Jump to content
Post-Update: Forum Issues Read more... ×
BPAL Madness!

alterosen

Members
  • Content Count

    1,635
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by alterosen


  1. Dorian (starts with CD so it's 400 something but the rest is too smudged)

    Beginning is strong tea/citrus with a whiff of something off-putting.  Maybe a hint of oudh, not poopy exactly but ever so slightly rank, kinda like leftover water from an old flower arrangement. Fortunately that note fades fast & the citrus becomes predominately bergamot: orange-y, slightly sharp. My husband thinks there's some rose here but I don't sense it. The drydown is vanilla musk with a citrus that is a little bitter. Intriguing.  

     

    Dorian CDIII (403)

    Dorian with sweet strawberries and lots of white musk. Simple but good. I love this one!

     

    Dorian CDVIII (408)

    Hint of evergreen, then nice strong Dorian vanilla musk. Maybe a bit of moss. This seems a bit more masculine than regular Dorian but still fairly unisex and is perhaps a little less sweet.

     


  2. Bottle of #61

     

    This could fit into the Gourmand category, no problem.

    Strong chocolate/cocoa powder, perhaps some honey and wood? There's a bit of tanginess that makes me guess honey. After a while, something gets quite dry/powdery feeling, maybe the woods but I'm leaning towards cocoa powder. I'm not seeing how this fits in as an Oriental, unless there could be some amber in it? Definitely dominated by the cocoa/chocolate.


  3. Pumpkin Latte (Espresso, pumpkin syrup, smoky vanilla bean, milk, raw sugar, and a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg) might be worth trying - it was available a few different years.

    Also Mornings in New Orleans (The scent of chicory coffee (au lait!) and sugared pastries) if the sugared pastries behave.

     

    The Buggre Alle This Bible is my favorite book scent - soft leather & papery sandalwood. The Book is similar but there is also a batch variation with a strong ink note, so you may be  lucky/unlucky depending on how much you like that note (I really, really don't).

     


  4. This is very berry-rific on me & I love it! I don't really notice the violet or chimney dust unless I search for them. My skin turns this into sweet berries with a candied, violet-tinged vanilla backdrop (both 2007 & 2013). It feels very purple.


  5. This was described to me as anise cookies & I have to agree! It opens with some clove, too, but that mostly fades/blends into the other spices. I noticed a slight warming sensation (though I'm not picking out cinnamon), so people with skin sensitivities may wish to approach with care. Scentwise, it's a sweet, spicy, comforting blend & I hope it gives me the boost I need to tackle some household projects.  


  6. My haunted house must have had a fire at some point because the wood here has sustained some smoke damage. I get a sweet, blackened wood note with cinnamon & a bit of syrup. Maybe this is a teakwood heavy version? No fresh cut cedar here (dad was a carpenter so I actually dig the smell of sawdust, but I'm not sensing it either). It gets more foody as it dries but I'm not loving it.


  7. I like all these notes but somehow this just didn't resonate with me. It was fine but I expected to love it. The lavender is a bit too herbal & the violet & orange blossom combined with the white musk make it too perfumey for my taste.  


  8. I was a little worried this would be too similar to Gingerbread, Vaniila Sugar & Pink Pepper but once the sandalwood warms up, it is its own gorgeous self. The Gingerbread blast at the beginning fades & becomes a supporting player to the vanilla & sandalwood with a bit of marshmallow wafting in and out. I don't notice a butter note but I do get hint of fruit once in a while that reminds me of Sugar Skull. I blind-bottled this one & have no regrets! 


  9. Mmm! Rather than anything metallic, I smell petrichor/wet stone layered with some berries & maybe a hint of herbs or woods. Drydown is mostly berries with a witchy, dancing at a stone circle vibe. I really like this & plan to upgrade to a bottle. I was expecting something with a sharp red musk, so I'm very pleased to be wrong. :)


  10. My son (16) likes The Bow & Crown of Conquest which is crisp, clean & intriguing. He also likes The Buggre Alle This Bible from Good Omens which is a nice sandalwood leather scent. 

    Sherlock Holmes & John Watson would be worth trying, too, as well as The Scales of Deprivation & Death On a Pale Horse.

     

    Eta: I missed that you were possibly looking for something spicy - woody & spicy are my husband's favorites! He loves Wild Men of Jezirat al Tennyn, Port Royal, Dee & Orion. I like him in Gingerbread Villain & Samhain, too.


  11. DXLIV (544, recent purchase from ETSY)

     

    First impression: a purpley pink fruity/floral. I'm guessing grape or plum with maybe a hint of gardenia. A bit of citrus, too. As it dries, the fruit changes to berries & a mild incense-y/smoky note develops. I'm starting to sense a little Dorian in the background - some fougere & vanilla overlaid by the smoky purple notes.


  12. Snake Oil  DCCXLI (recent purchase from ETSY)

     

    A bit citrusy in the bottle (blood orange maybe?) but that doesn't last long once on the skin. As it dries, I get a chocolatey note along with the Snake Oil & a smidge more vanilla, yet it's not totally foody. I tested it alongside Boomslang but they are quite different. This isn't nearly as dark a chocolate nor as sweet. I also get a tiny bit of red musk that isn't present in Boomslang & possibly a hint of wood.


  13. For a sweet fruity floral, try Titania (A nocturnal bounty of fae dew-kissed petals and pale fruits: white grape, white peach, iced pear, musk rose, sweet pea, moonflower and snapdragon). Super strong & very pretty.

    Miskatonic University (The scent of Irish coffee, dusty tomes and polished oakwood halls) was purely caramel on me.

    


  14. Hi there!

    I actually have an ancient imp of Severin (Dry black teas, Earl Gray, and leather) but it is so faint that all I can smell is a tiny bit of bergamot, so that's not much help but I'll see what I can find.

    Here's a bunch of mostly LE or unimpable suggestions (sorry) but you should be able to find decants to try on the Sales & Swap pages. I would also post an ISO to see if you can rustle up some Severin - you never know! :) And a wishlist never hurts.

     

    The one usually suggested when people are looking for Earl Grey tea is Theodosius (Earl Grey tea leaves, a white fougere, jasmine leaf, pearlescent white musk, and vanilla bean). The jasmine went bad on my skin (bug spray!) but you might have better luck.

    Lady Death: Savage (White musk, grey amber, Calabrian bergamot, vanilla absolute, French labdanum, styrax, wormwood, caraway, and bois de jasmin) has a strong bergamot note & something in there reads as tea-like to me, anchored by white musk & light amber.

    L'Intention Fait Valoir les Bagatelles (Black tea, lavender buds, Italian bergamot, and Siamese benzoin) looks promising but it was mostly lavender on me. Many of the reviews mention Earl Grey tea, though.

    The Silver Dollar from American Gods (Gilded iris and Siamese benzoin, silvery-white musk, white tea leaf, and bergamot) has the tea & bergamot combo, too, but it might be more fresh & citrusy than you're looking for. Maybe layering it with something with leather would work? I bet it would be amazing with The White Rider (White leather and sandalwood).

    There's also Furo (Black tea, bergamot, red patchouli, peru balsam, and bourbon vanilla) - a long shot but some people don't notice the patchouli.

     

    If you get some of the leather from Severin, you might like Jareth (Ethereal lilac fougere and gleaming leather with ti leaf, tonka absolute, white musk, and oudh).

    I love the leather in The Bow and Crown of Conquest (sage, carnation and cedar with lavender, vanilla, white musk and leather) & I can see it as being in the same scent family.

     


  15. On 7/15/2020 at 2:48 AM, Nightmare said:

    Can anyone recommend scents similar to Theodosius?

     

    I panicked a bit when it was sold out because I love it dearly and wasn't sure if it would be back. It is now, and I'm going to get an extra bottle or two when I have the $$, but I want to keep my options open, haha. It happens to be the only scent categorized under "white fougere," jasmine leaf, and one of two under earl grey (the other being a limited scent already sold out)... not even sure where to start.

     

    Edit: I guess I mentioned this in the last post I made here, when it was sold out, and entirely forgot, lol. I didn't see any suggestions though, so still definitely seeking them.

     

    The notes for Theodosius are: Earl Grey tea leaves, a white fougere, jasmine leaf, pearlescent white musk, and vanilla bean.Though Theo doesn't work on me personally, I do love these types of scents.

    I think Lady Death Savage would be worth trying since it has the jasmine, bergamot (Earl Grey), white musk & vanilla combo (White musk, grey amber, Calabrian bergamot, vanilla absolute, French labdanum, styrax, wormwood, caraway, and bois de jasmin).

    Perhaps Jareth? It has a bit of an edge to it (Ethereal lilac fougere and gleaming leather with ti leaf, tonka absolute, white musk, and oudh).

    Knight In Shiny Armor seems to be in the same family (dapper lavender fougere with white carnation, sweet oakmoss, clary sage, crisp leather, bourbon vanilla & a hint of armor polish)

    Also Silver Lace (bitter black vanilla husk, bourbon tobacco, white cognac, juniper berry, white musk, ti leaf, and Italian bergamot) though I think it's sweeter than Theo.


  16. On 2/11/2018 at 1:25 PM, hroki97 said:

    Does anyone know of any scents similar to Zorya P? I am absolutely in love with the blueness of the vanilla.

    I tried Pediophobia and I think the tobacco gave me similar impressions, but it just wasn't "blue" enough, if that makes sense?

     

    • I tried In A Whispering Gallery recently (Marbled white iris, white tobacco flower, Italian bergamot, white leather, and Mysore sandalwood ) and it reminded me quite a bit of Zorya P.  There's no vanilla listed but it seems like there's some in there.
×