Fallen

[titania]

... The essence of overweening pride and unearthly angelic beauty. A regal scent, glowing darkly, elegant and patrician, but unfathomably desolate. Cherubic white sandalwood and golden musk with a dark halo of amber, a breath of imperial florals, unbending woods, and the shadow cast by vetiver and violet.

 

This is amber with musk and notspicy!sandalwood, with flowing velvet far in the background that smells of florals and a hint of violet. It's an amazing, sophisticated scent for evening. Very well blended. Very magnetic. Would work well for a man or woman. I would never have blind ordered this one because of the violet and vetiver combo, which didn't work for me in Saturnalia, so it's lucky I got this as a frimp. Definite win.

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Amber and sandalwood, with a hint of vetiver

 

Wet on skin: Mmmmmm............... sandalwood...... This bit is gorgeous. It's tinged and complicated by the vetiver, but lightly, and not in a bad way. This reminds me of sandalwood incense, andtthe sandalwood garland we used to hang in the prayer room. I used to love to sniff it.

 

Dried down: Still that perfect sandalwood scent.

 

Throw: Almost none, but I barely put any on (I'm testing a few too many scents right now).

 

Verdict: **** This is something I think I'm going to want a bottle of.

[Myria Jean]

This is an elegant violet - it's sophisticated, not too heavy and not too sweet.

Unfortunately the vetiver turns acrid on me after awhile. Ack.

Edited November 7, 2014 by Myria Jean

[Veronica]

Beautiful bright florals and amber, with a dusky sandalwood base. Very warm and floral--I hardly detect any of the vetiver in here, thankfully! A rich floral with a warm amber background, with a dry, slightly dark base.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: Elegant dark florals (perhaps predominantly violet?) with a strong, creamy base. I've been disappointed by the disjunct between a scent's copy/idea and the reality (for example, Le Serpent Qui Danse has become my perfect sprightly spring violet scent, but I've never smelled anything less "sinister, darkly seductive"), but for a scent based around the Morningstar, this ain't half bad.

 

Wet: Just as lovely, but now much less smooth (although a better word might be "suave"), and with more...frisson, I want to say? Something attention-grabbing, anyway. Violet is definitely the dominant note here, but there are also, more omnidirectional, florals hanging around in the background. But it's a good 70% violet - lush, wet, and refreshing. That smooth, strong base is still there, providing support for the florals, but now I can just about distinguish it as musk, or maybe woods. Alas, no sandalwood yet!

 

Dry: A surprisingly quick fade! Within an hour or two, it's about 50% sandalwood, 40% violet (maaaaybe a whiff of a few other florals), and 10% musk. And six hours later, next to nothing! The barest whiff of sandalwood, if I really shove my nose into my wrist, but that's about it.

[roseus]

My lovely roommate gave me this because it wasn't for her, and boy am I glad we have very different skin chemistry! For some reason I never really took a second look at this one on the site, my mistake!

 

In the imp: Amber, wood, and a little vetiver.

 

Wet: The sandalwood comes out, as well as the musk. Not getting any floral. Very warm and golden at this point.

 

Dry: The amber, sandalwood, and musk come together, warm and almost spicy. Very gentle. The woods are soft, and lend the blend some backbone. There is just an en echo of vetiver and violet. I really had to reach to detect the violet.

 

Overall I really like it, and am considering a bottle. We will see how frequently I reach for the imp.

[Kmye Chan]

In the imp: Amber and flowers. Perhaps a bit of violets, now that I am reading the description, but I wouldn't have deciphered that one on my own.

 

Wet: Ew ew ew. Mostly dark, bitter vetiver and florals. The violet becomes indistinct, and I don't get any amber or sandalwood? This is strange, it smells almost aquatic to me - it actually reminds me of Darkness, if anything.

 

Dry: After a while the vetiver steps off a bit and blends in with indistinct florals, a similar note as in Marquise de Merteuil. This is bitter, aggressive and dark. No amber, no sandalwood whatsoever on me. At one point, some musk peeks out in an ugly way - not kidding, I smelled like dirty bedsheets in dire need of a wash.

 

Throw: low.

 

Wear time: I don't know, I scrubbed it off after a while.

 

Oh boy, this one was not for me. I think my skin hates vetiver? Or perhaps I got a mislabelled imp?

[LizziesLuck]

There are so many notes in this that are lovely on me...but initially all I get is violet, which doesn't agree with me. It's soapy, and acrid, with faint nutty undertones from the vetiver (I love this smoky vetiver note in the right blend, but not here). O_o this is so not good on me - smells like charred violet candy. Sadly I think I have to wash this off before it even gets to dry, violet causes headaches sometimes for me, and I think that's what's going to happen here. Still, glad I tried it!

[Coldfire]

Imp: really dark heady old floral
Wet on Me: powdery dark floral
Drying Down: powdery and sweet from the sandalwood, musk and amber. the floral has faded a touch
Dry: this is definitely giving me 'male' vibes. sweet but deep and woody/resin-y.

[gloame]

First thought: Oh this is pretty, many violets. Violet is a scary note for me because I love the idea of it and I love it in some blends (Midnight on the Midway, e.g.) but it can quickly go bubblegum on me if I'm not careful (Brusque Violets, e.g.). This is a nice balance of violet. The white sandalwood keeps it from becoming too bubblegum and I really like the amber and musk here, too. The vetiver is no doubt keeping it more regal, along with whatever other florals are in here (can't tell). This is nice, soft, feminine, but unexpected. Do like!

Where I'd wear this: A tea party with your best girls

[ramblingrambler]

Typically vetiver destroys a fragrance for me not because I dislike it but because my chemistry does not play well with it. HOWEVER, in Fallen, it works well. I don't know if it is because my imp is very aged or if the ratio of vetiver to other components is extremely small, but whatever the reason, I'm glad.

 

Fallen is an understated floral resting on the foundation of soft resinous and woody notes. Balanced and well done.

[achildoftime]

This one is truly golden. It's very resinous and warm. I get a lot of amber and sandalwood right away, but there is some violet running under that. It's just a soft floral that only adds to the beauty. I was very worried about the vetiver because it very often completely overtakes on me. It doesn't do that here, which I'm very surprised. It's really just a solid resin scent with that touch of violet for something to break it up a little. Not bad.

[oh_honestly_]

My first impression in bottle was "I think I'm going to like this one." Put it on and wet, it turns into a lovely, spicy blend that reminds me of walking into a new-age shop. Definitely gives off an incense vibe. Dry, the spice mellows out and some of the other aspects come out to play. Overall, not an everyday scent for me, but I enjoy it! Dark and floral.

[VetchVesper]

A complex and regal floral with warm musk/resin undertones. This is quite seductive, but then that is the point! I'm willing to bet money there's lily in here. Maybe some rose, but I could just be adding that cause roses are regal. I can smell the amber and lovely musk, and I get violet, but wouldn't recognize it if it wasn't a listed note. This is reminding me of an older perfume, but I can't think of what. Red Door maybe? I could see it as a department store fragrance, but in a good way. It gets a little more woody and gender neutral with wear. Quite beautiful and classic.

[cassiejaynebunk]

in the imp - violet and vetiver. on my skin - it's kind of a soapy floral. *INSERT BIG SAD FACE HERE*

[Teamama]

I just realized I have never reviewed Fallen, which I adore. It is gorgeous, & for lack of a better word, "stately." All of the BPAL violet blends that work on me so far seen to be at least a little formal. I don't yet have a violet that goes with, say, heading out for thrift shopping & banh mi sammiches.

 

Wet: sweet, violet-forward, taller & more slender than me. Slowly the amber, musk & vetiver emerge. Perfectly-groomed, but not fussy. The sandalwood is very reserved, I don't notice it much. Fallen shops vintage, not thrift.

 

On dry-down, the violet is still the most prominent note, over a rich, sweet but dry base of amber, light vetiver, & musk. Fallen got her masters degree. Fallen volunteers more, & donates to worthy causes more than I do. Fallen has sex more frequently than me. Fallen intimidates & seduces me.

[doomsday_disco]

In the imp: The violet is the first note to leap out at me, but I can also smell lots of musk, sandalwood, and some vetiver.

 

Wet: This one is sharp. I'm getting the violet, musk, white sandalwood, and the imperial florals. The violet note is by far the strongest note, followed by the musk.

 

Dry: This is predominantly violet, musk, and dry, white sandalwood on me, followed by the woods. The violet and the dry woods still smell sharp on me. But on the plus side, at least the vetiver seems to be behaving itself?

 

Verdict: Fallen is too strong on the violet and sharp on me.

[quigza]

I was rec'd to try this as I love Saturnalia (discontinued). I do feel the similarities.

 

At first there's a grungy kind of smell to it. And, there's a very scary point in the dry down in which I quietly hope the musk doesn't turn on me. Thankfully, it doesn't. The violet plays well on me & the vetiver drifting into the lovely green happiness it sometimes does on my skin. But, there's some white floral in here and something sweet as well. The sweet is a little resiny. The white floral goes a little wild here (my skin makes some white florals stronger).

 

The effect for me is more of a little wooden cottage with false jasmine and violets blooming nearby, and a freshly tilled garden ready to plant. Lovely, but not what I was expecting at all.

[torischroeder9]

In the imp: Predominantly violet, with other deeper notes swirling in the background. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, violet still dominates with one of the grounding notes becoming a distinct wood. 

 

Once dry, I am amping the heck out of this violet. (I have a working hypothesis that sometimes in a blend, a scent can "attach" itself to the amber note, which is what helps it amp on me. There are several blends where I don't normally amp Note, but I do amp Note + amber.) This is definitely a deep violet. On my skin, there might be a touch of the other florals giving it a bit of a top note, but it's mainly violet as the main player supported by a lovely mix of grounding, deepening notes. At this stage, I once again cannot pick out one grounding note from another. 

 

Half an hour later, and my skin chemistry has spoken: This seems to want to stay a fairly pure and deep violet on me. The combination of woods, musk, and vetiver must be what's creating the soft, deep base for this perfume, but they very much allow the violet to be the star of this show. 

 

The throw on this is fairly strong. I'm not sure if it's actually stronger than the throw from my other favorite violet scents (Marie and Sybaris) or if it's just that this scent carries a little more heft to it that makes the throw feel stronger. 

 

Possible TMI update:

Spoiler

So this is one perfume that changes markedly when I'm on my period. It's still recognizable as the same scent, but the vetiver (grassy, not smoky) and other florals are more prominent. The violet is still easily detectable, but it's now one of a small group of main notes. 

 

Edited February 5, 2019 by torischroeder9
update

[cyborgutena]

I'd describe this as a sombre floral. The floral with violet is really beautiful but backed up by something dark - desolate seems correct. At least at first, the vetiver is quite a grassy one, which I think suits the florals quite well. The couple of times I've tried it, it hasn't lasted very long unfortunately. If it lasted, I think all the interesting non-florals (wood, sandalwood, amber) would come out to compete with the florals a bit more.

 

Someone said above that it reminds them a bit of Darkness, and that's what I was thinking too! Darkness has something in it that doesn't sit right with me when it develops, but Fallen is just fine so I prefer it.

[bellumed]

Even though it's not my style, this is an impressive perfume. I've never tried a vetiver that was so prominent without being too strong and masculine-musky. It fits in perfectly, a smooth blend with the violet and sandalwood. Elegant and mature, subtler than I expected. Definitely unisex.

Edited January 2, 2022 by bellumed

[Gnostril Probostril]

I wish this one would come back. Romantic Luciferian atmosphere. In my ancient sample, the violet is the dominant note. As in Faustus, it is a dark, masculine violet. A cold, rich purple aura. A black wing.