Pumpkin with white chocolate, caramel, pomegranate, and cream.
Reviewed: 07/08/2008
In the imp: Caramel, then an undertone of something bitter that I can't identify but makes me wrinkle my nose.
Wet: That bitter undertone I noticed in the imp rears its ugly head again, but smooths out pretty quickly as the caramel and cream take over.
Drydown: The caramel is gone, and that bitter note (which I'm assuming is the pomegranate, but it isn't like any of the other pomegranate notes I've tried from BPAL) hasn't come back. This has settled into a spiced cake with a hint of chocolate. I don't get actual pumpkin, but more like the spices you use for pumpkin pie. Not a huge throw. This would be wonderful in the fall, but it's a bit overwhelming for these hotter months.
Red musk, lemon peel, sugar cane, cassia, white sandalwood, mango, and agarwood.
This was the All-Cassia-Channel on my skin. I like cassia, so that didn't bother me, but I wish I could have gotten some other notes from it. I didn't get to give it a fair trial, though, because I started to get burning, itching welts after only a few minutes. I tested it on the back of my hand, which is one of my least reactive zones, so this is definitely a no-go for me.
A new year's blessing! Peony, China's national flower, with bamboo for flexibility, plum blossom for perseverance, courage, and hope, tangerine for wealth, lychee for strong family relationships and peace in the home, orange for happiness, pine resin for constancy, golden kumquat and quince for prosperity, narcissus and King mandarin for good fortune, coconut for longevity, and candied melon for good health, with a splash of blazing red of dragon's blood... to help you scare away the rampaging Nian.
Reviewed 03/08/2008
In the imp: This smells sharp, but not citrus sharp. It makes my nose twitch.
Wet: Why hello there melon! Wow, that's strong. I can't make out any of the other notes through the melon.
Drydown: None of the citrus notes came out for me, sadly. The melon calmed down a lot and blended with the other notes to create a beautiful fruity-floral scent with a hint of something sharp cutting through all sweetness. I'm glad I didn't amp the dragon's blood in this, because it doesn't do well on me. The throw is low, but it lasts a really long time even on my skin, which drinks up oils like a Hummer guzzles down gas. I'm not sure how often I will wear this, but I definitely want a bottle of this before it goes down.
Osmanthus, honey, golden musk, vanilla flower, and ginger.
Reviewed 03/20/2008
In the imp: I have no idea what I'm smelling, but it 'feels' golden. It doesn't smell particularly musky or floral or spicy or sweet.
Wet: Now there's floral notes. Something is making my nose twitch if I sniff too closely, maybe the ginger?
Drydown: I have such hit-or-miss luck with honey notes. Sometimes it's gorgeous, sometimes it turns into cat pee. Sadly, this is the latter kind. I really enjoyed this scent until about 45-60 minutes into the weartime, and then it turned bad. I probably won't be ordering a bottle of this before it comes down, but I'll hang onto my imp for use in my scent locket.
The perfect vanilla mint.
Reviewed 10/27/2007
This is so very different from other vanilla mint scents like Tokyo Stomp, Lick It, and Lick It Again. The only way I can describe this is as a WARM mint. It is utterly gorgeous and delicious the way the lab's mints always are, but it doesn't have that chilly cold feel that most of the mint scents do. Something in the combination of vanilla and butter in this blend make it feel like mint wrapped in a blanket in front of the fireplace, and I love it so much.
A nocturnal bounty of fae dew-kissed petals and pale fruits: white grape, white peach, iced pear, musk rose, sweet pea, moonflower and snapdragon.
Reviewed 07/05/2008
In the imp: Pear and sweet pea, fairly strong. More floral that fruity.
Wet: Grape juice, a hint of peach and floral. The floral notes take a back seat to the fruits.
Drydown: Refreshing, clean, girlish and innocent. This is very well-blended, no one note takes over although I can definitely smell sweet pea, which happens to be my birthflower. This is a very different pear than the Haunted House '07 scents; those turned into play-doh on my skin, while this stays sparkling and fresh. I see this becoming a favorite summer scent. Medium wear length and it clings close to the skin with little throw, so the sweetness doesn't become overpowering on hot, sticky days.
Sugar cane, blue musk, mahogany, black orchid, black currant, violet, blackberry leaf, teak, strawberry, and dusky rose.
In the bottle: Sugar, tart strawberry and currant, something herbal.
Wet: I get a boozy note mostly, and something under it that smells like...barbecue spices. It's not pleasant.
Drydown: This stays very dark and boozy. Whatever is giving me the barbecue impression sticks around too, with a hint of maple syrup added in. This is not good for me. One bottle will stay in the box to age and retest eventually, but one is definitely going to the swaplist.
Hony mone, a term proverbially applied to such as be newly married, which will not fall out at the first, but th'one loveth the other at the beginning excedingly, the likelyhood of their exceadinge love appearing to aswage, ye which time the vulgar people call the hony mone.
Three honeys blended with seven fruits, flowers, and herbs of passion, pleasure, and joy: honeysuckle, fig, carnation, apricot, jasmine, tonka, and almond.
Reviewed 12/19/2007
In the bottle, bright golden honey with an undertone of almond and just the faintest hint of flowers in the background. I put it on and BAM. Pretty much instantly it became cat pee. I waited a while, hoping it would change again, but the only morph I got was overripe, almost rotting floral. Oh skin chemistry, how I loathe thee! I love honey scents so I will save one bottle and see if I can age the pee out of it, but I think the extra bottle I got may be swapped out.
Smut! Smut! Smut! Three swarthy, smutty musks sweetened with sugar and woozy with dark booze notes.
Reviewed 07/05/2008
In the imp: MUSK!
Wet: Wait, where did it go?? There's nothing, literally no scent at all. Did my skin eat it in the 15 seconds it took me to swipe, cap the imp, and sniff? How *weird*.
Drydown: Powdery, faintly spicy musk, with absolutely no throw. What little I do get smells like it could be very sexy but it disappears the moment it touches my skin no matter how much I slather. I have to practically drown myself in it to get a whiff of anything at all, and used nearly 1/3 of the imp just to properly test it. This has the potential to be really wonderful, but my skin drinks it down faster than someone guzzling water in the desert.
Since 1928, Mother Shub and her brood have been providing the snack shacks of the Miskatonic Valley with a bevy of otherworldly sweets and baked treats. This year, Mother Shub has created a promotional perfume oil that embodies the scent of her famous Peanut Brittle Caramel Popcorn. Iä! Shub-Niggurath! Thank you for an eon of community support!
Reviewed 4/22/2008
In the bottle: Hot, dripping-with-butter popcorn.
Wet: Buttery popcorn, and a hint of sweetness coming out.
Drydown: The popcorn settles down and sweet caramel comes forward. I'm not getting anything peanut-y at all. The caramel note is amazingly real, and combined with the lingering butter it reminds me of fresh, homemade caramels being pressed into a buttered pan.
Fairly low throw, but decent wear length; I couldn't wait to get home and slathered some on right there in the post office after I picked up the package. That was about three hours ago, and it hasn't faded much at all despite the fact that my skin drinks oils for breakfast. I can't wait to try this in my scent locket tomorrow!
As sweet as death, as deep as the grave: pomegranate, raspberry, gardenia, plum, and rose with patchouli, black pepper, rose musk, and a hint of blood accord.
Originally reviewed 09/09/2007, revisited 11/02/2007
I tried this for the first time back in September, and got a strange Vicks Vap-o-rub scent from it. I decided to give it another try tonight, just to see if there was any reason for me to keep it sitting around in my BPAL box.
I'm still getting a strong Vicks scent from this. I can smell the berries swirling around under the surface, but whatever is going Vicks-ish on me is way too dominant. Unfortunately, it just does not fade away completely. With the exception of that one note, I love this blend...but that one note is so strong and lasting that I can't get past it.
The Moon of Ice shines its pale white light on snow-blanketed hills and barren fields. Icicles dangle from skeletal branches, and the desperate howl of starving men and beasts echo through the darkness.
Frost-crusted winter flowers, white pine, eucalyptus, and traditional lunar oils.
Reviewed 03/12/2008
In the bottle: I can't pinpoint what I'm smelling, but it smells like something I used to use to mop my floors. Very cleaning-fluidish.
Wet: This is so sharp and cold it almost hurts! I can definitely pinpoint the eucalyptus and something else herbal.
Drydown: After a few minutes this settles into something that reminds me of Jabberwocky. It's citrus, almost creamy, with a hint of flowers lingering in the background and a tang of eucalyptus giving it all an edge. It's got a light throw, but it lasts a long time. 12 hours and multiple hand-washings after I put this on I could still get whiffs of it if I lifted my hand to my nose.
I really didn't expect to like this, but I *really* do. I wish I'd gotten more than one bottle while it was up.
A lunatic's blend of lunar herbs and blossoms, with lemongrass, guava, pink grapefruit, banyan fruit, hibiscus, and cherry blossom.
Reviewed 03/08/2008
In the bottle: Creamy fruits.
Wet: Heavy on the guava and the grapefruit. It's very crisp and clear.
Drydown: The longer this sits on my skin the more the floral notes come out. The florals come forward and ground the fruit, while the fruits keep this from becoming too floral. It's a relatively non-foody fruit scent, IMO. It 'feels' very cool and it's appropriate for the coming spring season. I like this a lot.
Papaya, blueberry, lemongrass, and gin.
Reviewed 05/02/2008
In the bottle: Sugary sweet fruit, lots of gin.
Wet: A hint of sharpness from the gin, but mostly this is syrupy, over-sweet blueberries.
Drydown: I'm all about the sweet foody scents, but this was overkill while it was wet. Thankfully it calmed down as it dried, becoming lighter and less cloying. It's like a blue raspberry slushy, with a dash of gin, some fizzy club soda, and a twist of lemon. This scent is very summery and so much fun, and I got more compliments wearing it today than any other I've tried. It's got great throw, and it lasted all day long without needing to be reapplied.
While Persephone visited the realm of Hades, she tasted one single pomegranate seed, an act which compelled her to remain connected to the Land of the Dead for all eternity. Demeter's grief over her beloved daughter's absence that brings on the bleakness and barrenness of the winter months.
The Fruit of Paradise, the Nectar of Death: bittersweet pomegranate.
Reviewed 01/22/2008
I was a bit nervous when I first put this on. I got a hint of the Vicks-ish note that makes Crypt Queen awful on me, but thankfully it faded after a few moments. It became a gorgeous, juicy fruit scent, just tart enough to make things interesting. I'm so in love. I wish it had more throw, and it fades out very very quickly, but it's so beautiful that it's worth hoarding so that I can slather myself in it repeatedly without guilt.
Annihilation. The ice, desolation and barrenness of nuclear devastation shot through by a beam of radioactive mints.
Reviewed 03/21/2008
In the imp: Minty, but a different mint than the other minty BPAL scents I like (Snowblind, Tokyo Stomp, etc.)
Wet: This is a spicier mint than I'm used to, and it is amazing. I love this. YUM.
Drydown: This kept the spicy mint scent, but a tiny bit of greenness has come out under it, like the first little sprouts of grass peeking up through the snow. I want buckets of this, gallons and gallons of it so I can bathe in it. It feels so cool and fresh. I wish it had a bit more throw, but that might be my oil-drinking skin.
Dark, decadent and incomparably exotic: the rich scent of buttered rum flavored with almond, bay, clove and sassafras.
Reviewed 07/28/2007
In the bottle and wet I loved this: spicy, strong notes of cloves and cinnamon with something buttery and creamy under it. Intoxicating, sexy, confident...and then it dried. *sigh* Dry, it turned into old-lady soap (or maybe old Avon perfume) with a hint of Big Red gum. It smelled like the inside of my great-grandmother's purse. The throw was strong enough that when it went old-lady on me I had to go scrub it off because it was giving me a headache. I tested this on my inner elbow, so maybe this will be different on my wrists or at another time of the month.
I tried it on my mister, and wet it was all cherry syrup. As it dried the spiciness came out, but the cherries held their own. Does this have a peppery note in it? It gave me a pepper feel. The butter rum never manifested. The throw wasn't nearly as strong on him, I noticed. Even if this stays Avon-ish on me, it'll be good for the rare times I can convince the boy to wear scent.
Spectral white musk and the heart-stopping chill of sheared mint, fanned by caramel-touched body heat, and the diabolical sensuality of black musk, nicotiana, and sage.
Reviewed 01/03/2008
I got this as a frimp from the lab, so I decided to try it without looking at the notes beforehand.
This, on me, smells like vomit and cigar smoke. My arm smells like a bar bathroom at closing time. I don't know what happened between this and my body chemistry but oh, my dear gods. This is definitely going in the swap pile.
May marks the apex of the year's fertility, expresses the reawakening of the sexuality of the Earth and her inhabitants, and May's full moon celebrates both the fecundity of the creatures and flora of this world and the vibrancy, rejuvenation and life-affirming energy of Spring. Milk Moon is Flower Moon's warmer, gentler cousin; it is a scent that emulates the closeness of child and mother. In it, cream and warm honey soften our traditional blend of lunar oils.
Reviewed 03/08/2008
In the bottle: It smells like a certain milk candy I used to eat when I was young.
Wet: Milk, but it's barely there. It reminds me a bit of Chaste Moon. I put on quite a bit, just this short of slathering, and I still have to put my wrist all the way to my nose to smell anything.
Drydown: It gets a bit minty, and then suddenly it turns into sour milk and cat pee. Oh skin chemistry, you have failed me once again. *sigh*
Gleaming eyes, screeching voices, glistening wings: black amber, black orchid, black currant, olive blossom, wood violet, lavender, blue musk, rose attar, and cedar.
Reviewed 08/26/2007
This was so odd on me.
Emathides started off smelling EXACTLY like Avon Skin So Soft, and it was so strong that I almost gave up on it right then and there. But after it dried it changed to dark, juicy berries with a hint of woodiness underneath. Not my normal scent inclination but very nice all the same, not overpowering but with a good throw. After a few hours it morphed to a very overwhelming baby powder-ish smell. Then that faded out and it became the berry-and-wood scent again, only much lighter. That final stage lasted for another few hours and then poof! It was gone.
It was very pretty and feminine and grown up, and I can see myself wearing this out for formal occasions.
And for once, a scent that I love didn't work better on my kiddo than me! Muahahaha. She tends to lean towards light, floral scents, and this was all musk on her. It was a very light musk, but she didn't like it at all and wound up washing it off after about an hour.
Seaweed, honey, white mint, and ambergris.
Reviewed 03/20/2008
In the imp: This is an exact dupe for Zest soap! And it's strong, too.
Wet: This is an eye opener. It still has that Zest soap smell, and if I sniff it too closely it makes my eyes water.
Drydown: That strong soap smell never really leaves. I might wear this if I was dragging and had to wake myself up, but I can't picture myself reaching for this very often. I may try it on my SO to see if it smells better on him.
Lick It:
What else could possibly be more lickable at Yuletide? This is a candy cane perfume, minty, sweet and sugared.
Lick It Again:
Every holiday season should be full of lewd suggestions and filthy double entendres, right? This is a new take on last year's Lick It -- a peppermint candy cane with an extra jolt of sugar.
Lick It One More Time:
Every holiday season should be full of lewd suggestions and filthy double entendres, right? This is a new take on Lick It and Lick It Again -- a peppermint candy cane with a flash of vanilla and an extra jolt of sugar.
Reviewed 11/23/2007
I realized that I have never reviewed any of the Lick It line when my bottles of One More Time came. So what else was there to do but put all three on and do some comparisons?
Bottle:
The original '05 Lick It is a very sharp, intense peppermint in the bottle, with just a hint of something sweet underneath. The '06 version is much more mellow to my nose, but '07 is very close to the '05 version.
Wet:
On application, all three go on very strong.
'05 is immediately very sweet while still maintaining the sharpness of the mint.
'06 softens as soon as it touches my skin, with the vanilla and sugar pushing the mint into the background.
'07 reminds me of the original again, the peppermint staying strong as the sweetness swirls up, just like smelling a real candy cane.
Drydown:
The best wear comes from '05. It mellows considerably and has very little throw, but it lasts for hours if I bring my wrist to my nose. Smelling it is like licking your lips an hour after you've eaten a candy cane, a minty memory on your tongue.
'06 has very little throw as well. The mint tends to fade out after a few hours, but the soft vanilla sugar lingers on my skin for much longer. There's something seductive about it, and it reminds me a bit of Snowblind.
My skin drinks '07 like water. After less than an hour it is completely gone, with only a faint dusty smell left like I've been carrying around old books. Even the vanilla, which my skin normally holds on to for dear life, disappears without a trace. It's the closest to '05 in scent...while it's there. I love it enough to keep it and just slather it on every hour, but I'm wondering if the aging of the original is a factor in how well it stays so I'll be tucking a bottle away in a dark corner to see if it helps. If not, there's always a scent locket, right?
Affectionately nicknamed 'The Devil's Bake Sale'
Reviewed 08/13/2007
The first few times I wore this, I loved it. LOVE. It was gorgeous. If you are baking cookies and you cream together the butter, vanilla, and sugar, and lick the beaters, that taste is how this smelled.
Then, apparently, my body chemistry shifted. When I put it on yesterday, I had to take off running for the bathroom and wound up throwing up before I could get it all off. It smelled like rancid butter, and even after scrubbing my arms twice it still lingered. Wow. I'm going to keep this around for those times of the month when it's not awful on me, but I'm going to be very, very careful with testing it each time I use it.
An exquisite, enigmatic woman sidles up to you, bearing a tray of strange, dusty curios, chocolate creatures, serpentine taffy, and candied skulls. Her skin is dusky, her eyes are heavy-lidded and sensual, her hair is the fine, soft white of spun sugar, and her skin is softly scented with cocoa. She holds a shrunken head aloft, and beckons. Dark chocolate with a heavy cream undertone.
Reviewed 08/01/2007
I have been wanting to try this since the moment I read the description. I wore this to work today, untested, and I wasn't disappointed at all. Thick, sweet, dark chocolate while wet, it settled into a lovely, more subtle chocolate swirled with vanilla cream upon drydown. The throw was perfect; I could smell it without lifting my wrist to my nose, but it didn't knock down everyone who came within three feet of me either. The only drawback to this oil is that it makes me crave really good, really expensive chocolates like woah; I think if I wore this every day I would gain a ton and a half of weight.
Hay absolute, tall grasses, dry honey, mallow, cardamom, amber, and wheat.
Reviewed 07/04/2008
In the bottle: This screams 'perfume'. I almost didn't want to try it.
On my skin: My grandfather. I can't even sniff for notes because this smells EXACTLY like my grandfather, the unique combination of his aftershave, soap, hair stuff, cologne, and tanned skin. When I smell this I see his face, it is *dead on*. My partner thinks this smells amazingly yummy and would love me to wear it all the time. It's lovely, but I don't think it's something I can wear because it makes me all teary.
