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- Today
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For me, the “ruby-tinged amber sunlight” comes through first, both on my skin and when I try this scent on a testing strip. The scent has a slightly wan warmth and an expansive feeling that makes me think of being outdoors. As it dries, the woods come forward for me, though I never really pick up anything green. I suspect bergamot is in here helping to drive my positive reaction, although I can’t pick it out from the blend — but many of my favorite scents have that note. I love the way scents can capture a feeling or a story, and this definitely smells to me like watching a sunset outside near a fragrant woods. When fresh, it has significant throw, and while it disappeared from my skin after eight hours, after 24 hours on my testing strip, it’s still going strong.
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Oh maaan. I get more rose on my skin initially, a big gorgeous heady bloom. Different than the rose of Peacock Queen, sweet and slightly fruity without being an overly sweet, jammy rose. As it dries I get a beautiful toasty coffee note supporting the rose. They dry to a beautiful harmony.
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Terrible Moon: Cardamom and Black Amber
roseus replied to doomsday_disco's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
In in the imp I get a soft amber with a almost mentholated cardamom. My skin turns this to a generic men's shower gel unfortunately. -
Beaver Moon: Green Tea & Cookie Dough
roseus replied to doomsday_disco's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
Slighty buttery cookie dough with a gorgeous jasmine tea. Slightly vegetal and not citrusy like some green tea notes can be. Fresh but cozy. A beautiful gourmand-ish. -
Such a soft, sweet comforting scent. Toasty bread (there is something oaty too), sweetened and bit by the honey and amber and a bit creamy. Just a hint of soft, clean (but not overwhelmingly laundry-y) cotton underneath.
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Immediately in the bottle and on the skin, this smells fizzy, bubbly, and playful. Like when a carbonated drink tickles your nose. I'm actually shocked there isn't a listed note of champagne, aldehydes, something. Regardless, this is wonderful. I don't get much mandarin, but the melon is quite strong, especially in the bottle and first upon application. Later, it dries down into a creamy tuberose scent with melon layered on top. It's wonderful as a spring and summer scent, and I'm very glad I have a bottle.
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The Donkey's Tail
kinneret_rising replied to doomsday_disco's topic in Gifts with Donation or Purchase
I received a tiny sample of The Donkey’s Tail dripped onto a little cloth heart. I liked Gloomily, Gloomily, which smells to me like a drizzly lavender meadow. For me The Donkey’s Tail also evokes a meadow, but it’s full of wildflowers and strange herbs and is somehow exciting and unexpected. Is it the bourbon vanilla that’s so surprising? I would be tempted to get a full bottle of this if it were available. -
From the store description: The new discovery of “Table Moving,” by means of an unseen power from the human hand, has only been introduced into England within the last few weeks; but it would be difficult to dingle out any scientific subject which has with such rapidity, taken so extensive a hold of the popular mind. If we travel by railway carriage, steamboat, or omnibus, this is the universal topic of conversation. From the aristocratic saloons of Belgravia to the “Parlours” of Whitechapel – the Green Park to the Cat and Mutton Fields, “table moving” is all the rage. From the Royal Institution, where the secretary pokes his head through a forest of electrical apparatus, to inform the audience that the facts are established, down to the humblest Mechanics’ Institute, all are full of it, and the tables, to quote the words of the old song – “are all a moving, move, move, moving,” – Every evening party must of course have its experiments; accordingly, gentlemen come provided with very elegant chapeaux for the occasion, and many an innocent flirtation occurs consequent on the proper arrangement of the little fingers of some of the fair operators. As “sweet eighteen,” with her blue eyes and golden locks, gracefully links her little finger with Charles’s, in a retired corner, what wonder if the hat should tremble? And Charles, being of course fond of poetry (his very name is a guarantee for that), cannot resist softly breathing into Lucy’s ear, that exquisite line from Waller, on his fair one’s harp – “Touched by that hand – who would not tremble too?” And after a little more conversation of a strictly scientific character, they feel quite satisfied with the success of the experiment. Mamma, who has been watching the progress of the magnetic influence at a distance, “has no patience with such nonsense, and wonders young men and young women cannot find something better to do.” She forgets that there was a magnetic influence at work about twenty years since, and what little trifles served as conductors then. – Table Moving, its causes and phenomena: with directions how to experiment *** I was charmed by the story that came with this scent, of romance blooming in the presence of supposedly scientific spiritualist experiments. I tried the oil on a testing strip first, and wet, I smelled cool, airy white florals and green apple with a bit of honey. After leaving the strip to dry overnight, I found it eight hours later still going strong, but with the orange blossom forward. On a skin test, for me the orange blossom came forward immediately. This scent has significant throw, and I am smelling it strongly even when my hand is a good 2 feet away from my nose. It’s surprisingly intense and I like it a lot, maybe enough to look for more than this decant.
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Both wet and dry, to me this primarily smells like camphor, which is used in incense to clear impurities from a space. I do pick up some green notes, but the astringent, woody notes overwhelm them. It’s too medicinal for me to use as a perfume, but I could definitely turn it into a spray and use it to freshen the energy of my house. Quite bracing!
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This is my ultimate cozy scent. My skin gets along with both vanilla and cedar very well, but I wasn't expecting the beeswax to be so beautiful. Each note is strong, but at the same time this is incredibly soft, creamy, and harmonious in its entirety. It starts out strong on the skin, but after a bit, it becomes a soft, sweet scent that stays close to my skin. Absolutely perfect.
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On Imagination was paired with this poem by Phyllis Wheatley to celebrate Juneteenth: Thy various works, imperial queen, we see, How bright their forms! how deck’d with pomp by thee! Thy wond’rous acts in beauteous order stand, And all attest how potent is thine hand. From Helicon’s refulgent heights attend, Ye sacred choir, and my attempts befriend: To tell her glories with a faithful tongue, Ye blooming graces, triumph in my song. Now here, now there, the roving Fancy flies, Till some lov’d object strikes her wand’ring eyes, Whose silken fetters all the senses bind, And soft captivity involves the mind. Imagination! who can sing thy force? Or who describe the swiftness of thy course? Soaring through air to find the bright abode, Th’ empyreal palace of the thund’ring God, We on thy pinions can surpass the wind, And leave the rolling universe behind: From star to star the mental optics rove, Measure the skies, and range the realms above. There in one view we grasp the mighty whole, Or with new worlds amaze th’ unbounded soul. Though Winter frowns to Fancy’s raptur’d eyes The fields may flourish, and gay scenes arise; The frozen deeps may break their iron bands, And bid their waters murmur o’er the sands. Fair Flora may resume her fragrant reign, And with her flow’ry riches deck the plain; Sylvanus may diffuse his honours round, And all the forest may with leaves be crown’d: Show’rs may descend, and dews their gems disclose, And nectar sparkle on the blooming rose. Such is thy pow’r, nor are thine orders vain, O thou the leader of the mental train: In full perfection all thy works are wrought, And thine the sceptre o’er the realms of thought. Before thy throne the subject-passions bow, Of subject-passions sov’reign ruler thou; At thy command joy rushes on the heart, And through the glowing veins the spirits dart. Fancy might now her silken pinions try To rise from earth, and sweep th’ expanse on high: From Tithon’s bed now might Aurora rise, Her cheeks all glowing with celestial dies, While a pure stream of light o’erflows the skies. The monarch of the day I might behold, And all the mountains tipt with radiant gold, But I reluctant leave the pleasing views, Which Fancy dresses to delight the Muse; Winter austere forbids me to aspire, And northern tempests damp the rising fire; They chill the tides of Fancy’s flowing sea, Cease then, my song, cease the unequal lay. – Phillis Wheatley This was my first purchase from BPAL and I fell in love! I have a hard time picking out the individual notes — they blend so well — but for me it is an airy, dynamic scent. I often wear it for work because it feels both clarifying and creative; it puts me in a focused but expansive frame of mind. On Imagination is light enough to be worn in hot weather, but it also feels substantive and complex. Although it has sweet notes, the airiness is what I notice first, like the olfactory equivalent of standing under a big sky. I put this on when I need a little inspiration.
- Yesterday
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kinneret_rising changed their profile photo
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wonderful. i get why so many people seem to start with it (i also ordered an imp as part of my first order) and why it has twenty-eight pages of reviews. i like how many different situations it seems to suit; it is feminine (but? and?) less heavy/voluptuous than other scents i've tried, and one could wear it for a special occasion or every day and it wouldn’t feel out of place. i have worn it now about four times but i think i still need to work out how much i need to apply. in the bottle and when it's wet it smells very faint, and i always have the feeling i haven’t applied enough so put more on, but then as soon as it’s dried all at once it seems to become much stronger and i feel like i’ve applied too much! i seem to do well with rose, bergamot, and honey, so perhaps something must be going on here where they all converge in one scent and my skin really amps the whole thing up. maybe less really is more. or could that be the carnation? is that just what carnation is like? more discernment is required and there are probably a lot of scents i'm just not familiar with. that said, other reviewers have described alice as 'spicy' and, though my skin seems to bring the whole thing forth, that isn't a word i would use for it. i will need to spend more time with it to decide if i could go in for a whole bottle. i have a few other rose scents (othello, the rose, spellbound, etc) and i've really liked them all so far and all feel like 'me' in various ways, but realistically my purse will only ever let me commit to bottles of just one or two.
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okay, my project to keep a record of the things i’ve tried begins! let's go! i came cross an imp of this for £5 on ebay and i went for it because i was simply so intrigued; partly by the name (as madrid is a city i have very fond memories of and that means a lot to me), partly by the fact no one else has written about it for so long and i wanted to be able to investigate and report back. in the bottle it was very sweet (not in a bad way per se - just that i knew i'd have to be careful about not putting on too much). i also knew at once that i had to save it for the right occasion and that it wouldn't suit the very dark and wet english february it arrived to me in. then, about a fortnight ago, i finally got to try it out on the first few warm days when the sun finally showed its face. from the bottle there is a lot of red wine - then upon the skin cloves - then as it settles down the wines seems to come back. thankfully i don't find the wine plasticky as some others seem to have. i am not sure about the mimosa; i don’t get much, so either it's simply not a scent i'm familiar with or the wine and cloves are too strong, which may well be the case. it’s quite all-or-nothing; it's not one of those that is strong to begin with and then gradually fades and softens. while it’s on it has a good throw, but then after about five or six hours it seems to disappear all at once. i'm really glad to have this imp and i will enjoy wearing it on spring days or summer evenings sat out on a restaurant patio or at the theatre or anywhere else its boldness and sensuality wouldn't make me self-conscious (!). that said, i don't think it bothers me much that it's so old realistically one wouldn't be able to get hold of a bottle, and there are other imps i've tried that i'd be inclined to save up for and bottle sooner.
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I'm an absolute fiend for Turner, his art just does something for me, so since the notes also sounded innocuous enough, I had to grab this. It starts off very.... Gun? Like a well kept antique gun. A scent I grew up with, so quite a bit of unexpected nostalgia. I might have to return to this and re-review it when it's not so unexpectedly lever-actiony, but as is, if you wanted to smell like a slightly rugged gunslinger or a noir detective, this one's for you. Re-Review: ok, still smells gun-adjacent but I can parse out the notes a bit better if I sniff point blank. Brown leather, ash and a subtle sweet edge from the burnt sugar, which smells like maybe turbinado or something similar to me. Smoky without being too heavy. Curious to see how this wears as the weather starts to warm, I could see this being a neat summer scent in cooler climes. Another Ars Anni that really nails the vibe of the painting!
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kinneret_rising joined the community
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In the bottle, this is very honey forward, and I swear I smell jasmine, but that must be the ylang ylang. On wet, there's a lovely citrus from the lemon blossom and the neroli. It's quite floral, but no longer as cloying as it was in the bottle. A bit musky, and I can see why the description says "fuzzy." Dry, it reads a bit foody due to the honey making an appearance again. The lovely floral citrus is layered over that, but I'm not getting any cedar at all, which is unfortunate for me. The honey is very strong, probably deepened by the frankincense and amber. It's a very lovely scent, but not something I would buy a bottle of for myself.
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In the bottle, this reads as very cool and blue. Definitely getting mint and a very gentle eucalyptus smell, but it also smells quite sweet. On the skin, the eucalyptus and mint get stronger, but it stays sweet and not not overwhelming. It smells a bit soapy, or maybe like laundry detergent, but in a really nice way. It's quite bright and cool, and I'm definitely feeling someone else's description of the sun glittering on the ocean on a cool, crisp day. As it dries, I get more of the spruce, but it's just becoming drier and sweeter on my skin. The eucalyptus and mint have faded. Overall, this is a lovely, super bright and cool aquatic.
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Honey, Raspberry Jam, and Buttercream
Geminirubyshoes replied to doomsday_disco's topic in Lupercalia
shit I knew I should have ordered this! I will add it to my order next time ! -
My experience coincides with bheansidhe's; I get a beautiful pumpkin loaf, warm and bready, embedded with melting semisweet chocolate chips. Delicious!
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Behold! A honey perfume for those of us that generally can’t wear Bpal honey scents! I have a 95% fail rate with Bpal’s honey note so I’m not sure why I purchased a bunch of fullsizes from the Honey Pot release. I think all the notes just sounded good and thankfully my gamble paid off because every bottle ordered smells amazing. Honey, Raspberry Jam, & Buttercream is the first one I’m skin testing from this collection though! First applied to skin it’s straight up raspberry syrup with honey in the background. This is a sugary honey, not screechy or overpowering. My first thought was to slather since I had a feeling I was going to wand-cap and keep her! Within a matter of minutes the raspberry syrup calmed down and the buttercream and honey were stepping up and becoming key players too. Unf, let me tell you I sniffed my arms alllll day today. At some point magic happened and it smelled like sugary raspberry buttercream. If I could find a cake shop with buttercream like this - I’d never order any other frosting. Drool worthy! I’m for sure getting a backup bottle. It’s been over eight hours since application and I can still smell the sugary goodness on my skin when I sniff my wrists. I’m hoping this scent gets even better with age. This one is for the gourmand lovers!
- Last week
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green plants, electric/acid/ozone note adds brightness, hint of floral sweetness. No leather no soil
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In the bottle, through the dense cloud of fruits and incense, I absolutely smell Snake Oil! On the skin, the fig, pomegranate, blackcurrant and apple are pretty prominent. I keep picking up on the vanilla and musk from the Snake Oil. I'm sure you're wondering: what is this iridescent serpent scale accord? So am I! There is something in here that has almost a fizz or a shimmer to it? Maybe a bit of an aldehyde? Overall, very interesting and beautiful spin on Snake Oil. I always love the variants.
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This starts out as a nice mix of notes with the cacao as a solid base, but quickly dissolves into what I think is the yellowed paper note. Kind of sour, musty, bordering on moldy. Not great. I keep expecting the library-style scents to work for me, and they almost never do, so I should probably stay away from the more paper-y, incense-y notes from BPAL on the whole.
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In the bottle, I can't really make anything out! It smells rich, warm, dense. On the skin, I get the warm wool and leather, the wild honey and cedarwood. That deep, dark pomegranate. This is really sexy! Has a real rush of heat to it, wears a little closer to the skin but has some throw!
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In the bottle, super lush floral and rich, heady incenses! On the skin, a lot of rose and frankincense. A few minutes later, I can detect the iris, red saffron and warm, glowing amber. A bit of the beeswax. Oh, there's the myrrh! This is such a dramatic fragrance! High throw and guaranteed to turn heads.
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In the bottle, it smells like salty sand and warm metal. I like how summer-y this smells. Like a long day at the beach. And surprisingly soft, considering notes like armor and metallic blood! You'd think it would have more of that coppery tang, and instead I almost get the faintest hint of something soft and sweet, like incense, which makes me wonder if dragon's blood is a part of the blood note?
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