Antheia

[JasminDreams2010]

The Blooming / Friend of Flowers
Grandiflorum jasmine, Damask rose, ylang ylang, gardenia, sweetbriar, and apple blossom dusted by golden amber.

Am I the first one to review? Cool! I don't know how to do the report thing!! If someone wants to report it for me, or show me how to do that, that would be nice. - wait, never mind, saw the button.. duh.
I just got this in the mail yesterday, a cool thing for Valentine's Day! I love, love love love this!
Disclaimer: I am a huge jasmine fanatic (obviously), so if you're one of those people that has a Jasmine aversion be careful, the force is pretty strong with this one. It does settle after a few minutes of wear, though, so if you're on the fence it might be worth a try.
In the bottle: Jasmine, straight up. Such a sharp smell, it almost becomes anosmic

On- This is amazingly blended. The Jasmine stands out, sometimes I get hints of the gardenia and ylang. I am a little wary of anything apple related, but this apple blossom is sweet and not apple-green sharp if that makes any sense. I don't pick out the rose, and I don't know what sweetbriar is. The amber is soft and sweet, it is more noticeable as you wear it. I might have to run out and get another bottle before they stop making it. It will be great for spring. The effect of all the notes seemed to be more than just the sum of the ingredients, it's really a unique smell, doesn't remind me of anything else.
Also, the boy seemed to like it

This manages to be soft, warm, sexy and almost sparkling, like champagne and sunshine and flowers.

Revisiting after a few days- just wanted to say that this might be my very favorite fragrance, of any brand, ever- tied with Delight! I love this more and more every day. I really wish this were not a limited edition and that they would make it part of their basic lineup! It is so sparkling and soft, and pleasant- I'm getting compliments on it.
For reference, since my favorite BPAL is Delight, after smelling it for a while I realized it is like a less tropical cousin of Delight with more emphasis on the jasmine, less on the rose.

[edenssixthday]

Antheia - Jasmine haters beware! This is an incredibly strong jasmine scent. There's nothing soft or subtle about the jasmine in this blend. In fact, when I opened the box for my decant group, as I was pulling out the bubble-wrapped bottles, I came across this one and even with the cap screwed on tight and the bubble wrap around it and the fact that it was a good 18-24" away from my nose, I knew without a doubt there was jasmine in the bottle. It's very, very strong. And it's very very pretty. This is a really lovely jasmine blend. While jasmine does amp on my skin, this one doesn't amp as much as I would have expected, considering how strong it is in the bottle, but a little still goes a very long way with this blend. The ylang ylang blends beautifully with the jasmine (amazing, since I don't like ylang ylang!) and really brightens it up and keeps it from being too heady and cloying. I don't smell the rose or apple blossom, and the gardenia is very faint, enough that for me, it doesn't ruin the blend (although I'd still prefer this scent without the gardenia). The amber is soft and subtle and rather than being a dominant force in this blend, it provides a nice base for the florals. This is a really lovely scent, and I think it's yet another Lupercalia that's perfect for spring/summer. (The Lupers are putting me in such the mood for warm spring days!!!)

[tarotgirl99]

In the bottle, this reminded me of a lighter, less bracing and creamy Her Voice.

 

Jasmine for me is iffy and Ylang Ylang almost always a deal breaker.

 

Sadly, on me Antheia radiated both, esp. la Ylang, for the first few hours. When it finally stopped having a hissy fit on my wrist, the floral blend was more meh than anything else.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: springy fresh, green jasmine. Something that smells like fresh pavement and riding by flower beds in spring. I am a huge jasmine fan, and was momentarily depressed when I smelled something like a litterbox, which passed in all of about 10 seconds. I think my nose was misreading information and was overwhelmed. Crossed wires quickly straightened. I think the gardenia and jasmine had a quick cat fight. The jasmine, rose, gardenia, and ylang ylang quickly sort themselves out to a nicely aligned bright spring jasmine mix. Strange how reminiscent this is of riding a bike in spring.

 

Drydown: warm soft, non-powdery jasmine with apple blossom, amber and ylang ylang. The gardenia is getting lost in the background, which is fine. Wonderful.

Edited February 20, 2011 by SophieCedar

[countessmouse]

Disappointingly, this was just a mishmash of florals for me. Once the dreaded Damask Rose finally chilled out, that is. Nothing spectacular and rather light on the throw. Not a keeper.

[cfrancesca]

Strong jasmine and slightly softer gardenia and ylang ylang. This reminds me of the florals in biggerCritters, I think it might be the same type of jasmine.

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, this is yellowy, slightly herbal smelling jasmine and creamy gardenia. A very heavy, full smelling floral.

On my skin, I am reminded me of why I hate jasmine, as this instantly goes soapy and awful. Sharp, warm, yellowy floral with a harsh soapiness and a smoky edge to it. There's still a hint of creamy gardenia, and I enjoy gardenia, but I can't get over the sharp floral and soap that dominates this blend.

Antheia is really strong and has tons of throw on me, but I had to scrub this off after about an hour.

[Invidiana]

Wow did this ever make me sneeze. Most BPAL jasmines go to cat pee on me, but after trying this I think Grandiflorum is the worst offender. I would probably ooze cat pee from 50 feet away if I actually wore this. Take that jasmine and add rose to it, and it becomes sharp cat pee. My skin doesn't do this one any justice whatsoever.

[zankoku_zen]

Jasmine is often a problem note for me. Just uncorking the vial makes me think cat pee. On wet, it just smells like ultra-heady jasmine, with a touch of rose and some wet wool underneath.

 

This is heady, potent and to me mildly headache inducing.

 

Utter. Fail.

[hersphinxness]

If you have any issues with jasmine, this is definitely not for you. Not even worth testing, or sniffing or even glancing at. If you are down with jasmine, then oh yeah, you'll probably dig this.

 

Because it is jasmine, and it is here, and it is queen. For the first several hours, this is rich, bold, exquisite jasmine. Swaggering, prowling, sensual jasmine, a femme fatale of scent. You don't wear this if you want to blend into a crowd. You have to live up to the scent. Oh, how I love jasmine.

 

Later, the jasmine fades, and the rose and amber come out more. They're both sweetened and tempered by the ylang ylang and apple blossom (and presumably the sweetbriar, though I'm not familiar with it so not sure if that's what I'm smelling). Still a very big, sexy perfume. Classy, but never demure.

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Sweet florals.

 

Wet: The jasmine appears out of the mix, but all the other notes are there. The amber is going to powder already.

 

The dry-down: I think the rose is keeping the jasmine in check. This is a lovely floral scent, which would be so much more awesome if it wasn't for the amber.

[Fury]

Ooo, fresh out of the bottle it's just JASMINE. I've traditionally had difficulty picking out jasmine from other floral blends, but this one is very carnal, almost single note on the skin. Sadly, once it dries it becomes a bit powdery (oh amber, how I used to love thee, please behave!), at which point it smells almost identical to my grandmother's house from my childhood- faint synthetic rose tealights burning, the scent of her dusting powder, and floral french milled soaps at the sink in her very boudoir-esque bathroom. This evokes very strange sadness and anger in me, but also a sort of nostalgia. Unfortunately I don't think I can wear this one because of the emotional content, but it is a very pretty, classic sort of jasmine and rose perfume.

[milo]

From wet to dry, sour rose and overpowering jasmine. Very astringent on the jasmine, making it kind of smell like a kitty box. I knew this wouldn't work for me, hence the sniffie in my set, but I have to try all the lupers. If you like or love jasmine/rose blends, I'd give this one a whirl.

[evil_laugher]

It smells bad at first, but after a few minutes, it turns sexy. I didn't think I'd like it enough to keep it, but it's been my scent of the spring! I love it.

Edited May 1, 2011 by evil_laugher

[maika]

In the imp: I can only smell the ylang ylang. That's okay though, I love ylang ylang, but I was looking forward to the jasmine.

 

Wet: There's the jasmine. Weirdly though, underneath that, I can smell something that smells more than a little like Band-Aid adhesive. Kind of clean and a little powdery. Odd...very odd.

 

 

Dry: I've worked it out. The Band-Aid smell is the ylang ylang and the amber. I'm going to put this back to age for a while, because I don't want to give up on this, because the jasmine and rose that I wanted this for are nowhere to be found.

 

Further dry-down: (2+ hours on) The Band Aid aspect is gone, and it's pretty much pure jasmine...but it's throw is pretty much nonexistent. Again, I'll give it more aging, but at this point, it's probably not for me.

Edited May 3, 2011 by maikastar

[naeelah]

I love floral scents but don't often go for ones that are just straight floral, with nothing else. I guess they're a bit too light and thin on my skin. I hoped the amber in this would do the job of making it a bit fuller, without making it into a scent that felt something other than floral, because I did want one that isn't overtly resinous, or fruity, or musky, etc. I love all of the notes in this, EXCEPT for apple blossom. Apple blossom always smells like straight up apples on me, and I don't like that.

 

In the bottle, this is a very bright floral (lots of ylang ylang), backed by a nice round, clear amber. On the skin, the flowers blossom beautifully and the scent is very rich, almost juicy. No single flower seems to stand out on my skin. Different ones come forward slightly as it wears. After several hours, it's less full and the rose and ylang ylang seem more prominent. Initially, it's a bit sweeter, from the jasmine and gardenia. The amber mainly serves to anchor and round out the blend. It's there if you look for it, but it doesn't call attention itself. The apple blossom gives me no trouble. It probably helps to sweeten the blend, but not once do I catch a whiff and think I'm smelling apples.

 

Although I refer to some of the notes being sweet, this is not a sweet scent. It's sweet in the way actual flowers are sweet, not in a honeyed perfume way.

 

None of the flowers strike me as soapy or overly strong. (Gardenia or magnolia notes from the lab are sometimes super voluptuous.) This is rather like a spring garden -- rich, but airy. The throw is decent at first, but it fades quickly. This is alright with me, because I enjoy how it settles into the skin. This way, you smell like springtime, rather than smelling like you're wearing a strong conventional perfume, you know?

 

In short, this is a beautiful and well-balanced floral blend. It's absolutely worth trying if you're a fan of florals and want one that is rich but simple. This is a wonderfully versatile scent, light but elegant. I've tried pretty much all of the similar blends in the GC and many LEs, and this is certainly my favorite of its type. Try it if you like: Morpho, Abhisarika, Flower Moon, Delight, Helena, etc.

[Mechanical Death]

In the bottle-- sharp rotting flowers. Ouph! I almost didn't want to try it it smelled so sharp. I sort of stared at it on my table terrified of the FLOWERS.

 

I gave in-- wet on skin the sharpness immediately fades into a lovely bouquet. So far I'm glad I gave in.

 

I smell ROOOOSEEE, yanglang, GARDENIA HELLO!, and a hell of a lot of apple blossom. Not much throw just yet. It's very close to the skin and they're all fighting eachother thus far. It's a bit catastrophic.

 

As it dries further I get jasmine-- delicious beautiful jasmine which is helping to keep the others in check. No amber just yet. 5 minute timer.

 

The throw comes out now-- it's strong stuff! I put only a drop on the top of one hand and let it sit.

 

20 minutes later it calms down a bit and things blend together. I don't' get any soapiness (yay) or sharpness (yay!) just a very rich flowery flowery floral. I don't really get any amber outright, but there is something slightly warm and vanilla-- ever so slightly. I would love to have more of the amber though.

 

The apple blossom and Yanglang is the dominant notes, with the gardenia just underneath. The rose is there, but not as in your face and the jasmine lingers around as an after thought hauntingly, but it's not at the forefront.

 

This is an achingly beautiful blend. I have been searching for that perfect floral, and I think this is it! It must be used sparingly though-- holy Moses is it strong. You can smell it across the room!