theseagrows

as soon as i saw as above and so below i knew i had to try them. this scent is lovely. in the bottle, i think all i smells is cardamom and patchouli, but it blooms quite a bit more on my skin, into something gorgeous. it's a coconutty-caradmom-musk. the amber and musk are balanced so well with the vanilla, copal and cardamom, that no note really sticks out too strongly...they are blended perfectly. it doesn't smell exactly like it, but i am getting a bit of a similar feeling to snake charmer. i'm not sure why...maybe the fact that it's a bit sexy and has coconut. i love both companion scents- as above and so below. so glad i got them both, but i knew that they would be perfect for me and i was right.

as soon as i saw as above and so below i knew i had to try them. in the bottle this smells kind of like a boozy green-almond scent. almonds that aren't quite ripe, thus they smell bitter. this one starts out as pure leather and slowly morphs into a leathery-vanilla scent with a hint of green, which must be the oak bark and jasmine combination. i am trying this with so below at the same time, and i think that maybe these would be amazing blended together, which i will try soon.

i am so glad i'm seeing people use this as after shower body oils, because that will work better for me, since i don't take baths as much anymore, but still want to try so many bath oils! that being said, i tried this on my arm and mmm it smells great. it's a musky rose scent when it dries down, but starts out more sugary-rose-patchouli. it's a warm and sexy and lovely scent. resiny, musky florals...probably my absolute favorite type of scent. i can't wait to try this as a post-bath oil. i'd love it as a perfume too.

in the bottle it smells like pure lavender, but i don't get much on my skin. it starts off with mostly white rose and some backing lavender, maybe a hint of the carrot seed. after a bit, it softens and i think it's mostly rose and vanilla orchid. it's mostly dominated by rose, but the other notes soften it, so as not to make it too strong or sharp, but it is definitely a rosy scent, at least on my skin it is. it almost reminds me of tea rose, but i think it's softer due to the vanilla orchid. i really really like this. after awhile, the rose seems to fade completely, and i'm left with vanilla orchid and carrot seed.

not generally a foodie-scent person, but this one drew me in. i tried a smidgen on my hand and it's lovely! cocoa-coffee with some nuttiness that is strong at first, but then calms down after a bit. i can't really smell the pine, but there is something in the background, which must be it. very cozy and perfect for winter/fall.

this starts off as pure pumpkin on me, with alice nowhere to be found. it gets really spicy after that, which initially seems like it's coming from carnation, but it gets VERY spicy, like cinnamon spice, at least on my skin it does. later on the soft milky scent of alice does come through a bit more, and the rose peeks through just slightly. this is mostly spicy pumpkin on me, and it's too foody for my tastes so i will have to swap it. i prefer the original alice with my skin chemistry.

the pumpkiny note in this is very nutty. i think BPAL once used chestnut as a note, and this was it. it seems to have a softness in the background, kind of like musk. then the dorian scent makes itself more apparent pretty quickly, with the pumpkin adding a bit of spicy nuttiness to the overall dorian-ness. it's a fall-like dorian scent! kind of nice, but i am not a big foody scent fan, so i prefer the original, though i could see myself maybe wearing this a couple times during the halloween season!

this starts off soft and sweet, smelling like baby powder with a hint of skin musk, vanilla and something bright. not minty, but gives off a similar sensation when i smell it. after awhile the lavender comes through, though i don't sense the dorian very strongly, i must be there! this is reminiscent of TKO, i think it could help me relax or fall asleep. i guess it's the lavender vanilla combination. it's like a more complex and sweet TKO.

this starts out with a woodsy-forest-y berry scent. not like pine, per se, but just trees and leaves and greenery. it's very well blended, so difficult to really pick out notes. it is much subtler and softer than what i imagined it would be. after it's on my skin for awhile, the pomegranate smells juicier and lss like berries. it gets increasingly soapy, in a green sort of way. maybe i'm amping the chypre? not really my type of scent, so it goes to the swap list.

This is a very very soft scent. Starts off with a milky-cottony scent that is very comforting. There is a very slight hint of something sweet, most likely soft floral. It definitely invokes the idea of the scent well. After awhile, the ozoney-ness comes out more, though it is very very subtle. It becomes even more soft and more floral, less cottony. Very interesting scent, but I will probably swap it.

This starts off like a powdery-wood scent with resins mixed in, but nothing that I can singularly identify. After awhile it has a dustiness to it, like a musty, dusty old room that's been locked up for a century. Very evocative of a haunted house indeed. I think of a haunted Victorian parlor when I smell this! Very intriguing, but I can't really wear this, personally, so it's of to swaps.

i knew this smelled reminiscent of a commercial perfume, and Ondine hit it on the head with the BBW sensual amber. it reminds me a lot of that, but it's softer and more flowery. it's a bit too strong for my personal tastes, it has a lot of throw. the spices really amp up the florals on my skin. it's not a bad scent or anything, it's just not my cup of tea.

well, i knew this one would be a gamble, and was hoping it would work with my skin chemistry, but sadly, it does not. it's a sour, soapy white floral on me. rose can be hit or miss, but i think white rose misses more often. also calla lily, usually a miss, i should'e known. oh well, it's off to the swap pile for this one.

holy cocoa! this starts out as all cocoa with the blood musk supporting in the background. it is very strong. after about 20-30 minutes some of the resins come through, i think i'm getting mostly myrrh? mixed with the cocoa and aged patchouli. it smells very dank and musty now, which does kind of remind me of a coffin, come to think of it. sadly, this just doesn't work on me, it's too resiny for my tastes and the cocoa is stronger than i'd like.

this scent is very purple, as you would imagine it would be. in the beginning i think i mostly get violet leaf, poppy and incense, maybe a hint of cacao and olibanum? it's all very well blended. there is a sweet fruitiness from the plum too, but it's not super plummy or overwhelming. i say that because, i tend to amp BPAL's plum note and i am not a fan of super fruity scents. the plum was the only thing in this that really scared me, but it's alright. i feel like it has a similar feel to queen mab and glasgow, and is sweeter than queen mab but less sweet than glasgow. i like those 2 scents a lot, and i probably like them both more than this one, but i like this too. it's more incensy and dark i guess. after it's been on a few hours, it's mostly smoke and white musk on me. very subtle. this is a pretty soft scent, it's not too strong or overwhelming.

got this as a frimp from the lab. it's another one of what i call "scented doll" scents because it smells like a strawberry shortcake clan doll on me-sweet fruityness and plastic. BPAL's plum note usually does this on my skin. maybe this is grape? but it smells a lot like the plum note, at least on me. i can smell the cinnamon faintly in the background, but this is mostly cloying fruit on me. i wish fruit notes worked better for me, but alas....

this starts off as a deep red rose + slightly sharp leaf scent, and after a few minutes that sharpness calms down and the rose softens, and i swear i am smelling some carnation in there. i love both rose and carnation, so that makes me happy. it smells a lot like maiden as well as lush's potion right now, with less carnation and more rose. there's something else in there, but i can't quite place it. something almost honey-ish. on my skin, this is like a deeper more sophisticated maiden, which is one of my favorite scents! it's like what i'd wear at night if i had worn maiden during the day, and it kind of reminds me of tea rose. if you're a rose lover, you have to try this!

hmm this wasn't like i expected it to be, but many of my absolute favorite bpal's have oakmoss as an element, but for some reason, in those, the aquaticness of this accord doesn't come out much. this is much more aquatic than i was anticipating, giving it more of a clean feel. i can't really do aquatics, truth be told. this reminds me of shampoo or a sweet, herbal shower gel. kind of reminds me of the really old herbal essence shampoo from the 70s or 80s. i think i'd love this scent in a shampoo! just not sure i will get much wear out of it in general.

i haven't tried this in the bath, and i think maybe the plastic bottle it's in is turning it weird (is that possible?) anyway, i put some on my arm and it smells a lot different on my arm than in the bottle. it's a mix between fresh and vanilla, i think. the papyrus turns a bit wonky on my skin as it often does, but other than that, this is a nice scent. it's a very white feeling scent, and fresh in a way, but not in the typical laundry detergent way, but rather pale white scents. there is something slightly baby powdery in here too. spider silk is the perfect name for this.

it smells sweet and sour to me in the vial, and on my skin it turns very sour. i think cypress may be the culprit here? it smells like dying roses with a hint of pomegranate in the background, not a good rose scent at all. it's funny, because rose usually works for me and is one of my favorite notes, but unfortunately, it occasionally does this. i think the cypress and pomegranate are adding that sourness, possibly, as they are both notes that often don't work with my skin chemistry. i was so taken by the purple roses and myrrh, that i thought this one might work for me. i am disappointed that it didn't but now i can pass it on to someone who it will work for

i admit, i had mixed feelings and a bit of fear about this scent. BPAL's frankincense note and my skin chemistry are notorious rivals. when i first put this on it smelled...strangely medicinal, then came the frankincense in it's pencil-shaving glory, but luckily, that stage did not last long, because the vanilla came through and all the sudden it was gorgeous. i do get the lush american cream impression as well, as someone mentioned above. this scent, once dry is very beautiful and sexy in a subtle way. i think i need a bottle of this.

at first this is all tuberose, which is a note i like, so it's just fine. very floral, not for the floral-haters at all. then comes the aniseed, and now it's tuberose and aniseseed primarily. I don't smell the lilac, or it's very subtle, and the carnation doesn't seem to come through much at all, but i think white carnation is less spicy, so maybe it's subtle, hanging out in the background. this is a herbal-floral on me. pretty and different than the usual floral scents, but it's not really wowing me as a scent i would personally wear often.

i must admit, i have mixed feelings on this one! my gut feeling was that this scent is too sweet for my tastes, but the more it settles into my skin, the more i don't seem to mind the sweetness. this is a warm, soft, sweet scent that kind of wraps you in comfort (did i just type that?) but really that's how it feels to me- soft and comforting if a bit sweet. i think the vanilla is the most prominent note on my skin...it's hard to even make out the other notes, rather than just a warm, sweet blend. definitely keeping my decant of this!

this is a very fall-like scent, spicy and warm, it's slightly foody too, i'd say. i'm not much into fall scents, but this is nice. i like the clove and spiciness of it, but it's too foody for my personal tastes, probably because of the brown sugar and cardamom which adds a sweetness to the spiciness. also, i have tried other similar bpals to this one, but maybe without the vanilla. i could see wearing this occasionally in the fall/winter, but it probably wouldn't get that much wear out of me.

i love all the notes in this, and it's quite nice. the blackberry is subtle and not too sweet. this is like a more complex and sexy blackberry-musk scent, and i love it. the rose really isn't that prominent at all, i can barely sense it, apart from a slightly sweet sugary scent. all the notes in this blend seamlessly and smell amazing with my skin chemistry. sexy in an understated way.