Category: Diabolus
I really wanted to like this one, both for the name and ingredients! All I get is pine trees and eucalyptus, though, and it's not even that awesome. It could have been the heat and sweat, but even with trying to slather it, the scent just disappears. So sad.
Category: Limited Edition -- Yule 2007
Oh. My. God. Wonderful warm BEESWAX mixed with amber, and I think I'm even smelling the olive oil a bit...a warm, smoky sort of smell. Must...have...more!!
Category: Wanderlust
I could definitely smell the cinnamon in this one. Oddly enough, there was also a strong chocolate smell as well. I constantly had images of a cup of dark hot chocolate spiked with cinnamon...either that, or a cinnamon-colored, chocolate-striped tiger. It's not bad! Must have been the way the clove and honey were mingling together, with perhaps the ginger as well...it fooled me. All in all, I like it.
This is mostly white musk for me. There's a hint of coconut, but it's very light and fleeting. There's also an astringent, almost alcoholic quality to it that I've never detected in a BPAL blend before. Not sure what's to blame for that.
This scent wears very close to the skin. It seemed to fade pretty quickly.
Forum-only scent
I get lots of fresh, green apple from this, with just a hint of carnation. It's pretty, but just a wee bit too fruity for my taste. It faded pretty quickly.
Category: Marchen
Initially, this is plum, leather and musk like woah. After a bit, it softens, and the lilac comes out. Believe it or not, this is a fairly manly sort of floral. I am discovering that plum is one of my favorite notes, and this perfume does not disappoint. It has good staying power and some pretty decent throw from time to time.
Category: Mad Tea Party
In the imp: Honey, with a very warm tone to it.
Wet: Thick, sweet, honeyed cream, with a bit of spiciness to it.
Dry: The floral scents come out to me as it dries, and it 'cools off' as in the honey note becomes more subdued, though it never quite disappears...more like it coats the petals of the flowers (and I'm wanting to say that I smell more carnation than rose). And yet, there's a powdery note to it, as well...I'm wanting to call it 'baby powder' only because it's a very light, feminine, innocent sort of tone...not soapy or strident at all.
Verdict: I can see why this is a popular scent; it's *really* lovely, and very feminine, very elegant in an innocent sort of way. Unfortunately, it has *no* throw or lasting power on me at all, which makes me very sad. I'm reluctant to get rid of it because it's so pretty, so hopefully I'll be able to find another use for it.
What I liked: The honey and the floral scent.
What I didn't like: It's too weak! Sadness.
I have to wonder what sort of lotion this would make.
Category: Wanderlust
This blend is very floral and very wet -- like being near a pond laden with blooming water lilies. It strikes me as very feminine. I would recommend it to those who like aquatic notes and/or florals -- it succeeds really nicely on both of those levels.
As much as I enjoyed this blend, I still think that of the lush plant scents, Amsterdam still conquers all.
I can see right away why this one is popular. It's dark and resinous, redolent with patchouli and spices and musk. I personally get a hell of a lot more 'incense' than 'vanilla' with this one, though I can also sense the vanilla; it wafts up every now and then in teasing little strokes, like a beckoning finger.
I'm probably going to really really really really really hate myself for not getting a bottle, because I have a feeling it's going to age REALLY well. Honestly cannot decide if I want to trade it or keep it. Swaps only, probably, if I get rid of it.
Fig, walnut, and bamboo mingle together to evoke images of freshly-peeled bark, twigs, sticks, tendrils of curling greenery, and underneath it all, the moist, sheltering earth of a burrow. It's warm and sweet, like a little brown rabbit curling up somewhere safe. As if that lovely imagery wasn't enough, there is a teensy bit of caramel that gives it a chocolatey sort of feel...like a chocolate bunny, almost! (I was born in the year of the Wood Hare, so that must be where all the rabbity imagery is coming from). I really liked it, a lot! And I will probably rue the day that I decided to pass up on getting a full bottle of it.
I really loved all the Phoenixes. They are so very evocative in their own respective ways; I haven't had this much mental imagery from scents in quite a while. I really enjoyed my experiences with the Anniversary scents, and am grateful to have been able to sample them.
Category: Ars Amatoria
I had a hard time envisioning plum as an appropriate scent, but this fits the bill entirely. It really does seem like the sort of perfume that a five-dollar whore would wear (in 1880 dollars). It's sweet and feminine but definitely not innocent; it's one of those ladies that makes a point of putting a roll in her hips to make sure you keep following her up the stairs. Lasts all day, like a working girl should. Another winner!
In the imp: Whoa, butter!
I get a lot of butter when it first goes on...then it calms down into more of a toasted pastry sort of smell. There's still a 'brown' edge to it, as there was with Butter Rum Cookie, but without the out-and-out burned smell...it's more like cookies that have been perfectly, thoroughly baked.
So, if you're looking for something just a touch lighter than Butter Rum Cookie, or *really* like butter (), give this a try.
My verdict is still out on this one. I originally really liked it, but now that I'm giving it another sniff, I'm just sort of 'eh' on it. Then again, I've got like seven scents on this hand, so it may just be an overloaded nose. I'll wash off, give my schnozz a rest for a bit, and try it again before deciding.
Category: Limited Editions -- Samhain 2008
As much as I like sweet, foody scents, the just-straight-up sugar note doesn't do too well with me. It has an overly-sweet, plasticky edge to it that is not fun.
There *is* a warmer, almost boozy undernote to it, but it's overpowered by the plastic fruitiness. Not for me!
Category: Limited Editions -- Samhain 2008
This didn't strike me as a 'rosey' scent when I initially tested it, but now that I am re-sniffing it to jog my memory as I write this, I can smell the rose. It's definitely a very sweet floral scent...any incense is just peripheral, but I can detect the undercurrent of cocoa lurking at the very, very bottom of it all.
I think I'd agree with another reviewer above, and say that this is a smokier, foodier version of Mictecacihuatl. I don't think one needs to be afraid of the rose note...so if you like a hint of cocoa in your perfume, I think you could safely give this a shot.
I'm almost regretting not having gotten a bottle...
Category -- Bewitching Brews
Straight out of the imp, it's chocolate brownies! Moist, fresh brownies with chunks of chocolate chip melted in them...oh man, I really want to bake some, now.
As it dries, it turns to more of a dry cocoa powder...the sticky sort of smell you'd get on your hands if you've been nomming on a bag of chocolate candies for far too long.
I can see this being great layered with other scents...just by itself, it's not quite to my taste, but it could be fun to experiment with!
Category: Bewitching Brews
Piney dirt, mostly. Not a rose (or any other flower for that matter) in sight. Not bad, but it doesn't linger long, and I don't think it would be a 'me' scent, anyway.
Category: Diabolus
Very sweet: strawberries and poppy, definitely. It's more evocative of slumber parties and lipgloss than orgies, but...that's just me. Pretty decent staying power.
Category: Bewitching Brews
In the imp, it's vanilla and mandarin; once on me, the florals start coming out, but there is always a continual theme of vanilla to it. In fact, the vanilla amps and throws the most in this one. There is a slight powdery quality to it. If you like vanilla, go ahead and give this one a try.
Probably not bottle-worthy for me, though it is enjoyable. It reminds me a bit of Antique Lace.
Category -- Bewitching Brews
It's definitely a PINE scent -- but that's not to imply that it's offensive. Rather, it's a very green, fresh, 'pure' sort of pine -- the sort you'd get straight from the tree, rather than seeming like a cleaning product. Underneath is a faintly sweet, almost creamy sort of aroma -- the ambergris, perhaps, and/or the juniper.
Soon after application, I can also detect a cedary scent -- that must be the cypress. After a long moment of piney goodness, it turns into a more subdued, generally-woody scent.
It's really lovely, and perfect for wintertime, of course -- and though I don't need a bottle, I will definitely keep the imp for a day in summer when I am longing for some Christmas in July.
Unfortunately, Karl immediately said 'You smell like a car freshener!', so a bottle is definitely not in my future. But *I* like it!!!
Category: Limited Editions -- Halloween 2008 -- Sleepy Hollow
I got a variety of scents from this one over the time that I tested it...the first day, it was straight-on, overpowering apple juice, with a rather unpleasant...biological sort of edge to it. (Read: pee. Eeek.) On subsequent days, however, it played very nice. One day, I could swear that all I smelled was sarsparilla...like a smooth, creamy, home-brewed root beer with a hint of vanilla and just the barest wisp of smoke. I have NO idea what was going on, that day, but I liked it -- and if it had done that repeatedly, I'd definitely be wanting a bottle of it. Overall, however, it settles into spiced apple cider. It's a scent that's both sweet and warm and very evocative of Autumn. If you love apple scents, definitely grab some of this. It's really good, but for a foodie scent, I believe that Huesos works better for me.
Category: Limited Editions -- Halloween 2008
Admittedly, this is less-than-pleasant upon first application; you get all of the beery, boozy qualities of it, that stale, sour leftover-whiskey smell that lingers on your breath the morning after. Not nice.
However! It calms down and behaves itself really quickly. It is like a burly, scruffy man with booze on his breath, who completely surprises you by reciting a lovely poem from memory. The harsh booziness goes away, and you are left with a sweet, malty sort of aroma, like you're leaning over a freshly-drained cask of whiskey and inhaling that slightly-toasted, caramely smell that's still soaked into the wood. Once it's morphed to that stage, it stays there. I really liked this one.
If it weren't for the unpleasantness at the beginning, I would spring for a full-priced bottle. (If I had unlimted funds, I still would.) I managed to wrangle a partial bottle, and I certainly wouldn't mind buying up other people's unloved imps and adding them to it from time to time. It's inspiring borderline hoarding behavior.
Category: Rappacini's Garden
Several people have described this as 'flowery bubblegum', and I concur! It's very, very sweet -- and pretty, in its own way. I pretty much get just damp, juicy lotus, and that's it. Maybe a powdery hint of myrrh as it starts to dry, but it's mostly a floral, on me.
Category -- Diabolus
The first time I wore this, I knew that I was smelling the plum pretty predominantly; it had a sort of rich, dark fruity tone to it without being too terribly juicy.
Now, as I retest it, I'm given the impression of a rich lady sampling plums in between sips of champagne; it's fruity, yes, but there's also a very rich, perfumey smell that is almost alcoholic in its headiness.
A co-worker of mine recently received a rose that smelled a lot like this -- a sweetness so fruity that it was hard to believe it was coming from a rose! So I can believe that there is rose in here...though in this case the sweetness is surely from the fruits mixing with all the various florals.
It tends to hug close to the skin; this is a scent that's pretty much reserved for your own pleasure, and that of anyone you invite into very close company.
Recommended for fans of plum and fruit scents, and even for those who normally hate rose (of which I am one). This is a sexy one.
Category: Ars Amatoria
I really wanted to like this one -- and it was pleasant, no doubt about it. I get amber, pretty much, with the apple blossom and myrtle adding something sweet around the edges...and then it goes away. Just doesn't stand out enough for me, alas.
Category: Illyria
This is another pretty sort of 'bouquet of flowers' smell. The florals all just kind of bunch together and I really don't get any defining characteristic out of it. It seemed to fade fairly quickly and did not throw much.
