Blood onmy hands

All of the florals and ambers that have popped up in the last few updates are killin' me. As far as florals go, Allison Gross has quite a few in it that I actually like – sweet moonflower, sensual sunflower and chrysanthemum, and spicy white rose. But this is just bitter and overwhelmingly perfumey in a way that makes it impossible for me to even pick out any good floral notes. It's that mishmash of perfumey, chemical florals that I've been getting a lot lately, only this is strangely dry as well. This isn't sweet at all on me, though there's an unpleasantly herbal greenery underneath the perfume in the drydown. I'm glad that I opted for a decant of this one. It smells like department store white floral perfume on me

My skin chemistry has really been murdering scents lately, with all of the florals and ambers that have been popping up. I was actually hoping that Red Moon might be something like the sultry, dry warmth of Chrysanthemum Moon. I'm even pretty fond of BPAL's red musk notes. This Red Moon isn't at all sultry on me though, it's more of a dry, powdery orange candy with some dry herbs popping out in the drydown. Over time the orange is less sweet and more sharp on my skin, backed up by dusty amber and powdery heliotrope. Every once in a while I catch a whiff of something that I like, but it disappears quickly, as though it's just toying with me. *glares at wrist* Red Moon is too much sharp orange on me and too much powdery, dusty, dry herbs (and I really like chamomile and generally like marigold, so I don't know what's not appealing to me). I'm slightly devastated that the red musk isn't very strong on my skin. This is more dry than warm on my skin.

I'd recommend trying to get ahold of RM Renfield (Order of the Dragon LE) if you can. It's probably the closest I've come to finding a scent where moss was the main player and it wasn't really watery or floral. My review for that one: "In the bottle, this is mossy with an almost salty sharpness, and very woodsy. I love scents that smell kind of swampy (yay Bayou & Whippoorwill), and this falls into that category for me. It's colder and not as floral as Bayou, and not as crisp or watery smelling as Whippoorwill. On me... moss and dry, spicy woods. Renfield very much makes me think of playing in the woods in the fall, when everything is dryer, climbing on moss-laden rocks and weaving through barren trees. I get hints of a very light citrus in the drydown. The patchouli isn't strong for me, but is a grounding element in the background. Renfield hasn't been getting much love, but this is a new favorite for me. I love blends that remind me of the forest settings that I grew up in... and the moss notes here are wonderful. I'd love this on a guy, and will be wearing it myself when I want to be transported back to the forest in fall." It really does smell like pale moss on rocks to me. Whippoorwill is another mossy favorite for me (also LE though :/) though it smells slightly wet. Most of my favorite, strong moss scents have been LE. Bayou & Jazz Funeral are my GC moss-favorites, but those have pretty strong floral aspects and Jazz Funeral is pretty complex.

I snagged a decant of Leo 07 even though Egyptian Amber is one of my least favorite BPAL notes ever. I was hoping that my skin wouldn't amp it up like there's no tomorrow (yeah right, lol). BPAL's ambers are some of the only ones that I've come across that go so insanely powdery and dry on my skin. The Egyptian version also has a weird, dirty undertone to it that makes me think of soiled babies. It's almost a light undertone of sweat and rotten lemons and I have no idea why it does this on my skin. I'm probably the only person with this problem, but I'll tack on my review anyhow. I can't pick out any of the chamomile, frankincense, or saffron that I love, so they don't save this blend at all for me. I *do* get a weird, sickly sweet, nutty smell in the drydown, underneath the weird baby powder. I really wish that I were someone who could wear BPAL's amber scents

At first I thought Dian's Bud was something of a cucumber-melon fragrance; it had a watery green scent to it that reminded me of cucumber and a sweeter, fruitier sort of melon note. Watery, green, clean, and slightly sweet. There's also something herbal and cool and slightly menthol about this. In the drydown, though, this just turns into a perfumey floral on me. It's almost like Dian's Bud should be light and watery, but my skin is amping up the florals into something evil, or perhaps there is some sort of perfumey musk in this that I'm getting? I was hoping that this would be a green stem sort of fragrance on me, but it's another musky-perfumey-floral on my skin

Fox Fires is another Asian-themed blend that just doesn't work on my skin . The notes in this sounded lovely and I wish I got the cherry that others have mtnioned. On me, this is just musky-floral dryer sheets. Soapy and perfumey. I can't pick out any of the listed notes.

Nondescript, sharp floral that's reminiscent of soap and hairspray. Sharp, dry, musky, white tuberose and orchid type of feel. White, sour, sharp, perfumey/musky floral...

I've worn this a few times now, trying to figure out exactly how I feel about this blend and what it's doing on my skin. This is primarily a spiced honey on my skin, thick and sticky sweet, but with that strangely funky, metallic twist that BPAL's honey takes on me. There are a few resins lingering in the background as well, but they're slightly sharp rather than smooth. Every once in a while, some other note pops out at me and then melts back into the honey. I don't really like the flashes of bitterness and dry, sharp herbals that I get from this one. This is an interesting scent more than a wearable one for me. I'm not even sure if I find it interesting in much of a good way. It's sort of like poisoned honey on my skin, with the sharp, poisonous bits accidentally falling out at random points. I don't smell any of the chocolate or peachy-ness that others have mentioned.

I'm pretty fond of white rose (*love* Parlement of Foules), but this blend goes all wonky on my skin. I'm not sure what exactly rose amber is supposed to be, but the rose in this goes sour and chemical-like on me. That on its own wouldn't be so bad, but all of the lily in this blend goes to soap. I wind up smelling like perfumey rose soap. Helena is far too sharp a scent for me.

I expected this scent to be aggressive and hateful on my skin, but it's surprisingly light and floral. I don't like dark musk, and moss is pretty sharp and powerful on my skin. I usually amp up both of those things, but I can't even pick them out of this blend. First on, this is all light, herbal, softly smoky sage. I really don't like sage (bad scent associated memories there). After ten minutes or so, this dries down to a floral soap on me . Sweet and clean. It disappears entirely on me within a half hour. The only other scent I can remember trying with heather in it was Glasgow, and this is nothing like Glasgow's floral aspects on me. On my boy this starts off as a more sharp and acrid herbal note, and then dries down to a much sweeter, perfumey floral scent. He was very upset and thought I put "girl perfume" on him. Weird. Robin Goodfellow is... an odd one.

Surprisingly, the amber in this doesn't go insanely powdery on my skin. I *do* get a hint of powder, but it isn't painfully dry or overwhelmingly powdery. The florals are a touch perfumey on my skin, but mostly sweet, warm, and golden. The whole blend has a dash of sharp pepper laying over it. This blend is really not me, but it's not as awful as I was expecting. It's almost a sugared floral perfume with a sprinkling of pepper - a very warm scent on my skin. It gets more powdery & perfumey in the drydown, but the sweetness makes it bearable for me. Hermia gets points for the fact that I didn't have to run and wash it off, but I still don't see myself choosing to wear this in the future.

Pruno starts off smelling something like orange sweet tarts and sprite on my skin, and then promptly dries down to a sickly powdery fragrance. It's powdery, but with something 'off' underneath the powder. Rotten fruit and powder? It gives me a headache.

I wasn't sure if the double mentioning of tuberose on the notes list of this one was a typo or if there really was a double shot of tuberose in it. Either way, I hate tuberose and one mention is enough to frighten me, lol. Still, I tried this on while visiting a floral-loving friend, because I like to try on *everything.* I cannot help myself. Privilege is like my ultimate nosebleed & migraines perfume. It's so sharp that it goes straight to my head, like I just snorted some razor blades. Pain. So much pain. Perfumey hell. Sharp. Bright. Like blinding white florals drenched in department store chemical-perfoom. It reminds me of Stardust quite a bit (so much pain). It smells a lot like too much cheap hairspray and body splash spritzed liberally in the girl's lockerroom. Suffocating, sharp, chemical, cheap. I didn't get the green note that other people have mentioned. This morphs straight into an aggressive, chemical, department store, cheapie white floral the second it hits my skin. Gah. Just remembering it makes me nervous.

Strangely, Sunrise with Sea-Monsters smells a lot like the soapy/powdery Numb on me. It's like Numb with more of a breezy floral note, and then turns to a chilly baby powder on me in the drydown. Amber really hates me, and I have trouble wearing aquatics - they are not good news when they're combined on my skin.

I might love this if the 'dusty amber' weren't present. My skin amps up amber notes, and BPAL's amber is always unpleasantly dry and powdery on my skin. Thankfully, the amber doesn't completely take over this blend, though it is strong enough to make me not want a full bottle of Bat. I get a lot of moonflower from this, and it smells chilly and sugared on my skin. There are some other floral and musk notes playing about as well, but they're more creamy and not so perfumey or sharp on my skin. It's a clean, creamy, sweet, chilled floral on my skin. After a half hour or so, the amber gains some strength and mucks everything up. Night flowers covered in road dust. Still, I think I'll keep my decant of this one.

Wow. Lysander is quite possibly my biggest perfume disappointment ever. I *love* the lab's blackberry, and I'm a big fan of tonka, lime, and lilac. I didn't think that there was any way that this couldn't be awesome. It really does have something of a burnt rubber and chemical smell to it though (which isn't like any tonka I've ever tried). At first there were hints of something like a burnt caramel sweetness (scorched creme brulee) to the overall sharp, chemical fragrance. I wore this all day in the hopes of it mellowing out and morphing into something else. At best, this is a cheap, slightly powdery, musky, men's cologne fragrance on me. It's sharp and unpleasantly smoky on my skin. Mostly, Lysander makes me smell like I got into some bad chemicals. It is nothing like what I've come to know from any of the listed notes. So strange, and so disappointing

This is another Salon blend that goes to generic floral perfume on my skin. At first there's a sharp citrus-like note and a hint of spicy-green carnation. After a couple minutes, this dries down to floral perfume. Perfumey, sharp, chemical-florals with an undertone of dry powder. Bleh.

Banded Sea Snake is one of the only BPAL aquatic blends that has really worked on me, so Kiyohime didn't have much of a chance on my skin. Kiyohime immediately turns to a sort of wet laundry & dryer sheets smell on me, with a sweet floral background (oddly, I don't get a fruity impression from this). It's like laundry washed in some sort of spring garden detergent, with a splash of something like sharp citrus. I don't like soapy or floral scents, so I'll be finding a new home for my decant of this one.

I'm not a fan of this blend. BPAL's pomegranate is sorta evil on my skin. It's very tart, heavy, & loud - like sweet tarts on steroids. Plus, it goes a touch powdery on my skin, in a dry and unpleasant sort of way. I get that heavy pomegranate for the first fifteen minutes or so and then the florals come out and this dries down to a chemical, department store floral fragrance. Sharp and perfumey. Definitely not a blend for me.

I haven't had good luck with many of BPAL's sort of Asian themed blends, but I was hopeful for this one. I love their Blue Lilac single note and my skin generally plays very well with cherry blossom, white sandalwood, and pear. I have a hard time with honey, but I even loved the honey & lavender combo in The Oblation. I had high highs for Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree and it really doesn't disappoint. On my skin, the beautiful cherry blossom and lilac are at the forefront. The lab's cherry blossom smells so sweet and cheery on my skin, like honeyed flower pollen and sunshine. The blue lilac is just like falling into a bunch of sweet lilac bushes. Together this is a floral that I can actually wear - sweet, sunny, happy. I actually cannot pick out any of the pear in this blend, but I get a touch of the powdery sandalwood after an hour or so. I also can pick out hints of a sweet lavender every once in a while. This is such a lovely blend to me. I'm generally a floral-hater, but the florals here are sweet and summery and not at all perfumey. I definitely want a full bottle of this one, and I'll need a bottle for my mum as well, since she loves lilac so much.

In the sample vial, this smells like dryer sheets and I was instantly put off (ozone pretty much always does that to me). Surprisingly, this isn't a heavy ozone on my skin though. I do amp up a smoky, dark leather though, which isn't something I really love either. I don't know what half of the notes in this should smell like, but I can definitely pick out the leather. After a half hour or so, a very clean or coldly metallic feel pops up behind that leather note and the aggressive smokiness calms down. Macbeth and the Witches isn't as strong a scent as I thought it would be. It dries down to a light leather and cold soapiness on me. I'm not picking out the heavy ozone or spiciness that others have mentioned, but maybe my weird skin chemistry amps up the leather and twists the ozone into soap.

Incense blends are pretty hit or miss on my skin. I love the spicy and powdery feel of Priala, and I love the smooth, sweet darkness of Midnight Mass. Those two, along with Cathedral, have ended up being my true keepers of the incense/resins. I dislike those types of blends when they have a sort of bright sharpness to them. I seem to do better when the blends are more on the simple side as well; I end up not liking resins that have extra fruit, musk, or floral type notes in them (Minotaur, Lycaon, & Haloa are some of the blends that were duds on me). I am on the fence about Philosopher in Meditation, but this probably won't be a keeper for me. I'm not sure why it didn't dawn on me that this would be fruity. It has that grapey-sweetness that is similar to Urd (which I thought I loved, but that fruitiness made me sick after a while) layered with a sharp smokiness. In the drydown, a smoky, sweet honey seems to take over the blend. In the background I can still smell that dark fruitiness and something of a smoldering, woodsy incense. I actually might like the soft, almost powdery woods here, but I have a hard time wearing wine and honey notes. Philosopher in Meditation is, I think, a little too much on the smoky side for me, and perhaps a bit too sweet.

I hoped that Cancer would be a green, damp sort of scent from the wild lettuce and wild pear. I had visions of it smelling like a wild garden of sorts. Unfortunately, this is allll sweet pea on me. It's a very soft scent that clings close to the skin, but it did last for about six hours on me, so it has decent staying power. It just turns into a sickly sweet, perfumey, girly floral on my skin.

I like this more as a room scent than an actual perfume. It's clean (slightly soapy), sweetened by the honey, watery like melons & cucumbers, and has some fresh florals playing about. On me, the florals or something turn sharp and overwhelming (chemical-esque like cheap hairspray), but in the oil burner they seem to stay calm and just add a crispness to the blend. In the burner it reminds me of clean laundry just taken out of the washer and not yet dried. I like it well enough to use up my decant as a room scent, but I don't like it enough to try to find more of Selkie. I wish that I were getting the leafy greenery that others have mentioned.

To be fair, I generally dislike BPAL's tobacco and black musk, so I wasn't hopeful for this to begin with, lol. On me at first this is black musk and lavender. It's very herbal and very cheap, musky men's cologne. Dark, herbal, musky. In the drydown (after about an hour) the tobacco comes out smelling thick and smoky. It's very masculine to my nose and very not-me. I was excited about the dark vanilla, but this is just musky and herbal on my skin.