UltraViolet

~Lilith~

In the bottle

Something foody, vanillery and spicy. Yummy.

On

I smell caramel, musk, underlying fruit, floral, something pungent.

The black musk gives this almost a burnt sugar or caramel scent.

The wine isn't that strong like in some blends, it lends aciditity and fruitiness.

The rose is not strong at all, and thank goodness I say.

The myrrh is also not strong at all either, which is a surprise. You can tell it's there but it's not easily identifiable at first.

Oh man, now the floral (rose I guess) is just beating the s**t out of my nose. The rose is now smelling like it does in Lush's "Ginger" line. I think that's not a good thing.

30 minutes

Floral with a coffee-ish scent underneath.

Throw:

Medium

Scent category:

Spicy/Floral/Foody

Summary

It has staying power.

There is way too much going on here though. If they were all subtle notes that might make for a lively or interesting blend. As it is, these notes are all strong ones and while they don't necessarily clash, they are all too big or bold. Someone has to take the backseat here.

Purchase again?

No

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

2

In the bottle

Chocolate, cinnamon, and herbal something

On

It's a combination of a vanilla and chocolate swirl ice cream cone and minty herbs (maybe eucalyptus?) with something cinnamonish too.

30 minutes

vanilla and eucalyptus. Yep.

Throw:

Little

Scent category:

Foody/herbal

Summary

Very different.

This blend was intrguing as hell, and kept me sniffing my arm over and over trying to see if it smelled really good, strange but addictive, or if it smelled too weird and not good. After smelling medicinal vanilla I decided this is a No.

Purchase again?

Probably not.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3

In the bottle

clean spicy orange

On

This is what I would call a masculine energy type of blend. There's very little sweetness in this blend. It smells like the pith part of the orange, more bitter then sweet.

30 minutes

As it dries it takes on more of a holiday orange and spice smell.

It's more rounded now and less fierce. I smell more musk and less sandalwood now. It's faded a normal amount.

Throw:

Light-Medium

Scent category:

Citrus/Spicy

Summary

I'm a real orange nut and there are so many great orangey or citrus blends that I think are better on me like Seraglio.

Although Kuang Shi isn't a definitively male scent, I would LOVE my man to wear this.

Purchase again?

Probably not.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3

In the bottle

spicy raisin-like cherry

On

This is mellower then I thought. It's a warm scent.

Wow, this is fruity but not acidic at all. It's warm and rounded and gentle, not acidic and bright and candy like. This reminds me of a dark muted plum red color.

30 minutes

It's faded but not alot. There's little change from when I put it on, except it's a little more muted. It still smells fruity but licorice-y and sexy too.

Throw:

Little

Scent category:

Foody/Spicy

Summary

I wouldn't have thought Cherry and Anise went together so well.

The star anise and musk are ever so gentle not overpowering the cherry at all. It smells like dark swollen cherries with a touch of a "star anise in a cookie" scent.

It reminds me of The Red Queen a bit, because of the cherry and the warmth. In The Red Queen the warmth comes from the mahagony wood smell, in Kabuki it comes from the musk I think.

Purchase again?

Yes. Perhaps a 5ml but another imp for sure.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

In the bottle

floral and water

On

Ooh this is nice. It’s bright , fresh and almost minty. It reminds me very much of Blue Moon except danube is less floral but that fresh cucumbery smell is there. Danube is slightly sweet too along with that fresh cucumbery scent, also like Blue Moon is.

When I read “watery” in the description I again expected that “twang” of ozonish water scent. It’s not ozoney, it’s not sour lime-y water, it’s just watery.

30 minutes

Dry

It’s powdery lovliness. If I didn’t know Rhodoendron, bellflowers were in it I’d guess that there were a fresh green slightly sweet smelling flower with something that smells like pear in the distance.

The lime-ish smell is more present at this stage and nowhere near as beautiful as it was.

Throw:

light/medium

Scent category:

Floral/Green/Watery

Purchase again?

Yes, an imp.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

ADDED July 13:

In the bottle

Heaven

On

Oh my. It smells like a combo of Amsterdam and Blue Moon or maybe Eos a bit too maybe with some Luna. This is a wow.

I think I smell white lotus again I do get that vague cucumber note of Blue Moon but not hear as clearly as in Blue moon. This is softer.

30 minutes

Now it smells like Snow White and Amsterdam combined. That fresh smell mixed with light sweet flowers.

Throw:

A bit more than average

Scent category:

Aqua/Floral

Summary

It smells like a fresh floral with a watery base. Not too strong nor to blah. It's a floral perhaps for people who normally don't like florals. Very feminine without being cloying. It's sweet but not too sweet at all. Beautiful.

If you tried Blue Moon and liked it but it was just too strong for you, you'll go bananas over Danube.

Purchase again?

Yes!

1-5 rating (5 being best)

It's so beautiful. 4.5

In the bottle

the real smell of limes, bitter but nice

On

Lime! It's nice, just surprising is all. Not used to a real, juicy lime smell.

ooooh, the lilac and citron have come up nicely in the middle of things. The subtle fresh sweetness of the lilac and the citron pretty things up. The citron adds an addition of a bright lemon smell. Lemon and Lime? Yeah baby.

Now it's turning a bit more powdery (must be my chemistry and I'm just lucky) which is good because this is after all a tart scent, it can take powdery.

I'm not smelling the musk at all, its probably in the background but I can't pick it out like I can in some.

30 minutes

It smells almost too powdery between the time I put it on and now at 30 minutes. However once it dries it's at least a little less oily toned and more fresh to my nose but not enough to grab me away from the lemon-pledge thing.

Throw:

light

Scent category:

Citrus/floral

Summary

This is a medium strength scent on me.

I feel like this one has the potential to be spectacular with some minor tweaking.

But then again everyone else loves this blend so what do I know.

I can see how some who are sensitive to lemony smells would think the citron was a bit too lemon pledge-like because of an oily tone. If you're one of those folks, I wouldn't suggest this blend.

It's easy for me to get past that idea though because the blend smells, not un-like yummy lemon chiffon pie at times. Unfortunately that's about 50% of the time.

I had high hopes for this one but at around 15 minutes, my chemistry came into play (damn my body chemistry) and just changed things completely around.

I like the way The Star reacts better I think.

Purchase again?

Nope.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

2

In the bottle

Bright, clear rose with a little green note

On

Rose primarily with a slight woodsy note. The lily lifts it up a bit and I can tell the Frankincense is there but I can't really pick it out.

30 minutes

It's not a wimp staying power-wise.

And to think I was going to give this a 3 rating half an hour ago. This has developed into a most beautiful blend. I believe I've actually found my favorite (thus far) BPAL rose scent.

It's grown warmer and a more powdery and maybe a touch sweeter too.

Now it's a medium, slightly sweet, pink rose scent and so as not to get too fluffy...a light woody middle note.

Throw:

Medium

Scent category:

Floral/Woody

Summary

For a rose scent this is very nice. I like it more than "Rose Red" *ducks flying objects* and even (dare I say it) more than "The Empress". It's lighter then most of Beth's primarily rose blends...but not alot lighter. The woodiness that I'm getting is a nice combination with the rose. It's not a dense woodiness either, it's light.

Purchase again?

Yes, a 5ml

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

In the bottle

herbal but sweet and nice smelling.

Wet

Smells like sweet roses. I like it so far. There is a green bite to it and a woodsy herbal note as well.

There may also be another floral in here besides the rose...a white flower, maybe jasmine. I can't tell which.

10 Minutes

It's trying to turn soapy because of the rose and another ingredient.

It's less biting green now and more woodsy.

There's some milky/soapy/funky smell peeking out in the background.

20 minutes

Very soapy now and there's an undernote now that is not a good smell.

Throw:

Medium

Scent category:

Floral/Woodsy

Summary

It's a strong scent.

It reminds me of Rose Red and The Empress a bit in the way of the bitey green/floral combo. In all of these three scents you have a strong floral (rose) with the scent of the rose stem too in the form of the green or woodsy notes.

This one is sweeter than those however, and a wee bit wooodsier.

Purchase again?

No.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

2

In the bottle

citruss! Bergamot?

Wet

Bergamot

Powdery bright citruss loveliness

20 minutes

The piercing aspect of the bergamot is gone.

This reminds me of lemon-lime sorbet with herbs chopped on top of it.

I do smell the gentle but bright lotus in there and actually I think this is what saves this blend from being "too"...

Throw:

light/medium

Scent category:

watery/fruity/floral

Summary

I think it's a medium strong scent.

It's crisp, citrussy, herby and soapy and there is a bit of powdery sweetness in the background. A man could wear this too I think even there's nothing but feminine energy about this blend. Odd that.

Purchase again?

Yes Imp or 5ml

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3.5

In the bottle

Icey minty watery

Wet

Oh man. This is really nice!

It's peppermint, the less sweet one and the more minty one I think it's peppermint and not spearmint.

It's totally a water scent but oddly enough the first bpal watery scent that doesn't have that familiar lime-y tang of watery ozone.

It's a good thing.

10 Minutes

Believe this or not...My lungs and stomach are burning. Not bad painful something is wrong burning...but just brushed my teeth, just had a glass of bordeaux, just ate red chile burning. The good burning. It's in my nose, throat and lungs. It makes it easier to breath.

I never would have guessed an icey mintiness for inferring an undertow or the element of water but boy does this work well with the watery background. The lotus is the one thing that sort of grounds this and feels solid. The rest is pure cleansing and refreshing movement.

This is wild.

20 minutes

The mint has lessened now but it's still supporting things. It's not icey now but it is still working it's magic in the background.

It's like "Pain" without the lavender but the slight gentle sweetness is there. For you Lush fans this is like Ice Hotel without the lavender.

Throw:[/u]

light/medium

Scent category:

Aqua/Green-Herby/Floral

Summary

I'm all but having a spiritual experience.

There is nothing offensive that I can think of in this blend to "warn of" imho.

It isn't a strong blend. It's not a weird blend. Not too anything. Just subtley sweet icey mint with some nice rounded powdery middle notes.

It's a comforting blend.

Purchase again?

Hell Yes. A 5ml at least.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4.5

In the bottle

Sweet almond

Wet

Nice. The amber, almond and musk seem primary to me. The cardomom and myrrh are light, together with the saffron and lotus make this what I always thought Snake Oil to be.

10 Minutes

It seems like I smell sandalwood now (which I love), but it must be the musk.

It's more lightly spicey and incensey now and less sweet and foody but it's still gorgeous.

20 minutes

It's more powdery now. More perfumey now too but not alot. I smell mainly musk, amber and almond. It's still gorgeous and sexy.

Throw:

light/medium

Scent category:

spicy/foody

Summary

This changed midway from real yummy almondy goodness to...

more of a sweet incensey spice blend but is still very nice.

For you Lush users this reminds me of Prince of Bathness mixed with Psychodelic a little bit

Purchase again?

Yes. An imp or a 5ml

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

In the bottle

sweetness, creaminess, melon

Wet

Melon or exotic citrus. Something green and something floral with the sweet melon smell. There's a spicy scent in the background also.

10 Minutes

The calming spikenard is actually working it's wonders on me as I type.

The scent hasn't changed too much. It's sweet, spicy, lightly floral or green and melon.

20 minutes

This too turned powdery which is a good thing.

But it is still pretty strong. I can't stop sniffing it. It's a little more golden now as if amber were in there somewhere.

Throw:

medium

Scent category:

citrus/floral

Summary

A tad strong, but with an undercurrent of golden, warm and spicy things.

It's almost as good and along somewhat similar lines to the one I just reviewed previous to this (Xiuhtecuhtli) but this is a little deeper, warmer and thicker.

Purchase again?

Yes. An imp.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3.5

My third in a review series of blends with too many "X's" and "Z's" in their name.

Xiuhtecuhtli

In the bottle

Fresh, green and floral

Wet

Mmm...scrumptious. This is a marvelous warm yet light blend of mostly sweet orange and light floral, in the distance are the teeniest bite of incense which is yummy but lightly perfumey.

It reminds me of a gorgeous commercial perfume but I can't remember...

10 Minutes

More powdery now. I love powdery.

Oh My God I'm so in love with this scent. Okay, for you Lush BPAL fans. If you mixed Oxeo Cube and Silent White, you would get this. Maybe add a touch more sweetness and an iota more of spice. It smells like that one soap Irish Spring? But with less fake scent and more sweetness and spice. It's the copal, incense and jungle blooms that saves this from being a real soapy Irish Spring scent, and they mix so nicely.

20 minutes

OMG I've never smelled anything so good in my life.

I'm totally beholden to it now I can't even be objective any more. LOL.

My husband even said it smelled nice. *Shock*

Throw:

Medium to High

Scent category:

Spicy Fresh Floral (I realize I'm somewhat contradicting myself here he he)

Summary

WOW.

Though this is a strong scent, because of the ingredients I don't find this fact as alarming as I usually would.

Purchase again?

Yes. 5ml

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

I want to say 5, but I'll wait till the honeymoon is over before I say for sure, so until then I'll give this little beauty a 4.

In the bottle

Buttery chocolate

Wet

Chocolate and a touch of wine in the background.

It's like a coffe-ish chocolate, rich, dark and smokey. And something sweet in the background too like toffee.

10 Minutes

The wine is an equal player with the chocolatey note now.

I can't tell if the somewhat piercing wine competes with the dark coffe scent or if it lifts it, making it brighter and a tad sweeter.

20 minutes

This drying scent doesn't dry too well. It goes over and over from being a spicey chocolate vanilla scent (if there were such a thing) to having some weird undernote that verges on being yukky. I think it might be the blood note.

Throw:

Light

Scent category:

Foody

Summary

Has potential to be yummy if it weren't for that blasted note when drying.

This is a decadent little blend. In the list of chocolate scents like Bliss, Vice and Velvet, I would put this closer to Velvet only a wee bit sweeter and a teeny it brighter. It would be good on males as well I think.

Purchase again?

Yes. Perhaps an imp for mixing.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3

Another Hispanic here. *waves*

In the bottle

Fruity syrupy sweetness.

Wet

Fruity with the thick rich mango, thicker and sweeter still because of the warm golden syrupy amber.

The sage is coming through now. I was afraid of the sage but it really does alot to brighten this and save it from being cloyingly sweet.

I'm really surprised these go well together.

It is now reminding me of where I live in New Mexico...the cactus...the sage growing...

The lavender is out now and the blend as a whole has become a little sweeter and a little herbier, less fruity then it was initially. It's nice.

10 Minutes

Turned a bit perfumey and floral.

Still herby in the background.

Less sweet then it was awhile ago.

20 minutes

A nice blend of lavender, mango and a mere hint of sage.

Throw:

Medium

Scent category:

Fruity/Green-Herby

Summary

This blend is really alive and colorful but with a rich undertone because of the musk and amber.

Lasts an average amount of time.

I like this.

Purchase again?

An imp.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3.5

In the bottle

strong wine, rose, violet

Wet

Mmm. Smells like grape candy and roses with some wine in the background.

Smells like someone was up to something tawdry. lol.

It's becoming quite nice and fresher as it morphs with my chemistry.

10 Minutes

The red merlot works great here, it's not apparent like it is in some of Beth's blends. It just lends that acidic fruitiness that keeps things from being too syrupy.

The musk is a mere suggestion. It lends it that overall sexual quality but I can't actually pick out the musk.

The roses are the top or middle note to my nose. Subtle but full bodied enough to make their presence known throughout the whole experience.

The violets are almost of the candies variety that you can get in some sweet shops and add just a tidge of bright sweetness.

The myrtle and the leather really tie the whole thing together with a freshness and a strength to the otherwise sweet floral blend.

20 minutes

It's less fresh and more warm . It's also a bit more powdery. I love powdery. Still the lovely fresh blend of rose, light musk, merlot and violet.

Throw:

light/medium

Scent category:

Floral/Animalistic

Summary

Fair staying power.

Purchase again?

Yes. An Imp or a 5ml.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

In the bottle

spicy cloves

Wet

Yeah baby. This smells better than Beth's Yule blend "Gingerbread" I believe.

The pepper is a "whoo" kind of feeling, like when you just brush your teeth and there's that minty freshness? Except this isn't minty, it's peppery. But it does not come across at all as too harsh just makes it easier to breathe. It's blended perfectly with the clove and cinnamon. In fact the cinnamon and clove are blended so well they seem to make a spice all their own.

10 Minutes

This reminds me of Lush's "Skinny Dip" shower gel. It's what I wished my skin would smell of longer after use. Now it can.

20 minutes

Nothing's changed for the worse. It's still the spicy bakery type smell with a kick from the pepper.

Throw:

Light/Medium

Scent category:

Spicy/Foody

Summary

Good staying power.

This is Scrummy. Perfect for Autumn or the cold Holidays.

Purchase again?

Yes. A 5ml

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

4

In the bottle

Citrussy Jasmine and rose.

Wet

Nice. Rosey. Oh the Jasmine is coming in. Oh God...it's Jasmine without...Vetivert! I never though I'd find a Jasmine scent I'd like. Thus far this is lovely. A sweet floral. Sweet from the dark syrupy purple black currant.

Mandarin lends just a suggestion of sparkly happy citrus.

10 Minutes

More of the warm amber dragons blood is coming through now. There's almost a smoky presence.

20 minutes

sweet currant/ jasmine are primary

rose geranium middle

dragons blood bottom

Throw:

medium-light

Summary

I love this. Great scent for Autumn. And a great scent for those who didn't think they could wear florals.

Scent Genre:

floral/fruity

Purchase again?

Another imp for sure. Possibly a 5ml as a seasonal perfume.

1-5 rating, 5 being best.

3.5-4

In the bottle

Quite like a subtler form of Vicks Vapo Rub

The perfume itself is a pretty shade of green

Wet

It's green, and a bit eucalyptus-y. It smells like Vicks but instead of it being sort of cooling, it's sort of warming. It actually does ease my breathing when I take a whiff.

It seems like a distant cousin to the watery blends like Spezeponny, Sea of Glass, etc.

Either the sweetness or the medicinal smell needs to leave...there ain't room in this nose for the two of 'em.

10 minutes

There's a wee bit of throw.

It's a bit sweeter and taking on some kind of strange smell that is really repulsive to me. It smells like nitrates. Like if you've worked with plant food or marine animals you might know that high nitrate smell.

20 minutes

It's the same as it was at 10 minutes.

There's nothing really offensive about this blend per se, in fact if is wasn't for that one note it would be nice actually. The blend isn't even strong, some note just doesn't go with my chemistry at all so I wouldn't purchase more.

ETA: This deserves a second review. It's got a faint, nice somewhat cinnamon-y note in there now.

I have a feeling I need to try this again, maybe it's not my night nose-wise.

"Mmm. Vetivert." You're never going to hear me say that phrase.

I'm known for saying "Urggh Evil vetivert" funnily enough.

The description says "Evil incarnate". Yep.

This blend has a huge amount of throw.

It smells like dirt. This is another BPAL blend that is very similar to Lush's "Middle Earth" soap but turned up a couple of notches.

Oddly enough it dries down to a dirt, eucalyptus and leather kind of scent.

Giving up all pretenses of not liking only wussy bpal scents I have to admit I actually had a reaction to this. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

I washed it off...and washed...and washed.

I scrubbed the heck out of my wrist with some Figs and Leaves soap.

It's still there...mocking me.

In the bottle

A bright, piercing floral

Wet

ooh I smell the moss, the earth and now the rose is coming in.

Interesting. It smells just like you'd think.

It is similar to Lush's Middle earth soap, not exactly but somewhat similar, they would compliment each other very nicely.

It's a medium/light scent with little throw.

10 minutes

As it dries it gets mossier, almost a fresh seaweed type of smell but darker.

The moss part is the primary note to me. It's sort of a dark green bitter herby smell.

The rose seems to be the middle note to my nose anyway. It lends just a smidgen of sweetness to the mix

The brown earth is the bottom note for me. I like the brown earth part the best.

Normally I wouldn't like this smell nor would I wear it to work or anything like that.

20 minutes

Oddly enough this blend is extremely grounding for me and I feel serene (quite a challenge).

In a nutshell this is a bitter, earthy rose scent.

It's very calming.

I can hear a frog croaking or a lone cricket chirping in the distance and the rest is stillness...

If this is no happy accident and this blend really calms me in this manner I would buy more just for the feeling of dark stillness more than the smell.

Wet

Fruity and perfumey but not too much. There's a minty herby crispness coming through now. This sort of smells like Hamadryad but without the cinnamon top note.

10 minutes

It's more floral now. There's still a slight sweetness too it but it's mostly crisp, green, floral.

20 minutes

Wow, sweeter now and very floral but oddly not getting agressive on me as is usually the case with a large majority of florals.

I like this phase the best. It's more balanced.

Why do I like this? By all intents and purposes I should not like this kind of floral blend. I think I read pineapple a few posts back and I can definitely get there with the pineapple note. I think that's what is keeping me coming back for more with my nose.

I can't get my face out of my wrist. Consequently I've now ingested some.

It just keeps getting better the more it dries down. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that this scent is similar to Lush's sister company B Never's "B" scent perfume but a little heavier and thick and not as fresh and light.

God help me this is another winner, I would buy more of this.

In the bottle

I smell a piercing note and bright lavender.

Wet

ooh I likey.

Immediately I smelled musk and then a "dad's cologne" smell but sexier.

I can pick out everything except the thyme.

10 minutes

For you Lush users this seems to me like an adult male version of Ickle Baby Baff. Almost like if you mixed that piercing myrrh note in Icon and Ickle Baby Baff. Or maybe I'm just delerious.

It has a medium amount of throw.

I am already so freakin' addicted to Wilde and it's only been 10 minutes.

20 minutes

And again, it just keeps on getting better the more it dries.

This will be 5 winners in a row.

It's now sweeter, more powdery and only less sharp and bergamot-ish.

Jeez, this is fantastic. I let my husband sniff it and he really did too, he said it smells like an old mens cologne called "Drakar". I hope I spelled that right.

I don't know if I would buy more. Not to wear at work anyway, I think this would be the type I would buy another imp of so I could secretly put it on my pillow to smell it all night.

Wet

Very nice. It's tea with lemon just as everyone says it is.

It's very fresh. There's sugar in the tea and maybe even a wee wee bit of mint?

This is a scent that has more depth than most in my opinion.

10 minutes

Ooh nice, now it's taken on more of a musky note. The spiciness or minty lemon tea is still there though, they just let the musk through.

This is lovely. It's a soft scent but that the same time the ingredients and the combination of them make this scent so alive to my nose.

I see the male gender quality of it at this stage also. It's lovely. Like the perfect scent for a man to wear. A light clean bit of vanilla lemony spice cake or something.

Fab. Totally Fab.

Edited to add: I would most certainly get a 5ml of this and perhaps even a 10ml.

Wet

Smells fruity and bright and in seconds the brightness disappears and it turns to a citrussy sweet smell with something underneath that is odd. I can't tell if it's just different, truly yukky or just odd. Sometimes it's even familar.

Now it's almost antiseptic smelling. Remember Chloroseptic spray? It's kind of like that but much lighter and there's a powdery on top of it.

10 minutes

I just cannot decide if I'm liking it or if I really don't like it.

There's almost too many things going on with this blend and my chemistry doesn't quite get along with it.

It would be so lemony chiffon pretty if that one note wasn't there, then again maybe it's not supposed to be lemon chiffon pretty.

20 minutes

Nope. Can't do this one.