kwsix

I used Kaboodle for my Christmas wishlist. TheThingsIWant looks similar. However, I don't think either of them solve Asenath's problem of wanting people to be able to send gifts without getting her address.

Euphrosyne might be good for you, even though you're wary of florals. It's very soft and the florals are tempered nicely by the vanilla. It reminds me very much of a princess. And maybe Eat Me? You've gotten some very good recommendations.

Cassia-caked cocoa coconut over angel food cake. In the imp: I smell sweet coconut and something that smells like burning plastic. I almost didn't try this one on my skin at all. I've had it for several months now and finally have the guts to try it. I don't like the smell of burning plastic. Wet on my skin: Yay! There's no trace of burning plastic, or non-burning plastic, even. I'm getting mostly cassia, and it's lovely. Very spicy in a baked-goods way, with sweet coconut and dry cocoa powder in the background. Drydown: This is a very foody but not chocolatey scent. It reminds me of spicy coconut cookies I had at a coffee shop long ago and far away. They were delicious, and so is this fragrance. I'm very glad that the cassia is taking over, because otherwise I think this scent would be way too sweet for me. As it is, everything is staying nicely balanced. Thanks, cassia! Overall: I like this much more than I expected. There's not a whole lot of throw here, but that's ok with me. I have to put my nose about 4 inches away from my skin to get a scent. It is very foody, so it won't be an everyday scent for me, but I do think I'll wear it again in the future. It's a comforting bakery scent that stays interesting because of the spice. It also made me realize how much I like cassia.

In the imp: Spicy dragon's blood Wet on my skin: I've been robbed! I came for the spice, and sadly there's no spice to be found. I'm getting sweet dragon's blood, which has disguised itself as fruity flowers. Dragon's blood doesn't usually do that to me. Huh. Drydown: There's no change. I wanted spicy cinnamon goodness, and all I got was a pleasant fruity floral. Overall: Well, Wrath is pleasant enough on me, but pleasant isn't quite what I was looking for. I envy those of you who get welt-inducing spice from this one. All I got was a pale shadow of my beloved Blood. I do like Wrath, but it just doesn't fit a niche for me.

From the wet stage all the way through the drydown, I get almost pure leather from Loviatar. Loviatar is a little sweeter and deeper than De Sade, but otherwise they're both the same clean, fresh leather scent on me. The other notes come out to play a little toward the end, but they stay nicely in the background. Overall Loviatar is a sexy, saucy, leather scent that stays clean and crisp. It's not oiled leather or tanned hides, but the sweet leather of a supple jacket or corset mixed with the warm spiciness of the person in the leather. Rawr!

in the imp: sweet, heady florals wet on my skin: Holy moly, sweet flower overload! This is jasmine and honeysuckle to the nth power. It's so sweet and cloying that it could induce a migraine. But oddly enough I don't dislike it. drydown: As it dries, the florals are tempered by something that smells like damp and rotting vegetation. I mean that in the nicest way. The damp and rotting things are actually making this smell much better. They're holding back the jasmine, and I'm for anything that has the power to do that. overall: New Orleans isn't a "me" fragrance, but I enjoyed the ride. Floral afficianados should love it, and everyone else should at least try it once.

in the imp: tonka and flowers wet on my skin: This one is absolutely true to the description on me. It's a creamy, incensey violet with a hint of cloves. I hope the violet doesn't turn into Palmolive. drydown: Yay, no dishsoap! No change from the wet stage. The violet is soft and sweet, the tonka is rich and creamy, the clove is spicing it up just a little, and the incense is staying soft and rounding everything out. overall: This is the first BPAL violet blend that has not turned into dishsoap on my skin. It does fade quickly, but the clove seems to stick around longer than the other notes, so it still smells wonderful. This is another floral blend (violets, even!) that this former floral-hating girl actually likes.

In the imp: lavender and citrus Wet on my skin: It smells like lemon drop candy! There's a faint hint of lavender and jasmine in the background, but otherwise it's all lemon. Drydown: The lemon fades a little, and the other notes become more prominent. It's a fairly balanced blend of lavender, citrus, soft florals, and slightly minty herbs. Jasmine tends to go out of control on me, but it's minding its manners here. Overall: On me this is a soft pleasant fragrance that does tend to be slightly "medicinal" from the combination of lavender, herbs, and lemon. It could be the scent of a botanical sinus-clearing salve of some sort, so I can imagine reaching for it when I'm feeling under the weather.

In the imp: smoky woods Wet on my skin: Sri Lanka blossoms into warm woods, resins, and spice. I can pick out the sandalwood, cedar, patchouli, and myrrh. There's a hint of something citrus-y on my skin, which I'm guessing is the olibanum. I really like this one. Drydown: It stays pretty much the same as the wet stage, except the patchouli comes on a little stronger as it dries. Fortunately I like patchouli. Overall: Sri Lanka is warm, spicy, and mysterious. It's a very well-balanced blend, with no one note shouting for attention. I would classify it as more masculine than feminine, but still wearable for men and women. I like it on myself, but it would be very sexy on a man too. Something about it reminds me a little of Blood - probably the myrrh. I would definitely wear Sri Lanka again, and I plan on ordering a bottle whenever I can swing it.

Maybe it's because I tried Manhattan at the same time as Shanghai (although on different arms), but I don't get much scent at all from it. It's very indistinct on me from the wet stage through the drydown. After reading what it's supposed to smell like, I think I can detect orchid, grapefruit, and amber. It's a very pleasant scent, but it's so light as to almost be undetectable. I'll give this one another try all by its lonesome, and I 'll revise my review if anything changes.

In the imp: Tea! Wet on my skin: This is lovely! It's lemony tea with a hint of something woodsy in the background. Sandalwood, maybe? At least it smells like sandalwood to me. Drydown: Shanghai stays true through the drydown. The lemon fades a little, which is fine by me because the lovely tea scent is coming out even more. Overall: I really like Shanghai. It's a very clean, inviting tea fragrance with the barest hint of lemon and warm woods. It reminds me of the scent of a lovely old tea chest. On me, Shanghai is in the same vein as Embalming Fluid, Kumiho, and even Dirty. Kumiho is one of my favorites, and I can't imagine wearing Shanghai much if at all since they're so similar on me. But Shanghai is a wonderful scent, and would do well for people who don't like the ginger note in Kumiho.

In the imp: Florals! Wet on my skin: Eeek, jasmine overload! Jasmine isn't one of my favorites under any circumstances, so this is really not a good scent for me. Drydown: The jasmine has calmed, thank goodness. Now this is a nicely balanced blend of jasmine, rose, carnation, and bergamot on me. I don't get any tangerine or musk. I'm getting a hint of powder, which is probably the amber. Overall: The wet stage was a jasmine-fueled disaster, but the drydown wasn't bad at all. Moscow isn't a blend that I would really ever wear, but I can definitely see the appeal, especially to fans of soft powdery florals.

My husband adores Poison, and he thinks Spellbound has a similar "feel", even though the notes are different.

I second the recommendation for Eat Me. Much to my dismay, Snake Oil doesn't work with my chemistry at all. Eat Me is what I wanted Snake Oil to smell like on me. Something about Storyville also gives me a Snake Oil vibe, but good luck with that one.

In the imp: Tobacco, tropical flowers, and rum Wet on my skin: The rum is out of control! The tobacco and tropical flowers are reduced to bit players. I smell like I've been on a bender in an exotic tropical location. Drydown: Oh no, the drydown is pure soap on me. It is a nice soap, but still . . . Overall: Meh. I might have liked this one if the notes would have stayed true on me, but instead I am underwhelmed. It was good while it lasted.

In the imp: Bubble gum, leather, and wine Wet on my skin: As soon as the oil hits my skin a rush of sweet sticky bubble gum hits my nose. It departs almost as soon as it came, and is replaced by sweet woods, a little spiced wine, and the barest hint of dragon's blood. It's so soft and subtle that I have to put my wrist up to my nose to smell it at all. It's Blood's pale, tentative, wallflower cousin. Drydown: Same as above, but there's the tiniest hint of leather coming out now. It's a very pleasant scent, but it is so faint that I have to put my wrist right under my nose to smell anything. Within a half hour it's completely undetectable on my skin. Overall: Tintagel is a warm, sweet, woodsy scent with a hint of spice, but it's too subtle and boring on my skin. I'm sure Tintagel could be lovely on someone with different skin chemistry, but I'll stick with Blood.

In the imp: Tropcial fruit! Wet on my skin: Still tropical fruit, but some I detect some lush flowers in the background. Something reminds me of tobacco, actually a sweet cigar, but from the description I have no idea what that would be. Maybe the wet woods? Drydown: As it dries Manila turns into fermenting fruit and pencil shavings on me, which oddly enough isn't as bad as it sounds. It's a soft scent without a lot of throw, and it fades quickly. Overall: Manila is nice, but it isn't distinctive enough to hold my interest.

In the imp: Verbena! Wet on my skin: This starts off as a very perfumey scent. It smells like verbena and tropical flowers on me. Drydown: It definitely improves as it dries. Now I'm getting verbena, ginger, and fresh grass. I think it was the grass scent that made me think of tropical flowers during the wet stage. I can't single out the amber, but I'm pretty sure it's what's giving the scent such a warm golden glow. Overall: It's a lovely, well-balanced scent that manages to be bright and clean without being too sharp. Luckily it didn't turn into soap, powder, or cleaner on my skin. It does seem a little too perfumey for me, so I'm not sure whether I'll wear it again.

In the imp: Buttery pumpkin and spices On my skin: Hey, where did the buttery pumpkin go? I'm getting peach and spices. It smells wonderful, but really different than it smelled in the imp. There is absolutely no trace of butter or pumpkin. My freaky skin chemistry strikes again. Through the drydown, Jack is sweet fresh peach with an accent of of clove and nutmeg. I am a little disappointed that I don't get any pumpkin, but I really like the scent that I do get. Jack is a perfect warm, comforting, cool-weather scent.

In the bottle: Sweet, syrupy almond Wet on my skin, Bastet is mostly sweet almonds and amber, with a hint of saffron. It's a very warm, golden scent that is perfect for a cat goddess. As soon as it starts to dry, the musk takes over. All of the lovely almonds, amber, and saffron are virtually indetectable. It still smells good, but it's just too musky for me.

A wonderful antidote to an all-nighter oozing with drunken, addled perversion and debauchery. A fresh, crisp white linen scent: perfectly clean, perfectly breezy. In the imp: Clean, fresh, flowery. It smells stronger than I expected, but it's a pleasant smell. It makes me think of sunshine. On my skin: A bright citrus-y floral, which stays the same throughout the drydown. I expected this to smell like fresh laundry on the line, like a crisp cottony linen scent. Instead, it smells more like a big ol' whiff of laundry detergent to me. On my skin, it isn't so much crisp and fresh as it is sharp and strong. It really is a nice scent, but it's just not for me.

How about The Lion, Bastet, Bengal, and/or Lyonesse in honor of her Leo-ness?

O is a general catalog scent, but a search here won't bring it up because of the one letter title. Here are the reviews for O. You can find it on the lab's official site under "Love Potions". Your friend must be a lovely person to give you such a wonderful introduction to BPAL.

In the imp: Sweet! Cream, honey, vanilla, and cherry. Almost overwhelmingly sweet and rich. Wet on my skin: Ohhhh, this is lovely. It's still sweet, but nowhere near like it was in the imp. It reminds me of a heavily scented, high-quality vanilla candle. It's very rich, creamy, and a little smoky. The dragon's blood adds a spicy cherry undertone. Dry: No major changes have taken place. It's still honeyed vanilla cream with smoky spiced cherries. Dragon's Milk is rich, sweet, and comforting, without screaming "food!!", which earns it a place in my top 10.

From sniffing the imp all the way through the drydown on my skin, this scent is completely true to the description on me. It's all sweet cherries and warm wood. Thank goodness I don't get cough syrup or mothballs or any of the other yucky things some people are getting. This won't be an everyday scent, but I lwill at least occasionally wear it because it's one of the best BPAL cherry scents I've tried. My only complaint is that it fades very quickly on me, and was gone from my skin completely within 45 minutes.