samarablackcat

I love these types of scents, with just a few notes; they seem to work best on my skin. And I agree with annemathematics, this is on the subtle side. I really am having a hard time discerning each individual note. It's well blended, a tad smokey, not too sweet, not bitter or dirty. I'm not getting any tobacco, but sometimes I forget to roll the bottle with the absolute, as it likes to sit at the bottom of the bottle. I was expecting big, loud. I got soft, gentle, like a big, tattooed, grizzly man who loves little kittens. Slightly deceiving and a pleasant surprise.

A dark, meditative bath experience, created to facilitate communion with your shadow self: Red rose petals, myrrh, bourbon vanilla, ambrette seed, styrax, and frankincense. Fresh out of the mail, it's a soft rose (like four rose petals floating in your bathtub), light myrrh sweetened by the bourbon vanilla with just enough resinous base to balance it out. I was afraid of the rose, but it's stellar in this (rose is not my favorite note and tends to be overpowering). FWIT, I'm only testing on skin as a moisturizer, but I would love to take a long bath with this in the tub...it brings to mind royalty in times gone by with ingredients added by ladies-in-waiting. Or scented water Inara would use to bathe. I used as a moisturizer after my shower as soon as I got this (Friday); I felt so regal at work, unstoppable, nothing worrisome, in charge. Stayed close to the skin and was only able to detect the frankincense upon close sniffing of skin. As I test again, the frankincense is mixed with the rose upon initial application but still not overpowering, and quickly subsides to the background, balancing, never letting any one note overtake the whole. First testing out of the mail, it got a little powdery/dusty (myrrh?)but I haven't experienced that again. This is not something that falls in my normal range but something spoke to me and I couldn't click "Purchase" quickly enough. I am so pleased that I did as it exceeds my expectations and is so beautifully blended that I never want to be without. An absolutely gorgeous and feminine addition to the BPTP family. Apparently my shadow self is queenly; we are pleased to have in our collection and demand more immediately.

Scholar's Tower, how I love thee. This should be bolder, stronger, louder, in part due to the oil's color (dark reddish brown), but you are just perfection. Starts off sweet, the parchment and amber blending together, then mellows with just a touch of ash and incense. It lays softly on my skin, the incense, woods and amber combining to make a golden-colored ray of sunshine billowing in my atmosphere. This doesn't last as long as I would like, but while it is here, it takes me to a place of peaceful learning with many manuscripts begging to be read. I really don't mind reapplying; in fact, sometimes I just open the bottle to sniff, the cilia absorbing the aroma, creating that phantom smell that confuses me sometimes. I also use this for sleep; it takes me to a place not dissimilar to the image on the bottle, with no stress where mentors are there to help guide you on your path of learning.

Starting off, I get the pine pitch; it's sharp, acrid and loud. As it dries, this goes through the most wonderful transformation into something that reminds me of Illustrated Woman (it doesn't smell the same, just gives the same, sexy vibe). It is the most gloriously smooth, creamy smelling frankincense with something almost floral underneath. (The frankincense reminds me of that used in Peach lV, soft and creamy). It's hard to put into words the emotion that this evokes; warm and chill/ light and shadowy all at the same time. I imagine that this will age deliciously. I believe I will need more.

Mine must be a batch variation. This is more of an almost camphorous smell, with something sort-of sweet (maybe fig?), a light splash of benzoin. No lavender, no patchouli or frankincense, no amber, nothing honeyed. Not unpleasant, but not what I was expecting. Where are you, lavender? I miss you...I really wanted lavender top note with a resinous base.

This reminds me of a fall festival and a Renaissance faire, taking all the smells from both, mixing them up and voila! On Halloween! A bit earthy, a bit incensey, a bit fruity with wisps of sage and magical herbs slowing simmering in a pot. If you listen very closely, you can almost hear the murmur of harps and laughter. My decant arrive just today and I rapidly put a bottle in my cart, for I want this scent to calm me in the heat of the summer and remind me of gentler, slower times. I love how this takes me to another place instantly.

Wet, it's almond with the lime popping out. Dry, it's mostly lime with a bit of leather, which in some weird way reminds me C. Auguste Dupin. I don't really get the anise or absinthe (because that is a no scent for me), but something a little herbally. Limey herbal with a tad of leather holding it down. eta: Lilies. I don't think I recognized lilies as this smells nothing like my spider lily, but it's similar enough for me to place it. So, all of the above with lilies. Would be pretty for spring and oh, the changes this one goes through is amazing!

Wet: gentle vanilla creme. I can smell the candle wax before I apply to my skin, As it dries, a gorgeous vanilla (which is saying a lot for me as vanilla can be problematic on my skin) with a touch of gentle sandalwood. Dry, it's waxy vanilla with a hint of smoke. I don't get spices, per se, but something mellows the vanilla/sandalwood. This ends up being the residual of burning a high-end vanilla sandalwood candle for several hours, blowing it out, the the smoke mixed in, wafting through the room with a delicate reminder of what was. Not typically my kind of scent, but really pretty and feminine.

Tobacco and burnt. Not burnt tobacco, just something obtrusive to my nose. I swear I get a little bourbon vanilla. Drying this mellows and becomes tobacco and bourbon vanilla; close to the skin I still get the burning smell; that must be black sandalwood.I was hoping for a little bite of pepper. Much sweeter than I imagined, but not something I would reach for. I thought this would scream multiple bottle purchase, but alas, it was not meant to be.

Wet, hello vetiver! and citrus (?). I either have come to enjoy vetiver or this is a very special blend because it's soft, warm and smoky (no stinky, burnt smell). I'm not getting any tea or cedar. If I huff the place where testing, I get a little whiff of apricot, but it's more of an afterthought. Dry, all I get is vetiver. It's becoming more of the heavy, stinky variety as it dries, knocking everything down, overpowering until it becomes a single note. Maybe aging will mellow it out, because I rather enjoyed where this journey began.

Wet, I get verbena. I actually had to look at the notes because, whoa, verbena. As it dries, it gets a little powdery, but only for a moment. Dry, everything blends so seamlessly I cannot pick out any one note.Stays close to the skin, a warm and slightly herbal reminder of the end of summer.

Well, count me in the lemon tea group. Was hoping for more of the other ingredients, with the fougere in the background, but it was not meant to be.

Wet, lavender, but not sharp or bitter. As it dries, I am picking up the oakmoss and a little sage, like this was lightly smudged. Dried, it's predominately lavender and oakmoss, but with something underneath to keep it mellow and close to the skin. Very pretty and would be wonderful for sleep.

My bottle is LXX Something in this reminds me of Implacable Beautiful Tyrant. I get a little lemon-like scent as it dries, but that goes away (maybe lemon balm?). I'm guessing amber and maybe oudh (or frankincense, although it's not the same as Frank/Clove, maybe a sweet frankincense?) Wonderful golden globules float at the bottom. Great addition for me!

Wet, patchouli and honey. Wow, this really morphs a lot from the wet stage. It stays pretty much patchouli and honey, but as it dries, the patch mellows and the honey recedes enough not to be cloying (honey is a problematic scent for me. Not like rose geranium, but still. I digress). This picks up a little of the bourbon vanilla, again smoothing the honey into liquid gold and turning the patchouli sweet and sexy. There is no cinnamon to be found (on me). I also get, when dried, some kind of pine (slightly reminds me of something in Illustrated Woman; maybe it's the honey/patch combo?) Overall, I am pleased with this as I thought my nemesis would ruin this. Warm, comforting and snuggle worthy. FWIW, this doesn't remind me of Banshee Beat at all. That was all eww stinky hippie on me (blasphemy, I know!). eta: I kept huffing and thinking this smelled familiar. Something in here reminds me of This Is Your Wilderness, with the honeyed patchouli. Not exact, but reminiscent.

Wet, rose geranium. Rose geranium walks into a bar with balsam, opoponax, violet leaf, leather and patchouli. Being the spoiled, snotty little bitch that she is, she insists on being first, slapping all the other scents into submission, demanding all get out of her way. She dominates the others, drowning out their desires to become a harmonious reminder of autumn. No, she is selfish and obnoxious, taking the credit for everything they could have become. Rose geranium, why do you thwart me so?

Wet, I get cedar and pepper. The amber gives it a warm glow and stays close to the skin. After it dries, I feel as though I am walking in the woods on a rare, warm autumn day, the sun peaking through the canopy of yellow and red leaves, dry branches on the ground, cracking lightly as I step and somewhere far in the distance, the smoke from a fire, not overpowering (more like the residual of fire picked up by the breeze).

Whiskey and tobacco while wet, with a snuggly musk underneath. It reminds me of being in a close conversation with a person who has been drinking whiskey (no bourbon) who has been smoking a cigarette and has a nice, musky personal scent about him/her (or kissing said person) with whiskey/tobacco breathe. Now you may think, eww, but that is one of my favorite scents ever, and this takes me back to younger days. As it dries the musk is the most prominent note but stays close to the skin. I seem to do well with three or four note perfumes and this is wonderful. Had it not been for a decant circle this would never have been something I would have tried, but I am very glad I did! The musk reminds me of the musks in Hunter Moon 04, Buck Moon and Ivanushka, warm, slightly feral and oh so snuggly when dry.

Pumpkin with spices, heavy on the clove, with a little cinnamon, while wet. While drying, the creaminess appears, becomes perfectly blended. The lab must have changed the pumpkin because this is very wearable for me (I'm not a foodie and pumpkin in the past has been very buttery and eww on my skin). Dry, a soft, creamy pumpkin with cinnamon. I never thought I would say I like pumpkin, but this is bpal, so never say never. Not a typical scent for me, but smells so delicious and would make a perfect candle or atmo!

My skin is weird. This smells very similar to Luna Negra 13 on me. It reminds me of Our Lady of Pain a little, but more Luna Negra. I get no leather or patchouli. I thought this would be horrid on my skin but I am pleasantly surprised. I get more of a fruity/herbal vibe from this and I'm still scratching my head as this does not smell anything like I imagined from the notes. Maybe this is mislabeled? IDK, I'm going to get a bottle and hope it's the same because it's beautiful!

Elizabeth’s Interpretation A search for lost reason: white musk, indigo musk, and mugwort with honeyed sandalwood, honey myrtle, yarrow, white patchouli, and lemon verbena. This is a beautiful scent, and not the type I usually am drawn towards. I was intrigued by the two musks and white patchouli; honey or honeyed things usually do not play well on my skin. I cannot identify any one note (although I don't really know what myrtle and yarrow smell like); it's blended seamlessly. This reminds me of spring...light, playful, feminine. The verbena doesn't become problematic for me. It's office appropriate and still flirty enough to wear out, taunting your intended with wisps of potentiality. Sillage is closer to the skin than I prefer (I like big, bold oh hai) but produces an aura of sultry femininity. This is my second day of testing and I can't quit huffing myself. I've been needing something a little more professional for work, and I think this fills the bill for me. Contrasts nicely against Schwarzer Mond and layers nicely with Luna Negra.

The Celestials from 2004 were paper and the regular labels that were on the GC like this (Miss Twilight's) and the 2007s look like this (opacity). Does that help?

Juicy black fruit! With fig!

I get mint when this hits my skin, mixed with snow. As it dries I get the subtle citrus and the snowy minty smell still is the most prevalent. Orange/grapefruit blossoms covered in those early spring snows, giving everything an ethereal look but lasting only a few hours, like the scent itself.