dragonlady

I just got an imp of Tombstone, and I have to say, the drydown on me is a dead ringer for Love's Philosophy. The wet stage is iffy, but once it's dry it's the same creamy vanilla.

Oh. My. God. I have found my BPAL holy grail. I don't even know how to describe it, aside from saying I am in love! In the bottle I don't find it very appealing, it's very sugary vanilla, though I detect a hint of freshness in the background. When it hits my skin, the freshness takes over and there's no vanilla for a couple of minutes. That's definitely the wintergreen stage. I don't mind it, but it's not what I want from this scent. Of course, shortly thereafter, this becomes Heaven in a BottleTM (or technically on my skin.) I get wafts of vanilla, with an almost saltiness keeping it from going too sweet. I confess I was worried that this was going to be too sweet (both vanilla AND cream? it was risky), but the saffron is doing wonders. And I have no idea what causes the wintergreen, but man, am I glad it's there. I get an almost beachy quality from this scent, though I have no idea why. It doesn't smell like sunscreen, the sand, the ocean, the trees, or anything that can be considered beach-like. But when I sniff it, I think of the beach. I guess it's just the 'salty' tang I get. Or maybe because both make me happy. I see several backup bottles in my future. Also, lasts all day long, with decent throw. Not to be slathered before a long car ride. Crap, that means I have to wear something else tomorrow.

Wow, I am seriously loving this. First time I wore it I was a bit iffy, since it smelled exactly like an orange life saver on me. Not a bad smell, but I wasn't really sure if that's what I wanted to smell like. I've since decided that I do. In the bottle it smells mostly like the red patchouli, which I find much nicer than the plain patchouli. This is much less gritty, and the orange gives it a bit of sweetness that lightens the perfume a good bit. On my skin the patchouli wanders off, and the orange comes out nice and creamy, which is where the lifesaver similarity came to me. But this is so much better! And I don't mind smelling edible I'm not a very good judge of throw since I only wear it behind my ears, but I think it's pretty strong, I've been able to smell it clearly all day. As to wear length, this thing is amazing. I put one swipe behind each ear, so I'm not exactly bathing in it, but it won't go away! I put it on this morning on my way to school, around 10. It is now 1 am, and I can still smell it clearly. So if you can't reapply for 15+ hours, this is the scent for you. ETA: 10 am the next morning: there's a hint of patchouli still left. Now that's impressive.

Ok, I'm not a big fan of rose in real life, and most florals come off really strong on my skin, so I tend to avoid scents with strong florals, but I was willing to give Spellbound a try. Now, I know what amber smells like, and I really like it, but I don't get it at all from the bottle in this scent. I don't think I smell rose, or any rose that I recognize, so I guess in the bottle it mostly smells like red musk. I didn't really care for it at first, but it's growing on me. Unfortunately, my feelings are not returned, because as soon as this hits my skin, it turns completely to rubber. I feel like I'm sniffing a badly scented Barbie doll. I hope not all oils with red musk do this to me. If Mme Moriarty turns to rubber on me I might cry.

My first review! I hope I do it justice. I got this as a frimp from the lab with my first order, and it took me forever to try it on because I didn't like the smell of it in the bottle. I know, silly of me, but at least I did try it eventually. And I'm so very glad I did, because I love it. In the bottle it smells like smoky dirt, which I guess is the patchouli. On my skin it follows the following pattern; Initially: Patchouli. 2 minutes in: Patchouli with a hint of sweetness. 5 minutes in: Patchouli with a hint of apricot. 10 minutes in: The patchouli has really backed off, and the apricot's jumping up and down, demanding notice. 30 minutes: Apricot's out in full force, and the patchouli is just slightly there, keeping it from turning too sweet. It really smells like a dirty, ripe apricot. That's the first image that pops in my head when I sniff this: an apricot that fell from the tree into the soft dirt underneath. Amazing. Conclusion: I love this scent, I've been trying to decide whether it's going to be my signature scent or not, but jury's still out. Unfortunately, it doesn't last long at all; within two hours it's gone from my wrists, and maybe four behind my ears (kind of hard to judge as my nose doesn't reach there).