Carnal

[femmefatale]

Bold, bright mandarin paired with the sweet, sensual earthiness of fig.

Not bad, just very sweet. Smells like sweet orange candy. Not really for me, but glad I got to try it.

[catatonic1242]

In the imp: When I was prying the imp open, I got a big whiff of something floral. But smelling the oil on the wand, I only get the sweet fizziness of oranges grounded by a touch of fig. It's really, really nice.

 

On, wet: Sweet orange candy, almost like those bottlecaps that are meant to taste like sodas. It makes me want to lick my arm.

 

On, dry: So, so yummy. It smells like blood orange to me -- I don't get a lot of fig, but I think that's probably what's keeping the orange under control. It smells clean and bright and inviting. Honestly, it's what I was hoping Orange Phoenix would smell like.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Colourless oil. Mandarin and fig, yup. Sweet, fruity, and a bit rich. But mostly playful, candyish almost.

 

Wet: This reminds me of Christmas candles for some reason? In a good way. The mandarin is more juicy and tart, and the fig is almost creamy. I feel like there is something spicy here, clove or carnation...

 

Dry: Deeper and spicier, and the fruit is more concentrated, sweeter - like dried fruit, or jam. Intense. Still has that waxy candle note. Pretty simplistic.

 

Summary: Sweet, extracted fruit - a bit cloying and candyish, with a spicy edge. More fig than mandarin after a while. It actually ends up smelling like strawberry jam on me, with a hint of mandarin peel. Low throw, fades rapidly.

[catattack]

Imp: Citrus fruits

Wet: Orange TANG drink

Drydown: Orange TANG powder. This one became stronger on the drydown than the initial wet phase. After about an hour, I'm able to smell something sweet, spicy, earthy and deep. Must be the fig. The scent really "warmed up". This is a morpher on me.

Overall: This is not what I expected this scent to be like. I expected a scent called "carnal" to be something other than orange scented. Don't get me wrong, I like it enough.

[caitilarkin]

I am a hardcore citrus fiend and particularly in love with mandarin orange, but fig is very hit-or-miss on me.

 

In the imp: Orange (which is more like orange blossom at this point) with faint, dark fruitiness in the background that must be the fig

 

Wet on skin: The mandarin orange is much brighter and stronger, and very sweet. Not getting much fig at this point.

 

Dry on skin: Now the mandarin is grounded and subdued by the fig, but the blend still remains bright and tart. So far today, it has lasted about five hours. It's a very straightforward blend--perfect for late spring and all summer, or anytime you don't feel in the mood for a spicy scent.

 

I adore this one! Any citrus lovers out there absolutely must try this one out.

[anna1850]

A very juicy scent. The mandarin really lifts the fig.

 

Similar to Tweedledum but without the patchouli (which I don't think I like).

 

3.5/5 Nice but I don't think I need a bottle.

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

First impression: Gummy bears! Yay!!!

 

On the skin: Fruity gummy bears...specifically, the elusive white gummy bear!

 

I love it! But yeah...gummy bears.

[tragedy]

I wouldve never thought these two paired would have made a good combination. But they do.

Its fresh, but heavy sensual. Simple yet complex. I really like this

[EdenIris]

Wet: Candy.

 

Drying: A more sparkling candy, like champagne over orange sorbet.

 

Aaaand it doesn't really change after that. A delicious, exotic hard candy. I don't get the same earthy fig I get from other scents like Aeronwen, and I enjoy sniffing this, but it's really just making me crave sweets and isn't something I want to wear.

 

This will go into the swap box coming my way and will, I hope, find a good home elsewhere.

[caffinatedangel]

This didn't seem to be as orange or as sweet on me as others have reported. It was orange, yes. But yet I kept thinking apples and lemons when I smelled it, oddly enough. It did have a sweetness to it, but a fruity, natural sweet that I really liked. Fig adds a little depth, and warmth. To be honest, fig is a scent I have trouble understanding. If I could get a single note of it I'd love to o_o.

 

It didn't really last a long, long time though. a few hours in the top notes died off, and it wasn't really replaced by much. Just fig, I suppose, with this lingering sweetness. So, it's a reapplier for me. But i found it to be pleasant.

[biocarolyn]

Ahh Carnal. I think I have found my first BPAL love.

 

In the imp, all mandarin- tart sweet and wonderful. A hint of the fig underneath gives it a grounding.

 

Wet it smells just like the imp, but the dry down slowly reverses the prominence and fig eventually wins out with Mandarin underneath.

 

I can't stop sniffing myself, and I think I may soon begin licking my arm.

 

 

 

[kelpsoda]

How have I not tried this before!? It is the juiciest, sweetest orange you can imagine - almost candylike. I think I need a bottle of this.. . . yum!

[furygrrl]

In the imp: YUM! Sweet mandarin. A tip of the hat to those of you who mention the gummy bear connection - it's a *dead on* description, lol!

 

On wet: Fizzy, fruity, orange-y. Yes, it's reminiscent of Tang orange drink.

 

Drydown: Sweet n' simple. Fig on the bottom, mandarin on top. I can't decide if I smell more like candy, or a really, REALLY good bath product!

 

Overall: I don't know if I'd wear this very often, but it's definitely cheerful and lovely and huffable. Suitable for any occasion, and more than appropriate for any age group - especially the wee BPAL addicts-in-training. A fun 3/5.

 

(I'm thinking I may layer this with Plunder for some spicy orange tea goodness!!)

[RachelElizabeth]

On me, Carnal is a sexy, juicy orange (peel and all) tempered by something fruity, earthy, and a little spicy - I'm assuming that's the fig. It smells like Christmas in a totally non-candle, non-craft store kind of way. Just sexy-sweet fruit with a naughty edge.

 

I love it - It may be my new favorite GC!

[swtlilqtk]

This smells insanely pretty and very sexy, but in a soft way. I am unsure of the scents in it but I do get the fig....very nice. I wore this out yesterday and attracted some unexpected male attention, so maybe there is some truth to it's name! The one bad thing is the scent doesn't linger. Very short staying power. If it wasn't for that I surely would buy a whole bottle!

[Seismogenic]

I guess I'm stubborn with citrus. I should know full well by now that it barely lasts an hour on my skin, and yet I keep trying citrus things in the hope that they'll work better. This one was a frimp, but I still admit that I was hoping it'd be the one really citrus thing that didn't go poof on me.

 

In the imp: Fresh sweet orange, with a tiny bit of fig grounding it.

 

Wet on skin: Sweet orange, still fresh, but somehow drier. The fig is still just in the background.

 

Drydown: Freshly dry, the orange is losing ground and the fig is coming forward. I still do smell them both at this point, though they both seem sweeter than in their genuine real-life versions. At one hour in, if I sniff really hard, thereʻs a tiny bit of fig left.

 

Five hours later: Way the heck gone. As it has been since about an hour and a half in.

 

End of the day: So gone that, if this were some sort of prehistoric organism, it wouldnʻt have even left trace fossil evidence that it ever existed.

 

Overall: I can't say I'm the least bit surprised that this pulled a complete disappearing act on me. I'll have to swap it to someone whose skin doesn't drink up most fruit notes within an hour.

Edited November 26, 2009 by Seismogenic

[Invidiana]

Tart mandarin and sticky, earthy fig, both notes I love, come together in this fierce, sweet blend that's downright dripping with temptation...the temptation to eventually turn my imp into a full bottle. Neither dominates the other; they're both perfectly balanced.

Edited November 28, 2009 by Invidiana

[levelek]

This was a frimp.

 

An uncomplicated scent. In the vial: orange. Wet: whoa, orange! Then it sweetens further. Carnal is fleshy allright, but it's the flesh of a juicy mandarin left out in the sun to warm. I could not identify the other warm scent that is rounding out the mandarin - reading the notes, it is of course the fig.

 

Not normally a scent I would wear, but this morning I am exhausted, and this is keeping me relatively awake without the aggressive slaps that mint or ozone would deliver.

 

Fades super fast.

Edited November 30, 2009 by levelek

[reynardine]

Wanted to try this one because both mandarin and fig notes tend to do well on me, but I’m not sure how it’ll work together…

 

In imp: Very citrus!

 

Wet: Certainly getting the mandarin orange-y scent, very bright and fresh. No fig at all.

 

Drydown: Going into a light, pretty citrus, again almost one-note. No fig.

 

Later: Very light citrus. Pretty, but faded off to nothingness within an hour.

 

[jamethiel]

In the imp: fig and a nameless citrus. Bitter orange.

 

Wet: Fig, but it's much more airy and less intensely sensual than fig usually is.

 

After five minutes: there's a slight tinge of mandarin, but it's fizzy. Not strong.

 

After ten minutes: I honestly couldn't smell it on my wrist. I've never had a scent disappear this fast.

 

It's pleasant enough, but completely doesn't last. May as well see if there's someone it suits.

[benthic]

This is a dead ringer for Fig Newtons, if Fig Newtons had just a hint of orange. I get a dried, spicy fig note rather than a "fresh" one, which was unexpected but really nice; foody and spice usually don't work at all on me, but this does. It really does have a warm, earthy, spicy, figgy cookie smell, with some nice tart orange thrown into the mix. Absolutely gorgeous and unexpected. I'm so glad this is GC so I can slather it without guilt, because this really doesn't last on me. I usually don't keep blends that don't last on me, but this is GC and so nice that I definitely wouldn't mind just throwing an imp into my purse and reapplying every two hours. It's so rare for me to find ANYTHING warm and spicy that doesn't just smell like potpourri.

[kerikeri]

This smells a lot like orange sherbet on me. The fig isn't strong, and does smell more like a spiced, cooked, foody fig note than the sharp earthy fig that tends to go bad on me. It's a simple blend, but smells really nice and reminds me of summer (though that might just be the sherbet/Creamsicle association).

[donnatron]

Imp: Mandarin rind and Tang.

 

Wet: The mandarin amps up pretty strong right off the bat. There's a hint of the earthier, darker fig, but this is mostly orange.

 

Dry: Weird. It winds up smelling like orange Kool Aid powder. It's very sharp on my skin and borderline proper mandarin scent but there is a little powdery zing to this that makes it... deeply odd.

 

Throw: Mild.

 

Overall: I smell like astronaut provisions. I don't think this one is a keeper.

[girasol]

This is pleasant, but a little too 'pubescent girl' for me... it smells so sweetly fruity that it reminds me a little of one of those sickly body sprays I adored when I was 13. Also, my skin eated it after about an hour.

[tailoredshirt]

Wet, this is mostly fig - very thick and sugary and slightly spicy. As it dries, more of the orange starts to come through. Th orange is brighter, but overall the scent is still very sweet and fruity. I don't tend to like foodie scents, so this is not for me.