Similarities Between BPAL Scents - GC and general discussion

[AnnetteL]

Carnal and March Hare give me the same "feeling" (a translucent juiciness) though their notes are totally different - I think if you liked one, you would like the other.

 

Eclipse, Old Morocco and Snake Oil are also all similar on me - Eclipse obviously has the cinnamon, and Old Morocco is a little more exotic, but they are similar (especially over time, after about six hours I can't tell the lingering traces of them apart).

 

Oh, and Effluvia: Yes, March Hare is much sweeter than Depraved. On me, Depraved really comes through as earthy with a hint of apricot, whereas March Hare is apricot with a hint of spice... they share the apricot note, but I wouldn't say they're very close.

[LiberAmoris]

Cathedral and Anne Bonny smell very similar to me, although AB is a touch sweeter and has that 'salty wood note' that many have mentioned. But both have the same base of resiny/incensey wood notes, at least to my nose.

[chin]

Hey, I tried Namaste recently and it reminds me of one of my absolute favourites - Shadow. Eidolon also reminds me of Shadow, but it's more woody on me.

 

Shadow is dry and lemony and cedary on me, and I find it very relaxing - I wear it before bed to get myself into relaxed even-keel sleep mode. I was surprised to see patchouli in the description, I don't notice it when I wear it.

 

Eidolon - I haven't worn it a lot, but so far it seems a little more acrid/bitter on me compared to Shadow. A little more woody, with a little more "bass" if that makes sense. It's a little less light.

 

Namaste ... I just have an imp, but I am thinking of a bigger bottle. Compared to Shadow, my impression was that it was more sharply lemony upfront, and then a rosy floral woody scent thereafter (more woody than floral on me). I wear this one before bed too

 

Overall, my favourite is still Shadow - I love it. I'm not so much a floral person, maybe that's why.

 

ETA, I forgot Shroud. It reminds me of Shadow - light without being lightweight, sandalwoody, a little herbal, without the lemony component. There is a light floral component that I love - might be wisteria or lilac (my nose is not so good when it comes to flowers!). It's another beautiful blend (aren't they all?).

Edited September 10, 2004 by chin

[JazzieCazzie]

On me, at least. Spellbound and Le Petit Mort are VERY similar, with Le Petit Mort having a little less head shop scent and a little more rose.

[hypothermya]

I'm sure it's been said before, but:

 

Old Shanghai, Embalming Fluid, Phantasm. Like they could be sisters.

[ebonykawai]

Can anyone tell me if Sudha Segara smells similar to Dana O'Shee or Alice? These two have a similar note in it that might be that "milk" scent but I'm not sure. I'm not crazy about that distinctive note (which might be something else entirely), so I wanted to ask about similarities before I give it a try. Thanks!

Edited September 19, 2004 by ebonykawai

[Pookstrell]

 

I'm curious about the very same question, although for different reasons.

I love Dana O'Shee. The milkiness really works on me- so I am looking for scents with a similar creamy note. I have Alice on the way from a swap, purely on the basis that people have described it as being similarly milky.

I'm thinking of ordering 5ml of sudha unsniffed, as it sounds so much like Dana.

I'd like somehow to be able to skim off the creaminess of Dana- so I could mix it in every fragrance I use

 

A single milk/cream note would be heavenly- but I don't think it would work since creaminess is more a feel than a scent on its own.

[asa805]

The "creaminess" is about the only thing that is similiar to alice( i dont think dana o shea is anything like sudha segara at all). As for the distinctive note in SS it is definately the ginger. So if you do not like ginger then you probably wont like this. It not bitter or too strong because the creaminess lightens it but for me the "creaminess" was not as distinctive as in alice.

[babykitty]

Ginger flower or ginger root?

[isyche]

I agree with asa805, the milky note in Sudha Segara is similar to Alice but not to Dana O'Shee. The note in Dana smells more like cream to me, whereas Alice and Sudha Segara smell like milk, if that makes sense.....those two both somehow remind me of the smell of dried milk at the bottom of a glass. (Not in a bad way, but they do.) The almond in Dana O'Shee might be what makes it different, I don't know.

 

And I'd say it's ginger root (I don't know what ginger flower smells like though).

Edited September 20, 2004 by isyche

[tart]

I think it may be ginger root as well, based on the description.

 

I want Sudha Segara!!

[Pookstrell]

Well, I really like the ginger note in Aries, so I think I'll like Sudha.

 

the milky note in Sudha Segara is similar to Alice but not to Dana O'Shee.

 

Hopefully my imp of Alice will arrive soon, and I'll be able to evaluate the milkiness in that and by extension, work out if I'll like Sudha.

But... as of this morning I have tried Dragon's Milk (courtesy of Miggins) and the creaminess/milkiness in it is incredibly similar to Dana

Any comments on how Dragon's Milk compares to Sudha? Does anyone else find it similar to Dana?

 

Damn, I wish someone would hurry up and invent smell-o-vision!

[pekeana]

I've tested Dana O'Shee and Sudha Segara -- and have an imp of Alice coming in my Mabon/Queen of Spades order.

 

So far, at least for me, there hasn't been anything really comparable even between Dana and Sudha -- there might be common ingredients, but the tone and texture of the scents are completely different. Dana is smooth and almondy, whereas Sudha is smooth and softly tropical in an understated way. I would sooner compare Tarot: The Star and Sudha Segara because I instantly picked up on the coconutty twist.

 

That said, my nose is kind of strange. And so is my body chemistry. So you should take that with a grain of salt.

[darklorelei]

I was sortof curious about the ginger note as well. I adore ginger root as food, flavor, and EO, but Beth's blends with it have been kindof...not gingery. I know she doesn't like it, but I don't want to get Sudha Segara if it's the same "ginger" as Siren or Vixen.

[oubliette]

I'm also curious about Sudha Segara because of its milkiness/creaminess. Does anyone know what the secret "milk" ingredient is in Alice? Could it be a type of vanilla? I'd love to order a single note of it to layer with other blends!

[Donnababe]

I would sooner compare Tarot: The Star and Sudha Segara because I instantly picked up on the coconutty twist.

Oh dear. Coconut and I don't get on. Oh well, I'm still very keen to try it.

[pekeana]

That seems to be the general consensus I think... that Dana and Sudha are really very different. Bum! But still, I think I'll try it anyway

 

I will be ordering The Star in my next lot of imps... is it quite a creamy coconut Pekeana...? Sometimes I find coconut a little too bright- but I'm sure a Bpal coconut would probably be a little more balanced.

I only sniffed pkwench's The Star - didn't try it on.

 

But the coconut in The Star is very warm, creamy, and sweet in a naturally soft way. It doesn't smell at all like that horrid artificial coconut scent that's in so many sunscreens. It smells more like you've found a ripe coconut on the beach and cracked it wide open in the sun.

 

And the coconut in Sudha Segara starts off sweet in the vial, but my chemistry sucked up all the sweet almost immediately, so I was left with a delightful toasted coconutty smell under everything else.

 

So your milage with the coconut note might vary.

[Pookstrell]

But the coconut in The Star is very warm, creamy, and sweet in a naturally soft way. It doesn't smell at all like that horrid artificial coconut scent that's in so many sunscreens. It smells more like you've found a ripe coconut on the beach and cracked it wide open in the sun. 

 

Oh YUM

Yep, I was after a more creamy real coconut than a bright suntan lotion smell-

I'm definitely going to get an imp of this in my next order

Edited September 21, 2004 by Pookstrell

[asa805]

I'm also curious about Sudha Segara because of its milkiness/creaminess. Does anyone know what the secret "milk" ingredient is in Alice? Could it be a type of vanilla? I'd love to order a single note of it to layer with other blends!

it is, i believe, milk.

[tart]

Hello lovely ladies and genteel gents...

 

I got an imp of Pele in a recent order and thought it was nice, but just not me. It was very light and kind of soapy on first application. I tried rubbing my wrists together to heat up the scent and get the base notes to come out. If I sniffed real hard, I could smell a nice tropical scent, but the light soapiness was still very dominant.

 

The description for Pele: This perfume embodies her gentler, benign aspect as the capricious Goddess of Dance: muguet and Hawaiian white ginger enveloped by warm, damp tropical blooms.

 

What should I try to get more of the "warm, damp tropical blooms" and less of everything else? Machu Picchu sounds nice, but it has amber in it so I don't really want to try it. I have Xiuhtecuhtli but haven't really worn it. Perhaps someone has a suggestion for something I could layer with Xiuhtecuhtli?

 

Thank you in advance.

[Mandarin]

Wow..Storm, maybe? It depends on whether by 'tropical blooms' you mean the muguet, or the white ginger or what have you.

[pekeana]

Sounds like what you need is a shot of Plumeria.

[fallow deer]

Bayou was mostly warm, damp tropical blooms for me.

[ChupaChup]

I just got Machu Picchu and haven't had a chance to review it yet, but it seems a little closer to Xiuhtecuhtli than it does to Pele. It does have the "warm, damp tropical blooms" but they don't smell very Hawaiian to me, probably more jungle bloom-y. It also has the fruit which takes away from the floral aspect a tiny bit. It's really nice, though.

 

Have you tried Midnight? Everytime I wear that, people tells me it smells like Hawaii. I think it's the night-blooming jasmine, but could be something else in it. It's really lovely and might layer well with Pele or Xiuhtecuhtli.

 

I now what you mean about Pele, it just didn't have enough oomph for me, either.

Edited September 29, 2004 by ChupaChup

[allamanda]

Machu Picchu is gorgeous. I think Pikaki might fit the bill. You could use it with Pele to make it stronger, but it is beautiful by itself anyway.