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BPAL Madness!

fairnymph

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  1. fairnymph

    Ace of Hearts

    In the bottle: Nearly colourless extremely pale yellow oil. Sweet, fresh (citrusy?) flowers. Roses (rich bulgarian, tart white), freesia, gardenia, and a light touch of lotus. Utterly feminine. Wet: The freesia is so gorgeous and distinct, and the Bulgarian rose is strongest but not bullying. The white rose is slightly sour, and white lotus very sweet, but not bubblegum like its pink sister - it's more refined. The orchid is there too, heady and cool, while gardenia is a pure, classic white flower. Very well balanced. Dry: I'd swear there is something citrusy in here, it's just so fresh. The gardenia, slightly amped, is the loveliest, truest gardenia I've ever smelled in a BPAL blend, and it doesn't take over as other gardenias. Likewise, the strong freesia is delightfully crisp and clean and bright. The orchid has amped loads and is the strongest note, very heavy and rich. Lotus and roses hold just below. Later: So pure and feminine, and while intensely floral, it does have a cool, rainy feel to it that makes gives it an aquatic vibe. That freesia stays strong while other notes fade, and it's the first to hit me each time I sniff. Orchid is right below, then gardenia. The white rose is going a bit soapy, and the lotus is just a touch to sweet and sort of enhances the headiness of the orchid. Summary: Heady orchid, bright white gardenia, refined yet heavily sweet white lotus and soapy white rose over lush, fresh Bulgarian rose and crisp, almost citrusy freesia. An amazingly well-balanced bouquet of white flowers. Very feminine, clean, and slightly aquatic. Good throw but fades quickly. The heavy orchid and soapy white rose ruin this for me, which is a shame because I just adore the freesia and gardenia notes here, and I always love Bulgarian rose. While the lotus is always a bit too sweet, it'd be bearable without the overbearing orchid and soapy tinge. Alas, skin chemistry.
  2. fairnymph

    Aelopile

    Sniffed in imp: Smoky, earthy. Sharply green from the labdnanum, fresh and lemony from the verbena, with a mossy, bamboo-like oud note. Oddly both fresh and warm from the amber; a mishmash of disparate elements that somehow works. Masculine. Wet: Sweet and lighter, but also dryer - the cedar is now apparent. Loads of citrus/verbena - tangy and almost juicy. Slightly powdery. I also get a faint hint of semen-ish bleach? Very masculine, and more medicinal on my skin, less balanced. Dry: This has gone oddly sweet, in a sickly manner. It's also amped like crazy and is wafting off my arm in huge overpowering waves. Cloying Lemon Pledge verbena, dusty cedar, powdery amber. I must wash this off right away.
  3. fairnymph

    Lampades

    In the bottle: Candy-sweet grape (like kid's medicine), smoky. Hints of flowers and spice. Wet: Tarter and more woody, less like Dimetapp fake grape candy. Still quite smoky. The lilies have a powdery headiness. Dry: Becomes increasingly woody, in a way that's not dry (so no sandalwood or cedar or rosewood), but more earthy and deep. Musk emerges, deep and sexy indeed. Later: Woods hold, spices and smoke fade, florals long gone. That candy grape amps back up again, becoming the strongest note once more. It's definitely not cranberry to my nose. Summary: Sweet grape candy over deep woods with hints of smoke and musk. Fairly unisex if you ignore the almost-cloying sweetness. Quite a morpher; decent throw and lasting power. I don't like fake grape. I am so sad I never got any cranberry! It was a very interesting experience nonetheless.
  4. fairnymph

    Bilquis

    Sniffed in imp: Sweet, spicy and warm. The almond (very nutty, not benzaldehydey), honey, and notes of caramel stand out - not so much the florals or fruit. However, I can immediately predict this will go cloyingly sweet and heady-powdery on me.
  5. fairnymph

    The scents that get you the most compliments?

    I tend to like light scents with limited throw, so I don't get a ton of compliments unless people have great noses or get up close. But, people have, without prompting, commented how they liked: Black Lily Croquet (my ex's favourite) The Fruit of Paradise (multiple compliments) And while I've not had verbal compliments on the following, I have some strange stories which indicate these oils have power IMO: 51 (MULTIPLE gay men have made out with me when I wear this, and ONLY when I wear this) Fae (like glamour or charisma (I swear it works like a TAL) and makes me not only feel MAGICAL but seems to draw people to me like bees to honey, especially menfolk)
  6. fairnymph

    Recs for Longest Lasting Oils

    If I REALLY slather Cheshire Cat, I can get it to last about 6 hours. Shanghai, no matter how much I slather, won't even last an hour. I love both scents too, but especially Shanghai. I never even GET any honeysuckle at all from the latter, but it has the best green tea note ever. Some blends that remind me of Shanghai: F5 (LE but not impossible to find), Embalming Fluid, Phantasm, Holiday Moon (LE, semi-rare) Some blends that remind me of Cheshire Cat (note, I never get ANY grapefruit or red currant from this but citrus often fails to appear or quickly evaporates on me): Rome (more floral with a strong rose note, but otherwise, there's a lot of similarity), Dyan Moon (except way more floral overall, but the herbal-woodsiness of Dyan Moon is similar), Envy (minty, but the lavender and herbs are reminiscent), King of Hearts (though woodier and more floral), Lurid (probably the most similar of all), Mad Hatter (except pennyroyal mint) The blends which are similar to Shanghai are much more similar than the CC blends. I think CC is fairly unique in the BPAL catalogue.
  7. fairnymph

    Snow Angel

    Cherubic spun sugar with a hint of lemon, sparkling peach, and floral tea. In the bottle: Virtually colourless oil. Sweet, cold, wintry pine or evergreen, hint of lemon. Definitely picking up on the lab's snow note and the piney note most strongly. Wet: Sweet, smoother, less cold and piney. The tea note immediately emerges, melding with the pine in a pleasant manner. I think there is juniper in this, too, I'm getting a gin like feel. Lemon is gone. Dry: Okay, the pine is amping up again. It's definitely multiple evergreens, I'd guess pine, fir and juniper. But that snow note is gone, and this while very woodsy, this is not a cold scent. The sugar note is distinct, and has a hot edge, like spun sugar. Faint, feminine florals. Later: Peach, hello! You've been hiding, probably underneath the sugar, but you're here now, fruity and sweet and true. Not really sparkling, but a lovely note. The sugar has taken a bit of a vanilla tone, which I don't like - it's a bit fakely sweet. There's something plastic here. Evergreens and tea hold, flowers still barely detectable. Summary: Quite a morpher, but it settles down into woodsy pine and earthy/mossy juniper with smooth tea, over sweet sugared peaches and light musk, with very faint flowers. It's the most feminine woodsy scent I've tried, and uniquely and harmoniously blends some otherwise rather disparate notes. Good throw and lasting power. It's too heavy on the pine of me, and the super sugary and plastic stages aren't fun, but the drydown is overall quite pleasant, as the juniper takes on an earthy, almost mossy tone and mingles with some musk. I really wish I got more flowers and less pine, then this would be LOVE. Alas, it's off to swaps. Though far to unique to be closely similar to anything else, this blend has elements reminiscent of: Snow Bunny, Snow White, Fae, The Apothecary, Fairy Market, Dorian, FeƩ, Theodosius and Golden Wave (especially in drydown).
  8. fairnymph

    Worm Moon 2008

    Sniffed in imp: SOIL, wood, faint flowers. As expected, this smells very dirty in the literal garden-like sense. I don't get any blood or fruit notes. It's a neutral scent, not sharp or sweet or sour. Not a fan of soil.
  9. fairnymph

    Dyan Moon

    In the bottle: Extremely pale yellow oil. Slightly sweet, herbal, and woodsy flowers; rose, bay, chamomile, juniper, slightly soapy lily, mildly powdery iris and wisteria. Wet: More floral (less overwlhemingly rosy, more a bouquet), amped soap and powder notes; chamomile and juniper and bay holding strong below. Still quite sweet. Bay, rose, and juniper rule. Fainty honeyed, grain-like, warm grassy amaranth. Dry: Fucking wisteria, grrr, making this more and more powdery, and the heady powder from the iris isn't helping. The rose and fresh lily have amped further though, which helps make this more bearable. Bay and juniper have softened to pleasant woodsy notes, and chamomile remains sweetly herbal. Later: The rose amps further, so this is rose over powdery-soapy wisteria. Hints of heady iris, sweet chamomile, smooth amaranth and herbal mallow, and something woody (chaste tree?). A smattering of dusky blue musk. Summary: Not as bad as I had expected, but the wisteria, as always, ruins the blend with its intense powder. Still, the rose note in this is gorgeous and strong, and the other herbal notes, especially sweet chamomile, distract from the powdery soap. That amaranth is a lovely smooth almost resiny note, but very faint, and likewise with the woodsy notes. The musk, prone to dustiness on me, is thankfully light. Good throw. Yeah, as I predicted the wisteria and other unfriendly notes killed this, but not to the extent that I was running to the sink. I'm still devastated that this moon named after my favourite goddess failed on me, but it could have been worse. If you hadn't noticed: WISTERIA + ME = doom.
  10. fairnymph

    Sweetness!

    Just what I was thinking - very spot on description (though for me there the honey and mint notes are quite strong also). Another great sugar cane blend is Itaso (Salon). I like Horreur Sympathique a lot but the strong other notes in that blend totally overwhelm the sugar cane on my skin.
  11. fairnymph

    Khandita

    In the bottle: Light yellow oil. Sweet and sharp, floral and herbal. Neroli, rosemary,and a hint of spicy-warm saffron. A hint of sexy sweet musk. Wet: Much softer, warmer, gentler. Though the neroli's still soapy-sharp, and rosemary is still a bit medicinal-mentholic. The saffron is wonderfully spicy and sort of creamy, and warm-sweet almost like amber. Very light rose. Dry: Slow to dry, and increasingly spicy and warm - very strong saffron note here! Also something a little smoky and incensey, maybe poppy or opium? Other notes hold, except for the musk which is amping sweetly. Later: Arghh, clove has emerged and is taking over! This is going back to sharp again as rosemary and neroli remain strong. Rose totally gone. Only the creamy, fragrant saffron and sweet musk alleviates this blend at all. Summary: Cloyingly sweet, biting, spicy. Sharp neroli and clove, medicinal rosemary, and sweet black musk. Faint hint of warm saffron, but the rose is long gone. Rather masculine. Moderately strong throw, lasts forever. This made me feel quite ill. Man, I'm not having much luck with this line!
  12. fairnymph

    Temperance

    In the bottle: Very very pale yellow oil. Strongly herbal; grassy and woodsy. A hint of light sweetness. Rather masculine. Wet: Flowers, whoa - jasmine, in particular, and carnation too - maybe others. But the green notes/herb are still strongest - thyme?, ivy, grass. I'm getting a Garden Path With Chickens feel. This definitely has quite a kick, but it's also sweeter and more feminine. Dry: Floral notes have amped to take over the greenery. Definitely some soapy jasmine, some spicy carnation, and honeysuckle, as well as other florals, I'd guess maybe daffodil, daisy, sweet pea, lily and gardenia - it's quite complexly floral. I get both classic white florals and wildflowers from this. It's sweetened more too -quite likely a musk emerging. Later: The flowers back down a bit, such that they and the green notes balance each other evenly. The jasmine has gone more soapy. The carnation kick holds, and this has lost most of the its sweetness - the must has softened. And there's some woody clove in here. Summary: What a morpher! In the end it's a very feminine, soapy, spicy floral with light herbal notes. Soapy jasmine and spicy carnation, dominate, followed by sweet-light honeysuckle (amongst other possible similar florals), woody-sweet clove and soft musk, and lastly very faint fresh, green ivy and grass notes. Powerful throw & lasting power. I love the carnation, honeysuckle, and green notes, but the jasmine and clove make this unbearable for me. Also, I did not get any dandelion from this, unless it was in the early stages. I amp dandelion in Fairy Wine for example, and it's the primary drydown note, and this doesn't remind me of FW at all. Final drydown resembles all the following to some extent: Taurus 2007, Eternal, La Belle Dame Sans Merci, Midnight
  13. fairnymph

    Proshitapathika

    In the bottle: Light-medium chartreuse coloured oil, sort of looks like Galvanic Goggles. Sweet, herbal, and LEMONY - the verbena jumps out. Wet: Verbena still in dominance, even amped - this is tarter and less sweet. I'm getting a bit of fennel next, and it's lovely paired with the verbena, not sharp or acrid at all, but sweet and smooth. Very faint suggestions of iris and anise. Dry: Still very lemony, but it's lightened enough for the other notes to shine through, or else they have amped further. I'm getting a bit of heady powder from the iris. The fennel and star anise seem to blend together, with smooth, slightly spicy, sweetness. Unisex. Later: Iris has amped, going more powdery (it's more like orris, rooty), and a strong, dry wood (rosewood?) has emerged, now the strongest note by far. The fennel has gone a bit woody too, the star anise a bit spicy, and the blend is barely sweet now. Lemon almost gone, faint musk has emerged. More masculine. Summary: Primarily dry, deep wood - rosewood or something like it, it vaguely resembles both sandalwood and cedar. Below that, orris-like, powdery-rooty iris. Fainter smooth-sweet fennel and spicy-sweet start anise, and a very light touch of lemony verbena. Strong throw, good lasting power. Bah! I really liked the initial dry stage but then the dreaded dry wood emerged and took over.
  14. fairnymph

    Justice

    In the bottle: Rich honey coloured oil. Woodsy/foresty. A bit sharp, a bit green. Rather masculine. A white floral. Wet: Whoa, way more floral. Rather high pitched with a soapy edge. Still quite green and woodsy though. This also feels very 'wet', like you're in the forest and it's been raining, and your head is thrust into a bouquet of flowers. Dry: Okay, it's not a soapy edge, it's a powdery one, and it's gone a bit more that way, but bearably. This is still a feminine floral (violet) and a white one (armoise?) with wet greenery (like crushed leaves, almost grassy, and perhaps green tea) and deep woods (oak?). Later: It's losing some of its wet/fresh feel, and on the whole, this has softened. Which is rather fitting; at first, judgment can be harsh, but you feel relieved afterwards. The woods are going a bit dusty/dry - maybe it's blondewood as well as oak. Summary: Soft, slighty powdery violet and a sharper white floral (possibly armoise) over complex woods, definitely oak and possibly blondewood and rosewood as well. A faint smattering of crushed wet leaves and green tea give a green-herbal tinge. Good throw and last power. That unknown floral kills it for me, and it's a bit too powdery for me, but on the whole, not unpleasant. ETA: Whoa, after washing this off, I'm left with a very feminine, delicious sweet ambery, orange-fruity floral musk that reminds me of a powdery Black Lily. And I don't even like amber. Craziness!
  15. fairnymph

    Refreshing *and* relaxing?

    LEs: Uhh, don't hate me, but Blue Moon 04. I find the 07 version is a it too heavy on the orchid to be refreshing. The Spell of Amorous Love, which has soothing sexy floral and musk, but bright currant and sake and green tea. The Passionate Shepherd to His Love is like sitting in a cool green shady glen in England. Golden Wave - relaxing fruit and musk, refreshing gin and citrus. Ebisu - earthy and grounding from the oakmoss and skin musk but fresh from the green-tart nectarine. I also agree on F5, though for me it's a bit too biting/masculine. GCs: Squirting Cucumber - very light and fresh and yet soft and gentle. The Dormouse - both soothing and refreshing tea notes and light peony. The Apothecary - a deeper, sharper, woodsier version of Dormouse, more masculine, without the floral. Amsterdam - Grassy floral aquatic, reminds me a bit of Clinique Happy, very gentle. Envy - it has a soapy edge, but is closest of the GCs to The Passionate Shepherd, and has a nice herbal-green feel. The Hamptons - on me the juniper took over, but otherwise I found it similar to Golden Wave - a cosmo cocktail! Leanan Sidhe - soapy on me in the drydown, but a clean fresh floral initially. Lightning - yeah, despite the name, this is actually really relaxing! It feels very 'glassy' to me. Impossible to describe in typical perfume terms. Mary Read - salty ocean grounded by earthy masculine musk and patchouli. Sea of Glass - unisex green-white floral with a bit of ozone, but very light and gentle. Shanghai - delicious super smooth green tea, but totally dies on me after about 2 hours.
  16. fairnymph

    Manila

    In the bottle: Pale honey coloured oil. Sweet, wet, fruity, floral, green, woody. A complex and lush tropical assault. Sweet fruitiness dominates. Wet: Instantly far more floral, vastly less fruity - but I do recognize the banana leaf. A bit soapy, a bit sharp. Warmer and less aquatic - amber, I think. A tingle of ozone. Oriental woody-spicy notes. Dry: What a morpher. The florals have softened, balancing the fruit nicely, but the woods (dry, hot) have emerged in full force. Strong smoky and spicy notes accompany the woods. The sampaguita - ie pikake - is beautifully sweet and floral, but overwhelmed. Later: This sort of reminds me of Machu Picchu - it has that same hot, tropical feel with sweet florals. This is far woodier, though - the narra smells like a cross between mahogony and cedar - both deep and dry - and also recalls rosewood. Summary: Narra's spicy, oriental heat, much like cedar and rosewood and a few other dry woods, takes over completely on my skin; only at close range can I detect the sweetly floral pikake, a bit of green-fruity banana leaf, and a faint hint of soft amber. Strong throw. Not a fan of this one.
  17. fairnymph

    Abhisarika

    In the bottle: Nearly colourless extremely pale yellow oil. Rose and orchid. Floral, somewhat heady, a bit sweet and soapy. Wet: The rose is fresh, bright and gorgeous. The soapiness has already amped: there are definitely other florals. The orchid here is rich but not overwhelming - reminds me of the orchid in Blue Moon. While there is a certain creaminess, I don't get actual CREAM. Dry: That rose amps and amps as usual on me, almost becoming SN as it is wont to do. But the cream is emerging distinctly now - this is my first cream note and it's pretty amazing! It's rich and well, creamy, without the sour note that milk has on my skin, and without being foody. It's almost like a type of musk. Later: Rose and that soapy white high white floral (gardenia? some type of lily?) are on par now; the white floral has become a bit less soapy, but headier. The cream lies very faintly underneath, close the skin. And finally a bit of deep, sexy, but womanly musk. Summary: This softens into a balanced blend of rose, white florals, gentle orchid, pure delicious cream, and rich, sexy musk. The white floral loses most of its soapy edge, but is still a bit too high pitched for me. I do love the musk, orchid, and cream notes, and always rose. Pleasant, well crafted, and perfectly fitting, but not one I'll hang onto. Decent throw but fades quite quickly.
  18. fairnymph

    Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo

    In the bottle: Light yellow oil. Sweet and fruity, almost like bubblegum. Pink and cheerful in feel. Wet: Strawberry - very sweet, but more candy and less bubblegum. A light hint of something floral and a plastic note. Extremely feminine, girly. Dry: That plastic note is amping and a hint of sweet-sharp clove has emerged - but it's not spicy, yet. While strawberry is definitely the dominant fruit note, I can see a bit of raspberry and maybe melon too. Summary: Unpleasant plastic and sweet (not spicy) clove notes mingled with cloying candied, artificial strawberry. Possibly lighter melon, raspberry, and bubblegum. Great throw and good lasting power. I really do not like the lab's strawberry note on my skin. It is very fake and chemically.
  19. fairnymph

    Oya

    In the bottle: Dark amber/honey colour. Sweet, almost cloying, dark and rich fruit. Benzaldehyde-y almond and maraschino cherries, dark, dried plum. Wet: That benzaldehyde is potently volatile! Almond extract, but with a bitter almond note and that hint of cherry. Plum is much lighter, and an odd soapy/powder note has emerged, possibly floral. Dry: Okay, now it's going sort of DUSTY on top of the soap and powder, and I'm definitely getting a floral feel. Some smoky incense too, though I may be confusing some of the smoke and dust. Scorched sandalwood, maybe? I get a bit of Hellion. Later: There is a harsh muskiness which makes me think red musk, and it has that sort of dark/sexy appeal, even if it's not the sort of dark/sexy i like. Based on other guesses and my own experience, I'm going to agree that the soapy floral is probably jasmine. Summary: Although a bit sweet at first I like it sniffed; it's dark and juicy and fruity, but on me it very quickly morphs into a dusty, soapy-powdery blend of jasmine, scorched sandalwood, and red musk - all nemesis notes on me - AND loses nearly all the fruit. Moderate throw, fades rapidly. Sigh! I love this Goddess, her description and concept so much.
  20. fairnymph

    Horreur Sympathique

    In the bottle: Dark amber oil. Honey! Dry wine and grapes, sugar cane, deep fruit, tobacco flower, other florals. Sweet, fruity, floral. Wet: Less syrupy, more complex; benzoin and tonka sweeten but provide depth, the grapes are wonderfully tart but also raisiny-plummy. Velvety, feminine florals with a hint of spicy carnation. Dry: Still very sweet and winey-grapey, but also pleasantly tangy and with stronger resin and floral notes. A bit of earthy oakmoss has emerged, and some sexy musk too. Feminine, womanly. Later: The fruity-grapey-wine notes dominate still from a distance; they might be too sweet for my tastes, as this is almost candyish. I love the complexity the other notes lend, but they lie much closer to the skin. Summary: It reminds me of both Bordello (the same sweet but dark and somewhat tart grapey wine) and Kali (the honey, luxurious florals and deep resins). Grape, benzoin, honey, musk and oakmoss drydown; hints of florals. Sexy! Good throw and great lasting power. And probably bottleworthy, if I can bear the sweetness.
  21. fairnymph

    Akuma

    In the bottle: Very pale yellow oil. Bitter, slightly soapy neroli. Wet: Hints of raspberry and blood orange, but neroli dominates till. Pleasant sparkling, almost champagne like note. Fruity and sharp. Dry: Biting neroli with a soapy edge and rather artificial, slightly candyish (but not super sweet) raspberry. Very faint blood orange, alas. Later: The neroli is going increasingly soapy on me as it tends to do, and has a sort of sneezy powderiness too. Fruit holding in the background. Summary: Soapy, powdery sharp neroli with light sweetness from fake raspberry and even fainter blood orange. Strangely fizzy. Strong throw and lasting power. I don't like the lab's raspberry note and neroli does its typical evil on me, and the blood orange is as usual, woefully light.
  22. fairnymph

    Athens

    In the bottle: Pale honey coloured oil. Dark, bitter myrrh hits first, followed super sweet, candy-medicinal grapiness. Lighter, sugary honey. Hints of sort of heady flowers. Wet: Much the same right at first. The honey is perhaps a bit stronger, and the florals quickly start amping. The grapiness is a bit more winey, less artificial. Dry: Extremely slow to dry. The myrhh becomes smokier but still has that bitter edge. Honey and flowers amp further. Very sweet grapes are still far more medicine than wine. Later: The myrrh softens, such that I can detect the bitterness primarily only up close. It's still a dark blend, but from a distance, the sweet honey and cough syrup grapes dominate. The flowers have faded. Summary: in the final drydown, this is incense, earthy woods, and honey, faintly touched with aged, sour wine. It's dark, mildly sweet, and exotic. Grapiness and all flowers gone. There's a dry, smoky wood note that reminds me of the scorched sandalwood in Hellion. The drydown could work on men, but overall this is feminine. Strong throw, great lasting power. Not my thing.
  23. fairnymph

    Love-In-Idleness

    In the bottle: Light bright yellow oil. Fresh, white flowers and wet planty greenery. Lily of the valley and lilac like; a bit heady, a bit clean-soapy. Wet: More floral, a bit less on the crushed green leaves. Immensely feminine, rather classic, traditional perfumey white floral. Delicately sweet. Dry: A bit sharper; a touch of bitterness has emerged, which seems linked to green planty note. Still clean-soapy, but no more so than before - it's bearable. A touch more powdery. Overall, still FLORAL. Later: Fairly heady white flowers. This reminds me of lilies now too, and wildflowers. Still touches of soap, powder, and that bitter green note, but they remain light and the flowers overwhelm them. Summary: This lightens into a straight-up, classic, moderately heady , feminine white floral. Soft hints of powder and soap and a very faint sharp/bitter green note at close range. Clean and fresh, yet a bit creamy as well. Moderate throw and lasting power. Similar to Black Lily (a bottleworthy scent for me) but without the musky sweetness, and a sharper, greener edge and hint of soap/powder. Even more similar to Asphodel, but less soapy/powdery. It's definitely got a distinct floral note, but it reminds me of lilies, lilac, lily of the valley, lilac, and a touch of pikaki. I like this alot; it's a very unique yet classic floral; single-note, like smelling a single flower, but not boring in the least. Just sort of elegantly simple. The lilac, lily, and pikaki notes are lovely, but I don't know if I can handle even the mild soapy/powdery and heady facets. One to retry!
  24. fairnymph

    Shub-Niggurath

    In the bottle: Very pale yellow oil. Sweet, foody ginger and spice. Reminds me greatly of Gingerbread Poppet. It's almost cake-like, buttery and sugary in its sweet foodiness. Gingers are strongest, but other culinary dried spices lurk. I'm not getting any resins or herbs. Wet: Same. Sweet, foody, ginger and spice. Warm. Gingerbread cookies fresh from the oven, iced with sugary lemon-tinged glaze. Maybe one of the herbs is lemon verbena? It's an EXTREMELY faint citrus note, however. No incense or resin or other herbs. Dry: Yech, as it dries a sort of artificial gross plastic note is emerging, as well as a piney sort of resin - maybe benzoin or storax? That would explain the sweetness, but I'm usually good at detecting those immediately. The sweet foodiness and ginger and now plastic overwhelm. Later: Alright, it's got to have vanilla in it. It's just so, so sweet and it's going that fake vanilla candle way on me. But dark herbs and resins...HA...you lie, note description! Clove has emerged, my nemesis. Vanilla amps and amps; must run to sink. Summary: Cloying super sweet foody, buttery vanilla and ginger, with slightly less potent cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg oven an artificial, plastic backdrop. A fake vanilla version of Gingerbread poppet. Very, very strong throw; almost impossible to remove. I wasn't expecting to like anything with spices, but the note description is so awfully misleading in terms of how it reacted on my skin - I'm vastly more displeased than I anticipated. I'm hard pressed to think of a blend I dislike more.
  25. fairnymph

    The Lion

    In the bottle: Pale tannish coloured oil. Warm and spicy, a little incensey, but in a soft, rich manner, not spicy or smoky. Amber, for sure, but also sweetness. Cinnamon and cardamom. Wet: The amber here is luxuriously soft and warm, furry, creamy. Dry, too - almost like hay. The spices are light, and well balanced; the cinnamon doesn't dominate the cardamom. The sweetness is light, like autumnal afternoon sunshine. Dry: Not much morphing so far; the amber does go powdery, but not unbearably so, and the spices and honeyed sweetness distract from the powder a bit. A warm and comforting scent, with a bit of a kick. Later: Alas, increasingly powdery, and less warm, as the amber evolves in its typical fashion on me. The sweet spices are fading, or overshadowed by the powder. Summary: Perfumey, almost floral powder with a hint of ambery warmth over faint, honey-touched cinnamon and cardamon. Fairly feminine on my skin on drydown. Low throw, very poor lasting power. For a room scent I would have liked initial stages, but the powder and cinnamon do not work for me.
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