theseagrows

ok the only thing i was really iffy about is if the patchouli or jasmine is too strong in this. right off the bat i get strong night blooming jasmine (which i tend to amp) the roses then come out more, and i hope that the jasmine settles down a bit. it's not a very stinky jasmine on me, thankfully, it's just very strong. this is very very floral at first but i sense the amber, patchouli and oudh in there. after awhile the labdanum and oudh become more present and i love that element of the scent, almost woody and leathery, however, the jasmine is still so strong it gives me a headache. after awhile on the skin it becomes mostly a jasmine-patchouli with oudh. there is no rose and no vanilla here, unfortunately the jasmine is amping to 11.

right off the bat i get a sort of...dusty coconut for lack of a better word. maybe it's a hint of patchouli? then the lemongrass comes through supporting it. after a few minutes, i am definitely getting some amber and the patchouli is becoming more prominent. after about 10 minutes on the skin i seem to amp the lemongrass and unfortunately it turns sort of sour. i am not sensing any carnation at all, and if there is vanilla, it's very subtle. this scent is alright on me, but the lemongrass just isn't my cup of tea.

i took a chance on this because sometimes jasmine really amps up and gets stinky on me, but fortunately in this it does not! similarly to hal, which was a bit too strong on the jasmine note for me, but it's a jasmine note that i actually like. it is not as strong as hal in this so it works even better. the tea seems to really help the jasmine on my skin too. the very beginning is a bit sharp and weird, but that fades within seconds. it's mostly just jasmine tea on me at first with hints of amber in the background, but this amber is not powdery at all. the jasmine tea almost seems to have a sliiight bit of mint in it or something similar, rather it has that cool feeling of mint but isn't screaming "hi, i'm mint!" thus far i cannot smell any vanilla in this, i am assuming it becomes more apparent on the drydown. this scent is very soft and tranquil. i think it's perfect for spring or summer. i am so thrilled to finally have a BPAL jasmine that works for me! ETA: about 40 minutes later i get the vanilla and it's this lovely jasmine-vanilla. so nice.

let me preface this by saying that i often fall asleep just fine, i just can't always stay asleep. i tend to wake up in the middle of the night and then have trouble getting back to sleep. i finally had a chance to try this one the other night. i did the anointing as directed and i slept soundly and deeply, though, it took me a bit longer to get to sleep than it does with TKO, which as the name implies, tends to knock me out quickly. nocturne seems like mostly rose and lavender to me, with maybe something softly herbal underneath. despite using it a second time on my wrists/temples when i woke up around 4am, i did toss and tur a bit, but overall slept fairly well. i had crazy, vivid dreams as well, though i cannot recall the details now. i definitely want to try this again sometime soon and try to do a dream journal to see if it had any affect on my dreams as well.

this is nice but not what I expected. I thought it would be heavier on the vanilla to be honest. this is mostly spicy cardamom and cinnamon at first. I swear I smell sarsaparilla in this for a bit. the vanilla comes out more later, but it's primarily cardamom with vanilla backing it up. I don't smell any oudh in this. this is nice, but my decant is enough for me. i think maybe i'd enjoy it even more in the winter.

i definitely smell that polished mahogany, along with a bit of smoke, tonka and vanilla. i think the cardamom adds that little bit of sweetness. it seems to get a bit smokier as it settles, and then the vanilla gets stronger. i really like this! i feel like there is a hint of that candle note in this too, but just a hint. it adds a nice creaminess to this. i am glad i got a decant of this one and i might need some more.

BPTP frimped me this! i get the ozoney metal part with pumpkin. neither notes i like and a super-odd combination. a minute later i get more hay and vines adding to the curious mix of green/metal and hay/foody, which are like opposites calling for attention. metallic foodiness. after about 10-15 minutes on the pumpkin has pretty much disappeared and it's an ozoney-green combination. not as bad as with the pumpkin, but not really my cup of tea so i will be swapping this.

got this as a frimp. it does start off very bittersweet. i smell salt, pine and greenery from the palm and ferns. this is so fresh and green! it'd be like laying on a pile of leaves over grass or something. i think it's the fern, which seems to be strongest on me. i think i'd appreciate this more in an atmo. spray more than a perfume, just because it's very evocative and would bring one to the outdoors. a fascinating scent and i'm glad i got to try it.

i can't believe i've never tried this one. i got a frimp of it in a swap. it's starts off with lavender, ylang ylang and lilac, then the sandalwood and orris become more apparent as they ground the florals some. i smell maybe a tiny hint of gardenia but no violet. i love florals, and most of the florals in this, but i tend to like them mixed with something more musky/heavy/spicy and this is very very pure floral and more ethereal like the name implies. i am liking this though because the lilac isn't really bothering me. it can be hit or miss for me but here it's behaving. ah, there is the violet, after a minute or two on the skin, i sense it mixed in. i am liking it more with the violet and gardenia coming through, and now that the lavender is calming a bit. i would probably not wear this much, but occasionally, it makes me think of a rainy spring day, and i think that'd be the perfect day to wear it.

when i sniffed the bottle, something in this made me think of death adder. i thought it was coconut but there is no coconut listed. on my skin i think i'm getting the vanilla, benzoin, ambergris most strongly. someone up above mentioned black pearl and it does remind me of black pearl on my skin a bit, like black pearl without the musk and coconut. this is really subtle on me, it doesn't have a lot of throw. after about a half an hour on the skin it seems to bloom and it's more like a vanilla-ambergris with a hint of patchouli. this is pretty! but it is so similar to black pearl, and i like the muskiness of black pearl. this might work well for someone who likes black pearl but can't do coconut (?) ETA: i've been wearing this for nearly two hours now and it's really beautiful now. it still really reminds me a lot of black pearl, but it's more subtle and more vanilla-y.

got a lil' frimp of this in my decant circle! i am mostly not a foody/chocolate person, but am willing to try them. yep, i agree that this smells like brownies too. it just makes me want brownies. that's all foody scents do for me, make me want to eat something i am not hungry for. i don't get it personally, but it's cool. and i love how supremely accurate this scent is. i don't get any oudh that i can detect, just pure rich chocolate that's cakey or brownie-ish.

i just skin tested this since i tend to use these as moisturizers more than bath oils. it's a subtle rich vanilla and i thought to myself, "oh good! this is the vanilla i like." because it is not too foody. not a fan of foody vanillas, but ones like this are my favorites. it's a vanilla with a creamy sugary note that comes out more after being on the skin for awhile. i think i am going to need more of this...

i am skin testing this, not using it in the bath. it's whoa! orange blossom with some cedar and lily. it does smell very orange/yellow/gold to me. it tickles my nose when i smell it on my skin, almost making me sneeze. the vanilla orchid is in the background. i do get that slight lead-like scent from the cedar but not too bad. i think i am really amping the lily and cedar maybe, because it's giving me a bit of a headache. i really do love orange blossom, but i think the added cedar just pushes it over the top for me, at least at first. after it's been on my skin for about 10 minutes, it's more palatable. the cedar has softened and the orange blossom is so pretty. it smells like a classic scent to me, from maybe the 40s or 50s (?) but definitely has that classic feel.

this is such a pretty scent! and it does have that champagne-y effervescent to it. at first it seems to be all grey musk and carrot seed. it's fresh and sort of ethereal. does make tears come to mind and after awhile the gold (amber) comes forth warming it up a bit. this is so pretty and oddly comforting to me. it seems to remind me of another bpal kind of, but i can't recall which one, however it's also pretty unique. glad i got a decant of this.

this is like rose petals soaked in wine for several hours in a warm candlelit room with incense burning in the background. it is mostly wine and rose with the incense supporting. this is very nice, and it's almost a bit fruity from the wine. this smells very decadent and "eastern" to me. pleasantly surprised!

oh this is so evocative! at first spray i get a hint of the whisky, then lots of musk and candle smoke. i cannot wear the candle note on my skin but i am truly loving it in the atmo. sprays. after it settles for a minute or two, it's mostly candles and musk with a hint of whisky. it does make me think of a bar with antique dark woods only lit by candles. so nice.

i don't use a ton of hair gloss, so i haven't tried a lot of them, only a few, but thus far, this one is my favorite (besides dorian.) bpal's honey note sometimes doesn't work on me, but it's divine here. this is a thick, rich honeyed saffron-musk. there is something *almost* cocoa-y in this, for lack of a better word, that adds this richness (but is not the cacao note or anything. just can't figure out how to describe it. it must be the honey?) anyway, i find it very pretty and sexy and i'm so glad i got a decant of this!

ooh i like this quite a bit! i think I am getting mostly tuberose, jasmine and coconut and the amber gives a nice soft backing note. no mint here. this is very heady and tropical. it smells like jasmine on a warm summer evening , which is when I plan go use this most. it just screams warm summer nights.

i get mostly white musk, tobacco and cacao at the outset with maybe just a hint of ambergris. later on it becomes mostly ambergris and opopnax, very nice and resiny with that hint of saltiness from the ambergris and a clear brightness from the white musk. i am really liking this one and contemplating a bottle.

often times the white rose scents seem to go sour on me, but not here! this starts off with labdanum-y, mossy rose. it's kinda musky seeming to me but i think it's the labdanum maybe. it's a bit...skanky to say the least, which is nice, i'm just not sure if that's the labdanum or what, but this is an animalic rose to my nose. and yes it does seem to be the same rose that is present in zombi.

this smells like fougere-y and sandalwood to me, but really i am having trouble picking out what it is. it's softly woody and is evocative of the description, more dry than lush. looking at the other reviews that mention balsam, i think that's what it is. this is definitely very desert-y. very nice and i am glad i got a sample to try.

hmm, i smell primarily tea roses with maybe some lily, soft musk and a hint of greenery? but mostly it's lush tea rose to my nose. it's very pretty and floral, reminds me of a tea house with chintz prints everywhere.

this is a nice, fresh, clearing scent. it's a piney scent, but not overly so. there is a lemony-floral freshness mixed with the pine which adds a nice depth and rounds it out. it definitely doesn't remind me of pine trees or anything wintry, it's more springlike. i guess the citrus i'm sensing is actually bergamot. it's not really my "type" of scent, but it is nice and refreshing and cleansing.

ooh so pretty and springlike! i smell mostly lilac and fig at first spray, then immediately after i get the tea leaves. oakmoss seems to be a background/base note to the scent. i love this combination of fig and lilac. lilac can be iffy for me but i am liking it a lot in this. i can see spraying this a lot in spring and early summer, or times when you want a fresh floral scent. very pretty.

oh wow this starts off with just the macadamia milk, of course! i tend to amp the notes that i wish were more subtle. it's very nutty at first. at this point i am praying the macadamia calms quickly and we get to the other stuff. after about 30 seconds it smells like coconut curry. which smells really good, just not sure i want to personally smell like it. so i will give it more time... it's mostly macadamia and coconut. with the cream and marshmallow supporting in the background. the amber really is just a drop and grounds the scent a bit. after about 10 minutes it smells like a vanilla-y coconut curry. later on the nuttiness is a lot calmer and this is a creamy marshmallow-coconut scent. it's a pretty, subtle foody scent, not too strong or overly sweet. i like this but am not sure i love it. i will have to try it more to see how i feel.