Silvertree

Please check out our new, streamlined decant circle guidelines, effective immediately. We have increased the number of bottles/slots decanters may choose to fill. Current levels will remain the same; just the quantity of bottles available to you has increased. If you have circles open now, subtract the bottles you have ordered from the NEW bottle total to find what you may decant. (Even if you have not completely filled a bottle in an open circle, that still counts as one bottle/5 slots.) So if you are a level 1 decanter with 1 circle of 4 bottles open at the moment, you now have an additional 6 bottles to play with, and so on. At any level, you may choose to put all your available bottles in one circle, or start a new circle with fewer bottles than the maximum, keeping some in reserve. Please PM Silvertree or Maewitch with any questions! Happy decanting.

Zmey Gorynych is neither lewd nor aggressive. It is, however, compelling and seductive. I get a lot of golden glowing amber and a little hint of crisp, slightly sweet frost, so it seems to be warm and cool at the same time. Definitely adding this to the hoard!

Effective immediately, we are lifting limits on participants and items for group orders of BPAL/BPTP merchandise at events and conventions (please note that decant circle levels and the 6-week minimum for decanting still apply). Anyone who wishes to make a group order/ volunteer themselves as a pickup fairy must make a topic in the Decant Circles/Group Orders forum, post in the "New Decant Circle" thread, and report that post to bring it to a mod's attention. You may choose to set limits for your own sanity, or leave participation open, with the stipulation that participant lists be posted publicly in your topic. This does not apply to forum members who may choose to respond to select ISO posts in the Wanted forum-- there is no need to post a group order in that case. As always, forum price caps apply. We do not permit group leaders to pass on PayPal fees on top of shipping and handling costs. Participants will cover sales tax, but not cost of admission/gas/parking/merch/any incidental fees the group leader may incur. As group orders and event pickups often involve items of limited quantity, there is no guarantee that participation in a group order will ensure fulfillment. Caveat emptor. Please stay in communication with your participants/group leader; if a month has gone by and you have not yet received your order (or an explanation from the group leader) please alert the swap mods.

"Shipped" on CCNow doesn't meet the Lab/BPTP just got (meaning received) the order; it think it means that they harvested the order from CCNow as part of the order fulfillment process. The bottles weren't available to be ordered by then, but you had put your order in already, so you should be fine. You can check with them just to be sure.

Scherezade is not Indian, but I feel like the scent is in the same family as Morocco, Sri Lanka, etc. Saffron and Middle Eastern spices swirled through sensual red musk.

Definitely Lemon-Scented Sticky Bat. Description: Sticky-sweet iced lemon sugar!

I *think* it's 2005-- those were the years of vintage Halloween labels. Sugar Skull 2004 has text only, no picture. For physical appearance, I would check the bottles and labels thread. And I found... not a pic, but this: I don't havea pic handy but am pretty sure that th 05 sugar skull is the one with a pic of a brown haired girl who has her arm raised. Thanks! I wasn't sure --I've been spoiled by many of the older LEs having years printed on the label, it never occurred to me that they wouldn't be marked after the first incarnation. Sounds like it is 2005! ETA Exhibit B: we also have a Gallery, which includes a section for label art. It hasn't been updated since early 2011, but that might be a nice thing to have people contribute to. And I found this image! Upload date is pre-Halloween '06, so it must be '04 or '05. And since I know '04 was a text label, your bottle is... :drumroll: 2005!

The Salons are unimpable GCs, like Neil Gaiman scents. Occasionally one will be discontinued due to a sudden component issue, but other than that they're live for the foreseeable future. The Periodic Table series has not yet gone live, although testers have been spotted at NYCC and Will Calls.

I think Herr Drosselmeyer (Pipe smoke, sweet leather, woods and linen) would be a great choice! Unfortunately, it's an LE that wasn't revisited this year, but try the Swaps forum. My dad used to smoke a pipe when I was little, so there's something very fatherly about that scent for me. If I could find pipe smoke + cedar + wool (from the sweaters my mom knits him every year, stored with cedar blocks) it would be my dad in a bottle.

This one may be tough to find, but Conservatory Tableaux could fit the bill: Lacquered beech wood and old books. Or Herr Drosselmeyer: Pipe smoke, sweet leather, woods and linen.

This is not at all to knock decant circles, as I have relied upon them to help narrow down a too-large wishlist after an update. However, I can see a decant removed from a bottle by a second party being different in composition from the overall bottle, even if the bottle is well-mixed by the decanter prior to the decanting. I don't want to get into the synthetic ingredient debate too much, as that's off-topic and has been covered in other threads, but my understanding is that the Lab at one point in time made one or two prototypes with synthetic ingredients, but never put them up for sale. So they can't say "we have never used synthetics" but nothing in the current catalog uses them. Of course, I don't work for the Lab, so don't take my word for it.

Maybe Hellhound on My Trail for Hound of the Baskervilles?

Hmm, do you want scents that an evil queen would wear, or scents based on historical/literary ladies? Either way, I think the Diabolus category has a lot of great options for this theme! Maleficent is probably my top pick for an evil queen/sorceress, and I could see her wearing one of the Ars Draconis scents, like Dragon's Reverie: Opium-laced dreams of flame, plunder, power and fury: dragon’s blood resin, poppy, amber and ylang ylang. Another one that springs to mind is the White Witch from the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Maybe Baobhan Sith for her: Grapefruit, white tea, apple blossom and ginger. Then you have real-life villainess Elizabeth Bathory, represented by Blood Countess: corrupted black plum, smoky opium and crumbling dead roses covered by a deceptive veil of Hungarian lilac, white gardenia and wild berry.

Yes-- when the Lab creates your shipping label, you'll get a Click 'n' Ship from the USPS with delivery confirmation info. It will go to your PayPal address.

That sounds like a great soap! I would recommend Sin as a complementary perfume: Thouroughly corrupted: amber, sandalwood, black patchouli and cinnamon. Scherezade might be too musky, but if you like scents in the same family it's definitely worth a try: Saffron and Middle Eastern spices swirled through sensual red musk. There's also Plunder: tea leaf, cassia, cinnamon bark, clove, allspice, sandalwood, tobacco, peppercorn, and nutmeg.

Usually if something is backordered there will be an announcement. I had made a Lab order on the 8th as well (US order, via PayPal), and I just got my CnS last night. I think there was probably a massive rush to place Weenie orders, so things are just a bit slower than they otherwise would be.

I juuust got a CnS for my 9/8 order (US order, via PayPal). I never get confirmation emails through the Lab, just the standard PayPal "you sent a payment" email. Porcelina, you've got the right address. Don't freak out yet-- I think the Weenie rush has backed up orders and communications, too. Hang in there!

I think anything with a leather note tends to stand out and be noticeable. Hunter is warm and golden without being too soft (Leonine amber, tanned hides, clove, and clary sage). The Black Rider (Black leather, oppoponax, tobacco, and black amber) is just badass. If you can find Gun Moll, that's a great scent that's assertive without being too in your face, and it has the distinction of being one of the few scents with jasmine that I can wear (as sexy as ox blood lipstick and a Chicago typewriter: honeycomb, red amber, narcissus, bergamot, Zanzibar clove, opium poppy, tobacco leaf, skin musk, dark fruits, night blooming jasmine, tarragon, and gunpowder). And two of my most favorite GC scents might fit the bill: Spellbound (three roses, radiant amber, and sensual red musk) and Sin (amber, sandalwood, black patchouli and cinnamon) are both very compelling.

The lab's site says: "Please address your payment to paypal@blackphoenixalchemylab.com"

I think there are some blends at Dark Delicacies that might fit the bill: THE NAMELESS CITY DRIVE-IN THEATRE Chrome bumpers gleaming in cold, exhaust-fume laden night air. Soggy foliage and crushed grass dotted with popcorn that has been crushed under rubber tires. Leather seats moist with skin musk and the sweat of groping hands fumbling under ceremonial robes. SPLATTER COMEDY A bit of blood and chainsaw grease underneath a banana cream pie. You might want to check the reviews to see just how dominant those notes are, though.

Cernunnos! I bought a bottle at NYCC last year-- it stood out as wonderful even among all the amazing exclusives and other things to smell and try. Another Carnaval blend that's amazing on guys is Theodosius. And my top two guy-friendly scents (that are my favorites to wear, too) are Mr. Jacquel and Crowley.

Unfortunately, Carnaval Diabolique is dark right now, but when it comes back you might try Habu? Snake Oil with ho wood, teak, black musk, and bamboo.

I like that theme! Here's the GC list so far: Anne Bonny/Calico Jack (or Mary Read if you prefer/have a two-bride wedding) Marquise de Merteuil/Vicomte de Valmont Oberon/Titania Hermia/Lysander King/Queen of Hearts Prunella/Bensiabel Mme. Moriarty/Theodosius (or Snake Oil/Dorian) Plutonian/Alana Patel Liz/Hellboy Schmendrick/The Amorous Tree Couples with a discontinued partner: Wanda/De Sade (substitute Whip?) Yvaine/Tristan (substitute The Evening Star if you can find it?) Me being silly: Miss Lupescu/Mr. Jacquel

Congrats to all the BPAL brides & grooms! The Husband Elect and I will be tying the knot next June. He thought my suggestion-- which was Typhon for him and Ekhidna for me-- didn't have the most positive associations. His absolute favorite BPAL on me is Shub-Niggurath, but given the time of year I might wear a few drops from my precious bottle of Blue Lilac. Maybe he'll consent to wear His Station and Four Aces? That also has lilac in it, but the white musk and leather make it more manly. My other thoughts were to choose our favorite pair out of the King & Queen sets (Clubs, Diamonds, or Spades) and wear that. Most of the other couples in the BPAL catalog seem to be of the historical or literary variety, and don't necessarily get to live long and prosper, ifyaknowwhatImean. Just for my own edification, I'm making a list of all the "couple" scents. I'll post it here, if anyone is interested.

Over the course of the past few months, there has been a jump in swap-related rule violations. We thought it would be a good idea to post a quick primer on the dos and don'ts of swapping on bpal.org. This is not intended to replace the more extensive guidelines posted in the Swaps forum, but it can be a handy way to quickly remind yourself of what you should and shouldn't do! *** ~Swapping Outside Swaps~ First and foremost, there is to be NO swapping outside of the Swaps forums. Period. This covers offers to buy, sell, swap, and even gift BPAL or any other commodity. Examples are posts like, "I can send you an imp of that," or "That sounds like the best scent ever! Can anyone send me some?" and "I'm thinking about doing a decant circle for this, would anyone be interested?" "No swapping outside swaps" also means that there can be no swap-related content on profiles or in blogs. Please post this content only in the For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted forums, or in the Wishlists topic. Additionally, you cannot direct others to your swap/sale/wanted topic by posting links or swap/sale info in any other forum areas. We have seen this a fair amount recently, especially in Introductions. You may want to help enable a new forumite, but they will find the Swaps forum on their own. If you truly want to help them, guide them to Recommendations-- they'll probably remember your kindness and seek out your page anyway! If you wish to give away scents, please check out the Random Acts of Kindness forum, located within the Swaps forum. We also do not permit *any* linking to off-forum decant circles, group orders, sales/swap/wanted/wishlist pages, spreadsheets (such as Google docs), or databases (such as ScentBase). This includes, but is not limited to: posts on-forum, such as, "so-and-so is running a decant circle on LJ!"; links in signatures to off-forum decant circles/group orders, sales, swaps, wanted, and wishlist posts, databases, or spreadsheets; lists or links to any of the above in blogs and profiles; and off-forum links within swaps/sales/wanted topics, such as Google docs, spreadsheets, databases, LJ links, and so forth. This also goes for PMs. It is unacceptable both to PM someone on-forum and ask them to check out your off-forum sales/swap page, decant circle, group orders, etc., AND to respond to an on-forum swap/sale inquiry by providing an off-forum link. Violation of this rule will result in a suspension from swaps. Also, we do not allow specific swap-related content in signatures. That means no "I'm looking for Lughnasadh!" Or "Mme. Moriarty for sale!" You may post general links to your swaps topics in your signature, as long as those links direct to on-forum pages. Spreadsheets that are intended to keep track of released scents (i.e., ones that have no specific swapping info) are allowed, but they are not to be treated as a swap list. Why are we so strict about this? We're not trying to make life difficult for everyone. Partially, the forum was not intended to support the secondary BPAL market. We permit swapping and selling, but feel that it is best kept to one section so that it does not overrun the entire forum. Also, there are some members who are on a swapping hiatus and cannot access the swaps forums. Posting swaps content outside the swaps forum can lead to someone exploiting a loophole, and may mean that you're entering into a transaction with someone who's supposed to be on a time-out for swaplifting or price cap violations. In short, when you want to arrange a swap or sale, your best route is via PM. We discourage members taking transactions off-forum to private email, as that is how swaplifts have occurred in the past. We have the PM function for a reason! Please use that rather than arranging swaps in a non-swap thread, posting on someone's profile, etc. ~Swap Topics~ We have three main sub-forums within the swaps area: For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted. (Circular Swaps, Random Acts of Kindness, and Decant Circles/Group Orders are separate entities.) Every member is allowed one topic in each of those three sub-forums. As members can no longer close their own swap topics, we ask that members report their posts to be closed before starting a new topic. It is not sufficient to change the topic title to "closed" or "Done!"-- please use the report button. Members with multiple topics who do not report their previous topics to be closed will receive reminders, warnings, and may lose the ability to make new topics. Also, please keep in mind that your topics in Swaps are to be bumped at MOST once every 24 hours. If you posted at 9 pm one night, you must wait until *after* 9 pm the next evening! ~Arranging Swaps/Panhandling~ While the Wishlists are a useful tool, most people keep them as a list of scents they mean to try, or what they will accept as swap fodder. Please do not contact someone based solely off their Wishlist with an offer to swap/sell them a desired blend or add them to your decant circle/group order. Similarly, do not contact someone-- in-thread OR via PM-- based on a comment of theirs in a Review thread or elsewhere on the forum! Someone may have posted a positive review, but that is not an invitation to contact them offering to sell them more of that scent. The opposite holds true, too-- posting a negative review (or saying "I bought two bottles, when I really only need one!") is not an invitation to arrange swaps. If someone wishes to find a blend, they will post in Wanted. If someone wishes to divest themselves of extra bottles and imps, they will post in Swaps/Sales. ~Auctions~ In the For Sale sub-forum, there is a topic for eBay auctions. Please post there rather than starting a separate For Sale topic. At this time, we do not permit on-forum auctions or links to other auction sites, either for BPAL or to benefit groups or individuals. Please contact an administrator if you have a question about a specific auction. ~Random Acts of Kindness~ It bears repeating-- RAOK is a place for "I'll give," not "I want," or "I'll swap!" This is not the place to note your wishlist, to mention something you're looking for that has not been explicitly offered, or to link to your swap/sales page, etc. If you're offering items from your sales/swaps, please repost rather than linking. And also, since it's not entirely clear: on principle, we're opposed to charging people shipping for PIF/RAOK packages. ~Decant Circles/Group Orders~ In decant circles and group orders, please post in the "new circle" thread and report your post for approval. Once your circle or order is complete, please report it to be closed. If your old circles are not closed, you will not be able to start a new circle. Decant circles and group orders are to be posted in the appropriate forum ONLY, not in blogs, and must have moderator approval. We do not allow group orders to be posted for special events because there is no guarantee of stock availability. Please do not solicit for participants in your circles. It will not be tolerated. Please do not discuss decant circles outside the appropriate forum. If you have questions about running a circle, please use the designated topic. On-forum decant circles and group orders are to remain on-forum only. It is unacceptable to start an on-forum circle and then link participants to your LJ or other non-forum circle. If you are running a decant circle or group order some place other than the forum, you may not advertise it here by any means, including signature links or PM. Members who violate this guideline will lose the ability to start new on-forum circles, and may lose swaps access. ~Pricing~ One of the reasons we do not permit links to off-forum sales is that those pages usually contain costs over our price caps. If you do not wish to sell on-forum, that's fine-- but you cannot plug your off-forum sales. If you choose to sell on-forum, you must abide by the caps as reported in our database. If you are copying a sales post that you originally made on another site, please check your prices against our Price Caps Database. Abiding by the price caps includes posting specific prices (no "make me an offer!") and indicating if a blend is for sale or swap-only. If you note that you are willing to sell a scent on your swaps page, you must post a price within our caps. The price caps hold for responding to ISO posts, too-- you cannot offer someone a scent off of their Wanted post at a price that is above our maximum for that blend. We do not feel that going around the guidelines by only responding to wanted posts rather than posting the items you have available in Sales is acting in the spirit of fairness and friendship we try to encourage here. If someone proposes a swap that violates the price caps, please notify one of the swap moderators (Maewitch or Silvertree) or one of the board administrators (Morrighana or shriekingviolet). If you see a post in the swaps area that exceeds the caps or says something along the lines of "make me an offer/contact me for prices," please report the topic. For blends you only wish to swap, we advocate a 1:1 ratio. You cannot offer to swap heavily in someone's favor, or very generously, or offer two or more of your bottles for one blend. If someone asks for an uneven swap or quotes your a price outside of our caps, either offer a polite correction (it's likely an honest mistake) or, if the price is heavily inflated, you can report the conversation to a mod. Our prices refer only to the cost of a scent plus a $2.50 per bottle/$0.50 per imp or decant cap. Shipping fees are to be posted separately, not included in the price. A note on PayPal fees-- they are not to be passed on to the buyer. This holds for event exclusive pickups and Will Call fairies, both from the attendee and the purchaser. You cannot offer to pay your fairy for doing a pickup beyond the price of your items + shipping. And we absolutely will not tolerate surcharges-- you cannot charge a pickup fee to anyone purchasing items through you. ~Feedback and Swaplifting~ If a transaction goes awry, please use the feedback and unresolved swap centers! We can't send a SWAT team to retrieve your money or perfume, but we can stop a swaplifter from taking advantage of more people. You can indicate if the transaction took place here or elsewhere. *** If you've read this announcement and still have questions, or have swapping questions at any time, please contact a mod! Currently the swaps mods are Maewitch and Silvertree.