LiberAmoris

Bewildered in a Dream smells like an amazing herbal/green/black tea blend. I like lavender blends in general, but sometimes they're a bit too astringent for me. Here, the lavender is balanced with the tea notes and orange blossom so beautifully. I smell something pink and flowering at the top and something dusky at the bottom, but they're seamlessly blended. This definitely smells like tea in the springtime, and is very relaxing (perhaps due to the lavender?). This would actually make a great sleep scent, I think. It smells clean and fresh and calming. Lovely!

Oh my goodness, the MYRRH. If you love myrrh, you should definitely give Death is Venus to Her a try, because it's very pretty here and definitely the star on my skin. Wet, this is red rose and myrrh in what smells like equal proportion, with the clove adding a lot of character and the black jasmine closely behind but beautifully in check. If patchouli wasn't a listed note, I'm not sure I would pick it up, although there is something smooth filling in all the gaps so that might be the aged patchouli. I had to look up Cabreuva, which is apparently a tropical tree with an EO that's similar to balsam of Peru.

Dry, this is myrrh rounded off with rose and clove. The jasmine is there, just at the edges, adding sweetness. It's giving me flashbacks of a friend of mine from college, who always seemed so sophisticated because she wore very expensive attar or rose and smoked clove cigarettes. As you might imagine, she smelled amazing and the best thing in the world was to borrow one of her sweaters. The myrrh here is really stellar. It's part churchy, part sexy—sacred and profane! I think this will also age magnificently, and I intend to hang on to my bottle long enough to find out.

The Gourd of Deprivation really smells like fall...and doughnuts. I took the plunge on this atmo based on Mel's review, and I'm so glad I did! It smells to me like a sunny, late fall day when the air is cold and carries hints of kettle doughnuts, dry grasses, and woodsmoke. I can smell faraway fires in it, but they are in the distance, or have already passed through...this is no Brimstone or Djinn. So beautiful and weirdly addictive...I've already gone through 1/4 of my bottle!

Boo hair gloss is pretty much just vanilla cream goodness for the hair. I also get less linen in the hair gloss than I do in the perfume oil—this smells just like vanilla pudding on a linen tablecloth. Unlike other reviewers, I find this to be the lightest scented hair gloss I own and after drying my hair, it's almost imperceptible. But it leaves my hair beautifully shiny and glossy, with a faint sweetness that never competes with whatever scent I pick out for the day. When I want a little more Boo, I just dot on some perfume.

Some Strangeness in the Proportion also smells pink on me...almost like a peppery pink bubblegum when wet! The woods come forward on the drydown, and then I can smell the sandalwood and oudh and vanilla. The labdanum and saffron are subtle, but that pink pepper note remains really prominent. After an hour or so, it's very incensey with a bit of pink sweetness. It's a really interesting combination of notes, but I can't stop smelling (imagining?) Dubble Bubble! I'll set this aside and try it again in a couple of weeks, because there are times when the woods are really forward, and they're absolutely gorgeous. I agree with VioletChaos that this will age like a dream!

Obatala and Brown Jenkin are my fave coconuts. Psychodynamic Discharge looks promising as well (hope the vetiver is restrained!): black leather and red musk with aged black patchouli, Chinese rose, black pepper, coconut meat, Haitian vetiver, and igneous red ginger.

Somehow, in 2008, I did the right thing and ordered a bottle of The Illustrated Woman...I just didn't review it. Many years later, this is even more syrupy and viscous than when I first got it, and more concentrated. Every single note here gets to sing: the smoky vanilla, patchouli, pine pitch, resins and tobacco work together to make the scent feel outdoorsy and incensey. The honey and skin musk smooth everything right out.

 

The effect is almost hypnotically calming: this is 'slow the f*ck down' in a bottle. It's also absolute catnip to anyone who smells it. Coworkers, strangers in the elevator, friends...everyone loves the smell of The Illustrated Woman and wants to lean in.

 

Hours later into the drydown, it's a resiny, foresty, slightly smoky skin musk. Great stuff, and I'm so glad I hung on to my bottle!

This really is a great meditation scent. I love clary sage, and it definitely boosts this blend. Beautiful frankincense, sandalwood, rose, and clary sage—in equal proportion on me. Definitely mind clearing. At times, this goes into pickle-rose territory, which I think is just the intersection of frankincense and rose. But then it swerves out of pickle town and goes right back to resiny rose with sandalwood and clary sage. Very contemplative and relaxing.

Venustas is really lovely—my favorite of this year's Liliths. I do get a bit of citrus, but only at the very beginning. Then it's a dead match between the pale, mossy fougere and the incensey, churchy frankincense and myrrh. It does remind me a bit of Dorian, but it's lighter, wispier, and more resiny. After an hour or so, it does smell a bit soapy, but I like it—it smells clean and subtle and calming.

Oh wow, Incipient Madness is like Super Musk! The red patchouli, musk, and tobacco make for a dark, deep, sweet ride that's less smoky than I had imagined it would be...between the smoky musk and the tobacco, it's still very well balanced. The honeyed black currant adds sweetness and something tart and bright. It mellows to a incensey, honeyed musk and the tobacco note comes forward a bit more—really nice. It definitely has the feel of a classic '20s or '30s perfume, and lasts and lasts on me. This goes into my 'perfect for a night out' top ten list.

Streets of Detroit is totally fascinating. Whatever is in the motor oil note, it smells just realistic enough to be completely evocative without being overly terpenic. The black musk accord is dark and deep and smooth like tarmac. The myrrh is really subtle—definitely not the strongest note on me. All together, this is perfect for the scene in OLLA and captures beautifully the mystery and allure of driving through a city late at night. It mellows out to black musk with a touch of oil; surprisingly, delightfully wearable. And truly sexy—the black musk accord is slightly animalic, and smells a bit like danger barely restrained. I think this would be amazing on my husband, but I might take it out for a spin as well from time to time.

Vasilissa is the kind of blend that I think won't be for me because it's so sweet and youthful...and then it is. I have to be in the right mood to wear this, but when I want a BPAL that smells pink, pink, pink—this is the one (well, Vasilissa and Pink Moon). It's so sweet and pretty, but there's also something grounding and smart in there (as with all fairytale heroines who survive!). It's tough to pick out the individual notes, it just smells like a layered pink musk, like innocence carried through to knowledge and power. It's also a great blender, playing well with Snake Oil, Snow White, and The Rose—anything that can take a hit of a candied pink flower.

 

This smells like Andie's dress in Pretty in Pink. I know that's something of a polarizing fashion love, but—haters to the left—I'm team seam ripper.

Blacker than the Raven Wings of Midnight is like a list of my dream notes, but when I first tested it...it didn't hit me the way I'd hoped it would. I set it aside for a few days and tested again today. It opens with a smell that reminds me of tempera paint, a scent from childhood that I've always loved—I think it's something about the way the patchouli and black tea leaf fougere are colliding. That burns off quickly and then it's like the most heavenly burnished patchouli and sandalwood, with the vanilla and osmanthus cutting through the darkness like shimmering beams. The fougere is stunning, and the suggestion of incense is just that—like the smell of incense in a room where it's been burned, but is not currently burning.

 

As it dries down, it's almost intoxicating. Equal parts elegant and earthy, polished and primal. The fougere is gone within twenty minutes, leaving a tracery of tea leaves in the bottom of the cup. The patchouli mingles with the sandalwood and incense and vanilla and stays close. The osmanthus stitches them together with barely-there gossamer. I get no anise or licorice note at all. After a couple of hours, it's a very faint sandalwood, patchouli, and vanilla skin scent. Gorgeous.

The Lab's roses are so wonderful, I don't know how I missed this one for so long! I got to test it during NYCC this year and fell in love. Gorgeous red rose, warm plum, and red sandalwood. The bergamot is short-lived on my skin, just the way I like it. An hour after application, it's one complicated, plummy red rose. Total keeper.

The White Witch really does smell red! When I saw the note list, it was an instant buy, but I was a little worried about the vetiver. But the vetiver is completely in check, adding just a bit of dark sharpness, like a delicate, sharp thorn on a rose. Wearing it is like working through a cascade of reds: red musk, pomegranate, red rose, with patch and violet leaf attendant. The bourbon vanilla adds sweetness. It definitely has an incensey vibe—the red musk, patchouli, and amber give it a pleasant 'blurriness'—but if this skews hippie, it's one upscale hippie.

The tobacco note in Visions of Autumn VII is so beautiful. The opoponax is also perfect here, sweet and resiny—one of my favorite notes in the BPAL catalogue. I can pick out the myrrh, black sandalwood, and black pepper, and they round everything out but don't step forward. There's something restrained and elegant about this blend...I think it would pair just as well with a beaded dress as it would with jeans and a t-shirt. It has a classic feel, like it would be at home in some gorgeous art deco flacon. Lovely!

Wow, verbena! Visions of Autumn IV is really strong on the verbena and orange blossom, with the myrrh giving resiny depth. The champaca flower I catch from time to time—like flowery incense. It's a pretty fall floral, but it might be a little too much verbena for me. If you're a verbena fan, try this!

Patchouli honey! Visions of Autumn III is a honey-forward, light patchouli blend on me. I get very little vanilla and almost no cinnamon here—they're really subtle. On the drydown, it becomes a honeyed skin scent with just a hint of patch. I like it on its own, but it's also pretty spectacular layered with Snake Oil.

Rose geranium is definitely prominent in Visions of Autumn II, but I really enjoy it—it smells like dry rose and a light touch of something green and nearly bitter, like latex sap, to my nose. The other notes are supporting players, but they add a lot in subtle ways. The leather and balsam give it a woodsy base, and the patchouli is so light that I can barely smell it at all but seems to fill in any gaps for a smoother drydown. The violet leaf comes and goes like a shard of something sweet and green and almost camphorous.

 

Overall, this wears like one of those days in autumn where flowers are still blooming, but not for long.

I bought Visions of Autumn I for my husband, but wanted to test on myself before I turned it over. The cedar and bay are strong on me, with the pepper, amber, and oudh close behind. On the drydown, this is like a complex bay leaf—a little sweet, a little peppery, and a lot woodsy. I would definitely recommend this to those who love bay leaf and cedar. The amber is really fascinating here...it comes through sporadically like sunlight on a fall day, giving the other notes a slightly faded gilded quality.

I cannot resist an em dash (or Em Dickinson) so Autumn — Overlooked my Knitting was an automatic add to my Halloweenie order. I wasn't sure it would be a keeper, as I don't normally love the leafy notes. But I do love ambergris accord, so I held out hope.

 

In the bottle and freshly applied, that leafy note is almost too much for me—it's a little sharp. But after just a few minutes, this goes from a bit bitter to pretty pretty. The ambergris and soft wool feel very grey and soft, with bright reds coming through in the currant and fall leaves. Once fully dry, this is like an autumnal, terra firma take on Lyonesse. Definitely keeping my bottle, and can't wait to pair this with a cozy wool sweater.

If loving Pumpkin Spice hair gloss makes me a basic bitch, I'm ok with that. This is just like the perfume oil; freshly-ground pumpkin pie spice with just a hint of pumpkin. It blends well with a lot of the Halloweenie scents I've been wearing, and lasts so long that I can smell it the next morning. I recently wore the hair gloss and perfume together to work and felt like I was walking around in an autumnal cloud all day. At times it smells almost like pumpkin pie chai! Definitely a keeper, and one that I feel certain I'll pull out in September/October next year, when I'm pining for fall scents.

I do get pumpkin in Pumpkin Spice Everything, but just the tiniest bit. It's possible that I'm imagining it due to the scent association with the spices. Definitely pumpkin pie spice, but more wearable than that would suggest—on me, it smells more like chai after an hour or so than anything else. As Atrous says above, it's great for layering. Any blend that needs a fall kick could benefit from a bit o' Pumpkin Spice Everything. Pumpkin Spice all the things!

Resiny, honeyed pumpkin! Like the other pumpkins from this year, the pumpkin is very well balanced here. The honey is the most prominent note on me, followed by the champaca, and then pumpkin. Oudh and frankincense add depth, warmth, and more sweetness. After it settles down, it smells like honey made from pumpkin-loving bees, with a waft of incense. Very pretty, and another blend that will be fun to wear until it's time to start wearing Yules.

Pumpkin chai! Pumpkin I is another foody delight from this year's Halloweenies. I love the pumpkin here, restrained and subtle, taking a backseat to the spice. Definitely feels like the same pumpkin 'family' as PSE, but creamier and ginger-ier. The cream and ginger combo make this super comforting, like Sudha Segara drinking tea in the pumpkin patch.