Imp #8: Scherezade
"Saffron and Middle Eastern spices swirled through sensual red musk."
Note: End of cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: Definitely smells like insense. Do I detect the dreaded patchouli? Musky as well, I think.
On me: I definitely get what I would define as a perfumey feel out of this. Perhaps that is the reaction I have to red musk. I can't seem to pick out individual notes.
1 hour+ later: I am catching the spices & I think I can identify the saffron, though it is not as bitter as the mehndi on my left hand. At this point, a few hours later, I have lost the throw, but I like the scent.
Imp #5: Sea of Glass
"Upon the Sea of Glass, glowing with the perfection of spiritual union and the radiance of true wisdom, rests the throne of God. A scent of inimitable purity, crystalline grace, and limitless light."
Note: Mid cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: Pleasantly citrus and... lily? Gardenia? Very fresh. Somewhat as I would imagine the edge of the sea in Narnia with Reepicheep sailing away. "Where the waves grow sweet...There is utter east."
On me: Wet, I get a lemony fresh almost cleaning product smell, but that goes away fairly quickly. On drydown, I have a fresh, gentle floral aquatic.
1 hour+ later: Stays fairly true to original drydown. It is rather lovely, not an annoying floral, but it is floral none the less. I don't know how much I will wear it.
Imp #4: Anne Bonny
"A blend of Indonesian red patchouli, red sandalwood, and frankincense."
Note: Mid cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: It smells like salt-water soaked teak, the smell of a sailing ship!
On me: Knocked back a little -- mellowed. More feminine. Less patchouli. I like this red patchouli much better than the patchouli in Lust. I still get a whiff of the salt spray. It doesn't seem to have changed much at all, in general.
1 hour+ later: Same as when I first put it on. I like this very much, especially since I enjoy sailing.
[Edit] Anne Bonny has proven to me that it is entirely possible to have too much of a good thing. After liking it so much I applied more so that it wouldn't be just on my wrists, and OMG strong & headachey! It took a while to calm down, but by the end of the night it was back to happy pirateishness.
Imp #2: Lust
"red musk, patchouli, ylang ylang and myrrh."
Note: Early in the cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: This smells rather perfumey to me. And red. Like Red Door? Or is that just a totally dissociated scent memory?
On me: The "perfuminess" is starting to mellow. I'm not sure what it is I don't like. Is it the patchouli? Is it the ylang ylang? I'm not sure I've ever smelled red musk or myrrh.
1 hour+ later: This has mellowed down to a light incensy scent, like old books in a sacred library, or the library at Hogwarts, yes, I think this is a Hermione Granger scent -- at least on me. It isn't the lust I was looking for, though. *tear*
I decided to try O first. Here goes:
"The scent of sexual obsession, slavery to sensual pleasure, and the undercurrent of innocence defiled utterly. Amber and honey with a touch of vanilla."
Note: Early in the cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: This is much sweeter than I expected! Something sharp... but not in a bad way, more bright. I don't know why I didn't expect it to be sweet, looking at the description "Amber and honey with a touch of vanilla." The honey is shouting out here, with a sort of Sweet-Tart-ish tang.
On me: A little mellower, less sweet. The amber is coming out more. The vanilla is just giving it an extra zing. I'm not sure I put enough on to really get a wet stage and a drydown stage. My skin kind of soaked it up before I had a chance to order my thoughts.
1 hour+ later: It still has throw, despite the fact that I only applied a little. I was smelling it a tiny bit as I went about my tasks around the house, without having to sniff at my wrists. It isn't what I expected from other reviews. On me now, it is like warm, aching desire. I'm glad it has morphed into this. Here I go to put a little more on.
I just received my first order from the lab, and I can't wait to try it out! Of course, it's something I will do better to avoid, since I am about to go out and join friends, and I have no idea of my body chemestry. Still, I will try one tomorrow morning.
I received my order: Anne Bonny, Blood Kiss, Hamadrayd, Scherezade, Swank, O, Lust, Sea of Glass, Sin, Neo-Tokyo, Prague, and Tintagel.
Plus, I received two free imps:
Seraglio
The Bow and Crown of Conquest
Funnily enough, the package smelled a lot like stepping into Raven's Nest Herbals. From that, I really feel that true oils were used.
I have several concerns with scent usage, as follows:
1) I have rather dry skin, and I am afraid that I will need to be a slatherer. I would like to have good unscented lotion that I can use to couteract this, but I don't know what to look for. There was a thread, but I lost track of it. I am alergic to some things, so I have to look for a number of options, just in case. Right now, I am using 100% Cocoa Butter, which -- logically -- makes me smell faintly of chocolate.
On the other hand, I had good staying power in the past with just a few drops of Planitary Perfumes on the pulse points.
2) I would like to find (or make) good unscented moisturizing soap, shampoo & conditioner that would work well, and also not conflict with my BPAL scents. For reference, currently, I use Oil of Olay bar soap with shea butter, Aussie Moist shampoo, Garnier Nutrisse Sleek & Shine conditioner. I also use leave in conditioner. My favorite is Sheer Blonde spray in, but I am now using Garnier Nutrisse, or Sheer Blonde detangler & shine gel. Some of this should become unnessisary after I cut a good two feet off of my hair, but I'm not sure how soon that will happen.
Here's the grouping I expect them to fall into:
Woodsy:
Anne Bonny - A scent several people recommended for Zoe -- woodsy & sexy to boot!
Tintagel - ancient magical forest!
Hamadrayd - I remember fiddledragon especially liking this one - deciduous forest.
Aquatic:
Sea of Glass - it sounds so clean & makes me think of Ys. Also recommended by zankoku_zen.
Neo-Tokyo - Recommended for Serenity & Steam Punk, according to zankoku_zen.
Prague - After all the raves on Danube on the Aquatics post, people said this was the river version of the saltier Danube.
Sexy:
Blood Kiss - debated between this and Blood Rose for all the reviews, went with zankoku_zen's rec.
O - "defiled utterly" sounds more my style than "sugared with vanilla".
Lust - Lust in a bottle & highly recommended in the sexy stuff thread & by zankoku_zen.
- Slinky subset:
Swank - Pommegranate (my favorite fruit) that doesn't sound too sweet like Persephone. Recs in sexy thread.
Sin - Described as slinky in a dark blue dress.
- Exotic subset:
Scherezade - Exotic, highly recommended on the sexy thread & by zankoku_zen.
Ok, I've gone through the Sexy, Smutty, Seductive, Proactive thread about as much as I can stand -- 15 pages. I was looking for specific categories, and of course it all depends on what makes you feel good about yourself, but:
13
#20 Love Oil
Aizen-Myoo
Alice
Anne Bonny
Antique Lace
Antony
Arachne
Aureus
Baghdad
Baobhan Sith
Bastet
Bathsheba
Bathsheba
Bearded Lady
Beaver Moon
Bengal
Bewitched
Bewitched
Black Dahlia
Black Lotus
Black Opal
Black Opal
Black Phoenix
Bliss
Blood Amber
Blood Amber
Blood Countess
Blood Kiss
Blood Lotus
Blood Rose
Bordello
Brisingamen
Carnal
Carnivale
Casanova
Cerebus
Chaste Moon
Chimera
Coiled Serpent
Come To Me
Crucible of Courage
Dana O'Shee
Debauchery
Depraved
Desire
Dia de los Muertos
Dirty
Dorian
Dragon's Heart
Dragon's Milk
Elegba
Embalming Fluid
Eve
Fae
Faustus
Fenris Wolf
Fire of Love
Follow Me Boy
Formula 54
Freak Show
French Creole
Frost Moon
Glasya
Gluttony
Golden Priapus
Grog
Harlot
Haunted
Hecate
Hellcat
Hellfire
Hell's Belle
Hetairae
Hollywood Babylon
House of Night
Hunger
Hunter Moon
Incantation
Jack
Jailbait
Juliet
Kali
La Belle Au Bois Dormant
La Belle Dame Sans Merci
La Petite Mort
Lampades
Laudanum
Lenore
Lilith
Lolita
Love Me
Loviatar
Lust
Malic
Marquise de Merteuil
Masquerade
Mata Hari
Midnight
Mi-Go
Morgause
Morgause
Morocco
Nemesis
New Orleans
Noir
O
Old Athens
Old Morocco
Old Port Au Prince
Old Scratch
Old Shanghai
Old Sybaris
Omen
Othello
Persephone
Perversion
Pink Moon
Psyche
Queen
Queen Mab
Queen of Hearts
Queen of Sheba
Rakshasa
Rapture
Ravenous
Red Devil
Red Moon
Regan
Rose Red
Sacred Whore of Babylon
Salome
Samhain
Scherezade
Seraglio
Silentium Amoris
Sin
Siren
Snake Charmer
Snake Oil
Snow Bunny
Snow White
Snow White
Spanked
Spellbound
Spooky
Storm Moon
Succubus
Sudha Segara
Sugar Skull
Swank
Tarot: Temperance
Tarot: the Empress
Tempest
The Lion
The Star
The Unicorn
Three Witches
Tombstone
Tzadikim Nistarim
Undertow
Urd
Veil
Velvet
Venom
Vixen
Voodoo
Wanda
Wanton
Water of Notre Dame
Whip
Wicked
Xiuhtecuhtli
Yog Sothoth
Zombi
The ones I am most interested in trying based on the comments are:
Blood Kiss
Blood Rose
Love Me
Loviatar
Lust
Morocco
O
Scherezade
Silentium Amoris
Sin
Snake Charmer
Snake Oil
Spellbound
Sudha Segara
Swank
The Lion
Vixen
According to the General Recommendations Post , folks recommend the following aquatics:
Amsterdam
Apothecary
Bayou
Black Pearl
Blue Moon
City in the Sea
Cold Moon
Cthulhu
Danube
Desdemona
Dragon's Tears
Dublin
Empyreal Mist
Glasgow
House of Mirrors
Hurricane
Jolly Roger
La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente
Lightning
Lurid
Mock Turtle's Lessons
Neo-Tokyo
Niflheim
Obatala
Old Glasgow
Ophelia.
Paris
Penthus
Prague
R'lyeh
Sea of Glass
Shattered
Szepassony
Tarot:Temperance
Tears
The Isle of Demons
The Lady of Shallot
The Pool of Tears
The Unicorn
Two, Five & Seven
Ulalume
Undertow
Virgo/Harlot
Water of Notre Dame
Yemaya
Zephyr
Some sound more floral, etc. I will need to see how my skin reacts. From the descriptions there, the most appealing look to be:
Danube
Empyreal Mist
Jolly Roger
Neo-Tokyo
Niflheim
Prague
R'lyeh
Sea of Glass
I am new to BPAL. Yes, I have been signed up for quite a while, but I agonized over what I would choose for my first order. Then I got laid off, concentrated on a new job, etc., etc. Now, I'm still overwhelmed by the vast selection and my lack of olfactory knowledge, and a large dose of perfectionism.
I had narrowed it down quite a bit, but now I can't remember my conclusions. So, I had the (not so) revolutionary idea of chronicling my search here. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll even get some input from more knowledgeable noses.
My known preferences: I am not a girly girl. I do not like flowery perfumes or fruity or sweet scents. The prospect of smelling like food scares me; I am not a snack! I like the smell of the woods after rain. I am drawn to nature, and I plant flowers and vegetables; knit, spin, and dye yarn; make candles, bake from scratch, and have intentions of making soap from scratch as well. I also paint watercolors, draw with conte crayon, sculpt clay, sew, make chain mail and venetian masks. I am drawn to Native American traditions, medieval knights, & the exoticism of the Marrakesh Market or the holy Ganges. But I also like steampunk. I like the simplicity, asymmetry, and elegence of ikebana. I ride bikes a lot and hang out with indie hipsters. If that makes any sense to you, then you are starting to develop an idea of me.
I wish to first develop a framework to hang my further explorations of BPAL on. I plan to start by trying some musky scents, some earthy scents, some aquatic scents, some exotic scents, and some bohemian scents. This blog will chronicle my plans & reactions to the scents.
The Firefly thread might be useful.
I'd follow the pattern of Zoe or Inara. According to the thread, that would give me:
Zoe:
O
Snake Oil
Dead Man's Hand + Bastet or The Lion
Anne Bonny
Dirty
Dragon's Heart
Loviatar
Inara:
Kurukulla
Silk Road
Lust
Scherezade
Snake Charmer
Queen of Clubs
Seraglio
Hetairae
F'54
Aglaea
Unlike the Firefly post, there are few suggestions in the Tolkein post for what actually exists. I am trying to revive the thread & steer it that way, though.
Also according to the General Recommendations Post, here are woodsy scents:
Anne Bonny
Aquarius
Belladonna
Black Forest
Burial
Capricorn
Darkness
Golden Priapus
Hamadryad
Intrigue
Jabberwocky
Kweku Anansi
Loup Garou
Omen
Seance
The Hesperides
Tintagel
Tombstone
Ulalume
Umbra
Val Sans Retour
Wolfsbane
I am most interestedin more hardwoods type forrests, with dirt & leaves, and mosses... the following look most promising based simply on that post:
Burial
Hamadryad
Kweku Anansi
Tintagel
Val Sans Retour
Ok, well Val Sans Retour wasn't in that post, and it isn't even out yet, but I had to read the reviews earlier. After all, it's the Val Sans Retour, in Broceliande, Breizh.
Thanks for your help, zankoku_zen.
I am now placing my first order for the following imps:
Bewitching Brews:
Anne Bonny
Blood Kiss
Hamadrayd
Scherezade
Swank
Love Potions:
O
Sin & Salvation:
Lust
Sea of Glass
Sin
Wanderlust:
Neo-Tokyo
Prague
Tintagel
Order from littleone101701's for sale.
Bewitching Brews
Aeval
Penny Dreadful
Diabolus
Djinn
Excolo
Pannychis
Queen Mab
Funereal Oils
Dance of Death
Limited Editions
Beltane
Love Potions
Whip
The Muses
Melpomene
Sin & Salvation
Tzadikim Nistarim
Wanderlust
Athens
Delphi
[Edit:] Received today 1/20/07.
I finally realized that there was something in the swaps forum for me, even before I got my first order -- the sales area.
From fruitycake's sales:
Bewitching Brews
Eclipse
Ouija
Séance
Diabolus
Black Phoenix
Phantom
Love Potions
Libertine
Salomé
Somnium
Temple of Dreams
Wanderlust
Florence
[Edit]Received 1/12/07.
Imp #3: Neo-Tokyo
Note: Mid cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
"Urban metallics and an ozone-tinged breath of electric light mingled with reedy bamboo, crisp mountain air, cherry blossoms, delicate orchid and a splash of playful, wet fruits."
In the bottle: This smells like French double milled soap! (In a good way.) The cherry is coming out a lot in it. I am getting the metallic, too. Like wet, fruity, finely milled soap on the side of a steel wash tub, in the cold mountain air, where you poar fresh water over your head from a pitcher.
On me: Cherry is moving back on drydown. Yay! (Why does my right wrist smell totally different from my left? It's cherry +5.)
1 hour+ later: Clean, metalic. I think that clean sharpness is the ozone. The fruit is gone, except maybe as the faintest hint of sweetness. This is a very clean scent on me. Not what I was expecting, but I think it will be good for work wear. Also, it's very light.
Bewitching Brews
Aeval
Anne Bonny
Blood Kiss
Eclipse
Hamadrayd
Ouija
Penny Dreadful
Scherezade
Séance
Swank
Diabolus
Black Phoenix
Djinn
Phantom
Excolo
Pannychis
Queen Mab
Funereal Oils
Dance of Death
Limited Editions
Beltane
Love Potions
Libertine
O
Salomé
Seraglio
Whip
The Muses
Melpomene
Sin & Salvation:
The Bow & Crown of Conquest
Lust
Sea of Glass
Sin
Tzadikim Nistarim
Somnium
Temple of Dreams
Wanderlust
Athens
Delphi
Florence
Neo-Tokyo
Prague
Tintagel
Imp #6: Hamadryad
"Seven dry woods with mossy lichen and a gentle breeze of forest flowers."
Note: Mid cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: Faint and hard to capture. Sweet, mossy...
On me: Licorice! OMG LICORICE!
1 hour+ later: The licorice has gone away, and it is now a mild, vaguely spicy, unitentifiable second skin scent. I like it, but I'm afraid to put much on and have to wait out the initial stage.
Imp #7: Prague
"Crocus with snowdrop and three lilies."
Note: End of cycle. Imp fresh from the Lab.
In the bottle: Very sweet. I think the crocus and perhaps the snowdrop are coming out the most. It smells very much like the taste of honeysuckle nectar.
On me: The sweetness dies back some & I get more of what I would deem an aquatic feel. The crocus is definitely still speaking up, but the rest more smooth & unidentifiable.
1 hour+ later: I think it sweetened back up a little, but crocus stays as the top note. It doesn't have a ton of staying power, but it does get a little more throw than it has initially. Still doesn't have tons of throw, though.
Imp #30: Sin
"Thoroughly corrupted: amber, sandalwood, black patchouli and cinnamon."
Note: Middle of cycle. Imp from direct from the lab, but it's been sitting here a while.
In the bottle: Sandalwood comes out first, but I can detect the other scents as well, in a smooth flow. Warm, round, and a little spicy, this feels like a wintery scent to me.
On me: Amber and cinnamon dominate, while the sandalwood and patchouli fade into background supporting notes. It is somewhat foody, but also sensual. The black patchouli does not give the strong hippy patchouli note I feared. As it dries more, it is becoming more woodsy.
1 hour+ later: The scent has not really changed. It is still a delectable warm, spicy scent, with a woody background.
Imp #10: Blood Kiss
"Lush, creamy vanilla and the honey of the sweetest kiss smeared with the vital throb of husky clove, swollen red cherries, but darkened with the vampiric sensuality of vetiver, soporific poppy and blood red wine, and a skin-light pulse of feral musk."
Note: Late in cycle. Imp straight from the Lab, but about eleven months old.
In the bottle: I am not sure what vetiver smells like, but I am getting something green, and musk, and poppy, I think. Cherries.
On me: There's the honey & vanilla. They're all I smell now. I didn't smell them in the bottle. At this point, it seems like it could become too sweet before long. I have yet to smell the clove, or the wine, really. As I type, the honey is already backing off. I am smelling a green sharpness, now. The cherries are gone, I think. It seems to be going light & crisp.
1 hour+ later: Now I've got the honey & vanilla, plus some green crispness, and a faint hint of musk. These last two keep it from being too cloying. It doesn't have a ton of throw -- or I've just gotten used to the throw -- and it isn't as dark as I expected. It's rather mild, and personally I like it, though it wasn't what I was expecting.
Edit: This has major staying power. I can still smell it after17 hours!
Imp #9: Tintagel
"Spicy mulled wine flowing through the musky heat, warm leather and bright clash of armor, the damp branches of Cornish hawthorn, blackthorn, juniper, English elm and bayberry, and the magical tingle of dragon's blood resin."
Note: Late in cycle. Imp straight from the Lab, but about three months old.
In the bottle: Dragon's blood, bayberry, & juniper jump out at me. I don't get the leather, though there is a brightness. It is rather potpourri like at this stage.
On me: I think that the leather & hawthorn are coming out. I have no good way of identifying the blackthorn. I'm getting a slightly forresty mulled cider effect. The metal has gotten sharper.
1 hour+ later: It had decent throw for a little while, but now most of it is gone. Now it is mostly dragon's blood again, I think, with a little leather and metal. Not terribly exciting, but nice and clean in a woodsy sort of way, like a wood maintained by a forrester, not a rolling around in the dirt sort of way.
Imp #12: The Bow and Crown of Conquest
"And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
Nobility and haughtiness befitting the Antichrist: sage, carnation and cedar with lavender, vanilla, white musk and leather."
Note: End of cycle. Imp straight from the Lab, but about eleven months old.
In the bottle: I get vanilla and somewhat peppery carnation, maybe sage.
On me: This pretty much disappeared on me/became a second skin with no distinguishable notes. I can tell that it's there, but it's only a tiny bit more vanilla and maybe musk on the right hand and carnation on the left hand than my actual skin.
1 hour+ later: Slightly sweeter & muskier second skin. Still there. For some reason it sticks around longer on my left hand than the right. Go figure.
