thekittenkat

In the bottle: all the notes are present, but the mint dominates, in a sweet way Wet: still minty, but more sweet, probably the sweet pea The Dry-down: the citrus notes are coming to the foreground, but there's also an underlying woody note, maybe the lemongrass (as if it was dried in the sunshine) Later: not so minty now, and the lavender is peeking out, and I'm getting more of a sense of sun-warmed herbs This is a very light scent, very airy, and that's good, because Gemini is an air sign. I wore this the other day, the first day when we had temps in the 80s, and it seemed to be very changeable from the bottle to the dry-down. Typical Gemini. It's a mutable sign, so all the changes this oil goes through are also appropiate for the sign. Gemini is my sun sign, so I knew that I needed to try this at some point. This will be a good scent for spring and summer, and a good one for sleep-time. I only have two problems with this oil. It's so light that I will have to slather and re-apply often. Also, it's a bit tacky-feeling on my writs, but I suspect that this is two-fold: this is an older oil, and also there are those citrus notes; orange juice, for example, can be sticky.

The dole referenced in the poem's title is an archaic use of the word, meaning sorrow or grief; or dolour, which is an obsolete word that means a painful grief or suffering (all these from the wiktionary for a reference that one can check, but I remember this usage of the word from studying medieval English literature and poetry). In the imp: That sharp note that lilies have on me. Wet: Lilies still like woah, but the rose is coming out to play. And the sand and yew are starting to ground those flowers. Not getting any blood, though. The dry-down: it all seems to have blended together and is lingering close to the skin, and slowly fading away. Pretty but not for me, I think. I had hoped that this would be like Sturgeon Moon, only with roses and not so much the lilies. It's nice to know that lilies can be tamed. I wanted to like this oil a lot, because of the wonderful sad and mysterious poem, and it's fine, but it's not lasting on me at all. I'm also really surprised that the roses were not stronger, as I usually amp rose.

In the imp: Sweet and spicy; the oil itself is a dark maroon in colour. Wet: The honey and the red currant have jumped right out! But the musk is underneath it, and also the oakmoss is giving off the woody note as a bottom note. The dry-down: Some things are blending together now. But the woody oakmoss is rising to the top. There might be a slight hint of the neroli. The bergamot must be the herb and not the fruit, unless I'm mistaking the neroli note for the fruity bergamont. I tried this earlier, and got some violets from the orris root, but this time I'm being attacked by the honey and the red currant. Strangely enough this may be too sweet for me. I'm beginning to think that I might like honey musk, but not honey, but it may be too soon to tell. The Deserted Village is nice enough, but I'll have to think about it. Probably not bottle-worthy.

In the imp: Water and frankincense. Wet: The frankincense is over-riding everything, but but there's a little sweetness underneath, probably the white rose and the balsam. The dry-down: I'm getting a little of the clove and the blackberry leaf, with a sharp note that must be the zdravetz (a mum--my grandmother grew mums in big pots on her porch, and they were always bitter-smelling in the hot summertime air), but mostly everything is blending together, slowly. ETA: Later: this has slowly faded away to driftwood. And once the oil was on me, there was no aquatic note at all. If you're looking for a summertime version of Lines Written Among the Euganean Hills, this could be it. Lines' notes are skin musk, white sandalwood, balsam fir, frozen black berries, cedar, winter rose, and white amber. There's no musk or berries in Eanach Dhuin, but the other notes are similar enough. It might be an interesting experiment to layer the two, or to layer Eanach Dhuin with The Winter Maiden. I would also like to try this on the bf. I think I'll order a bottle before it comes down.

I put this on my skin and took a sniff, and said "that's just lovely!" It's a well-blended oil. I ordered this one unsniffed, because I was rather sure that all the notes would work on me, and they did. In the bottle: Green yet sweet. If the Host of the Air (the Fair Folk) were here, this is what they would smell like. Wet: Green and sweet. The green is the peat, the grass, the heather, and the heath, mixing together. The sweet is all the flowers and the berries in a wonderful blending. The dry-down: This is so well-blended, that not one note predominates on me. I like that, as it shows the art of the perfumer. This is a lovely scent that has me more in mind of the late spring/early summer, when there's fruit and flowers mixed together in the meadows. I might save this for June.

Coldie, thanks for all your help! Going to check both of these out.

Mods, forgive me in advance if I've missed something, but I've looked and searched through this and other forums, and can't find what I'm looking for. About a couple of years ago, give or take a few months, I had a BPAL spreadsheet. I don't know where I found it (I wasn't on the forum then, unless I did register, but never posted, and I wouldn't remember the user name anyhow, as all that might be found on a computer that I don't use any more), or who made it, but it looked very useful. Now that I have seriously gotten into BPAL oils, I really need a spreadsheet, and one that is either kept updated, or that would be easy enough to keep updated. I don't want to re-invent the wheel, of course, so if a spreadsheet is out there, would some kind forumite please point it out to me? Many thanks in advance!

In the bottle: I am smelling each note by itself, so yummy. Wet: more of the white chocolate as a top note, with the marshmallow and coconut playing nicely under-neath The dry-down: all three notes are combining in a lovely paean to foody goodness, with just a hint of the cocoa that is the base of the white chocolate drifting away from me. Each time I sniff my wrist, one of the notes jumps out for a nanosecond, and then there's that lovely rich scent of all three of them together. If this was a drink or a cake, I would be savouring every sip, lingering over each and every bite. This oil smells so good, from start to finish, that I can hardly believe it! Except for honey and fruits, I didn't think that I was a foodie kind of girl. But this and WC & Strawberries have changed my mind. With either of them, I just want to put my nose on my wrist and just leave it there. I was so sure that the milk and dark chocolates in the Box of Chocolates would work for me, and they failed to impress, alas. Chalk that up to wonky skin chemistry--either cocoa/chocolate work wonders on me, or they don't at all. WC & S, and WC & M & C are true delights. (I can't say that of WC & Sugared Violets, though.) WC & M & C might be a good oil for sleeping. It's nice and soothing and relaxing.

In the imp: A lovely dark rose scent, with a hint of musk and cherries lurking underneath. Wet: All that and more, and strangely enough, ramping up the sweetness (cherries, but not just-picked and raw, but more like the maraschino cherries in those sweet drinks), and a tiny bit of some spice. The dry-down: Same as for Wet, but now there's also some resin or amber (not sure which). I was hoping for a bit more of those two, plus more musk. And not so much sweetness. Later: This oil is interesting and complex, but the sweet note is the stand-out one. I like it okay, but think that it would make a better layering oil with something that has musk or spice or amber or resin as the major note, so to speak. Note: This was a frimp from the Lab. Not sure that I would have ever tried it, otherwise, besides reading these very helpful reviews. In the vial, the oil looks a red-orange-pink colour, translucent in clarity. The oil itself is somewhat viscous, and clings to my finger tips where I touched the toothpick after applying it to my wrist. Rubbed my fingertips over my arm, so as not to loose any precious oil.

In the imp: maybe some white chocolate, but overall something very sharp Wet: some of that white chocolate, and that sharp purple-green smell which must be the violets The dry-down: see Wet Later: see Wet. I only ever got a hint of a sweet note, which must be the sugar. Otherwise, screaming violets with white chocolate trying to get away. It's appropriate that this is my thirteenth review. I tried this when I first got it, and really didn't like it. In fact, right now, it's giving me a headache, and I will have to go wash it off, just like the first time I sampled it. I really don't think that this combination of white chocolate and sugared violets is good for me. What are sugared violets? All I can think of is something on wedding cakes. If you like violets, you will love this. If you don't, you won't. Many have rose turn to powder on them and think of an "old lady" scent. I guess that is what happens to me with violets. I want to like violets, but they don't like me. I've tried other perfumes and colognes with violet in them, as a main note, and they never work on me. I got this because of the white chocolate, which I dearly love, and the idea that the sugaring would tame the violets. No such luck. Sell or swap for sure.

In the decant: some sweetness, something a tad spicy (very mild though), and water underneath all Wet: like fresh water over rocks (the sandy shores?) in the shadows of a little stream high in the mountains, just after the snow-melt (that's the benzoin) The dry-down: the musk and all the plants are showing up now, a lovely green scent, a little sweet and a touch spicy at the same time. Look, there's the cucumber! Cool-feeling on the wrist. That would be great when it's hot outside. Very soft, and I have to put my nose to wrist to smell it at all. Nothing fishy about this, just the smell of the cool waters as it passes over all those other plants as the moon rises. Edited to add this: I'm getting a slight touch of the salty air that others have mentioned. And this lovely oil is fading away.

In the decant: When I opened it up, I got hit with a wave of cold air and the eucalyptus that others have mentioned, altogether it's not listed in the notes. (Had it kept to these two notes, it would have been what I wanted Moon of Ice to be, and with some staying power, but sadly enough, the Moon of Ice melted into my wrist within in minutes, so not bottle-worthy.) Wet: It's already starting to morph away from just cold air and lovely eucalyptus. The dry-down: I'm getting the florals now, but not as single notes, but as a lovely wild garden about to be covered by falling snow. And there's some kind of minty note in there, which must be the fir. And yes, there's the rose, I suspect, a bit sweet, but tempered by all the other flowers and cooled by the snow. (I amp rose.) And a hint of mum and something spicy underneath. Right now, it's a lovely scent. And, it's cool-feeling on my wrist. How does Beth do this!? I love the coolness--could be a great oil for the dog days of summer. Edited to add the following: An hour later, it has gotten a sweet note, like sugar thrown on snow, but not like maple syrup on snow. And I can catch whiffs of it as I move my arm around. Add in a half-hour, and it's starting to fade, but the sweetness seems to be the last to leave. Quite a morpher. Might would like a bottle, but would have to slather or re-apply a lot.

In the bottle: I get mostly tobacco, strangely enough. Wet: the rose blooms immediately! But the green note of the fir is cutting through now. Dry-down: Slowly, most all the other notes appear, especially the clove and the musk. All the scent notes in the tonka are swirling around. I'm not really sure about the amber or the tobacco, though. Later: an amazing scent--all of the ingredients have blended together nicely (red rose buds, with amber, clove, tonka, Indian musk, fir, and tobacco). The rose and the fir notes are the most prominent ones, but the red musk grounds them, and the tonka adds sweetness, while the clove tempers with spiciness. The green note in Red Rose is not as prominent as it is in Rose Red. Artwork: The art on the bottle is that of the stylized red rose of the House of Lancaster dominating a medium blue and blue-grey background. I adore the contrast between the red and the blues. Layering: if you layer White Rose with Red Rose, the most marvelous thing happens. Even though both oils are perfectly wonderful on their own, layering creates a totally new scent, seemingly. It's as though one takes hothouses buds, and grafts them to a rose running wild in some neglected part of the garden. A totally new rose, and one that is complete in itself. It's as though the hothouse bud, and the young almost-wild rose, grow into each other and became the queen of the garden, in full bloom, heady yet still sweet, the envy of all the other roses. If White Rose is the House of York (and I am quite the Yorkist supporter), and Red Rose is the House of Lancaster, then the unity of the two can only result in the House of Tudor. I'm not overly fond of the Tudor kings, so I will call the layered scent Elizabeth I.

In the bottle: a gentle white rose scent, no others. Wet: the benzoin pops out first, then the white rose rises up, very sweet, but definitely only a budding flower, and not a fully displayed rose. Underneath is the creamy coconut. Dry-down: now the vanilla tea is coming out, and I can see that this is why others think of Dorian. As for the comparisons with Snow White, that oil is a combination of florals, a hint of the snow note, and some creaminess on me, so I don't get the comparions. White Rose is just that, a white rose, and I don't detect a combination of a whole bunch of other florals. Now there's that tiny whiff of the frankincense. And a gentle touch of the violet note from the orris, very faint. Later: a delicate yet creamy scent--all of the ingredients have blended together nicely (white rose buds, vanilla tea, benzoin, orris, coconut meat, and frankincense). The rose and the tea notes are the most prominent ones, but the creaminess of the coconut meat grounds them, and the frankincense keeps it from becoming too sweet or too foodie. Artwork: The art on the bottle is that of the stylized white rose of the House of York dominating a blue and green background. It's beautiful! Layering: if you layer White Rose with Red Rose, the most marvelous thing happens. Even though both oils are perfectly wonderful on their own, layering creates a totally new scent, seemingly. It's as though one takes hothouses buds, and grafts them to a rose running wild in some neglected part of the garden. A totally new rose, and one that is complete in itself. It's as though the hothouse bud, and the young almost-wild rose, grow into each other and became the queen of the garden, in full bloom, heady yet still sweet, the envy of all the other roses. If White Rose is the House of York (and I am quite the Yorkist supporter), and Red Rose is the House of Lancaster, then the unity of the two can only result in the House of Tudor. I'm not overly fond of the Tudor kings, so I will call the layered scent Elizabeth I.

In the decant: more of a cocoa note, not really any strawberries at all Wet: some chocolate, but it seems to be more like milk chocolate; there's a sharp note that might be a hint of strawberries coming through, and also a hint of a creamy note that could be the white chocolate The dry-down: the chocolate note still seems to be somewhere between white and milk; the strawberries are coming out more -- close to what a white-and-milk-chocolate-coated strawberry ought to smell like Later: a couple of hours on, the scent is still there, but faint and fading fast Much later: three hours after the Later, and if I put my nose to my wrist, the creamy strawberries are still there. This might be a nice scent for spring or summer. May have to rethink ordering a bottle of this. The notes that I could detect are mostly that combo between milk and white chocolate, the strawberries, and a touch of cream that is probably the white chocolate. It's a lovely scent to be sure, and I'm glad that the strawberry note seems to be light and delicate, and doesn't turn plastic, or fake, so it's not similar to the strawberry (food) topping one finds that is totally artificial. At the same time, as much as I like this oil, it faded fast. Not really sure that it's bottle-worthy for me, but if you like white chocolate and strawberries, this is a really good but delicate oil. I used to love white chocolate (the food), but I find now that it's really too sweet for me. I prefer a 60% dark without being too overly sweet. Edit to add: I tried this again, and although it still seems to fade fast, I loved it more each time. So much so, that when I went to GA WC, I made off with two bottles! This is now my spring go-to oil. As an LE, it could be difficult and/or expensive to find later, and I have fallen in love with it that much.

In the bottle: very gentle, very sweet, yet with a note of sharpness Wet: the red currants are the top note, but the honey is there as a middle note, grounding the currants into a lovely sweet wine scent, more like a sweet but light red wine than anything else that I can think of. That sharp note seems to have disappeared--was that the dandelion? The dry-down: more honey and more red currants, melding softly together. This is what a red wine from Faerie ought to smell like. One would possibly like to taste such a vintage. More later, once it's had time to work longer on me. I will say that the Lab's honey note is one that seemingly works well on my skin. EDIT: it's four hours later, and here's what happened during that time. The honey and currants stayed in their lovely combination, and for a little while, when I put nose to wrist, there was much later a sharp green scent, which must be the dandelion. But that soon went away. It's now dried to a powdery, light musk, with a hint of the honey and currants. I wish that it lasted longer, but I adore the oil so much that I'll just slather it on and more often.

In the decant: mildly sweet and a touch of musk Wet: a little like pickles at first, but quickly changes to musk and sometimes that smells like sweet-gum leaves in the fall The dry-down: the musk and the sweet-gum leaves are combining in a lovely sort of way. Of course, this is nothing like standing in a forest of sweet-gum in the fall, not so heady and not that olfactory overload, but it's lovely nonetheless. There's some floral coming out as well. Very lovely, and not at all overwhelming.

In the imp: heady, tropical florals, but with a sharp note. Wet: already changing on my skin--I'm getting more tropical fruit notes, maybe some mango, guava, papaya, banana, but very sweet, but not with a sugary sweetness. I'm not really all that familiar with the florals in this. Also there's that sharp note that I can't pin down, maybe a hint of green stem? Or ginger? In the dry-down: very light and delicate floral-fruit fragrance with that green or ginger note to balance it. Six and an half hours later: It faded away slowly, but it's still there if I sniff my wrist. The gardenia and ginger really did amp up during this time, but now it's just that creamy scent one gets from a gardenia blossom that's just at that peak moment. This would be a great perfume oil for the spring or summer, or a tropical place such as south Florida or Hawaii. It's very pretty and feminine. It's a little too heady for me, as though there was gardenia blended in as well. Since it's winter now, I'll put this away, and try it again in the spring or summer. (Please note that this was a frimp from the Lab.)

This is for Snow White 08. In the bottle: very sweet and somewhat floral, a hint of vanilla Wet: a very sharp scent like after a heavy rain (that must be the ozone), also the sweetness, some vanilla The dry-down: more vanilla, the ozone is still there, the florals are there, but just barely I've tried Snow White several times now, somewhat because of all the hype. It's not quite what I was expecting, I was hoping for more of the icy/snow scent and less of the sweetness and vanilla. The florals do move to the foreground for me as the day goes on. It is a pretty scent, with the florals and the sweetness of the vanilla, but I had hoped for more snow, less sweet and floral. I'm glad I got a bottle, but it won't be an everyday scent for me. (That is Lady Una, so far.)

In the imp: very wet, very cold, a chilled rose. Wet: mostly the same as above, but starting to warm up a bit now that it is on my wrist. The dry-down: a pure rose scent, light, not heady, still a little cool, might be a touch of powder there. Two hours later: I keep wanting to sniff my wrist. It's become a very light scent, a bit more powdery, and maybe that hint of green that others in the thread have mentioned, but only very lightly.

In the imp: mild spiciness. Wet: just more mild spiciness, with a hint of something sharp, but not bitter. The dry-down: I'm smelling something that I would call seeds (like bird food seed), a hint of floral, and as I type, I'm getting a few whiffs. So far I would call this oil a light spicy scent with a touch of sweet floral, and they seem to be mixing well together. I'll add more to this later. I like it so far. Three hours later: The florals seem to have come forward more, and yet are still mixing well with the spicy bits, which could be the "bird seed" or the amber. I think I'll try this on the bf, it might do better on him. (Not so floral, I hope.) I'll keep the imp, I think, but I don't see a need for a bottle of this, not at this moment.

In the vial: very musky--that must be the amber and the musk working together. Where's my black rose? Wet: there's a sharp note here, and a dark rose scent, which is very much in the background, a bottom note, perhaps. The dry-down: the rose amps up a little, that sharp note has gone away, but this is slowly fading into a powdery amber, but with a little sweetness left of the rose, almost like a red wine note, and a little creaminess from the musk. Note: on the first try, the dry-down was just musky amber, after about six hours. On the second try, the wine note of the rose seems to be lingering a bit longer, but at the four hour stage now. A lovely smell, but not what I was expecting. Rose scents usually do well on me, though. In short, after a couple of tries, I don't think that this is really working for me, and I so wanted it to. At least it isn't the rose scent that my grandmother wore. It's not a bad scent at all, I just wanted it to have more rose in it. It's more like a rose at the end of summer, all dried up on the vine or bush, or rose leaves which have been left to dry for potpourri. A soft but mature rose.