Indigo78

When I first got Iron Phoenix (circa… more than a decade ago?😯) something in the blend was salad-y. Basil? It was a fleeting, unexpected top note, and the only thing close to sweetness that I remember from this blend. I don’t smell *any* salad now, probably because the component has faded with age. The remaining notes have become a chorus of smoky resin, all present but none dominating. It’s richer and denser than I remember, with the same great throw and wearlength. This Phoenix is fr immortal and I’m glad to have it. Incidentally pairs like a dream with SO💕

At first this is very green on me. About five minutes after applying the frankincense comes out, and there’s a sweetness. Something about this reminds me of the way Hanerot Halalu behaves on my skin. I love it.

Stunning. It’s not easy to describe in notes, so I’ll talk about what it evokes. I smell hand-woven fabric that’s been impeccably cared for. If kind, wise ghost whispers had a scent, this is how they would smell. It’s unforgettable. There’s in my collection quite like it, and I’ll enjoy every precious drop.

Not sure how I haven’t reviewed this yet, since I’ve gone through at least 3 bottles between my home and work space. The scent is very round and full to me with a gorgeous depth from the spices. It smells like anticipation; like a place where anything can happen. I love it past forever♥️

Found an untested decant and I’m not sure of the year. Based on how long I’ve had it, I’ll guess 2014. 🤔 I didn’t read the description and couldn’t get a read on any of the notes at first, but I could have sworn peach was somehow involved. (I wore a peach scent this morning so my brain wanted to read it as that.) Peach turned out to be fig, which became more recognizable once the cedar dialed it down after 10ish minutes. The sage is soft and binds this together well. Medium throw. I’ll be using this up.

Clean linen, expensive candy floss, and diamonds. Something about this reminds me of the discontinued Black Opal, but I don’t have anything quite like this in my collection. It’s gorgeous.

I did not sniff the imp when I cracked it open, since doing that tends to mess with my scent impressions after applying. Straight into the skin it's an uber-clean "YAHSO I SMELL GOOD" . Maybe half the imp was a bit much. It reminds me of Dirty in this stage. Dirty, but with much more to say. After fifteen minutes it's perfect. The whole vibe of this is cold to me, but not in a calm way. It's noisy. Underneath the initial brightness there's a melancholy note that I can't place. Something reminds me of Sage, but I'm not sure if that's in there. This is one of the only aquatics I've found that I really enjoy. It's also much less literal than many aquatics I've tried. Rather than screaming Green-Blue Fresh-a-Roo, this one uses other notes to get the point across. Beautifully done. ❤️

If you missed out on the French Tobacco SN, and you amp-adore it as I do, then this may be a bottle to track down. I have had it for a year or so, lab fresh. It was initially a little sharp, but the notes have coalesced into something magical. It is unquestionably dark, but it has this embracing pipe-y sweetness. Completely unique. In 7 years of BPAL lovedom, I have not experienced anything quite like it.👏💞

Sensual brown musk, rich amber, English rose, oak bark, and moss. Very rosy on my skin, with a really wet quality to it that's more than plant stemminess. More like earth. Mossy, and not sweet at all. It reads as very "adult" on me, super serious and almost astringent until mid-drydown when the rose and earth subside and the musk peeks through.

Not sure how I managed to not review this in the years that I've had the bottle, but here it is. Wet on the skin this actually reminded me of TKO, or even a lighter, airier version of Queen. As soon as the lavender settles, though, it becomes its own huffable animal. Every note in the list is seamlessly present, and the end result is a clean that's nearly edible. Pure, unadulterated, squeaky clean nom. If they ever came out with gourmand laundry soap, I'd want it to smell just like this. Massively, inexplicably addictive. Like that new baby smell.

Oh my stars. Beth's gone and bottled the richest, sweetest parlor room cigar on earth. It's glossy, smooth, complex and gorgeous. The sweet/dry balance makes it wild and refined all at once. I agree that this is a *perfect* layering note, but it's complex enough to wear beautifully on its own. Just, thud. So very glad I didnt pass this up unsniffed, and I'm seeing a backup bottle or 10 in my future. ^edited cuz "unsnoffed" ≠ "unsnoffed".

This is spicy on my skin when wet, but thankfully not in a red-hots candy way. The rich, golden amber is warmed by the cinnamon bark and cumin. The myrrh, cedar and frankincense rise and fall back as it dries, and the mandarin and osmanthus are subtle but very present, and they don't seem to fade as time passes. I haven't had success with other saffron blends, but I don't really detect it in this one. The throw is very good, which I love, and the scent doesn't seem to morph much after the wet stage-- at least on my skin. To me, Pallas Athene says "I'm sexy, but pretty much out of your league." And for better or worse, that's exactly what you want to communicate sometimes. It smells completely different from anything else that I've tried, and I'm very glad to have a bit in my stash.

The Womb, Shabbathai, the Uppermost Feminine in the Godhead, Supernal Mother, Divine Sorrow, Supernal Shekhinah, and the source of the 50 Gates of Understanding. Myrrh, along with something that reminds me of sweet pine (yum) and maybe jasmine. I like this scent. It's right on the cusp of darkness, sort of a starlit scent, and I find it just cozy enough for the fall. It isn't something I wear very often without intent, but I'm glad to have it in my collection for those times when Binah's fierce, sometimes frightening influence calls.

The final burst of the soul’s light and joy before passing into the depths of the earth, and into the cords of Sheol; Sheol, who is never satisfied, and who makes wide her soul to all. Vibrant gladiola, graceful stargazer lily, triumphant iris and bright heliotrope flare, and is finally made somber by heavy copal, a drop of labdanum, and tonka. I've been meaning to review this one since I received an imp about two years ago. I'm not certain which note caught my attention, but I bottle-listed Sheol the second I smelled it. I didn't realize this was such a floral blend until I read the note list just now. Copal is the star of the show on my skin, and I catch whiffs of smoky labdanum and tonka, but the florals really do seem to be absent for me-- at least in the typical "I SMELL LIKE FLOWERS" way. That's a good thing. I'd describe this as a cozy, slightly vanillic and dusty incense. Like an affectionate death hug? I'm struggling, here. All I can say is that, even if you're not a fan of florals, Sheol is a must try. It's a one of a kind member of the catalog, for sure... Glad I have a bottle, since it seems to be getting richer and more beautiful with age.

Um, this is incredible. I want to smell it all the time. It starts off very sweet and mellows into a rich, smoky, tobacco-y scent that is both relaxing and almost erotic... Naughty, sexy, delicious stuff, here. I used to have a bottle of Red Lantern a couple of years ago that I don't remember being nearly as enamored with, but I wish I still had it so that I could make a comparison. What's interesting is that I don't normally care for caramel *anything*. The note has that "bad taste/smell stuck in the throat & won't go away" olfactory effect on me. But somehow , this is tempered perfectly by the spices, incense, coconut, etc. I really wish I could articulate just how luxurious this... Backup-worthy for sure if you can track it down.

I had this decant for a shamefully long while before finally deciding to give it a test. I wish I'd given it a day in court much sooner, because... Mmmm. But isn't that how it always goes? Wet on the skin it smells like the description-- cold and stony, bordering on dirt-like, but not. It's got a very regal tone to it. After a few minutes on the skin it starts to develop a harder edge. The gilded, metallic tones come through loud and clear, with the jewels sparkling just beneath. On my skin, it dries down to a sweet gardenia mingled with something decidedly masculine. I keep sniffing to get a sense of what that might be, but can't quite grasp it. This definitely strikes me as a "fancy" scent, or at least a semi-formal one. It's also unisex, as far as I'm concerned, and "ageless", meaning anyone could wear it For a little while I expected it to turn into Eau de Geriatric, given the other reviews, but nope. Gorgeous and memorable, I'll be looking for a bottle.

This started out super candy-sweet on my skin, in an MB Bloody Mary sort of way. Of course they're totally different scents, but the blast of sweetness was the same. After a few minutes it went to smelling a lot like Sugar Skull (I'm not familiar with all of the incarnations of SS, since the one I did try was a glorious failure on me). So... Yeah. Brown Sugar Land. And while I wish that I liked the maple-y, sticky scent of brown sugar, it frankly grosses me out. Hardcore. This phase gives me that squiqqy, yak-a-licious feeling in the back of my throat that usually only comes after eating way too much candy that really didn't taste good enough to warrant an all-out gorge-fest in the first place, and... I'm seriously toying with the idea of prematurely terminating this experiment. After an hour or so, the maple thing eventually went away, and beneath it I started to notice a familiar doughnut-like waft. Yep... I could swear there's some Eat Me in here, too, which I can handle on it's own-- I actually like that scent a lot. But combined with the sickly maple smell, plus a heaping dose of burning plastic, I'm sad to say that Zombie Apocalypse just doesn't work for me. Notta-tall.

This is the creamy tobacco scent I've pined for since discovering BPAL. True, there's no tobacco in the note list, but the magical combo is very suggestive of it to my nose. The licorice is barely detectable for me, or if it is, it's a licorice that I evidently like (I loathe anise in all it's forms, so this is good.) These are different cloves, too. My usual experience with cloves is that I amp them to high hell... but no these. They're understated and ephemeral, just sort of dancing through the blend without yelling and screaming like drunk assholes at a frat party. The amber lends it this fantastic, lickable smokiness and the coconut is so summery and sexy. The cinnamon is another barely-there note, adding mostly depth and sweetness on my skin. I poured myself a cup of coffee before testing this, and I actually started to crave a beverage that tasted like it. This is going to age amazingly, I am 200% sure. It already smells so rich and thick and syrupy, but I'll bet a year in the cellar will do absolutely amazing things to this blend. I was having hoarder's anxiety over PKS until I saw that it will be live until late August, which is the best news, ever. I'll be collecting bottles en masse. eta: typo fixes

I haven't had an Eisheth experience, but I just put on some Snake Oil from early April of this year (I mark the "vintage" on my SO bottle toppers ) It smells very Vertivert-y! Almost like Death Adder... So much so that I wonder if there was some batch confusion. Weird, weird weird. It's like Snake Oil on... a man-trip. I dunno if I like it, yet. I want my mellow nilla smoky incense nectar of the gods! eta: Alright, so... I wear SO to bed a lot. The next morning (yesterday), the room was positively thick with amber from this stuff. I dunno what's with this bottle. I have another backup of Snake Oil from that same order, so we'll see if they're the same.

what are you wearing it with? I can see Tombstone and Black Lace for sure. Plus what fun to tell people you are wearing Black Lace, and let them wonder What you're wearing it with will help me for suggestions (and pure nosiness!) I have a sleeveless, square-neck black jersey cotton top that is really lightweight, and my boots are camel-colored leather slouchy boots that *should* be over the knee'ers, but alas, for me they come to just under the knee. Last year I must have tried on at least 10 pairs of engineer boots in search of just one pair that would cover my knees, and I ended up having to settle for the slouchy Madden ones. I looked for a pic, but can't find one online. Maybe when it arrives I can post a pic in the forumite pic thread. I have a slightly embarrassing backup supply of Black Lace, so I'm glad to hear that suggestion... I also like Havana, and I know that I have at least one imp around here somewhere. Thanks, you guys

This is on it's way to me... finally. I think it's kind of Tombstone... maybe?

Kinda vegetal at first. This isn't how the bottle test-wore when I first got it, but I did kinda slather this time. After a minute this is getting really herbal, almost medicinal/camphorous. It reminds me of an Elemi and Rosemary soap cream I had once. *gets sad* I'm going to do something else for awhile and try not to think about this. Worst comes to worst, I'll kill it with Snake Oil. 5 minutes - Salad Bar?! WTF. I guess... I remember loving this at first sniff. But I had other scents to wear and put it away to sit. I eventually did slather it with Snake Oil after about 5 minutes because 1.) I already took a shower and I need to go to bed, and 2.) the combo worked when I tried it another time. But... Dammit! Salad? I might need to retest this in another week, because I remember it being *so* beautiful. My chemistry's been everywhere because of not smoking and new life habits in general... So I'll give it another spin in a few days. eta: My skin must have been cold last night. Lead Phoenix did eventually lose that minty salad vibe, morphing into the tart, yummy plum blend that I remembered from that initial test. Then my skin ate it. By the time I laid down it was all but gone even after the ridiculous slathering. Still, I'm happy to have a bottle. It's got the same tartness that's in some of my favorites like Dionysia and Snake Charmer.

The moment I opened up the box this came in, I was like There was a luxuriously sweet, rich, incensey honey-scent swirling out of the bubble wrap, and I knew that it had to be Xmvlzencab. I made an excuse to take a bath ASAP just so that I could try it out. The oil color is sort of milky, so I I shook the bottle a few times and squirted a little into a cup before going to the tub. I wanted to make sure the components were blended, plus, the idea of wasting TP bath oils on klutzy spillage is more than I can stomach. The sweetness is the first thing to bloom when this hits warm water. This is the same honey that's in Womb Furie, but the ginger keeps it from having the sharp-ish quality that I got from WF. I don't know what black laurel flower smells like, but I think that it mixes with the beeswax from the "wild honey" note to give this a very incensey feel. As I sat in the tub I kept thinking that this must be as hypnotic as a scent can be without it being actually classifiable as "Dark". It's really amazing. It smells-- feral, and wild, and sticky, and almost alive... Those are my initial impressions. This isn't a scent with a distinct color as I expected it to be. It dances through the spectrum and really defies that kind of description. It goes through heady dark green and purple stages, but it never gets pinned down... at least not by my nose. As it settles and fades into the water, there seems to be a thick, almost clay-like note that comes forward. I love this and will restock before it is taken down. One caveat: If you like applying bath oils as perfumes and have sensitive skin, be sure to either... not do that, or use an extremely light hand. The ginger has ouchie potential. I wanted to have the smell with me in full force after the bath and tried dabbing some one, and it was quite... erm, warming. Best to follow the label directions on this one. Amazing. This is, by leaps and bounds, the yummiest thing I have ever had the pleasure of putting into my bathwater.

At first this is very damp and warm. Yeah. It's the vetivert of Sunday Mass, funerals and, well, horny old guys. I get it from the vetivert in Crowley, too. But the good news is that while it's off-putting when wet, this stage usually dries down to something tolerable. In fact, that's why I like Crowley. The drydown is worth it. I really don't smell the other notes until the vetivert moves, but once it does, this is beautiful. Smoky and somehow light, even with the note list it has. Amazing. I probably won't seek a bottle because I don't see how I could ever get through it. A tiny swipe gives crazy throw and it lasts forever. PS: I tested this while drinking lapsang souchong tea... and it's a killer combo. Try it!

Thanks. It still reminds me of that old, early 80s Sesame Street song where Big Bird's trying to pronounce the entire alphabet as one word. But I want to say it right, especially if I love it as much as I think I will!)