VioletChaos

**Note, this is a kind of tandem review as I received this and the Samhain lotion at the same time, and tested both on the same day.** This is (along with Samhain) my first foray into the exciting new world of Black Phoenix's body lotions! I chose Snake Oil because it's one of my long-time go-to fragrances (GC *OR* LE), so I figured whatever the outcome, I will find a way to use it! The lotion is a lovely texture- fluffy, thick and verrrry moisturizing. As this is an initial test, I went sparingly, not knowing about the absorption rate and also wanting to see how heavily fragranced it would be. In both aspects, I'm glad I was reserved in application: a little goes a long way! Comparing the two (Snake Oil and Samhain), Samhain had the higher fragrance-to-product ratio, but Snake was no slouch, so definitely go extra sparing with application until you see how both absorptions go for you. The skin on my hands is fairly dry, especially a few minutes after washing them, which is when I conducted this test, and the soothing and absorption I experienced was perfect: it did the trick, absorbed completely and evenly, and left no greasy or sticky residue- very impressive! The scent left behind is heavy enough that you might want to be mindful about coordination if you're applying a perfume in addition to. I'm not entirely sure about other types of scented products such as hair gloss or bath oil (especially if you're one of the folks that uses the Lab's bath oil as a post-shower body oil) so I'd say do your due diligence, especially if scent clashing is something that bothers you In all: another spectacular product from the Lab! I don't know how long shelf life will be yet, and I definitely have questions about that, especially since I'm one of those people that like some scents -Samhain and Snake Oil among them- to be as aged as possible. I don't anticipate that these lotions can hang around for years, but who knows what exciting changes might happen in the next month or two? Then again, the more stabilized the base, the more static the fragrance might be as well 🧐 Regardless, the Lab, as usual, has created a superior product, and I'm delighted to have a new way to wear some of my favorite scents from them!

This is (along with the recently released Snake Oil) my first foray into the exciting new world of Black Phoenix's body lotions! I chose Samhain because it's one of my all-time favorite autumnal fragrances, so I figured whatever the outcome, I will find a way to use it! The lotion is a lovely texture- fluffy, thick and verrrry moisturizing. As this is an initial test, I went sparingly, not knowing about the absorption rate and also wanting to see how heavily fragranced it would be. In both aspects, I'm glad I was reserved in application: a little goes a long way! Compared with the Snake Oil lotion, I'd say Samhain has a higher fragrance-to-product ratio, so definitely go extra sparing with application until you see how both absorptions go for you. The skin on my hands is fairly dry, especially a few minutes after washing them, which is when I conducted this test, and the soothing and absorption I experienced was perfect: it did the trick, absorbed completely and evenly, and left no greasy or sticky residue- very impressive! The scent left behind is heavy enough that you'll want to be mindful about coordination if you're applying a perfume in addition to. I'm not entirely sure about other types of scented products such as hair gloss or bath oil (especially if you're one of the folks that uses the Lab's bath oil as a post-shower body oil) so I'd say do your due diligence, especially if scent clashing is something that bothers you In all: another spectacular product from the Lab! I don't know how long shelf life will be yet, and I definitely have questions about that, especially since I'm one of those people that like some scents -Samhain and Snake Oil among them- to be as aged as possible. I don't anticipate that these lotions can hang around for years, but who knows what exciting changes might happen in the next month or two? Then again, the more stabilized the base, the more static the fragrance might be as well 🧐 Regardless, the Lab, as usual, has created a superior product, and I'm delighted to have a new way to wear some of my favorite scents from them!

Jean Veber Pumpkin cream, honey, vanilla sugar, and smoked vanilla bean. In The Bottle: sweet, creamy vanilla and scratchy vanilla bean, with a breath of pumpkin. Yum! Wet On Skin: the pumpkin comes out a bit more and the honey with it, warming the scent up a bit. Dry Down: A beautiful, light pumpkin ice cream! In All: low throw, a sweet, gentle scent. Not too foodie. Perfect for daytime wear throughout the fall. Total keeper!

This is the 2025 re-release. Samhain is always pure autumnal love for me. Frequently apple scents are iffy for me, but Samhain is always true and I love pulling my well-aged, well-loved perfume out each fall. The atmosphere was a gamble for me, as the aging of my bottle is part of why I love it so. But I tested it today, just a few days out of the mailbox and it's great- just two poofs in my living room, and the whole is well-scented. It's been a few hours and it's still going, but it's not overpowering. As with my all-time favorite Cathouse, I *do* suspect that some aging will do this atmo some good as well. I will be sparing in my poofs now, because I'm betting I'll enjoy it even more later!

A far juicier peach than I was expecting coming off of last year's Peach and Red Bean Paste HG. That said, I was into it from first sniff. Way back (decades, in the pre-Lab-exisiting era of the halcyon 1990s) the Body Shop had a peach perfume that I wore obsessively. It smelled like canned peaches packed in syrup. This hair gloss has a similar quality, though I'd say the peach is fresher and amps even more than that long-ago fragrance. It's ;lasted all day and pair nicely with several scents I tested (one a light sugary musk, the other a dark, spicy autumnal confection). I will put this in my cold-weather rotation on days that I need a bit more brightness and sparkle in my dreary day!

In the bottle I get mostly the nice, buttery pumpkin that shows up here and there in the autumnal / Weenie profile. Once on my skin, the scent warms and opens, revealing a delicate blend of those beloved fall spices. "Delicate" being the operative word here. I agree with doomsday about this being a good option for those looking for a pumpkin spice scent that's not heavily spiced. It's also just a lovely, fairly fresh, pumpkin scent. I was surprised because I have the Peach Brandy of yesteryear, which has its boozy moments, and I was anticipating a similar outcome here, but that doesn't materialize for me. I'm not mad about it, because this really is a lovely, imminently wearable autumnal scent. Low throw, delicate, but definitely of the season.

I mean, it's all right there in the name This is EXACTLY what I was hoping for- a straight-up rootbeer float. The rootbeer / sarsaparilla note does NOT disappoint, and the ice cream makes it soft and creamy and yummy, and keeps the rootbeer from being sharp or acrid. Eventually a bit of pumpkin *does* reveal itself, but I wouldn't call this a "pumpkin scent". I agree with the above assessment that this is a great scent for sliding from late summer into early fall, but I will also definitely be wearing this over the winter when I want a sweet and warming daytime scent to cuddle into. 🎃

I'm...just not sure about this one. at least, not yet. I love Dorian. I love Snake Oil. And I love love LOVE Graveyard Dirt. But. I guess this moss note is throwing a big ol' monkey wrench into the proceedings and I don't know what to make of it. I am not one of the folks that tested or used the atmosphere iteration of this scent last year, so this is a brand new experience to me. Because I have such love for three of the four listed elements, this seemed like an obvious choice for me, but the moss here seems to be doing this thing where it's amping a black musk bit that is...not amazing with my skin chemistry. It's also possible that the moss and the Snake itself are having some complications for me, as I am definitely one of those people for whom there is no such thing as "too aged" when it comes to Snake Oil. The fresher, the sadder it is for me, and that's just how it is. (I am currently slowly working my way through a gloriously aged 10mL bottle dating back to 2006, with several from 2010 aging softly in the wings, so that should give you an idea concerning the gravity of what I'm speaking about here). There's something here, baffling, that also reminds me of the disquiet that I both love and feel repelled by in the American Gods scent, Laura. Write it off on some weird undertone from the dirt note if you wish, but I could slather myself in Graveyard Dirt all day and never get the strange bit that's marking both of these blends. In all, I will absolutely keep this scent- I know my chemistry well enough to figure the Snake just needs an extra long rest, if nothing else, to make this wearable for me. Hopefully, in the process, the rest will sort itself out.

In the bottle, the wet greenery is the only thing present. Normally, "wetness" can be an issue for me- water notes tend to register as heavy cologne to my nose. But here, at this stage, it really smells like being outside after a rain, breathing in the damp grass and leafy trees. How lovely! Wet on skin: as it warms up on me, the honeysuckle comes into the mix, lending a delicate-but-unmissed floral touch. The honeysuckle was one of the reasons I was eager to try this scent, so I'm glad to see it showing up now. Dry down: finally, the blackberry joins the party! I'm relieved, as this note was the OTHER reason I was so interested in trying this scent. The grass and green are still present but the honeysuckle, if it's here at all, is so far in the background as to be just part of the atmosphere, but nothing that could be picked out of a lineup as a contributor. It's a very interesting and deeply unsettling scent, reminding me of that part of autumn when the weather has turned but tendrils of late summer continue to hang around (leaves starting to mulch, and yes, the last of the blackberries juuuust starting to turn on the bramble). The story on which this scent was based is a long-time favorite of mine and I think this scent beautifully captures the specificity of a gilded cage: there can be beauty, sure, but don't ever, ever forget the sinister undertow.

There is a specific red wine note that I've loved from the Lab since I first encountered it with Glüwein all the Way Back When. It starts off slightly grape-y but finishes a bit more boozy, and it's a welcome addition where I find it. I believe this is that note. I say "believe" and not "for sure" because the dragon's note is pulling it sideways in unexpected ways, amping the grape aspect of the wine a bit, and subsequently tamping down the booze edge 🤷‍♀️ As a Duet, as the prior poster stated, it's a "what you see (...smell?) is what you get kind of situation: a very balanced, two note perfume. As *just* a duet, if you like either or both of these notes, you'll find a satisfying balanced little daytime blend waiting for you here. As a layering piece, you will find it adds some nice, unusual new interpretations for the primary Moon it's affiliated with. I also procured the Duet of Clove and Sweet Incense and I played around a little with *just* the two Duets and NOT the Blood Moon at all, and here, too, there were some nice surprises to be found, as the spice and the sweet all play well together there, too. In all, some lovely variations to be had, and probably some nice twists to come as both of these notes lend themselves well to aging.

In the bottle, it's a balance between the two notes equally, and it stays that way through the warming-up-on-the-skin phase as well. The incense here is indeed a sweet alternative to what I normally think of as an incense note- this is NOT a hippy-headshot vibe at all, and I also don't get the alternate, which is church-y. This is neither. Upon full drydown, it's a very well-blended mix of the spice from the clove with a mildly sweet incense-y melange. Surprisingly delicate, and quite low throw. Many Duets are things that I lean toward wearing on their own. This might be the first time I've encountered one where I feel strongly that this scent really is best in service as a layering device for the primary Moon it's affiliated with, as it bumps up those aspects nicely but doesn't overpower. Also, and this is specific to my personal skin chemistry, clove as a note, requires a fair amount of backup in order to not become flat and one dimensional and a little harsh. The duet dries down a bit flat because it's only the two notes, and my chemistry requires more. I've had to turn away more than a few clove-forward scents for this reason, alas. But paired with its intended Moon, it does precisely what it's supposed to, so I'm totally pleased to have it! This is also a good time of year to have options to boost a cozy-spice factor on other scents, and I will definitely have some fun playing around with this scent's layering possibilities in a number of ways!

I am a huge, HUGE fan of the original 2005 Blood Moon. HUUUUGE. And I know that the notes are mostly quite different in this blend as compared to my beloved from twenty years ago. But I grabbed this because I am hoping that there's a similar mood or vibe with this incarnation. But as with the previous poster, I, too, am a person for whom black musk tends to amp so dramatically as to blot out all other notes (and the sun itself!) so I have my trepidations about it as well. Let's see where we land, shall we? In the bottle, it's the clove that I get immediately. I have a complicated relationship with clove because when it's good, it's so, so, SO good, but when it's not, it can be very acrid and sharp. In the bottle, it's a perfect shot of spice, and I believe there's a little of the sweetness from the pomegranate present that could be helping with that, but of course, we're still very early in this process... Wet on skin: upon application, the clove starts to die down almost immediately, and the black musk is starting to step forward at the exact same time. Pomm is holding her own, but not in any front-leaning capacity- the note continues to be more of a background sweetness, so for those hoping for more, if your chemistry is similar to mine, know that this might be all there is. At this stage there's no hint of patch or tobacco or dragon's blood, alas. Dry Down: This may be the first time in my nearly-two-decade history of BPAL fandom where I've got a real winner in a black musk scent. It helps that it remains in check by that beautiful clove. The pomm (and likely dragon's blood, which has its own sweetness) are definitely background players, keeping this scent from being too sharp or intense. But the that spicy clove remains the star. If you're a fan of Thorns Clove Cigarette (or sad you missed out on it) then I'd say snag this immediately. It's very wearable, surprisingly soft in the throw given the composition- a great, warming daytime scent as the weather grows ever more cold. In All, a total keeper and, as I'd hoped, a nice similar vibe to my beloved OG Blood Moon 🦇 ❤️

I am unsurprised in some ways that I'm the first to review- mushrooms and brains are not everyone's cup of tea for a perfume!- but what about the ink and the grave loam??? Welp, let's just see what happens. In the bottle, I'm getting that gorgeous turned-earth, loamy-loam that some of us adore from Penny Dreadful and Graveyard Dirt. There's also a sweet plant-y smell in the mix that isn't quite floral, and I'm betting it's the Spanish Moss. We are off to a great start! Wet on skin, the sharp, slightly chemical scent of the ink starts to come through. This is my first encounter with the tattoo ink note from the Lab, but I am one of the fans of the original Indian Ink single note they released many years ago, and I'd say at least at this stage, this ink is a close cousin of that old one, and I'm delighted. I think I'm also getting little hints of the mushrooms, which are adding a nice extra layer to all the earthy bits here. Upon dry down, the moss and ink are melding into a rather cologne-y combo. Normally, I can find that to be off-putting, but the loam and mushrooms are holding everything in balance and it's turned into what I can only describe as a great counterpart to Penny Dreadful. When I first tried out Miss Dreadful 18 years (!!!!) ago, I thought she had a chocolate note in her. I no longer think that- I think there was something rich and sultry lurking in the noir perfume of the scent that read that way to be for a time. I mention this because I think that Penny wound up being a bit more on the femme-side of the scent spectrum, though not by much, and that rich, almost-choco-aspect held the balance. Here, I think that moss-ink combination are doing the same, right across the line, making this scent a slightly masculine-leaning version of a scent with similar bones. If you *really* wanna gender it up, you might conclude these to be brother-sister counterparts. Of course, there's DNA in both scents that can *also* be found in the American Gods scent, Laura, and it's NOT the loam that joins the three but Laura's formaldehyde-glycerine-lanolin combo (sweet-but-chemical) that I think is actually the element that creates the kinship amongst the three. For me, this makes Zombie Flash a welcome addition to a verrrry specific part of the Lab's perfumed family tree, and I am super delighted to welcome it aboard ❤️

I am definitely smitten! (This review speaks only to the scent, and not the properties of the hair gloss base, so all I'll say about that part, is that I adore the Lab's glosses, they work wonders for my very long, thin, multi-textured hair, especially during the cold half of the year, so I welcome any chance to accumulate more scent varieties!) Upon initial sniff, I had a feeling of whatever the equivalent of déjà vu is in the scent realm. I realized that something, or things, about this fragrance reminded me of a long-ago version of the Lab's classic Egg Nog. Upon closer inspection / meditation of this hair gloss, I determined that part of the spice profile coupled with this particular version of vanilla (which to my nose reads as vanilla bean), are the elements that brought to mind that Yule of yesteryear. But what was *really* interesting is that, in the same way when you think you see a friend from across the street, and then you get up close and you realize "oh, that's not who I thought it was at ALL", this brioche doesn't bare more than an actual passing resemblance to Egg Nog, actually. What it *really* smells like is the gorgeous, creamy interior of thick, beautifully done french toast. The kind that has a rich egg batter that lends itself to a custardy finish. I get that vanilla bean, and a delicate but ever-present array of autumnal spices and a buttery hint of the pumpkin. I don't get the brioche per se, but I'm definitely NOT disappointed by any of this. Yummy, delicately sweet, definitely gourmand- It's the "fall flavor" scent I didn't know I was missing. ❤️❤️❤️

This spirit shall return to Him Who gave its heavenly spark; Yet think not, Sun, it shall be dim When thou thyself art dark! No! it shall live again, and shine In bliss unknown to beams of thine, By Him recall’d to breath, Who captive led Captivity, Who robb’d the grave of Victory,— And took the sting from Death! Lilith at Poet’s Corner, Westminster Abbey – one of my favorite places in the entirety of this earth. Piety and intrigue, succor and terror… stone walls and painted glass panels bearing witness to generations of poetry, pride, conquest, and despair: the echoes of the incense smoke of hundreds upon hundreds of years curling around roses and oak branches. In The Bottle: This is...wow. It's got a rose in there, but it's honestly not like any I think I've smelled before. It's dark and dusky and the oak is certainly grounding it, even in the bottle. It's beautiful and somber and makes me want to walk in cemeteries on cloudy days- AND THIS IS ALL IN THE BOTTLE. Wet On Skin: The oak makes its presence more known and the rose takes a little more of a back seat. I'm less familiar with oak notes in the Lab's cannon, but this one reminds me of autumnal days and, yes, crunching through leaves. Unusual for me, but no complaints Dry Down: The rose is in the distant background, and this has become an oak incense - it's crunchy leaves mixed with an incense base. It waxes and wanes, strangely- one moment it's quite strong and the next it fades back. And it's got something I can't quite place...something that reminds me of childhood, though the scent isn't 'childish' in the least. It's dusty and powdery and incense-y and fallen-leafy and slightly musty. I honestly can't decide how I feel about it just now, but it's intriguing enough that I'm going to let it age and check back in later to see what's happening.

As you have no doubt heard, during the third presidential debate, Hillary described her plan to raise taxes on the rich in order to fund Social Security. She took a swing at him over him being a tax dodger (which he is). “My Social Security payroll contribution will go up, as will Donald’s – if he can’t figure out how to get out of it.” Trump interrupted her and said, “Such a nasty woman.” These are two things uttered by the same man within the same hour: “Such a nasty woman.” “No one has more respect for women than me.” Amazing. Let’s put this pussy-grabbing, racist, predatory, misogynistic, hateful, irresponsible, ignorant, immature grotesquerie out of politics for good, and do what we can to ensure that he and his ilk never cast their miserable shadows over our political process again. Nasty Woman: black fig and patchouli, filthy bourbon vanilla, honeyed amber oud, and loukhoum. In The Bottle: A dark, dirty patchouli with a bit of our to smooth out the edges. Wet On Skin: I detect a rich tobacco, though none is listed in the notes. It's possibly the black fig, it has a similar "chewy" quality. Dry Down: The patch is back at the forefront, the kind our foremothers would've worn when burning bras and protesting the war at the Pentagon! The vanilla is a supporting character, along with that touch of honey- not sweetening the mix so much as adding further depth and preventing this scent from going over into HippyLand. It's rich and dark and not to be fucked with, just like angry women everywhere In All: Oh, she's a Nasty, Nasty Woman, alright. And she's only gonna get better with age!

Each order placed on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Filler Whatever Sunday, or Cyber Monday will receive two 1/32 oz. imps of INCOLUMITAS, one to keep and one to share. It’s been a very challenging year for so many, and this little imp is our gesture of bottled kindness. INCOLUMITAS is a scent of safety and security, of peace of mind and freedom from harm: warm honeyed patchouli, bourbon vanilla, sweet sage, and lavender. In The Imp: A good, pure lavender. This isn't a sugared or cologne-y lavender, this is more like clean essential oil lavender. Wet On Skin: The vanilla comes into play, sweetening the lavender quite a bit, and it goes from being that almost-medicinal to a little more of the sugary lavender encountered in True Love or Day Break- two lavender scents I adore, so I'm happy with the direction this is taking! Dry Down: The scent stays mostly true from wet to dry down, with the exception that I'm getting the *slightest* edge of sage in the mix now, giving this scent something that feels bittersweet, somehow, like cherishing joy in the midst of acknowledging the hard time all around us. Which seems perfectly apt for what this scent is all about ❤️

The civilized, sweet restraint of lily-white sugared vanilla silk gleaming with a glimpse of fang-white musk, smeared with wanton red musk seed, tobacco, red agarwood, and ritual benzoin, and blackened with a depraved miasma of clove husk, drooping oakmoss, black leather, and balsam.  In The Bottle: a very, very gauzy white musk and an even fainter vanilla silk. the whole experience sniffing in the bottle is that of a dream, it's so light and wispy. Wet On Skin: The lightness of the scent continues in that it has very low throw, even as it warms on my skin. Joining the silk and white musk I get a hint of something slightly sharp, such as ambrette seed, although that's not listed in the notes. It might be the agarwood. Dry Down: The scent remains very soft and slow throw- try it by small increments at first, but i anticipate this one will require slathering to really get the full force of it. It's extremely well blended, so although I can detect ghosts of benzoin and clove husk now, I wouldn't say that either note dominates, but rather that it's all supporting roles for all players involved. I get no leather at all, which is unusual because my skin generally amps that note, so it might again be a testament to how thoroughly it's been blended. In All: A moody scent appropriate for this coldest time of the year, but definitely something that I'd wear for daytime- it lacks a total intensity but I think that's a good thing, because not all heavy scents should be reserved for nighttime uses

With the coffee and tobacco, I was expecting something in line with Pinched with Four Aces. I also felt mildly concerned about the leather, as that frequently amps on me to the exclusion of all others. Instead, this is most carnation. In the bottle there's some promise of the other notes. But once applied, there's really just carnation on me, with a verrrrry delicate melange of the other notes doing deep background work. I have -and adore!- Spanish Carnation SN, so I like this scent and can also tell that *something* else is going on here than just the carnation. But it's more like Spanish Carnation is a fresh cut flower and this is more like that same flower several weeks later after it's dried but still has quite a bit of scent.

I concur that this could be a relative of Violet and Vanilla Chiffon, though perhaps more like a first or second cousin rather than a sister In the bottle and when first applied, this is straight up violet flower in all its glory. It gets through warming and over to dry down pretty quickly, which makes sense as a duet, as there are less moving parts that must arrange themselves. This is still mostly violet as mentioned in the previous review. The hay doesn't read as hay in this blend to me, which is a surprise, as normally hay amps at least somewhat with my skin, typically. No, what's interesting here is that the hay only adds a slight touch of sweetness, making this violet less of a direct flower and more of a soft floral essence. Honestly, the thing this scent reminds me the most of is my very first Violet BPAL love, Faith, from Carnivale Diabolique, that sweet, sugared violet confection. This scent is like Faith grown up. Whereas Faith was very much about the interplay of the SUGAR with the violet, here is the same violet note, but the sweetness, though present, is scaled way, way back. It's like running into a childhood friend years later- you can still see the second grader in there, beneath the refined bones of adulthood. I am *delighted* to add this to my collection of violet fragrances 💜

I got this as a frottle from the Lab and double thanks- both for sending me a treat with my order and also sending something I might not have tried but am glad I did! In the bottle and when first applied this is straight up summer salad on me- literally it smells like the cucumber salads I devoured as a kid, fresh cucumber from our backyard doused in a generous portion of Italian vinaigrette. YUM! Once it's had a chance to warm and really go through dry down, the lime mellows considerably (this was what read as "salad dressing" in earlier states) and the freesia comes out, balancing the cucumber in equal measure. A very light, fresh scent, I would recommend this for warm weather daytime wear for sure, and for those that need their food or florals to be on the delicate side of things. 😃

Huh. Given the notes I was anticipating a delicately rich melange of summer confections, plus pumpkin. Instead, from start to finish this is largely fresh, pulpy pumpkin. After extended wear, I get whispers of tiare, but it's really in the background, just adding a little faint balance that prevents this from just being straight up pumpkin squash on me. I don't mind it- it's a light, fresh, pumpkin scent, which is a nice twist out of all the scents out there that are less about the squash and far more about the spice components. Still, I was hoping for the suntan lotion parts. I'll age it more and see how it does, but maybe this is also just a pumpkin flesh scent for me 🤷‍♀️

2025 version. In the bottle: a sweet incense of indeterminate origin. Although it's early, I am already leaning in and wondering how I never picked this up before! Wet on skin: The amber and dark musk are distinguishing themselves a bit from the pack at this stage. I am continuing to marvel at the fact I overlooked this scent previously- it's SO lovely. Dry Down: This extremely well-blended scent is one of those that it's quite hard to pick out individual parts. I read the notes again and again throughout this testing, because I kept forgetting what, exactly was in here. And I go, "oh yeah, fruit, I can see that"- but I definitely wouldn't go "oh that's for sure blackberry / currant that I'm smelling". Same with the amber, same with all the notes. I can squint and say, "Oh, yes, I think I get that" but really, it's a cloud of rich, deep, incense-y, musky-sweet essence that defies a more pinpoint description. In all, a surprisingly low-throw scent, all things considered. Dark musks tend to require a longer-than-average aging time for me personally, given my particular skin chemistry, but there's enough to go on here that I can already tell that when the time is right I am going to be slathering this dreamy concoction every chance I get, but especially on frigid nights and biting days when I need a little extra comfort to pull around me and dream in.

In the bottle, all the listed notes are present and accounted for in a frothy, rich, decadent mess that I am instantly smitten with. I agree with the prior post that all remain accounted for in the final drydown...I just wish it was anywhere near as strong as the warm, gooey WHOOMPH! I get from first sniff upon opening. That said, there's a way where this scent feels like a bit of a BPAL throwback to the ways Beth and Co used to do some of the olde-timey foodie scents. It doesn't remind me of any one in particular, more that sense of "This is a classic BPAL cake-rich scent!". It's very warm and cozy, and it makes me want to pull on a big sweater and cuddle up with a book. I imagine I will do just that whilst wearing this lovely daytime scent over the ensuing cold months, in fact! Medium throw and a nice base scent, I could also see layering this with either resins (to punch up the drama) or a decadent gourmand (to heighten and extend the foodie aspect). It's also a great daytime scent on its own that would be friendly in a host of environments. Yummy! 😋

I am thirding that this scent is a morpher to be sure! Even so, the vibe remains the same throughout the journey, which is what I was hoping for. I'm not always friends with florals OR with myrrh, but I just had a feeling that this would be an exception, and I was right. At its heart BBM is a dark, juicy, vampish, goth-girl scent. I picture my 19-year-old self, with meticulously applied eyeliner, having a fun night of drama and dancing at a club in L.A. with all my friends...but also the remnants clinging to my skin when I crawl into bed just before dawn, cozying up for sleep and gorgeous, gothy dreams. 🦇 The tuberose and black orchid are definitely the stars throughout, but this isn't a straight floral scent- the myrrh and vanilla provide a grounded-ness to the scent, with the other listed notes coming in for visits, leaving, and coming back, repeatedly. Not only was this a blind-buy, but I was so certain it would be grand that I got a backup to boot- and I'm glad I did, as I know this will get even better with age.