forspecial_plate

I'm resisting the urge to order another Trick Or Treat Inquisition scent. I keep telling myself, just wait....because I don't even know which scent I'll get with my first order, because Possets' fall update is at the end of the week, because bpal may or may not have an update coming soon....not to mention the other bpal Halloween scents that I want, that I still haven't ordered yet.....all very good reasons, but I want another Trick Or Treat order pending, dammit!

[from my 2006 bottle] I knew there was a reason I waited months and months to review Samhainophobia. I tested it a few times, and just didn't get it. I read the reviews. I read the description. What I had didn't match up with any of that. No patchouli, no vetiver......in fact, none of the notes listed, as far as I could tell. To me, Samhainophobia smelled almost exactly like Samhain, with just a smidge of sharpness on top. [i should mention, when I wear Samhain, I mostly get the sweet apple note, almost like honey, and very little woods or patchouli or anything else like that. Samhainophobia is the same way.] Well, I wore it again today, and it finally 'clicked' for me. It still smells sweet, like Samhain's apple note. But there is a chill, like autumn woods at night, that just reached out for me this time. It's reminiscent of bpal's snowy blends, but definitely different.....this is an autumn chill, with the slightly spicy sweetness behind it. I think I finally just gave in and accepted the scent as it is, and found that I really like it. And since autumn is my favorite season, I'll be wearing this again, for sure.

I have so many different perfumes now, that sometimes wearing just one isn't enough. I get too impatient to try something else. So I end up smelling like 2 or 3 different ones, and it kind of turns into perfume overload. Like they all just get lost in a cloud of too much smelliness. I'm getting better lately, though, and trying to be patient and just wear one for a while before trying another one. I still have quite a few new scents that I haven't reviewed or even tried yet. It's a little out of control, and when I look at my wish list, I kind of think to myself "you're kidding, right? you need MORE??". On a different note....I already knew that I like fall scents year-round, including in the heat of summer. Lately, though, I've noticed that I don't reach for the 'red' summer scents, now that I'm in a fall mood. Red Moon and Corazon are two examples, I just haven't felt like wearing them at all lately. Maybe that's because I'm sooo hyped about the fall scents right now. I do sometimes like the winter scents in different seasons. I wore Jolasveinar and Midnight Mass a few times over the summer. Speaking of fall scents, I'm starting to wonder just a little about my decants. I've bought from this gal before so I'm not too worried, I'm just wondering what stage we're at......has the CnS come yet? Has she actually got the package yet? Are they on the way to us (doubt it)?? I'm just so impatient for these, so I can go ahead and place another order. Also, when I look at which Pumpkin Patch decants I ordered, I kind of wonder what I was thinking. I ordered 2, 4 and 5. Now I wish I could try 3 also. I'm pretty sure without sniffing that I'll like 3 and 5. I think I ordered 2 just to see how the champaca or champa plays out in it. It's a note that I like but it sometimes takes over a scent for me. I'm also really really excited about the Possets fall update, coming soon. One more week! I know I need to set aside at least $50 or $60 for that, probably more..... *sigh*

This smelled like aquatic, white floral, and white musk to me. A little powdery, and the familiar 'mist' note that I remember from other bpal scents......it became more powdery as it dried/faded on my skin. It reminds me very much of some perfume that my stepmom wears, but I don't know which one that is. It also reminded me of Empyreal Mist, a little bit, if I remember correctly. This is another scent that I could use for enabling, I think my stepmom might like it. I personally won't get much wear out of it, though.

The first thing I thought of was Gypsy Queen: "A heavy-lidded perfume, the quintessence of beauty and power shrouded in mystery, swathed in a deep, velvet-clad cloak of dark omens: Romany incense and candle smoke mingling with an alluring, body-warmed whiff of bergamot, neroli, Bulgar rose, carnation, and amber musk." For me it's more floral than anything, but it has a lot of throw. When you described your costume it seemed to fit. (oh and it's LE from Carnaval Noir)

I've worn this a few times now, and still can't tell if I'm going to like it enough to wear a lot. It's much sweeter and.....brighter than I expected it to be, greener somehow. Basically the other reviews before mine are accurate. There does seem to be musk here, and it reminds me a lot of Devil's Night. Both scents are musky and sweet on my skin, and light on the booze notes. In Hunter Moon the wine is hard to pick out. Comparing it to the old Hunter Moon, from my decant......very different scent. That could also be because of aging, though. But I like my old-school, dark, incense and woodsy (also heavier on the wine note) Hunter Moon more than this one. This actually reminds me more of Buck Moon (which I've only tried once, but I think someone else mentioned the resemblance and I agree) than the older Hunter Moon. I've had good results with this when I apply very lightly. Too much of it becomes cloying but that's often a problem for me. Oh and as long as I'm comparing, Hunter Moon '07 reminds me a lot of Thunder Moon, like this could be its fall companion.

For some reason Umbra rubbed me the wrong way. I like many dark scents and this seemed like one of the darkest. I love patchouli and vetiver, and cinnamon sounded good here too....generally I like it in moderation. So what happened? At first I got strong, 'new' patchouli, and lots of it. Then as it dried the other notes came in. Something began to smell borderline powdery, and somehow the scent as a whole just didn't work for me. It was woody and earthy with a faint undertone that was high and sweet....a little cloying, almost like decay. Basically, just not for me. This scent reminds me of Typhon, but I love Typhon. Oh well, there are plenty of other scents to love. Edit....I'm holding onto my imp because I know that patchouli and vetiver can both age beautifully, and become smoother. Still pretty sharp today but no powder so far. Yay!

First impressions, straight out of the mailbox: This goes back and forth from realistic damp leaves to more traditional, but light, cologne or perfume. I agree that you could call it masculine. There is a hint of peppery bite at the top, from the leaves I think. Underneath the leaves, this scent has a 'golden light' mood or tone that reminds me of Minotaur and even Pumpkin King, a little (yeah, I said it!). I think there is some kind of soft, subtle resin at work here, like copaiba balsam or something....that must be the 'sap in the air'. The hint of smoke has echoes of Djinn. But mostly this is golden autumn light dancing on falling leaves. In fact, if there was ever going to be a Falling Leaf Moon like someone speculated, I think it would smell like this. Much later, as October dries, that peppery bite seems to gain intensity until I'm getting almost a cedar vibe from the scent. Woodsy now and spicy. October is light, and I don't think it has a whole lot of throw. Still, I am drawn back to my wrist over and over to sniff. I could wear this year round but I'm weird like that. In other words, I love it. I'm already resisting the urge to hoard another bottle (and I've never even finished an entire imp or decant of anything). [edited to remove clunkiness]

Ooooh, Hunter Moon looks very pretty! Can't wait to smell it too!

Ginger is a hit-or-miss note for me. I love Shub-Niggurath, but I don't like the ginger note in Saw Scaled Viper and War. I like Sudha Segara, but I don't love it, and I'm not sure I can smell the ginger in it. It smells more like sparkly lemon and lime to me. I have a wee sample of ginger essential oil from Nature's Gift, and I really like how it smells. Oh and I do like Pumpkin Queen, but I don't love it (wait.....PQ does have ginger, doesn't it?). I was reading reviews for Shub-Niggurath and couldn't believe all the variations people are smelling. I don't smell lemon at all when I wear it. And were there really different 'versions' of Shub? I always wonder if that's true or if it's just people's different perceptions of the same scent. I have a decant of pre-resurrection Shub, and also a bottle of the resurrected Shub, and they smell exactly alike to me. Of course, I don't know how old the decant is.

For some reason I expected this to smell like Dragon's Milk, but it doesn't. It reminds me of a Possets scent, Elixer of Heartlessness....but I bet if I tried them side by side, they're quite different. This smells 'perfumey' to me (I know, lame description), and I think I finally know what orris smells like. Doesn't one of the Snake Pit scents contain orris? Now I want to try that one again. The coconut here just barely peeks in and out. I do like this, but perhaps not enough to wear often. I'm not sure yet.

Okay, I found the gardenia thread. I'm adding Euphrosyne to the list, and maybe Pele. I absolutely cannot imagine giving my stepmom something called The Sacred Whore of Babylon, though. Maybe a decant with just 'Babylon' on the label. I wonder....if she ended up liking it, and I told her what it's called, would she still wear it?

I'm starting this because I have 2 livejournal accounts, but I really don't participate in the bpal communities on lj. I used to be a member of a couple of them, but decided that my lj is not the place for my bpal trading. I still write about bpal stuff but I get the feeling that many people on my friends list probably don't care about bpal. So here I am. Friday I had dinner with my dad and stepmom, and told them a little bit about my perfume obsession. Actually, I told them about Fabienne and Possets. They both expressed interest, and they might go to a Final Friday where Fabienne opens her studio to the public (along with many other artists at the Pendleton Art Center). My point, and I do have one, is that I would like to make lists of imp packs for my dad and stepmom, sort of a bpal introductory selection of scents. My stepmom says she likes gardenia, so I did a search on the lab's site and came up with a few possibilities. The one that stuck out most was Le Serpent Qui Danse. I think she might like Antique Lace, although I myself have never tried it. She works for Clinique and would probably like the more traditional-smelling bpal perfumes, at least to start out. Other than that I have no idea what her tastes might be, so I'd like to come up with a range of styles for her to try. As for my dad, I would go for more masculine blends, obviously. The first one I thought of was Casanova. Maybe Whitechapel, Calico Jack, possibly Dracul. For both of them I'm going to stay away from limited edition scents, so in case they end up loving a particular scent we can definitely get more. That said, I would probably let them try some of my LE's, particularly from Carnaval Diabolique. Bonnie (my stepmom) might possibly like Midnight On The Midway, and heck, my dad could like it too (I love it, and I'm a guy). So for the next couple months I'll be keeping my eyes open for possibilities, and I think there are at least a couple recommendation discussions I'm going to peruse also.

I haven't tried the L'Occitane scent you're talking about. However, bpal's Spider (from the Carousel) has notes of "White ginger, artemesia, vetiver, nutmeg, King mandarin, bergamot, and lime". Might be worth tracking down a decant.

Our local big Playhouse is starting the season with Dracula. I am so excited!! I'm already deciding what bpal scent to wear (unless I go with Possets...). I think Count Dracula is a little obvious. I'm thinking Devil's Night or October (and I haven't even smelled it yet!). If I decide on Possets it would be Ribbands, Merlin's Mistress, or Over The Rhine. More choices: Montresor Pumpkin King Typhon Mme. Moriarty

One of my new favorite scents is Montresor...."The black fruit and vanilla oaken notes of fine Medoc and De Grâve, but not a hint of the elusive Amontillado". I love deep, somewhat dark scents and this sure is that, and the vanilla is fairly prominent on my skin. It's LE but doesn't seem all that hard to find....I found a 5ml fairly quickly on ebay. This from another guy who sometimes amps sweet notes, which can sometimes ruin a scent for me (unless I want a really sweet scent, like Sugar Skull).

Hmm, right away I thought of 3 from the Salon.....Orpheus, Garden Path With Chickens, and Les Anges Dechus all smell very 'herbal' to me. Antony is another herbal scent, and you could even get a sample of that one (the Salon samples come in sets only). Now when you talk about specific herbs, it might be easier to just do a search on the Lab's website. For example, a search for bergamot turned up no less than 26 results! Lavender would probably bring a lot of results, pennyroyal at least a couple (Mad Hatter is a good one, smells kind of minty with lavender and musk), ginger is in quite a few (Shub-Niggurath is a must try for ginger fans if you ask me) and the list goes on.... Hope that helps a little, I know the lab's catalogue can seem daunting at first!

I was pleasantly surprised by Cathode. I was expecting a lot of bright mint, more of a high-pitched crystalline scent. Instead I am getting mostly moss I think, with the mint kind of dancing around the top. I was also afraid of it smelling like spearmint which I hate, but I really don't smell that at all. In fact, I don't really smell peppermint either....it's more like a minty feeling. It goes through a long middle stage where it reminds me of a spice cabinet, some kind of savory herbs....not sage or basil, but something. Then long after that (I put it on 5 hours ago and it's still there), I think what I'm smelling is mostly the ambergris, although I don't really know what that smells like. It's not musty like moss can sometimes be on me. It's a little sweet, somewhat herbal. Basically I'm thinking 'masculine' when I wear this, along the lines of Antony. It's a really good scent that works well on my skin. I will continue to wear it and consider a bigger amount than my imp.

I'm always on the lookout for the perfect 'red' scent.........red musk, incense, spicy, smokey, that general category.....there are a few that I really like.....Fenris Wolf, Sin, Lust, Blood, Mme. Moriarty, of course Red Moon, and Crowley, which sort of falls into that. The list goes on and on! Oh yeah and Hellion, perhaps.

When I tried this today I smelled mostly honey. I don't like to smell like honey, so this wasn't good. After about an hour, the sweetness backed off some, and it was more of a spicy, warm scent that I liked a lot. I heard a rumor that this gets better with age, so I'll hold onto my imp and try it again. I was expecting a lot more almond, so it's weird that it smells like honey (almost typed hiney!! ). I guess it's the myrrh and/or musk that's playing tricks on me. Bastet does have some potential to be something I like.

My first thought was this smells a lot like the more recent Blue Moon, with some minor differences. Lady of Shallot doesn't have the wood note/s that Blue Moon has. There's some note floating around in the background that made me think of plumeria for some reason, although I really don't know what plumeria smells like. Now, reading the notes, I think it was the ginger. This is a very pretty, aquatic floral scent. The ginger might give it a roundness, I think. I will probably use this for enabling because I think it would be good for that purpose. I personally don't need this because to me, it's so close to Blue Moon which I already have. edit: I agree with dorothy humbird that there is a linen-like note in this. It reminded me of Dirty, a little bit.

When I tried this I didn't have the description handy, so it was a total guess as far as what notes were in it. I thought it smelled like a creamy, musky floral with something tart. I guessed jasmine (I see now that I was wrong...), and honestly Endymion reminded me a lot of Unheavenly City. I don't remember smelling pear at all! It was a nice scent, pretty....just not something I would wear very often.

Today I wore Midnight On The Midway and it reminded me a lot of nag champa.

When I wore this, I thought 'almond' much more than 'cinnamon'. I found it nice and warm, spicy, and kind of like bread or pastry (which in this case was a good thing). Reading over the description, I was startled to see some of the notes....honeysuckle? Where was that? Copal I could understand. I will definitely wear this again. It's kind of a golden, spicy, bakery scent for me, which I do like. Yum.

I got this as an extra in a recent swap (thanks, this machine!). I love this scent, more than the other 2 that I actually swapped for. I need more! Very deep, somewhat dark, wine and fruit, hints of wood, deep vanilla. Just like the description says. I don't get 'grape' specifically. For so long I avoided this and most other wine scents. I can't remember what but some other bpal scent gave me a bad experience with wine. Well, I'm so glad I put this on my wish list, because it's wonderful. I can really imagine wearing this on a chilly autumn night. The warm vanilla balances with the other notes, beautifully. A real winner, this one.