coldandsleepy

In the bottle and straight onto my skin, this is oranges and wet woods and dust and I freaking love it. Within 15 minutes, it's dried down into nothing but musk and a faint hint of lilies. And there it sadly stays.

The aftermath of piratical nuptials: walls smeared with red and black frosting, copious amounts of spilled red wine, the leftover contents of three full bars, dry leaves and desert flowers crushed into carpet, tobacco smoke, and champaca incense in a cloud of body-heat amped Snake Oil and Dorian. Pulled this one out a few days ago, here are my notes: Well, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but on me this is like Eat Me plus a big ol' bowl of cake frosting. There's some booziness in it as well. I get no incense at all, and not a whole lot of nuance or complexity, I guess because everything else is drowned out by FROSTING. Hey, I don't mind, I like frosting.

So I've had a bottle of this sitting around since-- well-- I think since it was first released. I smelled it at the time and set it aside. Things were busy in my life and I thought oh, I'll get back to it... And here I am 5 years later. I was looking for a scent I hadn't worn in a while and stumbled across my bottle of this. Couldn't remember anything about it but thought I'd take a gamble and dabbed a bit on. In the bottle, it smells very faint to me. There's something that reminds me a little of Selkie, a bit aquatic and wildflowery, but nothing that stands out. Straight on my skin, it's the same thing turned up a bit. I keep thinking "crushed wildflowers" though I've no idea how crushed fits into that. It has a sweetness to it that I quite like but it's still overall very gentle and faint. So much so that I nearly forgot about it... Ten minutes later: what is that smell? That lovely smell? Oh! It's the Lady on the Grey! Which has now opened up and amped quite a bit on my skin. Still getting the wildflower note (whatever that is), but here comes a bit of sandalwood and just a little hint of spice. I get the comparison to posh soap. It really smells... expensive. Like something a classy lady would apply whilst wearing a silk slip in front of her vanity. Really very lovely.

Newer questions towards the top! 11/15/12 24. Do you have a favorite animal (or breed of animal)? The noble tree kangaroo! Also pygmy shrews. Also guinea pigs. And wrens are really special to me. 25. Do you like stuffed toys/animals? Sorta! Okay, let me explain. I love stuffed animals, but I'm pretty much at capacity for them unless they're really special. Beanie babies = probably not something I need more of in my life. (My kid would steal them anyway.) A stuffed animal you made = omg awesome. Something unusual that you think I'd love = probably cool too. 26. Would you like/want anything Disney-related, or from Disneyland? Can't think of anything! I like older Disney animated movies but that's pretty much it. 27. How do people feel about puzzles? Board games? Any particular ones that you might like or have and would like additions to? I'm crazy for crossword puzzles, but that's about it. I like board games but rarely play then. 28. Is there anything under $10 that you've been wanting from World Market? Not that I can think of! Though I fucking love Hob Nobs (oaty biscuits!!) and pretty much never say no to them. 29. If you answered yes to any beverage-related questions, what exactly do you like in tea, coffee, alcohol, cocoa, cider, etc.? Did we already have a question about this? Um... hm. My general food answer is that I like pretty much everything that's vegan. It's true for drinks too. For tea, I mostly drink chais these days (but I like black, and green, and herbal, and roiboos), there is no coffee I don't like (I'm not super into flavored, and I will generally pick a dark roast over a light one), I like most booze (particularly fond of red wine and gin (not together of course), love craft beers, pretty much anything unusual or small batch gives me grabby hands), cocoa (if it's vegan I like it; I'm a bit disappointed by the Theo brand one), cider (hot and spicy). 29. Stones? What color/types of stones, precious, semi precious or otherwise do you like? I like shinies! Amethyst is a favorite, and garnet, and labradorite, and agate. Shiny glass is okay too. 30. Anything small you need? Small size or small price? I'd love a bottle of nail polish (see: sparkly!). Or a ball of rubber bands. Or plain black metal hair clips. 31. Would you like a scarf, or knitted dishclothes? If so, what colors? Sure! For dishcloths, color doesn't matter, though not white because I will stain it instantly. I love dishcloths though; we don't use paper towels so new cloth ones are always welcome. For scarves, I generally go towards darker colors (charcoal grey! dark brown! etc!) but anything other than rainbow multi-colored (I don't have the panache!), or bright orange or bright yellow or bright pink, I'm into it. Red, blue, green, dark orange, it's all good! Sparkly yarn okay too. 11/12/12 14. Socks? short? long? fuzzy? sure! Handknit socks are sort of my dream gift right now, but storebought socks are okay too! I don't like velour or weird stuff like that... no novelty stuff or stuff that's too bumpy. Cotton or wool would be ideal. I've loved some of the socks I've gotten from SockDreams over the years but in general they tend to carry socks that are pretty thin and (this is awful to admit), my terrifying toe chitin tends to destroy them quickly. 15. Jewelry? Pierced Ears? Do you like necklaces/pendants? Bracelets? Rings? I don't have pierced ears. I like necklaces, pendants, bracelets and rings though! My wrists are smallish, my neck is smallish, my fingers are sort of fat. I can give you more specific sizes if you need them. 16. Anything you're particularly wanting from the Lab/Post at the moment? How about GCs you keep meaning to get but never get around to? I want all the Yules. What I really, really want are Yules from 2 years ago. (Nutcracker stuff.) Life got in the way and I missed all of those and have been mourning it ever since. 17. Do you have any fandoms? Doctor Who, and Lovecraft! I love all things related to either, but I'm not socially part of any fandoms. (Know what I mean?) 18. Does anything from Two Timing Tart interest you? I don't really like scented candles! 19. Does anything from Sock Dreams interest you? See above re: socks. What I would love from Sock Dreams is another pair of the EG Smith space-dyed tights. I got a pair in a clothing swap and loved them so much that I bought another pair from there a few years ago... muy expensivo but so warm and so beautiful. It looks like they're out of stock right now though (maybe forever?). 20. Any movies (holiday or otherwise) that you want to see but never get around to? I'm terrible about remembering movies. Nothing's coming to mind! 21. Do you need any smartphone accessories (case, skin, etc)? Not really! I have an iPhone 4 and while I can't think of anything I really need for it, you're welcome to send something if you have a good idea! I have a bumper thingy on it currently but am not married to it. 22. Small samples of homemade booze? YES PLEASE. 23. Is there anything from local farmer markets that would interest you? I love food and I love local shit and I would love if you would send me local foods! Anything mailable and vegan works for me... nuts or jams or sauerkraut or whatever. -------------------------------------- Where can I find your Q&A? Do you have a wishlist post/blog and does it link other things like Etsy/Amazon? All links in my sig! If you were to come into an unexpected windfall (a huge amount of cash), what would you get for yourself? A nice hair cut and a trip somewhere I've never been before. And probably a shit ton of nice soap, heh. Do you prefer votives, tarts, tapers or jar candles (if you are into candles)? I don't really do candles (see: small people running full tilt around my house at all times). I also don't really like scented candles. (Isn't that weird? I don't like my house to smell like anything but a house.) Any books you've been meaning to get for yourself but haven't yet? There are some things on my Amazon wishlist! My husband and I have pretty similar taste in books (mostly SF with occasional jaunts into fantasy etc), and he tends to buy books he wants as soon as they come out. So most of my wishlist is stuff that only I like (vegan cookbooks, memoirs... I love memoirs) or that I want but am not desperate for. Right now I *really* want a copy of Vegan Eats World by Terry Hope Romero... not sure that's on my Amazon list yet. Would you want something included for your pets? If so, is there anything they really like? Ianto, my guinea pig, isn't really into toys or guinea pig treats or anything. Such things do exist but he could care less! Is there any Bath etailer that you want to try? That you love? What do you want from there? What's your favorite bath item? Oy. I love all things bath related and pretty much want to try ALL THE RETAILERS. You can never go wrong sending me fancy soap, even if it's from someone I've never heard of before. As for people I have heard of, I loooooooooove Paintbox Soapworks and pretty much anything new that shows up there, I instantly want. Tea? Cider? Others? I'm mostly a coffee drinker these days. I like tea, I just don't have time for it! Hot cider is great but I rarely drink it. Recipes/Soup in a Jar? Sure! I cook all the time and am always happy for new recipes. Soup in a jar would probably sit in my cabinet for a long time and then one day I'd be near starving to death and be like HEY GUYS LOOK SOME SOUP and get really excited. Fiber Allergies? Nope! I will note though: I don't do silk generally. "Tussah" or "peace" silk is okay with me, but plain ol' mulberry silk squicks me out. Likewise, anything else you have to kill the animal for (like bison fiber, sadly) doesn't appeal. Colors You Like/Dislike? For wearing: dark colors, but not necessarily black. Charcoal grey is probably my super favorite. Also browns. Red is my favorite color overall but I don't wear it a ton. (I like it, just don't seem to buy it much.) I don't love pastels in general and I don't usually care for yellow. Otherwise, I am pretty easy to please. Oh, and anything white quickly turns another color in my possession, so, yeah. Sweet Solstice Sister, what color of nail polish would brighten your senses or make you smile? Glitter or no? Glitter! Glitter! Glitterrrrrrr! Um, if it's sparkly, I like it. I have a 3 year old's taste in nail polish. The one color of nail polish that I actively dislike is blue. A light sort of ice blue might be okay but mostly blue isn't my thing for polish.

Switch Witch time again! WOO! I have answered about a million questions in my BPAL blog for past rounds, and much of that is probably still relevant if you're curious. But all new answers for this round will go in this post, with newer questions towards the top and older ones towards the bottom. ONWARD! Sept 30-Oct 3 10/3 What do you think of Shiro Cosmetics Halloween Collection? (www.shirocosmetics.com) Pretty, but I don't wear eye shadow at all. (Super eye sensitivity = I'm a painfully red eyed zombie for 2 or 3 days after I wear ANY eye shadow.) The Godiva Halloween Collection: http://godiva.com/gi...default,sc.html I've yet to come across a vegan Godiva product, but if you find one, of course I'm gonna eat any candy you send me. 10/2 If you had a fairy for NYCC, what exclusive scent would you kill to own? I answered this one in thread-- none of the NYCCs is a definite must have for me. Mrs. Lewis sounds lovely but not terribly unlike a number of other scents I already have. A lot of the others have killer notes in them... honey (tends to go crazy on me), patchouli (likewise), etc. 9/30 Do you want anything from Arcana's fall update? Oh, probably. I loooove Arcana's soaps. Let me go peek really quick... Oooooooh shiny. If I had a magic money tree, I'd pick it bare and buy: All Soul's Island soap Darkling soap Little Ghoulie soap Sleepy Hollow soap Groooooan. So many good sounding soaps. 9/29 Would anyone like a witch pendant? A pendant with a witch on it? This could be nice. I think i'd like a romantic sort of witch more than a cartoonish witch (does that make sense?). What's a new company to you that you most want to try a product from or what would be a new product to you that you most want to try (make-up, perfume, or bath/body)? I would like to finally try something from Haunt, but the timing never works out for me. Hmmm... I often think I'll get into lipsticks some day but I'm not there yet. If you like necklaces, what are some symbols or images that you would love to have a necklace depict? I do like necklaces! Hmm... imagery that I like... well, tarot imagery (as explained in other questions), wrens, keys, leaves, the moon, the man in the moon. Geometric designs that are just pleasing to the eye. Sept 25-29ish Who here is going to be picking up JK Rowling's new book on Thursday? I'll definitely read it eventually, but not rushing out to buy it at $40. What do you do to take care of yourself when you're having a rough day (sick, life not going your way, whatever)? I answered this in thread... left to my own devices, I'll curl up on the couch with a warm blanket, extremely stupid television or a favorite movie, my knitting and something good to drink. favorite and least favorite baked goods? Favorite is so hard! Maybe spice cake with a mountain of frosting on top. Or snickerdoodles. Or vegan Samoas. mmmm. Samoas. Least favorite is also hard though because yeah, I like most things. Um... least favorite... while I like a good chocolate cake, I tend to find "death by chocolate" type desserts (a chocolate cake! with chocolate frosting! and chocolate sprinkles! and a chocolate unicorn! (okay, a chocolate unicorn would be cool)) a little overwhelming. what size T-Shirt do you wear (standard AND babydoll)? Women's t-shirts do not tend to fit me at all. I think it's a result of having really outlandishly proportioned boobs. (I'm currently rocking the 34H, to give you an idea.) Even if I get an XL, they tend to hit at a really bizarre length and end up being belly shirts on me. Yeck. So I mostly wear men's/unisex t-shirts in a M. I find that after a wear or two, they'll generally stretch in the right places but not shorten the way women's shirts do. My belly stays covered! Tissue tees do tend to work well for me though. I found a fantastic little shop while traveling that had unusual jellies and jams. Would you be interested in trying something like Georgia Moonshine Jelly or TOE Jam (each letter stands for some kind of fruit, I don't remember which ones) or something similar? How about homemade jam in general? YES to jam. I eat oatmeal with jam and nuts in some form pretty much every single morning, so jam never goes unloved in my house. Would you be interested in homemade herbal remedies and tinctures? I'd be interested in topical things (muscle rubs, etc). Owls? Girasol's answer to this in thread made me laugh so hard. I do feel that owls are kind of over-exposed... but I like them fine. No special affinity, but they're nice. Do any of Villainness' Soap Box exclusive scents interest you, especially any of the Smooches/Whippeds? It's funny, I was just over there looking around the other day for the first time in ages... Masala and Sol Bacio definitely appeal. Most of the other Villainess stuff that I'm into isn't the exclusive stuff. Cobwebs, Mango Spicecake, Slipdress, Autumn Gala (which I missed last year!), oooooh. Puddin' just put a shitton of old Lunacy shirts on the BPTP Etsy! Any ones interest you? Not that I see. Witchee, do you want anything from the Haunt update coming up on 10/3? I know it might be too early to say, but if you could look at the preview on the night of 10/2 and let me know if you want anything... Oh, I always drool over their stuff and I never buy it. I would love to try the glossing oils in particular. They had a Golden Pumpkin one a couple of years back that I wanted soooo much. Gardening? Pretty sure we had a gardening question already. I've been gardening this year! It's been fun! There's nothing in particular that I need right now... other than a couple more huge planters for tomatoes for next year (but it would be near impossible to mail them!) Do you use or would like to try loose eyeshadow pigments? No. My eyes are VERY sensitive and irritated by pretty much all eyeshadows. Is there anything you might want from the latest update (Lab or TP)? I'd be interested in decants of: Beaver Moon Halloween in the Misk U Library Pumpkin IV Pumpkin V Witch Dance Any of the 'Weenie bath oils - jeez those look good. All the Pumpkin Flosses... especially black. And the candies look way yummy. Mmm. Candy. ------------------------------------------- Sept 20-24 I live in Japan. Anything you would be interested in from there? Oh, I am a huge nerd for pretty much everything Japanese. Cute weird Japanese things = yes. Any kinda snack food that's both mailable and vegan (that can be tricky with Japanese food... milk powder in everything!). Stickers and stationary and all that stuff. Candy Corn: yes, no? It's one of those things that really messes with my blood sugar, so while I love it, I get really sick if I eat more than like one piece. WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH YOUR ASS OFF!!! movies, comedians, black humor, your partner, a comic strip? what? Oh, all kinds of things. I am pretty easy to entertain. Um... Jon Stewart/TDS pretty much always guarantees a laugh from me. And Hark, a Vagrant! by Kate Beaton. Those are the first two concrete things that pop into my head! You are meeting up with someone on a casual lunch/early afternoon thing. This person is someone you want to impress/look good for (for whatever reason, not necessarily romantic, and not necessarily for business either). What would you look like, given the contents of your wardrobe/etc? Ugh, almost nothing. My body's changed so much in the past couple of years that even though I'm now under the weight I started at before my first pregnancy, most of my stuff still doesn't fit because I'm just shaped so funny. With what fits, I'd probably go for something nice and understated... I have an awesome calf-length wool pencil skirt in a subdued argyle (charcoal grey, dark brown, and camel) that would pair well with a form-fitting thermal t in charcoal grey (that I am wearing right now, though I am not dressed to impress anyone!). Used to have a nice curve-hugging beige jacket that went well with this ensemble, but um, my curves got a bit too big for it to hug. You are to be let loose in a clothing store of your choice, to pick a full outfit, down to the shoes, the accessories, etc. and things would be altered to fit you if needed. What store would that be, and what would you look like? What an interesting question. I'm really not sure. I love interesting style and fashion but I hate drawing attention to my appearance, so I'd probably try on all sorts of fun stuff and then leave in a grey t-shirt and skinny jeans. Or a really fabulous dress. (The problem with that is you never know exactly what dress is going to wow you til you see it on your body! But in general, I like something tailored, not too body-conscious/skin-showy (especially not too cleavage-y, because I have a boob vortex), form fitting but breathable, shortish but not ho-y... oh, you know. You open a box from the post office to reveal the 3 things you want most right now. What are they? (caveats: size doesn't matter, but they have to be tangible/buyable). A cupcake with lots of frosting, some size 1 knitting needles so I can start something with the yarn I just impulse bought (on sale!!! 50% off!!! a yarn I have picked up about a hundred times and decided not to buy because I don't have a project in mind for it... yet...), a bar of fancy soap. The end of this month I'm going to Scarefest, the big horror and paranormal con in Kentucky. (www.scarefest.com) If I were your witch, is there anything you would like from there (skull jewelry, art prints from an artist that catch your eye, etc), or anyone whose autograph or photo or such you would dig? That sounds like a blast. I don't see anything from looking at the webpage that instantly grabs me though! What is your holy grail "I'd kill to just have one drop in an imp" bpal scent? Hmm. Nothing's coming to mind just now... I've been really fortunate in that I've gotten to at least sniff just a ton of things. I'd love to smell Champagne and Roses again... I smelled it once somewhere (a friend's house I think) and thought it was great. Are there any existing Weenies that you have your eye on, but haven't gotten around to getting? I only skimmed them really briefly this year-- too broke to buy much so I was kinda relieved that none of them jumped out at me. Let me peek again and see if there are any I'd like decants of if the magic decant fairy were passing my house. ... Okay: Lurid Library Sinister Salon All Souls' 1917 Autumn Coolness 2012 Fizzy jack O'lantern Ghost House Mango-Infused Pumpkin Chai Latte Suck it 2012 That's what I'd want decants of if I was buying decants. I'm not planning on getting any for myself this round though! Gotta save my monies for witchin'. if you wear earrings, do you have pierced ears? No pierced ears! My new job is at a consignment store where we have all kinds of designer brands for very reasonable prices. Are there designer clothes/purses/sunglasses that you desire/love? (Give some indication as to your "style" as well. For example, do you like bohemian-style frocks in lavender? Crossbody purses in black? Sunglasses that are round and bug-like?) Not really. I realize that we had a similar question in the ?aire, but I need you Witchee-s to list at least 5 items, each ranging $20 and under from Amazon.com or Walmart.com. There are a ton of < $20 things on my Amazon wishlist right now. Books always seriously delight me, and there's lots of nail polish on there too that's well under $20. In the meantime, let me know what you like to do on the Internet to kill time. Flash games? What are your daily websites/blog visits, or favorite YouTube videos? It's sort of funny because career-wise I'm a computer person, but I don't get a whole lot of free online time these days. When I do, I like to browse Flickr (and Instagram), read forums, fool around on Ravelry. I begrudgingly have a Facebook account primarily to keep in contact with family and friends who insist on it. I pretty much never self-motivate on watching youTube videos, but my husband saves them up and plays them for me. I inadvertently got him hooked on reading Reddit a while back and he passes on the things he knows will make me laugh. We were recently dissolved into hilarity by: And of course living in hippie-central, I have a serious lol every time I think of: And what are your favourite characters from your fandoms? Oh, specific characters, hm. Well, obviously I love the Doctor from Doctor Who... that's kinda the point. I love Daleks too. Even though I know they're evil, they're just so cute. My Little Pony... Cute or meh? I don't collect the toys at all, but my older son LOVES MLP:FiM. We watch it together, and I think it's hilarious. Any pony thing you sent would be automatically confiscated by him. (Not necessarily a bad thing, just don't send anything valuable because we would not know how to enjoy it!) Lip balm - tube or tin? Either! I like tins just because I feel like they're less likely to end up in lip-balm-splosions. Would you like to receive a journal or sketchbook? How about other pretty paper goods like post-its, notepads, bookmarks, letter paper/envelopes? YES. Two things I can't live without: things to write with and things to write on. I'd love a journal/sketchbook/whatever. Not super in to bookmarks (weird, all things considering, but mostly I just lose them), but all those other things would find a home here. Are you interested in audiobooks? If so, any specific titles? Not really. Bar soaps with some scrubby bits, yes or no? YES. I love scrubby bits. Do you need any small electronic gadgets like flash drives and the like? So earlier I'm having this conversation with my husband and joking about how if he didn't live with me, he would be a hoarder. Because his natural impulse is pretty much to gather up all the electronic gadget things and wallow in them. Even with my sobering influence, we are still a pretty gadget heavy household. I probably don't need anything! Would you like a pair of knitted socks? I would LOVE a pair of knitted socks. My shoe size is a women's 7.5 or 8, just on the edge between normal width and wide width. Do you have any use for knitted dishcloths, facecloths, etc, especially if they were fandom related? Sure! I love seeing patterns for them but I don't really like knitting flat things so I've never made one. Do you subscribe to any sample boxes, and if so, which ones? Would you like to receive some samples? No I don't. Samples of most cosmetics (lipstick, blush, eye liner, mascara, eyeshadow, foundation) wouldn't appeal to me. Mini nail polishes, lip balm, moisturizer samples would all be welcome. do you have a problem with nudes??? If not, do you prefer male or female? Nudes don't bother me. Paintbox Soapworks: Interested in anything from her? Pretty much all the things. I put the Weenie box on my wishlist on etsy. I am also kicking myself so hard for not buying a full sized bar of the lavender-vanilla one she had a while back... Man in the Moon I think. Didn't think I'd like it THAT much, but I LOVED my tiny tablet of it and now it's gone, long gone. are there any other e-tailers you're desperately wanting to try? if so, any specific items/scents/etc? Not desperately, not specifically. I love fancy ass bar soaps. Soap is really one of the only non-food related luxuries I engage in regularly! So new companies etc are always welcome. ThinkGeek: anything interesting to you on there? Oh, almost definitely. I burnt out on their t-shirts as an undergrad, but sheesh, I still like nerd toys. Also, I just saw TARDIS string lights on there. I would hang those up in my house. What's one thing you want, right now, that you're having difficulty finding? Pants that fit. You can't help with that, can you? ------------------------------------------------------------------ Sept 17-19 Marzipan? Vegan marzipan = win. Would you be interested in washable/reusable muslin “paper” towels (basically muslin squares hemmed around the edge)? Maybe in some sort of box to put on your kitchen or bathroom counter? We went totally paper-free in the kitchen about 3 years ago and have never looked back. We already have just a butt ton of dish towels, yet somehow the (huge) drawer is always down to the last 2 or 3 so yeah, I'm always happy to have more! Do you drink alcohol and if so, would you be OK with your witch sending you homemade infused vodka? Yes, yes I would be okay with that. Vodka might sit around my house for some time before I get a chance to try it (super busy + nursing an older baby) but that probably only gets better as it sits, right? If you get me (or a fellow Aussie, if there are any playing this round) as a witch or witch's minion, would you like to try some Australian specialties, such as TimTams (delicious chocolately cookies), Caramello Koalas (koala shaped chocolates filled with gloopy caramel), Australian native spices or anything like that? I forsee you getting very bored with this answer but: yes, if it's vegan, I am going to cram it into my gullet. If your witch is a knitter, crocheter or sewer, is there a particular type of garment you would love to receive (hat, scarf, wrap, cowl, socks, fingerless gloves, arm warmers etc)? Socks! Armwarmers! I would love a shawl (can you knit a shawl in a month? I can't!) but can never seem to finish one for myself. Is there anyone else in your house (kids, pets, partner) that would really appreciate a small gift being included for them in the switchwitchy haul so they don't feel left out? So basically anything you send me is going to be thoroughly pawed by my (almost) 3 year old son. I have just come to accept that he is going to co-opt some of anything that comes in the mail for me. He doesn't necessarily need anything JUST for him but it would probably thrill and delight him. During last year's SW I told him the postcards my witch sent were for him, and he loooved that. My 8 month old won't know any better if you don't throw anything in for him. My husband will probably eat some of anything edible you send him but doesn't need anything of his own (unless you inexplicably have a lot of Soviet memorabilia you are looking to move along). Since it's been mentioned several times, and I've also offered to nacho witch some, would you you like to receive wild rice and or maple syrup? I promise to include recipe ideas with the wild rice. Wild rice: jeeez louise yes. Maple syrup: probably better sent to someone else, because while it would be cool, I have to admit I almost never use maple syrup for anything. I have 5 bushels of tomatoes sitting in the kitchen right now that are supposed to turn into red sauce tomorrow, so would anyone like a basic red sauce (spaghetti sauce) to make its way to them? Yes! Would you be interested in having a bat adopted in your name? I have no particular affinity for bats but I think this is a sweet idea. How would you feel about a taste of (insert witch location here) box? Ooooh yeah baby. Some of your favorite artists? Classic and modern? I have such a hard time with this question. It's like "what's your favorite movie?" I can never think of anything on the fly. If this is a very important question to you, PLEASE hassle me more about it. If you could have an image or certain subject painted for you on any type of "canvas" (on a box, on paper, on a canvas, and so on) - could you point your witch to some of these images? Hmmm. I'm very into tarot imagery, especially images of The Emperor and The Magician (which are what I call my kids on the internet, and which are eerily accurate representations of their personalities). Is there a GC scent that's been on your list for ages but keeps falling off your list It'll break my heart if Veil suddenly vanishes. I've been meaning to get a bottle forever but it just never seems to happen. I've been getting into indie nail polish brands recently. What's your favorite indie brand of nail polish? Or what's your favorite mainstream brand of nail polish? Or are you not big on polish? I'm just starting to get into nail polish a bit lately. It started because my kid really wanted me to paint his nails, and if I'm going to paint his, may as well do my own too. China Glaze does a number of colors that I like. I like some of the Butter London stuff (though the names are horrible) but haven't bought any because oy prices. There are lots of OPI shades I like too. Mostly so far I've done a lot of looking and not a lot of buying. Stuffed things: yea or nay? A stuffed thing you made: yay. There probably aren't any random manufactured stuffies that I'm in the market for right now though. New Question: mix-in-a-jar? How to you feel about cookie or cake or soup mixes that come in jars and you just add, like, an egg or water or what have you? Not really my thing, because pretty much everything that comes as a mix in a jar, I can and do make myself. Would you be interested in beer, wine, or other specialty beverages from your Witch's area? Think we covered this further up but again - yus. Sure! I don't really like sweet drinks much (if you send me full-sugar soda, I will pass it on to my husband) but beyond that, it's all good. Oh, I don't mind artificial sweeteners at all. I HUGELY prefer diet sodas over sugar sodas (whether it's HFCS or cane sugar or agave or whatever). I prefer the taste AND diet soda doesn't mess with my blood sugar. (You probably weren't going to send me soda anyway but now ya know.) Are there any crafts/skills you've wanted to learn but haven't gotten around to? And if so, would you be interested in supplies and tutorials? Ugh, so many. I would love beginner info on quilting. I started a baby quilt before my younger son was born thinking I'd figure it out as I went along and yeah... a year later it's not done yet because I was just screwing it up so badly. Who here would be happy to get a lil' sumthin sumthin from Adagio Teas? I love tea but don't drink it often. If you get me something, better put the emphasis on little. Sample sizes of any kind of tea are welcome though! I love herbal stuff, and rooibos stuff, and black tea, and flavored black tea, and green tea. But not flavored green tea. Do you Ravelry? And if so, what's your handle over there? Would you be interested in gift patterns from your queue? My Ravelry username is stophittinyrslf I usually put things in my favorites if I'm not sure if I want to actually make them or not-- usually if they're in my queue I've already bought the pattern. That said, I'd be delighted to have any of the patterns that are in my favorites (or any of the yarns that are in my favorites). I'm not a great knitter... at all... but I ride the bus for four hours a week and it's critical that I have something to do with my hands in that time. So more knitting projects = good, heh. I live near this very cool Retro store (retrodrygoods.com) (you can order online too) - are there things from it that would make you squee if your witch sent them? Didn't see anything that screamed "buy me", but they have pretty dish towels and stuff. Despite the fact that I'm always in the kitchen, I don't really wear aprons at all. Who likes Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses? Not me. I'd be interested in the combo of pumpkin spice + chocolate if you can find a vegan version though. What does your kitchen look like? Colors/style? It's kinda I dunno, kitchen colored. We don't have a theme or anything. It's a BIG kitchen though, so after living in a string of places with tiny kitchens, we've got plenty of room to spread our stuff out... It's very sunny and lovely in the day time too. Witchee, what are your favorite quotes? Too many answers. Put your iPod/MP3 player/what-have-you on random and list the first 10 songs it plays! 1. Alias - Well Water Black 2. White Stripes - Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground 3. Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock 4. David Bowie - Let Me Sleep Beside You 5. Destroyer - My Favorite Year 6. Brian Eno - Stedelijk 7. The Rolling Stones - Get Off of My Cloud 8. John Vanderslice - Numbered Lithograph 9. Robyn Hitchcock - Uncorrected Personality Traits 10. Clearlake - Trees in the City What's one random thing you really like and one random thing you really dislike? Really like: eating a really juicy piece of fruit over the sink and not caring$ Really dislike: going to bed with damp hair. Are there any herbs that you haven't been able to lay hands on that I could send you? There's an herbal shop I really like here in NYC called Flower Power (flowerpower.net) that has quite a wide selection. Not that I can think of. If there are no "witchy" shops near you, is there anything I can pick up for you from Enchantments? Not really into "witchy" things. Hey Witchee! I want to send you a delivery. It could be cupcakes from a local bakery, it could be a singing hugging bear-a-gram, it could be a bouquet of flowers. But it will be something that you need to be there to receive. a) Are you OK with "special deliveries"? *waggles eyebrows* B..) Is the address in your questionnaire the best place to reach you for said deliveries? c) If the delivery requires a phone number (as say, some florists do) would you be OK with that information being tracked down by your Witch or asked of you anonymously? a) Sure! Yup c) Yup What are some things you are OK with receiving gently used or homemade, and some things you absolutely do not want if they are gently used or homemade? Homemade anything is good with me. Gently used is fine as long as we're talking like, books, toys, clothing, etc. Gently used is NOT okay for food (ewww) or cosmetics (used lotion? noooo) other than nail polish which I don't suppose would bother me (nails aren't gross). Used perfume is okay! And now a new question: I live near a Mast General Store (mastgeneralstore.com). It has lots of vintage-y toys, southern foods (jams, jellies, spices) and vintage candy. Is there anything I can get for you? I see yummies on the food page. Do you have any Fall or Halloween traditions? I always dress up. I've only ever missed one year-- the first year after my older son was born. He was a month old and I literally forgot that Halloween was happening. This year we'll go to the downtown Halloween parade and I might take him up and down our block for his first trick-or-treat ever. Gotta have cider at some point in the fall. It's not fall if there's not cider. Ninjas or Pirates? Yarr, matey. I have an extra room spray and 2 extra bath oils (one Cephalopod, one Exhibit Hall Fatigue) from Dragon*Con - would anybody like a decant? I would *love* to smell Exhibit Hall Fatigue. Witchee, would you like it if I made you a "mix tape" of songs that I think you might like? And if so, would you prefer mp3 or CD format? Yes! I'd love that! CD format's probably good. I know it is totally the wrong season (for most of us), but do you like/have space to garden? If so, what do you like to grow? Yes! I just started this year. Not surprisingly, I use what limited space I have (about 8x3 ft of dirt in full sunlight, plus about 6x6 ft of concrete in full sunlight that I put containers on) to grow edibles. I had a blast growing tomatoes this year and definitely want to try that again next year with some interesting varieties. I'm about to be near a Lush store next week, is there anything you might like from there? I love pretty much all of their bubble bars. Those bubble-roon things are great. Really loved the rose jam one. Songs that you keep meaning to buy but never get round to it? I don't usually buy individual songs. Movies that you love but forgot to put in your questionaire? Can't think of any. Any favorite Bath & Body Works scents/products? I've never tried their stuff but I love fancy bath crap. Feel free to surprise me. Haus of Gloi is offering custom perfumes - would you like one? What would your ideal blend be? Sure. I have no idea what my ideal blend would be though. Lavender and something. Any Bath, Body or nutritional type items you would love to try from a Natural and Organic food store (similar to Whole Foods) that you don't buy because they are a bit too pricey? Ha ha ha... so many things. I often drool over Copper Moon Apothecary stuff at my local crunchy store... not only does a bunch of their stuff smell good to me, but I love the packaging too. They have my aesthetic nailed. OK, so those of you who said you wouldn't mind receiving (sneakily packaged!) beer or wine: Tell me of your taste preferences. Dry/sweet? Red/white? Lager/ale/porter/stout? Fruit? Spice? Hops? Sour (brettanomyces, etc)? Red wine, more dry than sweet. Hoppy beer, bitter beer, dark beer, mmmm porters mmmm stouts. Fruity bleccccch. Honey bleccccccch. Anything you send will at least be tasted though. I am actually pretty easily to please. Witchee, will you be gone from your normal mailing address at any point during the round? Not for even a little bit, alas. Are you a Disney fan or does even thinking about Disney make your head hurt? If you're into Disney, would you like something from the Happiest Place on Earth ? I'm decidedly neutral. I have good memories from my childhood and fully intend to rewatch some of my favorites with my kids. (Actually, my son already knows and loves Beauty & the Beast.) Beyond that, don't really care one way or another. Can't think of anything I want from Disney. dear witchee, would you, could you use an electric candle warmer? Candle... warmer? I don't even know what this means. Why would you warm a candle? Do you lust after some new socks/tights? I'd love some handmade socks or something but beyond that, I'm set for right now! are there any of MeiLin's books (e-book or print) you'd be interested in? Not that I know of. Are you a gamer (of any sort - video, casual, tabletop) and are there any games you want? Sigh. Yes and no. What I want is some free time to be able to play games in... I have had almost 0 time to play video games since my older son was born, and now that I've started full time grad school again, my free time is just decreasing by the minute. So, don't need any games now, is what I'm saying. No matter how much I might *want*. Sniffles. Would you be interested in BPTP CANDY? If it's cool and vegan. Sure. Do you like coffee? If so, what kinds? Flavored, fancy, basic? Beans or ground? YES. I drink... a lot of coffee. I like a darker roast. Whole beans are better because no one else drinks coffee in my house so I grind as I go. Beyond that, I'm not choosy. I do try to buy fair trade coffee because I feel like it's worthwhile to pay a little bit more money to buy something that is a luxury for me if it makes it slightly less exploitative. Would a Starbucks gift card make you happy or do you prefer your local place? A Starbucks gift card probably wouldn't get used, at least not in a timely fashion. We have one in town, but it's my last choice after a ton of great local places and a very nice Peet's. A Peet's card would get used-- but slowly. I received a $50 last year for Christmas and am still working my way through it! CUSTOM-Made Pottery?? yea or nay? coffee mugs, rustic or more elegant? a set of bowls? soap dish? bird feeder? something alltogether different? and lastly, good colors for glazes...? If this is your special talent, please, make away! I can always use another vessel to drink coffee out of. Do you have a forum buddy? Someone who knows you and/or your tastes well enough to answer questions on your behalf? I know strangemodegirl IRL and she could probably answer some questions. If you are on Livejournal, would you appreciate LJ stuff like paid time, custom userheads, stuff like that? If you are NOT on LJ but are on other sites that have similar paid-for services (Flickr, for example?) would you, and what are those sites/etc? Livejournal: not really. Flickr: I use the HELL out of my Flickr account (username also coldandsleepy) though. I think I'm paid up for another six months or something already though. A question, witchees: if you are into tarot, what is your favorite card? The Emperor and the Magician for my sons. The Fool for myself. And another question: would you like your own set of handmade rune stones or worry stones? That would actually be really cool. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, cider, or none of the above? Or *all* of the above. Gum, hard candy, soft candy, or none of the above? I don't really do gum. But beyond that, I like pretty much all candy at least a little bit. Loose tea or tea bags? Do you need anything for your loose tea? (Filters, presses, etc.) Either! Usually loose! If you like tea, what kinds? This is a near repeat... like I said in the Adagio question, I like pretty much all tea. Do you do Goodreads or LibraryThing or a site like that? If so, can I see your to-read list, please? No. I should but I don't. *hangs head in shame* Zombies; Yay or Nay? Not really my thing. If you have cats, do they like catnip toys? If you have doggies, would they like a super-reinforced canvas toy with a squeaker in it? No cat, no dog. Alas. If you have kids, what are they into? My 3 year old loves: trains, Dr. Who, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, stickers, band aids, stickers shaped like band aids, and stamps (like rubber stamps). My 8 month old is into chewing on things and cramming himself into small spaces. How do you feel about wearable knitted lace? Shawls, wraps, and the like? Very positive! Looking at the warehouse, I notice that our lovely Greenwoodtree is able to do chart readings and/or forecasts at a very reasonable rate. Is this something you would want? Not particularly. --------------------------------------- Sept 15/16: Do you like s'mores and s'mores-flavored things? Yes, with the usual vegan caveat. I loooove marshmallows, as long as they don't have gelatin or anything nasty in them. What's the neatest freebie you've gotten? It can be cool or thoughtful or just totally unexpected, and not limited to BPALdom. This is sorta sappy I guess, but after I had my first son, there was a vendor at our farmer's market who would always slip me some extra produce and tell me it was "for the baby" with this really shy smile. (He doesn't speak much English, I've come to learn.) A cauliflower here, some celery there... nothing big, but that kindness really touched me. And... I still buy stuff from that guy every week 3 years later. Would you enjoy receiving cute but useful items like colorful kitchen utensils/gadgets, or bento supplies? (boxes, chopsticks, accessories, etc?) What about things like spice mixes (homemade, or Penzey's for example) Cute but useful kitchen items are pretty much my ultimate objects. I don't really do composed bentos (these days! I used to!) but I do pack lunch & dinner for grad school two times a week, so lunchbox accessories still get used around here. Also super yes to spices. Do I already have pretty much every spice on earth? Yes. Do I still want more? Yes. Please. Do you like cute, seasonal or fluffy PJ bottoms? Like they sell at Target, Old Navy (they have had cute Halloween ones!) If so, what size do you wear? Oh, I LOVE jammie pants but destroyed every single pair I had during my last pregnancy (because that was pretty much all I wore at home, heh). So yeah, that would be a pretty good present. I'm between a 10 and a 12 for pants, so I usually get an L for jammies. I like flannel more than fleece, but I'm not choosey. What kind of chocolate do you like? Nuts, no nuts, white,dark, etc? I like any chocolate that's vegan. I've never had vegan white chocolate but it does exist and it's safe to assume I would like it. I prefer a good dark chocolate over vegan milk chocolates, but honestly I like them too, just in a different way. Interesting combos of mix-ins always appeal to me... I get so mad every time Vosges comes out with a new variety that's vegan except for like one ingredient, because the always look so damn good. I live near a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, and Penzeys! What does your little heart desire from any or all of these places? I live down the street from a Whole Foods and a TJ's and do most of my shopping at TJ's... so I'm probably set for those. (Though if you send me a jar of Speculoos, I'm not gonna mail it back!) Penzey's on the other hand... mmmm. As I mentioned a couple questions ago, I have a LOT of spices already and pretty much everything basic is already in my kitchen somewhere, but any sort of unusual or uncommon spice or spice blend appeals to me... Right now I'm cooking a lot of Indian food so India-specific spices would be nice... I keep seeing recipes calling for dried pomegranate seeds (?) and I haven't been able to find those anywhere near here. I want a good Berbere mix... and I'm looking for plain ol' sumac, which I haven't seen anywhere here. Are home made foods acceptable or does the idea of eating strange mailed food disturb you? Totally acceptable. Beyond acceptable. People who make me food are my favorite people. I just gave you $20 and sent you into a "has everything" store ala Walmart and told you that you have to come out having spent it all, and none of it on anything you need. What would you buy? Be as specific as possible! Um... right now I'd buy some nail polish remover, some new underwear (I'm all about the cheeky hipsters or whatever they're called), and a case of fizzy water. Well, you asked! What kind of cuisines do you like? (I mentioned this in my ?aire but curious what my witch may like)And, what are your favorite restaurants? The thing about me is that I like pretty much all food. Sometimes I joke that I HAVE to be vegan or I'd never be able to decide on what to eat when... even with my dietary restrictions there is still so damn much to choose from. My very favorite cuisine is probably SE Asian... my mom cooked a lot of Thai food for me when I was a little kid and so it's both delicious and extremely nostalgic for me. I think I have a list in last Fall's SW Q&A of local places I love to eat... just off the top of my head (and probably forgetting a ton), I love: Mobo Sushi, Engfer's Pizzaworks, Planet Fresh Burritos, Pearl of the Ocean, Dharma's, 99 Bottles, Seabright Brewery, Star of Siam, The Delmarette... I can keep going for a long time... I'm from Canada - is there anything specifically a witchee might like that is only available here? Interesting flavors of chips, and maple sugar. what are your "fandoms" and would you like a t-shirt from TeeFury if an appropriate one came up? Funny Doctor Who or Lovecraft shirts always have a place in my life. (Anything I said in last year's SW Q&A about not wearing t-shirts is now null and void as I kicked the no-tshirt job I had to the curb, heh.) Do you have an eReader and if so which one? No. I do sometimes read things in the Kindle app on my iphone. Do you like candles, or tart burners, or something? If so, what's your favorite scent to burn? Nope. I like scents, and I like candles, but I don't like scented candles. I don't really like my house to smell like anything in particular other than like, a house.

A couple years back, I had this rooibos tea blend with sliced almonds and little candy hearts in it. That is precisely what this smells like to me, with the gentlest touch of licorice on top. I don't really get much in the way of individual spices, just that strong herbal scent rooibos has and some bonus sweetness. Nice but not a home run on me-- it just doesn't smell super distinctive on my skin. I was hoping for something a little spicier.

This reminds me really strongly of the bath oil from the L'Inverno set from BPTP a few years back... In a good way. It starts out all lilies and hemlock on me, then it turns very sweet. My nose is telling me tonka though it's not in the notes. There's a definite cold note here but I'm not recognizing it as mint thankfully... Just smells... Chilly. Really quite pretty.

I'm surprised by how much I like this. It's berries-- sweet, red, bordering at first on bubble gum-- and golden resins. Frankincense and sandalwood, neither overpowering. I get a breath of florals, but only just a whiff, and I can't pick out the rose. Overall, it's quite beautiful on me.

Like others mentioned, this is much sweeter than I expected. To me it's sweet spruce and a TON of sweet birch-- almost birch beerlike at times. And yet it's not candylike or cloying at all... the sweetness makes it almost sparkle to my nose. Like a glittering Christmas tree. This scent is so beautiful and straightforward to my nose. Doesn't morph on me at all, stays true for hours. I'm totally in love with it.

I have no idea why I ordered a decant of this other than that I like the image-- this is basically all death notes for me. Three types of honey? Three types of yuck! Vanilla? Ewwww. Okay, I do like linden sometimes, and orange zest, and I love amber... Very sweet and honeyed. It reminds me VERY strongly of Blood Kiss and I had to check the notes to make sure there wasn't cherry in there. My nose is swearing up and down that there's cherry but... Also brings O to mind, though this does much much better on my skin than that did. I actually think it's rather beautiful but not the kind of scent that I'd personally enjoy. However, if you like the other two I mentioned, I would advise you to give this a go.

On first application, this is nothing but laundry detergent on me. A nice unscented laundry detergent (you know the way "unscented" still has a smell?) but laundry detergent all the same. After a while, it's a little less aggressively detergent-y and I get a nice skin musk and a very, VERY gentle breath of tea rose. If I wasn't looking for tea rose in particular, I might just describe it as "petals". It's a nice clean delicate scent. It does make me think of a little girl-- not a dressup scent but the way an actual child might smell fresh out of the bathtub. Unfortunately, it's just a little TOO delicate for me to see myself reaching for it in the future.

Okay. So my package of decants that went wandering (thanks USPS) finally showed up today, and I opened it with my 2 year old son who gets verrrrry excited about BPAL. He wanted to try some on, so I picked this out, thinking we'd both end up smelling like candy or cake or both. I dabbed a little on his wrist and instructed him to sniff. He sniffed. "I can't smell that, Mommy." What? Sometimes he uses "I can't" to mean "I don't want to" so I asked if that's what he meant-- and he told me again that he couldn't smell it. Then, his little face scrunching up in a way that often indicates a storm is coming, he wailed, "I need mooooooore perfuuuuuuuume." I dabbed a little more on him, then finally got around to dabbing some on myself. Sniffed. Huh. He's RIGHT. This is super, super faint on me, and on him too. It smells like... almost nothing. I expected it to maybe be overwhelming, but it's sort of the opposite end of the spectrum. On both of us, there's a sort of breath of chocolate, a hint of molasses, and a tiny tiny touch of spice. What I can smell is nice (and smells especially good on him) but boy, it is just faiiiiiint. I'll have to try slathering this and see if I feel differently about it then...

My bottle is getting up there in years now-- it's from 2006, though it didn't come to me until 2008 or 9. It's amazing that I've never reviewed this because it's easily one of my favorite BPALs, and one that I reach for most at this time of year. To my nose, there's nothing dirty or floral about this. It smells like eating a pastry (just some random danish or something) while stomping through the snow in an evergreen forest, feeling slightly buzzy from the beer you had before you left the house. Let me recap: sweet but not spicy pastry, something snowy, green trees (but not Christmas trees/pine-- more like juniper to my nose), and a bit of hoppy beer, all in perfect balance. Delightful. It's only gotten lovelier with age.

This is so straightforward to my nose: bitter almond oil and nice spicy (not sugary or sweet) cinnamon. When I first applied, it smelled distinctly like SWEET almond oil, but now it's morphed. I love almond in any form and so I'm happy with both. And it's nice to have a cinnamon smell where the cinnamon doesn't smell like a cookie, if you know what I mean. Though I gather it does smell quite sweet on some other people. Neroli is sort of a scent blind spot for me. I don't smell it here but then I often don't notice it in scents... This is really a nice simple blend. If you like it, I'd suggest you look into All Night Long, which has a similar vibe.

Interesting. I really expected this one to be a floral explosion and was bracing myself for that. Instead, it's mostly the other things in the scent description-- I get high, cold breeze and spicy amber with maybe just a slight touch of white florals. No fruit that I can detect. I like it quite a bit though.