Blackberry Lily by The 7 Virtues

Blackberry Lily might be the most difficult for me in the set. It has blackberry, yum, but also potentially artificially fruity. And it has lily in it, white floral. I don't think I need to say more to those who read my reviews regularly.

In short, I am hoping for the caramel, amber and vetiver, but I might get the lily, rose, magnolia and lily of the valley.

So how does Blackberry Lily smell like? Well, on paper I get a jammy, sweet note of blackberry and blackcurrant. It is quite juvenile. Think The Body Shop or Victoria's Secret body mist. To my surprise, I don't find the fragrance particularly floral. It is, however, bad. Really not my cup of tea. I read a review that said that the fragrance gets better when you let it marinate. I bought my discovery set second hand, so it should be at its "final stage". 

I'm not too keen on trying it on myself, but let's see how it goes.

Still sweet, but definitely more mature on skin. Note-wise, they are much more difficult to distinguish. Hmm, the scent is more sharp. More alcoholic. It is deeper, more green, but do not misunderstand, it is by no means a green, aromatic or otherwise green-leaning fragrance. Blackberry Lily is still a cloyingly sweet fruity fragrance. On skin, however, something more mature appears.

Honestly, Blackberry Lily is very difficult to describe from its scent on skin. We have moved from the The Body Shop-esque realm to that of Rituals. A more sophisticated, mature and deep take on the fragrance. I like that it has taken that turn, but it is still not a fragrance for me.

Right now, The 7 Virtues seem to be a fragrance house that isn't to my liking.

Lotus Pear by The 7 Virtues

I must admit that nothing about "Lotus Pear" is appealing to me. Lotus evokes something floral and light, whereas pear is a fruity note I'm not necessarily keen on.

Geranium, gardenia and lotus promise a floral fragrance, but I am hopeful that the orange, peach and vanilla power through! So, Lotus Pear, let's get you out of the way!

Lotus Pear is giving me Gucci Flora vibes from the get go! Think Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia. It is sweet, lightly floral and fruity. After dry down, it becomes creamy and I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised. It is, however, on the verge of being headache inducing with its designer-esque sweetness.

Lotus Pear is a very feminine fragrance, just about verging on being juvenile. I have to say that a few minutes in, I have had enough. It is just too sweet.

I am dreading trying it on skin, but let's see, something magical might happen.

On skin, Lotus Pear is a mix of Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia and Hugo Boss the Scent for Her - the peach is definitely there. However, something about Lotus Pears doesn't sit right with me. I think it will appeal to designer fragrance lovers, but it is far too sweet for me.

Lotus Pear might have potential in the spring and summer, so I might revisit it, but right now I cannot wait to get to the woodier fragrances in the set.

We just need to try Blackberry Lily first.

Santal Vanille by The 7 Virtues

I know about The 7 Virtues thanks to Anne Lauren. In fact, she might be the most @'ed person on my blog. However, the way she has been raving about Santal Vanille makes me think - how could I not try it? An avid vanilla lover, I am so glad the day has finally come. I got my hands on a small 7 Virtues discovery set. It contains Vanilla Woods, Coconut Sun, Blackberry Lily, Santal Vanille and Lotus Pear. Naturally, I will be starting off with Santal Vanille, but I am very curious about Vanilla Woods and Coconut Sun too.

So, now in my hands, how good is Santal Vanille? Both the name and the notes allude to something warm and smooth. I am imagining something sweet and creamy from the coconut milk, something warm and spicy from the cardamom, hoping for something rich and elegant from the cashmere, sandalwood, cocoa, vanilla and frankincense. Santal Vanille is, on paper, ambiguously just that, but at the same time, not at all. It is fresher than I expected. The coconut milk isn't thick and creamy, it smells like the taste of fresh coconut meat. Santal Vanille remains the same after dry down. There's a hint of vanilla and cashmere, but I do not get the spiciness from cardamom, the depth form myrrh or the thickness of sandalwood. 

I was honestly scared that Santal Vanille would be too close to my two other favourite vanillas, namely By the Fireplace and Memoirs of a Trespasser. However, it is a fresh and lighthearted take on vanilla. It might even be mostly appropriate for summer.

On skin, Santal Vanille opens more cedarwood-forward. The fresh coconutty note I got on paper isn't as prominent and the fragrance is less endearing. In all honesty, it is quite fleeting on skin. It might be, because I've tired my nose too much (I must admit that as soon as I received this discovery set, I powered through the set of Penhaligon).

Something about it is very The Body Shop-esque. I am getting some synthetic vibes, but that seems unlikely considering that The 7 Virtues are made from natural sources and essential oils.

I keep smelling my wrists to see if I like it or not and I don't know. I don't know. You know?

When it's not a loud yes, I guess it's a no. Don't get me wrong, it is a beautifully smooth vanilla fragrance, but I am not over the moon.

Days later, I have smelled the paper strip many times and unfortunately, I dislike it.

The Inimitable William Penhaligon by Penhaligon's

Carrying the name of the house, William Penhaligon has something to prove. I hope that we'll finish off with a bang!

Vetiver and warm, earthy notes. Oh I do hope William is nice. He promises a fresh opening with bergamot, potentially from cedarwood too, but the frankincense, vetiver and sandalwood invite something creamy and divine.

On paper, William Penhaligon is just that. Wow. I'm at a loss for words. He is elegantly creamy. An ever so slight note of fresh bergamot at top, but so faint. Just like Mr Sam, I cannot stop smelling it. They are very different. Mr Sam was spicy and warm, whereas William Penhaligon is smooth and creamy. I am honestly wanting them both in my collection!

What a wonderful way to finish off the portraits set.

The Blazing Mr Sam by Penhaligon's

First of, I have learned not to be too excited about the notes in Penhaligon's before trying them (*cough* Changing Constance), however, Mr Sam is promising something very nice! Hot and cold spices, patchouli and creamy cedar... I might even hope that I can try it on skin, but alas, we've been here before...

Just seeing the notes of cardamom, cinnamon, saffron and vanilla makes my mouth water.

So, Mr Sam, on paper... Yes, yes, absolutely yes! Warm and sweet. Masculine, but not far from unisex. After dry down Mr Sam... Dries down! The fragrance is less sweet and more of a spicy, dry perfume. Still very warm and ambery - I absolutely adore it!

Honestly, I cannot stop smelling it. I've been through a couple Penhaligon's fragrances now that I really dislike and my nose finally feels at ease! It is perfect for this season, the spicy cardamom and cinnamon allude to walking down cobblestone streets during Christmas. It is cold, the air is crisp and the small booths filled with Christmas delights like roasted almond fill the air with wonderful spices.

Terrible Teddy by Penhaligon's

Notes of leather and incense promise something wonderful, but I am side-eyeing the ambroxan. I have a tendency to become anosmic to it, so I hope this won't be the case.

Definitely leathery - Terrible Teddy is spicy at the opening, but I've just sampled Mr Sam and the two have a completely different note of spicy. Mr Sam is a classic, warm, spicy fragrance of cardamom and cinnamon, wheres as Terrible Teddy is a leather fragrance with the sour and spicy (also almost peppery) note of leather. I am not getting the incense to the degree that I'd like. It only smooths the leather a bit.

Have I made a mistake looking up other reviews? Maybe, because I agree with them that Terrible Teddy suddenly became a woody fir fragrance. I now find it woodsy. I wish it had more charm. It is wonderfully made, but I am not blown away. 

Much Ado About The Duke by Penhaligon's

Oh well, another rose and pepper fragrance... Let's get this over with. 

The pepper is there, but much lighter than expected. Not my cup of tea, but I thought it would be worse! However, as the fragrance dries down, I find myself exhaling stronger and stronger to get the scent out of my nose. The pepper is definitely the main accord in The Duke. Much to my dismay.

At the moment I don't get much rose, but bare in mind, I won't be testing this on skin (explained in my Changing Constance review).

I had a small break between reviewing and had to respray.

If you like pepper, The Duke is a wonderful fragrance, but as told in a prior review, I ate too much pepper as a child and now I hate it. The scent of it is just as unappealing, so unfortunately, The Duke is lost on me.

The Tragedy of Lord George by Penhaligon's

Depending on how unisex I find them, I will only be trying "the boys" from the Portrait Set on paper. Being completely run down by all the florals and finishing off with a doozy, Changing Constance, I am ready to be done with this set.

Lord George is promising something divine. Woodsy notes, brandy, tonka and amber? Sign me up! 

However, on paper, Lord George opens with a much drier and less sweet accord than I initially thought it would be. It is instead spicy, dry and woody. Quite masculine and fairly enough so that I don't feel like wearing it on skin. I will however look forward to spraying this on my partner!

It is an elegant fragrance. Even after dry down, there is a sharp alcoholic note. There's also a distinct soapy note. Imagine someone having freshly showered and who walks into a library full of old books, a leather couch in the middle of the room, and pours himself a glass of rum. All these notes amplified and liquified and put into a fragrance bottle. 

Beautiful.

Changing Constance by Penhaligon's

I am in dire need of a pick me up! We started off so well with the Portraits Set, but I had to go through three florals to get here, to a beloved Amber Vanilla!

Caramel, warm spicy, vanilla, tobacco, salty... What's not to like!

On paper, Changing Constance is giving me Lush fragrance vibes. Simple, not the best quality (sorry, that's the experience I had) and quite frankly, cheap. Constance, why are you doing this to me! We were supposed to finish off big! 

Well, there's nothing else to do than try it on skin. 

From the whole set, I was looking forward to Changing Constance the most, but I am still reminiscing about Yasmine, which was a far more elegant take on cardamom. Constance is weirdly composed, monotonous, linear, boring. Just a sweet blob on the skin. I am so confused and struggling to describe it.

Where's the caramel? The saltiness? The warm spicy notes? To me, this is as monotone as was Grand Soir, Absolute Aphrodisiac and Angel's Share (if I remember correctly on the latter). 

And I stand by my Lush remark. 

I'll give it a minute and reapply.

Nothing's changed. What a snooze.

This could be a great layering fragrance though - it is warm and sweet, perfect base for other fragrances that need some depth or sweetness, but alone? It just doesn't do it for me. I need more nuance in a fragrance, especially the ambery and gourmand kind.

Oh well! The boys are up for testing now, which one should I start with? 

Heartless Helen by Penhaligon's

Second to last of all the more feminine scents in the set. I know Constance is going to be more up my alley, so I have a "let's get Helen out of the way" approach.

Helen is a white floral and tuberose scent, so my hopes aren't high. 

Oh yeah, this is not me at all... I am dreading trying this on my skin! Peppery tuberose, two of my usual dislikes. The more it dries down on paper, the worse it gets - it is creeping close to smelling like sticking your nose into a pepper grinder with freshly ground pepper. Fun fact, I loved pepper as a kid and put it on everything (almost put it on my marmalade), but one day I've had enough and I have hated pepper in food ever since. This is absolutely repulsive to me.

I am honestly dreading putting this on skin, and you what? Life's too short. I'm not gonna do it.

The Coveted Duchess Rose by Penhaligon's

Y'all know how I feel about rose scents... Alas, it is in the set and I will give it a fair chance.

From the first spray, this is giving me Chloé vibes - pure and clean florals, however, a little more mature and a little soapy. Yet again, this is more of a spring scent than for autumn. Though I dislike florals, I have to say Duchess Rose is more inviting to try on my skin than Lady Blanche was.

On skin, Duchess Rose has the same Chloé-esque quality to its florals. Somewhat soapy too. It is quite light and airy for a rose scent. It is in fact a fine fragrance, light, feminine and soft. 

Duchess Rose is so light that I reapplied generously just after it dried down. Even though I was generous to begin with!

In all honesty, the fragrance is barely there. Very personal and only those passing you by or standing next to you, would be able to smell it.

I usually wear a fragrance for some hours and write my final take then, but I completely forgot. Why? Because Duchess Rose is so faint and lasts only a few hours.

I can only smell her close to skin.

What I do smell is a pleasant, light take on a classic rose.

The Revenge of Lady Blanche by Penhaligon's

Oh how I love that I finally have the energy to try and to review new fragrances. I am, however, selective in which order I am discovering the set of Portraits from Penhaligon's - I need easily likeable fragrances to get into the swing of things.

Lady Blanche sounds just as amazing as Yasmine - a spicy, floral and woody scent. Perfect in Autumn!

But oh how different the two are! Lady Blanche is a powdery and light fragrance, whereas Yasmine was spicy, deep and smokey.

I'm sorry Penhaligon's, but in what world is Lady Blanche a spicy fragrance? This reminds me so much of Infusion d'Iris by Prada. Both are elegant, powdery, feminine and floral. Lady Blanche has in comparison to Infusion d'Iris a notable note of hyacinth.

The one who wrote the pamphlet in the set needs to revise it 👀

Lady Blanche is definitely for spring and maybe summer, but not my cup of tea for autumn.

On skin, the hyacinth is very much noticeable. When spraying myself with Lady Blanche, I made a note to myself that she and Infusion d'Iris are identical, but when smelling my wrist, I distinguish the hyacinth as being the sole noticeable note. It is so strong that I find Lady Blanche to be a purely hyacinth fragrance. The similarity to Infusion d'Iris is still there, but between those two scent experiences is another one too. A terrible one.

Something really synthetic and plastic like. It might just be my dislike of anything floral, especially hyacinth.

This is the type of fragrance that I struggle to write a review of from a full day's wear. 

I think I've gotten the jist of it - a green scent of a predominantly hyacinth note, floral of course, powdery and moderately sweet. 

That's it, you won't get more out of me.

Maybe just a last remark that I tried to wash it off and it ain't budging, to my dismay.

The Bewitching Yasmine by Penhaligon's

From the first spray, I am getting MFK-esque vibes. Think Oud Satin Mood. 

Rich, deep, spicy. Not for the faint of heart!

This is the perfect season to give The Bewitching Yasmine a go - an oudy, spicy fragrance with just the right amount of sweetness, so it doesn't become too cloying.

The fragrance reminds me so much of a scent I have already tried and reviewed, but I cannot remember which. I still keep thinking of Oud Satin Mood from MFK, but Yasmine is without any notes of rose.

The cardamom is at the forefront and is absolutely delicious, I get smokiness from the incense and just the right amount of creaminess and note of gourmand with the vanilla. I cannot wait to try this on my skin!

Beautiful, but like Oud Satin Mood, I feel overpowered by this kind of scent. I absolutely adore Woody Vanillas, I feel so empowered when wearing By the Fireplace or Memoirs of a Trespasser, but something about Yasmine is heavy, and maybe too much so.

After the initial dry down, she reminds me of Sweetly Known by Kerosene. It's the same, gorgeous cardamom, just lighter. Kerosene does NOT play when it comes to the performance of their fragrances.

After complete oxidation, Yasmine is a wonderfully soft cardamom scent. Not as strong and boozy as Sweetly Known. And not as strong as previously presumed by the first sprays. Gone is the MFK impression. It is, however, a 'would like to have' and neither a need or want to have. Were it to be in my collection, I would definitely wear it in autumn and winter, but I find it to have a poor projection for the price tag. The longevity is good, I could smell it, close to skin, six hours later.

Yasmine is really nice and cozy, I would definitely wear it again, but will satiate my appetite for Woody Vanillas with BTF an MOAT. Though a good sale would have me thinking of it...