copyshopclerk

In alchemy, the archetype of water represents cleansing and purification, emotion and intuition. We express that essence here through our blend of Roman chamomile, frankincense, sandalwood, helichrysum, davana, geranium, and lavender. This massage oil helps release emotional trauma, alleviates stress, and imparts a sense of tranquility and well-being. Almond oil, refined rice bran oil, fractionated coconut, rosehip seed oil, evening primrose, vitamin E, Anthemis nobilis, Boswelia sarata, Santalum spicatum, Helichrysum italicum, Artemesia pallens, Pelargonium graveolens, Lavendula angustifolia, Citrus aurantium var amara, and our Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab oil perfume blend. To start, the bottle is pretty! Kind of a neutral tan on the top of the label fading to a deep blue on the bottom. The scent is very nice - so soothing! I can pick out the lavender, chamomile, and sandalwood the most, maybe a little bit of frankincense. It's relaxing and definitely a unisex blend - I tested it on my husband and he loves it. Now that it's dry on my hands, it lightly smells soothing and still gives the impression of water - a dampness that's not dank or unpleasant, but gives me the image of a quiet reflecting pool. Texture-wise, it's amazing - sinks into the skin cleanly leaving no residue - my hands are soft from using this, and not at all greasy - I'm not leaving fingermarks on everything now as is common with other oils or moisturizers. Overall - this is so luxurious and lovely! My husband loves it too I'm torn between getting a larger bottle of this when it's gone (I only got a 4oz bottle) or branching out into one of the other massage oils!

No scent description available. This. Is. DELICIOUS. In the bottle: Sweet, creamy, not quite foody but close. I think there's a little bit of rose, someone said (and I don't even like rose, to give you an idea of how nice this is). Everyone I saw sniffing this did a "Oooh, wait, lemme see that again!" double take On: It's a little bit red in color - don't know what gives it that quality. But it's *so* yummy - I think there is a light rosy quality to it, with an almost spicy sweet creaminess underneath. I can't place what it is - is that a floral? Is that a foody quality? Whatever it is, it's beautiful. I wish I knew what notes were in this because I'd stalk the boards for other things that smell like this. Someone who can identify notes will probably give this a more accurate description, but I luuurrrrvvve it! Beautifully done, Beth! (Edited to add some of the components - I had to ask! I'm probably going to get some of this wrong, but it includes red musk, rum, gardenia, & caramel accord, and probably some other things that I forgot!)

A gleaming holographic obscuring an earth-brown base. I'm not typically a nail polish wearer but I bought this on a whim and it's lovely! In indirect light it's coppery and reminds me of a new penny, and when direct light hits it right, the multicolored hologram is extremely vibrant. All of these pictures are with one coat. The texture is smooth, no grit or roughness or glitter. Thumbnail as a test, with flash All 5 of left hand with flash From a little further away and a slightly different angle, trying to show how the hologram colors shift and the base color deepens. No flash, indoor lighting. My pinky nail here is the closest to that coppery color it has in indirect lighting. And two of the bottle to show the color shift: http://i.imgur.com/HoZJZBN.jpg http://i.imgur.com/DAFo3u1.jpg

No description available. AWESOME. Everything about this blend rules - I love the concept and inspiration (the fashion show was excellent, too!) In the bottle & on (it's not a morpher) - delicious, desserty... I've never had a crumpet but this is like thick blackberry, maybe blackcurrant filling with a buttery golden crust. In a way, it reminds me of Bloody Mary but with darker berries instead of the cherry. I do get a "baked pie" quality from it but with a tart-like kick. Lickable and would definitely be hoard-worthy as I love foody blends. Pretty strong throw, too.

No scent description available. In the bottle: Jasmine, maybe something grassy On: I'm not much of a jasmine girl, actually, and while this is wet it's almost overpoweringly so in it's jasmine-ness. When that calms down, it's pleasant, slightly green on me. I like it much better dry than still wet!

No scent description available. In the bottle: Woodiness (not as in a forest, but rather the scent of wood itself), something a bit damp On: Definitely evocative of tunnels beneath the city! When it's still wet, there's something in it that reminds me of the wet phase of the most recent Wolf Moon, and I like that a lot - very atmospheric. When it was dry, it reminded me of wood silvered and softened by the passing of time and weather. I'm not sure how well it works on me as a perfume - some of the other people there had it turn sweeter on them, where it was almost too masculine for me. I'm eager to try this one as a room scent because it seems well-suited for that.

This has been stated before by Beth and others, but it bears repeating since there seems to still be confusion. I think an important question which people who are wondering "are there synthetics in BPAL?" need to ask, and that is Synthetic what? BPAL is vegan (aside from honey), so that means every blend that lists leather or musk or civet or ambergris or blood or meat or milk as a note does not really contain those ingredients. There is no real blood in your BPAL, I promise But Beth will use bouquets to approximate the scent of those ingredients. AFAIK she blends those bouquets herself and what makes them up is proprietary. Fair enough, because if she listed step by step instructions on how to make her stuff everyone could just do it themselves and not buy her work. (though I'm sure I'm one of many wondering how she got Gore Shock to smell like bloody meat with no animal ingredients) So if by "synthetic" you mean "didn't actually come from blood/ambergris/musk/etc", then yes, those BPAL blends contain synthetic mixes, called bouquets. They are made from blends of plant extract (which is listed on the FAQ page), but together they make a synthetic approximation of a nonvegan ingredient. Basically the only reason you'll need to know what, specifically, goes into a bouquet is if you have an allergy. So let's say, for instance, you're allergic to rose and you want to try a blend that doesn't have rose listed but it has, say, pink musk* (or other nonvegan ingredient). You can write to the lab and ask "Hey, I'm allergic to rose and 'SAMPLE BLEND' looks really good. Is there rose in that one?" And they'll let you know. *I don't have any clue if rose extract is part of the pink musk bouquet, I just picked an example Does that help?

Hey jayne, just as a thought - if you're concerned about a particular component for allergy reasons, drop a line to BPAL's customer service at answers@blackphoenixalchemylab.com - they'll be able to let you know if something you're allergic to is in a blend that you're considering purchasing.

In the decant - I put in for a decant of this one the night the update went live strictly because silver birch is my favorite kind of tree, and I had no idea what it would smell like but whatever, it had my favorite tree in it! Then it got rave reviews at Will Call AND IT DESERVED EVERY ONE OF THEM. I rarely buy backups, but if this smells as good on me as it does in the bottle, it is backup worthy. It's a high, light sweetness that's so perfectly balanced I can't pick out any individual notes. One of those "you smell good", not "your perfume smells good" blends. On me - not a morpher! In a way it reminds me of Dia (which I still kick myself for not getting a bottle), I think it must be the white amber and pale musk (assuming that's similar to Dia's white musk) that are the most prominent on me. Davana is good to me too - I adore everything about Ether. Gotta be honest, I'm not a jasmine fan in the slightest (and the GC's I've tried that have star jasmine in them have been "no"'s), and I don't notice it at all in here. This is a very clear, sweet but clean scent. Not dark and heady, not knock-you-down foody or floral sweet, but beautifully balanced. Again - it's a "you smell amazing", not "your perfume smells amazing!" Dry - this LASTS. I first tested this several nights ago and it had some serious staying power for hours without going wonky or powdery. The only change is that a hint of wood notes come out a bit (I guess this must be the silver birch!) as it dries, and then it remains pretty constant. I can see this one wearing beautifully in summer or winter - summer because of how clear and almost refreshing it is, and winter because it's so white and crystalline. Lurrrrve!

I'd also say something like Black Forest or Jersey Devil to see if you like pine/evergreen type scents.

Fig, almond, patchouli, and honey. This is just a review of the scent now - I'm going to be sharing this bar so I don't want to use it until I cut it, so I'll come back and edit this with a review of the soap itself (how moisturizing it is, etc) after I use them. I admit I had a minor doubt about this one, as I'm not patchouli's biggest fan by a long shot, but I absolutely adore almond, love fig, and am growing an appreciation for honey. I needn't have worried! The patchouli really takes a backseat to the almond and fig which are the most prominent notes in this on the first sniff. Overall it smells like sweet almonds, honey, and dried fruits - I want to say the honey and patchouli are what makes the fig smell dried rather than fresh. If this were an oil I'd definitely use it in my oil burner as I want my house to smell like this It's a feel-good, snuggling, hearty kind of comfort scent.

White musk, fir needle, cedar, winter plum, neroli, white ginger, sandalwood, and eucalyptus. This smells woodier than I was originally expecting - I think the cedar, sandalwood, & fir needle are what I notice the most, but the eucalyptus is almost like a scent aftertaste (if that makes any sense!) giving a coolness to the scent that wasn't as noticeable to me when I sniffed it directly. There is a slight sweetness, but unlike the summer and fall soaps, it's more like a whisper of sweetness than a defining factor. If you don't care for plum, I think you'd be fine with this as it does not smell outright fruity, but rather just a light impression of it. It's interesting comparing this to the other two soaps I got (L'Estate and L'Autunno) because while those were rich and lush and sweet, L'Inverno is more ethereal and almost stark in comparison, which I think makes it very evocative of winter.

Iä! Shub-Niggurath! The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young, the All-Mother and wife of the Not-to-Be-Named-One. The lust incense of a corrupted Astarte. A blend of ritual herbs and dark resins, shot through with three gingers and aphrodisiacal spices. Water, Saponified Organic Palm Kernal Oil, Coconut Oil, Soy Oil, Macadamia Nut Oil, Sodium Lactate, Jojoba Oil, Caster Oil, and Shub-Niggurath. Mmm.. Shub in soap form! I could smell it immediately when I opened the box The wrapping is very pretty, with the inside of the paper giving a little bit of info about BPAL and how the soap was made. I hadn't read other soap reviews so I wasn't expecting that, but I thought it was a nice touch. The soap itself is tan in color, kind of marbled/mottled throughout with an alchemy symbol stamped in the top. It's a very creamy soap - lots of lather, but not at all drying. I'm very glad to see that a soap that smells this great isn't going to dry me out! It's making my bathroom smell like Shub, which I rather enjoy - but it's the sweet scent Shub takes on after it's been on your skin a while, not the blast of fresh ginger that Shub has when you first apply it. My skin doesn't smell very strongly of Shub from the soap - only very lightly so up close, so I would say you won't get any conflicting problems layering other scents over it. I really like this, would get again!

Carnation, golden amber, cardamom, vanilla, and beeswax absolute. This is just a review of the scent now - I'm going to be sharing this bar so I don't want to use it until I cut it, so I'll come back and edit this with a review of the soap itself (how moisturizing it is, etc) after I use them. I'm still in soap opening squee-ville! On the first sniff this is a rich, beautiful sweetened carnation, which almost makes me think this is like Pink Moon 07 in soap form. Carnation is the prominent note, but the amber and vanilla lend a creamy sweetness to it that keep it from being too spicy in that characteristic carnation way. I can't really pick out cardamom in this - it's more of a creamy sweet floral than a spice scent, I'd say in the same family as Pink Moon 07, but with similarities to Hod and Morocco. I really, really like this scent and want it in more forms than soap!

In the imp - clean aquatic, with something that's almost like a not-quite-citrus fruitiness (the davana, perhaps?) On - a sweet, clean aquatic. Something in here reminds me of how Tiki Queen smells on me when dry - I guess maybe they have a floral note in common? - combined with that almost watermelon-rind scent that I get from Szepasszony. I really liked both of those so this is a very enjoyable scent! Dry - Doesn't morph very much from the wet phase. This is really lovely - it's refreshing and sweet without being overly sweet, and there's still something there that smells a lot like Tiki Queen did when dry, and since I didn't buy a bottle of that when it was up, I like having something in the GC that wears very similarly!

In the decant: This smells light and summery, I think from the freesia. On: Definitely freesia, and jasmine tea - a genuine jasmine tea scent, which doesn't smell like jasmine to me at all (a good thing, I don't care for the scent of jasmine in perfumes but I adore the scent of jasmine tea). Dry: When dry, it's pretty much exactly like jasmine tea with a light fruitness - not berry sharp but just an extra hint of sweetness. I wasn't able to pick out the mint at all in any stage, which was a little bit disappointing, but overall this is very smooth and beautiful, definitely bottle-worthy.

In the decant: Reminds me a bit of Storyville - spices, sandalwood, resin? On: Definitely nutty, in a fuzzy comfort scent kind of way. The honey isn't doing anything noticeable which is good because 99 times out of 100, honey goes pretty funky on me. The slight spiciness is still there, and I'm not sure what's causing that. Dry: Another in the "nice but I don't need more" - I'm well stocked on fuzzy comfort scents! Several hours later, this has settled down to a vanilla-based honey incense blend.

In the decant: Lemon verbena in front, but with a juicy sweetness behind keeping it from being too sharp. On: Smells like the bath bombs section of a Lush store, probably from the combination of rose & lemon. No lychee (bummer). I love lychee. Dry: Straightforward rose. Not one for me at all.

In the decant: Very sweet, almost candy like, with the greenness of bamboo. On: Quite similar to how it smelled in the imp, although the candy quality goes away, which I prefer since it was almost *too* sweet. Now it's predominantly bamboo - not getting pear at all, or the violet which I'd really like. I'm wavering between thinking this smells pretty and thinking it smells like a cleaning products variant on my skin - not the lemon kind, but one that gets labeled with something like "Orchard Rain" Dry: Kind of pretty, but too sweet for my preferences.

In the decant: Ozone - yay! On: Very "white" - almost snowy but without the chill. I smell ozone & petitgrain, which is the note in Tangle reconditioner from B Never that I absolutely love - curse them for not making it anymore! Parsifal is very clean & refreshingly pretty on me, but it's gender neutral and would be very sexy on a guy.

In the decant: Rose and something almost citrussy On: Almost all rose when wet. As it dries, it becomes a honeyed rose - maybe a bit like Lady Luck Blues? Dry: It shifts - on some sniffs it's a lot of honey (which I don't like) and some rose (also don't like), and other times it's gardenia (which I love.) So I don't like this enough to keep, but it's interesting how it's oscillating. It's very fresh and springtime.

In the decant: Patchouli & the sweetness of amber. Sweet & earthy On: It's dark so it stains my skin a bit. On the sweetness of amber is developed further by the fig. I'd classify this as a dark resin, but it's got that shot of sweetness through it which is really nice. This is probably one of my favorite dark resiny blends because of that - instead of being a solemn resin or a too-sexy resin, it's very wearable. Dry: There's just a little bit of a bite to it, I think it's the combination of vetivert and fig - it's more of a dried fig than a fresh one to me. Lucifer is surprisingly gorgeous!

In the decant: Peach, but with an edge - maybe the tangerine? On: That might've been jasmine giving it an edge, because on me it goes very jasmine with little else behind it at first. After a few minutes, the scent I recognize as wine grapes is noticeable behind the jasmine and this almost reminds me a little of Pumpkin Patch 1 from 2007. Dry: It's nearly all the white wine grape - grape is a note that I can't wear well and this is unfortunately no exception. Several hours later, it's still quite strong on my hand, and the grape has subsided to let the other fruits come through more. I couldn't pick out the rose in this at all.

In the decant: Very light and sweet - not floral like I would've expected! On: I can't pick anything out, and I usually don't like honey or patchouli but I don't notice them at all! As it starts to dry, I can pick out the patchouli but the rest are so blended together that they just make kind of an airy sweetness. Dry: As this dries, it feels almost aquatic, like an aquatic patchouli. It's a very fascinating scent!

In the decant: Myrrh, frankincense, and sandalwood. Very powerful incense blend. On: This is actually the most "church incense" BPAL I've tried so far and it's really nice - much more reminiscent of Catholic Mass incense than Midnight Mass worked out for me. Unfortunately I don't have many blends in this category so I'm not very good at describing it, but if you wanted something like Midnight Mass, try this. Dry: As many resin blends do, it softens somewhat over time, so it's not quite as solemn. Beautifully done.