foolssilver

wonderfully woody, but not as resiny as you might think. it's lighter, almost cedar-like, though i don't pick out cedar exactly. as others have said, it smells like wood on the wind, and a teeny bit sweet, too. i like it!

woody, resiny, a bit smoky, like cathedral. there's something hitting a higher note, maybe it's just amber seeming different to me in this context.

much less fruity than wanda. i don't smell *damp* rose, exactly. it's a drier rose on me. a very gentle fragrance. not much leather come through on me.

i've never had any trouble, but i usually look pretty boring when i am travelling!

katharina immediately sprang to mind for me. i think it's one of the more accessible or office-friendly bpals. i wore it and a dab or two of has no hanna to my recent interview.

at first, the pepper dominated, and i was excited. but the lemon became the top note, and i just don't like to smell like lemon very much. i'd agree that this is not 100% for men only, but that it would almost surely work on men. sometimes my skin seems to absorb certain notes, which is frustrating. ETA: i don't think thyme agrees with my chemistry, which may be why i don't love this.

my experience with decadence was a lot like fairywingmaker's. i didn't smell any cinnamon at all, and i'm glad cause i get a rash from oils containing it. on me, decadence smells of orange oil, almonds, and now that fairywingmaker mentions it, champagne as well. it's a warm, soft scent, tending more towards the bright than the deep dark side. i don't know if this wears well on me, but i will try using it in my oil warmer tonight!

well, keep in mind that it's my new fave: bon vivant. very sparkly and fun.

i don't know much about lush, so i don't have an exact match BUT bon vivant, on me, smells like what i think of as the generic lush smell (the smell of bath bombs and bubble bars). mmm-mm!

i'm so glad carnivàle works on me! it was the first bright scent that really captured my interest. i get in ruts sometimes, and i assume that certain scents will not work on me, but i could not stop sniffing my wrist when i tried this! the individual notes do seem as though they would clash, but they go together just like the colors of carnivàle. you'd think that purple, peacock blue, red, and gold would be awful together, but context is everything. i'd recommend carnivàle for people who like resiny scents, but who need some fun, too! (and other people as well...duh!) ETA: this was on such heavy rotation during my recent trip to key west that my 5mL is almost dry!

my experience with bon vivant renews my feeling that chemistry is everything. this was in no way too sweet on me. i, too, got this as a freebie, and i was excited because of the name. i wouldn't say strawberries, perhaps because i think immediately of faux-strawberry candy when i hear that. but FRESH cut strawberries doused with champagne, i can see that. on me, this smells exactly like the generic lush smell. the scent of a bag of bath bombs and bubble bars all mixed together. (a fresh, grassy haze with a splash of spice.) it's genius, it's very fun, and i will probably be ordering some within the next month.

havisham evokes disturbingly profound sadness. i smell a faint breath of roses, a bit of citrus that somehow deepens the misery. and honestly, i smell tears. cold tears. as i expected, it is similar to snow white but it is almost the opposite in mood. havisham is delicate and floral, but has a deepness to it (some sort of resin? i am terrible at guessing ingredients.) very finely crafted!

i also prefer this to imp. it seems such a golden scent to me, as though i have a slight tan and a splash of new freckles. i primarily got this to wear to at the office in the spring and summer. for me, katharina is a day scent, but not a childish scent at all. (i'm 28.) i fall into the category of "thought it would be too fruity but the white musk makes it work." and the apricot tempers the musk and makes it more accessible and less glaringly sexual. ladylatemar mentioned a champagne quality to it, and i agree. it's like drinking a cool mimosa made with apricot nectar

elizabeth, i just have to add my 2 cents and agree that bpal customers seem so impatient because your perfumes mean so much to us. your scents are *amazing*, and i think a 3-4 week turnaround is fine. i also think that sometimes we get so excited on the forum that we forget how impatient we seem. i often see posts and think, "god, i hope we're not driving elizabeth crazy!" brian's weekly posts and the "i got my order!" thread help me keep perspective on when i should be expecting my orders. thanks for everything!!

i applied a small amount on my arm with the dab stick, and i sniffed it, and said, "mmmm! i LIKE it!" then i got some traces of oil on my face from sniffing too closely and they burned and i had run out of the room to wash my face. after 5 minutes, my arm started to burn and i had a raised red welt where the oil was. i might try this as a room scent, but i learned to fear and respect cinnamon! inferno is a very apt name!

i tend to like dark scents, and usually my chemistry is such that a dark/light scent such as undertow becomes just light on me. (but if i try to wear something very fruity, such as persephone, it smells terrible.) i love to wear this when it's hot out, because it is such a cool scent. the mint is very present, and the juniper/pine backs the mint up, but does not overtake it. i would NOT characterize it as foody. i think undertow is FRESH, lovely and accessible (ie. office-friendly) without being generic in the least.

quantumspice: thank you! i am SO happy to have it all in excel so speedily! i was NOT looking foward to updating my old spreadsheet, and yours is in a better format anyway. now to work on trying them ALL! (ps. i borrowed some imps from ladylatemar, and i saw your name on the tag, and i was all, "oh, this used to belong to quantumspice!")

i didn't look at the description before i tried this one, since ladylatemar let me borrow it. lily of the valley sprang immediately to my mind, like Koumari said. i was quite excited that i was carrying off such a traditionally feminine floral, since i am usually a resin-fiend.then i looked up the description saw that it is not what i thought. perhaps the drop of civet is what makes this wearable on me. i don't smell any civet (or sage), it smells purely like a powdery lily of the valley on me. i would recommend this for snake oil addicts like me who shy away from florals. give it a try! it's not too sweet!

i love velvet. on me, the cocoa is the strongest scent. on the dry-down, it is light and powdery, almost as though i've dusted myself with an expensive cocoa. (it's one of the scents i can't stop sniffing on the days i wear it!) ADDED Feb. 3: i think that velvet describes the scent, the scent is not reminiscent of velvet, the fabric (to me). once again, i just want to quote the description! it IS a warm, sensual embrace. a low, sweetly enveloping scent. i am a chocolate lover, but to me this is not chocolately or foody, it's a tad nutty, like a ground cocoa bean (not like swiss miss!!)