TereFaerie

Hmm, this is very nice, but I'm not sure if it's me. I love the mimosa and the wet fruits and the spices, so it must be the floral, which does tone down over time, but I'm not sure if it is worth the wait. Maybe the florals won't be so sharp in the heat of summer. I'll have to keep this one and give it another shot.

In the imp I smell straight up orange zest and what must be the copal. On the skin wet the orange flames up, but the smoky incense smell and flowers come out to play as well. Once it dries, the plumeria and the flowers vie for attention over the orange, but never quite make it. I should try this one in my scent locket since the orange overpowers everything. I did use about half an imp in the bath with half a Lush Sunnyside bubble bar and had a bath I didn't want to get out of. Once I did, my husband kept telling me I smelled like fresh laundry. I don't know if I would ever want a bottle just to wear, but I wouldn't say no to a bottle just for the bath!

In the imp I smell ginger and honey, mostly, with just a hint of warm vanilla flower. This and the osmanthus blossom once on my skin, muting down the honey. The ginger keeps to the background, but it is there if I sniff closely. The scent of golden musk comes out after a few minutes, which I strongly associate with Fairy Market, one of my first bpal loves. Where that one has a bit too much of the green grass and is too sweet for me to wear every day, Harikata is perfect for New Orleans' hot spring weather (and I think it will do well through summer, if I can keep Red Lantern off of me long enough, that is, lol!) and isn't too cloying for the office. I just bought a bottle and love the art on it. So does my husband, and Harikata is one of his new favorites on me, too. He thinks it smells like my natural smell, only better. Well, that's what I've been looking for in bpal, so thanks, Beth and the Lab! edit-even months later this is still one of my favorites! It is the osmanthus fragrance I've always wanted and it is just so beautiful. I don't see much difference with aging so far, it is still predominantly osmanthus, which I just adore, with just a hint of honey and golden musk. I still want more when I see it up for swap, even just decants! I just hope it doesn't lose that delicate quality that I love so much with age. **It's now January 09, and I think it smells even better, so I went and bought TWO backup bottles. Can't wait to try the scents from the new Shunga series.

Red Lantern 2008 I had always been curious about the earlier incarnations of this scent, but the coconut always made me decide against it. I shouldn't have worried, and now I'll have to try more coconut blends, lol! I'm so glad Red Lantern was re-released as it has quickly become one of my favorites. In the imp I smell caramel and coconut, with just a hint of tobacco or opium. It's definitely a "golden" colored scent to my mind. On the skin the sweetness amps just for a little while, until the dry, vetivery coconut comes out. The tobacco and opium keep this from being too sweet or cloying, adding a smoky finish to the sweetness. It does conjure up images of a South Seas opium den, just a hint each of romance and danger. It will be my standby scent for summer and I'm so glad I ordered a bottle. Thank you, Beth, for bringing this one back!

I have to agree with the suggestions of Aureus, which is such a simple, clean, yet woody smell. Sri Lanka is similar, is the same sort of scent, and would also be great for scenting wood. I have to admit my first thought was Aziraphale, too, though, and if you like that one, you might like to try Grandmother of Ghosts, which has a citrus quality that Az. is missing that you may find to be fresher in your trunk. Also nice might be The Caterpillar or Pulchinella and Teresina (LE) or even Sheol. Good luck and happy scenting!

I get a definite "wet rock" scent from Aureus, and my guy likes it a lot. Good luck!

I really wanted this one to work, but of course when I first tried it on straight out of the mailbox, it reeked of jasmine. Setting it aside for a few weeks, I tried it again yesterday, and to my surprise: in the imp: green; jasmine, bergamot, gardenia wet: jasmine, bergamot, ginger, orange pulp, oakmoss, musk, woodsy and damp smelling dry-down: jasmine, sandalwood, amber, honey, vanilla, sweeter The amber in this blend manages to stay resiny, not go baby powdery as most do. It is a damp, green, wet scent, perfect for this rainy spring day. It is a close to the skin scent, and fades quickly from my skin, but remains in my hair overnight even, whcihc prompted me to wear it again today. Every turn of my head sends delicious whiffs up to my nose, each one different from the last. I may need a bottle of this.

Thanks everyone, for your recommendations! It looks like Sheol, Oblivion and Temple Viper might be my best first choices. I wanted to try Teresina and Wulric both anyway, so that's good. I do amp rose, but I'll ahve to give Magdalene a shot as well! Thanks again, my Gaueko (that I have on today) is better in the bath tub than on my skin, so I can't wait to get some imps/decants of these others!! XOXOXO Tere

I have very recently tried Gaueko and while I like the dry down, the all lavender all the time for the first 20 minutes is a bit much for me. I have had very good luck with the resinous blends, but not so much with white florals. It looks like there are about 12 blends containing labdanum, and I have only tried this one. I know I love that resinous scent from some of my favorite Lush Cosmetics Bath products like Jingle Spells, Jingle Jelly and Reincarnate. I know these blends are much more complex than Lush scents, but I wondered which ones were the "labdanumest" smelling to y'all! Pulcinella & Teresina Labdanum, cedar, teak and red rose. The Scales Of Deprivation- A scent that offers no sustenance, comfort or satiety: lemon peel, white sage, frankincense, lavender fougere, sandalwood, vetiver and labdanum. Medea- Night-blooming cereus, black orchid, black currant and myrtle leaf enshrouded in the incense of Hecate's cypress and myrrh, and the dark rage of magickal labdanum and intoxicating poppy Gaueko- Blackened sandalwood and misty lavender, with curling wisps of smoky tobacco, nag champa, and labdanum. Hades- A dark, palpably sacred chthonic blend: black narcissus and cypress, stephanotis, opoponax, labdanum, onycha and ambergris. The Isle Of The Dead- Cypress, labdanum, stargazer lily, juniper, yew, black rose, white sandalwood, benzoin and aquatic notes. Temple Viper- Snake Oil with sugar cane, frankincense, champaca, opoponax, labdanum, and hyssop. Sheol- Vibrant gladiola, graceful stargazer lily, triumphant iris and bright heliotrope flare, and is finally made somber by heavy copal, a drop of labdanum, and tonka. Hymn- Based on an incense blend sacred to the Virgin Mary: perfect rose absolute and Palestinian Lily of the Valley with olibanum, labdanum, frankincense and myrrh. Magdalene- A bouquet of white roses, labdanum, and wild orchid. Oblivion- Dark musk, wood spice, labdanum, patchouli, dark African woods, and saffron. Skuld- Ylang ylang, honey, Egyptian and Arabian musks and labdanum.

Let this be a lesson to me. In the imp all I smell is lavender, which is okay, but not my favorite. It makes me think of sachets and Yankee Candles usually. Once applied, still lavender. Not normal lavender, but screaming lavender, bright blue all encompassing lavender. I almost went to the bathroom and washed it off. About half an hour later the lavender settles, mellows, runs away, whatever, and what is left must be mostly labdanum and wondrous warm spices. I still have to try this one all over and not as a simple spot test, but I have high hopes for this one this stage really lasts. It reminds me of Lush's Jingle Spells/ Jingle Jelly/ Reincarnate scent. I will update after a full trial, but this one bodes well and I'm glad I didn't wash it off!

This is my first trial of The Tell-Tale Heart and so far I really like it, enough to make it one of my top 10, I think. The first thing I smell is the cocoa, for sure, then the dragon's blood and pepper come out and the allspice, too. The dragon's blood does smell a bit cherry to me, but not overwhelmingly so. Overall, it's a sultry incense, reminiscent of food, but not foody. It's spicy and warm with just a hint of powder. It's dark, bold and dry and very well blended, and no one note really stands out on my skin. Luckily, the vetiver behaves in this one and it dries down to a very skin friendly musk instead of amping wildly and making everything smell like dirty powder. It smells very nice in my hair as well as my skin, so this will be one bottle I reach for constantly. I see the similarities to Midnight Kiss, but this doesn't have the tobacco or the sour wine notes.

I almost feel guilty that others don't smell the same scent I do when I put on GoG. It is my mainstay, my first "signature" scent from bpal and I get more compliments on it than any other blend including Snake Oil. On me the woodiness gets a bit sweet, but the pepper tempers that sweetness. The mandarin comes out to play very shortly after applying and sticks around for hours. I just adore the dry-down, it is so earthy but not "hippy". it's rich and incensy, fruity, and, to a lesser extent, floral, all at the same time. This is so well blended, but I can smell individual notes if I try, but I'm not sure what laurel smells like unless it is similar to bay leaves. Aziraphael reminds me of it, but without the pepper and mandarin and floral, just the dusty incense. This is definitely bottle-worthy, and I'd have to get about 5 if it were being dc'd.

In the bottle it smells of nothing but incense, but once on my skin it warms and sweetens into a beautiful powdery scent that retains a hint of darkness so not to go all baby powder. It is a warm amber that doesn't go so sweet that it smells like a bathroom or a diaper, lol, as many ambers do. It reminds me of a sweet ritual type incense, and conjures up images not of the Minotaur himself, too sweet and feminine and almost hay-like, but of the ancient Minoan men and women who braved life and limb to vault the bulls and were immortalized in sculpture and wall paintings. The light skinned figures are females. My husband is "meh" about it, but it doesn't give him a headache, so that's good enough for me. Maybe it'll grow on him. All in all, glad I went for the bottle.

Put me in the Chai Tea group! I am very happy with this one, but it took me a while to get there. I used waaaaay too much the first time, and straight out of the shower, causing redness. All I needed today was a swipe across the backs of my wrists and a bit in the hair at the nape of my neck. It goes very nicely with my Lush Potion lotion. After wearing it all day it now smells like musk/vetiver, but in a good way, even though I tend not to like straight up vetiver in musks. The spice is wonderfully warm and lovely for fall and winter, and sort of reminiscent of this year's Samhain, sans fruitiness, of course, and a bit less dark/patchouli. A must have for the spice/cinnamon lover!

Very pretty, sweet and almost fruity, which keeps it light and bright, but unlike many fruity scents, it doesn't go plastic on me. I do love gardenia, and it loves me, so that's proabbly why I like it so much. Reminds me a bit of Shattered, but warmer and fruitier. It almost smells orange, the color, not the fruit. I would buy a more of this for sure, since it works very well with my skin. Is it too late to get a bottle?

As with all ambers that I have tried, this one immediately went "urinal cake" on me. I figured it would, but thought I'd try it anyway. It is just lovely in the bottle, so golden and sweet, but on me, it warms up so quickly and wafts off of my skin smelling a bit too much like air freshener or something else not perfume.

This is like rose candy with a hint of grass on me. I like it, but it is waaay too sweet. I would like to layer it with something else maybe to make it more suited to my taste. Or I can imagine that a lot of these rose scents that are too much for me to wear would make a perfect addition to a rose scented bath, like a Lush Amandapondo or to finally use up that dusty Tisty-Tosty you've got lying around. I may use this one in the bath, too, now that I'm thinking of it.

Yum! I love this in my scent locket! Wet this smells like butter and roses. On my skin, the butter and rose fade just enough to meld into a harmonious sweet pastry/rosewater scent, like that Indian dessert of rosewater dough balls, jamin golub? After a while, the rose gets a bit of that burning smell that I identify with rose geranium, and the buttery crust of the tart smells less sweet. The drydown on my skin is so-so, and that's why I prefer to put it in a scent locket as well as my skin and in my hair. It is strongly evocative of the character in Alice, as well, which is another reason I like it. edit, I have been keeping an imp of this on my nightstand; I just love to catch whiffs of it as I lay down to sleep. I got an extra one as a frimp and used about half of it in the bath-- this would make a wondrous bath oil and satisfy both the foodies and the floral/rose lovers-- but I used it with some Lush stuff and had the best bath I'd had in a loooooong time. In case you wanted to know what the bath was: Half a Butterball with chunks of Amandapondo and The Comforter. Not an exact dupe of the scent, but once the oil went in, it was just lovely. The Butterball adds to that wonderful buttery crust scent and the Amandopondo actually makes the whole scent a bit brighter and clearer with the addition of lemon to the rose. Enjoy!

Buttered Popcorn Jelly-belly. Crazy throw, lasts and lasts. I get a hint of cherry at the beginning and a bit of smokiness near the dry-down. Not a scent I will wear, but I do enjoy the scent on my neice, who is 18. She smells like jellybeans when she wears it.

Yum, Crowley is sexy man on me, but not too masculine. I like the way it smells, on me, like a feminine cologne. It is not so cologny, though, that it makes me feel manly. The musk is very red, which I like, and the other "cologne" components, lemon peel, lilac are well blended enough that they are difficult to pick out individually. There's just enough of a green smell, patchouli?, that it smells a bit earthy, but a red earthy, not a brown earthy, if that makes sense, with the tiniest hint of vanilla, but only if you're sniffing for it, like a shadow of the vanilla in Snake Oil. It is definitely the Crowley of Good Omens. He is hot leather and a tiny bit of unexpected sweetness.

War is much too strong on me, too much red musk- which I usually love, by the way- and a scent of something like almonds and honey musk. I get no honeysuckle floral scent, though. It is just too much musk for me. The ginger is strong and spicy with a bite, but too strong for me, too. This is just war on my skin, not "War".

Shadwell is sweet and musty on me, but not unpleasantly so. While this is not a scent I can really wear, a bit too musty sweet, I definitely feel it it strongly represents the character in the book. I really DO smell a mildewy raincoat and rolled ciggies! Love almost all of Beth's Gaiman scents for complexity alone, but many of them are my favorites!

The Hesperides is more than just apple on me, more like apple and something dark and slightly smoky. I get a bit of a plastic scent during the dry-down, which is not unusual for fruity scents. It is okay, but kind of a "shampoo" scent to me.

Let me preface my review by saying that the lab's vanilla very rarely stays true on me (read: doesn't turn plastic). But Snake Oil has the lovely, sultry, sexy spices that I love and can't for the life of me describe. It is sweet, yes, and dark, and so perfect for so many occasions. Great for before bed, since its vanilla and spice notes make the wearer so relaxed. It is both foody and sexy/notfoody at once, which I love. My imp from the lab (imp pack) is already dark and thick, so I have no way of determining its true age, but if it gets any better than this, WOW! I must get a bottle to age. Now I have to try the Snake pit!

Sleek, dark, and ominous. Violet and neroli mingled with iris, white sandalwood and dark musk. This was a somewhat pleasant floral on me, but the iris might have made it too white. It is not my style, certainly, so I will never wear it, but it shouldn't be overlooked by floral lovers. I have to say I couldn't tell that the violet or neroli were there, but it may just be that well blended that I couldn't pick them out. I also thought it too "white" to be the Raven, but it is definitely not "bright". as florals go, it is a powdery soft blend with floral and musk.