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  • Silvertree

    Mod post: No wishlist posts in blogs

    By Silvertree

    Please be aware that we do not permit swap-related content on profiles or in blogs. Please post this content only in the For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted forums, or in the Wishlists topic. ~from Swapping 101  Thanks!
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Anactoria

When it was fresh, I did not like this. It had an unpleasant, sharply chemical smell. Now aged, it has mellowed into perfect soft musky amber.   It has average duration and throw. There's a brief, odd period where it smells like a terrific carmelized cotton candy, but mostly it is musk and amber with a bit o honey.   Mmmm. Nice. Surprisingly delicate.
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Cam's Blog
 

A few more reviews

Last few scent reviews from my 7/9 order from the lab.   The High Priest Not To Be Described...and there... sat a lumpish figure robed in yellow silk with red and having a yellow silken mask over its face. To this being the slant-eyed man made certain signs with his hands, and the lurker in the dark replied by raising a disgustingly carven flute of ivory in silk covered paws and blowing certain loathesome sounds from beneath its flowing silken mask.   Monastic incense, blood musk, black leather, cypress, pimento, white pepper, and Roman chamomile. In the bottle, this has a complex, musky aroma. You can definitely smell the white pepper, and a sharp herbal scent from the chamomile. On wet, it's definitely very sharp and loud. Once it's dried for a few minutes, it's MUCH softer. You definitely get more of the musk and incense, and the pepper's nowhere near as strong. The chamomile also comes through, which is interesting and light with all the heavier scents. I really like this one a lot.   NephilimDark children conceived from the union of Fallen Angels and the Daughters of Men. According to lore, the angel Shemhazai led a group of his angels to earth to instruct mankind in the ways of piety and righteousness. After a time, the angels became prey to earthly desires and began to lust after the daughters of man, and thus they fell. They instructed their mortal mates in the arts of conjuration, summoning, necromancy and other magickal arts. The fruits of their union are the Nephilim: possessed of superhuman strength, cunning, and infinite capacity, and hunger for, sin. Venerated as heroes by some, vilified by most, the Nephilim eventually annihilated one another in a cataclysmic civil war instigated by the angel Gabriel as punishment for their transgressions. Holy frankincense and hyssop in union with earthy fig, defiled by black patchouli and vetiver, with a chaotic infusion of lavender, cardamom, tamarind, rosemary, oakmoss and cypress. Out of the bottle, I get a strong aroma of bitter chocolate, fig and a bit of cardamom. I definitely get the "earthiness" on this one. On my skin, the chocolate aroma softens (but isn't gone), and the fig is a bit stronger. I also get the cardamom and tamarind, and maybe a tiny hint of rosemary. This is one is very complex. It's interesting and I like it.   LanguorAn opiate torpor, soporific, trancelike, and sublimely languid. A poet's morphine dream, a listless journey into a gentle dream and the precipice of intoxicated madness. Paperwhite and black narcissus, three lilies, black poppy and tuberose and a hint of hypnotic opium den haze. In the bottle, this one smells very sweet and floral. I definitely get the narcissus and lilies. On, it gets very heavy. Way too floral and perfume-y for my taste. Oh well, it was a frimp.   Tomorrow (or sometime or the next few days): reviews from an eBay order I got today. Vampire Tears, Bitch, Nocturne and Salome.
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Argentwolf's Blog
 

Red Lantern '07

Category: Limited Editions -- Lupercalia 2007 I received this as a decant from my Switch Witch.   This...is sex and decadence in a bottle. The earthy pleasures of opium, tobacco leaf, and liquor -- yes, liquor! I'm wanting to say bourbon -- are all I can detect, and it is AWESOME. It's as if someone had captured the essence of a long night in a bawdy bar, sans the less alluring scents of, say, sweat and actual tobacco *smoke*, and put it in a bottle.   If you want to smell like you've been out all night partying, with the smug satisfaction of not having a hangover, then wear this. And don't be afraid to slather it.   YUM.
Argentwolf

Argentwolf

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Argentwolf's Blog
 

Megaera

Category: Excolo   I definitely get lots of grapefruit from this one; the plum gives it a sweet, rounded edge after the initial bite of the citrus. To be quite honest, it reminds me of Cheshire Cat, only without that creamy, ultra-sugary note to it; while Cheshire Cat hunkers down and grins at you, Meg is higher up, sulking jealously. If you thought that CC was too sweet or thick somehow, you may want to try this, instead. Also, I feel it's a perfect sort of perfume for the height of the summer months.
Argentwolf

Argentwolf

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Argentwolf's Blog
 

Lust

Category: Sin and Salvation   Normally, I greatly enjoy florals, and this should have been a really great combination: lovely ylang ylang, earthy patchouli, and sultry, amping musk. And I think that if it had just been the patchouli and musk, it might have been fine...but today it's the floral note that kills it. It's like a menage a trois gone horribly, horribly wrong; the primadonna floral sweeps in, greedily hooks into the musk, and gets selfishly, insatiably busy with it while patchouli cries in the corner, wondering what the hell just happened.   When you are wincing every time you lift your wrist anywhere near your nose, it's a bad sign.   So, nope, no Lust for me, thanks.
Argentwolf

Argentwolf

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Argentwolf's Blog
 

Himerus

Category: Excolo   This is lovely.   The juniper adds a very nice, grounding effect for the other woods, because for some reason sandalwood seems to do odd things on me that are not always pleasant. Together, the woods form a nice base, and there is a bit of spiciness from the juniper, I think, that creeps up every now and then, as well as bergamot. The florals lurk in the background; I can detect just a hint of lilac, just enough to make it especially sweet and pretty.   A very pleasant, romantic scent, in my opinion.
Argentwolf

Argentwolf

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Argentwolf's Blog
 

Eris

Category: Excolo   Oh...oh yum. Sweet luscious fruity YUM.   Could be apple in there...could be pear...could also be some melon...definitely very moist, juicy scents, incredibly wet and tempting, with just a hint of florals -- is it sakura blossom that continues to make it so sweet? In any case, hot damn.   I don't get any spiciness from it at all...just lots of seductive sugary sweetness. I know now how hummingbirds feel.
Argentwolf

Argentwolf

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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Eisheth Zenunim

This scent took awhile for me to grasp. It comes across as a fruity, juicy floral. It has excellent duration and throw. I've been wearing it without knowing what's in it and I can't say that I can identify any one note. I think the ambergris really makes things blend together.   Right after application DH says "What is that smell????" and not in a good way. Then he says it smells like really strong soap.   Several hours later, a co-worker tells me I smell like "old-school patchouli". I'm not sure that's a compliment.   And yet, I really like it. It's summery and fresh and it makes me happy. I think it will only improve with age, so this is a keeper and I'm glad I bought it.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Green Tree Viper

This scent is a gorgeous contrast between the warm sugar of Snake Oil and cool mint. Culinarily speaking, I'm not a big mint fan, but this scent is everything I wish mint could be.   Like others have remarked, it almost has a chocolate vibe. With aging, the mint smoothes out, but is still perfectly obvious. The mint lasts longer in my scent locket than it does on my skin - so I wear it in the locket and on the skin simultaneously.   I mourn the eventual demise of the Snake Pit, there's really nothing else quite like my favorite snakes.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Coral Snake

I'm in love with this blend. If I concentrate, I can tell it is apples, but honestly it registers as midway between some lucious berry and a peach for me. Plus, it doesn't have the cloying quality of Snake Oil. I can slather this and still be in the same room with myself. Other people think of it as autumnal, but to me it seems like the ripest, juiciest laziest late summer afternoon ever. Sigh.   And, it's aging quite well. I think it's better now at 2 months old than it was fresh.   It makes me sad that the Snake Pit is going to slither off to oblivion. I really wish the Pit could become GC.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Aelopile

Aelopile smells like expensive furniture polish used for generations on priceless antiques --> exotic woods and lemon oil. It positively glows.   Good throw and duration. Morphs into a sweet woody resinous lemon lime with a slightly smoky base. Incredibly lovely and I wish my house smelled of this.   There is something different than the normal woods, ambers and citrus notes that I'm familiar with. This is, to my knowledge, my first encounter with oud. If it is the oud making this so great I think I need more.   Normally I amp cedar so much that it's unwearable on me, but in this blend it is restrained and lovely.   I will buy a bottle of this and happily wear it, but I think it would be a stunning room scent and most people would perceive it more as a room scent than as a perfume.   My rating: 5/5
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

13: June 2008

This is my first 13 and it reminds me of Willy Wonka's experimental gum that tasted of all the courses of a complete meal in sequence.   Instead of experiencing the top notes that then give way to base notes, I keep getting discrete bits of them all in random rotation. A breath of honeysuckle, a puff of apple, a medicinal little waft of nutmeg and slathers of gorgeous dark melted chocolate. There is also a smoky woodiness that is very lovely and very autumnal. I was surprised to not see more wood in this blend.   Thirteen fades on me at mid-day, but I wouldn't mind reapplying this gorgeous scent. And I have a feeling I'm going to need more of this come autumn.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Manhattan

Manhattan was a frimp from the lovely labbies.   This is a wonderfully light and clean scent. It is lemony and minty with a touch of tea wafting about.   It smells like a very expensive spa in a good way. For all this clean smelling goodness, it does not smell of soap or cleanser.   Unfortunately, Manhattan is all top notes on me and fades quickly. I get no leather, teak or kush. I'm left with a faint amber-lemon on the skin and no throw at all.   It's so lovely that I'm going to order a bottle for those times when I really want to wear a scent, but shouldn't (on an airplane etc).
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Mania

Mania is one of my favorite scents and I can't believe I haven't reviewed it - but then I'm a lazy reviewer.   To my nose Mania is a very juicy, summery scent. It evokes a pale strawberry red tinged with green. I do well with red musk and fruits and that's precisely what I get with Mania although it leans far more towards the fruit end. For me, there's no grapefruit and it seems practically like single note strawberry grounded by red musk. I can't recall that I've ever smelled a strawberry leaf, so I can't speak to the subtle distinction that may exist between leaf and fruit . . .   Mania has quite a bit of throw and duration. Two drops in my hair serum is all I need for 12+ hours of fruity loveliness.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Juke Joint

Bourbon is my very favorite spirit, so I was excited about Juke Joint.   It's weird, I almost wonder if my imp is labeled incorrectly. I can't smell any bourbon or mint or sugar. To me, it just smells like a wood scent and then it quickly disappears.   Actually, Delirium1009's description of a gritty dirt scent is quite apt.   My skin eats this up and it's completely gone in 20 minutes. I am
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Skuld

Skuld is a frimp from the Lab. Thanks guys!!!   I would never have ordered this on my own,because I don't get along well with ylang-ylang and I did not have good luck with Urd (I know that shouldn't matter . . . but).   In the imp it is quite floral and honied. I've had recent success with O, so I decide to give it a shot. After a few moments of worrying ylang-ylang, things settle down to a sweet verging on cloying scent that reminds me of fermenting fruit or maybe mead. Once the ylang-ylang dissipates, I am left with a gorgeous honey with light resins.   After it passed the home test, I put a drop in my hair and wore it to work. One of the guys at work followed me around all day flirting with me. He said "there's something different about you today. . ." I don't know, maybe it was the Skuld. I did smell pretty good.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Snake Oil

**pouts**   I put off ordering Snake Oil, because the description was just too vague, but since everyone loves it, I decided to give it a chance.   In the bottle SO smells of nice spicy vanilla. mmmm. As soon as it touches my skin, it turns to a gigantic pile of clean disposable diapers. Since diapers aren't really that sexy IMO I'm going to age it for a year, and it if doesn't shape up, SO will be up for adoption.   It actually reminded me quite a bit of Titus Andronicus, only a bit more feminine. Like pink diapers instead of blue. I have a mostly unfounded and untested suspicion that benzoin is the culprit in my diaper/play-doh/band-aid problems and that aging really smooths it out and 'cures' it. We'll see.   ETA: Fast Forward to June 19 2008 - OMG! Snake Oil from the Cellar has absolutely done wonderful delicious things during its banishment. Luckily, I am too lazy to swap or sell things. I wore it today and NOW I see what all the fuss is about. No diapers, it's just deliciously spiced sugary vanilla. I hope my other cellared oils turn out this good! I want to age it forever, but I'm afraid I'll use it all up so I can see I'll have to order some more. F
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Fruitcake

Fruitcake is lovely. Boozy, fruity, nutty creaminess. It's quite delicious from start to finish with average duration and throw.   It smells quite a bit like a softer, sweeter version of Hellcat on me. I'd buy a bottle if I ran out of Hellcat.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Peitho

Peitho was one of the very first imps that I ordered because I liked the name and I didn't know that I can't wear florals. So, I tried it 4 months ago, deemed it too old-lady-ish and sadly put it away.   Recently I have come back to it because I'm having terrible luck with florals and I need something more spring/summery (hey, it's coming eventually). In my initial notes I had remarked that it didn't turn to sour dead plants on me unlike practically every other floral and I am tired of being told that I smell "like incense" every freakin' day no matter what I wear.   Well, I have to say that I do like this. I think this is about as light and floral as I am going to be able to go, and it is very pretty. Normally, I amp jasmine to a sickening degree but it is actually present and yet polite in this blend. The throw is mostly jasmine and lily and girly and pretty. Next to my skin is a lovely light vanilla musk.   I'm so happy I can smell like a girl when I want to. (that's me in the bow). I'm getting a 5ml.   UPDATE: Peitho is still one of the very few florals in my collection. I don't turn to it very often because I gravitate to resins and woods and foody scents. Nearly two years later I pulled it out on a whim and wore it today. I am in utter lust with this blend. It has sweetened and mellowed. The vanilla did that magical thing and the jasmine is a positive delight. This went from being a solid 3.5 to a five star blend. O Beth! How I love you!   I'm ordering another bottle for cellaring!   PS if you like this, you might like Eos
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Desire

sexy as hell. So, naturally I ordered a bottle.   Trouble is, the bottle doesn't really smell much like what I had in the imp. There is something really too sharply sour and nasty that just kind of overtakes everything.   I am going to try this later and hope for different chemistry. I suspect it needs to be aged to get that sharpness out and mellow into the smooth, rounded scent that it should be.   ETA: 5 months later and I pulled it out of the cellar and tried it. Things are much, much better. It's no longer sharp, but it hasn't yet reached it's full potential. I could and will wear it now, so I can watch the progress a bit more closely.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Titus Andronicus

According to the description, and in the imp, Titus smells like something I am sure to love. Mmmm. Spicy resins and lovely bergamot!!.   So, I put some on, and immediately a big pile of clean fresh diapers looms into view. Uh oh. I adore amber and I thought I could do it in any form, but not here!!   After a bit, I get a sour, spoiled scent that makes me a bit nauseous. I have to wash it off. WTH? I was really looking forward to this scent.   I'm going to try it again in a couple months and see what develops.
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Hoyden's BPALog
 

Velvet

This was the first imp I tried out of my last order, because it just smelled so terrific in the imp. I'm happy to say that it worked very well for me - of course food scents and woods and resins like me. I'm not sure exactly what myrrh smells like, but I could detect a spiciness with the cocoa and the sandalwood that I'm pretty sure was myrrh. It didn't really transform itself as so many other BPAL scents do, it stayed nicely balanced.   I had to reapply at mid-day and the throw was light to moderate. I could smell it, but nobody told me I smelled like any thing in particular today. (So far in my BPAL journey, I have been told I smell like: a bookstore, incense, cherry ice cream, a hippie, an old lady, vanilla, a candle and a "stench" )   You guys are not going to believe this, but I've never smelled Snake Oil because the description just never really tripped my trigger and I'm just not a huge vanilla fan. Today I kept thinking maybe Velvet is like a chocolatey version of Snake Oil??? Perhaps I will try it.   I'm currently working my way through several cocoa scents, I hope they're all this nice.
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