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I have perused some of the general "I'm so new and helpless and confused and you're so big and strong and experienced so tell me what to do" topics, but most are too specific about notes/scent family preferences to answer my question. I would like to get my sister a 5ml of something for her birthday, but I'm basically a bpal virgin myself and don't feel comfortable making a selection without input. She's pretty flexible about notes -- I know her current conventional fragrance collection runs the gamut from floral to green to fruity to foody to musky to, uh, single-note patchouli (hey, she likes the ganj, what can I say). My question is, what scents have you found to be generally be the least divisive and most universally flattering? I'm not saying she'd be averse to unorthodox/traditionally un-lady-like notes like leather, or even to raawr-grrr-in-yr-face scents, but I'm curious as to which BPAL oils have the lowest potential for wonkiness and general unsavory stankitude (sorry, civet). It would rule if I could get her something that was distinctly un-commercial and BPAL-y but also immediately appealing to most people (i.e., not something that "grows on you" or "ages well" or that you "develop a nose for"). The first impulse for most people (it seems like) would be to just get Snake Oil, but it certainly is not my favorite of the (limited) BPALs I've sampled and these elusive "Indonesian oils" probably contain all manner of possible fail. My personal favorite so far is O, but evidently it is decidedly NOT universally awesome -- I don't want her to call me and be like, "Uh, why do you want me to smell like vagina and baby powder?" Oh, it also needs to be a GC or current LE, for obvious reasons, unless you have a suggestion for general enlightenment and not my specific situation -- I ain't searchin no ebays or swap boards for a stupid ol' birthday present. Also, if you're disgusted by my ineptitude and there's clearly already a topic that specifically addresses this, hook me up with a link, yo.

I'm pretty sure Bordello was almost single-handedly responsible for several people telling me I was their soulmate last night. One guy who I didn't know grabbed my arm at the bar and was like, "you smell SO. GOOD." And another guy who I kind of know kept hugging me so he could smell me. I was feeling sorta eh about it, but apparently it turns teh boyz on so maybe I'll get a bottle.

I'm really attracted to the entire Snake Pit and to Womb Furie, but Snake Oil (at least lab-fresh) is way too sharp on me, even though I like it in theory can detect exotic smoky vanilla yumminess under the suffocating powdery bitterness and really really want it to work. Are there any SO bpals that, uh, don't smell so...Snake Oily? I do love O, and thought the honey in Womb Furie or the other notes in some of the Snake Pits might temper the more pungent qualities of fresh SO, but I would love suggestions from people for a good gateway Snaky blend for the unconverted.

I ordered 5mls of Smut 2010 and Mme. Moriarty and am gonna give her whichever one I think she'd like better and keep the other one for meeeee. Or maybe I'll let her try both and she can decide. Or base it on which label is schmancier. But THEN! I got my second package of imps this afternoon, including Dorian and Mouse's LAST, and I really like both of those, too! And Embalming Fluid sounds really nice as well, though I haven't tried it. Gah! What is a justifiable time interval between orders? Like a week? I will feel like an asshat if I make two orders within, like, a day of each other. Snow White is LE, right? Is it a recurring seasonal LE (or whatever they're called) or was it just available once? Same with Werepuppy?

p.s. I'm leaning toward Dorian, Shub, Mme. Moriarty, Alice, or Bastet, (none of which I've personally tried -- waitin' on mah next paycheck) based on your guys' suggestions and some of the enabling and top ten threads you linked me up with. I was sooo positive from the description that I'd love Morocco, and am actually thinking about getting that for her because so many people seem to love it, but it's kind of meh on me. She's turning 21, so I thought it would be hilarious to get her something with a boozy note, but apparently I'm the only one with the wino gene, because all booze except little girl drinks with gin and vodka make her sick. Thematically, she's into "the Orient," as I like to say -- she's traveled extensively in SE Asia, China, Japan, and India. She's not like, a manga nerd or one of those Nippon-ophiles, she's just adventurous. Another thought is that she used to really like The Body Shop's white musk line but we both now think it's too soapy and "clean," not to mention that we know a lady in her 60s who always reeks of it So I know she likes musk, and was thinking along the lines of a more animalic musk like Kiehls' original musk oil, but I can't discern a clear bpal equivalent. doublehelix -- thanks for the suggestion! Since I'm so new I haven't even ever looked, or thought to look, at the sales forum.

My other two bpal faves, both of which I've tried via decant, are Sugar Skull and Velvet Clown, the first of which I can't get for her by her birthday, the latter of which I can't get for her ever -- too bad her birthday's next month or I'd totally go the Halloweenie route. For those of you who've shared bpals with female family members -- do you find that the scents tend to smell similar on both of you? Or do shared genes not equal shared skin chemistry?