tsukara

So, fun fact, BPAL's rose notes tend to go full grandma baby powder on me. There are very few exceptions and I seem to have better luck with the non-flower parts. That holds true with this one. Not that it doesn't try! It tries extremely hard to go baby powder, but the orris root and oakmoss keep it grounded, I think. It also makes the pine needles smell freshly fallen. I get maybe the barest whiff of lime and I can't quite pick out any juniper going on here. As I said to the group chat: I smell like a fae forest floor (positive). On me it's a deep, forest green, the inside of Sleeping Beauty's castle when the curse is full on it. I kind of love it, tbh. And I always love to find another rare rose that works on me!

As a note: I was one of the people that crystaltongue tried this on and, at the time, got only cat pee. Odd and unpleasant, but I held on to it in hope. This week, my usual jasmine scents (like Defututa, an old favorite) were smelling not-good on me, I think for Hormonal Reasons. I caught sight of my bottle of this and thought 'hey, why not, I can always wash it off'. And it's a completely different scent on me this time! Redolent of deep summer, like the skin of peaches and jasmine on the breeze and sunshine. Even after 15+ years of being a BPAL fan, it's endlessly fascinating to me that body chemistry can do so much... Glad I held on to this! Even if I can only wear it about one week every three months lol

I was lucky enough to smell this at a small Sniff Things gathering recently (recently enough to order my own bottle) and I am so SO glad I did, because I have found my dupe for my long-beloved Hearth '05. A bit of background: an imp of Hearth '05 was my very first BPAL scent, back in '07, and I immediately fell in love with it. Later formulations of Hearth changed and were different from the one I loved and so I searched for a dupe for it. Some came close, but none of them hit until I tried this year's Harvest Moon. (I have done a side-by-side with Hearth '05 and this and while there are some subtle differences, this is so close it's practically twins.) In the bottle: sweet woodsmoke, pine and plum, fig, grapes, dusty ivy and dry leaves. Wet: The mulling spices, clove, and smoke take center stage with the pine and cedar backing it up, all softened by the sweet fruits and what I'm thinking must be the aloe. On the drydown the evergreens and spices, flowers and greenery, woodsmoke and wine all mix into something I've spent the last 15 years looking for (in fact a friend, when she smelled it on me, commented that it just "smelled like [me]").

I was iffy on trying this one, even after reading lots of reviews. Because, to me, the description read as "pretty dirt". And while I'm a nature-loving kind of gal, smelling like just dirt just did not appeal to me. Also wary because the last Garden scent I tried, Mandrake, smelled like pencil shavings on poor little me. But I ordered the imp, gave it a go. And, well.... In the vial: Something...sweet. I really can't be more specific than that, because it's very, very subtle. Maybe a little bit of wood scent in there. Wet: There's something a little spicier here, with the sweetness. But it's still really mellow and subtle. And while it's sweet, it's a very dry sweetness, like a little, tiny flower rather than a flull blown one. Flower scents and I are usually not on good terms, so to find a sweet scent that I like, and that my skin likes, is nice. Dry: On me, this only gets sweeter and drier as it goes on, until it fades away. A little dusty, but not like an attic--more like a clearing in the woods that no one's been to in years. There's still a little hint of something darker lurking there, but not unless you're looking for it. Like the really cute thing that's deadly--but you wouldn't know it. This hasn't got very big throw or a long wear, maybe half a day? But while it lasts it's beautiful. I, who avoided flowery/sweet scents like the plague before this, have adopted this as my everyday, can't-decide-what-else-to-wear scent. And I've already ordered the big bottle.

After dodging my friends, every one of which tried to eat my arm while I was wearing this scent, I was able to write up a review from behind locked (and barred-perfume zombies are not a pretty sight) doors. A little background: I bought an imp of this in hopes of finding something to match Hearth '05 without waiting for winter to come around again. In the bottle: Butterscotch is my first impression. Nice, and definitely making me hungry, but I'm afraid it will be too foody. Wet: Wow, buttery! But also with nuts and pastry, maybe and something with just a hint of bitterness in there. It adds a nice complexity. Dry: Holy wowzers, this one stays for days if I don't wash it off. It just continues to get darker and more lovely, with the buttery-pastry scent lifting it all up. Yum. I tried tihs on my friend Julia as well. On her, the hops came out much more strongly, making it a much more complex and somewhat bitter scent on her than on me. It's still nice though, with the sweetness of the butter lurking below the surface of the hops. Really lovely, either way. Definitely a worthy general catalog replacement for Hearth '05, and I will most definitely be getting a 5 ml of it, when I've got the money. Mmm.

Yay, new shipment! This is the first one I'm trying out, and the first Steamworks one I'm trying as well. Here goes! In the bottle: Ah, wine and incense. Well, it should make for an interesting combination. Wet: Whoa! Hello patchouli! The patchouli and jasmine have completely taken over, running away with everything else. Not unplesant, but it's just good that I don't mind smelling like a Buddhist or Hindu temple. Dry-down: Ah! The wine shows up again! Followed by a very nice rose and jasmine duo (though more jasmine than rose, which, yay!), with something like incense in there too. Reminds me of the insides of temples in Burma in the midday sun, and dark mysterious ladies on the street, half-covered in veils. Beautiful, dark, and dead sexy. The jasmine keeps trying to take over before being kicked down by the wine or the incense, in turns. It makes for a nice play. Overall: This brings up all sorts of lovely memories of mysterious locations and people, making me in turn feel lovely and mysterious, ina very grown up way. The rose and jasmine blend nicely so that neither over-powers the other; the incense is balanced by the tang of the wine. Lovely! Exotic! I was afraid it'd be too boozy (since I'd never tried a scent with an alcohol note before), but it's not and I love it. Yay! I'll wear it to tango tonight to see how my fellow milongueros like it. *eg* I also slathered it on a hallmate of mine. It's similar on her, though a lot lighter. Very nice still. Probably not a 5ml scent for me, but I think I'll probably use the imp up pretty quick!

In the vial it smells spicy and sweet, how a flaky, spicy baklava would smell after a good meal out of the hot, blowing wind.I want to love it, because it smells bright and lovely and mysterious, all at the same time. It really brings me there. But on me? It turns into baby powder. The spiciness is all lost, however hard I search for it and the sweet is over-whelming and cloying. I don't even get the sandalwood from this, all it is is baby powder. Not for me, alas! ETA: Hold up, what's this? *looks sidelong at Morocco* I tried it again, more than a month later and... It's completely different. Spicy, sweet, dry and subtle--not a warm, lush jungle scent but one of dry warmth. Gone the soap, gone the powder-freshness, all replaced by desert (and a faint hint of dessert) winds. I'm SO glad I kept this one. It would have been a pity to miss out on this! Perhaps all it needed was to be aged. We'll see where we go from here.

This was the first BPAL scent I ever tried after I won two Imps at an Interfilk auction this year. Hearth '05 is an instant favorite with me. From bottle to drydown, it makes me feel warm, comofortable and, above all, scrumptious. The butter, sugar and nuts all balance themselves out nicely on me, creating the general idea of warmth and comfort, while the pine and whiff of pleasant smoky scent remind of the wider world. It lasts a good while on me, which is surprising, as none of the notes really take over or go sour on me. It stays at the right balance of sweet and savory. Absolutely wonderful. Too bad I can't find more! And if only I could find a genral catalog scent I like as much... *sigh*

Ooo, exciting, my first review! This was one of the two imps in my friend's birthday present that I claimed (because she's a nice friend like that). So lovely, and Bottle: Ah, that must be what Dragon's Blood smells like, hello there. Also something like sandalwood and incense, must be the wood, vetiver and patchouli. Wet: Smells almost like leather on me now. Is this the vetiver. My friend says she smells pepper in it, something spicy. Is that the cinammon trying to shine through? Dry: My roommate says she smells something like almonds? Maybe that's the patchouli breaking through with the vetiver. Yum. Dark wood and slight spiciness. Verdict: My friend says I smell like a vampire should smell, all dark and pretty and musky and just a little bit spicy. Very nice on me, definately a keeper! Something to wear when I'm feeling wicked. ETA: I seem to have fallen head over heels in love with this, and wear it more often than I should. Going straight on the big bottle list, when the Imp runs out.