suki

In The Bottle: The apricot is sweet without being overly fruity. The vanilla bean and coconut milk give it a nice base that stops it from smelling like hard candy. Off to a great start!

Wet On Skin: I'm getting an edge of the peach now in the mix, but the coconut milk and vanilla bean are still in the forefront, which is a relief, because sometimes I amp peach like nobody's business!

Dry Down: The marshmallow finally comes out a bit to add to the party. Overall, this scent is low throw, mildly sweet and extremely wearable. I can see layering this with a number of other things because it's just so delicate and pretty. For those that are unsure about food scents, this could be a good one to help you dip your toe in the water for!

In The Bottle: the saffron note that I recall all-too-well from MB: Underpants is front and center Also, oddly, I get a blond tobacco from this, which is puzzling, since there is NO tobacco! I am going to assume it must be the golden musk. Odd!

Wet On Skin: Ah- THERE'S the resin! The resin is just starting to come out. It's warm and reminds me strongly of violin rosin, which wa frankly the best part of being forced to play violin in junior high school

Dry Down: Light throw on me, this is another fine Lace for the collection. I don't get amber in the petrified-tree-sap sense, but this scent is full of gorgeous resins and saffron to lend a little spice.

I cannot WAIT to see how this ages!

In The Bottle: The plum is sweet and bright right out of the gate, followed by a hint of that green cognac. That's all I get at first.

 

Wet On Skin: The oudh settles into itself, becoming a bit more rich, but not incense-y as I had expected. The vanilla cream lace is juuuuust beginning to peek out!

 

Dry Down: Siiiiiiigh. This is everything that I hope any in the Lace series to be: filling me with a painful nostalgia that haunts my longings and releases all my beautiful ghosts. It's sweet and dusky and gorgeous, no one note standing out, all working in gorgeous symphony. Like stepping into a sitting room full of silver print photographs and dried flowers in cut crystal vases.

In The Bottle: As other mentioned, a dark, bitter-sweet chocolate is front and center. But the vetiver is present too, taking this scent away from being strictly gourmand and making it earthy, root-y and smoky.

Wet On Skin: The cacao and vetiver are now neck and neck. I was hoping that one wouldn't overpower the other. Hopefully, that stays consistent through to the end.

 

Dry Down: The smoke of the vetiver has been largely tamed by the cacao and the bitterness of the cacao has been smoothed down by the vetiver. I knew that chances were excellent that this combination would work well for me, since I favor both of these notes. In combination, they are magical love.

The only thing better is to see what happens after some aging!

In The Bottle: SweetTarts lemon and lime candies!

 

Wet On Skin: The sugar settles down a bit, which I frankly hope continues, because as much as I like candy scents, I definitely get more mileage out of not-candy scents, usually because I amp sugar notes like crazy.

 

Dry Down: Lovely, LOVELY lemon-lime summer scent. This isn't a Sprite or 7up soda scent, this is like if the lemon from Happy Baby In A Long Dress married the lime in the original release of Tarot: The Star. Which is *precisely* what I was hoping for. If you love citrus for hot summer days, see if you can snag some of this, it will NOT disappoint!

In The Bottle: A light, very sweet, slightly dusty chocolate followed by a hint of rich buttercream.

Wet On Skin: The chocolate is quite light here. Mostly I'm getting a sugary vanilla with a dusting of cocoa powder on top.

Dry Down: The chocolate vanishes entirely and I'm left with a very light, sweet buttercream. On my skin, it is a very close cousin to Egg Nog, without any nutmeg.

In All: For me, chocolate scents are always hit (Bliss; Cacao Pod) or terribly miss (Candy Butcher, I'm looking at you). Unfortunately, in spite of three types of chocolate being present in this blend, my skin gives me not a one
well, of to the swaps it goes!

In The Bottle: The strange-yet-tantalizing combination of cocoa powder and lavender oil, with a bit of the vanilla rounding it out from underneath. I'm intrigued already!

Wet On Skin: The lavender comes a bit more to the forefront, certainly reading as more of a Victorian fougere, which I'm liking, because it makes the scent slightly more masculine, and sometimes I like that.

Dry Down: The lavender is definitely in the front now, with cocoa playing second fiddle and vanilla a distant third. I get no other notes but frankly, those were the three notes I was most compelled by, and I'm rather pleased with the end result.

In All: medium throw. A nice genderQueer scent for those that dig poncy lavender mixed with slightly gourmand sweets

In The Bottle: White ginger and a bit of honey.

Wet On Skin: Exceptionally light but with a nice spice. I was interested in trying this scent because I love spice scents, but many are too heavy for warm weather months. I may have found what I'm looking for *fingers crossed*

Dry Down: This reads to me like more of a ginger *flower* than straight ginger. I also get a light green tea kind of note (which I know, is nowhere found in the description but maybe it's the Ambrosia?) which lends itself again to making this an appealing scent for hot days.

In All: low throw, this is definitely a skin scent and a nice one for exceptionally hot days when I get tired of wearing citrus based scents. Glad I splurged on a blind bottle!

In The Bottle: WHOA. That is delicious. The white carnation is definitely a different experience than the Spanish Red I've encountered in past Lab mixtures (plus one of my favorite SNs of all time!) But just in the bottle, it's not the only note in the mix. The honey lends sweetness right out of the gate, but at this stage, doesn't present itself as the honey configuration we all typically know from such Lab favorites as "O". I am way intrigued, regardless!

Wet On Skin: Sweet, creamy (hey milk note heeeey!) and, as others mentioned, comforting.

Dry Down: The carnation reads slightly more like carnation I've met before, but still lighter, definitely a 'white' variation for sure. The honey and milk are holding strong. I personally don't get any of the cardamom, but that's not surprising, since my skin tends to eat that notes unless it hits me over the head in a OH HAI I AM ALL TEH CARDAMOM ALL TEH TIME kind of way. I have a SN if I feel like it needs ome, but this scent is just lovely right as it is.

Glad to have a bottle- it feels like sacred hope, which is needed in these exceptionally dark times.

In The Bottle: A powdery-soft note that I'm betting is the musk, and as I pull my nose away, I get a slight shard of the dry vanilla husk.

 

Wet On Skin: The benzoin starts to peep out just a bit, bringing a nice resin base into the equation. I'm a bit concerned that the musk is going to stay like baby powder, but hoping it changes on dry-down

Dry Down: Alas, the baby powder appears to be in full effect
However, the resin of the benzoin and the very dry husk of vanilla offer enough incentive to hold onto it and re-try in a month or so when it's had a chance to settle down. As the very least, this scent has a warm, soft vibe that I can see being of great comfort to many. In any event, I'm happy to have gotten a bottle if, for no other reason, to support such an important cause during these extremely foreboding times.

In The Bottle: a dry, straight-forward lavender. I would call this a "daytime" lavender, in that I don't get anything that feels 'sleepy' or 'drowsy' about it, which is nice, because I'm fond of lavender but most scents have to be kept to evening use since they facilitate sleepytimes.

 

Wet On Skin: the caramel aspect of the tobacco os coming out, but not overpowering, which is a relief. I'm also getting hints of the cognac that is a staple in many of the Lace blends. Not much, if any, of the vanilla to speak of. I hope that changes on dry down.

Dry Down: Someone above mentioned the scent of old linens, and I can see that. The lavender becomes a faint memory, the cognac and tobacco melding into the kind of scent that one would find on old yellowed fabrics tucked into a closet, left to their own devices after a passed lifetime of use. It's *definitely* a scent that belongs to the Lace family, I just wish it had a bit more of the lavender note left over...

I pretty much always gravitate toward creativity-supporting TAL oils. But as a full-time fine artist that is extremely political, I knew that I was going to need a bottle of this one in particular.

 

From a purely perfume-fragrance perspective, Artivism isn't the main attraction. Let's face it: mugwort just isn't that much of a go-to scent experience. It's dry and a little farty, in much the same way as clary sage. Yes, the jasmine certainly tempers that and the bergamot gives another welcomed layer. But all of that is besides the point, because what this is really about and the urge toward creative endeavor toward the greater good, and that's where this Artivism excels. I am often amazed (though not surprised) at Beth's ability to encapsulate the needs and desires of the creative process. But of course, an artist herself, she's one of us, and knows no doubt from first-hand experience what it means to have such drives and passions. And here it is, tailored and formulated not just to scratch the itch that comes with percolating a new idea or concept, but the specificity that comes with creative birthing that lies in service to helping for a larger betterment of those that inhabit this small planet.

This oil on a conceptual level, is basically the inverse of Honey Rose 45. Where that one is to gain a sense that we are not alone in this, that there are still people that are creating daily mitzvahs in the midst of oppression, this is about our own compassion and resiliency. I see them as two sides ultimately of the same coin, and the feelings I experience from each of them when engaging bears that out, as does the scents they happen to transmit.

If Honey Rose points to the port in the storm, Virtus reminds us that *we* are the fucking port. From Honey Rose I experienced almost a melancholy, a weepiness of feeling others connect and hold me in their invisible net. Virtus instead galvanizes me, makes to want to spin nets of my own, protect those that are spent and despairing and to do so with a level of integrity that is well-neigh untouchable. The weepiness is replaced with the kinds of tears that spring up when I'm enraged at the levels of injustice I witness daily and motivates me to fight back and fight HARD.

Normally, I can't wear oils with myrrh, I amp it, it becomes baby powder on me and is generally unpleasant. But the myrrh here mixes with the woods and the other resins to create something rich and earthy without being dirt-like. It's grounding and grounded and reminds me that ultimately the truth will set us free.

When they go low we go high, indeed.

When I was looking at descriptions of the 45-specific scents, this was one of the ones I *knew* I needed to have. In dark times, it can be incredibly difficult to hold on to hope.

 

Although TAL oils aren't about fragrance, I happen to be a person for whom sense of smell plays a factor in lots of aspects of my life, well beyond what perfume I decide to wear for the day. To that end, Honey Rose smells like roses, just passed their prime, wilting gently in a summer garden, surrounded by other signifiers of high summer, like errant greenery that sprouts, tenaciously, in sidewalk cracks, and maybe a touch of something more herbal, which I'm betting the honey myrtle in the mix.

 

Whether because of this complex scent or -at least as likely- the intent meant to be invoked, wearing a bit of this on my skin conjures strong feelings of empathy but also a bittersweetness that comes from feeling gratitude when life has been especially hard. This oil is the delicious cake, home made and frosted with care, that someone brings you when a loved one has crossed over. The warm hug given by a sweet neighbor when they hear you lost your job. It's a reprieve that casts no illusions that "everything is going to be just fine so look on the bright side" but rather that in the midst of tremendous adversity, there is indeed a port in the storm.

 

Which is intense, but a truthful solace we need.

In The Bottle: That gorgeous incense base that I've come to associate with Eve in all her glory dominates in the Fuck Up version as well. Can't wait to see what happens next!

Wet On Skin: Interestingly, the rose note in standard Eve never really showed itself, which is odd, because rose notes can amp on me and therefore be make-or-break situations. And I mention this because the sage is really subtle in here, in an only slightly elevated way that rose showed itself in the standard formula. What's it's doing is acting as kind of a stage or a base for the rest of the spicy, sultry notes in Eve to stand on. I'm definitely not getting the herby-greeny study Silvertree mentioned, so this might seriously be a skin chemistry thing taken to the next level.

Dry Down: I mean, this is Eve we're talking about. EVE. A scent based on a character personified by Tilda-Fucking-Swinton as an immortal living in North Africa. And having just come back from living for a brief and beautiful time in North Africa, the standard Eve was already close to my heart. This version of Eve, fuck-ups be damned, is fucking GLORIOUS. It's spicy and sweet and the sage plays up the desert aspect just a notch and it's just so. damn. slatherable. I never slather perfumes. But OLLA Eve, in both her guises, *requires* nothing less.

EASILY makes it into my top 10, my top 7and probably my top 5 if I'm pressed to say.

So, I was hoping this would be like a Mint Mojito, and it wasn't. But it is GREAT. It's fresh but isn't that WOW MINT thing that mint likes to do. It's more subtle here, integrating well with the vanilla and tempered by the sugar, angering and bourbon (I get no lime). This will be a lovely thing to spray in the house this summer to lighten the air.

I suspect this is going to be the "sleeper hit" of the DragCon offerings this year

I treat wig sprays as atmosphere sprays generally, so that's how I conducted tests for this pone, by spraying into the air, letting it settle and seeing what developed.
As I had hoped, this for me was pretty much all Lavender and Vanilla with a bit of Sugar Cane in the background. It's like an atmo version of Daybreak, which is my favorite lavender scent of all time, because it can be used during the day without it putting me into a stupor the way TKO does.

I love this!

This is a very light, very "clean" scent. I was hoping for a little more in terms of the vanilla skin musk. On me, it's reading more like a pure water note. Water notes usually go awry on me, but this is pretty sheer. I can definitely see what is meant about using this to layer.- I personally don't think I'd wear this on its own that much. But I'm already wearing OLLA Eve today, so I conducted an experiment with layering a bit of DIFE to see how it goes, and it's *definitely* better in that context for me. On top of Eve, DIFE seems to have an amplifying quality, pulling the incense and souk notes to the front of Eve and also adding an edge of some sort.

I'm going to continue doing some experiments but I don't know if this is for me just yet.

Love Me would be my top pick. I didn't wear it on my wedding day but I wore it almost every day of my honeymoon. It's a gorgeous floral, a little spicy, without being cloying.

In The Bottle: I get the sweetness of the labdanum straight away, with the liquidambar coming in after. Which is a GREAT start.

 

Wet On Skin: So sweetly, deeply, resinous. The ambar is reminding me of some magical amber I've had for my entire adult life. It's sexy and warm and quite strong. The labdanum is adding that hallucinatory aspect as it is wont to do, and I *LIKE* it.

 

Dry Down: More of the same. This is a great scent for anyone that loves rich, sweet resin scents.

I cannot *wait* to see how this ages.

In The Bottle: Dry sweet woods. Thankful, so far the cedar is staying put instead of jumping out at me. Here's hoping that continues...

Wet On Skin: The jasmine is coming round now. It's not the light floral jasmine, it's the thick, dark Indian jasmine for sure, which I guess must be similar to an Egyptian variable. I like both, but here the darker one seems more appropriate to hold its own against those other deep notes.

 

Dry Down: Deep jasmine grounded by wood. Possibly a *hint* of saffron bitten off at the end. Sadly I don't get any honey or vanilla. But I'm willing to wait, to see what happens with aging. It's not a bad scent, just surprisingly simple on my skin. I'm hoping some complexities come out by waiting around.

In The Bottle: This is an instant surprise. In the bottle, I'm getting a delectable mix of the Lab's blood note with a spicy undertone that is REALLY working here. It also smell, oddly, very "fresh", which, if representing the 'frozen' aspect of the scent, I can definitely get behind.

 

Wet On Skin: A slightly, almost-lemon aspect is emerging, which adds some breadth to the blood note in, again, a surprising and compelling manner.

Dry Down: Whoa. There's definitely been a shift, in a really nice way. That 'spice' aspect I detected in-bottle has come back during dry down. I get what some folks have mentioned about it being like an incense, but it doesn't read that way to me. It's more like a sweet-spice-blood combination. It defies description at the top-most level, which is great, and seems to be a bit of a theme in the OLLA series overall. Whatever it is wth Blood Popsicle, I am ALL IN.

In The Bottle: Sweet beeswax, a whiff of smoke, a bit of salt.

 

Wet On Skin: The beeswax gets lighter, and the salt remains a grounding force. Possibly some tears drizzled onto the whole affair.

 

Dry Down: A smoke and light beeswax combination that becomes nearly leather. Which, for me, sadly, is not great. I traditionally very much like the Lab's beeswax note, but I'm feeling rather disappointed with my skin chemistry this time out. I'll hold on to this to see how it ages, but this might wind up on the swap pile...

In The Bottle: Thick Turkish / Arabic coffee with a dusting of Middle Eastern spices.

 

Wet On Skin: The spices are coming more to the forefront at this stage, especially the cardamom and the nutmeg.

 

Dry Down: Having just come back from living in rural Morocco for a spell, I can say that this scent does NOT disappoint in terms of its realness and accuracy (so far, none of the North African-influenced OLLA scents have missed the mark in this regard!) Although I get none of the tobacco, it scarcely matters- this scent is one of the great coffee scents of the BPAL pantheon. The rich, thick, dark powdery grind of the coffee, the heavy hand of the sweet/savory spices, is exquisite. I can scarcely wait to see what happens when this scent ages. Just beautiful and simply mandatory for any fan of the Lab's coffee scents.

In The Bottle: Ridiculously gorgeous sandalwood/benzoin combination right out of the gate. If it doesn't morph at all, I'll be quite happy as is. If it shifts during dry-down, I'll be even happier, I suspect...

Wet On Skin: The benzoin's resin-y / vanilla-y vibe is coming out more, bringing the sandalwood into further balance whilst it warms on my skin.

Dry Down: Gorgeous, dry sandalwood mingling beautifully with the benzoin, and just a tiny peek at the end of the ink note I recall so fondly from India Ink SN. It's really a lovely scent, and perfect for the character of Hal. Comforting and friendly and enduring.