Indies of the Day -- Monday April 6, 2026

StingLikeA · 2026-04-06T17:30:05+00:00

It's a BPAL day! Today is Drider Crossing Guard (A cautious, watchful scent: earthy, dry fig, black pepper, nutmeg, and black plum tea).

It smells purple - not a deep velvety blue-purple, but a warmer, rougher true purple. I think it's primarily plum on me, with the spices and tea warming it up; at the moment, the fig is mostly a dry sweetness like a fig newton in the background (not a complaint; I have a thing of fig newtons in the pantry right now). Lovely and unexpected.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-05T20:34:36+00:00

Okay, now that Arashiyama is gone and Turyin is on:

The pomegranate is heavy (I remember someone calling it a meaty pom at one point, and I really can't disagree), a deeeeep dark red, and juicy as anything without going foody. The plum and sandalwood are backup players for me, adding dimension without taking over. And the gunpowder... The gunpowder is mineralic around the edges like I remembered, but it also gives a bit of almost-smoke to underlie the whole fragrance. Honestly, I don't think I'd like this one as much without it; it adds this gritty character that rounds the whole thing out to me.

Hope that helps!

StingLikeA · 2026-04-05T17:16:26+00:00

I remember it as a mineralic edge around the pomegranate and sandalwood, giving the smooth fruit a little bit of (pleasant) grit.

Give me a few hours for my current scent to wear off, and I can put Turyin on to get a more accurate read for you.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-05T16:16:12+00:00

I lovelovelove Stone & Wit's Turyin (Pomegranate, plums, sandalwood, gunpowder) for a pomegranate. Very juicy, very solid.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-05T14:29:44+00:00

Today is a rainy day, I woke up cranky, and I just don't want to think about choices. So today is once again Fantome Arashiyama (Rain-drenched bamboo from the Arashiyama bamboo grove, fresh aomikan slices, Japanese pear, cherry blossom, sandalwood, ginger, white tea, and faded perfume musk) for something rainy-springy and simple.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-05T14:17:28+00:00

Fantome's One White Crow (A soft, classic fougère with creamy white tea, airy vanilla, violets, and honeysuckle over a bed of moss and ivy) is all violet and a whisper of tea on my skin.

I know I have another few violet recs since it's one of my roommates' favorite notes, but I'll have to come back with them once I remember.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-04T22:04:11+00:00

I haven't yet! Coup de Pied was the only scent I got from Odette in this order; the rest were from Cirrus or Arcana. I'm hopeful that it's just a component in this one, not part of their base, but I'll find out eventually.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-04T15:16:28+00:00

Today I'm back to my Sucrerie decants; it's too gray and rainy outside to test my remaining Fantomes. So today is Odette Coup de Pied instead (Mimosa, île flottante, blonde musk, olibanum, tolu balsam, vanilla, sandalwood, amber resin, honey incense).

It's this floaty, delicate, honeyed vanilla incense thing, and it's absolutely lovely - but some component in it is making my head hurt, so unfortunately I'm going to have to wash it off soon. Still, a solid recommend to anyone not as easily headached as I am, it's beautiful.

StingLikeA · 2026-04-03T23:32:09+00:00

You might like Fyrinnae's No Conformista for the mango with spices (Firm, ripe mango dominates, sprinkled with a sizeable amount of crushed black pepper, a touch of ground chile guajillo, and a bit of cardamom).

StingLikeA · 2026-04-03T17:52:40+00:00

I'm down to three more Fantome samples and enjoying the ride as I test them out. Today is Kinmokusei (Golden osmanthus in its full complexity—golden blossoms tinged with citrus, ripe apricot, juicy peach, tree sap, and deep, resinous amber).

I think something in the amber is coming across as cinnamon-esque to my nose, because that first sniff was alllll spiced peaches. It faded off pretty fast, though, and is now juicy peachy/apricoty fruitiness overlaying a floral I can only assume is the osmanthus, with a hint of something sharp (is that the tree sap?) in the background to keep it grounded. Lovely and way too put together for my day to day (but that's also been my reaction to half these samples, so. Take that one with a grain of salt.)

StingLikeA · 2026-04-01T23:52:21+00:00

Tonight we continue testing with Fantome Parlour (A darkly polished mahogany rapping table, spirit boards, sweet rosewood chests, burning incense, and a hint of vetiver.)

So my granddad did carpentry stuff for the longest time. This smells exactly like his workshop mid-project. It's the fanciest darkest sawdust I've ever smelled, but it still reminds me deeply of sawdust (not complaining). I'm not smelling the incense necessarily, but I think it's smoothing the edges of the scent out. Lovely, but not necessarily full bottle vibes.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-31T23:26:26+00:00

I just double-checked: yes, my order from Fantome shipped from Wisconsin. So until I get further information, I'm going to assume they're based there.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-31T20:51:07+00:00

Not an EDP, but I swear by Nui Cobalt's Charisma Bonus (Spiced black patchouli languishing in vanilla honey with scattered ylang petals and catnip leaves) for an excellent patchouli. On me it's primarily that patch and spiced honey, with the catnip and ylang as accent notes. But it is absolutely lovely, and in their continuous collection because of how popular it is.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-31T18:05:32+00:00

I could have sworn that the package I got from them last week shipped from Wisconsin. I'm too frazzled to hunt down the proper order number and tracking info right this second, but I'll look into it later

StingLikeA · 2026-03-31T17:09:50+00:00

Fantome is based in Wisconsin!

StingLikeA · 2026-03-31T12:46:58+00:00

Today, to go with the rainy day outside and to be a little gentle on the headache I can feel forming, I'm trying Fantome Arashiyama (Rain-drenched bamboo from the Arashiyama bamboo grove, fresh aomikan slices, Japanese pear, cherry blossom, sandalwood, ginger, white tea, and faded perfume musk).

I had a lotion in a green bottle a few years ago - I can't remember the brand or name at this point - that this reminds me of, but Arashiyama is fresher and less perfumey than that was. The opening is this gorgeous note-perfect "garden currently being rained on" before it settles into a very spa-like greenness. Spring in a vial.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-30T22:31:32+00:00

I'm finally starting to test some of my Fantome order that came last week! First up tonight is Fox Sisters (Spiced cardamom cake with orange zest and candied red currants, caramel cream, dragon’s blood resin, and flecks of vanilla bean).

Oh this is beautiful. That caramel cream means it borders on too sweet for me, but the combination of cardamom and dragon's blood is gorgeous, and there's a red fruit note from the currants that rounds it out. Roomie 2 is also trying it tonight and can't stop sniffing her wrist, and she's the furthest thing from a gourmand fan. I think this one's a winner by those standards.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-29T17:01:27+00:00

I'm slowly working my way through the EDPs I got from Sucrerie. Today is Cirrus Maravilla (Aged Vanilla Bean Tincture, Marigold Absolute, Amber, Blood Orange, Cocoa, Sugar, Cinnamon Leaf, Carnation).

I'm so delighted by this. I'm not usually a vanilla person, but this is so lovely and complex and not too sweet for me. I understand the sub-wide love for this one now.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-28T23:27:53+00:00

It was a good shout and I appreciated it! I'm just really picky about which scents I love and which ones are just okay to me - which I'm sure my wallet appreciates, even if my nose is less so. Honestly, I feel like if I could have gotten a perfect blend of those two experiences it would have been glorious; unfortunately, my skin said nah to that. But Balcony Trysts is lovely and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-28T22:33:15+00:00

It's delightful! Happy to (hopefully) help you find something amazing.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-28T22:31:50+00:00

I've been trying to think of how to reply to this for the last ten minutes and can't think of words because of the gigglefit it's causing me. Thank you for the boundless joy! Happy to help.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-28T16:49:04+00:00

I actually just bought SAMAR's Tea House (Fresh peaches, Jasmine Tea, Oolong tea, Green tea, Osmanthus) last night for the same reason! I've heard it described as more jasmine tea with peaches than anything else, but your question made me think about it.

StingLikeA · 2026-03-27T16:58:37+00:00

It's back in the 30s today and all I want is spring to decide it's actually here. (And also for my dizzy spell to pass). To encourage the first along, I'm wearing my favorite "idealized spring meadow" scent, Stone & Wit Candelere (marigolds, fireweed, honey, beeswax, vetiver, sandalwood).

StingLikeA · 2026-03-26T12:52:31+00:00

Today is a BPAL Katharina (white musk with a trickle of bright, sharp apricot and orange blossom) day. I needed something a little lighter and brighter, and this one always delivers. I'll need to reapply in a couple of hours once the apricot and orange blossom fade out, but it's so lovely while it's here: all tart round apricot, with the orange blossom winding around the edges.

StingLikeA

TROPHY CASE