maewitch

Thank you for putting all that information together in such an articulate way. *lusts after your organizational and investigative skills*

Mmmm. Rich cocoa (the drink) in the bottle. On me, the cocoa fades out somewhat, and the underlying creaminess comes out. It's not really milky, nor does it have the unfortunate plastic quality that tends to occur with buttercream notes. Instead it is this very sophisticated non-dairy sort of cream. Though it doesn't actually smell like Snow White, it does share something similar in that cream note. I puzzled over it for days, trying to think of a way to describe it, and I just can't. Suffice it to say, this is a blend I would classify as gourmand rather than foodie, with a rich sort of elegance.

Rich, sweet golden apples in the bottle, with the spices and cider coming out more on the skin. There is a faint something else in the background - not the cranberry so much as something vaguely woody, almost like you can taste the oak barrel that cider might be aged in. A perfect seasonal scent. EDIT: There is a faintly sharp note in here that skates about. A little aging to let things settle, I think.

I was a little scared to try this since I didn't really pay attention to the "cakes" part of the description - until I started reading the reviews. Cake and buttercream notes tend to go horribly awry on me. But this is lovely. It is, thankfully, all incense on me. Sweet, occult-sore, somewhat spicy incense. Gorgeous, especially that mellow and unexpected sweetness.

This is interesting. The opening notes are delicate, just a wiff of crisp apple, which dissipates into the gorgeous and unique dusty grains scent. I can't really place any notes here, all I get is that feeling of dusk in a hay field, with that very dry, spark-could-start-a-fire ambiance. It is such dainty scent, a mere suggestion of the season in the still air. I'm going to give it some time to age, because I get the feeling this will develop very well.

Hmmm. I'll e-mail the lab just to make sure, but knowing that their e-mail has been wonky as of late, I wanted to check with y'all here in case I missed something obvious.

I don't know if I missed this somewhere, but how does one count the imp packs for the formerly unimpable categories when calculating international shipping? Is it one item?

CCnow sends you notification when your order is "harvested" from their system, not when the Lab sends it out. You will receive a CnS from USPS when they do ship out. By the way, there is a thread specifically for this here: http://www.bpal.org/index.php?showtopic=6796 A mod will most likely move this post, but in the meantime you can go through that thread. It will answer your questions more thoroughly.

Wet, this is the sweetest fluffiest candied-vanilla scent, somewhat reminiscent if those pink marshmallows you get at the grocery. As it dries, the amber and sandalwood give this confectioner's delight something of a backbone. This is a little girl scent, sweetness and light and golden curls, with leather boots hiding out somewhere beneath the frills.

I love citrus scents, especially in the summer. Nothing more refreshing. The only downside is that some of them tend to fade especially fast (lime) and they can lack depth (ok, not anything I've tried from BPAL, but in theory). Phobos is subtle and complex. The grapefruit is sweet and tart at the same time, fading quickly to reveal the peppery astringency of the lemongrass and verbena. Those notes in turn are supported by the white musk, which is not so much chilling as it is warm and sweet. A wonderful juxtaposition of notes that I wasn't expecting at all. Fabulous.

I find that Ocean Salt by Lush is really good at getting pretty much every scent off, is not harsh on the skin (not on the places I put on perfume anyway), and leaves behind its own nice scent. Granted, this does not make it the best option if you want to put something on afterward.

Holy Shmoley, folks. This is on my list of favorites as of RIGHT NOW. I'm not a huge carnation fan, as it can smell overly sharp on me, but this is just sweet colvy-powdery carnation goodness. It smells faintly like the Ruby Slippers bath bombs from Lush. It's pretty and feminine without being precious. The carnation fades back after a while and leaves behind an absolutely gorgeous vanilla-amber combo that makes me think of Snake Charmer's dry-down, but still retains a touch of spiciness. I don't usually wear many amber-heavy blends during the summer, as they can be suffocatingly thick and perfumy, but this one is an exception. I think the floral keeps it fresh enough. It works as a daytime scent and is perfect for sultry summer nights.

We don't receive actual Click and Ships (which is automated through the USPS system and provides a tracking number), but we do get an e-mail indicated that the order has been shipped.

Nightshade, as far as I know you can only order internationally through paypal. Unless they changed that recently? Laura, I've never gotten charged duty on a package yet (knocks wood) and I've ordered over a dozen times. I know a few people that have been charged, but the customs fee is much smaller than UPS charges (like 5$) and then you get charged for the approximate tax value. The reason is that you don't have to pay customs fees on stuff that is under a certain price, like 20$ and the Lab usually marks it under that. However, if your box is opened and appraised at a higher value, you will be charged the customs and taxes. Canada Post is kind of sporadic about spot-checking though, so in all likelyhood your package will be delivered to you without any extras.

Buck Moon and Devil's Night are quite similar on me. They share a very particular woodsy muskiness, though Buck Moon is sweeter.

Minus the smoky note, Baghdad is pretty close to Gypsy Queen on me.

This is in the same family as Morocco and Sheherazade, but their much more demure sister. The bergamot and rose exert a very lady-like restraint upon the musk and the spices, and lend the amber and woods a certain old-school elegance. It's much lighter than I thought it would be from the description, almost like the aftereffect of a very expensive and very exotic soap. The scent is clean, delicate, and feminine, but quite uncommon.

Interesting. Something herbal and perhaps a teeny bit soapy going toe-to-toe with a mellow, spicy amber. Is there lemongrass in this? It seems like there's a touch of something citrus, but green-edged. The spicy note is really quite soft, rounded and almost powdery, which makes me think of carnation rather than an actual spice like clove or cinnamon. Oh! Frankincense! That combination of citrus and spice makes me think of frankincense too. As it dries, it becomes less discordant and even more rounded and mellow, a wonderful, glowy-yellow, somewhat piquant kind of smell. I really quite like it.

Almond and clove, and musky, smoky background. It's a lot more subtle than I was anticipating. It does remind me of this rum we once had that was as dark as molasses and very deeply spiced. I actually quite like this.

I wish I was more familiar with florals, but since they so rarely work on me I don't usually give them much attention. This is the rare floral that is just sweet, light and lovely on me. It's something pale purple, like lilac or hyacinth, mixed with something a little sweeter and white, like jasmine. Really very pretty and soft, perfect for spring.

I will add a 'function' review when I use this in a more formal ritual context. Scent-wise, I'm getting something a little similar to White Light. It is equally beautiful and perhaps shares some notes in common. It is cooler, sweeter, less rounded and more distinctly spicy. I'm getting what I think is some clove, and a faint herbal edge. It smells almost like...if you took the pine out of Skadi and had just the dichotomous coolness and warm spiciness. Utterly lovely.

I haven't tried this in any formal ritual sense, so I will update my review in that respect when I do. Scent-wise, this is one of the most beautiful scents I have ever smelled. Soft and round, is is immediately calming. It's very difficult to pick out notes, but I think I smell a little bit of lilac and jasmine, something sweet and a teeny bit spicy beneath that.

So it turns out that plum and I are just not meant to be. I never thought we had a difference of opinion, but this blend has made it quite clear. Wet, there is a strange sort of chemical smell to this, high and unpleasant. Dry, it is darker, less chemical, yet still somewhat unpleasantly thin. It gives me that faintly queasy feeling that ylang-ylang often does. Too bad, but this one is meant for someone else.

Gorgeous. There's at least two notes in this that are usually iffy on me: heliotrope and lily. They behave themselves in this, however. Softly floral, warm without being too rich or sweet, this is a gentle promise, a hint on the breeze. This is golden and hazy, and makes me think of waking up to dawn sunshine filtering through pale curtains, the windows left open to invite the fragrance of the garden.

Strong lemon, slightly sweetened opens this up. I assume that's the combination of lemon balm and honeysuckle. It reminds me a bit of Shanghai at this point, but the citrus melts away to reveal the deeply aromatic woods and herbs underlying this. This is really like smelling two completely different perfumes. The first part is cheery and light, while the second part is much more grave. I think I like both equally. There's a spiciness and dryness to the second part that seems especially enticing.