alicia_stardust

Scent: It's beautiful. It has a resinous, spicy, magic/occult shop scent to it. Use: I was given a decant of this from a friend when I was very, very ill. I understand Babalu Aye to be the Orisha who governs epidemics and illnesses that are infectious. While my illness was neither of those two things, I was still very scarily sick. With my friend's help we performed a healing ritual complete with offerings to Babalu Aye. It didn't cure me, but it really unleashed something big because I found that was able to let go of fear and worry, which in turn kept me in a peaceful, pain-free state for a number of days and overall, I think I was much in a much better state from that ritual on.

Scent: This is a pretty, creamy mint. Underneath the mint I detect something that reminds me of something nutty, and something like dry chocolate. It's lovely. Use: This sat in my TAL box for quite awhile because of the stated use with incense and powder, which I do not have. Eventually I chose to anoint a few of my chakras with it. I find it useful for facing difficult tasks which are inducing a lot of stress and worry. I find that I feel more calm and peaceful with Helping Hand, and less likely to spout off or get worked up.

There's something about Intergalactic that makes my head explode in a fun way. I get this mishmash of fruit, maple, sugar, something musky, something exotic, and something nutty. I definitely think there's a nut in there of some sort. Amazingly, Intergalactic doesn't come off as foody. It's just sort of all over the place and yet unified. I really can't wrap my brain around that contradiction but it's really quite the experience. I LOVE it, that's for sure! It faded faster than average but when it was there, the throw was medium. I rate this 4 out of 5.

Black Orchid is flowers and dirt. There's a depth to this. It's very dusky, as I find most orchid scents to be, but this one is much darker. I can't tell if it is "earth" that is adding to the weight of this, or if it's a musk of some sort. Either way, that sits beneath the orchid note. The orchid is so deep and sultry, dusty and dusky, and very purple in my mind's eye. It sits close to the skin. I really wish I had more of this.

Toxin is highly citrus on me, with a slight aquatic/ozone quality that drives it. Beyond that there are some florals that I can't quite separate out from one another. For the first while it is almost cloying, but then it calms down into a fresh, crisp scent.

Zero is very pretty. It's one of those scents that is barely there at all. It's not alcohol-based, but it has a slight perfumey tweak to it. I wonder if there's a white musk in there, followed by some soft, tropical florals. Plumeria? There's also a clear, clean aquatic quality to this. It's really such a different (and good!) blend than I'm used to. I wonder if this will ever be released so I can get more.

Peace is a strong, sharp lavender. It's heady and encompassing. I think there are some woods and herbs that are sitting beneath the lavender. After a while the lavender really softens up and calms down. That is my favorite part of the blend. It is very calming and relaxing. Grounding. I found that this had a medium throw and a long wear-length.

I get a lot of myrrh. It is sweet and has that resinous kick to it. It makes this scent feminine, exotic, dark. Beyond that there might be a bit of warm amber and a bit of rose. I feel lucky to have gotten a sample of this and I will cherish every last drop!

I sniffed this at the C13 Meet n' Sniff. I think it was a little sample that edenssixthday had with her. Ded Moroz is beautiful. It was very familiar and comforting to me. It smells so very cold, but it didn't smell like snow to me. Rather, it smelled like frost. In my mind's eye I could almost see a frost-rimed landscape full of flakes of ice that had crusted onto everything. Beneath that light, frosty smell I could detect just a hint of rose, and just a hint of amber resin. It really was quite beautiful.

I... I really can't distinguish anything that's in this. It has a sort of heavy, aromatic cloud to it. It's dark but not sinister. I thought it had patchouli in it, but it must be the combination of the pepper, grass, and wood. The vetiver really darkens this and weighs it down. This scent is really too heavy for me but that doesn't mean I don't think it's lovely.

Nihil is a very lovely floral. It's almost sweet in the way that jasmine is sweet. There's also a strong vein of classic perfume scent. It's not quite alcohol, but almost. There's an edge and sharpness to it. That part reminds me of two things: the dryness of Voodoo Queen, and there's also something about Nihil that reminds me of Zero.

Infatuation is my very favorite of all the Agony/Ecstasy blends. It took me by surprise because I thought I would like the more sultry Ecstasy blends more than this. However, it is positively stunning. It is the perfect scent expression for Infatuation. There's the juicy bite of cherry, the uplifting grapefruit that reminds me of euphoria gained through being fixated on someone, and the gorgeous tropical flowers. Amazingly, this is not too fruity or tangy on me. It doesn't make me think "food" when I smell it. Instead I get that hypnotic plumeria and pikaki, which sits beneath the most delectable layer of citrus, cherry and grapefruit. The ginger seems to stay quiet but present. This has an average throw and wear-length. I rated this 5 out of 5 and I will hoard all I can of it! If you like this, try Baobhan Sith.

This is a deep and rich scent. It's a bit heavy. The blackberry sits the strongest and I get the sense of thorny, dark blackberries. Beyond that there is a strong layer of patchouli. Those two play off of each other for a while, then the citrus comes out to sit on top of those two heavier notes. I don't individually detect the sage but I am sure it is lending itself to the deep, rich scent that I detected at the beginning. This is a work of art.

My skin usually amps lavender. I do like lavender, but I have to be in the mood to wear it because I generally associate it with sleep and relaxation. However, The Agony of Loss has such a gentle vein of lavender in it that it won me over. Beyond the lavender I can detect some soft herbs and woods, and beyond that there is a touch of smoke and something that makes me think of "dust". It really does evoke the image of burning love letters and the ache of loss.

Out of the Agony scents, this one was my favorite of the bunch. It starts out very soft, with a beautiful cool blue-green cloud of freesia. I love freesia so much! It's interesting to me that, while I do detect the violet, rose, and pear, my attention keeps seeking out the freesia. This is haunting and cool, with just the right balance of fruit and floral.

A variant on the absinthe theme. Sugared wormwood, hyssop and melissa with calamus, angelica and Dittany of Crete, blended with a Bohemian perfume of vanilla musk, honey absolute and Moroccan spices. La Fee Verte is very light and bright on my skin. There's a touch of herbs in there, and while they are almost indistinguishable, I do think they are grounding out the higher and brighter notes to bring them to a nice balance. I can definitely detect the wormwood. Beyond that, there are a number of notes I can't call out by name but they blend into a sort of bright, lemon-like scent. This is very beautiful. It reminds me of the more refined cousin to Absinthe. I rated this 4 out of 5.

On me, this is a warm floral with springy bright petals, a touch of vanilla, and that nice characteristic melon scent. It's fruity but not tangy. The carnation lends the barest hint of floral spice to it. The tea seems to sort of soften and mellow the notes as they blend together toward the end. This is really pretty and I'm glad I tried it, but the melon is not for me.

Both in the bottle and on my skin, this is all sugar-coated lemons. They are light and sweet and crusted with sugar crystals. It's very uplifting and bright. If you like this, try Sugar Skull!

Mitzvah is a very light and sweet scent. Sweet doesn't really explain just how sugary this is. There's a creamy, buttery quality to it that reminds me of a dessert. It's simple but gorgeous. If you like this one you should also check out Sugar Skull.

This is a gorgeous, heady, and sultry blend. I adore red musk so I was an easy sell, but past that, this is a stunning scent. It has a very "red" quality to it: deep and musky. There's a bite of clove and a touch of vanilla and boozy swoon. It's very warm and glowing. I get compliments every time I wear it. It has a good throw and lasts longer than average.

Well hello there you sexxy, naughty thang! Spanked you are just perfect! This is all leather on my skin, but it's dry and smooth and doesn't become overbearing. The cardamom is the perfect spice for this, and there's just the right amount of sweet that lends itself to the leather. *fans self* I rate this 5 out of 5.

The leather and patchouli dominate this blend. Beyond that, there is an almost antique but swarthy mood to it. I think it might be the vanilla, honeysuckle, and magnolia that does that. My favorite part of this is the red musk. Ooooh, so sexy!! I rated this 4/5 and I will cherish what I've got of this oil.

This is so very rich and warm. The fig is the strongest note, followed by the coconut, followed by creaminess and buttercream. They sort of meld together after a while, and the orange rind lends a nice hint of brightness to this. In fact, I think that little top note is my favorite part of this! This one has a very strong throw, so a little goes a long way! I rated this 4/5 in my spreadsheet.

This is definitely vanilla and mint, but it is a very soft mint and a very buttery vanilla. This is richer and sweeter than Tokyo Stomp, but they are definitely comparable substitutes for each other (if one is unobtainable), at least from my own skin chemistry.

This smells like the world's best brownie. Better yet, it smells like brownie batter which I used to love sneaking whenever I had the chance. This is very rich and gooey, unlike some of the other chocolate scents that BPAL has. This is so decadent. It wears really well on my skin and always gets me compliments, even though I end up disappointing some who were hoping that I had a treat for them to eat!