shayelea

In the bottle: Hm. Spicy, sweet, a little sharp - it's nice. Wet: The spiciness is, I think, woods and spiced wine. (Still getting more "spice" than "wine" from this.) The sweetness lurks in the background; it would be cloying if it were stronger, but as it is, it's fine. Maybe a hint of powdery-ness around the edges. Drydown: Dries down to a sort of generic spicy-soapy scent. Doesn't stand out on my skin at all. Sigh.

This haunting, exotic scent is named in honor of the shapeshifting demons from Hindu mythology. Sandalwood with rose and patchouli. In the bottle: Heavy and incensey, but I'm getting something sweet out of this, too. Wet: Okay, this is weird. This almost smells citrusy on my skin, and as far as I can tell there isn't any citrus in this blend. Drydown: Hm. The rose isn't taking over, but it's hovering in the background. Still citrusy, but I'm getting more "orange oil cleaning spray" than anything else. (So. Weird.) It would be nice, except that it makes me feel like I should be cleaning my kitchen instead of messing around online. Later, this dries down further to more of a patchouli/sandalwood scent, but there's still that orangish scent underneath. Unfortunately, this one left me with a red rash on my wrist, so it's bound for the swap pile

In the bottle: At first I smell spices and chocolate, but that's just a gut reaction. When I analyze it I recognize the tart fruity topnote of the apricot, the sweetness of the vanilla, and the zing of ginger. No jasmine just yet. Wet: The ginger really comes out on my skin, and that plus the jasmine make it go a little soapy. But it's tempered by the bakery-scent of the vanilla, so we'll see where this goes. Not so much with the apricot when wet. Drydown: The soapy smell hangs around, but underneath it is something...well, something really sort of rotten-smelling. It finally got so bad that I tried to wash it off, only it didn't work...except that about a half-hour later all I can smell is a kind of spicy sweetness. So I don't know if that was the result of trying to wash it off or what. Sigh.

Yep, that smells like rose all right. Maybe something a little spicier underneath, but I'm not a rose fan. This goes predictably soapy on me after only a few minutes; not as badly as some other rose scents, but there it is.

In the bottle: Hm. Candy-sweet, but I'm getting some florals out of this, too. Wet: Pez. Pez candy and...um, flower shop. I really can't get any more specific than that. Drydown: Well, the Pez scent goes away, but then the flowers come out, and...well, they smell a little insipid on me, and then they go soapy. So. Also, for some reason this one left a red mark on my skin.

Wow, you sure don't need a lot of this one. In the bottle: Almost overwhelming; sweet and buttery and with strong hazelnut liquer scent. It's not exactly boozy, per se, but it's heavier than a simple hazelnut syrup. Wet: It becomes a little rounder and nuttier on, and it's not quite as overwhelming. Otherwise, the wet stage is very true to the bottle. Drydown: The drydown on this is really lovely; sweet, creamy, not overwhelming. It's surprisingly warm, actually; I think of this as a winter scent, curling up by the fire with something hot and comforting. I think the imp will last a long time, however, since as I said, it's very very strong.

In the bottle: Sweet, sweet fruit, with a bit of an aromatic underlayer. I assume that's the sage or maybe the musk. Wet: Went soapy on me for about 30 seconds, then went back to the sweet berry scent, though not as tempered by the sage and musk as I'd hoped. This is sort of a less-sweet version of Lady Macbeth - so I like it better, it just doesn't grab me. Drydown: Stayed pretty true to the later wet stage I mentioned above, though in the very later stages the berry faded a lot, and the sage was a bit more noticeable. All in all, it smells nice, but it's just not for me. The blackberry scent I'm looking for is a ripe, sun-warmed summer blackberry, full and rich, and I just haven't found it yet.

In the bottle: I'm not getting barren, dry fields from this at all. I'm getting...cleaning products. A few drops of this splashed out onto my skin when I opened the imp to sniff, and the cleaning-product scent kind of resolved itself into a rounder, sweeter version of...Windex? Actually, I know somebody who may want this. *g*

In the bottle: Light, floral, powdery. Wet: Instant soap and baby powder. This one isn't going to work for sure. In fact, I had to wash it off; it was pricking my allergies. Nrrgh.

I don't smell ozone in this one. I smell...lilacs? Some kind of spring bulb flower. It's pretty, and it stays very true to the first sniff from the bottle, all the way through drydown. It's just not me. I admit that I'm not sure I'd want to use an ozone scent as perfume even if I did find one that I thought actually smelled like the air right before a storm, but the truth is there are so many other BPAL scents that stand out on me.

In the bottle: Very lemony and faintly green. Wet: The lemon is still sharp and tangy, but it acquires a bit of sweetness, too. This is very light, almost non-existant on me. It's pretty, but I don't know that it's something I'd want to wear all the time. Still, it might work for aromatherapy. Drydown: The lemon gets a little mellower. Very nice. ETA: Ah, damn. I spoke too soon. The jasmine came out after a couple hours and sort of attacked. I don't like the drydown at all on me.

Okay, I can see how this is definitely a scent that reminds people of a carnival, but the county fair I always attended smelled more like grease, hotdogs, grass and cow pies. Maybe it's just a shoddy county fair, I don't know. *g* For me, this is the scent of walking through London for the first time, guided by my friend K. and being taken to Covent Garden Market, where I had to know what that DELICIOUS SMELL was. We wandered around sniffing the air for awhile, and then stopped to watch a string quartet in the gallery below. Later, I hunted down Covent Garden Market again, by myself, and sat my aching body down for the BEST WAFFLES IN THE WORLD. Belgian waffles with clumps of sugar in the dough that turn to caramel as the waffles cook. So when I open this bottle and immediately get an amazingly warm, rich sugar smell, with whiffs of caramel, Covent Garden Market is what I think of. Considering that it's been nine months since I was there, and I'm still talking about those waffles, this can only be a good thing. Sadly, I do get the plasticky note immediately when I put it on, but the odd (and good) thing about it is, I can only smell it when I literally put my nose to my wrist. If I pull back just a few inches, I get no burnt plastic, just wonderful, rich, sugary caramel waffles. It stays very true to this through the many, many hours that this scent lasts on me. In fact, after four hours or so, the plastic goes away entirely, and the scent is still going strong. Great throw, too, which is fanTAStic.

In the bottle: Fresh, with a hint of lime. A bit sweet. I can smell the musk under it, as well. It also smells like it might go soapy on me; I get a hint of soap in the bottle. But still, my first thought: yum. *g* Wet: The musk amps up a little bit right at first, and then the whole things starts to go slightly powdery. It's different from the powdery I usually get, though; this one has a definite sweetness to it. No soap at all, thankfully. (A lot of the time, an "herb" scent will go soapy on me.) This one is unusual in that, though I definitely get "powder" out of it, I still like it quite a lot. Drydown: You know, for me the drydown on this one is very similar to the drydown I get from Dorian. I think it must be the lighter musks that do this, and it's lovely. (Quite a surprise for me; before discovering BPAL I would have told you that I unequivocally hate all musks.) Buck Moon is softer than Dorian though; not quite as sexy, and definitely fresher. I think "velvety" really is also a good way to describe it. I'm not sure if I will wear this a lot or not. I still think I like Dorian better (thankfully, since I can order it off the site anytime I want!) but this is a more sophisticated scent; oddly enough, not quite as forceful. The drydown is very light; it has neither the throw nor the lasting power of Dorian, which might be what I want in certain situations. I will probably try to track down more of this, just to be on the safe side.

In the bottle: This is the scent of the yummiest laundry room ever. This isn't necessarily a bad thing -- fresh drying linen, fabric softener, dryer sheets, but there is a hint of laundry detergent that I smell. I sniffed this several times before putting it on, and I got that each time. Wet: Still fresh-smelling laundry room, though the soapiness mellows a bit, and leaves behind the scent of...flowers? There's definitely lemon. Drydown: Okay. So, like I figured would happen, the soapy scent comes out on me. A lot. The lemon disappears, and then out comes this scent I can't describe, but it's...well, it's a little nauseating. It's like, I've never smelled chloroform, but this is what I imagine it must smell like. Sweet and soapy and nausea-inducing. Fortunately, that part of the smell doesn't have a lot of throw, but the soapiness does, and like all laundry rooms, it's starting to prick my nose a bit. This will have to come off.

In the bottle: Sweet, with a tang. Almost smells like...bubblegum? Maybe a little citrusy. Wet: At first, the tangy scent is strongest. I admit that when I read "mimosa" I thought of the drink, not the flower, but I really did smell something boozy orange in there somewhere. Could be my mind playing tricks. Soon, however, this starts to go a little powdery on me - so yes, mimosa the flower, which is pretty similar to gardenia. Gardenia always goes powdery on me. Drydown: Yeah, it's settled down into expensive powdery floral soap on me. Shame, really.

In the bottle: Sweet. A bit too sweet, like some kind of fake fruity scent? Wet: Hm. Smells like spicy soap. Drydown: Yep. Spicy soap...and a bit powdery, so it's pricking my allergies.

Oh. My. God. This is my new second-favorite scent. (Nothing has yet to displace Dorian from the top spot.) In the bottle: Sort of delicately sweet. I don't get anything partiucularly interesting about this scent just from the bottle. Wet: Oh, nice. It smells very rich right away, with a combination of rich, deep fig fruit and a strong, sharp (but very pleasant) green smell that must be the fig leaf. This is unlike any other BPAL fig scent, which all invariably go powdery on me. This is never powdery. Oh, yum. Drydown: Love it even more. One of my favorite scents is this fig-scented candle made by a company called Pacifica - this is the perfume version of that scent. The green fades on drydown, but other slightly spicier scents come out and it's just *fantastic.*

In the bottle: a sort of powdery, perfumey smell overlaying a greenish/honey scent, with bits of genuine lily wafting through. It's a bit heavy in the bottle; I wasn't sure I'd like it. Wet: the greenness comes out a little bit more, and the powdery scent goes away right at first. More of the honey is distinguishable. After awhile, the powder comes out in force and it does prick my nose sometimes. Drydown: Luckily for me, the allergy-inducing powder scent seems to mostly disappear on drydown, and the honey comes through loud and clear, with the scent of lily in the background. This absolutely 100% smells like my mom's garden full of tiger lilies, which is *awesome,* because they are by far my favorite flower, scent-wise and appearance-wise. I don't know I'll be able to wear it all of the time because of the short allergic reaction I have just at first, but I've worn this twice now with no averse long-term effects. I'll probably get by for now on my two imps and make sure I don't wear it on the days when I'm feeling most sensitive. But overall, I really, really love it; it smells fantastic on me and the sweet tiger lily stage lasts for at least six hours. It'll be a great scent for when I get tired of the foody scents that seem to be my best bets.

In the bottle: Oh my God! The yummiest, juiciest fruit you could possibly imagine! I do smell a little bit of the clove, too, but mostly it's just fruit, and real fruit too, not sickly chemical sweet. Wet: The rich fruit scent sticks around, but is joined by the smell of sweet flaky pastry. This really does smell like an apricot tart on me. *g* Drydown: The more it dries, the more the clove comes out, but the apricot sticks around too. I have this apricot jam that I love, and the apricot in this is the smell of that jam. It lasts and lasts on me, too. I must have it.

In the bottle: Ooh, rich chocolate with orange, like one of those "whack and unwrap" balls. No cherry, though. Wet: Huh. I was sure the chocolate would stand out on me, but wet all I smell is orange. And not cloying orange; more like a bitter orange. I like. Drydown: ...except about an hour later is settles on "orange candy" and stays there. Way too cloying for me. Hmph.

In the bottle: Sharp and aromatic. I get a general green scent, then the lavender, then a whiff of the lime. Wet: It mellows out a little, and goes a bit sweet, but still aromatic. Lavender and lime are two scents that I find very theraputic, which is why I was interested in this one. So far, so good. A very calming scent, while still a bit energized. Drydown: Unfortunately it mellows out a little too much and starts to smell like fancy soap. I'm keeping this one around to try on my temples the next time I have a migraine; otherwise it's destined for the swap pile. Le sigh.

In the bottle: all I smell is alchol, at first sniff, but not rummy alcohol - it's more like rubbing alcohol. On second sniff I get the mint in there, too, but it's nothing at all like I thought it would smell. Wet: strong, strong mint and strong, strong astringent alcohol. It's nothing I would want to wear to smell good, though it did clear my sinuses! Drydown: I might have kept it for aromatherapy if the drydown didn't turn quite so generic-men's-cologne on me. Which is weird, because my skin has a tendency to turn even men's cologne sweet. From the description, I was hoping this one would smell like a mint julep - but really, not so much.

In the bottle: Mint. Strong, aromatic mint and a lot of freshness, though sometimes "fresh" smells soapy to me; this does not. Wet: Mint still, and the freshness resolves itself into green grass and lemon. This is a cold scent, which I would have expected from the name, but it's nice because I don't usually like cold or aquatic scents - again, they go soapy on me. Drydown: Okay, this is very strange. The mint turns menthol-ish and the green grass turns kind of tobacco-ish and the lemon all but disappears. It's sort of a spicy men's cologne scent - but you know what? This is the exact scent of the cologne my, um, dead great uncle used to wear. What it is with me and BPAL scents smelling like my dead relatives?! Anyway, it's got very pleasant associations, and it doesn't smell overwhelmingly masculine on me. I can see wearing this for nostalgia, or when I'm having sinus issues - the minty-menthol smell really clears my head. *g* Really, really dry drydown: There we go. Most men's cologne turns sweet on me after a time. Now it smells like spicy, sugary vanilla. Hee.

In the bottle: super-super sweet, but a sugary sweetness, not a fruity sweetness. I found Lady Macbeth to be too sweet; this wasn't. Wet: I can pick out more individual notes, now; I smell cherry, which I logically know is the almond, and honey and cream. Drydown: The almond smell hung around for a long time, and then it started to smell like my Suave Milk & Honey shampoo, and then...it started smelling plasticky. Unfortunately.

In the bottle: weirdly, in the bottle, this almost smells like the dry-down stage of Tiger Lily on me. Sweet and florally with an undercurrent of something sort of salty that I suspect is skin. Wet: Huh. The sweet/floral hung around for a few minutes, and then it started to turn just a tiny bit musky, along with a faint sour note that was, at the same time, by no means unpleasant. Also started to get super-powdery for several minutes. Then, it started to smell like...Lubriderm? Lubriderm and baby powder and that faint sour note. Not sweet at all anymore, unless you count the powder, which is more of an irritant than anything else. Drydown: Just like with Tiger Lily, the baby powder smell backed off during drydown, which is nice, because it doesn't make my nose itch anymore. I'm definitely smelling the ylang-ylang, and I assume the myrrh is what was going powdery on me since resins and woods tend to do that. I think maybe it's still there lending just a little bit of a rich spiciness. And I can definitely smell the skin, but it's not so much sexy skin as it is the scent of skin after a good workout. This scent does not make me think of sex at *all.* Also, it is very, very light on me - I think maybe it smells so *much* like skin that there's not much else to smell? Y'know, it smells good, but I'm just not sure I like it enough to wear it much. It really does smell very similar on me to Tiger Lily, only I think I like Tiger Lily more.