Keslynn

In the bottle, a strong white floral cradled by caramel. On my skin, the white floral really comes to the fore. Usually, when I think white floral, it's very gentle, but this is not. The flowers are white and gorgeous and in your face, and you don't mind because being in your face means you can sniff them more. The caramel note floats through the bottom, adding a gorgeous creaminess without tipping the blend over into foodiness. Now that I've read scent descriptions, I can recognize the red musk, but it's so well blended that I wouldn't have picked it out on my own. It adds a hint of spice. Despite me describing the notes separately, this scent really is blended very well. It's hard to pick everything out. Unheavenly City gives me the feeling of both power and sensuality. This is a woman with a spicy temper beneath a sexy demeanor. Verdict: Love this scent. It's complex and very very sexy.

In the imp, Victoria is a strong floral scent. On my skin, she blossoms into a strong tea rose. I can't really pick out the lily separately so it's either not there or is blending really well with the rose. Later on, the rose is softened by the vanilla musk, which adds a nice creaminess to the edges. Verdict: Rose haters beware. Victoria is pretty much all tea rose. This blend is nice but not something that really wows me. I enjoy rose, but I think I prefer it with spice rather than sweetness.

In the imp, Tristran is all a piney woodsy smell. On my skin, still woodsy with a pine edge. I was confused at how pine-like it smelled until I looked up redwood and discovered it's a conifer. I'm not really getting any of the other notes at all. I think if I try really hard I can detect the tonka smoothing out the edges of the redwood, but it could also be me trying too hard. Verdict: All evergreen, all the time channel. Nice for those who like the woodsy scents, but not for me.

In the imp, Aziraphale is a strange musty woody odor. On my skin, he goes right into being bookish. It's all dry paper with a hint of dust on the edges of the heavy tomes. I'm also getting a hint of the wood shelves. It's one of those scents that's really spot-on for something - in this case, a library. Then, it does something odd. Aziraphale gets a little stinky from cataloging and now smells like books and BO. Verdict: Aziraphale smells exactly like a library. This is a neat scent although I'm not sure I'd want to smell like a library. But... the turn towards BO ruins it. Off to the swaps with this angel.

Initially on my skin, the Mad Hatter is pure mint (from the pennyroyal I guess). There's also the slightest edge of citrus. It's a fresh summery kind of scent. As time passes, the mint fades and it becomes more of a "male" scent. Not rocky studly man cologne like Axe or Phoenix. It's more an old-fashioned refined manliness. I'm picturing a man clothed in Victorian clothing with a top hat on so this scent is definitely evocative of the intended subject. I'm getting the citrus as the primary note here, but there's a nice bottom to it that's giving it that masculine feel. I quite like it. It's a different kind of manly and also smells very fresh. Verdict: I like this fresh scent though it's not something that's really me. It reminds me of my boyfriend's body scent so it'll probably work ten times better on him.

Normally, BPAL lavender scents tend to behave the same for me. In the bottle and initially on my skin, it's all lavender. Then the lavender will step back, or more often disappear completely, to let the other notes come out to play. Yvaine was no different although the lavender seemed to take much longer to fade than most other blends. In the bottle and on my skin, Yvaine is pretty much lavender single note. A little while later, the lavender gets a slightly sweeter edge though it's still all lavender stealing the show. Finally, after a few hours, the lavender has stepped aside to let the magnolia shine. Unfortunately, it seems I don't like magnolia. It's kind of soapy and a little to perfumey sweet to my nose. Verdict: I will have to admire the twinkling Yvaine in the book because she doesn't work on my skin.

This is the Stardust scent I was most looking forward to because: 1. I am a plum whore. We loves it. 2. The description is just so fitting and awesome and purple. I tried the scent at the EC Will Call. I was slightly worried when Witch Queen smelled a little like cleaning fluid in the bottle. Yet I was undaunted because there are many scents that smell funny in the bottle and end up luscious on my skin. The result? Still cleaning fluid. I can smell my yummy plum and something a little floral and a little incensy but mostly there's this watery astringent kind of scent to it. Verdict: Unfortunately, Witch Queen doesn't work on my skin despite my high hopes.

Oh my god! I got to try this one at a will call (after lusting for a while) and I went home with a bottle. It's that good. This one dries down pretty much the way it smells in the bottle so I'm not going to make a distinction. Blood Countess is very deeply fruity and floral. The plum is the primary note and it's juicy and dark. I can picture dark juices dripping down someone's chin. The second strongest note is something floral. I'm thinking it's the gardenia though it could be lilac (or both). Whatever it is, it makes the juicy plumminess somehow very darkly feminine and lush. It's incredibly sexy. For me, Blood Countess is almost too sweet, but it never actually goes over the edge. Verdict: One of my top 10. I think I've been wearing it more than anything else lately.

In the bottle, this is very ozone-y. It smells a lot like those "Mountain Fresh" laundry detergents. On my skin, there's still a ton of ozone. It moves from Mount Fresh Laundry Detergent into the Land of Zest-fully Clean. I agree with many other reviewers - it's very masculine and bracing. I figured on ozone coming out manly on my skin, but I got a bottle anyway because of the cool label art and a lingering hope that it would be more aquatic. Verdict: Manly fresh. Nice but not for me. I'll see how it wears on the boyfriend.

At first, I didn't want to put this one on. The smell in the imp was very sour. But... I've been surprised many times before, and this time is no different. On my skin, Lilith is pure sex. I'm not talking conventionally sexy either. This is sexy as in "I will take you now and drink your soul while I f**k you and you will love every single second of it." It's very dark because of the myrrh and musk, but there's also a polished fruit note to it from the wine. To my nose, the rose is blending with the wine to give it a dark floral edge. This is hot as hell. I put on Lilith and then put on a skirt, heels and lace top. I hardly ever wear feminine clothes, especially sexy predator clothes. Verdict: A scent for the sex demon in you. Makes me want to ravish someone.

I find this scent to be really hard to describe (though I'm obviously giving it a shot ). In the imp, Lysander is an old time cologne-y kind of smell. On my skin, he turns into a woody scent, but it's not a deep woody scent. I'm definitely in the woods, but this is the bracken rather than the trees. Small thin branches without the deepness of a true tree scent. I'm picturing tangled sun-dried vines across a forest floor. Upon further whiffing, I think I can catch the barest hint of the lime rind and a little of the benzoin. I was hoping that I would get more tonka from this blend, but no such luck. I was on the fence about this one. It's lovely but I wasn't sure how often I'd wear it. Then I had my boyfriend sniff. He got the look of love and said "smells like that perfume that gives me a hard on." Verdict: Definite bottle purchase.

In the imp, LII is a soft floral that doesn't kick you in the head. There's also a soapy kind of edge to it. On my skin, this scent is so soft. I have to really sniff to get anything. It's been so long since I've smelled a pansy, but I'm pretty sure this is the scent. It's gentle but upbeat. As it wears, the scent actually gets a good deal stronger, though it remains a soft feminine scent. The mental image I get is of a young Victorian lady holding her baby in an early summer garden. Beautiful and gentle and maybe a little untouchable. Verdict: Soft and gentle is so not me, but this is very pretty. A Victorian scent. I like it!

In the imp, hello, rose! On my skin, Helena is almost completely a wet, almost sour rose. It reminds me a lot of Wilhelmina Murray or Lady Luck Blues, and it's quite lovely. As it dries down, the rose remains dominant. If I sniff near my wrist, I can catch the white florals, but the throw is all rose. Verdict: Helena is a gorgeous rose, but I feel like I already have rose blends that smell very similar. Probably off to the swaps.

In the imp, Hermia is actually kind of foody to my nose. It's a floral with a crisp edge, which I think my odd nose is translating into an almost lemony cookie kind of smell. Yeah, I don't know how that works. It's a nice fresh scent though. On my skin, Hermia is spicy and soapy. The spiciness is reminiscent of Shub soap, but oddly enough, this turns soapier than that. It's a warm waxy smell like many of the Yankee Candle fall scents. Because of the pink pepper and honeysuckle, I was hoping that it would be a spicy floral like Aries. Unfortunately, I'm not getting any of my beloved honeysuckle and the spice is more gingerbready than peppery. I think the amber might be what's going funny on my skin. Verdict: My skin chemistry is doing very strange things with Hermia. Alas, I think she's off to the swaps.

In the bottle, Blue Moon is a cool floral. I can smell the cucumber quite strongly as well and maybe a touch of the woods. On my skin, wow! This is a gorgeous blue/white floral. I think I can detect the ylang ylang, which doesn't go off on me like it sometimes can, but otherwise, I can't really pick out individual notes. The cucumber is AWOL and I can't really smell the woods either. It's pretty much all a haunting floral. It makes me think of fields of flowers in moonlight. It's beautiful and complex and somehow untouchable. Cool without being icy. Verdict: Beautiful and aloof blue/white floral. Glad I have a full bottle.

In the bottle, Gemini is lavender!!! All lavender, which I don't mind, especially since my boyfriend loves it. On my skin, the lavender is still lord of the scent. For a while, it's almost lavender SN, but then it gets a lovely softer edge to it. There's the orchid sidling up beside the lavender. Not sure if I'm smelling the benzoin or frankincense. I'm horrible at picking out notes. To me, it almost smelled like the rich plumminess of Lenore or Mme Moriarty. Whatever it is, it's wonderful and is keeping my nose glued to my wrist. Verdict: The surprise smash hit from my Rose/Blue Moon order. I love it!

In the bottle, Arachnina is very musky, smoky and dark. There is only the lightest hint of currant. On my skin, it has a very smoky background, though not enough to be irritating. The currant adds a roundness to the smoke, and the lily adds just the right amount of femininity. I wish I could explain it better. Arachnina is just plain sexy. She's smoky and sultry, and as the description says "hypnotic." I cannot stop smelling myself when I have this on. Verdict: Dark and sexy. I love it!

In the bottle, Lady Luck is very floral with a slightly sour note to it. Mostly floral, though. On my skin, OMG gorgeous roses! At first, there's an almost tart edge to the rose, but then whatever is doing this settles down into a nice floral complement to the rose. I'm not really picking out any other distinct notes. Everything else blends together very well. It's very perfumey, but not in the cheap way. This is definitely the "wow, how much did you shell out for this?" kind of perfumey. Heady and what I like to call a "high floral." Classy and seductive. As far as that dominant rose note goes, it's very similar to the rose in Wilhelmina Murray. It's kind of astringent, which I like. Verdict: An amazing high floral. I love it! So glad I have a bottle.

A base of cocoa absolute and white chocolate with thirteen baneful and beneficial bits: cardamom, fig meat, grains of paradise, rice flower, chamomile, sandalwood, catnip, clove, and a bundle of five blessed blossoms and herbs. In the bottle, new 13 is chocolate and green herbs. Something smells a little bitter so I'm not sure how this combo is going to work on my skin. On my skin, the scent is initially all chocolate and warm spices (cardamom/nutmeg). This is delicious gourmet candy. Then the scent morphs and becomes very herbal. At this stage, it goes a little bit soapy but then settles down. This reminds me of the herb canisters I used to have in my kitchen. It's a very soft green herbal, not violently so a la Wolfsbane. Verdict: Has at least 2 distinct stages - spicy chocolate and herbal. I'm not normally an herbal scent kind of person, but I enjoy this. It's a very unique scent. Glad I have a bottle.

In the bottle, VD (snicker) smells like wood shavings with a creamy caramel touch. On my skin, it's mostly wood scent. This is the kind of wood smell you get in a place where there's new construction. I keep sniffing my wrists because I can't believe that scent could be captured in a bottle. Only Beth could work such magic. This is very cool. The only problem is that I wanted a little more of the sweetness that I smelled from the bottle sniff. I'm not getting any of the foody stuff, and it's somewhat disappointing. Verdict: Wood shavings with only the barest sweetness. I wanted more of the foody, but this is still a very unique scent. I find it strangely fascinating. I'll probably keep my bottle.

This is definitely a strange (but good) one and definitely a morpher. When I first put it on my skin, it was very earthy with a hint of a dark floral. Then the earthiness retreated to the edges and there is a dark rich scent that's floral or maybe aquatic. It makes me think "round" which is probably not helpful for anyone else. Maybe dark aquatic? Whatever it is, it smells pretty nice. Then, the caramel stops by to say hello and sweeten the whole deal. Mmmmm... Caramel. At this stage, Bad Luck Woman reminds me of Tiresias, though she doesn't have the sharpness of tobacco. She's earthier and definitely on the dark feminine side. Makes me think of the whole Hooker With A Heart of Gold motif. Then it gets weird. I'm eating dinner and not paying as much attention to obsessively sniffing my perfume, and I get a whiff of Sugar Skull. I am really confused by this because I haven't worn SS in a while. I think maybe it's on my clothes, but that can't be it either. Turns out, Bad Luck Woman is out at the IHOP. The scent has completely changed into the maple syrup-y smell from Sugar Skull. Not what I expected at all. Verdict: Unsure. I really like the initial stages - earthy, aquatic and caramel - but I am a little weirded out by the total morph into a Sugar Skull clone. I will have to try it a few more times before I decide. Edited to add: Verdict is this one's a keeper! My boyfriend loves it. He actually requested that I wear it again, and he's never done that before.

In the imp and initially on my skin, Psyche is all sharp lavender. As she dries, the lavender disappears and something goes weirdly soapy. Frankincense can sometimes smell dirty on me, but this time, it's playing nice. Too bad the soap is there. Then, poof! She's gone. My skin ate it. Verdict: A nice blast of lavender, then soapy. I'll be swapping this one.

I love foody scents, but a lot of BPAL cakes go a little off on my skin. It often ends up too buttery sweet (Cockaigne, MB: Closet) or weirdly bready/doughy (Haloa, Ostara). Eat Me doesn't do either of those things! It smells like really good cake without any strange side trips. The cake is moist and rich, more similar to pound cake in texture than cake mix. As a previous reviewer mentioned, this is the kind of cake that isn't served with icing. It makes my mouth water. The currants come out a little later as a juicy accent to the scrumptious cake. I feel like I'm sitting down to tea outdoors at a sunny table with freshly baked repast. Verdict: LOVE! A perfect foody scent. I will definitely need a bottle.

I love this scent! It's cupcakes! Pure delicious cupcakes. No plasticky weirdness, and oddly enough, no cheeseecake at all. Some cakey scents turn weird on my skin, but this one is just perfect. Mmmmm....

In the imp and wet on my skin, all i get is buttery pie crust, which is quite yummy. As it dries down, the rose starts to come out more until it's the same strength as the pie crust smell. A delicious gourmet rose cake! These are not scents that I would have ever imagined would go together, but they work wonderfully. Later on, I get a slight hint of the blackcurrant, but the main notes are the rose and cakey scent. My boyfriend says it smells like butterscotch and likes it, despite his dislike of rose scents. Verdict: Foody and floral together? Count me in! I think I might need a full bottle.