Lucchesa
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Everything posted by Lucchesa
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I definitely have the Friendship annemathematics gave the Lab description for. It was received in a decant circle of TAL house blends. I love Friendship, which is a spicy honeyed carnation on me. I can't comment much on its efficacy; I'm using it mainly in an attempt to recharge the friendship component of my marriage, though I may wear it to visit my 94-year-old friends tomorrow. But carnation is my favorite floral note, especially with the one-two punch of carnation and clove, and this is definitely one of the lighter honeys I wear well, and I find it delightfully uplifting.
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This is gorgeous in the bottle, but perhaps predictably, on my skin I get red musk. It's accompanied by yummy cola labdanum at the beginning and a slight charred note, not identifiable on me as vanilla, but once it's dry, it's basically the red musk show with a hint of smoke. I'm hanging onto my decant to see if time will balance the notes out somewhat and allow the vanilla some play, but given red musk's history with my skin chemistry, I'm not hopeful.
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I blind bottled Sunyashniki, which doesn't always go well for me, mainly because I wanted one of the Ukraine scents and this seemed the most "Ukrainey" and the one I had the best chance of wearing often. It was surprisingly successful. It's more floral than I expected or usually wear -- definitely a sunny warm yellow in tone. All the notes here that could be sharp are instead mellow and cooperative: lemon, neroli, frank, cedar. In fact it's challenging to pick out individual notes, they meld together so seamlessly. I'm not getting much in the way of musk, and I hope that note develops a little more, but even if it doesn't, this is a wonderfully optimistic sundress blend, and it's going to get a lot of wear this summer.
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Necrobump! I’m wearing Winter Night. Figure on a Bridge from the Lex Brumalis Yules of a couple years ago, a stunning dark broody lilac. And the newish Vigil for the Harvest Suitors has an absolutely gorgeous lilac note. Lilacs are blooming here in the northwest — anyone else have lilac in heavy rotation right now?
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I love this Winter Night. I’m wearing it because the lilacs are in bloom, which is pretty much the only time I wear the note. But this is a sultry nighttime lilac I can wear year round. The snow note doesn’t last past the opening on me; this is all about deep dark lilac in an opium den, with hints of plum. It reminds me of a lilac Event Horizon though I think opium is the only shared note. (I always misremember Event Horizon as having plum.) Dark and sexy, with better than average throw and wear length on me.
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I'm not sure I even ever skin tested Chaotic before putting her with the rest of my RPG decants, probably because I've had skin reactions with the wasabi note before. But I just got frimped another one, and I'm trying it now, ready to scrub any moment if my skin starts tingling. Fresh Chaotic on me is a very grapey red musk with a zing of wasabi. There may be other notes in here, but did I mention the very grapey red musk? Red and grapey? The exact red musk that never lets any other note get a word in edgewise? And there it is, heat and tingling. Time to wash this baby off.
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I don’t think I’ve ever eaten chocolate fruitcake. This is delicious! Chocolate, cherry, maybe some fig. Chocolate and dried fruits soaked in brandy. Ultimately justa quiet fruity chocolate. Medium wear length and no throw on me, but that’s pretty normal with my skin. I’m so glad I finally got to try this!
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Envy captures the terrific SWS brilliantly. Dusty orris and dry sandalwood stand in for marble, and the faintly oceanic smell of ambergris reinforces the feeling of tears. (Poor carrot seed, always doleful.) I get only the lightest breath of rose, as if Galatea is still barely human. This is dryer and dustier than my tastes run, but a beautiful picture in scent.
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Aside from a couple of weeks each spring, I don't really wear florals, and they have to be dirty florals to interest me. Wisteria Blossoms interests me. It's built around the wisteria and lilac notes, but there's a lot else going on. Bamboo can be high-pitched on me, but this smoked variety is calmer and darker. There's a fruitiness that may be the red musk along with hints of darker musk and some earthiness from moss and indigo. As VetchVesper says, it's floral and purple without being old ladyish. In fact it's kind of floral, sexy and mysterious. I'm hanging onto my decant.
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It took all my will not to scrub off Masked Vulvas as soon as I applied it. Mandarin and pear combined to form that awful industrial faux-citrus deodorizer. Urinal cake, in other words. I know pear can go fake on me, but this was ridiculous. I went for a walk, still not good. Then I went to my desk to prep for and give a lecture, and when I was done, roughly four and a half hours after application, it has devolved into a barely-there light fruity incense. I’ll be passing this one on.
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Prairie Witch is a very classic Weenie-type scent, a little heavier on the apple than my usual autumn tastes, but undeniably lovely. It's got the BPAL buttery pumpkin note with a boozy spiced cider and a little vetiver for that whiff of bonfire. When I tested it I was seeing out of town relatives who commented on how good I smelled; one even came in for a second hug so he could get another sniff. So people like it! and that was a few hours after application.
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I'm pretty sure Lucy's Kiss is tea rose because tea rose is generally a disaster on my skin. If rose works for you, I imagine this is delightful.
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I love love love the BPAL beeswax note, and Shouutsushi Aioi Genji delivers. I was worried that bubblegummy lotus would take this into cloying territory, but this is almost entirely a beeswax and amber scent on me, with the lotus contributing a creamy sweetness that doesn't overwhelm. Unlike other reviewers, I get almost no smoke from this and I'm hoping that note will develop with a little more aging. Definitely in the family of V'al Hanissim, Lights of Men's Lives and Endless Corridors. In other words, lovely.
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The Red Ribbon is an extremely wearable red musk blend, sweetened and softened by the vanilla and amber. The wood notes are secondary; it's a subtle not a gnarly patchouli if that's keeping any red musk lovers from trying this. The goat milk might as well be oat milk on me, creamy but with none of that barnyard twang. Yes, the red musk dominates, giving this good throw and wear length, but it lets the other notes sing as well. Just lovely!
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Cake, cookies, donuts, baked goods, even Cinnabon
Lucchesa replied to imaginepageant's topic in Recommendations
No, but my dear friend Teamama loves it! -
You May House Their Bodies But Not Their Souls
Lucchesa replied to Seajewel's topic in Limited Editions
These notes couldn’t go wrong on me, but they go so right. You Can House Their Bodies has vaulted right into my pantheon of top BPAL patch scents. It’s a big round patchouli softened and sweetened by a non-foodie vanilla, with warm amber and just a trace of musk around the edges. Beautiful warm embrace of a scent. There is nowhere and no season I wouldn’t wear this. I cannot wait to pair it with Hedonism bath oil when it returns to stock. It lasted four or five hours, not all day, but that’s quite good for my skin chemistry. I will need more than one bottle. -
Cake, cookies, donuts, baked goods, even Cinnabon
Lucchesa replied to imaginepageant's topic in Recommendations
Several of the scents in support of Ukraine are based on baked goods, if not exactly cake. I’m particularly looking forward to Chocolate Babke. There’s Hildegard’s Cakes of Joy and Mari Lwyd from the most recent winter line and Amor To Show That He Was Pleased from the current Lupers. The Lilith scents usually include a full on cake with frosting but they’re not currently available. Good luck! It sounds like so much fun! -
I am out of Eusapia (Pale lilacs, white tea, and candle wax) and the lilacs near my house are blooming. Enter Vigil for the Harvest Suitors! I had forgotten this was a lilac scent -- I don't associate lilac with harvest time. But Vigil is all about the lilac and beswax. I am not sure what broomcorn smells like, and I'm not getting anything I associate with bone, but I am getting lots of gorgeous sweet lilac and beeswax, and that is exactly what I was hoping for. If you're mourning the fact that Eusapia didn't return with this year's crop of spirits, you need Vigil for the Harvest Suitors in your life. Plus the label art is amazing.
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I'm going to have to use Foco purely for ritual because it doesn't mesh well with my skin chemistry (red ginger is always a problematic note on me). Dry and harsh at first, with none of the sometimes cloying sweetness I usually expect from dragon's blood, Foco eventually mellows down into an herbal blend in which the ginger and chamomile are uppermost. I would happily drink this as a tea!
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I quite like Robotic Scarab. It's never strong on me, a skin scent, but it lasts a long time at that level. I don't get a lot of anise (which I love) or frank from this, or really distinct impressions of any of the notes besides the machine oil, but it's a melange that reminds me of the men of my childhood. Comforting.
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This is amazing. I feel like if you missed out on the TAL Rose Tinted Mirror, this would have much the same effect. Better for me as it’s lavender instead of violet, though as usual the lovely lavender doesn’t last long on my skin. Soft sugary pink rose, marshmallow vanilla, just a cloud of lifted spirits.
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I have no problem with cologne-type blends, but El Dorado isn’t that interesting on my skin. It’s dry and starts out a little higher pitched than I expected before mellowing down into dusty incense. There’s nothing wrong with it, I just don’t love it.
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Violet and champaca are Notes I Avoid so I wouldn't have tried this if it hadn't been frimped to me. It's actually surprisingly lovely. The violets are more bright than powdery, and while the violet and rose combo is definitely old fashioned, it's not old lady. In fact it's kind of a curious blend of classic floral perfume and headshop incense. LavenderCoffee's description nails the drydown for me: soft violet champaca musk over patch and dark dramatic roses. Which is not my thing, so I'll be passing this decant on, but I can appreciate its beauty!
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Vaginal Tales is such a luper. Soft, sweet, creamy, with poofy mallow and bubble-gummy lotus. Pink pink pink! OK, maybe there are some other pastel tones here too. It toys with the edge of cloyingly sweet but never teeters over. Pillowy pink powderpuff of a fragrance; wear with a frilly skirt and fluffy kitten-heel slippers.
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Signum Crucis starts out overwhelmingly rose on me. This is disappointing because I don't believe rose hips actually smell like roses. I was hoping for the tart tang of rosehip with three notes I love. The leather and mushroom did peek out eventually, but they didn't stand a chance against the roses. I never got much in the way of ambrette. This is definitely intended for rose lovers who want something less overtly femme. It makes me want to go out and cut into a rose hip and see if I smell rose.