Honey

Dear Silvertree and Monday, thank you for your reply! Yes, I know that having a rash does not necessarily imply an allergy. I suffer from allergies and stress rashes sometimes, so I know my skin can be sensitive. And since I eat cinnamon in many dishes (my favorite spice), I think I can rule out a full-blown allergy anyway. Like cassia or ginger, it gets really hot.. that is, it warms the skin (don't know the exact details of the reaction). I think I will follow your advice and try another part of my body or use a lotion first or use it on, say, a scarf or something else that can be scented OR I do swap it after all. I have never tried diluting one of my BPAL oils.. any tips regarding that? Is there some how-to thread somewhere? I don't really have any equipment like fancy pipettes or other little vials/bottles. Bitter almond.. yes, true. I have never reacted to anything in foods before, and I think I tested negative on any kind of nuts once when I had an allergy test, but it could be the combination of both that does the trick. Hmm.. maybe a swap ain't such a bad idea after all..

You know, it's funny how you sometimes check out a frimp, then put it into a save place - only to get back to it some day, realize you really dig the scent, wear it all the time.. and then wonder if it's really something you wanted. I don't know.. does anyone else have these silly frimp love affairs? Destroying Angel is a lady of that sort.. appealing in a way, but I am not sure what draws me to her. Imp: Clean, yellowish green, light, a slight bit tart and sour.. as if you're walking into a flower shop.. just minus the flowers. Smells like the inside of a chapel when there's a casket inside that's decorated with unsweet flowers (like calla lily). And then you walk to the grave, and there is fresh soil. The scent somehow sums this up for me. Hmm, but there is also a layer of man's after shave / cologne. That's why I also get some aquatic notes. Wet: Funeral flowers with patchouli. I am sure calla lily is in there somewhere. Dry: Finally, a sweetness comes through. A light floral scent that is dominated by something heavier.. is it only patchouli? Is there something citrus-y in there? Something tart like bergamot? I bet there is another "greenish white" flower like cala lilly in there. To me, literally a grave scent. It's alluring and light but also sinister and twisted. It scares me a little but I like it therefore. I cannot detect any mushroom scent.. but it's a bit musty, so maybe that's how the destroying angel deserves its name after all? Has a spring appeal to me.. spring or fall, when there is white buds on bare trees or utter decay.

Witch Queen - hello! A very strong, very heavy scent that I'm not really sure what to think about.. Bottle: Plum! Overly ripe, juicy and sweet plum. Maybe some floral scents mixed in or in the background. But this is sweet and strong and mainly just plum. Wet: It's really sinister and boozy all of a sudden. The plum retreats in the background and floral scents - mainly calla lily - come into the foreground. Smells earthy somehow, a bit like funeral due to the lilies and earthiness. Smells sharp and a bit.. acrid. I guess that's the incense and the pimento. Yes, the peppery scent of pimento is very strong now. Dry: Incense and musk become visible, of sorts. Plum and florals blend into one another and smell sweet in harmony. Yes, it must be the musk that has become dominant (although I have never smelled red musk on its own). Possible that other flowers come through more strongly now, but I cannot quite pin down the exact ones. I'm a huge honey lover (hence my name), but the beeswax isn't really noticeable on its own. It's definitely not a scent for everyday use. I think it's one of my favorites for fall, maybe also winter. It reminds me of plum jam with cinnamon or baked apples with almonds and cloves. It's almost too sweet and heavy, yet it fits to a gloomy fall day with wet brown leaves on the ground. I guess the peppery pimento is the one thing I am not really thrilled about. Would have preferred clove or cardamom instead. The florals are great that way and harmonize well with the plum. Great if you need something sensual and heavy for evening use.. or if you actually feel like a witch queen.

A pale, delicate, truly angelic blend. A scent created to emulate Adonis' halo of beauty: fragile, distant, and radiant. Rosewood with Sicilian lemon peel, red Mysore sandalwood, pale musks, sweet mountain sage and a dusting of lily, night-blooming jasmine and orris. This scent is one of those that is so rich in ingredients and different layers that I have to sniff it for quite a while like other people would sip and slurp a good wine to get to its delicious core.. Bottle: I smell lemon peel; slightly bitter yet fresh, with a faint citrus note. That note is rather balmy, though, not acidic or sweet at all. Therefore to me it smells a lot like Nivea facial cream. Now that I check Nivea's ingredients via Google (Bergamot, Lavender, Rose and Musk), I seem to be quite close. AMGP has a very dominant citrus, musk and floral appeal to it. The sage sits there in the background; I am hardly able to smell it. But it adds another fresh, herbal layer to the scent. Wet: Wow! There is only citrus and a strong waft of sage. No, it's mainly sage, all fresh and balmy. Still smells a lot like Nivea cream, though. Dry: I wish it were less sage on my skin once dried down and more musk and floral notes. The musk gets through after a while, though, even if the citrus has taken a step back now. I rate this with 5 stars anyway because to me it is an everyday scent that goes with any season and projects an image of cleanliness, purity, freshness, beauty and reminds me a bit of my childhood when Nivea cream was the smell that made you feel cozy, loved and protected.[/size][/font]

I have a pretty bad reaction to "Inferno": my skin gets red, itchy and suffers from a mean rash. I guess I have a good explanation for this: the scent contains a lot of cinnamon (oil? extract?), and cinnamon is kind of sharp when you put it on your skin. Just think of cinnamon chewing gum or toothpaste. And I even had a self-warming massage oil with cinnamon once. So why was I surprised? I should have known! Anyway.. I would like to know if any of you has tried this scent and gotten the same reaction? Then I'd know if I am allergic to the scent (or the cinnamon), or if it's just my sensitive skin? It's too bad because "Inferno" smells great.. but, heck, the name could have given the reaction away, really.

One of the first imps I ever got. Only smelled in the imp itself a couple of times, never used. Tonight, I am going out, and I will be wearing this "blindly". Imp: Very strong waft of alcohol! Like port wine and coconut rum. Also very fruity, like cherry or plum. Sweet and strong. Wet: Still very strong. Port wine and coconut rum. Cherry overrules the plum (plum scent seemed stronger than the cherry in the imp). Dry: Just like red wine cake. The alcohol has taken a step back but it's still a very fruity and sweet scent. But more "dark sweet" than "candy cotton sweet". Cannot put my finger on the cocoa. Does not have a distinct chocolate-y smell to me at all. More port and rum with plum. Veeeeery heavy and dark. Seems like a perfect autumn/fall scent. Or if you are in a pirate mood. Don't get any South American vibe from this, more Caribbean or, well, Germany in October. But I like this. Not one of my favorites but it seems daring and fun for a night out.

This is one of my first scents from BPAL. I had ordered it because I once had a vanilla-pear tea that smelled and tasted just delicious. Alas, this scent couldn't make me just as happy. Bottle: Very faint pear. Not ripe, juicy pear.. more green, clean pear. The vanilla is simply too sweet. Smells a bit chemical.. like something medicinal. A bit like plastic or cheap vanilla candles that give you a headache. Wet: I get a waft of pear. Never noticed that before, but now that I pay close attention for my review - it's there. Dry: Alas, the pear only lasts for a minute. Now I mainly smell plastic vanilla, sugar and something green (like grass?) in the background. I wish there were more notes to it.. something that would give this smell a spicy or a clean attribute. Pear and vanilla just seem a bit.. bland to me. I could imagine this scent in a revisited version with white or green tea, calla lilly, honey and/or ginger. Somehow Perilous Parlor seems like a "white and green" scent to me, so these would fit in there quite well I think.

This scent is one of my favorites, so I might be a little bit biased as a reviewer. But then again: that's what these reviews are for, right? My first review so far, hope I'm doing this right. I ordered White Rabbit in my first order addressed to BPAL ever. Mainly because I was amazed there were special "Alice in Wonderland" scents, but also because I have loved the smell of honey ever since I had tried a parfume at L'Occitane in Budapest. My grandpa also kept bees and made honey when I was a little girl. Bottle: Opening my vial of White Rabbit, I first smell honey (not too sweet) and a sharp note, which could be ginger and/or white pepper. But it blends in just fine. After several sniffs, I also smell a bit of laundry detergent. It levels the sweetness of the honey and adds a freshness to the overall scent. Wet: I smell the notes of tea, milk and a bit of lemon. The tea sits there in the background, milk and vanilla are a faint company and allow the honey and ginger to dominate. Still not too sweet, not too sharp. I have a body lotion with rooibos tea and date that I bought because I loved the tea note of White Rabbit so much. Alas, the body lotion smells horrible by itself and horrible on my skin (very bitter and a bit sour). The tea in White Rabbit is very nice, clean, and not bitter at all. I was also afraid that the vanilla could make it too girly - not the case, so I am happy. Very different from the vanilla in, say, Mouse's Sad and Long Tail. Dry: Mainly honey, lemon, ginger, white pepper and a decent milky tea smell remain. I absolutely love this scent! I think you can wear it in all seasons. It's not too heavy but it doesn't fade too quickly (at least not on me). When I put this on, this scent stays most of the day, and it doesn't change into something I would not want to smell like. ETA: The feeling I get from this smell is very warm, comforting and familial. It reminds me of a, well, actual tea party. White crisp linen, bone china, warm spicy tea with a dash of milk, the linen fresh out of the laundry, homemade honey that seems a bit dirty and wrong.