rivercitylizzy

I loved Black Cashmere (my signature scent during my post-college "I'm really a grown-up now, honest!!" years and was heartbroken when it went DC. So glad I found this thread for some suggestions on BPAL with a similar feel. I tried Scherezade layered with Sin as per the recommendation above and ohmigosh it was heavenly! Sure, it's not an exact dupe but it certainly gave me that BC darkspicysexywoodsy feel without venturing too far into the sweet--and without causing a sneezing fit, which the BC used to do. Excellent suggestion!

This one must be appealing to my darker nature--the full-on Scorpio (Sun, Mars, Mercury) I so often veil with my more well-behaved Virgo Rising--because damn I'm loving me some Nightmare In the bottle: I first get the vanilla-soaked linens, rich dark sweet dried fruits (currants, maybe even dried black fig or plum), milky poppy, and dry white honey. I have to hover over the open bottle for a bit to pick up the florals in the background, but they're very faint here. Wet on skin: as it warms up, I get more of the florals, and oddly enough the lavender and jasmine seem to dance back and forth on the drydown. It is thoroughly fascinating and I keep revisiting my wrists to see "who's on first" from moment to moment. Dry on skin: The amber and vanilla and honey work well to tie the florals together in a lovely bouquet with the fruity notes woven in seamlessly. I am delighted with this hauntingly beautiful and slightly feral scent--this ends up where I wish Antique Lace had (although I may be the better for it, as Nightmare is both more accessible and less expensive). Backup bottle worthy for certain!

Wet in the bottle: intriguing and enticing soft sweet honey and vanilla, fresh green magnolia, and what seems to me a very gentle patchouli, luring me into a skin test. Wet on skin: oh, no. This is threatening to go on a detour into Ol'ladyville and in a hurry. Dry on skin: yep, it's definitely headed there. Even after nearly two hours, it's soft and powdery (certain honey & beeswax notes will do this on me but I was seduced by the vanilla, ylang-ylang, and patchouli); perhaps not quite offensive but not really adorable either; overall I'd say it reminds me of The Gladdener of All Hearts as it dries down and develops. Which is not necessarily bad--it doesn't stink, IMO, and I might not need to scrub it off--but powdery is just not my thing. I'm willing to pop it in an aging drawer (along with a number of other Weenie bottles I bought on impulse) to see if it gets better behaved with time, but I'm afraid it may end up in swaps. Le sigh.

Exactly this! Wet in the bottle, it is MJ all the way. Wet on the skin, still MJ (with a little something faintly hay-like in the background, like someone tried to burn sweetgrass to cover up the...um...grass ). Dry, even after an hour and a half...yup, MJ, unless I really huff at my skin and THEN I can almost pick up the intended notes (red sandalwood, my beloved vetiver & patchouli) trying desperately to come out & play; I am not in love with Mary Jane. I blame the ambrette seed, perhaps, or the peru balsam or ambergris or whatever, for bullying some of my fav notes and making them stinky and gross. Where Expressive Head was a wonderful (and euphoria-inducing, no joke) development on my skin, Triumph of Death is a crushing disappointment. Thankfully it's sticking close to the skin but given the longevity of several of the notes on me I'll probably have to scrub it off before bed. Boo.

Exactly this! Wet in the bottle, it is MJ all the way. Wet on the skin, still MJ (with a little something faintly hay-like in the background, like someone tried to burn sweetgrass to cover up the...um...grass ). Dry, even after an hour and a half...yup, MJ, unless I really huff at my skin and THEN I can almost pick up the intended notes (red sandalwood, my beloved vetiver & patchouli) trying desperately to come out & play; I am not in love with Mary Jane. I blame the ambrette seed, perhaps, or the peru balsam or ambergris or whatever, for bullying some of my fav notes and making them stinky and gross. Where Expressive Head was a wonderful (and euphoria-inducing, no joke) development on my skin, Triumph of Death is a crushing disappointment. Thankfully it's sticking close to the skin but given the longevity of several of the notes on me I'll probably have to scrub it off before bed. Boo.

Oh, I'm so glad I got this as a decant... In the Vial: The sweet pink grapefruit jumps out first with something faintly powdery-sweet lurking in the background. Still, it's the most promising of the Seekims I've sniffed so far. So I put it on. Wet on Skin: Inside of a minute, it's gone full baby powder on my skin I'm amping it, whatever it is (perhaps the honey note + orris? maybe they're fighting with the swamp moss & green musk) and it's giving me a headache. SCRUB. Dry on Skin: Despite a skin-reddening scrub followed by a bracing pass with rubbing alcohol (oh, my poor abraded wrists!) it is still there. If I keep my head away from my wrists it's not too bad. After about 4 hours it thankfully turns to soap (never thought I'd be thankful for that), then...6 hours later it is back to Old Lady Body Powder. Gah. Seekims, why hast thou forsaken me??

I wholeheartedly second Seance--it's a beautiful rose-but-not-rose scent and the rosewood note in it is lovely!

I received a goblin squirt of this--maybe 1/3 or 1/4 full?--as a frimp from another forumite, tucked in with my purchase from their sales post. Having never tried any of the BPTP atmosphere sprays I was quite curious how I'd like it, as with some folks upthread I've never been a big fan of the super-fake-smelling "air freshening" sprays (even the "lighter" ones like Febreeze, etc.). I was changing the bed linens today and decided--what the heck? I'll give this one a shot. I spritzed a quick bit over the dirty linens to see if I'd like the scent enough to sleep in it and, oh, my! It's lovely, unique, and did not give me a sneezing fit at first spray: I could pick up a spicy-sweetness (like a spiced marmalade, very nice!) and definitely the dirt & dry leaves notes right off the bat and decided that this was a scent both I and my husband could tolerate overnight. I spritzed a bit over the mattress pad, then laid down the layers of flannel, waffle weave cotton blanket, and satin comforter. This stuff is surprisingly strong without being overpowering and I am typing merrily away surrounded by a gentle but definitely present cloud of sweet-spicy-earthy goodness. Definitely worth picking up a bottle

This was the second of the An Evening in Hades decants I tried and unfortunately I can't add much more to the description of my experience than the above. In the vial I had some hope that the scent would be unique--the pom was sweet and juicy but didn't seem too "sweettarts" like and the other notes seemed to make it a pretty blend. Wet on the skin though it began to show signs of going plastic just like Green Apple of Venus and once it dried down...yup, fall candle all the way. Without the smoke to make it more interesting, no less. Worse, it's amping like heck and beginning to make me feel a bit nauseous. Definite pass, and it looks like no bottles from An Evening in Hades for me

Still death-matchin' the Weenie decants to see what makes it into a "get 'em before they're gone" Lab order Last pair before bed are two from the An Evening in Hades trio; here we go with The Nymphae Avernales! In the Vial: On initial sniff, this was the one among the trio I was most likely to enjoy skin testing. I got the lilac musk first and then the rose (seemed like a pretty soft, velvety pink rose, not as strong as a tea rose), with the frankincense grounding it and the honey & pomegranate kickin' it out back. Lazy bums. Wet on Skin: A pretty blend, the pomegranate still takes a backseat--it's not a super-sweet or plasticky pom, as in the Green Apple of Venus (which so broke my heart!)--and the rose comes more forward to blend with the lilac musk and frankincense as this warms up to my skin. No sticky sweet honey/pom here and that's good news, but also not much sandalwood. Hm. Dry on Skin: This blend has just a bit of throw and after about an hour the sandalwood is peeking through but not as strong as I'd like it. I've got Regina Erebi on the other wrist and as far as I can tell the throw on that one is kicking The Nymphae Avernales' ass. So I have to huff my wrist to get the rest of the drydown--soft and well-mannered rose with a touch of lilac in the background (TG it's not a super-sweet ickickick lilac, I kind of hate the RL stuff), a faint air of sandalwood, and slightly sweet resin. Not bad, but when I compare it to La Calavera Catrina I think LCC takes the win! I do think this would be a lovely blend for the rose-phobic though, as it's not overpowering at all

As opposed to A Nocturnal Reverie--another "purple" scent--this is truly a "dark purple" blend, the sort of purple that's almost black like a midnight-hued iris. Amazing how a scent can so definitely evoke a sense of color. In the Decant: My first hit is dark purple fruits, like black cherry and something reminiscent of bitter almond, though I know that's not in the notes. If I huff it for a while, I can pick out some of the tobacco (which might have been lending itself to the "bitter almond" impression), sage, and aquatics, which to me are not so much saline as brackish. Wet on Skin: Thankfully the "cherry/almond" recedes here (those tend to be no-nos) and I get more of a dark plum/blackcurrant note as well as more of the aquatics and the sage, sweet violet, sweet/herbal opopponax, and earthy moss. It's very pretty. Dry on Skin: Nothing But Death stays pretty consistent on my skin; after about 30 minutes of wear it's fairly similar to the wet phase. If anything, the fruits are now in the background sweetening things up and the florals/herbs/earthy notes are more forward along with the clean/fresh aquatics. An hour in, the tobacco is much more forward but not overpowering. It's a nice blend, but it's not knocking my socks off (especially compared to OMGILOVE A Nocturnal Reverie) so the decant may have to suffice

Got a decant of this to test out in my effort to "narrow down" a Weenie 2 order In the Vial: Wow, rice cakes! Starchy plantain! Tropical florals. Caramelized sugar. This smells like a seriously foody scent and--at least at this stage--very raucous. Lots going on here, hard to pick out the rest... Wet on Skin: Rice cake and starch all the way at first, then some of the chocolate pudding and buttery caramel custard comes out as it warms up on my skin. The florals are there too but seriously in the background. It would be great--amazing that all of this is in here!--but I'm really starting to wonder about the OMG RICE CAKE!!! and not sure if I can wear this. Dry on Skin: The caramelized sugar note is taking on a burnt edge that is blending with the starchy plantain and rice and chocolate and becoming overwhelming--like a pudding left on the stove too long and hopelessly burned--burnt microwave popcorn, anyone? Throw on this is pretty strong (it's beating out Nothing But Death, which I was testing on the opposite wrist) and though the DH next to me thinks something smells pretty yummy ("is that butter mochi??") I don't think I can do this. SCRUB.

Just got a decant of this along with several other Weenies that didn't make it into my first round of bottle orders (thanks Catseyes!!), as I wanted to see which, if any, of the rest I'd want bottles of before they came down. In the Vial: beautiful, ethereally sweet violet, bright and clear citrusy olibanum and elemi, sexy red musk, the slightly bitter saffron and astringent wormwood (I so love that and other artemisia notes, which I hardly ever see in perfumery) all mingling together to seduce me into slathering. I was going to a memorial service at a Buddhist temple which was going to be heavy on the incense, thus I saw no harm in doing so. Wet on Skin: I agree with the experience upthread about giving this blend a moment or so to warm up on the skin and allow it to blossom. Not that I thought it wasn't pretty enough on first application but once it began to warm up--OH!! Yes. Yes this is definitely hoardable; the blood red musk swirls around the resinous elemi and olibanum, mellowing the brightness of the citrusy aspect carried by these notes, with the violet leaf adding a sweetness and the white tea, wormwood, and saffron adding astringent/herbal and earthy/bitter edges that are just beautiful. I don't feel like I'm getting much of the crypt dust, unless like the saffron it's simply serving to ground the blend. Whatever, it's...just... I so want to bathe in this. Instead I slathered it on wrists, behind ears, and over the sternum. Dry on Skin: The musk & resins take center stage here with the other notes blending and keeping the scent from going either sweet/cloying or dusty/powdery/old lady. Throw was pretty decent though as I said, I was in a room with lots of incense wafting around and so no one was getting blown away by my perfume. After several hours of wear it is softly sweet and incensy and I just love how it is slow to fade. It is sensual and irresistible and yes, it may be giving A Nocturnal Reverie and Halloween: Las Vegas a run for their money in my "Best of Weenies 2011" death match In any case, I see at least one (maybe more) bottle in my future.

Just got a decant of this as part of my order from Catseyes' Happy Halloweenies circle and was most eager to try it and La Calavera Catrina to see if bottle purchases need to go in before the Weenies come down In the Vial: I also get mostly a fresh, green, crisp scent, with the rose sneaking forward; this is not a lush and sweet tea rose but a brighter rose--the way I recall wild roses actually smelling. There is just a hint of sweetness in the background--probably the vanilla--but it's not rushing to the front at this point. This is pretty unique as my tastes run mostly to deep, dark, rich, and earthy/spicy scents and these are most heavily represented in my bottle purchases. However despite this being a "fresh, clean" scent it's not seeming soapy and I'm down for a skin test. Wet on Skin: Oh, gods above the rose in this is stunning and as it warms up a bit to my skin the vanilla comes forward and the two are tempering the fresh & bright quality of the other floral notes--the astringent chamomile and dry/dusky marigolds & chrysanthemums. This I really could wear to work everyday--it has a zingy, alertness-inducing effect without being either minty or citrusy (again, unique) and as I'm caffeine sensitive this might be a good alternative to using coffee or black tea as a "wake up & get my ass to work" crutch Dry on Skin: Throw is pretty decent on this one, though again because it's such a well-balanced and clean scent it probably won't offend anyone if I did wear it every day to work. Happily it's pretty consistent on my skin and keeps that lovely blend of wild rose, grown-up vanilla, and bright golden florals. MUST HAVE BOTTLE. Maybe even backup bottle.

Just got a decant of this as part of my order from Catseyes' Happy Halloweenies circle and was most eager to try it and La Calavera Catrina to see if bottle purchases need to go in before the Weenies come down In the Vial: This definitely made me perk up and go "Oh, unique!" I definitely agree with the cold dry autumn leaves as the forward note--where I live it's not so humid and October so far has been a see-saw of chilly nights/mornings and warm days. The leaf note here reminds me of our weather now, leaves just changing from green into golds/reds/oranges/browns and shivering still on the trees in the cold dawn. Very bright and chilly. I'm also getting the sweet from the vanilla/white cocoa and the richness of amber in the background, sweetening up the blend. Wet on Skin: My gosh this is beautiful!! Throw is not super strong but it wafts gently around my wrist and up to my nose. The white cocoa has come forward a bit to blend more evenly with the vanilla--as others have mentioned for me this is more a dry, powdery white cocoa and not a creamy white chocolate note--which is good because the "buttery" aspect of such notes can go sideways on me. The shivering quality backs off a little bit, keeping it from being too "minty." Dry on Skin: The combination of white musk, vanilla/white cocoa powder, and amber incense deepened by slightly woodsy dry leaves is rich and complex when I sniff at my wrist and from a distance (maybe a foot or so) it is slightly sweet, slightly incensy powder--the way I wish body or baby powder would smell. It is the best powdery scent I've ever tried and if anything could make me refrain from shouting my loathing of powder scents from the highest mountain, this would be it Not sure if it's a bottle purchase but the wet phase is making me think on it and I'm certainly enjoying the decant.