Mother Ghost

[Catcircus]

Love transcending time, space, and death: a cold, sheer white musk gleaming with black orchid, benzoin, labdanum, and blackened amber, and embraced by white rose, tea leaf, and vanilla flower.

I'm a novice at describing notes, and this is fresh out of the mailbox. It's light. There is something pearly about it. At first I feel like there is a sharp smell but the dry down is a lovely amber. It's not powdery at all (on me)

 

The more I smell this the more I like it. It's like a creamy subtle grown up sweet amber. It doesn't smell like a 'mom/motherly' at all.

[DiesMali]

In the bottle: Vanilla-frosted rose.

 

Wet on my skin: Oooooh pretty. It's somehow chilly, despite having so many traditionally warm notes in it! Mostly vanilla-touched white rose at this point, with a bit of the orchid and amber.

 

Dry: This is an ethereal, slightly 'cold' scent from wet to dry. Delicate and pale, the body of this scent is orchid, rose, amber, and creamy vanilla-like benzoin and vanilla flower. On me, at least, the amber and labdanum are supporting players, giving it a faintly incensed feel, and I can't smell much, if any, of the tea leaf. This is a beautiful and melancholy scent. Not quite white, but like...pale grey, like the sky when snow clouds are covering it but the sun is also out behind the clouds and lighting them from above.

[Aviatrix]

I get mainly the sweet orchid with an overlay of a little tea and a little resin. I am not getting much in the way of rose.

It is soft and mysterious and very fitting for a loving ghost. There is indeed a feeling of something cold, but not unpleasant at all.

[Little Bird]

Mother Ghost is lots of lemony, strongly honeyed, watery tea, which I was not expecting at all. The vanilla, white musk and floral notes smell like a proper ladies perfume, but mostly this is honeyed tea on my skin. It's like a dainty tea party. I get more of a fresh rose and powdery amber in the drydown, and it's like having a tea party in a little rose garden with wafts of perfumey, white musk and soft vanilla floating through the air.

[absinthetics]

This is a beautiful, heart warming but delicate scent that is like a warm play on the other scent called Ghosts. This scent needs to be tried by everyone, it is not like anything you would expect. The tea note really comes out after a while on the skin.

Edited November 22, 2015 by Absinthetics

[azurephoenix]

Wow, I love love love this! I thought it would be a little more popular in my circle but only 3 of 5 spaces filled... I'm so glad it wasn't! I've claimed the rest of the bottle for myself!! Hahah!

 

Bottle Sniff: Lemony white tea

On Skin: It has a very sweet creamy feel to it. My skin loves amber and this one stays sweet and true without going powdery on me, it also can amp tea and rose, but in this case I can't really pick them out of the blend... the black orchid and musk is adding just a hint of edgy sexiness which makes this a winner for me!

 

[theseagrows]

this is one of those somewhat cold/funereal scents which instantly reminds me of sarah from a past halloween. it's not exactly the same, and not quite as funereal, but it has a similar feeling of warmth and cold at the same time. i think right off i get the musk, benzoin, amber and tea with a hint of vanilla, then the orchid comes out later on. it gets lovelier when the amber is more noticeable, warming it up a bit more. this smells very modern to me, for lack of a better word. it's like a cool slightly powdery amber after it's been on the skin for a bit. i think it smells like a tom ford i tried...velvet orchid (?) i can't remember. however, i can handle this one because it isn't so strong and chemically as the other one was. i have mixed feelings on this one. it's interesting and i like it but i'm not sure i'd get much wear out of it

Edited December 1, 2015 by theseagrows

[Hystrixia]

In the Bottle: Mother Ghost is a very pale oil with a scent that is very cool, smooth, and sweet. I’m mostly getting the vanilla flower, tea leaf, and orchid when I’m sniffing her in the bottle.

Top Notes: Freshly applied, she has an invigorating white tea note with a warm, resinous vanilla sugar to accompany it. The vanilla note is more restrained and ladylike than Edith’s nearly gourmand vanilla and it has a colder, almost gossamer quality to it thanks to the tea leaf.

Middle Notes: After thirty minutes, I’m beginning to smell more of the floral notes, particularly the orchid and just the slightest hint of a powdery rose. The tea leaf, vanilla flower, and resins are still the dominant notes. The combination makes for a very charming, classic fragrance that screams feminine elegance.

Base Notes: Six hours later, and a soft mix of resins and warm amber remains. It gives a very cozy feel while adding a quality of mystique.

Overall Impression: I expected to enjoy Mother Ghost and was not disappointed with my purchase. I especially like the combination of the tea leaf and vanilla flower as it really gave the whole perfume a nice translucent quality to an otherwise traditionally heavy oriental fragrance. The feeling I get from this scent as a whole reminds me of the scene where she first visits young Edith, particularly when she curls up next to her daughter on the bed while cooing to her. Her scent colors are a pearly white and gauzy grey, brighter than her almost jet black appearance in the film.

She is about the same as Edith in wear time. However, she’s much stronger in terms of sillage, probably ranking second strongest out of the four Crimson Peak scents I have. Because of this quality, I actually have a story to share about what happened the first time I wore Mother Ghost:

The day after the bottle arrived in the mail, I applied the oil on my wrists before heading out to lunch with my boyfriend. We were in the restaurant and had just finished our placing our orders when a woman and her boyfriend/husband walked by us looking for a table. The woman paused for a moment while she was behind me and said in a sentimental tone to her partner, “I wonder who is wearing Shalimar? It’s the perfume my mother wears.” The whole episode was kind of spooky but funny at the same time.

By the way, the lady is right about it smelling like Guerlain’s Shalimar. They share many of the same qualities, so if you run out of Mother Ghost, you know where to go for something similar.

Final Verdict: Mother Ghost will be staying my collection. I’d recommend giving her a try if you are partial to delicate, slightly fresh oriental vanilla scents.

Edited December 8, 2015 by Hystrixia

[Teaotter]

This is so beautiful.

 

Wet, it was barely present, with a green note like flower stems fading slowly into orchid, and I didn't think I'd like it.

 

But once dry, it really opens up with the most lovely throw. It's remarkably well-blended; I can smell the white rose and a bit of orchid if I think about it, but mostly it's a single, gorgeous scent of its own. It's definitely in the Oriental category, it has the warm amber undertones. But it's soft and gauzy, cool on top of warm, billowy and white...

 

Gah! Okay, I'm having a hard time describing this. It falls into the category my partner calls 'perfumey,' but it's a delicate, beautiful one. I don't often wear scents like this, but oh, this is so lovely!

[topazphoenix]

I was wearing this last night. I think others have adequately described the intricacies of the notes..to me it evokes a high, cold, and soft old love. There's something antique and sad about it. I'm quite pleased but it does have a specific vibe and isn't something I would reach for every day.

[zankoku_zen]

So I mis-reviewed Mother Ghost previously. I wrote down the First Time I saw a Ghost instead. I get a TON of vanilla flower, and in a way, this smells like a more ghostly and mature version of Edith Cushing.

 

This is vanilla, orchid, a ton of amber, and a hint of musk. The resemblance to Edith is there since this is actually a very foodie sort of vanilla on a bed of amber. Warm, comforting, but sort of wispy.

Edited December 20, 2015 by zankoku_zen

[Poenari]

Lemony at first, but thankfully that quickly fades because I'm not a fan of citrus. On drydown, this becomes a dark Floriental scent... it is a very old-world perfume. The notes are so well-blended that one doesn't stand out over the other. It most definitely smells like something a child would remember smelling on her mother. It fades quickly, which is appropriate for a ghostly scent. This is so very pretty, but my decant will suffice for me.

[ShowOrchid]

This smell has a comforting aspect to it. It reminds me very much of my own grandmother (who still lives). I get a floriental from it and the throw is wonderful!

[porcelina]

the tea leaf really dominates everything else in here for me at first, and then as it settles down, things get strange. i thought this might work despite the white musk and rose because of the resins and amber, but it is just a little too fresh and floral for my tastes. weirdly, there is something in here that reminds me of the smell of raw pumpkin.

[sarandipitee]

Oh man. This is stunning.

 

It's gorgeous on me. The white musk does feel cold, but it's not ozone or mint which is how my nose usually interprets 'cold'.

 

The orchid and white rose are there, but very well-behaved and vanilla sweetened. The amber and benzoin lurk underneath making this a very well blended and beautiful floriental perfume.

 

It feels much like a ghost of a perfume; I've smelled something similar to this before but I can't recall when or who wore it. Very apt considering the inspiration.

 

I will for sure get a bottle as I own nothing like this.

[LiberAmoris]

Mother Ghost really does smell cold, like something from beyond the veil. I'm surprised at how prominent and lovely the tea leaf note is here. This is mostly light tea, vanilla flower, white rose, and black orchid on me when wet, with the musk and amber coming forward on the drydown. Gorgeous and otherworldly, and mellows into a gentle tea-floral with good staying power.

[Haltija]

The most stunning, soft blend of tea and vanilla flower on me when wet. Dry it deepens with the gorgeous black orchid and musk. There is something about this that every time I smell it I feel like a veil of comfort has been draped over me and I love it. Definitely will be needing a bottle.

[LizziesLuck]

The combo of the tea, vanilla and musk have serious potential to go all dryer-sheets on me. I am aware of this, and persevere anyway. Also has the potential to be glorious. I like all of these notes separately - every single listed note.

 

 

Wet: Wow. This reminds me of something, can't say what. It's perfumey, but in a way that I love. The tea is really strong at first, and gives the impression of having lemon in it. The floral comes through as well, and the amber is there, making it smell like perfume, and not floral tea. Mmmm. Feminine, elegant. Lovely. This doesn't feel "motherly" at all to me.

 

 

Dry: The musk in this is lovely. Combined with the vanilla flower, it's feminine and pretty. The tea has mostly faded, just getting hints now. The amber and benzoin provide some nice sweetness. I don't get any white rose in this, and I tend to amp rose. This is really lovely. It makes me feel feminine and pretty. I don't find it ghostly or motherly at all, in fact, I feel like I would associate this perfume with a young, beautiful, elegant, classy woman. I will likely need a bottle of this.

[FeralFae]

Mother Ghost is surprisingly sweet and comforting, without loosing her otherworldly quality/coldness. When wet, the orchid, tea and vanilla are the most proeminent, but as it dries the amber and what I think is the benzoin come forward a bit more. It's very elegant and not what I imagine Edith's mother would smell like at all as a scary black ghost. This Mother Ghost is more of a wispy, pale-white/blue ghost that doesn't scare her daughter half to death, but rather luls her to sleep peacefully. I need a big bottle.

 

ETA

 

I got a bottle

Edited December 13, 2016 by FeralFae

[theredkilt]

I smell tea leaf, which to my nose smells like white tea note. Then something airy and sweet comes into the picture. The drydown reminds me of an airy white tea-peach musk.

[Jenjin]

Blind Bottle Purchase

IN THE BOTTLE:

Very soft, lemony tea.

WET:

Oh-Pretty! Crisp tea with swirling white blossoms, lemon and vanilla.

DRY:

The resin amps up and I'm getting a sugared, vanilla amber dancing with crystalline orchids and a very, slight rose if any.

NOTES:

This is so divine, i'm crying--it feels like it was made for me. I was sad that I missed Edith, but now I don't care. Mother Ghost has floated into my top 10 and makes me feel like i'm in love~and that I am loved from beyond.

RATING:

10+

Edited June 25, 2016 by Jenjin

[Kaye_Sera_Sera]

My bottle of Mother Ghost has aged very nicely over the past few months and as I sit here watching Crimson Peak with it dabbed on my wrists, I can't stop giving myself a sniff.

 

This perfume came to me months ago and it was quite light and "barely there" in the most proper of ways considering the character it was created for. This perfume has now aged and with that came a stronger smelling perfume, it's so stunning and perfectly captures the character. It's comforting in a way that reminds me of snugging up to my mother as a child, but it's fresh and rich smelling like that of a cold, fresh bouquet of white flowers.

 

I give this perfume 2 thumbs up, and it has quickly become one of my favorite perfumes of all time.

[annemathematics]

mother ghost has snuck up on me as being one of my most worn CP scents, mostly because she's so easy to wear. elegent, creamy, musky resiny vanilla. a big comforting scent that's also comfortingly weird. this is not light like the other ghostly scents in the series. this has big throw and sticks around, haunting the aura all night long.

I'm a big fan of labdanum, benzoin, amber and vanilla, and they all shine here. floral notes are listed, but the rose doesn't stand out and I've assumed that the orchid flower references the vanilla orchid, upping the vanilla oomph. the ti leaf makes this feel like a distant cousin to dorian. musky vanilla tea love.

[SmilesSunshine]

Beautiful vanilla flower vanilla, hint of tea, hint of lemon. Wispy & pretty. The sweetness is aromatic and barely there. Drydown, vanilla, musk, amber. Super pretty. A colder, mature Edith. Also some parallels to 2016 mrs dunbar for me.

Mrs. Dunbar reminded me of one I couldn't place. And finally .,, this is it.

[Bassmastadroog]

Fresh out of the mail...

 

Application...orange/tangerine scent? Not what I expected at all. Very citrusy in Orange colored fashion.

 

I smell the edge of musk...maybe the perfume of the Rose...but it's too light to tell. I don't get much vanilla. Not even lemon. Just orange fruit. How peculiar. A tad like my earl grey and bergamot I think. There's a slight ozone like coolness.

 

I think I was expecting a cold vanilla tea smell.

 

I did not like this upon application, and I was disappointed. The more I wear it, and the more it settles I smell tea strongly, that I like, with a rose perfuming the edges, though not detectable enough to call it a rose scent. The dry down has no fruity twang...and it altogether becomes a perfumy floral.tea, an expensive department store type. Fancy. Adult and feminine.

 

Can't yet tell if it's a keeper since it has such a citrusy bite for me.

 

ETA: The dry down is what I hoped The Unquiet Grave would be! That vanilla orchid...

Edited December 5, 2016 by Bassmastadroog