Black Phoenix

[arabella]

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

First Impression: Almond and musk.

Dries down to: A musk-tinged, very light floral with, maybe, a touch of sandalwood. The almond disappeared almost immediately and the rest is following almost as fast.

Additional Comments: This one was barely perceptible on me within 10 minutes of applying it and I never got even a hint of cherry out of it.

Lasted: 1/2 hour at most.

Rating: 1.5 out of 5 (purely based on its lack of staying power and strength)

[tesao]

in the bottle: almonds. pure almond extract. alcohol. (my husband says cherry. this is probably where people are getting the cherries!)

 

on my wrist, wet: i can understand why the description says that you will be kissing mirrors for days! there isn't any standout note to me, here - - just light, lovely white florals with a hint of spice.

 

on my wrist, dry: i can honestly say that i understand why this is the lab signature scent. it is a triumph of blending. none of the single notes stands out, but rather merges into something that i simply cannot stop sniffing. this may be my first 10ml that could be purchased in a smaller size -- i love it that much.

 

overall: if i was forced to pick a flower this reminds me of, i would say a spicy hybrid rose. but it isn't a heavy damask scent. pale rosebud pink. first kiss spicy.

 

almonds are the pit of an apricot like fruit, which may explain a lot of the cherry/apricot and cola/dr. pepper references.

 

this is one of those oils that i would love to know the actual notes that beth uses to blend it, simply so that i could look for them in other oils.

[magdalene]

in the bottle: spicy cherry-almond.

 

wet: I had ordered an imp of this without reading any of the reviews, then got a little bit afraid when I read that some people thought it smelled 'green'. Upon smelling it for the first time, I get cherries and almonds, with some sort of boozy type of background holding them all together. Like amaretto. Gorgeous.

 

dry: This is me, after a long night of drinking amaretto sours and laughing myself silly.

[Dark Seraphim]

Bottle: Light cherry. Made me think of Kabuki, only lighter, more floral and more earthy. So strong that it radiated from the bottle.

 

Worn: Started out a cherry scent dominated by an earth-like scent and light florals. Later, it begins to remind me of Ra, with it's strong herb-like scent, only the cherry scent is still there and I do detect some almond and even citrus, oddly enough.

 

Burner: It's truly wonderful here. Smells like cherries with almonds mixed together in a cobbler.

 

I'm not really sure about it on skin, but on the burner, I just think of light cherry almond and light musk. I like this scent a lot on a burner. 8/10.

[Ajila]

Wet on me it was entirely bitter almonds, and very strong. As it dried it went through a stage of almost perfumed candy, but the almonds were still very predominant. Dry on me it's dark, almost gassy, almonds. This is nice, but I doubt it will become a favourite.

[tinyvulture]

in the bottle this smells like straight almond extract, with a hint of cherry. but as it dries, it becomes darker and more complex. i smell roses and soap and tobacco and dr. pepper and lord knows what else. i think i truly am addicted to this scent. i can’t figure out what’s in it, and it smells amazing, so i must sniff it over and over

[Lilithlefay]

When wet on the skin: Very cherry and almond on me. Almost sticky sweet.

Drydown: still very cherry/almond sweet but I think I smell a little spiciness to it now.

After 10 minutes: there is more of a musky, spicy, sweetness to it. still definately smell the cherry and almond, but they aren't as strong.

[roseaeron]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!! I was visiting my Grandmother today and she has this wonderful cherry almond hand soap in her bathroom. I washed my hands with it and thought, "Wow, I need an oil that smells like this!" Imagine my delight when I tried Black Phoenix for the first time tonight and there it was. I'm so glad I trusted my instincts on this one and bought the 5 ml bottle with my first order! Now I don't have to worry about running out for a while. The Lab description is incredibly accurate. I've been comtemplating kissing my own wrists for about half an hour now...Where's my mirror?!?

 

edit: Wow, almost two hours later, to me, it's less almond and cherry and has now morphed into a wonderful, spicy incense scent that reminds me of when I worked the Renn Faire. This just keeps getting better and better. Definitely one of my new favorites! And I'm still considering making out with my own wrists...

Edited August 20, 2005 by roseaeron

[DarkMouse]

in the bottle: Boozey cherry & almond

 

on my skin: wet, it starts out cherry liquor and thick sweet almond (think Eclipse) and is yummy.. for about 5.2 seconds. It goes into a cedary sort of scent then to mahogany (like the drydown of Red Queen) and then to something wood polish smelling that gives me a headache. There's something similar to Sri Lanka in it.. maybe the cedar.

 

verdict: I had to wash this off.. it gave me a splitting headache.

Off to the swap pile with you!!

[Blood onmy hands]

I wanted to love Black Phoenix just because of its name... but I don't. I've tried to wear it several times now, and ended up washing it off each time. It's just too thick and boozy. Like cherry cough medicine, syrup, and boozy almond extract. It has a sort of incense like quality in the drydown, but it's just too much for me. Too cloyingly sweet and thick.

 

Sorry, Black Phoenix... it's time to put you up for swaps.

[quimerula]

Wet I can smell sweet almonds. I hate almonds, but they use to vanish quickly on my skin.

 

After the almondy moment, it turns into a dark, mysterious and powdery perfume.

I get myrrh, roses (like the ones you can smell in Black Rose) and a touch of cherry over a tinny bit of almonds. I think I get an ambergris bottom line too.

 

A lovely perfume, it would be perfect without the almonds.

I'll probably buy an imp.

[loveandprozak]

In the vial/wet on my skin: Cinnamon, almond, and maybe a touch of honey. This is a gourmand scent at this stage without being overly foody. I really like this stage; it creates a sultry feeling without being overly sexual.

 

10 - 20 minutes: The cinnamon stays, but is a background note and in its place are almonds and a very clean soapy note that I can't place. This is a very strange combination -- I never really would have thought to pare a 'clean' scent with something as spicy and almondy as it started. I'm not particularly crazy about 'clean' scents, but I have to admire this stage for having notes that I'd never personally think to pair together, and yet having them work quite well.

 

40 minutes - Drydown: Lotus. Suddenly lotus becomes very evident and becomes stronger and stronger until it easily is the dominant note. A slightly spicy and very clean-feeling lotus blend. I'm noticing a lot of the reviews are reporting rose, but I'm not getting rose at all. This is a very loud and screaming lotus note on me. Weird skin chemistry, anyone?

[parrot_suspect]

Hooray! I've finally found a replacement for my beloved, discontinued Unseelie.

 

I never would have guessed Black Phoenix would be this type of scent. It starts out strongly cherry-almond -- sticky sweet, like candy. At first whiff, my thought was, "Yech, forget it." But then....ahhhh! Within 15 minutes, it dries down to a delightful powdery, musky, vanillic aura. I am almost certain there must be heliotrope in this blend. The powdery drydown is to die for, if you're into powder...which I am.

 

I can definitely see this blend layering well with other vanillic/powdery scents like Alice, Snow White, etc. What a find. And I have to admit I'm pleased to be able to wear the lab's signature scent.

 

A big bottle of Black Phoenix is going on my wishlist today!

[Firewaver]

In the bottle it smells similar to Love me.. like cherry liquor and spices.

 

On my skin.. It's initially very spicy and dark when first applied. I still smell black cherry and also a spicy resinous/incense smell. Maybe patchouli, though I'm not sure about that. I usually try to steer clear of patchouli so I'm inexperienced with it's scent.

 

Drying down.. it's taking on a powdery transformation. It kind of smells like wild cherry incense cones right now. It has a bitter edge to it, I can see this being appealing on guys as well as women. This smells very unique to me when compared to other bpal scents I've been exposed to... which is most likely why it's a signature scent.

 

Dry.. ooh, a bit more of a cinnamon spice kick is coming through, very pleasant. It does still remind me of Love Me, maybe a slightly more unisex version.

 

 

I like it. It's a good spicy smell, and I love a good spicy smell.

I will think about getting a bottle of this, and there's no way I'm giving up my imp.

[modesty_blaise]

When wet it´s all almonds and a tiiiiny drop of cherries. Very sweet. As it dries down, the almonds disappear completely and it morphs into something more heady, almost incensy, still with the cherries in the background. All in all, it´s a nice scent, but I´m not so sure it is for me. And, umm, thanks to my lovely sense of planning, I now have two imps. I guess I´m gonna have to get rid of one, and then keep the other for further testing

[maewitch]

The wet stage is pure cherry liqueur, and I get progressively more patchouli as it dries. I don't really like the middle part, as the combination of the cherry ans the rising incense is cloying yet pungent at the same time. And there is that strong sugared booze note that I get from Juke Joint that I'm not too crazy about.

 

The drydown is nicer, and the cherry has completely faded.

 

This smells very headshop-y on me. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the end product, but I think the mid-stage classifies this as a swap.

[aessedai]

Cherry coke!

[Savannah]

In the imp, this was pure maraschino cherry to my nose. It was so maraschino cherry that if it had been red instead of clear, I would have been convinced that the lovely person who sent me a free imp had actually, for her own mysterious reasons, sent me an imp of maraschino cherry juice.

 

But I gamely put it on, as I will put on every BPAL blend that ever crosses my path, since I learned how they unfold.

 

The sugarfruit rush faded as it dried and a new scent began to emerge-- a scent difficult to describe, yet oddly familiar. Still sweet. Incensey... spicy... rich... dark... musky... sexy... what was it I was smelling?

 

Then I realized. I keep all my BPAL imps in a box. When I open the lid of the box, a scent wafts up from the box, that's like the wafty, sultry-sweet, delicious, melange-eriffic throw of all my different imps combined. This is that scent! I opened my imp box to check, and they're practically the same. How cool! Black Phoenix is the smell of... Black Phoenix!

 

That's what I get from it, anyway. :-)

Edited September 29, 2005 by Savannah

[LyndaM]

I had expected not to like Black Phoenix at all, as people had mentioned possibly detecting frankincense, patchouli and heavy musk in reviews, and I don't get along with any of the above.

 

But somehow, this works pretty well on me. The only notes I can really pick out are the sweet almond/cherry note when it's wet, and maybe cedar on extreme drydown. In between, have no idea what I'm smelling, but me likey. It makes me think of my grandfather, an amazing and intelligent man. It doesn't smell like anything he ever wore, it just brings him to mind. I think this will be great on my husband (if I can get him to let it dry beyond the cherry beginnings).

 

If it smells as scrumptious on hubby as I suspect it will; it will definitely be a bottle for him. And I'll sneak some for me occasionally, too.

 

Edit: Tried it on hubby, and it was wonderful. A yummy sexy musk note was readily apparent on him after the cherry wet stage. It smelled nothing like it did on me, luckily it was even better.

Edited September 30, 2005 by LyndaM

[Phaedra]

Wet this smells like sweet almond marzipan. When first applied this smells faintly of powder and also a sparkling, bubbly cherry- thick and heavy. This dries down smelling exactly like O- a warm, honey, close to the skin scent. Very nice but since it's so similar to O I ended up including this in a swap package.

[lookingglass]

Wet this is very strong, almonds...sweet, creamy and cherrylike.,,yum.

 

Drying down, dusty resins, spices and floral (very rosey) notes come to the front and mingle with what is left of the fleeting almond. I see the Seraglio reference, but this is darker, muskier, more complex, and without the citrus. It also reminds me of the incense note in All Souls. You know what it really feels like?: Alice and Hecate together.

 

Dry this is sweet, dark, musky, slightly dusty/powdery floral.

 

This scent keeps me interested as it morphs through the drydown stages: from a gift of candy, to the presentation of fresh blooms, to the down and dirty seduction. I am in love...

Edited January 11, 2007 by lookingglass

[mandalinn]

In the imp: Lovely almond, sweet & sticky

 

Wet on: Almond, cherry with a hint of patchouli.

 

Drydown: Ick, went way to dry on me, too heavy and powdery.

 

Not for me, off to the swap pile!

[ladymissspyder]

In the bottle, I really couldn't pick out any individual notes. It was just very, VERY strong and overpowering.

 

On - now this may sound weird - it smelled like a combination of Poison (the perfume) and Coca-Cola concentrate. I could see how this scent could potentially smell great on someone, but that someone isn't me.

[Xiabelle]

In the imp, this is syrupy sweet. I can definitely see the Dr Pepper comparisons, as it's got that sweet, fruity tang to it.

 

When I put it on... I consideed scrubbing it off. It just starting throwing syrupy sweet cherries and almonds all around. In fact, it smells like a very old bottle of amaretto, when it's started to get thick. Positively cloying, and rather overpowering.

 

It fades after a while, but eventually picks up again...

 

On me, it's a musky vanilla spicy thing with almond and cherry undertones. In... reminds me of the vanilla in snake oil, I think. Or something. It's familiar, but I can't place it.

 

This seems too close to other things, and I don't much like the initial stages... I'll probably test again, but this might be swapped.

[zenvodunista]

I can't tell if I like this one or not. In the imp it's ALMOND, but on the skin it becomes so complex. The almond is there, and so are spices and other things. I am confused and yet… mildly intrigued. But it's not hitting me over the head with the love. let's see if i end up reaching for it ever.

 

n.