sarada

I am not good at telling flower notes apart so I am glad some are listed for this blend -- it helps me figure out what I like! I don't generally wear florals but I sometimes like to sniff them anyway, and on nice spring days they sometimes even suit my mood.

Ephemera is a pretty, yellow floral to me -- it reminds me a little of Asphodel, but less cloying. While I saw that as a murky, yellow-grey field of flowers this seems like a daytime grassy field full of pale yellow blooms.

It's a little powdery -- that would be the violet and possibly the tea rose -- with a bit of a dusty, herbal edge -- that would be the chamomile. Like most florals it vanishes on me. All in all a very pale, lacey scent -- something with which to scent a handkerchief, a doily or a letter. Motes of dust in fading sunlight. These are the sorts of impressions that violent and chamomile usually give me, but the white flowers make it glisten a bit. I like to sniff this a lot though I don't think it likes my skin.

I'd suggest this as a good blend for someone who likes floral perfumes and who is nervous about dipping their toes in the BPAL waters.

How fortuitous, that when I am trying to test and review all of the Stations of the Sun that I got Khephra as a frimp!

Unlike the others I have recently tried, Ahathoor and Ra, I don't get the feeling of intense inner heat from this one -- there's not as much of the not-exactly-spicy but somewhat herbal emanating warmth that the others shed.

I do get what I think is frankincense, which of course I like. Now it's sort of like...Arcana, but stronger frankincense, and no lavender. Perhaps it's because it's the midnight sun that it is not as hot -- if there is a spice in this there isn't a lot.

As it dries down it becomes more of a faintly spicy powder of a scent, which is not very good on me. A bit mellower than the mid-day suns, a shadowed sun that is holding its warmth a little bit closer to itself than the others.

Hard to pin these down but they all seem to have some sort of resin element and something herbal. They are different enough so far that I can easily tell them apart but they are definitely the same family of scents. I'd wear them regularly if it was just resins, but the strange herbal and clove twists -- and the powdery drydown on this one -- make them more of a curiosity for me than something I'd wear.

I'm always happy to get a frimp of one of the few remaining scents that I haven't tried and they've done it again!

Happily, I was very much in the mood to try some more white flower blends. While I don't typically wear florals I do like white rose, and heliotrope, and despite not liking gardenia on its own I seem to like a lot of blends (Blood Countess for example) that include it as a back-up note.

I agree with Olympia that this is a simpler, younger blend for the lab -- and like many "white florals" I really like them in the bottle even though they go flat on my skin and don't wind up smelling like much of anything. A crisp and sweet, refreshing Easter Sunday scent in the bottle....I had a similarly pleasant reaction to Phantom Queen, and Juliet. I really adore them in the vial and think I might enjoy it as a candle on a spring day with an open window.

As a fragrance it mellows very quickly to just a vague perfumey floral -- but I think in my hair or in a scent locket it would be more like it is in the bottle.

This is a great scent if you're looking for something that recalls funeral flowers or an Easter bouquet. And if you're a fan of the radiant glistening heliotrope note you'll want to try this too. I don't know why, but anything with heliotrope in it appeals to me at least a little.

Holiday Moon is just what I've been wanting, for early spring days: a crisp, cheery, clean green scent.

Tea scents are often very light and lemony but this has the extra snap of a crisp green stem that has been broken or sliced open, and the oude -- though I don't know what it smells like on its own -- seems to anchor the otherwise fleeting smells into place and help them to last.

It's different from Spirits of the Dead, in that it has much more of a fresh garden scent about it in the bottle. Not overly sweet, just very leafy and natural. It's interesting to think that this is a January moon scent since it is so very "springy."

It also brings to mind this little store I used to go to that specialized in Asian products, which stocked many kinds of green tea, light incenses and fresh potted bamboo plants. Walking into the store smelled a little like this, but this much more recalls actually walking into a little bamboo hut where someone is brewing tea, just after a rainfall, than anything else. Not that I've ever done that, but, well, I can imagine it.

The crispness fades on my skin and it becomes a faint green scent that is still pleasant -- if I get a scent locket this would be another great candidate to put in it, to help it last longer in that "fresh" stage.

A keeper, for sure!

Oh it's so hard to describe the Stations of the Sun!

I can't remember if I tried this a long time ago but I am taking notes this time!

Like Ahathoor and Sol, it smells like HEAT without smelling like what we'd typically think of as a "hot" scent. Not spicy, just...intense, and focused. I would guess that there would have to be clove in this, to create that kind of focused heat but it doesn't smell overtly spicy. There could be frankincense or red sandalwood amping that up because this wouldn't last this long on me if there wasn't a wood or resin in it...and those are particularly "hot" wood/resins to me.

But there's also a strong citrus and an herbal component. I'd say rosemary, because I keep running into rosemary and thinking it is a sort of menthol/eucalyptus scent, but after a few minutes it goes back to being herbal. And as I think I mentioned in a review of Catherine it makes me think of the beach -- a scorched, exposed herb scent.

Whatever that citrusy note is, helps to lighted this up and make it really shine. Lemongrass? Plain ol' lemon? Verbena? Something in that family.

Good staying power, a bit of throw, and overall a really nice blend but not necessarily something you'd wear because you wanted to smell like it. I'd think that I'd use this more because I wanted a little sun power on my side.

While I like the lab's regular Absinthe, the anise does me in and makes me smell like Licorice All-Sorts, which are delicious but not so good to smell like. Ahh, this gives me the strangely twisted greenery of absinthe, the splash of herb and citrus, without the licoricey scent. It's predominantly strikes me as a very very clear green scent, with a strong but sugar-sweet citrus (lemon) component and a pleasant, pale mixture of slightly musky herbs.

Although I don't care for vanilla typically I really like the vanilla musk combos from the lab, there's something....fuzzy about them. Combined with this scent of a lemon dusted in sugar (and a couple of slices of lime) it's really quite marvelous, and that's not even the type of scent I go for. I don't know anything about what real absinthe would smell or taste like (I'm a teetotaler...and I just spent five minutes checking to see if that was the correct spelling, so I'm also a complete nerd) but I like this, whatever it is!

I like things that smell like fresh greenery in the sun and this definitely fits the bill -- with a glass of lemonade on the side, the perfect balance of tart lemon and crystalline sugar. It dries down very faint on me, and I don't know what it smells like to anyone that doesn't have their nose pressed to my wrist, but I'm really glad I got to try this. I think one imp is all I would need, since I can't wear light scents like this except for my own amusement (they have no staying power and no throw on me at all) but it's brilliant!

Oh and p.s., the drydown really reminds me of Antique Lace.

Regarding Tramp, I thought that BPAL's Dance of Death smelled almost exactly like it, and patchouli does not seem to be on top in that blend for me (though to be fair, patchouli is just about my favorite scent in the world so I probably just accept its presence unquestioningly). Actually I seem to have a problem smelling patchouli at all in a blend...I practically have to sniff the pure essential oil to get what I feel is a strong enough dose!

But if someone wanted to amp up Tramp I'd suggest Dance of Death...it smells, uh, dark green to me.

I hope that Tramp stays around, it's my very favorite Lush product even though I haven't tried many...I will buy a vat of it if it comes back in a large size.

I don't know if anyone else has posted this or mentioned it but I thought Spanked smelled just like layering Geek over a little bit of Alone.

Which is a good thing for me because I like Spanked...and I didn't wear either Geek or Alone very much on their own. But together...wow! Geek Alone = being Spanked!

Yay, I got to sniff the only one of the Naughty/Nice scents that sounded appealing to me -- and I like it!

In the vial it smells just like Geek to me, but less green. The leather note is very sharp and strong, but I like it when it's combined with woody or earthy scents like patchouli. As it dries, it's like Geek layered over a tiny bit of Alone. And that is good news for me because I have both of those and don't really wear them, but if they work well together, then I get to double my fun!

So this is a leather softened by the slightly sweet, earthy patchouli (which doesn't really jump out on its own, it's very much lost in the mixture) and a slight cardamom kick that resembles the cinnamon bark of Geek. I don't know if I'm smelling the bourbon but there's nothing in this that I dislike.

Fortunately, since I think I can replicate what I like about this by layering those other two, I won't have to seek out more of this but I'm glad I got to try it!

I've had strange luck with certain honeyed florals. Tiger Lily was an early hit for me and the only blatant floral that I have in bottle form. Honey Moon is currently occupying the "favorite Lunacy" spot in my heart. So despite my not liking honey in a lot of other scents, it's usually worth a try.

Happily, Al Araaf seems to be another case where the honey is delicately sweet and floral without being cloying, perfumey or headache-inducing...or sickeningly sweet. It's much lighter than Tiger Lily and not quite as scintillating and complex as Honey Moon but I would definitely say that one of the honeys present in that blend might be in here as well.

It's a bit too light for me though, and fades to a wisp of a golden scent...like the Kama Sutra honey dusting powder, if you've ever tried that. Count me among the ranks of those who are going to stick with Tiger Lily and Honey Moon, since they so mysteriously work for me, against all reason!

First thoughts: rosemary and eucalyptus. Whoops, then I realize -- rosemary always smells a little like eucalyptus to me. Similarly sharp, medicinal and herbal. This is one strong rosemary.

I don't really get anything else from it, but.....the beach? It makes me think of the beach. I don't know if I can explain, but it's got a kind of scorched, salt-watery smell to me. I think my mom must have used some kind of perfumed sunblock that smelled like this.

None of that makes sense but all I can think of when I smell it is a beachbag, scented with that perfumed sunblock.

I'm waiting to see if rose and orange blossom come out, and several hours later there's just the faintest trace of a floral in the remains of the rosemary. It mellows out somewhat. Kind of a harshly perfumed herbal tonic.

However I think this would be perfect in the bath...and I think I will use it for that. I'd love to soak in hot water scented with this. Once again I wish I had some unscented products lying around for experimentation.

I first tried Neo-Tokyo a very long time ago and got it confused with a lot of other scents I was trying at the time -- Shanghai, The Apothecary, and others, which all gave me the same impression: something light, white-yellow-pale green, hinting at tea or citrus.

Now that I am trying it again I've become a bit more sensitive to individual notes but it still strikes me mainly as a light, electric, scent with a bit of a green tea/grass or very faint citrus. I like the "air after a storm" feeling but it does make it feel a bit more like the kind of perfume you might spritz on yourself from a bottle before going out for a night on the town.

It fades so fast on me I never really get to know it. A great 'fresh' scent though and another to consider if I ever get some unscented bath products that I want to add a refreshing scent to.

I'm never sure what to say about dragon's blood scents other than, "It smells like dragon's blood." It's such a strange fragrance -- although a resin it sometimes smells cherry-like, sometimes lilac-like, and every once in awhile it comes across spicy as well. I sometimes really like it, and sometimes can't stand it.

Whatever you think of this strange resin, you have to like it a lot to like Blood Amber, which is almost just straight dragon's blood to me. The amber makes it a little stronger and more longlasting, I think, but from beginning to end it's basically dragon's blood.

I have a feeling that when people smell this (or any other strong DB scent) on me that they think it smells like cherries because that's just the kind of thing that people say to me to drive me crazy. It screams "red!" and it's a bit sweet but I tend to think it's more of a sweet, glowing incensy resin -- like the coal burning underneath incense powder. And this is warmed a little by the golden touch of amber. But I just know people are going to say it smells like cherry on me.

I was so excited when I saw the notes listed for this one, that even if there was no statue I think I would have paid this much for a 10 ml bottle of this!

Black plum, champa, dark musk, patchouli and sandalwood are pretty much the Who's Who of scents that I can't live without...narcissus is not typically my friend, but let's see if the dark purple fruits and incense can smother it, eh?

Oh yes, bliss and heaven. In the bottle this is very incensy and I smell that dark juicy purple plum that I love so much (the one in Blood Countess and Red Phoenix). I think that the narcissus is actually serving to lighten this up and to help keep all of the elements in the air, as it were, without turning things floral.

On my skin, WOW. This is the ultimate incense! Actually at first it reminds me a little of my favorite GC blend, Urd, but without the muscadine. And it slowly slides into something like Red Phoenix, without the cinnamon.

This is actually so multilayered and complex I can't predict what it's going to do next. It's very much that deep, soaked-in incense smell that you get in a room or in fabric when you've been burning nag champa for years and years ... combined with the fresh scent of loose, blended incense in an occult or hippie shop. And that is the scent that I crave, all the time. That's what I want to bring with me everywhere I go.

Thank goodness this came in a 10 ml. The way Seamus is holding onto it it's like he's saying "Mine! Mine! You can't have it!" and yeah, that's the way I feel, too!

This was the one of the Come and See quartet that I had most wanted to try and even contemplated ordering a bottle unsniffed until I seriously thought about that "cocoa" in the description and decided not to chance it. Cocoa may make life worth living when it is consumed in brownie form, but as a fragrance on my skin it just makes me think that I forgot to wash frosting off of my fingers.

Sniffing this, I'm glad I didn't order a bottle. The notes sounded very close to Red Phoenix but this is much closer to something like Cerberus or 13. I didn't hate those, but I decided that I'd never wear them, and didn't keep them.

Actually, in the bottle this reminds me of the smell of those root beer barrel candies, after you've been sucking on them for a little bit. Sticky, syrupy and just a little lemony. It really does remind me of Cerberus, a blend that I appreciated the artistry of but knew I wouldn't wear. Or it's 13 tinted orange instead of purple (the iris in 13 makes me think of purple, what can I say?)

Really strong, lemony citrusy and a cocoa/root beer sort of smell. I guess I can kind of sense that there's something I like behind it...something smoky and herbal like tea or tobacco but I can never quite grasp it.

Red musk, black tea, and tobacco are three of my favorite notes. I also dig herbs, and tonka, and I am OK with mandarin and maybe even saffron. But all I can smell in this is that sticky root beer barrel smell, a mishmash of candy crunched together with chocolate and a spritz of lemon or orange. Nonetheless I think I'll hang onto it to keep the full set of four, just for aesthetic sniffing purposes. It doesn't quite make me think of swords or war though, it makes me think of a candy store!

Burial was one of the very first scents I ever tried, yet for some reason I never reviewed it. My bottle is rather old now but it still smells about the same. When I first got this I was hoping for something like GothRosary's "Graveyard" -- it's different, but fulfills a similar green mossy need in my brain.

Actually I remember when I first opened this my overwhelming impression was a sharp rosey smell. Mossy, mouldering wood, damp greenery and a sharp rose. It also reminds me a little of the scent of our old canvas tent after it had been rained on, and was dusty and slightly moldy in the basement. That's kind of a smell that I like though.

Now, after sniffing many many other things, I can definitely recognize the sharp bite of juniper in there. Not so sure if those are roses or some other flower but it's predominantly a sharp green scent, anchored in place by an earthy base. The powdery scent that floats over top...I don't know what that is. It reminds me a little of nail polish remover.

It isn't quite like Zombi though it might sound like it. Zombi is much more of a strong dirt and pungent rose scent. The rosiness is a little less overpowering in this and the dirt is subdued by the damp mossy greenery. I wound up keeping this bottle and not keeping Zombi, because this one doesn't give me a rose headache and doesn't stick to my clothing or hair for a week afterward!

I love the dark red color of this oil -- it makes me want to drink it. I'm craving cranberry juice now.

Being from a town that has a cranberry festival every year, this was kind of interesting to me -- and I like a lot of berry scents when they have an incensy or earthy feeling to them.

This is a very pungent, sweet-sour cranberry cocktail. Actually it does smell like a candle -- even down to being a little waxy. I don't smell lilies at any stage but it does make me think of some of the holiday cranberry candles that I sniffed this year. It would definitely smell great at the end of the year as a room scent.

I'm not sure if I'd wear it though -- I do like the slight burst of power that the musk gives it, which is probably why this doesn't become candy on me. Ultimately, it makes me thirsty...and I smell a bit like a candle. Not a bad thing but probably not something I'd wear again. If you're looking for a cranberry scent, or a room scent that would be something like a cranberry candle, this is definitely the way to go!

Mantis makes me think of grass. It is green in color, first of all...but it is a very fresh, green smell to me, and the patchouli in the background makes me think of soil (though it is barely "smellable" in the blend to me) and then there's golden amber pouring over like sunlight. Again, very faintly.

And I wish I had kept my bottle. I'm ordering another one I think. It's my favorite fresh green spring smell.

This is around the time last year that I started to plan for spring...

Last year I was thinking lemony, citrusy and green tea scents but as it turns out they are so fleeting on me there's almost no point in wearing them.

I think Dublin will stay as a big spring scent for me though (as similar as it is to Skadi, it's a little more springy), and Unicorn...what's left of my Cheshire Cat...and Arkham Revistied and Mi-Go for sure. Short-lasting or not they make me think of last spring! And Spirits of the Dead seems to be a good tea scent.

I don't think I'll bother getting any bottles for spring though as I pretty much just wear my favorites all year. I think Snow White and Mistletoe will still be gorgeous fresh scents for the warmer months though!

Mmmmm....

Shh, I haven't tested this but I sniffed the bottle I got for my friend. I had to know what kind of rose it was. Any fears I had that it would be too similar to Rose Red are dispelled. To me, this is a dark, deep pink rose. In other words it's a slightly sweet, full bloom...and it is not overly spikey or powdery or, erm, headachy. Rose Red was a very cold green rose to me, and gorgeous but it does tend to get up in your sinuses.

From sniffing this, I know that it wouldn't give me a headache if I wore it, but I simply don't wear rose scents very often. There are SO many ways to approach rose, though, which is why it's such a wonderful scent. If you love rose in all of its manifestations, try this! If you want a pure rose ~different~ from Rose Red, try it! If you found a lot of other roses too perfumey or powdery then this might also be worth a try. I'm glad I got a sniff!

I didn't order a bottle of this because of the narcissus and other floral notes. I am pretty sure that narcissus is the note that smells like chemical/hairspray/nail polish to me and didn't want to take a chance on yet another Lunacy blend that I'd have to get rid of (I've kept...only four Lunacy blends to date, and I've tried all but one).

But oh hell. It's gorgeous. It's actually more like Dublin than Skadi to me, must be the white rose. It's such a ROUND note. So cold, so white and pale pale green. If you liked Dublin or its piney cousin Skadi, oh man, this is for you.

I'm going to be kicking myself over here for awhile. But seriously, between Skadi, Talvikuu and Snow Bunny I think I have enough scents like this even though I love them all. They are all so similar, and just one tiny shade different from one another. The main reason to get all of them would be having all the cool bottle labels.

I don't really get the florals from this and I definitely don't get the dreaded narcissus. Just that lovely round succulent white rose (which does not smell 'rosey' really).

I'm never sure whether these are more aquatic, or woody, or slightly fruity, or what -- they're just, erm, snowy. Pale greenery and snow and just a hint of sunlight sparkling on ice. Sigh.

This is actually kind of how I wish that Incantation had smelled...

Lemon and lavender seemed a bit out of place at first, in an otherwise resiny earthy blend (frankincense and vetiver are two of my reasons for getting up in the...afternoon, I love them so much). But they don't really announce themselves too loudly in this blend.

The lemon peel is a square of sunlight falling on the floor of a dark chapel, but it never smells overtly lemony. It just adds a little light. Same with the lavender...if you like the fougere of Dorian or Old Scratch, this is a similar musky, faintly lavender cologne that just drifts around the edges.

The frankincense is foremost on me and lasts the longest -- the other dark scents give the whole blend some body and staying power. Like the other Come and See fragrances, this is a fascinating experience and it's great to just let these scents develop on you and listen to them tell their story. I don't know if I'd use them regularly, but wow, they certainly unfold in a most interesting way.

I like this one and I have no idea where to begin with it.

First, the thing that really struck me about this scent was how glassy and transparent it smelled to me. Most scents give me a synaesthetic color association but this strikes me as perfectly clear. Another review compared it to a clear stream running over rocks and that is also how it strikes me.

I'm guessing that the slicing, clean scent is a combination of the citrus (lime, yuzu) and sharp mint with the cleansing lavender. A glassy blade or a chill dip in a stream. But underneath, there is soil. Rich, gritty, clean soil. I really love it when it starts to come out, later in the transformation. Sterile, but earthy.

I don't know if I would wear this enough to warrant a bottle but it's a fascination scent and a real delight to experience. It has a very mineral quality to it, and I am so baffled by this "clean/dirty" association that I can't stop sniffing.

I don't really like many of the notes in this on their own, but you never know what things are going to do when they get together.

This reminds me initially of a lighter Tombstone -- not as cedary, but there's that strange vanilla and leather thing going on. I am not wild about the leather note if it's too strong, but it adds a nice warm masculine touch in small amounts.

Lavender and vanilla and this masculine musky scent together do remind me of Old Scratch as well but not as incensy and fragrant. This scent stays at a low, sultry simmer.

This has all the swagger of Tombstone but instead of wearing chaps he's sliding into the saloon wearing a long Victorian coat and has a carnation in his lapel. Boy this does really come across as a Western scent doesn't it?

The verdict for me is that it's too leathery, and while I can dig that in certain super-woody blends, in this particular one it is a little too cowboy but I think it would be great for guys, or girls who like leathery vanilla combos.

I've been trying to figure out how to review this for days now -- this is a fairly unique scent and I've tried about 500 from the lab. The only really similar one I've tried was Clio, and that is another recent addition to the catalog. This is like Clio...without the orange. Yet there is still something slightly warm and almost citrus/fruity hovering around this scent.

In the bottle and freshly on the skin it is a very appealing light wood fragrance and yes it really does have a dusty smell. My boyfriend said it smells like old books in the bottle, and he didn't know anything about what this was supposed to smell like. I think it's the "parchment" note she's been using lately. But it actually makes me ~sneeze~ when I sniff it on my skin at first.

The dusty wooden box smell is somehow dappled in sweetness and light, unaccountably, making it a rather friendly scent to me. I don't specifically smell musk of any sort, and certainly not anything sharp, but maybe I'm just interpreting that as a citrusy warmth. It's smiling at me, at any rate.

It dries down to a powdery wood scent and a light musk clings to me after it dries. The bf does not like it when it dries on my skin because he said it smelled too powdery...but when I told him it was supposed to smell like dust and wood he said it made more sense. He usually doesn't comment on my fragrances, which is why I mention this....it had enough throw and personality for him to really comment on it. Unfortunately he didn't like it on me but I like it, so there!

Really unique, but if you want it and can't get it, try Clio!