Chaos Theory III: Strange Attractors

[Diana]

Each bottle of Chaos Theory is truly unique, a fragrant fractal, and exercise in the joy of chance and uncertainty! Each is a one-of-a-kind, utterly random combination of scents, the composition of which is based on whim, mood and gut instinct.

Bottle # MLXXX (whoa!) (1080)

In the bottle: green notes, slightly ozoney.

Wet: Green, without being herbal or leafy. I have no idea what I'm smelling! It smells vaguely reminiscent of some of the notes in Holiday Moon or Budding Moon - green woods, I think. Maybe aloe. It's very faint and has hardly any throw.

Drydown: The green note still has a nice crispness, but not a lot of throw, nor a lot of complexity.

It's nice, but really not me. Edited September 5, 2006 by Shollin

[Mountaingrrl00]

XXVIII

 

I got a decant of this from a fellow meet 'n' sniffer who thought it smelled like banana. I don't smell any banana, but I think I know where she got that association. To me, this smells like a tropical drink - something with a couple kinds of booze (and I swear one of them is Curacao) and mixed fruit juices. I think I can even smell the maraschino cherry and a dash of grenadine. I really like this! It's fun, light and summery, and I predict I will be wearing it to some parties.

[edenssixthday]

Chaos Theory 3: XDVII (517) - The friend I split this bottle with smelled a bitter and herbal vinegar in the bottle. In the bottle, I smell something that kind of reminds me of buttery pumpkin...but not quite. I dislike pumpkin, so I have really low hopes for this scent. I apply the scent and still smell that smooth, buttery, and almost greasy scent. Then I ignore it for a while, and when I come back to it, I am totally and completely blown away by the scent I smell now that it's dry: I smell a very honey-like benzoin (or is it storax?) and the tiniest hint of plumeria and a whole lot of orchid. My bottle-splitting partner smelled plumeria and rose. I agree with her that "this one does an extreme 180º compared to the way it smells in the bottle." However, that benzoin/storax scent pretty much blows it for me. If it were just the floral notes, I'd probably be loving it down t o the very last drop. As it is, it's just too sweet for me.

 

Previously reviewed by Jettcat.

Edited September 11, 2006 by Shollin

[cuervosueno]

Chaos Theory III: Strange Attractors

 

ML (1050)

 

In the last few years, I got CT's that really really didn't agree with me. This year, I got lucky! (Woohoo! Third time's the charm!) I adore my first bottle, and while I'm not yet sure what I think of this bottle, I think I like it.

 

In the bottle: Huh...this is tough. Slightly bitter? Like crushed green leaves?

 

On, it immediately blooms in to a very green but lovely floral. I'm not a huge floral fan, but this reminds of the scent of a tropical greenhouse: wet plants and a sweet blooming flower. It also is a bit musky--but not white musk. It's very familiar and it's bothering me that I don't know what that scent is.

 

(Off I go to compare it to other BPAL scents and to my essential oil collection). Be right back!

 

Ok, bergamot. That is accounts for the fresh green slightly floral note.

 

I thought there was musk in this, but when I sniffed it against several musk single notes, it didn't match up.

 

It's a resin, not a musk. Either amber or labdanum. Its not as powdery as some of BPAL's ambers can be on me, so it might be labdanum instead, though when I compared it to Jacob's Ladder, there was a slight resemblance. And what I initially thought was musk is more likely that slight muskiness that some ambers have. This blend is not at all powdery, and the resin notes are very well balanced by the green of the bergamot.

 

My final guess? Resins and bergamot, for a lovely morphing scent that goes from green to resiny warm sweetness.

 

It doesn't last that long on me, however, and it also doesn't have a lot of throw--its one of those scents that stick close to the skin.

 

It is quite lovely, though I'm not sure I need a whole bottle.

[elspeth]

MLIV This one smells like grape to me. A very sweet grape like the cough medicine I used to take when I was little. To be honest the smell makes me remember all the times I was sick so I couldn't even try it on.

 

MLV This smells like coffee to me. It is really warm and almost reminds me of the coffee note I got from Misk U. It gets a little too strong for me after putting it on. But the coffee was what I didn't like about Misk U so this sadly is not for me.

[edenssixthday]

Chaos Theory 3: DCCCXC (890) - The person who sent me this (and who originally reviewed it) thought it smelled a lot like The Red Queen or Kabuki. When I open up the imp, I get a blast of strong, sweet cherry. As the oil begins to warm up on my skin, the cherry loses its punch and the strong, distinct scent of brown sugar comes to the forefront of this blend. There may be other notes in it, but on me, it smells like what you’d get if you mixed a half-cup of maraschino cherry juice with a cup of brown sugar. I don’t usually like brown sugar notes, but blended with the cherry, this is actually a very distinctive and interesting fragrance that I think will be perfect for scenting my home rather than my skin.

 

Previously reviewed by maddi.

[themast]

my first review!

 

DCCCLXXXIX - I didn't review any of the CTIII decants from the decant circles I joined because none of them really worked for me. This my first bottle (3 more on the way - I wish now I'd gotten more).

 

in the bottle: fresh, green herbal with a slightly bitter tinge to it.

on skin, wet: the same

on skin, dry, after about an hour: the bitterness starts to mellow and it reminds me very strongly of a Lush bubble bath, which eventually helps to me to place the note that's coming out - violet! after a few more hours, this changes to violets with a lovely array of spices behind it.

 

Initially I wasn't planning on keeping this one because I don't like the herby bitterness, but I think the drydown might be worth it.

[iriedanym]

XXXII (32)

 

In the bottle: Robitussin. I'm really not a fan of cherry cough syrup. It makes me kind of nauseous.

 

To me, it smells like red wine, but on second sniff, it does have a medicine smell to it as well. Not certain about this one, but I think my brother will be begging me for the scent.

[loveandprozak]

Chaos Theory 3: DCCCI (801?)

 

Overall note impressions: Red musk, amber (multiple types -- dark, honeyed, and powdery), vanilla bean, patchouli, dark musk, sasparilla, other resins and spices?

 

In the bottle: Almost a pure Red Musk single note. Sweet and strong; if you've smelled Smut, you know the note -- it's the same musk.

 

Wet (applied): An initial strong waft of vanilla bean hits my nose upon skin contact. The red musk is still very apparent, but now there is a dark, sweet vanilla liqour counteracting it.

 

5 - 20 minutes on skin: We have a morpher on our hands. The gauzy red musk has parted to reveal a scent remniscent of Snake Charmer. With the musk and candied vanilla beans still backing the scent up, though, this seems less of the Snake Charmer, and more of an exotic, copper-skinned snake-woman/Naga (circa Laurell K. Hamilton, perhaps?) full of slinky, sexual intent. Honeyed, slightly powdery amber is at the forefront.

 

20 minutes - 1 hourish: From the clouds of sweetness the distinctly feral scent of black musk has surfaced. It's slight and subtle, far from choking like most of Beth's scents that incorporate a dark musk. This is menace contained -- the still seductive naga smiling, the faintest drop of blood visible on a fang, her belly full of the Snake Charmer's blood who wished to contain her, his body safely tucked away.

 

1hourish+: The dark musk evidence slowly fades from view, and instead there's the red musk/vanilla bean/powdery amber/snake charmer combination. She's soft, seductive, and well-fed now. The body has long been safely disposed of, and there's nothing better to do on the lazy summer afternoon but sprawl out amidest the honeyed indian spices.

 

Final thoughts: I love fragrances like this that bring creativity and visualization so easily to the forefront. I"ve never been much of a Chaos Theory person, as most of the bottles I've had have always struck me as "nice, but lacking the softening process of blending and reblending that makes a fragrance really come alive, artistically speaking". This is my first real exception to that, I think. While I have, admittedly, never been one for the scent of Snake Oil, Snake Charmer, Smut, etc. on my own skin because it just doesnt' work well with my personality, my hats are off to the beautiful blending of those, and now to this Chaos Theory as well. Quite a lovely winner.

 

Related Fragrances: Snake Charmer, Smut, Golden Priapus, Snake Oil

 

Previously reviewed by neuilly.

[cybra111]

Chaos Theory III: DVI (506)

 

In the imp: Chocolate

 

On me: It becomes fruity and sweet. I will add more if I can.

[mandragora]

CXCV (195)

 

On the bottle: Boozy almond with a hint of cocoa.

 

On me: The booze mellows leaving a bittersweet chocolate-y almond scent. Has hint of resin on the drydown.

 

Bit too foody for my tastes.

[Arianwen]

DCCCXLI (841?)

 

I'm not very good at describing scents and might be completely wrong with the notes I think I can pick but I love this.

 

In the bottle it's very rosy but I like this rosiness

On the skin it's still quite rosy but there's more to it than that, possibly some lemon and other sweet florals perhaps?

And on the dry down I swear I could smell fresh cut grass behind the beautiful floral.

 

Apologies to Beth and Lab if I am totally wrong with those notes but thank you for such a beautiful blend. This was my first foray into Chaos Theory and I got damn lucky with this one

[crescentwench]

XVIII - 18

 

I swapped my orangey/floral bottle to Wench457 for this bottle, which she thought smelled very masculie and clean, with a bit of earthiness on the drydown.

 

when i initially opened the box there was a sicky sweet powdery smell that me feel al little naueous, but now that i'm sniffing right out of the bottle I think it might have been a combo of this and the frimp of vixen she sent me.

 

straight out of the bottle all I can think of CK1. a little soft, a little sweet and kinda of herbal. I can't name any notes, but it definately smells like men's cologne.

 

on me it's a dead ringer for CK1.

 

I don't how much I'll wear it, its got a "perufmy" note that my nose and I don't like and most of beth's scents not having it is one of the reasons I love bpal so much.

[The_Merf]

Chaos Theory III: CCLIII (253)

 

In the bottle, this reminds me a lot of Dragon Moon, Oberon, Dorian and other tea/musk/fougere scents. I believe that this bottle contains tea notes, maybe a bamboo or other pulp note, some light musk, and fougere, or maybe just some lavender. There's probably a light floral here as well, but I'm simply awful at telling florals apart from each other (maybe a light rose?)...The tea is most dominant on me, and this is really performing like Dorian did on my skin. This blend is more floral though, and the more I smell it, the more I am convinced that there is something floral here. If I were to characterize it, it would a very light colored, summery oil. It's really not me, but I'm pretty sure that someone else on this forum will adore it.

 

Chaos Theory III: CCLXIV (264)

 

In the bottle this smells very citrusy--some sort of orange note, if I had to guess. I'm not really picking up anything else specific, but its clear that there are things lurking in the background. We'll see what emerges on my skin. Well, wet, this scent is even stronger orange/citrus. This is another clean blend, and I'm having a really hard time figuring out what else is in this. There are additional notes emerging as the scent dries down, but the citrusy smell is still dominant, though now I can't tell if the citrus note was actually lemon, or if lemon is emerging on drydown. It really does smell like orange in the bottle. It's unique, but it's also not really me either.

 

What a shame. I knew I should have gotten three bottles!

[fairy]

CMXIX...obtained an imp through a swap.

 

I smell pear. Sunshine pears. There is a floral I can't place...I want to say honeysuckle. As it wears it softens to a beautiful powdery smell. Very nice~

 

Previously reviewed by edenssixthday.

[ciannait]

DCCLIV: In the bottle, it smells like KarmelKorn stores. Also a bit like Rice Krispies. On the drydown I smelled what seemed like chai spices and maybe some incense-type notes, in addition to the kind of buttery-ness of a sweet popped corn or rice scent. Lovely, autumn, foody scent.

 

MXXVI: In the bottle, I smell pine or cedar, and something "clean" underneath it. As it dries it becomes more of a warm vanilla mixed with a very cedar sort of smell - I could see it going to pencil shavings but it holds itself back from the brink.

 

They're both utterly unique and wonderful-smelling and I'm glad I didn't let the sniffs from the bottle dissuade me from trying them! They're completely not what I would get for myself, but they both win my husband's (and his best friend's!) seal of approval.

[moonarcana]

My buddy caramialove and I were both too chicken to commit to a whole bottle of Chaos Theory, so thinking that there's safety in numbers, we decided to go in together on a bottle.

 

Here's my review:

 

Chaos Theory III: MV

 

Smells like a Sharpie.

 

 

in the bottle...

applied to the skin wet...

after it dries down...

 

Smells like a Sharpie.

 

So although neither one of us desires to actually smell like a Sharpie, it was a fun experience. And no...you don't get a buzz from sniffing it!

[Reedsong]

Dear Chaos Theory III: CCLXXXIV:

 

Let me first preface this letter by saying

 

You are the perfect coffee-chocolate scent. Your rich, caffeinated goodness is more stimulating than Misk U. Your dark, velvety chocolate richness is more wonderful than Lump of Coal. As you dry down, you remind me of the imagined effect were I to melt a Coffee Crisp and rub it on my wrists.

 

You are absolutely magical, and my only regret to acquiring you via trade is that I have only one imp of you. I promise I will never wear you around anyone that gets on my nerves, for they do not deserve to smell the beauteous glory that is You, Oh Coffee Crisply One.

 

I'd also like to officially laugh heartily at the above review of the Sharpie Chaos Theory.

 

Love and kisses,

The Corinthians

Also Reedsong.

 

Last reviewed by sarahmarie.

[gypsybaby1]

CMVIII

 

I purchased the bottle from Midnight Aeval, simply by the description of "musky tart cherries".

 

and believe me, it was!! in the bottle the cherries aren't what I'd call tart, but it's not a candy sweet cherry either. And I could definitely smell the musk.

 

It does change after it's dry to a powdery floral with the fresh cherry undertone.

 

It's beautiful to my nose, but it doesn't appear to last too long. It's only been on about 2 hours and I can't smell it anymore. Maybe it'll come back...

[midnight_aeval]

I got these 2 decants in a swap with Forspecial Plate, and so I think I need to do reviews on them!

 

CDLXII: In the vial and wet on my skin this was cookies, browned sugar cookies, with some herbal smell in the background SPECIAL COOKIES!! no, it didn't really smell like that kind of herb. Like something familiar that is used in quite a few blends I have smelled before. Eh, can't place it. Ok, so the cookie almost fades away and the scent is now a sweet herbal with a hint of what could be lemongrass..

 

Previously reviewed by Forspecial Plate.

 

CMLXXIV: Pine candy?? Really, it's a sugary pine scent on me.. very odd! I would imagine this is what Little Red Riding Hood would smell like heh.. The pine note burns my nose a bit, but at the end is that white buttercream, sugary goodness.

 

Previously reviewed by Forspecial Plate.

 

Thanks Tom for letting me try these scents!

[furygrrl]

CMLV - 955

 

In the bottle: Mmm...smells like powdery, peppery cherries! I'm instantly reminded of Black Phoenix.

 

On wet: CHERRIES on STEROIDS! And then...*poof*...they're gone. All I'm smelling now is this gorgeous underbite of black peppery-ness.

 

Drydown: Still getting that amazing peppery scent (ginger? peppercorn?) with just a hint of sweetness playing underneath. It's an absolutely incredible smell.

 

Overall: ::swoons:: Mmmm...this blend is like spicy sex in a bottle. I'm thrilled to have something so deliciously unique, and *beyond* delighted by my very first "perfect for me" CT. Thanks to Beth for creating such an exciting fragrance, and for the agents of Chaos that sent it my way!

[peppermintgum]

I got my order today

I received 2 CT3 scents, so here goes....

 

MCXXVII - 1127

In the bottle it smells really clean and bright, sort of a citrus-y floral, but not overpowering.

On me, it morphs into mostly floral, with a bit of an incense undertone, I think. It's not a strong scent, which is good, but I'm not totally a fan. I'll test it out again tomorrow though

 

MCXXXI - 1131

It's a really delicious fresh clean smell, with some citrus and either mint or eucalyptus.

On me, it starts out like a sweet minty-lemon candy, and then morphs into the best scent ever - clean laundry hanging out on the line on a sunny day, floating on fresh breezes. Definitely some citrus in this one, and it's a very bright scent. It just borders on smelling like cleaning products but stop just short of that ammonia smell (or whatever cleaning products have in them). I'll test it again tomorrow to make sure, but I think I'm in love

[furygrrl]

MLXXIX - 1079

 

In the bottle: Sweet n' perfumey. Kinda reminds me of a really high-end shampoo.

 

On wet: Wow, forget shampoo - we're talking upscale perfume here. It's so intense I'm having a hard time picking out familiar notes. It's not foody or watery, amberish or incensey, roses or citrus or tea or ozone...

 

Drydown: After a few minutes, this totally calms down. It's still *very* perfumey and hard to dissect component-wise, but I'm REALLY enjoying it! It's kind of like a spicy, creamy floral with a shot of fruity sweetness added for good measure. I can only guess at what might be in it: carnation and/or spices, jasmine and/or ylang ylang, possibly bergamot... *is stumped*

 

Overall: This, my fourth and final bottle of CT, is just lovely. In fact, ALL of my CTs have been wonderful! It *is* a touch heavier than I usually like, but as an evening out/cold weather scent, I think it'll be perfect.

 

What a great experience CT has been! I hope the Lab continues this tradition, 'cause I'm already excited for the next round!

[Athena's Owl]

my bottle of chaos theory, arrived today, is MIII (1003.)

 

in bottle: good lord, I don't know. my impressions are "sweet" and "clean" but not lemon or mint. flowers? I don't know, it doesn't smell like anything I recognize.

 

It's a good smelling stranger, though.

 

wet, on skin: there's somthing in this that smells like skin, or leather, but it's faint, and something that makes me think of the way fruit strip gum tastes. and I smell roses, I'm sure I do. and something way down beneath it all that is... slightly feral.

 

later: dryer sheets, a bit, but still roses and sweetness. that i think it's leather smell, a slightly herbal edge.

 

I think it's a fragrance I have to get to know. it's not like my usual resins and woods or my love affair with honey or what have you. it's interesting and still light.

 

I'm going to keep it and see how it ages.

[theshapeshifter]

My second CTIII bottle... if I remember correctly, number DCCLIII (753).

 

In the bottle, I just kept sniffing it, thinking "I know this scent somehow!" After applying it, I realized what it reminds me of: Poison! It's not a dead ringer (it's more subtle, less in-your-face), but it really takes me back to my 18-year-old days, when that was my favourite scent.

 

Partly for nostalgia value, and partly because I still do love me a heady mysterious scent once in a while, this is definitely a keeper.

 

I wish I could sort out what the actual notes are, though.