LizziesLuck

I love the name of this. I loved the scene in the book, I loved the scene in the show. I'm not really expecting to love these notes, but I'm trying it anyway! Wet: really interesting! It feels cold. It's such an ethereal, foreign scent. Like a bunch of familiar things that combine to make something totally mysterious and unrecognizable, if that makes sense. Wow, this is so hard to describe, but it's very atmospheric, very magical. Mentholated without actually smelling of mint/menthol, which is interesting. You can almost imagine that the cool night air on that rooftop smelled just like this. I don't know if I'm crazy or not, but I get hints of the same pale, silvery musk from The Girl (though these two scents are very different). The lemon is getting stronger, and is sadly a bit sharp on me, which is too bad. Without that sour sharpness, this scent would be so perfect. Thanks, skin. Dry: It's not listed, but I swear there's a sparkly ambergris in this! Must be the musk I'm getting. It's so pretty, but I think it needs some age to take some of the slightly screechy edges off (on my skin, at least). I will be holding onto my decant for further testing. Neat scent! ETA: The musk note in this lasts long after the other, lighter notes fade, and it's really different and quite spectacular!

I <3 tobacco! favourite new finds since last time I posted in this thread: The Ta-Ta Boiled leather, carnation blossom, coffee absolute, and tobacco. It strikes me as funny that coffee and tobacco go as well together in perfume as they do on a patio....lol. Dead Leaves, Blackcurrent, and Tobacco Tar aka a few of my favourite things...awesome. Pleasures of The Imagination III Turkish tobacco, black leather, cinnamon, benzoin, and smoked honey. This is so dead sexy! The tobacco note is similar to French Tobacco on me. YUM Three and Twenty smoky vetiver, myrrh, and labdanum with bleak agarwood and tobacco. This is an awesome dark, somewhat gritty tobacco scent on me. Love it. The Bones of Capys King mandarin, bronze tobacco, white sandalwood, and chamomile. Total surprise hit for me! The blonde tobacco reminds me a bit of Bulgarian, only less sweet. It's amazing paired with the orange.

Penitence A blend of pure, pious frankincense and graceful myrrh Usually Frankincense is a "bully note" on me, but in this blend the Myrrh is totally dominant. I really like it. If you're willing to hunt it down or wait for it to be available from Blood Milk again, Lorraine Cross is my favourite ever Myrrh scent. Steam-distilled Somalian myrrh with wild crafted rockrose, Moroccan rose absolute, and white sandalwood ETA - there's also this thread that I found - http://www.bpal.org/topic/17127-myrrh-identifying-its-scent-picking-the-best-blends/?p=322574

I have put off testing this for a bit, because I wanted it to settle, and because I'm terrified I won't like it! I tried Antique Lace way back in 05/06 and HATED it - got rid of it. Now my tastes and chemistry have both changed. This smells amazing in the bottle, so I'm hopeful! A generous friend gave me a tester of the original too, so I am going to do a side by side. Left arm - 2017 Wet: Beautiful. I agree with others that have noted it's an almost-but-not-quite gourmand vanilla. It's not buttery, but it's rich. It's utterly gorgeous, and reminds me of the NAVA vanillas...but even better. As it dries it picks up a faint dusty quality that is quite pleasant. It's light, low throw. So, so pretty. Dry: It goes kind of weird on me - does this dry "stale" thing that some gourmands do on me, but then it recovers, and is a beautiful pale vanilla with hints of florals, and a real "antique" vibe. They captured that so well! This is very light and feminine and so very wearable. I will enjoy it, and am glad to have some. Right arm - Original Wet: Oh, wow, these are not the same AT ALL. This is more floral, high pitched, and is doing a bit of that "hair spray" thing that tuberose does on me sometimes. It's settling as it warms on my skin though, and the vanilla is coming out more, and it's the same gorgeous vanilla note. It just has more of the florals, which could be an age thing? It's stronger, as well. Dry: These are similar, but different. They have a different feel - the original has a "clean" feel that the new version lacks. The vanilla note is similar, but maybe not identical? Hard to say. Could also be the florals that are slightly different. Any way, it's hard to say whether that is the result of age or what. I am glad to have gotten to try some of both!

I couldn't decide whether I just wanted to test this on it's own first, or compare to my Strawberry Moon 09, which I love. I finally decided just to test this, mostly cuz I'm lazy, and 09 is upstairs... Wet: YUM. Tart/Sweet realistic strawberry and green notes. I immediately need to put more on! I do find it's a bit more bitter (the green notes - maybe the sage?) than my 09. Dry: This is different from 09, but I still love it. The strawberry (real strawberry, on me) comes through, with lots of grass and dandelion. I love it. I had planned to have it as a back-up for if I run out of 09, but instead I may put it into rotation as well. I'll have to test them side-by-side to see.

1. since you like Pele, maybe Machu Picchu? Sweet tropical fruits burst through deep, wet rainforest boughs, enormous steamy blossoms, over thin mountaintop breezes, mingled with the soft, rich golden scent of Peruvian amber. 2. No idea, hopefully someone else can help - Pirate Moon was super weird on me. 3. Raven Moon is in the same vein, to me. shining, moonlit ebony musk with benzoin, myrrh, smoky vanilla, patchouli, nutmeg, and dried red chili.(2009) Or maybe Schwarzer Mond? opoponax, Tunisian black amber, night musk, antique patchouli, zdravetz, terebinth, myrrh, and Pimenta racemosa. 4. Not a lot of help, aquatics are terrible on me, but many love Thalassa, the Galapagos Mermaid Seaweed, kelp, salty ocean spray, bitter almond, night-blooming jasmine, frankincense, and benzoin. 5. Tiki Queen is a fave of mine too. I haven't found anything similar, but scents with the same tropical feel that are easier to find would be Elegba coconut, tobacco and sweet, sugared rum. Lamia Pale orchid, vanilla amber, black currant, white peach, champaca, coconut, Arabian myrrh, Burmese vetiver, and oude. Eden fig leaf, fig fruit, honeyed almond milk, toasted coconut and sandalwood.

I can't help with the protos, having tried neither, and since they don't have listed notes. Since you like Velvet Unicorn and Pink Flamingo, have you tried Alternative Facts? Sugar-crusted vanilla, a firecracker-blast of cherry and sour lemon, a hint of scuttling spiders, encroaching fog, and trumpets of bombast, bluff, and bluster. It's mostly cherry and vanilla sugar on me, with hints of lemon. Yum! Maybe you'd like Uncle Brian? Raspberry sherbet dotted with orangesicle, merlot gelato, pink cotton candy, and iced lime. or Jiggery Pokery pink pepper cotton candy with a sliver of orange peel and a hint of vanilla cream. Mouse Circus may also be up your alley: A toodle oodle of pink cotton candy noses, vanilla spun sugar fur, scattered kernels of popcorn, and a touch of polished golden wood. Or Battle Fairy in Training This Battle Fairy smells like blue cotton candy, strawberries, a plop of vanilla icing and a bit of crushed peppermint candy.

I don't find Cicuta to be earthy really at all. It's more of a dry dusty rose with smoke and a hint of resin. Zombi is mostly dirt on me.

Wet: Sticky lime popsicles! That's why it reminds me of! Though less sweet. It's sooo fresh and zingy! There's a hint of bitterness to it that makes it realistic. It stays close to the skin, which I am glad about, as I had the intention that I could wear this to work (no one can be offended by the scent of lime, right???) Dry: Not a morpher at all, just gets fainter. I like this a lot, I think it'll be super wearable for summer, and I can't wait to layer it with any number of things.

Wet: Champagne, and something a touch buttery. I amp the Lab's champagne note like no other, so I was expecting this to be champagne single note. But I'm actually getting the floral honey now! My nose thought it was buttery, but my nose was wrong, it's a beautiful floral honey note, kind of like the one in Door, if I remember right. Wow, I like this even more than I thought, champagne and honey is lovely. It has a clean edge that I find champagne notes often do on me, and I like that. Dry: The champagne and honey are now equal. It's so pretty! The honey note has taken on a musky undertone that I am enjoying. Low throw, for a honey note, it doesn't sock you in the face like it sometimes does. I love this.

has he tried Dorian?I thought of that one (when will it come back in stock??) Would Theodosius be similar enough? I have a hard time distinguishing foody vs. nonfoody in descriptions Theodosius is quite similar, I think, and I actually like it better. I have often thought it would smell just as good on a guy. It's fantastic.

Wet: Wow. That amber is amazing. Seriously. And the vanilla musk...wow. This is the kind of scent you want to smell like every day, forever and ever. Dry: This scent!!!! I never bothered to try it because of the cedar and the myrrh, I thought they would take over the vanilla and amber and make me sad. I was wrong. This is all about vanilla musk and amber. It's sweet, a little bit powdery (in that amazing way that The Moon Reflected in Every Rice Paddy is slightly powdery) and absolutely divine. Thank goodness the Act of the Carnaval that Inez is from should be re-released soon, because I need ALL the Inez! ETA: This has gown to be one of my favourite scents! So when it was re-released, I had to grab a bottle of the 2017 as well. Now to see how they compare! Wet: Hmm. This smells..different. It smells gourmand. I almost get some spice? And some kind of pastry not? I think my nose (or skin!) is broken. In the bottle it's mostly that rich amber that I adore so much. Where is the musk though?? I am really hoping this is just an age thing. Right now this isn't the same scent at all. Dry: OK, it has settled into the amber scent I know and love, but the musk is not as strong. I am hoping age will solve that! I have a bottle and a bit of the old version to go through before this will get used anyway, so I will put it in the "cellar" till then!

Wet: Wow, this is a really creamy, musky sort of coconut. Not really sure where that muskiness comes from, but I like it! Hints of spice. A bit of sharpness, maybe from the stinging nettle? It's a herbal sort of sharpness, sort of peppery, in a really lovely way. Wow, it really does smell just like summer. I can almost year the cicadas. I am thoroughly enjoying this. Dry: This scent is like happiness on my arm. The notes are so incredibly well blended, I honestly can't pick any out other than the coconut, and a general warm muskiness with hints of spice that I am JUST LOVING. So happy to have this, it will be a summer favourite.

Wet: WOW mandarin and tobacco are AMAZING together. My skin chemistry sometimes turns citrus icky (who am I kidding, almost ALWAYS turns it icky) but I really have my fingers crossed it works this time, because this is glorious. It smells like biting into a real orange, plus a slightly spicy tobacco note, like Bulgarian Tobacco, but not quite. Dry: I am so happy I randomly got this decant! This is one of the most gorgeous tobacco notes I have smelled, and the orange is beautiful on me in this. For that alone, I need more!

Thank you to the lovely forumite who sent me a tester of this! Wet: At first it smells like there's patchouli in this, and I have to go look up the notes because I didn't think there was! But by the time I looked it up and saw nope - no patchouli, and then took another sniff, it had morphed anyway. Now I am getting mostly a deep, dark rose and darker opoponax. It's very nice, but for sure a "dark" scent. I do keep getting hints of something earthy (whatever I had mistaken for patchouli, most likely). Overall, I really do like this so far, and keep thinking, hmmm, I wonder if I could find a bottle....? Dry: Very darkly pretty. Like putting on a ball gown with combat boots, you know? Dark rose, dark opoponax. Just sweet enough. Really fantastic.

Little Sister is Watching You from the Kabuki GC collection - electric, aldehydic cherry blossom I think that's the only other Cherry Blossom scent from the GC, other than Kyoto and Aizen-Myoo which Sprout already mentioned. ETA: And if you decide you want to delve into LE's, here's a thread of Cherry Blossom recs - http://www.bpal.org/topic/58560-cherry-blossom/?p=1505313

Not the same, but similar, are Yorick Grave dirt, bone, decay, angel's trumpet, and moldering scraps of shroud: the essence of finality. Jazz Funeral also has that dirt/moss combo - Bittersweet bay rum, bourbon, and a host of funeral flowers with a touch of graveyard dirt, magnolia and Spanish Moss Destroying Angel Papery white notes evoke the grace of this fungi, grounded by thin, crisp soil

I've actually been afraid to try this, due to all the hype. What if I hate it? That'll be quite the let down. I adore clove (and clove cigarettes) and absinthe, so I just had to try this. But then based on reviews I wondered if Pageant Queen was more my style, and I was afraid I picked the wrong bottle....anyway, here goes nothing! Wet: Mmm. Smoky clove. Gorgeous. Hints of opium. Hazy, almost soporific. I can pick out the absinthe, but not the patchouli, which I am fine with - I like patch, but it can be a bully note on me. This is very clove-centric on me, and I couldn't be happier about it. It's a muted, smoky clove - not a "I just stuck my face in a jar of ground cloves" clove. It's not at all gourmand. It's actually pretty darn sexy. The absinthe lends a lovely sweetness to it. I can't stop huffing my wrist, and every time I do, I grin. Dry: I love this. It's fantastic on my skin. I feel like this is the smoky clove scent I have been searching for for years, and I have finally found it. So happy to have it. It makes me feel feminine, yet badass at the same time. Like, I'm going to kick your ass, and look hot while I do it. (which is not my personality at all, so it's fun to think about) Yeah, that's Goth Queen.

Wet: Clean, fresh cologne. Then it sweetens up a bit as it warms on my skin, and I think that brings it into neutral fougere territory. For having some of my least favourite notes (orange blossom and jasmine) this is surprisingly lovely. Dry: Stays true as it dries, a lovely cologne - clean, slightly sweet, fresh, not too floral. I like it, but I would never wear it. I think this would be a really "safe" option for introducing a man to BPAL, but anyone could wear this.

Wet: Musky, murky woods. I like it better than most scent containing pine. The musk is keeping the pine from smelling like cat pee on me, as it often does. Instead it's refreshing and almost minty. It's a cold scent. Dry: Pleasant musk and woods. I think it's about the best pine has ever smelled on me! I still find it too masculine to want to wear, but it's very pleasant.

Wet: Trees. Mostly pine, aka cat pee, on me. Dry: Stays true - piney cat pee all the way. Sadly not for my skin. I need to just give up on pine, we're never going to be friends.

Wet: Tress, smoky notes (like bonfire, mmm!) and some faint aquatics? Wow, different! Neat. Mint in there, maybe? Can't help thinking this would be great on a guy. This gets more and more wintry. Woodsmoke, rising over snow laden trees. It's peaceful. Not really my kind of thing, but appealing anyway. Dry: It almost smells like there's a really dry, earthy patchouli in this? Mixed with a cold, frosty mint, and some smoky tones. Interesting! But overall, not for me.

Wet: Uhg, Vicks Vaporub! The mastic, maybe? This smells mentholated and medicinal on me, but strangle soothing. That aspect fades quickly though, and it gets more resinous and incensey. Dry: This fades down to a very faint incense. It's pleasant, but not amazing on me.

Wet: A mix of sweet and bitter notes, fruity and floral. Not getting any of the darker notes (patchouli, leather, musk) which I expected to amp. This is very fresh smelling, currently, and somewhat green. Sadly, the Nepalese amber (possibly my favourite note ever) can't be detected yet. While I like the freshness of this, the sharpness is a bit off-putting. Mixed feelings! Dry: It's interesting - I tested this in two spots on my arm, the back of my wrist, and the inside of my elbow. At my wrist it dried down much sweeter, and I can actually faintly smell the Nepalese amber. In my elbow, it remains much more tart and bitter, more green, not nearly as pleasant. Sadly, I generally find my elbow is a truer test to how it will smell when I actually wear it, applied to my neck/chest area to keep the throw down and the scent closer to me. As a result, this likely isn't wearable for me. Sad. ETA: I was so torn because this smelled so different on my wrist (gorgeous) and not as great in my elbow (bitter) that I did a full slather - turns out the amber comes through! It eventually did on my elbow too, enough for me to think I should track down a bottle of this. Man, I love that amber note!

Wet: Very light, sweet, pretty. The honey almost reads as beeswax. Very nice! Clean smelling without being dryer sheets. Low throw, very much a skin scent. I might be able to get away with wearing this to my "scent-sensitive" workplace! I don't get the wood notes. Or the rum. Just pale musky honey/beeswax and maybe a faint glimmer of metal? A very pleasant scent, and I feel like a bottle of this is in the near future! Usually I amp beeswax and it's too strong to wear to work, but this is so soft and subtle. Dry: The wood comes out, and this is really just quietly stunning. It's so soft and subtle, but just perfect. Warm, comfortable, alluring. I need a bottle. Like, now.