Lycanthrope

This is soft, and shiny, but subtle. Kind of like actual pearls! I have short hair, so I tested this on my skin (even if you're not supposed to). The tiare (pikaki?) and orchid rise to the surface and this is reading tropical very quickly to me, but the kind of fleshy tropical that you think of in rich tumbling leis of ivory petals. I definitely get fig as the next player, a fleshy sweetness, ripe, rich. Vanilla and benzoin play together as adding a hint of sugar beneath the now tropical flower-fig combination. Amber is probably there burnishing everything and grounding the other scents in a very quiet way. Definitely a classic white floral, with a bit of modern fig and vanilla to stabilize the high flower. I probably can't get away with using it, but it's beautiful!

Whoa, so weird. This is sprayed onto a microfiber cloth as a 'linen spray' so I don't mix it up with the other scents. Definitely a dry leather, like... um, Dee leather, or White Rider leather. The florals are definitely present and quite skatole-heavy. Maybe the gardenia? There's also that sharp peppery-leafy sweetness of honeysuckle petals and the grassiness. Then, perhaps the musk (white, I think?) is adding another tone of sweetness. The effect combines at first into a very... um, kind of fecal/skatole burst off the bat, mixed with leather this is very scary. I also for some reason huffing the cloth get 'squash and garden leaves' but I have no idea why. Initial burst is off-putting. However given a few minutes to calm down, this is a leather-planty, yellow-gold light floral, slightly herbaceous blend. I can definitely get the honeysuckle and gardenia after it's calmed down from the leather blast. I like both, so this is improving on pleasantness as it has a moment to settle. Very... interesting... I don't dislike it, but that first blast is something to get over, lol!

So, right off the bat, for those of you jonesing for the House of Mirrors like Carnaval Noir original line (gah! How long have I been collecting!), this is not quite it in balance, although it definitely has similar elements of polished sweetness and a kiss of aquatic-floral-ozone. This is primarily vanilla-forward with a backdrop of amber, the good, sweet, rich, honeyed type. I get not as much smoke, so it's not reading so much incense as it is resin. I get a tiny touch of muguet like Sea of Glass (one of my favorites), but is indeed a sliver and not very strong overall. It is there, though, and there is the peep of glinty aquatic peering through that makes this not entirely a rich foody amber. I like this a lot, but I'm also partial to the ozonic, light florals like Sea of Glass. It's remarkable. I hiked back to the con and got three more.

Sweet, sticky, cyanidic almond right off the bat, but this swerves away from the pure almond very quickly with a mid-note rise of the florals in a very subdued way. Lace under a fluffy white gown? The florals are very exotic - and this is probably what I am getting now as the almond is segueing into the background - oh, and there's the honey, but it's like honey rubbed into a cedar chest, since I can get the hint of cedarwood. The cedarwood though is... kind of buttery, since I can also get even with the light exotic florals the kiss of almond. This really reminds me of a less WISTERIA'D Cordelia, which is one of my favorites. This may be more sweet and soft, lightly floral due to the honey and the peony/orchid. I do get some ylang ylang but to be fair most of Beth's ylang blends on me I have a blind spot for picking it right out. This is the one I bought a few bottles of right at the table. I think I will like them a lot, since even with all the sweet and floral notes, I read this is a woodsy foody, which sounds weird, but is very unique. I like unique! I really get the 'Colorado Bordello' feel from this, probably the cedarwood talking. Over time, this has gotten more honey-ish, and the cedarwood has retreated. I think the orchid is also rising, since this is reading as 'O' in familiarity.

Immediately, a flush of bright champagne note, a bubbly sharp and dry grape-y scent, very alcoholic. Similar to fresh Bon Vivant. The note does die down a bit after application and some time for the scent to settle on the skin, but the predominant crisp 'yellow gold' of the champagne lingers. As that top note dissipates, there is a slightly deeper yet still not very heavy base of a cool leather (not terribly brawny), and the patchouli and amber are not very strong. This reads as a fruity, fresh, slightly bright leather scent (think White Rider). Though rose is in the note list, I don't actually get much at all! Since I am a rose amper, this may be circumstance versus a very small amount of rose actually in the blend. Deep inhale, I do get some of the lighter patchouli, yet still tons of the champagne fruit note. While fresh and forward, this is not the kind of scent I tend to gravitate towards, since piercing fruits give this wolf a bit of a headache, but if you love teh bubbly notes, this is a good one.

I get a hint of the sweet vanilla-carnation-lavender right off the bat, which is my scent cue for scents like Hod, Bow and Crown of Conquest, and Dolce Stil Nuovo. But! Boy! The vetiver-limned aspect is definitely present since I get a husky vetiver chomp at the first bit, and it's not subtle at first! It's like two different personas trying to fight to the surface - the restrained prettiness of the vanilla-lavender, bridged with husky vetiver musk, combined with the carnation. Tobacco makes its appearance as a very rich, potent smoke, and it's a very good tobacco indeed. Polarizing for me since I can't tend to pull off tobacco due to skin chemistry. It's not a cigarette tobacco, but the tobacco leaf type of richness. The floral blend lends this a type of strong femininity (scent wise!) which really fits the character of the blend well. This is a feisty no-nonsense-but-still-rocking-the-perfumes type of scent. Drydown this is definitely not your sweet, sleep and relax type of vanilla-carnation-lavender blend, it retains its purposeful grittiness. As time passes, the vanilla-lavender rises to the surface and I get glimpses of TKO sweetness.

 

ETA:

It is interesting to see what skin chemistry does! I'm a single guy in my 30s, and to me, TKO has always read as vanilla-lavender forward. When I'm wearing Laura Belle McDaniel it does have a bit more husky tobacco. I thought maybe I was crazy because the reviews below mentioned that this did not have strong resemblance to TKO. So, I wore it a few times. Scents in the family of TKO, Hod, Dolce Stil Nuovo, all seem to light up the same notes for me - the whole creamy vanilla lavender + carnation spice that reads to me as 'lavender vanilla!' I still get that same feel, although it appears it's not everyone's experience.

Peppery florals right out of the bottle and on my skin. Whoof! Gunpowder dry! But those white florals are there, kind of like in Tissue and other comparable gardenias. And then, the gardenias bloom and I have gardenias starting to rise above the initial dry pepper. There is still a marvelous lushness for this white floral. I can't get away with shoving flourishes of gardenia into everyone around me, but if you can get away with that kind of behavior, please, obtain Kate Fulton. Especially if you love gardenias, since this reminds me of walking by those bushes when I was living in the South. In the end it's mostly a bouquet of gardenias, kissed by pepper.

Sweet this is nectar-sweet, peach-juice drippy peach. After it is applied to my skin, the vanilla creeps up to make the peach more foody and dessert-y. I do get a touch more of the rose as the rest of the blend starts to solidify and back off from PEACHFACE'D to a fruity, floral scent. I can't always yank bergamot out of a crowd, but this is still very 'orange' in scent. I am a jasmine amper, but I can't really detect the usual flashy, takes no prisoners jasmine that is in some other jasmine blends I have (Corinna I'm looking at you). I have to say the tobacco is not terribly apparent. Over time, this remains mostly fruity, with light floral support, and maybe a touch of rindy bergamot citrus. Dominantly smooth, vanilla-kissed peaches.

I just got this!

 

After a really rainy Denver week, this is helpful to smell a slightly dry, reddish wood (like Fenris Wolf, but more flowers... a bit softer around the edges). That's wafting from the bottle.

 

On the skin, it has a very similar reddish sandalwood vibe, but then the myrrh starts to turn it more... 'voluptuous' for a better word, and then the scent goes definitely towards a sweet, deep, vanilla-like (but not cloying!) sweetness. It starts moving more towards a very intriguing, non-sugary and definitely non-foody vanilla. A gourmand, supported by the woods to make for a very wonderful, less masculine but still UBER CUDDLY Fenris Wolf. On me, Snake Oil has a bit too much exotic flair - this is still heady and commanding, with that red-musk feel, but I don't get actual red musk. So... um, it's hard to put this completely into words...

 

It has similar traits towards Monster Bait: Underpants (vanilla sandalwood?), because lurking under the very slight, but burnished woods, the fundamental song is a harmonious woods-vanilla richness. As it dries down, the richness improves, and it doesn't morph quite as much as Fenris Wolf or Jupiter (BPAL) moved on me - those were strong dry red woods that dried down drier. This is like a heavy bass note or chant slowly reverberating down to your nasal core and harmonizing, spreading, enveloping, singuralizing and becoming a full, rounded EXPERIENCE, a scent that hits all the chords so right you can't tell one note from another, until it's just MMMMMMMMM.

 

As it dries down, the Oude woods enrich, and, wow, like seriously, I can't believe how good this is. It melds with my (male) skin chemistry SO GOOD. I smell like... SO GOOD. I would be in trouble if like, for example, Chris Evans sauntered into my house and was like, HEY BABE. I SMELL LIKE SINUS AMORIS, LIKE SRSLY. I would also accept Jeremy Renner, although I'd expect him to smell more ... woodsy. Of course if they both were wearing Sinus Amoris, like, they could totally fight, shirtless, over me, and I would be like MOAR SINUS AMORIS, throwing it onto their unnaturally buff bodies, and wondering if I would go more for classic scruffy or the hot dad Renner effect. And they would smell awesome, and it would totally be the WORST MOVIE PLOT EVER.

 

So, um, this time, hoarding instincts, you win. I already checked the website for the slim chance that this was still up (no such luck). I would have bought many more Evans.

What is this?

 

It starts off very green and grassy, with a bit of a sharper leafiness (maybe the myrtle). Definitely more the plant honey myrtle as opposed to actual honey.

 

Very weirdly, two hours in, and this is going very musky on me. Like, a relative of red musk but less rich, yet, all at the same time, not as work friendly as I thought. So, it started off fresh, leafy, and turns rich, lacquered faint woods, like... what I would imagine aspen tree wood would smell like, bright, golden, yellow-ish green, a morpher.

 

It -is- very similar to Laughter of Loki, same green musk note, just stronger than I expected and differently sensual.

Starts off smelling a little bit of a sweet, sugary musk, with a small hint of something almost a bit caramelized. This turns out to be somewhat darker around the edges as the castoreum accord brings in a little grittiness. It's overall a sweet, slightly honey scent (!) with only a touch of shadow from the castoreum.

Partial to the pretty muscular guy, and there's... a very interesting scent here!
It's very sharply cologney and masculine initially, although once it hits the skin, it starts to go immediately towards a very nice white tea, kind of like The Unsteady Governess, and then it goes more towards a slightly sweet costus (rockrose), with a little bit of dryness from the sandalwood. The Champaca is subtle but makes this not completely an absolute chypre, it adds a nice unisexuality to this scent. This is a refined tea. With a little bit of resin.

 

Drying down on me the champaca adds a dryness, and once the tea settles, it's a little bit of a gritty (yet light, or white, if that makes sense) scent.

I did a cross-country move back in... um, 200...9? I had an overnight in some place called Grand Lake, and even changed a Travelocity booking because I didn't trust the hotel, cuz, you know, BPAL.

 

Everything still smells great, even my *cough* 2005 Snake Oil 10 mL

 

It is even better because it stood up to those Nebraskan (theoretical) ruffians!

It smells like... the dirt component of Down the Rabbit Hole atmosphere spray, including the grassiness.

 

There is a subtle background like Coyote, but not that strong.

 

It's very nice! I love DtRH spray, so this is perfect for light wear.

 

I am glad I got two bottles.

This is rich and velvety. I get a very nice, smooth vanilla sandalwood mostly, with the roundness of musk. The lotus is just a tiny kiss. By the name I was expecting something very luminescent, bright, citrussy, floral, but this is like... what ivory would smell like, very bright ivory, with a hint of the green spark.

 

It's very nice. I like.

A challenge! I rise to the occasion to try to figure out this white musk scent!

Wet, piney, slushy, Beth's snow note (Cloister Graveyard, etc). On, definitely a strong burst of juniper, which rapidly steps a bit aside as not to be overpowering, and then maybe a hint of ozone, and then, magic, it's a less intense Nuclear Winter, it's the snowdrift of Talvikuu without reading first-forward as a pine scent, it's the snow cresting the slopes of Snow Bunny, it's Skadi's breath of cold ice without the berries... Close to Ice Queen, in terms of how it glistens.

On drydown, it adopts a very tiny smidge of that beautiful Dorian white musk sweetness, but by no means is this sugary-sweet.

The wintertime needles and plant notes behave masterfully in this and unlike things like Winter-Time (too spearminty on me) this stays smooth, close to the skin but remarkably wearable, so very pretty.

This is so much more than just a white musk single note (but it is also NOT a single note white musk), and it is perfect. DEAD. ON. Winter.

Wet this smells a lot like the top note of Blue Moons (like, the 2007 version in particular, not the classic one), then it veers right into wet but pretty lilac territory. After the very fresh, true to life lilac scent fades a touch, you can really smell the herbal push for the chamomile. I'm not getting frank cade from this (thank god!) but it may be adding a little bit more depth and sharpness to an otherwise initially floral blend. I then get both lotus root and petal, although that may be the lilac still playing tricks on me. While wet, it is very complicated, still very much lilac, without it being a very masculine scent. I would say this is a traditional strong floral.

On drydown it melds together and stays pretty true to form as a blustery, springtime lilac bush, hazy in the heat from the bees, with the fragrance dripping off the petals so strong you swear you can see the air around the bush dance and you temporarily lose your place as you get taken by the sheer presence of flowers.


...


Uh... well now.

So if you like lilacs you must try Glaucous Snow!

Wow!

I totally ordered this thinking it was a perfume, but it is totally not. However, still awesome.

This is a very beautiful, intensely sweet and quite amber-y mid-range rose floral. Spicy carnation, kind of like a richer Maiden. This does veer towards stronger territory and is a touch powdery, but bizarrely when I spray it, I get LUSH Alkmaar as my recurrent 'I know this scent!' deja vu. On a piece of fabric, I can detect a rich, deep lush rose, balanced very well by a sunny amber. I don't get much orange or citrus so the 'sunlight' is maybe still just the amber, and in terms of sweetness it's likely that a well-blended honey note is what is sending this into sugary-sweet territory. The carnation is detectable on drydown as an exquisite spicy sweetness and depth, which tingles at the last whiffs of the spray. The pretty 'Spanish Red Carnation' vibe is present, in that the carnations I smell are the rich, very spicy type (not the slightly sharper 'pink carnation' that I recall from other carnationy things).

It's very nice. Very sweet, floral, spicy tea rose without being "tea rose" SN, similar to Maiden, but with hints of things like Lugubre Gondola for the rich amber. Definitely something I would see myself using more in the summer or fall.

Because I'm weird. I ordered this because I love lily, but only the stargazer type. Not knowing which type was a risk, I suppose.

Smelling from the spray top (see above), I definitely get Beth's frosty, slushy snow note (a la Cloister Graveyard in the Snow, Dust of Snow, etc).

I spritzed a bit of this into my palm and spread it to smell it. Initially it's a very sappy, petally, clear, very white lily petal, and I'm definitely getting more of a Stargazer / oriental lily vibe versus muguet/of the valley. The sharpness almost has a boughy, evergreen like quality to it but that may be the snow note playing tricks on me. As it has a bit of time to calm down on my skin, which is in moments (like 3-5 minutes) the sharpness is gone and it rises to the surface as an ethereal, ripply fabric-like cold lily, and most definitely the cold, slushy snow note I love in many blends. There's almost a trickle of water in this. It reminds me partially of Sea of Glass without being as frankly rose-y. Which, OMG. Why did I make that comparison, now I need it forever.

On distant drydown there's a little sugar, but it's by no means caramelized like Sugar Skull (that type of sugar goes really wrong on me long term).

So, scent wise, this is a beautiful, not overtly floral but still extremely charming winter lily, which could be worn in winter for sure but may also make for a ravishing summer, iced flower scent.

On my skin at least, this starts off a bit sage-y (chaparral), and then veers right into a very pretty Hetairae variant. It turns into a lightly spiced carnation fig in the drydown, hints of the reddish Spanish Carnation note keep wafting up to me. It's very good, and at least for me this is a very 'fall' type of fragrance. Surprisingly, I am not amping honey or caramel (both of which can be problems). The honey is light, and not at all overpowering.

 

I will nab a backup or two.

This is very light, but very atmospheric, and I think probably more true to the idea of Autumn than any other scent I have run across. It is predominantly a slightly dry, woodsy maple leaf, with maybe a hint of frost (so, not frankly mint, although there is some coolness, maybe a mist note like in Leanan Sidhe but not as aquatic, a very slight brush of smoke, but not so much as to be dominant like bonfire).

 

I don't know how else to phrase it, but it has the idea of October and November without being In-Your-Face-Leaf-Pile like October, and much much less snow/slush than November. It really does bridge multiple components of the end of the year.

Similarly to Wanderbyy, this is one of the softest throws I have ever experienced with BPAL - I have to work to find it even after five large swaths over both wrists, neck, sternal notch. And it is pretty much gone and needing refreshment in an hour.

 

Like it, but will use only intermittently.

So, interestingly, this strikes me as a less resinous, more reedy La Lugubre Gondola, probably because of the strong golden amber note. This has a sweet, nice and spicy drydown but is less rich, and more leafy (pepper, bay and cedar?). That being said, I definitely think of leaves and cold air when I wear this. I will get a single backup probably.

So, I have had this for a few days and I wore it to work today. I smell very strongly of that cherry-pink cake at this moment.

 

However, since I am an old person and have been wearing BPAL for a long time I definitely get a strong nostalgia link to 'I Fell in Love with a Floating Brain' from Dark Delicacies... um, 2008? There are some differences but the basic idea is very similar and I think it is because of the 'cake' and 'strawberry' together. Very Pink Surprise Cake has the same strong berry fruit note, but it is not quite as spicy floral (minus carnation) and I definitely don't get the rindy grapefruit I get from IFILWAFB. That being said, this is nice, but for me, not hoardworthy as I may have a few brains in my closet already.

 

If you liked IFILWAFB or missed it, this is definitely a nice supporting player.

Ruptured in transit - 3/4 bottle left but I could smell it all over the USPS package!

Intially has a blast of leaves, like Autumn Grove, the 'fallen leaf' note. I can also detect the slightly sour, bitter moss note. Underneath this all is actually a deep, romantic cedar scent (Himalyan?) that represents the thick, gnarled roots. The cedarwood is so relaxing that even after the top notes have burned out I keep sniffing the blanket corner that I sprayed this on for a sweet, deep, woodsy, environmental note. Similar vibe to Grove, but less super-leafy. Very nice.

Please don't waffle on this if you like dry, realistic forest floor notes, given the cryptic description!

Oh, baby.

This is like a brooding, Black-Forest like atmosphere spray that brings to mind a deep forest that you really shouldn't be in. Add to that a quiet room and you can be transported to the center of a forboding grove. While the predominant topnote is a pretty classic pine, the oak supports it with a powerful, warm midnote. The spanish moss is present in a slight sourness / tang to the pine top notes, and the juniper comes across mostly as tiny spark of gin-berry. The overall drydown is a blended mixture of 'forest' and this would be super awesome for a forest-themed halloween party.

I can see this also being a fall / Eastern Europe forest atmosphere inducer.

Mmm.