India Bouquet

[ipb]

Used liberally in love magick to ensure tranquility, calm quarrels, and rekindle faltering flames of attraction, sensuality and romance. Used also to put an end to infidelity, and in this aspect, it can be used not only on your mate, but on your self to keep your own eyes from wandering and hands from straying.

the smell of anise/licorice bark is strong with this one.. i wanna go eat a black twizzler now. (first the skittles astro blend, now this! someone must be hungry...)

[Lady_Ell]

India Bouquet smells just like coriander seeds and fennel seeds and other Indian food spices when wet - as it dries it goes all fennel seeds and smells like those teeny pink and white fennel seed candies that you eat after you have Indian food on your way out of the restaurant. After a while the coriander comes back and makes it a bit more bitter. A little unusual but I think it might become a favorite in time.

[bigeyedgirl]

Initially it's like curry, coriander and ginger. It's a heavy, foody smell...like an indian groccer.

 

Durring the drydown it has a hint of floweryness, but mostly there's still alot of coriander and ginger.

 

At first I didn't think I could wear this, howeer now that it's dried down I think it will make a splendid autum scent. Although it's awsomely spicy, it's not too spicy. I love it...perhaps enough to order a 5ml.

[autumn24]

Amazing. Just like poking around in an Indian market, and plunging your hands into great big baskets of spices-- fennel, anise, curry, coriander. Like eating samosas and caraway fritters, and freshening your breath after the meal with anise seeds. Potent, licoricey, sweet, and deeply exotic.

[ChupaChup]

Oh my, how I love this one This was a generous extra from the lab, thank you so much for letting me try it. I adore spicy blends and this one is so exotic. At first it does smell just like curry but within only about 5 minutes, the top notes of coriander and cumin fade and the fennel and maybe some cardamom emerge. It starts to get slightly sweet, with that soft licorice smell that fennel seeds have, much gentler than anise. Someone above mentioned that bowl of seeds and little licorice candies they have in Indian restaurants, it smells like that, all freshly ground.

 

I think Beth should make a whole range of oils using India Bouquet. I would love to see this with notes like vanilla, almond, honey or even soft florals. I have already tried it layered with O <twitch> If you've ever had any of the Indian sweets that are ground cashews, condensed milk and cardamom, that's what it smelled like

Edited September 10, 2004 by ChupaChup

[darkling]

Unfortunately, this smelled purely of anise in the bottle and on my skin. I had to run to the bathroom and wash it off! Even the aroma of black licorice in the store makes me ill, so this is not a scent for me.

[Astarte]

I have to admit the anise note got me too, I have too many bad memories of aniseed shots to ever be able to wear this.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: Aniseed and curry.

 

Second Impression: Pure spice without a trace of sweetness. Like being in a curry house waiting for your Tikka Masala.

 

Final Analysis: I really like the smell of this, but not on me as a perfume. It did layer really well with vanilla bean single note.

[vitawash24]

Yes, it does smell like those little seeds at the exit of an Indian restaurant. But it's a sweet, exotic smell and it's gorgeous. The fact that I love those little seeds probably isn't hurting my impression.

 

The weird thing is that while in my, er, decolletage, I can still detect this gentle, peaceful spiciness, on my wrists it has inexplicably turned to cardboard. Very odd. I do like it, though, and might try blending it with other oils.

[omly]

India Bouquet made me want to dig around in my spice cabinet. After a little bit of searching I found it. Five Spice Powder. Thats what I smell like. That isn't necessarily a bad smell, in fact I can see how others might desribe it as having an exotic spiciness. Mostly though, it just made me hungry...

[Scylla]

In the vial: Oh my! It smells like Devon Avenue (in Chicago) where there are at least 10 Indian restaurants or grocers on each city block and the air is thick with the scent of Indian spices and Indian cooking.

 

At first, in the vial and on my skin, all I smell is curry and I want to run and wash it off. I REALLY don't want to smell like an Indian restaurant or a cab!

 

But I waited, and the curry faded away and other spices came to the forefront.

It's one of the more interesting, evocative BPAL scents I've tried. I think this one should go in the Wanderlust category, as it transports me to India. And it definitely made me crave Indian food!

Edited October 7, 2004 by Scylla

[nephthys_lvx]

First sniff - Anise, very strong, and not that pleasant (I can't stand licorice)

 

Second sniff - Now it's starting to smell like an East Indian shop, which ain't all bad.

 

Third sniff - never got there, my stomach made an unexpected lurch and I had to run and wash it off.

 

Too bad, I like the smell of curry, but there is something in this that is nauseating to me. Probably the anise... Off it goes to the swap bin!

[Lorencita]

This was veery yucky to me. I did not like it at all, I wish I like it, cause it did sound good... but oh well!

[NoirRosaleen]

Oh no oh no oh no...

 

Anise. Anise anise ANISE. In the bottle, on my skin, single-note anise!

 

I like it...my boy gets sick at the very smell. I*m SO glad he*s not here, but man, I JUST got out of the shower and now I have to get back in, after 30 minutes trying to figure out how to use the blow dryer to get my hair to curl under...*sighs* Maybe I*ll sit around for an hour or so and hope it changes. *bleah*

 

Swap pile for this one...*so* disappointing!

[pkwench]

The first whiff was a giant bitchslap of anise laced with a heady, undefineable spicey kick. It was so overwhelming when I first dabbed it on that I just didn't know what to do with it. But, then it started to settle and mellow in a way. Once it did, it still retained that spicey and anise laden scent, but one that was gentler and more likely to evoke the images and sensations of something exotic. This isn't a slathering blend, by any means, but a dabber. One to wear, I think, on days when you need a touch of something far and away.

 

And, agreeing with those that mentioned it, it would be purely to die for mixed with vanilla.

[hypothermya]

Initial Impression

 

This one smells like straight anise. There's a marsh that I used to hike by a lot, and one of the things that I'd always do is snag a little sprig of anise and twirl it between my fingers just for the smell. It definitely smells more like the anise plant than it does like licorice (a fav. candy of mine). I guess that it's missing the sweet/syrupy smell.

 

Wearing It

 

Oh, wait, there is sweetness in here! This smells just like those dishes of anise seed and sugar candies that they have in Indian restaurants. (love those too.) There's the slightest hint of curry smell in the backround; for a minute I thought that it was just my imagination, but there really is some spice in there that smells like curry.

 

Delightful scent. I can't wear it regularly because my boyfriend hates the smell of licorice and anise. Pity. Also, it might be a bit strong if I applied more than a dash; and I'm not a big fan of foody scents (since I don't like having my mouth watering all day). I didn't end up using this ritually... When I first ordered it, I thought it might be good for the first part (the tranquility, rekindling flames of attraction part) but ever since I got it, I haven't really felt the need to use it at all. Oh well.

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Most of the voodoo love oils have some sort of pungent thing in them that I simply can't stand. I haven't a clue what it is, except that it makes my hair curl and my face wrinkles up. Whatever it is, it's in India Bouquet. That and curry – man, this makes me think of curry dinners.

 

On me: Curry curry curry. I barely dabbed it on (I'm a bit scared of this fragrance) but it's still quite strong. Oh, and there's that licorice smell. As I like fruit and sugary scents, this won't work out for me at all. Oh well. I wasn't that worried about infidelity anyway.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Licorice dusted with powdery yellow spices.

 

Wearing: Licorice and I just do not get along. India Bouquet is an interesting scent, but one I won’t be wearing.

[pekeana]

Guh. Oh my god, just guh!

 

In the vial, this smells like the curry mix I like to throw in with my potato soup -- a mix of curry powder, anise/five spice powder, fennel, coriander, and just the barest hint of vanilla bean and cardamom, with a final twist of saffron.

 

On me, it's almost entirely anise, but with a soft twist of fennel and the barest bit of sweetness. It's a very soft and spicy blend that's just to die for... especially in close proximity of Perversion. It makes you feel like a dirty belly-dancer.

 

I'm definitely getting a 10ml of this before it goes bye-bye.

Edited October 25, 2004 by pekeana

[heartbeast]

On me, this blend of spices (mostly anise and cardamom) is pleasant enough, but dry and somewhat blah. However, it may have great layering potential...Snake Oil (which is also somewhat flat on me and improves with layering)? Katherina? Gee, I wish there was a single note mango or tamarind I could nab before they go away...

[Northernminx]

Curry and saffron in the wet phase, this smelled like going to an Indian grocer, sharp and spicey and interesting. I didn't think I'd like smelling like saffron and curry but it was a decidedly yummy smell. Anise started to peek in as the saffron calmed down, sweetening this. The blend was almost floral for a while and then was very licorice.

 

I love this one, unusual and spicey and exotic. Of course it's been discontinued. Keeping the imp!

[Splendid Molerat]

Cripes, I could have ordered this one. (Smacks forehead).

 

Yes, India Bouquet has the misleading curry note in the vial. On wearing it instantly becomes a soft cloud of mountain fennel.

 

And then,... You know those days in late summer when crews are out mowing the tall grass, and the air fills with wild herbs (sweet grass? sage? thyme? parsnip?)

 

Carolinian grassland. I'll have to go fishing when this imp runs out.

[tart]

The first time I tried on India Bouquet, it smelled like strong florals with some incensey spice over top. This time, it smells exclusively like Indian cooking. At first I thought the spice might have been BPAL's take on saffron, but I'll trust what others say about the fennel. I think my nose is just blocking out the floral smell, but the spice truly smells like walking into a Middle Eastern market. So interesting! I don't think I'd wear this as a perfume because it's foody to me in a way that I'd actually eat. I do find it unfortunate that this scent was discontinued, though, because it's one of those that shows off BPAL's creativity.

[nevermore]

To tell the truth, I was kind of afraid of India Bouquet when I got it in a swap. I opened the bottle and could smell nothing but cumin and curry powder. I closed it back up and put it back in the "to try" box. I kept doing that - open, sniff, close - for about 2 months. Last night I finally had enough courage to try it on (of course, it helped that it was the last thing in my to try box). I was surprised when the cumin dissappeared and left anise and some other unidentifiable spices. It's quite nice, though I'll have to remember to put in on a few minutes before I leave the house (so as not to smell like curry).

[leapylees]

In the bottle: Cumin! Coriander! Fennel!

 

On: Fennel overload. It has a nice smell but I'm not sure if it's a nice perfume if you see what I mean. I liked the scent but I wasn't sure I wanted to smell of it. My boyfriend loved it though, and for me it did bring back memories of a happy year when I had a flatmate from India who used to make wonderful Indian food.

 

India bouquet didn't last very long on my skin. Great scent but somehow doesn't quite work as perfume.