Teamama

2016 Faith, lab purchase with her twin Hope. Alone, Faith is a delicate, dry violet fragrance. Not a lot of throw. I go along with the reviewers who have compared it to candy. If Necco Wafers came in violet flavor, they'd smell like Faith. I'm not going to wear Faith alone. Firstly because violet is pretty far down on my list of notes I love, and second because Faith + Hope = WAY better than either one alone. I wore Hope on one arm, Faith on the other, and was surprised and seduced by the interplay between them. I'm much fonder of roses than violets usually, but I'm going to wear these together, every time. I wish there was a way to review H&F together. They're "nice" by themselves, but together they're exponentially better! I encourage everyone who gets H&F to trust Beth on this one, and test them together before deciding to re-home one of the twins. Edited to add: worn together, H&F are REALLY long-lasting. 10 hours.

2016 Hope, lab purchase with her twin Faith. Alone, Hope is a sweet, sheer pink rose type fragrance. Not a lot of throw. It reminds me a little of the roses in Obsidian Widow and Love; kind of candied. Frankly, I would not wear Hope alone. I believe the sheerness of Hope is intentional, because it's half of a pair of twins. I wore Hope on one arm, Faith on the other, and was surprised and seduced by the interplay between them. I'm much fonder of roses than violets usually, but I'm going to wear these together, every time. I wish there was a way to review H&F together. They're "nice" by themselves, but together they're exponentially better! I encourage everyone who gets H&F to trust Beth on this one, and test them together before deciding to re-home one of the twins. Edited to add: worn together, H&F are REALLY long-lasting. 10 hours.

An aged decant crimped by a forumite. I wasn't expecting Intercourse to work for me, but WOW! Benzoin and orris magic, with just a hint of jasmine. Delicious! Not long-lasting, alas, but that's probably a good thing. Otherwise I'd spend all my time trying to get more...

White floral & subtle ivy. It's kind of a pleasant fragrance, but I hate English (tree-strangling, invasive, non-native,) ivy so passionately that I will never be able to bond with The Ghost.

I got a decant of 2016's Love's Philosophy, and it's so fabulous, I ended up buying a partial bottle. It's got something in it that has a variable response to my chemistry. The first day I tested it, I was underwhelmed; the next, it was a hallelujah vanilla cream party. During the first, meh test, I got a lot of the "wintergreen/root beer/Ben Gay" note on application, and it took a looking time to go away. Subsequent wearings have been free of that curse. This has medium throw, but incredible staying power. I get a lot more vanilla than cream, and only a wee bit of saffron.

This is magical. When I first spray it, there is an interaction between the notes that smells like fresh rhubarb sauce (!!) Don't worry if that's not your jam, it only lasts for a short time. (I loved it.) Next phase is strawberry musk, with a hint of cream. Those words don't begin to express what's going on in your nose, because the words "strawberry musk" immediately bring to mind the many ways that the combination could go wrong. Put aside the fear of artificial strawberries, and musk with fruit-loops. This is BPTP strawberry musk, and it is perfect. The final phase is a softening of the musk, leaving simply strawberry. It's like you hulled and sliced a flat of strawberries, and then left the juice to dry in your hair. I love this.

Roses, Pearls & Diamonds is a good one. I would also put Elf, Dawn: Maiden, and Mummeries and Straining-To-Be-Memorable Passages in the romantic/fresh/sweet category.

On me, LPM is like O crossed with Follow Me Boy, with the addition of skin musk. I don't get very much myrrh. It's very sexy, and I probably need a bottle,

Third test of my decant, and I reluctantly have to admit DD is not for me. My skin chemistry just does not play nice. In the vial: almonds and sweet musk, and a hint of citrus. Nice! Freshly applied to my skin, for about a minute: complex red musk and roses, and a little leather (?) Not a lot of citrus, and no almond. And then: RED MUSK, BABY! It's all over. Red Musk had a couple of drinks too many, and has started doing a combination trombone solo / striptease that's making rose and blood orange and almond slide down in their seats and hope nobody knows that they came with Red Musk.

I'm testing an imp from a forum purchase; part of my quest to try all the Conjure Bag oils. Queen lives up to its description. Sexual power, indeed. It's pretty much aroused woman accord. I wonder if this is what puts the Queen in Peacock Queen? In the imp, I smell herbal honey. On me, musk combines with the honey and herbs. I get a subtle hint of licorice or anise, way way in back. It's kind of quiet and close to the skin on me. ETA after around 2 hours, I now smell cumin. ETA (again) At 5 hours, the cumin takes over on me. I really like Q during the first 3 hours. I'm glad I tried it, and I'll probably use the imp occasionally.

I love this. I grew up in a desert, and TN somehow feels like a vision of justice and wholeness in the desert. The frankincense is a resinous, desert-y anchor for the sweetness in all the other good things. This is my first experience with spikenard, which is definitely not to be missed. I was blown away by a frimp, and promptly bought a bottle. TN is unique, and elevating, and pleasurable.

Today I'm testing a decant of Love's Philosophy. I ate an entire tube of mini M&M's in the morning around 9:30, alas. However, at lunch time I made much better choices, focussing on protein (hummus) and vegetables (celery & cukes,) to feel full & satisfied. I've enjoyed the vanilla creaminess of LP and Boo HG all day. I think it helped me to be mindful after dinner, because I caught a vanilla whiff as I was preparing to put away leftovers. I felt my stomach, and noticed that I felt satisfied. As a result, I did not pick at the leftovers and mindlessly overstuff myself.

My decant of Black Moths smells so promising in the vial, but my skin wrecks it. I have tested it 3 times now. Each time, the complex, dark, mysterious scent I get from the vial has gone flat and blah once it's on my skin. The Rose & patch disappear, and the vetiver, plum & blackcurrant somehow turn into salty herbal fruit leather.

Today is turning out to be pretty sedentary, except for some laundry. After my shower, I put on Snake Oil, Revenant Rhythm HG, and a cozy sweater and jeans. Since we're likely to lose power some time today due to high winds, we made minestrone. I'm knitting, drinking black tea, and haven't felt a need to supplement the tea with goodies. A couple of times while watching my family eat nibbles, I've thought about making popcorn. Each time, I've had a little more water or tea, and felt my belly. Since I'm not getting hunger signals, I've waited for the impulse to pass, and each time it has. Of course now that I've written about popcorn, my mouth is watering a little. I'll see if water makes it pass, and if not, I'll have a little bit .

I have decided that I'm going to use BPAL as an incentive to make healthier choices. My weight has gone up and up and up over the last several years. I do not like what's happening to my endurance, strength, agility, blood pressure, or my risk for developing diabetes! My plan is: 1. Associate the pleasure I take in smelling great with healthy behavior. (I'm wearing a different BPAL to my Weight Watchers meetings each week, so I can tie what I'm learning to scent.) 2. Reward myself with BPAL purchases for healthy behaviors (like increased fresh fruit & vegetable intake, exercise, drinking more water, increased flexibility & strength, reduced body measurements, etc.) I haven't yet figured out what the criteria for rewards will be, and would love wisdom from the room :-). Ideas: Walk 1000 steps farther each week for X weeks = a bottle? My resting heart rate goes down? Accomplish a physical activity without huffing and puffing? Low blood pressure number goal? My hope is that by using BPAL to say "atta girl!", I'll train myself to feel rewarded without involving caloric overload.

Ditto!

Brown Jenkin for sure, The Little Wooden Doll, Rakshasa, and Volcano in Springtime from the 2016 Lupers. Of the 4, Brown Jenkin seems to have the greatest proportion of sandalwood.

Wow, Volcano is by far my favorite Luper blend for 2016. In the decant: sweet vanilla cream and sandalwood. Applied: the Sandalwood's warmth spreads out, sweetened by the vanilla cream. I can't identify lotus root as a note in Volcano, I suspect it's also adding sweetness. Volcano stays true over time. It lasts a long time on me, and it's so pleasurable! My decant is going fast, and I have put in an order for 2 bottles. I think Little Bird described Volcano well "...a rich, sweet vanilla cream and hint of warm woodiness."

Bilquis is sweet, and rich, and fine. I'm amazed by how good this blend makes me feel. I don't experience a lot of changes over time, and Bilquis lasts for hours. I smell honeyed rose and lily of the valley, with the apples, almond, ambrette, and myrrh as a framework. It's sweet like baklava, if baklava could be stuffed with fresh flowers. Love X 1000! Maximum rating. Can't be improved.

I agree that this is a happy combination. Lavender, hay & strawberry candyfloss are a winning team. Carnation arrived late, and I never found the cream. Smells fantastic! The bad news for me is, my skin eats it up! Within an hour of application, it was nearly undetectable. Four applications later, I have to admit defeat. I will never smell like RD for any length of time.

This review is based on a teensy decant-ette that came with my Luper decants (thank you Azzie!) Upon opening Fire Monkey, I was overwhelmed by how great it smelled. I could also tell that FM was likely to smell better on my daughter than me: she's the herbs & fruit one, I'm the resins and flowers one. I called her over, and had her sniff the implet. No sooner had she smelled it than she snatched the vial from me, and began applying it to herself, declaring "This is Mine, and I must get a bottle!" Since there is only about 1/5 of an imp to test, I have been informed that I must wait until the bottle arrives to test it on myself . My impression is: FM is hanging out in the flowering plum thicket, next to a pine tree, pussy willows, and a stand of bamboo. She's got a basket full of fruit with a few peony blossoms, and is alternating bites of the lychee, mandarin, and peach. I was reminded quite a bit of Elf, with added fruit.

Amber, golden musk, and sweet dried plants (woody, grassy notes.) Long-lasting, utterly sweet and desirable. I love Coyote.

Decant. In the imp: Coca-Cola and wood. Wet: Incense and wood. Dry-down: Incense, salt, and sweet wood. This is kind of baffling to me. I can't pick out the individual notes at all! It's a lot like Morocco, that way; well-blended and balanced. I have an oddly neutral response to Indulgence as a scent. My daughter says it smells nice on me, which is unusual, given that she usually dislikes Incense-heavy scents. I'm not sure how often I'll wear it, but I'm glad I got the decant, and I'll keep it.

I get compliments when I wear his fuzzy highness. TBP is a cuddly musky rose, or rosy musk. The feeling I get from the musk isn't the shaggy, animalistic kind you'd get from the label art. It's more like the skin musk of someone you're cuddled up and you're sniffing their hair, or neck. On me, the snow is delicate and subdued. The rose may be Rose Red, but minus the green bits. I'm really happy I got a bottle, and I'm considering a backup. ETA 1. Bear Prince is definitely related to Coyote. 2. I bought a backup bottle. 3. I hope he comes back again, because he's wonderful.

This haunting, exotic scent is named in honor of the shapeshifting demons from Hindu mythology. Sandalwood with rose and patchouli. Almost colorless oil. Wet, I almost think I smell almonds and oranges, but I'm pretty sure that's patchouli being a trickster. Cinnamon seems to have a small walk on part in Rakshasa, but no lines. By the time it dries, Rose & Sandal are the stars, and they're very sweet. Spicy patchouli warms them up, and keeps things from getting too sedate or powdery. I'm glad I got a bottle.