Hiram Green - Moon Bloom (perfume review)

Happy New Year! Thanks for reading my first official post of 2015!  *hugs*

Not too long before Christmas Clint informed me that he needed ideas for one last Christmas gift, as the list I had provided wasn't quite enough to split between him and the family Secret Santa. So I put 2 more things on my list - the 5ml travel atomizer of Moon Bloom and an equally priced scarf. I was kind of hoping for the Moon Bloom as I have read countless lovely reviews for it - but instead I got the best of both worlds, the scarf (which I love increasingly by the day) and a sample of Hiram Green's first creation.

sample purchased from Indigo Perfumery

Moon Bloom is an all natural eau de parfum and it is lovely. On me, the first sniffs are lush, green, creamy and nutty - channeling the smooth aura of coconut without the sweetness. After the initial wave passes, the white florals come out to play. The sharpness that I commonly associate with florals emerges first, and is then balanced by pearly soapiness. The floral accord shifts back and forth between the creamy tuberose and jasmine; they dance together in the night - the moonlight shining down on them through a veil of coconut. There remains a touch of green, and Moon Bloom is warmly tropical. Several other reviewers mention a rubbery notes and a medicinal camphor/menthol note in the opening, but I don't really get either on my skin - though I was dabbing from a vial. 

As Moon Bloom dries down, the jasmine fades behind the tuberose, whose creaminess is enhanced by a touch of sweet banana (which I've read comes from the ylang-ylang). Despite it's milky character (which I would envision as being opaque in my head), Moon Bloom becomes quite light in the dry down, and it feels more like catching a floral breeze through a tropical garden than smelling a bouquet of white tropical flowers.

The sharpness in the early stages Moon Bloom varied on me over several wears. Some days it was hardly perceptible, and other days nearly headache inducing. The greenness varied a bit as well, but the creamy tuberose and milky coconut were a constant - and they alone are worth the wear.

There is no question that Moon Bloom is a beautiful and captivating tuberose - and one that all admirers of tuberose should try. In many ways, Moon Bloom reminded me of my beloved Do Son EdP - lush, creamy, milky florals married with greens. However for me, Moon Bloom doesn't quite live up to Do Son. This is actually a huge relief since I just received my bottle of Do Son for Christmas. On my skin, Do Son feels lusher and thicker, creamier and more opulent - without the sharpness.

While I will *happily* use my sample, I don't think I personally need Moon Bloom while I have Do Son. So in the end, I am exceedingly thankful that Clint got me the beautiful scarf - I guess he knows me even better than I do. :)

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Clint's 3: Soapy, Rose, Sharp

Clint thought Moon Bloom smelled nice, but it didn't elicit as much enthusiasm as some others. I'm not sure where he got rose - but maybe he just associates all floral smells with roses?  :) 

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My rating of Moon Bloom: 4 

1  -  - -  -  2  -  -  -  -  3  -  -  -  -  4  -  -  -  -  5

   Nausea/Gagging         Meh        Decent       Great         Olfactory Elation    

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Moon Bloom as described by the Hiram Green website:

"Moon Bloom includes generous amounts of tuberose absolute, jasmine absolute and ylang ylang. There are also notes of coconut, leafy greens and hints of tropical spices and resins."

Perfumer: Hiram Green

There's no shortage of reviews on this beautiful scent. For further reading, check out: EauMG, The Scented Hound, Now Smell This, Olfactoria's Travels, Perfume Posse, Kafkaesque, Perfume Shrine, Smelly Thoughts, CaFleureBon.

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Have you tried Moon Bloom? What are some of your favorite and least favorite tuberose perfumes?