Jareth

[Casablanca]

Ethereal lilac fougere and gleaming leather with ti leaf, tonka absolute, white musk, and oudh.

 

In the bottle this smells to me like Dorian with more lilac. On my skin, it becomes Dorian with less tea, more lilac, and... sorry, got lost there; this is really good... pale musk and a smooth, almost creamy vanilla that might be coming from the tonka. This sits on a solid fougere -- a fougere with extra tonka in the accord.

The sweet vanilla-lilac is strong on me. Once dry, the lilac fades some, but the tonka is still going strong. Only a little leather is coming through on me. I thought I got a brief glint from it early on -- then it was gone for a while, but now again I get it as a mild black warmth over everything. I have to sniff this from further away to get the leather: if I put my nose right to wrist, I only get vanilla-lilac fougere.

Anyway, this is fabulous. I miss the man.

Edited June 27, 2016 by Casablanca

[lizardskin]

I really thought Jareth would be a safe bet since Dorian is one of my all-time favorites, and in the wet stages, this is perfect. It has the same fougere as Dorian, but with different, less sweet undertones--I think the tonka and leather, I don't get any lilac. Unfortunately, once it dries everything vanishes except for the oudh, with maybe a hint of leather in the background, and the oudh mostly smells like pencil shavings to me It would be perfect if the other scents hung around to balance out the wood!

[FlippedOutHatter]

Truthfully, I bought a bottle with barely a glance at the scent list. I never regretted it though!

 

I can never really tell what scents are what (trying to get better though) but I can honestly say that when I put on this Oil I feel like I'm walking into a Fairy Court like I own the place. I am the new Goblin King and no one can deny my power over the Labyrinth!

 

Elegant and Mysterious with a slightly Intoxicating feeling. It's light but heady at the same time (depending on if you slather or not.). Lilac and Leather are the main scents that I can pick out and damn if I don't feel like I'm sitting on a Fae Throne.

 

(This is my first review. Hope it helps!!)

Edited December 9, 2016 by FlippedOutHatter

[Spaztic]

I'm of the mind that this is Dorian's older brother

It's a little more dry and a little less sweet (but still fairly sweet)

I like it a little better than Dorian

The lilac almost comes across like a nice lavender for some reason and that's what I thought it actually was (lavender not lilac) until I went a looked at the notes again

I don't notice the oud or white musk

[violetvorpal]

Jareth is a beautiful scent. It reminds me of Dorian when I sniff it in the bottle, however when I apply it to my skin it becomes something truly magical.

 

Wet on skin: Dorian fougere mixed with brown leather. The leather note in this reminds me a lot of The Book from the 2016 Lupercalia. Very soft and dreamy brown leather like that of an old story book or journal. No chemical leather note like black leather tends to have. Brown leather is one of my favorite notes.

 

Dry: The brown leather is much stronger compared to the fougere now. Lilac blossoms to keep the brown leather soft and ethereal. The more I wear it, the softer, sweeter, and more lush the leather becomes. The tonka is not noticeable on my skin.

 

Hours later: Dorian comes back and the lilac disappears. It is now Dorian with soft brown leather. Both notes are equally amped on my skin. Very gorgeous. Very unisex.

 

This scent is very comforting and soothing. I would even like to wear it to sleep. It has a medium throw and lasts a very long time on my skin (almost a full day's worth of wear).

[Bassmastadroog]

Lilac fougere is a slightly cologne-ish, mature, lovely lilac scent. This leather smells sort of buttery suede to me- not black. Or maybe the tonka is just warming it up that much. With a touch of the idea of Dorian (they're both different enough between the lavender and lilac) this is a beautiful scent! Low throw, a tad more masculine than Dorian...but still unisex I believe. The leather pushes it over the masculine edge.

[whisperstilled]

Wet: Well, this is pure happiness to my nose. Tonka sweetens, white musk keeps the fougere from being too sweet. This is everything I love about Theodosius, but lighter and less heavy. Ugh. This is going to be a killer summer scent.

Dry: I want to eat my arm. If a man was wearing this, I would want to eat him. Phenomenal.

[renfair]

I've wanted to try Jareth ever since I discovered BPAL several years ago, but the price of a full and uncertainty about what it would actually smell like always kept me from getting it. But since a few months ago when I was getting way heavier into BPAL, and discovered I loved Dorian, which of course is currently out of stock, I heard this was actually a great swap for Dorian. So on my birthday I binged a little and bought a full bottle of Jareth, along with a few others. Now I wish I'd bought this years ago!

First Sniff Impression: Definitely similar to Dorian, but less sweet.

Wet in Vial: Lilac fougere, obviously. The rest are harder to pick out, except that it adds a more subtle support to this than Dorian has with vanilla.

 

Drying Down on Skin: Immediately on it's Dorian with less tartness and sweetness. Starting to dry, the leather is like HERE I AM AND I AM SEXY and the white musk is just OMG and the tonka and oudh are in the back making everything all nice and grounded while there's a fougere party in David Bowie's amazing leather pants, which we're all invited to. There's something just the tiniest bit spicy or astringent, something that shoots up my nose. But it's not very strong, so it simply adds another layer to the scent.

Dry on Skin: Oh wow, fully dry the leather pops right out at you (I could make a reference to David Bowie's pants again, but I'm not going to do that cause honestly they never bothered me growing up, being in ballet and all, and I'm much more mature than that.) This is Dorian with a whip. No fancy-schmancy pretty boys here (still pretty, but not fancy. FABULOUS perhaps).

Conclusion: I could've figured out that I liked leather scents way sooner if I'd just tried this one years ago when I first saw it. It's absolutely amazing.

[spikyfairy]

I bought this as a present for a boyfriend, but I often 'borrow' some when I'm staying at his house..
Really would not have expected this to work on me, due to the leather and white musk (and lilac?), but it's actually gorgeous! Like a less food-y / sugary Dorian, with more interesting top notes. That tangy purple sparkle over everything (lilac & ti leaf, I presume) is even keeping the leather in check, though it does get stronger with wear.
Sadly I've noticed the sparkliness has been somewhat lost with ageing, but this is still a beautiful blend that I would consider a bottle of myself - for now I'm happy with just nicking some occasionally!

[Pixie-elf]

AMAZING!

 

This is a scent that is pure sex. I'm not really sure I can describe it better than that.

 

It is musky, snuggly, leathery goodness with the lilac adding a nice floral tone that just makes it SPARKLE!

 

I want to crawl in to bed with this scent, mingle, and be enveloped. It's GORGEOUS. In fact, I'm about to try to distract myself from this headache by snuggling in to it. I want it as an atmosphere spray, I'd love this on my pillows!

[roseus]

So excited to finally try this, I love Dorian so hoping this is similar on me. The only worry is the leather. Wet this is all musky lilac with sweetness, and as it dries sharp, black leather starts to creep in. Luckily, it stays in the background just a hazy smokiness. I think the musk and fougere keep it from being too sharp, and I still get a little tonka and lilac in the end. Very nice, but not as glorious on my skin as I hoped.

[RedPersimmon]

 

Like a lilac Dorian with the same grape-y oudh that was in Cassiopeia.

 

[theredkilt]

Imagine Dorian stripped off the lemon tea and muskiness and put on some sensual tonka. A pity that wear length is short lived on my skin

[Lucchesa]

I never reviewed Jareth? Shame on me! I love this stuff! I actually death-matched it with Frostbitten Dorian today, and it won hands down (though FBD is glorious, too - just sweeter and cooler and it wore out faster). It has lasted all day long, which is really rare on my skin, and though it's a skin scent now, it had a little throw at first.

 

White musk doesn't usually work for me, but I think it gets down with the oude and anything soapy or screechy in the white musk is completely subdued. The leather turns the lilac fougere into something as sexy as a Bowie growl. It's soft, buttery leather, and the tonka makes it even warmer. Don't let the word lilac scare you away -- this is totally unisex. And while nearly all tea scents disappear on me, this ti leaf does not. Anyway, I adore this, and it always makes me feel sexy but also safe and warm.

[mishi-bear]

This blend is surprisingly mild on me, but not really in a bad way.

 

I get a lot of the ti leaf off the bat. It's a nice clean smell, leafy. It's not too bitter at all though, it's tempered and sweetened by something else.

 

That something else being, I think, the tonka. It's quite sweet here, and has an almost vanilla like tone to it, but not quite. It's definitely not foody, but it's a tempering note to this blend.

 

I get some of the leather, more on wrist sniff than in the throw. It's a very mild and close wearing leather though, not at all chemical and not at all strong. It just has a distinct leather sweetness to it.

 

The lilac fougere is definitely 'ethereal' but a lot more mild than I thought it would be. I don't get anything masculine smelling from it at all, which is a bit surprising since fougere can usually be a bit cologne smelling. I just get the lilac, a sort of light and wispy lilac at that. It lends a hint of it's purple smelling floral, but not strong enough so that I'd consider this blend floral at all.

 

The white musk and the oudh provide a nice fixative quality here, but are overall both quite mild. I get a hint of that sweet cleanliness from the white musk, and just the tiniest hint of something woodsy and a bit nutty from the oudh.

 

Overall I actually really like this scent, but... it's so incredibly mild. This definitely wears pretty close to the skin, and some of the notes are whisper quiet. This decant I tried of it has been aged about a year, so I'm not sure if it's an aging thing or just a skin chem thing.. or if that's just how it is. I really do like it though, and I don't entirely mind that it's so quiet and personal.

[donkehpoo]

I'm seriously slacking here. I have a freaking tattoo of Jareth, why did this review take so long?!

 

Wet: Definitely getting the same Dorian vibe that many others are. Dorian, with the addition of lilac.

 

Dry: Dorian, lilac, and the faintest hint of leather. There's something a little odd smelling too, though.. almost like a combination of burnt plastic and wood? Unfortunately, it's kept me from going for a big bottle, even though I think the wet stage is awesome. (Can I just blame the oudh?.. Because I want to.  )

[garbagewitch]

Wet, Jareth starts off with that same delicious, distractingly heady vanilla-musk that Dorian has—you know the one, it vaults past all your attempts to properly describe it and just slams down on that ‘WANT’ button in your dumb animal brain until all you can write are vaguely pornographic descriptions of Victorian teatime and damp gloves.

 

As it settles, Jareth’s polite pretense slips as something dark and polished—almost slick?—starts to peek out from under that refined facade. Once it’s out, that dark, sharp note quickly gets stronger, without overpowering the sweetness, and that’s definitely leather, black and sleek—and I could swear I’m picking up a hint of latex, too. Woof.

 

Eventually, the intimidatingly dark, slick leather softens and melds with the vanilla-musk, creating a light, buttery smooth musk with a dark edge. It suits Jareth perfectly, smooth and softly menacing, but drawing you in all the same. It smells like someone with gentle hands and a quiet, steady voice suddenly pulling out a crop and grinning with feral fangs.

 

While it’s definitely similar enough to Dorian to warrant every comparison in this thread, it’s also distinct enough to justify owning both, if you’re so inclined. I wouldn’t say it’s less sweet than Dorian, but the leather cuts through the sweetness to give it a very different tone—they have the same refined sensuality, but Jareth is less mannerly, more shadowy and fey. Rather than an elegant Victorian gentleman sitting down to tea, it’s. Well, it’s David Bowie brandishing a riding crop. 😏

[fairybites]

I didn't really understand the Dorian comparisons until Jareth started to dry down. It's similar for sure, but I prefer Jareth overall. I'm sure this would do nice paired with Dorian Hair Gloss though.

 

It's very leather heavy when first applied with a hint of the lilac on me. The leather note is still present after drying, but it starts to soften and the other notes come out more, especially the musk. I'm not a big fan of leather scents if they are the main note in a blend, but in this case I think everything blends together perfectly.

 

Definitely keeping the bottle, I plan on getting all the Labyrinth scents. If you've already got Dorian, I would still try and find a decant of this. I think it's at least worth trying, especially if Dorian is your favorite.

Edited November 22, 2020 by fairybites
Typo

[bkwy.aesthetics]

Surprisingly bright and clean, this is a very easy-to-wear scent! I was definitely expecting something darker, but I am not upset at all! This smell evokes positive scent memories from me 😚

 

In Bottle: Very aromatic and bright, with a soft sweetness, likely due to the tonka. The musk in this is very clean. The leather is not really detectable to me in this.

 

On Skin: Citrus notes from the fougere emerge, but otherwise quite similar to in the bottle, just stronger. 

 

Dry Down: Very soft! A sweet and clean musk! Very wearable.

 

Wear Time: 6-8hrs

 

Throw: Light (4-5in)

[stainedglass_siren]

I had high hopes for something closer to Dorian, but Jareth is a little lacking. I prefer strong throw, and Jareth is quite faint on me.

 

In terms of the blend, I can’t place any notes in particular, by which I mean it is very well blended. Alas, all it evokes is this: the steamy aroma of walking into a bathroom that had just been showered in, probably by a man.

 

I can see why people like this but as a Dorian lover it’s just not close enough 😢

[skyturtles]

I purchased a lab bottle of this for my partner, who loves Bowie.

Wet on my skin: Ooo, this is nice. I do get a bit of the vanilla, and I'm not even sure what else. Some of the musk, I'm sure.

As it dries down, the leather and oudh become more apparent to me. I'm usually not a fan of these notes, but I'm glad my partner likes this blend. They feel it's very sexy.

I've just done a bit of reading about what a fougere is, and I do agree that Jareth belongs in that class of colognes. "Woody, sharp, and slightly sweet." I don't have too much experience with tonka but I do think it's contributing to this aura. Now if only all leathery blends could be this nice on me...

[Manic Pixie Dream Ghoul]

Fancy, fancy, fancy man.

 

This one smells like Really Expensive Aftershave. Quoth my father's girlfriend: "It's like if Lynx Africa was actually good." For those of you in the USA, Lynx is the alternate brand name for Axe in a bunch of countries where they weren't allowed to call it Axe because of trademark issues. In South Africa it's actually called Ego, but that's not the point. I think what she was trying to say is that it definitely falls into the men's grooming product smell association category without being loud and obnoxious. But hey, I'm no code cracker.

 

I have never smelled Dorian, which everyone seems to compare this to, but I have smelled Vicomte de Valmont, and to me Jareth smells like that but without the sharp greenness of the Vicomte. It's a little warmer, sweeter, darker. It's delicious. Not in a food way, just in a delicious way. I like it a lot.

 

Don't take the man smell comparisons to heart too hard though - context is everything. If I remove my associations it just smells clean and complex and... expensive. A masc guy wearing it might smell like a fancy man, but a woman would smell like a mystery. I'm into it either way.

[Cali]

Sexy lilac fougere. A ever-so slightly lighter, more sweeter, sparkly purple version of Sir Thomas Sharpe, dare I say. And yes, also similar to Dorian.. Won't need this but it's been lovely to finally give this a try!! 💜

Edited March 21, 2023 by Cali

[aerenn]

This is daydreams. The fougere parts of the lilac fougere keep this from being heavily floral on me. I get the tonka at the base and the well kept (not new, not worn) leather others have mentioned. Immediate holy grail, and lasts forever on my skin. Still amps after 20 hours (which is generally how far I get before I apply again or apply a perfume that meshes well with it). 

[Weirdgirlpilled]

tbh, could swap away most of my collection to wear just this for the rest of time. i adore jareth- he’s a sexy gleaming tan leather jacket worn by a tall stranger with long hair. Said stranger wears a lot of very expensive musky cologne, and keeps themselves very groomed. It’s also something i wear to sleep in, and it’s so comforting and relaxing at night. Jareth serves two roles for me, and i love him for it.