roseus

Was hoping for a musky grapefruit, but I got strawberry bubblegum. Not for me!

Dark, smoky, and spicy. I'm loving the Siberian musk, it's so dark and fuzzy. I think this would be better suited on my guy however.

Started off as a beautiful warm, musky, and spiced patchouli. It was very comforting. But as it settles on my skin, the spices do something that I just don't like. I'm having a hard time describing it, it's not bad but I just don't like it at all. If it had stayed in the wet stage forever it would have been a winner.

In the imp: this just straight up smells like classic BPAL. Heady and dark.

Wet: the rose and jasmine come out, it's such a beautiful combination. The dark smoky myrrh comes out as well.

Dry: it was so heady and beautiful and then it disappeared. Now I just have the faintest hint of rose left.

In the imp: musky and a little spicy.

Wet: this smells like dragon's blood. Like lightly cherry-toned, and almost too sweet. The orris is probably not helping, it always goes weirdly sweet on me.

Dry: Oddly I kind of like it. The blood musk gets spicier, and though its's still cherry-esque I don't mind. The orris is smooth and powdery in a pleasant way surprisingly. I didn't think I was going to like this at all given the orris. I get just a little creamy coconut underneath. It doesn't feel in-your-face tropical to me, but I could see wearing it to the beach!

A very sexy refined patchouli. It's soft and sensual, enticing and seemingly innocent. Perfect for a sin. There's a light woodsy element, lifted by the heliotrope. I'm loving the refined element the oakmoss is adding.

Green tea bubblegum. In the imp I get green, fruity patchouli. But on, it turns to green tea and bubblegum...

In the bottle: strawberry milk

Wet: some fresh strawberry, sugar, and a lot fluffy mallow

Dry: The strawberry all but disappears, and it's thick, fluffy mallow nearly identical to Stekk on me. A yummy springtime mallow, with the barest touch of fruit.

Very dark red rose, less sweet than Peacock Queen. The tobacco blends really well. It dirties up the rose a bit, and adds a little chewy sweetness. It's a rich tobacco but it's not heavy. Absolutely in love with this rose.

In the bottle: this smells exactly like Giljagaur did in the bottle. Buttery goat's milk. Not like butter, but creamy and rich milk.

Wet: Goat's milk is still very strong, but now getting soft coconut as well. Not loud tropical sunscreen coconut, if you're worried about that. Also a touch of carnation peeking out.

Dry: Soft, milky base. I'm definitely getting a little bit of a starchy rice note, and the whole thing is just a tad sweet.This is probably the softest carnation I've ever smelled, it's a dainty spiciness floating over top. It's blending so gorgeously, and the throw is pretty good for such soft creamy notes too.

In the bottle: sugared rose water. It's dainty but not faint, if that makes sense. I get a similar sugared rose water note in Nasty Woman, but this is much more prominent.

Wet: Rose water, but even rosier. Sweet, with a little spicy carnation making it's way in. Here it reminds me a bit of High Strung Daisies.

Dry: I catch a whiff of the cognac, it's very similar to a cognac essential oil I've sniffed before. Fresh and green, but also rich and deep. Surrounding it is sweet pink roses and spicy carnation. Very feminine, but the cognac keeps it sophisticated instead of an all-out sugary girlish floral.

In the bottle: sharp, fresh black leather.

Wet: fresh black leather, and tobacco. This is not a sweet, chewy tobacco though. But compared to the leather it is the tiniest bit sweet.

Dry: the leather still dominates, but I get some tobacco and sandalwood. It's a very bad ass scent, and maybe a little more on the masculine side. Layering this with something sweeter would make it perfect for me.

ETA: I decided to let this one rest awhile because the next two times I tried to wear it, not just one dab for testing purposes but several, it gave me a headache with how rough and chemical the leather would get. Now that it has settled more I get the sandalwood, and a little more tobacco than I got before. The chemical stage burns off quickly, though I would still call this a rough scent.

In the bottle: light vanilla-amber.

Wet: sweet, soft leather. The softest leather I've encountered. It melds well with the vanilla and amber, it's almost creamy in this stage.

Dry: Similar to wet, but I catch whiffs of coconut here and there. The patchouli is very subtle underneath everything, I almost don't even notice it. It's cuddly, and very work appropriate.

In the bottle: all saffron. Almost delicate, lightly spicy and sweet.

Wet: This does almost smell like orange blossom. Saffron, a little sweet sandalwood, and I swear I catch the tiniest bit of red musk. The oudh comes out a little too strong for a moment, but smooths out beautifully.

Dry: This is the truest saffron scent I've sniffed, it's hard to describe but it's exactly like sticking your nose in a little jar of those golden threads. The oudh and sandalwood gently support the note and make it even more dimensional but definitely do not detract. It's subtle and exotic, and makes me think of summer evenings as a sweltering day cools into night.

So, here's a bit of a puzzle--my skin chemistry and amber. For the most part I've just started avoiding it because when it's bad it's really overpowering and makes me feel ill. I think I must amp it but not in a good way.

 

However, several of my favorites/almost favorites have a prominent amber note. There doesn't seem to be much pattern to it, either; excluding grey amber(/ambergris, which isn't real amber) there's not a color of amber that I can consistently wear. Four Seasons: Winter and Mouse's Long and Sad Tale are both delightful, and O isn't bad, but Road to Versailles at Louveciennes, Black Rider, and Coyote are all awful on me (Anubis is also on this list, but amber isn't listed as a note so I'm not sure).

 

Does anyone have advice/suggestions for what I should try or avoid, or is it going to continue to be hit and miss?

Unfortunately I don't know what it could be except for maybe the other notes its paired with? I don't see any obvious patterns in the scents listed, but who knows maybe someone has a similar issue with amber. I have a similar story with honey, except it was the first five or so blends I tried were awful and I thought I had to avoid it. But then I started finding more and more that work. Now honey amping horribly is the exception, but I still can't pin down a pattern.

The wine was very sharp at first. Then the rose gets very heady with the wine as it smooths out. It dries to a rich wine-rose and I get a bit of myrrh underneath, and a little black musk to dirty it up. I thought this would be a lot like Obsidian Widow, but the rose is more prominent here, and the black musk (and lack of sandalwood) really sets it apart.

This is so heady and wonderful. The rose and jasmine combination is heavenly, and it's sweetened gently and very seductively by the fig and vanilla. The tonka, mahogany and coffee ground it really nicely. It's a dark, warm base for all of the florals and fig to play on. It's very sensual, but not heavy.

Snooty rose starts off very sweet, and I definitely get brightness from the bergamot. As it dries it gets a little more of a seductive body from the sandalwood, oud, and plum. The plum sweetens the rose a touch, but melds with it very well. The sandalwood gives it a nice texture, not powder but not quite woody either, and paired with the oud it's a like a very soft incense.

In the bottle this warm, clean, and sweet. Mostly sugar and a little cardamom. Dry I can only describe this as others have, a dusty vanilla. But not at all in a bad way. The vanilla and tonka are spiced by the musk and cardamom, with a little sugar to sweeten it and balance. The tonka makes it rich and almost smoky. It smells so natural though. This is one of those "You smell so good" vs. "Your perfume smells so good" kind of scents. Even though it's a spicy vanilla scent, the musk keeps it from being foodie.

Without looking at the notes this smelled like dried roses and old books wet. Like a dusty, long-forgotten Victorian library. Dry, I get dried rose up front, with a little lilac. I still get that warm, dustyness underneath and I think it must be the myrrh and frankincense. It's really nice, but I don't think it is something I'd wear that much.

This is very clean and fresh, in a distinctly wintry way. It's hard for me to pick out the notes, but I could pick out the juniper distinctly when wet. It's cold, with a tinge of bitterness underneath. Not my thing, but quite pleasant.

Very sharp pine, edging on to floor cleaner. There is a sweet musky-ness underneath and with the spicy clove this could be very nice, but the pine is too sharp on me here.

This smelled like lavender in the imp, and a lemony-lavender combo wet. But dry it's a gorgeous dry rose, spiced and with a hint of lavender. It's sexy and womanly. I am in love with this. It's sultry, not too obvious. Perfect for seduction.

In the imp: pink sugar.

Wet: carnation and sugar. Kind of fluffy.

Dry: It's carnation cotton candy. It's so fluffy and pink and gorgeous. There's a dusting pink pepper which comes off as rosy to me, not spicy.

I'm in love and desperately need a bottle.

In the imp: There's something clean about this, not in a soapy way though. It's light and breezy.

Wet: It gets warmer and more of a body to it. Less breezy. Soft, almost dusty rose petals. I think this is from a combo with the oppoponax. A little bit of soft fruitiness from the pomegranate.

Dry: smooth and warm benzoin, with soft rose petals, and champaca. I don't get any pomegranate or star anise (thankfully). Very pretty vintage feeling rose.