zankoku_zen

Oh man, this blend is not for me. Upon application this is just like... olive juice. And then it dries down, and its kinda like dusty boozy florals. This goddess and I are definitely not getting along.

Evil fruit. This does smell like ripe, juicy fruits and something evil and slithery lurking underneath. Fruit death. For me, I think it's a combination of the pinkpepper and jasmine that is repelling me. Evil. Evil.

This is definitely sugary vanilla musk. Perhaps a bit too sugary for me, but still pretty and pleasant. I can definitely see this being the 'base' for Black Lace (which I couldn't wear because of the evil tobacco). And I definitely can see why this has such massive appeal. ETA: It's been a while Antique Lace. It really has been. You smell like deep vanilla, musk, and hints of lace. You're sweet, somewhat whispy and in general just a very wearable vanilla. Without being too foodie.

This is white tropical blooms --- and dryer sheets. Something about this scent ends up smelling like dryer sheets on me. Fantastic smelling dryer sheets. Honestly, I would love it if my laundry smelled like this. But I do not fancy smelling like clean laundry myself.

This scent went horribly awry on my skin. Horribly. On me, the first hour or so just smelled kinda foul --- smoke and burning and peppery. I kept it on hoping it would turn. After about an hour, it does. Just a little. Not quite so much burning and pepper. I get no hint of the ginger, but rather a musky smoky kinda smell. I have to say that this fits what I thought of War. Violent, smoky, martial. It should be appealing but it's not. And in its wake, nothing but destruction.

Mmm. This is spicy gingerbread with a touch of incense. Gingerbread Poppet and I didn't work out, but this one is like a sexier version of what I imagined Gingerbread Poppet would be. Smashing. Now I see why so many people love Shub.

This dark --- smoky and incensey without the grounding bases of patchouli or sandalwood. It reminds me to an interesting and arcane headshop... you never know what you're going to find inside.

For me, this is like a sweet grape soda. It is by far the most purple scent I've ever tried --- but it's too sweet. Prospero is a sweet, plum and grape dessert wine.

I like this --- but I do have a weakness for clean florals and I'm not opposed to ozone at all. Very crystalline and pure, and yes citrus ozone heaven (I didn't want to copy Oly's words) This is very much, in my mind, like Tempest or HoM, but less edgy than Tempest. Kinder. Softer. So if you wanted to like Tempest, I would give Parsifal a whirl.

This definitely has a green fruity edge when I applied it --- different than Green Phoenix, because I get more of a plum purple vibe as opposed to GREEN papaya from it. I can see how this is compared to Fire Pig because it also has that Asian feel to it. On the other hand this is not like Fire Pig at all. I get more of the plum blossom and other florals (cherry and wisteria). Thankfully the magnolia is pretty absent (we've had problems before). It's more floral than fruity, which is a bit disappointing since I was definitely hoping for fruit. I'm very on the fence about this. I like it, but I'm not sure I like it enough because of the floral overpower... on the other hand, I did enjoy the plum blossom smell... I might keep it for a few weeks, give it a whirl and see how I feel about it later...

Okay, at the beginning this is a very sweet goeey honey. And then after the first ten minutes, this is a honey almond cookie dough. Painfully honey and foodie. After a few hours it dries down to a sweet sort of floral, with a foodie edge to it. I think I rather stick to O. Who needs marriage when you can have crazy sex for hours?

I definitely smelt a cornucopia of fruits at the beginning, very well blended, but the most distinctive for me were the papaya and the cucumber. Very crisp and green. The fruityness put me in mind of Fire Pig, but without the spicy ginger/peony thrown in. However, as it dries down I get more of a 'soapy' kinda smell and now it's almost babypowderish. This isn't working out for me. Which is sad, because this is one of the greenest BPAL scents I've ever smelled.

I have to say, I remembered that sweetened condensed milk was a component... but I forgot about the tobacco. The sweetened condensed milk is ever present, but the tobacco throws me off. It gives it the smoky qualities of tobacco but combined with the other ingredients it also smells kinda nutty. So I get nutty sweet milk with smoke. And yes, it does make me think of Shadwell... but I'm not sure that's what I want to smell like!

I really get the hazelnut in this one. It's the nutty/vanilla combo, but not completely foodie. It shares certain similar qualities to Haloes, in that it has this golden ethereal light to it. If you're looking for a lighter nuttier Haloes, I definitely recommend this one. This one is also for a foodie that is looking for something a little bit different. Not just straight up foodie. But rather, an illustration of food. A glorious illustration.

This is a fresh, juicy peach when you first apply it. And it stays delightfully peachy for about two hours. After that, the sandalwood does make an appearance, and as a previous reviewer noted it was kinda chalky and dusty. Ah, but the first two hours. Simply like licking peach juice off my skin. ETA: I managed to swap for a bottle, and I have to say that aging makes a big difference on the sandalwood. It's still fresh and peachy (for about an hour), and then it dries to a soft apple blossom/peach with a very smooth sandalwood base. I like this one ALOT more than I thought I would. I'm glad I got the chance to swap for a bottle.

I have to say that this is one of the more interesting Yule blends I've tried this year. It reminds me to my friend Shivani's mother, with the mix of sandalwood, musk and spices... something about the combination is intrinsically Indian, but rather comforting. This is not going to eat at an Indian restaurant smell, this is the hug from a mom that is happy to see you. She just happens to be Indian. This was great for a trip down memory lane. On the other hand, as an actual perfume, this is not my cup of tea. It is a savory, delicate and gentle blend. Kinda like eating coconut rice pudding after a fiery vindaloo. Just... comforting.

Very excited about the descriptions of the scent and the reviews. And yes, at the beginning it was this light golden slightly sweet scent of vanilla and woods. And then the amber turned to powder. I smell like vanilla dusting powder. Which is pretty, but none of the glorious light of a scent that had started on my skin. *sigh*

This is for the 2007 version. Man oh man. When I first applied it, I was superduper excited. It smelled like gingerbread cookies. I think I was falling in love. I think I'm falling out of love now though. As it dried, it got sweetier and more honey-like. And it's got the honey syrup very reminiscent of PI: Cockaigne. It's a very dense sugary sort of syrup. The gingerbread cookie is gone, gone gone. And I miss it. But for the first fifteen minutes, it was so flipping delicious.

I don't really get a rose from this. This is a soft, soapy, clean kinda of floral. Did I mention soap? Really, it does smell like nice expensive soap. *sigh*

At the beginning this was a sharp lemon verbena dominated floral. Now, it is a very ozoney, very clean white floral. This would make a great detergent smell. Unfortunately, my skin chemistry is NOT cooperating on this one. Boo.

At the beginning, it was very much like Faery Market, a little less foody, and slightly softer. It retains the same sort of 'ethereal' and otherworld character of Faery Market with the gentle swirling of smells, but it is slightly more powdery. Very lovely. ETA: Def. less foody, and I can smell the vanilla flower in this alot more. It's a nice soft and pleasant vanilla, so I think I'll keep my decant. And maybe think about getting more...

This is such a powerfully masculine scent. Well-worn leather. My guy tends to appreciate a floral masculine bouquet more. But I might just have to convince him to wear this one.

This is a very sweet orange blend, not sickeningly sweet, but rather a bright citrus kinda orange. Very happy, very mellow. My only problem is that it had little to no wear length. In an hour, it was gone.

*sigh* This so doesn't work for me. At the beginning, the tobacco is way too predominant, and then it drydowns to an expensive male cologne, with still a hint of tobacco. I might have to go try this on the boy. But its definitely not for me.

I love strawberries and their smell and continously try to find a strawberry scent that works for me. So far that has been Strawberry Moon, so I continue my search for a less extravagant strawberry scent. Beaver Moon 2007 is not it. The beginning was promising. Strawberries and cherries in the vial, sweet but not too sweet. The minute it was applied on my skin, it turned into a graham plastic cracker. And now, it smells like the scent on a new Barbie doll. I think it's the cream. I think BPAL's cream accord tends to smell plasticky on me, because it has the same problem that Zarita did. And I so wanted to like Zarita. *sigh* Off to swaps.