Nui Cobalt Designs: Bee's Collection

Nui Cobalt Designs has been changing up a few things in their store, and a few new (much needed!) additions have come around to the store. 

Firstly, they're now selling 1ml samples for selected scents - which means you no longer have to go through a decanter and wait ages to get your scents, which is a definite bonus for the impatient. Sample sizes are also a great way to explore the rest of their catalogue - although you can still go through Ajevie with pre-orders for alternate sizes with a minimal price mark up and a slightly extended TAT. Currently, Ajevie only offers the Slinks option, which is a 0.74ml vial for $4.05 USD, and NCD retails their 1ml vials for $4.25, but if you're one of those full size collectors, they're still offering their signature cobalt blue 5ml bottles with their iconic Art Deco labels. 

Additionally, they've introduced a pre-order option, so you can place an order now in case you're worried about certain scents selling out, although you still have to wait for the official release for your order to ship! 

Due to popular demand, Forest has brought back the amazingly popular and delicious The Bee's High Tea and The Bee's Cotillion which I'll be reviewing. 

The Bee's Cotillion - So fancy! This ebullient blend evokes mirth and merriment to highlight your most endearing qualities. Succulent pears simmering in spring honey with the gentlest breeze of lily carried in a homespun infusion of honeysuckle flowers.

Honey tends to be a popular and well known note, but mostly in the sense that it's extremely divisive, typically doesn't play very well with all types of skin and is often known for being a finnicky note. So with this, I hope I don't sound too arrogant when I say that, I truly believe that Nui Cobalt has created one of the best honey notes I've tried, and is generously featured in their Bee's collection. Accompanying the honey, this scent puts the flowers in the foremost of the blend, so this definitely captures a bright spring day in a bottle.  

Wet: A blast of beautiful creamy honey, dripping down the waxy crevices of the honeycomb. The honey note here drifts between the intoxicating sweetness of golden syrup, and the luxuriously sticky taste of honey, folded into thickened cream and rich milk. The honey is drizzled onto crunchy slices of Bosc pears, peppered with the tiniest hint of cinnamon and wrapped in strings of heavy floral nectar, and lily petals. 

Dried down: As the scent develops, the honey flits away from the skin, pulling slowly away after an hour or two, and the airy softness of the florals bloom into the sharper notes, the full bodied scent of lilies are marked with sweet, candied clove, and an element of magnolia and its subtle tart zest, and the airy lightness of honeysuckle and its vanillic quality that rounds out the richness of the creamy honey. During my wear, I found the lovely creaminess of the honey to slowly fade into a pillowy cloud that hovers around the edge of the scent, as the florals continue to blossom on my skin, bringing a heady ambrosia of lily petals, honeysuckle and magnolias spiced with clove and a touch of cardamom. 

With a wear of 4-5 hours, The Bee's Cotillion is a soft swath of honey sweetened florals, yet underneath its chiffon like gentleness is a simmering base of brown spices, revealing an unexpected warmth to its otherwise demure and docile profile.  

Perfect for: A garden party for the Rite of Spring - although you might want to take extra precautions to make sure the bees in the garden don't mistake you for one of the flowers too. 

The Bee's High Tea - An uplifting blend to forge lasting connections and cultivate friendships. Delicate vanilla cakes with rose petal preserves, elderflower wine, and Earl Grey tea with a dainty drop of spring harvest honey.

For me, I find High Tea my personal favorite between the two - and of course, I'm probably biased because my gourmand loving heart can't ever bear to part too far away from the sweet and foodie scents. Similar to Cotillion, this really shows off NCD's gorgeous honey - and in line with the theme, some of their wonderful florals. 

Wet: Crushed strawberry pulp doused in rose syrup, decorated with candied rose petals, with all its jammy, smooth sweetness. It's followed by a combination of creamy, whipped honey, with its pale golden hue and rivulets of milk and a splash of elderflower cordial, topped with white clouds of powdered sugar, generously dusted on top. 

Dried down: The first hour showcases the lovely rich red petals of Turkish rose, basted with notes of jam, syrup and candied in syrup and coated in sugar. There are peeks of vanilla cake, but only a modest slice with its warm vanilla essence, coated in rosewater buttercream, served with a baked honey madeleine. After another hour, the honey becomes intensely sweet and heavy, and is incredibly dense and potent, like eating a whole spoonful of honey. Trailing along is a touch of bergamot, and while the Earl Grey here is mostly absent, the telltale citrusy tartness gives this an extra sharpness to the overall composition. The finishing touches are climbing tendrils of demure white florals, and a particularly jasmine-like sweetness. The longer the wear, the more florals blossom on my skin, and embodies a lovely haze of spring bloom. This last stage of wear reminds me of The Garden Party (Sixteen92), with its louder, fragrant notes of jasmine, but still retaining the sweet honey and light lashings of jammy rose. 

Having also worn this through a few seasons, I confess that I prefer this scent much more in warmer months. The scent feels almost too rich for the cold grips of winter, but in summer, my skin pulls out sun warmed honey and cakes, drenched in its soft vanilla, rose essence and topped with jammy compote, before giving way to a gentle yet intensely aromatic floral with ribbons of honey decorating its facade and fading quietly at 6 hours. I personally prefer to wear a smaller dab of this, as too much of it is almost too intense, and the honey becomes a touch too cloying for my taste. 

Perfect for: An elegant afternoon tea out on the patio, with lace gloves, fine porcelain tea cups and lots of cake. Fans of the well loved flo-urmand will enjoy this one. 

Ordering and shipping: 

The TAT is typically kept low, around 3 business days for normal orders, but 5 business days for orders with samples (which usually take a little longer as well across most brands.)

When ordering from Ajevie, international shipping starts around $16 (and will typically stay at that price unless you're ordering particularly heavy items). 

When ordering from Nui Cobalt's site, it typically starts at $14.25, and their next weight bracket is $24 (and will jump up the heavier your order is.). 

They ship all their items in bubblewrap, in cardboard boxes, and I've never had any breaks or leaks with their current 1ml vials, or their 5ml bottles. 

Disclaimer: These items were sent for review. I was not sponsored for this review or affiliated with this brand, and all opinions are my own, and do not reflect the brand's opinions or interests.