bicyclette

Chaos Theory XLV In the bottle: smoky, spicy black pepper Wet on skin: immediately goes citrusy- sweet, fresh, juicy lemon, with a bit of a spicy pepper note remaining. Almost lemony candy. There's black tea coming out to play in the background, too. Drydown: tea! lemon herbal tea. It's very dry, like I'm smelling the teabag rather than a brewed cup of hot tea. Hmm. I'm not sure how I feel about this. I really like the lemon, and how everything melds together when wet, but the drydown isn't really me. I'll spend some more quality time with this one and see how it goes.

This is a scrummier version of Pink Moon-like Pink Moon plus vanilla/honey plus a lot of throw! It's long lasting, too- PM disappears from my skin within an hour, so it was awesome to be smelling of Pink Phoenix all day. I was lucky enough to score a bottle from a forumite, and I'm so glad I did. I only wish I'd hoarded Pink Phoenix instead of Red..

Milk Moon really didn't agree with me, so I was hoping for a bit more coconut and a bit less toothpaste note of Doom, but unfortunately it was not to be. I'm not sure what it is exactly, but the milky/coconutty blends go sickly sweet on me and invariably smell like pina coladas. More creaminess might have rounded it out, but it was more of a candy-sweet smell. This was definitely similar to the Snow White coconut note, although I know not everyone gets coconut from that blend. Off to swaps with you, Obatala!

Sharp, strong lavender. It smells like it means business, and it certainly helped me get to sleep, although I'm not sure if that's a placebo effect or not. Placebos tend to help me a lot as an insomniac. I found this blend very medicinal at first, but it grew on me to the extent that I'd consider a 5ml just to scent everything with soporific lavender goodness. I put it on my pillow, my temples, and my throat so I can breathe it in while I'm doing my pre-sleep meditation. It's great to use as a focal point when I'm trying to get my mind into sleep-mode. I would totally wear this around, but I'd worry about getting drowsy.

This is very strong and floral. It says "sophisticated older woman" to me at first sniff, but unfortunately that's not a vibe I usually go for. The lily dominates right off the bat, and I can't really smell the other florals at all. I need to spend some more quality time with this blend and see how it morphs. It does dry down to a lovely warm vanilla, which is beautiful. I really want to like this, so I will test again and amend this review as necessary.

Dorian is sweet, creamy tea, a cup of Earl Grey with loads of milk and sugar. Reminds me of eating tea and biscuits at my Gran's house in Sussex when I was little. It's a very comforting scent for me, and one I sense I'll love to slather. I might need another 10ml of this goodness. Really, really nice.

Ah, Pink Moon! This is a lovely blend. Strawberries and pink sugar, with a hint of florals in the background. I'm glad I was able to track down a bottle of this. It's tart and sweet and fruity at first, with a good bit of throw, mellowing down to a second-skin kind of scent. Really nice.

I was determined not to try the Panties. I saw the description, and put away my credit card, safe in the knowledge that the foodies and I don't get along. When the forum and LJ were overrun with crazed Panty-sniffers, I was smug. Little did I know that a certain coveted decant was winging its way to me as a frimp in an uber-generous swap. Sigh. Well, I guess I'll try it. Panties reminds me quite a bit of Misk U, only with a bit more buttery caramel. The "butter" in buttercream scared me, because almost all the BPAL foody blends turn to movie theater popcorn on me, and I hate popcorn. This one, though, was pure butterscotch, which I happen to love. It's foody, but more in a sweet, super-sexy way than a wrist-eating, baked good way. The drydown on me is the same old-paper note I got in Misk U, which was the death knell for that blend on my skin. Panties takes quite a bit longer to reach that point, though, so I will most likely keep it around. Or maybe I'll slip it to an unsuspecting swapee one day and share the love.

Ack, I was hoping for vanilla and currants per yeahbutnobut's review, but I got the big 'ol scoop of cake batter (and what I've come to think of as the Generic BPAL Foody Smell, which goes buttery and unfortunate on me). I was hoping for big ripe juicy currants but I got a bit of a tart undertone and that was it. This one is already heading off to a new home where I'm sure it will be much loved. I should just learn my lesson and stay away from the foody blends, but I will always be haunted by how well Underpants worked and how I only have a lone imp of it because I thought it would be awful. Tear!

This one reminds me of Carnivale, but it's the fruity top note I love in that blend coupled with a lovely spicy carnation base. I LOVE carnation, which was unexpected because it's about the blah-est flower I can think of. Who knew the hallmark of middle school Valentines Day could be so sexy? This blend is like Bathsheba's evil twin- whereas Bathsheba is a hint of plum and major carnation, FB is the exact opposite. FB was an impulse purchase for me too, and I'm so glad it found its way into my shopping cart. I see a 10ml in my near future. Thank god this is GC!

Ah, I lucked out swapping for this! I love it. I just get straight up honey from it. In the bottle it's a little more green/herbal but as soon as it's on it's sweet honey, not cloying at all. Apparently my skin chemistry plays well with honey, as the honey note in Khajuraho predominates on me. Honey Moon has a touch of clover to it, making it just that little bit more complex. I think I prefer scents that are a little more multidimensional on me, but this is gorgeous and I will certainly be busting it out when I want to smell super-sweet.

This made its way out of my imp box and was chilling on my table for awhile. Hmm. I've been on a carnation kick and tried this one on last night, and holy crap! Love! Spicy and creamy and just a little bit fruity- the plum cuts out pretty quickly for me, which is too bad, but it leaves behind that wonderful carnation spicy sweetness so it's all good. Not much throw or staying power, alas, but I am contemplating a bottle purchase so I can slather. Beautiful.

Yet another reluctant florals-wearer preaching the gospel here! I have been converted! I love real roses and HATE artificial rose scents, but this one is pure fresh rose, as others stated, straight from the florist's refrigerator case. I'm holding it close to my face and stroking the petals across my cheek. The rose is really bold when wet, then the green makes an appearance. Someone upthread mentioned citronella, and there was a brief moment there where the greenery took a distinctly citronella turn, but that passed really quickly and now, dry, the lovely fresh rose is back to stay. I got this in a swap, deciding to take a chance after reading the reviews, and this is exactly how I thought it'd smell. Just lovely. Give it a go if you get the chance, even if you think you hate rose perfume with the fire of a thousand suns. This one is different. *goes off to hunt for more rosy scents to try*

Ah, I LOVE this. It goes on sweet and sexy and doesn't really morph much at all on me. The honey and tuberose predominate at first, drying down to a sweet, spiced amber base with the sandalwood coming out a teeny bit. I'm still new to BPAL and not great at differentiating notes, but this has great throw (always a tossup for me; my skin likes to eat oils apparently) and staying power. I put it on at 6:45, it's 12:45 now and I'm still getting whiffs of it. Amazingly good. This was the standout Lupercalia blend for me and ironically the one I thought I'd like least.

In the bottle, this smells uber-winey with an apple undertone. On my skin it's wine-soaked apples with a hint of sugar and spice, and it morphs fairly quickly into brown sugar with a hint of apple. These are definitely red apples too- I love apple but cannot stand the golden apple in The Hesperides, so this was a relief. Lovely and very much fall- I got this in November and it made me really miss New England falls now that I'm back in Texas.

In the bottle ALL I can smell is the cassia. Damn! It doesn't smell sweet at all, just kind of dark and harsh. When I first sniffed it I was a bit worried, but I'm glad I didn't write it off because the second it hits my skin it morphs into a wonderfully complex, sexy blend. The cassia tones way down and I get a strong fruity, citrusy note that must be the mandarin. Cinnamony orange, yum! Eventually, the tonka and benzoin emerge and it dries down to a sweet, almost creamy base where it stays for quite some time. Red Phoenix has great throw and staying power on me and I've been getting lots of "you smell GOOD!" when I wear it. I love this and I need to track down some more!

A mournful, poignant scent, thick with foreboding. Soft golden amber darkened with a touch of murky black musk. Ah, Haunted! I love it. I got an imp from a swap and I've been wearing it as a "going-out" scent ever since. The musk jumps out at me initially, strong and clean, but then it warms up and mellows out into sweet ambery goodness. This one got a lot of compliments and makes me feel incredibly sexy whilst wearing it. In the imp my first impression is a note that reminds me of my mother's Tiffany perfume, but that disappears almost immediately on my skin when the amber comes through. Beautiful.