MamaMoth

Wow! I expected something rather heavy with this, but the saffron gives it a... spicy freshness? heh. It's hard to put into words, actually. Spicy without being heavy or opressive. Clean-smelling, sweet without being SWEET. I mostly smell the saffron, wet and dried down. A few hours in, I get a vague reminder of Morocco, but still overlaid with that great saffron. Really lovely, and unique.

I decided to try this on a lark. I just had to smell bubblegum perfume. I truly expected something fruity and sticky and gross, but that's not what it is at all! It really is like one of those dry powdery sticks of gum... maybe a little old and dried out? The smell of this oil is really faint, like that. It even has that slightly cardboard undertone! It's gone in about 30 minutes. I can even see the oil on my skin still, but all I can smell is the faintest whiff of sweet cinnamon. How strange. What a fun perfume! I'd never want other people to smell me like this, so I'd not wear it out. It's a shame that it fades so quickly, but it's almost like my body chemistry rejects sweet pink scents instinctually.

In the vial and wet on, this is heaven. A kick of almost pure patchouli. I was ecstatic. As it dries down... it's still good, but I like it less. It reminds me of Anne Bonny, in that it gets dry cedary-woods on me. It's not quite as agressive as Anne was, so I call it Anne Bonny lite. I'll be keeping the imp, but probably not a bottle purchase. I'm beginning to think that BPAL patchouli does not work on me unless it's paired with something sweet, which is somewhat disappointing.

Sugar Skull 2008 (decant) I was hoping for smooth, sweet, and light fruit. What I get is so sharply sweet it's almost bitter, with just a touch of overripe fruit thrown in for good measure. Yuck.

... soap? Really, Dorian? No tea? No vanilla? Just soap?? *wistful sigh* I hope this is not an indicator of what tea notes will do for me, but now I'm ascairt.

Oh Lawn Gnome... how I wanted to love you. The currant is the overwhelming note here, and it smells of fake strawberry to my nose. Syrupy sweet fake strawberries n cream. And moss. I can't detect the patchouli, I may be mistaking it for the moss as a single earthy note. Lawn Gnome is definitely fun and quirky, and I can see how it might work on the right person... unfortunately, that person is not me.

Snake Oil with cocoa, teakwood, and rice milk. What I have is a decant, not sure how aged. This it is the thickest, darkest, oil I've ever seen. It just coats the tester wand. So beautiful. In the vial and wet on my skin, it is Snake Oil with rich cocoa. Not exactly dry cocoa, but rich and sticky, dark, and a little bitter under the sweet. As it dries, it smells of vanilla and cocoa, with the rich sexy spices of Snake Oil whispering underneath. Boomslang is so many things. It's totally warm and sexy, but it is soft and comforting too. I could put this on to go out on a date, and I could also put this on to cuddle up in bed with a book and read 'til I fall asleep. A little foodier than what I generally like, but judging by how often I go back to huffing my wrists I call it a winner.

WOW. Just wow. With this oil, I've found something my nose has been searching for a long time. Musky incense, earthy patchouli, luscious vanilla, and juicy plum/pom. They all blend perfectly, with this wonderful system of checks and balances. Each one shines without being overwhelming. My god, this is just too good for words. Knowing this is an LE, I'm feeling my first ever impulse to hoard. I may have to get an extra bottle or two of this to tuck away, as I can tell it will only get better with a little age on it.

The smell from the vial is heavy, thick, sweet, spiced, and slightly medicinal. It put me in mind of anise almost immediately, and that association almost ruined it for me. I hate anise. On my skin, I would vacillate: sometimes smelling a thickly sweet, ginger-spiced patchouli, sometimes smelling syrupy anise and patchouli. Not exactly pleasant, but strangely compelling. As it dries, its starts smelling better and better. Now, about 2 hours later, I am enveloped in this cloud of slightly sweetish, ever-so-slightly bitter, spiced-orange patchouli. Oh my god, this is fantastic! Ultimately VERY nice, but it took a bit to get there. Kind of like learning to appreciate and enjoy wine, Vixen was also an acquired taste for me.

Mostly musk, with an underlying whiff of opressive floral. (the poppy, I guess...) As it dries down, I can sense the patchouli under there, struggling. This feels aggressively masculine, and the musk + poppy is giving it a decidedly pedestrian, cologne-counter kinda vibe. :\

Morocco smells really good. The descriptions really didn't prepare me for it. (My fault, I admit. I expected something dry and spicy-hot. Like the scent of a spice cabinet carried on a dry arid desert wind.) What I got was a creamy spice, not biting at all. It's almost foody-ish, but not. It's warm, but not in the least hot or dessicated. I wish I could describe this better. I just can't stop huffing my arm. I only got a dab from someone else's imp, and the wearlength was a bit disappointing for me. I wish it lasted longer; I want to smell this for HOURS! Ah well, I have a bottle on the way, so hopefully drenching myself in it will make a difference.

I... I don't loathe this! Wow! I'm not a fan of roses (nor florals in general, tbh) but I was frimped this by a lovely forumite and morbid curiosity compelled me to try it on. It's sweet and rosy and fresh green. Not cloying old-lady rose at all. It soooo doesn't suit me, so I'd never wear it... but I think I'll keep the imp as a novelty: "hey, this rose doesn't suck!" It has almost completely vanished after about 30 minutes. If I were a rose person, that would make me sad-face. But it's actually perfect for my needs. If I ever want a burst of rose, I can dab this puppy on, and not have to worry about it hanging around all day.

Very well put. I like this very much. It reminds me of a masala type incense, (where the scented materials are ground up and made into a paste, and are rolled onto a core to dry. a la Nag Champa) which is my very favorite kind of incense. There is a dry powderyness to it, but I can't say I immediately identify it as a "book" smell. I can definitely feel that association, but I can't say for sure that I would have made it on my own without the name and description being known to me. How can I say this without it sounding bad? It's not a spectacular, ZOMGMUSTHAVENOW kind of scent. It's very subdued, but lovely nonetheless. It's an oil I see myself reaching for when I don't want to smell like anything in particular, I just want to smell good. See, I'm making it sound bland and unattractive, but that's really not the case. Sometimes it is something I crave, and this is the first BPAL I've found to deliver that.

As I work my way through the Steamworks line, I notice that all of them that I've tried have a slightly metallic tinge, sharp and interesting. In my mind's eye, I see them curing in a shiny copper pot for a week before they're bottled and sent out. Aelopile has such a bright, shining, pleasant scent. I personally love citrus over resins and/or woods, and this is really a prime example of why. As someone noted earlier, it's not an immediately definable citrus. It doesn't scream orange or lemon, it just sings that sharp sweet freshness. The amber gives it a glowing roundness, and I can detect that spicy yummy labdanum peeping underneath. The cedar isn't dry or overly woodsy. This is good stuff.

Wet in the bottle, there is a strong hit of cocoa. Dark unsweetened powdered cocoa, definitely not chocolate. And some incensey undertones. The minute it hits skin, it undergoes this massive change. The cocoa disappears, and it scent turns almost candy sweet. Not like any candy I know, but that's the only way I can think of to categorize it. It's aaaaalmost foody, but not. And still with an earthy incense underbelly. I was anxious to try this one because chocolate + patchouli sounded divine. I never smelled the patchouli in particular, just a rich earthy incense tingle underneath the sweetness. It's compelling and gorgeous. I want gallons.

The overwhelming agony of passion crystallized into a singularly dark and magnetic blend: bittersweet neroli, black patchouli and black musk, gilded by apple, bergamot, blood red rose, teak, and vanilla. There's something in here that makes me think of cheap, heavy perfumes. Is it the mixture of black musk and rose, perhaps? I'm not sure. I'm not by any means saying this is a cheap scent, there are just those associations in place already in my wacky brain. It makes this scent smell very cloying to me. The instinct was to wash it off immediately, but I resisted and gave it a while to settle down. It did calm itself somewhat, and I can smell the vanilla and maybe the slightest hint of teak and patchouli. But that initial heaviness still overlays it all. This one is not for me. :/ Definitely a feminine blend to me.

I really really wanted to like this one, but I just don't think it's for me. The patchouli that I love so dearly is there, the down-and-dirty variety that I seek out, but it is obscured by the sickly-sweet apricot. September 11 ETA: I've come to terms with the apricot in here, somewhat. It's still a little overly sweet for my *ideal*, and apricot will never be my favorite fruit smell. But it's not quite so sticky and sweet to me anymore. And the patchouli in this one really is glorious. It's getting a bit more wear than I thought it would from me.

Wow, this one is very hard to describe. I can smell the olive a bit, but not the frankincense. I'm not familiar with the other listed notes. It is sweet, but not in any standard way to me (not fruity, not flowery, not sugary.) I'd almost say it has a sweet vegetable/grasses tinge. As it dries, I think I can smell the slightest bit of frankincense poking out. It smells like sweet incense burning in a fruit and vegetable market. Very exotic to my nose, without any of the spices that usually make me think "exotic market." Overall, I think I like it. I need to give it a full-day's wear to say for sure. I'd classify this as a feminine scent. ETA: After wearing it for a full workday, I'll have to pass on it. It keeps getting sweeter, and the vegetably/grassy tinge kind of fades out. I will be passing it to my stepmother who is looking for a sweet scent without flowers or food. I'm trying to get her hooked on BPAL, and this might be the perfect one.

I can smell all of the notes very distinctly in this one. The alcoholic smell is sweeter than I expected from the description. The dirt note to me is quite buried (haha, no pun intended) while still being evident, so if you like the dirt smell without wanting too much of it, this would be one to try. The flowers are nice, without being overpowering. I might not buy a bottle, but the imp is a keeper. Very nice, and definitely evocative of its namesake. I would rate this as a unisex-leaning-toward-masculine scent.

This is the very first scent from BPAL that I ever laid my sniffer on. I am still new, but I can safely say I'm an addict at this point, and all because of #93 Engine. What an introduction! I've never smelled such a complex scent before. To be honest, I'm completely unfamiliar with most of the listed notes. I can definitely smell the frankincense, the benzoin, and the beezwax. It has a glowing, round, coppery feel to it. I get the image of a frankincense beeswax candle being melted in a copper kettle, with a handful of spices being thrown in. I can smell all these individual notes (that I recognize) very clearly, but they never seem to be jostling for attention. It is complex without being busy or overwhelming. Simply put, it's gorgeous and a must-have for me. I've seen some opine that this is a masculine scent, but personally I wouldn't characterize it that way. Definitely unisex, not overwhelmingly masculine or feminine. The only negative thing I have to say about it is that it doesn't last nearly long enough. It has completely dissipated about 2 hours after application.

(2008 Edition) I got an imp of this with just a teensy lil bit in it, just to try really. It didn't sound like something that would personally appeal to me, but I was curious as it gets mentioned quite often. Now I'm afraid I'm going to have to track down a bottle. When most people describe a scent as "clean" or "fresh", it usually means that I need to steer clear, as there are watery florals that just don't agree with me. THIS smell, however, is very fresh and clean to me. There is just a little bit of gentle greenery poking through while it's wet, but it dries down to a gentle, smooth, innocent, unassuming and lovely scent. It's definitely watery, but without that aquatic bite I'm so leery of. Surprisingly for such a dainty scent, it is incredibly long-lasting. I applied some before bed last night and could clearly smell it on my skin when I woke up 8 or 9 hours later. I'm a devoted resins-spices-woods girl, but this might just be the perfect scent for those days when my favorites feel a little oppressive. 9/12 ETA: I tracked down a bottle on Ebay, vintage 04 edition. Just editing to say that I can't detect any discernible differences. Snow White seems like it seeps into my blood. This is the first oil that I've gotten "phantom smells" from. It can have been days since I wore it, but I'll suddenly get a whiff of it during the day. So odd.

This looks really cool! Thank you! Not to sound greedy... (*look shifty*) ..... Is there any chance in the future of each scent having a "personal notes" area that is only viewable to the logged in account?

Loviatar was my first introduction to the Lab's leather note. When I first uncorked the imp, the scent was strong and sharp, and it smelled quite nice. This scent just seemed to jump out of the bottle and tweak my nose. I put it in the list of wins for that batch of imps. Wearing, the scent was largely unchanged. But it began to wear on me after a while. The scent is just too aggressive for my style. It smells good, but just thinking about it seems to make me feel a little headachey and queasy now. I like to sprinkle a little bit of oil in my car, and I had the idea that this might be a nice one to use because of the leather. But the heat of the sun all day kind of killed all the leather, and it smelled musky and dusty after a day or two.

Dear sweet Urd, where have you been all my life? *waggles eyebrows* I have a committed love of patchouli, and I was really in a tizzy to smell Urd.... and surprise of surprises, it not only lived up to my expectations, but it exceeded them. Muscadine really is an inspired choice to combine with patchouli, as it is kind of like the grape's bohemian cousin. It has a very earthy taste and smell. I live in the Southern US, where muscadines are very prevalent. In many cases people go out and pick them from wild vines and make homemade preserves or wine from them. I have some very fond memories of my dad's muscadine wine, so Urd vaulted itself straight into my heart. The nag champa just added to the incensey feel of the patchouli. I'm not familiar with cereus. Urd is like.... patchouli, all jazzed up. Patchouli in a deep maroon dress, split up to the thigh, drinking homemade wine. It's Rich and sweet and earthy and just... yum. I get a panicky feeling when I think of ever being without it.

An imp of Elegba was a freebie included with my last order. What I find interesting was that I ordered an imp of Santo Domingo on a whim, and I expected Santo Domingo to smell very much like Elegba does. It's like they read my mind, and sent me what I really wanted. All of the listed ingredients are immediately apparent, and so well blended. It goes on in a burst of sweet buttery rummy coconutty richness. As it dries down, this fabulous skin-warmed tobacco lets itself be known. It could almost be a food scent, but the tobacco keeps it in check. It's such a rich, warm, yellow scent. I love the way it smells on me, but I think it would also smell divine on a fella. A happy surprise for me. And tobacco is now on my "made of WIN" note list. ETA: Got my hands on an aged bottle. Not sure just how aged it is, but it's in the old-style cobalt blue bottle. The rum is MUCH more apparent when it's wet, but it dries down practically the same. I would say the rum is slightly less buttery in the wet stage, and the tobacco is a bit more prominent when dry. Still just lovely.