Amoraexcena

I couldn't put my finger on what this reminded me of at first. Then I was reading a bit about Only Lovers Left Alive (as I ordered some Ava/Eve), and vampires... And it hit me. It's The Girl!

 

I had a bottle of The Girl that I let go of. Something about that scent curdled on my skin, and I sadly couldn't wear it. Best for someone who could give it the love it deserves, right?

Zorya is a version of The Girl that I can wear. It's definitely a cool, ethereal floral-vanillic-amber-musk. More similar to the original Antique Lace than the most recent reincarnation of AL, which I find much sweeter and almost-foody vanilla. This is much more crystalline and certainly not edible, but I find it very wearable. So does my boyfriend. On him, it's a little more musk-forward.

 

Just ordered another bottle to tag along with Ava and Eve. If you ever need a The Girl replacement, this is definitely along those lines. It works way better than TG on my skin so big winner for me. Top 5 maybe. So glad it's not an LE!!!

So I tore myself away from Moon Reflected for a brief moment to try using this, and it's gorgeous. Agree with all the reviewers - it's refreshing white tea and cherry blossom, with strawberry adding sweet fruitiness, making the blend gourmand, not floral. In my hair, it's more than a drop of strawberry - I'd say it's equal parts strawberry, cherry blossom, and white tea. It screams sunny, breezy spring day to me, so I'll go back to Moon Reflected and IBT while the temperatures are still in the single digits here, but I imagine this will be my go-to soon.

I really wish Ted would sell soap/shampoo/co-wash/conditioner with this scent. They would be marvelous.

This is an extremely richly sweet scent. I was hoping for something a little more mild, but this is full-on, BPAL-strength smoke-heavy vanilla-musk and ylang ylang. It's sexy and sultry and bordering on cloying. Subtlety isn't the specialty here.

It's kind of what I imagine Ted and Beth's bedroom to smell like, actually... If it had a bit more dark incense or something.

If you like "classic" BPAL heavy-sweet vanilla, don't let this pass you by. If you want anything lighter, this is not for you.

A similar rice note to Boomslang, but for me it's better without the cocoa - it blends perfectly with the vanilla and musk. I can't tell what iris root smells like, but I imagine something grounding it. For me the scent is quite strong - I applied after blowdrying my hair. It's lasted 8 hours and is still going strong. It smells sticky-sweet yet refined and comes in lovely wafts when my hair moves or when I run my fingers through it.

 

Love. I'd want this in perfume form too.

To me, this is a lovechild of Sugar Plum Fairy and TKO. Gorgeous, sweet, vanilla-marshmallow-peony with a soft, calming dusting of lavender. I don't get any rose, and I usually amp that note to the high heavens.

 

It's my favourite peony scent by BPAL for sure, and my favourite BPAL scent this year. I got one for one of my best guy friends and he's also obsessed. It's stunning. I think I need another bottle or two of this!!!

 

Edit to add that the drydown of this is similar enough to Antique Lace that I'm probably going to hoard this like crazy. The throw isn't as much, but it waffles and lingers in much the same way, too. LOVE this, going to get at least three more...

 

Get this if you like sugary florals like Mouse's LST, Antique Lace, Sugar Plum Fairy, TKO, Butterflies Flowers and Jewels Attending, and Hope & Faith!

This is perhaps my favorite scent since Antique Lace. It's a gorgeous sweet resin-centered blend, with oudh adding depth while ginger gives it a slightly airy top note. In its golden feel it reminds me of Haloes, Morocco, and Lyonesse. The throw works a lot like Haloes too. It doesn't really smother you in scent like some BPALs do, but more of a wafter - you won't smell it all the time (and thus desensitizing you), but will waft when you move. I only used 2 squirts though, so if you wanted to be enveloped in this, I'm sure you could use more.

 

Brilliant, 10/10. A must-try for anyone who likes sweet amber. I got a bunch of Silkybat as well this order, and I had overinflated expectations for that one and IBT. The former was nice and I'll definitely use my bottle, but IBT exceeded my high expectations. THANK-YOU PUDDIN' for making this a GC, because I'm sure I'll get one with every post order from now on.

Here is my all inclusive list -- if you think I left one out, let me know and Ill get it added

 

2004

Cold Moon (Lunacy 2004) - The Full Moon that shines over the frost-rimed heart of winter. Traditional lunar oils combined with glittering snow flowers, soft breezes and frozen ferns.

Frost Moon (Lunacy 2004) - A blend of traditional lunar oils frozen with winter mints, shivering eucalyptus, clear lotus, a gust of wind, and a midnight aquatic note.

Havisham (2004) - This is the scent of a frost-limed wedding bouquet, frozen forever in time.

Ice Queen (Yule 2004) - blend of precious pale musks, brittle winter blossoms, spruce, and frozen winter fruits

Queen of Diamonds (Forum 2004) - A glittering icicle of a woman, regal, proud and cold: shimmering white grapefruit, pale flowers and lemon bark with orchid, rose and a dash of mandarin.

Skadi (Yule 2004) - Frost-rimed winter berries, crisp pine needle, and a slush of bright snowy notes.

Wolf Moon (Lunacy 2004) - This is the dead of winter, the year's dark hibernation, the crystalline silence of the depths of the world's darkness

 

2005

Numb (2005) - a singularly chilly, delectably ice-rimmed perfume; gelid polar frostiness

Snow Moon (Lunacy 2005) - A scent of purity and silence, soft with falling snow, as dark as Midwinter: an icy flurry over the winter blooms of narcissus, pansy crocus, dahlia, tulip, chrysanthemum and white rose, with a hint of fir and birch.

Talvikuu (Yule 2005) - Skeletal limbs of birch and fir coated in a thick, impenetrable blanket of snow

 

2006

Black Ice (Yule 2006) - chilly white sleet-like notes with a hint of vetiver, a breath of smoky asphalt, and winter wind

Carpanthian Mountains (Order of the Dragon 2006) - Mountain air and the scent of crisp snow blanketing the mountain's flora: Scottish fir, beech, cembra and mugho pine, rhododendron, currant, honeysuckle, raspberry leaf, dwarf juniper, sedge, meadow grass, snowdrop, rose bay, lily of the valley, starwort, lichen and mosses

Darkling Thrush (Yule 2006) - Snow, darkness, and icy air illuminated by the thrush's song: warm amber, soft orris, and melancholy violet.

Knecht Ruprecht (Yule 2006) - The snow-covered foliage of the Black Forest and the fruit and woods of apple and almond trees.

 

2007

Archangel Winter (Yule 2007) - Crystalline, glassy ice whipped by a snowstorm. Piercing ozone, winter darkness.

Christmas Rose (Yule 2007) - Bruise-tinted hellebore blossoms pushing through snowdrifts.

*Hunger Moon (Lunacy 2007) - It is a clear night sky that and bracing chill wind that bears the promise of snow, sharpened by the pain of hunger, and the sharp, rasping stab of thirst. Ozone, white sandalwood, crystallized white amber, verbena, oakmoss, clary sage, and a hint of white citrus rind.

Jólasveinar (Yule 2006, 2007) - a mishmash of snow, dirt, Icelandic moss, marsh felwort, and the smushed petals of buttercups and moorland spotted orchids, with the barest hint of the scent of pilfered Christmas pastries.

*Long Night Moon (Lunacy 2007) - A bouquet of night-blooming flowers, petals dusted with frost. Cereus, moonflower accord, night phlox, honeysuckle, silver thyme, white mint, and blue musk

*Midwinter's Eve (Yule 2007) - The perfume of sugared plums over a breeze of winter flowers.

*Mistletoe (Yule 2004, 2005, 2007) – no notes listed

November (Yule 2007) - Autumn leaves damp beneath the first snowfall.

Old Moon (Lunacy 2007) - The cold, white moon shines on frozen ground dusted with silent snow: evergreen, juniper, winterberry holly, bayberry, Viking black chokeberry, hemlock, and yew, ice-rimed, gilded by traditional lunar herbs and flowers

Snow Storm (Yule 2007) - Winter aconite, balsam fir, cedar leaf, and white mint.

 

2008

Frau Holle (Yule 2008) - Snow-covered pines, witches herbs, bestial musk, flax, and ethereal flowers that represent both birth and death

L'Inverno (Inquisition 2008) – White musk, winter plum, pine wood, benzoin, orchid, and stargazer lily.

Lines Written (Yule 2008) - Skin musk, white sandalwood, balsam fir, frozen black berries, cedar, winter rose, and white amber

Moon of Ice (Lunacy 2008) - Frost-crusted winter flowers, white pine, eucalyptus, and traditional lunar oils.

*Moon of Small Spirits (Lunacy 2008) - Snow-blanketed wild grasses, sage, swamp tea, cedar, giniminagawunj, copal, rosehip, juniper, clover, elderberry, sweet flag, butterfly weed, wood sorrel, and pine.

*Moon of the Terrible (Lunacy 2008) - winter snow with lavender, benzoin, lychee, white resins, and a cluster of melancholy, lachrymose lunar herbs and florals (not much snow)

Nuclear Winter (Yule 2005, 2008) - The ice, desolation and barrenness of nuclear devastation shot through by a beam of radioactive mints.

*Perchta (Yule 2008) - wild musk, snow, and alpine flora: Nigritella lithopolitanica, aconite, crocus, touch-me-not, edelweiss, Iris variegate, and violet.

*Snow Angel (Inqusition 2005, 2008) - Cherubic spun sugar with a hint of lemon, sparkling peach, and floral tea

Snow Bunny (Yule 2005, 2008) - Soft white powder snow with a touch of youthful girlie perfume

*Snowblind (Inquisition 2005, 2008) – vanilla mint

Theres a Certain Slant of Light (Yule 2008) - Thin, tinny ozone with frankincense, white sandalwood, white amber, hyssop, bitter violet leaf, and shadowy wisps of smoke

 

2009

Cloister Graveyard in the Snow (Salon) - Three white musks, ozone, frankincense, mint.

Countess Dolingen of Gratz (Halloweenie 2009) - Hailstone-pounded cypress boughs, olibanum, and an ozone blast of lightning

Death of the Grave Digger (Salon) - Snow, soil, opoponax and myrrh

Ded Moroz (Yule 2009) - golden amber, white amber, redwood, teak, bois du rose, sage, tree moss, and snow.

Evening Cicadas (Yule 2009) - Frost-limned, ice-bejeweled branches, scattered blood-red maple leaves, a few camellia petals, red peppers, and nacreous, multi-colored musks that shimmer like gently-beating cicada wings

First Soft Snow (Yule 2009) - Heavy drifts of snow blanketing winter's narcissus.

*Kumari Kandam (GC) - Thick incense, clay, stone, and hothouse blooms with a spike of frost, a hint of decay, and heavy, dolorous aquatic notes

the Macabray (Gaiman) - White winter flowers plucked from a snow-covered graveyard

Hypothermia (Yule 2009) - Bone-chilling, heart-stopping cold.

*Niflheim (GC) - The House of Mists, a land of icy fog, shadowy darkness and soul-chilling cold. Dark, damp blossoms winding through an impenetrable, murky gloom

*Night-Gaunt (GC) - yuzu, white grapefruit, and kumquat mixed with snow-dusted flowers

Pink Snowballs (Yule 2009) - A lighthearted winter scent: chilly vanilla rose snowballs

Season of the Inundation (Iteru 2009) - Sweet, black silt mingled with holy myrrh, melilot, hyssop, spikenard, balsam, cedar, and a hint of melting snow

Shivering Boy (Yule 2007, 2009) - frozen, dormant vineyards, bitter sleet, and piercing ozone, hurled through labdanum, benzoin, and olibanum.

Snow Flakes (Yule 2006, 2009) - The radiance and desolation of winter.

Snow, Glass, Apples (2009) – no notes listed

Snow Maiden (Yule 2006, 2009) - Ylang ylang, osmanthus, spring berries, and daffodil cloaked in hoarfrost.

Snow White (Yule 2003-2009) - A chilly, bright perfume: flurries of virgin snow, crisp winter wind and the faintest breath of night-blooming flowers

Snowball Fracas (Yule 2009) - A scent tight with delirious adrenaline. Muddy dirt and frost-covered moss from the trenches rubbed into winter clothes and snow impact overspray

When the Winter Chrysanthemums Go (Yule 2009) - A gentle flurry of snow dusting the season's last chrysanthemums, illuminated by pale rays of winter's amber-tinted sunlight

 

(probably missing some in here)

 

2013

Almond Blossom: almond blossom, hoar-frost, and snow-wind

Go to Sleep, Darlings: Kiss-soft clouds of spun-sugar snow

Purple Snowballs: Sugar plum snowballs with a touch of currant and cardamom

The First Soft Snow 2013: Heavy drifts of snow blanketing winter’s narcissus

The Garden in Winter: Swaths of red poppies, white roses, graceful winter lilies, and sun-bright primroses beaming from beneath a flutter of snowflakes

Winter Stars: starry blue musk with mugwort, white mandarin, rockrose, and snow

 

 

*Not very snowy

Awesome list

 

I'm not usually a huge fan of snow (the only one I wear regularly is Snow Moon '05) but I can't wait to try Go to Sleep, Darlings. It sounds too lovely.

I can't wait to try Hesoid's Phoenix. Looks like a great amber-vanilla...

IBT hair gloss. And while you're at it, you can add a description of the smell of your character's hair somewhere.

Interesting. This is much less sweet, especially just out of the box, than I was expecting. It's got a slightly medicinal sharpness that reminds me of fresh Snake Oil. SO takes three years of aging before I can wear it... I wonder if this is going to take as long?

 

That said, this isn't unpleasant as is, not at all. I would just love if it were a little sweeter. It layers well with Banshee Beat so that's how I'll be using it for now!

Mrs. Palmer's Establishment is a little sweeter than I anticipated. It definitely has a cherry pipe tobacco vibe to it, but thankfully the leather, patchouli and vanilla counterbalances it. It works really well with Mahogany Hall - especially when I'm not in the mood for too much sweetness in the room, I spray Mrs. P once and MH twice. Great combination

Sugar Plum Fairy!!!! watermelony goodness for the summer

The Wiley Grasser

Snow Moon 2005

Tamamo no mae

Sibyl

Dorian

Banshee Beat

Definitely honeydew juice concentrate in an imp.

 

On my skin, Yemaya became significantly more complex. It reminded me of Titania a bit - icy cool, fresh and fruity, pale mint/blue in feel. There's definitely some lily in there - I amp lily, and I have a feeling that on someone else this could be a lot fruitier. On me, it's about half floral, half fruit. Maybe a smidge of darker green moss in there, but barely detectable.

 

Quite nice! I don't usually like lily of the valley perfume but this has enough honeydewy sweetness to temper the screaming white floral.

Lyonesse burns my skin in its pure form, which is SAD because I love the scent

 

However, I've found that dilution - specifically, making it into a solid perfume - has worked wonders. No more burning!

I love Liz... so glad to see it get some love

CONGRATS!!! I certainly hope that I marry someone who will love perfume as much as I do.

 

I have a few recs for scents. I'm coming at this from a best-pairs perspective, while trying to keep in mind the Steampunk theme.

 

-Dee or Black Rider and Liz

Liz is one of my favourite perfumes. It's a beautifully soft, sweet leather-floral. It pairs GREAT with Dee.

 

-Dorian and Sybil

These two are incredible paired together, but it might be a little difficult getting some Sybil - it's RARE. I bet a lovely forumite would be willing to gift some though for your wedding! I have a bottle... I bet you'll both love both scents.

-Robotic Scarab and Morocco

These two have a "golden" and exotic feel to them. The latter is a bit sweeter and would complement RS well I think.

 

-Antikythera Mechanism and Antique Lace

These two would be great together (both non-foody vanillas) AND they both fit the steampunk theme. Again, however, Antique Lace is... not quite as rare as Sybil but certainly expensive. Even imps will go for $10-20 on Ebay nowadays I think. WORTH IT THOUGH. I dished out $300+ for a 10 ml once upon a time.

Thank you for your recommendation and for the link to the GC Staples thread!

 

I'm also amazed and humbled by so many helpful people taking the time to share their BPAL wisdom with me!

Isn't everyone here absolutely lovely!? Good luck in your search! I second the rec for Morocco.

I personally quite like Intrigue:

A sultry, exotic scent that inspires devious plotting and clandestine affairs. It is a scent painted in artifice, veiled in deceit, and slithering with whispered secrets. Black palm, with cocoa, fig and shadowy wooded notes.

This is quite nice! It's a surprisingly clinging, strong scent, so use it sparingly! I use it mostly as a spot-moisturizer - on my heels, elbows, that sort of thing. But like all the other BPTP bath oils, it's amazing in the bath tub and it'll give you uber soft skin all over. Lovely for the winter too

This definitely is a cousin of Sugar Skull in the bottle, minus some jam and brown sugar. I didn't get much of the lemon mentioned upthread - maybe aging has toned it down somewhat.

 

It's a lovely texture in the bath. My skin felt extremely soft all day (I took the bath last night.) However, mental note not to dunk my entire scalp underwater - I did shampoo but I didn't get all the oil out, so I look like I have rather greasy locks today. I'll have to wash my hair again well tonight.

I've only had this for a few months, but aging is already showing wonderful signs. I definitely need a big bottle of this in my next BPTP order.

 

Sweet, somewhat nutty, golden resinous: a complex spice scent that I wouldn't wear but is utter divine as an atmo spray.

 

Mmmmm. Autumn Lace is definitely my fav of the lace series since the original Black Lace. It's definitely in the same category but is more wearable in my opinion. The incense and cognac are well balanced with the sugar and linen, and the musk comes out once it settles into your skin. The tea, laudanam and leaves I can't distinguish separately but they definitely give this scent a more golden-brown feel than Black Lace (which, in colour of scent association, is ink black). Autumn Lace also a little similar to Tattered Lace but minus the slightly strange lemon I get from that one.

As an aside, a rather famous October funeral in 1888: Elizabeth Stride, who was killed by the Ripper. May she rest in peace.

I definitely +1 the Dorian rec, and also the Midwinter's Eve. Definitely a sweet fruity floral, lovely.

I tried this without remembering any of the notes listed - I vaguely remembered I wanted a The Girl that actually works on my skin.

 

I put it on, and I couldn't for the life of me name any note. It's VERY well blended. My first thought was: Joyful Moon and Midnight on the Midway's sensual coupling produced this. Now that I look at the note list and reviews, I'm a little surprised. I don't usually get along with honey at all and I thought tea rose was my least favourite type of rose. I guess not.

 

This blend is absolutely gorgeous, and I'm sad that not many people got to try it because it's so exclusive...and because I wouldn't mind #grabbyhands me some more. It's complex in the best way possible - it's definitely not too citrus-y, not foody from the vanilla, the tea rose doesn't overwhelm, there's only a hint of cognac, honey doesn't amp to high hell on me, the olibanum and musk grounds it...

 

Props Beth, you're incredible.

 

PS: it's not much like The Girl, which is more... white, cold, birch-y, not nearly as sweet. The only common factor, in my opinion, is how well blended they are.

Here it's already starting to get chilly, so...

 

Dorian

Lamb's Wool

aged Snake Oil

 

and I can't wait for Raven Moon! though I suspect I'll sniff it and think, two years of cellaring for you!