LiberAmoris

2016 release: I didn't pick up Love's Philosophy in 2008, so was eager to try the 2016 vintage. This is one of those perfumes that smells very different on me at different times of the month, so I've had a variety of testing experiences. At it's best, it's an absolutely delicious saffron cream—like a gourmand's custard with an edge of something in the saffron that goes rooty-menthol. I can see the comparisons to cream soda (cream plus vanilla plus something rooty), as well as the reviews calling out wintergreen (vanilla plus menthol). The custard-y sillage is pretty wonderful. On days when my skin chem isn't behaving, I get an additional chalky note that I'm not so fond of. Even so, keeping what I have...on a good day, Love's Philosophy is very good.

Chinoiserie is wine and roses on me, with myrrh and patchouli supporting and a tang of poppy. As mentioned above, it does smell a bit like a well-executed, smokeless kyphi. Wine isn't always a great note on me, but the rose and patch really make this wearable. This is very smooth—reds and purples and blacks swirled together. Very nice, and I recommend it to Blood Rose fans!

Reviewing a well-aged imp of The Arrival at the Sabbath and Homage to the Devil, and slightly flummoxed at all the reviews of caramelly goodness...perhaps it's aged out of my imp? But it's ok, because I like what I have here: a complex iris perfume, that yes, smells a bit like the odiferous melange of a Lush store. This is mostly iris, carnation, sandalwood, and benzoin on me and it is YUMMY. I failed to pick up a bottle of this when it released, but I wish I had...knowing what I now know about what works on me, this is a note list that would definitely justify a blind bottle, that's for sure. This isn't foody or fuzzy on me, it's classic and chic.

If you rolled Obatala in white rose, honey, and the sheerest dusting of ambered chocolate, you'd be close to Adrastea. This is part foody, part mommy and wholly delightful. On and dried down, the sillage reminds me of a hot milk drink I once had at a fancy party that was steeped with rose petals, cacao nibs, and creme de coco. It makes me want to don a fuzzy bathrobe and curl up with a good book.

Resurrecting this topic since we can now add Stekkjarstaur (wonderful marshmallow!) to this list. Maybe someone will also chime in regarding Volcano in Springtime ('whipped vanilla cream')?

Oh yes, Fairy Thorn! I love that one also. I am too, can't wait! I learned recently that there was once (2006?) a Tuberose SN. Would have /died./ I never tried that one, but I wish I had!

Amber and honey with golden peach, patchouli leaf, bergamot, and sweet vanilla. Gold of the Heart of that Holy Kiss is like a golden cloud! The amber, honey, and golden peach give this a sunshiney, warm feel, with the patch leaf, bergamot, and sweet vanilla grounding it. The peach is forward here, but it's nicely balanced with the amber so it doesn't overwhelm. I think this atmo would be wonderful to spray on a grey day, because it's super cheering and sunny. It's reminiscent of the lovely Golden Peach and Bergamot HG, and I think I'll be spraying the inside of a winter jacket with this beauty and pairing it with that HG soon.

I love tuberose! Reviving this topic in case there are any other tuberose lovers out there. My fave blends with tuberose include: The Sorceress, Vain Sorceress, Plovers Above the Waves, Alma Venus, Lullaby, and Ava. I'm really looking forward to The Head from this year's Lupercalia release!

There are also a couple of cherry blossom scents available in the current Lupercalia update! First Cry of the Warbler on the Plum - Wild plum, blackcurrant, honeyed green tea, wisteria, and a flutter of cherry blossoms. The Instructional Manual - Cherry blossoms falling into folds of red musk, bourbon vanilla, and strawberry cream.

For cardio, I really like just a tiny dab of something with a citrus note. It's energizing and it smells nice and clean. My current favorite is Key Lime Pie. (Also, the smell of pie is a good incentive to work out!)

Another vote for Pleasant Embrace, if you can track it down.

Seconding The Radiance of an Opium-Dream if you can track some down—it's gorgeous.

The Ground Where all the Dead Lie really makes good use of the dirt note—this is one dirty, rooty scent. Honestly, if there's a floral in here, there's just a drop, at least on me. What I smell is everything below the bloom: the stem, the root, the dirt. I agree with Lycanthrope that there's something woodsy in here, and could be a bit of patch. This would pair wonderfully with Rose-Boughs and Rose-Roots Hair Gloss. For me, as much as I can appreciate the veracity of the dirt note, I like a little more rose with my root. Luckily for me, this is absolutely spectacular layered with The Rose.

Fresh and Blooming as a Rose is like a lightly ambered Snow White + white roses. This is like a cascade of warm whites—white roses, white amber, and snow. I don't always like the snow note, but it's lovely here, taking a backseat to the roses and amber. It's very clean and sweet and rosy.

Oooh, the chrysanthemum in Ghosts is very nice. The violet leaf is relatively restrained, and the funereal incense adds a bit of light smoke—a little blurring. This smells almost like old linens taken out of scented storage paper, very evocative of the past. It's very soft, and at times, the sillage smells a bit like a lighter Gypsy Queen. Very nice, a beautiful capture of the concept.

Mother Ghost really does smell cold, like something from beyond the veil. I'm surprised at how prominent and lovely the tea leaf note is here. This is mostly light tea, vanilla flower, white rose, and black orchid on me when wet, with the musk and amber coming forward on the drydown. Gorgeous and otherworldly, and mellows into a gentle tea-floral with good staying power.

Dr. Alan does smell a bit like Snow White in the bottle! Once on, it's really clear sandalwood and bay rum on my skin, with just a hint of something like Snow White in the background. Sandalwood is one of those notes that smells practically narcotic to me, so I quite like it here. Bay rum is one of those notes that I like smelling on others, but not on myself. I enjoy the clovey-cinnamon spice it adds to the sandalwood, and the overall effect is of a lovely aftershave or cologne that runs both sexy and clean.

Sir Thomas marries black amber with a pale fougere that's reminiscent of the fougere in Dorian. The fougere is gentle and mannerly, and the black amber is more raw and overtly sensual, so the combo is pretty effective at signaling the mix of aristocracy and scrappy that Thomas represents in the film. On the drydown, I get black amber, lavender, light musk, and maybe a bit of tonka. Very nice. I got my husband his own bottle so I won't have to steal it from his BPAL drawer.

Indulgence does smell a bit like washing powder at first. It settles down after a bit into a shadowy, grey-white floral with an almost lemony edge. I can smell a smidge of vetiver, but it's very subtle. On complete drydown, this is a big-broadcast floral—I agree that the sillage is phenomenal on this one. I'd definitely have to be in the right mood to wear this operatic fragrance, but I really appreciate how well-blended it is and how skillfully the vetiver and oudh slink up against the green amber and florals to cast a discomfiting shadow.

There's vivid rose and blurry snow in The Bear Prince, so I can see the comparison to the merger of Snow White and Rose Red. Not sure what creates the shaggy fur note, but maybe a touch of light brown musk? This is very wearable and light on me, like red seen through white. Somehow fresh and musky at the same time, which seems like a good capture of a fairy tale. As a BPAL rose lover, this is a great addition to my collection.

When I saw the relatively straightforward note list on Insects, I thought I could imagine what it would smell like. NOPE. Another great reminder to be very humble when it comes to imagining scent from description! It's really tough to pull individual notes from this. My husband said 'cologney' when I asked for his take, which is probably a synonym for well-blended and without edges. I would not pull patchouli, purple fruits, neroli, or opoponax from this on a blind sniff. What it does smell like to me is the iridescent, blue-green-purple-black exoskeleton of a beetle—a bit hard and dark and shimmering. It smells nice on me but amazing on my husband, who has added this bottle to his personal collection.

Rosewood always goes on a bit soapy and sour on me at first, but Between Your Heart and Mine deepens (quickly) on the drydown to a smooth vanilla-rose, like a woodsier, blushed shadow of The Waltz. The two scents are very complementary and they layer beautifully. Between Your Heart and Mine isn't sweet, and the rosewood runs a bit powdery (in a way I've come to enjoy), but this is really relaxing and smells antique in a good way.

Dark and Weary is really interesting...such a difference from wet to dry! The oudh and benzoin lead on my skin when wet, and it's a really strong dose of both. The effect is of something appropriately unsettling. That lifts after about ten minutes and I'm left with a new stage, one that's driven by the oudh and bourbon vanilla. The tobacco also emerges more strongly, adding a chewy, leafy, smoky feel. I like this stage, and the stage that follows—that's mostly like grey smoke with a touch of vanilla and oudh. I would definitely need to be in the right mood to wear this, but I can imagine such a mood!

The Snow at Dusk is gorgeous—my favorite of the new BPAL Yules this year. On my skin, this is the snow note from Snow White, blended softly with notes that smell like pale purples, pale oranges, and pale greys. It's definitely well-blended, with no one note leaping out at me—it smells the way a streaked sky looks at dusk, all swirled together with some warmth and some coolness. There's something hypnotic about this (perhaps the opium tar!) that makes me keep bringing my wrist back to my nose. The inspiration for this Yule sub-series was taken from one of my favorite short stories—James Joyce's "The Dead", which is the last story in his book Dubliners. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it (the whole book). I read "The Dead" each year at Christmas and take something different from it each time. This scent pays homage beautifully—thank you, Beth!

Second Spring is a pomegranate-currant to amber-honey to cypress-patchouli on me, with each note having a moment of prominence before melting into what smells like a currant-amber-pom-patchouli melange. Very evocative of the changing colors!