meredevachon

Frimp from the Lab In the imp: Dark dark dark chocolate, honey. Hint of tobacco. I'm not usually big on chocolate notes in my scents (I prefer to keep it in my chocolates), but this I could get used to, if it stayed like it is in the imp. Wet: Softer, very sensual and sensuous, and it's hard for me to pick out specific notes it's blended so well. Dry down: I've been wondering if I've finally found a BPAL red wine note I can wear. About twenty minutes in, I have my answer. Nope. It's not as strong as usual, but I'm getting the unmistakable aroma of grape Bubble Yum. Honey and chocolate seem to be taming it some, but not enough. Dry: And by the time I reached an hour, it's nothing but grape gum. Overall: I live in hope. One day I'll find a BPAL blend with a red wine note, and I'll be able to wear it. For now, Kali goes into my pile to swap.

Frimp from the Lab In the imp: CITRUS!!! and hints of a kind of funky musk. Wet: CITRUS!!! but it very quickly starts to calm down some Dry down: After the citrus calms down enough I'm not reminded of cleaning products, it turns soapy. No sage, and I miss having it. But rose and citrus (mostly grapefruit, I think, and I've never liked the flavor of grapefruit) Dry: Within half an hour, it's almost gone. Just a hint of soap, like being fresh from the shower and a faint scent of what you washed with clinging close to the skin if you try to smell it. Overall: I eventually try all the frimps I get, and I try to keep an open mind, because BPAL can always surprise me. But I'm not fond of citrus scents, rose and I have a complicated relationship, and once it hit skin I never got any other notes before it all disappeared. I'll find a better home for Croquet.

Frimp from the Lab. In the imp: Sweetness and dirt. Wet: It's like fresh turned earth, if green and growing plants were tilled into it. The earth predominates, but there's definitely something herbal going on. Dry: Horehound candy? Or maybe root beer of some kind? Or spiced gumdrops. It's something I remember from when I was a kid, that was more interesting for its rarity than because I actually liked it. Something I didn't get often enough to remember I wasn't overly fond of it, but I didn't actually dislike it, if that makes sense. Anyway, that's what it reminds me of, but heck if I could figure out what it is. Overall: Definitely foody, and I'm not big on smelling like food. But it's not the fig, date, currant dark fruits I would have expected. Probably not one I'll be reaching for much.

Frimp from the Lab. They really are so good to us, aren't they? In the imp: Candied fir. Not that I've ever seen or smelled candied fir, and I don't know why it would exist, but that's what it smells like in the imp to me. Wet: The sugared sweetness I got in the imp resolves into soft florals, with the fir still there keeping it from going too florally girly for me. Dry: As it begins to dry, I get a growing awareness that this is, in fact, an aquatic - which I tend to think I'm going to like more than I usually do. But I'm liking it here. I think it's the fir, not too sharp, but crisp and fresh. Overall: I like this, and more than I thought I would. But the throw is a little more than I'm comfortable with. I use a light hand when applying for testing, and it's still strong enough to be heady even when my wrist is far away from my sniffer. If I'm going to wear it, I probably need to find a way to tone it down more.

In the imp: Spiced gumdrops. Not what I was expecting, but bpal often surprises. Wet: Still spiced gumdrops, this smells almost exactly the way I remember them tasting. Of the good, I always liked the smell better than the taste, and that seems to be holding true. Dry down: The spice turns more resin and wood, and after about five minutes I start to get hints of beeswax to further soften it. Lemon balm starts to peek out too, little hints of fresh and bright against the deeper, darker resins. Dry: Once it dries, there's a metallic note that doesn't seem like it should blend with everything else as well as it does, but really, it all works together. Throw of a couple of feet, enough so I don't have to sniff up close but I don't feel like I'm going to call attention to myself by wearing it. Of course, when I do sniff along my skin, it's even more delicious and enchanting. Overall: Spicy resins with beeswax to soften them, lemon balm to brighten them, and metal to ground them. And it works. Impressions: Polished wood and brass chest filled with incense and candles. Warm golden brown.

In the imp: Green, fresh. Not getting much specifically honey, or tobacco-y. Wet: Still not much in the way of honey. Kind of sharp not quite pungent fresh tobacco (not cured, which is sweeter and rounder to my nose) Drying & dry: Picking out anything specific is impossible on this one (for me, YMMV, of course). It's fresh and green, with a tad of bitterness underneath. Overall: I like it, but don't ask me why I do or to describe it, because I couldn't do either of those things. I'll keep, use, and enjoy the imp, but don't see Tobacco Honey being a bottle purchase.

In the imp: Very very faint, just the slightest bit of something herbal. Wet: Clean, green herbal + sweet sweet honey. With more throw than I'd expect. Or rather, I notice it wafting sooner than I usually do with bpal. Dry down: The herbal scent becomes more obviously chamomile, with just a tiny spike of something extra that I'm assuming is the hyssop. But honey is front and center, in a jar still in the comb, with chamomile tea steeping at the other end of the table. The throw decreases, not wafting as far or as strongly as the oil dries. Dry: I've never tried honey powder, but I imagine this is what I'd smell like if I did. Sweet and actually kind of sexy. Overall: I'm going to have to think on this one. I got it because I wanted a good honey scent (and tonka is always a good thing), but I still need to decide if it's too sweet for me.

Every time I read the Lab's description, I thought this wasn't for me. But one of my closest friends is playing the Ah My Goddess/Oh My Goddess version of Urd in an online RPG we're in, and I just couldn't stop thinking about bpal's Urd. So reservations aside, I got an imp with my latest order. In the imp: Grape, but not artificially grape-y. It smells like the muscadines that used to grow in my great-grandmother's backyard (and in my sister's about 4 moves ago). Wet: The grape dials back a lot almost as soon as it hits my skin, with the patchoulis grounding it with some earthiness, and a sweetness that's floral enough I'm thinking it must be the cereus. Dry down: Becoming lighter than I would expect, incense smoke brightened with a little sweetness which every once in a while resolves into grape, but is mostly just soft-sweet. Dry: The incense sticks close to my skin, and within an hour I have to sniff intently to get even that. Overall: I like it more than I thought I might, but as far as incense-y blends go, this one doesn't have much special going on for me. I'll probably keep the imp, but it's not likely to be one I reach for often. Impressions: Sinuous smoke. Color: smoky-grey tending toward purple without quite getting there.

In the imp: Lavender, strong but not as sharp as it can be. Wet: Creamy lavender, amber seems to be softening it some. Dry down: Rosewood base becomes more noticeable, something solid for the lavender to lie on. Dry: This is definitely a lavender scent, but the amber and tonka (both favorites of mine) and the rosewood all work to smooth it out, get rid of the astringency lavender can have sometimes. Overall: Soft, round and comfy. This is a scent to curl up with. Maybe even sleep to, if I wasn't devoted to Lights of Men's Lives as my bedtime blend.

Frimp from the Lab. I love the smell of both jasmine and honeysuckle, but they and other florals aren't always things I end up liking on me. So we'll see. In the imp: Jasmine and honeysuckle, both strong but about even. Wet: Honeysuckle glistening with morning dew, lingering scent of the night's jasmine on the air. Dry down: As it dries, jasmine fades into the background, leaving honeysuckle the star of the show. There's a round-soft-sweet underneath that I think might be the buttercup. Dry: Lovely, soft honeysuckle, not overwhelming. Stays close to the skin with an occasional waft like a summer morning breeze carrying the scent of fresh blooming honeysuckle to you while on a walk. Overall: I'm not always sure about florals, but honeysuckle and jasmine are ones I want to work. And they do. Impressions: Sunwarmed floral-laden breeze. Creamy yellow, very pale. Lush.

Frimp from the Lab. I probably wouldn't have ordered this based on the notes, but the connection to the Morrigan meant I really wanted to like it. In the imp: Soap. Floral soap. Wet: Still soap. Like standing in front of a display of handmade soaps, where all the scents blend together, but under it all there's soap. (hm, I wonder how many times I can say that word in this review) Dry down: Floral and green, but I have a hard time picking out specific notes on this one. Right up against my arm, it fluctuates between high end soap and dusting powder. But with my arm further away, I get a lovely green floral with something sharp lingering after. Dry: I keep succumbing to the must sniff my arm of new bpal, but really this is much better with a bit of distance. I still can't pick out specific notes, though. Overall: This is the part in the movie, or better yet, the D&D campaign, where everything is going too well, and things are too quiet. While it's not what I would have thought for the Morrigan, I can feel something of her energy in the sharp and dark lurking just out of sight. I smell/taste/feel this one in the back of my throat, but not in a bad way. Impressions: Spring green with purpled shadows. Soft with jagged edges.

In the imp: Clean, sweet. Wet: Sweet pea, softened by the tonka. Very soft, ethereal. Dry down: Light waft of sweetness. Clean-smelling, which I think is from the sage, even though I don't get clear a yes, this is sage from it. Dry: Could almost tip over into fabric softener or air freshener, but it doesn't. It stays clean, sweet, and light, hugging close to the skin. Overall: This is very light and soft, fades after just a couple of hours. I like it. It feels like springtime, although in the heat of a Southern US summer like today, it feels pretty good. Impressions: A fine gauze wrap that was dried in the sun on a clothes-line in the middle of a pristine field of wildflowers. Palest green. Ephemeral.

In the bottle: Very faint. Ambery without being just amber, but no other notes stand out. Wet: Dirt and plastic. Something that seems very very familiar, but I can't identify it. Dry down: Slowly shifts from the wet scent. Amber and patchouli first. Then sandalwood starts to come out. It's like every few minutes a veil is removed, revealing another aspect of the blend. Almond next, and something kind of sickly sweet. Hint of florals, but only just, and not enough to pick anything out specific. Plastic-y smell is back. Then finally getting some musk, but it seems old (more like the musk that lingers in a den than the musk on whatever lives there). Then the sweet kicks up another notch. Then it's knocked back down a little by vetiver coming out. Dry: this keeps morphing, and mostly it just seems muddled. Like it can't decide what it wants to be. I'll move my arm and the waft is lovely, then the next time I catch the scent it's completely different and I'm not sure if I like it or not. Overall: This one's going to have to have a full day test, probably more than once before I can make up my mind. And even then, I have a feeling a little age might help this blend find its identity. (n.b., I'm actually a BPALer who's never tried Snake Oil (I'll get to it eventually, it just hasn't happened yet), so I can't compare Tombeur to either SO or Snake Charmer...or any of the other blends with SO in them.) Impressions: Muddled, muddied swirl. Mix of greys and browns with hints of brighter red and amber. Weighty.

In the bottle: Smoky-sweet. Almost burnt caramel. Wet: The sweetness seems split into a sweet floral up top and a sharper sweetness underneath. And still smoky, or smoked, rather. Imagine a glazed smoked ham, minus the ham. (that made sense in my head, I swear) Dry down: Still a floral top note running through, but most of the sweetness has resolved into a lovely pipe tobacco. And the woods are there too now. Others have mentioned cigar boxes, and I can see that. Maybe rosewood. Dry: I only get frankincense from time to time, and from a distance, not if I sniff up close. The rest is very steady, not morphing from the way it smelled as it dried. Overall: This is warm, solid, cozy to me. Like curling up in an oversized leather chair (that no longer smells of leather) in a study with a fireplace. Maybe taking a nap. I don't get brutal or ruthless from this, and I'm okay with that. Impressions: A rosewood pipe as it cools. Color of cognac. Rounded and smooth.

In the bottle: Honey, musk, just a hint if I try to find it of the chemical scent that the Lab's leather note almost always smells like to me in the bottle. Wet: Spiced honey and musk. Still only faint hints of leather, now more like your skin smells after you've been wearing leather for awhile. Dry down: As it dries, I start to get smoky hints of florals over a sweet skin scent. Even beyond what I normally do while testing, I keep sniffing my wrist for just a little bit more, a little bit longer. After a while the leather note gets sharper, skin-warmed. Dry: More of the same, although after about an hour it's very difficult to pull out individual notes (even more than it usually is for me). As a blend it's wonderful how it melds together. Overall: This is definitely one sexy vampire. (and the lady VILF on the label isn't bad either ) From the description there were a lot of notes in here I normally like, and VILF didn't disappoint. Impressions: Fur-lined/trimmed leather. Dusty red. Spiral.

In the bottle: Furniture polish. Not something like lemon Pledge or whatever, but really good furniture polish Wet: Still mostly furniture polish, although I could see why others are getting a cologne-y scent from it. Dry down: As it dries, it gets less intense, and the idea of incense and wax kind of grows from what was furniture polish. Then I start to get a musty-sweet scent that reminds me of very old books. Dry: More of the same, with hints of parchment if I sniff up close. Throw comes and goes, sometimes sticking very close to the skin, other times I get a sudden waft (usually of the incense and wax, which stay married throughout) even if I'm not moving around. Overall: Not exactly what I'd expected, even though the notes are there. I think I like it, but I don't think it'll be a bottle I reach for all the time. Impressions: Flickering light over highly polished wood. Muted purple. Shiny but delicate like crisp cellophane.

In the bottle: Cloves, but more like the clove oil you'd use for a toothache or something than whole cloves you might have in your kitchen (if it's better stocked than mine). Chemical hint that will morph into leather once it gets on my skin. Wet: A leather-spice men's cologne, but there's something sweetening it up just a tiny bit. Dry down: It seems like this has the potential to fall over into Play-doh, but stays just on the good smelling side by not going all the way there. Dry: The threat of Play-doh goes away, and I'm left with this awesome meld of leather, sandalwood, and clove. I might get hints of the iron filings, but if so, it plays peek-a-boo, so I'm not sure if it's just my imagination. Overall: I'm still not entirely sure what I expected of CC:Male, but I don't think I would have predicted what I got. Still, I like it. Not as much a Female, but I like it. And I definitely want to try layering them.

In the bottle: First thing that come to mind is, sweet. Almost fruity, but not. I'm a little surprised not to get any of the chemically note that normally shows up for me in anything the Lab does with leather. Wet: Still sweet, but the vanilla makes it creamier. Hint of citrus. A few people have mentioned creamsicles, and I can see the comparison. It's not the same, but very reminiscent. Dry down: The almost candied sweetness fades very quickly, the blend still soft, but deeper now as something almost dry and musty (but in a good way) comes to the fore. Warm amber starts to peek through, and after about 15 minutes the musty scent begins to seem more like worn leather. Dry: So well blended, if I try to pull out a specific note, I can (e.g., if I sniff deeply to find leather, it's there, if I'm looking for amber, I can find it), but in the waft and sniffing close, mostly I get something deep and round and lovely with the whole being more than its parts. Overall: From the notes and the reviews, I thought this was likely to be a good blend on me, and it is. It really really is. CC:Female has hidden depths. From the sweet innocence of the oil in the bottle, it blooms into this much more complex, deeper, and sometimes darker scent. And there's a sharpness lying in wait for the unwary. This isn't a girl, she's a woman grown, with experience on her side.

I can't wear Bordello because of the red wine note and I don't get along, so I know how that goes. But I tell myself every blend is different, so maybe Bordello would be the one to work for you. *fingers crossed* you find something wonderful

Awesome dress! And when I saw it, the first thing that came to mind was it needed a scent that's sassy. Unfortunately since I'm not the sassiest person, I don't have much personal experience on which to base a recommendation. But in reading other people's reviews, what about something like Pepper? Or Bordello? Or to go a different direction, there's kind of a retro feel to the dress that might work well with something from the Atomic Luau Lounge (although, again, I haven't tried any of them, so can't say for sure). Sorry, I'm probably not much help.

Maybe Sarah? (Unholy mist congealing into soft, white flesh, with black marble, remnants of liturgical incense, wolf's fur, and black flecks of froth.) ooo or maybe Black Butterfly Moon (Lady of the Night orchid, benzoin, opopponax, currant, BLACK chypre, white gardenia, ambergris, damp, wooded mosses, and BLACK lily). A good musk scent would also work if you can wear them - either black or white. Haunted or Andreiphontes come to mind, but Im sure there are better. Musks usually work well on me, so I'll definitely have to give that some thought. Haunted I've got in my stash and know I like it, but I might have to track down your other suggestions, especially Andreiphontes, it sounds yummy. Thanks!

I love that dress <3. Maybe a dark vanilla and/or tobacco scent would match it well? I thought of Black Opal, Detestable Putrescence, Perversion, and The Antikythera Mechanism when I saw the dress colors. I think that Black Opal and Perversion might have more of the sophisticated party dress feel... Perversion and Antikythera Mechanism are two of my favorites. I've never tried Black Opal or Detestable Putrescence, but reading up on them, now I'm wanting to. Thanks!

I'm very much a jeans and t-shirts kind of girl, so I always end up overthinking when I have to dress up for some reason. And that includes what scent to wear. Anybody have any suggestions on what might match this? Red wine is a death note for me, alas, so I'll avoid anything with it, but any other ideas would be wonderful.

Frimp from the Lab. I don't generally wear a lot of florals, although I do okay with blends that include a floral or two (or three on rare occasions) along with other notes I like better. So I'm not very good at picking out specific floral notes. In the imp: Floral. Yeah, that's as specific as I can get. Wet: Cool, pale florals. Sweet but not cloying. Dry: It smells like some floral lotion I got as a present from a relative who didn't know me all that well. Still cool and pale and floral, and so not me.

Frimp from the Lab. In the imp: Medicinal, herby, minty. Strong Wet: It's just what it said on the box (figuratively speaking, of course): pennyroyal and lavender. Dry: Astringent and medicinal. I used to make a salve for my grandmother's muscle aches that relied heavily on lavender and various mint essential oils. This reminds me of that. If I try to get any closer/sniff deeper than what I get just wafting up, it makes my eyes want to water. It doesn't change much over the course of a few hours. I'm not sure whether to keep this as a pick-me-up for when I'm all achy and/or sluggish, or pass it on to someone who would wear it more frequently.