spanishviolet

If it's a muggy sort of rain, I tend to reach for orchids like Bat-Woman or Black Moon. If it's chillier, then something that feels a little crisper like Old Scratch or Bess. Overall I'd say Bess is my ultimate rainy-day scent, it would feel wrong to wear it on a sunny day for some reason!

I bought a bottle unsniffed because I loved all the notes except the cumin, so all the reviews I saw before it arrived were worrying me. I was spared by the perfume gods, though - it just smells like resiny honey goodness on me. No Mexican food, no blast of cumin. Just spicy earthy honey.

 

The tobacco didn't go harsh on my skin as it sometimes does, which was my other concern. I tried it on my guy and on him it smelled more feminine than it did on me, so it's all mine. Definitely smells better on my skin than in the bottle. I'm looking forward to getting to know it better, and glad I was spared the cumin-blast that everyone else seems to be getting, because I'm not a big cumin fan.

I seem to be the odd one out on this--which I noticed in the reviews too--but I don't think Mother Ginger is fresh ginger at all. I think it is the bakery variety ginger, like gingerbread poppet, et. al.

 

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Adding my agreement to this - Mother Ginger to my nose is very cookie-ish. I enjoy it, but it doesn't really provide that fresh-cut ginger fix for me.

 

I've tried many ginger scents on my BPAL journey. Sudha Segara comes closest to that raw ginger tingle for me, though the creams softens it, and the whole thing refuses to last on my skin. I can't do Vixen because orange blossom hates me. Shub-Niggurath was one of my first gingery loves (somehow in the middle between fresh spice and cookies) and still one of the best. Gingerbread Poppet is good, but slightly too bakery-smelling; Saw-Scaled Viper was a big cassia-dominated disappointment; I don't really get ginger from He-Goat but love it all the same because vetiver is so good on me. Ginger Skulls was too much fruit, not enough ginger (so disappointing). Prosperity of a Country was promising, but leather's not great for me generally and I decided I was good with just an imp. Young Pine Saplings was delicious, but isn't really a raw ginger, more dried, and leans toward the cream & clove IMO.

Historically speaking, I hate coconut. But BPAL has enabled me to find it tolerable, almost pleasant at times.

 

This is one of those coconuts. It's smooth, not too chokingly-sweet or stomach-churningly rich. (I think I ordered this because I really like anise.) The hazelnut reminds me of Black Pearl minus the heavenly iris; the anise echoes Paduan Killer Swarm, but more subdued & less sweet. Pleasant, not long-lasting; a decant will do.

At first sniff, I thought this might be The One True Scent, it was so beautiful. All my favorite spices over a wonderful soft cream — not too foody, just spicy goodness!

 

But the throw is fairly close, and it doesn't last very long. It's worth slathering & repeating though, and heaven in a scent locket.

The only jasmines that bother me these days are the high sharp types, where it goes straight to the top of my nose and has no warm, sultry body underneath it. This is not that type of jasmine, at least not on me. Honestly, I was more concerned about the pomegranate, which sometimes turns sour on my skin. My first test swipe of this got a bit sour, but that phase faded quickly and can be avoided, I think, if I apply a bit less oil than my normal slather.

 

Overall, this was for me a beautiful, more or less even mix of warm blooming jasmine on a balmy evening and pomegranate juice, with just a hint of vanilla-y smoothness from the benzoin underneath. And it's fantastic in my scent locket!

I missed out on last year's gingery Inquisition scent, but this year I had the funds so snapped this up right away. I was hoping it would be heavy on the ginger candy, with a bit of fruit on the side. As the Will-Call reviews warned me, though, it turned out pretty much the opposite.

 

Lots of pear mixed with reddish-toned quince, and a bit of spice on the side. I like the fruits involved when they're not keeping me from my ginger, so I'll put this aside and come back to it when the disappointment has faded.

 

(Crystallized ginger is my favorite candy of all! Sigh ...)

AquaNet hairspray, judging by the cloud my sister left in our shared bathroom every morning ...

 

Love's Baby Soft or Debbie Gibson's Electric Youth perfume - googling that says it was a citrus scent (I couldn't recall, it's been a while!), so maybe something citrusy, sweet, and with a lot of throw? Citrus seems to go with the loud colors & geometric prints of the period.

Whippoorwill, most definitely, for an hour after application, then it gets a really nice light spiciness. But it's an older LE & will likely be hard to find. Thunder Moon had a little of that feel for me, though it warms up later.

The only question is, why didn't I just buy a bottle in the first place instead of going for the frugal imp option???

 

It does smell a lot like Tombstone, but without the cedar that one day decided to go all wrong on me. It recaptures the early days when I was able to wear Tombstone without cedar stomping all over it, and loved it.

 

A deliciously dry root beer, no scary butter scent on me, that dries down to a faintly spicy cream scent. I want to roll around in this & exude it in waves - but I only have an imp, so my coworkers are safe. For now.

 

Also, I don't find it particularly foody - foody's kind of a turnoff for me, and I love this.

I almost wish I'd ordered Aeaea just for the label now!

This scent is the exact scent of the last scene in The Blair Witch Project.

 

It's funny how different this scent is on different people. When I wore it, my friend told me I smelled like lemon cookies! Which led to much puzzled wrist-sniffing on my part. I think the anise had biscotti associations for her, maybe ... Perhaps cookies in a cave. I smelled cool rocks & a light sweetness.

 

Vetiver seems to love me, and I like licorice ... the only question for me here was the civet, which apparently doesn't act up too much.

These ingredients all sounded great, especially the almond flower. But something went terribly wrong. I wish it resembled Jacob's Ladder or Luperci for me, because I love those scents. The cedar went sour on me, though, and I had to wash it off, which is very rare for me. The scent was actually making me angry ... Weird, because I love the smell of cedar boxes, & it's worked in certain other bpals. Something about the combination of cedar & spicy flower just struck me wrong, I guess ...

I have never before enjoyed an ozone-based scent of any kind. But the amber, grasses, & wood in this convinced me to give it a try anyway. And I'm glad they did!

 

I can see where people are getting "sporty" from this, I guess, but on me that's just a tiny element of something much better. It really does smell like a summer thunderstorm, damp and invigorating ... The amber gives it lasting power, and together with the grasses & hints of woody florals, really warms it up. I love it! This fills a gap in my Bpal arsenal, and will probably be the only ozone I'll ever need.

First on, I get a burst of apricot, and then it mixes with the rest of the scent & becomes like I'm sniffing a really good-smelling wooden box. Very cedary - I love that smell! Previous cedar Bpals have gone wrong on me for one reason or another, but this does not. As it dries, I can smell spice & patchouli mixing with the dry woods. It's spicy, sweet woods on me, and I'm really liking it. Most bpal woods are just too woody on me, but this is just foody-influenced enough to be great. I'd say more brown sugar than caramel, which is good for me, since most caramel notes are too thick for my tastes.

 

My review seems to be wandering all over the place, but basically, the things other people don't like about this scent are what I'm really liking about it. It's halfway between two categories (woody and foody) that are often lesser scents on me, and somehow takes the best of both of them. I'd agree with cordia in her review - it doesn't seem as foody or cakey as the other Monster Baits. But the only other MB I've liked enough to keep a bottle of is Underpants, so that's fine by me!

I had high hopes for Dove's Heart, but found the sharp jasmineyness of it distractingly unpleasant. The TAL oils Lionheart & Anthelion gave me an occasional boost.

 

As for BPAL oils, I also found Dragon's Milk soothing. I don't know how many recent LEs you have, but some of the scents I turned to most often were White Moon (a white floral I wouldn't usually like, but which seemed to fit my mournful mood), Vipralabda (creamy herbs on me, which were very soothing), and Dreamland (musky cool florals - perfect for somber rainy days, although older & probably harder to find).

 

Some of the other recs in here sound good too - I'll have to seek them out. I was very interested when I saw your post, because this subject has been a lot on my mind lately too. I hope you find something that helps you feel better soon!

I didn't get a decant of this because it sounded "too herbal." Then at the last moment I ordered a bottle because the description fit my state of mind at the time. Thank goodness for the last minute save!

 

It is herbal - I get a lot of chamomile - but it's not harsh the way chamomile can sometimes be. Instead it's cool & creamy - must be the benzoin, I guess. It doesn't bring on feelings of bitterness & betrayal, it soothes them & leads to feelings of calm contentedness & repeated wrist-sniffing. Herbal with a hint of resiny richness underneath, I guess.

Clary sage is specifically mentioned in the description for Wulric the Wolfman: cocoa absolute, French vanilla, birch tar, lavender, bourbon vetiver, wild musk, clary sage, and cistus.

 

I'm not actually sure what clary sage smells like by itself, so I can't say how strong its influence is in the blend. Whether you like it probably depends on if you like the idea of lavender/cocoa - I loved it myself.

I must have weird chemistry, because I can't believe other people don't seem to be loving this as much as I do. On me it's a lightly chocolate-cherry-spice at first, and after a while it becomes a cocoa-cardamom musk. Then that dry foody musk lasts all day. Nothing lasts all day on me, but this does. And I love it! What are the chances of those two events coinciding?

 

Spicy sexy foody musk.

I was hoping for the lavendery one, but this was a close second hope, and I'm so glad I got this instead! It is so beautifully old-fashioned, so lightly floral with the balance of pear juice ...

 

It's me in a bottle! (But nicer ...) I haven't identified this strongly with a scent right out of the box since Bearded Lady. It does fade a little quickly on me, but I have a scent locket & I'm not afraid to use it!

All the components excited me, although I didn't know what dianthus was when I ordered (a type of carnation). I knew we were meant to be together ...

In the bottle: a cool floral, classically perfumey. I recognize the blackberry from Bitter Moon ...

On me: there's the honey! It stayed a bit perfumey for a couple of minutes, then warmed up & is suddenly intoxicating & not perfumey anymore. The blackberry & lavender seem sophisticated to me, but the honey & mild carnation (not the spicy kind) seem old-fashioned & warm. A soft, beautiful scent which will be perfect for spring. And a goodly amount of throw for me too ...

Wow, do I smell good!

I've been waiting with bated breath for this one - very curious about the black tea leaf.

In the bottle: a light, slightly warm, spiced orange musk. Yum.

On: Gorgeous. The musk is warm but not heavy. I can smell the tea leaf, and it's tea-like without being astringent at all. The tea & tangerine combine & cherry blossom are all swirled together without being perfumey, in a warm subdued way. Over it all hangs the cardamom - always present, never overwhelming. The cinnamon is just enough to spice it up without taking over. Not much throw - it's sticking pretty close. I think I'll put it in my scent locket & give people lots of spicy tea hugs.

I've been looking forward to this one with great anticipation since someone in the Speculation thread wondered if it might be kind of like He-Shub. I love all things ginger, and in general approve of smokiness, so smoked ginger sounded like a winner. The only ingredient that tempered my enthusiasm was the black musk, which generally goes powdery on me. But I ordered it anyway. It was of course the first part of my order I tried ...

It's a very earthy scent - almost like Gnome, if the eucalyptus were swapped with ginger. But lighter. The ginger, vetiver, & patchouli all swirl together in a wonderfully rich way, and the amber is underneath them all. I don't really smell the pomegranate on its own ... The black musk, happily, doesn't go to baby powder here.

All in all, a winner! If you liked Gnome or Samhainophobia, I think you'll love this. It seemed a bit masculine, so I dabbed some on my guy, but he dubbed it only okay on him. Much better on me! I love the earthy, confident feeling this gives me. It's my first definite Salon love, so I'm extra-happy I went straight for it instead of waiting for somebody else to sell off a decant.

This is so very beautiful. I liked both previous releases of 13 that I had, especially this spring's, but I can tell this one is even better for me. I can't stop sniffing ... Cocoa, lavender, rooibos, nutmeg, with just a bit of vanilla & sandalwood. It's a very sophisticated foodie blend. Why hasn't anyone combined dry cocoa & lavender before?!

 

First off, a blast of something that I thought was tobacco leaf (causing me much confusion in trying to figure out which wrist was which Trick). It must have been the magnolia combining with the leather. I loved everything in the description except the black leather - most leather notes smell flat & dead on me.

 

That magnolia/leather holds strong for about fifteen minutes. Then I begin to get hints of some sort of musky floral. But I really have to snuffle to get anything. I wasn't expecting it to pull such a quick fade. Just as it starts to smell good, too ...

 

Early reviews had me hopeful - I would have loved vanilla/patchouli or uber-floral. As it is, I'm torn between letting it age, hoping it will last long enough to smell good, or swapping it.