Bloodflower

Review in real-time style as this develops ~ Upon first spraying this - I'm actually impressed. Truly. It has a beautiful and creepy (yes, creepy, I'm not trying to be dramatic) vampiric, sour, rose along with an unsettling anise. Sweet, beautifully maroon/wine colored in it's floral tone, but...again, creepy. It reminds me of Elizabeth and James Nirvana Rose, but exponentially darker. It's utterly gothic. The patchouli is apparent even as it opens. There's a classic patch&rose tone in addition to all the natural spicy sweetness, off-putting softness, and metal. An hour later ~ One thing I appreciate about this perfume is that it's finally proven to me that I do actually love anise and/or licorice in perfume, despite detesting licorice candies (but I love the herb itself). If you want a licorice affair...try this. It's easily as much about licorice as it is bloodiness (*edit* until it dries). Though, the blood is truly beginning to dominate at this point. 2 hours and onward ~ I understand what people have been saying about this. Initially it seemed like the coppery, metallic sourness was underpinning the other notes and wasn't overwhelming the composition. As this continues to dry, the rose and peppery patchouli settle down and fade into the background, the anise mellows down to becomes a sweet hum beneath the blood. It's at this point where things go from creepy, to sinister. So yes, this really, *actually* smells like blood. It even gives me kind of a rolling sensation my stomach when I smell it on my skin. From a distance, it isn't too bad. And on the card it isn't as acutely disturbing...but on skin? A visceral experience. Asking my husband ~ My dude didn't smell blood in this, at all, so results might vary. He said when I requested an opinion - "Oh. Nice, sweet. That's good!" There's still enough remarkably in common with Nirvana Rose, but the ratios are flipped. There is a slight metallic, nearly bloody, peppery tone to NR, but it's merely an accent. The rose&vetiver-earthiness leads strongly in NR. Though in Bloodflower, the rose&patch are trailing while the bloody metallic-ness leads (by a significant margin). NR is one of my very, very favorite perfumes, so I feel the need to mention this. NR is an anti-hero with some baggage. Bloodflower is an outright, bloodthirsty villainous creep. It's beautiful, but it's repulsive. I don't think I've ever experienced a fragrance as divergent to my senses. 🖤Summary❤️ This is absolutely brilliant perfumery. It has a legitimate unnerving effect on me and I truly recommend trying it. I won't wouldn't wear this often enough to purchase a bottle, but I'll probably always keep a sample. In all reality, perfumes are usually not how I hope them to be, but this, I'm thrilled to say, truly delivered. I have the same feeling with this as I have watching quality horror movies. Even though it's not *me*, I'd contend that it's an arguably perfectly executed fragrance. A 10, if you will. I applaud Alexandra Carlin! 🥀 🩸🦇

I requested a sample of Bloodflower when I purchased a full bottle of Poppy Soma. If you're wondering whether I can smell the metallic, 'blood' accord, the answer is - yes, I can, absolutely. Although Bloodflower is very poorly rated here on Fragrantica, I don't find this type of scent disgusting at all - quite the opposite actually! In fact, Bloodflower reminds me very much of Juliette Has A Gun Metal Chypre - another challenging yet fantastically enjoyable 'metallic' floral. I had Metal Chypre until recently and I enjoyed it very much, so you'll have to trust me when I say that they are very similar. Now, I've just checked the list of notes for Metal Chypre and it is 99% different from Bloodflower (the only shared note between them is patchouli, so we can only presume that patchouli is responsible for the 'blood' accord). Basically the only difference between Bloodflower and Metal Chypre is in the opening, because Bloodflower is a bit weirder in the beginning, with orris, anise and licorice clashing against each other. Then, as the scent develops, it turns into Metal Chypre's watered down yet unmistakably metallic brother. I will enjoy my sample of Bloodflower till the last droplet; the only reason why I give preference to Metal Chypre over Bloodflower is because Metal Chypre is in extrait concentration and, consequentially, much, much stronger and longer lasting. P.S. As other reviewers on this page have said, Bloodflower is wrongly classified as 'oriental vanilla'. Heck no - this is a very modern Chypre with a capital C!

Bloodflower was my initial first favorite of the Parfums Quartana presentation when first smelling the entire collection and it remains a provocative, unique entry in the line, somewhat a cold-weather, sweet, slightly masculine-leaning option, like Hemlock, but very much with its own vibe. Amidst a host of notes, licorice and anise color my experience of it most strongly--not wholly, but enough that I'm generally thinking licorice and anise first before any other notes. Only after several hours does the pseudo-blood accord (that many seem despite, and others revere) become a significant aspect of the fragrance. All throughout, spicy additives of clover, patchouli, and orris help add color and depth and nuance while not taking away much from the signature players. It's a solid perfumer, like Hemlock, somewhat masculine and surely more apt for cold weather, and at $145 for 50ml, is at the lower end of the Quartana pricing (for which other perfumes are $165 or even $185). 8 out of 10

This is so intriguing! On first spray, the licorice is very strong. I'm a lover of black licorice, so I do like the smell of it. After a few minutes, the blood note begins to peak through. I admit, my first whiff of that made me a little light-headed and my stomach dropped. It smells like fresh blood from a cut or a nosebleed. However, I could only smell the blood note if I put my nose directly to my wrist and thought about blood; it didn't really project in the air. Over the next few hours, I expected the blood note to become more prominent as some of these reviews suggested. On my skin though, the scent became a sweet, syrupy strawberry with rose and plum. There was only a hint of blood left. This is so unique that I'm thinking of getting a full bottle. It's sweet with a dark edge. The sillage is great! I only used one spritz on my wrist and I could smell it wafting through the air. Definitely get a tester and try for yourself. Personally, I think this is wearable.

I absolutely love this! So Good! My new cold weather go-to!! In warm weather this is a beast!! Beautiful spice, sensual amber and deep red roses so dark they are black. In the cold it sits closer to the skin and lasts an eternity. Warm, creamy amber patchouli, with an airy breeze of floral rose. So perfect. My husband loves it on me and I have to admit I may be addicted to it. Every time I catch a whiff of myself I get a hit of dopamine... brings me peace and calm. Reading the reviews below make me wonder if we are smelling the same perfume?!?! I get no blood notes, Or maybe makes me feel lucky I have the right body chemistry for this piece of art. If you are a legit perfume lover, collector, experimenter. You NEED this.