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Argentwolf

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Blog Entries posted by Argentwolf

  1. Argentwolf

    Azathoth

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Picnic In Arkham
     
    At the very beginning, as I first drew breath to sniff it fresh from the imp, I could detect a faintly-sweet, fruity note.
     
    And then...the cedarwood came.
     
    The cedar completely dominates this one for me; I cannot smell anything else. And, oddly enough, the sweetly-earthy note that usually defines cedar for me takes on a sharp, high pitch early on in this blend; it reminds me more of pine trees.
     
    So, nope...this one just didn't work.
     
    (Just between you and me...I found myself thinking, 'This is what Azathoth uses to spray the bathroom with after he uses it'. It's *that* pine-like.)
  2. Argentwolf
    Category: Ars Amatoria
     
    In the imp I could smell musk and a hint of lemon. It was a very elegant mix.
     
    As it joined with my body chemistry, the lemon grew a little bit stronger. Unfortunately, it grew faint and wore off really quickly. Just not for me.
  3. Argentwolf

    Reflections so far

    By Argentwolf,

    Out of the nine scents I've tried so far, there have only been two that I didn't like: Akuma and Tushnamatay. The rest I would love to keep around, though I don't need bottles of all of them. In order of preference, I would rank them:
    Wrath
    Absinthe
    Aglaea
    Aeval
    Aizen Myoo
    Al Azif
    Fruitcake
     
    So far, I seem to like citrusy/fruity scents, florals, and just sweetness in general. I despise raspberry. It amuses me that I seem to amp musk and clove (or whatever that sweet scent in Wrath was). The verdict is still out on incense and foodie scents; I liked Al Azif and Fruitcake, but need to experiment more in that regard.
     
    My second order has arrived and is waiting patiently for me to experience it. Awaiting me are Alecto, Alice, Al-Shairan, Amsterdam, Anathema, Anne Bonney, Asphodel, Clio, Erato, and Urania. I also have a bottle of Angeronalia! I'm looking forward to discovering more lovely scents.
  4. Argentwolf

    Wrath

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Sin & Salvation
     
    In the imp: There's cinnamon, but in a sweet, sugary, Red Hots candy sort of way.
     
    Wet: Sweetness predominates. I'm assuming this must be the clove, though I had never expected it to smell like that. It is mainly a floral sort of sweetness, with just a hint of sugar running through it; thankfully, the candy-like scent has gone away. Every now and then I can detect a brief spike of cinnamon or pepper, but the scent is predominantly sweet.
     
    Dry: Finally when it had dried and died down (this would be *hours* later), I could detect a resinous incense scent on my skin -- dragon's blood.
     
    Verdict: Even though it's not behaving the way I'd have thought from the description, I LOVE this scent! It is my favorite so far. Every time I would catch a whiff of myself I would feel quite happy...and this would happen quite often, as even with moderate application the scent is very strong and throws very well. Yum! A full bottle of this is a must-have.
     
    What I liked: The sweet scent -- flowery and sugary, without crossing over into being obnoxious. The strength -- this throws *so* well, and I love being able to smell it on me without having to slather it on and risk being too stinky for people around me. And, the lasting power -- I put this on in the morning and can still smell it -- albeit faintly -- twelve hours later.
     
    What I didn't like: Nothing! Wrath makes me happy!
     
    I thought Absinthe and Aglaea were good, but this tops them, absolutely.
  5. Argentwolf

    Tushnamatay

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Bewitching Brews
     
    It was hard to review this one, simply because I'm not sure how to describe what I was smelling. Ah well, here goes.
     
    In the imp: I am wanting to say it was more floral than anything else, though there was a certain...solidity to it. An edge. A razor-thin one, however, as the scent was not strident in any way.
     
    Wet: Still floral, getting a lighter quality to it. It's hard to really, truly catch a whiff of it...it's as if the scent rises just short of my nose, and then darts off to parts unknown, leaving only a ghost of itself for me. I told you this review was hard!
     
    Dry: It gets very faint, fairly quickly -- a couple of hours after application, it's barely detectable. It did leave behind a faint, woody scent, almost like cedar.
     
    Verdict: I'm afraid this doesn't do anything for me; I'll keep an eye out for a loving home for it.
     
    What I liked: It was a pretty scent, if a mystifying one.
     
    What I didn't like: It had no throw, no lasting power...I want to reek of smelly goodness, gosh darn it! I have no idea what notes might have been in it, so I couldn't tell you anything else specific.
  6. Argentwolf

    Fruitcake

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Unreleased
     
    Perhaps I should preface this with that I'm really not that familiar with fruitcake, my only exposure to it having been a nasty, cold concoction that had all the charm of fossilized Jolly Ranchers buried in road tar. I don't recall it having a scent, and the experience left me with no desire to ever make any of my own, so I've never smelled a freshly-made, *good* fruitcake.
     
    That being said...
     
    In the imp: It reminded me of a sort of bread...a dark, moist, spicy bread with a definite sweetness to it.
     
    Wet: A candy-like scent came out, like gumdrops; it also made me think of brown sugar, and molasses, and, yes, booze...perhaps rum. Definitely something sweet.
     
    Dry: It settles down to a more reserved version of those ingredients...sometimes a more spicy element pokes out, but there's always that sweet tone, as well.
     
    Verdict: I like *this* fruitcake. It's a very evocative scent. I can't see wearing it a lot, but now that I've used the imp I think I'll justify hanging onto it. It's really cute and I'm glad I've gotten to experience it.
     
    What I liked: It's sweet and comforting. I love the mental pictures it gives, even if I do get a vague craving for something moist, sweet, and chewy.
     
    What I didn't like: Hm, nothing really...except perhaps that it makes me fear that no real fruitcake could ever compare to this.
  7. Argentwolf

    Al Azif

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Picnic in Arkham
     
    In the imp: HELLO I WILL BE YOUR CARAMEL SMELL FOR THE DAY
     
    Wet: Still very strongly of caramel, mixed with chocolate...it was almost too overpowering, making me feel as if I had glutted myself on forbidden Halloween candy and eaten myself sick.
     
    Dry: It morphs from the crazy 'wtf?'-inducing candy smell to something...else. I'm wanting to say 'musky', but I don't think that's the right word. Yet it doesn't smell like straight incense, or straight florals. To accurately describe it eludes me...but this is not to say that it is unpleasant, now. In fact, it's a really lovely odor.
     
    Personally, I realized that the candy-like smell actually smelt a lot like the very dregs of burnt-out incense...I am wanting to say myrrh, simply because that's what I've burnt in my house before, and the 'memory' of smell that I have is from that. (And wouldn't myrrh be appropriate, in this case?) Once I realized this, I saw the perfume from an entirely different perspective -- that of smelling an area where a ritual took place, long after the fact, with just enough sweet, seductive malevolence to draw one's attention and keep it.
     
    Verdict: It's a very interesting scent, which I find works on several different levels (especially since the obnoxious caramelness has toned down quite a bit in subsequent days of testing). I don't know if it demands bottle status in my collection, but the imp is definitely worth hanging on to.
     
    What I liked: The caramel was okay, once it calmed the hell down. I like the ultimate end result. It seemed to have a little more throw than what I've been wearing lately, which was nice.
     
    What I didn't like: Getting to that beautiful end result is a bit uncomfortable.
     
    I will simply have to compare this to other 'incense' scents to see if I like anything better. It's not bad by any means, it just may be one of those scents that I'd only wear once in a while.
  8. Argentwolf

    Akuma

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Diabolus
     
    In the imp: Strongly sweet and fruity.
     
    Wet: Hellooooo Raspberry! It was incredibly strong and sweet, and, oddly enough made me think of 'generic candle smell'...that scent that most candles seem to have to me. I guess I've hung around a lot of berry-scented candles.
    Dry: This was the part that has changed the most. I wore this every day for over a week, just because I *wanted* to try to like this scent, or at least give it a fair shake. Initially, it dried as pure raspberry -- sickly sweet and very 'childish', in that I felt like I was about 15 years too old to be wearing this scent. As the days passed, however, I noticed that there was more of a mingling of orange with the raspberry...that was actually a *lot* more pleasing to me. And today, I've noticed that the scent has grown sweeter still, like faint cherries, but unlike the raspberry, it isn't annoying.
     
    Verdict: This scent just isn't for me. It's certainly not bad, and I would advise anyone who is initially put-off by it to give it a chance over time, particularly if you otherwise enjoy cherry-like scents. But there are other scents that I like a lot better.
     
    I'll quit beating this dead horse (or imp) and put it away; perhaps I will think of someone else who would give it the love it deserves.
     
    What I liked: The orange (when it briefly showed itself).
     
    What I didn't like: The raspberry. Just too sickly-sweet for me.
     
    Also, my skin just seems to eat up fruity scents. Waaah! So sad.
  9. Argentwolf

    Alecto

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Excolo
     
    In the imp: Very herbal and 'green'.
     
    Wet: Very strident and medicinal in tone. As time passed, it morphed into a really musty, sour odor; perhaps that's the vetiver? I've never worn anything with vetiver in it before, so I'm hesitant to pass judgement right away, but whichever component was at fault, it was not a very nice smell.
     
    Dry: I was definitely throwing something sour and nasty. Which is a shame, because if I sniffed up close to my skin, I could smell the leafy components of it perfectly, as if I were bending low into a garden and letting the leaves brush my cheeks. If it *all* had ended up smelling like that, I would have liked it a *lot* more, as that particular feeling was lovely.
     
    Verdict: I'm going to have to pass on this one.
     
    What I liked: That leafy scent; I'll try to keep an eye out for scents with olive leaf and see if that evokes a similiar feeling.
     
    What I didn't like: That musty nastiness. I'll have to keep an eye out for vetiver, as well, and see if that was the culprit.
  10. Argentwolf

    Aizen-Myoo

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Excolo
     
    In the imp: Whoa, that grapefruit is aggressive! I could smell it as soon as I took the stopper out of the imp.
     
    Wet: Very citrusy/fruity, though it quickly had a mellowness to it, which I am assuming was brought on by the tea.
     
    Dry: This is a very fresh, clean, crisp scent; I detected the grapefruit throughout, and also fancied that I smelled the tea...like I was near a fresh, cold glass full of green tea on ice on a summer's day. It's really lovely! Unfortunately, I think my skin eated it, pretty much...it lasted the majority of the day, but now I have to get my nose to my wrist and huff forlornly to get any residual nummy smell. Strangely enough, now that it's been quite a while, I smell a sweet cherry scent, mostly.
     
    Verdict: I like it, really I do. I wish that it came in some form of spray, though, or a lotion...it would be a really great scent to slather on in the summertime, when you're showing lots of skin.
     
    What I liked: Citrus! Whee!!
     
    What I didn't like: The fact that my skin seemed to slurp it up; it didn't throw very much. But hey, maybe in summertime, with short sleeves? I might have better luck.
  11. Argentwolf

    Aeval

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Bewitching Brews
     
    In the imp: Very, very sweet and floral, with a haze of warm, herbal scent about the edges. When people describe this scent as smelling like a garden, it is very apt.
     
    Wet: The sweetpea comes to the forefront, resonating with a very strong sweetness. It seems like a feminine scent, but one that is more sweetly seductive than powerful and sensual.
     
    Dry: The other notes return; I can definitely smell the musk, and I am assuming that warm tone that envelopes it is the tonka? Now I begin to see why this scent is named after such a fae. It sneaks up on you, but once you become aware of its power it is inescapable, and a little overwhelming.
     
    Verdict: It's very interesting; certainly not a bad mix of scents by any means. I don't know if I would go for a whole bottle of this...I'll be wanting to try other floral-type scents and see how those strike me. It will definitely be a standard that I compare the others to.
     
    I'm a bit relieved that it seems to smell good and 'appropriate', i.e. like the notes that are supposed to be in it, rather than melon-like, sickly-sweet, or just plain icky, as other reviewers had experienced. I'm a little torn on whether or not I like the musk of it...on the one hand, it's nice and warm and strong, and on the other hand it comes dangerously close to turning into 'old-lady' perfume. It may be one of those things that will be iffy on me.
     
    What I liked: The warmth; also the sweetpea was surprisingly good. I will have to keep an eye out for that and tonka in future scents and see if those are the exact notes that I liked.
     
    What I didn't like: The fact that the musk is iffy...almost dangerous, like it could turn on me at any moment. It's less of a dislike than something I'll try to be aware of.
  12. Argentwolf

    My First Order

    By Argentwolf,

    My very first BPAL order came today! I brought in the mail just a few minutes ago. I was excited, but made myself linger over the box, because I love to do so when opening any kind of present.
     
    I had ordered six imps: Absinthe, Aeval, Aglaea, Agnes Nutter, Aizen-Myoo, and Akuma. (Yes, I meant to do that.) Agnes is not available as an imp, as I found out soon after I had placed the order, but whoever had packed my box had kindly substituted Al-Azif for it instead. Hee! Thanks for understanding my wacky system, whoever you are!
     
    I received 3 frimps as well: Fruitcake (I have heard much talk of this scent), Tushnamatay, and Wrath. I love how Wrath is so cutely furious inside its vial, bright cherry red compared to the others.
     
    Mmm, and the very sweet, faint scent that caressed the packing materials, as if to reassure me that these were not going to be like any perfume I had yet smelled. Lovely...
     
    Thank you, oh BPAL dieties. I can't wait to embark on my explorations...what a wonderful way to celebrate the Solstice...
  13. Argentwolf

    Aglaea

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Excolo
     
    In the imp: Oh my goodness, this was a beautiful scent. It actually brought tears to my eyes for a moment because it was so lovely. Very sweet, definitely redolant with peach, though I could also smell the warm tones of the musk and, I am assuming, amber around it as well.
     
    Wet: Very sweet and peachy. The fruitiness and sweetness predominated.
     
    Dry: The muskier tones come back, but the peach is definitely not to be undermined, and conquers all. It is *almost* a little cloying.
     
    Verdict: I really like this scent, though I am almost thinking that it would be better as a room scent, as unfortunately I think it tends to get a little sour and cloying on me. I'll be willing to try more of it, though.
     
    What I liked: The peach, and I think I liked the amber.
     
    What I didn't like: The fact that yes, I think musk likes to misbehave a little on me. Though thankfully it's just a little.
     
    Overall, I can live with this scent, I just don't feel like it's *perfect* on me. It's so gorgeous, though, that I can't give up on it. I wonder if it would work in a locket, where it is warmed by me but not in contact with my skin. I'll keep the imp around but hold off on getting a bottle for a while, I think.
  14. Argentwolf
    Category: Bewitching Blends -- The Conjure Bag
     
    In the imp, it had an almost licorice-like quality to it, with lemondrops mixed in.
     
    Wet, it smelled like bubblegum -- fresh, pink, juicy sugary gum.
     
    Oddly enough, as it dried, there was a sort of...flowery note to it...or perhaps an herbal one...rather powdery and faint and intriguing, after that straight-up sacchirine candy goodness...almost as if Aunt Caroline is revealing her true talents behind that candy-coated mask! Unfortunately, as time went on, it turned plasticky. Very disappointing...
     
    Had it stayed in the candy stages, I probably would have liked it a lot more. It does have a soothing quality to it, but quite frankly, *all* the BPAL scents do that for me. If I encounter a bad smell or am having a bad moment, I'll sniff at my wrists and feel better for a bit.
  15. Argentwolf

    Athens

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Wanderlust
     
    Initially, I smelled the myrrh and wine, with perhaps the honey thrown in...it had a very sticky, tart, juicy sap-like quality to it.
     
    As it went on, the stickiness of it went away...just becoming myrrh and wine, with perhaps an herbal tint around the edges.
     
    I'm thinking that myrrh is going to be one of those hit-and-miss things with me. This time, it was a miss, and I think it was the wine note that did it...the blend had a sourness to it that did not appeal to me. So, nope, not for me.
     
    I liked Anubis better than this, and I'm guessing it's because of the mixture of herbs that was in it...the wine note couldn't come out and outright trash things like it did in Athens.
  16. Argentwolf

    Asphodel

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Discontinued Scents
     
    Oh, dear. I *like* this. It's a nice, light floral -- not sweet so much as...natural and a little earthy. It's much like leaning into the buds of a flower that have just opened, that soft velvety odor that you get from a flower that derives beauty more from the shape and color of its petals than from an overwhelming fragrance.
     
    That, and it was long-lived in addition to being pretty...so now I'm sad that it got discontinued!
  17. Argentwolf

    Anathema

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Sin & Salvation
     
    In the imp: A very heavy, dark scent reminiscent of incense.
     
    Wet: It honestly smells like a really, thick, resin-based incense to me, with a floral sweetness around the edges. I'm not familiar at all with opium, but perhaps this is what's producting that? Very interesting.
     
    Dry: It softens down pretty drastically to a leftover sort of flower scent. I'm wanting to associate that with the honeysuckle.
     
    Verdict: This scent intrigues me even more now because I could have sworn that this was an 'incense' scent...but no, it's florals. Which is amusing because I was comparing it to other incense scents I've worn, and thinking that I'd found my happy medium there. My only criticism of this scent is that it didn't have the throw that I desired. It tends to last a while, though, and it's just lovely all-around as far as I'm concerned, even if it doesn't quite justify a bottle.
     
    What I liked: It combined sweetness with the smoky quality that I love about incense, and yet had a nice, thick, sticky body to it, as well.
     
    What I didn't like: I want to reek, dammit! In the good way! I'm strange.
     
    I'm scratching my head about the vetiver. Maybe that wasn't the problem with Alecto, then? Because I didn't detect anything sour about this, at all. I'm just not sure. It's really a shame about Alecto, because I really liked the leafy quality that it had...but it made me smell like I was on my period or something. Ick.
     
    I'm tending to ramble today, apparently.
  18. Argentwolf

    The Apothecary

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Illyria
     
    In the imp, it smells very strongly of tea and ginger, with some sugar thrown in.
     
    As it goes on, a more herbal sort of tone comes through. As it dries, though, I smell the tea/ginger again.
     
    It's a lovely smell -- I really like the smell of tea. Unfortunately, this scent is so light and fleeting that it will not work for long on me.
     
    I think I actually like this better than Aizen-Myoo. The grapefruit in the other scent isn't necessarily unpleasant, but I rather like the gentleness of the ginger in this one better. Just wish my skin didn't suck up tea so well!
  19. Argentwolf

    Aureus

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Bewitching Brews
     
    I smelled mostly cedar and patchouli in this one, with some other vague incense smokiness going on around the edges.
     
    Aureus is golden in the way that a chunk of amber is golden; you get that lovely deep aura of radiant wood and patchouli, dark red-gold and bright orange-gold; and then there are those dark swirls and flecks of smoke and leftover incense embers caught up within it. If you are blessed with skin chemistry that highlights incense and smokiness, I suspect that your senses would be going over and over it, like polishing a smooth stone in your palm.
     
    I, alas, am not one of those people. As seems to be the norm with incense, this faded quickly on me, though the cedar stuck around for a bit.
  20. Argentwolf

    All Night Long

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Bewitching Brews -- The Conjure Bag
     
    In the imp, it smelled warm and spicy, like cinnamon and other spices, with a sugary hint to it...as if someone sexy were baking something sweet in my kitchen! (Hey, one of the many ways to my heart is through my stomach...)
     
    If only it had remained like that. As it went on, it immediately smelled like red-hots, or Big Red gum. Not really my idea of sexy, now.
     
    An hour later, it's gone. Not even a remote trace of it left to sniff.
     
    So, no...not for me.
  21. Argentwolf

    Clio

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Discontinued Scents
     
    I pretty much get patchouli from this, with a bit of lavender around the edges. Unfortunately, it didn't get any more complex than that on me. Will pass it on to someone else who can appreciate it more.
     
    I do like that patchouli. This is saying something, since I'm used to suffering exposure to it via people who seem to bathe in that instead of hot water and soap. Usually, it tends to crawl up into my sinuses, summon little knife-wielding dervishes, and then dance back and forth up and down my nose. Normally, only pollen does that.
     
    There are other incense-like scents in the GC that work better on me than this did, so I'm not too sad about it.
  22. Argentwolf

    Arkham

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Picnic In Arkham
     
    In the imp: Wow. It really does smell like an old person's house. Like...cleanser and very artificial air fresheners trying to cover...something gross. Eeek.
     
    This scent morphs quite a bit. When first applied, the florals are predominant, in an almost sickly-sweet way, though having them in open air on the skin does wonders for the geriatric-home smell. Then, there's pine, trees, woodsy scents...perhaps the moss as well. Definitely a sense of earth and loam and undergrowth there.
     
    When dry...it actually smells a lot as if you'd come to a halt on a forest path, and were scenting the trees and ferns around you. I'm not familiar with Eastern US trees, but there's definitely a pine smell like Douglas Fir, cedar, redwoods...that's what it reminds me of.
     
    I don't believe it's for me (and it didn't last long on me at any rate), but if you like nature scents perhaps you should give this a try.
     
    I rather like the way that it morphs around, as it's an interesting phenomena. However, the florals are just too...artificial-seeming, to me. I compare them to something like Aeval or even Amsterdam, and they just don't stack up.
  23. Argentwolf

    Alice

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Mad Tea Party
     
    In the imp: Honey, with a very warm tone to it.
     
    Wet: Thick, sweet, honeyed cream, with a bit of spiciness to it.
     
    Dry: The floral scents come out to me as it dries, and it 'cools off' as in the honey note becomes more subdued, though it never quite disappears...more like it coats the petals of the flowers (and I'm wanting to say that I smell more carnation than rose). And yet, there's a powdery note to it, as well...I'm wanting to call it 'baby powder' only because it's a very light, feminine, innocent sort of tone...not soapy or strident at all.
     
    Verdict: I can see why this is a popular scent; it's *really* lovely, and very feminine, very elegant in an innocent sort of way. Unfortunately, it has *no* throw or lasting power on me at all, which makes me very sad. I'm reluctant to get rid of it because it's so pretty, so hopefully I'll be able to find another use for it.
     
    What I liked: The honey and the floral scent.
     
    What I didn't like: It's too weak! Sadness.
     
    I have to wonder what sort of lotion this would make.
  24. Argentwolf

    Arcana

    By Argentwolf,

    Category: Bewitching Brews
     
    In the imp, there is the sweetness of the lavender, spiced around the edges with the prickly sharpness of rosemary.
     
    As it goes on, there's still that very sweet tone with the herbal note throughout...I think I can detect the neroli now.
     
    As it dries, it gets light and peppery...herbs and perhaps frankincense.
     
    While I'm not exactly a huge fan of lavender, it's a nice, soothing, pretty scent, and would make for a great room scent IMHO. Unfortunately it evaporates pretty quickly on me. But if you're a fan of lavender, well, here you go.
  25. Argentwolf
    Hm, odd. The first time I tried this, I got all clove and spices and balsam and a hint of orange punch. Not wicked at all, but certainly yummy. Over the day, it morphed into something woody, and by the end of the day was getting a bit soapy...but it behaved so nicely for the majority of its stay that I was willing to forgive that.
     
    Now that I'm sniffing it again, I get primarily bitter mandarin orange, with some balsam or cypress...something sweet but woody. That's a bit more...wicked, I guess. Perhaps things had settled -- I didn't really bother with rolling the imp or anything, this time around.
     
    In both cases, however, I very much like it. I'll need a bottle.
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