Different smells/colors, same perfume

[blu°]

oops, I edited my post before reading sookster's reply.

 

I still think the second DN is closer to Samhain than to the other DN bottle, but it's good to know that variation within one LE scent is possible. Thank you for the explanation, sookster!

[olympia301]

Yeah, there probably is a variation among the oils used from the supplier. they are also hand blended (I believe I read this) and there is bound to be some variation, especially if you don't buy one bottle right after another. Think of cooking...does your favorite recipe come out exactly the same from batch to batch? Mine don't.

 

I just got a bottle of The Hesperides and it has a distinct wintergreen-like edge to it that the imps and bottles I bought before didn't have. I chalk that up to ingredient changes from the Lab's suppliers, or maybe it's a strength issue in the raw ingredients as well. It could also be my nose (and mind) interpreting minute changes in the raw materials (and that change may not be perceived by the next person).

[mmcfa2]

I have a 5ml of Wanda, that I received with a lab order on december 19th and that smells weird to me.

 

From the imp I really liked the scent, but I had only ever tried it once or twice. It was a rich, slightly bitter, slightly sharpish, smokey wine note that I enjoyed a lot.

 

From since I got the bottle, I never wore it much, but when I tried the other day, I got this really vinegar-y, herbal, pungent smell from it, that was just awful. I had to wash it off.

 

I then thought that this might be a hormone/time of the month issue, especially as there is myrtle involved and I remembered to have read something around that topic about myrtle. But anytime I open the bottle, I get the same vinegar-y smell from it.

I haven't tried it again yet, as just sniffing the bottle I feel repulsed by the strong vinegar-ness of it.

 

What's changed about your Wanda? If you get the vinegar scent as well, maybe there is something wrong with recent batches. (?) The wine note going sour or something.(???)

 

ETA: I'm just testing this again. I applied very sparingly from the rim on my left wrist. First it's all old vinegar again, like a salad bowl you leave dirty for some days because you're too lazy to do the washing up straight away. Old balsamico.

Somehow I can see how this perception is due to the wine and leather intemingling. Once it settles, the scent widens, like the components gaining space to seperate from each other and develop into their true selves. I still get a hint of vinegar, if I think of it. Some clever person on the forums some time said something along the lines of this before. Like, if once you think that scent x smells like y, you'll stick to this association subconsciously and won't perceive anything else but y.

So, now that the spot of Wanda on my wrist has dried, if I try not to think "vinegar", I can smell the wine note which is rich and deep and the leather which is airy and high, and the flowers raising above that.

The throw is delicious, floral and fruity without being cloying. I really get the florals in the throw of it. If sniffing my wrist like two centimetres above skin, I get the wine and leather and a little bit of floral, something sweet. If I stick my nose right to my wrist it's vinegar again.

In the end I think that the difference might be between imp and bottle. Not sure why that should be though. Maybe because there's more perfume, it'll smell more intense to the point of inrecognizability (is this English?).

 

mmcfa2, did you have a bottle of Wanda before? My imp had been fresh from the lab I received it on 1st of October 2005.

 

The first ottle is from early 2005, this new bottle is fresh from the lab a few days ago. the old bottle smells of sweet berry wine, roses and leather. upon application it is too fruity and almost overwhelming and I have to avoid my wrist, but after a few minutes it settles and blooms and the rose and the leather rise to the surface and I ADORE it. This new bottle smells smoky and acrid, there is no recogenizeable rose, no sweet wine. It' is about as different as I could imagine and bears no resemblance to the original. I am used to variations in the oils bottle to bottle but this is WAY different, almost as if it had a huge dollop of opium or myrrh added to it ( those two notes tend to smell like hairspray or solvent to me.) It never morphs into anything at this point. Of course I will try it again in a few weeks, but I'm not having homone issues atm and I am fearful that this just can never even come vaguely close to the original.

 

As a matter of fact, I got a smidge from my arm on the keyboard and the smell that is rising from it is nauseating.

[blu°]

Oh, well, it's probably component issues we're looking at here.

As far as my re-testing my Wanda bottle, I have to admit, that all the positive things I found in it again were probably wishful thinking. If I sniff my wrist, that vinegar note is still there and I smelled it several times wafting up to me as well. Remember, I only applied very little, so it's not too nauseating right now.

There must've been a change in the ingredients late in autumn last year.

I don't have the imp from before around anymore, so I cannot compare the two directly, but I remember I loved the imp scent right away without hesitating a moment to order a bottle of it.

I'd really like to swap this bottle away but am afraid people would feel betrayed if they know the scent from imps or former bottles. I guess I'll just make decants from it to include as frimps in other swaps.

In your case, if the time the order arrived is not so long ago, I'd probably try to get an exchange for it. Myself, I had that bottle for almost two months now and wouldn't feel good about trying to get a replacement now.

[Ms Density]

The bottle of Wanda I just received smells like what's been described here. I've emailed the lab.

[blu°]

The bottle of Wanda I just received smells like what's been described here. I've emailed the lab.

 

That's probably the best thing to do. In my case I had noticed so late after I had received the bottle, that it didn't even occur to me to ask for a replacement.

 

I'd be interested in what the lab says, maybe you can post later on about what happened?

[Ms Density]

Here is the response I got from the lab, in case anyone else has the same issue with Wanda:

 

"All of our oils are organic, and come from natural sources. In nature,

there are variations in the scents of plants; a red rose you buy today

will not necessarily smell identical to a red rose you buy tomorrow. In

addition, we acquire our base oils from many home based businesses,

co-ops, and other small growers. Plants coming from different regions

and hybrid plants sometimes differ in scent. The only way for us to

reproduce our scents flawlessly and exactly each time would be to use

chemically synthesized products which we refuse to do. We do our best

to keep things as consistent as possible, but due to the nature of our

product sometimes nature can not be controlled."

 

They also offered to send me another bottle, but made no guarantees that it would smell the same. I think I'll try it, just because it's one of my favorites and I'd hate to never get my hands on it again.

[blu°]

I guess if that paragraph goes repeated in a personal mail than that would read as:

We are 100% sure that each oil leaving the lab is fresh and fine.

 

Thank you for the post Ms.Density!

[karmageddon]

I'm a little sad, because I had an imp of maiden that was heavy on the rose and carnation, and the 10ml I ordered was like lightly floral'ed tea. I pretend I like it, but I really cry inside.

 

*tear* I even gave my imp of the goodness away once I got my order. *double tear*

[olympia301]

Just to be a contrarian, I got a bottle of Velvet from a forumite and is it different from the Velvets I have known and loved before. It's like Velvet in its Glory! My word. I don't know what's different, I'm picking sandalwood out of the lineup of The Usual Suspects. It's positivly strong (not one of Velvet's usual characteristics) and somehow more perfumy (another uncharacteristic part regarding Velvet). I chalk this up to improvement.

 

I hope this is the way that Velvet is going to be from now on. But, if it isn't, I can be just as happy with the old version as I am with the new. Different variations on a theme. Either way, I look at it that I win.

[cranberry]

I gotta share this. I have several bottles of Devil's Night. The initial bottle I got was musky, clear smelling, and reminded me a lot of Buck Moon. I've been wondering because very few people, if any get this reaction. I checked out my other bottles and did a wrist-to-wrist comparison, and they are totally different! They smelled very different in the bottle and on the skin confirmed it. On one wrist I now get the boozy, fallish scent that most people are taking about when they review devil's night. It has a lot of similarities to Samhain (05) and it clearly links it with the Yule series. Whereas my other bottle displays more light musk (and again, super similar to Buck Moon). It's just stunning to me that this one bottle (and perhaps another to tiny degree) are soooooo different.

 

I don't think it's a matter of aging or having a mislabeled bottle, but it really illustrates to me just how different batches can be. I've never run across an oil with this much difference from one to another. It's really quite amazing!

[HennaFairy]

i've come across two cases where something seems off..

 

wolfsbane - i had two imps, tested one, didn't like it. smelled almost like nothing, if anything, like paper and musty (like when our basement flooded and we had to clean it out!) that one was set aside for a friend, another friend took the second one out of my swap box, and i sniffed it - it smelled a lot different!

 

i suppose it could have been aging...

 

but - at a meet & sniff, i smelled Pele and remember it being fairly strong/distinct. i just got my imp of pele from the lab, so it's fresh, and i smell - NOTHING. absolutely nothing. i can't believe that it needs aging to smell like ANYTHING, could it??? i thought i read somewhere (no idea where...) that sometimes if the lab cleans out the equipment the first few in a batch may be weaker. could that happen?

 

i will see what my friend with a good nose says this weekend...

 

any ideas beyond waiting?? thanks

[TroubleDoll]

I can't smell Pele when I first put it on, but it seems to strengthen with body heat *shrug*

[blu°]

I gotta share this. I have several bottles of Devil's Night. The initial bottle I got was musky, clear smelling, and reminded me a lot of Buck Moon. I've been wondering because very few people, if any get this reaction. I checked out my other bottles and did a wrist-to-wrist comparison, and they are totally different! They smelled very different in the bottle and on the skin confirmed it. On one wrist I now get the boozy, fallish scent that most people are taking about when they review devil's night. It has a lot of similarities to Samhain (05) and it clearly links it with the Yule series. Whereas my other bottle displays more light musk (and again, super similar to Buck Moon). It's just stunning to me that this one bottle (and perhaps another to tiny degree) are soooooo different.

 

I've got two bottles of Devil's Night and they are exactly like yours. One is slightly cookie-ish and clean smelling, a bit like Buck Moon, and the other one reminds me strongly of Samhain. I like both, so I don't mind them being a bit different from each other at all.

 

As for Wanda (see some posts above), I received a new imp in the meantime, which smells just like my previous imp.

[Ms Density]

Thanks for the update on Wanda, Blu... I think I'll add an imp to my next order to give it another try.

[SueDonym]

Here I thought I was crazy or that the bottle had been topped off with something.

(Smack my evil mind)

 

Got a bottle of Mi-Go off the internet that smelled...awful.

Nothing like the lushiousness of my first imp.

Nothing like the used bottle I ordered, nothing like the one from the lab.

(Yep, three bottles)

 

Yeah, me-go Mi-Go crazy but I have Lovecraftian friends to whom I owe gifts and my intention was to send the bottles on, since the initial scent I tested was quite easy to like -- fruity tea goodness with a hint of undertone which offered a fun balance. (Thus enabling with lots of love and a spin on their likes.) In the fresh from lab scent the undertone smell was much heavier but not 'bad' in any way, but in the ebay order it was, eeeewwwwwww!

 

Now I don't know what to do. My gift bottles aren't what I expected, and one just seems unusable.

 

Could it be age? I *think* the overpoweringly awful note on the ebay order is a little bit in the lab bottle (but much nicer and less spoilt seeming) and perhaps the imp and used bottle were just older/melded better.

 

I've contacted the seller of the nasty bottle who assures me it was barely tested and kept cool. Anybody else have Mi-Go issues or am I the only one crazy enough for it to obtain enough to tell the difference? It is *really* awful and I don't want to pass it on if it's going to stay that way.

[neuilly]

I was given two imps of Spellbound but the two are entirely different in color! I was wondering if someone could help me know which one is the most accurate? One is a yellowish amber color and the other is a dark reddish brown?

 

I mean maybe it's the same scent but that seems unlikely...

[SmileCat]

Huh, my bottle of Spellbound is a dark yellow brown. Maybe it's just the natural variety in oils.

[clover]

It's the same scent.

 

It's the red musk that changes color - I've had light & dark imps of Spellbound, Kabuki & Scherezade. They can go from almost black to a golden color. No worries!

[neuilly]

Thank you so much guys! I guess they must be the same scent then Red musk, who knew? Definitely adding that in my notes. Thanks again!

[jenleigh]

Anybody else have Mi-Go issues or am I the only one crazy enough for it to obtain enough to tell the difference? It is *really* awful and I don't want to pass it on if it's going to stay that way.

 

I've got two bottles of Mi-Go, and I haven't noticed this at all between the two. It's the same lovely fruity-flowery scent it's always been in both.

 

Was the eBay bottle sent during that huge heat wave, or from a really hot place? If so, it's possible it was damaged or left exposed to heat too long during shipping.

[Beatrice33]

O.K., I've tried to read all I can from discussions of Morocco to figure this out, and I'm still befuddled.

 

Background: I've tried 3 different Morocco imps and owned and swapped away a bottle of Morocco. Sometimes I love it, and it's like a Holy Grail kind of scent, and then sometimes it gets too sharp or else way too Antique Lace-ish for me. From the Aging BPAL thread, some seem to think Morocco changes as it ages and some seem to think it's a batch issue.

 

I now have an imp which I believe was a frimp from the lab and I can't remember how old it is. I rediscovered it yesterday and I'm in LOVE! It's a perfectly balanced sweet/spicy/smooth/soft conconction that has my nose glued to my wrist. But here's my big question: have people been having batch issues with Morocco lately? Has anyone noticed lately what new bottles have been like? I ordered another this morning because it definitely seemed worth the risk, but I'm just wondering what people's experiences have been lately with Morocco.

 

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated -- thank you!

 

Edited so as not to sound so darn urgent in my title.

Edited August 31, 2006 by Beatrice33

[Dinah]

Morocco was the first oil I fell in love with - I sawpped for a half-10ml bottle and it was perfect. Heaven in a bottle (fyi, this still had 'Old Morocco' on the label).

 

Now I've just gotten my second 10ml bottle - it's fresh from the lab, two weeks old or so.

 

The thing I've noticed is: my new bottle of Morocco smells just as heavenly as the old one - but it's much less strong and fades rather quickly. There's just a certain richness that is still missing and that I hope will develop over time.

 

So, that's my experience with Morocco. *g*

[lookingglass]

Some BPAL scents, IME, especially with vanilla, can vary from imp to imp and with age. I cannot say if it is a Lab issue or not, because I have only gotten multiples of imps from swaps. I say if it is fresh from the Lab, and you love it, use it up. See how it ages. I personally do not buy multiple bottles because the Lab mixes them fresh, and I prefer them that way. (Except for Blood Kiss~I like that better aged; It also has vanilla. I got an imp from a swap, LOVED it, bought a bottle fresh from the Lab, and it was not the same. Months later, it is what I tried and fell in love with! Again, I blame the vanilla. Some swear it is the same for Snake Oil(see the Snake Oil thread). I like the fresh better there, though. Hunger is the same way: Fresh it is sharp and fruity, aged it is smoky vanilla, very Snake Oil-y).

 

Good luck!

[yeahbutnobut]

Does Morocco have vanilla? It's not mentioned in the notes but a lot of people describe it as a vanilla scent. I always thought Morocco's sweetness was due to the musk, but maybe there is vanilla in it too?

 

When I first tried it I didn't understand the hype, my imp was woody and masculine. Then I tried another imp and was smitten! My new bottle that I have is creamy-sweet and so divine!