tinyvulture

there’s a fruity sourness to this that i don’t care for. like pineapple soaking in warm milk. i adore other BPAL milk blends, so it’s just this particular combination of fruits and milk that turns so cloying on my skin. the honey, fig and date are rich and sweet, but the sour fruit is just too overpowering. off to swaps.

From the description, I thought this might be a bold fruit and incense blend along the lines of my beloved Depraved. But it’s far more subtle and homey -- more like a dried fruit potpourri. That’s not to say I don’t appreciate it in its own way. The combination of peaches and orange with cinnamon and cloves is warm and comforting -- reminds me of the holidays. But I don’t smell any patchouli or incense -- the dark, sexy elements I was hoping for. I’ll probably use it as a room scent for my kitchen.

I love the tobacco in this. It combines so well with the leather and adds a wonderful, sweet spiciness and a hint of vanilla. And the soft, warm musk is ever so gentle and comforting. “Delicate leather scent” seems like an oxymoron but that’s exactly what this is. There’s nothing bold about it, but its softness is appealing.

This is a perfect addition to my beloved collection of forest blends. I love how individual they all are. This one is heavy on the fresh evergreen and pine, while the woodsmoke adds a smoky dimension that turns quite sweet after it dries, similar to Nocnitsa or Hexxennacht. But while I think of those as autumn scents, this one is all summertime. The sun is shining through the tree branches as you pitch your tent and hike down to the lake and then, as the air cools down, you build your campfire and get the smores ready. Warm and comforting. A definite keeper.

Buttery sugar cookies and sweet, slightly tart key lime pop up here and there, but it’s mostly rum. I recognize the rum note from Grog. It’s the one that turns sort of Playdoh on me It also seems like there is a tiny touch of cinnamon. I’d like some incense or a candle that smelled like this – it would make a great home scent. But it’s a little too sweet and foody for me to wear.

this is an extremely strong floral. some jasmine notes smell good on me and others don’t. the star jasmine in this blend seems to hate me. and i’ve never been able to wear magnolia. it’s making me sneeze, actually. i love orchids, but they’re overwhelmed here by the other floral notes. i can barely make them out, and i can’t smell any rose at all. the amber lends its usual wonderful soft warmth, but it’s not enough to tame the overpowering jasmine and magnolia combo. swapping.

clean, sharp grapefruit and ginger notes. this will wake you up and clear your sinuses for sure! the apple blossom sweetens it up a bit. cheerful and refreshing. a bright spring/summer scent.

On me, this is a blend of rich cherry tobacco, powdery sweet tonka (smells like marshmallows!), and something minty… like eucalyptus, sorta, but not as medicinal. On my husband, it’s straight-up cherry tobacco with no trace of tonka sweetness. I’m not sure what hops smell like (are they minty?)… all I know is, this doesn’t smell like beer, and I don’t get any similarity to Roadhouse. I like it -- it’s complex and comforting, a scent you want to curl up in.

this blend, to me, smells like a “traditional” woman’s perfume. the rose is beautiful and seems to tie all the other notes together. it’s a little citrusy from the orange blossom, a little fruity from the peach, and a little sexy from the skin musk. i can’t really smell any myrrh or frankincense. i think this is another one of those scents that is so complex that it’s impossible to pick out every individual note. and it’s so finely blended that the orange blossom, which usually amps up on my skin, is restrained and seems to be in perfect harmony with the other notes. it’s strong and long-lasting, drying down to a rosy peach softened by the powdery skin musk. really nice.

a blend of herbal/mossy and aquatic notes. as with most aquatic blends, this one goes a little fruity on my skin at first and almost smells like watermelon. but after a few minutes the sweetness fades and it’s probably one of the “truest” aquatic scents i’ve tried thus far. it really does smell like a deep, murky body of water, full of green plant life, algae or seaweed. i’m not really picking up any citrusy bergamot or minty eucalyptus. there’s something clean about it, but something dark and foreboding at the same time.

my husband tried this imp out first, and on him it was pure tobacco. i have to say i like it better on me. i love this tobacco note and it seems to be blended with…caramel? buttery, salty, sweet caramel! looking at the description, i have no idea what could be creating that smell, but i am in love with it! the frankincense and sandalwood hang out in the background, i smell no black pepper at all, and i’m not totally sure what redwood smells like but there’s nothing especially woodsy about this blend. just tobacco and foody caramel. i think this one’s worth the higher price for the 5ml.

on first application, all i get is extremely strong citrus, from the orange blossom i suppose. after a couple of minutes the earthy vetiver comes forth and forms an odd combination with the citrus. but then the orange blossom loses its overpowering sour tang and sweetens up quite a bit. the dark vetiver remains, but now the soft myrrh and the unmistakable scent of mahogany are also present. it's still a chaotic jumble of notes, but interesting and unique. i'm just not sure if i can get past the bold citrus.

on my skin, the strongest notes are the resinous myrrh and frankincense, the warm red musk, and the woodsy cypress. i love woodsy and incense blends, so i’m glad to have this imp. i can’t really smell the honey or saffron or cardamom, but i think that’s just because this is so well-blended that you get more of an overall effect rather than really strong individual notes. the downside is that it’s not very strong. i’ll leave it to age awhile longer and see if it develops a bit more throw.

as i open the imp, honey practically drifts out of it towards my nose. it’s such a strong honey scent, i love it! there’s also something that kinda smells like root beer, and a powdery, spicy floral. i think it’s ylang-ylang, because Osun reminds me of La Petit Mort and i know that has ylang-ylang in it. but Osun is lacking the skin musk that makes La Petit Mort so sexy. so i think of this as LPM’s flirty, playful little sister. it’s really gorgeous and has great throw.

i love bpal’s pine blends. so, for the sake of comparison, if black forest is “musky pine” and jersey devil is “berry pine”, then this one is “cologne pine”. it has a definite men’s cologne aspect. that often turns me off, but let me say in this case, it’s the best men’s cologne ever. the pine is strong and clean and a little bit soapy. it’s like what a really hot lumberjack should wear. need a bottle for the husband.

a refreshing green herbal scent. it's masculine, but the clean wood and slightly sweet herbs are softened by creamy shea butter. the sweetness was a bit much at first but it faded after a few minutes and the woodsiness came out more. this is probably my favorite herbal blend thanks to the shea, a favorite note of mine.

i believe the benzoin is what i’m smelling when i first apply this – a piney, sweet resin. i’d have to sniff a benzoin single note to be sure. but regardless of what it is, it’s really lovely. the sexy warm red musk and gorgeous, rich honey (favorite notes of mine) compliment the benzoin beautifully. i don’t smell any caramel, and i’m not sure if i’m getting any “unguents” or not. it’s an exotic, complex, resinous blend. it’s not really masculine or feminine. it’s just wonderful.

coconut and incense! i think i’m in love! the incense is very similar to that of Midnight Mass and All Souls – sweet and with a slight “banana” note that no one else has mentioned, so maybe it’s just my weird chemistry. the coconut here reminds me of Black Pearl or Blood Pearl. i’d say it’s kind of dry, compared to the “fresh coconut” note in, say, Obatala. the sandalwood and orris add more dryness. stays strong for hours. i’m glad this is GC because i see a bottle in my future.

astringent ginger and spicy cinnamon take center stage in this blend. if you like the strong spice of Three Witches, i’d recommend this for sure. the sweet vanilla and resins of traditional snake oil add warmth and balance. i don’t think i need a bottle of this, but it’s really nice. try layering it with something creamy for a lovely chai scent.

Sleek, dark, and ominous. Violet and neroli mingled with iris, white sandalwood and dark musk. The violet and dark musk are an interesting combination here. I’d say the dark musk is very dark…it adds an almost ominous note to this otherwise unassuming floral. Also, I keep thinking I smell coffee beans…not sure what that is. I can’t smell the neroli or sandalwood, and I’m not familiar with the scent of iris. If you’re a big violet fan, this one’s for you. I’m not so much, so it’s off to swaps.

I have a love-hate relationship with jasmine and ylang-ylang. Sometimes they love me and smell spicy and sexy. Sometimes they hate me, and smell like old lady soap. Sadly, in Pannychis, they are both really pissed off at me, and they are ganging up to make me sneeze and sneeze. I do like the black currant, though. The flowers are so strong on my skin that I can’t really detect any other notes. But the currant stands its ground and provides an excellent, dark sweetness. It adds depth, and because of that, I think this would be a really lovely floral on those whom jasmine and ylang-ylang are better friends with.

Obatala is simply the best coconut scent ever! It’s the scent accompaniment to a perfect dream vacation in the tropics. I wish I had all kinds of soaps and lotions that smelled like this, to slather on my skin. I don’t know why, but BPAL’s coconut notes often go all plastic-y and gross on me, especially the black coconut. But this here coconut meat, why, it’s a whole different story Pure coconut essence, white and clean. And creamy, comforting shea butter, which I adored in Chaste Moon and am falling in love with all over again here. As for the water, I feared a heavy aquatic note, but I’m not getting that. It just has an overall clean and refreshing feeling. This one’s going on my 5ml list!

I wasn't sure if this scent would be right for me...but because of all the anticipation for it on the forum, I went ahead and ordered a bottle. I’m so glad I did! I’m thrilled with the lab’s ability to constantly, pleasantly surprise my nose Pink Moon is carnations and sugar. I’m not sure what phlox smells like so I can’t say to what extent it is present. Carnation is actually one of my favorite flowers. I love its subtle spiciness. Like the carnation itself, Pink Moon is floral without being "old lady", and sweet without being silly. A lovely, clean springtime perfume. Now I'm extremely curious to try those other “sugared” florals, Hope and Faith, which I also previously believed weren't right for me! This may be my very favorite lunacy.

a sweet, soft, creamy floral. the strongest notes on my skin are: rose otto, vanilla, amber. the jasmine adds a touch of spice, and i can’t smell the lavender at all. it’s really a lovely, subdued, feminine scent. a good floral for those who typically don’t enjoy florals, but love amber.

sweet, dry, dusty. like an aged bottle of women’s perfume from some unknown era that has been buried for centuries. there’s a powdery incense element to it as well. i was expecting some stone or metallic elements, but there’s none of that. it’s not a strong scent, but a pretty one.