Ops

[hkhm]

(given out at the november 2010 will call canned food drive)

imp: sweet, spicy, creamy citrus.

wet: this reminds me of the citrus tea cake i bake during the holidays. it's slightly spicy, richly creamy with the brightness of citrus like a halo.

dry: this doesn't change at all from wet to dry. it's a beautiful scent, very festive, light & cheerful.

[bheansidhe]

The top notes are the more delicate baking spices: nutmeg, allspice, mace, cardamom. There might be the lightest sprinkle of cinnamon, but I usually amp that note, and it's not dominant here.

 

The middle hints of holiday baking, but without an overtly dessert-like quality: unfrosted carrot cake, fig, bread pudding, and fruitcake. I don't get citrus off hand (though there could be some orange zest in the blend), but I do get a faint whiffs of cranberries and maraschino cherries, and maybe a touch of candied ginger.

 

The drydown adds a yeasty sweet bread note, like the inside of a fresh loaf of challah, lightly buttered, while continuing with the spices and the lovely bread pudding middle.

 

Overall: delicious!

Edited November 22, 2010 by bheansidhe

[sunlitgarden]

Ops

This is a rich and lightly spicy foody blend to my nose. After it was first applied, I could smell cardamom and other spices. Citrus was detectable more to me after a couple hours of drydown. After a full day's wear, it's fainter but sweet. The overall impression is of a fluffy cake, not rich, with spice and citrus that complement each other well and are not completely dominant one way or the other. I really like it!

[myth]

This is bakery-foody at first, and I get a hit of spiciness, like a spiced cake or cookie. But there is something else in here that doesn't like me, and it begins to amp on my skin. I may be getting a whiff of milk chocolate or possibly some kind of cream, as it's got that curdled-sour tinge that I get with those notes... or it could instead be a faint dollop of honey, because that also funks on me. Not entirely sure. It's sweet at first, but the spices turn savory as it sits on my skin. By the time it dries it smells like, well, food, but in a non-specific kind of way... just sort of yeastiness and spices and maybe other things that have been cooked in the background, and I can't really pin anything down. It's spicy now but not sweet, and foody but not bakery-foody nor gourmand... it's more hearty-foody, I guess. I get zero citrus at any point. This is vaguely similar in effect to Daya, although this one plays a little better with my chemistry. It's ok, but not really the type of scent that I wear... I prefer my foody scents to be dessert-like rather than dinner-like.

[Lorna Brigid]

I was fortunate to get this as a frimp from a forumite.

In the imp: I was afraid it would be yet more of the Shub Niggurath/Gingerbread Poppet type of thing. Nutmeg and spice cake baked goods.

On my skin: The spiced cake is still there, but it opens up with a a dark fruity scent that is just heavenly.

I wish I could buy a big bottle of this!

[zankoku_zen]

Mmmm. YUM!

 

This smells to me like oatmeal cookies - its warm, sugary, vanilla and lightly spiced. Perhaps a tinge of milk chocolate?

 

It goes a little plasticky on the drydown, but I forgive it --- because it's so delicious!

[Dark Alice]

On me...this just stinks. Stale gingerbread and anise. This actually made me nauseous and I had to wash it off immediately. Rarely does this happen to me...but alas every now and then...it does. *sigh*

[ellebelle]

This smells like gingerrbread to me as well - not in a foody way, but in a raw spices way. I don't just fruit or citrus.

[puck_nc]

Origin: unexpected gift in a decant circle shipment

 

Initial Thoughts: After reading the other reviews, this may turn out to be too foody for me, but it's worth the try.

 

In the imp: Spicy and vanilla-sweet and just a bit citrus-y, definitely a foody impression.

 

Wet: Creamy, sweet and gently spicy. I agree with the idea of baked goodies, but it's not shouting any particular kind.

 

Drydown: The spices amp up a little, but not too much. It's quietly warm and comforting on my skin.

 

Verdict: I'm going to test this one again in a couple of days to be sure, but I think I like it very much.

[dixiehellcat]

I got this as a frimp too. Lovely spicy, creamy, slightly cakey scent.

[Suu4LC]

In the imp this is a sharp lemony/spiced cakey scent. Sort of foody, but not zomg foodz. On my skin this has a dry, dusty spice feel to it-not dirty dusty, but dry dusty and the citrus-y scent is almost like dried lemon or orange peel. This is all over a cake scent, that is also a dry cake scent-dry meaning not buttery/moist. I know I keep using the word dry-I don't mean it in a bad way-this really smells lovely and I just don't know what other word to use to describe this scent. As it dries more, there is almost like a candied citrus scent mixed with those warm spices. Or maybe candied ginger...I can definitely see where other reviewers got gingerbread in this.

 

On drydown, I sort of lose a lot of the foodiness of this blend-I don't really get any citrus (citrus generally tends to get eaten on my skin) and I even lose a lot of the cake-iness. It is mostly a dry spices scent.

 

Overall, this dries down to a dry spice/ginger scent, with maybe a touch of cake. It's most interesting in its wet/first application stages, while I still get that candied citrus scent in there. Not something I would have bought a bottle of, but a nice scent I am glad I could experience.

[angelicruin]

Spice cake on my skin. Love it!

[edenssixthday]

Ops - Something in this comes across as "woods" more than "cake" to my nose. But it's earthy and spicy. Tons of cardamom, yum! I don't smell much spicy cinnamon, but perhaps a hint of cinnamon bark. There's nutmeg, ginger (gingerbread?), and pure yumminess. Most foody scents "turn" on my skin, but this one doesn't. It stays pure and true to its yummy spicy, slightly woody deliciousness. Mmm.

[Blood onmy hands]

I don't get the citrus or fruit from this that others have mentioned, but my skin tends to amp up spice notes. This mostly smells like a dry, spicy, gingerbread cookie on me. It lasts for about an hour and doesn't have a ton of throw, but is spicy and cozy while it lasts.

[mxtine]

This was a huge morpher.

 

It goes from citrus cake (the kind with flecks of lemon rind) in the decant, to oatmeal cookies, to one of those giant Toll House fresh baked milk chocolate cookies that I love to smell (but can't eat), and finally to a candied ginger cookie. There seems to be a cedar wood note in here for a second, but it disappears. Despite being the bakery explosion it sounds like, it's rather light and airy.

[yeahbutnobut]

Ops

 

In the imp: like freshly baked bread. This is yeasty. I don’t think I’ve tried a bread-scented BPAL before but this is definitely bread, not cake!

Wet on skin: bread flavoured with savoury herbs like rosemary, thyme, dill, sage, even a bit of cumin.

Dry on skin: this one is really unusual. The dominant scent is BREAD! Freshly baked bread from the oven, soft and yeasty and warm. But this isn’t just bread. It has a sweet glaze, maybe a honey coating or even a bit of jam. But the bread has savoury spices and herbs-I smell fennel now, maybe some coriander, rosemary and sage. Maybe a hint of the savoury spices from Ein Kuss Von Krampus-the mustard and pepper maybe? It actually reminds me of focaccia, maybe there’s a dash of olive oil to this too. I don’t smell butter, or cream, I don’t smell any dairy really. Just lots of dry floury spicy herbal notes.

After a while: though there’s a dash of sweetness, I swear I smell salt. Something that reminds me of sea salt crystals, like on a pretzel. Maybe some seeds, like pumpkin, sunflower or poppy seeds? Or perhaps it is caraway or fennel. The bread scent becomes drier, a tiny bit saltier, and definitely more herbal. It loses that sugary scent. This is really unusual. At times it smells a bit like the TAL oil Temple Greek, or a milder, less sweet/boozy Delphi without that note that turned to parmesan on me. It smells like offerings of warm bread with wine and olive oil, and dry dusty stone with wild herbs growing around.

Verdict: this scent is so unusual for a foody…it smells of bread and herbs and olives! It does smell like the kind of offering fit for the Roman goddess of plenty, and there are also hints of honey and wine too, and spices as well. I’m impressed at how bready it is and I like that, especially those moments when it turns to rosemary focaccia, but there are some odd, savoury scents here that I’m not sure about, something a bit like cumin or caraway and even some salt. I decided to pass the imp on, but I’m still impressed by this scent and how unique it is-there’s nothing in the BPAL catalogue like it. (can we have more bread scents please?)

Is it a keeper? Not sure…it’s so intriguing but I’m not sure I can pull it off as perfume. Maybe as a room scent.

[ami226]

Wow this is tasty! I would eat this in a second! Baking spices with a sense of breadiness/cakiness. Not too sweet though, but there is some sweetness.

 

A very tasty/foody scent!

[hlinspjalda]

I had an unfortunate incident with this imp and spilled half of it on myself. I'm not a foodie lover to begin with, so that was kind of disconcerting.

 

At first it smelled like cake and spice, definitely a pleasant edible baked product. As the day wore on, though, it became very strong red ginger (a nausea-inducing death note on me) and vanilla with a creamy base. After about ten hours it had worn down to a fairly clear vanilla extract sort of note minus the alcohol -- so vanilla bean, I suppose.

 

But there's definitely red ginger in this one, my skin told me so.

[aleciarivas]

Hm this one's a strange one... I get a hint of citrus, a pinch of baked or baking goods, a touch of vanilla... Nothing in particular stands out hard-core, it's all completely subtle and equally supportive. Faint, though, and hardly any throw whatsoever. I really have to huff to catch the scent.

[angelamaria]

In imp: definitely foody! Somewhat cinnamonny, but mostly a citrusy sort of cake--lemon probably, but not a lemon pastry sort of note. Yummy!

 

Wet on skin: mmmm citrusy cake with cinnamon and other spices. Very light and foody, like a chiffon cake of sorts. I'm getting hungry! As it dries, it kind of reminds me of halfling a bit, a more spicy halfling and with the oatmeal not as dominant, more like a dusting of it.

 

Dry: sigh, there is that dreaded plastic note. So you know there should be cream here somewhere like with most cake-y blends. But overall, this is a sweetly spicy light chiffon cake, and both citrusy and cinnamony to me. The creaminess and the cinnamon-like note get more prominent as it lasts longer on my skin.

 

Verdict: very pretty and foody--foody lovers will probably want to give this a shot, and for those who have issues with cream and plastic (like me), probably not so much. I have to admit I'm relieved, as it should be crazy difficult to get more...

[Honey]

Frimp from a very friendly forumite!

 

 

Imp: Reminds me very much of Bread-and-Butterfly! Toasted bread and weak tea with a nice citrus note as well.

 

Wet: Still toast and lemon tea.

 

Dry: Toast (or non-sugary cake?) with faint anise, clove and cinnamon in the dry-down. Foody but also dangerously close to fennel/fish oil on my skin. Nice fresh lemon peel note to it too. But still not for me.

[Lethran]

In bottle: Mmmm.. orange scones maybe? Or cake with citrusy glazing. Something like that. Yummy. Wet: I’m leaning towards the scones with sweet citrus glazing as it’s not that sweet, but more vaguely sweet. The spices are lovely with the orange glazing. I can’t normally do citrus, but this doesn’t amp, so I can actually wear it! Yay!. Dry: Fast fading, faintly cakey, faintly orange.

[rhubarb3point14]

Out of the imp, this smelled like citrus-peel and aniseseed biscotti to me. I say biscotti, because even though it smelled like sweet cake, it gave an overwhelming impression of dryness and crumbliness. "Yum!" I thought.

 

But after half an hour, the scent started to turn very, very bitter. The bitterness became the only thing I could smell, and I had to scrub it off.

 

I never did get the spicy notes that most people seem to have gotten from it. That might have saved it -- I like spice!

[cuervosueno]

This is nice! It reminds me of a sweetbread or a not too sweet cake. It does kind of remind me of a yeast cake or one of those ring breads that have glazed fruit and spice in it, as it has a light sweet note, vanilla, spices, but also does have a kind of light, bready feel rather than a rich cake. I also think it has a slight lemon note, like a lemon glaze, or lemon zest or something.

 

It does hit a bit of a plasticky note after it's been on for awhile, but thankfully, that it short lived. Mostly, it's a pleasant, slightly citrus and spice bakery blend that is quite enjoyable, but has little throw.

[WidgetAlley]

Imp: A sweet, nutty, bready, creamy smell with a hint of spice. Smells like the batter for a really tasty tea bread or poundcake. Yum!

 

Wet: Hazelnuts, almonds and sweet bread. There's a divine Scandinavian nut cake that tastes like this smells! I'm getting a hint of a buttery note but it doesn't go to dry dust and playdough on me like so many others do. Instead it stays a gentle, nutty, cakey smell, rather like the sweet components of Hearth made into their own scent. I want to say there's a touch of musk and something gently floral in here, too, to make it wearable.

 

Dry: Alas, by the time of the drydown the butter has turned, just slightly, sour and playdough-ish on me. That's too bad, because it was lovely at first. I'll pass this one on to a happier home.