Stumbeline

Wine wine wine! Yum. I love the Lab's red wine note so much. It's always very warm and spicy on me and just melts into my skin. I've been wanting to try The Black Tower for a long time now. In the imp it's red wine and leather, sort of what I expected Wanda to smell like, but there's no rose. It's very sweet and fruity with a touch of green. On me, the green-ness amplifies, but is still sweetened by the wine. As it dries it smells very much of ivy and smoke and wine, and less of leather. It's wearable for me, but it's almost more of a room scent than a body scent. I think the best way to describe it is a cold scent, it reminds me very much of winter. It's a wonderful scent, but not something I would wear on a regular basis. I'm very glad I got to try it.

I just got this in a swap from Xoe and OMFG...I WANT TO EAT MYSELF. In the bottle it's straight up Thin Mints from my old girl scout days. It also has a pleasant backdrop of coconut that makes me think of suntan lotion, but in the very best way possible. It reminds me so much of a camping trip I used to take with my cousins every labor day. I seriously want to curl up with this scent and never smell anything else, HAHA. On me, it's mint, rum, and spices. Hardly any coconut or cocoa but that's totally fine. I smell like warm spicy rum and a sprig of mint. I can imagine this would be fantastic both in the winter and summer months. It fades so fast, though, that I feel like I need to bathe in it. Oh man, I love it I love it I LOVE IT.

In the imp this smells sharper than it does on me. It's a darkly sweet scent, that starts off on me with a bang of vetiver. That's okay, I like vetiver. It reminds me of a deeper version of Centzon Totochtin, I think that's the dragon's blood. Dragon's blood always smells a little like citronella on me, and Blood Kiss has that same effect. The wine in this is nice in the backround, I love wine scents. Overall, it's a good sweet scent that I would wear out dancing, but it does smell almost identical to Centzon Totochtin on me.

A modern incarnation of the Queen of Pentacles, or Disks, the Queen of the Thrones of Earth. Nurturing, warm and kind, she is practical, quiet and domesticated, and yet still ambitious, and possessed of the sensual lushness of Mother Earth. Soft, deep earth notes with myrrh, amber, pomegranate, dark incense, red currant, rose and vanilla. In the imp it's dirt and something sweet. It's a little sharp and green to my nose. On me, it's just dirt for about 15 minutes. I get sharp, earthy notes with little else, but there's something sweet and fruity in the backround. Currant, I think. After the initial sharp dirt phase, it's one of my favorites ever. Red currant and tangy pomegranate and vanilla. A little bit of spicy myrrh. I don't get any rose, and I'm not really complaining about that. It reminds me of a more grown-up Bordello. I love it.

O smells like rank plastic on me. Sharp and headache-inducing. I don't think I got a bad imp, because I swapped it away and the reciever reviewed it here with glowing praise. I just think some kind of funky stuff went down with my body chemistry and O and I just don't get along. I'm not inclined towards amber scents, although I love vanilla.

Wine and roses. On me, most of BPAL's florals turn into headache juice. I'm not kidding. I'm the least floral-inclined person on earth. BUT, I love wine. I love the Lab's wine notes and they love me. I've been on a mission to try all of the wine scents. Particularly red wines, they bloom on my skin and turn into rich, sexy, womanly scents. Wanda is a very fresh scent on me, and surprisingly it works. The florals are tempered by the wine, although I don't get any leather or musk. It's a very light, almost aquatic fruity rose on me. I love to wear Wanda in the summer months, when it's warm and I want to smell clean and pretty.

In the imp: Myrrh, almonds, and honey? Smells promising. I love myrrh, although honey can go either way on me and almonds generally turn to plastic on my skin. On: Oh holy shit...it's floral. I remember that there's ylang ylang in this blend and it's totally pulling a jasmine and turning my skin to diaper-smell. Ugh. I'm reminded why I hate, hate, hate florals. Everything floral smells like powder and diaper on me. But there's a soft sweetness in the backround that keeps me from running and washing it off like I have with other floral blends. Maybe red musk? Or skin musk? It's reminiscent of Spellbound and Bengal in that sense. Drydown: Honeyed musk with a touch of myrrh and still-raging ylang ylang, although it's all blended a bit better now. I do like this stage, it's wearable for me. But it's not a "me" scent. So now that I've tried the BPAL Sex Scent Trinity I can safely say that this and O were not winners for me, whereas Snake Oil took the first place trophy of sexiness with flying colors. Oh well!

Is there white musk in this? Because that's all I get. Just an overwhelming musky, masculine smell that reminds me of old man. I really wanted to love Devil's Night, I swapped and sold and begged vigorously for it because I am a HUGE fan of booze and sugar scents. Although there is a lovely foody smell in the bottle, and when I first apply it, like cookies, it's gone in mere minutes and it's musk from there on out.

Cinnamon and something green? I'm not getting the celery smell some are describing, but there's almost a woodiness to it. It's soft and warm and comforting to me. Very pleasant, unique, and something I'll wear often as I'm a fan of spicy blends. I wish I could try this out for its voodoo properties, but alas, I'm single.

GUH! This was an awesome frimp from the lab. They must be mind-readers, because I almost ordered a 5ml of this unsniffed with my Yule order. Now I'm totally regretting not going ahead with it. This is simple, pure, thick, creamy chocolate. Just a whiff of it makes me smile and feel better. I adore this scent, I'm getting some more ASAP!

This was a frimp from the Lab. I can't really smell this in the vial. It clears out my sinuses and 'gritty' really is the best way to describe it. I was really apprehensive about putting it on my skin. On me, it's a chalky dirt smell for the first half hour or so. Then it gets lighter, and there's something lemony? I've had it on for about two hours now and it's still pretty strong and actually very sweet. It's an interesting scent for the way that it morphs. I don't dislike it, but I'm not sure I'll wear it much.

I got an imp of this a while ago, sniffed it, sneezed, and then ignored it for the better part of a couple months. I tried it tonight out of curiousity. It is simple. Green and minty, then sweet anise. Not bad, but not really my thing. It may be in rotation in the warmer months though.

This was one of the first BPAL oils I ever tried, and the lab recently gifted me with another as a frimp in an order. My first impressions when I tried it a few months ago was that it was pretty, certainly very womanly, but too heavy for me. Now, having the opportunity to try it again, it's still not for me but I can appreciate it more and pick out the exact reasons why it doesn't work. I'm adverse to patchouli, and florals don't work on me. I like ginger, but it doesn't show up in this blend for me. All I am left with when I wear it is a very sharp patchouli-floral that gives me a headache. Fortunately, my mother and I are scent opposites, so she loves it!

A very sweet blend. In the imp it smells like lollipops and candy, which is okay. I'm into foody smells, but this is a little too light for me. On me, the honeysuckle takes over. Which is not okay. I'm not into florals. It does go a bit dish-soapy on me. But honestly, Lolita is a very pretty, girly scent that I just happen not to get along with.

I so wanted to like this, but I think my skin has issues with amber. I never get any creaminess or vanilla from O, just a very sharp plasticky smell. To the point that I had to wash it off immediately. It goes sour on me the same way that Dana O Shee does. It's a shame because I wanted to love O, but I ended up swapping it away. ADDED Nov. 8: The bottom line: Sadly O doesn't work for me, and I ended up swapping it. There are several oils, O, Dana 'O Shee, and Samhain 05 that turn into a very sharp plastic scent on my skin and wreck havoc on my sinuses. I used to think it was honey, but other honey scents (Athens, Bengal) work fabulously on me and vanilla is a tried and true favorite so I'm beginning to suspect it's amber. I wish I could wear O, but it's just not for me.

Well. Amber doesn't work on me. Rose takes over any blend I wear if it's included. So surprisingly enough, this blend works on me. This was a freebie from the lab in my latest order. It's a sweet incense rose on me. This is a very full, deep, mature scent. I can relate to the 'head shop' comments, this smell is very reminiscent of a new age store I've been visiting every winter in the Poconos since I was a baby. I think that's why I like it so much. It reminds me of a place I adore. I can imagine wearing this to a formal event, when I want to feel confident and assured of myself, and at the same time bring back pleasant memories.

In the imp this was screaming pepper and I was so, so scared for my skin. When I applied it, it was screaming pepper for about twenty minutes. I was getting really, really frightened that my body chemistry was going to amp up the pepper in this blend to the point of being completely intolerable. Fortunately, that did not happen. After some time, when it's dry, I get creamy honeyed cinnamon. It's a sweet second-skin smell on me. Slightly spicy, warm, and inviting. It's an autumn scent for me. I was having my doubts that the Lab's honey note worked on me, as almost every other honey blend has turned to sharp plastic on me. But the spices round this out and make it very cozy and wearable. Oh how I love spices!

There's a war on my wrist right now between wine and bay, and unfortunately I think the wine is losing. It's doing an admirable job, though. Beth's wine notes are my favorites, and I'm determined to try all of the wine scents. In the imp I smell honeyed wine with just a hint of bay, and I love the way this smells. It's Athens but altered, drier and smokier. On me, the bay just gets amplified and amplified until it's dominating, but is slightly sweetened by the wine. I don't really smell the laurel, but that's alright. This is scent I think is very evocative of its name, and I will use it in an oil burner as a room scent. On me, it's just too dry and herbal.

Oh sweet lord...I think I need to BATHE in this. This is seriously a gorgeous, sexy, slightly-on-the-kinky-side everyday scent. Let me state from the very start that when I make my Yule order next week that I'm snagging a 10 ml of this. I want to smell like this ALL THE TIME. In the imp it's all sugared lemons. I don't get much vanilla or tea yet, but it smells like delicious lemonade so I jump right in. I slathered Dorian on. I knew from the start this was going to be true love. The tea and musks amplify on my skin, and I do get a hint of creamy vanilla. The whole time this retains its sweetness. The musks to make it slightly masculine to me, but not masculine enough that I can't wear it. In fact, the masculinity makes it even hotter imho. On the drydown it's soft, deep, creamy vanilla tea and I want to ravish myself. I shudder to think what would happen if I put this on a man. I hope when the time comes the guy has a lot of energy.

I agree with the 'High Mass at a Church' comment. This specifically reminds me of attending a Catholic Easter Vigil. I was definitely expecting a much more smoky smell but I'm pleased with the deep, incense-y woodiness of Cathedral. It does live up to its name, and reminds me of time I spent in France and visiting the grand gothic cathedrals. Mostly I find this scent very evocative of memories for me. Not something I would wear on a regular basis, but I will keep the imp and save it for when I need those memories.

Sea of Glass is not my normal pick, but I'm in the market for a scent that reminds me of sunny afternoons at the Jersey shore so I included it in my last Lab order. I'm not usually attracted to light, aquatic, florals, but Dirty worked on me so I figured I'd give this one a shot. Right out of the imp it's STRONG floral to me, and it makes me cough. After the intial blast, I get a very summery clean linen scent. Very reminiscent of Dirty to me, and I'm thinking this would make a stellar bedding spray. Even on the drydown I'm not getting any of the citrus or salty notes that I was hoping for, but very much a light clean lilac and I'm suspecting a hint of honeysuckle? Definitely a warm-weather scent. Pleasant, light and airy. It makes me feel happy. I'll try it again in the summer.

I just recieved my Samhain '05 today and it has me completely and utterly baffled. I can't decide if I absolutely love it or if I want to swap it off right away! Like someone noted above, in the bottle and when it first hits my skin it is very medicinal and the pine note is prominent. I'm not a fan of this. I don't get PineSol, but as a fan of sweet, spicy blends I was expecting something different. But just because it wasn't what I expected doesn't mean it's bad, oh no. Something in the initial note is triggering a memory but I can't quite make it out. This is one of the things I like about this scent. After a time, say...30 minutes or so Samhain 05 does get sweeter. I can smell the apples, definitely. A touch of the pumpkin I get from Jack and just a tiny hint of spices in the backround. They're so faint I feel like I need some pom-poms and a cootchie-cutting skirt to get them out here. However, I'm going to chalk this up to funky skin chemistry on my part, and give Samhain 05 another chance in a couple of days. The final drydown that I get is akin to what everyone describes as the total scent of Autumn, and I'm not about to give up on that.

All in all, Bordello on me is sugared fruit. This is in no way a bad thing. In the imp, I simply smell fruits. I'm not familiar with black currant but if this is how it smells, I'm in love already. On me, at first Bordello is almost too sweet, but after fifteen minues or so it mellows out. The fruit gets more tart, and I can smell the wine (the Lab's wine note and my skin are totally BFFs) in the forefront, with smooth, sweet sugar and amaretto in the back. This is a wonderfully girly scent, perfect for a date or any time I'm feeling like a flirt.

Snake Oil turns heads. And Dana O Shee gets the attention of my guy friends.

This would be a really beautiful scent for someone else. Heh. Florals really don't agree with me. Every now and then when I wear it a get a whiff of mandarin, but nothing creamy and it's mostly floral on me. When I wear it I smell straight shampoo. It's not a bad scent at all, just not my thing.