Black Violet Perfumes

Not pictured: Candy.  Because I ate it.

I'm pretty sure I'd heard about Black Violet Perfume Vault & Bathory before the big anniversary sale back at the end of September.  I hadn't even been planning on making an order.  Then I heard about the sale, and the gift with purchases and.... I sort of tripped and fell on the *Submit Order* button?  Yeah, I don't buy that excuse either.  Moving right along then.  My haul included a Detangling Mist, a five pack of perfume samples, a full size Body Butter, and my samples were the Celebration mini, a lotion sample, and the Shiro GWP.  But Mel, you're probably saying, You said you got a five pack of perfumes and there's six in that picture.  That's because I happened to get a swap with Ringmaster in it.  

First up, perfume oils.  I was surprised at just how big the sample vials were.  Of course I can't remember the exact size and I can't check since the shop is closed right now, so I'll just show you what I mean:

BV sample on the left vs full sized sixteen92 5.5ml on the right

Affogato

Buttery vanilla drowned in espresso, burnt sugar & a drizzle of amaretto liqueur

In the bottle:  Mmm COFFEE.  

On my skin: This smells like coffee ice cream, or a very strong Caramel Macchiato with extra caramel on top.  It's delicious.  The only bad thing is, like most gourmand scents, doesn't last long on me.

That and it makes me want coffee. I may have a slight caffeine problem. It's totally normal to drink 5 cups a day.

Wear Time: Two and a half hours.

Sillage: Moderate.  I'm surrounded by a cloud of  caffeinated goodness.  Mmmmmm.  

Celebration

Our celebratory champagne opens with a garnet bouquet of pomegranate, aromatic ripeness of boysenberry, rounded out with a garnish of cracked pink peppercorn for a playful finish.

In the bottle: Fizzy citrus

On my skin:

Ah ha ha!  

This smells fizzy and citrusy with a hint of juicy berry.  I don't know if I'm smelling the pink peppercorn, because I've never really smelled it by itself.  This perfume is luscious and delicious and reminds me a lot of an Australian Sparkling Wine I had years ago that I loved.  I wasted an hour trying to find it because of course I don't remember the name, just the bottle was all black with a round tan colored label.

Sillage:  Moderate.  This has very good throw without being overwhelming.  I can smell this on my wrist even with my hands at my sides.

Wear Time: Two hours.


Lady Grey

Black tea leaves framed by a smooth, smokey undertone of vetiver with a bright bloom of bergamot essential oil swirled in orange and lemon.  Rounded out in a bold mix of amber, cedarwood, dark musk with hints of sandalwood and jasmine.

In the bottle:  citrus, flowers, with... a bit of wood? hiding underneath

On my skin:  I get cedar, a little citrus, and a bare hint of floral before a sharper wood scent emerges and takes over.  It swiftly turns smokey, reminding me of woodfires and ashes.   If I get up close I can smell what I think is the citrus trying to fight it's way back out.   After about 20 minutes, the ash starts to wane, and I think the jasmine is starting to emerge.  After 30 minutes (now that I finally bothered to look up the scent notes I'm guessing that the ash I smell is vetiver) the vetiver has mostly gone, I'm left with wood and a very very faint hint of citrus.

Wear Time: An hour and 15 minutes.

Sillage: Starts out Moderate then dries down to stick close to the wrist.  After about an hour, I can't really smell this unless I'm up close.

Paper Dolls

A vintage lactonic with comforting rice milk, pure white musk, sweet cream, and the lightly powdered musk of her skin.

In the bottle: Very faint. I can barely smell milk.

On my skin: Faint and delicate. This sweet, milky, and creamy. This perfume conjures the image of a delicate, fainting maiden. I could picture this on the wrist of that character Winona Ryder played in The Age of Innocence who was so utterly boring I can't even remember her name and don't care enough to look up. I can't decide if I like it. Actually, I do like it, I'm just not certain it's something I'd wear often.

Wear Time: Two hours

Sillage: Light. I can't smell this unless my hands are up by my face.


Ringmaster

Ladies and gentlemen I present to you... spun sugar clouds of fluff with a sharp whip of Russian leather under the Big Top.

In the bottle: Very sweet.

On my skin: Light, fluffy and sweet, this smells just like cotton candy.   I never did get any of the leather lying underneath.  Towards the end, I got a faint hint of something, but it was more clean skin or musky than leather.  Still I liked it a lot.

Wear Time: Hung around for about two and a half hours.  I could smell a very faint trace of it on my wrists for another hour.

Sillage:  Moderate.  Very nice range without being overpowering.


Steel Petals

Wild violets, hummingbird nectar of sugar water & an aromatic mist of metal slowly rising into the crisp air.  Modern with extra pep- unlike your grandmother's signature perfume.

In the bottle: Sharply floral... if that makes sense.

On my skin: Wow. Modern with extra pep- unlike your grandmother's signature perfume.  

:)

This smells exactly like a perfume my grandmother wore.  It's uncanny.  I can close my eyes and see her bottles of perfume lined up on the shelf in her Mamie Pink & Black Tiled bathroom. I wish I could remember its name.  When I wear this, I smell a powdery floral with a sharp, alcohol like note to it.  I actually don't have a problem with the powdery violets... it's the metal turning into alcohol that turns me off from this.  Pity.

Sillage: Moderate verging on strong. This is not a shy scent.

Wear Time: This was still going strong for about three hours... and then I fell asleep.  When I woke up the next morning, I could smell very faint traces of it on my wrist.


Valley of the Temples

Resinous amber, Asian oud wood, calming cedarwood, exotic ambrette seed, fresh rosemary, dark olibanum, patchouli, black musk, orchid and jasmine petals.

In the bottle: Smells citrusy and floral

On my skin:  This reminds me of Lady Grey without the vetiver adding an ashy note.  I smell warm woods and the amber, and I think a little rosemary is hiding under all that too.  I don't know why I was smelling citrus in the bottle, but neither whatever that was nor the florals showed up on my skin.  For me, this was a woody-musky oriental perfume,  So yes, I love it.  I could wear this everyday.

Sillage: Just south of Moderate.  It has a light throw, but I need to get up close to tell exactly what I'm smelling.

Wear Time: About two hours and 15 minutes.


Body Butter

NSFW

I ordered a full size of the Body Butter in Marrakesh because it sounded fabulous, and the perfume oil was sold out.  Just listen:

The market is bustling with energy, colorful spices, and the warmth of sandalwood.  Toss some carnations in your metal cart before the sun sets over the dunes with the promises of sensual musk.

Yeah, that's basically all my favorite non floral scents.  I couldn't pass it up.  My only regret in blind buying it, is that I didn't grab a full size.  This smells heavenly. It's like spiced cream or a rice pudding made with almond milk that's rich and sweet and perfectly spiced. I really hope there's some of the perfume oil left when she reopens because I need a full size of this.

As for the lotion itself, it's formula is so luxurious: thick,  rich, creamy, and moisturizing yet it absorbs quickly without feeling greasy.  It's wonderful as a body lotion especially at this time of year when my back and legs get so dry I could write my name on my skin with my fingernail.

Leilani was also generous enough to give me a sample scented with Affogato, and it comes out very true to the perfume oil.  I just thought I'd add that in because sometimes, the chemical process that makes a fabulous product can be hard on scents.  I haven't come across a product where, for example, a lotion's scent is completely different from the raw perfume oil used to scent it.  I have had cases where it amplifies certain notes or it catches a snapshot of the wet stage.  Not that I'm complaining.  It's just The More You Know.


Snow White Tea Detangler Mist

It's gonna take me forever to use these up.  Not that I'm complaining.

Chilled white tea kissed by juicy, red apples.

As usual, I don't smell any apples when there's apples in a scent.  What I do smell is a light, clean tea scent.  It's lovely, and so is the detangling formula.  The stuff I was previously using was heavy and greasy and I ended up using it by spritzing 5 or 6 pumps into a bottle of water and spritzing that onto my hair.  Black Violet's formula works well enough to allow me to work the snarls out of my hair but it's light enough that I don't want to wipe my fingers on my shirt every time I touch my curls.  



Shiro Everything Counts Eyeshadow

I don't know what I was expecting, but it's Shiro so I knew it would be good.  This is a beautiful, peach shadow with a golden shimmer.  This was such a nice shadow to work with.  It goes on buttery smooth and looks great, by itself or I like it a lot paired with Badger.

l to r over Bare Skin, Darling Girl Glitter Glue, and NYX HD Primer

I loved everything I got in this haul (well except for Steal Petals), but I think my favorites are the Detangler Mist and the Marrakesh Body Butter.  I still hate Wash & Detangle day, but at least my hair smells nice now, so I got that going for me.  

~M

Black Violet's currently on hiatus until Nov 10th at 10pm.  When Leilani does open back up, you can find her shop here.