lady_pandora

Rose, lavender, and...sweat. Stupid skin chemistry. This doesn't work on me in the same way Whitechapel doesn't work on me, so I'm going to blame it on the white musk. I smell like a guy who's just been for a run. I smell like my dad when he'd just come from a run. ...My dad and I don't get along so hot. This one's a nope. Damn skin.

I ended up wearing Mare Nectaris a lot last summer, and there was one day so hot I couldn't stand anything but Dormouse, which isn't even really my thing most of the time. In the meantime, I've also acquired Carnaval Diabolique, which really shouts "summer" to me too!

Lullaby (Crimson Peak), Esbat (Haute Macabre)--evidently ethereal is spelled "moonflower" in my head at the moment

The first few minutes of this are kind of harsh and floor-cleanery, but it settles quickly into leather and cherryalmond. There's a hint of floral, but it never really comes whomping out. I keep feeling like there's tobacco here, even though it's not listed. Maybe it reminds me of somebody's cherry pipe tobacco? There's a slight resemblance to TAL Black Cherry Love Oil. It becomes even better in the late hours, smoky leather with a bit of cherry. I am not sure this one is "me," but I'm keeping the imp at least. Because (a) I really like the super-late stage; ( it smells a little like BCLO, so I can use it to smell a bit like that without invoking the TAL intent, if I so desire; and © it's one of the very few miracle jasmine blends where I don't amp the jasmine. That in and of itself is worth a medal!

I never did get to try Nocnitsa, but have you tried Burial? Given the similar notes, I should try it but I'm wanting more woods than dirt. Maybe I can layer Burial and Black Forest... It depends on your skin chemistry, I think--I got more woods than dirt from it. But YMMV.

I never did get to try Nocnitsa, but have you tried Burial?

Mmm, this is dead sexy. It's dead sexy in a unisex way, and in a very non-vulnerable way--I feel badass in this, but also really comfy. It's like the best pair of jeans you ever had. First couple of minutes I weirdly get a chocolatey scent with coconut and something non-foody that I can't identify. Then it's kind of a musty wood for a few minutes. But once it settles, it's an incensey smoky wood with occasional slight wafts of whatever is chocolatey. Later on, the "wood" note seems like it might actually be coconut husk. Someone upthread mentioned Brown Jenkin and I agree, though I feel like I've been comparing too many things to Brown Jenkin lately! Anyway, it's a gorgeous incense/spicy/wood scent, and way more complex and luxe than those three words can really convey, but I can't break it down any further than that. Keeper!

Al Azif is super sweet on me. Beeswax is dominant in the first few hours, and early on, it's super sweet and smells kind of like bananas in some sniffs, and oatmeal at other moments. Then it goes to just smoky beeswax, and then in the later hours there's maybe some skin musk and maybe a wood note? Something in common with Brown Jenkin. Oddly comforting. I might have too many scents like this; I'll hang on to it for a while and see if I find myself reaching for it.

I was a little worried about Esbat based on other reviews, but at least on me, it does have an unpleasant stage but it only lasts a few minutes. Right when it's first applied, it's kind of harsh and chemical-y, like a cleaner. The only individual note I can make out at that point is oakmoss. It develops really quickly into oakmoss with an ethereal floral haze of moonflower, and as it continues to develop, the oakmoss recedes and the moonflower becomes more prominent. The eventual effect is a really nice, refreshing, maybe slightly soapy moonflower with a little bit of moss in the background. I like it! It does become faint within a few hours. I'll probably buy a bottle of this when it comes back. I could see wearing this on a hot summer night or in ritual.

My current sandalwood faves are Sinus Amoris, Brown Jenkin, Mini Magdalene, and probably something I'll kick myself for forgetting.

Oh yeah, how did I miss Bewitched!? I wear the heck out of that in spring.

Definitely going to start wearing Fairy Thorn again! Do the Dancing Maidens Sleep is also screaming spring to me. Persephone is always a bit of a tradition too.

The Waltz has it--the scent didn't quite work on me, but it's pretty and a lot of people really love it.

ETA: 2008 edition. Wet, Luperci is green and masculine, kind of aftershavey--I would have said pine and vetiver if testing blind, so I think it's the juniper and oakmoss amping up at this early stage. I was about to file it under Boyfriend, but then that wily wolf threw me a curveball--starting at about 30 minutes and then continuing on as the scent settles, it started to really remind me of Brown Jenkin. One of my favorites. There aren't enough notes in common to explain this, but I'm guessing it must be because they both have musk, a sweetening component (the coconut there and the honey here), an incense component, and a dry woodiness. Soooo now I really like this on me. But I also still think it would smell good on him. And he's into wolves. I'm probably more likely to wear it--he wears the same two things all the time while I'm a perfume slut. Maybe I'll buy a bottle and give him the decant or vice versa... Anyway, definitely a keeper, even if I haven't yet decided who it's for!

Well, I seem to amp the "tree" quality in Burial more than the flowers or dirt, but YMMV!

Burial (deep, brooding forest scents, including juniper and patchouli. The scent of upturned cemetery loam mingling with floral offerings to the dead.) I vaguely remember feeling that way about The Apothecary (Tea leaf with three mosses, green grass, a medley of herbal notes, and a drop of ginger and fig.). But it's been a LOOOONG time.

Not entirely the same, but Lyonesse or Morocco may have some of the same vibe and appeal that you're looking for. Yeah, Morocco.

I've never used either, but I think some reviews of Ask the Nearest Hippie drew a comparison.

It does happen sometimes! There was a batch years ago where the caps sheared off too. And I had a pile of decants from like 2007 that all leaked. I think sometimes the vial company has a bad batch. :/ No, it's not normal--I have lots of imps that have survived for ~10 years with no issue.

I'm also going to put in a plug for BPTP Do the Dancing Maidens Sleep, which is hyacinth/honeysuckle/asphodel/honey/vetiver. Mostly because I just love it. It's up right now, but probably coming down pretty soon, as it's basically a Yule.

Sjofn is apple bubblegum on me, and fades to faintness pretty quickly. It's sweet and pretty, but I have other apple BPALs that do more for me.

Early on I get spiced rum close to the skin, and this really lovely "rain" note in the throw--it reminds me of an oil my old roommate used to burn in her oil burner in college that was really ethereal and soothing. Unfortunately, though, I lose that note and the scent settles down into salty-spicy-rummy-men's-cologne. It smells really nice, but I want to slather it on a guy rather than wear it myself!

Shadows and Reflections definitely has a shadowy, smoky effect! The two most prominent notes on me are the poppy and myrrh; I can't really pick out the other two. The poppy is dominant at first, and it's a little "chemicaly" in the early going, but calms down shortly thereafter, and as the day goes on, the myrrh comes out to sit alongside it, sweet and incensy. This is a lot like Event Horizon. I like it, but I probably don't need a bottle because of the immense amount of Event Horizon that I have. But it's a well-blended scent and it suits the concept well.

Wet: WOOD! Soooo much cedar. 10 min: Cedar and I think amber? Also some black patchouli. 20 min: Cedary patchouli. 30 min: Slight cedar at the first sniff, and then all black patchouli. 1 hour: all black patchouli, and so from there on out. There's nothing objectively wrong with this--it's actually quite pleasant--but it's not me.

Holy good grief amazing. I am going to wear this so much in the spring. Wet, this is honeysuckle and something that smells like lily. Asphodel is a kind of lily, so this makes sense. It's a little soapy at this stage--not unpleasant, but soapy nonetheless, but wait for it... It resolves pretty quickly, on me, into its full glory, and what I get is a well-blended floral mix (I can't pick out any individual flowers anymore) with honey and a very gentle version of vetiver. There's a scent memory at the edge of my mind, but I can't place it. But in any case, this is pretty much an ideal non-rose floral for me. I want to bathe in it. There's something a little wild about it, like it's tempting you to your doom, but you're going to enjoy said doom. Sooooo beautiful. Kind of Snow Whitish waaaay into the late hours, must be the snow note. I decided to buy this because I like Anathema, which is also a honeysuckle/vetiver combo. They only ended up being distant relatives, but you still want to check this out if you like Anathema, because that means you'll probably like the vetiver-juxtaposed-with-sweet-florals thing.