edenssixthday

Seraglio - When I first apply this oil, it is so incredibly aromatic as to be completely overwhelming with a bittersweet scent that is reminiscent of a musty, dusty old fur hat pulled out of my grandma's closet being boxed up for the past 75 years. Fortunately, it only takes about 2 minutes for it to settle down and start to play out on my skin. For the first 15 minutes or so (after the initial dry-down) I really like the scent -- a rich and warm combination of rose, orange, and sandalwood. The almond and nutmeg/clove scents that are so strong on others don't come through at all on my skin. I can't say enough about how beautiful this scent is. Unfortunately, about 15-20 minutes after applying the oil, it turns into an incredibly light and soapy scent which doesn't appeal to me in the least. Since the scent I enjoy only lasts about 15 minutes, I won't be buying this again.

Loralei is one of the few BPALs with sandalwood and neroli that I really like. The ylang ylang gives the blend a distinctly fruity note, although I don’t pick up the citrus from it that I usually do. The neroli gives the scent a hint of floral. It’s a fresh, countryside-type scent and I can see how the scent and its inspiration are related. It’s pretty and I’ll be hanging on to my imp of this but probably not buying a full bottle. It’s got a moderate level of throw, but very poor staying power (on my skin, anyway).

La Belle Au Bois Dormant is fresh and a lovely fruity-floral. Fruity-florals tend to be one of my favorite categories of fragrance, and this one does not disappoint. The pear and plumeria are the dominant notes and mingle to create a gorgeous, bright, white fruity and floral scent. The rose scents are faint on me, but present, and the magnolia is also evident, but does what magnolia rarely does on me and remains in the background and serves as little more than a backdrop that emphasizes the shape and character of the other notes. This is a very pretty scent. It is too light for winter, but perfect for warmer/sunnier months.

Spellbound - I got Spellbound as a frimp. When I put my nose right up to my wrist, the scent I get is definitely "old lady in a headshop". Up close, it smells like my grandma's perfumes that have been sitting on her shelf for 40 years, and which she still occasionally wears, not realizing they no longer smell as good as they did when she first got them decades ago. Combine that with a light incense scent (the red musk and amber, perhaps?) and Voila! "Old Lady in a Headshop" should be the name... not "Spellbound." Anyway, this has decent throw and when I don't have my nose to my wrist and am just going about my daily business, I do not smell old lady in a headshop. What I smell is the scent of an Aveda store. You know that incredible clean, herbal scent that is the "Aveda" smell? That's what I get from Spellbound when letting it just waft around. If you're familiar with Bath & Body Works' Soyflower Shampoo/Conditioner, that's almost the exact same smell: clean, herbal, and pretty. Very, very strange how this smells so nice from far away, but stinks when smelled up close. Oh, and the oil is so thick it leaves a little yellow stain on my wrist when I apply it -- similar to the stain iodine leaves, but not as dark. Strange stuff this Spellbound. I'm not sure what I think of it. I definitely won't be buying more, but whether I'll keep or swap the imp I have is the question.

Saturnalia - due to the old-style tarted label, I’m pretty sure the imp I received was old and had aged a bit. I had really hoped that I would like the scent, because I’m the biggest fan of violets. However, the vetiver completely overwhelmed anything else in this blend, and it was dark, bitter, and highly unpleasant. I was hesitant to touch the oil to my skin, and when I did, I regretted it. There’s no nice way to say it: simply put, it stunk. However, I can’t help but think that the vetiver gained potency as the blend aged, and I still think I’d like to try a fresher imp of Saturnalia sometime. I am so drawn to violets it’s hard for me to believe that if this were a bit fresher and if the violet note was evident and strong, it could be really pretty.

Whip - If I close my eyes, I could almost believe I'm surrounded by summertime red, red, red rose bushes. The instant I opened the imp of Whip, I smelled true and fragrant rose. It reminds me of the lovely bouquet of fresh cut red roses my DH gave me on Valentine's Day. After applying to my wrists, it's still a strong scent, but not cloying or overpowering. It's exactly like what you smell when you press your nose into the center of a red rose at its peak. Oh but wait...what's that? The slightest hint of leather! The leather note strikes almost immediately, but is subtle, and definitely quieter than the rose, but it smooths out the rose and rounds it out quite nicely. I think I might have to purchase a full bottle of this! If you love true rose scents, I definitely recommend it. So far, of all the BPAL roses I've tried, this may be the nicest. [Edit: every single time I wear this to work, the guys I work with constantly comment on how good and fragrant both me and my office smell. They really dig the Whip!]

Satyr - OH! I love it! It’s like Snake Oil on steroids. It’s got a deep, warm, exotic, spiciness about it, and I can’t stop sniffing my wrist! It’s got the perfect amount of throw – enough that people close to me can tell that I smell super hot’n’sexy, but not so much that people are smelling me before I enter the room. I could see this working really well on a man, too, but not just any man. I think it would take a somewhat non-traditional and slightly exotic man to carry off this scent well. It’s not one I’d wear for everyday occasions, but would wear it out at night, to spice up the night. Incredibly sexy, spicy, and sultry, Satyr is definitely a winner!

Suspiro - Jasmine. I really can’t say anything else because the @#)(*%&@# jasmine overpowers all the other scents. Just like all my other jasmine scents, into the swap pile this goes.

Salomé smells incredibly sweet in the vial, and although I don’t normally care for almond, it smells too good to pass up. As soon as it touches my skin, the almond completely dissipates. The sandalwood scent overwhelms all of the other notes and is the one note that I notice for hours on end. This scent doesn’t have very much throw, which is unusual for sandalwood (on me, at least), but it does last for several hours. I don’t need another sandalwood scent, so this one will be going to a new home.

Queen of Sheba - In the vial and on my skin, this is overwhelmingly sweet almond. However, unlike most almond scents, I don’t dislike this one. It’s not my favorite by far, but it’s one I think I’ll wear. As the scent dries, the sweet almond scent becomes more dry and nutty and much more palatable. This when I begin to pick up on the spices that are in it, but I’m having a difficult time identifying them. I don’t smell any cinnamon at all, but I can feel the slight tingle on my skin that only cinnamon leaves behind. The spices aren’t red spices, but more savory spices, like something you’d find in Middle Eastern food, but it doesn’t smell foody in the least. I can’t believe that a scent with this much almond is causing me to keep my nose stuck to my wrist! I really like this scent. It’s bold, enticing, exotic, sexy, and very regal. I wish it had better throw, but otherwise, I really dig it.

Wanda is an absolutely gorgeous blend. The violet is quite spectacular and stands out from the crowd. As for the other notes, I can't distinguish any particular one of them, even when I look up the Lab description of exactly what is in it. It's complex, perfectly blended, and simply stunning. Wanda is sweet and floral yet deep and very, very sexy. It doesn't last long on my skin, but this is one that I don't think I'd mind reapplying and am going to add it to my list of bottles to pick up.

Perversion - On my skin, Perversion is predominantly vanilla with a hint of coconut sweetness. I don’t detect the other notes at all, quite surprisingly. I’d classify it as a “foody” scent, which is something I don’t normally like at all, and at first, I thought it was going to become too sweet for me, but it didn’t. It just really, really pretty. This is an incredibly gorgeous blend, and wow, does it have some incredible throw. The first time I used it, I put a tiny drop on the back of my hand, and I could smell it all around me for the rest of the evening. Simply amazing. I have managed to get a lot of this in swaps and never get tired of it.

Wanton has some kick-ass amazing throw! Just the tiniest bit leaves a soft, pretty veil of fragrance around me. I am so surprised at how much I like this scent. Perhaps sandalwood and patchouli aren’t as icky on me as I initially thought they were. I keep getting surprised over and over my BPAL sandalwood and patchouli. I’m not sure what palmarosa is or how it contributes to this blend, but something is definitely fresh, green, and herbal – maybe that’s the palmarosa? The rose blends gorgeously with the patch and the sandalwood, rounding them out and lightening them up, although it’s still a heavy scent. It’s definitely not for daytime wear or office wear. This is most definitely a screamingly sexy, nighttime scent. I’m very surprised by this one and how much I like it. Just to be sure – a little goes a very, VERY long way. Overuse it, and everyone around you will smell sex on you. This lasts all night long. Simply stunning. Must have more!

Succubus - When first applied, Succubus has a strong bitter overtone that reminds me of what Bess and Lolita smell like on me. But within a minute or so, that bitterness fades and I smell soft, sweet citrus and florals with just the tiniest touch of spice. It turns into an absolutely gorgeous blend that I would have never anticipated after sniffing wet in the vial. It’s simply stunning. It sticks really close to the skin, although I occasionally get a lovely, unexpected waft of the fragrance. Unfortunately, after about 30 minutes, it turns into soap and the loveliness is completely gone.

Depraved is a very strange scent. The juxtaposition of the deep, dark patchouli against the light, crisp scent of apricot is a strange one, at best. The two notes don’t blend together as much as they swirl around each other, never mixing together. Each one is very distinguishable as a distinct note. I love apricot and think it’s just gorgeous in Katharina, March Hare, Thaleia, and especially in Yerevan. But I don’t like the patchouli/apricot combo in Depraved. It has a distinctly “unnatural” scent. It’s very strong with good throw when I first apply it, but after the dry-down, it’s fairly subtle and after an hour, the scent is very faint on my skin, and my an hour and a half, I can barely smell it at all.

The amber necklace of Freyja, Norse Goddess of Love, Sex, Attraction and Fruitfulness. Her magnificent necklace was bough from four Dwarves [Alfrik, Berling, Dvalin and Grer] at the price of four nights of her passion. When Brisingamen graces your throat, no man can resist your charms. A glittering mantle of rich golden notes: five ambers, soft myrtle and apple blossom, myrtle, and carnation. Brisingamen smells to me like “Masabakes Light.” I was really surprised to see that there are no notes duplicated between the two, as far as the Lab description indicates. I don’t care for Brisingamen at all. It has about an 8” throw, so I don’t really smell it if it’s on my wrists unless I reach up to push back my hair or somehow get my wrist near my face. For me, it has terrific staying power at about 3-4 hours. Unfortunately, the scent is bittersweet and cloying, and just a very strange combination of notes and I’ll be putting my imp in the swap pile.

Hunger - Wow! This stuff is gorgeous! I'm a huge fan of sweet creamsicle type scents, and that's what I thought this would be. But it's not. It's dark and warm and deeply resinous and the orange blossom/resin combo gives it more of a bitter orange rind scent as opposed to a sweet citrus orange scent. The narcissus does a phenomenal job of pulling the vanilla and the orange blossom together and creating a thick, spicy, resinous scent. Initially, it was a bit too "hippie-smelling" for my taste, but after a few minutes, it reeled me in and now I'm hooked. I ended up buying a 5 ml bottle that I love.

Maiden - When I first apply Maiden, the tea is the dominant note. I don’t like tea scents, so I thought, “Ick. Another tea.” And almost wrote it off. Then, as it dried down, the tea faded far into the background, and a spicy carnation scent burst forth, softened and rounded out by a lovely rose. This has turned out to be an absolutely gorgeous scent, after all! It distinctly reminds me of Alice, only about 100 times better! It stays fairly close to my skin, but it’s an absolutely stunning scent.

Delight is a far cry from what I would call a delight. It’s a very heady floral and well, my nemesis Jasmine has made an appearance in it, ruining any potential that I may enjoy this scent. It’s one of the only two BPAL rose scents that I dislike. There’s something light and bright – maybe the frangipani? I don’t know what frangipani smells like, so I’m only guessing here. I think if this blend had been created sans jasmine, I’d find myself drawn to it. In fact, I may have to try this in a scent locket since that would keep my skin chemistry from amping up the jasmine, and if that works, then I might find myself wearing it and not swapping/selling it.

Vixen - Upon first applying Vixen, all I could smell was the patchouli and a dash of ginger, neither of which I care for much. As the scent dried down, however, the scent of orange blossoms began to burst forth and mingle with the other scents to create a new and entirely fascinating fragrance. I can still smell some patchouli, but I don't dislike it when blended with the orange blossom. The ginger scent is completely gone upon dry-down. I wear this to bed and can't stop sniffing my wrists. It reminds me distinctly of Hunger -- perhaps that's the orange blossom that's in both of them. When I wake up 8 hours later, the scent still lingers on my arms. It's much fainter than it was was the previous night, but it's still present, which is amazing when I'm usually impressed by a BPAL scent that lasts as long as 3 hours on my skin. I don't know how often I will wear Vixen, but I am intrigued by it and will certainly be hanging on to my imp and trying it again, hopefully sometime in the near future.

Bordello - On me, this instantly had the overwhelming scent of Cherry Robitussin cough medicine. Overpoweringly strong and sweet. Reminds me a lot of the discontinued AZW scent called "Cherries Jubilee" -- something I threw away after the first couple of tries. When the Bordello dried down, it left me with a cherry-lollipop-stuck-in-a-sweaty-gym-bag odor. Nope. I don't care for it at all. I am very disappointed because I really thought I was going to like this one based on the BPAL description. Oh well... I'll try again! With BPAL, it seems you win some (and win big!) and you lose some.

Sed Non Satiata is predominantly a myrrh and honey scent on me that has a slightly floral background. As usual, I don't care for honey, although I think the honey tempered by the myrrh makes it prettier than most honey blends. The florals in the background aren't discernible as individual notes, but in my head, something tells me I'm sniffing red flowers, and when I see the description, I realize it's not just red flowers, but also red patchouli, as well. It's a nice scent, but it's not really something I'd wear often due to the honey.

Forbidden Fruit - Forbidden Fruit sat near the bottom of my imp pile for quite some time, as a first whiff of the oil in the vial told me I wouldn't like it. It had a very strange scent. I didn't smell bubble gum like other reviewers did, but it was a bit too sweet-and-sour for me. Well, I tried it, and the instant it touched my skin, it turned into candied fruit. After about 30 minutes, the sweetness of it faded, and the amber and lotus notes danced to the forefront. It was a very nice scent, but incredibly overpowering. I didn't use much, and I could have easily used half as much and still had a very strong veil of scent surrounding me. I sat in a meeting about two hours after applying it, and was highly conscious of the fact that my coworkers on both sides of me had to experience the overwhelming scent of Forbidden Fruit for a good half hour along with me. It finally settled down and when it did, I was left with a soft, sweet-floral-amber scent that stayed close to my skin. The next time I try it, I will use only the tiniest amount, and apply more only if and when needed. But I will be trying it again because it was surprisingly pleasant, and shouldn't have been left near the bottom of my pile of imps. Only time will tell if I actually purchase a full-size bottle or not.

Hetairae - When initially applied, Hetairae is a strongly honey and fig scent. In fact, it’s so sweet as to be verging on sickly sweet. The clove is barely there, but gives the scent a full body that I don’t think it would have without it. The ylang ylang makes the scent just the tiniest bit crisp. As it is in the process of drying down, the honey fades a bit and the sweetness tones down to the point where I think this may be a wearable fragrance after all, and then, unexpectedly, everything remotely pretty or potentially enjoyable about this scent completely disappears and the patchouli jumps out and mixes itself with the honey, and becomes a bizarre scent. Upon full dry-down, it’s all honey-patchouli on me. I don’t like either note on its own, and together, they are actually more tolerable than either on its own, but I still don’t think I can wear this again. This scent has just the perfect amount of throw and the staying power seems to be really good – as it is with most patchoulis.

Kabuki - I was really surprised by how much I like Kabuki. I anticipated that it would turn into cough medicine on me the way some other cherry and plum BPAL scents do, but it's just gorgeous! The cherry doesn't smell artificial or medicinal at all, and the red musk works really well to reduce the amount of sweet bite the cherry would probably have otherwise -- it smooths out the cherry and makes it truly a lovely scent. Add a dash of anise, and it's got a nice, subtle twist to it. Lovely scent. I liked the imp so much that I bought a bottle, and have really enjoyed layering it with Dragon's Heart.