theseagrows

how did i never review this?? anyway, i love this scent, it's bright and green and spring-y to me. smells like dirt with some bright, fresh picked wildflowers-very grassy and fresh. this scent is perfect for spring and summer.

as usual, all i smell is jasmine. (my skin amps jasmine up to 11.) maaaaybe some bergamot. i have only tried this to help me sleep and it has worked well both times! however, i fell asleep pretty fast, before i can find out if any of the other notes come forth.

i was just going through my imp box and apparently i tried this but never reviewed it, so here goes. i definitely get mostly champagne and plumeria, and the pear is a little more subtle, but plumeria is also a bold floral. this is sweet and effervescent, pretty much the opposite of what i mostly wear when i was younger i really liked plumeria though, so i have a soft spot for this. it would be nice in spring or summer, however for me, i think i am really amping the plumeria and it's a bit too strong, so it will have to be swapped.

this starts out with an airy incense and spice. at this point i like it, but don't love it and i am waiting for more depth and then that happens- the rose, honey, myrrh and probably other notes come through and it's a spicy, incensey honeyed floral. there is more depth and it's quite beautiful, womanly and timeless. i love spicy floral blends so this is right up my alley. (bless that person who reported on the bpal facebook group that there were 9 bottles left! i went and bought one right away and i am glad i did because i was waffling. )

i've been having nightmares all week, so i decided to try this last night and it worked. this smells like mostly lavender but amped up lavender- with herbs in the back. i definitely got the anise that others have mentioned, and the slight sharpness that seemed sort of herbal-lemony to me. my bottle is pretty aged and while it was astringent, i found it also had a softness to it that was nice. i did have a rather odd dream about someone i dislike in real life, but i confronted them in a diplomatic way in the dream, which was interesting! i also felt refreshed and energetic this morning.

sorry my notes on this scent aren't too detailed, but i will give it a whirl with a review. it starts off all floral, mostly rose and opium. my skin tends to amp opium and not in a way i am a fan of, so i wasn't too sure about this. opium gets really strong and a bit harsh on my skin unfortunately. i love rose, but it can be fickle too. rose works amazingly on me in some blends and smells sour in other blends. anyway, next the carnation peeks out, which is one of my favorite notes. but then i get something souring the florals, which i have to guess is the mercury ointment, but i'm not sure. i so hoped this would work on me because i love resiny rose blends as well as rose-carnation blends, but alas my skin just doesn't seem to like the opium and mercury in this.

hmm, i was almost 90% certain this would work on me, but all i get is white musk and something oddly sweet. my skin seems to amp the sweetness. it smells kind of sticky sweet and i think it may be the gum arabic but i'm not sure (?) i am not really a big fan of sweet scents and this sweetness turns a bit strange on me. what a surprise! it's so odd how skin amps some notes and not others. i think if the sweetness had been more subtle, that this may have worked better with my skin chemistry.

this starts off a bit like pencil shavings which is most likely frankincense, sandalwood or both and white rose, which tends to sour on me. I should've known! most of these are "death notes" but sometimes in lesser amounts are ok, i guess that's why i took a chance that, and i love tobacco, vanilla and oakmoss but they aren't enough to make this work for me all the way. later on I sense the vanilla and tobacco come through which helps temper the leadlike/sour scent a bit, and the vanilla becomes more prominent and I like it more, but there is still an underlying something that is just "off" with my skin chemistry. too bad, because the vanilla-florals are really lovely.

this is all jasmine at first but it smells more like ylang ylang to me, which is probably due to the waxiness of magnolia and gardenia. it smells creamy and yellow, and then it blooms onto my skin and it's a gorgeous, heady summer floral scent. the non-floral notes do add a depth but they are subtle and don't overpower or anything. i honestly can't even really pick them out. i like this for summer, but it's probably the only time i would wear it.

got this as a frimp from the lab. i get something clear and almost musky mixed with patchouli, maybe it's the combination of the oakmoss with the patchouli? this reads as a bit dry and masculine to me. i get a bit of pencil shavings from this, probably the patchouli. the myrrh is in the background and not a strong element, and i am not even sure if i smell the juniper berry in this. it smells a lot like men's aftershave on me. not really my personal cup of tea but glad i got to try it!

i am so glad i was able to go to my first will call...for many reasons! one reason is that i ended up buying this. i probably would not have looked twice at this scent based on the description, but my friend picked it up and we both smelled it and really liked it. it's so nice for spring, it's a very pink, feminine sugary scent for sure. i get mostly sugary rose and carnation and maybe some pink peppercorn and peony. i really don't get much resins from this, so they must be very subtle. the moss and lemon add a light freshness as well. overall this is a lovely springtime scent and i am glad i got a bottle.

this smells like pure vetiver in the vial. on my skin it starts out all vetiver too, with maybe a hint of opium to back it up. after a minute or two, the rose and benzoin (i think) start coming through, which improves the scent quite a bit. in not much time, and unexpectedly, this becomes beautiful on me-like a resiny sophisticated rose scent, with the labdanum, benzoin and rose front and center. i wasn't sure about the strong vetiver at first, but it fades quickly on me and now it is a beautiful, dark, resiny scent. i think i may need a bottle.

at first this is all white amber on me, soft and pretty, then the rose peeks through a bit, though it's not very strong. this is mostly white amber on me. very elegant, classic and simple. it's been a long time since i've tried antique lace, so i could be wrong, but it seems reminiscent of that to me, except with rose, so it works better for me then antique lace did.

at first it's all clean red musk. the opopnax come forth after that, but the rose seems to be subtle and well balanced...all 3 notes seem to be there in equal parts, at least on my skin, though the red musk still seems most dominant at first sniff. the rose seems to come out more after it's been on my skin for awhile. this is a beautiful, sexy scent. simple yet beautiful and warm. love this!

i took a chance on this one, but i love tuberose. in the vial all i smell is pepper with something sharp floral in the background. once it hits my skin, it's mostly lilies and pepper with a hint of tuberose. it's kind of a dry, clean floral with a hint of sweetness. there is something SO familiar about this. i keep thinking "80s perfume" but i can't place what it is reminding me of. it keeps morphing back and forth on me, from a kind of sour-peppery floral scent to a sweeter one. in any case, it's not really working with my skin chemistry, sadly. eta: got it, it reminds me of that quintessential 80s scent, giorgio beverly hills!

not sure what i'm smelling here, i think it's black tea, bergamot and peru balsam with a hint of patchouli. no vanilla to be seen. this is a very dry tea scent, like dried tea leaves before you steep them. i am used to tea scents that are more like tea once you steep it, and i think i prefer those to this. this scent is very dry and leans more towards earthy and masculine on me. the vanilla seems to never want to come out!

this smells very "perfumey" in the vial. on my skin, i think i'm getting mostly blonde tobacco, it's sort of clean and...masculine? which doesn't make sense given the title, but my skin chemistry is known to be difficult at times after a few minutes, maybe a tiny bit of honey comes out, but this is mostly a clean tobacco scent on me. maybe some magnolia? i dunno, i am having issues smelling all the notes in this one. definitely not what i was expecting though.

this is one of the lupercalias i've been most looking forward to. at first it starts out all amber, oudh and labdanum (i think), just kind of resiny, but not quite as warm as some ambers i have smelled in the past. after a minute or two, the rose seems to peek out, but it's not a velvety rose, but more of a green one. uh oh, something in this is turning quite sour on me probably the oudh or labdanum, or maybe just the rose. rose seems to work very well on me and not so well, but it often depends on what it is blended with, almost as if certain notes sour it up more, and this is what is happening with this scent. after it's been on for about 15-20 minutes, it smells better. the sourness has toned down, and the musk is coming out more, but the oudh is still making the rose smell a bit wonky on me. eta: ok, 30-40 minutes later and this smells really good on me! the rose oudh has softened and it's like a beautiful musky rose, what i was hoping for! i'm just not sure i can make it through that first phase every time, but i really like this now.

at first: holy ylang ylang! yes at first it's all ylang ylang with hints of fig and vanilla...not sure if i'm smelling orchid yet or not. after it's been on my skin awhile, the ylang ylang completely disappears and it's a milky orchid scent, i am getting that kind of "plastic scented doll" scent from this, which reminds me of the strawberry shortcake dolls from my childhood. not sure why though, as it's usually plum type of notes that do that. maybe it's the fig? not sure. this is kind of nice, but i think i will pass on getting a bottle.

Beeswax, frankincense, dried rose petals, and a dribble of wine. 2014 version: first let me say, where was i in 2010?! i am surprised that i didn't try this scent then. it's a resiny rosy-wine scent on me. thankfully the beeswax/frankincense isn't overwhelming, since they are some bpal notes that sometimes don't work on me. i really can't detect much beeswax, if any, at all. thus far the frankincense is behaving, though i think i detect a slightly lead-like scent coming through, as bpal's frankincense can do on me. this is a dark dusky scent, and the roses and frankincense seem to fight for dominance and the wine moves more into the background as this dries. i also think the beeswax peeks through more as well. this has a similar feel to gypsy queen to me, but that has a stronger rose scent to me, while this is heavier on the beeswax, and gypsy queen is more complex and spicy.

alright, i'm not sure what the culprit is, but something in this is going sour and wonky on me. i suspect it is the red sandalwood. sandalwood in small amounts is fine, but i think in large amounts, it turns sour smelling and lead-like and then my skin amps it, yay. i can smell it mixed with the rose, but not really any of the other notes. damn, i had high hopes for this and i am fairly sure if the other notes were more dominant, that i would've liked this better with my skin chemistry. unfortunately, sandalwood and i sometimes don't get along.

this starts out with a zing of an effervescent light floral, and quickly the amber and honey come through. after the mimosa calms down, it becomes more honeyed and it's very light and beautiful. i think this is perfect for summer or spring. if you love honeyed florals, this might be for you.

i think i am mostly getting the rice flower, beeswax and the mixture of tea rose and tuberose, which oddly, smells like neither. there is also something a bit green and aquatic, which must be the abalone accord and white moss. something in this smells kind of dusty to me? maybe it's the rice flower. this is ok, but too fruity/sweet/aquatic for my personal tastes. i think if it had been more tea rose/white cream dominant, it may have worked better for me.

i knew this one would fall in the hit or miss range for me. i love rose and i think i usually like magnolia, but sometimes WHOAFLORAL scents are just a bit too much without something to ground them or warm them up a bit. that plus bpal's woods sometimes go wonky. anyway, with that disclaimer out of the way, this starts off as what i think is mostly magnolia with rose and mahogany in the background. it's kind of a velvety floral scent. then the other woodsy notes and olibanum come through. i really don't sense much vetiver in this at all, or if so, it must be very subtle. after awhile, i began to sense the waxiness of the florals that GinnyMoonbeam mentioned. after awhile the notes seem to blend seamlessly, and it becomes a very dark, perfumey floral, and i think at this point it's mostly magnolia, oak and olibanum that i detect. it's a very pretty dark floral scent, brings to mind deep dark red and purple. though i like this scent, i am amping it quite a bit and am not sure i would wear it regularly.

this is a pretty, light tea scent, perfect for warmer weather. in the beginning it reminds me a lot of ebisu when first applied. i swear i get some nectarine, but it's not in the description. it's a slightly sweet, watery tea scent, very pretty and light. i'm not sure about the amber incense or sandalwood, this does seem golden, but not in a smoky way. it's mostly just citrussy tea on my skin. almost a duplicate of ebisu with my skin chemistry. i want to try this next to ebisu and compare. i definitely think ebisu is more strongly a nectarine scent, but there is definitely a similarity. after being on my skin for awhile, i detect a very slight plasticky note, which probably comes from the yōkan, since sweeter fruits tend to do this on my skin with bpal scents.