Hey everyone!

A little over two weeks ago I got my bottle of L2K - two days before going on holiday. I was really happy about it because I desperately wanted to try out Chris's new puppy in a relaxed setting. So I didn't touch the bottle until I was gone.

Very much to my disappointment, I didn't get much testing of L2K done. I only tried it two or three times. Somehow, I just can't stand the smell. This is not a bad perfume (please don't be insulted, Chris), but to me it is overpoweringly sweet. (Too) Sweet smells make me nauseous. I could puke if I get into a car where someone though a vanilla air "freshener" was a good idea. Leather and Steel isn't that bad but after a short time, the musk is omnipresent and overpowers just about everthing else. If it's warm, the scent feels "sticky" and heavy.

I can take a sweet note if there are other notes that change the character. The Black Spice has a sweet part to it but it is also fresh and fruity - I really like it. A few woods and/or spices that make a scent sweet and warm are ok too.

Basicly, Leather and Steel doesn't hit the spot with me. Others will probably love it but I have a very accute nose and am really nutty about smells. I have another order coming in from Chris (I am actually giving away Glace as a present) and I hope I get the two samples I asked for so I know all the scents that Alpha-Dream has to offer. I'll let you know what I think about them.

Appreciate this! The more you can speak to the different scents the better. If leather and steel is sweet and black spice fruity would you then say they are more of a summer scent? Whats your take on daytime use vs nighttime use.

(09-10-2012 3:54 AM)TwistedOstrich Wrote:  Appreciate this! The more you can speak to the different scents the better. If leather and steel is sweet and black spice fruity would you then say they are more of a summer scent? Whats your take on daytime use vs nighttime use.

Different noses, different gathering, differing receptors. I had a completely different scent pattern to both of the scents. River, this isn't to debunk your thread or to show you up, just showing you a different side of things. A different perspective.

Leather and Steel

Something about this scent just brings me close to it, I'm a fan of this scent, and when girls can smell it, they seem to enjoy it. From my journal: It's a little sweet, but has a hint of spiciness in it for me. Smells amazing. I think I can get hints of leather in it, but not overpoweringly so. A soft baby powder like smell stays close to the skin after a while, but the scent on this one lasted a good 4-5 hours on me, to say the least. Afterwards the baby powder scent was present, and by hour 6, I could easily smell the mones on me. Compared to most colognes, its about average longevity. I'm not quite sure about projection, as no one I was with really jumped in to tell me they liked what I was wearing, but while I was in the car, a good 3.5 sprays of L2K kept me smelling myself. I thought that because of this, sillage was high. To be honest, it got a little overpowering at 3.5 sprays, in a closed car, but not in a bad way. The spiciness kind of "cuts" through the air so to speak, exactly like a steel blade, so I can kind of see where this scent got its name. A prior application of this, I asked my female friend what she thought, and she liked the scent, kept asking me what it was. So it's definitely good, may not project as far as I think. Sweet, fresh, hint of spice that cuts through the air, definitely noticable and different. Gives way to a baby powder scent after a little while that hugs the skin. Good for daytime, better for evening and night. Could see this worn in the fall and winter, although it does remind me of a nice night out in the summer.

Black Spice

This is a more "manly smell". The spices are very controlled, and almost rightfully and pleasantly so. I have this with the AM, and I must say that this is quite an addicting scent. Recently I wore it, and kind of had to keep wearing it for like 2-3 days, just because (partially) I kind of NEEDED to smell it. Black spice, how to describe it.. hmm.. don't think its fruit for me, its more peppery, definitely warming. It's sweet as well, but not sweet like leather and steel. The spice in it is more balanced, and kind of just lingers, attracting attention. I haven't received compliments, or notice on this scent, but then again that's not what I was looking for. Definitely woody, and warm, better suited for fall/winter, but it's perfect for summer evening and night wear too. This scent kind of brings "sophistication" to the table. Sophisticated and classy.

(09-10-2012 8:10 AM)bored4life Wrote:  Different noses, different gathering, differing receptors. I had a completely different scent pattern to both of the scents. River, this isn't to debunk your thread or to show you up, just showing you a different side of things. A different perspective.

I don't feel in the least bit debunked, dissed or anything! Scents are very subjecttiv. Tastes change with age and there is probably even a significant regional difference for some reason or another. Adding to that is the fact that a scent smells and seems different on different people.

I seem to have a very unique nose - possibly because of my bad eyes. I can come into a room and at once identify the perfume a person in that room is wearing. I kinda freaked out one of the two women in a local copy shop when I came in and said something like "Oh, Sun and Cashmere! What an interesting combination." Sometimes it's better to keep that big mouth shut. I often told my mother to watch her roast when she was cooking on the ground floor and I just came out of the shower on the 1st floor.

Scents are not just collections of single smells, although I can often tell the contents. They are complete constructions to me and I tend to take those few steps back to see the whole picture. While I know the scructure is made of bricks and wood, it's far more important to me how they work and look together. To me it not only makes a difference how many bricks were used but also how they are stuck together. A pile is different than a wall. Not sure if this makes sense when I am talking about a smell. It's just that language doesn't give me much to work with.

It's a matter of taste in any case, not matter how you percieve a scent. I have never liked really sweet perfumes and I don't really like musk unless it is really well buffered.

Maybe we can agree that Leather and Steel is sweet at it's core while Black Spice is more balanced and far more classic.

BTW. Can you say anything about the other scents from Alpha Dream?

The one thing I want to test the most between the two scents is there effectiveness. I personally can't smell the scents so its my only real objective way of judging.

Now I don't have any black spice to try just yet but I have been with 3 women using the leather and steel and each just love sniffing me.

I think it defiantly comes down to a time and place sort of situation coupled with personal preferences. I could imagine too an ex gf of mine would just molest me with something like this on. She would love sweet or exotic smells. But then I could see something 'classy' would have its purposes...

(09-18-2012 1:26 PM)Riverwind Wrote:  BTW. Can you say anything about the other scents from Alpha Dream?

Unfortunately I can't say much at all because those are the only two scent packages I have from them. Everything else from them is unscented.