The Queen of Earthly Paradise

[Casablanca]

The Fruitful Mother of Thousands that rules over the House of Man: golden bulbs bursting through the ground at the first light of Spring: sun-bright golden petals of daffodil, gladiolus, tulips, crocus, aconite and jonquil gilded with amber.

I'm almost through my bottle of Qui Aime Bien Châtie Bien (daffodil petals and lavender tulips, blonde woods, freesia, a touch of pale honey). That could have been a sad occasion, because it's a go-to quirky spring floral for me, but then The Queen came out.

I'm thrilled, because this does remind me a lot of Qui Aime, but with a bit of a golden tone in lieu of Qui Aime's sweet and watery one. (Qui Aime had smelled floral-aquatic to me in the way that Blue Bonnet SN smells blue floral-aquatic when I wear it. There's none of that here, but there's lots of unconventional spring floral goodness.)

I catch daffodils and tulips most, but I'm not sure what the other listed flowers smell like. I don't smell amber as such, but a vague golden light seems to warm the blooms.

From bottle to dry, this blend's balance is pretty consistent for me.

This Queen is a warm and wildflower-ish spring bouquet. It's a cheer-bringer, as if these faces were flowers:

[spookyumbrella]

Very cheerful! Dewy daffodils and wildflowers in a big bouquet - this is the scent of spring.

[artisjok]

I ordered this Queen to test how some florals work on me.

In the bottle it smells rich, heady golden flowers, and soap... Oh no.

On my skin it smells exactly the same, but even stronger on the soap note. Sadness! The drydown does bring the amber out some, but the soapiness lingers on.

I hope that aging can remedy this... I hope! Might just decide to trade for another of the Empress series.

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant: It’s a bouquet of pale floral notes! I am here for the daffodil, which actually does stand out to me in the vial. I hope that is also the case on my skin.

 

Wet: I’d still describe this as a bouquet of golden and white flowers, some of which are sweet, and I can smell the nectar on these flowers. It’s hard to pick out the different floral notes. The daffodil is there, but I don’t feel like it is as strong as it is in Lakeside atmo, and there’s also an aquatic-floral quality to this that I think could be the tulips, because Amsterdam has that same quality to it. After a few minutes, I get a touch of amber, giving the impression of sun-warmed flowers, but I wouldn’t describe this as a floral and resin scent. The floral notes are veering into soap territory as the scent dries… I hope they’re able to veer back out of it!

 

Dry: The floral notes calm down enough so that it does smell less soapy now, although it still smells slightly soapy on me. I am getting more of a soft, golden amber during this stage, making it have even more of a sun-warmed flower vibe.

 

Verdict: I was really looking forward to this one since daffodil isn’t a note that I see pop up very often. It’s nice, but it is not the daffodil scent that I was hoping for, since there are so many floral notes at play here. I won’t be needing more of this, but if you’re looking for the scent of sun-warmed flowers, give this one a try.

[Ghost of a Rose]

Bottle fresh from the Lab.

 

I don't know what any of these flowers smell like by themselves, so my review will have to be very general. I have daffodils, tulips, and crocuses in my yard but have never noticed any fragrance from them. Maybe there aren't enough, or maybe I need to get more up-close and personal with them when they bloom again!

 

I definitely will recognize the amber, though, if it comes through on my skin. It's one of my favorite notes. I also love pretty much any floral scent. So this should be an easy win for me.

 

In the bottle: All floral, but noticeably not the usual culprits. This is much less sweet than floral perfumes usually are.

 

On me, wet: The floral aspect is the same as in the bottle. I can smell a bit of the amber as well. adding warmth to the blend.

 

At 5 minutes: I do like this very much, although not quite as much as the sweeter, more girly, and more typically flowery scents.

 

After 1 1/2 hours: Mostly the same, except that it has sweetend up a little. That also must be the influence of the amber, although the actual note of amber is hidden underneath the florals now.

 

At 5 1/2 hours: The scent lingers very softly. It is primarily the amber now, in its familiar final drydown aspect of a pretty baby powder, but touched lightly with the flowers from earlier.

 

Verdict: This blend is stable, not a morpher. It would be a good choice for when you want an unusual floral perfume, or one that doesn't shout "girly", such as for work.

 

5 out of 6 stars

Edited September 3, 2018 by Ghost of a Rose

[zankoku_zen]

Daffodils, wildflowers, amber. This is a sophisticated wildflower perfume. I do like it, but I am not sure that I would wear it as much as I think I would. It is gorgeous though. Hmmm.

 

Good throw and wear length.