filigree_shadow

I'm not very good at picking out any notes in this, so I'm not going to try. The only thing I can smell for sure is ylang ylang. There's definitely something woodsy in there, and sweet. This oil smells expensive. I'm not sure how else to describe it. It smells like quality. It seems patient, gentle, and kind. Elegant and graceful. Well-mannered. It's quite soft after about 30 minutes, though -- not a lot of throw.

In the bottle it smells a little bit like ginger, but dark. On my wrist: I smell like I accidentally got into my husband's cologne. This oil smells almost singularly masculine to my nose. Many of the masculine BPAL blends are ones that I'd wear myself, but there are a few that I wouldn't wear. It's not that I don't enjoy the scents, but they seem like they would be more at home on my hubby. (And thankfully he looooves BPAL, so getting him to wear the oils is not a problem.) If I wore Two Monsters, I would feel like all the women I pass in hallways would be thinking to themselves, "Tsk-tsk, the poor thing doesn't know that's a men's cologne." That said, this oil smells absolutely fantastic. I am so thrilled to find a GC scent that can replace my hubby's Geek (his signature scent) when his stash runs out. This is exactly the kind of scent he likes -- the leather, black musk, and champaca seem to be prominent on my skin, and I can tell this will be earthy and powerful on him. So far this is my favorite of The Salon scents.

On me: Sugary grapefruit. It's cool and refreshing. Light and clean. I'm not getting a whole lot of herbs or woods out of this. But since it's not overly sweet or citrusy, I know something must be balancing out the sugar and grapefruit. And it definitely is balanced -- this blend doesn't go too far in any one direction. Very well done!

On me: carnation and amber with a little bit of musk. No lemon peel at all, thankfully. Golden. Glowing. Warm. Womanly. Powerful. Smooth. Rich. Beautiful.

CLXXVIII - 168 A cool, bright scent. I think there's an aquatic note in there, maybe ozone, but it's not twangy it's kind of round. It's sweet, but I'm not sure if that's a berry or a floral note. I guess I'm not very good at picking out notes. But I can say that it smells rainy, green, and sweet. The ozone note seems to fade out as it dries down, and it ends up smelling like a wet green floral blossom. (Apple blossom, maybe?) Clean, crisp, and very pretty... maybe a little young for me, though. Maybe a little too innocent for me, too. CLXIX - 169 When I smelled this in the bottle I thought "Ooooo, I got a GOOD one!" In the bottle it smells fruity but masculine. On, it smells like dark smoky resin... possibly vetiver. There's a smoothness to it. Definitely earthy, almost murky. Very dark. Strangely, as it dries it seems to be getting slightly foodie. That smoothness is becoming more prominent. It is starting to remind me a little bit of a heavy spiced pudding. I wonder if that fruity note I smelled in the bottle is fig. Or plum? Also I caught a waft of something that smells suspiciously like the "Irish coffee" part of Miskatonic University. I'm not sure I'm going to want to swap any of this one. And I can't wait until my husband gets home so I can try it on him. ETA: I know this is kind of dumb, but as I'm smelling this I can't help but think to myself, "Did Beth read that post of mine where I said I wanted a dark fruit like plum and something smoky like vetiver or opoponax?" I swear, this is practically like a custom blend. It's gorgeous, and perfect for me.

Smells like baby aspirin right at first. That chalky orangey smell. Then as it dries it gets to be more musky. Sadly not much civet that I can detect… and that particular note is the reason why I wanted to try this blend. Also it seems to get sweeter and sweeter as time goes on, and for me frankincense is usually the culprit for that behavior. Deimos is quite pretty but not a real stand-out on me.

A spark of citrus scent right at first, and then it settles into lavender. Kind of a fresh, crisp lavender. It's not bad as lavender goes, but I don't particularly like that note. So this one's not for me.

The curse of the discontinueds-you-cannot-have still haunts me; I like Torment a lot. My skin apparently adores vetiver and goes to great lengths to prove to me how wonderful vetiver is every time I wear it. Also I believe vetiver is one of those notes that improves with age. On my skin Torment smells earthy, dark, brooding, and ominous. As it dries down it begins to smell warmer and more inviting. And I can't smell any gardenia at all, which is good. It's maybe a little too heavy for me to wear here in the middle of July when it's 90 degrees outside, but this would be awesome in October.

A very woodsy scent. Is there mint in this? Or menthol? It's odd, the first time I tried Yggdrasil a few months ago I thought it was a very dry, light, wood scent, and I kept the imp around because I thought I might want to try it again later. I had in mind that it was the sort of light comforting scent I'd want to wear at bedtime. I definitely don't remember anything like menthol in it -- that is not comforting to me at all. After the wet stage dies down, that minty scent fades away. What's left is wood and herbs. This is much more herby than I remember. Also it gets a little powdery when it's dry. It's not the comfort scent I thought it was. Hunh. Off to swaps, I guess.

Woah. This scent goes straight through my head. It's white and sweet and so piercing it makes my teeth ache when I sniff my wrist. I'm not sure why this combination is so disagreeable to me -- the notes don't offend me individually. Frankincense often goes too sweet on me, but I can't really smell any frankincense in here. And oh great, I get the extra special bonus pounding headache from this one. Perhaps this blend is too angelic for me. 'Fraid this one's getting washed off.

When it's wet, this oil smells dark and powerfully sexy. It's almost all black narcissus with something deep and smoky underneath that reminds me a little bit of vetiver. As it dries I can begin to smell the orange blossom. The vanilla makes it slightly creamy. After about three hours it's not dark any more, it's just a bit powdery. The first time I tried this oil a few months ago I thought it smelled like a creamsicle. This time when I tried it, it was much darker. I like it this way better. Very nice blend. I think this imp might get upgraded to a bottle. ETA on 1/8/2007: I'm editing this to say that when this oil is aged, it smells like Snake Charmer with a little bit of orange blossom on me. I know it's weird, but I swear that's what it smells like. I think I need to get a bottle and let it age for a year or so. This is really nice.

Hmmm. An odd scent. I'm not sure how to describe it. It starts out smelling kind of floral and herbal. Green, but not sharp. It's not unpleasant, but it doesn't seem particularly enticing to me. After a while it starts to smell a little milky and floral -- kind of like sour milk. Still an odd scent. I wouldn't wear this as perfume.

Blood Countess is one of the blends I knew for sure that I would like -- the plum, opium, lilac, and berry sounded wonderful! The only listed note I don't get along with is gardenia. (I wore a gardenia-scented oil in the 90s and got burned out on the scent.) And guess what Blood Countess smelled like on me? Yep, you guessed it. Gardenia. A fruity gardenia, but still gardenia. I tested Blood Countess at least three times because I kept hoping that this time it'll be just plum and opium. You'd think I would have given up after three tries, but I refused to give up my imp hoping that one day my skin would play nice. And I am happy to announce that TODAY is that day! Today this is definitely a plum and lilac scent on my skin, and it's lovely! I'm thrilled that this finally worked on me. Now I can relate to the comparisons to Queen of Spades and Frumious Bandersnatch. I have discovered that this particular oil is affected by my hormones -- now that I know when to wear it and when not to, it's officially a keeper! Also, three hours after application the scent is still going strong. It's got some good lasting power!

Light and floaty, but extraordinarily floral. Like I just stuck my nose in a flower. It's one of those heady floral scents that would be cloying if it were stronger. (Luckily it's not very strong.) I'm not a floral gal, so I can't say which other flower this smells like because I'm not very familiar with floral notes. I can say that it smells kind of pale pink, rather than yellow or purple. I like this better than some of the other floral blends but not well enough to want to wear it.

Aizen-Myoo smells like stank on me. It is one of my least favorite BPAL oils. And it's weird, because the Lab has frimped me with Aizen-Myoo at least four times. I feel like Aizen-Myoo keeps saying "Try me again. This time you'll like me. Go on, try." And I try it, and it's horrible. It smells like the very worst bitter citric acid smell you've ever smelled combined with weeds that sort of smell like tomato leaf but four times sharper. And the scent lingers around for hours making me regret ever putting the damn oil on my skin. I know there are people who really love Aizen-Myoo, and I'm honestly glad that someone likes it. But I don't. Yick.

I really could have used that phrase about 4 months ago, before I quit my job.

Cross-posted to the reviews forum. cordia #1 package: Aizen-Myoo, Asphodel, Blood Countess, Follow Me Boy, Hunger, Seraphim, and Yggdrasil. I have all these imps, so I didn't have to use any of the oil from the swap package. Aizen-Myoo - Yuzu, kaki, and mikan with cherry blossom and black tea. Aizen-Myoo smells like stank on me. It is one of my least favorite BPAL oils. And it's weird, because the Lab has frimped me with Aizen-Myoo at least four times. I feel like Aizen-Myoo keeps saying "Try me again. This time you'll like me. Go on, try." And I try it, and it's horrible. It smells like the very worst bitter citric acid smell you've ever smelled combined with weeds that sort of smell like tomato leaf but four times sharper. And the scent lingers around for hours making me regret ever putting the damn oil on my skin. I know there are people who really love Aizen-Myoo, and I'm honestly glad that someone likes it. But I don't. Yick. Asphodel - The grey and ghostly flower that fills the fields of Hades. Light and floaty, but extraordinarily floral. Like I just stuck my nose in a flower. It's one of those heady floral scents that would be cloying if it were stronger. (Luckily it's not very strong.) I'm not a floral gal, so I can't say which flower this smells like because I'm not very familiar with floral notes. I can say that it smells kind of pale pink, rather than yellow or purple. I like this better than some of the other floral blends but not well enough to want to wear it. Blood Countess - Corrupted black plum, smoky opium and crumbling dead roses covered by a deceptive veil of Hungarian lilac, white gardenia and wild berry. Blood Countess is one of the blends I knew for sure that I would like -- the plum, opium, lilac, and berry sounded wonderful! The only listed note I don't get along with is gardenia. (I wore a gardenia-scented oil in the 90s and got burned out on the scent.) And guess what Blood Countess smelled like on me? Yep, you guessed it. Gardenia. A fruity gardenia, but still gardenia. I tried it at least three times because I kept hoping that this time it'll be just plum and opium. You'd think I would have given up after three tries, but I refused to give up my imp hoping that one day my skin would play nice. And I am happy to announce that TODAY is that day! Today this is definitely a plum and lilac scent on my skin, and it's lovely! I'm thrilled that this finally worked on me. And now I know for sure that this particular oil is affected by my hormones. Now that I know when to wear it and when not to, it's officially a keeper! Follow Me Boy - No notes listed. Hmmm. An odd scent. I'm not sure how to describe it. It starts out smelling kind of floral and herbal. Green, but not sharp. It's not unpleasant, but it doesn't seem particularly enticing to me. After a while it starts to smell a little milky and floral -- kind of like sour milk. Still an odd scent. I wouldn't wear this as perfume. Hunger - Evokes sheer, unadulterated carnal lust. An undeniably warm and sensual scent. Black narcissus, orange blossoms, and vanilla. When it's wet, this oil smells dark and powerfully sexy. It's almost all black narcissus with something deep and smoky underneath that reminds me a little bit of vetiver. As it dries I can begin to smell the orange blossom. The vanilla makes it slightly creamy. The first time I tried this oil a few months ago I thought it smelled like a creamsicle. This time when I tried it, it was much darker. I like it this way better. Very nice blend. I think this imp might get upgraded to a bottle. Seraphim - A perfume sacred to the highest of the angelic hosts: calla lily, wisteria, white sandalwood, Damascus rose and frankincense. Woah. This scent goes straight through my head. It's white and sweet and so piercing it makes my teeth ache when I sniff my wrist. I'm not sure why this combination is so disagreeable to me -- the notes don't offend me individually. Frankincense often goes too sweet on me, but I can't really smell any frankincense in here. And oh great, I get the extra special bonus pounding headache from this one. Perhaps this blend is too angelic for me. 'Fraid this one's getting washed off. Yggdrasil - The World Ash. Nine woods, nine leaves, and three herbs each for Ratatosk and Vidofnir, with three final herbs to placate Nidhogg. A very woodsy scent. Is there mint in this? Or menthol? It's odd, the first time I tried Yggdrasil a few months ago I thought it was a very dry, light, wood scent, and I kept the imp around because I thought I might want to try it again later. I had in mind that it was the sort of light comforting scent I'd want to wear at bedtime. I definitely don't remember anything like menthol in it -- that is not comforting to me at all. After the wet stage dies down, that minty scent fades away. What's left is wood and herbs. This is much more herby than I remember. Also it gets a little powdery when it's dry. It's not the comfort scent I thought it was. Hunh. Off to swaps, I guess.

I finally got to try Imp of the Perverse! After reading the reviews I was expecting a puke-inducing assault of disgust. Not so. At first I thought that cognac was a bit too strong, then I thought the roses were too strong, and then it went back to cognac. But at no time did I think it was rancid, yucky, rotting, etc. I think it's not bad! The rose is a little bit green and harsh for my taste, though. It smells like a mean, bitter, jerk of a rose got himself sloshed on top-shelf booze. But the drydown is nice. I'd wear this (for more than just a test) if I had more of it. But I have to admit that I love cognac, which is probably why I don't think this blend is icky. See, here's what happened: About 7 years ago I realized that I can't spend my entire life drinking vodka tonics. I'm one of those people who never developed a taste for alcoholic beverages, and vodka is one of the few things I could drink that didn't make me cringe and shiver and gag. I decided I would force myself to get used to another kind of drink. Something more posh than vodka. The only thing I could think of was how in the TV show Bewitched it seemed like they were always drinking brandy in the afternoon and it seemed rather sophisticated to me, so I decided I'd acclimate myself to brandy. I forced myself to drink a shot of brandy every single day for a month until I got used to it. And then, horror of horrors, I discovered that no one drinks brandy any more. Apparently cognac is the thing to drink now. So I tried a cognac. And I'll be damned if it wasn't three times as good as brandy. (Three times as expensive as well, but that's another story.) It's like if you've been eating hamburger your entire life and then suddenly one day you have a filet mignon and you think "Ohhhh, this is how it's supposed to taste!" I love the taste of cognac, I love the smell of it, and I love to savor it after a satisfying dinner. But I don't have it often. So to me, the scent of cognac is comforting, indulgent, and a wee bit decadent. And that's probably why I like Imp of the Perverse more than other people do.

OK, I originally wrote a story here, then I felt embarrassed so I deleted it, and then I wrote it again, and now I deleted it again. It's just too personal. Sorry. However... it works, and it definitely smells rosy.

Medicine Show is strange. When I first put it on my skin I thought it smelled too masculine. Rather strong, green, and yes, medicinal. I think that's the balsam and ginger combination giving it an aniseptic feel. After the top notes faded off, I definitely smelled the tobacco. Nice tobacco, not dirty tobacco. Like a tobacco shop. Then came a woody undertone that I imagine is the rosewood. It's sweet and dry. So it ends up a sweet, dry, woody, leafy scent. I would say that at this point it's not masculine enough for my hubby to wear. It also seems very light now, where at first it was quite strong. I like the scent when it's dry, but it still seems strange to me. It does seem like it might be better in the winter months, so I'll hang onto it and try again in a few months.

Very light buttery pumpkin at first, dries down into a bit of ivy, a dry floral note, and something soft and windblown. This is a beautiful oil, and it definitely reminds me of autumn. It seems warm and golden... like the last bits of summer before the weather turns cool. This scent captures that fleeting quality perfectly. This is one of my favorite lunacy oils.

Surprisingly fruity at first, although I'm beginning to realize that lotus smells fruity on me. The roses underneath are not very noticeable at first but dominate the scent when dry. This blend smells sweet and feminine -- I would definitely use the word "harmonious." The notes all combine nicely and the overall effect is soft and pretty.

This is an oil that I expected to like because I love the listed notes, but I had a very meh reaction to it. I thought it would be kind a musky deep scent, and I mainly got tea and herbs out of it. I guess the "five classical herbs of conflict" are too dominant for me. It ends up being closer to what I like when it's completely dry, but I don't think I like it well enough to ever want a bottle of it.

Phew, that's strong! It's also sweeter than I thought it would be -- this is sweet smoke rather than dark smoke. It's actually not as bad as I expected it would be, but it's giving me a headache so it has to go.

This oil smells like a gentleman's cologne -- it reminds me of my dad. My dad was one of those guys who wore a tie to work every day of his life and always carried a briefcase. He was very meticulous about his appearance and picky about his shampoo, shaving cream, and aftershave. When I was a little girl I used to love giving him a kiss before he left for work because I loved the way he smelled. I thought he smelled clean and like Daddies were supposed to smell. Looking back, I know it was woodsy and sweet and must have had a little bit of leather in in somewhere. Just like Dee. I think Dee is the only BPAL oil that reminds me so strongly of my dad that I would prefer that my husband does not wear it. It's also an oil I will always want to have on hand... just so I can sort of have my dad around sometimes. I miss him a lot.