thatpirategirl

A floral, incensey apple. The dragon's blood makes it bitter at first, just like the skin of an apple. You can almost taste it! But then it turns very sweet and flowery. The hyacinth comes out, and it smells more like apple blossoms than like the fruit. It's more sophisticated than The Hesperides, but it has less of that flavorful sweetness. I think this is more of a scent for people who like apples in theory, but don't want to smell just like them. Personally I prefer the Hesperides, and the two overlap to a point that I wouldn't want a big bottle of this.

Next stop on my hunt for the perfect coconut... It's amazing how much Blood Pearl smells like its name. Not exactly like blood, per se, but like Black Pearl got hit with something deep and sexy and red. It blends so well, I really can't pick out the coconut unless I concentrate. (Darn...) Instead it gives the impression of something deep, slightly floral, and incensey, all with that distinct redness. But JUST like Black Pearl, it fades away after an hour or two. Auuugh, and I really liked this one, too. Now I have to sniff my wrist just to get the lightest of coconuts.

This was my first BPAL! I didn't review it right away, because that review would have sounded like: "Oh my god, it smells like actual golden apples, not fake apple! How is it doing that? How can something smell golden? Hey guys, did you smell me? Did you notice I smell like apple? AUUUGH I AM DELICIOUS." Haha, good times... Ahem: Apple is one of my favorite scents, so it was easy to love this one. It's a very sweet, ripe apple, like being in an orchard at the peak of the season. The woodsy smell makes it unique and really puts me in an autumny mood. And I do get a sense of something very golden and glowy, like these apples are truly otherworldly, unlike any apple we've ever tasted.

Fresh berries and mellow spices, like a fruity tea! I only get a little bit of amber, and I don't know about the iris, since I'm not quite sure what iris smells like... But this is a perfect springtime scent for me. It's sweet and playful, with just a little bit of mysteriousness to keep it from being all berry-sweetness. I think this is the first scent I've liked enough to want a bigger bottle!

I was eager to try this scent, since coconut is my favorite note and I'm on the hunt for my perfect coconut BPAL. As soon as I opened the bottle, I knew I was in love with this one. It's sweet, warm coconut and hazelnut. It doesn't really give a beachy, tropical impression for me -- more like the scent of a little town by the sea. But perfectly lazy and delicious! It lasted about an hour on me before fading away to a weird soapiness. So the hunt for the perfect coconut doesn't end with Black Pearl. But I still think I'll use up my imp on sunny afternoons...

Energizing, citrusy herbs... I get mostly lemon and rosemary. After an hour it really softens and the lavender comes out, which made a nice relaxing scent. But soon after, it was gone for good. I couldn't smell a thing, even with my nose right up to my arm. Even if it had stayed in that nice middle area, it reminds me more of something I would like as a soap or salt scrub, not really as a perfume.

This is one of those scents I had to force myself to try. In the bottle it smelled disgusting, like cinnamon-flavored medicine. And indeed, when I put it on I experienced a five minute period of "AUUGH, get it off, get it off!" But I'm so glad I toughed it out. Hamadryad is gorgeous. It soon softened into a light, woody cinnamon, and within the first hour it became what I can only describe as the exact scent of a sunlit forest. There was a warm woody smell, earthy spices, and just a hint of rose, which I liked even though I generally dislike rose. It's a light scent, but perfect for sitting around reading a book. Too bad it's discontinued. I'd better use my imp sparingly.

I can't even believe how juicy and decadent this scent is. I get amber plum, berry, grape, and maybe apple, with an undercurrent of sandalwood. It definitely reminds me of the myth of Proserpine, much more than Persephone does, actually. I miiight buy a bigger bottle, but since this is a "special nighttime event" kind of scent to me, I'll have to find more events to attend.

For me this was a very warm, sweet vanilla. Rather straightforward, since on my skin I couldn't detect any note other than the vanilla. It's perfect the way it is, but for me not interesting enough for everyday wear. Vanilla always reminds me of winter and Christmas, so it'll be a pretty scent for that time of year.

Are there any BPAL scents that are similar to Henri Bendel's Rare Mimosa? I don't think that's strictly a Bath and Body Works product, but that's where I got mine... and the one at my mall doesn't carry Henri Bendel stuff anymore. I saw that there's a single note of Mimosa, but it sounds much too sweet. The one I have is very subdued and kinda spicy, and if I didn't know it was mimosa, I'd never have been able to identify it. Any ideas?