Missy_killer

In the bottle: Amber is naturally the first note to say hello, there's citrus here too and some sharp florals. Second snff is all heady florals and musk, it reminds me of some old fashioned "classic" perfume. It has a pepepry twist that tickles my sneeze buds. On: Very heavy cologne-vibe. It reminds me so much of a classic perfume, I know that my grandmother has a small bottle of it...But I can't remember the name of it. The flowers get strongerbut it's like...off? Like the icky water your flowers has been sitting for a few days. Far away it smells like peppery amber. Okay no, it's so heady and sooo floral! When i'm in my 60's I might consider wearing this.. But that's another almost forty years til then. It's better this one goes to a loving home that can get better use out of it than I can.

In the imp: Strong and sweet patchouli is the first one to greet me. It's backed up by a powerful red musk, and a vague hint of berries. On: It starts off strong and it's very heavy on the patchouli. There's a smokey quality to this, smells very strongly of tobacco to me. Yup, it get's darker by the second. For a brief second I detect a sweetness (currants) but alas, they are quickly drowned in the thick black tobacco smoke and earthly, gnarly patchouli that's fighting it out right now. I believe this is the darkest patch I've ever smelled. It's the most earthy one at least. I'm surprised I can't smell any red musk - which usually adds just a touch of sweetness. It tries desperately to sweeten up but it keeps failing. The smoke + grass makes the back of my throat itch and I get the urge to cough constantly. It's time to wash it off and declare defeat

In the imp: Smells like blackberry gummy candies, darkened with some greenery. There's also some lemon involved, which I suspect is the green tea. On: Less fruity than I would suspect. It's very green and almost minty. The green tea is the strongest note, followed by a green mint. I wish the berries would come out a little stronger, those were the main reason why I wanted to try this! 10 minutes in and the gummy candies make a reappearance. It almost smells like this Blackberry & avocado hand soap I use sometimes. It's not bad, but not what I'm interested in smelling like. It's a very quiet scent that stays close to the skin.

In the imp: Oh this is nice! First sniff is juicy red berries, probably the wine. With a smokey backdrop and just a little bit of cake. Now, I usually don't work great with cake scents, the buttery vanilla in it usually kills it for me straight away. It will be interesting to see how this one unfolds. On: A quick burst of red berries and then it swiftly moves over for a red wine and cocoa scent. Smoke is coming out more and more. My second fear is smoke/tobacco, by now you're probably wondering why I even bothered to try this scent but I'm very determined to fight my skin's hatred for the smokey stuff and make it realize that it can be great in smells! But it usually amps like crazy on me and makes me smell of sour ashtray - womp womp. This, however, almost smells like mulled wine on my skin. Something I don't mind at all. The red wine stays dominant for quite some time. Then it sweetens up quite a bit and I finally smell the frosting..but that's only for a very short while before Halloween: Las Vegas smells like a relaxing cup of tea after hours of hard partying.

In the bottle: Before I've even unscrewed the cap I smell vanilla and coconut. Is it coming from the bottle? The tape around it provided by the swapper smells like it. Vanilla, coconut & mint. In the bottle it smells like vanilla, slightly like ice cream, and slightly like baked goods. I really hope this will be manageable for my vanilla-sensitive nose. On: vanilla lipbalm. Artificial and slightly buttery. Then a coconut jumps in, unfortunately also that reads artificial to me and something smells "plastic" which I've never encountered with coconut before. It dries on my skin and gets quieter. From a distance I smell coconut and up close it's slight vanilla-y tan-lotion. Okay so, time passes and the sun tan-lotion fades. And what is left is a subtle, sweet and faint vanilla that I really enjoy! I'm happily surprised by this. I don't mind the lotion stage at all, to be honest. And this is not bad!

I have two imps of Bon Vivant. One I got directly from the lab right as I started BPAL in 2011 and one I got in a swap a year or so ago. The one I bought myself is pale yellow and smells fizzy and citrus (never got strawberries from it) but the one I got from a swap is a hair darker yellow in the imp and completely reeks of florals and old lady perfume. First I thought I had just forgotten what it smells like, so I dug up my original imp and they are completely different. The swap one also amps to high heavens on my skin, something that Bon Vivant hasn't ever done on me before.

In the bottle: Sweet and slightly floral with a backdrop of mint and vanilla. Unfortunately for me. the vanilla reads as the buttery or caramel-type which for me means migraines. On: Oh, I've smelled this before. Pink Snowballs! but without the lovely creamy coconut that I wanted more of. It has got a very strong floral, maybe it's lilies? Not at all what I wanted from this, I thought it would be a light and sugary scent From a distance I get that creamyness that Pink Snowballs had and that I loved. Up close it reads soap and headache. I tested this fresh from the mail in 2013 and just now, hoping it would've calmed down on the florals. Unfortunately it was still unbearable for me. Too floral

In the imp: This smells very nice. From the imp I smell sugar mostly. A light, white sugar! I can't say that I smell strawberries exactly, but there is also something light and pink mixed in here, very candy like. On: The same light pink and sugary smell. I can't pick out any of the listed notes, sadly. They all mingle together really well with eachother. I do want to say that this kitty has a citrus tone to it. And then I think I start smelling the cream. Now, the cream in BPAL is either a win for me, or it smells iffy. This one starts with the iffy, but thankfully the rest of the blend saves it, and it turns out to smell like a strawberry marshmallow! there's no alcohol or fizz here yet, which I'm actually perfectly fine with. About an hour in and it's already fading. Smells like a creamy, light pink candy. Like a marshmallow but not. It's a beautiful scent though, and even though the notes faded I could still smell the sweetness on my skin for hours afterwards.

*detective hat on* BPTP had bath- and massage oils called "Holiday Stress Relief" in '08, '09 and '10. and there's an unreleased scent from BPAL called "Winter Holiday Stress Elixir" from 2007 And I second Capax Infiniti for a great sleepy times scent! It's so soothing and creamy. I don't get much lavender from it though.

Oooh, such lovely recommendations! Venus Libitina has cherries unfortunately, which has a tendency to smell god awful and amp on me I NEED to track down Persephone!! And it's GC? Yes, soft and cool probably sums up what I want. I actually think I have an imp of Reaper and the flowers somewhere..It's time to dig it up and see how that works on me.

I've been on the hunt for Peacock Queen, but I've yet to snag myself some. Since I've been afraid for rose "by itself" it never occurred to me to try those so, none of that has been tried. Seance sounds lovely based on the notes, too bad it's Dced!

So, I've been craving rose scents for a while now (colour me surprised, I usually don't want to smell like roses!) But nearly none of the rose scents I've tried so far has been working for me. I think what I want is a fresh red/dark pink rose with a little "oompf" to round it out. I've tried: Zombi - soapy and dried roses Ouija - had rose that I enjoyed, but the rest of the notes didn't do too much for me. La Mort - Very much enjoyed the rose & pom combo when sniffed in the bottle, on my skin it was sadly old potpurri. The White Witch - Darn violets Love - Lovely sugary rose on me, an absolute fave! But sometimes a little too sweet for the occasion. Pink Lace - Fermented strawberry and vanilla mush Last Evening of The Year - For a short while I got exactly what I wanted, Bright pink rose with icy air! And then...white soap, no more rose. Pink Snowballs - Loved the creamy aspect of this, but the rose was soapy. Am I out of luck? Is it my skin that just really dislike bpal's roses? Or is it out there... My own special rose!

In the imp: This... is not at all what I had expected. Of course the lotus makes a bubblegum appearance. It is its usual soft, pink self. And then there's some spices. Together it's a weird combo for me, like you just ate some spicy foods and you're trying to save your breath with gum. Lavender, where are you little buddy? On: It's sweet and spicy. Far away it smells like cooking spices. It reminds me of rose pepper.. And my grandparents' kitchen. Up close it's gum. but it's not pink like I initially thought. This is yellow. A watered down/pale version of Juicy Fruit gum. I've been reading that some like this for relaxation or sleep but this is not working out for me at all. Way too sweet! And don't get me wrong, I love sweet - but not this Lavender is usually very quick to make itself known to me, but not in Paris. Absolutely no lavender has been seen.

In the imp: Sweet and clean. Like a soap or maybe it's the scent of cheap lip balm?I think soap is the picture I'm getting here. not even getting a colour from this scent, it's just "clean". On: Yep, soap. It smells like those milk and honey-type soaps or body washes. This is so soft and clean, nothing here hints about armor or sweaty battles. Is it perhaps bath day for the Paladin? The notes for this sounds amazing, but this is the second or third time that a scent with white musk smells nothing but clean. After looking through the spreadsheet of my listed collection I realize that white musk-scents either work very good, or are soapy. And then WOAH! Is that tobacco I smell? Smoke? Something is trying to break through the clean! Hallelujah! Huffing it I think the "smoke" is actually the leather. Unfortunately the leather could never break through the honey and milk-soap. To the swaps!

In the bottle: Ooooh... What is that? Tea? Cognac? It smells good! A rather sweet smell with a tart undertone. It honestly doesn't remind me of any of the listed notes, but it is very good. And so odd. On: Citrus! Lemon? Citrus Tea? I'm gonna go ahead and say it's tea. It's not juicy or tart citrus, it's bitter. But it doesn't smell of grapefruit either (which is what I associate bitter citrus with). And then something happens that I don't like at all. It turns green. Stems of flowers, newly cut and dewy. It's grassy, bright green and very floral. Please go away I'm not a fan of this stage at all, it then start screaming "floral with soapy undertones!!!" So loud and obnoxious. After it's been screaming for a while it calms down a notch and a light and sugary vanilla emerges. All the other times I've tested this I remember that I've liked it. Because then it was a soft and clean, non foodie vanilla. Now it almost gives me a headache. I honestly thing I will have to let this go. It's so, so strong! And not at all what I remembered

2013 version In the bottle: First it smells like artificial milk chocolate, which is a shame. Then there's a nutty appearance. Roasted hazelnuts! Usually everything supposed to smell like "hazelnut" to men smells very burnt and unpleasant, but this doesn't. And I'm surprised that there's so little sweetness showing up. On: Chocolate again, not a perfect one but it's better than the one I got a whiff of in the bottle. It's not very sweet and it still has that roasted nut-vibe. Then I think the coffee sneaks its way in. Just like with hazelnuts, coffee generally always smells burnt/cold, but this doesn't do it's usual nasty stuff either. It's quite pleasant. And then the brown sugar peeks its head through and I wish it would leave us alone! It's giving this a bi-note that I can't explain, but I don't care for it at all. All in all I'm not sure if I'm going to keep this or not. I wish the chocolate was creamier and the brown sugar would go away. The nutty and coffee works on me for once, so those are more than welcome to stay!

In the bottle: Honey. Like so many other blends this reminds me of A Wonderful Light. But this is much heavier and has an alcohol vibe to it. It feels snuggly and comforting, but not in a sticky way. There's also some citrus in here as well. On: The patchouli is out first. A careful and grassy one, not blazing and powerful as in most blends. The vanilla is second. It's not very foodie, but it sweeten the scent up on my skin. I just hope this isn't one of those vanillas that give me migraines or smells like Play D'oh. All of a sudden there's a deep smokeyness coming out from V III, and it smells like Antikythera Mechanism without the woods! Unfortunately AM was not for me, and I'm getting a feeling this won't be for me either. It goes through the smokey phase and then the sweetness comes out in full bloom. It's all honey and patch! no vanilla or cinnamon to be seen It's a good perfume for cold or rainy days, when you just want to curl up under a blanket. It's not what I had expected from it. I had hoped for a more prominent vanilla.

2014 Version In the imp: Now this is odd. It smells like outdoor air, but it's soapy. Very soapy. Could it be the white musk doing this? I really doubt that the leaves would smell soapy and clean. What else is odd is the amber, usually that's always one of the first notes to greet me in a scent, but so far it's nowhere to be seen. and no cocoa or vanilla goodness either. On: Oh, this really has a leafy quality to it. It doesn't smell dead or crunchy at all, it smells soft and newly washed. It has a light creamy ivory or baby blue colour to it. I got a faint whiff of cocoa/vanilla before the soap once again took over the show. I read "mint" in other peoples reviews of this, but I'm not getting any mint in mine. The only thing I get is SOAP. Asked my mother what she thought it smelled like... She gagged and proclaimed that this smells like a really old lady. She didn't get any soap at all. So sadly, this is not for me. No vanilla or cocoa that I was hoping for, and no amber.

This is a teeny tiny tester that I got with my Halloween decants (I had completely forgotten about them...woops) In the imp: Oh lord this does not bode well. I'm hit by a foul, sour floral scent. It screams of old lady and soap. In between there's a faint beautiful rose and one or two faint whiffs of apple, but it's so quickly drowned out by the shrieking old soap lady. On: Do I even dare to put this on? I must. For science! Sour florals and old fashioned rose soap. I don't know what it's about those soaps, they always shriek so loud to me. Not at all lady-like or soft and feminine. Evil roses in old soaps? I sense no pomegranate or apple, just a bit of the red musk. There's no vanilla to be seen either. 10 minutes after putting it on the awful florals go away and instead the pomegranate comes out strong with the good, soft rose that I got a swift whiff of in the imp. It fades so quickly on me. An hour after putting it on it's already losing power. I'm very torn about if I like it or not, but my teeny tiny tester will probably be enough for me.

Vampire smut: patchouli-infused honey, red musk, red sandalwood, red ginger, pink pepper, Peru balsam, dark Eastern florals, Himalayan cedar, smoky vanilla, bitter clove, and leather. In the imp: I smell myrrh (which isn't listed amongst the notes), a heady honey and dark musk. It's supposed to be red musk in here, but it reads more black musk to me. It's definitely a deep, heady scent. Perfect for a smutty (and slutty) vampire! I close up the cap and lean back, and I smell a much sweeter scent but grounded up by the patchouli. It's VERY strong. On: A thick, yeasty smell, peppery and patchouli-heavy. It's got that black musk or vetiver "soot"-feel that typically ruins most scents to me. Is it the clove making that happen? I don't smell any honey, ginger or vanilla. Nothing to sweeten or lighten it up. 15 minutes later and still no change. It's heavy and peppery with no sweetness at all. An hour or so later VILF sweetens up quite a bit. A thick and super sweet honey wrapped around the yeasty pepper. Unfortunately I don't think VILF is for me.

In the bottle: Lovely sugary cream with hints of vanilla and fruits. I smell a non-sweet citrus, probably grapefruit. The more I sniff the bottle the less prominent the cream gets, and the citrus seems to get more juicier. On: Immediate sugary goodness! Slightly fruity, faint citrus and lots of cream and sugar! I want to lick my wrist, it smells sooo good!! Reminds me of another bpal, I want to say it's the Mad Tea Party.. But Gobo is the better version of it. Is it Cheshire Cat? No clue, I swapped the kitty away a long time ago. Gobo stays for about 5-6 hours, the fruits eventually disappears and I'm left with the sugary sweetness.

In the imp: A very pulsating and red smell, reminds me a tiny bit about Mme. Moriarty, but this is even dirtier! On: Red musk, myrrh and patchouli first of all, closely followed by vetiver and the pom. From far away I can smell the rose. A dark red rose, velvety and sinister. Up close though all I can smell is violets. The White Witch is a deep and heady scent, perfect for dark rainy autumn nights.

In the bottle: This smells like purple. A dark, almost black, blue-based purple. There's a strong smell of lavender and some fruity black currants. On: Hmmm... I don't smell anything at first. Then the strong lavender comes out again. It's not a sweet one either, this is a herbal and "leafy" lavender. A couple of minutes later the fruitiness emerges. Is it fig? I honestly have no idea what fig smells like. But it doesn't smell like currants, so I'm just gonna go ahead and say it's fig. The staying power isn't the best on me. After an hour I smell the currants, but by then it's already very faded.

In the imp: What? What is that? It doesn't smell like any of the listed notes... Very sweet and almost green. Fruity? Floral? On: Slightly smokey and still quite sweet. I smell more chamomile than vanilla. It's kind of like a non-woody Araña. It's odd that I find this "fresh" even though it's certainly smokey. And it does not smell like sour camp fire either! After a little while it almost has a soapy feel to it. The vanilla seems to be shy, it only came forward for a couple of seconds. It goes a little buttery for a couple of seconds and then it smells heavenly! Like Lush's American Cream! It stays very close to the skin and doesn't have the best staying power.

In the bottle: Amber and coconut, with a bit of musk to deepen the scent and making it less sweet. On: Amber jumps at me first with its usual honey-like sweetness. coconut isn't far behind but it doesn't smell like coconut, if that makes sense. When I think of "coconut" I see a white and creamy smell, very foodie and sometimes it does smell like sunlotion. This, however, doesn't smell like any of the usual stuff. This is dark, but not even toasted. I have no idea what's going on. Another odd thing is that when I sniff close to my hand I pick up chocolate, and I have not a single clue where the chocolate is coming from. Also I am accompanied by vanilla. I would like to say that So Below is a lot sweeter than I thought it would be, it's a happier scent than what I assumed by reading the notes. It's very foodie, but at the same time not. My mother said it smelled like the perfume some Africans are wearing, it's spicy and heady but it doesn't smell bad or gives you migraines. She also made a comment that it smells like incense. Two or three hours later and the sweetness has dried up, the coconut is huskier and the vanilla has come out more. I would say So Below is gorgeous, but i'm not sure I need an entire bottle of it.