sarada

I dare not open this scroll. Temptation is the plague of men's spirits. Parchment, Siamese benzoin, infernal incense, red musk, brimstone, and daemonorops. The Wunderkammer collection looks like it's going to be my favorite thing in the entire history of BPAL -- the notes, the concepts, the art -- it's just everything that I read and think about! If I had time I'd write my review in the style of an HP Lovecraft story opening and talk about the trepidation with which I crack open this vial and let forth the wisps of forgotten nightmares, but since it's the first review let's just get down to business! Being a lover of incense scents above most things on earth I was very excited for this one. I've always liked red musk as well because it is so incensy -- such a rich, spicy, deep scent that one might imagine would infuse the tapestries and brocade pillows in a den of beaded curtains and hookahs. I do get quite a hit of red musk for this -- a dry, smoky red musk, that has long since seeped into the fabric and wood of the room. Hypnotic and arcane, not overly smoky, but it drifts around me and hangs in the air as though I've been burning all of my favorite incenses throughout the night. There's a nice dryness to it that I would imagine is from the parchment and brimstone -- but it's not acridly smoky, it doesn't smell like Brimstone the BPAL oil, for example. Benzoin adds a resiny incense kick, and I imagine that the daemonorops is making it just a teeny bit more of a glistening blood red. Overall a lovely, dry incensy red musk blend that incense lovers like me should adore. Scherezade fans take note! But this is a bit darker and smokier than that, and never powdery or perfumey.

Riding the Goat, C.M. Coolidge.A rich Masonic incense coupled with mahogany wood, ebony, and pipe smoke. Incense, wood and pipe smoke. Okay, that's pretty much my three favorite things in the world. So much so that I barely even paused to marvel at the amazing artwork -- what could be more wonderful than Masonic dogs wearing pointed hats? Oh yes, this is a smooth, polished, silky wood, Dark, glossy, but sparkling -- a clean, shiny black wood, stained with aeons of rich fragrant smoke. It is not the pungent pipe smoke of Herr Drosselmeyer, or the woodsy bonfire of Hexennacht -- it is the scent of wood-paneled walls in a library or sitting room, books and ornate chairs soaking up endless evenings of contemplation and study. The smoke is not overwhelming, in other words -- a faintly sweet dark wood, the memory of a long-ago mass. There are hints of the sparkly resin of Midnight Mass in here, and a slightly 'clean' smell as though the woodwork has recently been cleaned and only the fainted wisps of smoke still linger in the air. Oh yes, this is another favorite. I chose my first two Dogs well! Absolutely perfect. ETA: Continuing wonderfullness as it dries: It goes through a phase of having the tobacco/smoke note from Parliament of Monsters for a bit and becomes very Death Cap on the drydown several hours later! Oh god!

During luncheon -- which was excellent, of course, as everything at Toad Hall always was -- the Toad simply let himself go. Disregarding the Rat, he proceeded to play upon the inexperienced Mole as on a harp. Naturally a voluble animal, and always mastered by his imagination, he painted the prospects of the trip and the joys of the open life and the roadside in such glowing colours that the Mole could hardly sit in his chair for excitement. Somehow, it soon seemed taken for granted by all three of them that the trip was a settled thing; and the Rat, though still unconvinced in his mind, allowed his good-nature to override his personal objections. He could not bear to disappoint his two friends, who were already deep in schemes and anticipations, planning out each day's separate occupation for several weeks ahead. Orangewood, pine, wood moss, and vetiver. Something about this scent made me want to laugh when I smelled it. There's something stimulating and invigorating about these harsh pine and wooden scents to me. I can tell that this will strike many people as being something similar to a pine cleaner but it smells of wild nature to me. Pine resin from the deep dark woods, and glossy polished wood gleaming with orange oil lovingly rubbed into the surface for many years. Dark brown gleaming with orange-gold highlights, deep and faintly sweet. The strong resinous (turpentine, even, for a moment) notes are tempered by earthy, soft sweet vetiver. I love Rat. I think it will be too strong and piney for a lot of people but if you like these notes, you'll be pleased. I havent' had such a nice sharp jolt of pine resin since Stranger in Camp, though this is a bit different. I think the dark and wild pine trees have been fashioned into glossy wooden canes or ornate tables where schemes are hatched.

I don't like Caterpillar either, I think it's the jasmine and other floral notes in that that make it disagree with me since I mostly think of that as being a mossy floral headache scent. (It's the first BPAL I ever bought, too -- it took me a couple more months of experimenting before I found the right blends for me!) But jasmine has a distinctly...er, septic aroma to my nose as well, although I do like it in fruity blends it really doesn't work in other contexts for me. I think you'd like a lot of the blends that are all wood/vetiver notes in that case!

vetiver is my favorite note; i find that the limited editions are probably the best source for it, and many of those can probably be found at cheap prices in the sales section of the forum since we vetiver lovers are apparently in the minority. although since i especially love it paired with patchouli it's hard for me to remember which actually don't have patchouli prominent in the blend as well. the ones you listed above do not have enough vetiver in them for my taste (except for Death Adder, but the coconut puts me off a bit in that); the others have more of a cologney feeling for the most part and lack the deep earthiness that i crave. i like to smell rich, deep, thick loamy soil -- or sweet, damp, muddy earth. here are the ones that are earthy/vetivery enough for my taste but most of them contain patchouli. i find that it merely accentuates the earthy, sweet qualities of the vetiver though so it might be worth a try for you: A Countenance Forboding Evil was probably the best for my purposes although that is also patchouli, i really only notice the vetiver. Sloth (if you like Myrrh as well) might fit the bill though i never really clicked with it. Malediction (again, it lists red patchouli, but it's largely a vetiver scent to me) From the Salon scents, you might want to try Mad Meg, which is a nice earthy vetiverness to it. from the LEs, Hessian of the Hollow from last year comes to mind in particular, and from Carnaval Diabolique: The Grand Inquisitor's Heretics Fork. From the Neil Gaiman scents, The Potter's Field (Graveyard Book) is another one. "Dirt" is another favorite note of mine, but again that might be because I find it to be simialr to patchouli in many cases. Many of the best dirt scents also have a strong floral note (Zombi, Deep in Earth) so finding some Graveyard Dirt from last year's Halloween line might be a good bet if you don't want the floral. althoguh another good earthy scent is Penny Dreadful, or Death Cap, come to think of it. good luck! i find that vetiver is a note that positively sings -- it is a deep, glossy polished wood, with a sweet (almost chocolatey sometimes) earthiness. but on the other hand, if it's in a blend with a lemon or citrus note, it becomes bitter and cologney so i try to mainly look for it in earthy or woody blends to accentuate its best qualities. eta: oh yes and Samhainophobia is my favorite scent of all.

This is going to be a short review but I just had to throw my thoughts in here, since I notoriously don't care for foody or 'cakey' scents, so I wasn't sure how this would turn out for me. Cake Smash is very much like the original Beaver Moon when I sniff and first apply it -- it has a sparkling sugary bright cake scent, not something cloying and thick. That is precisely what I was hoping for! At first I thought it was going to be a near-dupe for the original Beaver Moon, which would be fabulous, but as it dries, the Snake Oil and a hint of the bright warmth of Dorian peep through. Absolutely marvelous. As someone who doesn't care for foody scents, and who has a lukewarm relationship with Snake Oil in general (love it in combos, but not so much on its own)...this is fabulous. I am very glad to have some because it will become the default scent to wear on birthdays now!

In the bottle this starts out strong with fresh-cut cedar, dark woody tobacco, and faint but bright notes of clove. I was in this for the cedar and tobacco notes -- it promises to be a bold, dry and dark wood and an inviting, incensy tobacco on first sniff. On my skin, a note like clove comes out and now it smells like some of my favorite clove incense (Airs used to make some...it was great), burning on a cedarwood stick. A bit heavier on the tobacco-y clove than anything else as it dries down. I would say it is most similar to the clove/wood/tobacco notes in Count Dracula, but a bit more dry and dusty, and less menacing. I agree that it is not smoky, but it is more of a tobacconist's shop as far as that note is concerned -- but clove incense in a cedar box is my main impression. I breathe deep to get my cedar fix -- I am looking specifically for it since it's one of my favorite notes, so I can't tell how prominent it would be for someone who doesn't like that. I'm just lookin' out for myself! And I am quite pleased!

Number smeared on label -- XX (20) is clearly visible but it looks like there might have been more numbers before or after it that were erased during its travel. In the bottle: something bright and lemony, perhaps herbal, with an undertone of musk. On my skin: incensy, strong black musk -- definitely, absolutely black musk. Which I happen to love. The lighter herbal tones are an interesting contrast. It's bright, stimulating and still sultry, sinuous, sweet and with an undertone of that sort of 'mothball' musk feeling. Fascinating. I really like this. Yeah, I'll definitely be doing this again! I don't like Snake Oil on its own but I like variants -- this is unlike anything else I've tried in the Snake Oil family.

LXXX (80) Penitence is a favorite blend of mine -- frankincense and myrrh are two of my favorite notes. So it's easy to please me with variants on this. In fact I shuddered at the thought of how many bottles I'd "need" in order to feel satisfied. My ultimate dream would be a piney Penitence. The one I got is quite undefinable though. I don't really smell the base in it at all at first, though as it dries I get a hint of something resinous. I think after testing this several times over several days that the top notes are fruit. It's a wet fruit -- perhaps melon, or pale apricot, or just a splash of fruit cocktail. Then again maybe it's got a dash of a floral. But I am leaning toward a melony fruit. It's not really me but since it's got Penitence in there somewhere I'm thinking it could grow on me. It's surprising how well the deep resins can be masked by the lighter notes, but it does deepen and mature a bit as I wear it. edited because I randomly inserted the word "not" where it didn't belong, completely changing the meaning of a sentence. SORRY!

LXXXIX (89) I admit that when I first sniffed this I couldn't distinguish it from regular Dorian, though comparing them one after the other now, there is a difference. But what is it? I think it might have a strong bergamot note. In fact it's a bit as though someone splashed The Dormouse over Dorian. Overall the feeling is a sort of Dorian Earl Grey. The bergamot is very light, a refreshing splash...and then, well, the Dorianness of the blend is a bit stronger than my regular bottle. Since I like Dorian and have made a big dent in my 4-year-old bottle of the same, I like having a back-up bottle of something slightly stronger and with that nice hit of bergamot. Seriously, if I just convince myself it's Dorian Earl Grey I am very happy.

whoa, i haven't ordered a GC bottle in a long time, i had no idea the labels had changed! the last one i got was Rumpelstiltzchen. i am tempted to 'upgrade' some of my favorites for new labels now since my old (non-glossy) labels on the 4+ year old ones are generally stained. thanks for the Irish bards photos! i hope i get mine today!

The combination of bitter, smoke-tinged vetiver; a clean, green ivy/vine/stem scent; the whisper of sweetly resinous dragon's blood and a hint of metallic tears is definitely something to sit back and try to wrap your head around. While i like the scent, it does command your attention for a bit as you comprehend how all of these disparate elements are interlocking. Like many BPAL scents, it tells a story as it unfolds. That clean ivy/stem scent constrasts sharply with the darker, bitter ashen/smoky vetiver. It is both clean and dirty at the same time. The 'clean' note suggests innocence; the salt and dragon's blood connote sadness and tragedy. But the darker, ashen notes add an additional ominous touch. I normally find vetiver (one of my favorite notes) to be a smooth, sweet deep polished wood, but this particular perfume comes a cross a bit more like dampened ashes. Sweet, almost fruity dragon's blood constrasts nicely with the salty "tears" and gives it a metallic tinge. It is more of a conceptual scent than something for everyday wear, I think. The odd juxtaposition of salty, fresh and resiny notes with the woody/burnt background is not exactly something I'd find wearable, since I always find myself a little annoyed by dragons' blood, and I don't like salty notes at all. I would wear it for walking in the woods on a winter day, or to a meeting in a wood-panelled room. Although I prefer masculine scents, personally, I find this blend to be almost a little too serious for me.

It's nice to see that after all these years I can still try an imp of a new GC scent and immediately race to the computer thinking "I need a bottle right now!!" -- and that, true to form, about 15 minutes later after it's dried and I've had some time to think, that I calm down and realize that I might not need one after all. The Witch's Garden contains some favorite notes of mine (sage, parsley) along with some that I am eternally curious about (carrot -- I always want more things with carrot in them), and anchored with some interesting earthy, rooty or green notes like hemlock, wormwood and mandrake. The immediate sensation is a fresh, wet, heady bouquet of herbs. Some medicinal, some fragrant, some floral. That first rush of wet greenery and disorientating, medicinal herbs is quite lovely. As it dies the main note that captures me is very similar to a pungent, soporific jasmine. Jasmine makes me fall asleep. I feel as though I am falling facefirst into the wet garden while bunnies look at me curiously, chomping on carrot greens. I have to assume this is what morning glory contributes to the blend. The jasmine-like odor becomes overwhelming as I wear it, and then the sneezing begins. I went from wanting a bottle of this, to feeling a bit woozy, very quickly in this case. The pungent, almost medicinal floral aspect is just a little strong when I was hoping for more of a wet, fresh herbal scent so it will probably stay in the imp case for now as a curiosity.

Florals can be very difficult -- but if there is one way I like them, it is in an absurd profusion. Like Flower Moon, we have here an explosion of flowers -- pastel colors flying in every direction, tinged with a hint of greenery. Wildflowers in dusky shades shadowed in the twilight, not too strong, but the closer you get, the greater variety you can see. There's a level in the game "We (heart) Katamari" where you go through a fairyland rolling up giant beds of flowers while soothing, dreamy music plays...that's kind of like what this smells like. Occasionally a fairy screams when you roll her up, too. The floral palette that has appealed to me in the past includes Flower Moon, Phantom Queen and Poisson d'Avril. Given that a great many floral notes give me a headache, it's a hard mix to achieve, but this falls into that category -- a plethora of wildflowers spiked with a few herbal/green notes. No attention hogs here -- everyone quietly files into place and takes a seat in a field to watch the sun set -- a choir of a thousand voices united in sustaining a single harmonious note.

Dirt, cumin, clove and leather together are very enticing to me, and I imagined this might turn out like something from the Wunderkammer. It is quite unique though, I can't think of anything to compare it to in the BPAL catalogue but what it really reminds me of, on first sniff -- is cola. I don't drink soda, but this smells like the fizz and pop of a freshly poured effervescing drink as the bubbles burst sharply on your nose. The spice notes capture it perfectly, and the light, pungent note of ginger soars above all the rest. It could be ginger ale, or pepsi, or some odd store brand, I'm not sure, but it definitely makes me think of cola. I do get the heavier notes slinking beneath -- the dry, scorched skin and leather crawl out after the fizz dies down. Perhaps the ghoul has come along to lap up the remains. The leathery notes beneath help to hold this in place so it doesn't fly away on a fizzy cloud. Fans of ginger and spices who might be backing away from the dessicated skin and blood, should take a step back toward it and consider this unusual scent! It might be a little too soda-poppy for me, but I am going to keep it around for a bit since I haven't come across anything quite like it in BPAL so far.

They used to have automated order confirmation emails but since they didn't always go through (they were filtered out by peoples' spam filters, or just took awhile to chug through the tubes of the internets) my guess is that the system might have generated even MORE "did you get my order??" emails than not having them at all. That's just a guess though. I do remember that I stopped getting them a couple of years ago, but even when the system was in place the automated emails didn't always make it through. I think that the Paypal or CCNow confirmation should be sufficient to prove to a customer that a transaction occured, and they do give an estimate of ship time (14 to 21 business days) and send out a click and ship. The only thing that I wish could be done to help clarify things for new customers is some sort of large, red flashing notice on the CCNow site that indicates that "order status: shipped" has nothing to do with the actual order status. If I am popping in on the squee thread three times a week to clarify people on that point, I can't even imagine how many emails the lab has to answer about it! (and I'm not a mod or anything, I'm just a busybody!)

have we coined "squattles" as a term for the old style bottles yet? i've got about four of those left i think!

That looks like one of the ones that were sold on sites like eyespyeclectics.com, years ago, -- maybe 2003? it was before i was collecting BPAL but i remember seeing them on that site (gothic clothing; i don't think it's in operation anymore). there were about a dozen BPAL varities including Wilde, Absinthe, etc -- a lot of the early ones -- and they looked like that. those are the type of tags used for imps back in the day too. at the time i thought they looked neat but i didn't buy any because i didn't think i'd ever have a use for perfume oils!

I will never miss out on a blend with dandelion in it. One of the most stunning notes in the BPAL repertoire, it adds an incredible freshness and life to any blend -- a soft, bright glow, a tangy greenness, with crushed stems and pungent sap. Sunny but cooling, not quite floral but not quite herbal -- and a fairy bit grassy to boot. Dandelion is very strong in this blend, lifted up by fragrant, fresh, sweet clover and grounded by faintest hints of wood. It is very much like 2007's incredible Sagittarius, one of my favorites of the astrological blends but without the hint of fig in that. Still, it does have a sweetness to it. Both the natural golden sweetness of dandelion (perfectly balanced with that bitter pulpy greenness) and the giddy nectar of clover. On my skin it fades very quickly and it's as if I crushed dandelions on my arm and rubbed some fresh-cut wood on my flesh after a good roll around in the grass. But in the locket -- oh in the locket!! It it summertime forever in a little silver box. Glowing golden, warming against my skin, a little magical amulet of daylight, warmth and youth simmering near the heart. I might pass out from joy as I keep lifting it up to sniff. Sweeter than "One to Tie, Two to Win" but not quite as sweet as Sagittarius, The Schoolhouse is indispensible for dandelion lovers or anyone who might need a splash of sunshine as we head into the darker months.

I spent about 24 hours just applying and reapplying this one to both skin and locket to really get a feel for it. It's that complex and interesting, and it goes through that many changes based on how you are wearing it. The artwork perfectly suits this blend as well, with the muted twilight lavender tones. You do have to really lean in to get a sense of it. I am first intrigued by the dark green herbal notes that peek through when this is wet and just drying down. Even in the locket they don't come out as strongly as they do fresh on my skin. Dark green wet broken stems and mysterious evening herbs. Dew clinging to your ankles as you creep through the overgrown yard where berries grow over graves. The next layer is that of the berries. Sweet, wine-like berries. A splash of communion wine perhaps, sloshed over the earth onto a soft bed of moss and midnight herbs. Frankincense is not very prominent but without its presence I think these notes would fade away very quickly. Its sweet, clear, strong tones add a touch of sparkle and earthiness at the same time, grounding the sweet berries and brief rustle of greenery. I would even swear there was a touch of stone in this one. I forgot this blend contained rose, but now I realize that is what the truly intoxicating part of the blend is...rising above the other notes, the simple plaintive pinkish purple rose, blending seamlessly with the berries to create a heady floral wine. It only peeks through occasionally on my skin. In my locket it was much more prominent. A unique blend though, if you like things a bit complex. A distant rosy cousin of Fortunato perhaps. But really, it's quite unlike anything else and that's why I keep reapplying it to get that fresh rush of herbs and sweet berries.

When I tried this at will call it smelled a bit more airy and light than it does in its final form. And I adore it -- this is a serious contender for the sarada hall of fame. Beneath a swirl of cool air I catch the very realistic scent of pine/fir resin (which I smear on myself straight from the tree whenever I see globs of it) and the warm, simmering resins of something like Midnight Mass or Cathedral along with a fresh-cut wood. All wonderful, wonderful things. A perfect mixture of green fir, deep natural sweet resin and its cousin in a censer in a dark wooden church -- with that freshly hewn wood scent beneath. Not quite as strong as the church resin scents; instead of being contained just within the vaulted cathedral ceiling, this is open to the night air, with a thick evergreen forest all around. It doesn't have a pine scent so much as the thick dollop of sweet resin beneath the boughs. And yes I love the scent of lumber and pencils! Can't be missed, if you like wood and resin scents. It is different enough from the others in this family to deserve a place of singular honor in your collection!

I've been sniffing this one for a couple of days to try to describe it best -- it fades quickly on my skin but the woody notes come out more; in a locket the wet ivy smell is stronger longer (and it has a bit more of a cologney/fresh feel) but there is less of the wooden base note. In the bottle I'm hit by a very wet, dark green ivy with the woodiness underlying it. Think of a less burnt Twisted Oak Tree covered in wet ivy. On my skin, a glittering wood emerges, dark and sparkling under moonlight, wreathed in dampness and sharp green foliage. The fresh, wet greenery is almost citrus-like at times. It fades to lighter woods on my skin but stays strongly green in a locket. Ivy fans will definitely want to try this out. If Twisted Oak Tree was too smoky, this might work better for you. Or if you like things in the Black Tower family of scent -- though this is a bit less complex, it makes a beautifully bleak and simple statement of silhouetted trees under a damp tangle of vines.

Eatingthesea, I think that was the label for Sugar Skull, I'm familiar with the image as well but I'm not sure of the name...i think I thought it was Joan of Arc but I could be wrong!

One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. 'Which road do I take?' she asked. His response was a question: 'Where do you want to go?' 'I don't know,' Alice answered 'Then,' said the cat, 'it doesn't matter.' Grapefruit, red currant, dark musk, Roman chamomile, delphinium, and lavender. Water, Saponified Organic Palm Kernal Oil, Coconut Oil, Soy Oil, Fair Trade Organic Shea Oil, Sodium Lactate, Jojoba Oil, Castor Oil, Ground Rosehips, Citrus paradisi, and Cheshire Cat. Wow, are there really no reviews for this yet?? I picked this up at will call because Cheshire Cat is one of my old favourites, and one of my first ever bottles. I know that because of all the oils and other ingredients that this will not smell quite like the oil, but it's bound to still be lovely. And it is! I'm going through the bar very quickly, not from using it a lot but because it seems to wear quickly. It's not quite like the oil, it doesn't have the strong presence of grapefruit and soft, tea-like herbs...I think there's more of a creaminess to it because of the soap ingredients, but I think rosehips might be adding more that gritty texture to it. Like all of these soaps it has a wonderful soft moisturizing quality, that makes my skin smooth and doesn't dry it out. I think wearing the oil after bathing with it would be a perfect complement, because although it doesn't quite have the sharpness and strength of the perfume it has that same soft lightness with an herbal touch.

Second review for CLXXVI (176) ElinaMakropulos' review My take on it: in the bottle, a beautiful burnt vetiver, smoky but sweet in a glistening, resinous way. A bit lighter than Malediction, somewhat comparable to the Grand Inquisitor's Heretic's Fork, and a little less burnt but similar to Smokestack. Sometimes when I breathe in deeply from the bottle I get a hint of that sort of "coffee and cigarettes" smell because of the burnt, roasted quality of the vetiver and the ashen, smoky scent, but somehow it manages to do this in a way that is not bad. As it dries the smoke clears and we are left with a glistening dark brown surface, stained with ash but wiped smooth. Yes, yes indeed, this is one for me, I'm glad that I was able to give it a home! ETA: Agnes Nutter! That's the closest to what this one smells like!