MilkAndSugar

This is all sandalwood and surprisingly mellow patchouli on me. I have no problems with patchouli (bring it on), and to me, this is a well behaved patchouli, staying in the background or blending so seamlessly with other notes that it hardly registers. I get no sea or ocean type scent, which is good because I can't stand aquatics. That said, I *do* get something damp, like damp wood, but it's not watery. Many reviewers have compared it to the sea-water soaked wood of a ship, and I think that's it exactly. The frankincense is also blended in well. I love resins, so I wouldn't object to it being a bit louder on me. After reading the reviews I was expecting a very dry, strong scent, and was very surprised to find that Anne Bonny, on me, is a gentle, rounded blend of damp sandalwood and slightly spicy patchouli. It doesn't have a lot of throw on my skin, but I like that, as most of my perfumes knock birds off the branches when I walk past. To me this is not really a sexy scent in itself, like, say, Snake Oil. It's a comforting and deep scent. Resins and woods always calm me down. Anne Bonny is gorgeous. So glad I took a chance and bought a bottle unsniffed. This just might be the sandalwood/resin scent I've been looking for.

To me, Iago smells like Haunted with vetiver. That's what I get when I apply it, after the first blast of vetiver is gone. It's very sweet and musky-ambery-powdery on my skin, just like Haunted. I like it. I'm not getting any leather notes, but that may be a blessing since I did *not* get along with Loviatar. In the vial I smell vetiver and black musk, but on me it goes straight to Smoky Haunted (I don't mind, Haunted is one of my favourites). It's really good, almost hypnotic with the smoldering vetiver. It's not masculine at all to me. But that's probably just my skin chemistry, so don't take my word for it.

Lovely. At first sniff, this reminds me of Venice a bit. There's something in here that smells a little red curranty to me. But that's about the only thing Marae and Venice have in common. I also find the same floral note that was in Hell's Belle (which unfortunately didn't work on me at all). This must be the gardenia (I'm not familiar with gardenia, seeing how it doesn't grow where I live). In Marae the gardenia note is nice and smooth, not headache inducing at all like it was in Hell's Belle. How nice, since I thought I couldn't wear gardenia at all. (EDIT: Oops, Hell's Belle has Magnolia, not Gardenia. My bad. The scent is, however, similar to my nose.) Marae has a nice throw, and it makes me feel like I have tropical butterflies in my hair (which can't be a bad thing).

I was a little bit nervous to try this, because like many of you here, the darker musks are hit or miss for me. I was expecting something like the musk in Black Rose, which to me is really really powerful, to the point of not being able to wear it as much as I would like. Then I received my bottle, and carefully sniffed it. Wow! At first I thought it was mislabeled or something, because it smelled very similar to Snake Oil. But after applying some on my wrist I discovered it's not like Snake Oil. They have similarities, but they're not the same. Where Snake Oil regroups and attacks your senses (in a nice way!) after being dabbed on, Haunted breaks into a cloud of amber powder. The scent is not powdery, but the way it wafts is like powder floats in the air. I don't know if that makes any sense. This must be that famous Haunted-effect. The scent is sweet and ambery and so very yummy. And sexy too, it has that Snake Oil/ Shalimar richness to it. It actually smells more like Shalimar than Snake Oil has ever smelled to me. Very decadent. To my delight the musk is really soft and skin-musky. Not agressive at all, and not overly animalistic. I keep sniffing myself because it's so good The drydown is perhaps my favourite part. There's vanilla underneath it all, the vanilla bean kind, that stays on your skin with a whisper of powdery musk. Haunted is my new signature scent. I adore it.

Well, that depends. There's a million variables that could be the reason here. Is it 100% EO (and not a synthetic oil)? Is it a good quality EO? Ylang Ylang is sold in at least three different qualities, not unlike olive oil, in which the quality and scent of the oil depends on which "pressing" it's from. Naturally the first distillation is the best (compare to virgin olive oil vs. pumice). Has the oil been kept out of light and heat? Is the lid airtight? Is the bottle glass, not plastic? How old is the oil? Essential oils also tend to vary from company to company, and even within the same company depending on which harvest the plant was from (drought and such affect the results. The plant might have more or less essential oils in it than usual), which country was it grown in, the specific genus of the plant (sometimes companies use plants within the same family interchangeably. For example lavandin (lavandula hybrida) as lavender (lavandula angustifolia). They have a similar scent, but definately not identical, and while their medicinal properties are also similar, they're not identical either. Plus it's just cheating. That's why it's always wise to check the label before buying), how the oil was produced, and of course how the company stores and handles their oils. That said, I think that one can't really compare 100% Ylang Ylang EO to BPAL's blends. The BPAL blends have much more than just Ylang in them, sometimes, I'm sure, there's only a drop of Ylang (I'm thinking La Petit Mort here) to give the needed effect. Pardon the Zen, but it's all about balance.

I am the opposite of ylang lover, as I can barely stand the scent , but I can wear La Petit Mort without any problems. The ylang ylang in it is very quiet (at least to my nose), just in there to give sweetness to the blend (I think the blend smells like waffles or some other sugary food, not very floral). So if your friend loves ylang, that might be a bit too subtle. Have you considered buying her a bottle of straight up ylang ylang essential oil? It's very affordable compared to most other floral essential oils. And strong! Boy is it strong.

I can't believe it's taken me this long to review this. I got a bottle of Queen of Sheba in a swap, quite awhile ago, as I was almost certain I'd like it. The sweet, foody blends are my favourites. The first sniff from the bottle was a bit strange and sharp, but then again, I think it's rare that BPAL blends smell good straight from the bottle anyways, because of the incredible intensity of the oils. So I always ignore the first sniff anyway, and hold off from any judgement at all until I've applied it on skin and let it settle for a while. On skin Queen of Sheba mellows fast into a gorgeous, slightly sticky but dry (huh?) almond+spice+honey. It's a skin scent, but it also has a nice stealthy kind of throw. Not as much so as Snake Oil, but definately more than Dana O'Shee. The spices here aren't christmassy or cookie like, they are quite mellow, middle eastern. It has a regal, lazy feel to it. I can easily imagine this scent wafting around the mythic character of Bilquis/Makeda as she walks around in her palace with devoted servants close at heel. I definately get a "golden/desert sand" colour when I think of this blend. The drydown smells like sunkissed skin with a very light spicy musk on it. I don't get much honey at any point. If it's here it's more of a "dry" honey than that sticky sweet honey you find in, say, (Old) Athens. I agree with those who say this is a lot like Dana O'Shee. It is, but where Dana has vanilla in it, there's none (at least to my nose) in Queen of Sheba. Also, Queen last much, much longer and in general is more womanly and not too sweet. One of my absolute favourites. Very yummy, but not necessarily too foody for those who don't appreciate smelling like a bakery exploded on them -Milk

I knew I'd love Pele after reading the reviews, but I had no idea how much! Oh sweet Goddess! This is the first BPAL that made my eyes roll back in rapture. It's so clean and gentle, lightly powdery and comforting. The flowers are like nothing I've ever smelled before and yet I know them so well. Gods! This is a once in a lifetime blend. A jewel. I love it to bits! The only negative thing about Pele is her fleeting nature. Here today, gone in 60 seconds. Yet, strangely, every now and then I get a whiff of the scent, but when I try to smell it again, it's gone. But I'd rather re-apply every five minutes, than have Beth change one thing about this lovely, lovely blend. I'm going to go through this bottle in record time. All of you who absolutely hate florals, try an imp of Pele. Take it from someone who can't do florals - this is an amazing blend. Amazing. -Milk ETA: Oh joy! I put some Pele on today, quite liberally as the scent is so fragile, and I was completely taken by surprise when I noticed the scent was still going on two hours later, and hadn't faded one bit. How strange. Not that I'm complaining!

I wonder when exactly I'm going to understand, that the Diabolus blends don't agree with me. At all. Knowing myself I would say that it's not that I don't understand, it's just that the curiosity killed the cat. *sigh* Hell's Belle was very strong from the bottle, a sweet tropical floral scent that for some reason reminded me of green bananas! Go figure. Too bad I really don't dig bananas. The second I applied some on skin, it warmed up and became a heady, sweet, lush floral with musk and spices underneath. There's also a definate dash or coconut under the florals, and that was very nice and exotic. I usually don't go for florals (except Rose, which I love like a madwoman) because most of them scream Ylang and Jasmine, and I can't stand those two, but I have to say, Hell's Belle was one of the nicest strong florals I've tried so far. Not a little old lady scent at all. However, I found the scent too strong for me in the wet phase, and yet, it died down too fast. The floral-coconutty goodness disappeared on me and left a caramelly "fudge" scent on my skin. That wasn't bad either, but a bit dull. It wasn't deep enough to be yummy like the drydown on Snake Oil. The sexy part never really came out on me, or maybe it's just that I didn't consider the scent sexy. I also got a mild headache from the scent. Off to swap it went. So Hell's Belle pulled a Loviatar on me, and reminded me that I really need to try imps from the Diabolus collection before buying a bottle. That's the moral of the story, kids. Nighty night! -Milk

Yep. The amounts depend on how strong you want the scent to be. The good thing is, you can't get it wrong. If it's too mild, add more perfume. Too strong, add more jojoba (or whatever carrier you're using), though it's hard to make it too strong when mixing with carrier. You could start by, say, 5-10 drops of scent per 5ml's of carrier. Work your way up from there. And you're very welcome! -Milk

Essential oils, which Beth & Co. use to make their perfumes, do not mix with water, but they do mix with vegetable oils (olive, almond, sunflower, jojoba etc.). So you can use carrier oils to dilute BPAL blends and essential oils down. This way they are more skin friendly and even the ones with cinnamon shouldn't burn. You can also make your blends last longer than you would using them straight up. Basically, you just take carrier oil and pour into a clean bottle (if you want to make a bottle of diluted blend) and add a few drops of BPAL of choice. Put the cap on and twirl the contents every now and then before adding more scent. When it's to your liking, put the cap on tightly (use an airtight bottle) and keep away from heat and sunlight just like any other precious Use as perfume, bath oil etc. The scent is going to be milder, but that could actually be a good thing with some stronger blends. It takes the "edge" off. I haven't diluted any BPAL yet, but I do use a lot of carrier oil for my own blends, and personally I would recommend using Jojoba. It's nice and stable and won't go rancid like Almond oil etc. Hope this helps! Have fun blending -Milk

I hadn't read the description when I got this. Jezebel was nothing like I imagined. The name brought to mind something heavy and spicy, then I opened the vial and wow! If there was such a thing as coconut cotton candy (is there?), it would smell something like this. It's sweet, and to me it has a distinct coconut-honey-type scent. Very nice. I put it on right away, eventhough I had plenty of other fabulous imps to try. The bees *loved* me. I must have been an amusing sight darting around the bus stop to avoid the little buggers. Though, something I noticed, this isn't a 24/7 scent to me. I can't stand the sticky sweet scent some days (and once you put it on, it stays for hours), on others I adore it. It's just too much sometimes. -Milk

I love Carnal. It's a fruity scent, and I'm not usually a fan of fruit scents, but I love fig and I love mandarines so this is fantastic. Very sweet and juicy, and smells like sunshine. TMI: The scent in itself isn't "carnal" to me, but I put it on before going to bed the other night and had very vivid dreams of the explicit kind. It was fun, might have to try if it happens again. -Milk

I got this in a swap for my brother (thanks Chai_Girl!). From the bottle it's good & bad, depending on what you were expecting. It was actually nicer than I thought, though it does have that medicinal thing going. Probably the Black Poppy & Nutmeg. I also smell a strong Myrrh note, which I love. On it smells increasingly softer and more resiny. Smoky too. The nutmeg calms down bit by bit. It's very smoky and masculine. Myrrh, nutmeg and tobacco. I smell something sweet underneath. Reminds me of the sweetness in Black Lotus. My favourite part is the soft pipe tobacco scent on the drydown. It reminds me of an old fashioned pouch of vanilla flavoured tobacco. This makes Laudanum a perfect scent for the gentlemen (imho), especially those who love the Victorian era. The dark side of Victorian era. Those who enjoy the more poetic reviews, this really does smell like From Hell. I can just imagine this scent wafting around in a parlor after a group of doctors have been sitting there, enjoying a drink and a pipeful over conversation (not forgetting the secret handshakes). It's a dark, sinister, yet sophisticated scent. Scent for plotting and scheming. It smells dangerous yet comforting (probably because it reminds me of my grandfather who loves his pipe tobacco). Definately one that is hard to pin down. May take a few tries to decide if it's love or hate. I recommend trying an imp first. I love this on a man, but it's too dry and dark for me personally. -Milk

"Oh my sweet Goddess! What's *in* this blend?" was my initial reaction when I dabbed some Kali on my wrist. What a beautiful, sweet scent! There's chocolate, there's wine, and that sweetness must be the honey. They all, blended together, remind me of something I know but can't pinpoint. What is that? I almost got it just now, but it was gone before I could recognize it. A bit annoying, but in an exciting way, like I'm an archeologist trying to dig through my memories. (ETA: I got it! It reminds me of these chocolate scented stickers I had and loved when I was a kid. Not very Kali-ish, is it? But a nice memory from waaay back.) The scent in itself is sweet, a bit berryish (if you don't like berry scents, don't be alarmed, it's not strong), the chocolate is not loud, it's dark and melted, mixed with honey. There's also a flowery note I get. Reminds me of the Lilac in Bruja. Actually, this is a lot like Bruja (imho), only sweeter, darker and better. And not the least bit soapy. I get the image of brown velvet from this one. One with a bold gold pattern on it. There is a definate "tropical" feel to Kali. Kali gets increasingly softer, sweeter and fruitier on drydown. I really, really like this one. I echo the above reviewers, this is a very complex scent. Very deep and mysterious. -Milk