Black Phoenix

[ipsafictura]

Our signature oil. A dark, languid scent. Promotes hedonistic tendencies and extreme self-love. You won’t stop kissing mirrors for a month.

Couldn't resist my first review on the site being of the signature scent. I see the formats that some people use and they seem helpful, so I'll try and use one myself.
Black Phoenix was a bonus imp in my very first order. I don't know if that was intentional or fortuitous, but it was pretty cute.

In the vial: Huh, intense, and hard to sort out the different notes, but pleasant enough. It makes me want to try it, teases my nose with sweetness.

Wet: WOAH, SWEET. Okay, the sweetness is intense, a definite cherry almond scent that smells a little bit, yes, like cold medicine. Not bad precisely, but it feels like the individual notes are in competition for supremacy on my skin.

Drying: The sweetness is unpleasantly cloying on the drydown, the almond smell is stronger now, almost overwhelming. It's a smell that's strong enough that I can almost taste it, and I didn't put a lot on. A musk note becomes more apparent at this stage which seems like it would be pleasant if it were not for the overwhelming sweetness. After the musk comes a flowery scent which reminds me of baby powder.

Dry: The almond and cherry notes are almost completely gone. I've been told how BPAL scents change over time, but the couple I have tried previous to this did not morph so significantly. What's left is a faintly musky, powdery floral which is very pleasant, but definitely not my style.

Overall Impression: This reminds me a bit of some vintage perfumes, probably a very good choice for people who like a somewhat old fashioned, powdery floral once the initial intense sweetness burns off. It's not my style, but it's certainly an interesting scent. I'll be passing it off to a friend. Edited November 14, 2006 by Shollin

[mmmitchell]

Oh, Black Phoenix, how I wanted to lurrrrve you! I mean, who COULDN'T use a bit more self-love?

 

Alas, 'twas not to be......

 

Vial: Definite smell of bitter almonds. Now, I like this part, but there is something lurking underneath.....

 

Wet: .....and it is apparently Windex. This goes very wonkily "chemical cleaning product smell" on me. Like cheap aftershave.....not nice. I am willing to wait for the drydown, because I wantwantwant to smell all the lovely notes being described by others.

 

Dry: Nope, nuthin' good gonna happen with this one on me, and for that I am very sorry, it sounded GREAT from the reviews. Just more "Windex From Hell" smell, and gee, that's NOT a hedonistic aroma for me!

 

I really liked the bitter almond smell, but something in this just went south on me, dammit! I'm thinking that MAYBE, since my imp was lab-fresh, maybe a little age will help this one. I'll try it again in a few months and see......

[maribouquet]

Mmm, cherry...and sadly this goes to total powder on my skin. Not meant to be, I guess!

 

The far drydown is less powdery and actually pretty nice, but it's not striking me enough to make me willing to wait through the powder hours.

[Jenesis]

From the vial: The only word that I could think was "Marzipan!"

 

Wet: Still smelt very strongly of marzipan - I only used a tiny drop from the Imp wand and it still swamped me out.

 

Dry: Waited for it to develop, there were a few base notes I could smell underneath if I sniffed really hard, but the sweet sticky smell gave me a headache by then

 

P.S. First review, this, so sorry for complete lack of technical vocabulary...!

[phedre]

This was in the first imp pack I ordered. How could I resist getting the site's signature scent after all?

 

I wanted to like this, but it just wasn't meant to be. On me it was bitter bitter almond, sharp and chemical. There's depth there, and it's an interesting scent to be sure, but all wrong for my body's chemistry.

[zankoku_zen]

Finally! I've been wanting to try this one for a while. It is the lab's signature scent...

 

In the imp: Almonds and cherries.

 

On Skin: Again, almonds and cherries. The cherries make it very sweet. It kind of reminds me of Jergen's cherry almond body lotion. There is a hint of a powdery floral.

 

On Drydown: I get a faint whiff of garlic. Where did the lovely cherry go??!?!?

 

After about 30 mins, I get the almonds and cherries again. Yeah! There is a "glassy" sort of vibe to it, like in House of Mirrors... and I can definitely see myself preening in front of a mirror.

 

Verdict: I like this scent. I'm not sure about the immediate drydown. Maybe it's just skin chemistry going wonky for a bit. Thankfully it doesn't last long. I'm not sure this is bottle-love. But it's still love. Oh yes. Mmm... cherries.

[Voleuse]

This is a dark, cherry syrup on first sniff, and it gets more sugary, more sickly as it dries. I get a strong almond note as well, which quickly turns the cherry to full-on medicinal. This could be a gorgeous, lazy blend, but on me, the notes go all wrong. Alas! Off to swaps!

Edited December 30, 2006 by Voleuse

[Tess]

I wanted this one without even knowing any of the notes, but I hear that it's sticky sweet berries with musk. So long as it steers clear of cherry, we'll be good.

 

In the vial - Black cherry and dark, dark musk. This isn't the cherry of Blood Kiss, this is black and sensual.

 

Wet - Musky and slightly boozy cherries. Yum.

 

Drying - You know those cordial cherries? That's these with deep musk lingering behind it. It's like a piece of the witch's house as she tempts Hanzel and Gretel. Dark, sinister and too, too sweet to deny.

 

Dry (1 hour) - It went through an almond stage and now it's dried to a dry, dry musk and incense scent. Very dry. To the point of making my throat dry, it's so dry.

 

Overall - I'm not the biggest fan of the dry stages; I really wish it would have stayed wet on me. I think this frimp might single-handedly cause me to get a scent locket. Huh.

[monsteralice]

I really wanted to love this, since it is the signature scent of BPAL. Alas, it was not to be

 

Wet: Woody, almond and anise

Finish: Powdery and a bit spicy

In between? Nice, but didn't evoke an emotional response.

 

I'm swapping this one. It deserves someone who will love it, not just give it the polite nod and move on to something louder.

[DEMONDAHLIA]

Black Phoenix was very very sweet in the bottle.. and dried to a soured almond scent on my skin .. off to swaps this just wasnt me .. Im happy to have tried BPAL's name sake ..and Im still considering for a room scent .. but this is the first scent Ive HAD to wash off my skin.

[dronzeka]

I wanted to try it because, well, signature scent and all, but I didn't really think I'd like this. I thought I really only liked light florals and citrus and fresh, airy scents.

 

And when I sniffed it in the imp, I thought, "Almond. Way too much almond."

 

But I tried it, and on my skin it turns into a glorious, warm, sweet, almost skin kind of scent. It's probably recognizably still almond, and I can understand why others are mentioning cherries, but I don't like either of those notes especially, and I love this on me. It all melds into something very warm, and sweet, but not recognizably one thing or another (cherry or almonds). It's golden and light-musky, and yes, a little sticky, but in the lovely thick way that pure honey is sticky, rather than sickly sweet like treacle or caramel. Love this! May have to get a big bottle...

[Carmencita]

In the vial: Pure almond extract (YUM) but even sweeter.

 

On my skin: Almonds and hard maple sugar sticks and orange honey comb. Lemons. Subtle florals.

 

Later: This smells like Wonka's Wonderland. The BIG introductory room in the original movie. Where you could eat the tea cups that grew on trees and drink lemonade from them. Without the scent of the chocolate river. Sweet. Almost cloying. But not nose-itchy or gross out.

[Bangles]

My lasting impression of Black Phoenix isn't the scent itself so much as the mental image it inspires. Picture an old Edwardian-style parlor by candlelight. You're reclining in a leather armchair by the fireplace, a bowl of hard candies on the table and a brandy in your hand, spending a few pleasant hours listening to the nosferatu in the chair across from you spin a tale of gory death.

 

On first sniff, I thought I really wouldn't like this, it was very perfume-y with that slightly chemical sense that most modern perfumes have; on second sniff, it had turned into soap. But that faded away, to be replaced by a sort of hard candy scent mixed with smoke and dried flowers, wine and musk, all fading in and out. It rounds out to become this smooth, dark, sweet smell.

 

It's not something I'd buy - I keep wanting it to have a little more of a kick - but I'll use up the frimp.

[theseagrows]

first this starts out as cherry-almond and seems sort of promising, but now that it's dry it smells like musty baby powder on me

[filigree_shadow]

The almond scent it very strong at first, but it fades a bit as the oil dries. This burns my nose when I sniff it -- like getting too close to a fire. (Not sure what's causing that, but I don't think I'll be getting my nose that close to my wrist again.) It's much darker than most of the almond scents I've tried. If there are any fruit notes in it, they're dark fruits. It's quite sweet, but it's a bit smoky, too. When it's dry it seems kind of woody and spicy. I like it a lot more after the almond part fades out.

[Dark Sparkle]

I wonder what went wrong between my skin and Black Phoenix because seriously, it ended up smelling like kerosene on me and nothing else

 

The first seconds I get a lovely almond note and them wham! - kerosene all the way - I am seriously bummed.

 

I think I need to try this a few more times to see if it will stay the same

[intothetrees]

In the bottle: Yum. Yum. Cherries and almonds in the middle of the night. Sweet and fruity but not perky. Luscious.

 

Wet: The vanilla or almond or whatever that sweet undertone was gets very strong, and the cherries turn into something like sickly ripe fruit about to spoil. Quite nice really.

 

Dry: It has mellowed out into a scent I just can't quite identify. Still very yum. Such a nighttime scent.

 

Later: Oh, it's turned into another variety of baby powder on me. Bummer.

Edited February 12, 2007 by into the trees

[Doomramen]

Black Phoenix smells like syrupy cherries in the bottle, and I expect that it will smell like softer cherries, and probably spices or incense, when I put it on.

 

At first it smells like strongly fragranced detergent, with a hint of cherry. The cherry fades, and it smells like evil detergent. The next time I smell it, it is just evil.

 

I', guessing that there's amber in it, because it has the same scary sharp wet spice smell that everything I've tried with amber has eventually turned into.

[undream]

in the imp; a cherry syrup scent, sweet and candy-like; maraschinos? &i happen to love the cherry (almond) notes, so this one holds promise.

 

dry; gorgeous!! light, musky, powdery - and something almost creamy in the background . . . just luscious. i can't stop sniffing my own wrists. i absolutely love it.

[bulletslc]

From my first imp order and second scent I've reviewed (first being Hell's Belle)

 

I'd wanted to like this as a long distance friend described it as "pure sex" on her, but.......

 

This is soap on me from start to finish. The drydown was a bit more warm, but still that soapy scent that doesn't work well on my skin. Sigh. Will be swapping this one.

[lightgatherer]

This is the first BPAL I've washed off in quite a while. After I put it on and for the first 20 minutes, on me it's sickly sweet floral baby powder. I don't know if it would have developed into anything else on me (like the cherry, cola, almond, and musk notes I read about in other reviews) because I didn't give it a chance. I'm normally very tolerant when testing something new and will wear something I hate for hours just to get all the nuances, but I didn't have the patience this morning - after 20 minutes I went to the bathroom and scrubbed it off.

[girl_android]

My mega group order of iminent BPAL doom arrived on Friday, which definitely made turning up to work somewhat worth it ! Black Phoenix was in my small bunch of imps, and I picked fairly blindly, not having read any of the reviews for it before it was added to the list before I could second-guess anything!

 

In the imp, it's almond essence with something else in the background. I was going to bake something tonight, but it's a little late to start, and I was thinking something along the lines of almond ...

 

Wet on skin, it's still almond essence, but with some underlying fruitiness. It's been mentioned somewhere above me that it smells of marzipan - I'd have to agree on that one.

 

Once it's try the almond essence feeling calms down a little, and I get something powdery and slightly floral. It's trying its hardest to make me think it's a really *really* luxurious soap, but I don't want to think that it's soap!

 

A few hours later, the soap feeling goes away, and I'm left with a kind of ambery musky almond thing, which I don't much mind at all ... I just don't want the part that makes me think soap !

 

I have learnt that for Black Phoenix, a teeny bit goes a very long way ...

[twistygirl]

What an interesting scent this is! On me, it doesn't seem to be nearly as complex and shifting as it does on others who have reviewed it. From wet to dry, it remained a deep, luscious cherry/almond-with-a-hint-of-syrupy smell - kind of like Serge Lutens' Rahat Loukhoum, but not as candied. And it has not changed one bit on me from the time that I first applied it several hours ago. It is a very rich, very deep fragrance - languid indeed. Incredible staying power and a good amount of throw. I don't pick up any of the greenness that others have. If I had to describe it as a color, it would be a deep eggplant-purply color. It's rich, so rich, and yet not, as I said before, terribly complex or complicated. Just sexy and sensual and tasty and totally, totally divine.

[stellans]

I wanted this to behave on my skin so badly! It smelled quite nice in the imp, and I had hopes... which were dashed, alas!

 

In the imp: luscious dark floral, with a slight tinge of green sweetness.

Wet on skin: still floral, but with a ever-increasing syrupy sweetness.

Dry: Get it off! Get it off! Get it off!

Verdict: The cinnamon (which I didn't smell) burned my skin, and the drydown almost made me sick to my stomach, it was so cherry-sweet-ick. What happened to the luscious dark florals/green tinge of sweetness??? I loved how the imp smelled, but my body chemistry ran amuck with this blend.

 

This imp went to my trade box.

Edited June 5, 2010 by stellans

[chanceofrainne]

First impression: Wow, I don't think I'm going to like this one.

 

On the skin, wet: I tend to like sweet smells, but this one to me is not sweet at all. In fact, it reminds me strongly of Hartz pet shampoo. I'm disappointed. It isn't one I ordered; it came as a freebie with an order, and I know people I'd love to send it to, but I'm always a bit disappointed when scents don't work on me.

 

5 minutes, dry: still smells like pet shampoo. I can kind of smell the almonds, I guess.

 

Ten minutes: it's gone. I almost can't smell it on myself. What a shame. This one's definitely going in the trade pile. *sigh*