KissleMeNow

Okay, what is the, um, protocol when you get another bottle whose scent you don't like? The situation is that I ordered a bottle of Crowley back in 2011 and loved it. The vanilla and leather were particularly prominent. Unfortunately, I lost it when my bag got stolen earlier this year, so I promptly bought a replacement (also straight from the Lab)... which I really do not like. It's almost astringent. I can smell the undercurrents, but they're overpowered by what I assume is the oakmoss and maybe the lemon rind. It's a scent which could conceivably float someone's boat, but definitely not the lush, sexy one that I wanted. At first I assumed it would calm down with age and put it in a box to wait, but it really hasn't – I know my last bottle was doing vanilla/leather by this point in time. Is it worth it to try a third bottle? Is it fair to sell a bottle of scent which I don't think smells "right" on the forum, even when I've treated it well? (No light exposure, as little exposure to extreme temperatures as possible, etc). Should I offer it up at a discount, or as a caveat emptor swap?

Kumiho and Embalming Fluid were all I could wear last summer.

A very simple, pleasant, piney scent – probably my favorite "woods" scent so far. I'm not sure how often I would wear it, but I like it enough to keep the frimp.

Ooh, thank you for the rec! I've been carefully review-stalking for my Luper order.

Does anybody have a photograph of Water Snake?

*attempting to resurrect the discussion, because I have a craving for tea blends* I thought Mrs Gorse, from the 2012 Yules, was a very successful black tea blend.

Most of the planetary Phoenixes made my eyes sting and nose run. Victorian Garden gave me a similar reaction (runny nose and sneezing) the first time I wore it, but fortunately I developed a tolerance or something like that.

When I tried Lear on, the first thought that popped into my head was "This smells like something you eat." I guess that was all bay leaf, because it quickly settled into a cedar scent. I agree with the many comments saying it's masculine, although it also has a neutral, neither of the above vibe to me. The bay leaf gives it an edge, and the sage makes it herbal rather than wooden. The cedar definitely reminds me more of cut wood than a growing tree, if that makes sense. I'm not quite sure if it's my kind of scent, but it is nice.

The Governess is a very long-lasting scent on me, which is good. For the first few hours, it's all sweet violet and orchid, which is not very vanilla-y. The green tea and white musk are there if I sniff my wrist, but it's mostly violet-o-rama. However, once that subsides, the green tea gets all creamy, and the violet and orchid play nice together. It's not a "green" scent as such, but it makes me think of cool, wet leaves – there's something about it that reminds me of a florist's shop. This stage is great. The first one borders on "bathroom scent" territory for me, so I'm not sure how often I'll wear it, but it is a keeper.

I know a lot of forumites don't like an herby, "medicinal" kind of scent, but that's what I'm in the mood for, so, recs? The three I have already are Tabella, The Face of All the World is Changed I Think, and Victorian Garden.

Wet, Peter Quint was spice, leather, and balsam, in a masculine, but not heavy way. Unfortunately, as it dried, it turned into powdery, powdery laundry detergent, and stayed that way. :/

I spent a while trying to figure out exactly which spices I was smelling, but I couldn't pin them down. The best comparison I could come up was the scent in an Armenian grocery store. Lots of spices, savory and mixed (though not hot). I think the black tea is contributing to that. Wet, the rose skates on the edge of powdery, but it mellowed out as it dried. The black tea is a subtle but solid underpinning. When the scent was almost faded, I would get a whiff of it and think of my grandfather's impossibly-strong Russian spice tea. I expected this to be like Harlot, a scent which I think is wonderful, but if Harlot is all wild sensuality, Mrs Gorse is older, calmer, yet still confident. It wasn't really a foodie scent to me, although it had food elements – I would recommend giving it a try if you like the notes regardless of whether you like or dislike foodies. I bought a bottle unsniffed, and am really glad I sprang for it.

Fruity. As the drydown progresses I get a whiff of warm ginger, and some of the patchouli and tonka, but mostly it just smells... friuity to me. :/

Damn, this did not work on me. It's bathroom scent. I do okay with amber – not always fantastic, but it's not a death note – love spices, and wanted to try almond. I get a bit of the golden warmth of the amber, the spices, the musk... but it's all under bloody bathroom scent. :/

I love some vanilla, I love some spices, and besides, I couldn't do BPAL without at least taking a dab of the infamous Snake Oil.

Wet and in the imp, it's really amazing. The vanilla reminds me of the one from Crowley – sweet, but more warm than sugary. It smelled a little spicy, but also a little like some wood I couldn't quite put my finger on – in a nice way. There was a period on the drydown where the vanilla started to get a little too sharp/sweet, and I distinctly got a whiff of Vick's. These calmed down, but ultimately it was... a little too heavy, a little too cloying, a little too sweet. It's frustrating, because I absolutely love the idea and the initial scent... but I still can't see myself wearing this. Away to another loving home it goes, I think.

In the imp and on me wet, Mercurian Phoenix is astringent, sharp, and reminds me of the lemon soap I used to use to mop the floor without being actually-soapy. Still, this isn't my idea of a wearing scent, and it made my eyes sting and water. As it dried, it became very resinous and spicy, although not a foody kind of spice. I guess this is the gums, sandalwood, and anise going on, because at no time did I get an herby scent. The final scent is nice, but I don't think I can deal with the first stage again.

Having though I hated all things floral, and then finding flowery blends I enjoyed, I decided to go for Lunar Phoenix in an attempt to explore beyond my scent comfort zone. Unfortunately, wet, it's exactly the kind of floral I fear. I couldn't differentiate notes at that stage – it was soapy in an almost-harsh way. As it dried, the jasmine overpowered everything else, and my eyes and nose began to run. However, once my nose had cleared (maybe an hour plus into the experience), it smelled... wonderful. Not, to my nose, in a floral manner – it was like mist or dew or water running over rock, something wet, fresh, clean, cool, and earthy. I can definitely see where the "lunar" is there.

Overall – I'm in love with the final scent, but if it repeats the first two stages every time, HECK NO. :/

It starts out all sugar and mint – a very wet, green-ish smell which fortunately doesn't turn into candy at all. Then it changes into something smokey and musky with a tiny bit of mint to back it. I actually like both smells, but the contrast is a little too dramatic for me – I feel like if I was in the mood to wear the one, I probably wouldn't be in the mood for the other.

It starts out all sugar and mint – a very wet, green-ish smell which fortunately doesn't turn into candy at all. Then it changes into something smokey and musky with a tiny bit of mint to back it. I actually like both smells, but the contrast is a little too dramatic for me – I feel like if I was in the mood to wear the one, I probably wouldn't be in the mood for the other.

This smells... like some kind of strange baked good, with a whiff of violet.

Hm. I feel a little conflicted about Jabberwocky. In the imp and wet, it is straight-up pine – I actually had a sudden flashback to being a kid and having my head surrounded by Christmas tree branches when I crawled under it to re-fill the stand when I put it on, that's how piney it was. For a moment, eucalyptus and orange came out in an almost-soapy way, but then it turned into mostly eucalyptus and pine. And stayed that way. A few hours after application, the scent has calmed, and the orange is showing a bit more, but still definitely secondary. The scent did have a certain charm to it, but it's very... distinctive and robust in a not-quite-always-me way. I don't think I'd buy a bottle, but I will probably eventually use up my imp, and enjoy it.

The floral, to me, was sweet and overwhelming. A lot of rose otto and Calla lilly going on. When it was almost faded, it turned into this lovely, warm thing – mostly tonka and sage with light florals floating over it, but it didn't last long enough to be for me.

Disclaimer: My review is from an imp of unknown age, so I don't know how it would square with something fresh. That said, though, I really liked Rome. It was a more "dried" green scent than fresh – lots of juniper and cypress, some camomile, a little rose. It was very unisex, not strong, but it did fade quickly – I'd probably put it in my hair if I wanted it to last all day.

Glasgow+my skin and nose=not meant to be. I like the scent of heather, and the berry in some other BPAL scents, but somehow the fruit and floral combined on me to amp an extremely-sweet bathroom scent. Augh.

I recently got my hands on an imp of Faiza and am in looove with the scent... Suggestions for a GC substitute?