Vega

My perfect BPAL winter forest? The Snow Storm, hands down. It's a fresh, pure evergreen forest buried in virgin snow, but warmed by a cool morning sun. Yule (only tested the 2010 version) is that same forest, but in the absolute depth of winter night, locked in frigid ice and frost. Yule has a more herbal touch than Snow Storm, maybe that's why it's colder and drier. The Carpathian Mountains is also a beautiful alpine forest, it gives me an impression of being high-altitude and cold, but not necessarily wintry.

I like green blends -- more of the foresty-green (but non-evergreen) types as opposed to the leafy-green types. You can't get more leafy-green than Envy -- it was all fresh greens and herbs on me. Also The Jersey Devil, Mag Mell and The Phoenix in Spring for other leafy/grassy types. Beer from the Marsh Woman's Brewery was a more swampy, yellow-green (and beer-like) blend. My favourite "forest-greens" are Moon of Small Spirits and The Darkling Thrush. The Carpathian Mountains is the same forest as Moon of Small Spirits, but at a higher, colder altitude. Other good forests are Glasgow, The Little Bird, Thunderbird and Ochosi.

No one's recommended Dragon's Hide? It's all smoke and leather alright, with a touch of brightness from the dragon's blood. I found it very masculine, and I thought the leather was more hide-like, living and "brown" as opposed to the synthetic black-leather I get from most other leathery BPALs. And Liz of course, except that she's most definitely feminine.

The darkest scent I've tested is Gacela of the Dark Death. I can't even describe how this smelled, except that it was horror in a vial. I usually get colour impressions for all the blends I try, and the colour for Gacela was abyssal blackness. Schwarzer Mond is also a black scent, but this blackness is comforting and warm and enfolding, in contrast to the terror of Gacela. I love SM's dry, dusty warmth, it's the only dark blend that I really like so far. Other very dark blends were Hades (not surprisingly!), Medea, and Oblivion.

Everything you wanted to know about Chaos Theory is in this thread.

Sniffed: Thick, sweet cream with a bright saffron edge. On skin: Beautiful rich, smooth, creamy sweetness -- cream and vanilla perfectly balanced, not excessively cloying or rich or sugary. The saffron is light and spicy, and gives the vanilla cream a zesty kick! This may be a simple blend, but it's fantastic for what it is, the best showcase of pure cream contrasted with spicy saffron. Verdict: Yum! I adore Love's Philosophy! This is bottle-worthy -- 'nuff said!

Sniffed: Sweet, green grass, maybe touched with a breath of ozone. On skin: I initially get freshly cut grass, green and a bit watery, but this takes a step back after drydown and deeper notes emerge. These must be the (very gentle) myrrh and the flowers. A light, clear, simple blend that morphs between sweet greenery and deeper myrrh. Verdict: A phoenix in the spring of its youth, gentle and pretty. I like green blends, but this is a little too grassy for me, and I have better blends so this will probably get overlooked.

Sniffed: Wet, dewy and pale. This floral note must be moonflower. On skin: Gentle, delicate and airy. I don't recognize the floral note (well, my extent of floral recognition is lily, rose, iris and chamomile), so this must be moonflower. A serene, celestial scent that evokes pale flowers resting in the blue-white glow of a full moon. Moon Rose is a watery pure floral like Danube, Water of Notre Dame, Helena and Amsterdam, so if you like those blends, this is a great showcase for moonflower. Verdict: Very pretty, but this is a typical pure floral that doesn't really stand out. I already have a favourite pure floral in Water of Notre Dame, and Moon Rose isn't distinctive enough to beat that.

Sniffed: Light, pale watery florals with a salty tang. On skin: Melancholia is a subdued, heavier pure floral. I can't identify any individual notes (but I have trouble distinguishing florals from each other), but as a whole these flowers are gentle, light and pale, "spectral" in quality, thankfully not screaming. (Similar to Grandmother of Ghosts and The Ghost.) This blend is distinctly salty, but this morphs in and out, and the scent is overall more sweet. It definitely evokes tears. Verdict: Melancolia I is my favourite etching by Albrecht Dürer, but I'm just not a fan of pure florals. Even so, the blend does evoke the image, and I'm glad to have tried it. Update on July 2011: I forgot I'd already reviewed this, and wrote another! Here it is. Sniffed: Whoa, this is incredibly salty! On skin: I never knew a perfume could be salty -- until I met Melancholia. Oh boy, this is an ocean of tears -type of melancholy, and the doing of a screaming white floral. I suspect that the culprit may be the lily or ylang ylang. I'm a little relieved that this obnoxious, pungent saltiness recedes somewhat as the scent dries down, revealing calmer pale floral notes (maybe narcissus and others) upon a light, barely detectable sandalwood-cypress base. Nevertheless, the saltiness remains and colours the entire blend, an utterly tearful melancholy. Verdict: I love Albrecht Dürer's etching, but this blend is quite disappointing -- it's a one-note salty floral on my skin. As one quite predisposed to melancholy, I can tell you that this state of mind can't be reduced to merely tears... But it does pervade one's entire outlook on the world. In that manner, this blend is successful. But alas, I still don't like it.

Sniffed: Lily and other light, watery green florals. On skin: Primarily watery-green and spectral-white florals (I recognize lily best), but grounded by a dusty, dry base note that I initially thought was a light wood, sandalwood perhaps. But it may be one of the florals, or an unlisted woody note. The watery-green florals fade with drydown, and The Ghost ends up a pale, spectral floral blend reminiscent of Grandmother of Ghosts, but dry and deep, and "old". Indeed, an apt representation of ghost-hood, ancient, neglected and entropic with forgetfulness. Verdict: A typical pure floral that nevertheless has a distinct character. This is a friendly and pleasant ghost, but I'm not much into pure florals, and it's just not distinctive enough for me to love.

Sniffed: Very fruity-sugary sweet. I can pick out the vanilla sugar, coconut and miscellaneous fruit. On skin: The oil blooms on my skin, becoming a light, airy blend of florals, fruit and sweet sugar, grounded by lightly herbal lavender. It's a bit too blended for me to pick out individual notes, many of which I'm not familiar with anyway. It stays much the same over time, straightforward but beautifully crafted. Overall, Nymphia is delicate and intricate, evokes lace and frills and chiffon, and embodies the bride of a typical Western wedding. Colour impression is pure white with a touch of leaf green. Verdict: Indeed, Nymphia exactly matches its name. It's much too floral- and fruit-heavy, and sugary-sweet for me, however.

Reviewing the 2011 version. Sniffed: Caramel leaps out, distantly followed by dry tobacco and opium. On skin: I don't like caramel, and sadly it is the star of this show. At least it's a bit tamer on my skin, and I can smell the dry tobacco and spicy, somewhat gritty opium/poppy. The spices, smooth dark currant, dry amber and fluffy coconut are also present to varying degrees. Red Lantern is a spiced floral, dark and heady and sensual. --Well, a spiced floral under the haze of rich, cloying caramel, which fades out every so often, but mostly stifles the other notes. Colour impression is, yes, caramel brown blushed with dark red. Verdict: I was really hoping that caramel would be imperceptible, but alas, it's the dominant note that undergirds Red Lantern. Foodie blends make me nauseous, and this is just a little too foodie for me. I think I would like it much more if the caramel wasn't present! Not meant to be.

Sniffed: Deeply, deeply sweet, full-bodied and clear. Must be a combination of the teas and orange blossom. On skin: Changing the Shadows has a particular sweetness that I've never encountered in any other BPAL blend, so it must be from the red tea and mate! It has the characteristic dry mellowness of tea, albeit very red and almost fruity in sweetness, perhaps brightened by orange blossom and slightly creamed by vanilla. I'm not familiar with carnation, but I'm sure it and sandalwood are involved somewhere. A deep, clear, dry blend that is perfectly balanced in its sweetness. It feels profound, almost hallowed, a blend with substantial presence but is not excessive or pushy. Colour impression is a deep, radiant vermillion red. Verdict: I really like Changing the Shadows! It's such a warm, full-bodied scent, with the perfect level of sweetness that's not too cloying, creamy or sugary. And it's the only blend that I've really liked out of all the 2010 Yules I tested. I'll be keeping my decant!

Sniffed: Green, watery florals upon mandarin and light woods. On skin: Viola is initially a promising green floral deepened by base notes: gentle lily and rose, and uplifting mandarin, over a base of sandalwood, rosewood and moss. It's a fascinating contrast of feminine florals and more masculine woods (albeit light ones) and moss. Unfortunately, the moss amps up after drydown and pushes the other notes into the background. Now it's just damp mossy-green with hints of woods and florals -- a disappointing end to what began so promisingly. Verdict: Sigh, if only Viola didn't end up mostly mossy after drydown! All the other notes were beautiful and I was very tantalized by how the florals and woods contrasted with each other, and how it evoked the Shakespearean character. But I'm afraid this was not meant to be.

I usually don't buy bottles unsniffed, much less pay attention to prototypes, but -- what a romantic concept! Rose milk! I love roses, and haven't found a milky blend that I liked yet... so could this be The One? So I was glad for the chance to pick up a bottle from Etsy. Sniffed: Sweet milk with almond and clear, gentle rose. On skin: This is a gorgeous rose-and-milk blend! This is the rose note that I'm most fond of: gentle, sweet and pink. The milk initially had a heady infusion of almond, but thankfully the almond recedes upon drydown. The blend settles into pink rose deepened by light, creamy milk touched with almond; a simple blend but perfectly evoking its name. Victorian Rose Milk is like a lighter version of Katrina van Tassel, which contains the same rose but is heavily creamy and honeyed. It is also reminiscent of Abhisarika, which is creamier and musky, and more complex. Colour impression is milk blushed through with pale, rosy pink. Verdict: Victorian Rose Milk is a simple scent, but perfectly crafted and lovely in its simplicity. This is indeed the rose-and-milk blend that I'd been looking for. I'm so glad I took a chance and got my bottle!

Sniffed: Decadent sweet cream, deepened by teakwood. On skin: Glowing Vulva is gorgeous, especially when just applied to my skin. All the notes are present and harmonizing so well: rich cream accord is sweetened by lotus blossom, brightened by amber, and grounded in smooth, dark teak. The lotus really blooms upon drydown, becoming turning the blend even more sweet and luxurious. Dry, radiant amber also emerges over time. This is indeed a gently glowing, warm scent, full-bodied and voluptuous and delectable. Thoroughly sensual. Colour impression is cream-white blushed with light pink and dark red-brown. I tested Glowing Vulva with The Antikythera Mechanism, and they are somewhat similar in the teak and vanilla/creamy notes. Perhaps the Antikythera Mechanism is a masculine variant, and Glowing Vulva is the feminine variant on the same theme. Verdict: Well, I can tell why this is in such high demand. Glowing Vulva at Ryogoku Bridge is quite delicious -- I love the cream and teak notes. However, the lotus blossom pushes it into too-sweet territory after drydown, and too-sweet is a big No for me. I'm quite glad that I'm not in love, but also glad that I had a chance to test this beautiful blend!

Sniffed: Oily olive blossom and sickly sweet honey. This isn't promising... On skin: Defututa contains two of my least favourite notes: olive blossom (it smells oily) and honey (it smells sick and decaying). And they're dominating here. Olive blossom has the upper hand initially, and keeps the honey from turning excessively sickly-sweet -- which is good, but it's suppressing the other notes too. Only until after drydown, though. Over time, the other notes gradually emerge. Now the scent morphs quite a bit: I can smell some spice, some vanilla sweetness, some sandalwood and champaca smokiness -- all swimming in a sea of olive oil enriched with honey. Defututa ends up thick, heady, hazy, and a bit cloyingly sweet. Colour impression is liquid, languid golden skin. Verdict: If only Defututa didn't have olive blossom and honey! All the other notes are firm loves and winners on my skin. Sadly, not meant to be.

Reviewing the 2010 version. Sniffed: Rose -- light, clear, sweet and very red -- and the lightest breath of wet greenery. On skin: The rose in Peacock Queen is the deepest of red: it has the characteristic floral sweetness and clarity, but is very rich and heady. Floating underneath is a hint of wet greenery, discreetly colouring what would otherwise be pure rose; this disappears after drydown. Peacock Queen fits its description exactly: it is decadent, voluptuous, graceful, haughty, and ravishingly beautiful, truly queenly. It is everything that I was hoping to find in Rose Red, which was all nasty wet greenery, alas. Perhaps they swapped roles on me! Verdict: The quintessential red rose in all its glory, a must-try for all rose lovers! Rose is one of my favourite notes, and while I adore Peacock Queen, I'm slowly realizing that I prefer roses that smell (or evoke) white and pink, so I may let go of this in the end.

Sniffed: Odd! A bit ozonic, a bit stony, a bit dusty and burnt. On skin: The Lab's stone note really defies description: it's heavy, dark and warm. And inorganic, but only because it doesn't smell like anything organic, not because I can link it any particular inorganic smell. In fact, I'm unable to make any olfactory links at all. (New leather car seats is the closest, but that's very tenuous.) Anyway, this note predominates in Visiting the Temple, heavy stone overlaid with humid, wet ozone, and a certain dusty grittiness that reminds me of vetiver in texture (but not in scent). This blend really does evoke warm, torrential rain pouring upon hot stone pavers. Perhaps there is a waft of dry, Eastern, monastic incense in the distance? Colour impression is blue-black stone. I actually see a vision of a small stone pagoda nestled at the side of a lush hill, black smoke of incense rising faintly from its walls. A traveller is making his slow way towards it. This picture is obscured by heavy, hot monsoon rain. Verdict: Visiting the Temple is a purely "concept scent". Fascinating and certainly evocative, but not a perfume that is fitting for wear. While I'm glad I got to smell such a unique blend, I don't think I'd ever wear it in order to smell like this.

Sniffed: Bright spices, musk and almond. On skin: Vivacious spices float above dry, golden amber and warm musk. Almond is playing well with the other spices, and there's a non-spice honeyed sweetness that must be from lotus and myrrh. A dry, smooth and light blend; relatively simple, yet with full-bodied character. Bastet really does evoke domesticated cat and wild cat simultaneously: sleek, golden, languid, and predatorially alert. Colour impression is the golden fur of a lion. Verdict: What can I say? Bastet is beautiful in every way. A sterling example of the Lab's scent artistry, and a definite keeper!

Sniffed: Dry coconut with a distinctly cold herbal feel. On skin: Dry, fluffy coconut husk (not milk) infused with light woods and dark, dried herbs. I can't precisely identify the non-coconut notes, but can smell how ginger, nettle, and liquorice are playing into the overall herbal feel. The scent remains much the same over time: sweet, light coconut framed by a fascinating but somewhat sinister dusty herbal-woody aura. Like a toothy grin, it's pleasant but not entirely welcoming. Indeed, Rappaccini's bees are more menacing than the average fat, yellow honeybee. Colour impression is the white of coconut flesh with black thorns lurking menacingly just beneath the surface. Verdict: No coconut-dominant blend has wowed me yet, but Paduan Killer Swarm is the best so far. Both the scent and concept are interesting and well-executed, but don't see myself wearing it often.

I looooove floral-incense/resin blends. My recommendations are: The Ecstacy of St Theresa, Mme. Moriarty, Three Brides, Ashlultum, Kaidan, Mama-ji, The Velvets. They're all in the GC but unimpable though *meep* The Arbor (Lupercalia LE) is also gorgeous.

Sniffed: A bright, fruity-sweet mix of rose, currant, orange and amber. On skin: Bright, bold and uplifting. All the notes are blooming together: rose, currant and orange blend to form this sweet, heady top bouquet. Golden, dry amber gilds the floral-fruity notes. Something deep and fragrant is floating at the bottom of this blend, possibly the myrrh and golden musk -- this is very beautiful but, alas, fleeting. Standing Female Nude is a radiant floral-fruity blend, clear, sweet and dry. It indeed captures the beauty of this female nude, her full-bodied and voluptuous and naked, but not sexual, beauty. Colour impression is vermillion. Verdict: A very beautiful blend that really captures the Venustas image! I find it a bit too bold and flattened, however, and it's not entirely my type of scent. May let it go...

Sniffed: Light but a bit muddled. Ginger and tea are the most prominent notes, with touches of vanilla and linen, and a dab of sweetness from milk and honey. On skin: Muddled, indeed. Mellow tea, sweet honey and creamy vanilla-milk form the base of the blend. Crisp ginger and maybe pepper eventually morph in and clash with these deeper notes, and for a while White Rabbit felt a bit disorderly and chaotic. But the ginger eventually disappears, and the blend settles into a light, sweet, honeyed milk and tea, made hazy with linen. Somehow it reminds me of Dorian: they must have a similar vanilla-tea and linen note, even though they have very different characters. Colour impression is smoky gray muddled with vague brown/cream/white. Verdict: White Rabbit indeed encapsulates its namesake, and it does feel bustling and bewildered. It smells pleasant, for sure, but there's something about it that jars and repels me just a bit. Not a fan.

Sniffed: A salt-laced blue aquatic, touched with woods and spices. On skin: Like most aquatics, Calico Jack is initially a thick, foamy wave bursting over a ship's wooden deck. That's the imagery I got when I first slather it on my skin! The aquatic recedes upon drydown, and now the other, darker notes emerge. I can pick out light woods, plus a hint of musk and faint spices (indeed a memory), all whipped with salt and thick, oceanic water. This ends up a slightly perfumy melange of light woods, spices, salt and water. Colour impression is light blue-green of shallow, tropical waters, but I get a strong visual image of a wooden tall ship plunging through that tropical ocean, spray leaping around its prow, foamy water pouring across its decks. Verdict: Even though it's not a favourite, and gets a bit "perfumy" in the end, Calico Jack really does fit its description! If you like blue-green aquatics like Selkie, Ogygia and Kiyohime Changes From a Serpent, this is a slightly darker, rugged variant. Yes, very piratical!