lizabelle

"Feminine Lights of Men's Lives" and "syrupy incense" are perfect descriptions for this one, and I'm torn in how I feel about it. Wet it's overpoweringly strong and sweet--I can see how this could be a favorite for many people, but for me this stage is just too much. It's reminiscent of wine, somehow, and the throw is huge. The drydown, however, is a favorite for me. The rose does indeed smell purple; it's dark and velvety and blends beautifully with the smoke/incense note to form something sensual and mysterious. The beeswax is exactly like the one in Lights of Men's Lives, and gives the impression of a dark room filled with candles burning low. I may have to try it a few more times before I decide whether to keep it or swap it.

So this is what wisteria smells like! Sniffing it without looking at a description, I could have sworn it was a slightly indolic jasmine, although after some settling it also has a fruity quality. This is really interesting, because it seems like a standard floral scent at first but has a bit of an afterbite (for lack of a better word). I'm guessing it's the spices that are giving it a kick. It suits the artwork very well, and strikes me as a black widow kind of scent--a beautiful flower hiding poison. I love it.

Despite not knowing what all of the notes smell like beforehand, I hat to blind bottle this. BPAL's apples haven't gone wrong on me yet, and the label art tickled me. Trying it now it's better than I hoped. It starts out with a crisp apple, much like the one in Poisoned Apple but not as short-lived (which is very much okay with me). I actually get no pine/juniper/cedar from this at all; instead it morphs into some kind of soft honeyed floral/musk/vanilla with apple acting like a base. Very well-mixed, so I can't really pick out individual notes, but this is a beautiful unusual spring scent.

Surprisingly enough, this isn't terrible on me. The few times I've tried magnolia perfumes in the past, they have without exception turned into rotting fruit/flowers on me. This one isn't, and in fact it's kind of nice. The flowers have a fruity edge, helped along by the mandarin. The musk (red, if I had to guess) is very prominent, as is the spice, which I can't place but has the same quality as cinnamon/clove. I've never smelled oleander but the two florals are blending into a single, creamy pink scent. I'm not sure I like this quite enough to get a bottle, but I'm floored that I've found a magnolia blend that I can wear!

I was expecting to love this, because "spicy rose" is basically my favorite scent category. I don't exactly dislike it, but it's nothing like I thought on my skin. One of the roses (possibly the Bulgarian one?) goes extremely powdery on me, and the effect is very old-fashioned and girly. The scent reminds me a bit of Lush's Turkish Delight, but even more powdery. I get no cinnamon at all. On my skin at least this is more like the perfume the harlot wears to seem like a dignified lady!

I wanted so much to like this one, considering how many people list this as a favorite, but it's just not for me. The grapefruit at the start is nice and sharp, but then it settles into a greenish, not-quite-sweet scent. It doesn't want to develop at all on my skin, the green florals and aquatic notes blending equally into something like an air freshener. In the past lily of the valley, iris, and most other powdery green florals haven't done well on me and this seems to be no exception. I gave the imp to my mom, who has almost completely opposite chemistry to me (my loves are her hates, and vice versa), so of course it's lovely on her. The grapefruit is softer and shorter-lived and the lily of the valley is the star, smelling like an actual early spring flower instead of an imitation of one. The aquatic notes are subtle but act as a base and keep the whole thing light. A sea-green scent, very dewy and springy.

Sharp, smoky, and strong. I'm really not a fan of this one, and find myself comparing it (negatively) to Djinn. While Djinn goes from smoky and sharp to warm and resinous, this stays as a campfire the whole time, and actually seems to get worse the longer it's on my skin. It also has a lot of throw, so I finally had to just wash it off. This is probably not my most helpful review, as I couldn't pick any individual notes out of it; just something like burning sap surrounded by huge clouds of smoke.

This starts out so well, but the ylang goes weird on me and just barely misses the mark. The base of this is dark and dirty, with patch, myrrh, and musk present equally. It becomes more syrupy as it warms to my skin, darkly sweet and almost edible. The ylang also starts off well, a sweet yellow floral on top of the other notes, but over time goes cooler and almost soapy. That tone doesn't mesh well with the rest, and I can't help but think that if it were just about any other flower this could be a favorite for me.

This is a very pretty blend. For me there's more blackberry in the imp than on skin, but I do tend to amp most flowers. I only recognize heather because of a few Possets scents, having never smelled it in real life--for those who aren't familiar with it, it's like a blend of lavender and rosemary but softer and sweeter than either of them. It's a bit perfumey but still herbal enough that it smells like flowers growing out in a field. It lasts surprisingly well and I can see it being wonderful for spring and summer. I might have to get a bottle.

Again, the juniper note in this is very gin-esque. I probably shouldn't have put it on the same arm as 21! The pine is actually rather subtle on me and blends with the juniper nicely, and the dirt isn't overly strong. It's just a soft earthiness in the background. It's not wowing me, but I do like it as a green herbal scent.

Patchouli, ylang ylang, blood orange, and vetiver. This one is bizarre on me. The vetiver/patchouli combo is turning into a bonfire like it sometimes does on me, and the ylang ylang on top is overly sweet. The blood orange is strong and it's reminding me of a cranberry-orange relish my family always makes around Thanksgiving, which I happen to hate. It's kind of medicinal overall, and I think it just doesn't work with my chemistry.

Wow. Wow! This is a perfect gin scent. As usual, the lab manages a fizzy scent that actually smells fizzy. I could almost swear I smell bubbles. It has a bit of a G&T feel to me, but then I've never actually had a martini. (And I will rectify that as soon as possible. For research purposes.) I've sniffed a lot of gin scents, because I love herbal stuff and gin drinks, but I've never smelled one as true as this. It is truly perfect.

Gorgeous! On me this is a soft, musky sandalwood/vanilla (although I'm not entirely sure if there's actually vanilla in here). This will probably sound bizarre to some people, but this smells exactly like the aged bottle of Dior Addict I have--not sure exactly how old that juice is, but it's old enough to have turned brown and smells like a soft vanilla/sandalwood cloud on me and lasts about 16 hours (yes, really). Somehow this is a dead ringer for it, which means that when I run out I won't have to worry about reformulations or whatever. I'll just stock up on Morocco!

This is amazing! I love Hemlock but it unfortunately disappears on me very quickly. This is the same bright, spicy herbal smell with a thick layer of the honey in Hetairae and Les Bijoux (my favorite of the lab's honey notes). It kind of smells like clover honey gone bad, and I love it. My mom announced she loved it as soon as she smelled it, too, so it seems to be a crowd-pleaser! I'll be getting a bottle as soon as possible.

This is bizarre, because on my skin this smells like a lotus single note. I have no idea what's causing it, but this smells fakey bubblegum in the same way lotus always does on me. The orris is making it extra powdery, but otherwise I can't pinpoint what the problem is. I love the other notes, usually, except amber, so I guess this version isn't working for me. Not a favorite.

This is kind of weird on me, borderline-soapy with a chemical edge. The rose in this is very sweet and I think the lilies are what's ruining it. Half the time they're alright on me and half the time they're not--this is one of the times they're not. Hopefully I'll be able to pass this one to someone else who'll like it.

Beauty is, well, a beauty! This is the dry, sawdusty sandalwood in several other BPALs (I always end up comparing it to the cedar note, and I apologize, but the cedar is so easy to recognize and they do have a similar character). The vanilla and tobacco are similar to the blend in Pediophobia, but not as sweet: very perfumey and a bit boozy. The resins are thick, warm, and lovely, and probably the most prominent aside from the sandalwood. The rose does not overpower in the least but gives a touch of sweet powderiness to the whole thing. It totally smells like the "desert rose" type of heroine in a western. I'm very glad I swapped for a full bottle of this, and think I will get a lot of wear out of it.

I was also going to suggest Amsterdam, as well as Dormouse--the same peony/green blend but with no aquatic notes. Knave of Hearts is rose but with a scone/cake note that reminds me of spring/Easter and garden parties.

The jasmine in here is lovely, cool and light and not overly sweet. The sea buckthorn and carrot seed combine into a really unusual orange sharpness that approaches bitter without ever really getting there. Iris is normally not all that great on me, and it's doing a kind of weird powdery/aquatic thing (which I didn't know was possible) in the background. It's not overly strong, and I get no frankincense. Sadly this is trying to go to soap on me, so I'm glad I didn't blind bottle despite the urge.

Why did all the Yules last year have to be so dang pretty?? I'm still trying to track down bottles I missed out on, and now it looks like I'll be looking for this one too. The sandalwood in here is very dry, borderline pencil-shavings, and also borderline cedar-y. There's a warm resinous tone to the base, which I guess must be the frankincense, but it's like no frankincense I've smelled before. I would almost believe there's citrus in here! The patch is surprisingly mild-mannered in this, and very perfumey. The coconut is subtle and serves more to blend everything together than really stand on its own; it almost reminds me more of coconut milk than coconut meat. The whole blend is brighter and softer than I expected, and less dry. There's a lot of depth here that's keeping my hand close to my nose.

When I was ordering Yules I put this into my cart and then deleted it about ten times. I finally ended up not getting a bottle because of some of the reviews here, but I should have gone with my gut. The lavender in this is so good; more herbal than the one in Mari Lwyd, helped along by the green musk. The bergamot is also prominent, sharp but not so much that it's unpleasant. The plum blends with the agar and forms a fuzzy blanket of a base (I'm not being poetic, it really smells like a fuzzy blanket), with the lavender and (somehow) plum forming the heart. Overall quite pretty, and it does give the impression of being snowed in somewhere very cold. I've never smelled anything like it.

I finally got my hands on the rest of the Yule decants I wanted from last year (I was late to the Yule game and therefore missed all the circles), and while I like some of the others I am truly kicking myself for not blind-bottling this. The vanilla in here is rich and gorgeous, just a touch boozy, and exactly how I like it. The cognac and tobacco are not overly prominent as I feared but soft and perfumey, more background notes to the prominent vanilla. There is a sort of cold powdered thing going on that I guess is the porcelain, and the overall effect is beautiful and just a tinge unsettling. I need a bottle!

This absolutely does smell like lemonheads, although maybe a touch less sweet. The tangerine peel gives it an extra sharpness, while the pink pepper keeps it from going too bitter and rounds everything out. There is a teensy bit of a powdery note that might be orris, but it's not strong. This actually strikes me as a summer fragrance more than anything, and I'm tempted to try and find myself a bottle.

Admittedly I'm not a church person, so I'm not entirely sure what one is supposed to smell like. (I have been inside churches when services are not going on, but of course you don't get the smell of it then!) I was expecting something sweet and high-pitched when I acquired the tail end of a bottle, and it's nothing like I expected. I'm actually not getting a lot of jasmine out of this, which is odd considering the other reviews and the way I amp most florals. Instead I get lots of resin and incense, surprisingly dark and gooey. There's a classic perfume vibe here, and it's actually kind of...vampy? Like those perfumes that first came out in the 20s that most people now think of as "old lady" scents, but were low-key meant to smell like you're walking home after a one-night stand. I feel kind of weird writing that when everyone says it smells like a church, but there we are! I rather like it, and it sticks around a good long time; I think I'll keep the bottle.

This seems to be a love it or hate it kind of scent, because it's not as obvious as the notes might suggest. Luckily, I love it, despite its oddities. Note that for this review I've sprizted some on my wrist as it's rather subtle on hair; that might influence how it develops somewhat. The opening is surprisingly root beer-y, and I'm not quite sure what's doing it. Perhaps the vanilla? When I get in very close there's a clear vanilla syrup aspect that borders on burnt sugar and vanilla orchids (and can that be the next LE, please??). The spices are much subtler, and smell like they've been toasted. They're mellower than in most of BPAL's spice blends. There's a definite smokiness going on but I don't get oudh outright--and I normally amp woods of all kinds. Overall it's dark and sweet, with just a touch of smoke and spice. This will probably go with 2/3 of my collection, or more (I have just a bit of a bias toward this type of scent)!