LizziesLuck

CP has been full of so much win for me, I have recently decided I should try the whole line, or as much of it as I am able, even things I didn't initially think would work. Fairy Tales and Lies called to me from my very first read-through. I LOVE the name, and might have ordered it based on name alone even if the listed notes were "cow shit and turpentine". As it is, lilac is one of my absolute favourite florals, and there's not a ton of it in the GC, so I tend not to pass it up. Rose is a big yes, as is amber usually. Bergamot I'm not sure about, and I didn't even really know what chypre was, I had to Google. (If y'all were wondering, Google says, "Chypre perfumes are often described as mossy, earthy, warm, spicy and nature-smelling. The scent of a basic chypre base accord is reminiscent of the forest floor in autumn, of crushed leaves and foliage.") Wet: I get something really green, which may be the lilac stems, or perhaps the chypre. It's nice. The lilac is present for sure, and the amber. Not getting a lot or rose initially. Really pretty. It feels timeless and classic. Dry: Amber and lilac. I only tested a tiny amount, and it didn't last long. I need to do a full day test, but I really like this and may be tempted to get a bottle.

I wasn't sure about Thomas. I love amber, but the rest of the notes are not usually my thing, and anything that's fairly masculine or even unisex often doesn't work on me (I like feminine scents, I guess). But in the end I just had to try him, so I got a blind bottle. The oil is a gorgeous red colour Wet: Rich, warm, sweet amber. Not getting the other notes yet. As it starts to dry, I think I am getting hints of lavender. So far this is quite feminine on me, so we're off to a good start. It's not really wowing me though, I have other amber blends that I like just as well. Dry: Ok, I'm starting to get what all the fuss is about now. Amber and lavender are swoon worthy together. I normally have no desire to wear lavender during the day, but love it at bedtime. I think this is a lavender scent I could wear on a breezy spring day, or at the tail end of winter. It's so pretty. Not at all masculine to me, very wearable. I am so glad I took a risk and got the bottle!

I am all about apricot. So anything with apricot, unless the other notes are all horrid on me, chances are I have to have it. I was worried about the mandarin though, mandarin goes terribly powdery sometimes. Wet: Like a creamsicle for one glorious instant. Then the butter comes out, and that's yummy too. Nose to skin, it's creamy and buttery and foodie. If I lower my arm, the throw is powdery orange. Shit. Lol. Is that where people are getting the Pez from, I wonder? Nose to skin again - yum. Hmmm. Dry: I'm a sad panda right now. You would get that joke if you could see me. My step-mom bought me this absurd Panda onesie for Christmas, and I'm sitting here in it like a fool (a comfy fool) testing mah BPALz. A sad sad panda. I digress. I'm 30, btw, and wearing a Panda onesie. ANYWAY: The orange has overpowered the apricot and gone completely to powder on my skin. Smells like powdered orange cleaner. If I stuff my nose right against my arm, I get hints of yummy butter with it, but butter and orange cleaner is still not a good thing on me. I just broke my winning blind bottle streak, I'm going to have to swap this one.

I wanted to try this because of the Myrrh/Musk combo - it doesn't quite work for me in Streets of Detroit, but the idea has always sounded lovely. And this is lovely. A real stunner. Myrrh forward, lush poppy, with undertones of musk, grounded by sandalwood. Gorgeous. Dark, and feminine, which was what I was missing from Streets, which smelled really masculine on me. It's kind of like Streets meets Event Horizon. It's syrupy and sweet, a little heady, but not cloying. I am loving it and already itching to order a bottle.

This is gorgeous. Initially I get some of the Lab's "cold" note, but it burns off quickly, and this turns into a really warm scent. Smoky, sweet and incensey. A little bit sexy, actually. I am not very familiar with Dragon's Blood, as I thought I hated it for years and avoided it, but there is something really resinous in this, and a little spicy, and I wonder if it might be Dragon's Blood. It doesn't smell burnt to me at all, but it is smoky. As it dries further, some of that cold note surfaces again. This is a beautiful mix of fire and ice. It's freakin amazing. This is my favourite out of this year's Yules, so far. It's hard to describe succinctly, but to me it Is compelling, intriguing, and slightly mournful in feeling. Once dry, it smells of far off incense, ice, smoke and sweet longing. Beautiful. I will treasure it.

This was fresh out of the mail a few hours ago. In the imp: Spicy, rich. Very red indeed. Heady and compelling. Wet: Terrible. It's doing that awful chemically thing that leather notes sometimes do on me, or metal, but there's neither of those in this. Hmmm. Dry: This musk is really not doing it for me. It smells very chemically and artificial. Usually I really like musk, especially red or black, but I guess burgundy musk isn't for me. I may retest this, as it was fresh out of the mail, but I have a feeling this is just not meant for my skin chemistry. Too bad! Smelled so great in the bottle.

2015 I love cocoa so much. Sometimes, when it's a chocolate note rather than cocoa, it goes powdery on me, but I felt sure this one wouldn't, and it didn't! I feel like it instantly became a Christmas classic for me, and I'm wearing it tonight, Christmas Eve. It's not much of a morpher on me - stays the same wet to dry. As described, dry cocoa, lovely soft amber. Altogether perfect. Soft, feminine, beautiful. Gentle and comforting. I love it. I have a ton of cocoa blends, yet this will still have a unique place in my collection.

Wet: Immediately this reminds me of something. I hadn't looked at the notes since ordering it, and couldn't remember what was in it...took me a moment to realize it reminds me of The Grave Pig a little, and when I looked up the notes that made sense - the Fig and Patchouli combo. This is earthier though, and almost woody, despite no wood notes being listed. Despite the initial similarities, as I continue sniffing at this and thinking about it, this isn't the same patchouli note as The Grave Pig. The fig is amazing in this, it reminds me of the fig in my beloved Freak Show. Dry: Still a lot like The Grave Pig. Which works for me, I love The Grave Pig. This is woodier and sweeter. The fig is the most prominent note on me, with the patchouli baking it up. Really nice, glad I snagged a bottle.

2015 Wet: sexy musk dominant. Sweet, but not overpoweringly so. Very sexy. The notes all blend together really well, and I can't pick out individual notes other than the musk, which is dominant. Not getting any of the Lab's caramel note (my favourite note ever). Dry: Sexy sweet musk. Smut never worked on me, but this works amazingly. This may be my favourite musk blend thus far. I don't get any caramel, or really any other notes, it's just sweet musk on me, and I love it. Can't wait to see how it ages.

Frimp from the Lab. Wet: Lemon! Not tart lemon. Not terribly sweet lemon. Kind of like lemon oil, or maybe lemon zest. Well, its lemon verbena, but to me that's smelling like lemon oil/zest. Dry: it sweetens up a lot. More like lemon candy now. Not getting any other notes. This is fresh out of the mailbox so I think another test once it's settled is in order. I was hoping for the lavender to show up, lemon and lavender is something I'm missing in my collection.

Wet: The patchouli is super gnarly for about a split second, then the other notes round it out and it's lovely. Sweet, creamy (but not foodie on me). It's very light, and I am having to add a dab more for a proper test. Earthy, sweet and creamy. Quite nice. Dry: I'll be totally honest - what I wanted was something even remotely similar to Revenant Rhythm Hair Gloss, which I am madly in love with. This is not that. It's not Banshee Beat. But it's beautiful in it's own way, and I do think it will layer well with my RR HG. This is not the same vanilla. This goes a bit dusty on me, and doesn't have that sexy quality that RR has. This is comforting, creamy and soft. I am glad I grabbed a blind bottle. It's rare I find a patchouli scent I feel like I could wear to work, and this is that for sure. It's really well blended - tough to pick out the individual notes. Overall, really really nice, just missing that "wow" factor that RR has.

Hmmm, maybe The Shivering Boy: A winter storm roaring through empty stone halls, bearing echoes of despair, desolation, and death on its winds. The scent of frozen, dormant vineyards, bitter sleet, and piercing ozone, hurled through labdanum, benzoin, and olibanum. That's all I can come up with that hasn't been mentioned already.

This is pretty, but not as strong a rose as I had hoped. Its sweet and feminine but I'm having a hard time picking out individual notes. I think I smell the rose, but that may only be because I expect to. I sprayed it on my pillow to test. I may need to spray more onto a smaller area to get a good read on this, but overall I quite like it, it's just not wowing me.

I tried Bengal, in 2005 or so when I first started collecting BPAL. My notes only said, "nope" so I ended up swapping my imp. But then I re-read the notes and wondered, why the heck was that a no??? So I reacquired it for another proper test. Wet: Sweet, slightly creamy, fiery cinnamon. I love cinnamon, but this is sort of the "cinnamon hot hearts" variety that I'm not really big on. Dry: This mellows out a lot. Becomes creamier. The cinnamon calms down and loses it's edge. I can actually start to detect the other spices. It's sweet, but not overly so. A comforting scent. I will keep the imp this time!

Wet: Sweet and citrusy, very bright and pretty. I'm not a citrus fan, but this is really nice. Dry: Amazingly, out of all those notes, all I really get it a light, white floral (the freesia I guess) and some citrus. Maybe a hint of musk (or I'm imagining it because I expect it). It's nice, but not really swoon worthy. I'll keep the imp, but don't think I'll need a bottle.

Based on the notes you like: Ginger (also creamy) - My fave is Sudha Segara Sweet milk and warm, healing ginger with a touch of golden honey and our blend of Ambrosia Tea - I just discovered I like tea, and my favourite by far is Iulia, L'Artiste de Diable - White tea, sugar cane, orange blossom, rockrose, lemon balm, white mint, and honey. I like strong florals as opposed to light florals, so not a lot of experience there, but Delirium might fit the bill - Contains apple, rose, and lemon For something fruity AND green Bewitched - blackberry, sage, green tea, wild berries and dark musk Skin/soapy with some fruit - Coraline Jones - Dry grass, clean skin, and a little bit of mossy berry. All Souls is my favourite incense blend. Not GC, but comes out every few years at Halloween. Lots of decants floating around the forum, and bottles currently still available for a few days. An incense blend that invokes the higher qualities of mercy and compassion, mingled with the soft, sugared currant scent of offertory soul cakes. Woods are not my thing, but I just tried Tombstone and it's a light, sweet creamy woods. vanilla, balsam and sassafras layered over Virginia cedar. Hope you find some new things you love! Let us know how the search goes.

Maybe give the new Key Lime Pie from the Trading Post a shot? Reading the reviews it sounds like it's a good tart/sweet mix.

Wet: Bright, powdery, citrusy, floral. Primarily soapy/powdery, but not in a particularly unpleasant way. It smells clean. The florals come out more as it's drying and the citrus fades. I don't get any fruit. Still mighty soapy. Dry: Nice, expensive soap. Not something I want to wear as perfume, but not unpleasant either.

I'm excited but wary to try this. Love vanilla, still searching for my "perfect BPAL vanilla", but wood is not my friend. Love sassafras though. Wet: Creamy, smoky, woody. The Sassafras stands out after mere seconds on my skin. Mmmm. This is niiiiice. Like creamy grown-up rootbeer. Dry: Mostly sweet woods. This is one of the first wood scents I have actually enjoyed wearing. The throw is decent and I keep getting whiffs from my arm and thinking, "mmm, that's not bad!" Very unusual for me to like something this woody, but I think I do. I can't see wearing it often enough to get a bottle, but I'm keeping the imp.

I currently have my face smushed into a pillow spritzed with Lucille's Room. Wow. It's gorgeous. The throw is primarily amber, but when I move my face closer the lilac sings out beautifully. I don't get much of the other notes, this is beautifully blended, with amber and lilac at the forefront to my nose. Just beautiful, and I want to spray it on everything. I know I will use this a lot in the spring and will likely throw caution to the wind and spray it in my hair. So lovely!

Everything comes in an amber bottle now. For a few years (maybe 2004-2006 or so? not sure) some items came in cobalt bottles. These are now considered to be rare. I don't think either bottle is better than the other, but since there aren't that many cobalt bottles floating around out there, I think they tend to be coveted. I treasure my few cobalt bottles.

I love lavender with mint. This is no exception. Strong mint and lots of lavender. Don't really get the other notes from it. So soothing and comforting to me. A new favourite bedtime scent, and aptly named.

This is my first experience with both TKO and The Post's massage oil. I am quite happy with the oil, which I just used as a moisturizer. But it just smells like oil. I think specifically the rice bran. Which isn't very pleasant. I get no lavender, no marshamallow or vanilla. Just kinda icky oil. I'm wondering if my batch is less scented? I know batch variation happens. I guess I will have to buy a bottle of TKO perfume to really try it...and then maybe dump some into my massage oil.

I had forgotten half the notes in this when I tried it, other than lavender and vanilla and patchouli. I immediately had to look it up, because it smelled like none of those to me! I get mostly a soft sweet floral (the tiare I guess) and what I now know is fig. Its soft and feminine and really pretty. I can see wearing this a lot in the spring. Not at all what I was expecting, but beautiful! I may need to shake it up a bit to get some of the other notes, but either way, really happy I got this. Totally office appropriate too.

Hope it's somewhere close to what you were looking for!