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zombiiesque · 3 years

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Nocturne Alchemy NEW Studio Limiteds!

Originally published 1/28/2018

In December, Nocturne Alchemy introduced several new Studio Limiteds - Anniversaries, Ombres. and "single notes". I recently nabbed a bunch on my wishlist and I haven't written a proper review in FOREVER, so I thought I would post my first impressions.

Quick note - these babies take more time to fully develop their personalities than the regular LC/PC perfumes, because I feel like the quality of notes is even finer, so I will need to revisit this in about a month or so when they've had time to fully develop.

I picked up Sky Amber too, one of the two new offerings of Royal Ambers from the grand reopening, and I had previously grabbed Temple Amber, so now I have both of them and I can honestly say they are both amazing and totally different. If you are looking for an alternative to Eternal Ankh and want a good vanilla and amber combination, I would strongly recommend Sky Amber. It has that gorgeous Royal Amber base, and it just melds into gorgeousness with the vanilla used in this offering. I for some reason cannot wear the original version of Eternal Ankh, it just doesn't work on my skin (I HAS THE SAD), so I'm super excited to have an alternative. I did spring for the Eternal Ankh Anniversary and that one is a huge win for me, so I can't be too upset. And Temple Amber? Oh. OH. That one, in a very short review, feels ANCIENT. It feels like lighting the fires sacred to the Gods, so if you are into that kind of thing, it's a must, I wear it a lot when I'm feeling the need for a strong spiritual connection, and it's amazing. It features a strong smoky vetiver note, and that's usually a huge no for me but it works here and I'm considering a backup.

So, let me give y'all some quick first impressions.

Crystalline Dark: Beautiful aged Crystalline blended into dark notes of Black Amber, Black Musk and Black Vanilla, blended and aged two years in an oak barrel. Apply SL Originals Crystalline to heighten the vanilla experience.

Okay, OH EM EFFING GEE. I love Crystalline. Of all of the vanilla SLs, it was my first love, and my first foray into NA vanillas, and it was an instant win for me.This? This is Crystalline made super sexy, wearing big black stompy boots. The black musk is sublime here, not overly animalistic, just perfectly musky, and the black amber and black vanilla are so grown up, little black dress, I have an image in my head of what this woman looks like and she's both sexy and defiant. This is fun. This one is a total win already, so I imagine with age it's just going to get better.

Pink Quartz: Pink Vanilla Blossom, Crystalline, Crimson Egyptian Musk, Bastet’s White Amber Absolute and a minimal drop of aged Oak.

Okay, this one is definitely PINK. Very feminine, a pink vanilla musk. For me it will require some grounding, so I'll be trying it with for instance Pteranodon, or maybe a bit of Hessonite. It's a bit too far in the feminine zone for me, but the SLs have the bonus of being wonderfully paired with their other mates, so layering these is a no brainer. It is very beautifully done, and I'm hoping for a bit more of the other elements coming out to play with age, so I'll catch y'all up in a few weeks as it ages.

Pyramid Santalum: Four aged Sandalwood perfumes by Nocturne Alchemy, blended together in different quantities to create an aromatic sandalwood symphony. When worn the sandalwood notes will vary in scent dependent on the wearer. Santalum, Santalum White, Santalum Sweet and Mysore Santalum.

Ooooh. Okay, I wasn't completely sure about Santalum when I first got it, but it aged so gloriously I fell hard. And Santalum White was pretty much an instant win. This is an altogether different Santalum, it has that familiar feel, with the elements of Santalum and Santalum White, but this is incredible right off the bat. It's somehow lighter than Santalum, not as bleached and summery as Santalum White, so easily wearable. I can only imagine how well this is going to age, y'all. This is another that I feel is instant backup worthy. If you love sandalwood, I'm here to tell you, you need it.

And I recently added Crimson. A single note with accents given to enhance. A pure Egyptian Red Musk that is a skin musk the envelopes the wearer in a sheer, deep and aromatic scent that binds with the natural warmth of the skin and is both alluring and unisexual. The colour is a rich vibrant red from the Red Musk petals used during the perfume process. Apply sparingly to enjoy the natural colour of the red musk petals. A very soft ethereal perfume.

This. This is between the sexy red musk of Kashmir, and the ethereal Egyptian Musk. It's clean, and more present than Egyptian Musk, which is considerably lighter and more of a skin musk. It's slightly spicy, and oh so beautifully done. I actually paired it with Bastet's Potion Number 23 from the Holiday update and it was amazing. And it layered well with Pyramid Santalum, too. Oh. So beautiful. If Kashmir is a bit too forward for you, Crimson may be the red musk you seek. I'm personally in love with both, and they are different enough from each other to warrant owning both.

From the new Ombres, I chose Oud Ombre #23: Exotic Indian grown Oud aged in Black Oak, NA Oudh ICON Absolute, Perfume Attar of Rare Black Amber, Black Patchouli Amber, Black Frankincense and Black Myrrh.

Hnnnnnng I love the Ombres, and I love oudh. Oh Gods. This is going to need some time to develop, but it has that dark incredible Ombre base, and the oudh is so smoky and sexy and gorgeous, this is going to be a favorite, right next to Santal Ombre. But it definitely needs some aging to reach its full potential, so if you aren't impressed straight out of the mail, give it a few weeks. I've had it for 4 days and I can see the potential already. YES.

And I have an original bottle of Fig Noir Ombre, so I thought I would give my impressions of that as well. Green Fig aged, Black Fig Essence aged, sweet Fig Leaf, a clove left in and then removed (subtle, but necessary), Perfume Attar of Rare Black Amber, Black Patchouli Amber, Black Frankincense and Black Myrrh. New 2017 version.

I haven't smelled the new version, but this is a deep fig, chewy, and sexy with the Ombre base. This is a sexy fig, if that's somehow possible, NA did it. It's a wrap dress and stacked heels. Yassss. If you like NA fig, GET IT. I'm going to grab a new bottle to age, myself. I love it so much.

So there you have it. Also in my order were Eternal Egypt Anniversary, which is a deeper, woodier version of Eternal Egypt, and gorgeous in its own right. Emerson, which is a cozy, comforting, beautiful scent. And Eternal Underworld, a cherry that is not cough syrup, but resinous amber and oh so well done, I would not have thought I would love a cherry scent this much but I'm pretty obsessed.

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purplesurveys · 4 years

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1121

survey by lets-make-surveys

1 - When was the last time you spent over $100 in one transaction? What did you buy? I had to buy a ton of groceries throughout last week for an upcoming execution we’re doing for a client. Each of my receipts went higher than P5,000 ($100) every time I checked out.

2 - Do you sleep with a stuffed animal? Would you judge a grown adult for doing so? No, never did. Hugging an ordinary pillow was always more comfortable to me. And no, I wouldn’t judge someone on their preferred sleeping habits?

3 - Would you describe yourself as fashion-conscious, or do you just wear whatever feels comfortable? I’d say I keep up with the trends, but I don’t always go out of my way to buy whatever’s in style at the moment. Like I’ve said on a previous survey, I haven’t even bought any new article of clothing in like a year now. I just don’t think it’s worth it?? especially since I’ve seen such a few people since the lockdown started last year, and since I mostly stay at home. It’s enough for me to just be aware of what’s currently in style.

Comfort matters to me too though, and I wouldn’t wear anything that I find too itchy or bares my skin too much or anything I’d feel unsure being in.

4 - The last time you got up from where you’re sitting, where did you go and what did you do? I headed to the other end of the living room because I wanted to ask Cooper to give me some kisses.

5 - Would you rather read an erotic novel or watch an erotic film? Probably a novel. I’ve read too much fanfiction smut as a teenager that a novel would for sure be a breeze to me lol. I think there’s also a lot more freedom in writing that you can’t always express through actors playing a role in front of a camera and who aren’t actually being sensual.

6 - Who taught you how to tell the time on a proper analogue clock? I have no clue. I think I just taught myself, mostly. And we were probably taught this in like Grade 1 as well.

7 - What’s your favourite way to make your home smell good? Do you spend a lot of money on making this happen? Hahah my mom will actually sometimes steal some of the signature fragrance from the hotel she works at, so our living room occasionally smells like a 5-star hotel. We also use a disinfectant spray that smells nice and not too bleach-y or chemical-y. As for my end, I also want to start buying scented candles not only for my work/rest area to smell pleasing, but so that I can feel like I’m spoiling myself too.

8 - How long have you had the computer/tablet you’re currently using? Does it need replacing or upgrading? I’ve had my laptop since 2017. I don’t abuse it at all or use programs that would exhaust the battery too much, so it’s still doing quite well even though the cycle count is already slightly above the normal recommended count. Obviously it would be nice to upgrade to a newer Mac model, but I’m not in a hurry to get that done.

9 - When you’re home alone, do you make sure all your doors are kept locked? If I plan on staying upstairs then yeah, I make sure the doors on the first floor are locked because I’d never be aware if anyone decides to break in. If I’m just staying in the living room I’m substantially more relaxed about the doors.

10 - How often do you light candles? Do you just like regular ones or do you prefer scented ones or ones that make pretty patterns when they melt? I haven’t started, but I would love to soon. I’ve already began following a bunch of local scented candle stores so it’s all a matter of picking a store and a scent to start with.

11 - Are you any good at taking care of plants? Not at all. I could never seem to get the hang of them.

12 - How many surveys have you taken so far today? Will you take anymore surveys today once you’ve finished this one? I took one last night but was only able to finish it this morning, so I guess it counts as one for today. I’ve been a bit slow with my survey-taking because I’ve been feeling a lot more tired these days, but I do miss doing it so I hope to be able to squeeze in a couple more today.

13 - What are the main two colours in the room you’re currently in? Did you pick these colours out yourself? White, because of the walls; and black, because my mom likes black accents. And no, my mom definitely wouldn’t have given anyone that much freedom so as to be able to dictate what colors would dominate the living room.

14 - What was the last hot drink you consumed? What about cold drink? My last hot beverage was the San Gines I had in La Creperie in Tagaytay. Last cold drink was the iced coffee I made myself this morning.

15 - Do you have piercings anywhere except your ears? How many and what are they? Nope, my only piercings are precisely the ones on my ears.

16 - Do you prefer taking baths or showers? How come? Showers. I don’t like taking a while when I bathe myself, so bathtubs don’t work well for me to begin with. Even when we stay at a hotel that has a bathtub, I usually opt for the shower so I can finish more quickly.

17 - What time do you need to wake up tomorrow morning? What is it that you have to be up for? It’s still a weekday so I have work, and I’ll have to be up by my usual call time of 8 AM.

18 - If you work, how often do you get paid? Would you prefer to get paid more or less often? Every two weeks, so twice a month. I feel like it’s a decent frequency. It trains me to discipline myself for the next two weeks and not carelessly spend money simply every time I receive my pay.

19 - What does your favourite pair of pyjamas look like? Do you wear them to sleep or just to be comfy around the house? I don’t have pajamas because it’s impossible to wear them where I live, unless your household can afford to have air conditioning turned on 24/7. I stick with my combo of either a thin t-shirt/tank top and shorts.

20 - How often do you wake up in the night needing a pee? Never. Even if I do feel the need to pee, I’ll wait it out until the following morning because I hate getting up from bed half-asleep.

21 - What apps do you use the most on your phone? Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and most recently, Viu. I also have the app versions of both of my banks because I have a habit of checking how much I have on my accounts.

22 - Do you prefer cats or dogs? Do you own any of either? Dogs. Yup, I have two of them. I don’t dislike cats, but I preferably wouldn’t have one as a pet. I’ve never met a cat that didn’t hiss at me when I would try to come near.

23 - Do you have one of those fridges that has an ice-maker in the front? If not, would you find one useful? No, we have a manual ice tray in the freezer instead. We get by with it just fine, so an ice-maker would just be a luxury for the most part.

24 - Do you like wearing hats? What’s your favourite style? They’re not really a part of my everyday style.

25 - If you live in a household with pets, who is responsible for their care - both in terms of finance and the physical tasks involved? Depending on whoever spots the pee or poop first, my siblings and I are the ones mostly in charge of cleaning up after them. My parents handle their food and feeding them; and, most recently, I’ve been the one in charge of paying vet bills since I can afford to now.

26 - What’s your opinion on leggings as pants? I wouldn’t wear them specifically if I wanted to dress nicely; but I would honestly go for it still if I’m in the mood to dress more comfortably.

27 - Have you ever driven in bare feet or do you think that’s too dangerous? Oh my god yeah I have, once. There was one instance I was running super late for an interview for a journ assignment and I literally had to change my outfit while driving because I had no time to do it. I timed the whole thing and did my changing while I was at stoplights, but at one point it turned green while I was still barefoot so I had to drive with my bare feet for a while until I reached the next stoplight. The entire fucking thing was dangerous and I feel so stupid retelling this story now lmao.

28 - Have you ever walked out of a job before? What were the circumstances and did you ever go back? Nope, never felt the need to do this.

29 - Do you collect anything? Are these things worth money or are they practical/sentimental items? No, I don’t.

30 - Do you have anything hanging from your ceiling apart from lights? Nah. I can’t think of anything I’d want to have hanging.

#survey #surveys

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stephhannes · 6 years

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get better or cry trying

“grief is the terrible reminder of the depths of our love and, like love, grief is non-negotiable”

i started november off back in NYC, which is always a weird experience for me. i was so eager to leave back in may, but now, landing at laguardia feels like home. when nathan and i left new york, i always assumed it would just end up being a chapter in our story, just something to look back on when thinking about where we’ve been. i assumed that philly would end up feeling like home, and had we spent more time there, i’m sure it would have. but now with this transgression of events, new york is just where my heart is.

new york was always special to us, just because it was the first place that was ever ours. we had spent three months together in abilene, and about a month together in austin before we lived in new york together, but both of those places were riddled with history, of memories of a time before we were together. when nathan visited new york the spring break before he moved there, i was the first person he told that he had decided on columbia for grad school. so from the very beginning, it felt like ours. it was where we finally got to be together every day and where we learned how to compromise and where we respectively made some of our best friends and where we got engaged. and while nyc has its share of pitfalls, it’s where i lived my best life (even though it didn’t feel like it at the time).

so anyways, i went back to nyc for a week at the beginning of november and i was truly back on my bullshit. by “back on my bullshit” i mean i showed up to the theatre almost every night and instead of having to work i was able to just sit and chill during the show. i went to the crocodile lounge two times in one week which was a weird experience both times. the first night we watched some dude try to shoot his shot with a handful of girls, eventually get successful at it, and then blow his chances by getting real weird and kissing the back of the girl’s kneecaps? men are weird and i don’t trust them. the second night we watched some dude sleep for like 30 minutes in a booth and then PLOT TWIST it turns out, he works there. we went to the cauldron which is one of those trendy things i kept seeing on facebook. you show up at a place, dress in a hogwarts robe, get a wand and get to magically brew some drinks. what they don’t tell you though is that the drinks are absolutely disgusting and taste like soap. the experience was fun but oh my god if i ever smell lavender again i’m going to puke. after that, i was drunk and we all went to another bar, where i started crying in the club. for some reason, when i hit a certain level of drunk i always start crying, and then i man up and get over it and rally for the rest of the night. but for that brief moment, it’s always real awkward for everyone around me. oops.

important life update: while i was in nyc i finally did something that was long overdue. like two years overdue. so here’s the thing: i only own 3 pairs of shoes. a pair of sneakers, a pair of sandals and a pair of black suede ankle boots. i wore those ankle boots through a nyc winter and i regretted every day that i did it because not only is faux suede not snow-proof, the boots also had holes in the soles. i FINALLY bought new boots. and i invested in a pair of docs because honestly after this year i deserve it. i’ve never spent more than 40 dollars on shoes before but they’re beautiful and have 100% less holes in them than my old boots.

most importantly, when i was in nyc, i had this brief moment of clarity. i remember having this period of time where i almost felt hopeful. i finally felt like i needed to get my life together and maybe move out of my mom’s house and try to be a normal human again.

grief is weird because some days i feel like a functioning human, like i’m back to myself. i briefly thought that i was actually starting to recover, but as of late, i’ve been having a really bad time, honestly. for the last two weeks or so, i’ve been constantly exhausted. i’ve been incredibly quick to start crying. i’ve started getting that foggy feeling again. i walk into rooms and forget why i was there, and i trail off in the middle of sentences because i forgot what point i was trying to make. the other day i drove to austin and it felt like i blacked out for the 3.5 hour drive because when i arrived i didn’t remember any part of the drive. i’m easily irritated. i’ve started having nightmares again. the thought of leaving my house makes me anxious. i can’t focus on anything anymore.

all of this hit me hard on thanksgiving. i didn’t want to go to thanksgiving dinner with the entire family, but i did it anyways because my mother would have been sad if i didn’t go and i’m too nice so i sucked it up and went. i showed up, said hello to everyone, and then sat at the table and didn’t talk for the next two hours. partly because i couldn’t focus on anything long enough to hold a conversation but also because no one in my family ever really talks to me at these things so whatever, it’s nothing new.

it doesn’t really feel like it, but i guess technically, i survived my first holiday without nathan.

the very last thing i accomplished in november is that i dyed my hair back to black. i’ve spent the last three months experimenting with fashion colors, but i started to get overwhelmed with upkeep so i just went ahead and went back to my natural hair color. it feels weird. i originally went blonde two weeks before nathan died. i bleached all of my hair, and cut a decent amount of it off. i did this because i wanted to both a) grow out my hair and b) be blonde for the wedding, and by starting the process back in july, it would ensure that my hair wouldn’t look like straw by the time the wedding rolled around. when i first cut off a bunch of my hair, along with the first stages of the bleaching process, nathan kept telling me i looked like he-man. which was true. i kept obsessing over my haircut for like three days, continually taking off more and more hair trying to get it perfect (why don’t i ever just go to a salon and get my hair cut??? i know that i’m poor and can’t afford it but oh my god my life would have been a million times easier). i was getting so obsessed with it that nathan literally just hid all of the scissors in the house because he was Done with watching me stress about it, and finally i just ended up with my he-man hairdo. but that was fine because i planned on growing it out. anyways, after nathan died, before going back to black i decided to mess around with some color again, like i used to in college. and it was fun for awhile, but now i genuinely just don’t have the energy to touch up the color every week, and bleach my roots every month. so i went back to black. and for the first time, i really realized that we aren’t going to get married anymore. i felt it a little bit back in august when we were cleaning out our apartment and i threw away the calendar that i had been taking planning notes on for reference:

and i felt it a little on the day that i realized i couldn’t take seeing wedding stuff in my email anymore so i unsubscribed from all the websites i was using for inspiration, and i deleted my pinterest and i un-bookmarked all of the wedding dresses i was considering. but for some reason, dyeing my hair, i’ve felt it the most.

on another note, last night i actually cooked for the first time since nathan’s died. i’ve been eating like a garbage can for the last three months so i’m trying to get back on my chicken and rice bullshit and it felt so weird going through those motions again. the last time i cooked chicken was the day that nathan died and this is such a bizarre thing to have thrown me into a sadness spiral, but here we are anyways.

along these same lines of “progress,” the other day, i finally stopped sleeping on “my side” of the bed. when i lived alone and had a bed bigger than a twin, i would sleep next to my laptop, phone, and a water bottle. after nathan died, i kept to “my side” of the bed, i would put my laptop on the floor next to me, water bottle and phone on my nightstand, and left the left side of my bed empty. i even had a pillow and extra blanket on that side. the other day, i finally moved all of my pillows into the middle of the bed. i fell asleep with my laptop next to me. i usually wake up curled in a ball, back on “my side.”

the other day, i remembered a paragraph from a letter i had sent nathan after he came to visit me during his first year at columbia when i still lived in austin-

“It was really great to get to see you again because being apart for so long, I had kind of forgotten what it was like to actually be together. I had forgotten how much I love to spend time with you. I had forgotten how annoyed I get whenever you do that thing where you say the same thing as me before I even say it. I had forgotten how much fun I have when we’re together.”

you don’t realize how much you forget about someone when they’re not with you 24/7. when we lived apart, we made things work, but i didn’t realize how different it was to not be right with him until we were face to face again. when we were apart, i’d forget about the little facial expressions he’d make when i’d start to tell a story he’d heard 100 times before. i’d forget about the way he was constantly putting on chapstick. i’d forget about the terrible sound his ankles made every time he cracked them. but we still talked on the phone every day, so i remembered his speech patterns, and his laugh.

but now i’m realizing that i can’t remember what his laugh sounded like. i can’t remember what exactly his voice sounded like. that’s always the first thing you forget. i lost the phone that i had during our year apart, so if he had left me any voicemails, i don’t have them anymore. i don’t have any videos of him. i still remember how he smelled, and every time i put on chapstick i remember him. i still use the same shampoo, body wash and moisturizer that we used, so every time i shower, i remember him. i still remember what he felt like. the other day when i was drunk and sad, i sent nathan a text that said “i’ve been having a hard time because i feel like i’m forgetting everything about you. but i still remember how it felt to touch your face. and how it felt to have your head on my chest. and how it felt to run my hands through your hair. i still remember how i felt every time you kissed me. and what it was like to lay my head on your chest. i wish that when i woke up sad in the night, you were there to hold me closer to you. i still remember how it feels to have your arms around me. i love you. i miss you so much baby.”

at least i still have that that i remember.

i’m still not doing great, but at least now when i wake up, my immediate first thought isn’t “i hope i get hit by a car today.”

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