mountainwitch

On 5/12/2020 at 4:33 PM, niffler said:

I couldn't think of a book scent without leather off the top of my head and just went to search here on the forums, BPAL's website, Etsy, and even straight up Google thinking, "I swear I've seen one before, surely there must be one here..." No such luck. You're absolutely right @mountainwitch, they ALL seem to have incense or leather in the mix if they're "old" books. What the heckity heck?? 

 

I'll continue to keep an eye out (would love an old paperback scent myself). I think part of the problem is that the old book smell is made up of so many compounds, and people fill in the blanks with a smidge of leather or incense as the books often absorb those smells anyway... 

 

 

So it's not just me! I feel better, at least. Please do let me know if you find something!

 

@feyofthefellwood 
Thank you for the recommendation. I am going to look those up. I haven't tried much from either, so let's see what happens. 

@artisjok

I tried Billet-Doux when it was new; back then I thought it was more of a light, barely-there floral than a paper scent. That could be my chemistry, however. 

 

I've also tried Bristol Two-Ply, and I even tried India Ink too. WOW Bristol Two-Ply smells like paper! It's like standing in a good art store with pads and big sheets of watercolor paper. It is exactly what it says it is, but not old books. 

BOOKS was completely under my radar. I'm going to see if I can try that one. 

Thanks very much! 

I've been looking for a good book scent for years. Here's my problem: almost every book scent I've tried includes leather. Leather tomes, leather chairs, etc. As much as I love a good leather smell, I just want to smell like old paperbacks . . . That wonderful smell of crumbly pages. But every book scent I try goes leather or incense, and I've been looking for something different. 

 

Any ideas? 

At first this was WHOA NELLY green, crisp and fresh and sharp. After it took a few minutes to settle down, however, I think I'm in love with it. The bark reminds me of a long-lamented discontinued favorite, Hesperides. "A Man in Armour" doesn't have that sweet yellow apple, of course, but what it does have is a wonderful fragrance, brought together with benzoin. For me, this is a keeper for sure.

 

 

I hadn't looked at the notes in this since it was released; when I tried a sample, I was pretty much a clean slate. I get jam. A big reddish-purple rich jammy jam. On toast. Serious dark toast. I am, in fact, shocked that the notes aren't jam on toast!

Nanny Ashtoreth, one of the Good Omens scents in the Gaiman category, is one of the leatheriest leathers I have ever smelled. It lists other notes too:

Middle Eastern flowers, amber, honey, blood red-berries, whip leather, and polished paddle wood.

 

But I get mostly glossy black whip-leather.

 

Whip has a similar kind of leather, at least to my nose, but it also has a very powerful rose. If Snake Oil makes you happy, you might give Western Diamondback a try; I really liked this one, especially after it aged a bit. Others that are harder to find include De Sade, sadly discontinued; Quincey Morris, a very cool old LE; A Bachelor's Dog, which was an April Fool's Day Salon scent; and C. Auguste Dupin, which I remember as a rich, buttery-armchair kind of leather, if that makes sense.

 

I haven't tried all the riders yet, but I was also very impressed by Red Rider. I'm looking forward to giving this one a longer try-out period.

 

Why yes, I like leather too--can you tell?

Wet, this reminds me of melons--lightly fruity, sweet in a restrained way. (Glad to see Ellebelle mentioned this too, or I’d think I was losing my mind.) As it tries the sweet strawberry emerges, and I can get just a hint of peach--but it still hits me as something like melons, like a bowl of chilled chunks of honeydew and sliced strawberries. Not for me, but different and lovely.

In the vial, this was pure WHOA NELLY CHERRY CHAPSTICK! On my skin, it seems to take a deep breath, stretch out, and relax into a dark vanilla muskiness colored with fruity sweetness. Wow. Other etailers I’ve tried always leave me cold with their cherry blends, but this is really pleasant, really attractive, and not ChapStick or air-freshener at all. I agree with the comment that it’s reminiscent of Velvet Unicorn, but Gothabilly is darker, the kind of thing you could wear while watching the fireflies on a warm summer night. Wow.

A clean, citrusy smell, but without the punchy super-lime of F5, which remains one of my favorite hot-day-in-the-summertime scents. Definitely a hint of hard-candy tartness. Couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was so familiar until some forumites mentioned the similarity to the old champagne scents . . . That’s it exactly! It’s like a cocktail made with Sprite, Mountain Dew, and champagne.

Smells like . . .

 

Trick #1.

 

Seriously, I put this on, and it smells just like what I loved about Trick #1 when I first put it on. The notes in that, if you missed it, were "Volcanic red musk, vanillaean, Queen Elizabeth root, red ginger, skin musk, black leather, honeycomb, honeysuckle, magnolia, and patchouli." Compared to "Red musk, ambergris, coconut palm, red sandalwood, balsam, date, warm leather, tobacco, ebony, lingum vitae wood, pandanus grass, an' a touch o' lime" . . . There aren't so many notes in common; perhaps it's the red musk/leather combination that makes this such a dead ringer on me.

 

Trick #1, as it got older, kept getting stronger and stronger in the red musk department, and ultimately I ended up swapping it away. Here's hoping that Pirate Moon stays as darkly sexy and balanced as it is right now.

I've tried some of the other ozone-type scents, and they're generally very hit-or-miss with me--usually miss! There's not a hint of dryer-sheet with this one, however. As mentioned earlier, it's a very soft scent, but it still has staying power, lingering for several hours after application. It reminds me a little of Lightning--maybe because that's one of the only ozone-scents I can wear! After a direct comparison, however, Lightning emerges as a stronger citrus, a sharper scent with more powerful throw. Lightning is more of a bright-citrus flare, while Door 13 is more subtle and quiet, like soft purple skies and the distant muttering of thunder.

We tried eight scents (Phobos, Thanatos, Dragon's Claw, Othello, Shanghai, Kyoto, a posset, and Alecto). Everything was too sweet or too floral and what could not possibly be either turned soapy. I would have given up on BPAL for him if I had not convinced him that Morocco suits him, and a Tokyo Stomp is on the way. Yay!

 

My boyfriend smells great in vanilla-type fragrances. He's almost run through a bottle of Dorian all by himself. Tombstone, mentioned upthread, is another favorite of his--he's exhausted one imp and wants a whole bottle. He smelled pretty good in Bow and Crown of Conquest too.

 

I'd also second the Golden Priapus; the juniper, rosewood, and white pine notes definitely add a more masculine edge. (Although I really like to wear that one myself. ) Lyonesse is a sweet one too, but there are notes of grey amber and ambergis which always make me think that it could work well on a man.

 

Of course, if worst comes to worst, you can always take the vanilla SN he likes and layer it with other complementary fragrances too.

I think Allison Gross will now be my late-summer scent. Just a rich, golden green . . . Wonderful. Another late-summer pick would be Sepulcher. It's discontinued, but it was resurrected a while back and still appears on the Sale list at reasonable prices, so I don't feel TOO bad about recommending it. It's got this powerful sweetgrass note that reminds me of baskets set out in a Charleston bazaar, breathing their perfume in the hot summer sun.

 

Moving into fall . . . Harvest Moon 2006 is pure September to me, with those great early autumn notes and apples. Singing Moon has a very similar feel to me, but without the apple-sweetness; I think it's the first scent that just screams "autumn" to me without being foody in the least.

 

Man, all expired LEs and discontinueds . . . I really should list something from the General Catalogue! I guess the GCs that seem most like early autumn to me are the soft, smoky mysteries of Morgause and Lampades. Morgause smells like twilight in a bottle, while Lampades, with its smoky sweetness, is perfectly evocative of moving from the juicy days of summer into the darkness of autumn.

 

There are other scents that are just pure autumn--Jack (of course!) and Samhain, Samhainophobia, Trick or Treat, etc. But those are more "real autumn" scents (in other words, October!) for me, not really "summer transition" scents.

 

August-September is a beautiful time of year. It deserves a little love of its own.

Dian’s Bud, it seems, is both a reference to “nipple” and to wormwood. In that vein, of all the wormwood/absinthe themed blends I’ve ever tried, this one is made for me. There’s just a hint of absinthe-like green at first, sweet as crystallized sugar. Then it unfurls into a subtle, complex, heart-melting floral.

 

Of all the Midsummer scents I ordered, this is the one that makes me happy.

I tried this shortly after Berenice, and at first it was so fresh and clean that I thought I was still sniffing Berenice. But House of Mirrors is something altogether more wonderful.

 

As it begins to dry, HoM has a sort of freshness I’ve come to associate with things like Sea of Glass—in fact, I'm pretty sure that to like one is to like the other, unless there's an amber issue. It's not really a lemon or grapefruit scent, but it has the same kind of crisp snap. It's difficult for me to to describe, but it's a truly lovely, clean scent. Under the glitter is a perfect amber that never turns powdery on me. I can wear this anywhere, and it still smells clean, classy, elegant. At night, in the morning—anytime, anywhere.

 

This is truly one of my perfect scents.

Of course I expected this one to be an aquatic. But it's a very fresh, clean, green scent. Very nice; I can almost envision the water pouring down like a creek through the grassy hills. Hints of flowers, but mostly very fresh and meadow-like.

On me, this scent is SANDALWOODSANDALWOODSANDALWOODSANDALWOOD(coconut). Seriously, I'm afraid I work the sandalwood just too hard to get much of anything else. Generally I love the sandalwood (Eshe, Khajuraho, Khajuraho, Dragon's Bone . . .) but here it's the only note that really comes out to play.

 

This is just me, however. On a friend this turned into a lovely blend. For her the primary note was coconut, but this was NOT the smell of a pasty suntan lotion. Instead it was a warm and fuzzy blend, not "foody" but good enough to eat (if that makes any sense). Out of all the new releases in the last batch, this one proved to be the surprise hit with her. Brown Jenkins will work for either men or women, too; I suspect this one will gain a lot of fans.

DCXCIX

 

I was kindly frimped with a decant of DCXCIX. This is only the third chaos theory I've tried, but wow, what a strange one. When I put it on, it was at first a dead ringer for storebought fruit cake. No, really. Nuts, spices, candied cherries, plastic wrapper, and all. As time goes on it's becoming more citrus, the fruit-cake spiciness taking a back seat to some citrus freshness (oranges, or maybe even tangerines).

 

I swear they could have relabeled this blend and sold it as a Yule blend. Christmas Snacks--a big slice of fruitcake and a stocking full of oranges!

Nope, haven't really tried any other foody scents. The closest to another "foody" is probably Dana O'Shee, which goes kinda powdery, but in a pleasant, almondy way.

 

The currants in Eat Me are really nicely balanced in when it's still wet on me, but afterwards is a little....icky.

 

Hmm . . . I wish I could think of some more mainstream "cake" scents, so you could experiment and see if it's the note or just the blend that's so off-putting. (I have an imp of Dana O'Shee, but I haven't gotten to test it yet--sinus issues are slowing me down. )

 

The only two blends I've tried that gave me a similar cake note were All Souls and Monster Bait: Closet. If I hadn't swapped mine back in the day, I'd send you some to test. On the plus side, both of these are LEs, and I can't think of any more really cakey scents . . . At least nothing that turned into rancid butter on my friend's skin . . . So I guess if worst comes to worst, and you turn cake batter into bad butter, at least you won't run into the problem very often!

 

Good luck aging your imp, and I hope that it works out for you--

Anyone have an impression on how Eat Me ages? It's way too...buttery...on me right now, but I'm wondering if that goes away with time. It's probably going to end up in the swaps if it doesn't.

 

I don't know about how it ages, but I do have a friend who turns cake scents into pure butter. Monster Bait: Closet was particularly disastrous for her. While it was a total blackberry boozefest on me, on her it turned into the very distinctive scent of greasy cakepans.

 

But I don't want to discourage you--maybe your imp is just too new/unsettled/whatever. Have you ever tried anything else with a cake-like note, like maybe All Souls?

Mmm . . . This is a darker one, never mind the "stark white ink" on the bottle. It actually reminds me of the Trick fragrances from the Halloween Inquisition; it's got that same kind of dark, intriguing sexiness. And blackberry . . . I love blackberry . . . It also reminds me of Bitter Moon--must be that blackberry and sage--but without the piercing or smoky quality Bitter Moon had for me.

 

I can't usually wear patchouli, but this is one of those really happy exceptions. The citrus doesn't take over, either; sometimes perfectly good scents have been ruined for me by something vaguely lemony (lemongrass, verbena, bergamot, whatever) getting too big for its britches and deciding to run the show.

 

I'm really loving the Heartache.

I've never had a pear scent I liked . . . But this could be the one! It doesn't scream "PEAR!" Or, for that matter, "ROSE!" None of these notes steals the show for me. Instead, together, they become a wonderful rich blend. I was afraid this scent would be pure fruitiness, and I didn't want another candylike blend . . . And Longing isn't. It's just this perfectly sweet, sexy fragrance that just makes me want to melt. Now that's a Valentine fragrance!

I was expecting something flat-out hot and spicy with this . . . Instead I was pleasantly surprised! This is a more subtle spiciness, like the light in the wild men’s eyes . . . These wild men are wearing well-tailored suits, horns hiding in their perfect hair.

 

It smells pretty good on wild women, too.

Tapped a bit of this one out of the cap, and suddenly it looked like I'd sprouted an extra mole. Seriously, when people say this one is thick and dark, they are not kidding.

 

Very strong cocoa, and very sweet. It's a sort of muzzy scent, as if the cocoa were intoxicated by the Snake Oil (or perhaps the other way around!). All of the other notes, for me, were fuzzed up by all that cocoa. I don't think this is the snake for me, but I can definitely see the appeal!

The tobacco and bourbon made for a very rich, dark combination on me, almost chocolatey. The "sleazy cologne" made things a touch too sweet, and bay rum usually strikes me as very masculine.

 

However, I wouldn't say Isaac is necessarily masculine scent. Two of my friends, one male and one female, tried it simultaneously. Both of them have very similar chemistries; what one wears, the other can usually wear as well. On the woman, it started out too strong and heavy, but within about fifteen minutes it had settled into something sweet, intriguing, sexy. On the man, it was less sweet; more of the masculine bay rum scent "popped" . . . Same scent, similar chemistry, but on him it was undeniably a powerful masculine scent.

 

Looking at the small number of reviews for this one so far, it looks like some fans may be a little leery of trying Isaac, but if you're curious I would definitely recommend giving this one a shot. You might be surprised . . . There's just no telling what might happen if you dance with the Living Skeleton!

Usually I can't wear caramel, but damn. This is a rich, warm, sweet, wonderful scent. Gluttony was too much for me; Sugar Skull 05 was very much like syrupy pancakes. But Anaconda had a warm slithery charm. I would absolutely buy a bottle of this if I could.

 

My friends and I tried Anaconda at a party. (Some people do drugs at parties; my friends and I just sniff things. And drink. But at least we don't drink the BPAL. ) On one chemistry, it really did the awful plastic smell that some reviewers described. But on the proud owner of the Snake Pit, Anaconda was a sweet and sexy miracle. On him, it was . . . Fabulous. Divine. Drool-inducing. All the women at the party, suddenly finding themselves strangely hungry, started passing around his arm. I think we scared the poor guy . . . At least we left his arm attached.

 

Anaconda may not guarantee everyone warm and sweet delights; this is one picky, picky Snake! But when the chemistry is a perfect match, and that sugary magic happens . . . It could just be dangerous going out without an escort.