Florence

[juniperus]

The pearl of the Italian Renaissance. Elegant iris, bright berries, gilded amber and velvety spices.

Bottle: a fruity-floral sweetness. berry, baby.
Wet: Flowers and raspberries, nothing spicy or resinous yet.
Dry: the sweet of the berry recedes as the amber steps forward. it's warming..not terribly complex, but pleasant.
Later: the fruitiness does not return, and although the note is there, it's very well balanced with the broad and golden amber and spice notes. Very nice.

[desu]

In the imp: An ambery, warm floral with a hint of sweetness to it.

 

On my skin: This starts out very nicely, if a bit faint, before turning into baby powder on me.

[nerdcraft]

in the vial:

A clean-smelling floral, with a bit of spice underneath.

 

wet:

Hmm. Has a bit of a candy scent for several seconds (the berries?), but then blooms into a sophisticated, spicy floral. It reminds me of a good quality department store perfume, but fresher. I think the dominant scent right now is the iris.

 

dry: Faded pretty quickly. Now it smells mostly of light spices and amber, with the tiniest hint of sweet berries. Slightly dry and powdery on me, too.

 

season: fall or winter.

office-friendly? yep.

 

overall:

This was a..handsome scent. Yeah, handsome is the word I'm looking for I think. Not very bright or long-lasting on me, but a sophisticated and mature floral spice.

[cranberry]

I love Florence so much and it’s a pleasure to finally review it. Initially, I smell iris and amber. There’s a touch of sweetness from the berries. The iris is oh so slightly dry and powdery and the amber adds warmth and roundness, with a touch of spice. The elements combine to a sweet, feminine, sophisticated scent that is so pretty. This is what I wanted the Haunted Palace to smell like (despite the fact that HP notes indicate it wouldn’t smell at all like this, I think it was more the description fits this scent so well). After a while, the berries recede and I’m left with a beautiful spiced amber that has a touch of powdery iris. Beautiful.

[Rhowan]

In the vial and wet on my skin the first note that strikes me is a very rich, warm amber. I can detect a faint bit of spruce? maybe also.

 

Drying down, it is still the amber and the juniper? spruce? something kind of woodsy like that, and a faint hint of sweet berry.

 

Completely dried down and I am loosing the scent already - it is very light on my skin and fading every minute. What is left though is beautiful. Seductive, rich warm amber with a hint of sweet, sweet, junitper berries (at least that is what I have settled on )

 

Florence is a very beautiful warm rich oil. It is so rich it makes me want to bath in it while sipping a glass of wine and listening to classicly music. Warm and Evocotive. If it would have lasted longer on my skin this would have def initely been a 10ml.!

[strawberry_star]

This intoxicates me for some reason!

 

It smells slightly herbal which I usually hate and slightly powdery which I also hate and yet the berries are so nice that it makes this into a very lovely scent. I wish it lasted longer on me though. Definitely a keeper regardless because I couldn't get it out of my head.

[edenssixthday]

Florence is one of the few iris scents I can wear and enjoy. This is a gorgeous scent – a warm fruity-floral with just a hint of spice. The berry scent has an almost wine quality to it. I get really nice wafts of this fragrance as I wear it, although the throw does become a bit more subdued with time. As with the majority of the Wanderlust line, I really like this particular blend.

[Miseraya]

In the imp: Amber and Iris. After a few sniffs I get some spice in there as well. There is an underlying scent that has to be the berries, but I can't pick it out enough to definitively call it berries. This seems like it will be nice on me. It's definitely a "blend" scent. More like a chord than a series of notes.

 

On the wrist: Florals and berries. These do not work well on me. Why did I buy this?

 

Drydown: Still too floral and berry. On my skin that equals rubbing alcohol and baby powder. *sigh*

 

Final Analysis: Pretty, but my skin chemistry tortures it beyond recognition. Off to the swaps.

[fairy]

This is a gorgeous scent, on and off. Very classic and sophisticated. It smells sweet mixed with powdery goodness. Might have to buy a big bottle of this one. There is no part of this fragrance that I don't like. From start to finish, it's lovely.

[kunoichi]

Florence is a subtle, and somewhat gentle, berry-sweet yet spicy blend from the vial. On my skin it becomes a darker fragrance (either with the iris or the amber), yet that beautiful berry-and-spices scent is still there and still lovely. After a couple of hours, it doesn’t seem to change – it still smells like a softer version as it slowly fades.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

sniffed from the bottle: iris and berries (not raspberries or strawberries... more like blueberries or elderberries)

 

skinsniff, wet: iris, berry and a teensy bit of spice

 

skinsniff, dry: amber and spice with berry and a little bit of what might be the ghost of an iris.

 

Amber and i don't much get along. ever since high school when N. chose her over me... we've just... been at odds. i know i should've gotten over that by now, i mean i know it was her *sweetness* that drew him... and everyone else. i can't help that i'm wierd, and enjoy smelling a little bit... off kilter.

Amber and amber, both... always messing up what could've been so beautiful!

[BrightRedScream]

Frimpy frimpy!

I'm a little baffled as to why I put this on my wishlist..I guess because I like iris in the flower? But skimming through other people's reviews..I've confused myself.

When I smell this in the imp - I feel like I've been smacked in the face with a bouquet of irises...Great. Spicey iris even.

Even better.

Berries too.

Everything just comes pouring out - and it reminds me of flouride.

 

On, this is so perfumey, and floral...I can't stand it..

I had to go and scrub it off.

Definitely not me in the slighest.

[gloom bear]

On me this is a masculine, strong woody scent, that started to smell bitter after drying. Lasts very well…too bad I don't like the scent.

[mountainwitch]

Berries? There were berries in this? I don't get the iris either, everything being overwhelmed by amber and more amber and then some amber after that. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, as for about the first 30-45 minutes this smells like wonderful and golden.

 

But sometimes amber does a sad transformation on my skin, becoming a bitter, powdery smell. Unfortunately, Florence has one of "those" ambers. Sad!

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is the most delighfully spiced amber

 

once applied the iris and berries meld together with the spicy amber making

this a truly sniffable inducing blend...i must comment how much i love the amber in this perfume...it is probably the best amber i have tried in one of the beth's

creations to date....absolutely lovely and i will be enjoying this imp for the upcoming autumn weather...this could very well become a big bottle purchase for me

[saralaughs]

Berries? There were berries in this? I don't get the iris either, everything being overwhelmed by amber and more amber and then some amber after that. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, as for about the first 30-45 minutes this smells like wonderful and golden.

 

But sometimes amber does a sad transformation on my skin, becoming a bitter, powdery smell. Unfortunately, Florence has one of "those" ambers. Sad!

 

 

Unfortunately, with Florence all I have to do is quote this review.

[Meg]

In the bottle: Iris and amber.

 

Wet: A bit of iris and some rather woody spices.

 

Drydown: Fresh green iris, that starts turning powdery, and amber that also smells vanillaish and powdery. I get a hint of berries that I can't really place, possibly blackberry or redcurrant, very tart. Of course, the iris goes rotten on me and smells like baby powder.

 

Overall: This smells like grubby baby powder on me, with a hint of perfume, and lots of dust and dirt. Iris really hates my skin and nothing in this seems to be able to save it. There's a tart note from the fruit that just hurts my nose. Off to swaps with it.

[cabinwench]

This was more floral and spice than berries, in the imp and on the skin. Very mature, fits my mental image of the city well. Lasted several hours, starting off as almost too strong/stingy (not quite, but almost) when wet, drying down to a more traditional upscale scent.

 

Overall scent impression is an expensive, elegant floral perfume, saved from "flowery" by the amber and spice. I can see Ingrid Bergman wearing something like "Florence" in "Casablanca".

 

This would be good for the office on a "serious" day, or dressing up and going out.

[Natch]

in the bottle: a very sweet floral, but not at all in an overpowering or strong way. I can definitely detect the floral/berry mix. Very yummy.

 

wet: Something very green comes out on the skin. The berry sweetness underneath is delicious, but the green (iris I guess?) is a bit bitter and not that pleasant.

 

dry: After about a half hour, the bitterness has declined and for the most part, it is a sweet floral. However, when the floral came out, most of the berries went into hiding, which I personally find a bit sad. This is sweet, a tint powdery, and still a little earthy without being cloying. I don't get much amber though... aside from the hint of powder perhaps.

 

overall impression: I guess Florence just really isn't my thing. There were a few minutes during the dry down where I really loved it (when the floral came out and before the berries went away) but now that it is just a slightly bitter floral, I am less than thrilled by it. It does also have a pretty decent throw. I can definitely see this scent being beautiful and upscale on some people, but on me it is mediocre. Or maybe it is just not my taste? Alas, I did rather like the idea of it.

 

B-

Edited September 13, 2006 by Natch

[Arianwen]

In the Imp and wet, this is all berry on my skin. It's very fresh and bright.

 

After a wee while, the berries give way a bit to the floral and spices. I'm still liking this a lot.

 

After about 1/2-1 hour or so the amber's coming out quite strongly, the berries are there in the background but it's mostly amber now.

 

I think it's going to have to go on the 5ml wishlist. I'm so glad I liked this one, Florence being one of my favourite places in the world and the sole reason I bought this imp

[supremegoddessofall]

Iris and a bit of amber, mostly. Pretty good. Very "fresh" smelling.

 

Score: 4 out of 5

[steffanina]

Florence-

 

In Bottle: Berries, floral, and a little spice.

 

Wet: Warm and rich, a little cinnamony. Berries coming out again.

 

Dry: This is really nice. Amber and berries! Rich and pretty scent--not as beautiful an amber scent as The Lion, but lovely all the same.

 

Overall: Nice.

[PilotKitten]

Suprisingly spicy. It's a semi-sweet spiciness... not overwhelming but not as berry/amber-riffic as I had hoped.

[Briar]

Scent: Florence

Out of the Bottle: Some sort of fruit, like pear; incense, Nag Champa maybe; a deep floral. It reminds me of a Turkish rug shop.

Wet on Skin: The floral note is sharper, almost like a rose next to a sprig of eucalyptus. The incense note fell deeper into the scent, and I can't find the fruity note now.

Lunch Time: The scent has faded down to a powdery musk again. Either there's more oakmoss, I'm drawn to powdery musks, or my body chemistry turns all scents to musk. We'll see as time goes on. However, I have so far really liked this scent a lot.

Dinner Time: By dinner time, the scent had completely faded away. It stayed powdery until I couldn't smell it anymore, though.

[cecelle]

This one did really funny things on me.

 

At first, straight out of the imp, it smelled like spicy iris.

 

After 30 minutes it smelled like pine (the amber, I suppose...). Almost a sweetened pine-sol type scent. I wasn't happy.

 

An hour later, the pine has completely disappeared, and I smell like berry taffy. It's a sweet, candy sort of scent.

 

Twelve hours later, it's still candy. My skin chemistry seems to make the amber disappear completely. On my shirt, though, it's still a nice mix of amber and berry (can't smell the iris at all at this point...) - too bad it doesn't smell like that on me!

 

It's ok, but I don't think I'll be buying a bottle of this one...

Edited April 4, 2007 by cecelle