Laurel the Woodfairy

Does anyone who's actually sniffed Victoriana.Goth have a GC suggestion? That's my new Holy Grail scent! In terms of notes, it sounds rather like Les Fleurs du Mal and Ode on Melancholy, but you never know, which is why I'd like to hear from a "real live" sniffer!

Every time I see this thread title I have a Pulp Fiction moment.

What do bottles and labels look like?

Do they look like a bitch?!!!

When I moved from Seattle to North Carolina, angelfish323 and I spent several hours bubble-wrapping the hell out of all of my bottles, then packed them in a large box with yet more bubble-wrap. We also taped the necks of every last one of the buggers. Then I mailed them to myself in a box with a lot of insurance on it and only one out of >100 leaked a little. No breakage.

Spicy bubblegum. I wasn't sure what BPAL's daisy note would smell like, but I was hoping for something a little like the discontinued Happy Daisy from B&BW, which was a clean, light floral. This...isn't. I usually love carnation, but all I'm smelling is bubblegum with sneezy pepper on top. Do not want.

Hm, I was hoping to get carrots and herbs from this, just b/c that would be so different from any other BPAL I have. However, my skin is amping something floral: it smells like sweet pea, but I guess it must be morning glory. There's something earthy underneath, but overall it reads as green-floral on me. I'll keep the imp b/c Witch's Garden is a kick-ass name, but it's not as weird as I hoped!

For some reason I associate the Little Wooden Doll with the Slightly Haunted Dollhouse...I can picture her living there! Anyway, this scent started out worrisome: wet, it was all wood for a second, like Cathedral + wood pencil shavings. However, almost at once it settled into a really lovely, warm sandalwood/amber blend with rose peeking out. Nicely rounded, with decent throw although it didn't last as long as I expected considering that I really slathered. This goes perfectly with the Rose-Sandalwood shower gel from B&BW I'm using right now. A woody, warm variant on rose suitable for fall/winter weather, as opposed to spring and the more truly floral scents.

Whoa, this is not what I expected! I was hoping for something akin to Black Orchid, which I've tried and liked. It's nothing like that, however. In fact, if I didn't know better I'd think I had an odd batch of Fae here: Fae is awful on me, tragically, and Phantom Queen has that same cloying-sweet fruity floral combo. It's apple blossom instead of peach, but my skin seems to have eaten any green herbal notes it had and amped the fruit and flowers to icky proportions, then dried into baby powder. What a shame! Maybe apple blossom will have to go on the list of notes that go weird on me.

Wet, The Rose smells similar to Rose Red, as others have said, but it's actually even better as a GC ringer for Madeline from Dark Delicacies: fresh rose with a lot of greenery, and something a little sharp underneath as it dries. However, it vanished before I even finished my commute to work--less than half an hour! So, "the promise of a rose" is more like the mirage of a rose! I have a vast collection of rose scents (gotta catch 'em all) and this doesn't compare with my favorites, Peacock Queen and Two, Five, Seven, for throw and staying power. I will use up my imp but not get a bottle.

Honestly, this is just grasping for things to attack me with.

Late to the party, but just wanted to tell Beth that, as usual, she is awesome. Not many posts on here make me tear up, but damn, girl, yours did!. I love you and all the Labbies. And Forumites.

Also, I am internally amused by all the stuff about "haute" parfum vs. Yankee Candle-scents, because I wear BPAL exclusively and it is honestly hard to out-snob me!

I received an empty bottle from my decant circle with just enough in it to test. Carlin starts out green and fresh, with a lovely hint of heather, but goes quite soapy on me and fades quickly. I'm glad I have the bottle with the pretty witch logo, but I don't mind not having much of this, as there are other "green" scents I prefer.

I love this scent. It reminds me of Harvest Moon 2005 (which I still have and wear) but better. Harvest Moon was all apples and spice and could be a bit sharp and definitely could go to Yankee Candle territory. Lambs-Wool has all those apple and spice notes *plus* the softening influence of cream and sugar. It's foodier, softer, and just more wearable. Delightful as an alternative to Samhain, which I wear almost non-stop in the autumn.

Princess Leia would have inherited a large case filled with crystal bottles of the Warrior Queens series, from her mother. After testing them all, she would settle upon Boadicea as her signature: "Rebel Queen of the Iceni, she led an uprising of the tribes against the Roman Empire." I mean, come on, how perfect is that?! The notes are: Amber, fig, vanilla flower, oak, patchouli, vetiver, dragon’s blood resin, leather, and neroli.

Whereas her mother Queen Amidala, would have preferred Jingu: "Although she was pregnant with the future emperor of Japan, she donned armor and rode into battle." Notes: Sakura, white orchid, mandarin, bamboo, red sandalwood, plum blossom, and lilac.

Luke would've been raised on Coyote but developed a fondness for Tristan whilst training with Yoda: "Dust on your trousers, mud on your boots, and stars in your eyes: redwood, tonka bean, white sandalwood, lemon peel, patchouli, rosewood, coriander, and crushed mint."

Yoda himself would go for Sea of Glass or something zen like Namaste. Or maybe Mag Mell: "The Plane of Joy, eternal reward for a lifetime of valor and glory...The warmth of amber, the puissance of white ginger and the clarity of verbena, with fresh green grass, lush sage and cleansing droplets of summer rain."

Han Solo would *have* to wear Casanova: "A rakish blend of leather, anise, lavender, bergamot and amber with tonka, lemon peel and lusty patchouli." Rakish = scruffy nerfherder.

Aaaand I've officially put too much thought into this.

I love Brides of Dracula but it's an LE...ditto on Lucy Westenra. I like the name to go along with the theme, so I'd probably zero in on Blood Countess (named for Countess Bathory) or Dracul. Or just go for Blood: "A vital, bold scent, throbbing with sensuality. Essence of dragon's blood resin, thickened with myrrh and cherry, with a trickle of clove." Hard to beat that!

When I was a wee fairy ( ), I would have been over the moon for any of the Marchen scents--fairytales! princesses! I would lost my mind over Belle Vinu and Rapunzel, especially. Also Mad Tea scents like The Unicorn and Alice, and the wonderful new Garden of Living Flowers. And probably anything fairy-related (Titania, Fae, Fairy Market, etc. etc.) or from Stardust, since it's such a romantic story.

Is it bad that, since I won't be having kids, I kind of hope my sister will so I can enable nephews and nieces??

ETA: Oh, and for a girl's pirate scent I would suggest Kill-Devil: "Rum punch... Sugar cane, molasses, oak wood, and honey" and Mary Read: "Salt air, ocean mist, aged patchouli, sarsaparilla, watered-down rum, leather-tinged musk, and a spray of gunpowder."

Short review: Strawberry Moon is made of crack; you will sniff your wrist off.

Long review: I am so glad I bought this sight unsniffed, which I rarely do. I adore Bon Vivant and Strawberry Moon sounded even better. I was right. This is THE strawberry scent. In the bottle it is so fresh, so true, like a concentrated SN. On my skin, it's more complex. Wet, it's candy-sweet, but still natural, not cloying. Drying, the green notes bloom and add a tang that balances the sweet. There was a moment where it threatened to go too acidic--I can see how it could turn medicinal with some chemistries. For me, though, it righted itself and became softly sweet vanilla-strawberry on the drydown. I could bathe in this. It is a joyous, juicy, summery scent that goes with a sundress and a picnic.

A frimp from the Lab...lotus has never been good for me, but then, I love saffron and other spices, so we'll see! Dabbing it on, the lotus immediately makes itself known, in the guise of bubblegum. It is very odd to smell bubblegum over sandalwood! I'm afraid the lotus is ruining an otherwise very rich wood/spice blend; it just isn't a note I can wear. It smells like Cathedral underneath, but I can't get past that topnote. Drat.

This was a generous frimp from the Lab--I'm nervous about the notes; I love violet and lily of the valley, but typically find juniper and cypress too heavy. Still, I'll give it a try! Hm, I get a surprisingly true violet--nothing sweet to turn it into violet candy, just a hint of green as though I had come across violets growing wild. I like it! I don't know that I would wear it often but it's nice and much more wearable than I expected. Very pretty. Violet always makes for an unusual, standout scent.

June Gloom will always stand out in my mind as one of the two LEs that were live when I first joined the Forum in June 2004. The other, of course, was my lady Havisham. I tested the original June Gloom; it was almost all lemon on me, very "clean" but not complex. However, I jumped to buy a bottle when it re-launched, because the new description sounds good and what if it's another 5 years before it returns?!

In the bottle, June Gloom (with awesome skully label!) is lush, white, hothouse floral--gardenia and/or magnolia. I really didn't expect that! On me, it's musky under the floral. The topnotes remind me of Swan Maiden, another LE. I don't get citrus at first, but then it starts to emerge. I see what others mean about it smelling "cologny". I wish there were more citrus, actually. This is nothing like JG '04, and definitely not a clean scent...it's a strong musky floral, very complex. I expected light aquatics on top, but those notes are buried in the middle, unfurling slowly. At first I didn't like it, but it's growing on me. It brings to mind a humid Southern summer day, rich white blossoms wilting in the heat, steam rising from a lake. In short, it wouldn't provide a refreshing counterpart to a hot June day--rather, it captures its somnolence perfectly. It's romantic, and I like it more with each sniff. Perfect for a midsummer night date!

If you're a fan of Pink Sugar (I am), my holy grail BPAL is and will always be Midway...on me it's cottn candy + sex. YMMV, though: some people get butter, some get funnel cake. I get candysex . The reviews for the prototype Tilt-a-Whirl make me hope it will be released eventually too. There are so many sweet/foody scents, but Midway is the main one that has a light spun-sugar feeling to it instead of something heavier. Sticky Pillowcase is also a fun, light candy scent *but* is not sexy.

For a winter wedding, I would recommend Szepasszony, which is SUCH an underrated GC! I have a bottle and wear it all winter: "clear, airy notes, slashing rain, and a thin undercurrent of white flowers." The description of her sounds like a bride: "a stunningly beautiful woman in a blinding white dress". Plus she is the Winter Witch, which I think is rad for a pagan wedding.

I am so glad I wore Two, Five, & Seven for my spring tea-party wedding; it could not have been more perfect. Utterly romantic and feminine, but fresher and sweeter than some of my other rose favorites. And now I smile whenever I smell it.

Beth should just go ahead and label this "Handfasting, Squee!" because if you have reason to use it... ! Buying my bottle has actually been one of the things that's made my impending wedding seem the most real. I will be using it to anoint our handfasting cord before the ceremony, and also our rings, my bouquet...everything I can think of to weave a love spell around us both on the happiest day of our lives. I am testing it today because we are going to get our marriage license!

In the bottle, Handfasting smells like citrus over what I can only describe as "the TAL smell"...that rich, herbal scent you find as a base in many of these blends. Lightly testing it, I smell strong, sharp lemon verbena on top of something warmer and "chewier", perhaps herbs combined with musk or a touch of resin? It's a little sharp to use as a wedding day perfume, which of course isn't really its intent anyway, but it will impart a lovely bright scent to all the ritual items used in Handfasting. And now...one more !

I told my Fiance that I would pass King of Hearts on to him after reviewing...although I have to admit the notes don't sound much like him, so we'll see. It would be so appropriate for him, in my majorly biased opinion, as the king of my *takes a sniff* Um, yeah, he'll hate this! I like it, actually: cleanly lavender with a hint of cherry that quickly fades and leaves a "chewy" sort of musk, if that makes any sense. I think it would be a good scent for gents who tend to like lavender, but I know mine does not. Alas.

I have a couple of Mad Tea imps that I need to review, as I want the full line on hand as wedding favors at my Mad Tea wedding. The Knave smells...both delicious and weird! I mean, I can smell a lovely buttery scent with currant, like Eat Me with less vanilla and more pastry. And I can smell rose, one of my favorite notes. I'm not sure how I feel about the combo! To me those are very different categories of scent, and I like Eat Me b/c it is all gourmand and rose scents like 2, 5, 7 because they are all floral. I wouldn't say this smells bad, but my nose is really confuzzled right now.