VorpalBunny

I like the smell of patchouli, so I wanted to give this one a try. When it first goes on, it smells totally masculine on me. I think it's something about the patchouli interacting with the ambergris. As I wear it a bit longer, it mellows out a bit, and I do smell the individual elements, the orange, a bit of carnation, the patchouli, and the ambergris (the latter subdued so it's not overpowering). It's nice, but it's not how I want to smell. I think it would be SO SEXY on a guy.

Out of the imp and when it first goes on, I smell overwhelming sweet cherry. Not sure why, since it's none of the ingredients, maybe it's the almond and vanilla. As it dries down the cinnamon comes out more, and I even smell the heliotrope (ooh!). I was a little worried about trying this one after my allergic reaction to hamadryad (figured it was the cinnamon) and after hearing about a lot of people reacting badly to it. However, no huge red welts. I love the drydown, it still has a bit of sweet foodiness, but between the heliotrope and frankincense it adds more complexity. It has a bit of the light sweetness of Dana O'Shee with more intensity and more of a kick.

This is a lovely rose, like the smell of roses that someone gave you and you painstakingly dried them. On me, I don't smell any of the other notes. It reminds me of a more mainstream version of Zombi. Very lovely scent.

I've noticed some scents that remind me of LE's but not as complex... here's the ones I've noticed so far:

 

Snow White: Dana O'Shee

Wildfire: Dragon's Bone

Red Moon: Desire

 

Any other similarities? I mean certainly, none of the non-LE's is an exact replacement, they just have a lot of similar notes (at least on me).

 

When it first goes on, Snow White smells like Angel Food cake. Then a bit of the almondy note from Dana O'Shee starts to come out, and a hint of mint perhaps, and a bit of white floral -- it almost reminds me of a subdued version of stephanotis. It is a predominantly a foody scent, though, so I am glad I didn't order a whole bottle. It is nice and sweet and pretty, but it's too dainty for me, I prefer the Yule LE's that I bought.

I see why Wanda is so popular. It smells like berry with a hint of wine (but without a booziness), like a grownup Bon Vivant, and then the leather comes out, and maybe a hint of vanilla or tonka bean or something, and then the floral comes out a bit later, faint enough to add to the complexity but nice and subtle. It is so wonderful. Wearing it, I feel sexy and empowered and feminine. I must get a big bottle of this one.

When Blood Countess first went on, it smelled like gardenia and pears on me (and it wasn't just me because someone else told me "it smells like flowery pears"). After a little time, the fruitiness subsided and the lilac came a bit more to the forefront. It doesn't come across as overwhelmingly floral (like real lilacs can), but just a lovely fruity floral with the good elements of lilac and gardenia (some of my favourite scents in nature). It struck me that it is reminiscent of my beloved Fae -- it has a similar sweet fruity floralness, without having the association that Fae has for me. I'm going to need to get a big bottle of this one. I love it.

 

Plus I just love the idea of someone asking me "what's that lovely feminine perfume you are wearing" and saying "Blood Countess".

When it first goes on, it's overpoweringly sweet and fruity. After a bit, the overwheming fruitiness calms down, and on me it turns into a strong combination of apricot and vanilla. I can hardly smell the ginger or jasmine at all. It's not unpleasant but it's not for me either.

When it first goes on, Niflheim smells like white flowers with a hint of cedar or something. As it dries down, it smells cold and foggy, with a nice floral predominating. It's a good light floral with just the faintest hint of darkness, for when you want the lightness of a floral but something a bit more sinister.

This scent is very herbal and leafy. There is a sweet faint woodiness, but it's a predominantly green scent on me. It does have an ethereal feel to it. It's very pleasant and has a lightness with still having an underlying power. I enjoy it a lot, although I expected it to smell more woody.

When Nemesis first goes on, it's complex and too "perfumey". As it mellows out more, the tonka bean and rose come to the forefront. On me, it's mainly tonka bean with a hint of floral, way different from how it smelled in the imp. This is definitely one of those wait-and-see scents, after I first put it on I was ready to swap it but now I definitely want to keep it. The florals balance out the tonka bean and make it more feminine than say Perversion (which is a scent I love but you have to be in the right mood to wear). Perversion in a dress.

Now, I am a huge sandalwood fan, but this doesn't come across as sandalwood at all to me. It is herbal and floral. That said, it is one of the most lovely scents, and so indescribably unique. It is light and slightly sweet and floral and sexy all at once. It makes me feel strong and powerful and sexy. It is one of the lighter Love Potions, but beautiful nonetheless. I definitely need to order more of this.

On me, it smells like all myrrh and musk, and is like commercial French perfume. It just doesn't work with my chemistry. As it dries down it gets a bit lighter, with the poppy and labdanum coming out a bit, but it still just isn't me.

When I was choosing which Yule LEs to get, Ice Queen and Skadi sounded similar but I couldn't choose between them and got both. This was a good decision. Ice Queen reminds me a bit of Skadi but more toned down, lighter, less piney, more floral, and sweeter.

 

Ice Queen smells like cold. Like a cold, crisp, winter afternoon. It is slightly sweet, just a touch enough to counteract the floral scent, which is also very light. There is the faintest hint of spruce, just a background note that you can smell from time to time, like the winter's breeze. Where Skadi has a definite holiday smell too it, Ice Queen is good all winter long (and I'm sure it would be nice in fall and spring as well). It is a lovely scent, and I am so happy I chose it.

Skadi is winter in a bottle! On me, it is PINE PINE PINE with subtle sweet hints underneath. Absolutely lovely. It's certainly a very seasonal scent. but wonderful, and would be great in one of those simmer things.

I thought about starting a new F54-specific thread, but since it sort of fits in here I thought I'd just jump into this one.

 

How do you apply your F54 (from the cool funky bottle)?

 

With the 5ml (I am so careless I guess) if it doesn't have a reducer cap, I just usually put the bottle against my wrist (so there is a seal) and gently tip it so that a little oil comes out on my wrist, and then I use my wrist to apply the oil wherever else I want it. This method does NOT work with the funky bottle. (Usually when I wear it I manage to get it out without having an oil slick, but I just took a bath in my expensive F54. ) I of course don't want to take it out of the cool funky bottle to put it in another container, because that would be silly. Should I just resort to the swizzle stick method? (And where the heck do you get them anyway?)

- citrusy: carnal, zephyr

 

note that these aren't necessarily my favorites.. but imo very different from the ones you've selected.

 

On me, Zephyr smells a lot like Queen Mab, so if you don't like Queen Mab it may not be the best choice.

 

Other scents you could try that might be very different:

Bon Vivant (strawberry)

Fae (peach and white musk)

Kabuki (cherry and clove)

 

You should try swapping on the swap board to see how other scents work on you.

 

You may want to check out this topic for more recs.

Dove's Heart is a nice light, sweet floral. It's definitely calming.

It won't make a broken heart all better instantly, but it is definitely uplifting and cheering. It's definitely a good tool to have around in your toolbox.

Kathmandu reminds me of Lapsang Souchong tea… it has the same smokiness. It is a heavy sandalwood scent with a hint of cedar that has a very Eastern flair. It doesn't have a masculine scent at all on me, but I could see it working on a man very well too. It is the kind of sandalwood scent that I like, woody and complex. A lot of other sandalwood blends lose their sandalwoodiness (I know that's not a word). Something about it reminds me of old leather-bound books. It's definitely not an everyday scent, but it's an enjoyable scent.

You may try Vinland. It has a hint of berry, but it's not overpowering.

Tisiphone is a lovely dark floral. I love all the individual elements, although I don't smell most of the notes on me, just the oleander and then an underlying dark muskiness. Some of the darker scents have a hint of bitterness on me, but this one had none of that. It is a great scent for wearing to work or some other formal occasion without smelling too cheerful and girlie. I am enjoying it a lot.

I'm glad you're at least able to knit. Sometimes when I'm especially mopey I can't even do that.

It just occurred to me that Grog was a very fun, pick-me-up scent, with it's buttery rumminess. Also, Dragon's Bone helps for me for some reason...if you like sandalwood you might like it.

 

Maybe you should work on a fun sweater for yourself.

 

*HUGS*

I love Wildfire. When I first put it on, the first thing I thought was "this is a more sophisticated version of Dragon's Bone." I smell the dragon's blood and the sandalwood, but it's got more complexity and a touch of floral and spice. I love Dragon's Bone, but it's a bit strong for me to wear too often. Wildfire has a slightly toned-down version of that intensity.

Grog is very fun. It reminds me of hot buttered rum (which smells great but tastes terrible). I get a faint hint of coconut too once in a while. It is definitely a feel-good scent.

When I first put Catherine on, it smelled like lemon-mint instead of orange-rosemary. No hint of rose. I resisted washing it off and waited. After it dried down a bit, it became less bitter and smelled more orangey and less lemony. Then after a little longer, a very faint hint of rose came out, and I liked the scent a little more. It's still not my kind of scent, but at least it wasn't as harsh as when I first put it on.