coldandsleepy

In the imp: smells like old roses. Hmm. On me, wet: roses are still there, but there's also a strong smell of... clay? Pink clay and spices. (Think this is the sandalwood, opium, tobacco, tea etcetera.) On me, dry: about the same as wet. This is a really evocative scent for me-- I close my eyes and I just keep seeing pink clay grottos and crushed rose petals. It also strikes me as a particularly cold scent. Throw and duration: throw is about average, but duration is truly excellent. This lasts at least 10 hours on me. Overall: I really love this. It's one of those scents where I can't say, oh, this smells like (some other scent). There's really nothing quite like it for me. All of the spicy things blend together to form one strong spicy note for me that I can't pick apart no matter how I try. The florals are pretty secondary in this for me; nothing sticks out except the rose, which's really mellow and mild. Definitely keeping my imp of this. I'll consider a bottle.

Imp: not sure on what this smells like, but it smells sweeeet. On me, wet: who-aaah. Sweet opium and sandalwood with a touch of florals. Verges on overwhelming. On me, dry: Still very sweet, but mellower. I get a little vanilla, but not enough to make me hate this. (Vanilla is the anti-me.) It actually smells highly reminiscent of Sleepy Moon, one of my favorites. It's the sweeter, more girly younger sister of Sleepy Moon. Throw and duration: both above average. Overall: Works for me! I like to wear it the day after I've worn Sleepy Moon. It's sort of like a Sleepy Moon hangover, but in a good way. It's a very fun and flirty smell to my nose-- not something I'd wear all the time, but nice. It doesn't feel particularly heavy or cloying to me, which I'd worried about. Doubt I'll ever need a bottle of this, but I'm holding on to my imp for sure.

In the bottle: jasmine and a bit of the black musk. Smells nice. I'm surprised by how tame the jasmine smells. On me, wet: oh, huh. Here comes the violet. I'm getting mainly violet and a bit of jasmine, with just a little musk around the edges. On me, dry: to my sadness, the violet really recedes as this dries and the musk steps up to take its place. It's still not overwhelmingly musky, though, which i'm glad for. The vanilla also shows up, but in a very tame, subtle fashion; it reminds me of the vanilla note in The Ragged Wood. The dominant smell at this point is the jasmine. Throw and duration: throw's about average. Duration's a bit shorter on me than many blends-- i get about four hours out of this. Overall: To be honest, i picked up a partial of this in order to give it to my older sister, because it has several notes she really likes in it (jasmine, vanilla, musk). These notes are basically the anti-me, especially the vanilla. So i was expecting to basically hate this. But i'm surprised and pleased to say that Melisande is really pleasant on me. It's much, much mellower than i expected it to be. It's not too sweet, or too sharp, or too anything. Really well blended. And i'm happy to say that the vanilla barely makes an appearance on me. Still probably going to give the partial to my sister, but maybe i'll decant a half an imp or so to keep for myself. It's really quite nice.

In the imp: whaaaa-oooh, whoa. All cocoa, all the time. On me, wet: first it's all cocoa. But then the cocoa train takes me to the cinnamon station and it's all cinnamon for a while. On me, dry: after about 15 minutes, both the cocoa and the cinnamon calm down and this becomes a lovely cocoa-cinnamon-coffee blend. I don't pick up the brown sugar at all, but that might be what makes the cinnamon smell so sweet. Throw and duration: throw's about average. Duration is much shorter than average for me... it's only been about an hour and a half, and this is already down to barely detectable on me. Alas. Overall: Well, i really like this an awful lot, though i wish it'd have remained longer and stronger. I found the cinnamon stage really delightful, so i guess i need to try more cinnamon scents. Anyway, this is a really yummy foodie scent, and my favorite chocolate lab scent so far. My husband did not like this and said the cocoa smelled "fake." I don't think it smells fake at all, so i guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.

In the imp: avast, ye! We're sailing the chilly seas of peppermint, bucko! On me, wet: cold cold cold peppermint and an almost syrupy sweet lotus. On me, dry: the juniper comes out of hiding and gets tangled up with the peppermint in one sharp, foreboding mass. The lotus, which smells almost... coconuty? somehow? definitely foody... floats just above them, beckoning, enticing... luring into something dark and doomful. Throw and duration: good throw! Not sure about duration yet. Overall: this is one of those scents that comes out exactly like the Lab description for me. I'm in a sort of cranky, confrontational mood today... feeling very sharp around the edges... and Undertow smells like Beth pulled the mood out of my head and slapped it on my wrists. This isn't something i'll wear every day, as it's a little more sinister than i usually go for. But i'll definitely be hanging on to this imp for when i'm in the mood. It really just sums this mood up perfectly. I'd also like to note that the mint in this definitely smells pepperminty to me, not spearminty, which is great, as spearmint tends to smell like butt on me. I also don't find the lotus to be particularly bubblegummy in this blend, so it might be good for people who like the other notes but are sometimes overwhelmed by lotus.

On me, To Helen smells remarkably like a slightly sweeter Versailles. Both have amber and roses, so this makes some sense. On the subject of my dear, sweet love, Sleepy Moon: there's really no substitute for it, but Belle Epoque is sort of like Sleepy Moon's more girly, less deep younger sister.

Congrats! I wore Veil when i got married, but while it was right for my situation, it sounds dead wrong for yours. What does come to mind from your post, though, is Wolfsbane. I found it to be really lovely and deep and vetivery, and basically perfect for anything that happens in the woods. It might not be quite sophisticated enough, though. For a little more sophistication (but a little less GC-ness), i'd recommend The Ragged Wood. Lots of good woodsy stuff like juniper, with some florals thrown in. Definitely very sophisticated to my nose.

In the imp: wheeeee tangerines! I am hit by a momentary urge to ingest this, then remember that perfume is poisonous and is meant for wrists and not mouths. So i decide to apply this now, and eat a tangerine later. Mmm, tangerine. On me, wet: wha? Where did my delicious tangerine go? I smell some benzoin, and some jasmine, and an itsy bitsy bit of citrus but... the beautiful tangerine from the imp is gone, all gone. On me, dry: same as wet. At least it's consistent? Throw and duration: not much throw, but average duration. Overall: I'm saddened by my skin's refusal to cooperate with this scent. It smells so good in the imp! And i normally do so well with citrus! But this just doesn't work for me. It doesn't smell bad, it just doesn't smell like very much at all. Alas. I hope it stays tangerine-y and delicious on other people, because man, does it ever smell good in the imp.

In the imp: ... dirt? Wait, flowers. No, dirt. Definitely dirt. On me, wet: oooooh. Hello there, amber. Delicious amber. And a good day to you, oakmoss. This smells sexy. Yet also sort of... cinder-y. It definitely smells grey to me. On me, dry: much like wet, but richer. I finally get a little touch of the tonka, but it's just a hint really. The myrrh also makes an appearance, but it's a really gentle, subtle myrrh. Also, this has gotten even more cinder-y. I swear, i can almost taste ash in my mouth when i smell this. It's bizarre, and i'm not sure which note is doing it. Maybe the amber? Anyway, i like it. Throw and duration: sadly, not a whole lot of throw for me. I'm still testing it, so i'm not sure on duration, but it's been about 3 hours so far and it's still going. Overall: sheesh, i really like this a lot. Soft, but not necessarily delicate. Smells seductive, but quiet seductive. Sneaky seductive. Wonderful. I'm definitely going to try to direct a bottle of this into my greedy little hands.

Hum. I don't really have enough to say about Night Thoughts to merit a full review. I'm going to try it again in a week or two and see if i get more out of it the second time around. Until then, though: my one fear about Night Thoughts was that the lilac might be really strong. I've got a mild allergy to lilac, so any lilac scent is a bit of a gamble for me. No worries with Night Thoughts, though. Neither me nor my sinuses could detect the lilac in Night Thoughts. All it smelled like to me was cedar and the lightest hint of musk. That's not to say that it was unpleasant. On the contrary, i liked it a lot. But then, i love cedar, and the blue musk is really quite pretty alongside it. There just wasn't much to Night Thoughts on me. Like i said, i need to try it again to make sure. Doesn't look like i will need a full bottle of this one, though.

In the imp: y'know how sometimes you open up a new imp and the scent is so overwhelming and weird that you just want to clamp the lid back on and hide the thing away and pretend you never ever opened it? That's about how i felt about Glowing Vulva in the imp. It smelled like sour cream to me. Like, to put on a baked potato. My husband gave it a sniff and also really, really didn't like it. After the initial sniff, i almost didn't try it out. But my sense of duty prevailed... On me, wet: hey! This doesn't smell half bad! Not like sour cream at all, though the cream accord is most definitely what's dominating this. It smells just like the cream in Velvet, with the chocolate and the sandalwood stripped out. There's a touch of amber giving this a nice soft feeling. There's also something sugary (though not overwhelming sweet) in this, maybe part of the accord. Hmm. On me, dry: almost identical to the wet smell, just a little softer. On further smelling, it reminds me of the smell of fondant. Kinda like the inside of Cadbury Creme Eggs. Not quite as sweet as that, though, and a bit richer. Throw and duration: throw is way above average on this, to the point where you can smell it on me a couple of feet away... and i just dabbed. Really, just dabbed. Duration's excellent also; i applied around 10 a.m. yesterday and it was still going at 10 p.m. Overall: Glowing Vulva perfectly sums up the concept behind it, i think. It's got a really strong character to it, too. It's just not a "me" scent, though. I'll hang on to my decant, but no big bottle for me. If you know you like the Lab's cream note and you don't mind a bit of sweetness, though, i would really strongly urge you to try this out. I think a lot of people are going to love this one.

In the imp: really beautiful cold roses, nice crisp ozone, and a little bit of beeswax. On me, wet: Soft, round scent full of sweet roses and amber. I get a hint of beeswax, but it's definitely a background thing. The ozone seems to have disappeared entirely on contact, and i don't notice any florals in this other than the rose. On me, dry: same as wet. Very consistent. If anything, the sweetness has deepened just a touch on drydown. Throw and duration: excellent throw and duration. Overall: Hum. This is really curious-- To Helen smells almost exactly like Versailles does on me. The only real difference is that where there would be citrus in Versailles, there's the beeswax in To Helen. It smells like... Versailles in a Catholic church. To Helen is really quite beautiful, but i don't think i can justify buying a full bottle of it.

In the imp: this is very strong, fruity, and a little bit spicy. The cap stuck a bit for me so i had my husband help me pry it off-- he was a bit overwhelmed by the smell once he got it open, and he kept sniffing the tiny dab of oil he got on his finger and going, wooow, that's strong. (It did smell REALLY strong on him. And extremely bubblegummy. This is not his scent. ) On me, wet: currants, currants, currants. And a bit of green tea. Not as strong as it was in the imp or on my spouse. It's not overwhelmingly sweet on me, but it does have the faintest breath of something bubblegummy. On me, dry: about the same as wet, just a little mellower. Throw and duration: throw is very good, duration is good for me (still faintly detectable the next morning). Overall: it's an interesting scent, not the sort i would generally pick out for myself. I don't think there's anything else in my collection quite like it, except Titania. (The grape in Titania smells a lot like the currant in Spell on me.) I like the spice from the tea a lot and wish it was a little more dominant... that might make this a scent i could wear often. As is, i think i'll hang on to my decant and see if an appropriate occasion comes up.

In the imp: very sharp lavender, with a side order of sweet violet. Smells very strong and kinda scary to me. On me, wet: this calms down instantly on my skin and the sharpness disappears. I get a base of soft crushed lavender mingling with sweet violet. The violet has a strange and almost boozy quality to it. It smells like i imagine violet wine would smell. Maybe the narcissus is what's adding the boozy smell, because i can't smell anything i identify as narcissus in this blend. On me, dry: basically the same as wet. I'm two for two for consistency in Lupercalia blends! Still predominantly soft lavender with vaguely boozy violet. No discernible narcissus or balsam. Throw and duration: throw's about average. Not sure on duration, but it's been a few hours and it's still going strong. Overall: The boozy violet note, while kinda strange, actually smells quite good on me. It's nice alongside the lavender, too. Farewell is a gentle feminine scent on me. Pleasant and pretty without being overwhelming or too demanding. Not as astringent or ferocious as lavender can be. (At least, it isn't on me.) I'll definitely keep my decant, but i don't think i'm going to go for a full bottle of this one.

In the imp: whoosh. This has a very sharp smell in the imp to me. Lots of juniper and lots of floral and detectable lurking vanilla. I had second thoughts about applying it, but went ahead anyway. On me, wet: oh, wow. This smells awesome on me wet. The juniper mellows a bit, and the pine shows up, but it's a really gentle, mild pine on me. A really delightful creamy lily note emerges. The rest of the florals and the vanilla all back way down, though they don't disappear. I agree with the reviewer who said the vanilla rounds this scent out. It's barely there, but it adds some perfect gentle touch around the edges of this smell. On me, dry: almost identical to the wet smell. Just a little gentler. Delicious juniper and lily with other lighter floral notes and pine. The juniper smells... damp? Like the trees have just been rained on. Throw and duration: good throw, excellent (6+ hours) duration. Overall: This is a hard scent to characterize. I wouldn't say that this is a floral scent, and i wouldn't say it's a woodsy scent, though of course it has elements of both. It also smells the tiniest bit foody to me, which i just can't explain. It's definitely feminine, but not overwhelmingly so. It smells really amazing on me. I hope i'll be able to order a full bottle before the Lupercalias are gone.

This one's very straightforward and consistent for me. It smells just about the same in the bottle as it does on me wet and dry. If anything, the eucalyptus comes out a little more on me during dry down. Overall, this smells basically as described to me. I get icicles on non-specific white flowers and a breath of eucalyptus. Definitely a bit of pine, and something slightly citrusy, but nothing overwhelming on either front. Throw and duration are both about average for me. Very pretty on me, in a sort of still, quiet way. Definitely a night time scent. Definitely a keeper.

This one was so strange on me that i tried it twice, just to make sure the first time wasn't a fluke. Nope. Here's what happened both times. In the imp: Apples, apples, apples. It actually smells kinda like this green apple dish soap i used to have. (This isn't particularly soapy smelling, but neither was that soap.) It smells distinctly green. On me, wet: Oh, hey, this is pretty cool. Still getting the green apple, but now there's also a whiff of mint and a definite splort of lime. Quite pleasant. I'm thrilled to see that the mint is not going totally weird on me like it so often does. Combined with the apple and lime, it smells really, really refreshing... and green... like some sort of delicious drink on a summer day. On me, dry: The apple dries down to be very mellow and subdued. It's like a skulking apple. I don't know where the lime and mint went. All that's there besides the apple now is vodka. Vodka, vodka, vodka. I smell like someone's depressed, drunken grandma. This is weird. Throw and duration: not much throw, which i'm sad about during the wet phase and glad of during the dry phase. Duration's on the low end of average, which doesn't break my heart. Overall: I wish this'd stay in the middle phase. Wet, this is something i'd probably wear a lot in the summer. Dry, this is just something weird and sullen that doesn't smell right on me. I'll probably keep my imp anyway, just... just in case something changes.

In the bottle: whoaaaaah, whoa, someone's hitting me with the sandalwood stick. On me wet or dry: sandalwood and cedar bobbing in a gooey bubbling pool of vetiver oil. There's just the tiniest touch of patchouli. The scent is sharp and astringent, yet it's got a sweetness and a richness to it. It does not change one bit on me as it dries down. Throw and duration: big throw, long duration. Overall: I'm really surprised by how much i like this. It was a frimp from a forum sale, and wasn't anywhere on my extensive wishlist. I really, really dig this, though. I can't stop smelling it. It's sorta... feral? ... without being at all musky, which is neat. On me, it's woodsy bordering on foody. It's... it smells kinda sexy on me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have found a BPAL scent that smells sexy on me. I'm alarmed by this, yet somewhat pleased. Anyway. I can see why this would turn a lot of people off. It is a very sharp scent, which may be what equals medicinal for a lot of people who've tried this. If you like a good stomp through the woods followed by a roll in damp leaves, though... Wolfsbane may be the one for you.

In the imp: not sure what this smells like. A little like the violet note in Veil. Strong, but not overwhelming. Nice. On me, wet: oh, no. This goes into a phase that i can only describe as pickles and honey. It smells really, really awful and i consider washing it off. But i persist! On me, dry: whatever the pickles and honey smell was, it's gone now. This mellows into a nice calm violet scent with just a hint of lilac in it. Throw and duration: both about average. Overall: My spouse kinda summed it up better than i can... on me, Nocturne smells "generically pleasant." Not bad, but not amazing. I'm glad i got to try it, but i think i'll pass it on to someone who'll love it more.

In the imp: Piercingly chilly. Very pine-y. On me, wet: As above, but twice as strong. Also starting to get a a really sweet, fruity, almost bubble gum scent-- maybe the berries? It's nice, but very very strong on me. On me, dry: This calms down on me as it dries and settles into a lovely scent. The evergreen actually mellows a bit and becomes almost secondary to the berry smell. Throw and duration: throw is excellent. I've only had it on for a few hours, but suspect it'll be a long lasting scent on me. Overall: On me, this is really quite stunning. It evokes an image of picking berries in a snowy, moonlight forest-- basically lines up exactly with the description. This one's a keeper.

In the imp: floral. Not sure what the notes are. Smells kinda tropical and nice. On me, wet: whaaoaoah, oh no. This isn't going well. I'm amping like everything in this scent. My husband can smell the tiny dab on me several feet away and agrees that it is NOT a pleasant smell. It's transformed from the peaceful tropical floral in the bottle into a raging old lady department store perfume on me. Yiiikes. On me, dry: no, this isn't getting any better on me. It's nauseating. My skin doesn't dig this. I have to scrub this off. Throw and duration: throw is overwhelming. No idea on duration, because i had to scrub it off. Overall: Other than Peitho, I've had super good luck with the Lab's florals and haven't had any problem with their jasmine before this. And i love their lilies. So my theory is... it's either the vanilla or the myrtle that's turning this into a monster on me. Yikes. This just smells plain old bad on me. On the upside, this was really, really easy to scrub off. Surprisingly so for how wicked strong this was on me. Smells fine in the imp, so i think it's just me. The rest of the imp'll be going off to a better home.

In the imp: mmm. Figs. And citrus. Exactly what i was hoping for. On me, wet: hello? Where did you go, mister fig? The fig note's completely disappeared on me. The citrus is still going strong, and is joined by a scent of... candle wax? That must be the fig transformed some how. On me, dry: faint orange conversation hearts and candle wax. Throw and duration: throw on me is probably the worst of any BPAL i've tried other than Harlot, but duration is about average. Overall: This does smell exactly like conversation hearts and candle wax to me, but i like the smell. It seems kinda romantic, especially around this time of year. Unfortunately, this is really barely noticeable on me. I'm really surprised by how faint this is on me. And i usually do citrus so well. :/ I've tried it on a couple occasions and the result's been about the same each time. Bummer, because Carnal is a really beautiful smell... just not one that'll stay on my skin.

In the imp: w-hoaaaaa, woah. I'm being whacked in the face with a floral stick. Lots of sweet lotus and sweet rose, not unlike the rose lurking in Versailles. Hmm. On me, wet: ah. This is opening up beautifully. The rose and the lotus are still going strong, but the lily has popped up here too and is adding a nice creamy touch to this. I'm also starting to get something... reedy? Or some other plant that grows by rivers? Seems appropriate, anyway. On me, dry: definitely has a strong touch of a smell i associate with river reeds. It's a pretty consistent smell in that the other notes (lotus, rose, lily) are almost the same as they were on me wet and even in the bottle. Quite nice. Throw and duration: throw was overwhelming at first but mellowed down after about 30 minutes into a noticeable but not nauseating level of smell. Duration seems very good so far, and florals tend to last on me, so i predict Ophelia's in for the long haul. Overall: this is one of those scents that's perfectly evocative on me. The florals are all sweet, innocent, almost candylike-- very appropriate for a girl like Ophelia. But the reedy smell is kind of sad, kind of sinister, and really seals the deal for me. Perfect. As an aside, i thought i hated floral perfumes prior to trying out BPAL; turns out that florals actually work really well on me and i love quite a few of them. On me, Ophelia's a good example of how a floral perfume can be more than just a pile of flowers or something that smells like old ladies. I really like this, and someday when the magic BPAL fairy comes to grant all of my wishes, i'll be asking for a big bottle of it. Edited to add: the "reed" smell i'm getting here may be the ivy in the description. Makes sense!

In the imp: crisp white flowers. Not super strong. On me, wet: this warms up on me nicely. I smell a few different types of flowers. There's also an undertone of... honey? in here? That must be the sweet herbs. On me, dry: nice, light floral. It's not rose-y or lily-y, which is a nice change from a lot of floral blends. Not entirely sure what i smell in here other than linden blossoms, but there's something that smells a lot like the peony in Earth Rat, so maybe there're peonies in the mix somewhere. Anyway. Very nice and not entirely typical floral blend. Also, i really like the sweet aftersmell. Throw and duration: not a whole lot of throw, but Unicorn lasted at least 6 hours on me, so i'm pleased with the duration. Overall: really pleasant smell. I think it'd be really well suited to spring or summer, and maybe a little out of place in colder months. I'm definitely keeping my imp.

In the imp: salty florals. On me, wet: still salty florals. Some of the individual flowers are coming out nicely. I think i smell lily and rose? Not sure. On me, dry: oh, this is really beautiful. I'd worried that it wouldn't be very strong on me, but it's actually surprisingly potent. There's a definite salty aquatic note here, but it doesn't smell "sad" to me per se-- more like the feeling of relief you get after you've had a good cry. Throw and duration: both average good. Pool of Tears lasted 6+ hours on me, which was a nice surprise. Overall: i really liked this. It wasn't overwhelmingly or cloyingly floral; just a simple, pretty floral base with the salty tear scent mixed in. I'm definitely keeping my imp and may buy a bottle at some point in the future.