Samhain

[crebbsgirl]

Truly the scent of autumn itself -- damp woods, fir needle, and black patchouli with the gentlest touches of warm pumpkin, clove, nutmeg, allspice, sweet red apple and mullein.

I'm not sure what year this is. Samhain starts out very juicy apples, and spice. Like cider, but more complex. As it dries, the woods and clove come out, adding depth and richness, as the apple note fades into the background. Both the apple and the pumpkin are not major players for me in this blend. They add a hint of fruity sweetness, but it's faint. This is beautiful! I can certainly see why it's so popular. I'm not one for fruity scents but this is so definitively autumn, I can't help but love it. Edited January 22, 2009 by crebbsgirl

[MisterShrapnel]

This is for the 2008 version.

Samhain is a very weird and yet highly addictive scent experience for me! The fresh bottle was extremely strong on the "menthol" or even the "bandage" smell and I thought everyone was crazy for liking such a thing, but now I think can see what everyone is talking about. Today it reminds me of apple cider, or baked apples with hints of spice, but that peculiar cooling note still lurks farther back--much like the promise of oncoming winter.

Sometimes when I smell this I am re-located to that box of Band-Aids like before and I want to swap this far away from me, but then that golden and quintessentially autumnal "apple" note lures me back. I don't know if I'd ever need more than my first bottle, but I keep thinking that this is one to hold on to.

[Teggy]

Band-Aids? Yeah, maybe that describes it.

 

Samhain 04:

Okay this is one of the strangest experiences that I've ever had with a perfume. It smells different when I just randomly get a whiff versus when I huff my wrists directly. When I sniff directly, I get that rubber/band-aid smell. At first I was mad thinking, "This doesn't smell like what I got at the trunk show..." But it was the same bottle! What the hell?

 

So I put it on and wear it, and now when I just kind of get a whiff, it smells like lovely apple cider. I think I'll just not wear it on my wrists and only wear it on my neck.

[weds]

Wrote this yesterday for the BPAL Fiends group on Ravelry. Figured it, with minor mods, might be of use here too.

 

I have, at this writing, bottles of 2004 (trunk show bottle), 2006, 2007 and 2008. (I didn't have a clean decant of 2005 available to work with.) I'd been increasingly wondering if it was worth collecting multiple years on their own merits, rather than a queue of things aging to just the right mark. So, yesterday, I wore all four and sat down to observe a bit.

 

Data point: I have a ginger allergy which 2005, 2007 and 2008 did not trigger.

 

When wearing multiple scents with known identical-or-similar components, I tend to lose that component completely and just pick up the differences. This stretches to how I register what’s in the bottle, so I've included multiple bottle-sniff rounds.

 

In the bottle, pre-application

Functionally identical. Cassia, dead leaves, clove, woodlands and apples. I don’t get pumpkin at this stage. 2004 is the most forehead-slappingly strong and 2008 the calmest.

 

Drydown

2004 - Fir and honey.

2006 - Pumpkin and butter.

2007 - Apple and spice.

2008 - Apple.

 

In the bottle, 45 minutes after application

2004 - Autumn woodsmoke in humid territory.

2006 - Pumpkin pie and apple cider.

2007 - Red apples and woodsmoke.

2008 - Faint fallen leaves and distant clove oil.

 

On skin, 60 minute mark

2004 - Smoke, patchouli and cassia.

2006 - Cinnamon.

2007 - Freshly bitten apples, cinnamon, cider, wisp of smoke.

2008 - Mild apple, some mint.

 

At this stage, am experiencing some allergy symptoms. This suggests either that one or both of 2004/2006 have the allergen or the oil, past a certain point, is not safe for me to be around. Not bad enough to discontinue, but am pausing for coffee.

 

On skin, while going through the multi-stage Latte Making

2004 - Massive burst of red apple out of nowhere. What the hell?

2006 - Small burst of green apple. Seriously, what?

2007 - Freshly bitten apples, cinnamon, cider, wisp of smoke, a little greenish-mint.

2008 - Where am I?

 

On skin, 120-minute? mark

2004 - Cinnamon-spiced, bright red apples, like the early stages of 2007.

2006 - Cinnamon-spiced apple pie or cobbler or something. Muted.

2007 - Red apple, candy apple, cinnamon, smoke. Mild, but not absent.

2008 - Can you see me? I am over here! I have built a fire!

 

Though allergy symptoms went away while making coffee, one of the more nervous-making ones – slight lip swelling – reasserts itself while I sniff the bottles. I really like what 2004 is starting to do and I'm curious about 2006, but I'm likely to stop the experience shortly.

 

In bottle, 125-minute mark

2004 - Beeswax.

2006 - Honeyed pumpkin.

2007 - Honeyed cinnamon apples.

2008 - Honeyed clove and candy apple.

 

On skin, 140-minute mark

2004 - Beeswax and apple.

2006 - Honey soap.

2007 - Faint honeyed cinnamon apples.

2008 - LOOK! LOOK! CAN YOU SEE ME? LOOK AT ME! I AM JUMPING!

 

...and then I showered.

[RaeiNarcissus]

I got an imp of 07's version, and tried it on, and it's reminding me of Gluhwine. Very sharp harvest wine scent. It's not as strong as Gluhwine was, and it's a little soapy, but not in a horrible way. It dries down to something I can't quite place, it's like a harvest snack that you can smell thats on your skin even after you've washed your hands. Not bad at all.

[donnatron]

My bottle is from 05.

 

Bottle: Dark. I get patchouli, smoke, pumpkin, fir and a bit of the apple. It's overwhelmingly dark and... well, dark. It smells like camping.

 

Wet: The fir amps up and goes a bit crazy. This is a bit of a discordant scent here. The fir is off doing its own thing while the pumpkin decides to take over. I get predominantly pumpkin over warm patchouli touched with apple and nutmeg. It smells like Thanksgiving at my household--baking pumpkin pie and the scent of the disinfectant my mother used to clean the kitchen after starting the turkey lest we all die of salmonella poisoning.

 

Dry: Pie. Serious, all out pumpkin pie. It's gorgeous and not as overtly foody as a totally pumpkin pie scent but that's the association I get. It's actually kind of witchy in a way. I get both a sense of a maternal, foddy sort of scent and then a wild and sultry dance around the fire throwing herbs, boughs and anything that strikes the fancy on a fire. It's cthonic. Definitely appropriate for the fall season and difficult to wear even in March which is still resolutely cold here.

 

Throw: Up close I get more of the witchiness and herbal quality. From afar all I smell is pie filling.

 

Overall: Samhain is a treasured BPAL and it deserves all its hype. It's a dark, beautiful scent and ages up something wonderful. Even for those of us (such as me) who cannot really deal with pumpkin it's a canonical scent and one that really indicates why BPAL is so wonderful. Most of the scents used in this are easiliy idenitfiable and as I smell it I can identify them all. But I can't explain what it is in just a series of notes. The true magic of the scent is what it conjures up in my mind just through the sense of smell. Samhain is definitely one of those scents that illustrate why BPAL is such a victory for Beth and such an addiction for the rest of us.

[Suu4LC]

This is a decant from 2006-Sniffing this in the imp it is far more calm on patchouli than I remember the one I sniffed from '08's will call. I'm thinking the aging mellowed it out. This has a sweet spiced apple cidery/pumpkin smell, the woods are also very subdued. Lovely!

 

Oh yeah, this is an uber-autumn scent. On my skin the damp woods/fir comes out a lot more and mingles with the cider scent. A perfect combination of the two different autumn elements-the smell of the natural outdoors and the autumn foody scents from inside.

 

This is an excellent blend-if I didn't already have two cidery autumn style blends, I would probably try to track down an older bottle of Samhain. Again, I do remember it being FAR more sharp and patchouli heavy when young, so this seems like a blend that if you really dig the patchouli/earthy side of autumn, you would want to grab the freshest bottle possible!

[fairnymph]

2008 version

 

Sniffed in imp: Pale peachy/beige oil. Woodsy, spicy, and a little sweet. Deep, complex woods and fir underscored by earthy patchouli. Light ripe, juicy apple and mulling spices galore. Almost smoky. Unisex to masculine.

[Ceri]

In the vial: Buttery, sweet pumpkin cookies!

 

Wet: Eating pumpkin cookies among falling leaves.

 

Dry: Apple cider with a sweet aftertaste of pumpkin goodness and falling leaves.

 

Overall: This is good! I'll definitely be getting a bottle.

[tragedy]

This review is for a decant of '03

 

This has the most delicious mulled cider scent... i get it straight from the imp-to the skin-to drydown.

It does no morphing at all on me, a big bonus, alot of things morph badly with my chemistry.

Aplle scents usually don't work on me.. I tend to turn everything into that "plastic cheap candle apple" smell... but this stays true.

 

Its too hot to be wearing this right now.. I almost cant wait till fall!!

[djsiberia]

how i fell in love with samhain:

i initially passed it by because of the fir needle and the type of patchouli that is in it. it sometimes smells like dirty hippie to me. so i thought it would make an awesome room spray. i purchased from the trading post. get the package and spray.

 

OMFG.... at first sniff.

 

so then i have to hunt down 2008 samhain. then i hunt down the other previous years of samhain because it's the perfect halloween scent and it makes me smile when i smell it.

 

i was certainly surpised this scent works so well on me and in my scent locket. it's a scent that i wear more often than not. it's probably the scent i wear the most out of my entire collection. its seriously that delicious.

 

so.......

 

i'm going to review all the samhain i have in one go because i've been lazy at reviewing this.

 

 

 

2004: this has held up surprisingly well. i won a 10ml of 2004 off ebay. i was afraid it would have really not smelled delicious. i was wrong. it's delicious. all samhain is delicious. i can still smell the apple and some of the spices. mostly it's fir and patchouli at this point, but it still smells delicious.

 

2005: this is much like 2004 however there is still some of the buttery pumpkin note and more apple.

 

2006: not like 2004 & 2005. this has more depth and more spice. patchouli & fir haven't quite taken over yet and it's still delicious. there seems to not be so much apple or pumpkin in this one.

 

2007: this reminds me of 2004 & 2005, a lot. fir and patchouli dominate and then apple and spices peek out only for a small bit.

 

2008: this version is reminding me of 2006. i can't pick out individual notes. everything seems well blended. there is a definite fir note, but not as much apple or pumpkin.

Edited June 6, 2009 by djsiberia

[cyanidenoir]

The bottle I received from the Trading Post today is from 2008.

 

In the bottle, the scent was mostly patchouli but upon application to my skin, it took an ugly turn. The scent turned into an indescribable and strong chemical smell. It took a long time to dry down on my skin and after a while, the scent did mellow out and the individual notes were easier to recognize. Apple and spice are very evident along with something sweet like sandalwood. I've had this blend on for about 5 hours and occasionally, I catch a wiff of pumpkin.

 

I really love autumn-y scents. Goth Rosary's Samhain is glorious and part of me was hoping that this blend would smell similar if not better than that. This blend is good in it's own rite but not what I expected. Nonetheless, I'll enjoy having it at Samhain time.

 

BTW, the label art is awesome!

 

Update: I've had it on for almost 24 hours and it's still going strong! It's taken on a creamy chocolately aroma. A little better than I originally thought it would be.

Edited June 12, 2009 by NeonGreen

[Evengloam]

Samhain '07.

 

Bottle: I'm smelling the fir needle here, though nothing really reminds me of the smell of damp woods. Definitely smelling the pumpkin, apple, and spices. The foody aspect isn't choking, though. Overall, the bottle scent reminds me of having a cozy bonfire celebration, with the smell of fir needles being brought in by the wind. Also smells a little medicinal.

 

Wet: Sharp and smokey. Fir is the most prominant note here. Also smelling something I didn't really detect in the bottle. I think it's the patchouli? I can't smell the pumpkin anymore, but I can still subtley smell the apple and spices. Still smells a bit medicinal; reminds me a little of Vicks. I'm beginning to assume that's the mullein. Stronger than average throw.

 

Dry-down: Not getting the medicinal smell anymore. Smokiness is still there, but smells closer to the embers of a bonfire rather than the start of one. Apple, pumpkin, and spices are there again, and they're most prominent note on me. The dry-down reminds me of the smell of crisp autumn leaves, too. A comforting, yummy smelling scent. A bit sexy, too. Decent throw.

 

1 hour in: Essentially the same thing as it was in the dry-down but softer. I can still smell the leaf-like scent, and finally the smell of woods. The throw continues to be nice.

 

Several hours later, it still has a good throw. The smell is pretty much the same as it was 1 hour in. It's really lovely and something about it is really comforting, to me.

 

I'd give it about 4.5/5.

[sprocket21]

I could have sworn I had already reviewed this O_o. *blink*

 

...OK, I'm back. I found it! I had mentioned in another thread that I hate Samhain on my skin, but the apple comes out more in a burner and smells really nice. That was for the 2007 version.

 

The 2008 version does behave better on my skin - I can smell apple, but it's sort of buried in smoke and a sort of medicinal smell. It makes my nose tingle a little bit. I think this one will also be a candidate for my tart burner, because my skin does not play nice with the notes.

[splendidissima]

Testing my 2008 decant of this from the lovely Shaniqua71.

 

In vial: oh, pretty color! very autumnal. Smells like sharp apples.

 

Wet: arrgh! medicinal! smells like Vicks! do not want! However, I shall persevere and see if anything better develops. Great throw, by the way.

 

After 3 hours: finally, a little better. The medicinal scent is fading a bit and becoming tangled in smoke and spices. I can finally see the autumn here, not just the seasonal catching of colds.

 

Verdict: not working on me, but I hate to give up on a Halloweenie, so I think I'll test it in the oil burner and see if I can get some apple or pumpkin out of it. If not, off to a better home.

[satinworship]

2008 version, decant

This is the quintessential autumn smell, to me. My boyfriend and I both adore wearing this.

 

On him it's mainly pumpkin with sweet clove and spice, and I can faintly pick up a woody smell in the background, but the patchouli is invisible unless you really seek it out.

On me I get apple cider, earthy patchouli/wood, and a little bit of pumpkin, but not like pumpkin pie, more like the smell of the pulp as you scrape out your jack o'lantern.

 

I'll be seeking out every version of this scent, to see all the variances of this, it's just so spectacularly cozy and warm. It has just the right amount of everything to make a perfect fall scent.

[phantomphoenix3]

2008 version

 

I wanted to love this, I really did! I tried the 2007 version as one of my first BPAL experiences and had to wash it off because the black patchouli was just too strong on me. I decided to try the 2008 version to see if there was a difference, but there wasn't. I can smell the apple, nutmeg and allspice trying to peek through, but the patchouli is beating them down and enough to be headache-inducing. Guess I'll keep Fearful Pleasure as my go-to autumn scent.

[thereshewent]

Samhain 2009

Truly the scent of autumn itself -- damp woods, fir needle, and black patchouli with the gentlest touches of warm pumpkin, clove, nutmeg, allspice, sweet red apple and mullein.

 

Wet: Foresty and spicey.

 

Dry: Pumpkin pie in the oven, Christmas garlands around the house and cider in your mugs. Lovely.

[topazphoenix]

This is for the '09 version. This is pretty, crisp pine needles...and what? Underneath that is a layer of something that smells like cat pee. It's faded slightly now that it's dry, but whoa. I'm going to age this bottle a little and see if it takes the edge off whatever that note is. Gah.

 

Edit: A wonderful forumer sent me a sniffie of the 07 version of Samhain. It's really lovely, spicey and woodsey and smokish and herbal with that note that has the potential to smell like cat pee smoothed down bye what I'm assuming is age. The only note I can name in here is cinnamon. Overall it's incredible and I can see why this is so popular. I may have to rethink getting my hands on a bottle of this.

Edited October 14, 2009 by AmandaKay

[Salem]

This is from an imp of the '08 version.

 

In the Imp - Sort of smoky chocolate almost. It isn't giving off much scent on the second sniff, I think it's either very faint or my senses are completely overpowered already. I get a bitter sort of cider apple in the background - maybe like one of those chocolate covered apples!

 

Wet - This is the pine needle right? This weird public toilet cleaner smell.. argh. The apple cider smell is morphing into almost.. dare I say it.. urine smell with the backdrop of the pine needles. This is seriously not good. I'm actually really gutted.

 

Drydown/Dry - This is more like it! Yes! It's mulled apples - not fresh perfume apple like say.. The Hesperides.. it's more "If it wasn't my wrist I'd try and drink it". This is walking down a leaf filled path on a cold autumn evening/night. I'm so, SO relieved that this works and the little hiccups at the start disapear within minutes. I can now sleep easy with my '09 5ml order.

[Ondine]

I have bottles of both the 2006 and 2007 versions and a decant of 2008. To me, 2006 is heaviest on the fruit, especially apple. It's the warm apple of Fearful Pleasure rather than the chilly apple of Snow, Glass, Apples. 2007 is much spicier. The apple and fruit hardly show up and instead it's cinnamon, nutmeg, patchouli. 2008 balances both 2006 and 2007 and presents a version with apple and spice.

 

I love them all

[secretstars]

i have the 2007 version. i have been desperate to age this thing since i got it in 2008 (yes, age it even more than it came to me!). i tried to wear it numerous times when i first got it and i kept getting nauseous from this weird pine needle, burnt sugar, and babypowder scent i was getting. my mom kept telling me she thought i smelled awesome, like halloween candy and apples, and i can't imagine how. all i smelled was pine and babypowder.

 

so i tried it on again today, about a year after i got it. today, it is happier, but it is not true love yet. in the bottle it is like pine needles and pancake syrup and something else i can't pick out. i put it on and i smell like honey and powder, which now that i've been into bpal longer, i think the powdery resin smell is patchouli. but! at least i don't get sick wearing it! my boyfriend confirms i smell mostly like honey. he doesn't smell this powder thing i'm talking about.

 

it's gonna sit here for another year and see where it takes us, LOL.

Edited August 30, 2009 by Lorelei

[CynicalPink]

Samhain 2009 version

 

Bottle: Patchouli, fir, clove and sweet bright red apple cutting through the darkness

 

Wet: Still a very dark scent with fir and patchouli riding high, but clove, allspice, and apple are keeping it from being gloomy

 

Drydown: A dark and stormy night drinking nice hot spiced cider in a cabin out in the woods <img src="http://www.bpal.org/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/icon_smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="icon_smile.gif" /> Beth hit the nail on the head. The scent of autumn itself.

 

Followup: Still love this scent but something strange has emerged...When it's totally gone in to my skin...It smells like super sweet honey. Seriously! And that residual scent stays on my skin for hours and hours (12 was the longest) until I wash it off. Still a fan, but I need to keep that super-sweet drydown in mind before I pick it for the day.

 

Followup 2: Candy corn! That's what the residue smells like. Once the scent itself is gone, it leaves melt-y candy corn behind. Still good though. I'm thinking of this as an "investment oil." One that I get to come back to year after year.

 

One Year On: Still dark after all these months. The scent is still on the dark side, with the woods, patchouli and fir are still the dominant notes, but the almost candy like red apple keeps it from being too dark. The extremely sweet leftovers on the skin has calmed down with time and there seems to be more of a "pumpkin" edge to it that I don't really get when it's not in its death throes.

Edited September 14, 2010 by CynicalPink

[loladae]

...okay I get it now. I bought a bottle last year, after the raves and because I wanted an autumn scent. I didn't like it or understand it. It was too blended and smelled like a candle. I swapped it away. I bought a decant this year, because I still am looking for my perfect autumn scent and I didn't want to give up. At first I smelled it and thought 'yup. Just as I remembered it.' I put it away, then after a week or less resmelled it. Now, it's wonderful and spicey. Nothing stands out to me that much. It's just smooth, slightly dark, slightly cozy and wonderful. I'm really glad I ordered this again and I might get a full bottle of THIS version...just to be safe.

[ladyjc]

Well, I keep trying to like Samhain...but it just really doesn't work for me.

 

All I get in the bottle, wet on skin, dry on skin- sweet pipe tobacco w/ a little nutmeg or spice thrown in. Now, I can do the tobacco in Velvet Bandito (maybe because that's actually a tobacco note and Samhain doesn't really have tobacco? *shrug*) but not this ...not whatever it is in this that's translating to pipe tobacco.

 

And it stays that way the whole time! No woods, no fir, no apples, nada!