LizziesLuck

The subject of our latest #BPAL7wordstory contest was Greed. The winning entry was submitted by Melanie C: Killed the last rhino for its horn. Ambergris accord, orris root, and carrot seed. Wow, no one has reviewed this yet?? I ADORE carrot seed and I love ambergris, so I had to give this a go, despite orris almost always smelling terrible on me. Wet: Gorgeous glittering carrot seed (Don't ask me why it smells glittery, I don't know). With musky, slightly watery ambergris and powdery orris. The orris isn't too terrible here yet, somehow the powderiness kind of works? But really I would much prefer it without it. I want a carrot seed single note. Dry: This settles and comes together beautifully and is really pretty stunning. The carrot seed is dominant but backed nicely by the ambergris, which becomes really smooth and mellow. The orris just adds some vague slightly powdery, slightly creamy sweetness. I only got a decant in a bottle of this, and will likely want more, so I am glad these seem to be GC for the meantime! LOVE that carrot seed!

I feel like this is one of those frimps I have received a million times, and kept thinking I must have already tried it, and passing it on...but eventually I realized I never did try it. And then of course I didn't get one for ages. LOL. Wet: Some kind of familiar candy...or maybe fruit punch? It's just on the tip of my tongue, exactly what it reminds me of...that's frustrating. Sweet, fruity, slightly herbal undertones. Interesting! Maybe a hint of spice too. Dry: Powdery fruit candy! Like make sweet tarts? It has gone back and forth between that and fruit punch. Sweet, fruity and fun! I like it but it's not something I would wear. Unless I all of a sudden come into some money tomorrow, and then I will slather it daily forever! LOL

Wet: The paper note is really strong in this on me, and I really like it! I was expecting cologne, but this is really nice. It's somehow warm and clean at the same time, and has an ineffable quality I am having a hard time describing. I can't really pick up the leather or coffee. It's mostly just paper with hints of an almost green or herbal sort of cologne. It does smell kind of like an office, the more I sniff at it. It's different, and interesting. Not completely masculine so far, I would say more unisex leaning a bit masculine. I don't think it would be particularly wearable on me. but I am enjoying it all the same. Dry: Dries to a skin scent, still mostly paper but now a hint of smoky leather comes through too. It's actually kind of great. I can't see myself wearing it, at this point I just have too many amazing perfumes to choose from, but I am really glad I tried this, it was not what I expected. Lovers of paper/book scents should give it a shot!

I always love catching up on testing some GC imps while on vacation! I know I have tried this years ago, but forgot to review it. My tastes have changed a lot, so I like retrying things occasionally, and I do adore the combo of rose and Myrrh. Wet: Jasmine - heady and sweet, but NOT indolic like it usually is on me. No cat pee! Instead I get popcorn and the plastic bowl it was served in....whaaa? This smells slightly like popcorn and burning plastic, and I don't know why. No idea the age of this imp, and I wonder if it has gone off. Dry: The throw is lots of jasmine, somewhat nice since it's not indolic, but still not a fave note of mine. Nose to skin, smells like burnt plastic and popcorn. SO. WEIRD. Not for me!

Catching up on some imp testing while on vacation! Wet: A soft, woody, salty aquatic that I actually instantly enjoy! Reminds me a bit of Snake Can with the salt mixed with lovely musk (Just in the same vein, not a dupe or anything). I LOVE sarsaparilla, and it comes through nicely here. I don't like aquatics, and was not expecting to like this, but it's not a typical aquatic at all, and I am really digging it. It actually feels perfect for vacation! It's slightly beachy, slighty "hot tropical night", a bit sexy-gritty. It's kind of a bit of everything! I am loving it more and more. Dry: This is really great. Sea salt, warm woody patchouli, a hint of sarsaparilla and musk. I think if the musk and sarsaparilla came through more once dried this would be an instant bottle buy for me, but as it is there is just a touch more patchouli than I want, and the whole scent is just a bit drier and not as sweet as I would want. I may try a whole day full slather - maybe to the beach! I sometimes wish for a beachy scent that isn't coconut, despite how much I love coconut.

Not gonna lie, I wanted to try this mainly because of the name, because neither oudh nor jasmine typically work for me. Wet: OMG so much jasmine and oudh, aka cat pee and feces. This was a stupid stupid idea for my skin chem. I have much regret. I smell like a perfumey outhouse. Dry: The oudh settles and fades out, but the jasmine is still somewhat "pissy". That's just how it rolls on my skin....Anyway, the perfumey part of this scent that I can smell past the outhouse is lovely, so if you don't have my skin chem issues, give this a go!

I had been on a BPAL hiatus and came back shortly after the OLLA's were released - the really popular ones had already sold out. I tried to track most of them down to try, but there were a few I missed, so I was really stoked when they came back (and of course to snag back-ups of all my faves!) Wet: Immediately that gorgeous teak note comes to the forefront - like the teak from Antikythera. But then the cedar comes and stomps all over it. I was hoping a few months would be enough aging to take the edge of the cedar - it wasn't. I do like cedar, but I have learned the hard way it's gotta age quite a while before it's good on me. I can't even smell the rose in this at all, and the teak is only barely detectable beneath all that cedar. Maybe it will dry better? Dry: It does settle a bit, and some syrupy rose comes out, which is nice. The teak is there, and it's gorgeous. But that cedar...it really just needs to age. It's hovering somewhere between pencil shavings and BO and the wonderful warm woody scent it wants to be. I'll keep the decant and age it and see what happens!

I wasn't able to try this before it got discon'd. I bought a bottle of it once (aftermarket) and received a bottle of fractionated coconut oil and was super mad and stopped looking for it. So I was excited that it made a comeback! Not sure why I think I will like it, these are not typical notes I go for.... Wet: Lots of warm brown sugar. I know it says white in the description, but I swear this is caramelly brown sugar! It's yummy. Some lemony tea is coming out a bit too. Overall this is a warm, comforting, snugly scent so far. It makes me want a cup of tea and some sort of baked good, and I feel like it'll be super comforting in the winter. Dry: This doesn't morph much. I never get the bread, the butter, much of the tea, or anything much really other than sugar. A bit of cream. But mostly brown sugar. It's cozy and comforting. I don't love it, but I think it has a place in my collection. I don't own many scents like this anymore, as I have moved away from gourmands, but I still get nostalgic for one once in a while.

Blackberry and lilac are two of my favourite notes, and two notes that seem to get swallowed in most of the scents that I hope they will be prominent in. I don't want to have high hopes for this.....but I do! Wet: This is stunning the instant it touches my skin - gorgeous realistic lilac, greenery and sweet blackberry. As it settles on my skin, I do find myself looking for the tartness of the blackberry that's not here, but otherwise this is lovely. Sweet, delicate, a bit heady. I have a lilac bush beside my driveway. When it's in bloom, I make sure all the windows and the roof of my car are open as I back into my driveway and I get the heady smell of lilacs as I come home. My home is my sanctuary and lilacs have always reminded me of home. We had them all over the property I grew up on as well, from when I was about 2 to 17. So lilacs mean the world to me, and are easily my favourite flower. It makes me happy beyond words that Beth does such a spectacular job of getting that totally realistic lilac note. I just need to find the perfect blend where it sticks around and is not overpowered by all the other notes! Will this be it? (Sorry about the "story hour" here friends, apparently I am a wee bit nostalgic today!) Dry: Sadly this doesn't have longevity on me. I didn't slather it, but had put a fair amount in the crook of my elbow, and it's gone now. Before it faded fully, it was a sweet scent, kind of hard to describe because the blackberry somehow really didn't smell like blackberry to me and it kept confusing my nose. I guess it was meant to smell more like the bush? But I kept missing that berry tartness. The lilac note is lovely. I will likely give this a full day wear before I make any decisions, but I am STILL feeling like I will never find my perfect lilac scent.

When I read the description for this, I thought of Tarantula Fascinator, which has this amazing combo of hay and chocolate that I just ADORE. So I blind bottled it! Really I love hay scents in general, so I am hoping this was a safe choice for me. Wet: Nose to skin I get lots of cacao and Tonka, which is cool because I feel like I can never pick Tonka out of a blend. I get a bit of nose tickly hay, and it makes me smile. The throw has a LOT of grass in it - not the dried grass I was expecting, but a slightly greener note. It's quite lovely. This is a very unique sort of scent, and I am really digging it! Dry: This is so lovely! Hay always has this dry, sort of spicy, perfumey quality on me, and I love it. It's gorgeous here with the subtle cacao, and a good dose of vanillic tonka. I really like it, it's quite different, and I am glad I blind bottled it! It feels like a late summer/early fall kind of scent. It's cooler here today, and I can feel the faintest beginnings of fall in the air, so I slathered this.

Wet: This is a lovely musk on me - sweet, clean, almost-but-not-quite powdery. It somewhat reminds me of the musk from Zorya P or maybe even The Girl, but without the floral notes. As it dries though, it gets "darker" in feel, and grows a bit incensey, which I was not expecting. It's also a tiny bit "woody" (that's not really the right word, but I am not sure what other word would suffice). I wonder if that's the "husk" aspect of the vanilla? This is definitely a scent that I would describe as "more than the sum of it's parts". Dry: This dries totally different than it opens, and it's not what I expected at all. It actually reminds me of a sort of warm woolly sort of musk, like the one in Unicorn and Ram or Hochelaga. I get no vanilla or benzoin anymore. There's an almost leather or suede sort of feel to it....hmmm. I'm not sure what to make of this, it's not at all what I ad hoped for or expected. I will likely let it age a while before trying again, though I got this when it first came out, so it's not settled for quite a bit... ETA: A few hours later I noticed that this was back to being a much sweeter vanilla musk, so.....I don't know. Needs more testing!

I blind bottled this on a whim, as I am obsessed with red sandalwood, and I love coconut and blackcurrant...strawberry is really iffy on me though. Wet: Ooooh this is gorgeous immediately. The red sandalwood is warm and glowing and gorgeous - the same red sandalwood of Sinus Amoris, which is what I hoped. It's actually amazing with the bright, tart fruits. This isn't too sweet at all, as the strawberry is of the fresh variety and not candy like, like I often find it. I don't get any coconut, however I think it adds to the overall warmth of the red sandalwood. This is really unique, and so so good so far. Dry: This doesn't really morph, it remains a glorious combination of warm glowing red sandalwood and woody coconut, with tart juicy fruit. It's an unexpectedly amazing combination. I immediately slathered this all over me. This is an instant stand out - I have nothing like this in my collection. I should likely grab a backup. So glad I tried this, it's so unique. I love that Beth can still surprise me after all this time. <3

I totally forgot I snagged a decant in a bottle of this, and then had a kicking myself "why didn't I try that?" moment, and then was super stoked when I found it! I am not sure if this is the result of having too much on my mind, or too much BPAL...both, lol. Wet: Upon cold sniff from the bottle, it smells like eggnog and I am a mixture of freaked out and delighted, but once it hits my skin it's all about that gorgeous hay note. This smells, to me, like there is cardamom mixed in with the clove. It's spicy and tickles my nose the same way cardamom does, making me smile. This is wonderful - fellow lovers of Hay Moon take note! Dry: I take it back, and say instead that clove lovers should take note! This dries to a sweet, grassy (dried grass) sort of clove. It's a bit earthy. Not sharp or harsh or overly spicy like clove can get, but it's for sure all about the clove now, not the hay. Which I am somewhat sad about, as I have many clove scents I seldom reach for, and only a couple of hay scents that I slather all through late summer and early fall. I hoped this would be another, but alas.

Wet: I couldn't resist dandelion sap plus white musk (both of which I am slightly obsessed with). Dandelion comes out strongest, with fresh sweetness from the pear (but I wouldn't be able to pick out pear if I hadn't been told it was there). There's depth to this, but I can't really pick out the musk or champaca yet either. Dry: Mild, slightly clean, green dandelion. I don't want to call it soapy, because really it's not, but for sure it's clean. I like it, but it's so light and has almost zero throw on me. I will likely use my decant in a bottle, but can't see getting more.

Wet: WOW this is immediately way better than I expected. The skin musk and vanilla combine seamlessly, so this presents like a vanilla musk on me, which I ADORE. The sandalwood and Frank give it an incensey, sophisticated vibe that keep it from dipping into vanilla cupcake territory. This manages to be girly and womanly at the same time, which I love. Love!! It's quite light on me, but I am wondering if that means I can pull off wearing it to work. Dry: This is very much a skin scent, those who like perfumes with tons of throw - this isn't it. But I feel like it's perfect for when you need a pretty, feminine, but unobtrusive scent. It's a faint but rich resinous vanilla musk on me, and I am really happy to have it. I only got a partial, and may need more. Hope it's available for a long time, both so everyone can try it, and also to keep supporting Angel City Junior Derby!

Wet: Gardenia and tuberose can both be really high pitched and screechy on me...they are trying hard to do that here, but the other notes keep reigning them in. I can't smell ambergris, however I do get a dampness to the scent, like there's dew on the blooms. This is all about the florals - the musk and amber incense really can't be picked out either, other than in that this has much more depth than "just a floral". It's settling more and growing more and more lovely the longer I have it on. Gardenia and tuberose are no longer having a fight to the death on my arm, and have settled into a partnership. Very pretty. Dry: This is a beautiful heady, musky floral. It smells lush. It also has that "classic perfume" feel that I always gets from both gardenia and tuberose scents. It's quite lovely, and I am glad I got a partial, but I won't need more...a little goes a long way!

I never tried the original, as I have just recently begun to find there are certain leather notes that don't smell like horrid chemicals on me. Wet: Soft, warm, worn, slightly spicy leather. It reminds me of the leather in Unicorn and Ram, only more prominent. It doesn't read as a single note of leather to my nose, I get a warm animalistic muskiness as well. The whole scent is much warmer than I expected, and I am really enjoying it. I am finding it more comforting than sexy, more "snuggle me" than "spank me", if you will. Dry: This is so nice. It's super cozy and comforting on me. Light, almost a skin scent, low throw. I keep getting faint whiffs though and going in for a bigger sniff. It's lovely. I can't see wearing it, or I would get a bottle. I think this imp is enough for me, as I really just never reach for leather scents, but I am so so glad I got to try this "classic". I never expected to like it so much. Leather lovers, get you a bottle before it's gone again!

I think I have tried the original and wasn't too enthused, but my tastes have changed, so I wanted to give it another go. Wet: Wow, lots of lilac. I love lilac. The lily begins to come through - lily is never great on me, but rounded out by the lilac and floral DB that's beginning to come through, this isn't terrible and never delves into typical lily "wet cardboard" territory. Still, there's something faintly "off" in this on me. Dry: This dries down to a lovely soft floral DB and lilac scent - but the undertone of "funky" lily prevents me from really loving it. I imagine if you don't have skin chem that causes lily to go wonky, this would be a stunning, unusual floral scent. Sadly I just can't pull it off, but I will keep my imp for sentimental value!

I have never tried the original. Wet: Whoo! Lots of red musk. Quickly followed by some smooth black leather. Luckily it's the kind of leather I can wear, so I am stoked. This is an awesome combo. The amber adds sweet depth. The Myrrh gives it a faint incensey sort of vibe. This is so sexy. Dry: Dries much softer than I anticipated. It's quite god, subtly sexy, but not "in your face" sex. Primarily leather and soft red musk. This will age really well I think. I get why it's a classic, and I am glad to have it in my collection.

I can never pass up the combo of tobacco and ambergris. I love the combo of benzoin and cedar as well. Wet: Mmmm. Yes. Lots of cedar initially, smoothed by the tobacco and musky ambergris. Rich sweetness from the benzoin. Good, but I can tell it needs some aging to be really glorious. Dry: I think this needs some age before I make any kind of determination. Currently it just smells faintly like sweet cedar - pleasant, but none of the glorious tobacco and ambergris I know it could be.

I have a much aged imp of the original, which I really loved, so I blind bottled this, despite several really iffy (for me) citrus notes. Wet: Lots of bitter citrus, but I can smell the warm amber underneath. I like it, but I don't love it the way I remember loving the original. I know citrus fades with age, and now I am regretting not realizing how citrusy this would be fresh. Dry: This goes through a soapy phase that I hate. Then it settles into a warm ambery incense sort of scent, with hints of clean musk and sandalwood that I quite like. I think I will age this to see how that makes a difference to the wet phases.

Wet: Lavender and mint - not as strong a mint as Anesthesia. More lavender dominant but still cool and icy. There's something a bit lemony in there as well. It's nice, soothing, refreshing. A good summer bedtime scent for me, I think. My lips are cool and tingly where I accidentally brushed them across the oil I am sniffing in the crook of my elbow. Dry: Really fresh and cool and lovely. Soft mint, lemon (or some clean citrus) and lavender. This will be added to my bedtime rotation. Happy to have contributed to the Labbies' AC fund!

You are shocked out of the torch song’s melancholy mood by shrieks, hoots, and yowls. You move to your left, and see that instead of a stage, a gigantic iron cage has been hung, hovering a few feet off of the ground. Elaborate, delicate silver sigils are engraved upon huge iron disks that have been mounted to the sides of the cage, and they flicker and spark whenever one of the wild men touches the iron bars that imprison them. The backdrop depicts a blistering volcanic eruption, spiked with thick luminescent bolts of lightning. Several beings are held within the cage, male and female, spanning every age. They flash their razor-fanged smiles at you malevolently as they anxiously crawl, pace, and stalk the length of their prison, stopping occasionally to pose and preen as they gossip with one another in an unrecognizable guttural, grinding language. Their tattooed skin glows an angry crimson, curving horns protrude from their skulls, and their eyes blaze with unholy light. Fiery, primal, and precociously diabolical: red amber, Spanish moss, Indonesian patchouli, ambergris, sweet ambrette seed, red pepper, two cloves, and vanilla flower. Wet: Clove - sweet and a little smoky. Not overwhelming, as clove often is on me. This is soft and alluring. This is a dry soft of spice. The amber is sweet and grounding. Dry: Dry, slightly sweet, slightly dusty clove, with amber underneath. There's not a ton of complexity to this on me, despite all the notes. I do, however, like it a lot anyway. I love that even though clove is still dominant on me, I haven't amped it to high heaven like usual. This is warm and exotic. It's almost smoky. I can't stop sniffing it, it's very intriguing. I may do a full day test, but I feel like at least a partial bottle is in my future. Also, I adore the name. ETA: I haven't tried the original release, so can't compare.

I have never tried the original, but I always wanted to! Wet: Very sweet. Much sweeter than anticipated, but I do love sweet scents. This is like a candied, sugared floral. I don't get sage. but there are hints of green. I can't pick out the Tonka either. The musk is really sugary. The whole scent is very "pink" smelling. I don't usually describe scents in colour, but this one is so very pink. It would be a little too "girlie" (meaning suited to a little girl) on me if it weren't for that hint of sage greenness. Hoping the musk comes out more on dry down. Dry: This calms down a lot, and the musk does come out a bit to round it out. A lovely sweet musky floral scent that will be perfect for spring. Not too much throw, it's very soft and feminine.

I haven't tried the original. Wet: This is sweeter than I expected, but I like sweet. Also lighter than expected with those resins. I hate jasmine usually (though finding more and more scents where I can tolerate it, yay!) but I like it here, it smells like a jasmine essential oil I have, not the Lab's usual indolic jasmine. The berries are great. I don't get the lime. Dry: Lovely. really subtle and sexy on me. Like, super sexy. Hard to describe, but I get the jasmine faintly and dark fruit, and sweet sexy resins. Awesome. Need a backup!