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forspecial_plate

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  1. forspecial_plate
    First applied, this is lovely! Right away it's very sweet to me, and I don't really know which note is so sweet unless it's the opoponax. Anyway.....I can also smell the rain note, and it's the most lovely, delicate aquatic scent that I have experienced. It's so light and fragile that it's almost lost in the blend, but just strong enough that it stands out if you're 'looking' for it. I love aquatics and this aspect is stunning, but overall I don't consider this an aquatic scent.
     
    After the scent warms and dries on my skin, it seems to actually get stronger. It loses a little bit of the complexity of the very first stage, and the sweetness starts to get to me a little bit. I don't like honey in perfume, and this starts to remind me of honey somewhat.....a little cloying. And this stuff really has staying power and strength!
     
    I can really understand the comparisons to Samhain, but this reminds me even more of Autumn, except without the rose in that scent. I'm going to try applying with a lighter touch, and I refuse to give up on this scent, even though it turns too strong and a little cloying with the honey sweetness. What I learned from Samhain is that after 3 years, the sweetness balanced out with the other notes and it became something almost heartbreakingly beautiful. I hope for the same thing to happen with Falling Leaf Moon!
  2. forspecial_plate
    I usually keep this about scent but I have to rant and rave for a minute.
     
    I am so annoyed by people who write useless reviews on this forum! I realize their review might be useful to someone else. But it makes me feel like I wasted time clicking on the post to read it. I'm talking about when someone floods the reviews forum with very short reviews which basically reiterate the description of the scent (the Lab's description), and nothing more. And the very worst are when the person says "Oh, I couldn't even try this on my skin!". In my opinion, if you haven't tested it on your skin, you shouldn't review it!
     
    If you're reading this and you have written this type of review, don't take it personally. I am just in a ranting mood and it's a small pet peeve I have. I totally understand the value of writing a review as a form of 'note to self', which is actually one of the reasons I write reviews. Otherwise I can forget that I've already tried a scent and don't need to try it again. So in other words, don't change your writing habits just because of me! : )
     
    /rant
  3. forspecial_plate
    I've been meaning to complain about this for a while but was never sure where to do it. Let me just get it out of my system so I can move on.
     
    I get so irritated when I see someone post: "Oh, just buy the bottle! Even if you don't like it, you can always swap it later!" Um, I disagree that it's totally easy to just swap stuff away.
     
    I have had lots of good swaps, and even successful sales, so don't get me wrong. Also....I do not bump my swaps/sales posts a whole lot, not even once a week. Usually I'll give it a bump just to keep it from being sent to the post cemetery. So it could possibly be said that I don't try hard enough.
     
    BUT.......
     
    I couldn't even swap away rares like Vanilla Bean SN, Corazon, Ice Queen, Snow Angel......things I wanted to swap for stuff on my wish-list, which IMO is a pretty long one and not too narrow. And I don't think I was being too picky about what I would swap for. A single note for a single note......well, that's what most everyone else does, isn't it? A whole bottle of Samhain sat on my swaps/sales pages for weeks, until I finally decided I would rather just keep it. In fact, I took pretty much everything off my posts and even retired my swaps post.
     
    Actually I'm not completely bitter. Part of it is indecision on my part. I hate to get rid of something unless I'm absolutely sure it's not going to work for me (Pruno, Selkie, ahem....). I'm glad I didn't get rid of Samhainophobia because it turns out I really do like it. Also....I don't regret my purchases. I have found a new hobby and I feel more enriched because of it. : )
  4. forspecial_plate

    The Salon

    By forspecial_plate,

    Since it has so many of my favorite scents, I think the Salon is my favorite of all the scent categories in the Lab's general catalogue. In light of that, I went back over the reviews and picked out a few that I want to try again. Some of them I even gave unfavorable reviews.....but still, I dare say that my nose is a little more seasoned now, and I may actually like them more now. And there were a couple that I traded or gave away and now I'm kicking myself....especially since they were the nice Lab labels from the imp packs.
     
    I even considered getting more imp packs!
     
    But I think what I'll do is continue going through my current (huge) stash of imps/decants, pick out the ones I don't want, and try another swapping post. This one will focus on the un-impables on my wish list. I figure since they are slightly harder to come by, it will be more of a challenging hunt.
     
    I also still think I would do well to just get decants from now on, and only get a bottle if something is just screaming at me to love it. With the sheer number of decants I already have, it's absolutely silly to buy more bottles since it would take forever even put a dent in them. For example, I traded for a bottle of Midnight On The Midway, which I hardly ever wear, even though I do love it. It's a scent for very particular moods.....when I'm feeling somewhat confident, sexy maybe, but also classy and refined. I could never wear it to work, it's just too emphatic.
     
    At work I've been wearing F5, Usher (bpal's Usher, not the commercial cologne), and sometimes CB I Hate Perfume scents......although now I can't remember which ones. Accords, I think....Snow and maybe Lava Rock. Tonight I didn't wear any kind of scent to work. I don't want to offend anyone so when I do wear something, it's very lightly applied.
  5. forspecial_plate

    aged Snake Oil

    By forspecial_plate,

    Today I broke out my first bottle of Snake Oil, since it's officially a year old now. What I noticed most is an increased sweetness. Also it smelled different on one forearm than on the other, like I didn't roll the bottle enough or something. It reminded me a lot of frankincense, which I don't think I've ever noticed about Snake Oil. But basically.....it just smelled really good!
  6. forspecial_plate
    ......the inner debate continues.
     
    I want Old Moon. I really do. All of this 'pining' I've been doing for a wintery/pine/fir scent (sorry, could not resist the pun).....and now people are saying this is the perfect one. On the one hand, I already have decants of Yuletide, Ice Queen, Death Of The Grave Digger, Jolasveinar, The Snow Storm, Mistletoe......Shivering Boy......Cloister Graveyard......in other words, many many wintery blends that I really like. More than I could use up in quite a long time. On the other hand.......that addition of 'lunar herbs and flowers' sounds soooo promising....makes me really lustful for Old Moon.......so I just don't know. I can't imagine that decants are going to be hard to find once people start getting this. But I haven't had a pending lab order in so long!
     
    Bottom line.....I have way too many bills right now. I just better sit this one out. : (
  7. forspecial_plate

    Duh....

    By forspecial_plate,

    I just realized I have 2 entries about custom scents that start out almost exactly the same! I totally forgot I had already written about that. *smacks forehead*
  8. forspecial_plate

    The Custom Scent

    By forspecial_plate,

    DSH Perfumes makes custom scents and ooooooh, how I'd love to get one. However, it's almost like getting a tattoo......it's kind of a big commitment and I would want to be sure I was getting the best one for me.
     
    [this is all hypothetical since right now I don't have 4 or 5 hundred bucks to throw around]
     
    My favorite scent is Djinn, but I wouldn't want another Djinn. The obvious choices would be resins, woods, musk.....smokey and incense.....perhaps opium. But really, do I want something obvious? Maybe I'd want a cleaner, fresh or spicey element in there. Ah dunno.....
     
    I even pulled up the questionnaire from DSH that she uses to get a handle on your scent personality. I like it because she asks some more abstract questions like what's your favorite color, what time of day/night do you like best. The questionnaire alone made me insanely curious as to what she would come up with for my scent. Then they send you 3 samples and go from there, I assume fine-tuning and whatnot.
     
    I know CB does the same thing, but after trying just a few samples from DSH I think I might like her style better. Nothing against CB but his scents are so light! I like them at times but as for a signature scent, something my very own, I think I'd want something stronger, more emphatic. Someday.....maybe........
  9. forspecial_plate

    random thoughts

    By forspecial_plate,

    Yesterday I was seriously considering making a resolution for 2008......decants only. Like, no bottles whatsoever.
     

     
    When I think about it, it makes sense. I've never used up a whole decant. My first bpal bottle, over a year old, would still pass for new if you just glanced at it. I'm really just a dabber. It's pretty ridiculous for me to buy a whole bottle of, for example, Beaver Moon. That was a total impulse scent buy and I really should have just searched out a decant instead of a whole bottle. There's no way I'll wear all that!! I like how it smells, but I know I won't wear it much. So, decants only for a year would make sense for me.
     
    Then I think about it. A whole year. That includes next year's Halloween blends and Yule scents. Decants are plentiful, but really.......could I really do that?? I don't think I could. I mean, what if some incredible forum-only scent came out? Or that one elusive scent that was made "Just for me!!"?
     
    Well, even though I won't do it for a whole year, I will definitely be curbing my bottle habits, lol. And also I need to seriously do some de-stashing (like everyone else it seems). I'm gradually working on that......testing imps, writing reviews on my laptop, and wrapping plumber's tape around the ones I know I'll be swapping. I'm keeping them in a small cigar box, and when it's full, I'll be posting them for sale/swap.
     
    Speaking of swaps......when I look at my wish list, I think to myself 'do I really need to try all those?'. So little by little I'm whittling that down, too.
  10. forspecial_plate
    I got so many decants today yesterday! Add that to the Lab order I got this week, and a couple other forum swaps this week also......I have a whole big bunch of new sniffies to try. I'm so glad tomorrow is Saturday, even though it's my weekend to work. I'll have time tomorrow to relax and try out all my new stuff. Well, I doubt I'll get to everything but I'll try a bunch.
     
    I already tried A Countenance Forboding Evil, and didn't like it much. : ( I usually like patchouli but it disagreed with me in this blend, for some reason. Maybe the ylang-ylang contributed some weirdness, because honestly I couldn't smell that note, but there was something there that just wasn't sitting right for me. I will, of course, try it again......maybe in a few days, maybe sooner.
     
    I also tried Monsterbait: Underpants and honestly......I wondered all day if I got a mis-labelled decant. It smells exactly like Morocco to me. I did some searching and found that some other people smelled the similarity, but really....I thought it really was Morocco and not Underpants. I told moonarcana I think she'll help me figure it out, she has a decant of Underpants.
     
    I tried both Christmas Rose and Buena Noche, and I liked B.N. much better. It did remind me a little of Chrysanthemum Moon (which I was hoping for), and later some soapiness came out (from the lily, probably). Christmas Rose was sharper than I was expecting, and almost aquatic with the snow note. Not sure that one is going to work for me but I'll be trying it again.
     
    Out of all the Yule LE blends this year, I know I want a bottle of Jolasveinar. Beyond that I don't know yet, I've got a lot of testing to do. I probably don't need a whole bottle of Buena Noche, but I might want one. I can't wait to compare Rose Red and Peacock Queen.
  11. forspecial_plate
    I went camping this weekend (well, I was in a cabin at a camp-site), and didn't bring any scent at all! I just figured, what's the point. I did bring my pillow and blanket. So I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into my cabin after a few hours and smelled......Snake Oil! Just the remnants that rubbed off my skin were enough to scent the whole cabin, not really strongly but enough that I knew it was from Snake Oil or the variations that I wear. Cool!
     
    As for the inquisition, I think I got the one I wanted most. I may swap a decant or two to try some of the other ones. I'm mostly interested in Egg'd Mailbox and maybe Pumpkin Smash. We'll see.
     
    I am so antsy to get my hands on my Halloween decants! Gimme! The CnS came yesterday. Now I'm worrying that Bonfire Night is going to be too sweet, based on the reviews so far. And still am up in the air about Sugar Skull. I really don't wear it that much, even though I love how it smells. Do I really need a whole bottle?
     
    And finally, the Possets Halloween update is enormous, even bigger than I thought it would be. There is one scent that I feel like came from a suggestion I made in the Possets forum, so obviously I need to get that one. And of course 7 or 8 others that sound tantalizing. I like how Fabienne doesn't list the notes for us. For me that makes it more fun when the scents are actually in my hands, and there's more anticipation, wondering what the hell is this going to smell like (Infernal Bar-B-Que, anyone??). So, I think I'll make a smallish order first, then read reviews, and make one more larger order in a couple weeks. I could wait and order everything at once, and get free shipping, but I really don't think I can wait that long. I really want to know what Bat Fur Cloak smells like, among others.
  12. forspecial_plate
    I'm resisting the urge to order another Trick Or Treat Inquisition scent. I keep telling myself, just wait....because I don't even know which scent I'll get with my first order, because Possets' fall update is at the end of the week, because bpal may or may not have an update coming soon....not to mention the other bpal Halloween scents that I want, that I still haven't ordered yet.....all very good reasons, but I want another Trick Or Treat order pending, dammit!
  13. forspecial_plate
    I have so many different perfumes now, that sometimes wearing just one isn't enough. I get too impatient to try something else. So I end up smelling like 2 or 3 different ones, and it kind of turns into perfume overload. Like they all just get lost in a cloud of too much smelliness. I'm getting better lately, though, and trying to be patient and just wear one for a while before trying another one. I still have quite a few new scents that I haven't reviewed or even tried yet. It's a little out of control, and when I look at my wish list, I kind of think to myself "you're kidding, right? you need MORE??".
     
    On a different note....I already knew that I like fall scents year-round, including in the heat of summer. Lately, though, I've noticed that I don't reach for the 'red' summer scents, now that I'm in a fall mood. Red Moon and Corazon are two examples, I just haven't felt like wearing them at all lately. Maybe that's because I'm sooo hyped about the fall scents right now. I do sometimes like the winter scents in different seasons. I wore Jolasveinar and Midnight Mass a few times over the summer.
     
    Speaking of fall scents, I'm starting to wonder just a little about my decants. I've bought from this gal before so I'm not too worried, I'm just wondering what stage we're at......has the CnS come yet? Has she actually got the package yet? Are they on the way to us (doubt it)?? I'm just so impatient for these, so I can go ahead and place another order. Also, when I look at which Pumpkin Patch decants I ordered, I kind of wonder what I was thinking. I ordered 2, 4 and 5. Now I wish I could try 3 also. I'm pretty sure without sniffing that I'll like 3 and 5. I think I ordered 2 just to see how the champaca or champa plays out in it. It's a note that I like but it sometimes takes over a scent for me.
     
    I'm also really really excited about the Possets fall update, coming soon. One more week! I know I need to set aside at least $50 or $60 for that, probably more..... *sigh*
  14. forspecial_plate
    Okay, I found the gardenia thread. I'm adding Euphrosyne to the list, and maybe Pele. I absolutely cannot imagine giving my stepmom something called The Sacred Whore of Babylon, though. Maybe a decant with just 'Babylon' on the label. I wonder....if she ended up liking it, and I told her what it's called, would she still wear it?
  15. forspecial_plate

    fun, fun, fun

    By forspecial_plate,

    High drama in the ED tonight, but nothing new. We get homeless and/or destitute people who come in with a minor complaint, then after they are discharged they want to stay here in the waiting room for the rest of the night. It's cold outside and they either don't have anywhere to go, or don't have a way to get there. We do have cab vouchers for people, but the charge nurse is usually particular about giving them. I understand their point of view, because once you start giving them out, people want them all the time, every time they come here. So sometimes, people are told no, you cannot have a cab voucher. But then they want to stay in our waiting area, which they can't do. So security gets involved, and they will give a cab voucher to anyone, going anywhere. Another issue is they are only supposed to go to the address listed in their account (their home address). And some of them don't have a home address. So it becomes like a big puzzle. And I am kind of stuck in the middle of it, getting complained at by all sides. I am okay with whatever they decide, but it's not really up to me, so I just sit here looking kind of dumb.
  16. forspecial_plate
    Wow, I guess it's my turn in the barrel for forum problems tonight. I've had hour-long stretches where I couldn't get anywhere, because the page just kept loading and loading.....eeeeever so slowly. Apparently it has been going around lately.
     
    In other news, fingers are crossed because my requests are in for the last 4 Lupercalia decants that I wanted to try. Still waiting to hear if they're available or not. I had thought about risking a bottle unsniffed again this time, but the choice is just too hard. I want to try them first. As usual, excited as heck about pending decants!
     
    More later if I am still this bored.....
  17. forspecial_plate

    Ginger

    By forspecial_plate,

    Ginger is a hit-or-miss note for me. I love Shub-Niggurath, but I don't like the ginger note in Saw Scaled Viper and War. I like Sudha Segara, but I don't love it, and I'm not sure I can smell the ginger in it. It smells more like sparkly lemon and lime to me. I have a wee sample of ginger essential oil from Nature's Gift, and I really like how it smells. Oh and I do like Pumpkin Queen, but I don't love it (wait.....PQ does have ginger, doesn't it?).
     
    I was reading reviews for Shub-Niggurath and couldn't believe all the variations people are smelling. I don't smell lemon at all when I wear it. And were there really different 'versions' of Shub? I always wonder if that's true or if it's just people's different perceptions of the same scent. I have a decant of pre-resurrection Shub, and also a bottle of the resurrected Shub, and they smell exactly alike to me. Of course, I don't know how old the decant is.
  18. forspecial_plate
    List of notes: "Bergamot, candied ginger, honey, patchouli, pepper, and dark cocoa"
     
    Well, this is quite a warm, cozy scent, very yummy, as could be expected just from reading the notes. But....it's not really a straight-up foody blend, and it's not quite as sweet as you might expect either. It's spicy but it's also very smooth and wearable, on the male side of unisex in my opinion, and just completely blended, with no notes standing out very much except maybe the ginger. I can't smell dark cocoa but I can tell it's there supporting. Overall I really like this and I'd love a larger bottle if it weren't so dang expensive. As it is, I'll keep wearing my little sample and maybe some day get a larger amount.
     
    Edit: I got busy here at work, so I didn't really finish what I was writing. This scent has a small component of the whole that adds some kind of strange salty or doughy part of the scent. It's just an interesting little twist that kind of reaches out from the scent from time to time.
  19. forspecial_plate
    Fruity wood, says the description, and that's what I smell. Interesting scent, reminds me of those fruity woody Serge Lutens scents. I like it but I don't think I'd wear it that often. I'll keep the sample unless I think of someone who would like it more.
  20. forspecial_plate
    Seriously, I have way too many samples of non-bpal perfumes and colognes, that I need to test and somehow keep track of what I've tried, what I liked, and what I haven't liked. I've been doing this to a certain extent here on my blog, and I'm going to continue to do it. So far not many of them have "wowed" me to wanting a whole big bottle. I might want to get more Chanel Pour Monsieur, or maybe Parfums de Nicolai's New York.
  21. forspecial_plate

    Lily!

    By forspecial_plate,

    Over the weekend I tested a number of scents including Kostnice and Sepulcher. Both of them turned horribly soapy on me. I guess lily is the note that they have in common, that caused so much trouble.
     
    They both developed a soapiness that got stronger and stronger until it was unbearable, and I had to wash them off. Not only that......both scents seemed to 'ruin' my nose for a good hour or two after I had washed them off. In other words, I tried putting on other scents that I really like, just to 'chase away' the horrid soapiness/memory of it, and nothing smelled right to me. It was kind of like trying to drink orange juice after brushing your teeth......everything smelled off in the aftermath of the soapy lilies!
     
    I don't think all lily notes have this effect. I swear I've tried other scents with lily that didn't cause such a violent reaction. But from now on I'll be eyeing that note warily. Already I'm afeared for 2 of the Yule scents (Noche Buena, and the one with candy-charcoal). Now, the candy charcoal one, I was already not real hopeful about because of the violets and lily. But I really want to like Noche Buena. We shall see!! I've already ordered decants of both.
  22. forspecial_plate

    10ml madness

    By forspecial_plate,

    I posted an ISO for 10ml bottles, and already I've got 3 coming to me! Well, 2 partials and one empty, but that's okay.....I can decant into the empty one (Morocco), if I get some imps or even a bottle (if I like it a lot, which I can barely remember what it smells like.......but I remember I liked it). The other 2 are Bloodlust which I've never tried, but looks promising, and Urd, which I do like, and have never really had an imp of my own....now I'll have plenty. So, that was more of a response than I was expecting! : )
  23. forspecial_plate
    More scent blogging because I'm boooored......
     
    The one good thing about doing laundry is, it's a good place to test scents. It's good because it takes a couple hours, my mind kind of wanders, and with the movement of my hands there is plenty of wafting so I get a good idea of 'throw'. So as my mind is wandering, I might forget what scent I put on, until it wafts up at me again. And the whole process has a little bit of zen that I enjoy.
     
    Other than that......I hate doing laundry. : )
  24. forspecial_plate

    my first post!

    By forspecial_plate,

    I'm starting this because I have 2 livejournal accounts, but I really don't participate in the bpal communities on lj. I used to be a member of a couple of them, but decided that my lj is not the place for my bpal trading. I still write about bpal stuff but I get the feeling that many people on my friends list probably don't care about bpal. So here I am.
     
    Friday I had dinner with my dad and stepmom, and told them a little bit about my perfume obsession. Actually, I told them about Fabienne and Possets. They both expressed interest, and they might go to a Final Friday where Fabienne opens her studio to the public (along with many other artists at the Pendleton Art Center). My point, and I do have one, is that I would like to make lists of imp packs for my dad and stepmom, sort of a bpal introductory selection of scents. My stepmom says she likes gardenia, so I did a search on the lab's site and came up with a few possibilities. The one that stuck out most was Le Serpent Qui Danse. I think she might like Antique Lace, although I myself have never tried it. She works for Clinique and would probably like the more traditional-smelling bpal perfumes, at least to start out. Other than that I have no idea what her tastes might be, so I'd like to come up with a range of styles for her to try.
     
    As for my dad, I would go for more masculine blends, obviously. The first one I thought of was Casanova. Maybe Whitechapel, Calico Jack, possibly Dracul. For both of them I'm going to stay away from limited edition scents, so in case they end up loving a particular scent we can definitely get more. That said, I would probably let them try some of my LE's, particularly from Carnaval Diabolique. Bonnie (my stepmom) might possibly like Midnight On The Midway, and heck, my dad could like it too (I love it, and I'm a guy).
     
    So for the next couple months I'll be keeping my eyes open for possibilities, and I think there are at least a couple recommendation discussions I'm going to peruse also.
  25. forspecial_plate
    Well, looks like I have to do a note-by-note breakdown for these.
     
    Harvest Moon......dry leaves, mulling spices, balsam fir, cedar, juniper berry, clove, saffron, damson plum, sage, yarrow, and lily twined with Dionysus' sacred grapes and ivy, a bounty of apple and pumpkin, and the amaranth and lingum aloes of Janus, all touched by a gentle breath of festival woodsmoke and sweet wine.
     
    The first nine notes are either 'yes' or 'sure, why not', then things start getting more complicated. Yarrow I just don't know about but I can handle herbal. And then lily....you know, I missed lily the first time I read the notes. Kind of snuck up on me and I usually don't like lily, so that is something to consider. Then we move on to some fruits, more herbs, woods, and smoke.....most of which I like, or don't hate.....except the grape is something to also consider. Overall, I could be interested, and I've never tried Harvest Moon before and this would be a good one to start with, because I do like most of the notes.
     
    Mabon.....Blackberry wine and apple with hops, English ivy, rosemary, hazel, sage, chamomile, sweetgrass, oak bark, wild nuts, and myrrh.
     
    I'm leaning towards no, because of the blackberry wine and nuts, although I might actually enjoy a fall herbal scent. The addition of myrrh makes me want to at least try a decant.
     
    Wildfire.....orris and rose together? No thank you. I don't think there's enough wood to temper those two powder/soap bombs.
     
    So, bottom line, if I'm feeling adventerous I might just grab a bottle of Harvest Moon before it goes bye-bye. Maybe a decant of Mabon if I see one. And I do want to sniff Wildfire, if it crosses my path, but I don't hold out much hope for that one.
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