Chrysantza

A very, VERY generous friend gifted me with Rose Red 2005 edition.

In the bottle: rose. Fresh-cut, red rose. - like a dew-covered "Mr. Lincoln" deep red bloom.

On me: Rosey but with, alas, a soapy undertone. My body chemistry doesn't always play nice with the greener or sharper scents. Still, more rose than soap.

As a room scent, it's true rose, probably the closest thing to a real fragrant rose I've ever smelled in the bottle. Mmmm.

I love YSL Opium, too - I used to wear it all the time before I discovered BPAL. I find that the LE The Masque is very similar in feel, though maybe not in ingredients.

Mitsouko by Guerlain = The Caterpillar

YSL Opium = The Masque (LE)

Avon's White Ginger = Pele

Good ol' HOD! Lace it into Thanatos, and you've got a nearly dead-on Gypsy Queen.

This is absolutely wonderful to know, as I have two (well, one-and-a-half now!) precious hoarded bottles of Gypsy Queen and didn't know what I'd do when I ran out. Morocco is GQ-like, but not quite the same.

So I have fallen in love with Zarita the Doll Girl . Thankfully, it's Carnavale Diablique, therefore I can still order it. But, what should I try when it's gone? Life just wouldn't be as nice smelling without her.

Alice is not identical, but close enough, with the same carnation-and-cream notes. Maybe layering it with Katharina or Siren for the orange blossom.

If you like The Body Shop's Woody Sandalwood, you'll like BPAL ______?

Depending on your body chemistry, either Anne Bonny or Loralei. The latter is sandalwood + orange-blossom on me. The former goes all patchouli with my body chemistry but on many people, including a dear friend of mine, it's very very sandalwoody.

Black Rose has the same ingredients as Spellbound (rose, musk, amber) but in different proportions - I find it to be rosier, whereas Spellbound is more with the musk/amber. But if your friend likes Spellbound she might like Black Rose, too. (I love them both!)

I adore the label on this one! So cute!

This is exactly what it says - sugared carnation. I love carnation and it's very compatible with my skin chemistry. This is the girliest scent EVER - pure essence of "sugar and spice!" Or, if pink were a scent this would be it. For lovers of sugary-spicy florals and all things girlissima.

I really love this scent - the only drawback is that it has little throw and fades fast. Take this with a grain of salt (or sugar) as I am a scent-eater. I might try layering this with something like The Lion to anchor it. But it's a sweet, fun, adorable springtime scent.

I had to order Pink Moon just because of the carnation.

I don't know if Abhisarika (Valentine's Day LE) has any carnation in it but to me it's a lot like Alice, a very soft creamy floral.

From the GC scents, if you haven't tried Moscow, it's very carnation-y to me.

In the bottle: Very heady, dark resin with floral undertones.

On me: All patchouli, all the time. No jasmine, no magnolia, just patchouli with a wee bit of opium lurking hopefully in the background.

Unfortunately, this went a little to hippie head-shop on me. If the patchouli had minded its manners, it would have been lovely. But I, the resin-amper, have to look elsewhere.

Any recommendations for scents similar to 1) Sol Invictus and 2) All Saint's?

I've used CCNow in the past, but having heard of several instances of credit card fraud from CCNow users I am switching to PayPal. In any event, paying via PayPal means more money goes directly to the Lab, and that's a good thing!

I got this as an imp from a friend who insisted I would love it...

...and so I did. Carnation loves me and I love it back. Moscow is a rich floral, spicy yet aquatic (or snowy maybe) if that makes any sense. The rose and jasmine are well-balanced by the amber and carnation, and the citrus did NOT go to kitchen cleaner on me like it usually does.

Verdict: Bottle-worthy.

Nthing the recommendation for Spellbound. It's a very sultry, amber-y, musky rose scent.

A word of caution about Harlot - it has cinnamon in it and I found that it irritated my skin. Though it's still really nice in the oil-burner.

Euphrosyne, on me, is very dominantly gardenia and jasmine with not so much rose, but YMMV.

A lovely rose blend that no-one has mentioned so far is Moscow: "imperial rose, carnation, lush jasmine, lily of the valley, dark musk, amber, bergamot and gilded tangerine." I love Moscow to death - on me it's a beautiful rose/carnation.

Rose Cross and Black Rose are roses with a base of frankincense and amber + musk, respectively. Persephone is a juicy rose/pomegranate.

My favorite LE rose blend is The Peacock Queen. It's a very pure, sultry, rich rose.

To me, Moscow is very similar to the Holiday bubble bars (formerly known as Ruby Red Slippers). Same carnation, rose and citrus. A bath with Holiday and a few dabs of Moscow afterwards leaves me deliciously carnation-y.

Snowcake is definitely similar to Dana O'Shee.

And if you like the very jasminey Sex Bomb? Try Euphrosyne or the Celestial Luna.

I don't know about Aromatics Elixir in particular, but Guerlain's Mitsouko is an oakmossy scent, and I've found The Caterpillar to be very similar. TC also has vetiver as an ingredient.

For someone who likes scents that combine moss/green/incense with floral, I'd definitely give The Caterpillar a try. It's probably the closest you'll get to a "chypre" in BPAL.

In the imp - a lovely floral, rose and ylang ylang just like the description says.

On me - SOAP! Soapy soap soapity soap. Raw Ivory soap. I'm so disappointed! It smelled great in the bottle but my body chemistry really fights this one.

On me this is very jasmine - a soft and pretty jasmine, rounded out by the rose and heliotrope. I like this.

I guess I worry about a GC blend I love going buhbye because it's unpopular. How often does that happen?

 

It's happened exactly once since I became aware of BPAL. It may happen again, but it's not exactly a regular occurrence.

Whew, and yay for that! I'm glad I don't have to worry about hoarding Euphrosyne. In any case, it's nice to see the catalog expanding (as it has done lately), rather than contracting. And it's always nice to have new LE's to take the place of old ones - almost like a treasure hunt.

I can understand where a lot of the components of LE's are seasonal and/or very expensive. I'm also fascinated by the story (earlier in the thread) about the black narcissus oil and how there was just enough to make an LE...

I do worry sometimes about a few of the oils I like because my tastes do not run to the mainstream!

 

Ah, but that is the beauty of BPAL, now isn't it??? Almost all of us are here because we are so out of the mainstream, taste-wise!

This is very true! And I found out I'm not even the only one who squees over jasmine and gardenia...

I guess I worry about a GC blend I love going buhbye because it's unpopular. How often does that happen?

Honestly, I try not to get too worked up over LE's because, usually, there's a GC that at least approximates it - and there are enough BPALs to love in any case, GC and LE alike. But sometimes it's nice to be able to hoard a bit.

I'm glad I found this thread! It answered questions I had about why LE's are LE's. It appears that it has mostly to do with components, and very rarely that a blend is just too unpopular. I do worry sometimes about a few of the oils I like because my tastes do not run to the mainstream!

I've noticed that some of the LE blends have oils with the same names as GC blends. Like Silentium Amoris, has rose and ylang ylang which I also see in GC blends. Is what is in SA a special kind of rose and/or ylang-ylang that is rarer?

One of my LJ friends decanted a few drops in a sample bottle for me to try.

I popped the cap off and the mint was SO STRONG that it made my eyes water and I sneezed.

And on me, it smells like I've bathed in Scope mouthwash or rolled in crushed Altoids. Plus my eyes still water.

Not for me, alas.

I love this oil. I got an imp in a decant circle and I've already used half!

The scent I get is overwhelmingly clove, with a bit of allspice, vanilla and lavender. Almost like pumpkin pie spice w/lavender and something else. As others have said, this is like a hug in a bottle. Definitely a Molly Weasley scent.

I wore a drop on each of my chakras before bed last night to begin a purification process. I did have some very weird dreams but I take it as part of the purification.

Wearing it today, I feel much more grounded, centered, calm and take-charge. I feel as if I can overcome whatever obstacles are in my path. This oil, when worn, works on me to give a serene, can-do feeling. I'm waiting to do a candle ritual with Anthelion and see how that goes.

Interestingly, my kitties are reacting very positively when I wear it! One in particular is being much more affectionate than usual and demanding pets 24/7. I would never ever put the oil on the cats but just having the Anthelion in their vicinity seems to have a positive effect on them. (To repeat: Cats have incredibly sensitive systems and I would NEVER apply ANY TAL directly to my cats.)

Adding to the chorus of "This oil works liek whoa!"

I get the scent of carnation, musk and some sort of resin from this. It smells good enough to me to wear as a perfume.

And the effects...every time I wear this I feel personally empowered and much more confident. People react to me in a very positive way, as well - initiating conversation, giving compliments, smiling, joking. I highly recommend this as a social facilitator and personal-power enhancer!

One little, tiny warning: The instructions for use are to dab a drop of oil on each chakra point. Be careful with the root chakra! Don't dab it in such a way that it might dribble onto tender parts because then it is ouchy. A small drop high on the tailbone works best.

Got this in a gift package from someone who knew I liked sweet florals.

This is a sweet, sweet floral (comparable to Euphrosyne). Very heavy on the jasmine and the honeysuckle. Thankfully, I don't get that much lemon (citrus and my skin chemistry are not friends). I really love this as it's sweet, floral, and has a wonderful throw and staying power.

Definitely bottle-worthy.

Incidentally, honeysuckle is supposed to be a Mercurial oil which increases the brain power - I don't know if this works for everyone, but I did write what turned out to be a very good paper whilst wearing New Orleans! YMMV.

At first this smelled very chocolate and lavender. Rather like a dessert whipped up from a very froufrou cookbook.

The end notes were delicious sandalwood and vanilla.

Alas, the middle part killed this for me. Between the chocolate wet stage and the final sandalwood drydown I got...COUGH SYRUP. A really nasty bitter medicinal smell.

Off to the swaps.