orata

So I'm looking for some new smells to try! I have some old favorites but I'm looking to branch out into some new things. Here are my current favorites, in no particular order:

 

Perversion

Embalming Fluid

Lear

Mage

Envy

Shanghai

Mouse's Long and Sad Tale

 

I want something that isn't too citrusy (like Envy, Shanghai, etc) and doesn't have vanilla in it. I'm not big into sweet, fruity, or floral scents. Rose and Lily of any kind smell especially terrible on me.

Cedar tends to go powdery on me unless it's a variant of some kind (like the white cedarwood in Lear.)

 

Thanks for the suggestions! Hope that isn't too constricting :/

I was just reading reviews of Herbert West that say it's quite similar to Embalming Fluid ("embalming fluid" is listed in the notes). You might also like Ehecatl if you like Embalming Fluid and Shanghai, although it's pretty citrussy.

 

Maybe try another coconut scent if you like Perversion--Elegba, Eden, Obatala, or Body, Remember?

 

I think if you like Mouse's LAST perhaps you'd like Aeval, which also has quite a bit of sweet pea. Have you tried Morocco?

Really nice--I passed up Ile de la Tortue when a previous large batch was up on Etsy because it sounded like a crazy jumble of notes, but the reviews + Great Vampire Bat-fueled orchid obsession led me to order a bottle, and I really like it. It's quite ozoney and green when wet, with the ozone subsiding into an incredibly refreshing tropical greenery scent. The white florals are definitely there and smell slightly grapey to me (?) but the smell of wet green leaves balances them out. I don't usually like aquatic scents, but this has just a hint of aquatic without smelling salty or like cucumbers or dryer sheets. It's a fresh but complex perfume great for hot weather.

Rather soapy/perfumey floral when wet. It gets a prominent smoke and vetiver note as it dries down and settles into a lovely orchid scent, dark and sexy without being musky--a heady film noir type of perfume, like smoke floating over plumeria blossoms.

looking for three things - i'm trying to find something to match scents i've fallen in love with.

 

one is Kyphi, the version used in the *candles* by the Sanctuary Spa in London. it's honey, wine, vanilla, and sandalwood, i think.

 

the other is Orange Sapphire by BBW - blood orange, orange, sparkling grapefruit, Sicilian bergamot, mandarin, white jasmine, magnolia, orchid, freesia and lily of the valley, musk, patchouli and vetiver, vanilla, white amber, honey. it's got that almost peppery scent you get with blood oranges and grapefruit and the sweetness of the oranges without smelling like orange juice.

 

the last is Azzemour by Crabtree and Evelyn. violet, bergamot and tangerine at the onset warmed by sandalwood, moss, amber and musk with some romantic florals to center it such as freesia, gardenia and Moroccan rose touched with clove. *note* please no suggestions that are heavy on the rose or violet - neither like me in oil form.

I would try Athens or Cairo for the Kyphi scent.

 

for Orange Sapphire, maybe Geisha in Orange Kimono Admiring a Samurai or Night-Gaunt?

Sorry- this is off the recent topic, but I was watching Howl's Moving Castle lately. What would you guys think for Howl and Sophie? Howl kind of has that dual nature, and sophie has the old woman/young woman thing going. interesting.

I'm going off the book rather than the movie.

 

I think Howl would wear one of the dapper masculine fougeres, like Wilde, Jareth, or Dorian.

 

Sophie loves her flowers so much, I'd imagine her in anything with lots of dreamy florals. Marie, maybe, Pele, or Lilium Inter Spinas? Or something from Rappaccini's Garden.

 

Something bakery-ish for Martha: Eat Me or Bread-and-Butter-fly?

 

And I'd imagine one of Rappaccini's Apiary scents for Lettie since she's studying honey-based spells--maybe Deadly Nightshade Honey (my favorite of the ones I've tried) for its greenery.

 

I imagine Miss Angorian wearing Morocco-- warm desert winds.

 

Calcifer: Brimstone maybe?

I'm looking for a scent somewhat like Forever Sunshine from B&BW. (Apricot, peony and praline are the main notes for the shower gel, which is what I used, but the spray lists these notes: "juicy tangerine, golden apricot, sparkling mandarin, exotic berries, gardenia petals, freesia, pink peonies, vanilla bean gelato, creamy sandalwood, nuzzly musks, a touch of sweet praline." Maybe Haloes? (figures it would be a hard to find scent...)

I find Haloes quite woody/creamy, not so much fruity-floral, which it sounds more like this is. Have you tried Tamora? Belle Vinu? What is your impression of the general feel of the scent?

I really liked this for the first few minutes--a really rich, complex, dark, smoky Nag Champa and sandalwood incense scent. The grapefruit seemed to be in the mix only as a bare breath to lighten the scent a little. However, as it dries, it gets this weird, gross, sweaty, savory note like cumin (although cumin is not listed) that reminds me of Tanuki no Amiuchi, and I really start to hate it at that point--like nervous armpit sweat basted with headshop incense.

I'm not really a fan of Uncle Traveling Matt. It smells a bit like Raisinets or those Cadbury fruit and nut chocolate bars: a little bit of dark chocolate, and a lot of something sticky, dry-fruity, almost boozy-smelling, and dark like raisins (this must be the fig and quince combo). The throw seems pretty good. The fruity, fermented note reminds me of Hermes Ambre Narguile, but it's not as thick or rich a scent without the backing amber, and the chocolate fades fast, leaving behind just that sort of sticky alcoholic rum-raisin scent.

Red is a cheerful, uncomplicated cranberry scent on my skin, like cranberry juice cocktail. I can smell the red currant as well, and maybe a tiny tickle of spice from the pink pepper. It's very light and fades fast on me, although I didn't put it on a pulse point, just on my arm, so perhaps that's contributing? I don't find it especially "sparkly" or "fizzy," but soft and brightly fruity.

Musky leather and bay rum. I don't find it particularly metallic or heavy on vetiver. It smells very much like a commercial shaving cream or cologne; I never would have pegged it as a BPAL scent. Very masculine, and I think it's sexy, but it does seem like a generic masculine functional scent rather than a unique olfactory story like many of BPAL's other fragrances.

Uh. Whoa. I hope you like radishes, because this smells very true to life--that sharp, bitter, crisp, almost burning clear taste of fresh radishes. I find it a little repellent as a perfume, although as time goes on the radish topnote wears away into a softer, sort of soapy-powdery clean smell that reminds me of Johnson and Johnson's "No More Tears" baby shampoo and is not bad at all. I would never wear this, but I'm glad I got a chance to try it.

I really like this, although Snake Oil Hair Gloss is still my favorite overall. It is a somewhat toasty/caramelized coconut with some sharpish white floral from the gardenia and a rather floral/anise-y or root beer-like vanilla note. Much more of a caramelly floral scent than I had expected at first; it doesn't really remind me of sunscreen, as I don't find it as sweet and creamy/powdery as the smell of coconut sunscreen.

 

It seems lighter in texture than the other hair glosses I've tried--the decant I have really spritzes/mists out, while some of the others I had tried (Snake Oil, Honey, Frankincense) kind of squirted. I use probably way too much: about 4 sprays from the decant on towel-dried hair, brushed through to the ends--in contrast, though, I can only use one or two of Snake Oil before it gives me a headache.

 

I'm not entirely sure what it does for my hair texture-wise, to be honest, because my hair is fairly heavy and straight and well-behaved in general, but I like to think it looks a bit smoother and sleeker with some of the gloss on there.

 

I have gone through about half my decant already, and I've only had it for a month or so, so I expect I will probably buy some more once it runs out.

Gobo is SOOOO delicious! The orange--well, tangerine--creamsicle scent I've been dreaming of. Bright, sweet citrus (I can smell all three citrus notes if I think about it) and vanilla ice cream, but a fairly restrained vanilla, not the over-the-top French vanilla of Love's Philosophy or Detestable Putrescence. I will probably buy a big bottle once my decant runs out.

Also, if you missed out on Vespertilio Proterus, I think this is a very nice substitute. No ginger, and it's slightly less sharp and fizzy, so it gives the impression of rounded corners rather than little spikes, but I think the overall vibe is very similar.

Cheerful, simple, childish, delicious.

Strong, tart, boozy sweet pineapple and banana, like a cocktail you'd get at a tiki bar. I kind of recoiled when i opened it because it was so violently fruity; it was like expecting a daiquiri and taking a big swig of undiluted sour mix instead. Very tropical, very Luau Lounge. If you like tropical fruity scents, you will like this! I didn't smell much mint or strong honey in it, though it was certainly sweet, so don't be scared off by those notes. (Be scared off by the bananapple attack instead!)

Linden lovers rejoice! This is almost all linden blossom to me. As it dries, the soapy/linen notes start to battle with the linden, but it retains that heavy honeyed green floral linden note, keeping it from smelling as sharply clean as Wensleydale. It's about 90 degrees here right now and this feels like a perfect clean skin scent to wear in this heat.

I love this scent! It's a light, cleanly creamy fruity floral that might lean too soapy for some, but I find it really beautiful. Sweet, ethereal, creamy, and delicate--the odd thing is that it smells really similar to Two-Barred Flasher to me, blueberry and all. I guess it's the lilac + orris with the fruitiness coming from the slightly tart peachy note of osmanthus. So glad it's in the GC and that I wound up with a half bottle or so left over from my decant circle.

I am anxious to purchase bpal on Amazon (I have a credit balance) and I have to narrow it down to ONLY 2 out of the following:

 

Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener (the idea of smelling like a rootbeer float is actually pleasing)

Dorian - (The fougere, or fern, is giving me pause)

Black Pearl - (The iris in the description concerns me)

O - (Should a Domina really wear a scent by this name? Is this more honey or more vanilla?)

 

I had already eliminated Dorian, but since I am now seeking the advice of extremely knowledgeable, sexy bpal madness members, I figured I would toss 'him' back in and see what sort of educated advice/suggestions I receive. Afterall, I trust you Connoisseurs & Devotees implicitly. I am rather confident that Sassafras will be one of the two selections, so now, based on my note preferences located at the top of the page, I hope those of you who are familiar with the other three can confidently select a 2nd choice.

As always, those who are kind enough to give my conundrum some serious consideration will likely find themselves rewarded for such effort and kindness!

I'd vote for Sassafras plus Dorian, personally. It sounds like you like vanilla scents, and I think Dorian will appeal to you. I find O more of a honey scent.

Marae is another LE orchid scent with incense!

This is a pretty sparkly ginger ale and slightly bitter lime scent when wet--reminds me of Independent or Polynesian Pop. I can see the comparison to Mother Ginger in that it's a pretty fresh ginger scent more than a baked good type of ginger. I haven't tried Gnome, but it sounds very similar. Unlike other reviewers, I'm actually not getting a lot of vanilla cream (I wish I was!) The bright top notes persist for a while and then fade into an oddly bitter/acrid, slightly plasticky smell on my skin that reminds me of the drydown of Monster Bait: Tokyo Stomp on my skin as well--maybe they share a vanilla note that's problematic on me. I really like it when it's wet, but I'm on the fence about the drydown stage--must re-try later. (I was convinced this Bat would be THE perfect one for me, too!)

So far this is my favorite of the Bats' Day scents! I'm not usually an incense scent lover, but this one attracted me and has been living up to my expectations so far. Rich, smoky, green, well-blended soft florals. Smells very lush and somewhat aquatic without being overtly salty (I don't like most aquatics). When it's wet, it has a slightly sharp, nearly fizzy, ozone-y or citrussy note (reminds me of the 7-Up smell of Pale Student of Unhallowed Arts) and something that smells like cedarwood, but this mellows out to a dark, smooth, hazy tropical floral scent without sharp edges. Sexy, dark, and heady, but there is also a clean aspect to it that reminds me a bit of clean linen.

Strong, sharp, fairly chemically leather. Reminds me a bit of Rogue (but without the hemp/rosin notes to soften it) or Captain Cully. It's quite realistic. I don't smell the oakmoss or balsam, just the overpowering leather scent.

 

I was skin testing this on one wrist, and the boy walked by. From a distance of about 3 or 4 feet, he said "What is that weird smell?"

 

"Is it the chard and onions I was cooking?"

 

"No, it smells musty, like an old bookstore. Or like India."

 

"Is it this?" I gave him my wrist to smell and he kind of made a face and said yes.

 

So: according to his reaction, powerful throw, smells "musty." These may be good things for you, but I may have to send this one on its way--there are other, softer leather scents I like better.

This doesn't beat out Black Lace and Red Lace, in my book, but it handily trumps Mourning and Pink Lace. It has a somewhat minty, licorice-y absinthe note--a little more green than anise, but it really smells mostly like strong black European licorice to me. The "lace" part of the scent--vanilla, sharp/smokey tobacco, cognac--is lurking underneath and persists after the absinthe part of the scent fades a bit. It smells kind of similar to Black Lace to me, but with the extra herbal-licoricey absinthe note on top. Smells refreshing yet mysterious, expensive, and complex.

A dark vetiver-like note that must be the cypress starts to lift as a slightly fizzy ozone and metal scent emerges. I smell a bit of red musk and resin underneath it all, and maybe leather? It is dark and woodsy and resinous, masculine, just slightly red-musky, and much nicer than the ominous description might have you believe--I think it would be a great scent for fall. It actually reminds me a little of Crowley, but smokier and without the lighter fougere/vanilla elements.

Gorgeous light waxy honey, amber, and clean Arabian musk (smells like Egyptian musk to me). Vaguely like O, but much lighter and cleaner, or The Lights of Men's Lives, but again lighter and without the smoky note. I really like it, but sadly, I can only smell it if my nose is practically touching my wrist--it's so faint! My color-impression would be a pale milky white tinged with the faintest drop of gold.

So gorgeous. Starts with a huge wash of delicious, flowery blueberry. The orangey bergamot and lemony white tea get stronger as it dries, and the blueberry fades back a bit so it starts to smell less like BLUEBERRY! and more like a pretty blended perfume. The lilac and orris provide a soft, fluffy floral background to the brighter, fruity notes of the citrus, tea, and blueberry. It smells like a creamy floral watercolor in pastel colors. Light and clean.