tinyvulture

At first I smell green fruits, sweet and tart – mango, and perhaps also melon. These light, juicy notes are grounded by the ripe richness of fig and the dark earthiness of patchouli. This reminds me of walking into Pier One. They may make a candle that smells like this. It’s just an association that I have in my mind. It’s really a pleasant scent, fruity yet sophisticated. I’d like it as a room scent. I’m not going crazy over it, it’s not completely “me” due to the fruitiness, but I will wear it on occasion.

This is rare -- a fruity, summery blend that I actually like. Playful and cheery, Croquet is a blend of juicy nectarine, sugary grapefruit and lime. Citrus typically amps on my skin and goes all sharp and yucky, but here it’s sweet and warm, helped out by lots of wonderful musk. There’s a drop of patchouli, which never hurts. I can’t smell the sage or rose. If a perfume can be adorable, Croquet is adorable. It makes me smile. I don’t think I’ll be ordering a bottle, but the imp will certainly get used.

Nine-tailed fox demon of Korean lore who transforms into the visage of an irresistible beauty in order to seduce men and lead them to their doom. A sharp, biting blend of crisp white tea and ginger. This smells extremely citrusy on me, like grapefruit or lemon. The sharpness of ginger is vaguely noticeable, but the citrus really outdoes all other notes. It’s very clean, almost soapy. If you like a fresh, simple, lemony scent, I’d recommend this. But the end result is too much like “lemon Pledge” on me.

I hoped this would be heavier on the birch and fir, but on me, it’s all dandelions and green grass. That’s unfortunate – I learned with Roadhouse that me and dandelion don’t exactly get along. It makes me sneeze. Which is sort of a shame, because this is a pretty scent. It’s spring-turning-into-summer. A fresh breeze in the air, the sun shining on a field full of the little yellow flowers. Turns a bit soapy after a few minutes. And that’s the point where I go wash it off and blow my nose. Off to swaps!

Want a dirt scent that is somehow sweet and comforting? Look no further. Damp earth is the main note, accentuated by dry cedar, galangal, and – I think - a drop of patchouli. I love the galangal, which is in the ginger family, but more earthy. I’d describe Badger as dusty, medicinal, woodsy, rooty, spicy. That’s a lot of adjectives! This is a great scent, my new favorite dirt blend of them all.

I can tell this blend has notes in common with Monster Bait: Ventriloquist’s Dummy. There’s that same combination of dry wood shavings (sandalwood in this case, while I think Dummy contains cedar) and caramel/butterscotch. This is a little sweeter and fruitier, thanks to the currants, while Dummy is more buttery and rich. I also detect just a hint of patchouli and a wee bit of muguet. No cinnamon on me. I like it, it’s foody and complex.

... This perfume embodies her gentler, benign aspect as the capricious Goddess of Dance: muguet and Hawaiian white ginger enveloped by warm, damp tropical blooms. I’m a fan of muguet (lily of the valley), but there’s a lot of green herbal notes and other tropical florals getting in the way, so the muguet is really faint. It comes off as an artificial, soapy, “herbal essence” shampoo scent. I’m not smelling any ginger at all. I’d like a soap like this to make me feel like I was on a tropical vacation, but as a perfume, it’s not working for me.

There’s definitely musk accenting the spicy dragon’s blood, but I think it’s mostly black musk. I’m just not picking up any red musk, which is usually so bold and unmistakable. I don’t notice any currant or fig either, so maybe my nose is broken tonight. But the dragon’s blood and black musk are a fine combination on their own. It’s a sweet, exotic, and very warm.

The boozy notes hit me first. The absinthe and whiskey are biting, alcoholic, almost harsh. The tobacco is an afterthought. As for the florals, I can pick out the lavender and that’s about it. Orange blossom, usually strong on me, is absent. Once the booze notes calm down a little, after a couple of minutes, it becomes difficult to distinguish one note from another. Overall this is a very complex blend. It’s a mélange of alcohol, tobacco, florals and woods. Not particularly masculine or feminine. It’s pretty cool, but I wish it had more staying power. It fades quickly.

A realistic cucumber note with a touch of green grass. Really sweet and refreshing; would be good on hot summer days since it seems to have a cooling effect on the senses. One of my most hated scents is Bath & Body Works cucumber lotion and I am happy to say that THIS is much better and has made me believe I would actually wear something cucumber-scented.

You’re in the kitchen; you’ve been cooking up some sweet treats. On the counter sits a giant bowl of fluffy white buttercream frosting whipped up with plenty of vanilla and rich butter. Meanwhile, on the burner, you’re caramelizing sugar and cream until you have a sticky, syrupy, golden nectar. This is the scent that fills the air. Now what are you waiting for, lick those beaters!

Being a lover of forest blends, I was excited for the black pine and fir sap. But what I’m mostly getting is moss and saltwater, with sweet incense in the background. It screams “men’s cologne!” Darn, I should’ve known -- moss tends to do that on my skin. After a couple of minutes, the scent of fresh soil joins the party. It’s still very salty and mossy at this point. Truly a scent of the great outdoors, showcasing the variety of scents found in nature. As others have said, it is both aquatic and earthy. I don’t think my man would care for this, and it’s too masculine for me, so it’s off to the swaps pile.

An interesting scent, though not what I was expecting since the pumpkin is nearly non-existent on me! My skin typically amps it, so I’m mystified. I smell sweet, sunny, grassy hay – the hay note also found in Gunpowder - a bit of dark green vine, and something soapy. It’s dry and warm, but I can’t figure out why it smells like soap. Must be my weird chemistry. I’ll keep it for the hay note though – honeyed, herbal, golden.

This is in a class with Snow Moon and Snow Bunny. It’s got that sweet slush note, combined with the perfume of various florals, and tart red berries. Unlike those other blends, there’s no noticeable pine or other forest trees here. The clean white snow, the berries and the flowers are joined by something musky, like animal musk. I don’t see musk listed in the scent description, but there’s definitely something warm and almost sweaty. Not in a bad way. Maybe the snow maiden was hanging out in the snow-covered forest, gathering berries, and she decided to run for awhile to warm up. It’s still a pretty, feminine scent.

Creamy, white, slightly fruity muguet (lily of the valley)and deep violet are the main floral notes I can make out in this sweet, sad bouquet. The rose is completely gone, and I can’t smell the autumn leaves either. I was really hoping for them! Soft, pretty and wistful, but not my style – off to swaps.

How random that I just tested The Hessian of the Hollow, which shares several notes with this blend – vetiver, blood, and metal. Vetiver is never a weak note, but I would say it’s even stronger than usual in this offering. Although the blood and metal are present, they play more of a supporting role here (compared to Hessian). The most noticeable note next to vetiver is actually the smoke. Of course, vetiver itself has a smoky, scorched element, so that might be part of what I’m smelling. Overall, although I’m a huge fan of vetiver, I wish it were toned down a bit to allow the other notes their turn in the spotlight. It feels one-note compared to some of the other spectacular, complex vetiver blends I’ve tried and loved.

Another winner in the family of vetiver-laden BPAL autumn blends. The Hessian's dry, raspy sandalwood and sour blood notes set it apart from Samhainophobia, Chant d'Automne, etc. I love how these oils can share a few of the same ingredients, yet are each entirely their own thing. I mustn't forget to mention the artillery shrapnel -- there's a definite metallic note, but none of the heavy smokiness I had anticipated. That's fine, I have plenty of smoky scents already! Also, while moss sometimes turns a scent into unwearable "men's cologne" on me, I don't get that here.

I no longer have my imp of Snow Bunny but, from what I recall, the two are nearly scent twins. BPAL’s slush note, so sweet in and of itself, is interlaced with a piercingly sweet floral perfume. I have a hard time picking out specific floral notes, but I’d say the narcissus has quite a presence, while I don’t smell any rose at all. The fir and birch are content to hang out in the background – I think the woodsy notes were a bit stronger in Snow Bunny. This is really a lovely, girly, wintry blend. I’m wishing I had more than this half imp’s worth.

My skin amps citrus, so it’s no surprise that the mandarin orange was the first thing I smelled, along with a dusting of powdery cocoa. But there’s also tobacco, which prevents this from being simply a foody, chocolate-covered orange scent. It’s similar to Cerberus, as others have noted. After about five minutes, the mandarin has taken over completely, obliterating the cocoa and tobacco. I preferred it in its initial state.

The rich brown hue of this oil gives the first indication of its deep, earthy scent. It’s a combination of wild vetiver (khus) and crackling autumn leaves, similar to The Death of Autumn or Samhainophobia, but lacking the grassiness of the former and the herbaceous qualities of the latter. The scorched, “coffee grounds” aspect of the khus is enhanced by tobacco and charred, smoky wood notes. At first I wondered if this was too heavy for my taste, but it’s grown on me. It’s one of those scents that is a true and poetic embodiment of autumn, my favorite season.

At first sniff, I exclaimed, "Peaches and cream!" Which is funny, because I had just been trying to think of a peaches and cream blend. Tamora comes close, but it's more foody, less floral than this scent. The peach blossom is the most prominent note, followed by the Calla lily and other creamy, fresh florals. I can't pick out the rose or black musk, and I'm not sure about some of the other notes such as palmarosa. A flirtatious, happy combination of fruit and flower -- tempting me to buy a 5ml.

I’ve never smelled actual tulips, but this is a slightly creamy floral, woven into fresh green grasses. It’s clean and energetic. Not picking up an aquatic note, which is good news for my skin which hates aquatics. This isn’t really “me,” but it’s pretty. It would make a nice shampoo or lotion.

The notes I can pick out most easily are peach and patchouli. There’s a green bitterness to it, like an unripe fruit. A green peach, just turning white. I can’t smell the cocoa at all, strangely. This smells kind of like Mane & Tail hair conditioner, actually… OK...hold on. I just went and sniffed my bottle of conditioner, and this smells EXACTLY like it. Random!

When I first apply this, I swear it smells like pumpkin and celery. That crisp, watery green scent is really unmistakable. And yet, there’s no celery in the scent description. The scent quickly morphs into a spicy potpourri, fragrant with berries and frankincense. The pumpkin note is surprisingly low-key, just hanging out in the background. The floral notes are nowhere to be found, but that’s fine by me. Then after a couple of minutes, the celery returns. Weird! I already have a lot of pumpkin blends, so this mysterious mixture is off to swaps.

This is a masculine cologne blend, heavy on patchouli, yet it’s got a lovely warm, creamy spiciness, reminiscent of Blood Moon. Tons of amber, as well as cinnamon, cardamom, and other members of the “chai spice” family. It’s exotic but homey and comforting, all at once.