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lunabee34I am forgoing ficcage for this round of recs because end-of-term grading is killing me, and I've been super sick. But I have not abandoned that idea. :)
In fact, I've got several pages of Inara/Nandi already written for Nanshe and another fic plotted out that I'm calling "The Politics of Perfume" in which Elizabeth Weir and her gradschool buddies get schooled by their mentor on how to use perfume as a negotiating tactic and to develop personae.
Nanshe
The Catalog Description
The Babylonian Goddess of Dreams, who bestows the power of Oneiromancy onto her priests. This blend opens up psychic sensitivity during sleep and aids in the understanding and correct interpretation of portents and symbols.
The Forum Reviews
Reviewers are fairly divided in their perception of Nanshe. About half the posters find it too invigorating to use as a sleep aid, and the other half find it very restful and sleep inducing. Several posters say that the lemon in Nanshe turns into Pledge on them, and several posters think of it as a foodie scent because of the lemongrass.
Our Reactions
Emma, Josh and I all liked this one. When I first tested it, I initially smelled lavender followed by strong lemon. My friend Michelle commented that it smelled exactly like fresh lemongrass, which it does, and now, I don’t smell the lavender anymore whenever I wear it—just a freshly broken stalk of lemongrass. As far as its purpose as a sleep aid goes, Nanshe does not make me sleepy. I do wonder if it has an effect on my dreams, though; I remain skeptical that a scent could influence my dreams, but every time I wear it at night, I remember my dreams/dream more than usual. I like this well enough, but not enough to get another imp or buy a big bottle.
Embalming Fluid
The Catalog Description
A light, pure scent: white musk, green tea, aloe and lemon.
The Forum Reviews
The forum reviews for this one spend a great deal of time comparing Embalming Fluid to other BPAL scents such as Old Shanghai, Kumiho, Baobahn Sith, Dorian, The Dormouse, and Calliope. Many reviewers also cite comparisons to commercial perfumes, particularly those based on green tea like Elizabeth Arden Green Tea. Many reviewers mention that this is a scent they’d feel comfortable wearing to work unlike some of BPAL’s more performance art fragrances. Embalming Fluid is also seen as a unisex scent.
Our Reactions
We all smelled pretty much the same thing with this one: lemon and green tea.
I love this scent. I agree with the forums that it smells much more like a commercial perfume than anything else I’ve smelled from BPAL so far. It’s citrusy; it’s light; it’s springy. It smells fabulous. I clearly love white musk. And yet, it fades so quickly (as do many of the scents I love the most from BPAL; anything light and herbally is almost guaranteed to disappear super quickly on me). I have found that moisturizing helps. Layering Bath and Body Works White Citrus shower gel and lotion underneath helps it last, as does layering with Envy. I hope I’ll have better luck putting this one in my new scent locket. If this had satisfying throw and endurance, I’d order a big bottle for sure, but as it is, I’ll have to pass.
Envy
The Catalog Description
Green herbs slithering through mint, lime and lavender.
The Forum Reviews
The forum reviews are pretty boring for this one. Flowers, lavender, plants, green—that’s about the whole of it. Some reviewers think this is a masculine scent (which I completely disagree with; I don’t think it’s girly, but it’s not what I think of as masculine).
Our Reactions
Emma: lime, mint, green, herbs, lavender, floral
My Mom: lavender, green, herbs, floral
Josh: mild grass
Me: green herbs, lime, lavender, floral; like a subdued and less floral version of Kate Spade Beauty
So far, I have smelled zero mint in any BPAL fragrance with mint on the billing. I don’t know if that’s because I have a subpar sniffer (which I am beginning to think is probably true; I do not have a nuanced nose) or because a lot of the mint lotion and shower gel I love so is relying on the much stronger menthol for its minty-ness. I really like this fragrance and would order a big bottle if not for the same problem with Embalming Fluid; it fades so damn quickly.
The Apothecary
The Catalog Description
Tea leaf with three mosses, green grass, a medley of herbal notes, and a drop of ginger and fig.
The Forum Reviews
Again, nothing to scare the horses here. Many reviewers note a similarity to Embalming Fluid or Kumiho. Lots of people find it as short-lived as I do.
Our Reactions
Everyone liked this. I can’t tell if Emma really has a sharper nose than we do or if she’s just highly suggestible from reading the catalog description, but she smells tea, ginger, green grass, moss, herbs, and fig. Josh’s parents both liked this, and so did Josh who smelled grass, tea, and ginger.
I really like this. I smell herbs, grass, tea, and ginger with a sweetness that must be the fig. I grew up with an enormous fig tree shading my bedroom window. I have eaten many a fig in my lifetime (although I don’t especially care for them raw). What does a fig smell like? IDK I don’t know what moss smells like either (and I suspect Emma doesn’t, but she’s all, “Mom, it’s that earthy smell. Moss smells earthy.” And I’m all, “Mmmkay.”) Again, this fades really quickly. I feel like Embalming Fluid, Envy, and The Apothecary are all sisters; they are really similar to each other but different enough to be distinct entities, and they all layer well together.
Croquet
The Catalog Description
We have some trouble managing our flamingos, too. Pink lime, pink grapefruit, white nectarine, wild rose, sage, woody patchouli, bergamot, and ornery hedgehog musk.
The Forum Reviews
The reviews are multiple iterations of fruit, citrus, and sweet tart candies.
Our Reactions
Emma: candy, lime, roses, sage, grapefruit; she really like this
Josh: no. Just no. (which ultimately rules the day in the house as I don’t want to make him sick)
Me: It smells like candy in the imp; then as I put it on, I smell roses, grape chewing gum, lime, and grapefruit. It smells like some perfume I’ve smelled before, and it dries sweet. Something about it is off-putting to me. This goes off to swaps.
And one non-BPAL:
Black Vines by Kerosene
The Catalog Description
There is nothing cold about this scent. It's a warm touch on the shoulder, as you are entangled in green vines of black licorice. The spices and gentle sweetness will warm your surroundings. This is climate change for your skin. Notes: Ivy, Fig, Star Anise, Cinnamon, Canadian Fir, Balsam of Peru, Tonka, Incense and Vanilla.
Our Reactions
Emma: cough syrup, licorice, alcohol
Josh: straight up cough syrup
Me: in the vial, it smells like Goldschlager. When I first put it on, it smells strongly of licorice. Then I start to smell cinnamon and vanilla. After a bit, it turns to Big Red gum that’s been chewed on for awhile. I think if I could actually smell the trees that are supposed to be here, it might balance out the boozy, black jelly bean thing Black Vines has got going on. This is definitely a swapper.
So to recap: an imp of Croquet and a sample of Black Vines to good homes.
In fact, I've got several pages of Inara/Nandi already written for Nanshe and another fic plotted out that I'm calling "The Politics of Perfume" in which Elizabeth Weir and her gradschool buddies get schooled by their mentor on how to use perfume as a negotiating tactic and to develop personae.
The Catalog Description
The Babylonian Goddess of Dreams, who bestows the power of Oneiromancy onto her priests. This blend opens up psychic sensitivity during sleep and aids in the understanding and correct interpretation of portents and symbols.
The Forum Reviews
Reviewers are fairly divided in their perception of Nanshe. About half the posters find it too invigorating to use as a sleep aid, and the other half find it very restful and sleep inducing. Several posters say that the lemon in Nanshe turns into Pledge on them, and several posters think of it as a foodie scent because of the lemongrass.
Our Reactions
Emma, Josh and I all liked this one. When I first tested it, I initially smelled lavender followed by strong lemon. My friend Michelle commented that it smelled exactly like fresh lemongrass, which it does, and now, I don’t smell the lavender anymore whenever I wear it—just a freshly broken stalk of lemongrass. As far as its purpose as a sleep aid goes, Nanshe does not make me sleepy. I do wonder if it has an effect on my dreams, though; I remain skeptical that a scent could influence my dreams, but every time I wear it at night, I remember my dreams/dream more than usual. I like this well enough, but not enough to get another imp or buy a big bottle.
The Catalog Description
A light, pure scent: white musk, green tea, aloe and lemon.
The Forum Reviews
The forum reviews for this one spend a great deal of time comparing Embalming Fluid to other BPAL scents such as Old Shanghai, Kumiho, Baobahn Sith, Dorian, The Dormouse, and Calliope. Many reviewers also cite comparisons to commercial perfumes, particularly those based on green tea like Elizabeth Arden Green Tea. Many reviewers mention that this is a scent they’d feel comfortable wearing to work unlike some of BPAL’s more performance art fragrances. Embalming Fluid is also seen as a unisex scent.
Our Reactions
We all smelled pretty much the same thing with this one: lemon and green tea.
I love this scent. I agree with the forums that it smells much more like a commercial perfume than anything else I’ve smelled from BPAL so far. It’s citrusy; it’s light; it’s springy. It smells fabulous. I clearly love white musk. And yet, it fades so quickly (as do many of the scents I love the most from BPAL; anything light and herbally is almost guaranteed to disappear super quickly on me). I have found that moisturizing helps. Layering Bath and Body Works White Citrus shower gel and lotion underneath helps it last, as does layering with Envy. I hope I’ll have better luck putting this one in my new scent locket. If this had satisfying throw and endurance, I’d order a big bottle for sure, but as it is, I’ll have to pass.
The Catalog Description
Green herbs slithering through mint, lime and lavender.
The Forum Reviews
The forum reviews are pretty boring for this one. Flowers, lavender, plants, green—that’s about the whole of it. Some reviewers think this is a masculine scent (which I completely disagree with; I don’t think it’s girly, but it’s not what I think of as masculine).
Our Reactions
Emma: lime, mint, green, herbs, lavender, floral
My Mom: lavender, green, herbs, floral
Josh: mild grass
Me: green herbs, lime, lavender, floral; like a subdued and less floral version of Kate Spade Beauty
So far, I have smelled zero mint in any BPAL fragrance with mint on the billing. I don’t know if that’s because I have a subpar sniffer (which I am beginning to think is probably true; I do not have a nuanced nose) or because a lot of the mint lotion and shower gel I love so is relying on the much stronger menthol for its minty-ness. I really like this fragrance and would order a big bottle if not for the same problem with Embalming Fluid; it fades so damn quickly.
The Catalog Description
Tea leaf with three mosses, green grass, a medley of herbal notes, and a drop of ginger and fig.
The Forum Reviews
Again, nothing to scare the horses here. Many reviewers note a similarity to Embalming Fluid or Kumiho. Lots of people find it as short-lived as I do.
Our Reactions
Everyone liked this. I can’t tell if Emma really has a sharper nose than we do or if she’s just highly suggestible from reading the catalog description, but she smells tea, ginger, green grass, moss, herbs, and fig. Josh’s parents both liked this, and so did Josh who smelled grass, tea, and ginger.
I really like this. I smell herbs, grass, tea, and ginger with a sweetness that must be the fig. I grew up with an enormous fig tree shading my bedroom window. I have eaten many a fig in my lifetime (although I don’t especially care for them raw). What does a fig smell like? IDK I don’t know what moss smells like either (and I suspect Emma doesn’t, but she’s all, “Mom, it’s that earthy smell. Moss smells earthy.” And I’m all, “Mmmkay.”) Again, this fades really quickly. I feel like Embalming Fluid, Envy, and The Apothecary are all sisters; they are really similar to each other but different enough to be distinct entities, and they all layer well together.
The Catalog Description
We have some trouble managing our flamingos, too. Pink lime, pink grapefruit, white nectarine, wild rose, sage, woody patchouli, bergamot, and ornery hedgehog musk.
The Forum Reviews
The reviews are multiple iterations of fruit, citrus, and sweet tart candies.
Our Reactions
Emma: candy, lime, roses, sage, grapefruit; she really like this
Josh: no. Just no. (which ultimately rules the day in the house as I don’t want to make him sick)
Me: It smells like candy in the imp; then as I put it on, I smell roses, grape chewing gum, lime, and grapefruit. It smells like some perfume I’ve smelled before, and it dries sweet. Something about it is off-putting to me. This goes off to swaps.
And one non-BPAL:
The Catalog Description
There is nothing cold about this scent. It's a warm touch on the shoulder, as you are entangled in green vines of black licorice. The spices and gentle sweetness will warm your surroundings. This is climate change for your skin. Notes: Ivy, Fig, Star Anise, Cinnamon, Canadian Fir, Balsam of Peru, Tonka, Incense and Vanilla.
Our Reactions
Emma: cough syrup, licorice, alcohol
Josh: straight up cough syrup
Me: in the vial, it smells like Goldschlager. When I first put it on, it smells strongly of licorice. Then I start to smell cinnamon and vanilla. After a bit, it turns to Big Red gum that’s been chewed on for awhile. I think if I could actually smell the trees that are supposed to be here, it might balance out the boozy, black jelly bean thing Black Vines has got going on. This is definitely a swapper.
So to recap: an imp of Croquet and a sample of Black Vines to good homes.
no subject
Date: 2014-05-10 01:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-10 02:50 pm (UTC)