Laurel the Woodfairy

If you're a fan of Pink Sugar (I am), my holy grail BPAL is and will always be Midway...on me it's cottn candy + sex. YMMV, though: some people get butter, some get funnel cake. I get candysex . The reviews for the prototype Tilt-a-Whirl make me hope it will be released eventually too. There are so many sweet/foody scents, but Midway is the main one that has a light spun-sugar feeling to it instead of something heavier. Sticky Pillowcase is also a fun, light candy scent *but* is not sexy.

For a winter wedding, I would recommend Szepasszony, which is SUCH an underrated GC! I have a bottle and wear it all winter: "clear, airy notes, slashing rain, and a thin undercurrent of white flowers." The description of her sounds like a bride: "a stunningly beautiful woman in a blinding white dress". Plus she is the Winter Witch, which I think is rad for a pagan wedding. I am so glad I wore Two, Five, & Seven for my spring tea-party wedding; it could not have been more perfect. Utterly romantic and feminine, but fresher and sweeter than some of my other rose favorites. And now I smile whenever I smell it.

Beth should just go ahead and label this "Handfasting, Squee!" because if you have reason to use it... ! Buying my bottle has actually been one of the things that's made my impending wedding seem the most real. I will be using it to anoint our handfasting cord before the ceremony, and also our rings, my bouquet...everything I can think of to weave a love spell around us both on the happiest day of our lives. I am testing it today because we are going to get our marriage license! In the bottle, Handfasting smells like citrus over what I can only describe as "the TAL smell"...that rich, herbal scent you find as a base in many of these blends. Lightly testing it, I smell strong, sharp lemon verbena on top of something warmer and "chewier", perhaps herbs combined with musk or a touch of resin? It's a little sharp to use as a wedding day perfume, which of course isn't really its intent anyway, but it will impart a lovely bright scent to all the ritual items used in Handfasting. And now...one more !

I told my Fiance that I would pass King of Hearts on to him after reviewing...although I have to admit the notes don't sound much like him, so we'll see. It would be so appropriate for him, in my majorly biased opinion, as the king of my *takes a sniff* Um, yeah, he'll hate this! I like it, actually: cleanly lavender with a hint of cherry that quickly fades and leaves a "chewy" sort of musk, if that makes any sense. I think it would be a good scent for gents who tend to like lavender, but I know mine does not. Alas.

I have a couple of Mad Tea imps that I need to review, as I want the full line on hand as wedding favors at my Mad Tea wedding. The Knave smells...both delicious and weird! I mean, I can smell a lovely buttery scent with currant, like Eat Me with less vanilla and more pastry. And I can smell rose, one of my favorite notes. I'm not sure how I feel about the combo! To me those are very different categories of scent, and I like Eat Me b/c it is all gourmand and rose scents like 2, 5, 7 because they are all floral. I wouldn't say this smells bad, but my nose is really confuzzled right now.

Having layered the two Roses for my Valentine's date with my Fiance (they were a valentine from him, and a MUCH better call on his part than literal roses!), I'm now reviewing separately. Red Rose more obviously contains rose than does its White sister, but spicy amber is just as strong--and it's a very strong blend! It's rather like combining Blood Rose, my favorite rich sexy rose blend, with Smut or Snake Oil or something else with musk, resins, and spice. It also reminds me vaguely of LUSH--like Potion with rose instead of carnation. I really love it! It's like a combination of some of my favorite sexy BPALs, all in one. It stands alone very well, and I'm more likely to wear Red alone than White, but when you layer them it is seriously heady stuff! The vanilla tea from White is amazing with all the spice from Red, but on the other hand the actual rose almost gets drowned out by so many strong notes. I like the symbolism of layering the two scents, but I would also wear either alone, just for very different events.

I wore Red Rose and White Rose layered for Valentine's, and holy cats was it ever a gorgeous and sexy combination! I want to review them separately now, though. When wet, White Rose smells very resinous and lightly incensey...in fact, I felt a little cheated because I couldn't really smell rose. And truly this is not the scent to buy if you want a serious rose fix (I recommend Blood Rose or 2, 5, 7 for that). However, as it dries, the white rose note is apparent, blending nicely with a vanilla-tea note reminiscent of Dorian. I never would have guessed there was coconut in this. It's sweet and rich and expresses the concept of the beauty and purity a white rose symbolizes, rather than smelling particularly rosy itself. Layering with Red Rose makes it less sweet, more spicy and sexy. It's beautiful alone though...it reminds me of Black Lace, and would be appropriate for similar occasions, i.e., when I want to smell feminine, high-class, and dramatic. It's not light or fresh enough for, say, a wedding--which is what a White Rose initially brings to mind for me. Rather, it's a glamour scent, like a woman in a dramatic white satin bias-cut evening gown in an old Hollywood movie.

Testing EveningStar's--she's married to a scientist and loves her kittehs, so of course she has this! Ooo, tangerine and lavender! Both are immediately distinct when wet, and they work surprisingly well together--the ultimate in clean and bright scents. There's a hint of sweetness in the citrus (the sugared lime?) to keep the lavender from making it too sharp. What a great fruity, summery scent--it could have been part of the Tiki Lounge Bar. If you missed that LE series, try this. I'm not getting the chocolate...but I guess I'll have to experiment again another time and see.

I'm delighted to try this, as B&B is a favorite fairy tale of mine, and I have to admit that I'm a huge fan of Belle from the Disney version (she reads!) and this makes me think of her. Hm, this is very soft on me, but pretty--like a wearable version of Fae (which went bad bad UGH bad on me, to my chagrin). Softly woody and clean--maybe just a breath of rose, but if so then it's the "clean" rose of Rose Red rather than the full, rich blooming roses I tend to love. Peach comes out on the drydown, but still very subtle. This is not nearly as sweet as vanilla-peach would suggest--it's delicate, pretty, and greener than I would have thought.

I have Dum on one wrist and Dee on the other, but I don't think I would layer them: it wouldn't be a fair fight; Dee would win easily. This is a really strong scent! Almost overpowering when wet, and not really to my taste-- knock-you-out sweet fruit with a weird peppery zing. The white tea adds none of the calm I normally expect from that note. While Dum was quite wearable, his brother needs to chill out and quit being so hyper!

I'm reviewing Dee on one wrist, and Dum on the other, because...that's the way it should be. Dum is a charmer! A soft green scent--I smell the fig distinctly, and it goes really well with the clean green tea note from Embalming Fluid. The patchouli just adds a little extra spiciness. This is actually one of the best fig BPALs I've encountered--the other notes round it out nicely instead of drowning it, which is what happened with Eden on me.

I'm curious about the Mouse but a little wary, for while I love vanilla and amber together, I've never yet met a sweet pea that worked on me. But we shall see. Blargh, this is weird on me! I don't know what to think. I'm getting a very odd, sharp "perfumey" floral that reminds me of peaches but...floral-er. Yet at the same time there is a luscious vanilla cream underneath. I think this is a case of sweet pea being as bratty to me as it always is. I could see this being quite beautiful on someone else, but I'm going to have to chase the mouse from my house!

We have some trouble managing our flamingos, too. Pink lime, pink grapefruit, white nectarine, wild rose, sage, woody patchouli, bergamot, and ornery hedgehog musk. Croquet struck me as lovely-sounding when it was first released, but I've only just gotten around to testing it (so many imps, so little time!). Mmm, it is pretty while wet! My skin seems to eat the fruit first though: I'm smelling creamy rose with a hint of woods and musk and just the slightest hint of lime and nectarine. I actually was hoping for more of a sparkling citrus summery scent--Croquet is pretty but "indistinct" on me, like it can't decide whether it wants to be floral or fruity with my chemistry, so it's a muddle. I guess I can't manage my flamingos either!

Oooo, this smells like an enchanted moongarden. White, silver, and green. Moonflower is immediately distinct, as is ivy--they are a great combination, a clean fresh floral. Witching Time is a little astringent right out of the imp, more like a commercial (i.e., alcohol-base) perfume...it reminds me a little of my Mom's favorite White Linen. She would love this. The drydown is softly herbal but still very fresh and pretty. What a great blend.

Katrina is a lovely pure rose and honey on me at first; both notes are distinct. Then she goes through a baby powder phase that I'm not happy about at all. The final drydown is good again--slightly powdery rose, but not as "elderly" as that middle phase. The honey didn't last terribly well on me though. A decant is enough, as I have darn near every rose scent Beth has created. I like the idea of rose + something mellow and sweet for an autumnal rose, but Love in the Asylum works better on me for that purpose.

White Rabbit and O decided to spawn, and they named their offspring Ichabod. God, that mental image is nasty. But the scent is fantastic! Wet, this is White Rabbit + a sexy creamy honey that I suppose is actually beeswax but reads as O on my skin. Drydown is pure White Rabbit, which luckily is a scent I love. In fact, I wanted Ichabod for another black tea scent. I don't need a bottle since I can layer the two GCs for much the same effect (and I already have 'em), but I'll enjoy my decant.

Fearful Pleasure is one of the decants I got to augment my near-continual wearing of Samhain and Harvest Moon all season long. I need *some* variety, right? Mmmm, this is a really interesting scent! While I certainly do get apples, what my skin really amps is firewood and spices. I smell like a walk in the woods on a golden autumn afternoon with the scent of bonfires in the air. And then there's the cider in the background...it's a very different apple than, say, Snow Glass Apples: much warmer and redder. This is a great fall scent that would also be amazing as a room scent. I may use it for both.

My Halloweenies are here, and Sticky Pillowcase is the first one I'm testing--I feel like a kid in a candy store. This is one of those rare scents that I wanted for the concept, whether or not it's exactly "me"...it's just too much fun to miss out. The label on the bottle is cute--gold-wrapped candies in a pillowcase with little handprints on it! Now for the sniffing... In the bottle, Pillowcase is light fruity candy over brown sugar; I see what everyone means about the brown sugar--that's just what it smells like. On me, it's a very "bright" scent: not terribly strong, but delicate and a little tart--like Sweetarts, in fact. Not really all that sweet, but fresh and playful and, somehow, pink and blue! I don't get candy corn from it, and the brown sugar in the bottle vanishes on my skin. It's like a better version of Princess or one of those perfumes marketed to younger girls--pretty and not heavy at all. I'd wear it for a date that's somewhere fun and casual, like the carnival or State Fair (which we just went to, actually). Or for trick-or-treating, naturally.

BUMP because Babylon mentioned looking for this thread, so here it is! Also as a reminder to myself to order Handfasting in plenty of time for my wedding, so I can decide if I want to *wear* it, or just to use it ritually.

I got to sniff the lovely Angelfish's bottle of SGA. Ooo, freaky label art by the way! My first reaction was "Creepy!" Not that it smells creepy--it reminded me of the apple note from Creepy, which is a true apple scent, very crisp and juicy. However, instead of Creepy's caramel, SGA has a clear aquatic note for a touch of ice. Very fresh and bright. Mmmm.

Temple: Maiden is beautiful, beautiful. I smell lemon verbena and a light white floral that reminds me of linden and moonflower but isn't either of them--it has that "light, luminous" feeling though. Possibly a touch of white musk, very pure but adding warmth. It's soft and does not have a lot of throw. I used it in a Full Moon ritual to honor Artemis and female friendship/sisterhood--it smells like a silvery, radiant young Goddess and carries a positive "young" feminine energy with it. Wear it with your girls on a moonlit night and be happy and carefree.

I accidentally tested Lord of the Forest before I actually meant to (explanation here). I thought I had put on some sort of Snake Oil variation! Not nearly as sweet as Snake Oil, and no vanilla, but that rich resin/musk combination...a bit like Smut crossed with Snake Oil, or at least in that family. VERY sexy. The civet is really well-blended; I caught a hint of it but it never took over--even on drydown, I was still getting *all* the notes, not cat pee. It has strong throw and good lasting power; it's super-dark in the vial and has a feeling of darkness as well. I'm passing it on to my partner, as the resident male--he thinks it smells "incensey" and, to be honest, he did behave more...animalistically...than usual. I recommend this one for its intended purpose, and even though it's for men, I quite liked smelling like a Lady of the Forest.

I've had the Passionate Shepherd on my wishlist for awhile--I am crazy for both rose and ivy, so I hope those are prominent. Wet, I get both rose and carnation in equal measure. This pleaseth me not. I like my rose to be slightly chilly and green, and carnation is so warm and spicy that it cancels it out. On the drydown the nice green background notes start to come out, which helps. Ultimately, though, I'm getting really picky because my collection is getting out of control, so I don't think the Passionate Shepherd will be joining my BPAL Rose Garden. The carnation is a faux-pas on his part. It's a beautiful blend, though, and I think my mom or my sister might accept the Shepherd's invitation to be his love. I'll pass him on and see.

Backstory: I have been looking for Quincey Morris for awhile now. My fiance is fond of fruit scents, especially apple, pear, and citrus, but wants it to smell "masculine", whatever that means! So you can imagine that my mind went straight to the one and only "manly pear" scent I recall seeing around the BPALverse. I finally acquired some for him at the last M n' S. Well, Mr. Morris was worth the wait! A luscious vanilla-pear scent, but with clear hints of leather and woods underneath to "ground" it and make it more...uh, dudely (as in, worn by dudes). I love it on my fiance and will encourage him to wear it often (for the record, his other favorite is Usher...dudely citrus).

I'm surprised to see how reddish-pink the imp is, as I would expect a brown earth color... Whoa! Now this I didn't expect--it's Christmas! That is, the scent of Yule at the Lab specifically...I do believe this is the first time I've run across Beth's amazing wet snow + fresh pine combination in the general catalogue. This smells pretty much like Ice Queen and Skadi, with an extra kick of mint. Cold, fresh, clean. Definitely unisex, but aquatics tend to skew masculine on me. A little warmer/sweeter on the drydown. This should be a cause of rejoicing for everyone who missed out on, or wants more of, the frostier winter LEs.