porcelina

to start, nothing but death seems… complicated. it has so many notes going on at once that it's more like "everything but... the kitchen sink." [/bad joke] anyway,

 

when i put it on my first impression is a dark aquatic with heavy dried fruit notes. something smells kind of metallic to my nose but i'm not sure what that would be. the tobacco is very thick and grounding; it muddies the water. as it dries, it smooths out and the individual notes are not as discernible, except for the sage, which floats to the top.

 

it's definitely a dark purple scent… murky water and dark fruit, hints of salt and sage. the metallic notes i get never seem to quite go away, and aquatics are not my friend. not a keeper for me!

this was a big surprise hit for me from last year's halloweenies. i am not even sure why i ordered it, since "icy" notes and blends don't usual like me. but i guess "icy skin" is different, because the vampire bride is quite nice! i even got a compliment on it from a random stranger in trader joe's, and used the opportunity to introduce her to the wonderful world of BPAL!

 

there's a prominent smooth, musky base, with the chilled top notes and hints of elegant violet leaf and tea, maybe just a teeny bit of saffron and resin? it's really a delightful, surprising blend that wears close to the skin. as it's aged, the white tea has become even more prominent, so if you are a lover of tea notes, give this a try! it's lovely, cool and musky.

i don't have a lot of experience with real live carnations so i can't really compare this to that. BUT! the carnation single note is lovely and i'm so happy to have my little bottle.

 

on my skin it first smells like a fresh floral, with even a bit of wet green stems. the wet sappy greenery eventually fades and i am left with a soft, slightly creamy, lightly spiced floral scent. carnation is great because it's a floral that doesn't always feel like flowers to me. this is beautiful on its own as a single note- it has more depth and complexity than i would expect from a one-note perfume, but at the same time it does feel like a SINGLE note- all carnation, all the time. i agree with marared who said this could be gorgeous layered with patchouli, but i'd also be happy to wear it alone.

i bought this one because i love cherry blossom and was intrigued by the peach musk. i don't get a ton of cherry blossoms- they seem more snow-covered than dusted, to be honest! the snow is a cold piney blast with some sweet florals and musk. it's a really wintery scent and it kind of tickles my nose. not my favorite of the shungas, i'm afraid.

i did not intend to pick this one up, but i smelled it at will call and couldn't leave it behind. i'm a sucker for red musk, and amber, and the musk pairs beautifully with the peach and cranberry. it doesn't really come across as fruity to me- just an exquisitely well-blended red musk perfume. add a touch of spicy carnation and i am very happy with my mischievous spirit!

for some bizarre reason, i get pineapple from this. fresh, sweet, juicy pineapple. i think it's the weird way the orange blossom interacts with the strawberry at first but as it dries it smells more like strawberry.

 

my husband and i went to LA last weekend for a couple of different events (including will call, yay!) and one afternoon we stopped to have persian ice cream. we sampled basically everything and my husband ended up with a scoop of orange blossom and a scoop of fresh strawberry. they worked beautifully together… it tasted like this smells! it's sweet and playful and the vanilla adds a beautiful creaminess (which reminds me even more of ice cream, haha). i lovvvve it.

woah! this is going in so many different directions at once. i love BPALs that have like a million different notes. it's always surprising and every time i wear one, i find something new.

 

wearing street festival for the first time, the french lavender dominates. it's more of a fresh, floral lavender than a dried, powdery one. but there's also plenty of fruit- tart pomegranate and citrus, sweet passion fruit- and a bit of mysterious resin. i keep sniffing and sniffing and finding new notes that jump out at me. it's a fascinating jumble of scents and i think it'd be great for a nice summer day.

almost totally thick, heavy black musk with a touch of spicy cinnamon. i love this. it lasts forever- i wore it all day yesterday and couldn't stop smelling myself! black musk is not for everyone, but if you are fan, this is a must-have.

fruity dragon's blood and pink pepper with a touch of chocolate and resins? i definitely get some bubblegum out of this- it's like a weird occult candy store. the bubblegum is too much for me, but i love the pepper and everything else- maybe it will be a bit tamer after aging it some.

aahhh i love this. clean sandalwood, beeswax, a touch of resin and sage. it gives an impression of light woods and bright sunlight. like a sunny, modern library. beeswax, herbs and pale wood. lovely.

narrow opening sounded amazing except maybe for the rum which is after a dealbreaker for me- except bay rum, which i love. but to my surprise and delight, it works! it's a very sexy leather, vanilla and resin blend with just a touch of sweet rum (more like bay rum than a foody or boozy rum) and musky ambrette seed. i love it.

starts off with gorrrrgeous teakwood and just a touch of dusty cedar. the bay, rum and tobacco lend a richness to the drier woods and then there is a little bit of orange spice. it dries down to a nice soft woody scent with some delicious bay rum.

i love peony and i have had mostly successes with vanilla orchid so despite my natural fear of florals, i picked this one up. the peony is sweet and pretty and the vanilla orchid lends a smooth creaminess and keeps it soft and delicate. i don't have a lot of florals in my collection so lady in speckled kimono is a welcome addition.

waraizome is pretty sharp and herbal at first, with a touch of bitterness.

there is a strong sense of citrus from the verbena, and a lot of oakmoss. the woody sandalwood stays in the background and the sassafras and aniseed lend touches of spice.

it blends together as it dries into a warm, herbaceous scent and honestly is rather nice, although it's not something i would normally pick out. there is something almost smoky-sweet about it- like burning herbal incense.

i have been using this a LOT to scent my kitchen and living room (they are basically connected). it's so yummy! i am not really into foodie scents as perfume (they just never work on my skin ) but this is a perfect room scent. it is a blend of sweet coffee, cookies, apples and spice. very festive, but appropriate for year-round use.

got this as a freebie in my etsy order- thanks, puddin'!

 

all of my atmosphere sprays are being tested on my stuffed animals so i can sniff them to my heart's content and not have to stick my nose up and sniff the air like a madwoman in order to give a proper review. so instead i am seen fanatically sniffing a giant stuffed blue narwhal... oh well.

 

first off, mahogany hall smells like something i have smelled before (not a bpal?) but i cannot put my finger (or nose) on it. maddening! the spanish moss is quite sharp, and mixes well with the strong patchouli. (it's a GREAT patchouli note, by the way.) there is a nose-tickling touch of cardamom and it all lays upon an opulent background of rich woods (think antikythera mechanism) and cigar smoke. it's REALLY nice. i would scent my bedroom with this for sure. if it was available, i would wear it as a perfume! YUM!

i sprayed mr. fezziwig on my giant stuffed narwhal to properly evaluate it. WOW! this is so christmasy. like a perfect, old-fashioned christmas. holiday spice and spruce made richer with resin and dark beer. it smells warm and dark and glowing. love it.

this smells so FANCY.

 

i am not a huge fan of rose scents, to be honest. i am testing this as a moisturizer, because that is how i use bath oils (especially in this dry desert climate- as an after-shower moisturizer, bptp bath oils do amazing things for my skin!), but i am not sure if i would in the future because it is such a heady, voluptuous rose scent that it would overpower anything else i wanted to wear with its crazy, deep red rosiness.

 

that said- it's really a lovely scent.

 

there is mostly deep, dark red rose. there is a sweetness from the candied berries, and maybe the benzoin, with a touch of sandalwood. it's resinous, sweet, deep and rich. it smells very elegant and very expensive. this is like a fairy tale queen type of scent. it's like a magical potion- she would pour this into her elegant, claw-footed bathtub to give herself beauty and power. it's very opulent.

 

i know it may seem horribly wasteful but i think i would like to use this in the bath! with lots of candles and bubbles (unscented, to let the scent of looking glass, looking glass shine!).

wow. lots of rum at first, but it doesn't go immediately terrible on my skin like most rum scents. the sweet figs and spice tend to keep it in check. but… boo, the rum takes over and it goes all plasticky like it always does. RUM! why must you taste so good, but smell so bad?

 

after a while the rum dies down and i get a lot of yummy fig, maybe some bread. it's kinda like fruitcake but not as fruity and less boozy. it's actually nice but i don't think i'll wear it.

i'm soooo glad i finally got my hands on dungeon crawl. it is soooo evocative and atmospheric (plus it just smells GOOD).

 

how? how do you make something that smells like damp stone and rust but still smells yummy enough for me to wear it as a perfume? the incense, musk and beeswax take it from dank creepy dungeon to fantasy dungeon in wearable perfume form. i think i detect a bit of leather, too. YUM!

i love midnight mass and i try to buy a bottle every year, with a few backups here and there. it is one of those bpal blends i could never do without.

 

this is the 2011 version i am trying, and it is as good as ever, but just a little different from last year's. last year's blend had more dark, resinous sweetness and this year's is a little lighter- it's not as strong and there is maybe more of a wood note than i have noticed before. it's such a gorgeous scent- i can't stop sniffing my arm. one of my all-time favorite bpals.

i would never have ordered it, but i sniffed it at will call and that it smelled great so here i am with a bottle of woods in winter!

 

it's very herbal and green at first. i don't get the overwhelming pine i often get from bpal's snowy blends, although it's there- it just doesn't stick out. it's dark green, cool and fresh and wet, hints of dirt and slush and snow and trees. it dries down to be quite masculine (and it does smell great on my husband) but not really in a cologney way. very nice, perfect for a winter day outside!

i get almost nothing but pure beeswax from this. i mean, that's not necessarily a bad thing because i love the scent of beeswax but where are all the other gorgeous notes? the ambrette, the saffron, the frankincense, the oak, the vanilla orchid? the most i get is a hint of citrus from the bergamot. i do start to smell the saffron as it dries. my biggest disappointment of the yules.

at first the magnificent christmas tree is all pine, but very fresh green, like an actual forest of pine trees. it's cool and fresh and bracing. then the woods start to warm up- the "warm, dark woods" in this scent are gorgeous, reminding me a bit of the teakwood and oak of antikythera mechanism.

 

it shifts to a warm, polished wood scent with sweet pine on top. there is almost a dark, resinous element to it. it dries down to soft pine and rich wood and it's one i will keep even though my collection is FULL of pine and wood already!

 

it's almost like this blend tells a story- from walking through the cool, snow woods to find the perfect christmas tree, to the tree in a warm, festive home, lit with glowing candles. it's really lovely.

this was kind of an unexpected purchase for me- i usually don't go for delicate, chilly scents, or rose, but my success with the vampire bride inspired me to go for it. and it's good!

 

the snow note is a *bit* overwhelming, to be honest- there's too much pine, that kind of takes over. i would actually like a bit more tea rose. the linen scent is lovely and clean and everything is quite sweet and lovely- i could just do with much less pine.