clementlau

Creamy, warm vanilla-milk held close against a cozy, soft cashmere sweater. There's a whispered, diaphanous quality to it that appears and disappears and reappears... just like a ghost. A perfectly rendered fragrance. (PS: I am a SUCKER for the Lab's cashmere note -- I don't understand how they do it but I will buy everything cashmere yes please thank you.)

I am a HUGE fan of the Lab's beeswax candle blends, and this is a subtler, darker, more evocative fragrance for me. I was also hesitant because of the vetiver, and it's definitely THERE and present, but it only adds to the atmospherics of the scent, rather than overwhelming. This is the scent of a freshly blown-out candle, all resinous dark ash mixed with the smell of smoke and burnt wick. But in the background, is the slightly warm and wavering scent of a pool of melted honeyed beeswax, floating gently around you, as if you have just leaned over the candle itself to extinguish it. The scent feels so haunted to me -- it has the feeling of interiority and of been hemmed in by close walls. Superb story-telling with this Haunted House series.

This is a gorgeous, cool billowy ploof of ethereal vanilla, lacy smoke and freshly laundered sheets. Upon first application there is the slightest breath of Victorian face powder, a puff of smoke, and an unsettling chilly scent of gossamer white flowers, as if someone is leaning in towards you, only to whisk quickly away. The coldness of this scent when first applied is pure magic, and as it settles, wafts subtly and beautifully as you move about. I don't know how Beth designed such MOVEMENT within this perfume, but it's so artful and understated and elegant. A new classic, I think.

Unbelievable. The dreamy beeswax scent I have ALWAYS wanted. Warm, glowing, sweet, redolent and golden. Candle flame, gentle, melted honeyed wax and cleanly burning sacred smoke. The amber is so perfectly blended into this, it becomes one with the beeswax and with the warmth of your skin. This one just enshrouds you all day long with amazing throw, casting light into shadows with deep comfort. So soothing for this dark time of the year and just exactly what I needed to uplift me. Thank you thank you, Lab.

WOW. The Lab is straight-up knocking it out of the park with these cozy, milky blends this year. I am absolutely in love with this scent and I never want to be parted from it, hahahaha. This is the most softly velvety and deeply comforting scent I've ever had envelope me with its warmth and surety. As others have said, there is just the barest hint of coffee, here -- but it is redolent of steamed milk, as if you have already drank the cafe au lait and the cool dregs are left behind in a very fine porcelain cup. Most prominent in the top notes is a creamy yet clean vanilla with the barest hint of lavender surrounding the softest cashmere wool you have ever wrapped yourself in, freshly laundered. Not only that, but there is a luxurious quality to this that makes you feel like you're stretching out on your favorite couch as the winter sun slants through your window, perfectly contented. This is a special, special scent that provided great comfort during the Yule season, which tends to be a hard one for me. I don't know how Beth does it... this is just perfect and exactly how I want to feel all winter long.

I definitely cannot top how spot-on and beautifully-written this first review is, but I'll second everything she said! When freshly applied, this is all scrummy honey cake goodness -- you can smell each warm crumb, in fact. When this quickly mellows out, the gentle amber just glows and glows.

Upon opening the bottle, this is all dampened and faded leaves -- oak, maple, linden, beech. Upon first application unfolds deep damp soil and layers of fallen dead leaves mixed with what reads as a bold black tea, cardamon, cinnamon, and a good spike of clove. Smells EXACTLY like chai sipped while sitting under my beautiful autumn golden maple in November, as branches become bare and the ground around it turns brown and gold. Cozy and crisp at the same time, deeply comforting and redolent of the very essence of late autumn.

Hahaha, I don’t even know where to start with this one. It smells fairly insane/unpleasant in the bottle, like caustic chemicals or rubber. Never deterred from the intensity of a BPAL bottle-sniff, I apply, and I still can’t quite grok what this scent IS or is trying to evoke 😆 To be fair, I’m not quite sure I even remember WHAT wax vampire teeth smelled like. I’m getting NO Snake Oil in this whatsoever, but as it starts to blend in my skin I’m getting a strong cedar or mulchy dirt scent. My boyfriend says it smells like Ivory Soap and incense. Hahaha, sorry everyone, for the bizarre description, but my skin doesn’t know what to do with this. I hope others post their takes, and maybe with some aging this one will become wearable on me!

Antikythera Mechanism is one of my absolute favorite BPAL scents, so much so that I've had the same aged bottle circa 2010, or something. That bottle has turned every so slightly, so I saw this morphed version and thought.... "Hm. That combo could either ruin or make even MORE delicious, this scent I already love. Let's give it a try... I need a new bottle, anyway..." Joyfully, I am happy to report the addition of pumpkin spice has made Antikythera Mechanism even MORE gorgeous, which I didn't even think was possible. All the lovely sweet teak and oakiness of AM is right up front upon first application, but then an absolutely buttery, gorgeous YUMMY glowing pumpkin emerges, accompanied by spice, smoky vanilla, and a vanilla cavendish-style pipe tobacco. HOLY CRAP this is good, and for me, totally sensual, which is somewhat problematic that I now smell like a dude I might like to make out with, LOL. I will be hoarding every last drop of this bottle, I am that in love. Damn if that pumpkin spice just DOES make everything good even better....

BPAL had me at "milky puppy breath" with this one. Boy am I NOT SORRY that the puppy thing had me rung cause I ADORE THIS SCENT. It's just exactly as described. It's a soft, sweet, snuggly, warm puppy with milky breath. And you're wearing a sweater. And you're snuggling A PUPPY and burying your nose in its fur to smell a little bit of dirt, and a little bit of Milkbone. Similar to The Small Brown Cat from the American Gods perfume series, but less cedar-y and it's own puppy-ish thing....

BPAL apple-lovers, this is for you. I'll never understand how the Lab manages to get apple-varietal scents so spot-on, and this is no exception. This is a winesap apple for sure -- so crisp, as sharp as cool autumn air, fresh, and wine-y/jammy. Combined with this is a light sprinkling of golden sugar that sweetens and warms up the crispness to an almost rose-y apple skin-musk. It possesses a delicate prettiness and depth to it that keeps it from being too candy-like.

Yay, I'm the first reviewer for this! Buttery, delicious, candy-sweet, sugary POPCORN BALLS. Totally edible. Once applied, I'm not getting a ton of the Snake Oil aspect of this, except upon first application, where it adds a very solidly gooey caramel-note. That fades quickly and I'm left with a light, buttery-sweet popcorn ball scent. VERY reminiscent of the Midway scent from the very first inceptions of the Carnival Diabolique series. Fleeting on me, but delicious, and smells just exactly like the real deal.

A perfume created in honor of St. Expedite. May he intercede on your behalf, and may all your troubles be swiftly resolved with the best possible outcome for you: honey and life everlasting, frankincense and cinnamon, bourbon vanilla, red ginger and red musk.  Wow, I'm the first to review this one! Chose this because I'm in need of some serious intercession and the notes sounded just beautiful, and it is one of the most beguiling, well-blended scents I've recently sniffed from BPAL. This is an incredibly warm, sweetly glowing scent that is soothing and serene. It starts out thick with honey and cinnamon and the rich booziness of the vanilla, but then it all quickly mellows out into fresh ginger/vanilla. There is a slight floral behind all of it, which may be the life everlasting or a wildflower-type honey, but this scent is so perfectly blended it all works harmoniously together for a really calming, reassuring scent. Definitely a medium throw, with a lovely closeness to it. Highly recommend.

Wow. This scent is so strange and pearlescent, and my experience of it seems to change minute by minute! As with the other posters, this starts off as pure coconut meat with loads of butter. So much so, that I thought this was going to be crazy-foodie, but that quickly backs off and for me the translucent petals start to appear. This is a delicate white lilac, not those drowsy purple ones, swimming in milk. In still getting back-hints of butteriness and an occasional whiff of coconut. This is amazing scent, and I can't wait to see how this morphs even more.

Well THIS is just pure deliciousness, and exactly what I was hoping for. Directly applied wet, it's all warm roasted nuts, dripping with dark honey and a slight booziness. When this dries down, it is soft pancake-y fluffiness and lightly spiced custard pie. You'll wanna eat yourself, but don't.

I'm in love with Inez... IN LOVE with her. Totally and utterly obsessed. Not only that, but I sorta look like the Grindhouse Girl on the artwork! At first bottle-sniff, this smelled very much like butterscotch, and I was a little wary it was going to be a little too candy/foodie, even for someone who tends to go for those gourmande-type scents. HOWEVER... as soon as I put it on, it morphed suddenly and softly to one of the sexiest, closest-to-the-skin, WARM scents I've ever tried. And I've tried a lot of BPAL. Inez is a teaser, it's a scent that pulls one ever closer, and I can't stop sniffing myself. There is the enticing cuddliness of the vanilla, the radiance of the amber, and the subtle spiciness of the carnation, amber and cedar that combine to make this smell like skin warmed by sex and deliciousness. This is a scent that for me, doesn't give too much throw, but absolutely demands closeness. Case in point, my boyfriend BIT me when he smelled this on me... which is a good review, for him. ; ) I want bottles and bottles of this.