Christine Daae

Initial impressions/prejudices: The "sexual" blends are often too strong on me, or don't play along with my skin chemistry, or feel like I'm wearing someone else's perfume (or maybe I just think the first two things because of the third?). This one has a bunch of roses in it, though, which makes me hopeful. In the imp, this is mostly jasmine - but the nice kind of jasmine that plays well on my skin - with an undercurrent of musk. Wet, on my skin, this is jasminey and orangey. Hmm, with mandarin, bergamot and neroli, I'm actually quite surprised this isn't more citrusy. As it dries, I get the musk comes out a bit more with the jasmine and the citrus notes. Where is the rose, I ask you? Where? This is very sexy, but in an understated, classy sort of way. I agree with everyone that's said this is an "evening" perfume, a "dress-up" perfume. It reminds me a lot of Feu Follet, which was (again) mostly jasmine on me; that was another classy, little-black-dress-and-heels, red lipstick, evening perfume. I don't know if this is really "me," but if I were going to wear one of the sexual blends, this would probably be it. Maybe if I layered it with Spellbound...?

I'm a serious sugar-foodie, so I was looking forward to trying this one. I've never smelled any of the blends with nuts (other than almond) in them, and I'm very curious. In the imp, oh yeah - that's seriously buttery/boozy. Smells like butterscotch or butterscotch schnapps to me! I do get the sweet almond-cherry note, too, but it's the top harmony to the butterscotch. On my skin, hello almond! All the almond blends do this as they touch my skin - it's all almond for a few minutes, and then the other notes get to come and out and play as the almond burns off. This is a bit strong for my tastes - undeniably boozy and sweet, but a bit too much (even for me, who loves foody scents!). Then again, I'm not a fan of most boozy notes, in general - they tend to the "too strong" end of the spectrum, for me, simply because I can't really pull that sort of scent off. Serious throw on this one, though. I keep getting butterscotch schnapps wafts, and if I press my nose to my wrist I get a bit of an undercurrent of some sort of spicy wood. Too much for me, alas. Off to the swaps with you, Hellcat!

Initial impression: Oh, well, the notes sound lovely! I probably wouldn't have tried to get this before they took it down just in case I loved it, so I'm glad the Lab sent me a frimp! Hopefully sweet pea won't turn into soapy death on me this time... In the imp, it's sort of an astringent floral. A floral with a soapy-astringent bite. Wet, on my skin - soap. Sweet pea, why do you have to ruin all the other lovely notes in this? Seriously. > Hmm. After a few minutes, this is less SOAPY SWEET PEA DEATH and a bit softer. I can still smell that undercurrent of soap, but it's more soft and floral now. I really wish I got more of the carnation, vanilla and apple blossom. After a bit, this is still too soapy for my tastes. I can sort of smell what this is supposed to smell like on someone with much more cooperative skin chemistry than I, if I huff my arm a bit, but...I don't want to go around smelling like floral soap all day. Oh well.

In the imp, this is sort of fruity-floral and very light. Wet on my skin...bubblegum?? As it dries, this is really pretty and not at all what I was expecting. There is no amber-of-doom in this, it's all sweet, light flowers. The prickly-pear is what is giving me the bubblegum impression, I think. It reminds me a little of Glitter, and a little bit of Phantom Queen - the sparkly, bubblegummy pear and the light, sweet, sort-of-herbal flowers. Yeah, definitely getting a Glitter vibe from this. Even without the lotus, it's really sweet. Pear is one of the few fruits I can wear, so this is really lovely, with a light herbal-floral underscoring the sticky-sweet pear. I can definitely smell the amber, but it's not as strong here as it is in other blends - it smells a bit like the amber in Bastet. This is really pretty, and not something I would have ordered for myself. Thanks, lab! I'll definitely be keeping the imp!

Hee - you ought to mention to him that knowing what he likes to smell on you definitely doesn't make him gay! My fiance is a geeky guy's guy, and he's finally come to terms with the fact that I'm always going to ask him what he likes on me, and that if he can put up with wearing something for me, it makes me want to pounce on him! It's a good incentive! It looks like the reviews for Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree mention B&BW's Japanese Cherry Blossom. You might want to try that!

I think I can safely say, for once, that it's not the pomegranate that goes wrong on me, in this. I think it's the amber. I really wanted to like this for the name and the concept and the poem. I still have Fruit of Paradise, though!

Hi, aRose! Honestly, with BPAL, you can never tell what's going to work on your skin chemistry. I'd try a whole bunch of them - start with an imp pack of things that look likely. It's how the addiction starts! If you're looking something that's specifically like Japanese Cherry Blossom, there's a thread here that has reccomendations in regards to B&BW stuff. You can peruse that thread, or ask there for help. Just looking at those notes, I'd check out The Fox Woman Kuzunoha Leaving Her Child and The Lantern Ghost of Oiwa. (I've never tried either, but the notes look similar.) I should note that you can't get those in imps, but if you're willing to buy or trade from forum members you might be able to get your hands on those there! Good luck and welcome to BPAL!

Let's see. For Christmas Eve (the big family party), I wore Snow White. I know my Mum hates the smell of rose perfume (she thinks I should wear something "younger"), so my other choice - Peacock Queen - was right out. I slathered some Hades on my boyfriend. And then we announced our engagement, hee! Christmas Day, I think I wore Gingerbread Poppet layered with Possets' Gingerbread Whorehouse. Om nom nom gingerbready goodness! For New Years Eve, I wore Fruit of Paradise. So much love.

I definitely agree with 51 (it's the blend that makes me think GREEN immediately, a lovely glowing green) - others you might want to try would be Sundew (glowing floral, more yellow than green, but bright and sunny), The Ghost and Asphodel (both green florals, to my nose).

I totally agree with Plunder - if Bengal is sweetened/milky chai, Plunder is chai steeping in your kitchen without the sweetness. It's really nice!

Wet, this is a little soapy, and I mostly get the gardenia. This has some note in common with Sacred Whore of Babylon, probably the gardenia - it's so lovely and white and almost-fruity. Gardenia is one of my favourite notes, especially BPAL's. In combination with the rose, it's so pretty. As it dries, it gets warmer and the amber comes more to the forefront. Whatever patchouli is in this, I can't really smell it, I get mostly the fruity gardenia and the sweet rose, backed by amber and grounded by a bit of tea. The Lab's white tea note is so gorgeous. This is really pretty. I'm definitely keeping the imp!

The boozy-cherryness of Fruitcake reminded me a bit of MB: Bloody Mary, if you can find some of that (it's an LE but there might be people willing to swap).

In the imp, this is a serious butterscotch-caramel-molasses smell. I don't get much booze at all. Wet on my skin, this is straight-up caramel sugar. It's like Sugar Skull, with more white sugar and less burnt brown sugar smell. This is seriously, seriously sugary. Not for the faint of heart! Okay, so, full disclosure: I love smelling like sugar. And I sort of adore this. It's rot-your-teeth sugary, with a honey note that plays well on my skin (for once!). This is not for people who don't want to smell like sugar. This is not a typical foody blend, in that it doesn't have anything bakery-like or fruity at all, it just smells like sugar. This is yummy. I am keeping the imp!

Well. I got this one for the name, in an imp pack of themed scents (Asphodel, Hades, Persephone, Iambe, Hymn to Proserpine and Lampades) to 'congratulate' myself on finishing NaNoWriMo this year. Asphodel was/is the name of my "novel." In the imp, it's a clear, green floral. I like clear green florals! On my skin, it's the same clear, green indefinable floral. It smells a lot like The Ghost to me, actually. This changes very little on me, other than the throw getting better, and it getting sweeter. This is early-spring flowers, on me, which compose some of my favourite blends. It is Persephone as she first captured Hades' heart, flower-wreathed, unassumingly lovely and feminine, young and full of light and spring, just a teeny bit of something darker lurking underneath. I have always thought that Hades first planted the fields of asphodel to make Persephone happy, in her honor, to bring a little bit of the springtime she so loved to the dark, cold Underworld. This scent is perfect for that idea, and for that, I love it - I will definitely need a bottle of it before it goes away.

In the imp, spicy amber! Reminds me of Bastet without the almonds. Wet on my skin, yep, reminds me of Bastet without the almonds. Spicy amber. As it dries, the spice dies down to a golden, sweet amber. I tried this on my boyfriend and it turned to syrupy, powdery sweetness on him - way too feminine for my tastes, which is the only reason he ever wears fragrance, hee! - but on me I get a more masculine scent. The hell? It might just be my chemistry at this time of the month, because usually I turn everything into sweet powder. I also get a hint of the tea others were mentioning, and a cinnamon-bark-like scent, like the one in Plunder. It's dry, but warm and golden at the same time. I've liked almost all of the Tea Party scents I've tried so far, including this one. It's a bit dry for my tastes. Though I think I prefer Bastet for a spiced, golden amber scent, this is very nice.

In the imp, this is faintly floral-vanilla-sweet. Wet, on my skin, it's...it's not soapy death! It's sweet, a little fruity-floral, with an undertone of the amber and a creamy vanilla. Very pretty! As it dries, it's a very faint slightly-soapy, slightly-creamy sweetness. This is what I wished Desdemona had done on me, instead of turning strictly to floral soap. And then I get the sandalwood, which dries it out considerably, but is still very nice. I think the ambers and the sandalwood are what keep the sweet pea from turning into soap on me this time. As it dries, it reminds me a little of...Death Cap? I think it might be the sandalwood and vanilla that's doing that. This is, thankfully, the vanilla that likes me. This is light, clean, and pink - sweet, but not cloying. It's in the same family as Maiden, to me, a sweet pink floral. This is very pretty - I will keep the imp, but I'll have to try it more than once to know if I'll need a bottle of it.

In the bottle, it's a sweet, ripe pomegranate smell with undercurrents of something darker. And yes, maybe another fruit. Wet, on my skin, it's the same pomegranate smell - YES! - and it doesn't turn icky on me! I have been waiting for a pomegranate BPAL that I could wear, since I love the smell so much. It's sweet, and juicy, undeniably red and yummy. There's a hint of something grounding it, though I couldn't tell you what it might be. Depending on where I wear this on my body, I get hints of spiciness and amber-ish goodness, too. 'm so happy to have a pomegranate perfume I can wear! For the B&BW fans out there, this layers gorgeously with Midnight Pomegranate, they have a similar spiced-amber-pomegranate loveliness.

In the bottle...this smells like gingerbread. On my skin...this smells like gingerbread. Well, really, it smells like gingersnaps and gingerbread. It's a perfect perfume rendition of gingerbread. It's got the cakey quality, the spices, the ginger, and the sweetness. It's just gorgeous, and who doesn't want to smell like a cookie, really? I know I do! As it dries, it gets spicier and less cakey. But still really yummy! I think I might wear this to my Mum's holiday party tonight (I'm going as her date). It's festive and yummy, and if I get bored or irritated, I can sniff myself and be happy again. It's a very happy, cozy scent. It's homey, and it smells like spicy/gingerbready goodness, it's perfect for the holidays! If I knew how to work one, I'd put it in an oil burner, too.

Yup, The Fruit of Paradise is a dead ringer (though of course so much better!) for B&BW's Midnight Pomegranate. They will layer spectacularly, I think!

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In the bottle, this smells like Snow-Flakes to me. Except without the mint. Whatever the non-mint part of Snow-Flakes was. Wet, on my skin, I get a white sweetness. It's sort of indefinable, actually, but it definitely smells like Snow-Flakes to me without the sweet mint. It's sweet and white and powdery, not cloying. A second-skin scent on me, and not cold at all. It smells warm on me. Warm and sweet. As it dries, it stays sweet and lovely. It doesn't change much on me. It's just perfection. It might edge out Lucy Westenra and Alice for the most "me" scent I've found. This is too pretty. It's soft and warm and white, sort of...glowing, almost. I was walking through a soft snowfall this morning inside my warm wooly coat, big fat snowflakes catching on my eyelashes. This smells exactly how that feels. It's beautiful, and this might be another that I have to find a second bottle of.

In the bottle, it's ROSE. It's a full-bodied, gorgeous rose. I don't get a "red" vibe from this, weirdly, I get more of a pink and white vibe. But then those are my favourite kinds of roses so maybe that's just me. Wet, on my skin, it's the rose from Hope without the Antique Lace-esque vanilla. It's sweet and velvety and undeniably feminine, very intense and, well, rosey. As this dries, there's little change. It gets softer, with an edge of sweet powder, but I think that's my skin chemistry more than anything, and it's certainly not bad. This is a perfect rose perfume. It's a perfect, gorgeous rose. I agree with MaidMirawyn's assertion that "this is how roses are supposed to smell!" I also agree that there's not a lot of complexity to this scent, but again, it's absolutely perfect the way it is. This is my holy grail of rose scents, and I may need to find myself another bottle of this before it goes away.

In the bottle, this is chilly and green and smells, yes, exactly like a florist's freezer. It's very lovely. Wet, on my skin, it smells more like the greenery of the rose than the actual flower, though I do get the hint of floral. It's got something sharp and cold to it. I'm wearing Peacock Queen on the other wrist to compare these, and I can say that this is definitely a "younger" rose - it's sort of a frozen, red rose with crushed green stems. I get a LOT of green here. This one is a lot more intensely green and cold-smelling than Peacock Queen. It's actually a lot more intense, period, and it doesn't fade as quickly. It has an edge of tartness that smells like green apples to me, actually. Green stems, green apples, and a dewy, almost-frozen red rose. This is like springtime!Persephone to Peacock Queen's underworld!Persephone. I think Peacock Queen is going to be my holy grail of rose, but I'm definitely keeping this one, maybe for spring. Edit to add: Hmm. This is one of the very few (read, two) scents that my fiance had a negative impression of. He says it reminds him of his grandfather's funeral. D: (The other was Sea of Glass, which smelled "like hairspray" to him.) So maybe this will end up in the swap pile after all...

So...Fruitcake! When I opened my box at my Mum's yesterday, she said "how did they know you're a fruitcake?" I should have told her, "well, they read the forums, and I'm pretty sure they know that we're ALL fruitcakes." In the imp, it smells EXACTLY like maraschino cherries. Exactly. Whoa. Wet on my skin, it continues to smell like maraschino cherries. It's slightly boozy, but it smells just like how maraschino cherries taste. It's...it's actually yummy! Hee! And now I have a craving for cherries... As it dries, the booze comes out a little bit more, and a little spice, but it's mainly candied fruits and sugar. It's really delicious. Holy carp, Lab, how do you do this? (Yes, carp.) It reminds me just a little of MB: Bloody Mary, but it's (dare I say it?) better. It's boozy and sweet and it's still got that maraschino-cherry smell to it. It's the sugar from Sugar Skull and the boozy cherries from Bloody Mary, with a bit of spice and some cakey goodness thrown in. In conclusion: YUM. <3 Thank you, Lab, for the awesome Christmas gift!

Oooh, first of all, the bottle art is lovely - it looks like a phoenix made of ice crystals. Pretty! In the bottle, it's cool, and a bit sweet and sharp (I imagine that's the lavender at work). On my skin, it instantly warms to something sweet and white and undeniably floral, but understatedly so. It's more along the lines of Kindly Moon than Swan Maiden (both of which I love). I agree that there's something exotic and almost spicy to this scent. The musk is light and really just a base for the other notes to play on. This is just gorgeous - I don't get the sharpness that I normally get from lavender once it's on my skin, and I don't get any bubblegum from the lotus (which is normally what it turns to on me). This is "perfumey," but I mean that in the best way possible. It's floral, but not overly floral, it's sweet, but not cloying. It's...ethereal. Ethereal is the best word to describe this. It's in the same sweet floral so-well-blended-I-can't-really-tell-what's-in-it family as Kindly Moon, even though it doesn't really smell like Kindly Moon. It's so, so pretty. I may have to get another bottle before it comes down...