Back in the saddle
Sep. 19th, 2015 10:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lunabee34I fell out of the habit of testing perfumes (although not of wearing them, thank goodness) this past spring when Fi got ill and stayed that way for so long. It wasn't any direct consequence of her illness; I think I just got depressed. My arm also started bothering me during that time period, and some other health issues were manifesting, and I stopped doing a lot of things that I enjoy (like reading books, wtf; I legit quit reading books I wasn't teaching for a whole semester; I don't think I've ever gone so long without reading a book in my life; I usually read at least one, sometimes 2-3 books a week).
But I've made a BPAL order, I've got a fair amount of scents still waiting to be tested, and a huge backload of write-ups to post. So . . .
Etat Libre D'Orange La Fin du Monde
Fragrantica: The fragrance features popocorn, carrot seeds, cumin, sesame, black pepper, freesia, vetiver, sandalwood, ambrette (musk mallow), iris, styrax and gunpowder.
Emma likes it; she thinks it smells like orange coffee. Josh thinks it smells like gross, powdery popcorn. I think it smells like a sweet, powdery orange-carrot combo. Not a keeper.
Eau D'Orange Verte--Hermes
Fragrantica: inspired by the odour of moist, rose-scented morning undergrowth . . . . It was devised as a burst of citrus touches, with orange to the fore, amidst zests and leaves, lemon, mandarin, mint and blackcurrant buds. Its complexity is revealed in a unique vapor composed of oak moss and patchouli.
Emma thinks it smells like oranges and mint; she doesn't like it much (although to be fair, she hasn't liked many of the traditional perfumes we've tried; half the time I think it's more the novelty of the marketing that's getting to her with BPAL rather than the scents themselves). Josh likes it; he smells orange, green moss and patchouli. I find it somewhat similar to Chanel Eau de Cologne (which I prefer), but Eau D'Orange is less bergamoty and reads much more masculine to me. It has a pleasant sour note that I like in addition to the orange peel/bergamot citrus scent.
Velvet Moon Bathery's Velvet Gypsy
Notes: Eqyptian musk, golden pear, sweet patchouli, black opium, pepper
Honestly, I think this vial was so old that any scent contained therein had disintegrated long ago. LOL But I must report all! For science!
Somnus by BPAL
You may not remember that I absolutely despised Somnus when I tried it. From that review: Josh and I absolutely despised Somnus while Emma was fairly ambivalent. She smelled lavender, lemon zest, and something flowery. For me, it started with sharp lavender, and then it almost seemed like there was something rancid underneath the lavender; finally a whole garden full of tea roses where something had died in a secret corner emerged. I’m pretty sure that the note I found so unpleasant is chamomile; I can’t drink chamomile tea because it smells vaguely like vomit to me. Josh found Somnus cloying and too floral.
This was one of the earliest scents I tried, and turns out, the jasmine is what was killing me, not the chamomile. I had gotten the imp in a swap and had no idea of its age. When I was sent a fresh frimp in our last order, I decided to try it again. Folks, this newly minted Somnus was even grosser than the older one. Such strong flowery poop! Bleck, bleck, bleck. Clearly jasmine smells good to many, many people or it would not be an ingredient in so many perfumes, but it mostly horrifies me. I wish I knew where I could smell an actual blooming flower and see if that smells gross to me.
I've got like a bajillion imps I'd like to swap, so my next project is to get that together for my next review post.
But I've made a BPAL order, I've got a fair amount of scents still waiting to be tested, and a huge backload of write-ups to post. So . . .
Etat Libre D'Orange La Fin du Monde
Fragrantica: The fragrance features popocorn, carrot seeds, cumin, sesame, black pepper, freesia, vetiver, sandalwood, ambrette (musk mallow), iris, styrax and gunpowder.
Emma likes it; she thinks it smells like orange coffee. Josh thinks it smells like gross, powdery popcorn. I think it smells like a sweet, powdery orange-carrot combo. Not a keeper.
Eau D'Orange Verte--Hermes
Fragrantica: inspired by the odour of moist, rose-scented morning undergrowth . . . . It was devised as a burst of citrus touches, with orange to the fore, amidst zests and leaves, lemon, mandarin, mint and blackcurrant buds. Its complexity is revealed in a unique vapor composed of oak moss and patchouli.
Emma thinks it smells like oranges and mint; she doesn't like it much (although to be fair, she hasn't liked many of the traditional perfumes we've tried; half the time I think it's more the novelty of the marketing that's getting to her with BPAL rather than the scents themselves). Josh likes it; he smells orange, green moss and patchouli. I find it somewhat similar to Chanel Eau de Cologne (which I prefer), but Eau D'Orange is less bergamoty and reads much more masculine to me. It has a pleasant sour note that I like in addition to the orange peel/bergamot citrus scent.
Velvet Moon Bathery's Velvet Gypsy
Notes: Eqyptian musk, golden pear, sweet patchouli, black opium, pepper
Honestly, I think this vial was so old that any scent contained therein had disintegrated long ago. LOL But I must report all! For science!
Somnus by BPAL
You may not remember that I absolutely despised Somnus when I tried it. From that review: Josh and I absolutely despised Somnus while Emma was fairly ambivalent. She smelled lavender, lemon zest, and something flowery. For me, it started with sharp lavender, and then it almost seemed like there was something rancid underneath the lavender; finally a whole garden full of tea roses where something had died in a secret corner emerged. I’m pretty sure that the note I found so unpleasant is chamomile; I can’t drink chamomile tea because it smells vaguely like vomit to me. Josh found Somnus cloying and too floral.
This was one of the earliest scents I tried, and turns out, the jasmine is what was killing me, not the chamomile. I had gotten the imp in a swap and had no idea of its age. When I was sent a fresh frimp in our last order, I decided to try it again. Folks, this newly minted Somnus was even grosser than the older one. Such strong flowery poop! Bleck, bleck, bleck. Clearly jasmine smells good to many, many people or it would not be an ingredient in so many perfumes, but it mostly horrifies me. I wish I knew where I could smell an actual blooming flower and see if that smells gross to me.
I've got like a bajillion imps I'd like to swap, so my next project is to get that together for my next review post.
no subject
Date: 2015-09-21 12:01 am (UTC)That is a seriously cool idea for a goodie bag and a great way to keep people buying from that site. Just based on your cursory sniffs, are all the Etat Libre d'Orange scents as out there (for lack of a better term) with the popcorn and carrots?