MaidMirawyn

My mom and grandmother both kept Christmas roses, so I knew what they were. Never sniffed one, though...now I wish I had! In the imp, it's fresh, clean, and green. A bit of a bite. That may be the "cold" note, but I've never smelled any of the other snow fragrances. Either way, it's a bit surprising and not at all what I expected. Wet, it's very similar, but the scent begins to develop a complexity. Now I can smell a touch of a floral tone, but it's not the typical floral. As it dries, the sharpness recedes. It's still clean, crisp, and herbal. Overall, it really is a surprising fragrance. Even though I wasn't fooled by the word "rose" in the name, I still didn't expect this! Definitely unusual, but I like it. May have to buy a bottle before it goes away! (Mine is a decant.) Edited to add: I can see that this might go medicinal or cleaning-product on some people. However, I haven't had a problem.

I don't know, I think that would make them MORE appealing, not less. I like doing the less-common characters. If you put together a good costume, people will ask you about the costume if they don't immediately get it. And it's a sure way to find out who the diehard fans are. Plus you don't see you staring back at you at every turn!

I wanted to try Shub-Niggurath, since everyone raves about it. But...I couldn't. I smelled it in the tester, and it was, to my nose, absolutely foul. Really foul. Then my husband came by and smelled it. Apparently our perceptions are very much in synch here: he thought it smelled even worse than I did! What happened? Bad bottle? Contaminated? Or do the dark resins simply not agree with us? The world may never know.

Peacock Queen is unbelievably regal. In the imp, it's pure, rich roses, in full bloom. Not the weak roses you buy at the florist, with a perfect little bud. These are the old roses, before the fragrance was bred out of most varieties. Wet, it's the same pure, intense rose. Dry, it's still the same, just a little softer. There's little change. It lasts longer than most fragrances have so far on me, though that's not saying much. But I didn't reapply for five hours: only Mouse has lasted that long on me. If you love roses, I think Peacock Queen is the scent for you. When I first smelled it, I thought, "Yes! This is how roses are supposed to smell!" It's too intense for everyday wear, at least for me, but it's divine. I wish I had gone ahead and ordered a bottle: I don't think the imp I got from the decant circle is going to be enough! I'll probably order a 5 mL after Christmas...

I received Kuang Shi as a freebie from a decant circle. I found the description intriguing, but the scent in the imp... In the imp, it smells very sharp. I don't detect any orange or mango, or anything else sweet or fruity. Maybe it's the white sandalwood, or the white musk. Whatever it is, it's really unpleasant. There's a reason I waited until evening to try it: I can go take a shower if it's bad. Wet, I can smell the same thing, but it is a touch milder. Maybe it will improve... Drying, the "nasty" part is fading. I can smell a touch of the fruit; the musk is still strong, though the sandalwood is fading. At least I think it's the sandalwood... Dry: Well, I don't feel I have to rush right to the shower to remove it, but I doubt I'll try it again. Whatever that note is, it's almost gone, but I don't really care for it. I'll probably let some friends or my sis try it. If it works for one of them, I'll pass it on. If not, I can always swap it later.

I doubt I would have chosen Chimera myself, but I received an imp with my decants. Granted, the Chimera was pretty awesome, and chimeras in general are fun, but "cinnamon, thickened by myrrh, honeysuckle, and copal" doesn't really sound like me! I don't even know what copal is... Well, on to my second third full review ever. In the imp, it's a sweet cinnamon, almost like a red hot but with a bit more depth. It reminds me of the Lip Venom my sister bought me last year... And I get the same thick, syrupy sort of feeling someone else mentioned, in a good way. Wet, it's still sweet cinnamon, but it's less candy-like. Maybe that's the myrrh. (For all I know, it could be the copal. I'll have to look up "copal.") Once dry, the cinnamon blends in with the rest of the notes. I don't really think "cinnamon" anymore. However, it's beautiful, warm, and rich, with a touch of fire. I never really smell the honeysuckle, but I bet it's the bridge between the cinnamon and the resins. (See? I looked up copal.) I love it, and I really want a bottle now! I can't stay away from the stuff. I wish I had waited to try it until I had tried Peacock Queen, Christmas Rose, and my other frimp. The Lab is so full of enablers...especially the people who put the frimps in the boxes! Edited to add: I know several people have mentioned how well Chimera lasts on them, but that's not the case for me. Of course, Parsifal didn't either, and Chimera does last longer than it. But so far only Mouse's Long and Sad Tale has lasted, and that was one I was trying to remove... Edited again, months later: Well, it turns out Chimera wears much longer than I thought. My husband can always smell it even hours later. (I should have edited this earlier.)

I sniffed some Bliss tonight at Whole Foods: Divine in the imp! But I only have two wrists, so I limited myself to fragrances I was considering buying. And Bliss is too specialized for my first BPAL! It smelled to me like Chantico, this rich, intense drinking chocolate that Starbucks sold briefly. It was served in a little six ounce cup, which was the perfect size. It was that pure. I cannot WAIT to try on some Bliss; it's a definite for my next trip.

Tonight was my first BPAL-wearing experience. After a visit to Whole Foods in Roswell, Georgia, I am wearing Mouse on one wrist and Parsifal on the other. (And I OWN PARSIFAL! Woo!) In the bottle: I loved, loved, loved Mouse. I can't remember it too clearly (drat...should have taken notes), but I remember it was sweet but not overpowering. I didn't really notice the amber and sandalwood. On my wrist: It quickly got strong, and kind of sharp? Astringent? It smelled very strong in the car...maybe it's the amber. (I remember I had to be careful with Bath and Body Works' amber fragrances.) Or it could be the sandalwood; it is a touch more incense-like than I usually like. No floral or vanilla I can smell. After an hour: It's mellowing a bit. I can detect the fragrance I liked originally. I'm starting to pick up the sweet pea, I think, and maybe just a touch of the vanilla. The amber and sandalwood appear to be fading a bit. We'll see how it smells in a couple more hours. Mouse was really my top pick from the bottle, even over the Parsifal that I ended up buying. After fifteen minutes of browsing and letting the scents set on my skin, though, Parsifal suited me better. Plus it made my beloved husband happy. Edited to add: I think the problem is the sandalwood, or perhaps the blending of sandalwood and amber. Kuang Shi was a big no for me, and it had white sandalwood... I'll try a couple of other sandalwood scents to find out. However, I'm considering an imp of Mouse anyway; I intend to buy a perfume locket very soon (yay for Christmas money), and I think it will work wonderfully in that.

I'm a total newcomer to this, and Parsifal is my first purchase. Well, the first one in my hands; I went to Whole Foods and bought it while I wait for other scents to arrive. So, be kind. My nose isn't really trained yet. In the bottle, it's a bit sharp, but totally in a good way. Very much a clean scent, with a touch of floral undertones. I don't know what is what, but I enjoyed it enough to try on my wrist. On me: The fragrance blended and mellowed almost immediately. The floral comes out some, and the sharpness is toned down. Maybe it's just me, but it also has a very subtle foody touch, almost vanilla, but not quite. To me, it isn't floral, it isn't herbal, it isn't food. It's too blended for any one category. But it's wonderful, and my husband loves it to. It's been about an hour and a half, but so far no significant change. It's a touch more mellow, but that's it.

Wow! So many ideas; thanks! I don't really know what works well for me yet, since I'm a newbie... (But my sis and I have some coming.) So I'll look up some of those, and try at least a couple of imps. After all, the next con isn't until summer; I have plenty of time to play with fragrances!

Oh wow! This is fun... My first request would be for my Guild Wars character, which I cosplay at Dragon*Con. She is a mesmer, and my character wears noble attire dyed a dark red; for a costume, I wear the courtly attire, in black. (Hey, I had black boots...) Mesmers are a spellcasting profession. The original mesmer is a bit Irish in appearance; in fact, the in-game dance for the female mesmer is an Irish jig. They tend to be a bit elegant in style. "Mesmers are experts in indirect damage and subtle magic, focusing on manipulation of the target to sway the events of battle to their favor...The Mesmer is a profession with a steep learning curve; to become a talented mesmer, it is important to know not only your own skills and abilities, but those of every other profession in the game....Mesmers are best suited in preventing their opponent from achieving their goals, whether that be to heal, cast spells, or attack." They use lots of mind-altering and mind control type spells. For instance, "Migraine" causes health degeneration and lengthens the time it takes to cast spells. Many of the spells cause the enemy to take damage or lose energy when they attack or cast a spell. Others may lull them so they won't attack at all. You can see a pic of my toon here if you're curious, and my costume here. (The black at my neck is my con badge, which I flipped behind my back for the pic.) Any ideas? I think it would be cool to have a special fragrance to wear to Dragon*Con et al. when I'm cosplaying her! I guess it would need to be general catalog, or one I could fairly easily get an imp of.