The Bitter Moon

[Marion Georgi]

Thisis quite different from what I expected, although given the list of notes I couldn't wait to see what it would be like. On me it smells like a musky grapefruit, which is fortunate, since I love grapefruit blends, although I don't see it as a listed note. The sage and lavender give it a crisp undertone, but not too medicinal or herbally smelling. I don't detect any vetiver, just maybe a hint of darkness and depth. On me, it is not overall floral, with sweet hints of fruity blackberry, the lovely white grapefruit smell (which is probably the poppy talking). It's wonderfully blended, and I wished I had gotten two bottles. Very unique lunar offering! It is somber, sophisticated and lovely.

This is an interesting blend because even though there are a lot of flowers in this, there is an underlying bitterness that seems to stem from the blackberry. The blackberry seems a bit earthy as if you were to smell the rest of the plant and the berry itself seems bitter from being unripe. I'm thinking that the earthiness is also coming from the sage and the lavender because it has a bit of an herbal edge. I've been craving a berry scent lately that isn't so sweet and cloying and had hoped for just a hint of rose and I think that I've found it in Bitter Moon. This is beauty, but with a bitter edge.

the peony adds the perfect touch...delicate; barely there and combined with the blackberry that is astonishingly mouth watering and ripe...nothing phony or off...what an accomplishment by the lovely miss elizabeth...i can only echo the sentiments that i *wish* i snagged an extra bottle of this one...it is that fabulous folks...

this isn't as bitter as i expected from previous reviews, it is slightly sweet even, but it does make my mouth gleep. it is almost entirely blackberry, but i get definite flashes of peony, and the blue hibiscus. i get no vetiver nor sage, it does retain that slightly watery feel from the lotus. on me this is fresh, slightly floral w/ alot of fruit. but the fruit isn't a sticky fully ripened fruit. it is only beginning it's bid at maturity. and in that i get a fresh feel from this scent. it is something i am glad i got more then one bottle of as i can actually see me wearing this quite often even tho fruity florals do not tend to be my grab for again and again scents.

After 40 minutes: Bitter Moon is a bit of a morpher, starting out as sweet blackberry and finishing up as an absolutely stunning soft floral, with the final drydown revealing the soft notes of wild roses, tonka, and the barest hint of vetiver to ground this very dignified and sophisticated blend. I am so glad I took a chance and ordered two bottles of this. Even though it is nothing like I expected, Bitter Moon is immediately a favorite and one I shall be stalking for more more bottles. My sincere condolences for those who did not order. This one is a real gem.

wow - this smells weird in the bottle - very bitter to my nose, and just a little "off", like citrus peel that's been sitting around. on my skin, it's much better, tho still quite odd. it's like a medicine made from grapefruit peel and herbs. - i quite like it! very unusual, dark, and evocative - it's rather woody, like an old wooden cabinet that's been polished with grapefruit oil. after a bit, the blackberry comes out, and i see that this is the note i've been trying to identify. a morpher, this one - now it's mostly blackberry within a cloud of soft poppy. like this a lot - after shying away from some too-sweet scents lately, i really appreciate bitter moon's bitterness!

Not as "bitter" as I expected, but very nice! The blackberry note seems to dominate, but it's oddly not an overall fruity scent. It's more of a fresh, earthen, hippy blackberry scent. I can detect the hibiscus and rose as the primary undertones. What a fantastic combination of scents! I can't really detect the sage or the vetiver at all, thank goodness for me. It doesn't have a ton of throw, but definitely has a "bite" to its bark. I like this very much, my only complaint is that is a greasier type oil, and stays pretty slick on my skin. Lovely just the same!

I get a sharp but juicy blackberry note, with a hint of the poppy for depth and the lotus for a little sweetness (which might be some of the tonka too - I can't tell, but I definitely pick up the lotus). There's a little sage floating around there - wow, that makes for such an interesting mix - and I'm not really picking up peony, lavender or vetiver individually. But it's probably because all these notes blend together so nicely.

It's bitter in a grapefruit sort of way, but really lovely, and not like any other BPAL blend I've ever tried. I had a feeling Beth would do wonderful, surprising things with this one, and I was right. A keeper for sure.

Bitter Moon had a nasty wet phase on my skin. The sage (or maybe it was the blue hibiscus, since that's the only other one I haven't smelled before) came out smelling exactly like the Vomit flavor in Berty Bots Every Flavor Beans.

But I didn't give up! Not only because the reviews on this thread are positively glowing, but also beacuse I BELIEVE in the Lab. They've never left me smelling like vomit flavored jelly beans for long.

Now it's turned into a stunning floral, with lovely blackberries as well. Other scents, like Baneberry or Bewitched, have stronger, sweeter berries than this one, but I'm so happy with how Bitter Moon turned out in the end.

Wet, it smells a little sweet and herby. On me, it changes from that generic sweet herbiness to something... maybe a little fruity? I don't know why but I get pear and apricot, those dried ones that taste great if you eat a few and then get sorta bland and squooshy. Ya know, those flat ones. Underneath it all there are very subtle florals. Hm. On me, this is definitely NOT what I expected! Heh. Although... for me, it's quite apropos for me, since I am always bitter in the realm of love!

I haven't been getting the last few moons because they seem very floral, and while I can like florals there's not point in my wearing them because they vanish instantly on me. They are nice in the locket sometimes but I am trying not to hoard bottles I won't use!

This however is so nice in a locket that it might be worth a bottle, just for that purpose. On my skin, it is beautiful as well at first -- light and fruity, smoky sage around the edges, and then it becomes grapefruit, of all things. It reminds me a Cheshire Cat a little at that stage, but with a hint of sage. I don't know where the illusion of grapefruit is coming from.

In the locket however it stays true to the fresh, exhilarating scent that I smell in the imp. It is not terribly floral. There's more of a fresh, clean fruity scent, a smoky herb and a tang of bitterness that I can almost taste. The floral notes take a back seat, the vetiver is nowhere to be seen and I think the tonka ends an even sweetness to it.

While it's gone from my skin in 15 minutes, this lasts in the locket and I will seriously consider tracking down a bottle just for the purpose. It feels more like a spring/summer blend to me anyway, so it's OK if I have to wait a little before I get more!

Mmm...this is such a nice and clean scent. Like Ah Xia, I get grapefruit, and I was surprised when I checked the notes and didn't see it listed. Definitely a fruity bitterness underneath the herbal notes. It's very light, with barely any throw. I can smell it on my wrist from about three inches away.

I get a very smooth fruity herbal scent from this. It's not a big morpher, and the florals and vetiver behave themselves remarkably. It smells complex and actually a little bit sweet, although it might be said to have a bitter edge to it. It's beautiful, and I'm so glad that I got myself a bottle of this in addition to the one I got for my decant circle.

Sour and tart, if not quite bitter...Bitter Moon is a much lighter scent than I would have expected on my skin - the poppy behaves (it often takes over with my chemistry, which was my biggest fear in this blend).

I get a sort of bitter fruity musk, with a floral edge, something very lush, but also sort of chilled - it is almost like Fruit Moon with a shot of vodka, although it doesn't smell at all alcoholic - but it has that sort of cutting aspect that liquor can give a mixer. I am making sense to myself...if not to anyone else!

Additional Comments: This one is quite intriguing. I think it's the combination of blackberry, vetiver and sage that's giving it the bitter heart. Rose, generally, amps way up on me but I can't even detect it here and I can usually pick out lavender and peony but not in this. I'm not quite as familiar with the other notes so I'm not sure how they fit into the whole. All in all, it certainly lives up to its name. I'm quite impressed by the blend but it's just not something I'd wear.

Wet: The herbal scent comes out first, and remains for about ten minutes. After that the blackberry comes out - it fits the name of the blend well, for it isn't an overly sweet blackberry. The other scents all combine to give the blackberry a herbal background.

This is definitely a unique lunacy scent! It smells on my skin of tart blackberries with a hint of smokiness (opium, I presume) and sage. I love opium blends, so this one makes me quite happy. This one doesn't morph too much on my skin, it pretty much stays this tart, smoky berry scent. It lasts for a reasonably long time, which is odd for berry-ish scents, but hey, I'm not complaining!

What was supposed to be a relaxing weekend, turned into a technological nightmare. Apple sent me an invitation to upgrade my Mac operating system. I pushed the button, and immediately wished that I hadn\u2019t- then spent the entire weekend tearing my hair out, as the download jammed, blocking a return to my home screen. Finally, I managed to reinstall the previous operating system- without wiping my entire hard drive- and I\u2019m now back at my desk, typing away. So apologies for the lack of a newsletter yesterday morning. Taking Nancy Mitford\u2019s \u2018Friday to Monday\u2019 into account, hopefully, you\u2019ll let me get away with it.

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