sunshinedaisybliss

This one really goes through ch-ch-ch-ch-changes. Every time I thought I'd got it made, It seemed the taste was not so sweet. For me, this one started out with a blast of fresh sharp lavender – very much like actual lavender smells when you have just fresh cut a bunch, rather than a soft gentle sweet lavender. And there’s a definite saltiness at the start too, which adds to the sharpness and tbh I wasn’t loving it too much at this point because it smelled kind of medicinal. But I left it on my arm for ten minutes – went back to it, and all that sharpness was gone. The lavender was still the main player but it’s softer now, and the salt had also lost its sharpness and gone just.. well, salty. And now I can also smell the rain, which wasn’t there at all in that first stage. It is exactly that smell when it starts raining – kind of airy and earthy. I can now say it truly gives me lavender, sea salt, and rain. After an hour, it’s mostly faded away to a barely there lavender with the salt and rain providing atmosphere rather than actual scent. It’s quite beautiful, but on me it stays very close to the skin and doesn’t last long. I did enjoy the experience though, because it brought back memories of walking along the beach in the rain which is one of my favourite things to do. 💜

I have the atmo spray version of this one, from the 2013 Lupercalias, and I have always loved it. In fact, I loveitsoverymuch seriously. So is the perfume oil as good? Well, yes — yes it is! The neroli here is the most obvious note for me, but it's not all NERRROLLIIIIIII shouty and loud — it's soft, sweet, and gentle (except at first, when it is a bit shouty and loud but that quickly goes away). The amber does indeed glitter, but in that lovely dusky way that amber does so well, and the vanilla silk is beautifully lush and smooth. This is like one of those perfumes that they hide behind the counter in those fancy stores because it's $11,000 a bottle — complex but also simple, sophisticated but not snobby, feminine but not girly, and sweet but not candy-ish. I personally think I enjoy this as an atmosphere spray more than as a perfume, because in the oil form it stays very close to the skin and it has low throw so I have to really sniff around to find it. Whereas a spray it's all there, everywhere around you. But that aside, this is completely beautiful.

Have you ever put on your bestest silk underwear then thrown on your favourite coat and hat that are both made entirely of soft dark green moss, popped some vanilla beans in your pockets and gone outside to sit in the rain? What do you mean "no, of course I haven't"?!? Well, honestly if that's the case — you haven't lived. But hey — the good news is, you don't need to! Just put on some of this, and you'll get the exact same experience. There's a beautiful deep green in here that somehow manages to be both fresh and earthy at the same time — that sits at the back of a beautiful gold warmth, like sun peeking through rainclouds. The vanilla is indeed sheer and wispy to the point where it's not a 'regular' vanilla at all — it's like the vibe that vanilla leaves behind after it's left the room, or that hint of vanilla you get when you catch a whiff of someone wearing it as they walk past you. This is the BPAL to take with you the next time time you embark on a journey through a mossy forest, because you'll blend in so well with all the other scents in the air that the animals won't even notice you're there and you'll be able to walk right up to an unsuspecting deer and gently stroke its back. It's really quite different to anything else I've tried from BPAL, and very lovely.

Hm. I was unsure about this one, because whilst I am a patchouli fiend — black patch tends to pull bitter on my skin (as opposed to red patch, which is always warm and smooth). But I thought maybe the inclusion of 'velvet' in 'black velvet patchouli' might mean this is a softer/smoother variety. What I was really hoping for was a nice earthy patch, a lot of dark amber, a nice rich bourbon vanilla, and a soft musk. On my skin, this starts out very bitter, and although that does dissipate after about 10 minutes, it never really goes away completely and it's getting in the way of everything else. I can pick up a very slight hint of amber, but no bourbon vanilla. And tbh I cannot recognise any musk in here at all. After about 30 minutes, it's dried down into... kind of nothingness really. Overall, this is an interesting mix of mysterious darkness but it's just not playing nice for me.

For me, this one opens up with a blast of burned marshmallow smell, but thankfully that goes away within the first few minutes. And what's left? sweet, pink candyfloss on a background of marshmallow-y vanilla. Big surprise, right? But this one is exactly what it says on the tin! Highly recommended if you enjoy spending your day with your head inside a bag of pink marshmallows. But without the risk of suffocation.

The hype on this was so strong and the raving so loud that I eventually caved and bought a bottle. Maybe my judgement is influenced by my little hoard of well aged (10+ years) Snake Oil, which is truly magnificent, but for me this does not live up to the hype. For one thing, it’s very light - I was expecting a much more ballsy blend. And I feel like the Smut has smothered the spicy musk and dark rich vanilla that I love so much in SO. I’m getting no leather and no patchouli - just a lighter, warmer Snake Oil. Disappointing, but not entirely unexpected. So I will do the only sensible thing, and put this away at the back of the drawer then see how it feels ten years from now.

Weenie Weenie on the wall, what’s the smuttiest ’ween of all? Well here’s the thing. At first this was ALL pumpkin - dark, boozy, oven roasted until it’s all caramelised type pumpkin. It reminded me of some of my favourite Pumpkin Patch blends from the very early days. But no Smut. And then.. half an hour later, it’s all sugary musky smutty booziness, not as swarthy as Smut on its own… so, Smut Lite. But no pumpkin. Eventually this balances itself out and that’s the sweet spot where the pumpkin and the Smut are there together. Musky, boozy pumpkin. But by then it’s not enough of either and nothing particularly exciting on my skin.

Disclaimer: I’m not hugely into florals, but this was kindly frimped to me, and I believe one should always test all the things, so here we go… On me, this is a strong white floral that leans slightly toward the sour side rather than sweet. It’s very soap-y and very perfume-y. As others have mentioned, the orris is subtle and doesn’t really appear until the oil has fully dried into my skin. Only then does the moonflower mellow out a bit, but it’s still very strong. So this is definitely not my style at all - for me it has no complexity, it is what it is but it’s not for me.

On me, the tobacco is definitely the dominant note here - and I agree, it’s that same rich chewy one from the French Tobacco SN. But where the FT SN was very “golden” to me, here the tobacco is warmer and softer thanks to the red benzoin which is a perfect compliment. Slightly woodsy, slightly sweet - it’s just tempering the tobacco beautifully, holding it back from turning this into The Tobacco Show. The ylang ylang is just quietly doing its thing, minding its own business, adding little glimpses of fruity floral sweetness but never taking over. I think this would appeal to people who like red musk but find it cloying, and people who like tobacco but find it too strong. This trio has some good throw, but it’s not as heady or heavy as other tobacco blends I’ve tried.

Ok so yes, this does smell like LUSH’s Honey I Washed the Kids. Except a grown-up, naughty and boozy version of it. More like Honey I Washed Lenny Kravitz and Slash In A Bath of Molasses And Then We Rolled Around In A Bed Of Donuts. It’s dark, delicious, sweet, rich and syrupy. And it stays that way for hours! I lovelovelove this one 👍🏼

Ooh this is the same dark, treacle like boozy honey that’s in the Honey, Tuberose and Vanilla Sugar trio - so rich, like molasses - borderline burnt brown sugar. It definitely has some balls, it’s not a sweet sunshiney honey. And - just like the honey in HT&VS, this one has a strong throw and lasts for hours. So with that said.. it takes a little while for the black lilies and the gardenia to come out - I couldn’t really find either of them until about 20 minutes in, but once they kicked in, that boozy honey backed off a bit. If you’re looking for sweet gentle honey and pretty florals, this is not the one for you. But if you like a smokey, boozy honey with a sploosh of sweet heady florals, this might do the job for you. Overall, this is interesting and a bit different, and it has great wear length.

This one had a lot to live up to, because I already have a honey/patchouli love in Tricksy (the one that rules them all). So on me, the honey really doesn’t come out to play (surprisingly, because it’s usually an amper), but the labadabbadumdum (what? that’s how I say it ok) is beautifully smokey and the sandalwood is dusky and warm. The benzoin is more woodsy and balsamy than sweet, so with the absence of the honey overall this definitely leans dark and smokey rather than sweet. The patchouli here is earthy but clean, and - as usual for me - it does end up being the lead singer of this little band. I am a bit sad about the lack of a “sweet” element, because I think it would have been more interesting. So in the end, I have a nice earthy smokey patchouli that’s nice and all, but not anything I’m too excited about.