Penance

I get horrible migraines, too, and I'll back up what's been said about mint and migraines...mint makes me horribly nauseous when I have a migraine (I learned it the hard way trying to brush my teeth when I had one, not fun). Although I have heard that peppermint oil is fantastic for headaches, I don't think it works for me. Kumiho's a little on the sharp side for me when I have a headache, so I personally avoid it at times like that. Pele would probably be a good choice, nice and light and calming. I've found it's very benign when it comes to wearing perfume during a headache, it's light enough not to make it worse and very pretty and calming smelling. Just my two cents, though.

This is, without a doubt, one of my absolute favorite BPAL scents ever. I'm so sad to see it go and even sadder to know that I never got a bottle of it because I never expected to see it go. First sniff: Cedar, extremely strong cedar. I adore cedar, so this is a very good thing. I can also smell something resiny underneath the cedar and looking at the description, it must be hte frankincense. I've never been good at identifying frankincense or myrrh on their own, so it's no surprise that I couldn't pinpoint them in Damnation. I don't smell the vetiver, but that's probably because the cedar is so overwhelming. Wet on skin: This does smell like a darker version of Cathedral! It doesn't strike an "evil" cord with me, it's actually very comforting smelling. It smells like a Cathedral built out of old, worn cedar and filled with the smell of incense smoke, the smoke working its way into the wood and being trapped inside. This is absolutely gorgeous. Dry down: It's lightened up considerably, but the cedar is still prominent, overpowering the smell of incense but not covering it up entirely. This is so beautiful and so comforting to me. I could see myself wearing this every day if it hadn't been discontinued. Now I'll have to ration it, but I'll cherish it for as long as I have it. Absolutely gorgeous. The bottom line: Dark, deep and cedary, like an church in the forest built out of rough-hewn cedar and imprinted with the smell of incense smoke. This is at the very top of my favorite BPAL scents list. I love it.

Got an imp of this in a swap hoping I'd love it since I love patchouli and ginger (on their own at any rate). First sniff: Patchouli underscored with a sweetness (the ginger?) and a floral note (the orange blossom). I love patchouli and all earthy scents, but, frankly, I'm worried that this one's going to be too sickly sweet for me. I don't do sweet and I don't normally do girly scents, so this might have been a bad choice. I'll try it, though, because you never know what some of these might turn into once they hit your skin. Wet on skin: An almost candy-like sweetness, like candied orange peels, covering a base of earthy patchouli. This one's wavering between earthy and cloying sweetness on me and it's not looking good. Dry down: No change, unfortunately. I love patchouli on its own and I like ginger, but somehow the two together seem to have morphed into some sort of ubersweet liquer with candied orange peel in it. The bottom line: Definitely not for me. I prefer earthy/woodsy scents and this is just not cutting it. Off to swaps with it. Hopefully someone else will be able to put it to some use.

First sniff: Wow...did I get a mislabeled imp? This smells exactly like Queen of Spades. I smell dark purple fruits; plums most prominently and some blackberry behind it. The only difference I can smell between this and the Queen is there's no incense notes here. Wet on skin: Fruity but not too fruity. This smells like Queen of Spades without the incense notes. As soon as it hits my skin, the blackberry amplifies, which is fine by me because I love blackberries. I don't normally go for fruity scents, but this is gorgeous. It's dark and rich and deep smelling and not too feminine like most fruit blends are. I really like the way it smells on me. Dry down: Deep, juicy blackberry with a hint of plum. If I sniff deep enough, I can barely smell the tiniest hint of coconut. It's a gorgeous blend, dark and mysterious and elegant. The perfect compliment to the Queen. The bottom line: Elegant, sophisticated, dark and mysterious. To my nose, it smells like a darker, less resiny Queen of Spades. This is definitely one of my favorite blends.

Nope, I'm the baby of the family. I've got an older brother...9 years older, to be exact, so I guess I may as well be the only child. The best part is I don't have to pay her back. She never takes the money when I try to, she just says to keep it and spend it on something nice. She's a real marvel sometimes. I always tell her I want to be like her when I grow up...although it's a little late for that now seeing as how I'm 22 and kind of grown up as it is.

First sniff: Dark, very dark. I smell, let's see...tobacco most prominently, followed by bittersweet chocolate and then the faintest hint of incense. This smells exactly the way I imagined it would! It's a very comforting scent for me for some reason, perhaps because of the association it has for me of seeing death in a positive light. I'm dealing with a couple of losses myself right now and that viewpoint is a welcome one right at the moment. Wet on skin: Tobacco very strongly, the moist, rich kind that my grandfather used to smoke in his pipe. The chocolate is still there, too, deepening the tobacco and making it sweet and rich. I can't smell the incense now that it's on my skin and that's a shame, but it still smells beautiful. I don't smell any flowers either, which is just fine by me because I don't like floral perfumes. Dry down: Sweet, but not in a cloying way, and rich. It smells like pipe tobacco mixed with chocolate with the slightest hint of incense. This is absolutely gorgeous, I think I like it even more than Samhain! The bottom line: This exceeeded my expectations. It's everything I could want in an autumnal perfume and more! Everything blends so wonderfully that it just paints the most wonderful mental image of an altar to the dead, piled high with sweets and tobacco and drinks and waiting for the those who have passed on. Gorgeous, just gorgeous.

This was a generous freebie from the Lab and one I probably wouldn't have picked out on my own. First sniff: Very clean and sharp, almost to the point of being biting. In spite of the fact that there's no lemon listed in the description, it smells very lemony to me. There's also a very clear, sharp ginger component underneath it. This is almost aggressively clean unlike something like, say, Neo-Tokyo which is tranquilly clean. I'll give it a shot, but I don't know that it will work for me since I prefer darker scents and don't care for lemon. Wet on skin: Lemony and very clean. It's actually not an unpleasant lemon even though I don't care for citrus scents as a general rule. The ginger is still there, too, making this scent even more biting and sharp. This isn't a soft, clean scent, it's hard-edged and dangerous; it's almost aggressively bright. I didn't think such a clean scent could smell so aggressive. Dry down: This one fades quite quickly on me, leaving a faint lemon and ginger scent that nevertheless manages to be no-nonsense. It reminds me of a hotshot female lawyer for some reason: perfectly coiffed and hard as nails. While it's not my normal kind of scent (I prefer darker, earthier scents), I think I'm going to keep it because it just screams feminine power to me. The bottom line: Clean, aggressive, hard-edged and biting. This is a no-nonsense, powerful clean scent that makes me feel like I could take on the world if I just put my mind to it. Not my usual cup of tea, but a nice change of pace, to be sure.

Yep, I already ordered 2 of Ice Queen and Gingerbread Poppet and 1 of Snow White, Hearth, Frost Moon and Midwinter's Eve. My mom's too good to me. She really is, God bless her. She's such a great lady.

Okay, I did this scent without having the description handy, so maybe it shows and maybe not. First sniff: Sweet, spicy, floral and powdery all at once. I'm at a loss to truly classify it. The only note I can clearly pick out is carnation, This really does remind me of the time I spent in Morocco my freshman year of high school. Wet on skin: Powdery and spicy. I can smell the carnation quite clearly, but the other notes are a muddle to my nose. I'm becoming leary of this one because carnation has about a 50/50 chance of making me nauseous the way almond does. This is pretty, but I'm not sure it's me. Dry down: The scent has almost disappeared, leaving behind a faint spicy carnation scent mixed with something that reminds me almost exactly of honey butter. The bottom line: Pretty, but not for me. I'm nervous about the carnation, so I doubt I'd wear this one often enough to warrant keeping it. Off to the swap pile with it. Hopefully someone else will be able to put it to some use.

Wow, this one was a real shocker! Not at all what I had expected, but in a good way. First sniff: Buttery pumpkin, allspice, clove and something that smells vaguely like a bonfire. This a really autumnal smelling scent. I really like this so far! Wet on skin: Dry leaves at first and something that smells somewhat like a bonfire then it threatens to turn into cleaning solution for some reason, but, thankfully, it's shortlived. I can already smell it beginning to change again on me. Dry down: It smells like pipe tobacco! I couldn't put my finger on it at first, but it smells exactly like the inside of a pipe to me, not smoky, but sweet and rich like the tobacco itself. There's also something that smells vaguely like dry leaves and buttery pumpkin, but they're so faint that they're almost unnoticeable. This is a real surprise! The bottom line: Not at all what I expected, but gorgeous! I really love this one.

I'm buying another 5mL of Hearth today, I think, but it's going on my mom's credit card since I'm still flat broke (I literally have $0.44 in my bank account). But I did pay CtrlFreak back, so I'm in the clear on that.

Got an imp of this from Tempete. First sniff: Frankincense, very strong frankincense and a hint of cinnamon. This is like Penitence's spicier, softer sister. I don't smell any violet yet, but that's fine because I love the way it smells as is. Wet on skin: The frankincense immediately disappears as soon as this hits my skin and it turns into violets dipped in cinnamon sugar. Very powdery and softly spicy at the same time. I don't normally care for floral scents, but this is beautiful. The spiciness of the cinnamon keeps this from becoming headache inducing and the floral notes keep it from smelling like a bakery. Dry down: More powdery and slightly less spicy. The frankincense still hasn't made a reappearance, but I find that I'm not really missing it. This is so beautiful just the way it is that I don't think I'd want to chance ruining it by adding it into the mix. I really like this one! The bottom line: This one's a real shapeshifter. It goes from resiny and spicy to powdery and spicy in the space of seconds and both ends of the spectrum are just gorgeous. I really like this one.

Well, seeing as how I get about 5 wears out of an imp (I guess that classifies me as a slatherer, eh?), I'd say a 5mL would last me about a month if I wore it every day. I've never actually used an entire 5mL so that's just my quasi-scientific estimation.

Got an imp of this from BrownBat. First sniff: Sassafras and something spicy. I'm guessing it's the nutmeg. I'm a self-admitted sassafras addict, so this is wonderful. It's one of the only foody scents I can tolerate as a perfume and I wear it with total abandon. Wet on skin: Sassafras...strong sassafras. The nutmeg is also becoming somewhat more prominent and there's a growing smokiness to it that's absolutely gorgeous. This is a really unusual combination of notes, but it works so well! I'm in love with this one already. Dry down: The smokiness and sassafras are fighting for dominance and the result is gorgeous. It's not too sweet or foody and not too smoky and headache inducing. The two blend perfectly. The bottom line: I really love this one! I can't believe I didn't try it sooner.

Got an imp of this from Spanglemaker. First sniff: Aquatic but swampy with something that smells vaguely like rotting wood. This is what I expected Bayou to smell like. This is a really unusual scent in the best possible way. Wet on skin: The same as in the bottle. This really does remind me of the aftermath of a hurricane when there's debris and standing water everywhere and the weak sunlight that heralds the end of the storm. I really like this! Dry down: Aquatic and vaguely sweet like rotting vegetation with an undertone of damp wood. It's not at all unpleasant to my nose. As a matter of fact, I really like it! The bottom line: This is probably the most unusual BPAL scent I've tried yet. It's everything I had imagined Bayou would be like and then some. I think this is probably a hit or miss kind of scent, but for me it's a hit!

I got an imp of this from Kimmer. First sniff: This is a very complex scent. On one sniff it smells like Constant Comment tea...spicy and clovey and dark and lovely. On another it smells like pepper. And on another it smells like deep woods and damp soil. This is so beautiful and complex! I'm really looking forward to trying this one. Wet on skin: Pepper and moss. I also get a whiff now and then of something that smells like allspice. I'm guessing it's the nutmeg. Whatever it is, it's beautiful. This is a very unusual combination of scents, but it works so well! I never would have imagined that this sort of combination would work so beautifully, but that's why I'm not the one designing perfumes, I guess. Dry down: Peppery and spicy in an allspice kind of way at the same time. The moss seems to have retreated into the background, but I still love the way this smells. I've never cared for the smell of black pepper, but for some reason, this works for me. The bottom line: I love this scent. I had some doubts about whether it would work for me, but it does and beautifully. This is quite possibly my favorite of all of the up-and-comings I've tried. Beautiful, just beautiful.

First sniff: Straw. Drying straw that's still slightly green. It reminds me of the inside of a barn after the harvest. Wet on skin: Now it smells more like a corn field after the harvest. There's a very unique smell to a field after hte dried stalks have been cut and hauled away, leaving the tangled remains for the bird's to pick over and Scarecrow has that smell. It's a smell I really like, personally. It has a lot of happy memories for me. Dry down: I really need to slather this one on to get it to last on me, but the result is well worth it. This is a scent I would classify as clean in a very unique way. It almost smells like bamboo in a way, if that makes any more sense. It's hard to explain but gorgeous. Bottom line: I really like this one, being a country gal and all. This is a definite winner.

Got an imp of this from Allidavie. First sniff: Oh my God...this does smell like buttered popcorn Jelly Bellies! That's pretty bizarre. Wet on skin: This scent changes character almost as fast as I can figure out what it is I'm smelling. At first it's pure buttered popcorn flavored jelly beans, then it changes into something buttery and vaguely floral and then it changes again into something very autumnal smelling that I can't place. This is really nice. Dry down: It's buttery. It's foody in a way I can't put my finger on. It smells like autumn. It's gorgeous! I can't pick out any particular notes, it's so well-blended, but it's a very happy autumnal scent. The bottom line: This is gorgeous! I don't normally go for foody scents, but this is really beautiful. It embodies everything I think of when I think of autumn. This is a definite winner.

Yep, I've tried Snake Oil. It starts off almondy, but it goes away fast enough that I can wear it (and love it) as long as I don't sniff myself while it's wet.

Neo-Tokyo. Nothing smells cleaner to me than it does.

To me, Obeah (the up-and-coming scent) smells exactly like Karma.

First sniff: Wow, this smells freakishly like LUSH's Karma soap! I smell patchouli and orange peel and maybe some lemongrass? This is nice in spite of the fact that I don't like citrus in my scents. Wet on skin: The sweetness of the orange peel (or what I'm assuming is orange peel) is tempering the earthiness of the patchouli to where it's not so potent and the earthiness of the patchouli is tempering the sweetness of the orange peel so it's not cloying or too citrusy. The sweetness seems to be growing a bit now that it's on my skin, but I really like this a lot! Dry down: The patchouli and sweet orange peel have balanced each other out and the result is gorgeous! It's not cloying and it's not too "dirty" smelling. I'm really going to enjoy finding out exactly what's in this one. The bottom line: I'm definitely going to get some more of this once it comes out on the site. This is really nice and it perfectly complements my Karma soap.

I ended up wearing Zombi. My mom says I smell like "dead dirt", whatever that means.

I'll admit it, I picked this one purely because of the name. Who doesn't want a perfume named after the walking dead? First sniff: Loamy dirt; the deep, wet, black kind. It smells almost exactly like Demeter's Earthworm, which is good because I like Earthworm. There might be the faintest hint of roses here, too, but the smell of soil is so strong that it's hard to tell. This reminds me more of growing up in the country than it does a grave. I really like this! Wet on skin: This smells exactly like Demeter's Earthworm on me. And I do mean exactly. The only difference is this is stronger. There's no change from bottle to skin, it's still fresh-turned black dirt. My mom says it smells like "dead dirt", which is appropriate given the name of this particular scent. Dry down: It's gotten even more loamy if that's even possible. I don't smell any roses in here, which is just fine by me because I don't like the smell of roses. This reminds me more of fresh-turned dirt on a farm when the planting is being done for the year than it does a funeral and I really enjoy that association because it brings back a lot of happy memories for me. I don't find this mournful at all, it's actually a very cheerful smell for me, but that's admittedly because of the associations I have with the smell of black dirt. The bottom line: Unique, very unique. I really like this one, it's one of my favorites, although I can see it not working for everyone.

Believe me, I would if I could, but I'm flat broke. I literally don't have more than $2 and I already owe money to CtrlFreak for the advance she so generously lent me, so it's just not a possibility. Why must the world be so unfair?