parrot_suspect

Debauchery reminds me of other rich, heavy, musky BPAL scents. It's along the same lines as Sin, Scherezade, Vixen, etc. If you like those, you will probably like Debauchery. This is definitely a cold weather scent, and an attention-getter as well. Sexy and deep. I can definitely detect the musk and the civet. The opium note seems to come out more in the drydown, and it eventually grows a bit soapy (in a musky way). I don't really get anything floral with this. I like this, but I'm not sure whether I'll get a bottle, as it's so similar to Sin and Scherezade, both of which I already have. UPDATE 05/09: I finally decided to get a bottle, and I'm glad I did. Ladies (and gentlemen), I have four words for you: Don't fear the civet. The civet is what gives this blend its unusual depth and sexiness. Give it an hour or two to develop, and you will be surrounded by a musky, sexy aura. To compare it to other "dark" blends I enjoy: I've decided it's not that similar to Sin after all, because it's not spicy. And it's not as soapy as Scherezade, nor as incensey as Event Horizon. There's no vanilla, so it's not like Snake Oil. The closest thing this comes to, in my mind, is Tarot:Judgment. Debauchery probably won't be one of my top scents for summer, but I'll let it age until fall. I'm sure it will be perfect come October.

Hooray! I've finally found a replacement for my beloved, discontinued Unseelie. I never would have guessed Black Phoenix would be this type of scent. It starts out strongly cherry-almond -- sticky sweet, like candy. At first whiff, my thought was, "Yech, forget it." But then....ahhhh! Within 15 minutes, it dries down to a delightful powdery, musky, vanillic aura. I am almost certain there must be heliotrope in this blend. The powdery drydown is to die for, if you're into powder...which I am. I can definitely see this blend layering well with other vanillic/powdery scents like Alice, Snow White, etc. What a find. And I have to admit I'm pleased to be able to wear the lab's signature scent. A big bottle of Black Phoenix is going on my wishlist today!

Three similarities I've noticed: Sin is very much like LUSH Karma Anubis (not so much O, on me at least) is similar to Honey I Washed the Kids soap Nocnitsa is similar to Tramp shower gel

There's a strong eucalyptus/pine note in the opening -- like being in a dark forest. Very woodsy-smelling. Then it loses the eucalyptus and slowly morphs into something reminiscent of Dragon's Musk. This is not a bad fragrance but I don't see myself getting a bottle, as Dragon's Musk by itself is just fine.

Honey is not listed as one of the notes in Anubis. But that's what I mainly get from it...honey. Not light, clover honey but deep, dark, rich honey...like honey that's solidified. This is an interesting scent -- I detect a touch of floral, a bit of fruitiness -- but also something dark and a bit woodsy under the surface. I don't get a lot of incense with this. On me it's a sweet, dark, deep honey type of scent. It smells "golden." I like it.

I have to agree. I love incense, vanilla, amber, musky, etc...and the early reviews for House of Mirrors were promising. However, my decant is nothing even remotely like Snake Oil, or anything I'd consider a warm, amber-y skin scent. It's kind of citrusy, but not in a fresh, zesty way...on my skin it's kind of a bland, synthetic fresh smell, like fabric softener or the hand soap in public restrooms. I had high hopes for House of Mirrors, but clearly it's not for me. I am so glad I didn't buy a 5 ml unsniffed.

Relaxation, calm, finding center. All I got from this one was a very strong, almost unpleasant, jasmine absolute. Sort of a "dirty jasmine" smell, sharp and biting. I didn't find it pleasant.

I've got an ordering problem of a slightly different sort. I'm trying to order a 10 ml of Dragon's Musk. When I click on "purchase 10 ml," however, it takes me to the CCNow shopping cart and it says "Dragon's Milk 10 ml." Obviously this must just be a minor glitch in the system; does anyone know who manages the BPAL website so I could get in touch with them directly? I'd like to place this order, but I hesitate to do so before this problem is corrected, because I don't want to wind up with a 10 ml of Dragon's Milk instead of Dragon's Musk. I e-mailed the lab last week, but have received no response, and I don't want to bug them too much because I imagine they're really busy, with Beth being sick and all.

After hearing that a bottle of this went for upwards of $200 on eBay, I had to try it. I was fortunate to be able to get an imp of Samhain in a swap. At first sniff, it smelled woodsy and piney. Then as it dried down, the other notes came out. I detect apple cider, spices, pumpkin, patcholi. It's a fantastic blend of cozy, "homey" kitchen scents and an eerie, lost-in-the-woods-at-night kind of scent. It truly does capture the spirit of fall and of Halloween. I sure hope Samhain will be available again this fall.

At first, this smells like pure cedar on me. Just plain ol' cedar, with maybe a bit of pine, like a walk through a northern forest. Must be that juniper note. This "cedar" phase lasts for quite a while, but it finally dries down to a soft whisper of woods and amber. It's an interesting scent, but I find it more masculine than I generally prefer.

It starts out sweet and almost syrupy, with that cherry note that many of the BPAL blends have. It eventually dries down to a pleasant sweetish floral, but I just can't get beyond that strong cherry note at the beginning. I don't get any incense from this whatsoever.

This is one of those BPAL scents that morphs quite a bit as it dries down. At first, it smells a lot like Vicks Vapo-Rub. It's a strong, medicinal kind of note. Within an hour, this note is gone and is replaced by a pine-forest type of scent...like a bayberry candle you'd get from Yankee Candles. An hour after that, it smells like pine mixed with sweat. Ugh! I felt the urge to wash it off, but I persevered to see what would happen next. Much later: The sweaty note is gone, thank goodness. Now it's sort of a sweet, soapy floral. Overall, not a bad fragrance, but I don't think I'll get a large bottle. I really don't like the "sweaty" stage.

This is a sweet (but not heady or suffocating) floral-musk blend on me. To my nose, it is *very* similar to Terra Nova China Rain. The scent seems to stay about the same from application to drydown -- unusual for a BPAL. It's a just-showered, fresh, soapy type of floral. A leeetle bit too floral for me, alas.

Starts out medicinal, but in a pleasant way -- like spicy herbal cough drops. Do I detect eucalyptus? It slowly evolves into a balsamic, slightly woodsy, slightly spicy scent. In the end it's sweet and balsamic. A pleasant scent. I think people who like resinous, woodsy or spicy blends will like this one. Not sure if I'll get a big bottle, but I'm glad I had a chance to sample it.

I didn't care for this one. It started with a weird, unpleasant, medicinal sort of twang, then within an hour or so, morphed into an anise/licorice scent. I'm not a fan of anise/licorice notes (except in very small doses), so this just wasn't for me.

Just curious -- what's the fastest anyone's ever gotten their order? I've noticed turnaround time (from date of order, to date of package arrival) seems to be exactly two months right now. I recall an order I placed last year, before I was really "into" BPAL, took six weeks. Do you think orders arrive more quickly when they're "regular" orders, not orders during a full moon or 24-hour LE? Yes, I know this is probably just wishful thinking on my part. I'm an eager newbie with two orders out, placed in the last two weeks. Guess I better develop some patience, huh?

If you're looking for a dark, heady, almost disturbing floral, Glasya is the way to go. On me, the rose and ylang-ylang come out quite strongly. I don't get the base notes (myrrh, patchouli, etc.) as much. It's very heady, like a garden full of jasmine on a sultry summer night. I'd say this scent is best for someone who likes rich, deep, floral blends. I have an imp of this, and it's going to be going up for swap; as beautiful as this blend is, it's just not my type of scent.

Based on the description of Veil, I thought I'd love it. However, on me, the only note that really stands out is the violet. All I get is violet, from the moment I apply it through the drydown. It reminds me of an African Violet oil I once purchased at some hippie shop. Really, it's almost like a single-note fragrance on my skin. It's pleasant enough, but I don't see any reason to get a bottle.

What a wonderful fragrance this is! I'm so glad I got an imp of it in my last order. Scherezade is billed as a spicy red musk. On me, it's a rich, powdery blend...soft and intriguing. Kind of like Snake Oil without the vanilla. The spices aren't strong and peppery, just gentle and soothing. The musk isn't the soapy variety (it's nothing like, say, Kiehl's musk), it's powdery and elegant. Imagine FM Musc Ravageur without the lavender note. Scherezade smells a bit like a musk-scented stick of incense, if that makes any sense. This is the kind of fragrance that would work well for almost any occasion. It's soft and mellow, yet sexy and deep. I'll be getting a 5 ml (or maybe even a 10 ml) of this in my next order.

Hi! I'm new here, so I definitely haven't sampled everything. But Tiempe Passate is a favorite of mine as well...I always get tons of compliments when I wear it. So far the only BPAL scents I've found that are *remotely* similar are Saint Germain and Morocco. They are not identical or even terribly similar -- they just have a little bit of the same feel as Tiempe Passate. Morocco is a soft, woodsy skin-musk type of scent; Saint Germain has an herbal, bergamot-y quality like the top notes in Tiempe Passate. HTH! If you do find something that's very similar, please let me know.

Hmm. I am new to BPAL, but of what I've sniffed so far, there aren't a lot scents similar to Amazing Grace or Falling in Love. However, there are a few that are in the same vein -- light, kind of foody, sweet. I think Dana O'Shee would layer well with Falling in Love. It's sweet and vanillic. And Sudha Segara is in the same vein as Amazing Grace...SS has a citrusy, fresh, musky skin-scent sort of feel. I did not find Veil at all similar to any philosophy scent. Veil, on me, was almost all violets. YMMV, of course.

I don't get a lot of vanilla, spice or any type of floral from Morocco (I'm testing a tarted imp of "Old Morocco."). What I do get -- soft, almost soapy, powdery woods. This is a dead-ringer for the fragrance Costes (by Hotel Costes). A gentle, clean, soapy woodsy scent, with a touch of musk and incense in the drydown. I detect cedar and sandalwood -- but again, these woods are soft and muted, not harsh and sharp. I'm thinking I need a 5 ml of this, because I do like the woodsy scents.

I wanted to love this one, but it just didn't work on me. Normally I like milky/foody/vanillic, such as Dana O'Shee. But Milk Moon is different -- it's an odd blend of coconut, mint and a buttery/vanilla type scent. It doesn't smell particularly "milky" on me...on me it seems to be a fight between the mint and the buttery note. Oh well, up for swap it goes!

Oh, how I love this scent! I'll be lurking on eBay and the swap board, trying to find some of this. I should have ordered last year when I had the chance. On me, this is a lovely, elegant, yet comforting scent. I definitely get a "baby powder"-y feel, but I like powdery scents, so this is a good thing. It's more complex than just pure baby powder, though. I detect amber, a very light citrus note (bergamot?), a light floral blend. This actually brings to mind classic French perfumery -- this fragrance is almost like a blend of Guerlain's Shalimar and L'Heure Bleue. Fascinating and complex. Ethereal.

This is a great thread -- I'm learning a lot! Has anyone found anything similar to Unseelie? I absolutely adore Unseelie, but of course, it's discontinued. Thanks