Monday

In the imp: Subdued black musk.

On my skin wet: Bummer, this is barely there black musk with a tiiiiny hint of bergamot.

On my skin dry: Black musk SN but it's very faint.

I think I'll stick to my decant of The Butterfly instead.

Ah perfection! This is the winner of the Feverish Fancies for me.

Soft, gorgeous white musk with sweet lily of the valley and ambergris. The orris is giving the blend a slightly purple feeling but is far in the background. It really does smell like fluffy mist.

A back-up bottle is on its way.

Wet stones and flowers, yep just as it says in the description. Ends up a bit soapy on my skin.

This is a way greener peony than I got from Lady in Speckled Kimono. In the imp I also get the nutty impression that others get.

On my skin wet: Cake and green peony.

On my skin dry: The peony has taken over. The blend has morphed into a youthful uncomplicated peony blend. It's still a green and stemmy but a bit too perfumey for my taste.

In the imp: Carnations? Seriously I get carnations and leather.

On my skin wet: A deep floral spicy leather. When it dries down the leather softens.

On my skin dry: Still a spicy leather the ambergris is making the blend smell a bit salty, the carnations are still around.

A spicy unisex leather scent.

Interesting. Starts out a lovely almond and lavender then the thyme comes round making the blend smell like wet clay. Stop that, thyme!

That's better. When it is drying down the thyme calms down and it has turned into a nutty lavender/almond combo. It reminds me a bit of Lilith Victoria.

When it's fully dry the almond has gone all vanilla-powdery the lavender is still present and the thyme is spiking through the blend. Quite nice, I'll do an all day test.

This is mainly sickly sweet oak on my skin, I also get the medicinal vibe for which I blame the pipe tobacco. It almost smells like there's wine in this. Frank Burns is a bit of a mess on my skin. I'll pass.

On my skin wet: Lemongrass! It stays all lemongrass for a while then the sandalwood and angelica come through.

On my skin dry: Sandalwood has taken over and the lemongrass has faded. I like it but it fades too quickly.

This is just gorgeous!

Soft rose with creamy teak and a hint of wool. the whole scent doesn't morph much but the teak amps a little when it dries down which I don't mind cause I lubz teak!

Overall a very comforting blend of snuggly wool, teak and warm rosewood.

On my skin wet: lots of fluffy sugary vanilla with a bit of gardenia. Jasmine is nowhere to be seen. It smells a bit fruity like strawberries with vanilla and lots of sugar. So far so good.

On my skin dry: It's still strawberry-like. The vanilla isn't going to plastic. There is finally a hint of jasmine but it's very quiet and plays nicely with the gardenia and vanilla. The lemon verbena is way in the background and is making the blend smell like there is a hint of violets in here.

Frilly is a good word to describe Miss Ida. It's a sweet, friendly feminine scent ready to attack you with its kindness.

Thanks sunshinedaisybliss for the decant!

On my skin wet: Dark woodsy incense, I get a bit of spice after a while. So far so good.

On my skin dry: It hasn't really morphed but it's lighter and spicier. The frankincense is ruining this for me though by going soapy.

Some aging might beat the frankincense into submission but it isn't a scent for me fresh.

'The tamarind is best described as sweet and sour in taste-' That explains why it smells so sour in the imp.

On my skin wet: Tamarind with patchouli. Kind of a dry, tart scent. After a while the patchouli is amping and the whole scent is going a bit herbal and just plain weird.

On my skin dry: Perfumey tamarind with a hint of fig and patchouli. The patch is morphing slowly and is going rather smoky. After an hour this is mostly very ashy patchouli with a hint of tamarind.

I isn't what I have in mind when thinking about mercy, I find it a very thin and spiky scent. I really hope the amber will come out with aging.

The Sportive Sun is an excellent sunny scent!

L'Estate is a good sunny one too, though it's a bit tough to acquire.

I'd also recommend Bub - A dog's bright, beaming memories of playing in the sun, rolling in the grass, and begging for table scraps.

For aromatherapy use I'd recommend The Butterfly - Fuzzy brown tonka bean, golden amber, bergamot, and petitgrain. Not only because it's gorgeous and warm but because bergamot is known for its uplifting qualities.

#203

I've had this one for a while now, time for a review.

Smooth amber and rose, the rose doesn't overpower the amber nor does it scream in your face. When it's dry there's also hint of what might be orchid in the background. Very gorgeous, this is one of those scents where I don't really know what to write. It's just so pretty.

Sadly I don't wear this Chaos Theory often, it might be better off with someone who does.

This one is just gorgeous! I get sage, coconut , tobacco and vanilla. It dries down to a fuzzy but sophisticated coconut and sage with wafts of tobacco and vanilla.

On my skin wet: Herbal musk, I get the tomato leaf very clearly. It goes a bit minty after a while.

On my skin dry: Still minty herbs and sweet musk. It's not unpleasant but not something I would wear. Herbal lovers rejoice!

On my skin wet: Lily of the valley is dominant, in the background I smell sandalwood and a bit of mandarin. No opium in sight so far.

On my skin dry: The opium showed up but is going a bit sour in combination with the lily of the valley and sandalwood. I'd have liked some orange blossom to go with this.

I'm looking for a true orange blossom scent: that is, one that smells like the actual flowers of the orange tree. They have no trace whatsoever of the scent of the orange fruit or orange rind.

 

I have been unhappy with nearly all fragrances labeled "orange blossom" since most perfumers just don't seem to get it that the flowers smell nothing at all like oranges. It's one of my pet peeves. I've lived with orange trees in my backyards for 50 years, and believe me, I know the difference. Orange blossom is one of my most-beloved scents in the world, and I've searched for decades for a fragrance that can make me (and my home) smell like that any time of the year. But I don't care for the scent of the fruit in a perfume - I don't want to smell like something to eat! (BTW, Trader Joe's makes a liquid handwashing soap that has a very authentic orange blossom scent, but of course I can't use that as a perfume or home fragrance.)

 

Torrilin's post (#26 in this thread) linked to a review that I was really interested in (comparing Orange Blossom vs. Neroli), but unfortunately only members registered to that site can view it. Torrilin, if you see this, could you possibly PM me a copy of that review, please? Thank you!

 

And I'm particularly interested in Beth's versions of both Orange Blossom and Neroli. Has anyone tried the BPAL single notes for both? How do they differ? Do either of them have the true floral-not-fruity scent I'm looking for? Can anyone recommend a BPAL fragrance blend that smells like real orange blossoms without any trace of the fruit?

A bit of belated advice but Khrysee is the scent I grab when I want to smell a true orange blossom. Notes are: Vanilla amber and orange blossom.

Light, citrusy linden very pretty! This one stays true to the wet scent.

Sandalwood prominent. It's still mostly sandalwood after a while but with a hint of the flowers and embalming herbs.

A gentle floral is what I get out of this too. Actually I also get coconut which isn't even listed, I guess it must be the poppy playing tricks on my nose. Strangely enough the carnation never shows up.

I like it a lot *sigh* another discontinued blend to hunt down.

Starts out as a fresh jasmine and ylang ylang. When it dries down it gets quite sweet and I get a hint of pear, the jasmine has melded with the rest of the notes into a sensual floral bouquet. None of the florals overpowers the others in this blend. Very lush and feminine.

Herbal resins, that sort of sums this scent up for me. Do not want.

Why, Vampire Bride we meet again! Seriously this is the Vampire Bride on steroids. Violet leaf with a hint of musk, but more masculine and cool than the Vampire Bride. It doesn't have a lot of throw on my skin.

For some reason I always find this ?etch? hilarious. Fireworks go off above the mountains and way down in the right corner a grumpy looking mask with tendrils is floating around. It doesn't make sense but it's hilarious anyway.

The blend is not quite what I had expected. I get a lot of fruity plum, black currant and grapefruit with orchid but no black musk. *pout* I'd have liked some black musk with my fruits but the jungle orchid is very dominant in this blend. Which is good news for jungle orchid lovers I guess.