MeiLin

Here in Portland we've got the real article. Rainy and 64, baby, you know it. I have an assistant this time, No1 Daughter. Also Floppy BPAL Sniffing Dog. Yes, the dog now comes up to me and insists on sniffing the bottles. In the bottle: No1: "Lilacs and rain. A sorta peppery lemon after-smell." Me: Aquatic lavender and lilies. Way, way in the back a tiny bit of citrus, but this smells mostly like aquatic flowers. Floppy Dog: *snurf* Wet: No1: "Pretty much the same, but more of the citrus and lilacs." Me: Definitely more citrus and herbs, with the aquatics/flowers underneath. Floppy Dog: *sniff sniff sniff* *licking chops* *snort* Dry: No1: "Way more lilacs. The rain is more pronounced. Citrus has gone back into its hole." Me: Gardenia now, which doesn't do well on me. The herbs have retreated, but the citrus is still there a little. Floppy Dog: *snore* Conclusion: I don't care for it. I think the bottle will go to No1 Daughter, who says, "I love it!" This is not a scent for slathering. In fact, I may decant an imp's worth into a roller bottle for No1 to cut down on slathering potential. Floppy Dog doesn't care one way or another.

Are there any postpartum doulas where you live? I can't recommend them highly enough; I couldn't have gotten through baby #2 without mine.

No number. Seems to be a problem with this CT? Honey, leather and tobacco. One of the most gorgeous things I have ever smelled in my life. How I'm going to replace it when it runs out (and it will run out, I can't not wear it), I do not know.

In the bottle: Jasmine! oh noes! But it quickly fades to something less soapy and more subtle. Wet: Jasmine! oh noes! Wait--here comes lime around the back turn! Oh, it's lime, it's lime, lime's neck and neck with the jasmine, and--it's margaritas, ladies and gentlemen! Drydown: It hasn't dried all the way yet, but oh! this is a happy smell! It is very reminiscent of the old and interesting parts of Los Angeles, my old home that I rarely miss but miss smelling this. The jasmine is back, but manageable. The lime and margarita smell is fading but still apparent, and now there's the moss and something that smells like terra cotta pots--don't know how else to describe it. Oh, I really, really like it! I'm glad I have a bottle.

I love orange scents, so I was looking forward to this. In the imp: Yep, that's orange and tangerine! Way in the back I may get the teak and the amber. Wet: Orange, cinnamon--but just a little. Then comes the licorice, and it reminds me of these patches of wild plants--I don't know what they were, but they looked like mustard--that smelled heavily of licorice growing along the cliffs above the sea where I grew up in California. boom, I was right there. Scent is so amazing for that sort of thing. Drydown: More teak, amber, and hello, vetiver. Orange is fading, but it's still there. Very little licorice, no cinnamon, though it may be contributing to the general glow. This is for fans of amber and vetiver, a tawny, lazy-in-the-sun smell. This turned out far better than I thought it would. Possible bottle.

Normally, sugar cane doesn't work well on me; that's one of No1 Daughter's notes. But just about any variety of musk (absenting artificial '70s strawberry musk) works on me. So! Allons-y! In the imp: Huh! Very pleasant laundry detergent! A little citrus-y. I get the reviewers who say this is a variant on Dirty. Wet: More huh! Jasmine! No citrus. Whoops, jasmine hit is gone, replaced by the musk. The sugar cane flower (I had no idea they flowered) top note is sweet but not overpowering; it's a little honeysuckle-ish and probably where that jasmine-y hit came from. Wow. This is really nice. Drydown: This smells like clean, pretty, naked girl right out of the shower. Maybe she used a body wash, I dunno. I really like this. Probable bottle.

In the imp: Very fresh, almost green, coconut. If you've actually gotten a green or very newly ripe coconut, you know the smell. It's not a sweet coconut at all. A quick whiff of all the exotic florals, and then that yummy tart hibiscus. It's funny, I hate hibiscus tea, but I love the fragrance note. Wet: Huh! No coconut! Passionfruit, hibiscus, pineapple--oh wait, here comes the coconut. And then the florals, led by the vanilla flower/bean. (Sir walks by and says "Oooh, you're smelly." Is that good or bad? "I wouldn't kick you out of bed, but it's pretty heavy.") Drydown: Warm vanilla, soft tropical flowers, a little tart hibiscus, fresh coconut base. A few hours later: Nothin' left but vanilla and a smidgen of coconut. It's nice, actually, but I don't think it's bottle-worthy. I have other tropicals I like better.

Velvet Tiki is a really young, fresh coconut with vanilla flower and vanilla bean. There are some serious tropical florals but they burn off fairly quickly. Wearing it now and it's almost entirely coconut/vanilla.

On me: OMIGOD ALMOND! RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!! I had to wash it off. I got none of the other lovely scents people were describing. It was FOUL.

AAAAGH! Plastic, artificial chocolate and cherry with a strong whiff of--gack--ALMOND!!!! run away!!

This is Gelt's sweeter sister. It is smooth, warm, not at all plastic chocolate like some of the other Box scents went on me--and dries to a less sweet but still delicious, velvety, ambery finish. Almost powdery, but in a good way. I was originally going to look for a partial, but oops, look what happened: a bottle of this fell into my shopping cart last night. huh, how'd that happen...

This? Is gorgeous. It's nice now, but I'm betting along with the rest of you that this will age magnificently. In the bottle: A faint whiff of chocolate and brown sugar, then spices--nutmeg and ginger leading--and quickly following, a not-unpleasant medicinal bitterness. Wet: Warm spices softened by a bit of brown sugar. No chocolate to be found. This is heavy on the nutmeg. In its drying down phase I did much wrist-huffing. Dry: Completely dry and a few hours in, there is a bitterness like myrrh. But unlike most BPALs with that note, this time is works. VERY happy to have a bottle.

The Curse of Jasmine strikes again: On me this is a soapy Death Cap.

This is the BPAL that finally convinced me aquatics are not for me. Not quite to the GAAAAH! level of almond *shiver*, but almost.

LOVE. This is the first room spray I've gotten from the Post that made me swoon. It's spicy, citrusy and so winter-esque that I'm going to go through the whole bottle by the end of the season.

I had a hard time figuring out which Inquisition I wanted...until I read the description for Gluhwein. If I could have only one (and really, that's all I have $$ for right now), that's the one I wanted. And I guessed right. It's delightful. In the bottle: A sweet but not cloying, definitely red wine, with strong undercurrents of tanginess and spices, even a little citrus peel. Wet: Strong red wine smell! yoiks! Dry: I am SO IN LOVE. Cinnamon, cardamom, well-mulled citrus, honey and vanilla, in that order, all floating in a warm, very subtle, red wine. It's SO PERFECT. I have all these other Yules to try, but this is what I want to smell like all winter. We're having a very snowy, cold winter here in Portland (very unusual), and this is what I want to smell like all the time. It's like a space heater for my soul. Thank you, goblins, it's beautiful!

This IS very traditional perfumy. I am reminded of something Chanel-ish. I don't think I'm going to buy it, but it's worth keeping the imp.

Do you like the smell of chocolate? I mean real chocolate, like unsweetened cocoa powder. I mean, do you really like to get your nose right down in that tin of Dutch process and take a big HUFF until the insides of your nostrils are brown? You like huffing that cocoa powder, bunky? Then you will love Gelt. BPAL does a lot of chocolate scents, the standards in the general catalog being Bliss and Velvet, and there are some outstanding limiteds based on chocolate like El Dia de los Reyes (one of No1 Daughter's faves). But for pure cocoa insanity, Gelt beats them all, and it doesn't hurt that I am one dreidl-spinning latke-eating goy. In the imp: Sharp, sharp unsweetened cocoa. Wet: Cocoa and hazelnut, again quite sharp. Someone else described it as sour, and while I don't get that, Sir did when he smelled it; he made quite the face. "I don't care for that at ALL," he said. Dry: Dry is a different story. It blooms. The amber comes up in this glorious burst of gold and cocoa and it's just overwhelmingly good. "Now THAT'S worth getting," said Sir. Not sweet at all, just perfectly blended cocoa and amber. Good stay; 12 hours later I still get it on my wrists despite cooking and dishes. A bottle of this is now on my Yule list.

In the bottle: Serious. This is a serious scent. To my nose, the sage is immediately apparent. Wet: Bergamot, sage, ginger. I smell bee balm, but that's probably the galangal and bergamot together. Dry: The frankincense resin comes out, the ginger becomes a lot more predominant. The bergamot fades. I smell the nicotiana now (tobacco flower). This is gorgeous, smooth, well-blended but with notes coming and going, a little sweet but hardly cloying, a little spicy but hardly overpowering. A strong but subtle blend. I love it.

In the bottle: A clean, soft, hopeful floral. Wet: Ylang ylang? What is Hawaii's state flower? No, that's the Native Yellow Hibiscus. This isn't tropical, but I smell something ylang ylang-ish in a very well-blended floral. Dry: Woosh! It's gone! Little throw, little stay. Might be a good nighttime sleepy scent.

In the imp: A soft bed of moss. Wet: The sandalwood at first, then the patchouli comes on strong; the mosses fall away. Dry: This seems to be fading fast on me, or maybe it's just really subtle. The mosses are back, and it's a soft, dry scent, mostly sandalwood and moss with the patchouli grounding it. I'm not sure it's bottle-worthy. I'll have to get Sir's opinion and live with it a bit.

In the imp: Mint. Oh, this smells like something I know, not absinthe because I don't know what absinthe smells like! Smiling It's a candy or something, dang, wish I could remember what this is. Wet: Lemon! happy Mei! Really full, sweet but not too sweet lemon! Barest hint my Aunt Fanny! Dry: Anise, hyssop, mint, and lemon at the back. Lovely, sporty, cheerful daytime scent that could be unisex on the right guy. I'll probably collect imps rather than buy a bottle.

I wanted to like this, but it's completely ordinary on me.

I want something that smells like the northernmost California rest stop on I-5, on the Klamath River. We were there yesterday, and it smelled of clean, sweet pine (not medicinal or Pine-Sol-ish) and snow--it was snowing!--and fresh, fresh air and river. I couldn't stop taking deep breaths. It was heaven. I want that smell.

Miskatonic University! We call it evil butterscotch!