Silvertree

Ooh, did you see Mary Read in the update? MARY READ Salt air, ocean mist, aged patchouli, sarsaparilla, watered-down rum, leather-tinged musk, and a spray of gunpowder.

I was thinking about Snake Oil, but then I did it one better by wearing Boomslang. Magical serpent, potions ingredient, smells great and fun to say!

I think I read somewhere that the Salon imps that the Lab sells in Exhibit packs have miniature versions of the art that's printed on the bottle.

I ordered my bottle of Dee pretty soon after it came out, and it looks just as you describe.

Here's Selkie!

Lilacs are my favorite flower, and quite possibly my favorite smell in the world. My parents have a row of lilac trees lining one side of the front yard, and every May I would drag a chair outside and read under the blooming lilacs for hours. At the Botanical Gardens, every year I contemplate building a tiny cabin in the lilac grove. Although I am not generally fond of floral perfumes, I will always make an exception for scents with lilac notes. I'm exceptionally glad that I didn't pass up this particular blend, as it is a knockout in its own right as well as a stellar lilac scent. The first thing I smell is a heady rush of fresh lilac blossoms. Nothing cloying, sweet, or overpowering”” just a noseful of gorgeous lilac aroma, like sniffing fresh flowers after a gentle spring rain and getting the lilac-frangranced raindrops all over your face and hair. The same white musk note I loved in Oisin starts to brighten the scent, and it soars upward almost to the point of getting too perfumey. But just before it reaches that headachy high note, the leather surfaces and yanks it back down, grounding everything with a soft earthiness. This is so different from what I usually wear (musks and ambers and resins and spices). It's also unbelievably gorgeous. Sophisticated without being standoffish. Dressy without being stuffy. Just... just perfect.

My friends and I are trying to place an order, but when we tried to add Oblivion to our cart, we got the following message: ***** Invalid Product Product ID: ZN01 is not on file Please use the Return link, and try again. If this problem persists, contact the administrator of the Web site where you are shopping. ***** What should we do? We're ordering some scents that will disappear soon (the Dogs Playing Poker, Blue/Rose Moon) and want to include Oblivion in the order. Should we substitute another bottle, and ask for Oblivion in the comments? I know that substitutions are generally Not Done, but we just discovered this problem and only have a few more hours to place the order.

I've been pushing myself pretty hard in my martial arts classes, and added boxing to the mix to improve my sparring. Good for my technique, rough on my muscles! After Wednesday's class, I was so stiff that I could barely walk. My loving and brilliant fella drew me an Ugh bath, lit some candles for me, and left me to my own devices for a blissful half hour. I asked him to only use half the bomb at first, and add the other half if it looked too watery... half was more than enough to fill the tub with silky, fizzy, muscle-melting magic. The scent wasn't too strong, just a pleasant, slightly medicinal background fragrance. I slid into the water and my legs said, "ahhhhh." I felt the tension and achiness in my body leave; the Dead Sea salts escorted them to the door and they were politely but firmly asked to leave and never come back. Any stiffness and soreness I had felt was replaced with warmth and relaxation. I luxuriated in the tub until I was approaching prunedom, then reluctantly climbed out. My legs worked again, my neck wasn't stiff, and my skin felt soft and moisturized. Anyone who suffers from body aches should invest in a closetful of Ugh fizzyBOOMs. They are, quite simply, da BOMB.

If you want to try combining fruity and spicy/sexy, how about Hymn to Proserpine? It's very warm, and ambery with a really nice blend of dark fruits and spice.

I was expecting the red musk of Scherezade to team up with the ginger of Shub-Niggurath and the leather of Loviatar and have a hot, spicy, noisy orgy on my skin. What I'm getting instead is a lightly musky scent that has what I think of as a starry quality. At first I was worried, but after reading the thread I see that several people are experiencing the softer side of Trick #1. Every so often, a gleam of ginger or a flash of red musk peeks out from behind the starry veil, warming the scent and intriguing me. It's more of a classy burlesque show, where things are hinted at rather than outright revealed. I prefer strong scents, and wouldn't mind being hit over the head with the ginger/red musk/leather triple threat, but I'm liking how some of my favorite notes are going in a completely different direction than I expected. I can't wait to find out what this smells like after it's been aged for a bit!

The Lab switched from cobalt to amber within the last few months because, I believe, they were having a hard time finding a good source of blue bottles. They've been insanely busy, so the website might be a bit out of date. But it's all good! (And easier to see the oil level!)

Thanks! I'd hate for one of my beloved bottles to burst in the cargo bay of an airplane, and if I can't bring it in my carryon in liquid form, there has to be another way of making it safe! Hmm. I wonder if they would catch imp-pendant jewelry. Another option: pre-soaking pads for a scent locket and putting them in individually sealed plastic bags?

I think I'll look into making solid perfumes for travel. My friend gifted me with a wee container of O + shea butter, and it is tres magnifique. In fact, it's the reason I tried (and then bought a 10 mL of) O! And if any security people question its harmlessness, I will rub it all over myself to prove it's not an explosive or dangerous chemical. That'll take care of the "stale airplane air" smell, too.

I believe Snake Oil got its makeover with the first inception of Carnaval Noir.

I think the spiciest scent I've tried is Bengal (A sultry and unruly blend that emulates the ambient scent of the markets in ancient Bengal: skin musk with honey, peppers, clove, cinnamon bark and ginger). None of the oils in the catalog really emulate a curry restaurant, at least to my nose, but maybe try searching for saffron, ginger, or cardamom. Also, try sandalwood (the chairs and the tables), or various spices and resins. How about Kathmandu (the scent of sacred incense swirling up the steep slopes to Swayambhunath Stupa. Saffron, blessed sandalwood, Himalayan cedar and the miraculous lotus of the Buddha with chiuri bark and Nepalese spices) or Sri Lanka (Indian sandalwood and cedar, and the dry incense smoke of olibanum, gum mastic, patchouli and myrrh)? Sri Lanka is all woods and resins on me, not much foodiness, but perhaps you could layer it with a foody scent for the whole shebang.

E-mail customer service- answers@blackphoenixalchemylab.com.

Nyx is one of those tricky three-letter words that the search engine won't pick up. She's in the Excolo section. Here's the description: Named in honor of the primeval Greek Goddess of Night. A scent reflecting inky black skies and eternal desolation. Night-blooming jasmine, warmed by myrrh, lifted by the promise of rose. And reviews are here.

I like Silk Road (A panoply of cultural treasures, spanning the herbs, flowers, oils and balms of the Romans, the Byzantines, the Mediterranean, the Levant, Northern China, Eastern Europe, Iran, the Bulgar-Kypchak, Mesopotamia, the Crimean Peninsula, Anatolia, Antioch, and North Africa) for an exotic scent with just the right amount of florals. I also think that Sri Lanka (Indian sandalwood and cedar, and the dry incense smoke of olibanum, gum mastic, patchouli and myrrh), in addition to being one of my favorite BPAL scents, is also a great belly dance scent. It's warm, resinous, spicy, and definitely enticing. If the fabric won't stain, you could scent your veil/skirt/etc. so that the fragrance really wafts when you move! One last idea: Sin (Thouroughly corrupted: amber, sandalwood, black patchouli and cinnamon) is a wonderful resin/spice blend. It doesn't have quite the same belly dance feel to it that Sri Lanka does, but I bet if you like it you'd have no trouble making it work for you. ETA: If you can get a decant of And There was a Great Cry in Egypt, that might work well as long as the musk isn't too strong.

Thanks so much, Gypsy! (Or GRR! if you prefer!) I think my favorite is the Litha label, but the Hungry Ghost definite has a look of the starving urchin about it!

Let me be the first to say- "YES, please!" I love seeing new labels!

Hmm... I really like Laurel's idea for an Underpants label. My thought was that the *monster* would be the one wearing the underpants- maybe festooned with pairs all over its body. Kinda like the sock gremlins who live in the driers and are responsible for me wearing one black and one pink sock today.

Try the "How do I store my BPAL?" thread! http://www.bpal.org/index.php?showtopic=1035 And from a personal standpoint, I would say wrap the bottles individually in bubble wrap and put them in boxes (empty cigar boxes, or maybe cosmetics cases). Then put those boxes on the floor of the passenger seat (depending on how full your car/van is), making sure nothing can fall on them. Or have them sit in the lap of the trusted friend riding shotgun.

As am I! And I was in costume Saturday night, and will be again tonight- the boy and I do a pretty good Young Gomez and Morticia. He wears Dracul and I wear Loviatar.

This is more of a technical "how do you photograph the bottle/label?" question. I don't know how I managed to get legible pictures of the bottles I posted in this thread- dumb luck, probably. I'm going to be putting some things on eBay in the foreseeable future, and I'd like to post pictures, but every time I try to take a photo of the label, it comes out super-blurry. Advice? I'm using an HP Photosmart R707 digital camera, if that helps. And it's the same thing I used to take photographs last time, so I can't determine why everything's out of focus. Thanks!

I can't believe I never reviewed any of the scents from the Tarot Circular Swap! I just found my notebook with the descriptions and my thoughts, so I'll start in the middle with the scent that affected me in a very profound way- The World. The World is very earthy and comforting to me. In fact, it reminds me so much of my own mother. It's a very nostalgic fragrance for me- when you're really little your mom usually *is* your world (figuratively, as well as literally for the first 9 months of your existence!). A great deal of that nostalgia also stems from the simple fact that my mom was my guide and teacher to the natural world. Whenever I hike, canoe, garden, or simply spend time outdoors, I think of her. Wearing The World is like being 4 years old again, holding my mom's hand and going for a walk in the woods, listening to her talk about the trees and pointing out all the wild plants and animals. My mom is a huge influence in my life, and I admire her so much. At the the same time, she's so knowledgable and capable that I get a bit of an inferiority complex! I'm not incredibly talented at picking out notes, but here are a few of the impressions I was left with from The World: oakmoss, cinnamon, sandalwood, and maybe a soft evergreen (not necessarily pine, maybe spruce or fir, something not quite as sharp as your usual evergreen). On me, it's very balanced between soft, spiced woods/resins and a green herbal, but the herbal part is slightly more grassy than medicinal. It doesn't smell like grass, though. More like cooking spices (parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme?). It's clean and fresh, at times a tiny bit peppery; at times it reminds me a little of eucalyptus, but there's none of the menthol-whiff or coldness that I associate with that plant. It's a warm green, like walking through the forest on a sunny spring day- but there are fresh breezes in the forest to keep it from being stuffy. There might be some amber in there, or patchouli, as I keep getting whiffs of something very familiar, but I'm not quite sure. It's earthy and grounded without being heavy- it's actually rather airy and light, but also strong and comforting. There might be some florals in there, very subtly, as it gets a bit sweeter as it dries down, but it stays green and spicy, not powdery. It reminds me of Hamadryad and Yggdrasil, but isn't either. Basically, it doesn't smell like pine or dirt, or even the woods, per se. It really just is The World, how it was supposed to smell and how it was meant to feel. I'm aware that I'm not explaining myself very well, but this is such a strong reaction and the feelings I'm having are so personal that it's difficult to translate them into language someone outside my own head might be able to understand.