I love BB's Tobacco and Bay Leaf, one of my very favorite fragrances. But at $50 for 15 oz (what is up with shorting that last ounce?), it really has gotten too rich for my blood, at least in soap. Anyone tried any other suppliers versions that come close? TIA for any suggestions
Substitute for Brambleberry Tobacco Bay FO?
- Thread starter not_ally
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Saponificarian
Well-Known Member
The Flaming Candle’s is close enough. I bought a 7lbs bottle a few years ago but that was before all the reformulations.
Thank you, S! ETA: ETA: just checked their site, I love that they have a search feature on their reviews so you can look for soap reviews, saves so much time with chandler sites. Any other FOs you like from there?
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Saponificarian
Well-Known Member
I like their Eucalyptus, Pink Sands, and Olive Branch. Their Cocoa Butter Cashmere is too citrusy for me but it sticks. BB is the original owner of Cocoa butter Cashmere and nobody compares to theirs, however, TFC’s will do if you don’t mind the citrus top note.
Thank you, all those look good! It is so helpful to get recommendations on FOs that stick - it takes so much time/energy/money to buy sample FO's, test them, wait them out, etc. So personal recommendations from longtime posters really helps and are very much appreciated.
"...(what is up with shorting that last ounce?)..."
I haven't tried the new formulation of BB's Tobacco & Bay Leaf, so no help with a dupe. But regarding your question about the missing ounce, I read that the density of FOs can vary a lot. Since the the bottles don't change, and the FOs are sold by weight, a lighter (less dense) oil will take less weight to fill the same 16 oz. (or 4 oz, or whatever) bottle. (There was also something about needing a certain amount of headspace in the bottle for safe shipping, but I'm not finding my source, alas, so can't quote it directly
.) Check out BB's latest Winter Escape FO collection of 4 FOs: 3 of the fragrances are a full 2 oz., but one is only 1.75 oz., even though the bottles are all the same size. And it's the same for any vendor selling FOs by weight, not just BB; compare Franc Encens from the Scent Memory website versus Berry Compote, for instance.
[P.S. sorry for the long and rambling answer — ha ha, it's obvious I'm not one of the forum chemists but do find all this stuff interesting!]
I haven't tried the new formulation of BB's Tobacco & Bay Leaf, so no help with a dupe. But regarding your question about the missing ounce, I read that the density of FOs can vary a lot. Since the the bottles don't change, and the FOs are sold by weight, a lighter (less dense) oil will take less weight to fill the same 16 oz. (or 4 oz, or whatever) bottle. (There was also something about needing a certain amount of headspace in the bottle for safe shipping, but I'm not finding my source, alas, so can't quote it directly
.) Check out BB's latest Winter Escape FO collection of 4 FOs: 3 of the fragrances are a full 2 oz., but one is only 1.75 oz., even though the bottles are all the same size. And it's the same for any vendor selling FOs by weight, not just BB; compare Franc Encens from the Scent Memory website versus Berry Compote, for instance.[P.S. sorry for the long and rambling answer — ha ha, it's obvious I'm not one of the forum chemists but do find all this stuff interesting!]
