Rose Red

[Freyja Lux]

The perfected winter rose, dew covered and freshly cut.

This is a product of witchery. How this can smell exactly like a freshly-cut red rose is frightening to me. It's a beautiful smell, but I don't wear rose so I can't keep it. Any rose fans out there will be elated by this one!
Thanks again Cinder!

[tempete]

I got to try Rose Red at the Oregon get-together thanks to Natsukaze!

 

Wet, Rose Red was the scent of a dew-covered rose that is just beginning to bloom. As the scent dried down, however, the greeness pushed the rose to the background - it was more of a sweet greeness than sharp greeness, but still not my favourite type of scent. The rose managed to re-emerge during the final drydown, but Rose Red was just too soft at this point.

 

An amazing olfactory recreation of a dew-covered rose, but the dominance of the green elements and the softness of the drydown have forced me to pass over Rose Red in this year's Yule offerings.

[zillah37]

This is so amazingly rose. I can't really add anything that hasn't been said, but wow. It smells exactly like the roses my aunt has in front of her house.

 

I'm not a rose fan personally. I've been buying a lot of Beth's rose scents and passing them onto my mother. However, I'm going to hold onto my imp of this for myself and maybe, just maybe give her the bottle I'm going to buy.

 

Maybe.

[iriedanym]

I'll have to see how Rose Red '04 differs from Rose Red '05. I've got the '04 version, and I am in love. It smells like freshly strewn rose petals. There is something unique about this compared to Two, Five, and Seven which smells straight up roses. Rose Red is more like sniffing baby roses, or just a handful of petals. The staying power on this scent is great. I applied some to my wrist and throat, and even after 8 hours the scent was still there. Very pretty scent.

[luxuria]

Rose Red 2005

 

The first Yule scent I've tried on! It was more of a "well, just to say I've tried it" purchase than really *wanting* it, but I was so entranced by it in the bottle that I tried it on before anything else- and it definitely wasn't a disappointment. I like rose perfume all right, but I like the way real roses smell much better. This is the only rose perfume I've EVER smelled that smells anything at all like actually sticking your nose in a rose bush, and it's not just any rose bush, it's a fresh and dewy one. Pretty much exactly like the description. Unbelievable, and I will delight in wearing this.

[olympia301]

 

This stuff should be illegal! Straight out of the bottle it is so powerful it will melt your nasal cartilage. It is the most concentrated rose scent on earth and you MUST give it room and air space to settle in or you risk a heart attack on the spot.

 

Once dry it radiates like roses in a greenhouse, the scent captured by still air, and the greenery surrounding it mixing with the smell of the blossoms.

 

This is a buxom rose, one which has reached its maximum powers of allurement, full of enchantment, beguiling and almost heart stopping.

Edited December 2, 2005 by olympia301

[Jillipede]

Rose Red 2005

I am absolutely smitten by this one. It's a chilly rose, like one that's just come out of the florist's cooler. It's fresh rose, not "old lady" at all. Makes me feel feminine, young and beautiful. Totally love it. My search for "the perfect rose perfume" is over! I could see this being a signature fragrance for me.

[Scarlettfish]

2005 Version

 

This has been described as the scent of a fresh, chilled rose - one that has just come out of the florist's fridge. I can't improve on that description, so I'm not going to try. I will say that this smells more like a rose than anything I have ever smelt, from the bud to the stem to the leaves. It smells like I have a roes sitting on my desk, it is so real. Absolutely love this - can't talk highly enough about it.

[CLFilm]

Yup. Like the above reviewers said - like sticking your nose in a fresh, red rose in the florist's fridge - it's just been spritzed with icy water and it's not fully open yet. Gorgeous. Such a pretty girl scent - absolutely makes me think of princesses and galas. I would wear this anytime I had a formal occasion to go to and will wear it anytime I want to feel like a pretty princess.

 

The scent does seem to just vanish after a while, but I had tried about three things on at once, so I will give that another shot. It's such a strong, true smell, I'm guessing my brain was just getting confused. As usual.

 

(PS Came in an amber bottle!?!)

 

Edited to note: This is the '05 version.

Edited December 15, 2005 by CLFilm

[Thaleia]

I cheated and sniffed this immediately after taking it out of the shipping box, and in between testing out my frimps and writing reviews for my 5mls, I've been sniffing this bottle. It's unhealthy on some level, I'm sure, but I just love the way it smells already.

 

In the bottle: I don't know how to describe it. Crack? No, seriously ... it's how a fresh rose should smell, pure and light with a greenish, aquatic layer, from sitting in water, or being in the snow. This is not an artificially grown flower, nor is it an old-lady rose that's been sitting in the shadows of an old house for however long. It's a flash of red in the middle of a field of white snow.

 

Wet: I'm in heaven, already. It's like lying in a bed of fresh rose petals. I feel like I should be Mena Suvari's character in Kevin Spacey's fantasy in American Beauty.

 

Drydown: It's greener now, the rose's leaves blending with the fragrance of the flower itself.

 

Dry: I have no words. I just ... love this. The scent itself hasn't changed, but it's intensified so that there isn't just one rose, but several, surrounding me - or that someone just threw more fresh rose petals in the air.

 

After reviewing Pride and All Saints, which were both rose scents on me, I can see that there are, in fact, different kinds of roses. Rose Red is a sweet and innocent rose with the energy of youth, while Pride was its haughty, evil stepsister and All Saints its warmer, incensey older cousin in a convent. My God. I'm in love.

 

Rating: OMG 5.

 

(N.B. This is my only bottle that's amber-coloured. Is there a significance to this? For now, I'll just chalk it up to the fact that Rose Red is v. special.)

Edited December 23, 2005 by Shollin

[Smurf]

In the bottle: Definitely what everyone else has been saying - freshly cut roses, quite green smelling too (if there's such a thing as a green smell)

Wet: ...Kitchen cleaner? Why?!

Drydown: Potpourri

Dry: This is actually quite nice now

 

I really haven't made up my mind about this one, it seems to morph into several different things before getting to something I like. Further testing may be required here.

 

(N.B. This is my only bottle that's amber-coloured. Is there a significance to this? For now, I'll just chalk it up to the fact that Rose Red is v. special.)

 

I don't think so, my bottle of Yuletide also came in an amber bottle.

 

Edit: And after a few more goes I quite like this. It's unusual but not something I'd wear everyday, probably more of an occasional scent.

Edited January 13, 2006 by Smurf

[Vicious Mistress]

In the bottle: There seems to be more of a green note in the '05 blend versus the '04 blend, but still the fresh rose.

 

Wet: Just like last year, fresh, fresh rose. I can smell the stems and the dew. Beautiful!!!

 

 

On my skin: Doesn't seem to be turning soapy like most roses do. I wonder what the difference is?

 

 

Definitely a keeper. A breath of spring on a dreary winter day.

[mayhap]

This stuff is nothing short of magic. Red, red roses, tumbling out of the bottle as soon as I open it. I'm absolutely smitten and I can't stop sniffing my wrists.

[amrita]

In the imp, it smells like green apples, acetone, and very faint rose.

 

I think it's the greenery notes which are turning out to be very appley on me. In the early stages, this blend is predominantly apple/greenery, with a very light rose note.

 

After ten minutes, the rose note blooms more and the apple smell subsides. At this point the rose smells very pretty, but it doesn't smell as realistic on me as it seems to on other people. The rose smells very light (I imagine it is white), and reminds me of toys I had when I was a little girl. (??) I wish I knew my rose oils better so I could figure out what this is... I prefer the rose in Peacock Queen much more. I think this is just a bad body chemistry issue because my nose is also irritated after huffing my wrist, which doesn't usually happen. Interesting!

[WaltzforZizi]

Well, I officially hate my body chemistry.

 

In the bottle it certainly did smell like fresh cut roses, but once it hit my skin it smelled well... like ant spray.

Which isn't exactly what I was hoping for to say the least. I wanted so much to love this, as I love rose scents. I let it sit on my skin for while and after 10-15 min. it started to smell a little rosey again, but not enough for me to want to keep it. I suppose it'll make some else very happy.

[zenvodunista]

that florist smell. How will it bloom? Soft rose spiced with the greenery of the stem, leaf and thorn.

 

there's a reason this scent is a BPAL classic. the only problem is that she fades right quick on me. but, she'll be in my soap, my lotion...

 

n.

Edited December 20, 2005 by zenvodunista

[empi girl]

I was very excited by the descriptions of this, and hope that this will be the rose I can wear.

 

In the imp, very green rose.

 

On: holy rose batman! I used a bare amount, far less than I usually do (maybe 1/6th), and it is amped up. It is indeed a fresh cut rose, with lots of greenery. On me, it isn't as sweet as it seems to be on other reviewers, and I confess I wish it were a little sweeter. It stays amped up and incredibly potent for 30 minutes to an hour, then suddenly softens to an almost skin scented soft rose-like the lingering scent that stays on your skin after you've touched rose petals. This is very nice.

 

I don't know why I feel this need to have a rose scent. This might be it (if I can get past the first 30 minutes...), but I also have an imp of Peacock Queen to try. The comparison will be interesting.

[sophia_helix]

In the bottle:

 

Rose, and, yikes, an incredibly strong dirt note that makes me recoil.

 

Wet:

 

That dirt note is still there and still making me not want to sniff too deeply. But the rose is beginning to unfold, and I'm holding my breath that at LAST I'll find a rose blend that isn't cloying or gross...

 

Drydown:

 

Yes! This is a mildly-qualified success. It does smell, as promised, like sticking your face into a rosebush. That's even how my husband described it, and I teased, "Have you been reading the forums again?"

 

It really is a pretty, lifelike rose, sweet and rich. The dirt fades, probably because I have sweet skin chemistry. The only caveat is that it fades a little quickly, but I didn't put much on.

 

Are you someone who turns rose to cheap candle-scent? Believe me, this really is the holy grail-rose that WORKS. Hallelujah.

[hangingfire]

In the imp: Green, aquatic, with a hint of rose.

 

On, wet: Strongly aquatic. The rose is still just a hint, and there's something in there that reads rather harshly to my nose. Not so thrilled with that part. I think it's the "dirt" note that sophia_helix describes.

 

Drydown: Ah, that's better. Very sweet, gentle rose now, balanced with the aquatic and dirt notes.

 

Once you get past that early harshness, it's a lovely, light rose, very different from the heady, decadent Peacock Queen. I'm not sure if I need a bottle or not, but I like it. I might spring for 'em both anyway.

[zorazen]

My boyfriend Ben and I sat on the couch passing this back and forth and sniffing.

"Rose Petels!"

"Oh, I can smell the leaves!"

"I can smell the dirt it's in"

"Water! I can smell water! How does she DO that?!"

 

I love this. Love it love it.

[SoapyRN]

Red roses, cut. Fresh from the freezer with some green green leaves around it. No cloying rose note, nothing heady like that. This is a red rose, not yet fully opened. And wet.

 

Holy Cow.

[ajcj213499]

I was so impressed with the reviews of Rose Red that I bought a bottle... Well, I was not dissapointed! When wet, Rose Red smells kind of sharply green on me (the first time I put it on I said, "oh no! why can't it smell nice on me!), but it dries to the most beautiful rose scent I have ever smelled. It's not at all powdery or old ladyish or fake smelling or potpurri smelling. It's just wonderful, like a real freshly picked rose.

It also lasted a decent amount of time on me. After about two hours it faded a bit, and I was afraid it would be gone, but the light subtle rose scent lasted for hours longer.

[Little Bird]

I've put off getting Rose Red for a long while now. I didn't get it last year because I didn't think that I liked rose scents last year, but I decided to give it a try after realizing that I actually love a few BPAL rose blends (Whip, Marie, Alice, The Haunted Palace, and such). Sadly, Rose Red is one of those roses that doesn't work on me

 

First on this is oddly sour and pickled. It actually reminds me of pickled beets. The sour juice and earthy soil smell. And it remains a strange, sour rose on my skin.

 

BPAL's rose scents are also usually pretty strong and long lasting on me, and Rose Red fades away within 2-3 hours. I completely adore The Peacock Queen, and it smells more like a true rose scent to me than this one.

[ginevra]

Rose is my all-time favorite scent. Before I found BPAL, I had to content myself with Tea Rose by Perfumer's Workshop. It was okay, but had a bit of a chemical undertone.

 

Not so with Rose Red. It's amazingly accurate with it's rosey-ness. There's a bit of sweetness underneath it all, but it's all rose. A good winter rose, I think of London as my summer rose.

[faifai]

Although it is a lovely version of rose, it's a bit too sweet on my skin. Like a real rose dipped in sugar. And, as a real rose dipped in sugar would do, it gets a little strange-smelling, kind of ripe to the point of turning. Not to say that it isn't great, I'm sure it would be on the right skin.

 

Whip and Harlot are more my "types" of rose scents--I can't do straight rose. If you can, you will adore this one.