AmyO'Shields

Yes...I was hoping this would have a touch of vetiver - nope. Wowza it is strong. I couldn't get past the overwhelming vetiver (it actually made my stomach churn a bit!) but I bet it is stunning on the right person...all of those notes of win!

This is one of the nicest perfumes I have ever smelled. It is just NICE. The almond is prominent but not overwhelming and works perfectly with the tonka/suede softness. I love this so much and am so glad I bought a bottle.

This IS beautiful! I think the above review is spot on - gorgeous sweetness added to the patchouli and dragon's blood and the oak is present. VERY very nice. ETA - this is aging beautifully! More depth to the dragon's blood, less astringent oak. very nice!

Shadow musk and blood musk with opoponax, aged patchouli, leather accord, black pepper, and bitter clove. I've been waiting for this one!!! Yes...the only notes that I was worried about were clove and black pepper but this is so beautiful! Blood musk, clove and opoponax...om nom nom I'm not getting the leather yet but I can smell just a hint of pepper as I'm exhaling after I sniff my wrist (if that makes any sense!) This is warm and sexy...I love it and will need a bottle. Great stuff! Forgot to say that I'm not picking out much patchouli here...I bet it will come out with a bit of aging. This is beautiful. ETA 23 Nov I wore this today and now I know what it reminds me of - Le Lethe! Om nom nom

THE ONNAGATA AND THE PILLOW ROLL White musk and Himalayan cedar with bergamot, rose absolute, white patchouli, pink peppercorn, and hay absolute. The cedarwood, oh the cedarwood! It was all i could smell two nights ago, and it is still very heavy. (I think this is a softer handed use of the cedar used in Our Hearts Condemn Us?) Dry, the white patchouli, hay and white musk are starting to peak through. This is beautiful but i want to smell the pink pepper...i am hoping some age will allow it to surface. As of right now, the rose, bergamot and pepper are mia.

This is so beautiful. Vetiver haters have no fear - the vetiver seems to serve as the stems to the carnation, which is amazing! Very artistic. Creamy/stemmy/carnation with just a hint of lavender... This smells/acts nothing like TKO, imho.

Sensual, robust, and silken: voluptuous red rose bursting with lascivious red wine and sultry dragons blood resin. In the bottle this smells almost exactly like the GC Blood Rose...there is more wine here. I will update this review as soon as i can skin test. It smells beautiful so far! ETA: i slathered this all over and, while i love it, my guy hates it. I guess there is no middle ground here! Deliciously wicked roses and wine. Love it.

I hate to follow Lycanthrope's amazing review but i just wanted to mention how much i love this and how much it reminds me of the TP Atmo Evening on the Veranda...must be the red sandalwood? Very nice! ETA I just couldn't handle the red pepper :-(

A decadently warming blend of three patchoulis, Himalayan cedar, and a touch of sweet clove. This is really good. REALLY good. Clove goes horribly wrong on my skin, as a general rule, so I waffled for a minute about getting this but then I thought about it: THREE PATCHOULIs? Yeah. I used a bit of this as a moisturizer last night and I smelled Black Patchouli most, followed by some Himalayan Cedar (like Atlas Cedar) with just a velvety touch of clove. Really good. I will use this as a moisturizer under many of my perfume oils...I might even try it in the bath one day. ETA this layers really well with Totentanz...:-D

This is pretty much my review too. I love sandalwood and had high hopes this would be the one to finally smell like sandalwood but its just a musty jumble of dust and benzoin.

Orange blossom and vanilla orchid with frankincense, rockrose, golden sandalwood, gilded cedar, and yellow lily. Short review of first impressions: in bottle: orange blossom and cedar on skin: cedar. Maybe a hint of sandalwood and frankincense Dry on skin: cedar, lily, sandalwood and frankincense, orange blossom in that order from strongest to lightest. I love cedar but i think this blend would have been perfect without it...seems to be out of place and needily screaming for attention. :-/ i am hoping it will age out a bit...will do a full after shower moisturizer test tomorrow. :-) ETA: this is beautiful as a moisturizer and about as spring-like as it gets! The cedar is a bit more subdued now...its all about the lily, sandalwood and orange blossom. I layered Black Lily over this two days ago and it was beautiful. Honestly i am surprised there isn't more love!

Single note Dragon's Blood. Not the BPAL Dragon's Blood that smells flowery/fruity...the normal one that most other companies use. After drying there is something else but i can't tell if it is an odd leather... This is almost wonderful except for the drydown weirdness.

At first, this smelled like baby powder and it made me sad (like the commercial: "Fiber makes me sad", lol!). It must have been the amber sorting itself after arguing with the honeysuckle (and winning, since i cannot smell any honeysuckle) and after about 15 minutes it doesn't smell like baby powder at all and i cannot believe it started out that way. This shimmers. I think i smell mostly amber, probably the crushed diamond accord and a touch of patchouli. Dry, the gardenia is present (in a beautifully understated way!) with the amber. Still shimmering. Definitely unique and quite beautiful.

Oh my goodness. Dark, sweet amber (i agree with strahlend) with NUTMEG! Yes, this is so wonderful! The tobacco isn't stomping all over everything and smells amazing...seems to intertwine with the benzoin and just wow. ETA: i wanted to note that scents with tobacco in them sometimes make me ill. I was a nasty smoker for 16 years and have not smoked in over 2, and i notice that when i smoked, tobacco smelled like burning rubber on me, whereas now it just smells like nice chewy tobacco...unless it stomps all over everything. The tobacco here is beautiful, on me, and very chill - happy to blend in. :-)

Oh dear god. Sorry to follow my own review of the previous release but this year's is better, if that is possible. Magnificent chocolate brownie...the dense flourless sort with a touch of something suede like which must be the oud? It doesn't smell like suede, it smells how the texture of suede feels. I am so glad to have this...will be layering Chocolate Stout Cupcake over this baby on Thursday!!! Woohoo, chocolate heaven!

Wow. This is wonderful. It is not a creamy or foodie vanilla...its a cold, flat vanilla but in the best way possible (not cold as in snow note but more solid and matter of fact, lol). The benzoin does give it a hint of 'spice' but just a hint. This is truly beautiful. I used it as an after shower moisturizer today and the cloud of scent stuck around for atleast an hour. :-) Eta: i ought to mention that i do not smell any licorice/anise that i got from the prior release (thank goodness!)

Well, color me disappointed. From a product titled Black Vanilla and Cardamom i would expect to smell both. I guess the Cardamom that they use doesn't smell like cardamom, more like anise? Good grief and i have never had luck with their vanilla smelling like vanilla so i guess i should have known better. This is a blast of tobacco (a hint? I think not) and their anise-y 'cardamom'. Vanilla and cinnamon, mia.

Wow. This is super beautiful!!! And, this is the first time i have *really* been whacked upside the head by vanilla in a BPAL oil!!! Woohoo! Almonds and vanilla...hoo boy am i in love. I guess i'm not really familiar with mimosa but there is something different coming through when this dries down that i am not sure i like. It adds a slightly bitter element to the scent...i hope this doesn't get stronger with age because the almond and vanilla cream are spectacular. ETA: whatever was bitter is smoothing out. This is beautiful.

'15 Wow. I am a Smut lover (at least years '07, '08, '10, '12 and '13) and this year's is no exception. I would say this is a tiny bit more powdery than '10 but most similar to '10...no particular fruits, just sweet, smutty red musk. It amazes me that it is instantly wearable since so many need time to rest/meld/think about what they've done, etc. I will need a backup of this, for certain...this Smut is hoardworthy.

Jasmine, amber, rose, patchouli...in that order. As it dries, everything dances a dark, velvet dance and i can no longer tell the flowers apart. It has a regal smell...i'm not sure how to explain - beautiful.

Well hello, cousin of Celeste! This is right out of the mailbox but i mainly smell that gorgeous, creamy saffron. I will update after this has had time to rest...so far, it is gorgeous. I should add that i cannot wear beeswax or honey and i do not smell any honey in this blend. :-) This morning it is all patchouli, saffron and leather. Wowza!

It took me a few months to 'get' Diamond Star. Incensey, musky, brilliant multi faceted and glowing but wrapped up in a comfy blanket? Yeah, that's what i smell. :-) Color association for this one is beige. I also love the ambergris here! This may be the genius, sleeper beauty of the OLLA line. These are all strangely addictive...

This is a purple version of Eat Me...no lavender in sight, which is a disappointment because i love lavender. I was worried about the ale but it doesn't show up on my skin. I thought i wanted to sell this but, even though it wasn't what i was hoping for, it still smells great and is different enough to keep!

My decant was all beautiful snuggly vanillaed sandalwood after a bit of snow, but my bottle is all snow :-( with just barely a hint of the sandalwood. Why?

Dark Strawberry Smut. I adore Mania! I broke her out for Spring (!!!) and decided to wear her to bed...this bottle has aged well and might not last the year. Good stuff.