crebbsgirl

Apparently my skin is particular when it comes to the lab's leather notes. Or maybe I just have odd associations which prevents me from enjoying some of them. Wet, the vetiver was pretty strong here. As it dries, the leather and musk comes out more. Now, certain leather notes remind me of my early years as a dancer, and going into costume shops to try on shoes. The tap shoes especially had a distinctive patent leather smell and wearing this I am immediately thrown back there. It's not necessarily a bad memory, but not one I want to relive every time I wear a scent. Overall this blend was a little cologney, dark and deep. I normally like those kinds of scents, but I won't be wearing this one.

I'm going to blame skin chemistry here, but my review of this scent can be summed up in one word... Pez.

This is a wonderfully smooth and smoky incense scent. The woods here offer a tempering effect on the smoke and incense notes and the resulting scent is deep and rich. Commanding but not overly in-your-face. I was worried this might be a little masculine for my tastes but I think I can pull this one off. Overall, I really like this.

This is smooth coconut on my skin, and the sugared rum/tobacco combination prevents the coconut from being sunblock-y. This is really nice, if a little masculine (through my own associations, rum = man), but I like it. I'm not sure how often I will reach for this, but this is a really well blended scent. Each of the notes is identifiable but they mesh together seamlessly, creating a really wonderful sweet boozy scent. Overall the effect is a little playful.

Ok, something went incredibly funky on my skin here and no joke - this turned into Eau de Gas Station on my wrists. Oh how I wish I were kidding, but there was UNMISTAKEABLY the scent of gas and oil on my skin. It settled down after about an hour (I can be pretty determined with perfume and I try to give everything the benefit of the doubt) and I got a spiced musk, but there was still hints of funkiness underneath. No, this was definitely not for me.

So after about a year and a half into my adventures with BPAL, I finally got around to trying Dorian. And I don't know why I waited so long. I think I have been scared of tea notes because they tend to go sharp and herbaceous on my skin. This was a sugared tea, creamy and warm. The vanilla wasn't over-sweet here. The musks were pure gorgeousness. Overall the effect was really warm and comforting with just a hint of sex appeal. Yum!

So a very kind forumite sent me a testable sniffy of this. I was ecstatic about her generosity. And very disappointed with how my skin changed this blend. I got a sickeningly sweet rose scent here, which dried down to something much easier on the nose - but getting there was just not worth it for me. The end product was a wonderful cognac/tobacco blend with just a hint of clove, but the overpowering sickly sweet scent just stayed around much too long for my liking. I'm glad I got the chance to try this.

This was predominantly pink pepper on me throughout almost all stages. Wet, it was a little... funky on my skin. There was something in the undertone that made me not want to sniff myself. As it dried it became a little more agreeable. But something was still off for me. I don't think it was the red musk, because normally the two of us get on just fine. But something was definitely off.

I was pleasantly surprised by this blend. I like it more than I thought I was going to. It's less sharp than I was expecting - metals and I notoriously don't get along - with something very sweet. I think the honeysuckle and the rose mallow are combining to dull the edge as it were. The carnation is adding just a hint of spiced floral in the background and I'm not getting very much verbena. The musk note here is a standout as well, and everything combines to form a fresh and light blend.

Alright full disclosure, I have no idea what year this is, but if I had to guess, I would say 06. This is a rush of vetiver out of the bottle, which quickly simmers down on my skin and the resulting scent is a smoky, earthy blend. The patchouli and bourbon geranium are standouts here, with the clove wafting through the blend. I had to go over the other reviews a couple of times because I kept getting an apple scent that I thought I was imagining but I see that other people smelled it too... so that's reassuring. This is a beautiful, dark autumn blend, and I am so glad I got to try it. I can see this going into heavy rotation.

A dusky, yet effervescent mix of pomegranate and black currant candies, with a dusting of sugared pear and white apple. This smelled like musky sugared fruit on me. Very candy like, but with a bit of an edge. There wasn't that overly youthful vibe of "eau-de-eleventeen-year-old" that I sometimes get with the sweeter scents. This smelled like a grown-up, jellied fruits from the shi-shi chocolate boutique kind of scent.

Cheesecake. This is exactly what it smells like. I am not a foody person, so this didn't really agree with me. I was left feeling vaguely nauseous all day. But the scent is true. Thick and creamy cheesecake!

I am suddenly reminded that aquatics and I do NOT get along. This is rain and salt predominantly on my skin. I can just barely smell the sweet pea beneath it and the herbal tang of lavender. This is cool and crisp and everything I don't want in a perfume. This is definitely a softer aquatic than most, but it is aqautic nonetheless.

This was very woodsy when wet. I would say almost masculine in it's woodsyness. I think that's because during the very early stages of this scent, it reminds me a little of how my Poppi used to smell. As it dries, the pink clove comes out, and adds a hint of spice. I can also smell the chamomile and hyssop. The walnut and fig remain hidden (which isn't a bad thing for me, as fig HATES me). The musk here is really lovely. Further into the drydown the magnolia comes out, adding a floral hint - but without overtaking the blend. I like this blend a lot. Much further into the drydown it starts bordering on powdery... I'm not entirely sure where that is coming from. I will have to retest this I think, but overall this is a wonderfully cozy woodsy scent.

Wet there was a WHOLE lotta soil here. The dirt note was most predominant in that stage. As it started to dry, the musk came out more, as did the jasmine. There was a very brief period where the jasmine knocked everything out of the way, but that only lasted a couple minutes before it settled into the background. The opoponax really adds to the resinous feel here, but it's a little hollow and cavernous feeling to me. This is a very deep and dark scent. The plum is really only a hint, and I'm not getting any cherry at all. I'm going to age this for a little bit.

I should preface this review by stating that roses = ammonia on my skin more often than not. White Rose was less rosy on me than Red Rose was. Wet, this was predominantly vanilla tea and coconut. As it dries, the frankincense comes out and adds some depth (and behaves, because frankincense and I have been known to have a rather tumultuous relationship). The coconut tempers off in the drydown leaving just a hint of itself, while the vanilla tea mellows into something sweet and creamy. I can't detect the orris here, and the white rose is a faint hint in the background. The result is something sweet and light. I can definitely see how the two roses are two halves of the same whole. As for combining the two: Holy Mother of... this is the most amazing thing I have EVER smelled. In combination with White Rose, the Indian musk from Red Rose smells identical to the musk note from Black Lace. I think that's the vanilla tea and musk together actually. The frankincense adds a hint of incense while the tobacco makes it a sweet incense. I think the clove and the coconut are blending wonderfully together here. I can't keep my wrists away from my freaking nose. Separately, these blends are stunning in their own rights, but together, I think I may have died and gone to some wonderfully scented afterlife. Get This! Immediately. Even if roses don't work on your skin!! (Cause they REALLY don't work on mine).

Let me preface this review by stating roses = ammonia on my skin more often than not. Red Rose on me was a little more rosy than I was expecting. There was a brief period in the wet stage where I was very very afraid. The beginning of wear is mainly rose and fir. It stays fairly rosy for about 1/2 an hour or so. Then the drydown begins and the Indian musk and tonka come out. I didn't get any clove or tobacco until the very late stages of wear, about a couple hours in. The rose never totally disappears here, but the important thing to note is that it DOESN'T go to ammonia, and that other than for the first 1/2 hour of wear, it's not the predominant note here. I would be very curious to see how this ages. Overall, this blend is deep and sexy, with musk and amber and fir all predominating. As for combining the two: Holy Mother of... this is the most amazing thing I have EVER smelled. In combination with White Rose, the Indian musk from Red Rose smells identical to the musk note from Black Lace. I think that's the vanilla tea and musk together actually. The frankincense adds a hint of incense while the tobacco makes it a sweet incense. I think the clove and the coconut are blending wonderfully together here. I can't keep my wrists away from my freaking nose. Separately, these blends are stunning in their own rights, but together, I think I may have died and gone to some wonderfully scented afterlife. Get This! Immediately. Even if roses don't work on your skin!! (Cause they REALLY don't work on mine).

LE 13 (April 07) 13 (November 09) A Wonderful Light Absinthe and Lace Arachne of Lydia Autumn Autumn Lace B340 Badgers Beaver Moon 2011 Black Butterfly Moon Black Cherry Amaretto Pudding Black Lace Black Orchid Blue Moon 09 (Elizabeth's Interpretation Bruja 10mL BTMEN But Men Loved Darkness Rather Than Light Caberet Goth Champagne, Chocolate and Cheap Sex Chaos Theory V: Recursive Self-Similarity V2 - The O Series CCXCI Chaos Theory V: Recursive Self-Similarity V4 - The Snake Oil Series CDXLVM Devil's Night 09 Diable en Boite Elegy: The Autumnal Faunalia Figgy Pudding Gacela of the Dark Death Geek Goth German Expressionist Horror Gothabilly Great Vampire Bat Gun Moll Gypsy Haitian Lover Hexennacht 05 Hygeia Infernal Lover Joyful Moon Kypris La Fee Verte Lenore Lilith Victoria Lucy, Kissed Midnight Carnival Mourning Lace Narkissos Ninon Now Winter's Nights Enlarge Odd Portents O v6 Pallas Athenae Pa-Pow Phoenix in Autumn Pinched with Four Aces Pumpkin IV 09 Sachs Set v3 Shub-Niggurath LE Smoky Moon Sugar Plum Fairy The Butterfly The Maltese Cross of Sanctus German The Shadowy and The Sublime The Spanish Dance The Tell-Tale Heart The Tree of Life Third Charm TKO TKO v3 Velvet Bandito Victorian Garden Virginia Voodoo Queen Witch Dance WILF Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse GC Bastet Fairy Market O Opium Poppy Penny Dreadful Perversion Port Royal Scherezade Shadow Witch Orchid Shub-Niggurath Sin Snake Oil (x2) The Antikythera Mechanism TAL Anthelion Aunt Caroline's Money Draw Bastet's Laughter Caliph's Beloved Fiery Wall of Protection French Creole Jinx Removing Peace Perpetuum Bonum Protection Road Opener Temple of the Mother Wealthy Business White Light Haunt Winchester

I'm not sure if any of these are up your alley but you could try: Mary Read - Salt air, ocean mist, aged patchouli, sarsaparilla, watered-down rum, leather-tinged musk, and a spray of gunpowder. Egle - Ocean water, hyacinth petals, star jasmine, and fir. Calico Jack - Sea air, driftwood, waterlogged kelp, and the memory of plundered spices sprayed over worn leathers, rough musk, and the salty wooden floorboards of the Revenge. Île de la Tortue - Damp air trapped in limestone caverns, heady greenery, hothouse orchids, nicotiana blossoms, bois de chandel, elemi, palm wine, garambullo, pega-pega, flame of the forest, and a swirl of Haitian vetiver. Windward Passage - Breezes blowing off of the waters of the Caribbean: marine accord, seaweed, and bladderwrack. Mary Read, Egle, Calico Jack, Île de la Tortue, and Windward Passage are General Catalog choices, you can order those from the lab in imp form. Thalassa, The Galapagos Mermaid (Carnaval Diabolique) - Seaweed, kelp, salty ocean spray, bitter almond, night-blooming jasmine, frankincense, and benzoin. Kiyohime Changes From a Serpent (Salon) - Salty ocean spray, red kelp, black plum, lychee, sea moss, green musk, hachiya, plum blossom, and matcha. Sunrise With Sea-Monsters (Salon) - Ocean mist, kelp, ambergris, amber, white pear, osmanthus, freesia, and seafoam accord. The Carnaval Diabolique scents aren't available in imp form from the lab, so you may need to comb the swaps or sales forums if you want to try a decant, but someone will probably have them available. The Salon scents ARE available in imp form from the lab, but only as a set, so the swaps/sales forum may be a better idea for those as well. Good Luck!

I will preface this review by stating that I have had trouble with the Lab's milk/cream notes before. That being said, I didn't seem to have that issue here... once this dried. Wet there was definitely an odd sour smell, but this seemed to only last 10 minutes or so. As it began to dry, the sour smell went away and it was replaced by this wonderful creamy honey smell. The milk thickened to a cream scent on me. Very comforting indeed. I felt warm and contented all evening while wearing this. Overall I really liked this, but I don't know if I necessarily will hunt down a bottle.

This is a truly beautiful blend! Wet, it's a little heavy on the gardenia for my tastes, but as it dries, the honey comes out and really shines here. This is a honey note unlike anything I have ever smelled before, almost beeswax but not really. It's very hard to describe. The rice paper adds a fragility here, almost a soft creaminess. Really it's just stunning.

Hi! I'm also very wary of sweeter scents and I found Poisoned Apple to be quite nice. Apple-y but not sweet. Another one for you might be Les Bijoux: Skin musk and honey, blood-red rose, orange blossom, white peach, red apple, frankincense and myrrh. Delirium is another nice apple scent that doesn't go sweet on me: Non compos mentis, indeed! A contrary, conflicted scent, bubbling with merry madness. Contains apple, rose, and lemon. You might try Verdandi too. Good luck!!

This is sweet plummy goodness while wet. As it dries, the vanilla sandalwood comes out more and the nutmeg adds a beautiful spice element here. It's sweet. Almost bordering on candy-like but it doesn't ever get there completely. The rice does indeed add a bit of creaminess to the blend, but it doesn't come out for me until much later in the drydown. This is light and gorgeous.

I concur that in the bottle, the predominant smell is cherry blossoms. Once it's applied, the moss really blooms here. As it dries, the moss and the cherry blossoms blend so seamlessly together, it's unbelievable. Its a soft scent, snuggly and warm. The vanilla comes out much later in the drydown. It is present in the wet stages but so faintly you really have to look for it. During the drydown it gets stronger, never overtaking the blend, but more so coming out from the background to become more of an equal player. I find this blend to me more comforting of the Shungas so far. I really like it!

This is a warm and golden scent. Wet, I get a lot of chrysanthemums but as it dries, the flowers blend wonderfully with the amber incense and vanilla. Further into the drydown the sandalwood comes out and adds some depth. This is a really beautiful second skin kind of scent. The cinnamon is not very present here, I'm usually quite sensitive to it and I don't see any tell-tale redness on my wrists. I can only very faintly detect any spice. And I don't get any locker-room funk here!