Hemlock Shade Lvnea Parfum Crème

Hemlock Shade is a deeply woody, coniferous perfume. The hemlock here references the hemlock tree, not the homonymous plant, which is highly poisonous. Both Fragrantica and Parfumo got that one wrong.

This smells like pine, both sap and needles. It reminds me a bit of honey and pine sap candies I used to eat as a kid, minus the sugar, though the perfume gets a little sweeter as it dries down. The smokiness in the opening creates a mysterious edge. It’s not obvious, more like a mysticism hidden in the shadows.

As the perfume dries down, lavender appears and brings a medicinal facet. The sandalwood adds warmth in the background.

This feels like setting foot in an ancient and dark forest. The light barely gets to the ground because of the trees. Secrets lie ahead.

Painting: Forest Interior - George Hetzel (1876).

(Review of the limited edition Eau de Parfum)

An even deeper iteration of Lvnea’s classic shadowy pines. If Ghost Pine puts you in the midst of a misty pine grove, then Hemlock Shade transports you to the depths of a Northern evergreen forest, towering spruces and firs swaying in the night sky overhead, a mysterious, sweet smoke crawling through the valley...

Opens fresh, green, coniferous, a tad bit minty/mentholic, with a fleeting medicinal funk which is difficult to place. Soon a soft, leathery smoke begins to echo, painted in subtle streaks of caramel, fruits and moss, with a rich and warm, sweet woodiness welling up from below. I wasn’t able to notice as many of the nuances my first couple times, but this is actually superb. Like Ghost Pine’s sexy, mysterious cousin who sleeps out under the stars every night.

Although dark, the impressive freshness keeps it from becoming too much, evoking the atmosphere of an old growth pine forest lit by the glow of a full moon’s light. I also find that the warm, woody and slightly caramelized features keep it from being too solemn a scent, bringing to mind cozy evenings spent among company rather than by oneself. Sandalwood also provides a fitting creamy backbone for the scent to settle down onto.

Sillage intimate to moderate, longevity great. While sharing similarities to Ghost Pine, the wonderful addition of Hemlock makes the blend worth seeking out for fellow forest aficionados. As a limited edition it’s priced a little higher than their standard line, but still relatively competitively in the niche market especially considering the desirable all-botanical nature of their scents.

Bravo, madames!!! Long live Lvnea!!!!