melrose

In imp, and on, wet: lavender, and nothing but. Near drydown: lavender and jasmine, not playing well together. Far drydown: Bathroom cleaner. Not for me.

I love Chanel No. 5, and don't like vetiver, so I don't think vetiver is your problem with Chanel No. 5. To echo another poster, I also love Ozymandias, in part because it reminds me of Chanel No. 5, so you'll want to stay well away from it.

I love any and all musks, and get along fine with the other notes listed, so I was excited to try Skuld: In imp, and on wet: Pineapple vomit! WTF? I've never been so surprised by BPAL. Near drydown: Butterscotch vomit, with something nice valiantly trying to peek out from underneath, but not succeeding. Drydown: About 15 minutes of a woodsy, powdery smell that's quite nice, then poof! All gone. Needless to say, no bottle for me.

Omen smells a little like Old Spice to me.

In imp, and on, wet: Nuts. Specifically, peanuts. Near drydown: Lemon cleaning product and it's screaming to be noticed. Far drydown: It settled into something spicy, incensy, with herbs wafting in and out. I really can't pick out any individual notes. I love this stage, but don't know if I can get past the first 2 stages to order a bottle.

Just discovered Lust - it's a dead ringer for Opium on me, much closer than Vechernyaya even.

OMG, this is wonderful. The name is perfect - Beth really nailed this one. I knew I would love it, based on the ingredients, but I didn't know how much. I used to love Opium, except it was SOOO strong, and this reminds me very much of Opium, without knocking out everyone in my general vicinity. I can't stop burying my nose in my elbow. Maybe I should stop wearing this at work - my productivity is way down.

Seconding Vechernyaya. It puts a smile on my face, plus I don't have to worry about knocking people out with it like I did with Opium. Also, V gets compliments from strangers.

First on and near drydown: Necco Wafers. It's a dead ringer. I'm not crazy about those candies, and this is making me a little nauseous. It dries down to a spicy, powdery blend that's nice if unremarkable. Not bottle-worthy, I'm afraid.

This one is not going to be easy to describe. Upon initial application, it morphed through the following scents: Fresh air and sunlight. Herb garden. Candied bananas. Smoked almonds. It finally settled into an absolutely gorgeous soft, clean, slightly powdery, slightly sweet, slightly citrusy note. It'd be bottle-worthy for sure if it didn't disappear so quickly, but I'm quite enjoying burying my nose in my elbow.

Oh, YEAH. I loves me some patchouli and it loves me back. I couldn't be more pleased with this blend. In the bottle, and on, wet, the vetiver did its usual bully thing (I hate it, but my skin loves to amp it), but it actually settled down! I can hardly believe my good luck. As mentioned by a poster above, the cedarwood does give the patchouli a dusty edge, which I freakin' love. The vetiver plays nice, addding a bare hint of clean sweetness. I wouldn't have identified cinnamon without reading the ingredients, but I'm sure it adds to the balance and depth of this new-found love. Definitely bottle-worthy.

First on, it was sharply herbal, with just a hint of something spicy and sweet underneath. Near drydown - gorgeous - it's like Cinnabar mixed with Old Spice, but no fake or overwhelming aspects to it. Far drydown - the same, only very faint. This would be HG-worthy if it lasted longer.

Jasmine - check. Rose - check. Myrrh - where are you? You would make this blend perfect! Only in the far drydown does the blend become lovely on me, but that stage doesn't last long, as the scent fades fairly quickly. Alas. I so resonated with the description.

Dear Bard, I feel strangely drawn to respond to your post, although I know next to nothing about you, other than I have read a few of your comments on the forum, and thought you must be very intelligent. I'm a Pisces (thus, feeling your pain), and 55 years old. I've been around the wheel a round or two more than you, and have learned surprisingly less than I should have, but one thing I have learned (kicking and screaming all the way) is that just when we have absolutely no idea what to do next, it's okay to just stop, do nothing, and be in the moment as calmly as possible. Something WILL reveal itself, and, when you are in a happier place, you may just look back and think ``Huh! It was the journey that taught me the most.'' My lesson has been to let go of thinking I must be in control of everything, every moment. I'm still learning, BTW. Not as clever as I fancied myself to be, I'm afraid.

The first time I tried this, it disappeared completely within 10 minutes. This review is based on the second application, when I knew to slather: In imp, and first on: This smells the most like department store perfume of all BPALs I've tried - generic, no notes announcing themselves. Near drydown: Still a bit of that aldehydic smell, plus lemon. Where's the milk? Where's the honey? Far drydown: If I bury my nose in my elbow, I get a whiff of tea with lemon. Whah? It's a no-go.

Butterscotch and nothing else - wish I could get even a hint of rum from this. Too sweet and straight-ahead foody for me. Later, it's mostly play-doh with a hint of butterscotch. Not sickening, but nothing special.

Envelop yourself in the soft, sensual embrace of gentle sandalwood warmed by cocoa vanilla and a veil of deep myrrh. In imp: peanut butter and body odor?!!? On, wet: Chocolate with a hint of woods. Nice. Near and far drydowns: Wow, just WOW! It changed into something fabulous, and I almost didn't even want to try it after sniffing it in the imp. It's spicy and incensey and woodsy, with just a hint of sweetness - bottleworthy for sure. I'm so excited to find something that smells better on me than in the imp, since I've had so many experiences that went the other way.

Vetiver and leather only - and they're not playing well together, they're duking it out on my skin. I loves me some leather, but vetiver always amps on me, and it's not one of my favorite scents, so this is a no.

In imp: herbal, greenery, woods. First on: very dry, woodsy, with a hint of spice underneath. Nice. Near drydown: Woods, spices, incense. Tres yummy. No far drydown; it disappeared. This makes it un-bottleworthy, but I will enjoy slathering the contents of the imp.

Bay rum and bourbon as the top 2 notes - I was apprehensive, but they do a lovely dance together - the bay rum isn't too masculine and the bourbon isn't too boozy. The drydown is quite nice - complex, spicy, slightly foody. I don't get the magnolia, dirt, or floral notes, but I'm sure they're helping the bay rum and bourbon morph into this yummy scent I'm smelling. Throw and lasting power are just okay.

Dee is my most favorite BPAL love. For me, it evokes, trees, earth, old books and much more.

Where are my amber and red musk? Sob. It seems my skin amps roses. This is all rose, all the time. Nice, but not what I wanted from Spellbound. Wonderful staying power.

On, wet: a jumble of florals. Near drydown: the gardenia is giving this an unpleasant sharpness. Far drydown: pleasant - soft, mild, airy floral. It does evoke the name - I see a wispy veil floating in the breeze.

I wish I got the earthiness other posters have mentioned. First on, it's sharp - woodsy and herbal. Later, those are the main notes, but there's a hint of something else - it's so faint I barely know how to categorize it, but it's not earthy, maybe ever so slightly floral. Not for me.

n1k1ta took the words right out of my mouth - generic men's cologne. It smells like just about any men's cologne you'd find in a drugstore. Unfortunately, it never morphs on me and has amazing staying power. Wilde is a no for me.