kwsix

I was going to post an entry about why I've been MIA, but really, I just don't feel like it. I'll just say that I'm ok now, but I wasn't for a while. I'm really sorry if I let anyone down or made anyone angry. I'm doing what I can to fix things, so pm me if I can do anything for you. I hope everyone is managing to enjoy the holiday season. It's been snowing here, finally, so I'm starting to get in the holiday spirit. So far everyone has been so incredibly nice and understanding. I wonder, what is it about BPAL and this forum that attract such wonderful people?

WORK IN PROGRESS Here are the blends I either need to test or re-test. Most of these I've had in hand and even tested on my skin, but swapped or frimped away before I could form a good opinion. I really need to take better notes. The ones that are actually on my active wishlist are starred. Bewitching Brews Belle Epoque Bess Black Forest Blood Amber Brimstone Cathode Calico Jack Chimera The Coiled Serpent Delirium Epherma Event Horizon Fae Grand Guignol Grog Hamydryad (looking for non-wintergreen kind) I Died for Beauty Intrigue Kubla Khan La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente La Bella Dame Sans Merci Leanan Sidhe Lightning Lurid Mary Read Morgause Ode on Melancholy Omen Ozymandias Penny Dreadful Phantasm Poisoned Apple The Raven Schrodinger's Cat Seance Shattered Tempest Ulalume Ultraviolet Veil Wilde Yggdrasil Zephyr Ars Moriendi Danse Macabre Darkness Epitaph Eternal The Ghost Haunted House of Night Les Fleurs du Mal Midnight Nocturne The Phantom Wooer The Reaper and the Flowers Sheol Shroud Thanatopsis Twilight Wings of Azrael Dark Elements Burial Hurricane Sin and Salvation Envy Greed Lust Sloth Death on a Pale Horse Anathema Black Dahlia Dorian Fallen Faustus Hymn Languor Les Infortunes de la Vertu Magdalene Nero Oblivion Penitence Roadhouse Rose Cross Seraphim Tzadikim Nistarim Love Potions Ave Maria Gratia Plena Bathsheba Bien Loin D'ici Brisingamen Debauchery Depraved Desire Forbidden Fruit Golden Priapus Jezebel La Belle Au Bois Dormant La Petite Mort The Lady of Shalott Le Serpent Qui Danse Libertine Lilium Inter Spinas Loralei Maiden Muse Nefertiti O (This was one of the first BPAL scents I tried, and it failed horribly. I'm curious to re-test it.) Psyche Rapture Ravenous Saturnalia Satyr Sed Non Satiata Siren Succubus The Temptation Suspiro Vicomte de Valmont Wanda Wanton Whip Diabolis A Countenance Forboding Evil Baobhan Sith Black Annis Blood Countess Bloodlust Bluebeard Catherine Dracul Goblin Hell's Belle Horreur Sympathique Incubus Kitsune-Tsuki Loup Garou Maenad Malice Marquise de Merteuil Masabakes Medea Nephilim Nocnitsa Nosferatu Pain Phantom Phantom Queen Phobos Rage Serpent's Kiss Szepasszony Troll Wicked Neil Gaiman/The Carousel Spider* Mad Tea Party The Caterpillar Cheshire Cat Croquet The Dodo The Dormouse Drink Me Jabberwocky The King of Hearts The Knave of Hearts The Lion The Mock Turtle's Lessons Mouse's Long and Sad Tale The Pool of Tears Queen Alice The Queen of Hearts Tiger Lily Two, Five & Seven The Unicorn White Rabbit Illyria Antony The Apothecary Caliban Cordelia Goneril Helena Hermia Juliet Katharina Lear Lysander Oberon Ophelia Othello Regan Robin Goodfellow Rosalind Titania Titus Andronicus Viola Wanderlust Île de la Tortue Windward Passage Ars Draconis Dragon's Reverie Ladon Rappaccini's Garden Asphodel Belladonna Black Hellebore Black Lotus Black Rose Blood Lotus Blood Rose Cobra Lily Death Cap Dian's Bud Devil's Claw Hairy Toad Lily Hemlock Love-in-Idleness Love-Lies-Bleeding Moon Rose Opium Poppy Shadow Witch Orchid Slobbering Pine Squirting Cucumber Strangler Fig Sundew Voodoo Lily Wolfsbane Yew-Trees

I've only ordered through CCNow one time, and my experience was that I got a shipped notice when the order went to the lab and my credit card was not charged at that time. The lab's TAT was pretty slow at the time, so it was weeks before the order actually shipped. My credit card wasn't charged until the order actually shipped, but I didn't get a CnS or any other notification of shipping. I'm not sure if my spam filter ate it, or if there just wasn't one. Anyway, what you're describing isn't necessarily odd, IMO, but I think you should e-mail the lab just in case. If you don't get a reply in a few days, e-mail again. eta - I don't think there's any way your 11/25 order would be shipping yet, btw. The lab is much faster now, but they aren't that fast. The shipping notice you got must have just been the wonky one from CCNow that always comes when the order is sent over to the lab.

In the bottle, Fairy Wine is currants in honeyed wine. It smells deep red and delicious. On my skin, the dandelions somewhat take over, and the other beautiful notes fade into the background. It still smells lovely, but I'm a little disappointed that the currants and wine aren't more prominent. Fairy Wine is a heady yet fresh scent that is poised between seductive and playful. Don't pass this one by if you like dandelions!

Even in the bottle, Lady Una was love at first sniff for me. On my skin, it doesn't disappoint. Unless I'm looking at the description, I have a hard time picking out the individual notes in the blend, probably because my brain turns into a big slobbering lump of happiness when I smell it. It's the perfect amount of sweet for me. Despite all the honey and vanilla, it really is too clean to be classified as a foody scent. There's something in the blend that nibbles gently around the edges of my consciousness and reminds me of my beloved original, white-labeled 13. It also reminds me a little of Florence, but Lady Una is much more smooth and delicate. I will need gallons of this beautiful scent.

This is such an unexpectedly fabulous scent. Personally I would classify it as gender-neutral. It's a little less masculine than Crowley, which I also classify as gender-neutral. I can detect all of the listed notes on my skin, and they add up to an incredibly well-balanced blend. On me, the frankincense takes the lead by a small margin, which gives the blend a warm and resinous edge. The tobacco leaf stays sweet and mellow and the musk is soft and clean. The tea is dark without being bitter, and I love the fresh wisp of lilac at the top end. There is a certain similarity to Crowley, and I agree that Famine is more refined and subtle. Famine is full of beautiful contradictions: sexy but reserved, warm yet chilly, dark and light, sweet but dry. It will definitely be a multiple bottle purchase for me. I suspect my Mom, who is devoted to Crowley, will love it also. If you have the slightest suspicion that you might like Famine, don't hesitate to give it a try.

Random observation: On extreme drydown, Dana O'Shee smells very, very similar to Snow White. Strange but true.

This may be a stupid question, because I've never tried the scent, but what about The Reaper and the Flowers? It has lily, rose, carnation, and chrysanthemum.

Sorry - I don't know the perfumes you're looking for similarities to - but I very much recommend Tweedledee! Love it, love it, love it. Smelt the imp - HAD to have a bottle right away. I love Tweedledee! It's such a bright, sweet scent. It reminds me of Fruit Loops and Orange Pez. Akuma is very nice too. I love the orange-raspberry combination. I don't wear it that often, though, because it goes very floral on my skin. I guess I amp neroli, unless there's another floral component that isn't listed in the description.

Wow! That is one gorgeous ring. Congratulations!

What is "this"? It sounds fabulous to me.

What have you tried that didn't work? Almost all aquatic scents seem salty to me. What about F5, or maybe Shanghai Tunnel (it had a nice salty wet stone quality on me)? Shanghai Tunnel might be hard to find, but even though F5 was a forum-only LE it's usually pretty easy to find. R'lyeh was salty grapefruit on me. I've read that The Deep Ones is very salty, but I haven't tried it. The City in the Sea is also supposed to be salty.

This is a breathtakingly beautiful blend! The tea rose in particular is to die for. I'm typically not a floral lover, so I would never have guessed that this would be one of my favorites of the Halloween blends. I'm not very good at describing florals, so I apologize for not doing this scent justice with my review. I can tell you that it isn't sharp, cloying, or overly sweet. There's nothing artificial smelling in this blend. It's sugared fresh flowers over a clean, slightly woodsy base. I agree that it's reminiscent of Antique Lace plus light florals. The notes are well balanced, and the scent is delicate, soft, and feminine from first application through the drydown. I absolutely love this scent. It's an instant top 10.

Wow, Hunger is far more lovely on me than I ever would have thought. I'm not a Snake Oil girl. Snake Oil smells great in the bottle, and definitely gets better with age, but it just doesn't work on me. On my skin, Hunger smells like aged Snake Oil smells in the bottle. It also reminds me of Eat Me to a certain degree, which makes sense, because I described Eat Me as smelling like I wish Snake Oil smelled. Out of the three, I definitely prefer Hunger. On me, Hunger is all deep spicy musk, sweet smokey vanilla, a dab of citrus, and a delicate endnote of soft honeyed blossoms. Could this be another example of red musk behaving well on my skin? I'm not a musk expert, but it sure smells like red musk to me. As it dries, Hunger gradually becomes less spicy musk and more sweet smokey vanilla, similar to a good quality vanilla candle (like the vanilla in Dragon's Milk). I really like how the softer floral and citrus notes linger on my skin. They give an innocent, flirtatious edge to what otherwise would be a very come-hither type of scent. Hunger is going straight to my bottle wishlist. It's a lovely mix of seduction and innocence that comes on strong at first but settles into a beautiful rich skin scent after it dries.

Bordello and Lampades are two of my favorite scents, and they both have excellent throw and staying power on me. Jailbait does not - it's light and tends to fade very quickly from my skin.

I'm not saying you're wrong, but are you sure? I was around for the demise of 10mls, but I was not around for the Three Witches re-release. Or is it just that LEs/special items weren't available in 10mls?

Samhain is fabulous! No cologne in sight - just a spicy, apple cider-y blast of pure Autumn. You may also want to check the Recs for general spicy-foody scents. There are some great ones for fall that aren't necessarily classified as Autumn scents. I'm thinking Cockaigne, Shub, and the like.

III is way too foody for me to wear. It smells nice in the bottle, but it's overwhelming on my skin, in the same way that scents like Gluttony and Hellcat are. Pumpkin I is my favorite (fruity grapey goodness), and I really like Pumpkin V too (spicy, no butter on me). Pumpkin II was nice on me also (sweet and oddly reminiscent of Hellion on me). IV smells nice, but I'm fairly indifferent to it.

Thanks! I will move them into the fridge before the heat wave fully hits. Make sure the temperature of your fridge isn't set too low. I decided to put one of my precious bottles of the original 13 in the fridge, because I'm concerned about the oil degrading over time (especially the citrus). But the fridge got too cold, the oil froze, and it just didn't smell the same, although it did smell good. I still wore it; in fact I emptied the bottle. But it definitely changed the scent, and I don't plan to ever put BPAL in the fridge again.

Ok, here are my early, slightly incoherent thoughts on the 2007 Pumpkin Patch scents. I didn't intentionally try any of these on, but I did get some spatter on Chief Running Wolf (that would be me) while I was decanting them. Pumpkin I: Pumpkin with pear, white wine grapes, and jasmine-laced tea. Holy well-behaved jasmine, batman! This is a contender for my favorite of all of the Pumpkins this year. It's lightly fruited and sparkling, and just absolutely perfect on my skin. No butter, and actually no pumpkin to speak of after it dries. It reminds me of some kind of white grape soda - I think it's the Diet Rite brand. It isn't sticky sweet - just sweet enough and slightly fizzy. The jasmine stays strangely subdued. I think I will wear this frequently. Pumpkin II: Pumpkin with tobacco, champa flower, carnation, and tonka. This is another winner for me. I've entered the twilight zone, because on me, this turns into a kissing cousin of Hellion. How that happens, I have no idea. I'm too tired to go check the notes for Hellion, but I can't imagine what they might have in common. On the extreme drydown, the tobacco gets stronger. Again, no butter, and basically no pumpkin to speak of after it dries. It also seems a little "fizzy" to me, in the same way that Hellion does. Contender for my favorite, although I think I and V edge it out just a little, if only because it's so similar to Hellion on me yet has no chance of replacing it. Pumpkin III: Pumpkin with white chocolate, caramel, pomegranate, and cream. I predicted that this would be my favorite of the pumpkins, because, hello, yummy foody wonderfulness. But, it's not my favorite, and I'm not even 100% sure that it works on my skin. At first it was way too creamy, too tooth-achingly sweet, and too rich. I haven't been able to detect the pomegranate at all yet. Right after the first stage of the drydown, it showed signs of mellowing a bit, but I accidentally washed the scent off during decant circus intermission. (I scrub my hands after I finish decanting each scent so as not to corrupt the next one, but I usually don't wash my upper arms. I guess I got a little over zealous)This one requires further testing, but I think it's going to be a bit too foody for me. Pumpkin IV: Pumpkin with cactus blossom, sage, and sweetgrass. Well, this was on the underside of the arm with Pumpkin III, and it hadn't even really gotten to the drydown when it was corrupted by soap. So, I can't really say if this will work for me or not, but it does have promise. This one seemed to have a fresh, summery edge. Pumpkin V: Pumpkin with benzoin, bourbon vanilla, lemon peel, neroli, blood orange, and red ginger. Ummm, yes please! So far this seems to be my 2nd favorite of the pumpkin blends, after Pumpkin I. But with further testing, it could prove to be the best. It's complex and spicy, and I'm really loving the deep citrus edge. It seems perfectly balanced, as I can detect all the listed notes yet nothing is taking over the blend. It reminds me a little of something I tried before . . . maybe Oct 2006 13? But this is better on me, and I'm very eager to give it an actual test run.

I have an imp coming with my Halloween order, but I really wish I would have gotten a bottle. That label is too cute! And I want to check both of the boxes.

I went through a purging stage and got rid of many of my bottles, but now I'm starting to hoard again. I have multiples of some of these. This list is from memory, so it's very likely that I've forgotten some things. 10ml: Bordello Hellion Voodoo (almost empty) 5ml: 13 (2005, white label) 13 (July 2007, pink label) A Bachelor's Dog A Bold Bluff Agnes Nutter All Souls 06 Arachnina the Spider Girl Arcana Aziraphale Black Tower Blood Bordello Chrysanthemum Moon Crowley Devil's Night Door 13 Djinn Enraged Groundhog Musk Fairy Market Faiza the Black Mamba Florence Frumious Bandersnatch (almost empty waaaaah) Halôa Harvest Moon 06 Hetairae Hunger Moon Inferno (almost empty waaaaah) Lampades Leo 07 Monster Bait: Bloody Mary Monster Bait: Tokyo Stomp Monster Bait: Underpants NYE in Dogville One to Tie, Two to Win The Organ Grinder Pinched With Four Aces Priala the Human Phoenix Punkie Night Queen of the Nile Samhain 05 Saw Scaled Viper (almost empty waaaah) Shadwell Sitting Up With a Sick Friend Sugar Skull 05 Temple Viper Three Witches Tristran Tweedledee Velvet Victoria War The Wildmen of Jezirat al Tennyn The Witch Queen Wulric the Wolfman Yvaine

My 4-year old son loves MB: Tokyo Stomp. Today he picked out Wulric the Wolfman, and it smelled great on him. He really appreciated the label art too.

Yes, the announcement is only for people using PayPal. I think the lab has to pay big fees for CCNow orders. If you're going to pay with PayPal, they ask that you place the order directly through PayPal and avoid CCNow altogether. I messed up once and did the PayPal through CCNow thing, and my order went through just fine. So I imagine your order will be fine, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. And if you'll be paying with PayPal, next time just log into your PayPal account and put your order in the comments area. I always total the order up in CCNow anyway, just to get the amount correct.

In the bottle, Door 13 is citrus, ozone, and saltwater. It's fresh, very salty, and a little sweet. It's CK One, but much, much better. On my skin, I don't get much citrus, which is a bit of a disappointment to me. It's all salty rocks and ozone, with a blast of cool fresh air. It's very clean, but there's a hint of creaminess here too that keeps it from being sharp, even though it definitely has a metallic edge. I really like the ozone - it's almost identical to the ozone note in Neo-Tokyo that I love so much. Door 13 is a winner, even though I wish the sweet citrus notes were more prominent on me. Try it if you like: aquatics, citrus, ozone, CK One, clean unisex scents, the ocean, cool scents, and salty rocks