WavyLocks

As usual, my nose never detects the notes that others mention, which baffles me, and makes it hard to figure out what I am experiencing, since I'm not much good at finding notes. The first thing that sprang to mind on putting this one on, was White Shoulders. Not necessarily the loud tuberose-ness of it, but something else in its' drydown, maybe?? The reason I say this, is that an old family friend wore White Shoulders as a signature scent for decades, and somehow that immediately sprang into my mind on first sniff. On first application, this struck me as a definitely perfume-y type scent, and I couldn't imagine a man wanting to wear it. I don't detect the herbal-y qualities others have mentioned, or anything medicinal or grape-y. Hmmm ... . On the other hand, I find this a lovely, wearable scent, and I'm definitely considering this one for a larger size purchase.

This is the first of the Carnaval Noir fragrances I'm reviewing. So far, I'm not much good at picking out notes on BPAL fragrances, but in this one I do notice the balsam, but it's blended with other notes, so it's not smothery. I like this one, it's definitely got potential for further wear. At first it had a sweetness I disliked, but that's mellowing, and there's a powderiness that balances things out. I'm never quite sure what people mean when they say something's 'powdery' but to me, it means it's reminiscent of an expensive, fragranced body powder. Not overpowering, but subtly there. I don't get a strong 'tobacco' sense from this one, whatever's there is blended with greeness and powderiness. I do like frankincense, so whatever relationship it has with olibanum in terms of fragrance, I'm not sure any of it hits me over the head. This is good: I prefer my fragrance notes to balance with each other so they have a sort of equilibrium, and no one element smothers the others. So far, this one's a keeper, though I think I'm tempted to try it blended with some perfumer's alcohol, to make my own EDT.

My first BPAL review!! Unfortunately, it's a bit of a boring one, because I'm not in love with this Bewitching Brew. I can't seem to pick out any individual notes in this one, and my imagination resisted the urge to take flight at first sniff the way it can sometimes. I'm not much good at recognizing notes generally, but I can usually spot sandalwood. Other reviewers keep mentioning it, so maybe there's a sort of sandalwood I don't recognize in this? I get a more generalized suntan lotion, body cream or hair conditioner fragrance from this one. Not unpleasant, not smothering, but not necessarily something I'd want to wear. Reminds me of Fleurs d'Osmanthus by Keiko Mecheri, which I didn't care for. If it is sandalwood, this will probably age nicely, so I'm keeping the imp, just to see how it hits me six months from now. I'm impressed with the balance of the scent, though, since no one note seems to jump out and strangle me, and it isn't the sort of unfortunate jagged mess that some (not BPAL) unsuccessful fragrances can have.