donnatron

Imp: Bubblegum lotus and a touch of white wine. Scent memory: late summer backyard parties. Wet: To be expected. Lotus goes sour and drags the wine down with it. I can smell the other notes but they're just a general background sweetness. Dry: Sweet heliotrope, touch of pear. The sour lotus and wine are still there, though. The longer this stays on, the more the lotus and wine fade, but the heliotrope and pear are fading almost as fast. Throw: Minimal. Overall: I'm not particularly surprised that my skin wasn't fussed about this. It is a lovely scent, though, so we may be meeting up in my hair or a scent locket in the future.

Bottle: Mostly vetiver with a touch of florals. Wet: The Caterpillar is the type of scent that just blooms when you put it on your skin. The vetiver meets up with the patchouli to create dense, dark base. The florals are lush and heady. The incense starts to peak out. This is definitely a headshop type of scent, but it's incredibly artfully done. Dry: This comes together into an intense, smoky incense. It perfectly evokes the Caterpillar--I get a damp, mossy forest feeling with the waft of incense and an altogether trippiness of the scent. I'm also in love with this scent because it whips the moss scent into shape, which does not often happen on my chemistry. Throw: Good. Overall: The Caterpillar was my first BPAL and my first BPAL love. I can't believe it's taken me this long to sing his praises.

Bottle: I sit on my bed, bottle of Snake Oil to my nose thinking "Does anyone really care? Is this honestly going to be the review that causes some poor lost soul to take the dive and try Snake Oil?" But then my OCD tendencies win out and my determination to review every one of my bottles demands I review this. So I inhale the heady, sweet, intoxicating scent of Snake Oil. In the Everything you wanted to know about Snake Oil... thread I just compared Snake Oil to an after dinner liqueur and I think that description holds true. There's something slightly boozy about the whole mixture, but also a rich vanilla creaminess and subtle spice. Wet: The lovely thing about Snake Oil--for me, at least--is that it hits the skin and it just warms up and acquires just a warm, skin scent to it. There isn't a whole lot of morphing from the bottle, it just becomes warmer and a bit denser. Dry: As the majority of the reviews attest, there is a reason this is the most popular scent. It's a beautiful, sultry, skin-warmed vanilla scent that can alternatively bring to mind ski sweaters and hot cocoa by a fireplace and sun-warmed skin under a filmy sarong. It's versatile, it's evocative, and it just smells damn good. This is an amazing scent. Throw: Ample and delightful. Overall: I acquired my bottle of Snake Oil without even bothering to stop for an imp first. It's a beautiful scent, it adapts to most people's chemistry in unique and beautiful ways, and it never fails to compliment whatever mood I'm in or trying to get into. It's the great chameleon of the BPAL blends and definitely deserves the status it commands.

Imp: This is a good example of my own natural circadian rhythms (or something). I smelled this last night and the strong pine smell put me right off. I smell it this morning and I get a smooth green herbal undercut with a touch of soft mint and the teensiest touch of pine. Wet: The mint becomes the dominant note but it's not unpleasant. At lack of a better description, it seems like a very soft, creamed mint. More of a mint candy than a mint herb. The pine notes form a soft base and the entire scent takes on the quality of scotch mints. Dry: Incredibly soft and unobtrusive. It's almost a... magical scent. It doesn't smell like I have perfume on, so much as I am some sort of forest spirit taking human disguise but I can't quite mask my forest origins. Lame description, I know, but it's a very strange skin-close scent. Very bright and refreshing, though. I can see this being a good cooldown scent on a hot summer day. Throw: Very close to the skin to the point where people think you naturally smell herbal. Overall: Am I one step closer to my holy grail herbal scent? If I didn't have to slather this like mad in order to get an hour's worth of throw, this might be a contender. As it is, it's a really nice scent and I can see it working well in toiletries for the upcoming hot months.

Imp: The tangerine dominates (yes!) with a nice base of vetiver and a touch of cedar (yes!). Wet: I have never learned my lesson with cedar. Cedar LOVES my skin. Cedar gets really rowdy on my skin. And unless the base is something completely soft and sweet like vanilla, it will just get unruly. Dry: I can smell faint hints of vetiver and a touch of the saffron and amber. Unfortunately they're all being smothered by the cedar which has aquired an unfortunate dill pickle chip quality. I will give the blend credit that this does smell manic. Throw: I'm leaving a trail of cedar. Good thing I'm alone in the office today. Overall: Just not my bag. This is a bunch of tempermental ingredients, though, so I'm just impressed that I managed to make it until the dry down.

On the layering note, maybe Plunder and Absinthe would give you that sort of scent? On a completely non-perfume note: It may only be 9:24 in the morning, but now I want a big old bowl of pho.

Imp: Bath and Body Works cherry blossom scent. Wet: This goes metallic on my skin, which is a but off-putting, but I soldier on. Dry: Tangy sort of cherry blossom, bamboo scent. Very light and feminine to my nose. Throw: Okay. Overall: I'm not really fussed about this. I think it will go to a friend who is a Sailor Moon fan but not much of a perfume fan. At least she'll get a kick out of the name.

Imp: Hardcore Kyoto. Succulent black cherries, a touch of anise, and what I guess is red musk (previously I have referred to this scent as "BPAL smell"). Wet: True to the imp. It sweetens and warms a touch on my skin. Dry: Brilliant. I have an evening class on Wednesdays and slapped this on my throat before class. I could smell it the entire time and it was just soft and sweet and completely cherry. It smelled absolutely divine and perked me up the entire class. Throw: Good. Overall: I jumped the gun on my Kyoto purchase. This is what I was anticipating Kyoto would smell like, and while I love Kyoto, this is just a bit more commanding. Gorgeous scent.

Belladonna and Undertow are both intensely pine-y on me. They both have a dense, lost-in-the-woods quality to them.

Imp: Sweet, candied rose. I get a touch of dragon's blood and the wine is very well behaved. Wet: This doesn't bloom so much as it just explodes. It's so well blended that I can't really distinguish the notes from one another other than to say "This is one gorgeous rose scent." Dry: This has a nice sweet/tangy dichotomy working for it, and the rose and dragon's blood entwine to create this smooth, sultry, voluptuous scent. It's very womanly, very independent, and makes me feel utterly beautiful and strong. Throw: A lot. Take care when applying. Overall: The description of this scent is what sucked me into BPAL in the first place. And, like many of my initial purchases, I forgot about it as I accumulated more and more. I remember loving this when I first received it, and now with a bit of age on the imp and a bit of refinement in my sniffing capabilities, I can appreciate it all the more. Definitely one of the--if not my number one--favourite florals from the lab.

Imp: Because I'm simple, I'm totally fascinated by the fact that this oil is a beautiful bright green in the bottle. When I open the imp I get sharp, overwhelming menthol--eucalyptus, maybe? If there are florals, I don't catch them. Wet: Muscle rub. I'm thinking there might be some of my old nemesis juniper in here. Dry: It retains that sharp, menthol muscle rub scent. I will give it credit for not morphing much from bottle to skin, but unfortunately it just doesn't agree with my skin or tastes. Throw: A few inches from the skin. Overall: I kind of think this would be awesome to slather on my temples and behind my ears if I had a headache. I'll hang onto it for psychosomatic medicinal purposes.

Bottle: As seems to be the case with all the lunacies, this is so well blended I can't pick out any individual notes. It gives an overall impression of a summer night at a lake in the woods. There's a smooth, watery scent and the florals sort of waft over it. Wet: Another common antic the lunacies love to get up to on my skin is all but disappearing the second I put them on. Dry: But then they develop and Blue Moon is no exception. This becomes a warmer, skin-scented version of the bottle scent. It's really light, fresh and floral although there is a smooth herbal undercurrent. The moonflowers are remarkably strong, not dominating the scent, but definitely making themselves known. Throw: A few inches from the skin. This is very personal and quiet. A still scent, if that makes sense. Overall: I really like this. This was one of the first BPALs I ever ordered and it arrived in such a fanfare of other scents that I never really got around to smelling it. It's a really lovely, calm, soft scent and I might muster up the courage to wear it to bed and hope for delectable prophetic dreams. For daytime wear it's a beautiful warm weather scent and a very calm, elegant and feminine scent to douse myself in. I don't know if it's necessarily my favourite lunacy, but I can see it getting a heavy rotation in the next few months.

Imp: Baileys in coffee. I have disaterous frosh year memories of Baileys and so I'm not sure I want to go through with this. Wet: Hooooboy. My skin, she loves the coffee. This amps up super sweet and doesn't smell so much like an Irish coffee as a giant whipped cream-topped Starbucks confection with lots of syrup and steamed milk in it. Dry: I get a touch of the woodiness, but this is overwhelmingly a coffee and cream scent. It's one of the truest foody BPALs I've tried, and I'm not fussy about giving off such a literal smell. After awhile, the strong scent and throw gives me a bit of nausea. Throw: I am in the living room and my roommate could smell it from the kitchen. Overall: It's the sweetness that kills this for me. I can smell the coffee and the dusty books and it's perfect. It's just that my stupid skin is amping the hell out of the sweet aspects and it's not working well for me. If your skin can handle sweetness in a reasonable manner, definitely try it out. It's a really interesting scent and it's unlike anything else you'll find.

Imp: WTF, mate? This is my second imp of Erato. The first was a frimp from the lab in early January right as Erato exited stage left. That imp was a dark red colour. This one is almost clear. And it smells completely different from the other Erato. The other one was very viscous and overwhelmingly sweet. This one smells of lush roses with a dry violet touch of orris. Wet: Ah, there's that thick molasses scent I associate with Erato. But... it disappears almost instantly, replaced by rose. Dry: Bizarre. This is... beautiful. I get a luscious, dry rose with a touch of ylang ylang and orris root and the sweet pea and stephanotis. It's a gorgeous floral, complex and dense and soft and round and womanly. Throw: A few inches from the skin. Overall: Phooey. I was relieved that I didn't like this, seeing as how it was DCed. Turns out that if I get my hands on the right batch, it's good stuff.

Imp: Sweet musk. Wet: Goes initially sour, which makes me worry that there is honey in here and it is taking its sweet time to see if it likes me or not. Dry: Quite fresh in a musky/incense-y sort of way. It's very dry and resinous, but smells sort of summery and makes me think of a summer's evening twilight. Throw: Enough. Overall: It's nice. I get the sense that there is a touch of moss in this and I'll have to be careful about what time of the month it touches my skin, but this is very commanding and smells good without giving off a "perfume" smell.

Imp: Predominantly chrysamthemum with a tinge of violets. Wet: As they are want to do, the violets go absolutley nuts on my skin. I sit back and wait for everything to calm down. Dry: Before I started my BPAL addiction, one of my favourite perfumes was Crabtree and Evelyn's Wisteria, which was wisteria blossom laced with violet, green notes and a few white florals. This reminds me a lot of that perfume but with a more true floral scent and a heavier hand on the violets. "Regal" is a very good word for it, it's very calm and reserved and hints at a writhing core underneath an absolutely icy facade. Throw: One of the strongest violet scents I've tried so far. Overall: One of my favourites of the Illyria collection. It captures the character of Gertrude perfectly and is just a beautiful, composed, womanly scent.

Imp: Promising. Sweet rose scent. Wet: Oh, no. Nooooo! This just goes instantly sour and unpleasant. Dry: The sourness continues. It's just unpleasant and gross and disagrees with my chemistry. I can't even pinpoint the culprit, because all the notes have behaved in other blends. Throw: It hates my skin, of course you can smell it ten feet away. Overall: Not cool, skin. Not cool.

Imp: Hey, I thought Titus was a green scent! I seriously thought it was and it messed with my head when I opened this imp. It smells very masculine, sexy and sensual. If this were the thirteenth century and I lived in olfactory heaven, this guy would have just come back from the crusades smelling like this instead of the real BO of men who had just come back from the crusades. Wet: Manliness. Dry: OMFG. The amber comes out and sweetens everything to a feminine degree and the musk amps and everything just dries down beautifully. This is a dense and complex amber scent and it is gorgeous. Throw: For an amber scent? Immense. For a normal scent: eh. Overall: While I happen to have a gentleman caller and kind of think this would smell nice on him, I'm a little afraid of giving up my imp.

Imp: Fresh green musk, a touch of honeydew and mandarin. Every time I smell this scent I think "This isn't going to last." Wet: MELON! Wow, the melon comes right out and starts sassing me something fierce. The green musk settles to the bottom to set up camp and runs into the white musk. They get along so well that they decide to set up camp together. The rest of the notes just sort of mingle. Dry: There are so many things going on with this scent but it winds up drying down to what I could describe a "glowing green scent." It's very luminescent and ethereal and has a delicate balance of floral and fruity along with the crisp musk and wood. The freesia tends to dominate the scent, but there are so few BPAL blends with freesia in them, that it's sort of fun to run into the note. Throw: Quite strong, actually. A lot stronger than you would think from the notes. Overall: What I find really impressive about this scent is how many of the notes can't necessarily be extracted as essential oils. The bouquets used are extraordinary for approximating the real scents and it all comes together to an absolutely beautiful blend. This is a definite summer scent.

Imp: High grade lavender oil. I don't pick up any of the other notes, but this smells like this ridiculously expensive lavender they sell at my local aromatherapy shop. Wet: Lavender and soap. Not lavender soap, but the jasmine seems to be disagreeing with me today and going a bit soapy. The honeysuckle appears shy. Dry: Sweet, soft lavender. This is definitely an old fashioned, comfortable sort of scent. The lavender mellows into a lovely, soft soap/linen scent, the jasmine has almost disappeared and the honeysuckle adds a gentle sweetness to the entire thing. Throw: Moderate. Overall: I have spent years slathering lavender oil on myself before bed and so the scent association is a bit Pavlovian for me. This scent makes me feel a bit droopy and sleepy and I could definitely seeing this being a good thing to slap on my wrists before a good long night's sleep. If not for that association, I think this would be a beautiful scent for every day wear. It's comforting without wilting and it draws to mind the image of a woman who knows what she wants and is not going to take no for an answer.

Imp: Bright, biting violets tinged with sweet gardenia. Wet: As violets tend to do, they go absolutely nuts upon first application. Violet is running around screaming "Look at me, guys! Look at me! Guess what I can do!" Vanilla and gardenia are reading their magazines and absentmindedly saying, "That's impressive, Violet," while signalling the waiter for another round of drinks. Dry: Violet has calmed down some and all three notes mingle together beautifully. The violet still dominates, but it's over a gorgeous, creamy base of vanilla and gardenia adding a really complex softness and sweetness to the scent. This does have a candy-like aroma, but it's also very classic and a really beautiful, feminine scent. In a perfect world I would be wearing this with a haute couture dress and ridiculously expensive diamonds to the Metropolitan Opera. Throw: Expansive without being overpowering. It's strong enough for people to notice you, not so strong that they'd rather take the stairs than get in the elevator with you. Overall: It's beautiful. It walks the very fine line between sexy/funky/fresh (which sounds like a TLC album but I don't think it is) and very classical and refined lady. I can put this on with a cocktail dress and feel ready for a night out pretending to be a responsible adult, I can wear it with a fun shirt and jeans to a house party, or I can slather it on while wearing my pajamas and fall to sleep in a comforting floral/vanilla haze. It's versatile, beautiful, and one of my favourites.

Imp: Dominant moss with a touch of elegant, spiced sandalwood and sweet rose and mandarin. Wet: This immediately smells like Jezabel on me, which is kind of weird. I get an amped rose/mandarin scent with this revolting screaming sourness. Dry: Ah... due to my old nemesis, oakmoss. Oakmoss is not actually my old nemesis, but in the family of my nemeses. The type of note that can sometimes be subdued by other notes in a fragrance but not in this one. This goes almost pure moss on me with a slight underlying hint of sandalwood and rose. The moss is disturbingly body odour-ish on me. I smell like I have been climbing mountains and gutting fish with my bare teeth for a week and decided that a few swipes of fragrance would substitute for a shower. Throw: Mercifully minimal. Overall: Oakmoss got the funk.

...Who says librarians can’t be sexy? A rakish blend of leather, anise, lavender, bergamot and amber with tonka, lemon peel and lusty patchouli. Imp: Anise and ctirus with leather and patchouli running amok. Wet: This immediately goes "general men's cologne" on me. So I wait. Dry: The citrus dominates with the leather and patchouli sort of lurking below. This is still very manly but a lot more complex than it initially smelled. It's a very dry scent, my skin has not been able to sap the slightest sweetness from it. Throw: Very polite and reserved. Overall: It's a clean, fresh scent that would probably work better on a man, but I am happy to wear it to work or on a Saturday afternoon running errands.

Imp: Wood and sharp sassafras. It smells like when you're travelling in the West and you come across an old ghost town that's been turned into a living museum and there's a candy shop or candy section in the gift shop. Wet: Cedar and sassafras. The sassafras immediately goes hardcore rootbeer on me, and while I love the scent of rootbeer, the cedar is not playing nicely. Dry: This is definitely a patience scent. After about an hour it dries down into this sweet, slightly heady but also sultry and strong wood/sweet perfume. The cedar has calmed down, the vanilla has bloomed into this delicious sweet base and the sassafras is still bright and mellow. This is beautiful. Throw: Good. The throw is definitely a lot more woody than the up close scent. Overall: If you are the patient sort, or you are good at getting distracted after putting on your oils, this is a good scent to try. It will reward you.

Imp: Dusty mint. I don't get any of the bourbon but the mint is screaming out loud and clear. Wet: The mint soars and the bourbon comes out in a sort of molasses sweetness. Dry: Okay. The sweetness goes corn syrup-y on me and the mind settles down into a soft dustiness. Throw: Minimal. Overall: Interesting but it doesn't really have enough punch to grab me.