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By Silvertree February 7, 2012

Please be aware that we do not permit swap-related content on profiles or in blogs. Please post this content only in the For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted forums, or in the Wishlists topic. ~from Swapping 101 Thanks!
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Indie Perfume Collection [12/2023]

Here is my current full size indie perfume collection! I've been meaning to whittle this collection down, and over the past few years I really have! It's funny how so many of my favorites are perfumes from almost a decade ago that I still cherish to this day. Clearly I move through oils rather slowly. Over time I want to go through and add mini reviews to each of these since that will be fun. Here's to keeping this collection curated! Link to my bottle collection can also be found here! Total Bottles (38) ? Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab (17) General Catalogue Eat Me - Gorgeous cake, earthy woody black currant, and a hint of juiciness from red currant. It’s round, intoxicating and not super sweet. Age has done wonders for this beauty. No. 93 Engine - This honestly has just gotten even better with age. Herbs, resin, besswax, and benzoin. It's golden, spicy, and rich, and it's really mellowed out with time. No edges at all. Snake Oil - My bottle is rather old so the oil is thick and gloriously terracotta colored. It smells of spices, musk, incense, and a sweet sugared vanilla underneath it all. A triumph of a scent that is best experienced with a light hand. Tamora - A warm, fuzzy, amber and peach perfume to end all peach perfumes. Sweet, a hint fruity, golden, and rich. It’s like a warmed summer day where you can feel the heat envelop you, but the juice of a ripe fuzzy peach keeps you refreshed while sitting in your wicker chair. Zombi - Dry decaying greenery, wet earth, and roses. It’s a bit powdery and musky. I used to love this, and in a way I still do, but that musky powdery edge is a little bracing. I will keep this for now, but one day it might make its way out of my collection. Special General Catalogue Collections Hand of Glory (Carnaval Diabolique) - Leather and beeswax and a good dose of sandalwood underneath it all. The leather is so creamy and supple and buttery and positively frenched with melted lightly sweetened candles. A favorite comforting leather. Lady Una (Neil Gaiman: Stardust) - It’s just as I remember it, a comforting vanilla green tea with a healthy dose of a beeswax like honey and lightly spiced, lightly green berries. It’s a bit lactonic but also comforting and a little laundry like and fresh. A bit of a conundrum, but a lovely one. Temple Viper (Carnaval Diabolique) - Sugary incense, resins, vanilla, a bit of smoke, and patchouli. There is also an addicting, lovely, powdery champaca floral tone running through which keeps this a bit lighter than regular Snake Oil. I used to wear a ton of Snake Oil and Samhain, so this reminds me of my college days but it’s something I can still wear and adore! Wulric, the Wolfman (Carnaval Diabolique) - Cocoa and lavender with a large dose of vanilla and a hint of something herbal that keeps this from getting too sweet. Delicious and perfect, especially for sleep! Discontinued and LE Celeste (BPTP) - Buttery, sugary vanilla, and powdery orchids. It’s very lady-like, and it smells like a lightly purple, velvety, powdery, floral marshmallow. Edith Cushing (Crimson Peak) - Predominantly vanilla musk and grey amber on me. I absolutely adore a light amber scent, and this is a stunning one. It almost has a sweet floral quality that makes it quite approachable. Not the most unique, but lovely nonetheless. My Little Grotesque (Lilith) - Vanilla cardamom cake, nothing more, nothing less. Cardamom and vanilla are two of my absolute favorites so this is a cozy favorite, and I adore that the gourmand vanilla cake note is the same as in Eat Me. Paduan Killer Swarm (2010) - It's sweet, cozy, resinous, and warm. The tonka and licorice are at the forefront when it is wet, but when it dries down the spices and woods come forward to make it feel a little less juicy. It's still an absolute cozy favorite of mine in a similar vein to the Soldier. Halloweenie a World Where There Are Octobers (2013) - The initial blast is all bell pepper, green and dry and a little spicy. It dries down with a bit more of a dry sweetness (like maple syrup without the syrup) and a bit of fall spices. It’s still peppery, but the “green” aspect is mostly gone. Very atmospheric and unique. Golletes (2010) - Lovely, pink, and foody. Of all the foody scents I have, this is BY FAR my favorite. It's just delectable without being too heavy. Yules Snow-Flakes (2009) - I don’t think there will ever be a prettier snow perfume than this one. Minty, slushy, aquatic snow, and something ethereal tying it all together, something floral I think. It’s a crisper, cooler version of Snow White. I am desperate for another bottle. the Soldier (2010) - This starts off as all red musk, black tea, a bit of creaminess, and gourmand anise which I'm assuming is the pie! No black pepper in sight! It's gotten richer and more gourmand over time and has this syrupy almost honeyed red musk and licorice pie vibe now, less tea. ? Arcana and Arcana Craves (3) Astrid's Diadem (Discontinued) - This smells like a delicious lemon merengue with a hint of mint and something a little herbal. There is no cookie or a baked feel, just cream, sugar, a touch herbal lemon, and mint. Honey Craves Sunshowers - Golden glorious vanilla cardamom with an herbal cardamom at the forefront. It’s absolutely stunning. Vanilla Craves Crescent Moons - This smells like the prettiest floating fluffy milk scent. I don’t get any floral, just sweet slightly fatty lactones. Like heavy whipping cream, not butter? ? Fantôme (3) Finist the Falcon - Juicy rose jam with velvety currant and a hint of cream underneath it all. My favorite rose. It’s lush, juicy, and delicious without going gourmand or fruity. Just a vibrant beating heart of a rose. the Fox Sisters - If I had to pick a "signature" scent, it would be this one. It's a cardamom forward chai latte, and it fulfills my wish of both smelling like a snack and being a snack. Perfection. Lycanthrope - Fresh, sweet, and sparkly from the bottle, but on skin a bitter, herbal, freshness from the tomato leaf starts to bloom. There is depth from the oakmoss and lingering sweetness from lychee, peach, and a dash of honey. Overall a gorgeous sweetened fresh spring garden botanical. ? Mythpunk Olfactive (2) Mossmallow Puff - Initially the vanilla marshmallow vanilla is strong with hardly any earthiness, but then the earthy notes peak out and balance the scent quite nicely. I get a lot of rain, moss, and a touch of sweet amber. It reminds me of an early morning rain shower, when dawn is just creeping over the horizon, and you’re outside getting drenched in the rain in your prettiest white dress. Strangeling - This is an earthy, dry, mossy, matcha powder and oolong tea with no sweetness whatsoever. The matcha and tea drenches ink stained pages of yellowed ancient books with slightly vanillic binding. Still, there is no sweetness. It’s quite herbal, but there is no sharpness. It’s got a round warm and dry quality to it. Almost like someone is brewing a cup of green tea on a dry day. I’ve never encountered anything like this, and I love how the tea is not tempered by any sweetness and the journey the scent takes me on. ? Nocturne Alchemy (4) Blue Egypt - The perfect perfume to wear to sleep and perhaps my favorite from Nocturne Alchemy. It's juicy but soft and sweet lavender and chamomile tea. Eternal Ankh - A cool floaty soft vanilla, mostly vanilla with a dollop of white amber. It’s a bit fluffy and powdery and definitely needs some age on it to become beautiful, but once it does? Stunning. It's a classic for a very good reason. Moonstone (Studio) - A slightly powdery marshmallow vanilla. It stays close to the skin and is very lightly sweetened. I suspect this needs age. Opal Vanilla (Studio) - Cozy, sweet, condensed milk vanilla that is more potent in the bottle than on skin. It’s sweet and lactonic and less buttery than I expected. I suspect this needs age as well! ? Poesie (6) Comfort (Winter LE) - A lightly spiced, lightly woody, lightly musky, lightly sweet, enveloping vanilla. Comfort is a good name for this since it smells like a lovely cozy sweater and is perfect for layering. Curiouser and Curiouser (LE) - It's a fluffy and sweet vanilla with a hit of freshness keeping it from getting heavy at all. It reminds me of a lighter, fresher BPTP Celeste but without the "purple" that I largely get from Celeste. Emmeline Pankhurst (LE) - This is Poesie’s tea note with a heaping helping of cool, airy, earthy stone and musk. It’s a pretty, chilly, but more bracing version of their Twice to Tea classic. Initially, the earthy watery elements are strongest, but over time the tea and earthy notes balance each other out. It’s a soft crisp blend that feels both cuddly and invigorating. Poison Pen Lane (LE) - Black tea, berry jam, and a hint of something absolutely snuggly and woodsy underneath it all. This perfume is delicious, cozy, and perfect for fall. The berries are decidedly blueberries, and they recede a bit over time. This feels like a more nuanced, cozy, and grounded take on their Twice to Tea classic. Twice to Tea - It's a sweet scent that has bits of tea, vanilla, milk, lavender, and that sweetness that comes with earl grey tea. It's not super foody but is more of a perfume version of a rather sweet tea if that makes sense. Velvet Moon (Collab) - Initially, this smells like a whisper of a sweet cardamom vanilla. It’s so light I can barely smell it, but in the drydown, it transforms to this papery inky library scent. I really do sense the flickering candle-smoke and hardwood shelving. It’s incredibly evocative. ? Possets (2) Black Annis (Halloween Retour) - Medicinal, herbal, and slightly sweet black licorice. Dark, inky, and absolutely gorgeous. This is the anise perfume of my dreams. Pavane - Cardamom sugar cookies! A rich spiced gourmand that is neither too rich and sweet nor too spicy. It’s a delectable combination of the two, and I love wearing this snuggled up in a sweatshirt with a book in hand. ? Treading Water (1) Déchets - The prettiest fresh floral jasmine scent. I don’t even like jasmine, and I find this to be so lovely. It’s airy and pretty and warm and almost vanillic.

CiaoBonefish

November 13, 2023

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