claudia6913

Ahh plum again. =) Always nice to see. In the imp it's spicy carnation and musk. Wet on my skin its still the spicy carnation + musk, but a hint of soft sweetness. It really is nice and soft, feminine without being the overly flowery kind. Each time I sniff my wrist I get a different scent coming to the fore. This definitely is evoking an "innocent" feel, but not pure. Shy maybe, but with heat and desire underneath. I really really like this for the soft sensual feel of it. It doesn't scream harlot, but it could with the right clothes and look. It's deceptive in that way. On the outside you appear sweetly innocent strolling along, but in the dark and behind closed doors, you could be whatever you wanted while maintaining that blush of innocence. I do believe I want a bottle of this. I really like it and can't stop sniffing my wrist.

In the imp it's a bitter wine smell. It reminds me of the wine used at my old church for communion. It's not a scent with good associations for me at any rate. But, I'll give this a try. Wet on my skin it's staying true to the bitter wine, but there's a sweetness under it. I visualize someone taking a cup of wine and pouring a bit of honey into it to give it some sweetness that was lacking. The flowers are there, but they are at the bottom of the metaphorical cup. I'm not getting much myrrh. If it's there, it's hiding beneath everything else. The longer this sits, the less bitter it becomes, but it still has a strong wine scent to it. Not sure if that's something I would want to go out smelling like! >.< Hmm, smells like the myrrh just kicked it's way to the top and beat the wine into almost non-existence. I'm starting to enjoy this the longer I have it on. It's complex and deep, almost heavy but with a deceptive softness that catches you off guard on occasion. After an hour or so, it's nothing but a soft floral. Nice, but barely there. Not bottle worthy simply because of the initial wine phase.

In the imp is spicy slightly floral sweetness. Wet on my skin is spice, almost like red hots, and my skin is tingling a little where I applied the oil. Still no plum, which is kind of sad since I really like BPAL's plum. As it's drying the florals come out some. I understand now the love of carnation. Not that I didn't before, I love carnations as they remind me of buying them for friend's and the "boyfriend of the month" in high school for Valentine's Day or Sweetest Day. But this is staying sort of true to the spiced carnation smell. I would really love if the plum came into play. Will see if it shows later in the dry down. The "bandersnatch" musk is starting to come to the fore now. There is no sweetness from the plums that I can detect. It's all spicy carnations with an undercurrent of musk. Despite my wish for more plum in this blend, I still really like it. You would think that the spice and the musk would make it a rather heavy scent, but it doesn't. Not really. It "feels" heavy, but more so in a weight sense than in the scent actually being heavy. If that makes any sense. It feels like you're carrying a giant bunch of carnations while eating red hots and wearing musk. I also get a visual of some potpourri, the spicy kind. Bit further in the dry down I start getting hints of the plum and mums. Very nice it's all blending together extremely well. I'm not sure this warrants a bottle, but I wouldn't mind having an imp or two laying around. OH NO!! About an hour or so later I'm having sneezing fits! Dang it! I like the scent, but don't want to be sneezing my head off whenever I wear it....

In the imp it's a very sharp almost harsh smell. Lots of honey and some vanilla. And seeing as I was totally brilliant and just spilled this on myself, I better like it. >.< Wet on skin this is again a very sharp smell. Nothing headache inducing, but very much in my face with just a hint of vanilla. It's not even very sweet. As it dries down I have a feeling this is trying to turn on me. On my skin it's starting to turn sweet, almost too sweet. On my shirt where I spilled it, it's still a very sharp smell. I'm not sure I like this scent. It's not horrible .... but it's not appealing either. I hope that has nothing to do with me spilling it. I've got enough to test again later and I just might. A little bit later it gets a powdery sweet scent with almost no hint of vanilla anywhere. It's all amber and honey. Jury's still out on this one.

In the imp this is has a sharp tang to the undercurrent of leather. Not really what I'd expected from the description, but not horrible. It kind of makes me think of new leather with a citrus oil worked into it. Wet on the skin still has a bit of a citrus over-tone too it. Like over polished leather that is still gleaming from the oil. Hmm, I keep mentioning oil, and I only do so because it does have an oily scent to it. Perhaps I've just not been around true rawhide leather in a long time? Possible. Okay, the longer this stays on, the more it becomes rawhide leather, at least what I remember it smelling like. That initial citrus-oil phase isn't horrible, just unexpected. It doesn't burn my nose like other BPAL scents that have citrus in them do. Oh yes, dry down this is just pure unworked leather. Dried, maybe worn a bit so it is pliant an soft. Kind of fuzzy almost. Very warm and very nice. Though not something I would particularly wear solo, I think it would be nice to layer with another scent that you want to punch the leather up on.

I managed to snag an imp of this via a swap. (Thanks stellans!) It looks as though it is aged, but I'm not sure if the oil is dark and stains the imp like that naturally fresh or not. In the imp is buttered currants with just the barest hint of vanilla. Not a bad smell, but makes me just a bit leery. Wet on my skin is all sweet and tart currants. The vanilla sometimes makes its way to the surface, but rarely. I was really hoping for more of a vanilla out of this, but I'm actually liking the tart currants a lot. I'm not really getting a "cake" scent out of this - nor any butter for that matter. As it's drying down, the tartness of the currants backs off a bit and they start to sweeten even more. Hmm, I got a whiff of a sweet musk-like smell for just a moment, but its gone now. Dry this still is not a very "cake" smell, but the sweet yet tart currants are still swirling around and making me smile. This is good because it's not an overly "foody" scent, and I'd rather not walk around smelling like cake. Overall, I really want to get a bottle of this. Way into the dry down (2 hours later) I start getting a cake smell out of it, but it's still a tart and sweet cake. Very lovely. I really like it a lot! I'm also noticing that a little goes a long way, which is wonderful! Usually I soak up scents like crazy and they tend not to last very long on me, but this is staying around for a while.

I somehow managed to get frimped this, and it looks very aged (the imp cap is stained golden brown). To me, this is a very masculine scent. Strong and solid. Not in your face, but it is there, and it knows that you know it's there. It seems to have a fairly decent throw (for me at least, since it seems my skin just eats scents) and I get whiffs of it every now and again. The vetiver and musk are the strongest and last well through dry down. I get a little pine every now and then, but not much, which is good since I tend to amp pine. Overall, it's a very dark, nearly angry scent - good to wear when you're in the mood, but I don't think I'll get a bottle.

I'm very intrigued by this scent from the description alone. I love the opium note in Languor. This is black as black can be in the imp. The scent can only be described as a pure lack of color. On my skin though it just .... disappears? What?! Oh, there it is. Hello nose touching skin just to get to the scent! Weird. As it dries, it has a bit more of a throw than, well, the nothing it had when wet. It is deep and dark and languid. I like it, but wish it had more of a throw. Oh yes, the more this dries, the more I like it and can't stop sniffing my wrist.

I grew up Catholic and should know without a doubt what frankincense and myrrh smell like. Yep, it is what it says in the imp. Frankincense and myrrh. Same wet on the skin. It is what it is. I feel like I should be saying 5 Our Father's, 10 Hail Mary's, and an Act of Contrition for good measure with my rosary!

At first, this was lemon booze in the imp. But as it's drying down on my skin, all I get is dandelion's. Pure rolling fields of big 'ole yellow dandelion's. Which, I don't mind dandelion's, but I really don't want to smell like one. Every now and then I get a hint of tobacco, maybe some hops (or the booze note). Not my thing for sure.

Without even opening the imp, I knew I'd smell pine (more like Pine Sol >.< in the imp). On my skin, the juniper comes out and seems to temper the pine a bit, but I'm not getting much musk. It's not bad ... but it's trying very hard to hold onto the Pine Sol scent. As it's drying I'm finally getting hints of musk and the juniper is coming out a bit more, driving away the Pine Sol. I still don't like the smell though. Earth Phoenix is heavy on the pine as well, and on my skin, it eats through everything and has such a huge throw that I've been turned off from pine scents I think.

In the imp I get cleaning solution. O.o Wet on my skin is all rose (though amazingly not baby powder rose, this is a pure rose - wow). I'm not getting any "wickedness" out of it. Just light, sweet rose. Very matronly. Dry this does not morph much - it's still a pure rose scent. Definitely not for me. Though this is the only scent with rose in it that has not gone to baby powder.

This just screamed spiced banana at me from in the imp, as well as wet on the skin. The dry down is a bit more tempered, less banana, but I'm really not liking the tropical fruits. After a bit longer this chills the hell out and stops yelling at me and becomes something wearable, but not something I'd wear.

... This is the scent of autumn night, fires in the distance, with a touch of boozy swoon, playful sugar and thuggish musk. 2009 version This is pure booze with a fire in the background (WAY in the background) in the bottle. Not really something I like. As it dries the fires come out, and the thuggish musk starts kicking some ass. Mainly my nose. I'm also getting a whiff of ... church incense? What?! Definitely frankincense. How odd. Will have to let this one sit for a bit and beat itself up in the bottle.

In the bottle I get the sweet smell of flowers beginning to decay, dying a slow sweet death to return again. On my skin, I got about 15 minutes worth of sweet decay with a huge heap of freshly raked brown leaves pilled on top. Lovely. Now that it's dry ... I get pure rose which morphed to baby powedered death. Damnit. I'll try it again in a week, but I was really hoping the roses would've just been buried under everything else. Oh how nice, the roses have backed off, though I still get a lingering of baby powder, it hovers over the soft silence of dead plants, brown and dried, sitting and waiting to be covered by the snow. I think I will let this one sit for a bit and come back to it when I'm not so overrun with hormones. If the rose stage would disappear, I'd be in so much love with this scent.

When I'd first received the imp, I took one whiff and stuffed it away. It was very sharp and spicy in the vial. However, I'm glad I decided to try it out. Turns out it's very warm and lovely on my skin. There's still a hint of spice, but it's tempered by all the things around it so it's more of a warm, close smell. I'm not getting any of the fruits that are supposed to be in this blend, nor am I getting the vanilla. Mostly it's just the amber, heliotrope, and red musk. Out of those three, I'm not sure which is giving off the 'spice' smell. I have a feeling it's the Egyptian amber, but I'm not familiar enough with individual scents to truly pick it out. Overall I'm really, really pleased with this scent, and think it's perfect for colder nights when you want to feel warm, but also has a little bit of a kick to make you motivate a bit. Edited on 7/2/10: I ended up buying a bottle 4/10 - fresh it is not something I would touch with a 10-foot poll. It was so sharp it burned my nose. Now, a few months later, it is starting to temper a bit and be more like my imp. It's still not there - but aged Hollywood Babylon is definitely worth waiting for.

I just received this from the lab today, and I have to say, I couldn't be more pleased. I was honestly skeptical about the scent after reading all the notes, but I shouldn't have worried. This scent is everything it promises to be and more. Dark, sultry, a little naughty, and just a wonderful blend overall. At first, it's dark with a bit of a sharp scent to it, like it has teeth and nails ready to dig into you. Eventually the sharpness settles down and you're left with the dark an slinky/sexy/sultry scent that creeps along your skin teasing you with shadows and whispered promises. Edit: About 45 minutes in and it's nearly gone. Not a lot of lasting power, unless I've hit the point I can't smell it because I'm used to it. I'm a slather-er though, so perhaps I need to do that with this as well instead of the small wrist test.

This list will be updated regularly to reflect new purchases, swaps, or sales. Bottles I currently own: ~ Autumn Coolness x2 ~ Hallloweenie 2008 ~ Black Butterfly Moon ~ Lunacy August 2009 ~ Bordello (incoming) ~ Ars Amatoria ~ The Caterpillar ~ Mad Tea Party ~ Chuthlu (incoming) ~ Earth Phoenix ~ Anniversary ~ Lambs-Wool (incoming) ~ Halloweenie 2009 ~ Lawn Gnome x2 ~ Summer Garden 2009 ~ Mme. Moritary, the Misfortune Teller (incoming) ~ Nocturne (will be selling/swapping for something else) ~ Bewitching Brews ~ Sachs (incoming) ~ Sachs & Violens 2009 ~ Snake Oil (incoming) ~ Bewitching Brews

I am in the same boat rubymulligan. I placed an order on 8/5 for BBM, yet have nto received a CnS yet. All three of my orders have been charged and all three of my order histories say they are shipped. This is only my second, thrid, and fourth orders to the lab. I didn't really pay close attention to the first one, I'm sad to say.

I must say, I was pleasantly surprised by this scent! When I'd first received it from a lovely forumite, I'd looked up the notes and immediately set it aside, cringing at the fruit + booze. I shouldn't have given up so easily. Thankfully, I didn't get rid of the imp and now that I've learned to at least try it before I cringe, I can say I'm in love and want a bottle right now. In the imp, it's a sweet, if a bit sharp smell. If I didn't know there was amaretto in it, I would've assumed a cream was there. On my skin it is just wonderfully sweet, creamy, with a little bit of a sharp scent lingering in the background that takes you by surprise. So far, nearly an hour later, it's lasting on my skin without needing a refresher (unlike some I've noticed that are gone 20 mintues after application). It's wafting lazily around me and makes me smile every time I catch a wiff of it. This is definitely a bit sexy, very smooth, with a little bit of a playful bite. I will have to get a bottle of this as soon as I can!

All I can smell in this blend is lemon it seems, to the point it smells like pledge on me. I kind of knew the lemon and mint would be killer (as some people with the same tastes/skin chemistry have shown), but I had to give it a try because of the name. The anise is also a killer as I absolutely loathe black licorice.

This is one of my all time favorites, and I wish I had been around for its release. I would've ordered so many bottles of it! It's cool and relaxing, sweet without being overly so. It's complex in that it has quite a few scents, but they come together so singularly that I cannot pick one out from the other. Late summer blooming flowers blowing in a sweet breeze. Utterly wonderful.

I highly recommend Lawn Gnome if you like sweet vanilla. Molasses, vanilla cream, moss, and patchouli. The moss and patchouli ground the vanilla and molasses and keep it from being a cloying sweet smell. It also makes it a bit heavy, and not light. I'm usually not a fan of sweet (give me dark and musky any day) but I simply cannot get enough of Lawn Gnome. Also from some of the Will Call reviews, Boo might be another good one. Supposedly the cotton in it grounds the spun sugar and keeps it from being overwhelming also.

I just received this from the lab today, and boy am I glad I got a bottle before it goes away! This is very vanilla cream on me, which is awesome. It's not the cloying sweet vanilla, though it does add a sweet tone to it with the molasses, but the red currant and patchouli (which is very minimal in this) keeps it from just overpowering. I did expect a bit more of a 'dirt' feel, but I am really, really pleased with what came of it. No dirt, just a sweet, very slightly spicy, bit earthy mix that is just wonderful!

Pine, pine, pine, and just a bit more pine. Underneath that, I catch a sweet/dirty smell. Must be the cherries and moist soil. I get very little floral scent from this until way past dry down. I must be amping the cypress from here to kingdom come. It nearly drowns everything out, but that's okay. I really, really like forest-like scents and this is definitely something I like.