Myrrha

Wet: a light, understated lilac scent with a bit of purple fruit. The fruit does not get fake and plastic on me. As it dries: the leather comes out and the purple fruit becomes a background note. Dry: Something about this tickles my nose. It is a nice, light, feminine scent but with a bpal twist. The leather keeps it from smelling very young or like a typical fruity-floral. There are so many really special and outstanding BPAL scents to choose from, I feel like this is nice but not as wonderful as many other scents in the GC. If you are specifically looking for a fruity floral but want something more grown up and elegant this might be one to try.

Wet: at first it is very sour on me, I suspect the pineapple. The seltzer is really there and really fizzy. How strange! The sourness goes away after a few minutes. As it dries: I think the “hazy amber” in this blend is the same or quite similar to the “grey amber” used in Bat. It is a bit sweetish and gives a depth to the scent. Dry: Now it is strongly floral with fruit. The amber really is a bit hazy and adds interest. Basically it is a warm, golden fruity floral. The fruits and amber are adding up to something a bit too warm and sticky smelling for me to enjoy.

Rats! I was really hoping to love this one. I like rose scents and can never understand why others don't. This is why. The rose note is deep and rich, which is good, but it also smells somehow harsh. It tickled my nose. I guess it is just too strong. Frankincense is not the best note on me. Here it just adds more fume-y dryness to the already harsh rose. This one did not morph much once the frankincense came out. I washed it off after an hour.

If I'm applying right from a bottle I use a toothpick or decapitated q-tip. I only dip the q-tip into the oil once, and then swipe it onto my wrists or neck. If I dip the toothpick deeply into the oil there will be enough on my wrist that I can transfer some to behind my ears, cleavage, underarms wherever. Plastic q-tips are hollow and some oil gets in there like a little pipette and you can blow it out into a puddle on your wrist and then put it anywhere. The oils I use most often I decant into imp vials and just use the imp-wand as this is easier and the bottle is less likely to be spilled. I am a great believer in inverting the bottles and even imps a few times and taking two minutes or so to gently roll them every which way. Before I started rolling the imps I noticed a couple that smelled one way at the start of the imp and a completely different way toward the end (Black Lily was one and another was House of Night). I also suspect that a certain amount of the changes people ascribe to aging are actually from the oils not getting mixed properly each time they are used so some components settle to the bottom and aren't used up as quickly. I do notice a difference with some back up partials I've gotten in the swaps where the oil doesn't smell as fresh as my own bottle even when they are the same age. They just smell a bit more blended and the fragrance looses definition. I thought this was people applying right from the bottle and introducing skin oil into the bottle but i could be wrong.

Thank you to ChaosKitty for the tester. On me wet this had a delicate citrus-y orange blossom scent combined with what I think is the tea. Usually I like orange blossom but this one has more of an orange scent and combined with the tea it does something strange. Or is it the karakarounde which according to other reviews is a flower of some kind? By strange I mean... there is a note here that is unusual and sort of seductive and repellant at the same time. Once it dried the rich wood note and the opoponax (I think I recognize this note from Death of the Grave Digger) come out. I like the light incense feel of the scent. The strange note mellows into something a bit like nag champa and this becomes a light incense/floral scent. I like it. There is something very sensual about this scent but it is still light. It is gently, persistently seductive and nothing at all like a mainstream perfume.

At first I can smell the slightly violet-like orris along with the plum note. The plum is phony at first but plastic note goes away. Then the grapefruit becomes the standout note. At this point I think it is too much citrus. Maybe I'll save the imp for the hot days in summer. After about a half hour everything blends together and it becomes a wonderful sweet-tart, slightly powdery-in-a-good-way, elegant scent. After wearing it most of the evening I thought it was too sweet and sticky. The plum in Megaera dries down to something similar to the pomegranate in Fruit of Paradise but Megaera is a sweeter and somehow more syrupy or sticky scent. I prefer the fresh tartness of Fruit of Paradise.

Honey-sweet but not the smooth sweetness of Les Bijoux. It might be the labdanum or slightly sharp ylang ylang that gives this sweetness a more interesting slightly acrid quality. It is very strong and the first few minutes it was on it reminded me of bathroom deodorizer. Once it is dry I like it much better. I actually like the harsher sweetness. It is a very sexy scent but more casual and less obviously sexy than, for example, Sed non Satiata. I'm not sure I would want something this sweet often enough to buy a bottle but I do like it. EDIT: I've been wearing this every day since I tried it. It is amazing. I need at least a couple more imps of this, possibly a bottle.

I love the lightness and ethereal whiteness of this scent. However there is a sharp note from the "white resins." The resin scent is a little bit like very faint turpentine with a slight citrus. I wonder if it is elemi? Edite to add: Trying it again on a very warm summer evening, I notice that the floral notes come out much more strongly after about a half hour. It is a very interesting transluscent white floral but the sharp resins keep it from having anything cloying about it. I can't stop sniffing my wrist. Love this one!

Tiger-lily, ginger root, neroli, purple fruits, and frankincense. A frimp from the lab. Thank you! At first, wet, this is very soapy. I love floral scents and lily usually works well on me so I'm surprised. It seems to be the lily note that is soapy and sharp. Once it dries it is mostly frankincense with a sweetness to it that I guess is the purple fruit. I *think* I can still smell the lily, still a little soapy, on top of the frankincense but only when I put my nose to my wrist. This scent just doesn't glow or bloom on my skin. I put rather a lot on and I can't smell it from a few inches away. I really think frankincense is not a good note on me. Later, I can smell the lovely lily note, not soapy anymore, just faintly and buried under the dull frankincense. So sad. If frankincense is a great note on you and you like floral scents definitely try this one.

I tried this one on a weekend morning before showering because I suspect I will not want to wear it all day. The imp was fresh from the lab. Wet: All I can smell is vetiver. I am not a vetiver fan and it is hard to make out any other notes. As it dries: OK, it is vetiver and fig. Dry: Something lovely and very sweet comes out. Sweetened vetiver and fig (might also be smelling the tamarind because there are lighter somewhat tart whiffs too). I can smell the frankincense now but only because I'm looking at the notes. I don't get the "dirty feet" smell that is usually there in blends with patchouli. 20 minutes or so: It lightens up a bit. I actually like this more than I thought I would. Once fully dry it doesn't seem so masculine. It is very earthy though. It makes me feel very grounded and calm. I don't get any sinister overtones from the scent, but that fits with how I view the Nephilhim. I'm going to hang on to my imp because it just might end up being something I wear in the fall.

On me this is a very balanced scent at first, I can smell the rose, the coconut and the orris. After about an hour the rose fades into the background and it is a lovely coconut orris with a tint of rose. Very beautiful. It is a very smooth, soft scent. There are no rough or sharp notes at all. Lately I've been enjoying florals that are a bit more crisp so I'm not sure about this one. I feel I might get bored with roses and pearls, with the niceness and sweetness of this blend and start looking around for a snake or a toad. It made me feel relaxed and beautiful, maybe this is the "vacation" feeling scent I've been looking for. I will try it again before deciding on a bottle. Edit: On trying it again the rose notes did not seem to be working so well on my skin.

I received a frimp of the Ghost and scent-wise it is my absolute favorite. LOVE. However, like a ghost it disappears quickly and completely. Is there anything similar in the catalog? I do have some Witching Time of Night which seems a bit similar, and had a decant of Bat last summer, am planning to get some more soon. Is there anything else I should know about? thanks!!

The first time I tried this scent I thought it was gorgeous dark roses and beeswax. Now, trying it again, it seems lighter and sweeter. As it dries it goes through a phase where it feels flat on my skin. Either the frankincense or the beeswax is not working quite right. Then it dries down to a sweet and slightly powdery resin scent with rose in the background. It is a a little similar to Lilith except that Lilith is quite a bit darker. Parlement of Foules is also similar. The beeswax and frankincense make St. Foutin warmer than either of the others, a slightly golden fuzz of powdery resin with roses and a little wine. I like this one.

Wet: At first it is just an OK smelling, feminine scent with a bit of an aquatic feel, nothing special. As it dries: About four minutes later I am surrounded with the most incredible, delicious scent, the combination of cherry blossoms and delicate fruit with tea. Kaki is a Japanese persimmon, Mikan is the Japanese name for those tiny Satsuma mandarine oranges and Yuzu is an aromatic citrus. The scent doesn't smell like citrus to me at all, the vague fruit scent combining with the cherry blossom isn't sharp or orange-y. The tea is noticeable for a moment but then it combines with the other notes. Dry: It is a sweet and feminine scent, delicate but not high-pitched. The combination of fruit, flowers and tea is very wearable. I think even people who don't like floral scents might like this one. The scent is just magical but very light. It only lasts about an hour on me. It doesn't last long but this might be nice in the summer when I want something very light for frequent re-application. This is one of the most beautiful BPAL scents I've tried. Many thanks to Edensixthday for the frimp.

I've gone through a couple of the little squirts that were around before this spray was released. This is the most wonderful scent. It is the kind of rose that is in the Caswell-Massey rosewater and glycerine soap: a light, almost watery tea rose. Along with that there is some light powdery scent, probably the orris? Or violet? It is delicate, cool and PERFECT. I am sad to hear from previous reviewer that the released version is different. Maybe they just made the released version a little stronger?

Wet: starts off with quite a bit of musk, sandalwood and rose. It is a perfumy, dry scent. As it dries: the rose note blends with the musk/sandalwood. At this point I can’t really smell any distinct flowers, I guess it is rose and jasmine together blended with the other notes. Dry: It has calmed down a little bit and it is just a blend of the rose/floral scent and the musk/sadalwood. This faded quite a bit after two hours into a sort of sandalwood/floral scent. It actually smells like a much more natural, toned down and less overtly floral version of Joy. Not as exuberant as Joy but someone looking for a reserved, dry, understated rose scent might like this one.

Wet: Yum! I can smell the chestnut, a little bit foody but in a woody way. It smells sweet but refined and elegant at the same time. As it dries: It is a clear, light scent but with the round note of chestnut. It doesn’t have the thick rich buttery-ness of Judith and Holofernes. It feels comforting but at the same time elegant. Dry: (about 20 minutes) It is more perfumy now as the florals have come out. I think I can recognize the osmanthus and magnolia but the scent doesn’t scream “floral” at all. The chestnut doesn’t stand out as much but blends with everything else. There is a delicate powdery note, maybe the rice powder? It smells like a terrifically elegant expensive perfume- not from a department store but from some small boutique in Japan where they sell high-fashion clothing in neutral colors. The throw is light, definitely a scent that invites someone to come closer.

Wet: A high, thin floral scent. It is like the smell of the glass flowers sold in the fairy market, precious and fragile. As it dries: Nag champa floats in, but it is very light. With it is a very faint scent of sweet pastry like a fairground treat. Now it is almost like two perfumes coming from two separate places, like scent in stereo. Sometimes I get the flowers and sometimes the sweeter part of the scent. It is like they float in on separate breezes. Dry: Mostly a delicate floral scent on me, with elusive wisps of incense/pastry. Lovely but too ethereal for me to wear. I’m impressed once again with Beth’s artistry. How does she get that “stereo” effect? It is interesting to compare this scent to Midnight on the Midway which also has nag champa and a note of fairground pastry. Fairy Market is much more ethereal, delicate, and smells like a longing for something unobtainable. Midnight on the Midway is much sweeter and fuller and the nag champa is more recognizable as a familiar incense.

Wet it smells like a very mixed floral. There is orchid in here but it doesn’t stand out and let me experience it in detail like it does in Regan. There is gardenia or tiare,but it is delicate. This is a higher, thinner scent than Shadow Witch Orchid. It is very warm which can make a scent seem overly-assertive to me. I love the banana or pineapple note here making a creamy backdrop for the florals. As it dries: A green note and the moonflower come out and it is no longer a warm scent but balanced. The floral notes calm down a bit a bit. I can't smell any ginger or rose. Dry: The moonflower is even stronger now and balances with the other florals. It doesn‘t seem as explicitly tropical at this stage, just a feminine summer evening floral with creamy fruit background keeping it from being too dry. I like it very much but will see how often I end up wearing this in the summer as it seems like a more dressy scent. After an hour moonflower is the dominant note still sweetened with the fruit. After 1 1/2 hours it was pretty faded and I applied a tiny dab over what was left. The result is perfect.

Wet -- at first it was all lotus, sweet and floral but different, not a boring floral. Then the rose came out. For a while it was just rose. I think I can smell the white roses that are in Parlement of Foules and also some darker pink roses. Then the lotus came back. Dry -- The roses and lotuses blend and balance but at times it seems more one than the other. I really love this. Lotus is a moist almost aquatic floral so the effect is almost juicy. The scent is sweet and full, but it isn't a sugary sweetness. The lotus is an unusual note so it doesn't smell generic or like just another floral. I think the simpler scents can have a big effect on your mood because there aren't many competing notes so each one makes an impression. This scent makes me feel optimistic, confident, beautiful. Medium throw. Later -- it finishes as mostly lotus on me. I tend to re-apply after about four hours because of my bpal eating skin. This is a new favorite.

The notes are nothing alike but the complexity of this scent reminds me of The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Both of them have notes from several different scent categories and are well blended complex scents that are difficult to pin down. The description mentions that the fumes of this tree are poisonous and I get that sense from the scent. It is very aromatic and fume-y. There is some fruit, blended with something sharp and aromatic, maybe a turpentine-like resin? As it dries there are lovely green notes and some spiced bark and musk in the background. It isn't something I would wear as a personal scent but it is very interesting to sniff. It is more a masculine scent but because of the spiced greenery might be nice for a woman who likes more masculine scents. This will smell quite different on different people as it is complex.

Wet: sweet, creamy with a sort of neutral backdrop which must be the "wool" note. As it dries: The lily of the valley is so lovely in this scent. Any sharp edges are smothered by the cream, beeswax and wool. The beauty of the lily peeks out but without the problematic aspects. Dry: The pepper is the last to come out. A lovely scent but in a quiet way. Sometimes I really like the milky tea but at other moments (if I sniff my wrist directly) the milk smells slightly sour. All in all an interesting scent. I would recommend it to anyone who likes creamy light florals as the lily of the valley is so beautiful. While it doesn't smell "manly" or cologne-y at all it might also be an interesting choice for a man who wants a sweeter light floral scent. edit: I like this and will look for some other blends that have milk and tea notes.

Wet: Blast of powder. It is too sophisticated to ever be baby powder. It smells just a little like pine. This must be the amber. It is nothing like the amber in Blood Amber. No bpal amber I've tried has turned to powder quite like this. As it dries: the pomegranate comes out but is pomegranate the way my skin presents it which means sort of plastic smelling. Dry: Still mostly amber/powder. If I focus on it I can smell the fruit. It isn't an awful scent. It is distinctive and has lasted for a couple of hours. I don't think this is how it is supposed to smell though. I'd better be wary of dark amber in bpal blends.

Wearing this scent is like unexpectedly finding a couple of free hours and sitting in the shade of lilac and wisteria drinking iced oolong and peacefully doing needlework. It is cooling shade and leisure in a bottle. Wet: I notice the lilac first, and a cool, moist almost aquatic aspect to the scent. It isn’t really an aquatic note but somehow moistness is infused into the scent like it is in Glasgow. It feels very cooling and refreshing. As it dries: The cool musk and wisteria come out and balance with the lilac. It makes a blueish purple floral scent like lilacs and wisteria painted with transparent watercolors. Dry: a gorgeous, light watery floral. If I focus on looking for it I can smell the lavender but mostly it just adds a relaxing soothing tone to the scent and shapes the character of the lilac and wisteria. The lilac and wisteria do not refract into fake smelling notes on my skin at all, they smell enchanting even if I put my nose right down into my wrist. After an hour: The refreshing, watery aspect of the scent is the tea, and it comes out more now and is more recognizable. The musk is more prominent now but it is delicate, cool and transparent not an animal-like musk. The lilac and wisteria color the tea note so it is like musky iced tea with flowers floating in it. Verdict: I like this much better than Nocturne for a lilac scent and better than Glasgow or Dian’s Bud for a cooling floral. I might need at least a second bottle because I can imagine wearing this frequently in the summer.

Wet -- Orange! I'm not really into orange scents. There are hints of amber and spice but mostly it is orange. As it dries -- The apricot and amber blend with the orange and I like it much better now although it is quite powdery. Dry -- After about a half hour there is a wonderful cloud of softly spiced and fruited amber-rose. As others have mentioned it is a very blended scent so no singe note really stands out. Well, the rose does seem a bit dominant but it is so permeated by the amber, fruit and spice that it almost isn't rose anymore. Something about this scent lifts my spirits and makes me feel happy-- but in a grounded, calm way. The softness of the scent is relaxing. It is really a lovely oil. EDIT I tried another scent with "dark amber" prominently listed and realized that on me dark amber = dark powder.