nightbiscuit

My new bottles came! DCCCLXVII (867) Holy shit, I have absolutely no idea what this is. I would say cinnamon, but that is a common allergen and thus not included in CT. Wow. It kind of smells like christmas cookies. Marzipan! But like a spicy, boozy marzipan. Bizarre. I don't get it. CMXLIV (944) And I am completely bowled over by a blast of green and lemony sweetness. This one starts out fresh lemons and green grass, very very strong. As it warms, the sugar comes to the forefront and this becomes a straight spoon of old-fashioned lemon curd, with the lemon, eggs, butter and sugar all present; with the grass note in the background as if you were at a picnic! What a trip.

There is a redolent warmth and spiciness in Buggre which reminds me of Malkuth. This leather is indeed ancient, but alive and glowingly warm. I get the impression of the incense and tobacco leaf notes being very dry; the incense has gone stale, and the tobacco leaf is of an old cheap cigar. The combined effect manages to be very elegant.

2005 blend: Incredibly rich and chunky incense, the resins are practically plantlike, they are so moist. This scent is sharp, dark, smooth, and intense. My skin brings out a very sweet tang which is almost citrusy. So interesting, because when I first put it on, I could have sworn I smelled cinnamon in this. Morph-y!

Ooof, that's cherry?! The queen smells like an almond funeral parlor nightmare to me. Well, I appreciate the generosity of the person who frimped it to me anyway!

in the bottle: I am reminded strongly of Monster Bait: Closet... this is very sweet and creamy. on skin: The love child of Faith (the sugary violets Siamese twin) and MB: Closet, after playing outside in the ashpile. A sweet and cute fragrance.

This is so sweet and fruity. To me it seems like the lightest of all the denizens of the pit (though I have not tried Habu or the minty ones), but really beautiful! As others have noted, Coral Snake goes on 1000% apples! As it warms, the snake oil spices bubble up and smooth out over the apple top note. Once dry I can detect only the plumeria, not the gardenia, but the plumeria and apple seem made for each other! An exceedingly harmonious blend. But, you know, I just can't find the citrus. Which rules, because I hate citrus.

Mysterious and sexy! Another musk from BPAL which totally makes me drool. This scent, as has been said so accurately, is very very purple. It's so purple, in fact, that I am reminded of huge plump black grapes. Perhaps that would be the pomegranate. In any case, Penumbra is a dark and richly fruity resin-musk.....

Pew! This is not okay. It smelled like a really robust and pretty floral in the imp, but as soon as I put it on, the pink pepper becomes overpowering. There is a hint of a yummy juiciness from the blood orange, but the pepper is just too strong. EDIT: Hmm. Actually, this orange is kind of nice, and the ginger has emerged.... But still too much pepper for me. Hence, I suppose, the name.

CCXXI (221) My fractal smells like buttered popcorn. And incense! Or honeyed amber. WTF. That sounds extremely not good, but actually this smells so good that i am getting oil on my nose and face from huffing my arm too closely. Ok, I really just can't believe this. Maybe I am wrong about what it smells like. But seriously, honey buttered popcorn (the popcorn even smells a little burnt!!) with some kind of resin, and actually now I can smell a hint of a smooth floral in there. Wow. I can't wait until the meet n' sniff party so I can get some other expert nose opinions on what the hell they think this is! EDIT: Okay, I know it's not like anyone cares, because there is only this one bottle of this blend....but I think I may have been trippin about the incense. It's definitely foody, for sure. And I stand by the honey buttered popcorn, only I think the other bit is toasted coconut! I think that yesterday I was just sniffing too many resiny scents to get a proper sense of this. Seriously amazing, though. I am going to get at least another one of these intriguing scent gambles!

Ohhh yum. A plush, smoky, woody honeyed vanilla. Just like the woman herself, her complexity is dazzling and begs exploration. Wink wink, nudge nudge.

Enter the absolute perfect leather scent, so accurately desribed as glossy. I could go on for days about BPAL's leather notes (which is actually weird because I'm a vegetarian )... This leather is so soft, sweet and pliable, more like a pair of fine gloves than a jacket (or chaps! that would be Western Diamondback.) I am reminded of the Blockhead's leather note, but his is scuffed, faded and soft...the Robotic Scarab actually is glossy. The seamless combination of the leather, metallics, and herby golden resin positively shimmers on the skin. *sigh* beautiful.

Wow, that is really bad. I tend to think spicy scents are less conducive to sweatiness.

It is so weird to find this, since for the past 2 days I have been really enjoying wearing my BPAL to work out! A beautiful smell is so refreshing and soothing. For me I love something light and sweet to keep me motivated (that and funky techno music!). On Tuesday I wore Faith, and loved it. Yesterday I wore Eisheth Zenunim, and found it blended beautifully with my sweatiness (gross? sorry!). Today I am going to wear Marae, actually I am going to change and go right now! So I suggest light sweet florals, if you are into that kind of thing. Fun topic!

How about Herr Drosselmeyer or Capricorn 2007? You might have to search around for those though. I tobacco note!

How about Talvikuu or Black Forest?

Oh my this is dark. In the bottle, no light passes through the oil, it is just black. On my wrist the oil is very dark brown and thick... YUM!!! OMG, I think this is the note that made Cracked Bell so beloved to me. Oh heaven, I am so glad to have found this. It is extremely powerful, I am going to have to remember to use it sparingly. This note is among my favorites in BPAL, it is so rich and exotic. I know it's a single note, but damn if I don't smell some woods lingering around in this. Extraordinarily beautiful.

MMMMM....delicious! Black Lace is mild, sweet, and dark. I get the vanilla and cognac notes primarily, with a thin wisp of Beth's exquisite Indian musk crisscrossing beneath like spiderwebs. Such a winner!

Hope smells exactly like a very sweet rose incense on me. Interesting, I think that my skin chemistry does something weird to sugar and maybe caramel notes. *pout* Well, it's not bad, anyway, I think I can still wear it.

This is for the 2008 blend. I hardly know where to start. This scent is so complex and subtle. The beeswax seems to be the top note when it is first applied, and what a friggin glorious experience I am having huffing my wrist to get more and more of that warm sweet golden smell. The only other notes I can detect in this olfactory magnum opus are the incredibly smooth patchouli and the East African musk, inextricably intertwined. This is so romantic.

Utterly unique! This is actually the cleanest metal note I have ever smelled, despite the fact that it's supposed to be rusty. On me, the leather note is so sweet and pliable that it seems almost like a skin musk. Gorgeous. I would never have thought from the Blockhead's facial expression that he would turn out to be such enchanting company*! *I do like his corset though.

It's like the Candy Butcher let one of her chocolate snakes melt in Faiza's snake pit! It's really good chocolate, too, maybe even the kind that has chili bits to give it a kick! Ahhhh....very dark, sweet, and smooth. The snake oil is recognizable in this blend, and it feels like it's moisturizing the dry teak note.

I want to love it! But alas, on me the cherries are quite cloying. Also, after one hour, i smell exactly like cherry chapstick. Not good. EDIT: After 2 hours, the sweet cream comes to the fore and is rather light and tasty. Requires more testing!

Oh, joy... A cocoa that does not turn plasticky on me! This is a smooth, warm, spicy creamy cocoa, which is quickly supplanted by dry sandalwood. Funny thing, I could swear I smelled some orange in there during the drydown!

In the bottle, I thought King Cobra smelled exactly like plain Snake Oil. This feeling persisted even after I put some on. Then I decided I would apply a dab of Snake Oil to the crook of my arm to compare....WHOA! Now I smell the difference! Snake Oil is thin and whiny in comparison to the King Cobra. Don't get me wrong, I love SO! But this blend is so much deeper, richer, sweeter, darker... I die from it! Also try layering this one with Rose Cross. OMG! Sexy incense heaven.

I hope it is okay to write a really negative review. Because Holy christ. I do think that this is one of the worst scents I have ever smelled (probably it is actually a tie with Malediction). It reminds me of some shitty drugstore cologne kneaded into some Play-doh. It must be the Dragon's Blood resin, because vanilla and sweet scents don't usually turn into MARSHMALLOW CREME VOMIT on me. Ahem. Sorry about that. Carry on.