Babette

This is a very sexy and masculine scent. Quite sophisticated, too. It reminds me of a particular cologne -- Dunhill? Calvin Klein? -- that sticks out quite memorably in my childhood memories. There is a story to this actually: My older sister was a class beauty during her school years. One of her guyfriends was absolutely smittened by her (I think they were both 14 or 15 then...?) and so he sent her stuff that he made to demonstrate the extent of his feelings towards her -- 3D coloured paper stars, a bundle of letters he wrote and one in particular had lines of 'I love you, I love you, I love you' all over, many mixed tapes, etc -- and he presented them all in a box cushioned with thick clumps of cotton wool. The cotton wool was scented with this scent and I remember, being that dreamy and romantic girl I was then, sniffing at it and wishing for the day when there would be such a man who would do something like that for me. Little did I know that in real life, this translates into creepy, stalkerish behaviour. *shudder* Anyway, I personally believe that this scent should be in anyone's BPAL collection (if one can carry it off well) since it is classic elegance captured in a container. Once I start working and have a fixed income, I will buy me a bottle and slather on when I need an extra oomph of masculinity to get me through the day. Who needs a man when one has this? ETA: I got so distracted by my reminiscings that I forgot to give a descriptive review for this scent. Sadly, I have the wrong nose for detecting specific notes so I can't really give a very good review like the others did. All I could identify was lemon but it's not the sharp kind that I encountered in Doc Constantine. This lemon flits in the background to give the overall scent a certain kick to it so it wouldn't be too boring. There is a certain darkness but not dark-dark like woods in Death of Summer but just enough for it to be intriguing. Mysterious, posh, classy and refined with a bad boy edge.

To be quite honest, I rather like this perfume. My skin amps up the herbal note pretty strongly when it's wet and when it dries down, the herbal-ness is still there but softer and sweeter, almost pillowy-like. I can't associate it with other commercial perfume because the ones I am familiar with do not smell like this. Instead, Privilege reminds me of shampoo, like Herbal Essences, but not quite because this is sweeter. However, like the shampoo, it gives off a clean vibe for me and I quite like that. This is something I'll wear on days when I can't decide on which blend to dab on and have to stay indoors.

I just received this yesterday from a swap and this has rocketed up my list of favourite scents to wear! I get a lot of incense (my skin tends to amp that a lot, right next to vanilla), which is very comforting because it reminds me of this woman I knew who would burn incense in her home with the exact same scent. And I get a sourish-like, perfumey scent that I can't pinpoint exactly from the notes listed above -- the sour part probably comes from the wild plum since I get the same from Midwinter's Eve and the perfumey bit from the lily and ylang ylang, I think -- which lends a somewhat sinister effect to the perfume. Yes, I definitely agree that this scent does capture the character completely -- beautiful, matured, and evil to the core. ETA: Throw and wear-length is somewhat minimal. I have to press my nose close to my skin to smell but oh my, it smells so good! The incense is still present but there's a certain creamy and sweet quality to it. Gorgeous!

This has got to be one of my favourite scents, ever! It's fresh and light and not overly florally (but florally enough to make me feel feminine), and it's something that I can wear for all sorts of occasions. Too bad that it doesn't last long on my skin so I have to slather a fair bit and the dry down after several hours smells a little herb-y and stale.

Another amber that doesn't turn into powder! Yay! The first application literally had me gagging because it had such a strong chemical smell to it. After a few seconds, I got a powerful blast of bubblegum -- *sour* fruity bubblegum -- that drowned all the other scents I have on my arm (I am scent-testing today). There is definitely something flowery peeking underneath, almost jasmine-like but not quite. The reason why I think there could be jasmine is because the flowers smell like those normally sold outside of Indian temples and in fact, there is something almost Indian-like about this scent. It's making me think of jasmine necklaces (easier to drape around the necks of gods), water tubs of lotus and chrysenthemum flowers, incense smoke in the air, chanting and ringing of bells. I really like this scent and if it had a decent throw, I would definitely get a bottle. But because it stays close to my skin, I am happy to keep the imp just for the memories the scent invokes.

To me, this smells dark and velvety. For once, the amber doesn't turn into powder but it gives off this soft, almost dusty-like, feel to the scent. It is comforting -- I think it's the rose that's making it rather pleasant to smell -- and quite somber. It makes me think of words like 'quiet', 'calm' and 'grounded'. It feels old-fashioned but not to the extent that it'd embarass me to wear out in public. Probably something to wear to work when I want people to take me seriously. ETA: Okay, after half an hour or so, this has turned into powder for me, the sort that old ladies would wear.

I get a lot of smoke and frankincense, and some underlying sweetness that I can't figure out since I still am a newbie to many scent notes. It reminds me of those times when I would visit my [indian] friends homes during the holidays and because I would head over in the mornings, their mothers would be praying to the gods and burning incense. St. John's Eve brings back comforting memories of my childhood summers and when I wear this to sleep, I would get very pleasant dreams.

Incredibly spicy with a soft perfumey edge to it. If the spiciness toned down a little and perfumey bit amped up, I might consider getting a bottle. Sadly, my skin chemistry made my arm smell like a spice rack.

I don't smell anything remotely grape-ish or herby/root-ish in the vial or on my skin. What I do get is a strong laundry scent, which is rather comforting. In fact, it gives me flashbacks of my mother and her obsessive ways about how the clothes must be dried (only by the sun), where they must be hung (thick clothes here and thin clothes over there), and how they must be spread on the clothes line (otherwise they would be wrinkled, etc). Sigh, I miss my mother now. (haha) In terms of efficacy, I can't really say whether it works. But if it smells this good, I am not surprised.

This smells like a more posh version of Windward Passage. Sweet and clean aquatic... and that's just about that really. Luckily, I happen to like my scents simple so this is a keeper!

Light, sweet floral. A bit dusty. Reminds me of still air with motes of dust flying around.

I got this as a frimp and oh my goodness, I absolutely love the way how this smells on me. I have searching for a clean, 'cold and haughty' scent that's unique and different from the generic commercial types and I found this! I am in love! It has a strong throw, which is exactly what I am looking for since my skin loves to eat up most scents. Aquatic, floral... is that cucumber I smell? Mmm. It smells expensive, without a doubt, but like I said earlier, absolutely different from any commercial perfumes. Something I would gladly wear out to formal events without worrying.

2008 version: Mmm... this is absolutely heavenly! It smells like milky orange candy on me, which reminds me so much of my childhood (lazy, hot days in school eating chewy orange sweeties). Definitely comforting! I can even detect a faint hint of dates (love!!). It doesn't remind me of anything Indian-like. If you want something truly Indian, try jasmine and coconut for starters.

I was frottled with this by the lovely dixiehellcat and I must say that I am liking it more than I expected! I was only interested in it because it says 'dragon' and dragons hold a significant spiritual meaning for me, but I didn't expect to like it so much. In the bottle, it smells sharp but not entirely unpleasing. On wet, it's warm and herbally, and now that it's dried down, I can definitely sense some warmth (is that the dragon's blood? I am afraid I am still new to it) and sweetness, like a darker version of a herbal shampoo. At first, I didn't like it so much because this sort of scent is something I used to associate with unwashed bodies but I can't stop sniffing myself. Conclusion: Dusty. Sharp. Warm. Somewhat musky, I think. A rather matured scent for me, since I have a liking for vanilla and surgared scents. I am definitely keeping the bottle and probably wear it on cold, rainy days.

I don't know why but this scent confuses me. It comes off as simple (candy berry and grape) but there's something dark and bitter lurking beneath. Slightly fizzy. Very interesting. I might not get a 5ml but definitely keeping the imp.

I am going to echo what the others said and agree that it does smell like honey dew melon and grapes. A sweet and innocent scent. It gives me short bursts of happiness whenever I sniff my wrist. Awesome stuff! 5ml? Yea!

It smells very light and clean in the bottle, sort of a subdued scent for me. On wet, I definitely get ozone and a bit of something plummy in the background. Nothing smoky or incensey. Rather clean and unisex. Unlike Midnight on the Midway, which is like a heady sugary floral scent, Stormclouds is somewhat sophisticated and quiet. In terms of colour, it's greyish or blue-green. A backup bottle of this for me, please.

In the bottle, it smells like lightly sugared floral water. On wet, it smells like... soap powder. Not a bad thing, really. I can definitely smell jasmine but it's not the strong, in-your-face type. It's delicate, yet obvious. There's another smoky scent that I can't identify and it makes me choke when I breathe in too deeply. It gets smokier with every minute. Very interesting! It keeps changing and I can't wait to find out how it smells like after a few hours. ETA: This is gorgeous! Backup bottle for me, please!

I don't get any smoke or leather -- all I do get is the scent of lemon candy, the bitter and sour kind. I probably might need to layer something with this because I don't want to go walking around smelling like cheap candy. Maybe it needs to drydown a little bit more before something magical happens, but right now, I am not loving it so much. And I had such high hopes for it. Still keeping the bottle though. I mean, come on, it's Doc Constantine, Major Hottie. Heh.

When it is wet, it's all paper, paper, paper... and the scent of a freshly sawn wooden plank. I didn't really like it all that much at first but on the drydown, I get something dusty and bitter. I can't imagine what that could be... is it the tobacco? I probably wouldn't wear it on its own. Might layer it with another lighter scent to add some depth. ... oh, I am getting an elusive whiff of something that reminds me of my antique hunts with my father. Wow, now I really want to make a trip to Guangzhou. I think I am growing to like this blend.

I didn't really like this at first. I planned on washing it off, except I had some urgent matters to attend to and I forgot in the end. And it's a good thing that I forgot because it's smelling rather lovely right now. It's sweetly floral and it's the sort of scent that I'd feel comfortable wearing daily. However, during the first thirty minutes, it smelt rather stale and old lady-ish (I think it's the leather and floral notes, they do that all the time), and so I am not sure if I should get a bottle purchase in the future if it means I have to endure that, especially when, in comparison, there are other oil blends that work better on me. Oh, what the heck, why not? Works well with Antikythera Mechanism, so it might be useful for layering purposes.

I bought a bottle from a lovely forumite and frankly, I think this has been the best decision I have made in this month. I know that one of the listed notes is black vanilla but I am not getting any of that, sadly. But -- but! -- to compensate, I am getting glorious whiffs of wood (I can smell the teakwood, which is probably the only wood scent I can identify) and tobacco, which is fantastic for me because I have finally identified my first few scent notes all on my own. Yay! This reminds me of my childhood memories of spending time with my dad exploring old Chinese furniture shops and the homes/warehouses of fellow antique-collecting enthusiasts in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and China... and wow, okay, thanks a lot, AM, I really miss my dad now and we don't have that sort of close father-daughter relationship to begin with! This has been the perfect scent to wear today because it has been rainy, gloomy and cold. It somehow seems to complement Wanda pretty well. 'Cos I am a mighty slatherer, I'll need a backup bottle, STAT! And must remember to sign up for furniture-making classes! ETA: Getting the vanilla now. Yay! It's not very dominant, which is good because too much vanilla makes me sick. The teakwood is still around and has morphed into a very clean scent. I am really loving this!

I got this as a frimp from the lab (thanks guys! i really appreciate this!) and wow, all I got was pine, pine, pine! It's sharp, refreshing, clean-smelling (only because it smells like cleaning products), rather beautiful as a room scent, I would think, but sadly, not really me.

I got this as a frimp from the lab (thanks, guys! i really appreciate it!) and it isn't something that I would even consider getting in the first place. I like being surprised though, and I was indeed rather surprised by how much I absolutely loathe foodie scents. This blossomed into an olfactory nightmare on my skin and I literally gagged, which was something that never really happened to me before. It's my skin chemistry, really, not the oil blend, that's at fault here. Now, all I need to do is to find someone who is willing to take this baby off my hands because looking at it just gives me bad feelings.

This smelled so beautiful in the imp but when it was on my skin, it turned stale and dusty. I think it's the smoky vanilla. I will probably try again later. My body chemistry could be a little off and probably didn't do this much justice.