Perle von Mauren

[Upstart Crow]

PERLE VON MAUREN
(Revelations in Black, Carl Jacobi)
I stumbled forward, my eyes quickly accustoming themselves to the half-light from the almost opaque windows.

At the end of the corridor a second door barred my passage. I thrust it open - and stood swaying there on the sill staring inward.

Beyond was a small room, barely ten feet square, with a low-raftered ceiling. And by the light of the open door I saw side by side in the center of the floor - two white wood coffins.

How long I stood there leaning weakly against the stone wall I don't know. There was an odor drifting from out of that chamber. Heliotrope! But heliotrope defiled by the rotting smell of an ancient grave.

Then suddenly I leaped to the nearest coffin, seized its cover and ripped it open.

Would to heaven I could forget that sight that met my eyes. There the woman in black - unveiled.

That face - it was divinely beautiful, the hair black as sable, the cheeks a classic white. But the lips - ! I grew suddenly sick as I looked upon them. They were scarlet.... and sticky with human blood.

Heliotrope, grave soil, and blood.

O.M.Gee! YES! I get to be the first reviewer on a scent! Hehe, sorry. I've just been wanting to do this since 2007. Hope I do this right.

OK, my bottle just arrived this afternoon, and here are my impressions:

In bottle : Sweet, a little powdery, ethereal. I can definitely smell the tang of the "blood" note, and I assume the sweetness is the heliotrope. The dirt note is there, but not as strong as in, say, Graveyard Dirt 2008, Premature Burial or Zombi.

On me, wet: At first I get a burst of sweetness, almost like honey. Not exactly cloying, but definitely very nectar-y. After a moment, the sweetness becomes powdery, almost talcum. This must be the heliotrope. If I sniff really hard, I can almost smell the dirt.

dry down: Sweet and light, almost pure heliotrope (I'm guessing). The dirt is still very, very light, but comes out a little stronger as the scent dries further. A very, very dusty light floral.

verdict: I'm a little disappointed. I had really hoped that this one would be earthy and bloody, but it's sweet and effervescent -- kind of what I thought The Girl would be. Fans of Heliotrope and skin musk (which isn't one of the ingredients, but which mimics it perfectly on me) will probably love this one. People who are cautious around dirt scents probably don't have a lot to worry about.

ETA: Wow. On second thought, I think this may just be a scent that I need to put on in larger quantities. When I dabbed on a little more, I found that I liked it better. It's definitely a soft and very weird scent for me, but that's not really a bad thing. Not really sure if I'll ever try another perfume with a heliotrope top note, though, since I think this floral may not be my thing.

Throw is average to a little below average on me, and I'm guessing it's wear-length will be short to average. Not sure if I want to keep this one yet.

[hkhm]

bottle: mostly heliotrope. i don't smell any dirt or any blood.

 

wet: very sweet heliotrope. almost like a dragon's blood and heliotrope scent, sweet like dragon's blood is but no florals. where's my dirt?

 

dry: sweet, bright heliotrope. as a dirt lover, i'm a touch disappointed because i thought this would be dirt heavy. but i do really appreciate how brilliant and bright this scent is. far more feminine than i was expecting.

[edenssixthday]

Perle von Mauren - This is a really, really weird scent, yet it totally works. I don't tend to like dirt notes, but blended with the right notes (here's looking at you, Shattered Pumpkin!), it can work. Same with the "blood" note. Here's another scent where both of these notes blend gorgeously with the dominant sweet scent of heliotrope and really work gorgeously well. It's a heavy scent, but sweet and earthy. It has an odd scent about it that I can't really describe, but it works really, really well, and I keep coming back to it because I'm so intrigued by it. It's a really strong scent with tons of throw.

[topazphoenix]

Interestingly, this scent is almost pure....baby powder on my skin. Whoa. Wasn't expecting that.

[theseagrows]

this is baby powderish...plus white florals. wasn't sure what heliotrope smells like, but i guess this is it. it's a white, powdery floral scent. i am not getting any blood or dirt at all. this is a very odd scent...not sure i'd ever wear it though!

[Lamia]

Yes, effervescent, exactly. In the bottle and fresh on skin, it really smelled like bubbles.

 

Much sweeter and softer than expected. I also get baby powder out of this, which is confusing considering that two of the 3 ingredients aren't foofy like that at all.

 

After about an hour, a note of damp loam comes out from under the baby powder.

[angelicruin]

Initially, it's mostly heliotrope on my skin. As it begins to dry, I pick up the dirt note as well, but it's not overwhelming. This is a pretty light scent with little throw and fades quickly on my skin.

[Myotis]

I don't know what heliotrope smells like on its own, but that must be all I get in this.

I get no dirt, no blood.

On me it smells like powdery cheap men's cologne with a hint of sweetness to it.

I sooooo wanted to love this.

 

Why oh why won't you come out to play with me dirt?

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this smells like heliotrope (which smells like creamy vanilla powder to me).

 

On my skin, this is sweet, innocent, soft, creamy, and slightly powdery. I don't smell any of the grave soil and blood to darken things up. I imagine an expensive vanity with pots of expensive face cream and dusting powders set out over its surface. The woman who owns it prefers to smell clean, cool and collected, but with a soft side (she's firm and expects you to follow her orders, but she's also approachable and kind of motherly). I don't know if that fits the Perle von Mauren character, but that's the impression that I get.

 

Perle von Mauren is a soft and uncomplicated scent. It smells like moisturizing cream with a touch of vanilla and a hint of clean powder.

 

I'm a little disappointed, because I wanted to see how the innocent, sweet heliotrope played with the darker soil and blood notes, and all I can really smell is the heliotrope. Then again, I'm delighted to have this and the result is lovely.

I'm surprised that the heliotrope note managed to drown out the other notes (go heliotrope!). I love how soft and comforting/approachable this smells.

 

I'll probably pick up another bottle of this before the LEs go down. It's very wearable and lovely

[Bamels]

Sniffing the bottle I think I can smell the blood, something oddly sweet anyway, maybe a type of perfumed talc.

 

When on it smells a bit grim to be honest, it's reminding me of a toilet which can't be good! The dirt I suspect? The perfumed talc is making a comeback now, booo.

 

Once dry it smells like a moisturising cream, pretty boring. I'll try and swap it for Suck It. If anyone wants this bottle, let me know!

[femmefatale]

Ok, so this seems to be another 'Weenie that ended up not at all how I was expecting.

I expected something darker and a bit dirtier, but it's actually a very sweet, soft, clean scent. If what I'm smelling is heliotrope, I need to add it to my favorite notes.

After sniffing it for a little while I realize what it reminds me of...Love's Baby Soft, but better!

I am definitely keeping my decant and if I can manage to swap for a bottle, I'll be happy.

[Xanon]

I had high hopes for this one, but the minute i put it on my hand started to sting. :(

I think it's the helitrope being so much a part of this blend... though I have other blends with it in there and have not had this problem... Oh man, I really wanted to love this one.

[totheo]

?

 

Baby powder! I mean, very very nice baby powder but still... baby powder. Okay, maybe more lightly fragranced body powder than plain old baby powder. But very strange, considering there's meant to be dirt and blood.

 

I... do not know what to do with this. It's a nice smell but really, really not what I was expecting.

[Lycanthrope]

Did not work on me.

 

It was like old, powdery, undead grandma. Agree with talc, and pleasant old woman perfume, mixed with DEATH AND DIRT. Considering the background behind the scent as well as the intent... wowzers, rousing success.

 

Having worked in a hospital, this scent is quite unnervingly the smell of slowly atrophying smiling grandmothers.

Edited October 4, 2009 by Lycanthrope

[ami226]

At first smell I thought "Heavenly!". Then a second later, I thought "suntan lotion!". And now..... It smells like insanely good, sweet, suntan lotion. I don't get any of the dirt note at all (thankfully!). I never really knew what heliotrope smelled like, but I think that is the only thing I can smell.....

[MeiLin]

In the imp: As described. Weird!

 

Wet: Woo. Blood. Then heliotrope and dirt. The heliotrope is a little powdery.

 

Dry: Eh. It turns old lady on me. There's really no other way to describe it. Verdict: No.

[LunaLovegood]

I was very hesitant for this scent. I absolutetly adore Helitrope on its own, so to see it mixed with blood and dirt was making me pause. but I decided to take the plunge anyway and in I went.

My first impression was that it was a too baby powder for my taste.

 

After I let it settle and tried it once again, I could see the helitrope coming out. Its fresh and beautiful. Yes it might be powdery and hence why it might remind some of old lady perfume, but I think old lady perfume is nice and comforting

I'm happy with my one bottle.

[aquazoo]

Starts salty and soapy. The soap fades into a soft floral. But it's still a tad salty. That may be the blood.

 

[medvssa]

This scent is soft, creamy and sweet, just a little bit powdery.

 

The soil is very soft, not at all smoky or gritty earth, but a sweeter note, like that found in Death Cap. And the blood note, is fortunately not Dragon's Blood which I don't like, but a slightly metallic and salty note. Soil and blood are not the protagonists of this blend, at all, but they do a great job darkening the otherwise bright and sweet floral, heliotrope.

 

I really like this blend, I thought it would be flatter but it is quite deep & dimensional. Very interesting, I will consider purchasing a bottle.

Edited October 13, 2009 by Medvssa

[Aldercy]

Wet baby powder from start to finish for me. I have no idea where the soil or blood comes in, if at all, but is this what heliotrope smells like? I had no idea.

[zankoku_zen]

This one is a odd one --- it's a very 'warm' floral. And 'warm' in the sense that blood is warm.

 

I get dirt, and a hint of a 'warm' white floral with an edge of sweetness, and for me that's def. the heliotrope playing into it.

 

Odd.

[milo]

I love heliotrope, and this one does not disappoint. A very 'true' heliotrope, the best I've smelled in any blend from wet to dry. I don't get any blood or dirt at all. Heliotrope kind of smells like vanilla to me with a touch of soft floral. This one is a warm, friendly vampire.

[thekittenkat]

In the imp: Florals, a hint of blood, and fresh moist dark earth.

 

Wet: The metallic copper tang of the blood and the sweetness of the heliotrope have overwhelmed the soil. In fact the flower and the blood are combining to make a richer and deeper scent than I would have imagined.

 

The dry-down: The wet dirt has dried up and is blowing away, the flower is dead, and the blood no longer runs freely. A fascinating scent, but I can't imagine when or where I would wear it. But then, I said that about Graveyard Dirt, and yet I have a bottle. At any rate, this doesn't come off as an autumnal scent to me. There's a coolness about it, so it might be good in early spring, when a sudden frost can still come and wreak havoc amongst the buds. Yet another morpher.

[voodoocatwoman]

Soft, very soft and lilting is this fragrance. I don't detect dirt or blood at all, just soft floral.

 

I like it.

[Schmoozy]

 

Soft, wispy florals that translate into baby powder with the barest touch of soil. It's kinda weird in a good way, but it doesn't blow me away, so a decant is enough. I detect no blood, or the metallic tang associated with it.