Pave.Gurl

Am I incredibly excited about this? As a long-term gourmand stan, YES I AM. As a hoarder of Midway, from way back in the Carnaval Noir days, I have a deep hope that this will be a worthy addition. The only part that give me pause is: Fresh out of the post, it's really sharp and unpleasant for me, so I wait a week or two to let it settle before giving it a run, because I don't want to taint it with that initial sharpness. And, sadly, for me, the sharp unpleasantness takes over everything, even weeks later.Turns out, for me, that balls-in-your-throat feeling smells a lot like... Bile and old vomit. Like, you know how after it's been cleaned, but there is that sharp, lingering thing that hovers, keeping you nauseated? Like that. And then it adds a note of homemade salt dough that's gone off because you didn't realise it would go bad; the kind your mom made because you couldn't afford actual play-doh, and made you keep using because it was wasteful to throw it away. I am nothing if not stubborn, though, so I have tried this four separate times now, over the course of a month... thinking maybe different times in my cycle might make a difference? I'm gutted to learn that, nope, this is just not going to work for me, no matter when I try. Womp womp

Thanks for the recc! And to make double extra sure - their rollers work with BPAL bottles? I have zero desire to decant into new bottles.

Current favourite "pretty" scent? Zorya Polunochnaya hands down. I also think Pele is quite pretty - that may be the Southern dame in me, though: gardenias and dampness remind me of my home.

Milk, honey, and blood? This was an OBVIOUS go-to for me, and man alive, this is a keeper for me. Honey is keeping the milk from curdling and turning into butter, and YUM, I want to drink my own self up! Blood often kicks everything else to the curb for me, but in Mithras, it's staying to the back, like blood of the bull spilled on a floor in another room - it's a tang, not the heady top note I'm accustomed to it being, and it's adding a really lovely warmth and depth to the honey and milk. I'm kinda surprised by the wild florals vibe I'm getting, Mithras being SO male-identified, but it's not a "girly" floral in any way (that seems like a weird thing to say, but it's true. It feels like a wild piece of property that dudes hunt on has flowered in spring, with zero regard to how the flowers will interact with each other - there's a sense of leaves warming in the sun and flowers that aren't being tended dropping their petals as the weather turns to summer). Overall, it stays pretty close to the skin on me, and I have no idea where the floral note I'm picking up is coming from, but I'm shocked at how little love this is receiving out here in the wild forums. This is a wonderful body note for me, even with as warm as it's been this summer.

Ooooh. I have always been hesitant about florals, because they so often go directly to reminding my of my Gramma and my Aunt Sarah, in a classic Cutlass Supreme with the windows down. Florals just have such a specific connotation for me! But I've had some successes lately, and I had a little extra scratch... But this... OH, Polu, you have stolen my heart, in darkness, like your star. This is ethereal in its lightness, but never, ever to be mistaken for weak. The amber and ambergris give depth to the vanilla and white tobacco. I can't stop smelling myself, which while I have a lot of oils I enjoy, it's not often I can't stop smelling myself. This is so well balanced and a lilt of moonflower just wafted up and now I am lost again in examining all of the scents that I normally don't gravitate towards. I had high hopes based on the reviews, and while I haven't gotten through all of my AG scents yet... this is in contention against Mithras for my fave.They're so different, and yet... I would be hard pressed to choose one I prefer.

imp, straight from the lab. I've been really into both tropical flowers and the Lab's tobacco note of late, and as it's August, this seems like a good fit: let's think VACATIONS! Wheee! First impression, in imp: Woof, that's sharp. Maybe that's the rum? It's been years since I smelled rum of any type, so I just don't know. Hm. On skin, it stays really sharp for a few minutes, but the sharpness is changing to feel more antiseptic to me - my nose isn't reading "booze" so much as "rubbing alcohol." Alongside that, though, there's a warm woodiness - it doesn't really smell like the tobacco note I'm most familiar with (like the one in Sherlock or Perversion, for example), but it's definitely not floral... unless it's the woody trunk of a well established hibiscus. About 20 minutes, I seem to be holding steady with rubbing alcohol and wood, though the wood at this point has decided that it's cedar. Wait... something else is coming out. Is that... Hm. That doesn't make any sense. Why do I smell maple syrup??! I think I'll give this a few days, but right now, I'm leaning towards "turn this imp into a room spray."

Got this as a frimp in an order, and I'm trying to work through all of my imps - this jumped at me today. Thanks, Labbies! I'm really shocked in reading other reviews here, because for me, this is crazy complex and fascinating. When I put it on, I slather this because it's light - the lemon and sugar balance each other really well but they want to fly, so I'm guessing it's the agarwood that's grounding it. The sandalwood gives it a deeper body, and the cassia is only peeking out if I really huff myself. I am getting almost none of the musk or mango (which is good, because mango is not my favourite). It's been pretty hot and muggy where I am for weeks now, and this is somehow refreshing without being chilly. Two hours later: all gone except a bit of sugary wood wafting by. I'm really feeling woody and mossy scents right now, so I'm pretty happy to have this available: it's a really nice grounded-but-airy scent.

I just use circles cut out of old felted wool sweaters, lol! ooooh! I love that idea of the felted sweaters - thank you!

It looks like GotOilSupplies is out of stock on rollers. Has anyone got an alternate source to recommend that will work w/ the BPAL 5ml? TIA

Picked up a bottle of this from the Lab's etsy shop, and WHOA, that's rich and buttery. The first whiff is cinnamon apples, which is followed by butter - they then meld to become something that reminds me of streusel topping an apple custard cake. It settles down, but stays rich and close and spicy cinnamony goodness. This will be a serious contender come fall!

Hey, sylvis! As I understand, Lunacy events are sponsored by the Lab, specifically, though fans may congregate for meet 'n sniff events to sniff/ share/ swap. However, I'm not super involved in the IRL component, so that could be a completely wackadoodle interpretation - please correct me if I'm wrong!

Lush used to have a bath gel called Skinny Dip that I loved, and I keep trying to find things that give me that feeling. Over the years, I've ended up with Bengal in imps a few times, but they always seem to get lost before I try them. The notes make me so optimistic! Thoughts: This is somehow warm, but not dry feeling/ smelling. it makes me feel as though I'm coming across the desert, but I'm also getting a breeze from the souk across the dunes with the tiniest bit of moisture. I'm getting the spices that are in the stalls, and the honey keeps this from feeling dessicated. It's very close to the skin on me, and I think... I think it's already gone. (I never trust my thought that it's disappeared, though, because my nose acclimates quickly to scent, and I don't want to fumigate my office) [a little later] Oooh! Now that it's been on for a while - even though I can't smell it - I can feel the contact point. Interesting! It's a very mild burning sensation for me, but I can definitely tell the exact place I applied.

I was so excited to get this - I LOVE leather as a room scent, and I loved the idea of my den smelling like a bar (don't judge). I was super bummed when this leather got really plasticky smelling - like naugahyde instead of leather - and since the Lab's leathers are usually SUPER good... So sad for me! I realised I was hoping for the leather from BPAL's Sherlock.

Impatiently, I just plopped this directly onto my wrists, and OH, it smells just like extremely fresh, extremely vigorous carnations, but with a little extra oomph of something. This reminds me of the headiness of walking into the refrigeration unit at my mom's friend the florist during football season: the carnations are up front, but there is so much richness and depth to it, as though there's a whiff of mashed rose petals from the floor (even though rose isn't noted) and bruised filler greens (the fir starts to sneak its way into notice here, I think). On the drydown, it reminds me of a very wealthy man's aftershave - the guy from the country club that always wore his vest and pocketwatch that Grandma made you hug, even though you were a little intimidated by him, because who wears a three piece suit all weekend? Quite pleasant, unexpectedly comforting, and very compelling. It stays very close to my skin, and after about 2 hours, I have to put my wrist to my nose to wrap myself in it. A very masculine and cosy scent. I quite like this. I'm not sure it will be something I reach for often, but I feel like this will be a power scent for me - rich, without the sexiness.

I guess I'm in the minority - I love a reducer cap! But then again, I also use my BPAL in my oil burners and as incense and make room sprays, and that way, I can do a drop at a time. Maybe it hinges on one's prefered use case? LOL I have put reducers in my bottles I like to use for other things, and wand caps for ones I want to wear more of, and some I just leave wide open so I can slather at will. Ha!