To a Wreath of Snow

[Belladonnastrap]

Morning rising in mourning grey: tobacco flower, white oud, lavender bud, and ambergris accord.

[doomsday_disco]

This is gorgeous. It smells like Hag Grey Hair Gloss and The Air and the Ether had a baby. It features the same sophisticated white tobacco note from scents like A Vision of the Courtesan, Fake News, Hag Grey, Pediophobia, and Zorya P, which remains the star of the show on me throughout wear. I love the combination of this tobacco with the lavender. The white oudh in this isn't problematic at all (I never got an indolic quality from it), and the ambergris, while understated, becomes a little more noticeable later in the day.

 

I'm so glad I blind bottled this. This is one of my favorite scents from the Yule update for sure.  

[torischroeder9]

In the decant: tobacco, lavender, and ambergris. 

 

On my skin:

 

Wet, it's predominantly tobacco flower and lavender. As it dries, there is a phase where the ambergris becomes more prominent, but it doesn't last long and fades back again within several minutes. Eventually, however, it creeps back out to be a skin-close note in the scent, whose throw is still dominated by tobacco flower and lavender. I never do get detectable oud, which is somewhat unusual for me, but I also tend to amp tobacco in all its forms, so it could well be that I'm missing the oud for that. 

 

If the notes of this call to you, I think this is likely to be a winner in its delivery. 

[Missanneshirleyofgg]

 

 

So, this white tobacco flower....

 

I am covered in Pediophobia, Zorya P, Vision of a Courtesan, Hag Grey HG and To a Wreath of Snow.

 

All have the white tobacco. All throw like no bodies business, so not slather! Slatherer, no Slathering! Thoughts:

 

When I smell Zorya P then transition To a Wreath, I smell only a minty like scent that I attribute to the lavender and white oud. It is pretty, but, if I am not thinking of the fragrance and turn my head, I smell camphor. I actually went and googled this and I guess alot of lavender essential oils do contain camphor. It presents as a chilly note. 

 

When I contrast A Vision with To a Wreath, I pick up all that rice milk from Vision. For Wreath soft lavender becomes dominant. A vision is so pretty, borderlining on gourmand, but never veering into foodie. Wreath may share the white tobacco, but is very distinct from this one in blend. You could definitely have both in your collection. 

 

When I contrast Pediophobia with To a Wreath, I feel like I am smelling the contrast between a warmer white tobacco blend with a colder one. Interesting since both are yules. Pediophobia reminds me the most of Zorya P. The vanillas and white tobacco, wow! To a Wreath of Snow is the chillier “cousin”. Definitely could have both in your collection. One presents as more year round. I wonder though.... that camphor I pick up in Wreath might make it a lovely Autumn fragrance for when Hotlanta is sweltering! 

 

Hag Grey, how I love thee. The ambergris, Nom. So beautiful. The bleached woods immediately surface to distinguish the fragrance as distinct from To a Wreath. These would pair so well together! I mean, wow. The bleached woods is melding with the Lavender and white oud in the prettiest way possible. If you have Hag Grey you need Wreath!

 

OK, so my point was to decide if someone needed every white tobacco flower blend.  While Hag Grey presents as a unique blend with lovely layering possibilities To a Wreath of Snow, and A Vision as a slightly gourmand atmospheric,  finding that Pediophobia as a more autumnal weather contrast, I think Zorya P is not dissimilar. If Zorya P nails it for you, you might not need To a Wreath of Snow. If, however you have been curious about Zorya P and want to try a yule like slant, Wreath is perfect. If You have Hag Grey you desperately need To A Wreath of Snow. 

 

Also, keep in mind I never found this to be a herbal lavender. Its a soft pillowy lavender which on my skin had a slight camphor leaning which I felt added a cooling wintery chill to the blend. 

 

 

[feyofthefellwood]

This definitely is that same gorgeous tobacco of A Vision of the Courtesan and Zorya P (with this reminding me the most of A Vision). On my skin, the white tobacco is the dominant note, sweet, creamy, and somehow smelling lightly spiced. The lavender gives it a chilly edge but is otherwise more sweet than herbal, and takes second stage to the tobacco. The ambergris comes out more over time and gives the overall scent more texture, if that makes sense (I always think of ambergris as being sort of fuzzy?). I don't detect the oud at all, although I know it must be doing something, maybe adding to the strength of the tobacco note. 

 

If you love or missed out on A Vision of the Courtesan and other white tobacco/tobacco flower blends, I hope you get to try this! It's absolutely gorgeous and the stand out of this year's Yules for me so far. 

[lorizav]

This. Is. So. Lovely.

My favorite of the Winter scents.  Now the reviews will have me looking for Hag Grey hair gloss.

[puellacaerulea]

Echoing the love this one's getting. Tobacco flower stays the dominant note on me throughout -- white floral with a bit of pipe tobacco undertone. It's backed beautifully by the lavender and ambergris, which give it a chilly and fuzzy quality that take it into extra-wintry territory. The oud's hard to detect. The only thing holding me back from a full bottle is that my skin eats up the lavender, leaving me with primarily tobacco flower when the interplay between the lavender and tobacco flower is what really takes this scent over the top. Still, it's such a good tobacco flower scent that I might get a full bottle anyway.

[groovyrooby]

Beautiful! This comes off as a lovely tobacco that has already aged nicely!

 

Starts off with an instant of gorgeous cold minty wood. Like peppermint that makes your breath so cold you can see it. But right off the bat that sweet tobacco starts pulling it down. Refreshing + gravity at the same time. Gradually the balance shifted to pretty much 100% tangy, chewy, sweet vanilla & fruity tobacco with just a hint of that chill, probably from the lavender. Really good throw. Husband even commented how nice it smelled!

 

We've got a winner. Going big with this one.

[Laughing Seagull]

This is beautiful.

 

I wasn't impressed with it in the vial (I smelled lavender and not much else), but putting it on my skin seems to "activate" it.  Once it's warmed up on my skin, it reminds me of a professor I used to occasionally pass by when I was in college.  I never took any of his classes, but he would stand around outside smoking a pipe with really good smelling tobacco in it.  It has a sweet, vanilla-like quality.

 

Overall this is a lot sweeter than I had anticipated.  This is a good thing.  It keeps the tobacco flower from going off the rails as it so often does.  In fact, it strikes me as surprisingly edible-smelling - were it not for the tobacco, I might wonder if I accidentally got a decant of lavender and white chocolate madelines.

 

I want to wallow in a bathtub full of it.

[Something_Diabolical]

Wow this is an interesting one. Normally it wouldn't be something I'd choose based on the notes since I'm not familiar with ambergris and lavender and oud are usually not something I look for. The reviews here got me interested in it and I wanted to try it yet I had no idea what to expect. 

 

From the bottle it smells mostly of fresh lavender with something soft and slightly sweet underneath. The lavender doesn't last long when I put it on my skin. While drying it becomes softer, sweeter and slightly vanillic yet not smelling like actual vanilla if that makes any sense. While I can not smell the lavender anymore I think it still adds a bit of freshness makes the blend a little bit colder. 

I tried one other scent with oud and I wasn't impressed by it. Here it is a non stanky one and I can not detect it at all. I have a few scents on my arms now and To a wreath is the strongest of them while still being delicate. 

 

It's a really pretty scent yet so unusual. 

 

Edit: I ended up swapping this one because after longer wearing time the tobacco flower ended up overpowering the other notes on my skin. 

Edited April 17, 2021 by Something_Diabolical

[freyasfae]

This is fruity sweet on me - I am not really sure why. If I move in closer (once dried) and sniff deeply, I get a well-blended floral-ish perfume. I don't pick up distinct notes (and I am pretty keen on BPAL's lavendar notes). I think this just may be a skin mismatch for me based on other reviews?

[Leopard403]

It’s all lavender, a softer TKO. I’m sad to miss that tobacco flower.

[Madame Mew]

This is so pretty! The husband loved it too, said it’s up there with the million I’ve had him sniff. I totally agree with the similarities drawn to Vision but I like this more but can’t put a finger on why! It’s exactly what I was looking for. I don’t think I can necessarily pick out certain notes besides the tobacco flower. It’s somewhat sweet, not gourmand though. It’s even more beautiful after a little time to warm on the skin. Yay! 

[wordortwo]

A beautiful multi-faceted opening drying down to simple sweetness.

 

In the bottle and wet on the skin, a fresh and sharp lavender hovers above a creamy, chewy, nutty scent. As it begins to dry, I smell a rich, slightly spicy floral; I don't know what tobacco flower smells like but I think this is it, as it has that same golden syrup edge as good tobacco. The overall effect is a bit melancholy but bright.

 

As it dries down on my skin, the pieces that make it wonderfully complex fall away -- no more nuttiness, spiciness, or lavender. It becomes a sweet and creamy skin-close scent. As someone above said, it is like sweet vanilla without being exactly vanilla. In this phase, it sometimes smells like rubber or plastic to me. (I should note that, on my skin, many cold or "white" scents sometimes smell a bit like plastic and all fragrances sweeten much more than expected.)

 

I have tried this fragrance several times over the past month and half and I have yet to find it particularly evocative or interesting after the lavender fades away. However, as time has passed, it does seem the lavender is lasting longer, so I am curious to see how it changes.

 

Edited March 10, 2021 by wordortwo

[hhelix]

This is very pretty. I can understand what all the fuss is about. The lavender gives a shout out, bright and fruity, in the opening. The middle phase is a sophisticated fuzzy gourmand perfume, and the late dry down turns vanilla plastic doll’s head, in a good way. This will probably age beautifully. Full bottle contender.

[theseagrows]

i get mostly tobacco flower, ambergris and lavender and do not sense any oud, though bpal's white oud is one i can wear, thankfully. i do love hag grey and there are definitely similarities here. in a nutshell, this smells like hag grey with lavender to me. while i like lavender, it's not an absolute favorite note and now i am wondering about the other notes combined with other florals and how that would be, hmm. anyway i digress...this is really pretty and the ambergris + tobacco combo is just lovely.

Edited May 2, 2021 by theseagrows

[Minh Scent]

Bought a full bottle of this after reading the reviews (thank you everyone who writes and posts!) and it is the classic I hoped it would be.  I like this so much more than Zorya P (probably because it is stronger on my skin).  The lavender is so comforting, but I would not call this a lavender-centric perfume.  I have been loving Beth's ambergris accord (which I believe is the same in Socrates).  The dry-down has a distinctive vanilla to my nose, which is not listed, so perhaps it is the "white" in oud?  I love indolic  oud, but this is not it, so if you were hesitant because of that note- no worries!  This goes perfectly with Hag Grey.

 

The name is perfect...because I get a snow vibe...hmm...Snow White, did you hang this wreath up yourself?

[zankoku_zen]

Tobacco flower,  snow and a whiff of lavender. Unfortunately this doesn't have a ton of throw on me, which makes me super sad because this scent is gorgeous.

[LadyLuckless]

Lately I’ve been collecting scents rumoured to be in the “Zorya P” family and this is a lovely ambergris cousin, closely related to A Vision of the Courtesan. It’s got the same vanilla-tobacco going on but with a touch of lavender and a breath of something almost fruity and almost minty? A lot of shifting, pearlescent “almosts”, like mother of pearl. It’s very hazy, very grey in a beautiful way. A lot of throw on me, I think I very slightly amp tobacco.

 

Also, Bowie the BPAL-loving labradoodle adores it 😁 

Edited April 16, 2021 by LadyLuckless

[storme]

Wet: lavender with warm, slightly smoky florals and resin in the background.
Dry: Yum! I expected this to be more lavender-centric somehow, but it's a gorgeous sophisticated floral/resin blend. Very very pretty indeed. I can't stop sniffing my wrist!

[roseus]

I'm definitely seeing the comparisons to Hag Grey, Zorya P, and Pediophobia. But if I had to pick one I'd say it is most like Hag Grey, but it definitely has some differences. There's that warmish ambergris with tobacco flower instead of white tobacco, but it has a similar effect. The lavender is present but so well melded with the other notes. I can't pick out the white oud but I'm sure it's contributing to the depth. It's a rich, yet floaty scent. Almost vanillic. Great throw. 

[Lapis]

This is as close to Hag Grey as I've found, and I've been looking; I've been on a years long grey/ambergris scent hunt.

I'm not a lover of lavender but here I don't get it, or it's the minty note when wet.
Dry on me it reads super close to Hag Grey, and makes me happy.

[Brianna Gemini]

Air and the Ether.  Very very similar both to sniff & on.   When I 1st opened  Wreath of Snow I instantly recalled Air & Ether, but for the life of me couldn't remember the actual name of it. Hopped on here to see if anyone else sniffed the same, bless you all I was so happy to see it A&E mentioned was driving me crazy.  Anyway, I can see why wreath is so popular.  I can't do better than others above.  I can only say if you like AIR &. ETHER grab this one.  

[Rayleigh]

To a Wreath of Snow starts out sharp, with little kitten teeth made of lavender and mint. The tobacco flower, a note I particularly like, is recognizable from A Vision of the Courtesan. The sharpness recedes as the ambergris warms up. The comparisons to A Vision are apt, though this is less spicy/creamy and more icy from the minty lavender. They are definitely distinct scents, but they share a family.

 

In this class of scents, my preference is still for Zorya Pulonochnaya and A Vision of the Courtesan, but this is a welcome addition. I expect it will grow on me in cooler months and as the ambergris matures.

 

ETA: I was right. This grew on me a lot. It smells hazy and dreamy, with the minty lavender giving it a chilly effect and the ambergris warming it. It's strikingly beautiful.

Edited December 12, 2021 by Rayleigh

[aphrodisms]

Well-blended perfume-y lavender with some oud making things more complex (but also a bit foreboding).