Fairy Thorn

[macabre_fae]

Drawn away by the spirits, never to be seen again: an eerie veil of vanilla musk twirled with tuberose, Siamese red benzoin, cassis flower, Irish moss, white sandalwood, plum nectar, violet leaf, and apple petals.

This is very pretty.

I tried this on as soon as I received my bottle because I was so excited for it! On my skin, I'm smelling fae spices similar to those in Lady Una (which is one of my favorites), soft honey like benzoin, lush green moss and purple fruits. Sweet and spicy, mossy plums.

Overall it is very mild and it does have an unearthly, ethereal feel to it. Very glad I got a bottle.

If you like Lady Una, The Witch Queen, or Kitsune-Tsuki which all have similar plummy/vanilla vibes you'll likely enjoy this very much.

[GoddesShel]

Oooooohhhh!! Cold sniff I get a very pretty light floral. I like florals, and this smells like spring in a bottle.

 

Wet, on me, it seems to be mainly tuberose, at first. I know I won't ever get plum - for some reason, my skin eats Beth's plum notes

As it warms, though, I am getting the vanilla musk and the apple petals. This is more floral than fruity on me...and again, very pretty and light. As the above poster said, ethereal. A perfect spring scent!

[lady_pandora]

Fairy Thorn starts out a lovely, ethereal floral, though I can't name all the floral notes I'm smelling. I'd say a white floral (likely tuberose), plus something green and damp and misty (maybe moss?) that's kind of tea-ish and reminds me of Empyreal Mist, plus a white sandalwood note that's kind of piercing to my nose (there may also be some light musk lurking in this impression)--I guess that's the thorn! The white floral fades and leaves me with a combo of the green and the sandalwood. This is really nice, though I'm not getting some of the notes I was hoping for. Sadly, after about two hours, it's about 80% sandalwood, and it's just too much of that. So I'm hoping it'll mellow with age, or else I'll wear it for occasions where I only need the scent to work for a short period of time (like a ritual). Plum and vanilla, where art thou?

 

ETA: After a few months' aging, this mellows down to what I think will be a keeper. The skin scent is still a little sharp, but not as much as it was, and the throw is just gorgeous and is the ethereal floral/green combo I described earlier.

Edited June 24, 2015 by lady_pandora

[Myrrha]

So pretty!

 

On wet -- tuberose and possibly white sandalwood come out first and combine into a high white fairly dry floral scent. At this stage it feels formal like a serious fairy woman in a long grayish-white gown.

 

As it dries a sweetish aspect like honey comes out (vanilla and cassis blossom?) and the tuberose interacts with this greener, sweeter side of the fragrance. Sometimes I can't smell white sandalwood properly but here I thinking is a giving a delicate crumbly quality to the tuberose.

 

After 45 minutes to an hour it is much less formal and begins to feel like a scent I could wear with jeans and a blouse. The fairy woman has finished her duties in the high fairy council and is walking in the orchards playfully with her love. Playful, but always with a shadow of delicacy and reserve.

 

Although it is a light scent I could smell it in the air when I left the room and came back. Haunting and lovely.

 

Ultimately not a bottle scent for me though. If you like white florals give this a try.

Edited March 24, 2015 by Myrrha

[Veronica]

Not sure how I feel about this, I'm getting a lot of sweetness from the benzoin, a mishmash of light floral notes and just a hint of apple--all over a base of dry sandalwood. I like it, but its completely disappeared on me minutes after applying.

[theseagrows]

this starts off with apple, plum and florals- a fruity floral. i am wary of the apple and plum, but let's see how this goes. after 30 seconds or so i get something slightly nutty? not sure what that could be, but it soon passes. the fruity sweetness calms a bit, and i get more of the florals and moss next, it's a bit strong and green or leafy. maybe it's the moss and violet leaf? then that period disappears and it's a fruity plum with vanilla and cassis. it's nice but i think i amp the violet leaf, and i already have scents like this that i like better, so off to swaps with my decant.

[LiberAmoris]

Fairy Thorn really is a little like being lured away from a sensible world. It's a tumult of notes that signal abundance, sweetness, and the apex of bloom. The tuberose, apple petals, and plum nectar stand out the most on my skin. The vanilla musk and moss provide a soft bed for the florals, and the vanilla musk comes forward as the florals start to burn off. It's a fruity-floral, but with a strong emphasis on the floral. It's pretty and I think I'd reach for it on days when I want a mellow floral.

[zankoku_zen]

Fairy Thorn is the Ava of the fairy world. Take Lady Una, but turn her into a fairy version of Ava. You know, white vanilla skin, sweet swirls of tuberose and apples, and just a touch of sandalwood. It's eerie, otherworldly and ethereal --- all of which could also be applied to Ava, but this one is slightly more floral, and has more of that floral feral aspect. Good throw, good wear length.

 

This makes me think of a young Titania, more fairy princess than fairy queen.

[Atrous]

Like many previous reviewers I'm using the word 'ethereal' to describe this scent because its spot on.

Ethereal florals and a bit of wet greenery on a bed of sandalwood. I don't detect any plum or benzoin. The Tuberose note is the same as in Playing Tag in a Garden Full of Gods. After about 30 minutes I can also pick up a pinch of violet and apple.

Overall a lovely, delicate scent.

[Aviatrix]

This is an extremely light, fresh and ethereal scent. I find it difficult to distinguish the individual notes as they mesh together perfectly to form a gossamer elfin veil with light to moderate throw. It lasts a fair amount on time as well.

I get a bit of the moss underneath everything else, and it adds depth and grounding nicely. I am sadly not getting much in the way of violet or apple blossom, but they must be a part of the overall light floralness of the scent.

 

I very much like this scent, but I doubt I will need a big bottle. For ethereal floral I already have a few in my collection, but I will certainly treasure my decant!

[DiesMali]

In the imp: Irish Spring soap?

 

Wet on my skin: This still brings to mind Irish Spring soap. I happen to LIKE that soap, though.

 

Dry: The soapiness fades as this dries, and it becomes a light, ethereal, green floral. This literally smells like what I imagine Ireland's countryside to smell like - green moss, green leaves, and white and pink flowers. In that order. There's a vague spiciness from the benzoin and sandalwood, but on me, this is primarily lush greenery and the flowers of late spring. While the overall scent is wispy and ethereal, it's not pastel in my mind's eye. Instead, it's a deep but misty green. Very pleasant, and good for a situation where you want to wear a scent that is pretty but subtle.

[Psuke]

Decant bottle

 

In the bottle: sweet

 

Wet on skin: I get candy first. Like violet or rose pastille candies, then the tuberose starts coming in strong.

 

Dry down: this gets much more floral as it dries and the other notes start coming in to play.

 

 

This is a very pretty Spring floral scent. A bit on the sweet side to be a personal favorite, but I definitely like it and shall treasure my decant.

[bulletslc]

I LOVE this! I can pick out the vanilla musk, tuberose, plum nectar and apple blossom. The rest blends together to make everythingseamless. This is a light, more innocent Witch Queen (Witch Princess?). Long lasting, gorgeous throw. This is definitly my main summer scent for the year!

[claudia6913]

This is a super green scent with hints of flowers and a soft sweetness rounding it all out ... but on the edges is something sharp. Not painful, but there.

[thekittenkat]

In the bottle: Vanilla musk aswirl with spring flowers and leaves, with hints of benzoin and moss deep in the mix.

 

Wet: More of a crisp green scent now.

 

The dry-down: Now it's back to something like the cold sniff scent. I have to hope that the tuberose doesn't come forward. A nice early spring scent. As Eva said at WC, this really surprised me, to be my fave of this year's Bards.

Edited June 21, 2015 by thekittenkat

[JuliskaMarie]

In the bottle: This smells like baking. The other notes are definitely there in the background, but the primary feel of this is sweet baked goods. I think it's the vanilla/plum combination that's making this smell like cake? Whatever it is, I like it!

 

Wet on skin: This is morphing really quickly! Woodsy musk, then CAKE, then fruity florals & then some lovely (yet confusing) combination of all those.

 

Dry on skin: Vanilla cake, soaked in plum nectar, surrounded by flowers & scented candles (the sandalwood, I think)! Yessss! This is pretty full on (& amping on me a fair bit), but GORGEOUS!

 

After a few hours: About the same as dry, only faded.

 

Verdict: I think this is going to get a LOT of use! I love it!

[doomsday_disco]

In the bottle: It's hard to pinpoint the notes in this one. There is a floral aspect, the resins, and then the sweetness of the plum nectar and vanilla musk, but it's rather complex, and there isn't one note that seems to jump out to me more than the others.

 

Wet: At first, the tuberose and moss stand out to me the most, but it isn't long before the cassis flower, resins, and plum nectar make an appearance. I was hoping to get more vanilla musk from this, but it seems it doesn't have as big of a role here than it does in scents like Ava and Butterflies, Flowers, and Jewels Attending. This is predominantly a floral + moss scent on my skin, though, with a bit of plum.

 

Dry: The resins are more prominent than they were during the wet phase, as is the cassis flower. Sadly, I'm not really getting any vanilla musk from this at all. The florals and moss are still present, but they have died down significantly.

 

Verdict: I don't think I'll reach for this one again, so I am going to put my half bottle up for swap.

[LizziesLuck]

I love vanilla musk, and feel compelled to try everything containing it. Some of these other notes should be great on me too, but the violet leaf is a little iffy.

 

Wet: Mmm, much fruitier than I was expecting! Yum. The plum note is lovely, but there is a chance for it to turn into plastic on me. So far so good! This is a totally "different breed" than the other, darker plum blends that are the ones that usually work on me (Black Moths, Lady Lucille Sharpe, Mme. Moriarty) This is a lighter, sweeter, brighter type of fruity floral. Sadly, I am not actually getting any of the vanilla musk I had hoped for, but this is still lovely.

 

Dry: I am so happy with this. It's so perfect for spring, and so work appropriate (which I struggle with). Fruity and fresh and floral. Not cloying at all. Just perfect.

[ShannonElisabethJones]

In the bottle this smells fruity and flowery, with maybe just a tiny hint of something....different. After application, that different vibe seems to turn up a little bit. It's hard to pin down, but it works with the fruits and flowers.

 

I love this scent. I've had it for a while now and it's one of my favorites.

[tyche]

Spring is on its way, so the time for my Fairy Thorn is here!! I love the clean light florals in this one. Some other plum blends are dark, but this plum nectar is refreshing and just floats on top of the moss. One of my all-time favorites. 

[fairybites]

This resembles a fruity and floral shampoo on me. The plum in this is pretty strong, which I appreciate because I don't have many plum blends. Not getting any musk and just a little bit of the sandalwood. Don't think I'll upgrade, but glad I tried this.

[alyelle]

Personal decant from a friend's 2015 bottle; aged in a temperature controlled cellar.

 

In the imp: Sweet and floral plum, a mossy little apple, and a slightly bitter violet leaf. As it has aged, the vanilla top note has emerged.

 

Wet: Vanilla, apple, tuberose; after a few moments, moss and a mild synthetic musk, like washing detergent. The apple has dominated as this aged, with sandalwood taking a very back seat. 

 

Dry: A wonderfully pleasant moss-drenched, apple-tinged musk. Less synthetic after settling. The throw tends to the milder side, and the life is a fairly average 6-8 hours.

 

Stars: ★★★★