KittyHawk

I had high hopes for this one, despite the star anise. Well, all I got in the imp, wet, and on drydown was cherry cough syrup and Jagermeister. Off to the swaps with you, Kabuki!

I have yet to experience that; I hope I never do! Oooh, thanks, paperrose! That sounds really pretty, even if I don't end up getting dill out of it. <3

Hi, y'all. I did a search and came across this topic for herbes de Provence scents, but I'm looking for something more specific. Mods, if you feel this is better suited for that thread, feel free to merge. Thanks in part to a rerun of a Good Eats episode on pickles, I wanted to see if any of you lovelies could think of a BPAL scent that has dill in it. I put dill on everything and it's one of the only herbs in my garden that didn't die a horrible death. I know there are some really lovely herbal scents out there, but any with a fairly prominent dill note?

I think you're right; I'll have to see if I can hunt down a sample. Thank you! Thanks for all the recs, sunshine! I actually have an imp of Antony lying around somewhere; I'll try it today! I am indeed looking for a fresh dill scent, not a vinegary pickled dill, though I didn't have high hopes for the former. I do now! Lots to add to my wishlist, woo hoo!

At least it stays green, right? Thanks, I'll give that a shot.

Yay, scent sisters! I've heard good things about Van Van, but that moves it right to the top of the list. Thanks for all the help!

Huh, that's interesting! I think the only one I've tried with vetiver in it is Highwayman, and it just smells smoky to me. My nose is still woefully untrained, though. I'll make a point to try a few other vetiver blends just in case Highwayman is the anomaly!

Have you tried Tombstone? I can't wear most of the Lab's foody vanillas either, but Tombstone is gorgeous on me (it's my favorite GC by a long shot). The balsam and cedar give it a nice smoky quality, while the sassafras keeps it light. It's really interesting and neutral to boot-both my husband and I wear and love it. It really feels like you just walked into an Old West general store where someone's eating vanilla ice cream at the counter.

Huh. I had forgotten the notes of Fire Pig when I tried it; I'll just say that I'm really surprised at some of the notes. In the bottle, FP is super fresh fruit: citrus, kumquat, cherries? It's delectable, regardless. This doesn't morph on my skin at all; my skin must like fruity scents, because most that I've tried have stayed really faithful to the first sniff. Anyway, Fire Pig smells like fruit punch! Delicious, spicy fruit punch! I understand the correlation to Hungry Ghost Moon, but this doesn't have that gorgeous musk note that HGM has. Still, Fire Pig has a beauty all its own. The spiciness must be coming from the dragon's blood? This is my first tryst with dragon's blood, and if FP is indicative of that note, then SIGN ME UP! This really is light and delicious--perfect for summer! I bet this would be fantastic layered with a white musk/vanilla scent. I might have to layer this with Zephyr or Dorian and see what happens.

This is my very first experience with vetiver, and I'm pleasantly surprised! My skin cannot handle very dark, masculine notes. Even patchouli misbehaves, regardless of how much is in a particular blend. I had high hopes for Highwayman, but I wasn't holding my breath. It's so fantastic! In the imp, what must be vetiver was very strong; I interpreted it as cigar smoke and dirt, with a faint hint of leather. Wet, it's trodden-in-the-dirt, smoky gardenia. I am in love. I don't detect the rose, jasmine, or the cinnamon, but I'm hoping they'll come out! As it dries, the gardenia fades quickly. It was gone completely within 45 minutes or so, but what was left was still nice. Dry, Highwayman smells like how I wanted Dee to smell; it reminds me of studying in the graduate stacks late into the night every Wednesday and Thursday. After a couple hours, I layered this with Lady of Shalott, and It was that good. I'm really not convinced yet that this merits a bottle, but it very well may get upgraded sometime in the future. If nothing else, this blend reminds me of , which makes me cry every time I hear it.

I was really excited about the coffee note in Mata Hari, especially mixed with the vanilla, fig, jasmine, and a hopefully non-soapy rose. Well, once I applied it, the coffee was gone, never to return. It was a nice blend otherwise albeit too heavy on the florals for my taste. It's just not what I was hoping for, so it's off to find a better home.

Yep, there's apple and rose in here, alright! This actually worked surprisingly well on me for the better part of an hour, but after awhile, the lemon came out and clashed with the rose, leaving me with a soapy rose disinfectant scent on my arm. It's a pity, too; it started out with such promise.

Why HELLO THERE, Hungry Ghost Moon doppelganger! I have been hoping there was a GC that was a suitable substitute for my well-loved but hard to find HGM 2006; well, Fae is it! It's interesting because the notes aren't much the same except for the musk, but the peach in Fae seems to mimic the ginger in HGM. Fae is very light and ethereal, juicy and sweet, but the oakmoss gives it a dark undertone that I really like. This is a real winner for me!

I've been on a carnation kick lately, so I was really excited to receive this as a frimp from a recent Ebay win. Well, it's lovely. The carnation is prominent, definitely, but the plum and amber don't want to play second fiddle. It's a beautiful and unusual blend, but it fades very quickly on me, even after having applied it in a generally long-wearing spot. As far as carnations go, I think I prefer Queen Alice, but Bathsheba certainly gives her a run for her money!

Cherry is an iffy note for me; it either melds harmoniously with my skin or it's a head-on collision with no survivors. I like a lot of the Lab's wood notes too, so I figured there was a 50-50 shot The Red Queen would work for me. ...well, it didn't. This lady didn't morph at all. Whether it was in the imp, wet, or during drydown, all I got was heavy furniture polish, lacquered with a hint of artificial cherry. Off to the "get the hell outta my house" box you go.

Huh, I thought I had already reviewed Dragon's Milk but I guess I haven't. Here goes! In the imp, it's very sweet and creamy; the honey note is prominent. On my skin, this got *really* sweet. A little too sweet, actually. I understand why some forumites use DM to calm and relax themselves, but I couldn't get past the cloying sweetness. Dragon's Milk seems to me like Dana O'Shee's boozy, boisterous neighbor. It's certainly a beautiful scent, but it's not for me. I wonder if it's the dragon's blood resin that's ruining it for me or if it's just the honey... Hmmm, this calls for more Ars Draconis imps!

I'll throw in my recommendation for Cordelia as well; it's a very lovely and feminine lilac; Lysander is a nice lilac too; while it's more masculine than Cordelia, it's still very wearable and gender-neutral. Lady Amalthea is supposed to have a beautiful lilac note too, but I have yet to try it.

Apparently, neither patchouli nor benzoin are even tolerable on my skin. This smelled rich and spicy in the imp, but as soon as I applied it, it turned to cinnamon vomit. Goblin nearly made me physically ill. I wish my skin could tolerate patchouli so I could appreciate the scents that feature it, but I think it's a lost cause.

Mint julep all the way! I don't enjoy smelling like drinks, but I could see this being a refreshing summer scent for the right person, or anyone at the Kentucky Derby.

Dana O'Shee is a near dead-ringer for Snow White, which is one of my dearest LE loves. Sweet almond tempered with milk; for being so foody on paper, it's surprisingly light and clean on. The milk note reminds me of Cleopatra; I imagine this is what she smelled like after a bath. My only contention with Dana is that it vanishes on my skin after just a few minutes. I'm a little surprised, as Snow White actually lasts quite awhile. At some point I'll probably end up getting a bottle just to tide me over from eventual Snow White withdrawals, but I'm not looking forward to having to apply it every few hours. Maybe it would be a successful locket scent. It's a shame because it's so lovely, but I imagine this becoming very cost-prohibitive.

I got a free sample of this in an Ebay win; thanks Puddin! Swamp is a really fresh green floral, with a hint of moss in the background. It reminds me of my grandparents' cottage on Lake Huron where I spent my childhood summers. At first, it's very aquatic, but very fresh. There's not a trace of salt in here. After a minute or so, the florals come out to play. Like some others, I get a faint whiff of jasmine and carnation; it's so lovely and unexpected mixed with the greenery. Nostalgia aside, I love this.

Glasgow is certainly simple, but it is also deceptively pretty. Right off the bat, I smelled blackberry-laced heather in the imp. It is perfect sweet Scottish heather, and reminds me of trekking through the rain down the streets of Edinburgh and through the gardens of Inverness. Once I applied it, it got very crisp and clean. I personally wouldn't describe it as dryer sheets or laundry, but I do understand the association. I find it to be incredibly relaxing; I want to curl up on the couch with a mug of homemade chicken soup and a good book. As it dries, the rose comes out of hiding, but only a little. Thankfully, the rose here doesn't turn soapy. It just adds a bashful softness to the heather that I find intoxicating. I'm really on the fence about this one; I really enjoy wearing it and smelling it, but I don't how many opportunities I would have to wear it. Thanks to the labbies for the frimp! Never would have tried this otherwise. Glasgow is an unexpected winner!

I've been studying Latin for years, and Narcissus & Echo is one of my favorite Metamorphosis stories; heck, it's one of my favorite stories period. It was the first significant piece of work I ever translated, so it holds a special place in my heart. I even have a tattoo of a passage from this story. Needless to say, I was going to try this regardless of the notes. In the bottle, I got a lot of sweet candied flowers; I can't pick out specific florals. The best way I can describe them is "amber-y." Wet, this becomes more complex. I get a little of the vanilla, and the orchid boosts the florals. As it dries, it gets powdery. I generally hate powdery scents, but somehow this works. It's very mature upon drydown, which doesn't make sense to me. It's still beautiful, though. I don't think this is a particularly "Echo" scent, but it is beautiful nonetheless. I would have loved to have gotten some aquatics and maybe a little oakmoss, but that's the obsessive Latin major talking. It's lovely. I am happy to say that it has good throw and lasts a long time, just like our Echo's calling voice. This is a real keeper. ETA 10/25/12: If anyone out there is looking for a dupe of Regan, look no further. The sandalwood here makes Echo a little different, but the vanilla orchid is the same beautiful note in both blends.

The vanilla in TFOTS is incredibly light and ethereal; it's not foody, spicy or heady as like it is in many vanilla-centric BPALs (which I love, btw). It's not aquatic, either; it's dry, yet icy. It's a perfect winter vanilla. As it dries, the flowers take bloom beneath the frost of the vanilla. It's a distant scent, yet it still beckons you. It's an enigma, this spirit. I doubt I'll have much opportunity to wear this for quite some time, but it will be lovely in the winter.

I just received Lambs-Wool 2009 in the mail; perfect timing in anticipation of the 'weenie update! In the bottle, the apples, clove, and nutmeg take the stage. I get a bit of a milky note, but it's very subdued. If this were edible, I'd drink it. Wet, it's still mostly apple and spices. I'm concerned that the milk will go buttery on me, but so far, so good. Upon drydown, the milk comes out of the woodwork. I'm not crazy about it, TBH. I was hoping the apple, nutmeg, and clove would stay the dominant notes. It's nice, but I don't know, the milk nearly ruins it for me. The longer this stays on my skin, the stronger the milk note gets. It smells like a buttery apple now, about 2 hours later. I'm not ready to give up on this yet, as I think (more like hope!) my hormones may be to blame for the WHOA butter. For now, though, this looks like a locket scent. Drat.