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BPAL Madness!

zankoku_zen

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Everything posted by zankoku_zen

  1. zankoku_zen

    Joyful Romp

    Plum, sandalwood, tuberose. So everything is fine and dandy, plum and sandalwood are having a very nice party that is crashed by tuberose, who is that uninvited drunk guest that comes in with a bang, upsets all the drinks, and the proceeds to shout all over the place about her floral parts. All other guests look at plum and sandalwood and depart. Plum and sandalwood, as the hosts, now have to figure out what to do with the tuberose. Good throw, good wear length. Plum, sandalwood, tuberose.
  2. zankoku_zen

    Prosperous Flowers of the Elegant Twelve Seasons

    Honey, vanilla, saffron, and just a hint of leather. Huh. Again, this makes me think of Badgers, but more Asian. So take Celeste and add a swirl of Badgers, and this is what you get. I get a ton of honey, vanilla and saffron. Dark, heady, sexy.
  3. zankoku_zen

    Comparison of Celebrated Beauties

    Creamy almond and vanilla. With just a very tinge of plastic on the drydown. This reminds me a little to Snow White. Without the chilliness. It's a warmer, springier version. Creamy almond and vanilla.
  4. zankoku_zen

    The Wet Nurse and the Old Monk

    I'm almost afraid to write this review, but because I'm honest and nice I'll do so. This is the Luper that has displaced Creeper Dragon as my favorite Luper of 2015. No joke. I get red sandalwood, champaca and just a swirl of peach. And somehow, this ends up smelling like a Lush store - with a heavy fruity floral component, smoky and just... awesome. Ever wanted to smell like a Lush store but didn't want to buy a gazillion products? Here's your chance. You only need to buy one. YES. One. So good. I need more. Everyone needs this. BIG STAMP OF APPROVAL. Consider this my Luper PSA.
  5. zankoku_zen

    Venus Libitina

    Bourbon, black cherry and rose water on wet. As it dries the ever sharp presence of orris combines with the rose water, amps it up, AND PROCEEDS TO STAB ME IN THE NOSE. REPEATEDLY. In fact, orris does this so well that I almost don't catch the plastic note of cream until the very end. So yeah, super pink blend in vibe. Loads of rose water (slightly sweet because of the black cherry), orris and a whiff bourbon. UGH. Pink, orris, sharp.
  6. zankoku_zen

    Venus Caelestis

    Frankincense, myrrh, amber and again with the silvery-blue aquaticness of lotus and a dollop of sugared lemon. Despite sharing similar notes with this year's Shunga Minamoto and the Lotus Flower, this Venus seems to work a little better on my skin. I think the addition of myrrh makes the frankincense richer and much more resinous, and you get the lotus and sugared lemon as an after-taste, like after a mouthful of wine. Low throw, low wear length. If I were to pick a color for this blend, it makes me think of pale yellow. Resinous, myrrh, lemon sugar.
  7. zankoku_zen

    Minamoto no Yorimasa and the Lotus Flower

    Frankincense, amber, and lotus. To me, the lotus is a silvery-blue aquatic element over the resins. On wet, I thought I got a whiff of the black currant. Typically lotus smells like bubble gum to me, and this one smells only of that faintly and vaguely on a deeper whiff. Average throw and average wear length. Watery resins and amber.
  8. zankoku_zen

    Serving Tea After Coitus

    Plum, honey and green tea. This is a light floral/green tea honey blend. It simple, sweet and clean in an Asian oriental sort of way. Low throw and average wear length on me. This one sticks really close to the skin. White flowers, tea and honey.
  9. zankoku_zen

    Startled Toad

    Oh, Startled Toad. I so want to love you because of your label art. There, I admitted it. You are by far my favorite Shunga artwork. Possibly ever. Alas, you contain coconut. And while your coconuttyness cannot possibly compete with the hot mess coconut debacle of Ivory Vulva in my skin, you still seem intent on starting some sort of riot. I get coconut, amber, resinous frankincense and a spicy drop of patchouli (which is what I think is happening with the carnation and patchouli in the background teeming up for some sort of alliance or nefarious purpose, still to be determined which one it is). You don't smell unpleasant, at least not compared to Ivory Vulva, but perhaps I am damning you with faint praise? You're really a resinous, ambery coconut with enough elements to keep your coconut present but in check. Average throw, average wear length. Amber, resin, coconut.
  10. zankoku_zen

    Ivory Vulva

    Almost every note is slightly, if not overtly problematic, to me. So it starts as a buttery creamy coconut with hints of nuts and amber. And it dries to a weird suntan lotion coconut, still creamy, a more present milky nut smell, and plastic. Why CREAM, how nice of you to join this party and simply throw everything into disarray. BPAL's cream note is like l'enfant terrible in my skin. It just does bad things. All the time, without remorse or conscience. Good throw, good wearlength. So yeah, coconutty plastic.
  11. zankoku_zen

    A Commentary

    Red musk, clove and apricots. Unfortunately in this particular blend, the red musk is ultra aggressive and the rest notes let her bully them into the background. I get a fair bit of clove and vetiver on wet, which combined with the apricot, didn't make it smell all that pleasant. Thankfully vetiver sort of left the stage on the drydown, leaving a trail of smoke, and clove sort of calmed down and settled down to do its part. At which point the red musk took the opportunity to take center stage, despite this being a sort of ensemble play. Most other ingredients decided to decamp. Good throw, good wear length. Actually, this made me think of Birdman. I'm not sure if the red musk is Edward Norton or Michael Keaton. I'm leaning toward Edward Norton. So, sexy in the overt red musky way.
  12. zankoku_zen

    Seated Couple Leaning on Hips

    This one is this year's version of Lovers in the Teahouse. If you loved LitT, you should give this one a whirl since it is very similar. I get a ton of sake, but instead of wood I get more a musky scent, with just a touch of ambrette to prevent it from being too musky or too much sake. It smells polished, Asian, and very sexy in a refined way. Good throw, good wearlength. Simple, but sophisticated in a very understated way. Very torn. I enjoyed Lovers in the Teahouse immensely, and even had a partial, but found that over time I didn't really reach for it that often.
  13. zankoku_zen

    Venus Obsequens

    I was hoping for alot of apple, but it smells only slightly of apple blossoms on a bed of honey and cardamom. There's a bit of dark berry sweetness to this, which is the black currant peeping through. In vibe, it sort of makes me think of the color violet. It's a sweet feminine blend, without being pink. It's a little darker than that. Sweet, floral, honey.
  14. zankoku_zen

    Venus Erycina

    Gardenia, amber, patchouli and a blush of honeysuckle. This one is a deep amber/patch blend with sweet white florals. It sort of glitters, and is intensely sophisticated. I can see this appealing to people that loved classic floral perfumes, and it sort of reminds me to Chanel No 5 in vibe, and perhaps a little in smell in that yes, it is floral but there's that deeper resin preventing it from being all floral, all the time. Average throw and wearlength. Deep, womanly, classic.
  15. zankoku_zen

    Mount Fuji Reflected in Lake Misaica

    Woods woods woods. I get cedar, cypress, pine and chypre. This is a delicate, slightly manly cologne. Very soft. Very woody. As it dries more of the oakmoss comes out and giving it a decidedly aquatic dimension. Low throw and low wear length on me. Again something to try out on mr. zee_zee.
  16. zankoku_zen

    Mars Corotiacus

    Clean chypre, hints of gin and sage, tiny bit of leather. Very clean, very sophisticated male cologne. And then it's gone after 30 minutes. I may have to try to mr. zee_zee and see what he says.
  17. zankoku_zen

    Venus Cloacina

    In your face gardenia, with a ton of vanilla orchid and a drop of frankincense. Honestly, gardenia just dominates this blend. So, if you're looking for a creamy, vanilla gardenia, here is your lady. Good throw, good wear length.
  18. zankoku_zen

    Pleasant Embrace

    Pear, with fizzy white musk. This is cool, crisp pear with some light musk. Unfortunately my skin eats this up. I am off to sit under the Tree of Despair.
  19. zankoku_zen

    A Peculiar Spirit

    To me the black tea and benzoin combined end up smelling like anise/licorice, and not just the black tea by itself. So, anise with a whiff of black tea, tobacco and neroli. I sort of seriously wish I had joyfulgirl's skin chemistry because a shining dimple of love perfume oil would have been amazing. Sadly this is a sweet anise blend. PASS.
  20. zankoku_zen

    Riding in the Palanquin

    Slightly lemony jasmine blossoms, silk, and wood. You get this lacquered, silky jasmine blossom on top of wood. It's delicate, oriental, and floral. Very sophisticated. Low throw, low wearlength on me. So, yeah, hmmm. It's definitely unusual and yes, it somehow makes me think of luxurious silk sheets. It's that mix of luxury, decadence, and sensuality. Because SILK.
  21. zankoku_zen

    The Onnagata and the Pillow Roll

    Pink pepper, cedar and roses. This is too much. It smells very asian, very sensual, and very in your face. It's a very aggressive pink blend. In some ways it makes me think of being attacked by kabuki makeup. It doesn't matter if you want to have kabuki make up on, you're getting kabuki make up. Excellent throw (obviously!), and decent wear length. If you like roses, you like pepper, and you like cedar, give this a whirl.
  22. zankoku_zen

    Venus Murcia

    Green grass and the same green musk that was prevalent in Laughter of Loki. Very green, very fresh, very grassy. If you wanted LoL, I'd definitely take this out for a spin. If I could love a BPAL for the color of the oil, I would adore Venus Murcia to bits. It's teal. TEAL, people. It's the sort of perfume that you want to display in a crystal atomizer so you can admire how pretty the color is. (Nevermind that doing so would probably KILL the scent, LOOK AT HOW PRETTY THE BLUE IS, EEEE!) This to me, is very Spring-like. Which is great considering how miserably snowy and cold the East Coast has been this year. And because we don't have enough grass scents. Verdict: like laying on summer grass. But better. It's like you're laying of MAGICAL TEAL GRASS.
  23. zankoku_zen

    Mars Rigonemetis

    Black pepper, cedar and cypress (meaning it toggles between smelling like wood and smelling like a pencil shaving), and dribbles of pine. This smells dark, and yet oddly wearable. It also makes me think of a BPAL version of Drakkar Noir. Meaning, I think this would be a scent that appeals to teenage boys. It's got all that testosterone around it on the edges. Definitely masculine on me. If you've ever wanted to enable your male teen to BPAL, tell him to give this a whirl. It's probably 1000x better than the mass produced crap they seem to be willing to dump themselves in by the gallon. Average throw, average wear length. Dark, musky, angsty.
  24. zankoku_zen

    Creeper Dragon

    Well, huh. This smells like red musk, brown leather, and a splash of honey. And you know what, it smells really good. Both red musk and leather notes are problematic for me, so I'm utterly charmed by this dragon. It smells leathery and cuddly. Like what? In some ways, I'm reminded to Loviatar in that this is a feminine leather - kinda sexual, but its kinder and gentler. I agree that it makes you think of Blood Amber and Blood Kiss, but its the leather that brings in some of that Loviatar aspect for me. (Mind you, it's been ages since I've tried Loviatar). In some ways, the leather note is the same that you find in Badgers. So perhaps its better to say that this is a red musk version of Badgers? Which means, I'm totally on the fence on whether I need more.
  25. zankoku_zen

    Venus Genetrix

    Black vanilla, amber and some delicious jasmine tea. Wait, what? A jasmine that doesn't go to cat pee? What is this miracle blend you speak of? BEHOLD, THE BPAL. IT LIKES TO CHANGE YOUR MIND ON NOTES, ALL THE TIME. So oddly enough, the amber is the spoiler in this blend. Yup, not the jasmine. It's almost too ambery. If it were just the vanilla and jasmine tea, this would be a rather delicate and polished blend. The amber adds way too much resin and sort of overpowers everything. Decent throw, average wear length. I may have to retest this again, because I'm very torn. Will this be my first BPAL jasmine blend that I must own? Stay tuned.
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