JasminDreams2010

Interesting -this one is different on me than the previous poster. I love that about indie perfumers, the scents can vary from person to person so greatly that you often get a unique blend, even if your friends have the same scent. On me-classic, straight-up, tuberose/gardenia, Billie Holiday fresh-flower style, with a touch of green. Realistic, like a wet garden. No honeysuckle. Good throw but fades sort of quickly, feels like it’s all top notes. Winner

This is simple and sweet. Its a lemon-honeyed musk with a light floral in the background to keep it a little airy- it doesnt get too syrupy or have too much stank. I like Jasmine a lot and my husband doesnt, I keep trying to sneak it past him but he usually noses it out. The jasmine in here is just barely there enough to notice, it smells a little more like jasmine tea than the potent jasmine of peitho or delight. So jasmine lovers may be disappointed and jasmine haters may be safe. Not sure I will need backups but this is a keeper. I could see it aging very well. Not sure about the musk in good because I havent tried it, but it reminds me of a more feminine Door or Pandy- with enough gentle floral to mellow out the harsher aspects of those.

Peach-tinted pale musk with neroli, ambergris accord, and champaca absolute. OH HAI THERE CHAMPACA WOW SO CHAMPACA VERY INCENSE MUCH SMOLDER this one isn’t bad but not really what I was looking for, was hoping to hear from the neroli and ambergris, something light and oceanic but nah. Don’t freak out peoples bc everyone has different skin but on me this could be a dupe of Streets of Detroit.

A tumble of cherry blossoms falling into a pool of white musk and crushed strawberries. Ooh- this one is pretty! Very PINK, very GIRLY, but manages to walk that line and not be too twee. Its a dance with the notes holding each other in check- fresh, jammy strawberries, soft, floral cherry blossoms and a grounding, light musk. The strawberries are not too kool aid, the cherry blossoms are not too soapy. Just balanced enough to make this very wearable. I think you could do daytime office with this one if you wanted, brunch with friends, or even better, a spring picnic! This is like a more sophisticated version of something youd get at Victorias Secret or bath and body works. It would be a good entry scent for someone new to BPAL ETA: this is a bit younger or something than my usual deal but while I probably wont get a backup I am glad I bought a bottle

This is mostly orange blossom sweetness on me, with a bit of the fresh blast from the sap. Not getting any of the honey note, I think it may just ground the orange blossom a bit because it doesn’t fade the way orange blossom/Neroli tends to. Feels a little beachy, actually, like a fresh breeze. None of the soap smell Neroli sometimes has. Good stuff! If you liked alma Venus from a few years back you may enjoy this as well.

Being a Pisces I had to try this. Aquatics can go either way on me. At first the notes are all jumbled together and its a pretty scent that captures the madness and spiritual depth of Pisces; it swirls and changes and wafts. I get a gentle sea scent with sort of a wooden incense and just some light lavender. But then my skin does this thing where it's like O HAI RED MUSK and the musk comes in and stomps on everything else. And then it smells exactly like... Funnel of Love from OLLA? Which was pretty enough, but not for me. Weird... I may have to give the bottle a rest and try again. I like it before the musk goes all psycho-killer. If I were to pick a truly Pisces scent from the bpal lineup it would've been Lilith's mermaid or the gentle but wild Pele, y'hanthlei or even death adder. Stupid musk.

Completely agree- Strawberry Stekk. But wow! Strawberry just kinda Leroy Jenkins in, and there's a little Stekk dying there at the end. Really really fun. This is my little pony candy crazy pink. Luv

In the most recent phase of my skin chemistry, my very favorite perfume is BPAL's Pele. This is a close second. They aren't similar exactly but they are tropical floral cousins. I keep sniffing my wrists and smiling. This is an exquisite, sun-drenched vanilla tuberose, with the other players acting as support. The notes intertwine very well, they dance together, it's delicate, no toe- stomping. Any of the weirdness this fragrance could have, it doesn't. The orange blossom doesn't go fusty, caramel doesn't get burned, peach isn't a diva, tuberose doesn't go bubble-gum or grandma-purse. I want to wear this on a date Just sunset on a beach. Love

Stand here by my side and turn, I pray, On the lake below, thy gentle eyes; The clouds hang over it, heavy and gray, And dark and silent the water lies; And out of that frozen mist the snow In wavering flakes begins to flow; Flake after flake They sink in the dark and silent lake. See how in a living swarm they come From the chambers beyond that misty veil; Some hover awhile in air, and some Rush prone from the sky like summer hail. All, dropping swiftly or settling slow, Meet, and are still in the depths below; Flake after flake Dissolved in the dark and silent lake. Here delicate snow-stars, out of the cloud, Come floating downward in airy play, Like spangles dropped from the glistening crowd That whiten by night the milky way; There broader and burlier masses fall; The sullen water buries them all- Flake after flake- All drowned in the dark and silent lake. And some, as on tender wings they glide From their chilly birth-cloud, dim and gray, Are joined in their fall, and, side by side, Come clinging along their unsteady way; As friend with friend, or husband with wife, Makes hand in hand the passage of life; Each mated flake Soon sinks in the dark and silent lake. Lo! while we are gazing, in swifter haste Stream down the snows, till the air is white, As, myriads by myriads madly chased, They fling themselves from their shadowy height. The fair, frail creatures of middle sky, What speed they make, with their grave so nigh; Flake after flake, To lie in the dark and silent lake! I see in thy gentle eyes a tear; They turn to me in sorrowful thought; Thou thinkest of friends, the good and dear, Who were for a time, and now are not; Like these fair children of cloud and frost, That glisten a moment and then are lost, Flake after flake- All lost in the dark and silent lake. Yet look again, for the clouds divide; A gleam of blue on the water lies; And far away, on the mountain-side, A sunbeam falls from the opening skies, But the hurrying host that flew between The cloud and the water, no more is seen; Flake after flake, At rest in the dark and silent lake. – William Cullen Bryant Flake after flake – All lost in the dark and silent lake: a snowflake dissolving into an indigo pool of blue jasmine incense and violet leaf. Oooh- am I first?! Well, for starters this is very evocative. As it opens, I can't detect any of the incense or violet leaf; it literally smells like frozen water falling into cold water. The chilliest top note burns off a little and the resinous floral becomes more apparent. If you're a violet hater, don't worry because violet leaf is more of a cool green almost herbal note. This isn't the powdery purple flower. The Jasmine is apparent but is somewhat mellowed with the incense. This could be a unisex aquatic blend. I really do enjoy it. However sadly the snow note can be headache provoking for me and this does come on pretty strong at first. But I will keep the bottle because it is so unique and I am hoping it will mellow with age. <3

How is this so freaking awesome?!? It's only 2 notes. But it's a glowy, warm, sexy golden presence. The name haunted makes sense, it's like it just follows you around like a sex ex. My theory on this perfume is that Liaison tells the story of who haunted was before he got murdered I agree with the reviewers that get snake oil minus vanilla. Perfect for the days when SO feels too sweet. Now I wish I had a bottle, le sigh...

I realize this isn't entirely what you were looking for since the thread is about theme, but I'm a drag King sometimes and my go-to drag self is captain jack sparrow. He wears incantation, elegba, or body, remember. So maybe we need a separate thread for drag pirates but I think those fragrances help me explore my other side, if that makes sense. Cool thread

So, bear with me through this analogy, but I hate the term "basic b#tch". And it crossed my mind that this was Ms. Alma upon first sniff. that Alma Venus has been called basic by somebody and she's taking it back. She's empowering herself, she's letting the simplicity of her core serve as a strength and backbone to the many things she's got going on. She's, you know, *more* than just orange and Amber. So, maybe she does like Starbucks lattes and uggs. She's also a wonderful gardener, and can intimately describe the coagulation cascade without batting a pretty eyelash. Take your labels and stuff them into a generic fruity floral, because Alma's her own person, complete with tuberose and wafts of soft resin. And her cedar mean streak never rears its ugly head. It's just there to let you know she's boss, when she wants to be. Keeper.

I really enjoyed this scent! It was an impulse buy for me, because carnation and lemongrass both can go either way for me. No worries, though- it's a warm, tropical-ish glow of resins with no note really dominating. I love the label art! (Yeah, I'd be startled too, if I was just catching flies and some massive penis dropped out of the sky).

I had the same experience as Woozel at first. Genetrix freaked out and went all violent Jasmine ala Julianne Moore in the pharmacy scene from Magnolia. It was similar to the Jasmine in Hal that turned angrily rancid on me. That was the first day. Second day, I saw a ghost monster Panther fume rise from the bottle, snarl at me and then evaporate. And then, a sweet little fluffy kitten came out. A kitten with wise golden eyes that knew more than they should. Black vanilla and Amber and Jasmine, slinking around the property, casing the joint. I'm posting a link to this blog- this is the perfume you want to wear for number 2. (Flaunt your complexity- When planning outfits for your holiday soirées, think "I'm an heiress and an Italian professor at this upscale tropical funeral). http://imissyouwheniblink.com/2014/12/08/how-to-be-a-ladyperson-at-the-holidays-9-important-tips/ Sorry for the incredibly right brained review- I thought this perfume deserved a stream of consciousness. I think I love it.

This was a surprise hit! I'm normally into dark vanilla resins or exotic florals. I'm not always into the foodie stuff and I wouldn't have picked this out for myself. So I was really surprised when I got a free tester of it from a forumite and loved it so much I had to order a whole bottle. It's fairy cakes! With herbal, soft non-old-lady-lavender and flirty booze. So to me this smells like a fairy party in a bottle. Surprise win!