TheFrenchWaffle

Dearest jasmine, why can't you be more like the jasmine in Red Devil? Or New Orleans? Sincerely, me. What is it about this particular type of jasmine? It just hates my skin. The other notes try to salvage the scent but just can't muster the energy to save the day. Instead I get a scent that screams bug spray. At least it will hopefully be going to a nice home, thank goodness for swaps.

Just the other day some friends and I were watching "The Re-Animator" and while not true at all to Lovecraft's work, is extremely quotable. I was rummaging around in my collection of imps and I stumbled across Herbert West and just for kicks and giggles I decided to try it out. In the imp: smells clean, hospital clean. Must be the lemon/citrus... Wet: Still retains that lemony scent but there is an added soapy/aftershave like scent that is absolutly delightful. A bit on the masculine side but its kind of like stealing your boyfriend/significant other's clothes and being bathed in their scent. Dry:The aftershave really has center stage with lemon in the background Final verdict: Defiantly not a scent that I would wear often but would love to smell on a significant other. Very clean and masculine, just heavenly.

In the imp: orange blossom and something else, perhaps sandalwood? Wet: Orange blossom and a nice light honey, A LOT of throw dry: honey amps up supported by the orange blossom with the sandalwood holding the base together Final verdict: I love this scent and it is defiantly going on my top ten list. A very sexy scent, it reminds me of O a bit (honey) however Jezebel keeps all her clothes on perhaps flashing a bit of ankle to be suggestive. Defiantly bottle worthy at some point.

Used to open up options in your life, overcome obstacles, and create opportunities. This blend increases your potential for success, inspires creativity and quick thinking, and helps you to be more flexible, adaptable and open to change. So happy I hunted this one down. In the imp: Sweet herbs Wet: Cinnamon and cloves blossom on my skin, very powerful stuff in the best possible way Dry:Cinnamon and CLOVES. Then it starts to mellow out without loosing any of its strength. Final Verdict: Defiantly bottle worthy, I love it so much I keep re-applying it. I really find myself much more energized and focused after taking a whiff of it. Very thankful to have Block Buster for during finals week (yay for my huge ass history research paper!)

As an avid reader of Lovecraft I was overjoyed to be able to try this scent out. In the bottle: Ginger, sexy sexy ginger and spice. Wet: Warm ginger laced with something citrus and spicy, love! Dry: It turns into a very slight bubblegum-like scent laced with ginger. Not overly bubblegum-y but enough sweetness to suggest so. All together not a bad scent, the ginger really plays up on my skin Final verdict: While I would have preferred a much more straight-forward spicy ginger, the sweetness of this scent actually works nicely on my skin. I do agree with the general consensus that this smells like "evil gingersnaps", I can't stop smelling my skin. Now I want to actually bake some gingersnaps....

In the imp: Mint along with a collection of herbs. Interesting... Wet: The rose blossoms on my skin with the mint in the background occasionally stepping forward to play with the rose. Quite lovely, one drop goes a long way. Dry: A beautiful rose with some herb/spice, thank you skin for not screwing things up. Final verdict: I do like this scent, the perfect thing to keep me from going completely bonkers during finals week. Simply fantastic. Not sure about a whole bottle though, this imp should last me a while. edit: a friend asked me why I smelled like soap. I asked if it was a bad thing and she replied that no, I smelled like a nice rose soap. I'm not sure if that's quite the effect I'm going for...

Yay for swaps/sales! This is defiantly one of my favorite scents, but a little goes a long ways. In the imp: Jasmine, I dunno about this... But a jasmine that likes me! Wet: One drop is quite enough! A very nice jasmine, almost tea-like, tempered by a touch of rose and something that reminds me of childhood spent running through my dad's garden-soft fragrant white flowers...I love this Dry: Jasmine is still there actually getting along with my skin (score for BPAL!), maintaining that white flower blossom scent. Quite a lot of throw and staying power. Final Verdict: I love this scent! I was a bit squeamish towards florals and Red Devil helped change my mind. I would spring for a bottle but I really only need one-two drops so I think this imp will last a while yet.

I received it as a frimp in an ebay sale, it was my third experience with BPAL. In the imp: oh wow, bug spray? Not sure how I feel about this, it seems very potent. wet: Still strong on the old lady bug spray perfume on my skin, a shame since I was so intrigued by the lab's description. I really can't get past this bug spray smell. Dry: the bug spray scent died down a little, so strong on the jasmine. I wish I got more of the almond most people seem to be getting... Final verdict: So far this is the one BPAL scent that just flat out disagreed with me. This one just wasn't up my ally. Hopefully I'll find someone else who can give poor Salome a nice home.

Received this as a frimp, and thanks be to the sender. I was a tad nervous because I had had bad experiences with Jasmine in the past (Salome). In the imp: pretty florals, but is it too matronly? No, too green for that. Wet: Oh hi there rose! Hi there lily! Where's jasmine? Oh you say they are running late. Ah, there you are jasmine we were wondering. I like this so far, perfect for this sunny spring day. Dry: A very nice sedated rose that doesn't seem old lady at all on me (My great aunt uses rose hand cream, hence the old age connection) along with a soft bouquet of florals. Very lovely. Final verdict: This has defiantly changed my mind about florals, I am a fan. Helena is a nice soft light scent that dwells somewhere between green and white, absolutely wonderful. Today was a very nice warm and sunny day and Helena seemed to go so well with it.

I was not familiar with Whitechapel so I went to the site and looked it up. The description matches Judge Brack perfectly, good call.

I wasn't too sure about this perfume so I tested it as a sleeping scent. In the imp: Honey, but a super sexy honey that has something more to it Wet: Oh wow, smells like sex. Very VERY honey. The amber is there (I get a slightly fruity[?] scent from the amber) Dry: Honey honey honey honey and amber are there. A very sexual perfume. This scent fits perfectly with O, which I keep buried at the bottom of my dresser safe from prying eyes. In the morning: Oh there you are vanilla, I didn't see you come in. Final Verdict: I'm not sure I would wear this as a normal everyday scent, it seems too racy on my skin for that. But oh dear lord, I am in love with this scent. I know I want a bottle at some point. Perfection!

Sorry to take the conversation away from the lovely recommendations for Doctor Who (Tom Baker will always be the doctor to me...fancy a jellybaby?). I was wondering what sort of perfume the various heroines and other characters of Henrik Ibsen would smell like. Hedda Gabler (Hedda Gabler)-"Hedda is the daughter of the famous General Gabler; as a child she was used to luxury and high-class living. Hedda is an intelligent, unpredictable, young woman who is not afraid to manipulate her husband and friends." However her compulsive nature, much like a Greek tragedy, leads to her eventual downfall. I personally feel that, in light of today's society, Hedda is the most relatable Ibsen character and the most human. Jürgen Tesman (Hedda Gabler)-"Tesman is an amiable, intelligent young scholar. He tries very hard to please his young wife, Hedda, and often does not realize that she is manipulating him. In fact, he often seems foolish for his age, and when he annoys Hedda, the audience has reason to sympathize with her. Tesman is hoping for a professorship in history." Judge Brack (Hedda Gabler)-Brack is a judge of relatively inferior rank. He is a friend of both Tesman* and Hedda, and he visits their house regularly. He has connections around the city. He seems to enjoy meddling in other people's affairs. He is a worldly and cynical man." Ejlert Lövborg (Hedda Gabler)-"After a series of scandals related to drinking, he was once a public outcast but has now returned to the city and has published a book to rave reviews. He also has another manuscript that is even more promising. Mrs. Elvsted helped him with both manuscripts. He once shared a close relationship with Hedda." Mrs. Elvsted (Hedda Gabler)-"Mrs. Elvsted is a meek but passionate woman. Mrs. Elvsted went to school with Hedda and remembers being tormented by her." She also left her husband with Lövborg, acting as his secretary. By looking after Lövborg, Mrs. Elvsted essentially helps Lövborg become the success he is. Nora (Doll House)- "The protagonist of the play and the wife of Torvald Helmer. Nora initially seems like a playful, naïve child who lacks knowledge of the world outside her home. She does have some worldly experience, however, and the small acts of rebellion in which she engages indicate that she is not as innocent or happy as she appears. She comes to see her position in her marriage with increasing clarity and finds the strength to free herself from her oppressive situation." Torvald Helmer (Doll House)-"Nora’s husband. Torvald delights in his new position at the bank, just as he delights in his position of authority as a husband. He treats Nora like a child, in a manner that is both kind and patronizing. He does not view Nora as an equal. Torvald is overly concerned with his place and status in society." Krogstad (Doll House)-"Krogstad’s character is contradictory: though his bad deeds seem to stem from a desire to protect his children from scorn, he is perfectly willing to use unethical tactics to achieve his goals. His willingness to allow Nora to suffer is despicable, but his claims to feel sympathy for her and the hard circumstances of his own life compel us to sympathize with him to some degree." Mrs. Linde (Doll House)- "Kristine Linde is a practical, down-to-earth woman, and her sensible worldview highlights Nora’s somewhat childlike outlook on life. Mrs. Linde’s account of her life of poverty underscores the privileged nature of the life that Nora leads." Gregers Werle (Wild Duck)-He "subscribes to an inexorable Christian logic: he speaks in a language of forgiveness, exaltation, redemption, martyrdom, confession, absolution, and sacrifice. When he finally realizes that he has failed to redeem his friends, he will make a melancholic exit from a world in which he in a sense has no place." Hedvig Ekdal (Wild Duck)-"The Ekdals' fourteen-year-old daughter. She is the play's most pathetic figure: its innocent and victimized child. She is of uncertain parentage, belonging either to Hialmar or Werle and potentially passed from the former to the latter in a marriage designed to circumvent public scandal." *All character descriptions were lovingly ripped from Spark Notes rather than carefully typed.

I acquired this scent via sales/swaps, so I am pretty sure it has been aged. In the imp: spices, more incense spice than food spice Wet: Faint spice and vanilla. Not a foody vanilla. I really wish the spice could have been amped up more... Dry: Soft vanilla with a very faint whisper of spice, a very wonderful and seductive scent. Plenty of staying power and medium throw. Final Verdict: I love this scent but wonder what an un-aged Snake Oil would smell like. Vanilla has a tendency to play well on my skin, making this scent work fabulously on me. I am defiantly keeping this imp and will buy a bottle in the future. Snake Oil, where have you been all my life!

damn it skin, why do you have to ruin everything for me?! In the imp: amazing! chocolate and tobacco (yes please!) with a slight floral angle. wonderful! Wet: Tobacco downplayed perfectly by the chocolate. The wine lurks in the background hiding behind a smoky floral. Dry: As soon as it dries everything disappears and I am left with lotus. Don't get me wrong, I love lotus it smells lovely on me. However at this point it smells exactly like Paris leaving me with "what was the point? I could have just put on Paris". Final verdict: This breaks my heart. I fell in love with Kali in the imp and loved it at first on my skin. When I first smelled it I wanted to bathe in it. But it just turns into Paris which rules out getting a bottle. Sigh.

I saw lavender in the description and knew I must try it, and the fact that it contained tonka only sweetend the deal. In the imp: Soft lavedner (wish it could have been stronger), tonka, and something else I can't quite put my finger on Wet: Lavender goodness with tonka with a tiny bit of patchouli lurking around in the back, pleasant Dry: Wait! don't leave me! I need you! Now all that is left is a baby powder like smell. Clean, a pinch of lavender, but not not something I really like. It reminds me of my grandmother's bathroom, face powder mixed with an old lady air freshener. Not my thing at all. Final verdict: This one utterly breaks my heart. I have tried it three different times during the month and it doesn't seem to like my skin. I think I am going to cry in the corner. At least I can smell the imp...oh well. Edit: So Lady Macbeth came to visit for the month and I tried Old Scratch again and magically the tonka appeared on my skin creating a lovely scent.

Thank you all for your recommendations. As far as the setting, it is work/social. One of the people (female) I work with has been, for lack of better words, harassing me going between direct verbal abuse and passive aggressive tactics. I have been logging each encounter and now am considering going to her supervisor with a formal complaint, or, sitting down and talking with her directly (but I'm not sure if that would work, it hasn’t in the past). I am usually quite about this sort of thing and try not to take things personally but this situation has gone too far and I think I should stand up for myself. I tend to be on more of the reserved side, but when push comes to shove I do have a fiery nature and am capable of kicking some serious ass (thanks Irish ancestors, stereotypes, and debate team!). Again, thank you so much, your recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Stop me if this has been done before. I am looking for a scent that essentially is a "don't fuck with me" scent. Something that says I am patient, cold and callus. Something that is authoritative and charismatic. I am looking for something that says "I am an intelligent and powerful woman, screw with me and I will cut your face". I would prefer it if recs came from the general catalog or at least easy to find limited editions. Thanks.

I'm not getting a strong lavender scent (which was what I was really hoping for) nor am I getting that bubblegum that some people seem to be getting. On me it's sweet but not candy sweet. In the imp: A soft lavender is the first thing that jumps out at me with other scents under it. Wet: Lavender with a sweetness behind it Dry: Bye bye lavender, wish you could have stayed longer. thanks, though for introducing me to you friend, lotus, they seem really sweet. A few more minutes go by. One poster mentioned that came off as smelling like chai tea, I think that's what I am getting too. Not a bad scent, lovely actually, but not quite what I was expecting. Final: I do like this scent, although I really wish the lavender could have been more prominent. I defiantly want to keep this imp around. I'm not sure if I would spring for a whole bottle yet, but time will always tell.

I'm kind of on the fence with this scent, I love it don't get me wrong, but it smells exactly like my grandfather's house which instantly takes away any sex appeal of the scent. Now my grandfather does collect old books so that could be the leather, but it just reminds of old people. Yet at the same time the lavender and bergamot work so well on my skin... In the imp: Lavender!!! Beautiful wonderful lavender in all its sharp awesomeness! Something in the background mellowing it out, bergamot? Wet: Lavender, front and center with bergamot on the side. Oh I can smell the tonka now, lovely! Dry: What is this? Leather? Now it reminds me of my Grandfather's house, dear Lord now I am drawing parallels between Casanova and my Grandfather >.<! A few more hours: Leather is very present, for me this has a strong connotation to old age (not quite sure how I feel). However, the lavender and lemon peel are there to temper the leather a bit. It smells slightly soapy (in a good clean, expensive soap, sort of way), I like it but am not sure if I really want to be smelling like my Grandfather's house. Very nostalgic smelling, but more of a house scent not exactly a perfume scent. I am a little nervous of what people will think (are they too polite to tell me I smell like an old lady?!), my mother is notorious for pointing this sort of thing out "Good Lord, who smells like they escaped from the old folks home!". Final thoughts: I like it but I'm a tad insecure about it. I want to wear it but am terrified that people will hate the smell but be too polite to say so. So conflicted! Leather, why must you do this to me!

I received this as a frimp from a very enabling and generous forum member in a sale/swap. I rather enjoy this as a sleeping scent. It is very soothing and comforting, top marks. In the imp: Lavender and eucalyptus, not necessarily my taste in everyday perfume but something I would use to get to sleep. Wet: Lavender, eucalyptus and anise. A very nice herbal blend that works wonderfully with my skin. Dry: The anise is the superhero in this scent with lavender as the sidekick. Together they defeat the nefarious evil mastermind, Dr. Insomnia! Armed with the power to sooth away stress and worry they effortlessly banish insomnia, giving me a restful night of uninterrupted sleep. About five minutes after I put this on I felt my mind stop running full speed ahead and my limbs felt heavy and I literally felt myself fall asleep. Amazing! Final verdict: The downside of this imp is that was a little less than half full and I love it so much... Not something I would wear as a perfume, but perfect for falling asleep, defiantly bottle-worthy. *I stand corrected, apparently it is not anise but fennel

This defiantly one of those cloudy rainy Saturday scents that should be worn while reading a good book with a hot cup of tea by the fireplace. In the imp: Smoky amber, musk and something that reminds me faintly of cherries. Wet: Cardamom is the dominate scent on my skin which is perfect since is one of my favorite things (Cardamom bread...yum). The saffron comes into play along with a whisper of myrrh that keeps me sniffing my wrists. Spicy and lovely. Dry:Sweet almond and spicy cardamom. How I adore this! I'm not sure if this is the lotus, but through the spice I smell something floral that keeps the woodsy scent on the feminine side without becoming too bug-spray floral. The almond is not as strong on me as on others. For me the cardamom, myrrh, amber and musk is the strongest which I am not opposed to at all. Final verdict: I L-O-V-E this! Defiantly bottle-worthy. Plenty of throw (in a good way) and great staying power. I would rush out and get a bottle but first I think I should work through the assorted BPAL scents I already have. edit: I recently received a frimp of Bastet and it must have been a different batch or aged (or something) because this one was clear in color and smelled more like almond extract than anything else. You learn something new everyday: almond loves my skin, so this scent is still in my top ten Super edit: I did get a bottle, and adore it. Lady Macbeth came to visit for the month and I thought I would wear Bastet just because I felt like it. On my skin I still smell everything okay but it seems a bit off, like soda that has gone flat, this is weird. Yay for crazy skin chemistry and hormones.

I received this as a frimp from an all-too generous ebay seller, many thanks to whoever you are "Starcia". In the imp: Pine, juniper and underbrush. Lovely but rather masculine, I will have to wait and see how this one plays out. Would LOVE this as a room scent. Wet: Juniper comes out the strongest quickly followed by pine which lags behind a few paces. It reminds me of a forest, not the rain soaked ones here at home, but the sunny warm woods in the Rockies during the summer with the faint wisp of wildfire smoke in the background. Still lovely, but very manly (in a good way) Dry: The sharpness of juniper and pine have smoothed out, mellowing into a delightful woodsy scent that inspires smiles. Love it but I am not sure how often I will/would actually wear it. Final verdict: I love this scent but I don't think I would wear it enough to buy a bottle. This would make a wonderful room scent, I've always wanted my place to smell like it (or of lavender,they both smell so good). I think I'll let my brother try it, perhaps I will enable him...

To piggy-back on this topic. I absolutely adore The Dormouse. However, the scent just doesn't last very long on my skin,I almost have to bathe in for it to have staying power. To really notice it you practically have to press your nose against the skin and since my life does not include a whole lot of people sniffing my skin I don't feel I can justify a whole bottle no matter how much a love the scent. I was wondering if there were any tricks to getting more staying power out of a perfume or if there were any similar scents to The Dormouse that had more stay.

I have a question, I have a friend who loves perfumes all all things scented however she has a moderate-severe nut allergy. Before I introduce her to the wonderful world of BPAL I just want to know if there are any blends that should be avoided at all costs. Thank you

I'm not sure if anyone has said this but The Dormouse reminds me most of walking into a florist shop. Growing up one of our neighbors, a florist, would watch me after school and sometimes I would hang out at her shop. When I received my imp and opened it I remember thing, "oh my god, this smells like my childhood!", I think it might have to do with the peony but it has that smell of walking into a room of flowers with the teas adding a floral/herbal scent.