girlygirl

In the bottle: plumeria grounded by green notes

Wet: plumeria and mum, plumeria is dominant

Dry: mum and plumeria, evenly balancing each other.

I have never smelled anything like this. The mum keeps the plumeria from being cloyingly sweet and the plumeria keeps the mum and sage from being to harshly green. I don't really get incense from this, but my nose is not very good at identifying notes yet.

Verdict: a unique blend. Feminine in a very sophisticated way.

In the imp: floral and aquatic. Very pretty

Wet: very floral, very perfumey

Dry: the aquatic comes out and floral fades.

Extreme dry down: nearly disappears, but leaves clean scent behind. This may be a scent locket only blend, but it captures springtime in the NW perfectly!

On my skin, La Befana is similar to Sugar Skull. Less spicy and more floral/sweet, but a cousin to Sugar Skull nonetheless. Delicious. Especially good in my scent locket. Seems long-wearing.

When I received Snow White in the mail, I opened it to sniff immediately. It smelled very green and I did not like it. I tested it a day later. Still very green. Did not want.

Fast forward to this week. It smells completely different. Now I get the creamy marzipan/floral goodness everyone was raving about, even on my skin. Either it needed to settle a bit or it's my hormones, whatever the case, I am glad I kept this one!

This is pure, unadulterated jasmine love on me. The jasmine is sweetened and warmed by the other notes, but they are in the background, barely noticeable. They play backdrop to the star of the show, jasmine. The jasmine is sharp at one point on its journey to drydown, but mellows nicely.

This is unabashedly feminine.

ETA: Now that this has aged a bit and settled, I get the most glorious cocoa scent from it and the jasmine is much less prominent.

In the imp: Boozy fruitcake

Wet: Fruity with a similarity to Sugar Skull

Dry: Soft, warm fruit and cake.

Beth, please release Fruitcake! I would buy a VAT of this!

Thanks for the ideas, kraken! I just bought Dorian. I will have to check into Et Lux Fuit as it sounds delightful.

Ivanushka

In the bottle: FUR

Wet: Furry baby powder

Dry: slightly powdery, soft, warm. A warm, nurturing scent. Reminds me of babies and kittens. It will be interesting to see how others react to this scent.

This is completely original. Defies description, defies being categorized. It's not foody. It's not floral. It's not green. It's not incensey. It's just Ivanuskha.

Wow, I am really impressed with Beth's skills. And I am forever grateful it's not Pickleushka for me!

Shivering Boy is a gorgeous winter sent, IMHO.

Midwinter's Eve is a lovely fruity/floral, very warm-by-the-fire feeling.

My buddy nursekins calls this "chocolate sex brownies" and she is SO right. I wore this yesterday and my husband most ardently approved.

The scent is long wearing, intoxicatingly good, and hubby approved. I like this much more than Snake Oil by itself!

I am wearing Vampire Tears today. It contains grapefruit and jasmine, two oils Beth mentioned. I must say, this is a happy bubbly scent. It helped me get to work this morning instead of hiding under the covers!

I heard from Beth.

She says the following notes may help offset SAD:

bergamot, geranium, grapefruit, jasmine, and lemon

She mentions Moxie and Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo. She also cautions even if an oil is recommended, don't use it if you don't like it because it won't be effective.

And she reminded me to take my vitamins. I feel loved!

In the imp: whoa. Dripping with sugar. Instant toothache.

Wet: Sweet. Floral. Juicy.

Dry: Less sweet. Florals come out. Smells chartreuse green. (the color of bamboo)

I am loving this one! It's sunny and cheerful and 100% girly.

I have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) so winters are difficult for me. I am taking advantage of what Western medicine can offer, but find it lacking. Since BPAL's TKO helps me sleep, I'm wondering if there are any SAD sufferers out there who can recommend a BPAL to help me get through the winter.

I PMed Beth this question, but then I realized she is probably swamped preparing for WC.

What works for you in these dark days?

In the imp: sweet pears with cinnamon

Wet: pear/vanilla/cinnamon

Dry: same

Long wearing. Excellent throw. Approved by my husband, who normally hates foody blends. He says it smells "spicy".

Wet: coconutty floral (do I smell jasmine?)

Dry: fruity, woody incense.

More delicate than I expected. Fades quickly on my skin. The way it changes upon dry down, it would be very fun to wear on my skin and in my scent locket simultaneously.

Yum.

When I close my eyes, this transports me to a white sand beach.

LOVE.

Wet: cold, sharp. A chill in the air.

Dry: warm grapey but not sweet. Now the Shivering Boy is snuggled in Mama's quilt.

Lovely. Complex. Delicate. Unique.

06 version

This is the incensey, woody, resiny blend I have been dreaming of! LOVE!!

A dark pomegranate scent. Not a single note - there is something dark in there with the pom. Juicy, mysterious, and yummy! It doesn't last long on my skin. I will test it in my scent locket next time.

This is gorgeous combined with Midwinter's Eve 07!!

Wet: mmm, herbal lavender. Not sharp at all.

Dry: lavender vanilla marshmallows!

Delicious! I used it on a particularly tough night. While it did not make me sleepy, it did cause an overwhelming urge to close my eyes. I will try again on a less anxiety-ridden night and see how it goes.

In the bottle: sweet and foody. Doughnuts!

Wet: mmm, doughnuts with jelly filling.

Dry: The amber, beeswax, and olive oil come out to play with a maple note. Warm and comforting. I do smell something bitter - not unpleasant really, just odd enough that I keep sniffing to try to identify it.

I like the wet stage the best, so this may be one for the scent locket.

ETA: the burnt note comes out after it dries down. Like a just-extinguished candle. This does not play well with my skin chemistry.

O

In the imp: honey and amber

Wet: honey and something powdery. Smells like Kama Sutra Honey Dust

Dry: honey that says "hey baby, how YOU doin'?" and growls like a tiger.

Verdict: Lock the doors, turn off the phone. My honey is home and he's not leaving the bedroom for a week.

How does Beth do it? This actually smells warm.

Wet: sugared plums and unnamed flowers

Dry; warm sugared plums just out of the oven, sitting in a room with a bouquet of mysterious flowers.

Just when I think I've found a favorite blend, BPAL surprises me and ups the ante!

ETA: this is the 2007 version.

Love this blend. It's so warm and romantic, like I am being hugged by someone wearing plum colored velvet. It makes me feel cherished and safe.

Mad Kate is a mystery!

In the imp, I can smell various notes. On my skin, all I can smell once it dries is red currant and vanilla. I smell delicious!!

This is soothing, comforting, and sexy, all at once.

Wet - the teakwood is prominent.

Dry- the sandalwood comes out to play.

It doesn't have a lot of throw but the scent is so heavenly that I don't mind that you have to get very close to me to smell it. (insert raised eyebrow here)