tinyvulture

i just reviewed I Died For Beauty and it made me realize how much i love violet. and now this! the ultimate violet scent for me, as i also adore vanilla. a lovely, creamy, sweet floral. i’ve hardly ever bought 5mls of floral scents, but i need more of this.

when i first apply this, it smells medicinal and astringent. i guess there’s some mint in it, and maybe other herbs. then a strong metallic note comes out. and lavender. and then cinnamon. it’s funny how the notes just keep popping up and announcing their presence. seems so chaotic. it’s just not a good combination of notes for my chemistry.

i’m surprised at how much i’ve come to appreciate florals thanks to BPAL. not all of them are for me, but now i know i should at least try them out. i’m often pleasantly surprised – like now. this is gorgeous. sweet violet and spicy ylang ylang and combine perfectly. is there vanilla in this? it’s so sweet. i guess it’s just the frankincense resins amping up the sugary violet. i don’t smell grave loam at all. this really reminds me of an old fave, Morgause. i’m realizing how much i like violet!

a cold, mechanical scent. i smell eucalyptus and oiled metal. i’m not sure how else to describe it. picture being in a chilly factory, the assembly line cogs grinding together, steam rising in the air... i can’t wear it, but i’ll try it on my husband. it might make me think he’s been working in the garage all day!

sharp greenery blended with powdery florals. i believe i smell rose and orchid. i do find it a little soapy. a serious, even haughty scent… there’s nothing playful about it. but the bitter herbal green quality softens and there’s a gentle sweetness. pretty but not my cup of tea.

Majesty - Expansion - Optimism Politics - Civic & Religious Leadership - Health Prosperity - Advancement - Justice - Benevolent Power - Responsibility Sagacity - Sworn Oaths dark, spicy and woodsy. the other reviews say it's redwood, so i'll go with that. (i tend to confuse cedar, redwood and sometimes sandalwood because they can all smell like pencil shavings.) i think there's also patchouli and a hint of sweet orange blossom. i love woodsy blends so this is right up my alley.

a warm, fiery blend. there is sweet citrus in this, but also something sharp and almost acrid, like dry grasses set ablaze by the sun. truly scorching and solar. one of the more interesting blends i’ve tried and one that truly lives up to its name.

a syrupy, dark resinous blend. i see that opoponax, onycha and labdanum are all resins, although i’m not familiar enough with them to say definitively that they’re what i smell. i can’t make out any florals, but the ambergris is apparent. i’m drawing comparisons between this scent and The Black Tower – another heavy ambergris/resin blend. a sweet, sinful scent.

i smell sweet tart apple, soft rose, and a drop of lemon. conflicted perhaps, but these notes actually seem to mesh very well! a cheery, youthful scent. i’m not head over heels for it, but it’s a perfectly good, fun, everyday type of scent.

a bold, spicy, extremely woodsy scent. it’s powerful; it has a real presence. there’s a strong cedar or sandalwood note (whichever one smells like pencil shavings and is kind of peanutty) combined with some herbs and spices i can’t identify. i think it’s too “dark” for summer, but it’ll be just right when the days get shorter and the weather turns crisp and cool. some might say this blend is masculine, but i’m a woman and this is my favorite of the Celestials, so i dunno.

a soft, romantic, feminine rose scent. it’s really light, dreamy and slightly powdery. i’m not picking up the citrusy or green elements that others have, but my skin really amps up rose. i’d wear this year-round whenever i want something simple but lovely.

I’m not really feeling the combination of spicy dragon’s blood and citrusy mandarin in this blend. With my body chemistry, the mandarin is so sweet and cheerful that this blend doesn’t really live up to it’s name! Oh well, I have other dragon’s blood scents that I love. Off to swaps for this one.

on me, this comes across as an odd blend of soapy aquatic and candle smoke. there’s a faintly sweet floral in the background. i’m picky about my aquatic blends and this one’s not right for me, but i do think it is interesting. a cooling, calming scent for a hot summer day.

mmm, spicy, smoky dragon’s blood perfectly blended with sweet, creamy vanilla. i used to really dislike dragon’s blood, but it’s grown on me tremendously and this may be its finest showcase. this is such a warm, soothing, pleasant scent to wear all day, any day. i think there’s a hint of cherry in it as well. i think this calls for a 5ml.

I swear, what I smell is soft creamy florals mixed with powdered sugar! It’s so sweet -- the vanilla really dominates. The jasmine is soft and I think that’s where the powderiness comes from. I don’t really smell the rose. A lovely, girly blend. I love vanilla, and this is one of the rare florals that seems made for me.

When I apply this, I immediately smell something extremely lemony… must be the verbena. It’s very strong, as it tends to be on my skin. The combination of verbena and ginger is sharp and clean. The green grass and rain notes also make this, overall, a very clean, fresh, springtime scent. The overpowering lemon, however, is too much for me. Off to swaps!

Clove and cinnamon! Spicy, sweet and foody. Nice, but straight spice blends aren’t really my thing. They tend to burn my nostrils. Still, it might be nice blended with a creamy, milky note to take away some of the fire.

lotus is usually way too sweet for me, but it’s toned down in this blend to where i can actually appreciate it. this is a sweet, fruity floral, backed with powdery incense. the lab has a certain incense note that smells like bananas on my skin, and that’s what i smell here. i haven’t noticed any dragon’s blood. i’m really surprised at how faint this scent is, considering how bold the lotus normally is. i don’t get much throw from it at all. a shame, since it’s the one lotus blend i’d wear regularly.

in the imp, Boomslang is a dark chocolatey brown color. when i apply it to my wrist, it smells exactly like a Tootsie Roll candy. as it dries, it smells sticky and syrupy. like rich chocolate syrup with a hint of molasses. it’s not at all powdery like most other BPAL cocoa scents i’ve tried. i don’t notice any teak or rice milk. after it dries, the Snake Oil asserts itself. the cocoa and the woodsy, spicy incense notes of Snake Oil seem to be vying for dominance. sometimes the cocoa is stronger, but then i sniff again and the Snake Oil hits me. either way, it always smells good.

full-bodied red wine, extremely fruity and sour. there are also herbs, but i couldn’t say exactly which ones. as it dries, a very strong wine smell remains, but it’s tempered with faint incense and something tangy that reminds me of olives. olive leaf, maybe? i’m not hankering for a bottle, but i'll use this imp from time to time. probably on cold days, as it’s a very warm scent.

at first i smell a buttery graham cracker pie crust... filled with pencil shavings! is this a foody or a woody blend? well, it's both. the soft, dry cedar and sweet, mouth-watering caramel and butterscotch don't seem like a match made in heaven, but they combine really well. it's long-lasting, too. later on, the dark patchouli comes out more, but i never do smell any apricot. a truly unique scent. i have a feeling this imp will disappear in no time!

oh my goodness. i’ve died and gone to incense heaven. this incense isn’t churchy, and it's not hippie. it’s heavy and resinous and dark, but also warm and slightly sweet. i haven’t tried schwartzer mond for comparison (but i think i need to!) definitely one of my favorite incense blends, right up there with my beloved athens and the pit and the pendulum.

i mainly smell the aquatic notes and green ferns (like fresh-cut grass, but a little sharper), with just an undertone of wine. i’m usually not big on aquatics, but i admire the complexity of this one. it’s tropical and cooling – you can almost feel the cool island breeze on your skin. this is definitely a “salty” water scent – and it stays salty, rather than turning cloyingly sweet on my skin like most aquatics do.

Strong black tea with a squeeze of lemon, over soft faded leather. After about 5 minutes, the lemon goes all soft and powdery and slightly floral, and the leather lingers faintly. The tea is still going strong, though – it’s really the main attraction here. Nice… but a little less masculine than I was expecting. My husband doesn’t do florals. That’s OK, I think I’ll wear this one myself

this smells exactly like pineapple upside-down cake! pineapple, cherries, and buttery cake. yum! i’m not sure what else to say. it’s a fun, sweet foody scent; i like it a lot. (it doesn’t smell like turkey. not at all. )