Your Salon Must-Haves!

[ivyandpeony]

I am pretty sad to see that the Salon series is going to be discontinued as of July 30th. I have quite a few favorites in that category and I'm hoping that I haven't missed any treasures that I wasn't aware of. So anyway, I thought I'd start a topic so we can all share info about our favorites as we plan final orders for those scents. Please share your favorites.

 

My big faves are:

 

And There Was a Great Cry in Egypt (Dark myrrh, white sandalwood, amber, hyssop, frankincense, honey, cypress, red musk, cardamom and saffron) - gorgeous spicy ambery red musk. If you love red musk blends, this one really needs to be in your collection.

 

The Fox-woman Kuzunoha Leaving Her Child (White tea, cherry blossom, wisteria, star jasmine, and teak) - a light floral despite the wisteria, the white tea & cherry blossom lighten things up

 

Three Brides (Moroccan rose, king mandarin, red sandalwood, Egyptian amber, orchid, carnation, benzoin, tonka, calla lily, vanilla flower) - just gorgeous, a little more "formal" in feel than some of my simple favorites

 

Itasô Kansei Nenkan Jorô No Fûzoku (Osmanthus, white honey, ti leaf, hibiscus, and sugar cane) - I love the blends that have an Asian feel and this is another favorite of mine. Sweet without being sickly sweet and lightly floral.

 

Philosopher in Meditation (Smoldering woodfire embers, Galen''s Kyphi, and Abramelin incense) - such a deep and intense incense scent. It's like a cranked up version of Sri Lanka or Midnight Mass.

 

Schlafende Baigneuse (Skin musk, white cream, honeycomb, yellow rose, King mandarin, chrysanthemum, golden amber, honeysuckle, and wide-throated yellow monkey-flower accord) - you can probably tell I love florals and this one's really special. The mandarin, chrysanthemum & amber offset the sweet flowers and provide a bit of a spicy base.

[portalkat]

So sad.....Some of my huge favorites are from the Salon. I have always been meaning to get bottles of The Smiling Spider and Cleopatra. Favorites that I do have bottles of are Carceri D'Invenzione, Love and Pain, Madonna, and Philosopher in Meditation. I should also probably think about Arrival of the Sabbath, The Great He-Goat and Satan and Death. I love deep dark resiny blends and the Salon has a lot of those.

[CiaoBonefish]

My favorites are...

 

The Lantern Ghost of Oiwa - Black tea, cherry blossom, ho wood, calla lily, rice wine, and white mint.

It is sweet, woodsy, refreshing, and slightly floral and ghostly. This could work in the summer because of the refreshing mint and the winter because of the gorgeous deep ho wood. It makes me feel pretty when I wear it.

 

Sunflower - Sunflower bouquet, black amber, creeping black moss, wilted greenery, and scorched, dry stems.

With only two review pages, I can see this isn't a favorite from the salon, but I adore it. In my opinion, if you liked High Strung Daisies or any kind of sugary sweet floral you must try this. This is a hot summer sunflower floral. Not cloying, but sweet and slightly sugared. It isn't dewey or when like spring florals but dry, like the heat of summer. Sweet sunflowers, dry grasses, and a touch of deep amber is what I get and I absolutely adore it.

 

Cloister Graveyard in the Snow - Three white musks, ozone, frankincense, mint.

Crisp snow that dries down to reveal a lovely frankincense note. The combination is solemn and slightly sinister, but also refreshing, beautiful, and has this snowy crystalline feeling. I loved this being GC because I haven't really found any cool, crisp, snowy GC blends that work on me.

 

I also really liked Death and Life Completed though not enough to keep my bottle! Based on these do you have any recommendations for Salon blends I would like or should try before they are gone?

[MCS4096]

I can tell this is going to be a great thread.. I've already decided on a couple blends I must have before they come down based on the couple things people have already said here Seriously though, I am really sorry to see the Salon go also. The concept of these blends seems so intimately tied to my understanding of BPAL in general -- a scent interpretation of a visual experience. It's more than using scent to evoke a feeling or a memory personal to the wearer, it's recreation of a concrete image. I'm rambling, but the point is I can't believe these scents are leaving..

 

 

Cloister Graveyard in the Snow - One of the first BPAL blends to intrigue me based on it's description. It's so evocative of the image, and the idea.. it's cold, and sweet, and charged.. You feel the fallen snow and the electricity in the air, and the frankincense lurking, dark and old, beneath. This is far above any other snow/ozone atmospheric blend I've tried from the lab. It's one of my boyfriend's favorite ever blends.

 

Cleopatra Testing Poisons - Truly the only peachy scent from BPAL I've enjoyed. It's syrupy and brooding and deadly. Such a complex blend but so obviously peach. It's deep and spicy, like a fermenting peach in syrup rather than a springy, fresh peach. I only have a decant, but I've had a bottle on my list for years. Now's the time I suppose.

 

The Smiling Spider - Clove fans you must have this blend. The patchouli is well behaved and this is all incensey, dark, woody, clovey goodness. It's slightly masculine, and sorta badass while still being a true comfort blend. It's like the spider exactly-- kinda fuzzy and cute.. but a goddamn spider!

Haloes - (Are retail exclusive Salons leaving too? I assume so..) This one was worth finding an angel for. My bottle was purchased in Georgia or someplace and shipped to me unsniffed. It is a perfect warm vanilla and wood. This stood in for the unattainable Glowing Vulva (for me at least, I know others don't get the comparison).

Edited June 30, 2012 by MCS4096

[cuervosueno]

So sad.....Some of my huge favorites are from the Salon. I have always been meaning to get bottles of The Smiling Spider and Cleopatra. Favorites that I do have bottles of are Carceri D'Invenzione, Love and Pain, Madonna, and Philosopher in Meditation. I should also probably think about Arrival of the Sabbath, The Great He-Goat and Satan and Death. I love deep dark resiny blends and the Salon has a lot of those.

 

Oh, I hadn't even seen this news til I saw this.

 

I also have some favorites and unsurprisingly, they are quite like portalkat's! My faves are Carceri D'Invenzione and The Great He Goat. I liked Sailor's Den quite a bit too, though I rarely wore it. Love and Pain is also quite lovely.

 

I will have to mull over whether I need more the Great He-Goat (best vetivert scent ever) or Carceri.....

[angelamaria]

I've tried a few Salons and they haven't worked on me so far, but these are the ones I still want to try:

 

Lucretia (Iris, black amber, sage, Kashmir wood, vanilla musk, mandarin and violet.)

 

Orpheus (Pale musk, green mandarin, neroli, benzoin, citrus peel, blue lavender, narcissus, stephanotis, crushed green stems, willow branch and cedar.)

 

The Arrival at the Sabbath and Homage to the Devil (Bourbon vanilla, benzoin, caramel, Mysore sandalwood, aged black patchouli, carnation, and iris florentina.)

 

Cupid Complaining to Venus (Apple blossom, fig, white peach, honey absolute, red sandalwood, and wild thyme.)

 

Garden Path with Chickens (Damp grass, ivy leaves, morning glory, daisy, rose geranium, heliotrope, white gardenia, climbing roses, peppery nasturtium, phlox, begonia, verbena and sun-warmed herbs.)

 

Love and Pain (Lavender, Balkan tobacco, black musk, dark vanilla, and golden copaifera.)

 

Schlafende Baigneuse (Skin musk, white cream, honeycomb, yellow rose, King mandarin, chrysanthemum, golden amber, honeysuckle, and wide-throated yellow monkey-flower accord.)

 

Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree (Cherry blossom, blue lilac, lavender monofloral honey, white sandalwood, and Asian pear.)

 

Not sure about the retail salons, but I've been lucky with those: Parsifal and Haloes are part of my keepers.

Edited June 30, 2012 by angelamaria

[Dark Alice]

Where is Haloes listed? The only salon I will truly miss and that I bought a back up of was Orpheus. It is the most gorgeous but melancholy floral scent that I own.

[angelamaria]

Where is Haloes listed? The only salon I will truly miss and that I bought a back up of was Orpheus. It is the most gorgeous but melancholy floral scent that I own.

It's a retail exclusive Salon

 

http://www.bpal.org/topic/38836-haloes/

[parrot_suspect]

Lucretia is a big favorite of mine. I wear it to work a lot, because it has a polished/professional/"ladylike" sort of vibe. Violet, woods, and soft powdery/musky notes...it's beautiful.

 

I also love And There Was a Great Cry in Egypt -- it's an amazingly well-blended woodsy floral-oriental. Sophisticated and smooth. It reminds me a lot of Guerlain's Vol de Nuit parfum.

 

Philosopher in Meditation is another smooth woodsy sort of scent that I really like.

 

I think anyone who likes Death and Life Completed would like Love and Pain; they are kind of similar. Also, Les Anges Dechus has a similar feel to those two. These three all smell (to me) like very high-end candles or shampoo.

 

I think Garden Path With Chickens was quite popular when first released. It's a little too floral for my tastes, though.

 

And now I need to get a bottle of Itasô Kansei Nenkan Jorô No Fûzoku, because someone sent me an imp a while ago, I loved it and put it on my wishlist, but never got around to ordering it. Well, there's no time like the present! I'm glad we got plenty of notice before the cutoff.

[surlygurl]

Hmmm... I have maybe 15 decants of salons, and I do like Carceri D'Invenzione, but not enough for a bottle (I think). The bottle I will definitely get is the Penitent Magdalen. I'm one of those weird people who can do lily of the valley - in moderation. The scent is a shy floral on me, and I should wear it more often.

 

Now to go retest the other decants.

[AmyO'Shields]

I love Love and Pain, Sunflower, and The Nettle Tree one...love them!

[forspecial_plate]

So sad.....Some of my huge favorites are from the Salon. I have always been meaning to get bottles of The Smiling Spider and Cleopatra. Favorites that I do have bottles of are Carceri D'Invenzione, Love and Pain, Madonna, and Philosopher in Meditation. I should also probably think about Arrival of the Sabbath, The Great He-Goat and Satan and Death. I love deep dark resiny blends and the Salon has a lot of those.

 

Our tastes are so alike, as usual. : )

 

Great idea for a topic, ivyandpeony. I am a little overwhelmed and can hardly gather my thoughts on this, so I have a lot of decision-making to do. This will help a lot!

 

Right now Love And Pain is near the top of my list of last-minute bottle purchases. I've gone back and forth in the past, but I am wearing it now and I do like it a lot. It reminds me of Angel or A*Men (but better).

 

My top 5 wants right now, off the top of my head, would be:

Love And Pain

Carceri D'Invenzione (how do I not have a bottle already??)

And There Was A Great Cry In Egypt (thanks for the Vol de Nuit comment, parrot_suspect! I never made that connection)

The Great He-Goat (another one I'm surprised I don't already have)

Cup Of Death, Sailor's Den, or Smiling Spider? Can't decide! I haven't even tried the first 2 of those.

 

My favorites are:

Cloister Graveyard

Sunrise With Sea-Monsters

Mad Meg

Satan And Death

Silence

[strahlend]

After The Macabray was discontinued I comforted myself knowing that Cloister Graveyard was always available.

~sigh

[ljaylh]

I kinda wish now that I had invested more time in fully exploring all the Salon blends. The ones I have tried have all been really impressive - even the ones I didn't personally like were still beautiful - I always thought that the Salon oils were a bit extra special.

 

Of the ones I can remember trying, I know Lucifer and Carceri D'Invenzione and Love and Pain were standouts. I vaguely recall being impressed by Parsifal, too, and Judith & Holofernes was also very pretty . But the only ones I own bottles of are Wezwanie/Hold, Heavenly Love & Earthy Love, and Haloes (as others have mentioned, I presume the retail-only Salons are also going?). Wezwanie/Hold has such a beautiful dusky smoothness with that amber, sandalwood, myrrh and honey, and the vanilla bean is outstanding - the hazelnut was sometimes iffy on me though, so I have to be in the right mood to wear it. HL&EL is just such a rich smoky resin-y incense-y mix.. my bottle has aged beautifully, I love this one. Haloes is a big fave - on me it's like Antikythera Mechanism's sensual and voluptuous older sister.. all gold and creamy - I love the oak+vanilla+amber+sandalwood combo, plus the apricot is heavenly. Luckily I have a couple of bottles of those three blends, so I don't need to do a last-minute order but I will certainly cherish what I have

 

I hope everyone manages to get themselves stocked up with their favourites - this feels like a sad loss but I know nothing lasts for ever and I understand that part of the creative process requires sometimes requires letting things go in order to let new things in.

 

 

[stellamaris]

Genius topic, I have been wearing myself out tonight listing, reading, this BPAL stuff is like work sometimes

 

For me, the standouts are

Cloister Graveyard in the Snow, amazing. I tried like 5 Yules with the snow note wanting them all to be this, the only one that came close was Dust of Snow. I love this in the summer, it actually feels cool on my skin.

Arrival at the Sabbath and Homage to the Devil, beautiful lush caramel. Heavenly.

 

I want to try these, so I may end up buying some/all

Three Brides

Judith Victorious

Philosopher in Meditation

Lot and His Daughters

La Mort Qui Danse

The Penitent Magdalen

 

OK, so I made my first OMG order, with Lot & His Daughters, Three Brides and The Philosopher. Ruddy Daggerwing and Spanish Red Carnation came along for the ride.

Edited June 30, 2012 by stellamaris

[bibliophile]

I really appreciate that the Lab gave us enough notice of the Salon discontinuation to procure bottles/backups. I picked up bottles of Sunrise with Sea-Monsters and Cleopatra Testing Poisons tonight. My bottle of SwSM isn't perceptibly different scent-wise than it was when I first got it over 5 years ago (!!), though there's much less of it now! I have been out of Cleopatra for a while and just never got around to reordering, but am glad to have the chance to do so before it goes. It's such an unusual, and oddly lovely, combination of poison + peaches. The balance among the honey, almond, fruit, and green notes is so unique; it's sweet and astringent at the same time.

 

I used to wear Haloes very frequently back in the days of ECWC, and went through several bottles of it during that time. I haven't been able to make it to any of the other retail-only locations in the intervening years, so I haven't had any since then. None of the blends that other people describe as similar have been anywhere near as lovely on my skin as Haloes. I hope that it and the other retail-only Salons will make a reappearance somewhere/in some form someday; I have missed/will miss them! ...but now it looks like it's not going anywhere, so no worries!!

Edited July 6, 2012 by bibliophile

[Andalei]

I've been eyeing And There Was A Great Cry in Egypt for a couple months now, but I've been afraid to spend that much money on a bottle unsniffed. And now I don't know if I should grab one before they go, or not. I also really want to try Heavenly Love and Earthly Love, but I don't even know how to go about getting a retail salon blend.

 

All the Salon blends sound incredible, but with a limited budget there's always been something I want more so I've never tried them. Such a shame.

[becca_s]

I just made an order and added Schlafende Baigneuse, it sounds really good but I have never tried it. I could only order one of the Salon scents though, due to my budget and it was hard to pick between this one and The Penitent Magdalene

[sixthsentinel]

Bat! I normally can't do florals, but this is such an airy, beautiful blend. I have gotten so many compliments on it. Peacocks is also lovely.

[ayelienne]

I recently got a backup for Cloister Graveyard in the Snow and must get another bottle of Three Gorgons which is amazing. I love this area, but am consoling myself with visions on what will replace it

[forspecial_plate]

I thought that Philosopher In Meditation was a must-have for me, but with repeated testings I finally accepted that I just don't like it. As burning wood/incense scents go, there are a few others I'd rather wear. Philosopher smells fruity and candy-like to me, not in a good way, just in a weird way.

 

Fox-Fires On New Year's Eve was also a disappointment. I thought the notes sounded so beautiful, and when I tried it, it just fell sort of flat on my skin.

 

See, at least there are some I can cross off the list with confidence. Anything to make the decision-making process a little easier!

[puck_nc]

I have never delved deep into the Salon, mainly because so many of the blends have a death note for me (dark musk, incense variations, patchouli, amber, etc.). I do have a bottle of The Fox-Woman Kuzunoha which I like a lot.

 

After reading the reviews, I think I'll need to snag a bottle of Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree. I love several of the more floral Asian blends and the reviews sound divine.

[KatharinaNordh]

I can't decide if I am sad or just indifferent about this - I always wanted to test Cleopatra Testing Poisons on Those Condemned to Death - but now I won't, cause, well, I wouldn't be able to stock up unless I got rich.

 

But that also means that there's less for me to spend money on and I can stick to my current favourites until a "must-have" shows up, rather than a "might like"

[fireweaver]

I tried a decant of the ecstacy of St. Theresa due to the name and liked it. Soft and pretty. a bit floral and a nice frankinsense scent to it tro add a bit of bite/spice. I'm contemplating a bottle of it. I also got frimped the arrival at the sabbath and homage to the devil and was surprised at how much I *didn't* hate it. Caramel usually is horrible on me, sandalwood can be too dry, patchouli is hit or miss, and my nose doesn't really pick up bourbon vanilla. I was expecting to hate it, but it wasn't bad on me at all!

[Lycanthrope]

My must have from the Salon is:

 

Cloister Graveyard in the Snow.

Definitely has that ethereal winter snow ice vibe that is one of my favorite BPAL themes.

 

Runner ups are:

Death of the Gravedigger (for dirty snow... slush... so accurate!)

Lucretia (kush + violet, nothing else like it, very rich)

Itaso ... blarh blarh... no Fuzoku (I remember liking this because of the delicate sweet floral, understated, but nommy)

 

A lot of the Japanese Art Salons were wonderful on me, like Fox Fires, Itaso...

 

I have to also put a thumbs up for Philosopher in Meditation which is like a less bristly Brimstone or other smoky incense blend. Sweet without being syrup golden sweet (for me like Cairo).