Snake Oil

[EricthoDesalamander]

By far, our most popular scent! Magnetic, mysterious, and exceedingly sexual in nature. A blend of exotic Indonesian oils sugared with vanilla.

I've heard so much about this oil, and I've been wanting to try it quite a while. An opportunity finally presented itself in eary November, and me being the impulse buyer that I am I bought two (one is here, while one is still on the way).

All I can say is that I'm glad I bought this oil, because I know that I'll be using it quite a bit!

I will agree with most posters that when you take a whiff from the bottle it does smell bit medicinal (vicks, maybe?), but when it's applied and allowed to dry down is when the magic truly begins. The vanilla slowly, but surely starts to appear but is kept in check by the incenses/spices within the blend - it doesn't border on the overly foody/sugary (although I will admit that I do like to smell like a bakery every once a while, but that's a different subject for a different time).

I like that slight bite/sting, and I'm constantly bringing my wrist up to my nose to catch a whiff, I love it that much! It's definitely a sexier, more grown up vanilla. As one reviewer on YouTube put it once, "it's sex in a bottle." I agree!

I know that I'll be repurchasing this again, and again...

[Erinofhere]

I got my first shipment of BPAL in today and I immediately tried Snake Oil on.

 

I'm not a fan.

 

Okay, that's wrong. I am a fan of it, just not on me. I think it would smell amazing on my husband.

 

I do smell the vanilla, but on me this turns into an after shave sort of smell.

 

In the bottle I got a huge whiff of vanilla and cough syrup.

 

On my skin it smelled more medicinal and less vanilla. It gradually warmed up to a vanilla-ish sexy man smell (not the smell I was going for). The resins are strong in this one and while the vanilla comes to full attention the resins turn it into a very masculine vanilla.

 

Hopefully my sexy man will be okay with his imp of this because I just can't hang with it.

 

I was also hoping for better staying power. Its been about 5 hours and it has all but disappeared on me. That isn't necessarily an indicator that it wont have staying power on you. My skin eats perfume.

 

Alas, this one wasn't a win for me. Tomorrow I'll be trying "O". I sniffed it in the bottle and I do believe we will be best friends.

 

Edit:

NOW I UNDERSTAND WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT

 

Okay so I set this back and forgot about it. I pulled my imp out last night to see if aging really helps this stuff. I am very happy to say that aging makes all the difference. My imp has been aged for 9 to 11 months..give or take. This stuff is fantastic. All the vanilla a girl could want with staying power to boot. I'm so happy! I am going to buy a few big bottles just to age.

Edited August 2, 2013 by Erinofhere

[DJ Sin]

Just got this a sample in my order.

 

It warmed nicely on my skin and didn't turn to soap-smelling on me.

 

Its soft, sexy and seducing with spice and vanilla. I think I may have to order a bottle of this.

[NuadaVixen]

After all the reviews, the hype and overall popularity I got really excited about Snake Oil.

It was my first one to try out of the batch. On the bottle it smells like inciense. On my body, the vanilla starts to emerge... but it doesn´t turn complex: it's just vanilla inciense.

Even a classmate started wondering "why does it smell like inciense here?" while we were at the elevator, with a weird-out, not-pleased tone of voice. It was embarrasing.

Worst of all, it has a really long staying power, so I smelled funny even after a shower.

Snake Oil was a dissapointment for me.

[ladymeag]

Better late than never, huh?

 

I know that Snake Oil is beloved by most but I, most unfortunately, get a slight powder note out of it.

 

In the bottle: Musky vanilla. This is exactly what I want.

 

On my spouse: Slightly sweet (sugared feels about right, it's not very sweet but there's just an outer edge of sweetness) spicy vanilla. Spouse says: brown sugar, bay rum, spicy vanilla.

 

On my child (an accidental spill caused a scent-test for my three year old ) Smells like a sweet spice market - the vanilla seems to be lost but it's a wonderful smell anyhow.

 

On me: Nearly all powdery light musk, with a sweet vanilla in the background - from application to dry down it doesn't morph much for me.

[Opulence]

Even though I'm a vanilla lover and was so excited to try the fabled Snake Oil, it has a synthetic smell to it that ruins it for me. The synthetic smell seems to fade after an hour or hour and a half, so that I am left with a soft vanilla powder scent that is fairly nice. However, I can't put up with the synthetic smell for that long--to the swap pile.

 

Even though I'm a vanilla lover and was so excited to try the fabled Snake Oil, it has a synthetic smell to it that ruins it for me. The synthetic smell seems to fade after an hour or hour and a half, so that I am left with a soft vanilla scent that is fairly nice. However, I can't put up with the synthetic smell for that long--to the swap pile.

 

Update: Ok, so I didn't swap this. I read that Snake Oil gets better with age, so I aged it for 6 months. Tried it again today and it was LOVELY! Such a deep, dark, sweet and spicy scent. It is definitely sexy, sophisticated, and edgy. Long lasting, too--my husband noticed it right away when he saw me 11 hours after I had applied it. He liked it--rated it an 8 out of 10! It did not go powdery over the hours, which was a relief.

Edited July 12, 2013 by Opulence

[littlebeky]

Ok, I suck. I just got into BPAL and have about 20 bottles at this point, all from the forum and eBay. I never gave Snake Oil a thought, figured I would try it someday and spent my time buying LE bottles unsniffed, building my hoard of hard to find and seasonal scents while ignoring the GC scents. Well, I decided to try Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener and the Lab scent me an imp of Snake Oil!

 

In the bottle: nothing exciting I thought, spicy incense. Maybe a little tiny bit fruity too?? Don't quite get the hype. Yet.

 

Wet: OMG what does this remind me of?! I'm having smell déjà vu. Seriously frustrating. Those gummy fruit snacks, not candy like gummy worms but the fruit snacks comes to mind. But only briefly. It starts softening and settles into a creamy, spicy, incensy vanilla but I do get a small hint of something fruity here and there. Beautiful.

 

Dry: after a while it goes just a tad powdery on me. Which with this scent isn't a scent-killer for me, it isn't too bad. It is still beautiful.

 

Verdict: I'm going to need a bottle. And I have read that AGED snake oil is the way to go. I would love to try an aged bottle as well as trying snake oil with some other scents to layer. Maybe my Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener? I can just smell it now! I will be on the lookout for aged bottles and be experimenting with layering tonight, that's for sure.

 

BPAL NEWBIES! Don't skip over this scent like I did.

[ShadesOfFree]

This is one of those scents where the drydown/final stage is the best part for me, and the beginning is just "meh" but not bad enough to make me sick or something, so I can stand it long enough for it to get to the good parts. I like the initial application's intensity - this one goes a long way with just a few drops, normally I kind of slather the stuff on, but with this one nooo - and I like that there's a whole complex scent thing going on with it.

 

Once it dries it goes for the sweet vanilla resin smell that I love, with a bit of powder, which I also like in most cases (as long as it's a complex powder, which this is - it's almost like a scented body powder, 'cause it's got the vanilla/spice/resin + baby powder smell).

 

The only issue here for me is that occasionally I get PEANUT BUTTER from this. Like, some days my skin is just like "you know what? Today, everything about this scent is peanuts. No spice, no vanilla, no powder. Just karking peanuts!" and I mean it could be worse, but I'm just basically learning I need to test a drop on my hand or somewhere easy to wash before applying it for the day in more spots, because I've gone to work smelling like peanuts like five times now, and it's kinda maddening.

 

Also I need to try this aged. I might just let my bottle rest a bit, get a little older, and just use the imp for application in the meantime; I had an older imp ages ago that was much smoother, faster drydown and no peanut issue, so maybe that's a young oil thing. We'll see. 4/5 stars, though, in all.

[KissleMeNow]

I love some vanilla, I love some spices, and besides, I couldn't do BPAL without at least taking a dab of the infamous Snake Oil.

 

Wet and in the imp, it's really amazing. The vanilla reminds me of the one from Crowley – sweet, but more warm than sugary. It smelled a little spicy, but also a little like some wood I couldn't quite put my finger on – in a nice way. There was a period on the drydown where the vanilla started to get a little too sharp/sweet, and I distinctly got a whiff of Vick's. These calmed down, but ultimately it was... a little too heavy, a little too cloying, a little too sweet. It's frustrating, because I absolutely love the idea and the initial scent... but I still can't see myself wearing this. Away to another loving home it goes, I think.

[Saffrin]

Double review for this one!

 

Aged ~2 years

Imp: Spices. It's more kitcheny than incense. No sign of the vanilla or smoothness. I can easily understand why it apparently smells medicinal when fresh as it still carries an undertone of it.

 

Wet: Even sharper spices. Reminds me of pepper, with that back-of-the-nose hit of sharpness.

 

The oil is yellow on my super pale skin. Hopefully that fades away when my skin eats it more.

15 minutes in, and the yellow has faded a bit, but is still pretty obvious. Thankfully I didn't wear it at the top of my cleavage.

 

Dry: Still got the light gold stain on the inside of my wrist.

 

The spices no longer hit the back of my nose. I can't tell if the sharpness has just fallen off a bit, or if the vanilla has softened it.

 

 

 

Aged even more years (however, not the flying witch imp label old)

Imp: This one is definitely creamier. The spices are still there in the front, and they still have a bit of sharpness to them, but the vanilla really tempers it nicely.

For some reason, it's reminding me of slightly spicy brown-cream soda. Onomnom.

 

Wet: This is a foody vanilla. When first applied, the cream-soda smell jumps out even more.

Pretty shortly after, it falls away into a nice even mix of spices and vanilla. The spice losses the sharpness, and instead just give off a nice warmth.

 

 

Dry: This one has also stained. Dammit, blend!

Mainly vanilla, with warned spice edges. Definitely better than the less-aged version - this one definitely has more vanilla.

 

+ Some more time: Something in it is smelling burnt. Like burnt sugar and spices.

 

Boyfriend's opinion: "Meh. Smells like talcum powder."

 

 

They're both nice enough, I guess, but neither came close to wowing me. I also realllyyy wish they didn't make the application area look like I have onsetting jaundice. ._.;

 

Edit: Just after 2 hours in, and the stain has faded enough that you can only see it if you know to look for it. Guess I need to get some more sun.

Edited January 20, 2013 by Saffrin

[yakiguri]

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet. Though I have to say, on the fresh vs aged Snake Oil debate, I have to thoroughly side with the aged camp.

 

In my early BPAL days I thoroughly read reviews before placing my first purchases, and being too impatient to deal with samples I bought a few bottles unsniffed. Snake Oil was one of them. Upon opening the bottle I was greeted with a nose pinching, medicinal mess. Disappointed, I shunted Snake Oil into my NOPE box and put it up for sale.

 

Then I was frimped an aged imp of SO from a lovely forumite, and it was like the heavens parted, I was anointed with BPAL's heavenly scent, and I got it. Thankful my poor misunderstood bottle never sold, I pulled it out of the sales box and begged it to forgive me for writing it off so soon. My bottle had indeed blossomed into the creamy, spicy, heady vanilla goodness that makes Snake Oil such a beautiful blend.

 

So if you don't like Snake Oil at first, put it away for a bit as it's a late bloomer! If you find you like it afterward, buy two bottles so you always have one for aging and one for slathering.

[Mergekat]

I can understand why this is a big seller at BPAL. It at times varies between foody to just spicy, but I'm getting whiffs of the vanilla and the various spices. Though to me the spices kinda come come across as mix between a cream soda and a poppy seed muffin (hints of lemon?). While the spices can be puzzling, I love the scent throw on this and how the spices seem to shift with time. I do believe the vanilla works well with my body's chemistry too.

[tharsei-thanate]

Play-Doh, nooooo

 

Snagged a frimp at this past NYCC, haven't touched it until tonight, and it's Play-Doh. Vanilla can be weird on me sometimes so it's not entirely surprising, but it is disappointing. Luckily, it isn't 100% Play-Doh. The incense is lovely and and smokey and there's a yummy sweetness lurking close to my skin. This is definitely a sexy blend. But it'd be even sexier if the Play-Doh wasn't sitting there and mocking me. Sigh.

 

I guess the best course of action is to put this away and let it age and see what happens.

[musikmegs]

I love Snake Oil...and as a BPAL newbie I love it fresh, so I can only imagine how swoon-worthy it will be when aged. It was my first bottle purchase, but I'm letting that bottle sit while I use up my imp.

 

When I smell it from the imp it is a bit sharp with a tinge of sweetness. The oil is thick and viscous with a pretty orange-yellow color. On my skin it becomes this wonderful resinous incense surrounded by a rich, round vanilla. If I put my nose right up to my wrist I get that slightly medicinal quality others have mentioned, but the cloud of scent that hovers around me is just delicious and heady. This lasts forever on me. It is definitely the fragrance I reach for the most from my small collection.

[Deliciousness]

By far, our most popular scent! Magnetic, mysterious, and exceedingly sexual in nature. A blend of exotic Indonesian oils sugared with vanilla.

Fresh from the lab...

In the Imp: Oh, is that a head shop in there? Filled with spice and incense, but slightly sweet

On the skin: Smells like the same as the imp

Dry: The spices are starting to settle down and the scent is becoming more rounded ... is that musk?

A little later: Wow, its musk, all day strong all day long.

 

Darn the musk, my skin must love it or something, I can't smell the vanilla

 

Aged a little bit (about 6 months)

In the imp: Oh indonesian oils, there you are!

On the skin: like the imp again

Dry: Wow, its a lightly sweet musk. very warm. Much less "abrasive" than when I first purchased this.

 

Although I do like the warm smell of this oil, I was seriously hoping for more vanilla.

Vanilla, I can never have enough...

 

 

UPDATE

A few months later...

 

I had to do an update! Just tried this on last night and was like WOW! I get what all that hype is about! Snake Oil ages so freking well; I'm getting the sugared vanilla now and the entire scent just opens up and is so mellow, with a beautiful sweetened musk (reminds me of Smut). Drool ... I want to nom on my arm. I 'm definitely getting a bottle or two to age now.

Edited May 1, 2013 by Deliciousness

[nixie3]

This is my first review! WOOT!

 

Hmmm....in the bottle, I barely detect scent. Smells kind of like a New Age bookstore....

 

Wet on skin: Smells sharp, a bit almondy/cherry, almost bitter.

 

Dry Down: As I walk around, I get whiffs of rich sweetness, but when I smell my wrist, still the bitter almond smell.

 

After an hour: A floral is emerging, but the scent itself has very little throw on me. I barely smell the floral. Can also detect a hint of smokiness, almost a leather scent in the background. I like the smell itself, I've never encountered it before. It's interesting because the bitter edge I detect spells "boundary" to me...so instead of feeling inviting, it seems standoff-ish. The word that comes to my mind is haughty. Attractive, but distant.

 

Well, after 3 hours, it still has an edge, but it's not the same haughty, keep your distance edge. It's definitely: "Oh Hai! I'm Spicy McSpice, and this is my little brother, Resinous!" However, my son smells Vanilla!!!! I totally don't smell it! lol!!!! That's on my left wrist (I don't smell anything on my left wrist). On my right wrist, we both smell cherries. I smell spice and cherries, he smells vanilla, cherries, and a little spice. All of this makes me want to cry because my sense of smell is pretty horrible since turning 45 :-( I'll look at my bpal addiction as something I'm giving the people around me :-) BECAUSE my husband DID keep nuzzling up to me saying "Mmmmm, you smell nice" even though I couldn't smell anything at all, lol!

 

Hour later: On second thought, I think my nose (like the rest of my everything) is really sensitive, which is why all I can get are the spices, they do overwhelm me, which is why I think I'll be much happier with this when it's aged a bit.

 

From the reactions of the males around me, it's a keeper. For me, after the initial dominator hour, it's a pleasant, inviting scent. It has more throw than I can smell, it has a pleasant effect on myself, and people around me. What I get in the dry down is playful in mood, and optimistic. Nice scent! 4/5 for a fresh batch. Will report back in 6 months.

[tealight]

I spent last week shaking my bottle of Snake Oil and sobbing WHY WON'T YOU LOVE ME. I bought an aged bottle on a whim and I literally smelled like old man and carpet. As it turns out, Mother Nature came around a few days later and I decided to give it another go. Oh what a world difference. It was all head shop incense and nothing else the week before, and now I'm finally getting that warm, dark resin-y vanilla people rave about. I love it! It does seem to be morphing on me still, so I'll have to try it again in a few days to see if it warrants a full bottle.

 

Edit: Ok, this definitely deserves a full bottle. The more wear it, the more I seem to love it.

Edited March 23, 2013 by tealight

[January Garnet]

In the Imp: The exact same amazing vanilla from Dorian and some spices I'm interested in getting a better whiff of.

 

Wet: Whoa! Instant love. If it stays like this, I'll be happy. Crystaline sugared vanilla and spices.

 

Dry. Well, the delicious sugared vanilla has calmed down and has blended evenly with the spices. There is definitely patchouli in this, which I love.

 

My only problem is that this is very strong on me. I put on a normal amount and I could smell it everywhere. Thank goodness I was testing it at home, because I might have triggered someone's allergies. I just need to be very careful with this one.

[zewtsuit]

I've heard so much about this oil, and I had to try it. However, within the first few seconds of applying it then letting it settle, I had to scrub it off. It smells absolutely vile.

 

I then tried it on my dad to see if it was just my skin, then a friend, and oh dear lord, it smells so disgusting I can't even bear to be around it- I have no clue what's wrong with me. It smells bitter, cloying, like something's gone off in a spice cabinet, paired with a new age bookstore smell and dare I say it... pot? This smells like really, really stinky pot. Holy crap, I've never disliked a smell this much before in my life. Back to the foodie, sweet stuff.

[Luthien]

Sigh... I tried a fresh imp of this ... and it just does NOT work on my skin. I am disappointed. I was expecting to feel induced into a seductive rampage... instead I smell a base of something patchouli-ish with sickly sweet, powdery almost musty overtones. I cannot detect any vanilla, and in the imp/wet I do get the cough syrupy thing other people are getting.

 

I think I am going to forget about my imp in a dark corner for a good year or so and see what happens............... (cannot understand how this is the top seller......is everyone using Aged Snake Oil or what?!)

[Caper]

This is powder on me. I didn't figure it out until I tried blend after blend of the Carnival Snakes and they all turned to powder. I finally tried Snake Oil and realized that w the component that they all had in common that didn't work for me.

 

I like it in the vial and lot. The vanilla and incense are great. I wish it didn't turn to powder pretty much immediately. Oh well, one less person competing with you all for the aged bottles y occasionally see!

[Xue_Bai]

Trading Post freebie. I was SO excited when I saw this in there. After looking through reviews, this had jumped towards the top of my to try list.

 

Imp: That is HEAVENLY spicy vanilla.

 

Wet: The oil is SO thick compared to other BPAL oils I've tried. Only wanted a few drops on, but it was near impossible not to end up with a bunch on....oh well! The spiciness has changed a bit, but still VANILLA! There's a pleasant incense feel now.

 

Dry Down: Spices still changing, still amazing. There's a sweetness now, but it's subtle.

 

Dry: Spices have subdued, but are still playing a wonderful part. The vanilla has turned a bit....different? It's like it's missing something, so I can't call it vanilla anymore. It's more like vanillin? Which is the main component I love from the scent of old books. Still a little smokey incense feel to it.

 

All together it's amazing, sleek and sexy, and now I get why it's so popular. It has an amazing throw initially, and I'm going to assume it has staying power like my other BPALs with vanilla/vanillin components. Assuming this doesn't bother any family members, I will end up buying a whole bottle of this.

 

GAH! Much keep smelling this! If it was a Trading Post atmosphere spray I would cover my bed in it and just roll around in bed for hours, I swear.

[Alyssa79]

Sultry is the word to describe this scent on me. Its a boozy cherry almond vanilla on me and i cant stop smelling my wrist! Hard to describe but it has this oomph that i look for in scents and it has a uniqueness.

 

Im so glad i tried this and a big bottle is in my future ;-)

[Magycmyste]

So my first imp of this came as a frimp from the lab. Subsequently, I've gotten a couple more imps, but hadn't had a chance to actually test them yet. Something I find interesting - the imp from the lab is slightly darker than one of the others and slightly lighter than the other. I wonder that that says about its age. Anyway, to the test. I'm going to use the imp I got from the lab. It's been about a month since I got it.

 

In the imp: vanilla and something else - I'm assuming the blend of Indonesian oils. It's sweet and spicy at the same time.

 

Wet on skin: Incense with a little bit of sweetness. (also, wow, this oil is dark, and for once, we have an oil that doesn't immediately sink straight into my skin. I can still see it glistening a little where it's applied.)

 

Dried down: Incense and sweet vanilla, with the scent I got out of the imp in the background.

 

Throw: This definitely has some throw. The incense sort of overpowers it when I sniff my wrists, but otherwise, I've got this cloud of slightly spicy vanilla floating around me, and I keep wanting to breathe it in.

 

Verdict: ***** I get it now. I need a bottle of this. Two bottles, actually, so one can age while I use the first one up (although I seem to enjoy it already when it's not so aged).

[welcometothefamily]

Really not sure what to think of this one. I kinda like it, but I don't know. I get compliments when I wear it, and it does smell nice, but something in this blend makes me picture motor oil. I don't know why, because it doesn't /smell/ like motor oil, just when I sniff it, it somehow reminds me of motor oil. I mentioned this to my mother and she said 'yeah, creosote.' I have no idea what creosote smells like -shrug-. All that being said, this blend isn't at all unpleasant, and I do like it, but it doesn't seem to be one that I reach for that often, so I'm not sure whether to go for a bottle or not. Oh well, I've got a month to decide before my next order . Oh yeah, and it does stain my skin a little bit yellow, but then, I only wear perfume on my wrists as I suspect wearing it around my neck was giving me headaches. So not that big of a deal, people don't notice unless I point it out.

 

3.5/5

 

 

ETA: OHMYGOD. I totally get it now. So this has been hidden away for just three months, and it's already changed so much! When I first got the imp, it smelled quite sharp (although I did still kinda like it ) and like I said in my previous review, reminiscent of motor oil. Now, it smells like delicious sweet, smooth, spicy vanilla. I love it so much, and I'm definitely picking up a bottle or three in my Yule order =D. I've also picked up a bottle of boomslang which is freaking AMAZING so the fact that I don't have a bottle of SO isn't a huge tragedy for me yet . This is now one of my favorite blends!

 

Updated Rating: 5/5

Edited November 14, 2013 by welcometothefamily