eml298

Yes, reading zankoku_zen's helps me feel less crazy. I fell madly in love with the Lick It! candle from several (five?) years ago, which was never to be made again. I've had several versions of Lick It! over the years in perfume oil form. I like the vanilla mint scent in perfume form, but I LOVE it in home fragrance form. When this came live, I bought two bottles post haste. I just sprayed one for the first time today. Brownies. Brownies with some mint in there. There's an icy after thought, but I don't get the vanilla mint I typically expect with this scent. So, if minty chocolate is your thing, you should definitively stock up on this. It's not an overwhelming, buttery chocolate, but rather a cool one - Thin Mints (as suggested by ZZ) is an apt comparison. 

I am not good at reviews. Thus, although I've been with BPAL since 2006, I am unsure if I've ever written a review - maybe one?

Antique Lace is one of my all-time favorite scents. I love it. In all my years of BPAL-dom, it's one of two I've paid heavily for, and not regretted it. I love AL, and I know AL on my skin.

Stekk is AL with a non-buttery*** marshmallow note *on me.* The AL aspect is about 80-90% of what floats up to my nose, with the remaining 10-20% being the all-white, fresh (not cooked) marshmallow veil.

Love. Serious hoarding happening here.

***I *hate* buttery notes with a passion. HATE.

I am horrible with reviews, and I think I start them all that way, but I owe Crypt King a try...

In the bottle: OMFG. Brilliant. Mild patch, oakmoss, very vague pomegranate, and wood?

On skin in first few minutes: As usual, I amp cologne-type notes. However, while I often amp them to the point of having to wash them off, this one remained enjoyable.

On the drydown: Cologne note dissipated, and there's this sexy, very well-blended, slightly dry, slightly spicy NOM left behind. There's vague pom in the background, but only if I'm looking for it. I actually really, REALLY like this. I agree with Aldercy about this being unassuming yet deadly sexy.

*On a side note, this is the kind of scent that often morphs into CRAZYSEXYDOMENOW on Mr. EML298. He is eager to test it, and is a huge fan of it in the bottle but had already applied Schwarzer Mond (his signature) when I presented this to him to sniff.

I rarely write reviews as I don't believe I'm very good with them. That said, I owe it to Tattered Lace to weigh in, at least.

A little relevant background: I gifted my bottle of Antique Lace right before it disappeared from the Lab, and have regretted it ever since. A few blends have been somewhat reminiscent (like Joyful Moon with its added rose note), but none have really been a fair replacement.

This scent, however, comes very, very close to satisfying my AL craving. It's definitely in that same family - maybe nonidentical twin? Each time I wear it, it smells a little different in the wet stage. Once it dries, though, there's that familiar and beloved ethereal and creamy vanilla wafting on smooth tea and spice. It's close to the skin for me, but a winner even to my husband's nose - which is very rare for a sweeter scent.

Overall, I am in love, and have purchased multiple back-ups.

This is my first review, so of course I am anxious about it. I don't have the nose to pick out specific scents as many of you do, but here goes...

In the vial, this scent neither wooed me nor bothered me. It was simply there.

Once I put it on, it reminded me of two scenarios:

1) an industrial-type kitchen. Not one at a restaurant, but at someone's home. Their decor is cold and austere.

2) When I was a kid, we used to go this this place in the mountains referred to as "Slippery Rock". It was basically a natural waterslide. A waterfall fell over large rocks, and people slid down it. There were trees and flowers surrounding the area, but the large rocks were the predominant geography.

So, this scent is simply cool and earthy to me.

Once it dried, a bit more of the floral sweetness surfaced, though it is not the typical floral I think of (I am not a floral girl). This sweetness simply prevents the fragrance from being totally cool. It gives it the slightest hint of warmth, but not much at all.

I like Nocturne. It would be right for a solemn, pensive day for me.