mparker

This bottle arrived in an order (unsiffed) yesterday, and I am setting aside my instant love affair with the Feb-09 13 to give this one some quality time. In the bottle, this is an incredible vanilla-and-spice infused pine-sap. Sticky-sweet and hauntingly beautiful. Wet on skin, the pine fades back and the cinnamon and clove come to the fore. The two are very strong and come across with a hint of bitter cassia. They aren't sweet at all, but dry and sharp. The vanilla isn't really there at this point, and the pine is definitely giving this that "pickled" scent. As harsh as this sounds, it's not unpleasing, just not what I expected from the bottle. Happily, within a short while it hits a drydown point and the bitterness tones down and a gorgeous, smooth, creamy vanilla warms up and wraps its arms around you. The cinnamon and clove blend together beautifully, each accenting the other until you can't quite tell them apart. The vanilla starts to blend in with them, everything going cozy and fuzzy. The pine isn't a huge presence, but it's there keeping the sweetness from getting out of hand. I think it blends in with the clove, rounding it out more than being an actual note on its own, and this is a better blend for its being here. It's very different on-skin than in the bottle. I think that wearing this on skin with a scent locket too may be an even more interesting experience that shows the full range of this scent. I have to add that ,while BPAL vanilla can be either beautiful or horrible cheap waxy plastic on my skin (and even when it's good it can get overpowering), the vanilla here in this blend is one of the most incredible, warm, glorious, and absolutely not cloying vanillas I have ever tried. It's perfect in every way- strong enough to hold its own against those hot spices, but full of subtle nuances that keep it from being cloying.

Another thank you to hackness from me. I just love the spreadsheet! It's everything I could want to keep track of my collection/wishlist/pending orders. Having just got my 13 bottle, I had to come in and snag the latest update. So, !

Bottle- Lovely! Very gingery, but smoothly so. It has a slight dark chocolately tone to it, but it's mostly the ginger. To me, this isn't a dry ginger, and it definitely isn't red ginger, it's more a creamy candied ginger. Wet - Helooo Ginger! This reminds me a lot of Flesh-Eating Reindeer, though I'd though Reindeer wasn't particularly bright or cheery, this is considerably darker, with the spices less bright in tone. It might also have a touch of creamyness to it, but that might just be the brown sugar. On my girly skin - It's mostly sweet ginger and I can't really smell the chocolate as such, but it's in there darkening and maturing the blend, giving it almost a muskiness. There's other spices, but everything else is well blended so that it's only the ginger that is truly identifiable. As it dries down the ginger isn't quite so strong and the blend goes wonderfully smoky. I had to re-read the notes a couple of times because I swear this smells like one of the most beautiful tobacco blends I've ever tried. Nope, no tobacco listed. Odd. On boyfriend's skin - He smelled it on me and demanded I give it a try on him. It starts out just as gingery on him when wet, but as it dries the ginger and sugar subside and let the other spices and herbs rise up more. I definitely pick up the nutmeg and allspice and I think even the thyme and anise, though it's not in the least licorice-like. After time this goes beautifully smoky on him too, only it's a deeper, darker smoke on him and is just as gorgeous! This review was done straight from the mailbox. Normally I like to wait a few days to really make a judgement on scents, as it usually takes them that long to settle down in their blends. This one was just delightful right off!

Sniffing in the bottle, this is full of tobacco lovelyness, and the boyfriend says, "Smells like a head shop. But not a normal head shop, one that's got...you know...adult products." I said, "It smells like Bizzarre Bazzare?" He nods and I said, "You know, I can live with that." On the skin I immediately get the teak, the tobacco and maybe just a breath of anise, darkened by patchouli and musk. There’s a distractingly sharp “high note” to it that could be the labdanum (except labdanum normally doesn't do this to me) or the frankincense (neither does that). Whatever it is, it almost gives me the feel of an alcohol-based perfume, which is just strange for a BPAL. As it dries down I get a hint of the caramel now and again in the waft, which is a lovely addition. I’m really loving a lot of the notes here, particularly the tobacco and caramel, but that sharpness on the edge is pretty distracting to me. On my first test, it eventually got little soapy on me, but the nest time I tried, it did not. This one is strong and gives a good bit of throw (especially compared to the Shungas I've tried). I’d hoped, reading the notes, that this would be a favorite, but there’s something I’m not completely happy with here. I’m not giving up on it, though. I am going to try it again in a month or so and see if some aging helps deal with whatever isn't quite meshing for me.

This goes on dark, complex and a little creamy (that must be the tonka and sandlawood combination). It's a very smooth, purply, sexy, comforting, and almost velvety scent. I don't find the currants to be overly raisiny or too grapey here, they just add a slight wine-like tone to the whole thing, which the honey only makes better. It's a subtle honey, just a sweet drop or two. Honestly, I think this might be one of my favorite sandalwood blends, since the other notes in this complement it so well that it doesn't overpower everything else, as sandalwood normally does to me. The musk keeps the sandalwood smelling "moist", so it doesn't go dry and dusty. The ambergris adds a little bit of a sharp bite to this, but it's faint on me. While it gives me that slight tingle in my nose that's usually the sign of a perfume that's going to give me a headache, it never goes that far, and that sharpness actually helps to brighten up a blend that might threaten to be too dark. I don't find that this one morphs very much, and as with Giant Vulva, my only complaint is how close to the skin it gets as it fades down, but I think that's going to be a trend with the Lupercalias, and I do tend like my perfume strong. (Edited to add - after only about 4 hours this has gone so faint I really have to sniff at my wrist to smell it, but this might be one that's worth re-applying a time or two a day.)

In the bottle and wet, it strikes me as smelling like sugar-coated beeswax candles. Oh….it’s so gooooood! I want to lick my arm! That stage is fleeting , which doesn’t surprise me because when something is that beautiful it tends to be (and oh, I can’t wait to try this in the scent locket). I know make a similar comparison about a lot of blends, but wet, this reminds me strongly of the drydown of No. 93 Engine. As it dries it starts toning down into something really pleasant. The skin musk, which I adore, is very much present, and the copal adds both a bright smokiness (those who have burned actual copal will know what I mean) and a depth to it. The combination here is incredible. I can't smell the waft very well (Having totally snorted and huffed at my arm while it was strong and ruined my nose for that), but my boyfriend said he could definitely smell something good. It dries down to something faint and close to the skin, soft and beautiful but intimate. I am hoping that aging will give this a bit more potency as the copal develops, because it really is gorgeous, and it makes me so sad when it fades all too soon (about 4 or 5 hours, though I can still smell it a bit). (Edited to add: Hrm...wore this today, same application regimen and all, and it's acting odd, giving me the cheap-wax fake-vanilla scent that I get now and again with other blends. This one MAY be one of those temperamental blends that can go glorious or annoying depending on the day/mood/time in cycle/position of the planets. However, it is remaining quite sweetly lovely in my Clocket, though the musk is toned down this way.)

I really thought I had posted a review of this one, but apparently I didn't. Wulric was in my very first bottle order, and he was the first (unsniffed!) bottle I tried. I'm glad, because he was auch a wonderful choice, and I fell immediately and madly in love. Masculine, but not overly so, so I can wear it comfortably. Complicated, but sophisticated. The notes are separate, but complimentary, fuzzing together, but still distinct. Sweet, woody, and dark, with bright flashes from the lavender and sage. After it aged a few weeks, I've noticed that the cocoa keeps its presence better, readily apparent from the start and lasting well through most of the day. Or maybe I hadn't quite realized at first how thickly separated this can be, and now I'm properly mixing before application. This is just an amazingly dark and sexy blend, a little sweet, and still so wonderfully fuzzy and snuggly. I snuck some onto the boyfriend, and it goes a bit muskier, darker and deeper on him, and my nose was plastered to him for a good while. Wulric is definitely a winner on either gender, to my nose. As a matter of fact, I was forced to put another bottle into my next order to keep the boyfriend from stealing my bottle away entirely. So we've both fallen head over heels in love with the same werewolf! Who'd a thunk it?

Bought unsniffed. In the bottle this smells really nice– A bit reminiscent of Wulric and maybe Velvet, but with a bite, which is appropriate. Oh my, this comes out of the bottle looking just like hot cocoa! It’s so thick and opaque and chocolately and MMMMMM! Definitely chocolate and woody, with a pleasant bit of sharpness that keeps it from being foody or candylike. I love teak, and never would have thought it would go so well with cocoa. This was what I was hoping Velvet would be like, but Velvet turned on my skin horribly. This, however, is slinky, powerful and supremely sexy. The boyfriend says he smells a hint of babypowder, and if I concentrate, I think I can pick it up. It's the ricemilk and teak combo. The powderyness fades away quickly, and Boomslang remains as a smooth chocolatey, woody blend. Quite slinky and assertive, and absolutely gorgeous!

I bought this bottle unsniffed, and opening it for the first time...Whoa! I smell cassia! Once on the skin, this is strong Cassia for a while, then the cinnamon and ginger come out It took me a while to figure out, but I kept thinking "…sushi??” when I’d sniff, and finally realized that the red ginger note is EXACTLY the way pickled ginger smells, and I put tons on my sushi. Once I figured this out I wasn’t nearly so disturbed by it. I find that I might prefer a little less of the cassia, as it smells a little too bitter and harsh to me, but once it settles down the cinnamon smells all the sweeter for it. This has a good throw, too. Not too close, and not overpowering, either. At the end of its life it settles down into a cinnamony Snake Oil which is wonderful and sexy as all get-out. It lasted on my wrist well into the next morning, as well. And, again, as I like to sit and wait a while after my initial review before posting, I find that this one is aging remarkably in only a few weeks. That seems to happen with a lot of the Carnival Diaboliques I've been trying. With this one, that strong cassia opening doesn't whack me over the head so much, I can smell more of the cinnamon sweetness straight off, and it's not so bitter or harsh as it was before. The ginger also smells more gingery, and has lost some of that "pickled" edge that was so disconcerting to me at first. This one really wraps you up in an aura of scent, and it has one of the strongest throws of the BPALs I own, which is great for me, since my skin likes to eat scent until it's barely detectable. There's also something a little fun, a little sassy, and a little wicked about this one, that just makes it a joy to wear.

Goes on as boozy caramel apple and a hint of clean, but sweaty skin. There’s definitely musk in this. I’m catching some of the honey, too, and it is sweeter and lighter than the usual honey note I've tested, less warm and golden, more cool and sweet. There’s a sexuality to this, one that’s less sensual and more vicious, like the bottle illustration. It’s like innocence (the fresh apple) corrupted (the musk and teak). I’m not certain I really like it at first, as I don't think the notes are really blending, and there might actually be a bit of a clash going on here and there, but it’s fascinating and unusual. Early on (within an hour and a half) this faded so much that I thought it had disappeared entirely, but it soon came back to life. Then it lasted and lasted! By the end of the day it’s fairly close to the skin, but there’s a dark sexed-up, naughty, dirty, and utterly sensual honey scent that’s just lingering and oh, so lovely! I definitely am in love with the drydown. Coming back to my notes to post the review, I want to add that I think she's smoothing out nicely with age and the different notes aren't clashing anymore. If she keeps mellowing like she is, she's going to be just stunningly gorgeous in another couple of months. (Edited to add- And now she is! Stunning! Beautiful! Sexy! Sensual, creamy caramel-coated honey-apple drenched in lust with a tinge of clean sweat. Beautifully blended, now that she's aged. Wow!)

Bright and interesting. Reminiscent of some of the less sharp Steamworks line, to me, in the bottle. Which had my hopes soaring. They were not disappointed. On initial application, this threatens to go very masculine, but it quickly sweetens, and the amber gives some cozy warmth. I’m really loving this, but since I’m not completely familiar with some of the notes, I’m not sure what I’m smelling. It’s very well blended, though, without anything really dominating over anything else. It is comforting and golden and warm, and I really, really love it! It's fairly light and close to the skin, but is long lasting. This smells equally wonderful on my boyfriend, and is one of the few blends that doesn't smell drastically different on the skin from me to him.

In the vial this is boozy and sweet. Immediately on the skin I actually smell a warm oven and something like hot coconut milk (weird, I know!) and almonds, which is a bit odd, but quite actually quite nice. It has the scent of a crumbly (yes, it specifically smells crumbly) cookie, but one that isn’t overly sweet. Ok – this may sound odd but, on me and after several minutes to settle, this smells exactly like some sort of middle-eastern dessert, flaky pastry filled with almonds and pistachios and soaked in orange flower-water with just a whisper of cardamom (though I know that last one is not in the notes.) All I can think is it's my body chemistry being extremely odd, but even though on me it smells little like its name, it's one of the most interesting blends I've tried. And it makes me hungry!

(This is the first review I've posted here on the forums.) This one showed up as a frimp in my last package. The day the package was delivered had been a very bad one for me, a sort of culmination of a couple of months of growing stress with, earlier that day, a large lump of anger and hostility dropped on me that really had me down. So aside from the usual wonderful cheer and joy that a BPAL package brings, thanks to the psychic goblins out at the lab I was able to test this one out immediately for something close to its intended purpose. This seemed initially to smell like pure lavender, but just after application I could start picking up other notes, something herby, possibly another flower or two. I generally hate floral fragrances, though, so I'm unsure of what I'm smelling. I do know that intense lavender tends to give me a headache and an itchy nose, but this didn't do that to me at all. I found this to be a very soft scent, but extremely strong. A little goes a long way. It has a very appealing scent, and works well on my skin, which florals do not normally do. It has a hint of soapyness on the drydown, but in this scent it works with rather than against the fragrance. This immediately calmed me and helped me let go of the upset I was feeling. That was several days ago, and last night I was having trouble sleeping. My mind would not shut down, and I kept thinking about upsetting things. I rubbed a bit on my temples and a touch on the back of one hand and was able to drift off quite easily, without the spirals of unhappy thoughts. I am impressed with the effectiveness, and am probably going to put a bottle of this in my next order as a calming sleep aid, though I doubt I'll wear it as a perfume often.