Desire

[KittyHawk]

The overwhelming agony of passion crystallized into a singularly dark and magnetic blend: bittersweet neroli, black patchouli and black musk, gilded by apple, bergamot, blood red rose, teak, and vanilla.

Desire really didn't do much for me at first; patchouli generally gives me a headache and it overpowers any other notes it appears with. Still, sometimes the scents that smell the worst in the imp turn into fantastic blends on my skin, so I gave it a whirl anyway.

Whew, what a surprisingly light fragrance! After an hour or so, the sharpness of the patchouli and the black musk mellowed considerably; all I'm left with now is a soft apple vanilla. Gorgeous and ethereal and not at all what I was expecting. Thanks, skin chemistry!

[Tamalee]

This was a frimp I got from the lab (along with Tenochtitlan which I haven't tried yet).

 

In the imp it smelled like chocolate and peanut butter - pretty much the exact scent of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup.

 

It went through a bunch of scent changes on me and lasted for hours. I put it on around 3 p.m. ish and it was still on this morning (yesterday, technically).

 

When I first put it on it kind of made my wrists feel like they were burning a little so I was worried that was going to happen every time I tried a new scent. The burning feeling went away and just left me feeling warm.

 

This is the kind of scent you'd wear in winter when it's snowing out and you're totally not dressed for the weather because it will keep you warm just from the heat and the scent.

 

Even though it's August and (supposedly)summer it was kind of cold in my house but once I put Desire on I didn't feel cold anymore - just felt like I was wrapped in a big snuggly blanket.

 

It was my very first BPAL scent I tried and the first one to make me go "I NEED a bottle of this!" because I love the way it smells on me, how long it lasts, the throw of it, how my kids like it on me, how my husband seemed to react to it even though he didn't know I was wearing it, even one of our cats couldn't stop sniffing me.

 

Sorry about this being disjointed but it's late, I'm kind of tired, and this was my first review so I'm not entirely sure what to write about.

Edited August 13, 2011 by Tamalee

[toku]

This one is, alas, very green, bitter, and sharp on me. I want to say it's the neroli and bergamot and possibly the rose - I was hoping for a bit darker and mellow feel due to the musk, patchouli, and vanilla.

[relax]

Definitely sweet, but with the underlying metalic note-must be rose, I suppose, swap pile

[cherrycherry]

Testing this for the first time from a beautifully aged 10ml cobalt. The patchouli and black musk win out for me - and that's just fine. It's deep and makes me feel headstrong and wanton at the same time. Rose and vanilla come next for me and somehow, I get little to no apple, bergamot or neroli. I was a little worried about the neroli, but happily I get none at all. Perhaps this is because of how old the bottle is though, the floral and fruit notes might be stronger with a lab-fresh bottle. I could happily wear this every day. There is a powdery note coming through a few minutes after the drydown, but again I don't mind it. Reminds me of Haunted, actually. Loves!

[crimsoncrushedrose]

Okay, here goes....Deire is my first (and, currently, only) bottle of Bpal oil. It has been aging in a cobalt bottle since around 2005-2006. On to the review!

 

In bottle: Very strong, heady sort of perfumey smell. At odd moments, a weird hint of chocolate. Patchouli seems quite powerful to my nose. Nothing that makes me think apple or vanilla, just musky and spicy.

 

On me, wet: Still very harsh, but exotic and a little smoky. No apple or vanilla scents at all. Patchouli and a very classic perfume smell.

 

On me, dry: Much more powdery than expected, still a little overwhelming. Still no hint of apple or vanilla, just a dark, heady smell wafting strongly from my wrists. Almost overpoweringly deep. My fiance said he liked it, and thought it smelled "spicy and dry."

 

Overall: 4/5, it smelled nice enough, just a little strong for 100+ degree weather. Will test again in the winter. Lasted foreverrr on my skin, though, and my fiance adores it, huzzah!

Edited August 3, 2012 by crimsoncrushedrose

[stellamaris]

Oh wow. Silly me. I had pushed this one aside because of the apple, but lately I have been softening my heart for apples, so I tried it. Amazing, just gorgeous. The apple is only present for the wet note, and it's a nice sweet apple, then it turns vanilla, teak and patchouli, a very nice patchouli, one that I could see wearing without becoming OMG Dirty Hippie...love this one, on The List it goes...

[Caper]

The imp was definitely off-putting, but I decided to try it since I'm in a culling mood. The wet stage is nice, and the vanilla really comes out.

 

After it dries for a bit it becomes a bit less appealing. Meh. Too much apple. Swap!

[batsy]

In the vial: Red apple and roses. Promising.

 

On the skin: Red apple and teak. I'm pretty sure the neroli is strong on me today. As it dried down, it became teak, musk, and patchouli. Apple disappeared entirely, which is sad, because it's hard to find an apple scent that *stays* apple. Complete dry down it becomes teak wood furniture polish. Sigh.

 

Verdict: Swap.

Edited April 27, 2013 by bat

[mymymai]

ITI: It's a bit too sweet for me. The apple is artificial smelling and the vanilla and musk take it over the top for me.

 

Wet: Rose apple, musk, and vanilla - it reminds me of candy. I was hoping for something more exotic, though.

 

Dry: The sweetness has toned down some to vanilla, faint rose and apple, but I don't get any neroli, bergamot, and patchouli, which makes me sad.

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Saccharine rose.

 

Wet on skin: Honey. And something. Darkened by the bergamot and rose, possibly.

 

Dried down: Hmmm...... I tried on Whip a little while ago (on the opposite arm), and I'm starting to get leather out of everything now, whether or not the blend actually has any leather notes. My arm does still smell sweet, though.

 

Throw: Um, I can't tell, since Whip seems to have overtaken my senses. I definitely smell something, and it's nice. Just not sure where it's from.

 

Verdict: *** 1/* This is very nice, but I don't think I'll be getting a bottle in the near future. I would be willing to give this another try later, though.

[batsy]

On the skin: crisp apple and rose, with a hint of teak.

 

In the vial: I think that's the neroli, it's gone sour apple and dark. I can't say this ended up being what I imagined from the notes. Bummer.

[somacat]

I think musk and sandalwood may combine as a death note. This is mostly baby powder with a bit of dry soapy sandalwood. I actually like sandalwood soap, but, there's something a bit acrid in this-- a very high pitched baby powder that makes the back of my throat feel dry and a slight headache glimmer on the horizon.

[loubric]

In the bottle/IMP it smells like apple dipped in chocolate. Sweet and juicy.

 

On me it's juicy, wet apple dipped in chocolate. It fades to a beautiful light pink rosey scent. Normally rose is the death on me but the apple is still in the background and gives it a nice well rounded scent. As it dries it's very sweet and candy like. Pretty .... aaand we have baby powder

Edited December 9, 2014 by Lilly

[Dusk]

I found this to be very different after a bit of aging.

Fresh(-er, got from a forum purchase): Very, very sweet. Neroli, juicy red apple, vanilla, and a very plump, damp red rose. Dries down retaining the vanilla and red rose, but revealing a polished teak base and a bit of patchouli. Some sweet musk as well. Overall, sexy but quite sweet, a bit too much for me.

Aged at least 5-6 months: Not nearly as sweet. A dark red rose, but not a dewy one, or particularly dry. A bit of vanilla, some neroli, bergamot, dry woods. There's a bit of apple but it's crisp, not juicy sweet. Dries down to dark dry rose, subtle vanilla, dark woods, dark musk, a bit of nuttiness and creaminess.

 

I find the aged more wearable, personally, but I do miss some of the lushness from the damp rose and apple. Either way, an attractive, feminine scent that seems appropriate for date nights or other evening events.

[Veronica]

Not sure how old my imp of this is, but I get a very sweet, creamy musk scent--just the slightest hint of neroli and patchouli to give it a bit of spice. Very similar to Perversion.

[hiddentwilight]

Reading everyone else's reviews, I wish I could smell what you're smelling!

 

I barely got the apple or vanilla. They're more like hints. For me, this is a very rich, dark, and spicy scent. A little too spicy, actually. That's all it was for me. I had to scrub it off, actually, because it was making me sneeze. Perhaps the combination of the black patchouli and teak?

[Jeni Mullen]

Just a note on my own personal tastes, my nose, etc to give you an understanding of what's shaping this review!

 

My favorite blend of all time is Mme Moriarty, followed by Captain Lilith and her First Mate, followed by Gingerbread Snake, Ivory Vulva, Druid, Blood, Strawberry Sufganiyot, Snake Charmer Resurrected, Loved to Death, Eat Me, Beaver'Versary, Dana O'Shea, and Bastet. I usually wear Mme. Moriarty or Captain Lilith, but mix it up from time to time with the other blends or for special occasions.

 

Death notes: Cedar, mahogany, oak, all florals except rose and violet, frankincense, vetiver, civet, chocolate, cream, cardamom, leather, tobacco, sandalwood, dirt, wine, anise, saffron, almond

 

Notes I adore: red musk, vanilla, coconut, apricot/peach, plum, black currant, dragon's blood, rum, cake, orange, Middle Eastern spices, Asian spices, amber, pumpkin, strawberry, cherry, sugar

 

To be honest, I read the notes on this first. Teak is a wood and wood smells generally turn to pencil shavings and dust on me so I was a little bit wary and pre-disposed to not liking Desire... HOWEVER.

 

imp: Sugar, sweet and gooey sugar.

wet: Nothing special honestly. I'm getting some musky rose now but there's still lots of sugar.

dry 20 minutes: I was leaning my head on my palm and smelling something amazing. I'm testing Catheral, Elf and Storm Moon on the same arm. I already know it can't be Storm Moon or Cath and Elf is suppose to be florals so I should just be getting a headache.. Sniff sniff... WOW. Desire. I'm not getting the patch at all (sometimes doesn't play well with me) nor the teak. There's a sugary, rosey, appley musk thing happening in my testing spot and it. Is. Amazing.

 

This imp will be moving into my full body test phase...but I can actually see me adding this in the future to the GET A BOTTLE slot in my testing case.

[Kmye Chan]

This was a frimp from the lab.

 

In the imp: musk and apple (which I initially mistook for pear), very sweet, almost rotten.

 

Wet: lots and lots of earthy patchouli, with fruity apple and rose in the background. Eww. I don't really like this.

 

Dry: apple-scented cleaning product. Eww eww eww. Decidedly not for me.

Rose is a note that makes everything turn to cheap cleaning product on me, so unsurprisingly, this didn't work. I washed it off, so no throw/lasting power review. Swap pile!

[Soupy Twist]

Wow, what a morpher. Patchouli and musk in the bottle. I then get, in series, each note lasting about five seconds:

Patchouli with vanilla
Sweet musk
Apple
A weird apple juice
Teak
Powdery rose
Musk again
Rose again

And it settles on the rose. Other than the apple, these are all no-no-notes for me, but I must commend the Lab on the roller-coaster ride.

[methodmaven]

Received this as a frimp and wow, I could not smell any of the notes listed. Though I notice some posters mention baby powder, baby wipes, or diapers, I get... baby oil. Johnson's baby oil. I'd like to think I would at least be able to pick up on the presence of patchouli or rose. I could have sworn this contained frankincense as I had a similar impression of Tzadikim Nistarim, so color me confused.

[Casablanca]

I can smell the neroli from this before I even get close to sniffing the test site on my arm. Freshly applied, and up close, Desire intrigues. I barely catch any patchouli in the early stage, and the dominant neroli is well complemented by the apple and black musk. Then I realize I can smell a mix of the bergamot, rose, and vanilla as well. And even teak, when I hunt for it. I love teak.

But... after an hour or so, Desire's interesting structure kind of bottoms out: I just smell a quiet, hollow vanilla rose musk.

[Beary Strange]

Outside the imp, this has a nice, slightly sexy smell I'd expect from the name.

In the imp: flowers and a scent I couldn't identify until someone above brought up diapers and I realized: it smells like diaper rash cream

Wet on skin: it smells like flowery baby powder, which is nice but there's also this undercurrent of diaper rash cream

Dry: basically the same as wet, except less intense

Washed off: very nice, all flowers and no baby anything.

 

The is the second scent I've tried that smells better once washed away; I'm really not sure what to think of that. I might have to make a pile of imps I don't care for fresh on, but love washed off by the bathroom sink.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: A big, wet, slightly spicy fruity-floral, with heavy emphasis on the fruit. Helloooooo, apple! The bergamot is there, too, as is the rose, but this scent is bringing to mind Brisingamen's older, much vampier sister.

 

Wet: ...Yeah, a bit of diaper rash cream. But the apple-citrus is still notable as itself, and the rose and neroli are doing a similar sweet-sultry-sharp thing together. Once the deeply unfortunate diaper rash cream burns off (which it does after only a few minutes), it resolves itself into a lovely, very feminine, fruity-floral - similar to ITI, but with what is probably the patchouli/musk/woody blend providing some traction.

 

Dry: Still very feminine, now almost entirely floral. I think I'm getting all rose with occasional wafts of neroli, but that could be contamination from an oil burner I've got going. It's a powdery, very perfumey scent at this point, with maybe a waft of vanilla. I almost want to say it's turned to baby powder, but it's more pleasant and a little more complex than that.

[galahad]

In the Vial:

Deeply fruity musk and vanilla

On the Skin:

Patchouli, musk and apple. Rich and dark. The vanilla provides a grounding and the rose emerges not long after application but appears to be kept in check by the resins and vanilla.

On the Drydown:

A lovely antique rose and musk with a woody dryness on the background. The apple isn't particularly evident but provides a slight acidity and sweetness. The neroli is barely noticeable and not obvious bergamot. I like it but not a bottle.