Rose Blackthorn

Mara, these labels are too awesome! ,I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite. I so wish that I could be at the party! I have cat ears! I would happily wear them! I love the Vampire Raspberry Musk bubble bath! I just know that it smells delicious. I take mostly showers and have most of the linen tower space monopolized by my soap, shower gels, body creams, lotions and powders or I would definitely order one! I am madly anticipating the notes for these!

Ohhh...sounds SO nice! But alas, I have very negative associates with sandalwood dominant perfumes on me. Not incense, just perfumes.

So I did get this one and gave it a try. I did not get the crazy medicinal lavender that others have gotten. It was nice and well behaved on my skin and played really nicely with the blackberry. It was nicely mellowed by the vanilla. I only caught a faint hint O' honey. This was all fine and at first, I thought it might make a nice sleepy time potion, but there is a note in this which haunts me and is very strange on my skin. It tends to come out a bit later. I can not, for the life of me, detect what it is! I am going to let this one age a bit and see if that helps. My verdict is a thumbs up..until that strange mystery note chimes in. It's all quite nice until then.

Wow, rain_dancer! Way to put an A-Hole in their place! To be perfectly honest, I have not paid much attention to the effects of Gotcha on me, but after reading about your experience, I am going to be VERY aware! Good on you!

Glad to hear, CK!

Given what you need it for and what you have to work withI would go with LFN. In the future, you might want to add Popularity Potion and just LFM. And how about Star Power? Of course, attitude is everything as I'm sure you know. I used to go out with a friend to do Karaoke and she would tell me, "You always seem so calm on stage. You act like you just don't care." I laughed and confided, "It's not an act."

I received a package of wonderfulness the other day. Thank you so much Mara! I love all of the goodness of LPMP magick!

LOL @ you Equinox! I know I did it big time! I saw all of the precious and the words of Cocteau possessed me, telling me, "there is nothing left to do but to submit." And submit, I did! My budget is going to be angry at me for some time I suspect.

Cheezy and Vlad, if you want the benefits of EOW but the cops are just too much, Mara offers something called Sheer Essence to specifically address this problem. November will be here before you know it, so maybe you would want to experiment? I love PheroGirl and honey. Once the initial intensity of the cops dry down and settle in, I don't really have a problem with ny of them. I often use Phero Girl either on its own, or as a base for other perfumes. A little goes a very long way!

Yes, I am being utterly redundant, but I will say it anyway and add a pretty please with a blackberry on top. NOX!

Best of luck to you CK. And all of us. I am feeling the Turn of The Wheel very strongly this year and combined with Mercury Retrograde, am having a difficult time staying "light." I'm a Capricorn though, so this can always be a challenge. We can all only do our best.

I have gotten both of my packages and couldn't be happier with everything. And yes, thank you so much for the very generous sale. Just one of so many kindnesses that you extend to all of us here. You don't have to do these things, but you do and that is what makes it so special. And no.. IMO, there really is no end to your wonderfulness! xo

Rose, your comments are always so... complete! And thoughtful and sensitive. Life goals. Haha! Too bad I'm too brash for it.

 

I third the therapy comment. Screw the stigmas! It helps and even if he is not suicidal, it sounds like he might benefit from therapy, or maybe couples therapy or something would help. Shit, I want to go to therapy too! Haha!

Thanks belle-ville!

I'm thinking you really should try out a couple spell oils. Serenity Potion, maybe even Peaceful Home for when he's around. Those things are nothing to sneeze at! They work better, IMHO, than pheros do. I dunno, I guess I'm sorta of the mind where if someone's brain chemistry is a little off base, why mess with it more? But I know folks love they're pheros! Just a thought.

Also, maybe gently let him know that you can be in treatment without taking medicine. I have a pretty awful anxiety issue, and my counselor actually comes right to my house once a week. It really helps to talk to him! Sometimes having an unbiased stranger as a sounding board goes a long ways. I've been offered antidepressants, but declined. No one can make him be medicated unless he wants to be. And I only said 'suicidal' because of the comment "I'm going to go away too". That sounds a little serious to me.

Good luck to you, whatever you decide, and again, big welcome to our home!

Agreed!

Cheeseburger, I totally hear you on the brain chemistry thing. His lows are only during our solo time together, when I visit him. ( he is battling all the time, what I mean is that in terms of "us", I'm the only one who witnesses the obvious days of struggle, he is pretty guarded publicly ) The three of us are rather tied up professionally so it's rare that we are all in the same place. I know the BF is lonely quite a bit since the two of us travel extensively for work. Actually we all get lonely at times, but it hits him hardest.

 

He refuses to be medicated, I don't blame him or find fault with that, I simply try to be as understanding and supportive as I can. I hadn't realized when typing that "I'm going to go away too" could have been read differently. His meaning was that "I" (CK) will go away too, abandonment issues. Sorry for the confusion.

 

Our time is somewhat limited together, I try to spend a few days to a week with him every 4-8 weeks. It's hard, sometimes we are on opposite sides of the country. I want nothing more than for him to be happy and overcome his depression but I know it's something he has to work through. As far as pheros, I was looking for options that may help keep the mood a little more bright and relaxed when those bad days surface. It's a vicious cycle, he gets upset and depressed for being depressed around me.

 

Thanks so much for the insight and response. I feel for anyone who battles with anxiety and depression or cares for someone who is suffering. It can certainly weed out a garden of "friends".

I misunderstood, CK. I thought that the three of you were living as a triad. Didn't realize he was living on his own. Could this be part of it I wonder? If so, do you and your husband have room ( on all levels, that is) to have him live with the two of you? I know that the people I have known who live a polyamorous lifestyle all seem to have different ways of approaching it. Like any relationship, there really is no one size fits all depending on the variables. I'm with you on the depression and anxiety and feeling for people. Like you, I am empathetic to a flaw. But I prefer that to just not caring. As for a phero, halo, do men respond to Levitation well?

For you experienced mixology vets....can this handle a added shot of EoW or will the stank factor sour it too much?

Hey there Lovestruck! If you are adding your own, I think it can handle it just fine if you go lightly, a little at a time. If you are letting Mara do it for you, no worries at all! To me, it should easily be able to cover it up.

So, I finally got to try this and it just smells so delicious! Not at all sheer on me, much more opaque, in a scent sense. In the bottle, it is VANILLA all the way. Upon applying on my skin, it is still very vanilla, but I also get the butter/cream/egg quite strongly too. On me, it is a lot of sugar and a little spice. My skin sort of morphed it into an almost nutmeg and cardamon scent. Didn't really pick up the ginger notes at all. I was very hesitant about getting this one because of the maple which is not a win for me, but as Cheezy pointed out, I hardly know it's there. it just sort of blends in with the rest of the sugary yumminess. It is delectably creamy and sweet. After wearing for about an hour, I begin to get the caramelized sugar. It IS quite reminiscent of the creme brulee listed in the notes, and as such, is very custardy. It also reminds me of the way I sometimes make French Toast. Eggs, a little half and half, sugar, a little vanilla extract and a bit of nutmeg and into the pan with real butter. That is where the smell of caramelized / torched sugar comes in. I am thinking now that my French Toast could very much benefit from a bit of cardamon as well! This throws really well and it has surprising staying power for something with no resins in it. My partner had a headache when I wore this and he did say that he found it a a bit too sweet. He also admitted that it could have been because he just wasn't feeling well. I do agree that this is very sweet and rich, but I love it. I also agree with luna's assessment of this being a very nice perfume for Fall/Winter. Happy I went FB on this and even ordered a backup bottle. Bottom line, if vanilla foody scents are your thing, then I highly recommend this one. Quite nice, Mara!

Hi Cycle Kitten. I suffer from extreme clinical anxiety. I have used Balm Bomb with success if I hit it *before* the anxiety levels become too intense. I can not attest to how it works for men however. B 2 is a heavier hitter. I am feeling some of the concern that Cheeseburger has expressed. When it comes to depression, one can never be sure how much another person is suffering , no matter how close you are to them. Could it be that it's time to sit down and try to speak openly with him about your concerns? Is your husband aware of your BF's anxiety/depression issues? If you were to decide to approach the subject, do you feel that he would be more receptive to opening up if it were just the two of you talking, or would it maybe put him more at ease to have your husband present as well? I think if I were in your position, these are things I would be asking myself. I pass no judgement at all on people who have found happiness in polyamorous relationships. I think what is concerning me, is the strict, old fashioned upbringing that you mentioned in that perhaps it is he who is carrying around some sort of guilt and judging himself. I think for many people, some of whom I am close friends with, polyamory can work quite well when all people involved are completely comfortable with the lifestyle and feel secure. It's only my opinion, but I think I would try approaching the situation by talking openly before taking the phero route. Of course, it could perhaps assist in dealing with having "the talk." For that, I am thinking maybe, Open Windows, Empathy Potion, and if anyone can suggest a calming phero that could be helpful to both genders, I would think you might do well to consider those as well. I'm sorry. It's very painful when someone you love is suffering and of course you will end up feeling it as well. I really wish all of you luck with this. I hope you will post updates.

Great advice Stacyk. I recently sold my TH, but with November coming, I can always get a little bottle to experiment with. They were just such intense reactions..I was wary to try again. I am laughing because it turned ME into the older bitchy female! I am older,I am female, but I try to only be a bitch when I need to be. Not that I would hesitate to go there. As far as my cycle influencing its effects, I am post menopausal, so I don't think that this is part of the picture. I do love EST, B2, and have recently fallen in love with Teddy BB. No idea why I waited so long to try it! But you might be right. I can see where the EST would take the edge off, or perhaps a mad scientist blend is needed. Pheros are awesome, but given that our personal biological and psychological makeup is so unique, our reactions are bound to be unpredictable. Ah well..experimentation fascinates me!

I have a trial vial that I think I need to put to use. The dark half of the year is nearly here, I have some sadness in my heart over various things, and dammit, I could use some of this. Don't know if I have ever mentioned it, but most of my closet friends have been, and are men. This has always been mostly true. Women seem to mistrust me, which offends me since I have a very strong sense of honor and am not at all competitive. It has taken many years, but now this is fine. I understand that this is not my problem, but theirs. I am sad that I have missed out on so much of the sisterhood that many women enjoy, but I am ok with it, but it has conditioned me to feel that when I feel the need for this sort of comfort, that I am being a wuss. I don't feel that OTHER women are when they need such reassurance, but when it comes to myself, I am a bit less forgiving to say the least. I suppose this comes from having so many male friends. Whatever.. I need this.

I had to order a bottle of this. I don't mind waiting a little for the awesomeness to bloom. Lavender? Berries? Vanilla? I'm in!

Thanks StacyK. I think I have a trial or sniffy of that somewhere. I will have to try it if so. But it's not just about the scent. I really feel that Nox has a really unique and special protective energy to it that I love. It's VERY magickal to me.

I am really not certain how many versions of Nox Mara brewed, but I *think* it was two. There was an original and then a rebrew in 2009 as far as I know, but I am fairly sure that the wax melt w/ Teddy BB that I used recently and reawakened my love for this was from a batch of wax melts I bought last year. I would LOVE a rebrew that resembled the scent of those melts , or more of the wax melts! ANYTHING Nox. It was just gorgeous! Very vanilla and blackberry forward, but the resins/ amber were in there too. I have two left that I am saving! And pairing it with Tedddy BB was sheer genius!

I got package one yesterday and it felt like a magickal, special holiday. Mara, I can't tell you what a high point it is for me to receive my LPMP orders. It's like opening a box of beautiful, loving energy! And thank you *so* much for the very thoughtfully chosen extras. That made me feel so special! xo

With the dark half of the year a approaching, I am really hoping that Mara will consider doing a review of Nox! I love, love, love the scent of it, but beyond that, I have found it to be an incredibly effective protection potion! Wonderful!

LOL! I love it! Heavenly Heathens!

I'm sorry Raq, but...LMAO!!!

Just wanted to add, not every woman exudes the stereotypical air femininity. Nothing against it, but not every woman is a girly girl type, yet they have their own unique inimitable style of personal femininity and to many, THAT is the attraction and the sexiness. It seems natural to me that you would feel less confident when you feel that you have to fake it, Maiea. It's always more comfortable when you feel that you can be yourself. Otherwise, the air people give off can just seem...contrived? And that is definitely not sexy.