LiberAmoris

Oooh, so pretty. 51 is polished and well-blended. It would be perfect for work, as it’s very light and nearly elegant. My skin picks up the honeydew and freesia the most, but it’s also got a great, greenish glow of a drydown that seems to be powered by the musks. I really like it, I just wish it stuck around a little longer on me. Even so, I think I might put this on my bottle list! It's one of those blends that just makes me feel happy.

Holy hell, this does smell like Potion! I really like the spicy sweetness of carnation, and Pink Moon 2007 is a carnation-centric blend for sure. The phlox gives it a little sweetness and lift that makes it feel springy and fresh and truly pink. It lasts a good long time on me, for a floral, and lingered in my hair for a full 24 hours.

I really love Dark Delicacies. I've been wearing it for like the last three days straight, and I don't normally do that, so I know I'm in love. It's so smooth---the patchouli and coconut inform the blend, but they're buffed down to an elegant and sensual undertow. The orchid is perfect here---with just enough floral crispness to give the blend an edge, but not so much that it becomes a predominately floral blend. The resin helps too, providing a depth and smoky sillage that puts it firmly into the 'come-hither' category for me. It's vampy, it's upscale, and it puts a little swing in my step when I wear it.

Sloth is an indolent mix of vetiver and myrrh. It comes off a bit powdery on my skin, and the vetiver is surprisingly well-behaved. It smells heavy and languorous, like a long, dark sleep. Not something I'm likely to reach for, but a great capture of the 'sin.'

Whiskey is something I love the smell but not the taste of. It reminds me of youthful nights spent at the bar, leaning into people that have a little bit of it hanging on their breath (in a good way!). So even though Mad Sweeney might not be the kind of blend I reach for every day, I'm glad to have it around because it smells just---JUST---like Irish whiskey and oak. And that makes me happy. Straight out of the bottle it definitely is alcoholic. It hurts a little bit to sniff, just like the real thing. But after a few minutes, it's like caramelized oak on me, or like a summer fire when someone's burning loose branches. The whiskey's still there, but it's in the background. The oak note is really the star at this point. This is the kind of BPAL blend that I think I would best appreciate on someone else's skin, as it doesn't quite feel like 'me'. But I would love to be close to someone who wears it well!

Holy crap, this is so good. As others have said, Abhisarika is a floral living large. I love rose, so this is like my happy place. The rose is so pretty here, and Damascus rose must be the kind that always seems to have a dark halo around it to my nose, like there's the slightest hint of leather or something, which dissipates eventually but leaves a bit of darkness in its wake. The orchid is lovely and doesn't overwhelm as it can in other blends for me, the musk is heavenly, and the cream accord is so subtle---not at all like the milk/cream note I know from other blends. It's much softer here. Beautiful stuff.

Virahotkantita is all about the blue lilac. That note is so gorgeous and it's here in large amounts. It's definitely the most prominent note in the blend for me, which is a good thing, because I love it. The only other notes I pick up from the note list are the lily, the frankincense, and the cedar. Overall the blend's not stellar with my chemistry, but because of my great love for lilac, this is one I'll keep and enjoy.

Kalahantarika is really unusual---there's that astringent lavender, unmitigated in this context, and it is sharp---much like the inspiration for the blend, in which harsh words are spoken. But as the lavender cools down, it also seems to regret its sharpness and the other notes come forward like a chorus of repentent thoughts---and they are such lovely herbal-resins, plus the jonquil (narcissus). The result at the drydown is a really pretty, mellow lavendered resin with just a hint of the floral narcissus, and it's so gorgeous. It's the kind of thing I'd definitely reach for as a sleep scent, or if I needed to wind down after a long day. Definitely worth the wait for the sharpness to recede.

I wore Chintamani-Dhupa today at work and I kept thinking I smelled incense burning---but it was me! I have no idea what's in this, but it really is a honeyed incense blend, subtle but searching. It's also tremendously relaxing. I can feel my blood pressure drop just smelling it. It's like being somewhere else, somewhere meditative. I loved the Lupercalia series last year, and this year's additions are just as wonderful.

Vasakasajja is definitely the kind of blend that blooms on the skin. It's pretty in the bottle, but on my skin it's like a tropical flower unfurling. Strangely, I get a melon note from this, and I'm not sure what combo of the notes could be coming across that way, but it's nice all the same. I love the tonka, vanilla, and skin musk here---they're so warm, like flushed skin. Very pretty, very seductive, but eminently wearable to work. Definitely a keeper.

Dolce Stil Nuovo is another unusual lavender blend. Here it's married to the amber and white musk in a really nice glowing way. I don't smell any jasmine here, nor really any rose. The vanilla flower and carnation are just wisps and hints at the edges. It feels cool and elegant. There's a similarity to Lyonesse here at times that I'm quite happy about.

The Oblation is a pink, happy blend on me---reminiscent in that color association of Pink Moon, though not nearly as sweet by a long shot. The lavender here is really ingenious, perfectly blended to play its astringency against the sweetness of the honey. In fact, it’s hard for my nose to tell where the lavender ends and the blackberry begins, which is kind of amazing, I think. There is something innocent and youthful (perhaps even naive) about this blend that aligns wonderfully with the feel of the Swinburne poem. Something to wear on the rare days when I’m not feeling bitter about love!

Kanishta is sexy stuff. Of the new Lupercalia blends I've sampled so far, this is the one that stands out as overtly sexual, almost predatorial---but winningly, like a sexpot with a magnolia flower tucked behind her ear. I'm a sucker for patchouli, so maybe that's what's working on me here. But the whole combination of the patchouli with the jasmine and opium and magnolia and kush---is just wonderful. I love the way the earthy patchouli and high elegant florals collide and collude here. Gorgeous blend. If this is the Other Woman, she's really quite something to contend with.

Anaconda can wrap me up in its death squeeze of caramel any time! Yum. Buttery, sugary, delicious caramel with a hint of Snake Oil. It makes me want dessert.

Faiza is one that I'm glad I tried a few times, because the first time it just didn't strike me as something I needed to hang on to. But I wore it again yesterday and holy hell, this is beautiful stuff. As others have said, the gazillion notes are seamlessly blended and roll elegantly into each other like the muscles on a snake as it moves. It's just gorgeous. This is the kind of blend that I could see myself wearing with a pair of jeans and a t-shirt or a slinky dress. It's feminine without being prissy or uptight, it's sensual and warm, and I think I absolutely need to put it on my bottle list.

The Music of Erich Zach is fascinating stuff. I have to say I have not smelled any other BPAL blend that even remotely resembles it. And it's got a strange sort of sexuality about it that's kind of messing with my head, because I keep getting whiffs of tamarind chutney from it! There's something very compelling about the mixture, something exotically foody but not sweet, something a little bit feral and dangerous, something outdoorsy and natural. It's a bizarre combo, but it's more than the sum of its parts. I probably wouldn't reach for this as a personal fragrance, but it's so amazingly evocative that I think I should probably hold onto the imp for a while. If I met a guy that smelled like this, it would be a foregone conclusion!

Habu reminds me of fresh cut grass. There's definitely something very viridescent about it, vigorous and alive like springtime. Although I love that feeling, the bamboo note is one I'd rather have around me in the air but not on my person. It's beautiful, though. And if you enjoyed the Asian moons, this is likely to work for you. The Snake Oil comes out just a bit on the drydown---if I didn't know it was in here, I wouldn't know it's in here.

Australian Copperhead's really such a berry blend, and the acai note is really interesting---not a sweet berry so much, but more tart. It smells like the dried goji berries I keep around for snacking. As much as I like the note, berry-prominent blends aren't usually ones that I enjoy wearing on my skin. And although the smoked vanilla and Snake Oil do emerge on the drydown to dim and darken the berryliciousness of this, it's still too much for me right now. I think I'll also be setting this one aside for a little aging, to see if that acai note can come down a little bit.

Wowza, minty! Green Tree Viper is some seriously sinus-clearing stuff right out of the bottle. Then it's all about the bergamot and green tea. I don't really detect much Snake Oil in here, maybe just a little around the edges. Mostly it comes across as a slightly minty Earl Grey tea on my skin, with that 'green' feel from the green tea note. As others have noted, very refreshing and mind-clearing. Surprisingly wearable for me, given all the mintage in here. I think this would also be great in the oil burner on a day when I'm having difficulty concentrating.

Now this is an aquatic I can really get into. Banded Sea Snake is like Snake Oil plus Lyonesse on me, and I could not be happier. The result is a dark aquatic with something lurking in it, like a brackish, moss-green pool teeming with naiads. I can't stop sniffing my wrists. It's a little bit hypnotic.

Asp Viper's like a sexy almond cookie! That initial hit of almond is really strong, but it fades quickly to a warm, marzipan-ed Snake Oil with the mandarin and myrrh rounding it out. I wasn't expecting to like this as much as I do, as almond's one of those notes that kind of makes me queasy sometimes because it's so strong and sweet, but here it's perfect. A definite keeper.

Death Adder is a true morpher on my skin. When I first put it on, I thought the vetiver was going to knock me out. It's strong, and I'm not a vetiver person. But after about ten minutes, it really backed off, and I got more black coconut (yum!) and opoponax (double yum!). At this stage, it's much more balanced and I can see myself maybe reaching for this when I want something darker and more dangerous in feel. I think it's worth aging a bit to see if the vetiver backs off a little more, but even if it doesn't, I think I might be able to wear this when I get in the right mood. It's really kind of unapologetically sexy and rough-hewn!

King Cobra is incensey heaven. It's not showy in the bottle, but on the skin it absolutely unfolds and is maybe one of my favorite incensey BPAL blends ever. The Snake Oil is the true and recognizable base here, with the orris, frankincense, and copal rounding it out and giving it a lot more sillage. The definite and immediate association for me is church incense, although it also smells like some decidedly secular loose incense I bought on the street one time on St. Marks. I just need the tiniest bit of King Cobra to send scent absolutely everywhere in the room, it's that strong. Mmmm. Very nice.

Western Diamondback is like the Snake Oil that tips its hat and calls you 'mam. I love the tonka here, and the leather is just perfect. When it dries down, it's just so warm and snuggly and rustic. I would love to smell this on a guy some time, but it also wears well on my skin and I can see this being a comfort scent of sorts for me.

Saw-Scaled Viper is crazy hot stuff. Wow. Spice lovers, this is the snake for you! The first few minutes are pretty intense, but then everything starts mellowing and it's a vibrant but not incendiary mix of the ginger, cinnamon, and cassia. It's very invigorating. As this dries down, I also get a hint of the 'feral' note mentioned by others, and what's incredible is that it actually kind of smells like a real snake to me. Amazing.