puellacaerulea

I snagged a bottle of this last fall and apparently forgot to review it, so, here's my take on a year-old bottle! I don't know if the oil itself changed with age or my nose did -- when I first got this, the apple note (which is pretty much all you get in the bottle) was cloyingly sweet and almost medicinal-smelling to me. After not wearing it for most of a year (it's very much a fall scent), I picked it back up and found the apple note is still really strong in the bottle, but it doesn't seem as aggressively sweet or artificial. Now it's more like sticking my nose into a bag of fresh red apples. My skin really amps up the other notes once it's on, especially the oats and vanilla -- the goat's milk is there, but it's not the strong, slightly sour smell I get with other goat's milk blends. Same for the hay and honey notes -- I'm sure they're there, but they're hard to pick out individually. The apple stays strong for the first few hours, but this gradually fades on me to a pleasant creamy vanilla scent with a vague hint of apple. Overall, if you like the idea of a warm, foody apple scent, snag a bottle of this if you find one floating around. I've found myself reaching for it often this fall.

In the bottle, I mostly get strawberry and vanilla, with the other notes hanging out in the background -- it's like a grown-up, sophisticated strawberries and cream scent. Once it's on, the strawberry fades fast on me and my skin amps up the rose (which, unfortunately, goes powdery on me) and woods. The other notes are there, but very well-blended -- I'd have a hard time picking them out without the list of notes. After a while, the strawberry continues to hang out in the background, and the powdery rose dies down. The overall effect is resins, woods, and musk with a subtle sweetness. I'm a bit bummed about the rose note going powdery (rose might be my death note), but overall, this is subtle and sophisticated. This Libra/Scorpio cusp approves.

In the imp: Lots of strong florals and incense -- not normally my thing, but it's kind of appealing. A poster above said it's like a grande dame's perfume, and that seems accurate to me. Sophisticated and maybe a little old-fashioned, but not necessarily a bad thing! After applying: Still florals and incense, but it's going powdery on me. After a couple hours: The baby powder dies down some, while my skin amps the incense. The end result is incense with relatively faint florals and a touch of powder. Not normally my style, so no bottle for me, but I'll hang onto the imp.

In the imp: PINE! So much pine. Wet: All of the pine. Drydown: The orange starts to really amp up, adding some sweetness to the pine/eucalyptus combo (though I think I'd rather a sharper, less sweet citrus note -- on me, the orange is kind of cloyingly sweet). The end result: pine with a weirdly sweet undertone that lasts about four hours. I don't need a bottle of this, but I can see myself reaching for the imp this summer.

In the bottle: Coffee with something syrupy sweet. Yikes. After applying: Vanilla's nowhere in sight; otherwise, coffee and baby powder. Yikes. After drydown: The vanilla comes out to play and the coffee notes move into the background. The vetiver and resin notes get less powdery and blend really nicely with the vanilla. The overall effect is a warm, dry vanilla with the vetiver/resin notes keeping the whole thing from being overly sweet. Much better.

In the imp: Strong citrus notes and something woody/incense-y, like a weirdly pleasant version of Lemon Pledge and polished wood furniture. Once it's on: The citrus is still there, but my skin really starts amping the wood and incense notes, along with a trace of something powdery (the oud, maybe?). A few hours later: Mostly just soft wood notes and that powdery note. I wish the citrus hadn't gone away so quickly, but this is still really pleasant. This has a lot of staying power; I could still get a whiff on my wrists 6-7 hours later. Overall, it's a really warm scent that would probably work well on both men and women. Will keep the imp and might consider a bottle once it runs out.

At first sniff, I was worried that the cinnamon would end up being too much for me, as it seemed to completely overwhelm the floral and slightly smoky vanilla/honey notes. On dry-down, the cinnamon took a back seat, and the honey and vanilla notes really amped up, with some nice, subtle floral notes in the background. It's very warm and languid (definitely the closest thing I would imagine to a "post-coital" sort of perfume). Maybe I just really amp the honey and vanilla notes, but this really reminds me of O (one of my favorites), with some spice and floral notes floating around in the background to give it some more complexity.

This is one BPAL scent I consistently get compliments on! While it goes slightly powdery on me (oddly, I don't seem to have any issues with soapiness or laundryesque notes), it fortunately doesn't morph all that much on me. This is a really wonderful warm weather scent, with a perfect balance of fruity, green, and slightly rosy floral notes. I'm very likely to get a 5ml after the imp runs out.

In the imp and upon application, The Lion is pawing me in the nose *hard* with cinnamon. For the first couple of hours I don't get any discernible amber, just Red Hots-esque cinnamon. After a couple of hours, though, softer and resinous notes start coming out and balance the cinnamon very nicely. The end result is a scent that to me is evocative of warm, dry days -- spicy and lightly resinous without being overpowering. I could see myself wearing this more often provided I think far ahead enough to apply it with enough time to let the hardcore cinnamon die down before I go anywhere.

When it's wet, this literally smells like bottled Irish Spring! The scent gets a bit less soapy and more of the honeysuckle notes come out to play after it starts to dry down. I admit I was hoping for a bit more in the way of aquatic or ocean-ish notes, as the "salty spray" is what really sold me on this scent. Still, as a green scent with a bit of floral notes, this is really pleasant and perfect for warm weather.

In the imp, Lightning is all aquatic notes without any obvious ozone -- fresh, clean, and very promising. On me, the ozone started amping up fairly quickly, which sharpened the aquatic notes quite a bit. The end result is like a somewhat airy take on a standard "marine" scent. It's also got fantastic staying power -- I put some on around 9am and it's barely faded as of 5:45pm (though it does seem to stick fairly close to the skin). I really, really love this. It's fresh, simple, and one of the few scents I imagine coming across as truly unisex. I imagine I'll be reaching for my imp often this summer (and springing for a bottle when it runs out).

In the imp, Velvet is cocoa-y deliciousness. I'm having a hard time picking out the sandalwood and myrrh behind all the cocoa. Not that I have a problem with this, because it smells kind of delectable. Almost immediately after I put it on, however, the cocoa starts to disappear and I start amping spicy, resinous sandalwood and myrrh. So far, not having the straight-to-powder problem I sometimes have with sandalwood blends. After a couple hours, the cocoa is almost entirely gone, leaving me with resinous myrrh with a bit of sandalwood in the background. This isn't necessarily a problem, as I've grown to really like incense/resin notes, but I miss the cocoa note. It's worth noting that Velvet has some serious staying power. It's been about 14 hours since I first put it on, and I can still smell it on my wrists. Overall, while I'm disappointed that my skin apparently devours the cocoa note, the myrrh/sandalwood blend I end up getting is still quite pleasant -- spicy/resin notes that aren't overpowering. I may have to try this one in a locket and see how it works there before I decide whether or not this merits a 5ml purchase.

In the imp: Something bright, sharp, and aquatic (and vaguely citrusy) kicks me in the nose. Hard. I haven't learned to recognize BPAL's ozone note, but I'm guessing this is it. It's nearly drowning out any incense notes. Drying down: Now the heavier incense/resin notes are coming out to play. It's considerably less sweet than some of the other incense-heavy scents I've tried; this reminds me a bit of the incense you'd smell in Catholic churches. Combined with the ozone, it's very dark, sinister, and definitely Lovecraftian. After about an hour: The incense has turned to baby powder on me. Wait, what? So much for sinister. Overall, the first hour or so is kind of intriguing, but it looks like Nyarlathotep doesn't think much of my skin chemistry. Oh well.

In the bottle, Kyoto is all anise. Sharp, intense, almost medicinal anise. Cue dread on my part. Once it's on, though, the cherry blossom really amps up, resulting in a soft floral with just a little semi-sweet, almost herbal depth from the anise and sandalwood. White sandalwood in BPAL blends tend to turn to baby powder fast on me, but I surprisingly don't really catch any powdery notes, even after several hours on. This scent also has fairly good throw and good staying power (about 8 hours later, I can still catch whiffs of it on my wrists). Overall, it's a very well-blended floral that seems to get along exceptionally well with my skin.

In the imp, Rapunzel is all light florals with a watery green note from the wild lettuce. The floral note, while on the lighter side, is still quite bright and just short of overpowering (to my sometimes florally-averse nose, anyway); the lettuce helps to keep things in check. Once it's on, my skin really amps the wild lettuce note, giving a very bright, spring-like, watery green scent with a bit of semi-soapy floral underneath it. I'm glad my skin amps the lettuce note, as I'm not sure I'd be very into Rapunzel otherwise. Highly recommended for anyone who likes lighter scents in general and green scents in particular.

Yeah, so it's like BPAL figured out what all of my favorite notes are and put them into one glorious scent. Milky, super-sweetened black tea with a generous helping of vanilla musk. I don't seem to notice the fougere notes; on the other hand, this imp's been aged for a bit, so maybe the vanilla/musk notes are heavier than they might have been with a fresh imp. Either way, it's wonderful and incorporates everything I love about "foody" notes, yet I wouldn't call the overall scent impression foody/gourmand. This is definitely going on my 5ml wishlist.

Bright, wet, sweet, and most definitely golden! In the imp, it's all bright pineapple and citrus -- the tobacco seems to be lurking somewhere in the background, but I don't pick up any florals or amber. The amber amps a bit on me after it's been on for a few minutes, giving just a little bit of depth and sexiness to all the fruitiness that's otherwise ensuing. This scent fades relatively quickly, however; it's gone after 4ish hours on me. I quite like this -- it's very evocative of hot, humid, lazy summer afternoons. It's not something I'd reach for often enough to justify a bottle purchase, but I'll keep the imp around for those times when I need some kind of olfactory reprieve from the midwest winter!

Somehow I never wrote a review for this one despite its being my first ever LE purchase! The roses and lilies predominate, but they have a very chilly edge -- the effect is like a dark reprise of a classic, feminine floral perfume. The yew/earth notes are there in the background, giving the scent a dark green undertone, with a mineral-like edge from the sand. This is my standby when I want something that's reminiscent of a classic, old-fashioned perfume, but with enough of an edge to keep it fresh. I'll have to do some serious hunting when I eventually run out.

I was surprised to see all the floral notes in the Lab's description -- even in the imp, this is all white musk, white sandalwood, and aquatic notes to me. Very pale (almost ethereal) and clean; very evocative of its name! Unfortunately, on me, it turns to baby powder fast. I love white sandalwood, but it doesn't seem to love me back, as I've noticed this straight-to-powder trend with every BPAL blend containing white sandalwood that I've tried. Looks like this is a scent locket-only candidate for me.

I actually picked this up late in its original run last winter, but put off reviewing it because it seems so season-specific I never really wanted to wear it after early January! I had picked this up mainly for the tuberose, as it's one of my favorite floral notes and the idea of a snow/tuberose blend was ridiculously appealing. However, what I get in the bottle is a whole lot of pine/mint sharpness, a scent that seems stereotypically "Christmas-y" to me. Once it's on, the pine softens a bit and the mintier/menthol-ish notes amp up a bit more, and there's some kind of sweetness emerging behind it, but it's a berry-like sweetness rather than tuberose to my nose. I was concerned initially about walking around smelling like a Christmas wreath, but the end result on me is more of a slightly sweet minty scent than anything else. While I'm disappointed that there's not the kind of tuberose I was expecting, this is certainly a pretty scent in its own right. That said, it carries so many Christmas associations for me that I have a hard time seeing myself wearing it outside of the holidays.

In this imp, this is all sharp cypress and moss. As it dries down on me, I still get primarily the cypress and moss notes, although it softens a bit -- some kind of faint powdery note comes in behind the cypress/moss notes (the oud, maybe?). I couldn't detect the frankincense or hazelnut notes at any point, though. This strikes me as a very murky take on the "green" scent; I'd recommend it to anyone who finds most green scents too bright and fresh (this also seems like it'd make a great unisex scent). I can't see myself making a full bottle purchase, but I'll haul out the imp when I'm in the mood for something different.

In the imp, Phobos is most definitely Lemon Pledge (and this is coming from someone who loves citrus scents). However, the verbena and white musk amp on me fairly quickly, offsetting the Pledge effect. It's still very bright and sharp, but with an underlying softness (from the musk, I'd guess). After a few hours, there's little morphing, just plenty of clean citrus. I like this well enough -- it kind of reminds me of a more in-your-face, floral-free Phantasm. I'd buy a 5ml of Phantasm before Phobos, but I'll happily keep the imp for when I need a more intense citrus scent.

In the bottle, Sachs is pretty much all chamomile, with a bit an odd, almost medicinal sweetness behind it (the bourbon vanilla, maybe?). Once it's on, my skin starts amping the vanilla like whoa, which balances out the heavy chamomile notes and makes that odd quasi-medicinal note go away. As the Lab's description suggests, it doesn't have a whole lot of throw. It does, however, have plenty of staying power -- a good 12 hours after putting it on, I can still smell it on my wrists. I quite like this -- it's warm, a bit sexy, but without overpowering sweetness. To me, it seems like a more understated version of O (one of my favorites, but not one I can wear on an everyday basis with all that honey).

This starts off as a really fresh, simple rose -- more freshly-cut rose than old-lady perfume. After a few minutes on, my skin starts amping the spices. I wouldn't call them harsh or medicinal, but they do add a darker, almost incense-like undertone to the rose note. It's not enough to make the scent heavy or especially dark; the overall impression is still quite light and simple. Unfortunately, the rose note fades on me after about an hour in and I mostly get faint spices. Still, this is a very pleasant scent. I'd recommend it to anyone who's on the fence about incense or spice notes, as this is a relatively subtle spice and the rose note keeps it firmly in floral territory.

In the imp, I got straight nail polish remover, which was a bit terrifying, but I went ahead and tried it out anyway. Fortunately, the chemical sharpness mellowed out pretty quickly, but I was still getting nothing but patchouli and vetiver -- a very dirty, raw, greenish scent. After about an hour, things started looking up when the blood orange started to amp; the citrus blended really well with the patchouli and vetiver and took it out of dirty/harsh territory. I never could pick out the ylang ylang at any point. This is a bit of an odd one -- it's not so bad once the blood orange comes out to play, but I'm not sure it's worth the first hour of nothing but patchouli and vetiver. I'd be curious to see how this smelled on a guy, but I'm not quite sure it's for me.