AliBabble

sticky, brownish oil...smells almost chocolote-y at first...morphs a lot...goes through a slightly soapy stage, which feels like greenery - this must be the seaweed and moss...after this, some spice comes out (the clove and pepper?) and it starts to smell a bit witchy/head shop. i feel a slight tingle from the pepper and clove. the final drydown is quite sweet - i wish i got more tobacco, actually...though complex, it seems to fade rapidly on me, and leaves me with mostly clove. not bad, but i need to test it again...i'd like to experience all the layers longer, or maybe i just need to apply more? i think this is actually very wearable - though it's a dark scent, it doesn't feel heavy or overwhelming...i think it feels sorta slinky and mysterious...

this smells amazing i think - very spicy, herbally, but warm - not sharp. it's got a resin-y feel, from the frankincense, and a real spicy carnation scent - interesting combo. the chamomile and angelica, to me, add a bit of herbally "zing", and the heliotrope sweetens it all up a bit. it's true this doesn't have a lot of throw, and i need to actually sniff my wrist to smell it, but it's a great scent - especially if you like frankincense. very uplifting and addicting.

ooh, this is so nice - let me see if i can describe it...the rose is juicy and fruity, almost citrussy at first - like orange-y, but light. the orris helps to balance and subdue the rose - i agree, it's a bit coconutty, but very slight. i have to say i'm not getting much of a musky feel, just the rose and the orris. i love this - may need a bottle, as it seems kind of light, and might need heavy application.

i smell the bpal butter smell i've smelled somewhere before...it's in the doll girl, and pumpkin queen i think...but there's also a nice sugared tea smell, a la white rabbit. this is a very fun and pleasant scent...with a lot of classic bpal flavors rolled into one. i like this, it smells very happy and cheery, and though it has a familiarity of other bpal scents i've already smelled, i like the concept of this one, it's very cute, and i can actually see wearing it often.

like others have mentioned, i think i was hoping for a bit more cream. my first impression is of a very clear, light, slightly high-pitched floral - really what this reminds me of is blue moon, from a couple years back - almost a cucumber-ish cool feel. pleasant, but not unlike some others that i have - black butterfly moon, like blue moon, is also in this camp. anyway, as it dries down and wears on my skin for a bit, it does indeed get a bit creamier and muskier, and gains a little more character. it's pleasant enough, simple and feminine, but seems to lack some personality, it's a bit bland. but maybe that makes sense for the chaste thing? the label is really lovely.

for a fleeting second, this was reminiscent of an old favorite of mine - hearth from 05? i think - which also had chestnut - which i love. but the more i smell it, it is much lighter and feminine than hearth, more delicate. there's something a bit fresh and plant-like - think that is the geranium, and a touch of earthiness and floral - the magnolia? osmanthus? the khus?...it's well blended, and the other notes are a bit indistinct - the chestnut is strongest, tempered and refreshed by the other notes. - this does smell outdoorsy like springtime. pleasant. (edited cause i was testing bottles in the dark, and accidentally applied a completely different bottle, whoops! )

ok, now i get what the other reviewers are saying...i was so intrigued by this scent, that i just really wanted to like it...but it is really...disturbing, almost. my first thought when i sniffed it from the bottle was "old lady". but the more i smelled it, it doesn't smell old so much as ancient...the smell is really eerie....metallic incense...not completely unpleasant, actually kind of fascinating, but rather spooky...on my skin it's pretty much the same: an eerie, ancient scent, like metal that's been dug up out of something wet, and has maybe rusted or oxidized. i have to say i'm drawn to it and repulsed at the same time. there's a little bit of a funky smell, like feet, in there too. don't know what that could be, but it'll probably keep me from wearing this very regularly. still - this scent is evocative and chilling, and i can appreciate that about it.

i know this thread has been beat to death...but i just have to say...what makes luca turin the gospel? although he is a scientist, there are numerous articles stating that his "theory of smell" has no validity. here is one: http://www.innovations-report.com/html/rep...port-27230.html and there are more... if jayne is so enamored of turin, and she's admitted to being obsessive about seeking the truth, why does she hold this man in such high regard, when his own scientific theories are so questionable? just wondering....

i would also guess that bpal uses a variety of sources for their oils - i'm sure they do use natural oils whenever possible, maybe augmented by synthetic ones, in the case of the "cotton candy" and "funnel cake" type smells...but i think it's clear that beth takes her perfumery pretty seriously, in both the quality department, and the concept department...the fact that it is reasonably priced doesn't cheapen the quality in my view...and i think the concepts and thought that goes into the perfumes is one of the things that appeals to its followers as much as the actual fragrances... it's like a whole learning experience - and a world you enter into - as far as the connection of perfume to literature, culture/art, mythology, etc - and this is one of the things that makes the company so special, and separates it from other "regular" fragrance brands....

obatala is great - doesn't really smell like any other bpal to my nose - it is refreshing, and clean - but not ozone-y - it smells beachy, like coconut oil, but not heavy... like it's mixed w/ watery milk, or milky water...it feels very pure...

thank goodness countess willie seems like it's gonna work on me, since the other two from my latest order do not... "yes" to the bordello comparison. since bordello was one of my first bpal loves, i know that anything in that vein will work. i should just embrace all the plummy oils, because really, they do agree with my chemistry. this is well-blended and surprisingly subtle actually - the ginger is barely there on me, and the red musk, which can sometimes smell obnoxious to me, just totally blends in. i'm only getting the smoothness of chocolate, not an actual chocolate note, and the amaretto and plum just kind of blend together. i'd say that it's a bit smoother than bordello, and i like it a lot!

uh oh. it's not working on me. i prefer the purity of snow white i guess...since i love snow white and rose red, i thought pink snowballs would work for sure, but i'm getting an intense rose of the glade air freshener variety, blotting out the softness of the snow white layer...gonna try again on a different day, but i think this one may be a lost cause for me. roses are tricky for me - some work great, others not so great. oh well.

hmm. not sure about this one...at first i got the boomslang thing too...i did not like boomslang, and sold it off...i thought this one might be better though...the cocoa fades away, but i am left with the same "leather shoe" type smell that boomslang and snake oil does on me...i can tell it's probably good for those who like boomslang and snake oil. on me though, it's not a love. oh well....

tried this in the bath last night - the oil has a great texture - silky, and sticks to the skin but not heavily greasy. the scent is 90% orris - to me, with a chocolatee-y undertone, for some reason. the scent lingers after the bath - a bit fresh, from the orris - but not obnoxious or loud. gives a luxurious feeling, befitting a warrior queen. nice, a treat.

zenobia smells heavy on the orris, for me, and a little chocolate-y, for some reason...it almost reminds me of a "13" blend, although there's no actual chocolate...it smells of an herbally, chocolate-y orris, with almost an orange citrussy tang. i'm getting very little patchouli, actually, but this does have an earthy feel to it, as well as a spicy feel. it's pretty yummy and unusual...does give me a little "power" feeling - like a warrior queen...i'd say it's a blend with a fair amount of depth - it's not a light blend, but not heavy either...

i loved the first litha... 2009 is very different...but i'm warming up to it. sniffing from the bottle, it smelled great - soft, sweet and honeyed, yet subtle. on my skin it is faint at first, yet a little sharp , with an herbal "bite" - maybe the parsley? not sure...this is a strange scent - it seems to get stronger, rather than fading...i'd say it's grassy yet honeyed at the same time...i can't remember exactly what's in this new version, but it smells a bit like wild summer greenery warmed up by honey and resins...i can't say it has the same lushness and richness as the honeyed-mead version of the former litha, but it's still lovely in a feminine, summery way....

i've been wanting to try this for a long time...i've always loved the name...in the bottle it smells amazing - i'm not an ozone girl at all, but this smells really sexy and addicting, and reminds me a bit of berenice and batwoman...ethereal and almost ghost-like spooky, airy, light flowers... on my skin it is just as amazing...it's fresh and light and has a live energy to it, the way the air feels after rain. to me, there is nothing generic or department store-ish perfume about this...it is super feminine and probably would have a wide appeal, but i find it very unusual in that way that only bpal can do. a masterpiece!

Wild strawberries, strawberry flower, vanilla-infused sugar, early summer grasses, and milky dandelion sap. i too get the strawberry gum thing, it's nice, but a little candy-ish at first...the green grass/dandelion smell is very present as well, and the two components - berries vs. grass - are almost equally balanced, which is nice. it is a very light, spring scent on me - i think i was expecting something richer and thicker...this strawberry moon is almost clean smelling on me - a clean green fresh smell, with just a hint of strawberry candy. it lasts pretty well, eventually settling on the vanilla sugar smell, with traces of fresh strawberry. although it's a little tamer than i expected, i think it would be wearable for a lot of occasions - for work, or just to wear around on a nice summer's day...

in the bottle this is pear mixed with something strange. revisiting the notes, i'm guessing it's the bronze musk, because it smells metallic. there's something elegant and heady about this oil, although it is basically a sunny pear scent. it's like a plain little pear all dressed up in furs and jewels. this scent is really odd and schizophrenic, but it works. i'd say it's basically a sophisticated pear scent. as it dries the amber makes a very quiet appearance...a resin-y pear. a gilded pear. nice.

in the bottle, i know i like this - it's got a bit of a cola scent at first, but on my skin the frankincense really explodes. on me, this is mostly frankincense and musk. i don't get much fruitiness at all. i like this, but wish the currant was more apparent. on my skin this is mostly a church-y frankincense. i still do like it though.

in the bottle, motley smells good to me - fruity - the blackcurrant and rhubarb, with a hint of the mushroom, which gives an odd tinge to the fruitiness, but not unpleasant. it's almost candy-like to my nose, but with a bit of mustyness. don't know why, but this reminds me of an indian grocery...there is slow morphing, as the champaca and myrhh come out - at this point, the blend really, - well - blends! and i think the combination, while unusual is very pleasant, and quite evocative. i don;t know - i find this one a really nice change of pace - people who like candied fruit scents - but not overly sugary ones - should try it.

oh dear, the pineapple is very prominent at first...reminds of milk moon, the version that smelled like pina colada... thankfully the pineapple backs down after a bit, and the coconut comes out. i love coconut, so this a relief. the flowers also come out a bit later....and at this point, things feel more balanced. the orchids are a bit drowned out by the pineapple, papaya, and other fruits...but the longer this wears, the flowers do blossom out a bit more, as does the vanilla. this takes a while to develop and round itself out. i agree that this is very tropical and feminine, like a fruity drink with flowers wafting in the breeze... a fun scent that'll be nice for summer evenings...

heavy vetiver at first, mixed with some bright orange - i don't wear much vetiver, but i like it once in a while...the vetiver recedes fairly quickly, and the orange comes forward - sort of a spiced orange smell - like an old fashioned pomander orange, stuck w/ cloves...it's got almost a candy-ish feel - like orange hard candy. something lurking in the scent reminds me of leather...maybe the licorice? i think i would like more of a defined licorice smell, but this scent is interesting nonetheless - it does some morphing, with the different layers popping in and out...though i can't smell the amber...this scent fades to a spicy orange with smpky vetiver. the licorice masquerading as leather bugs me a little, but overall i like it, it's quite warm and comforting.

this reminds me of budding moon for some reason - a subtle, almost cold, breezy floral - when blossoms are still in cool breeze. i don't remember if budding moon had wisteria, but that's what i think i'm smelling - it's a watery quality, and a bit nostalgic and old fashioned too...i do smell the honey which gives a succulent quality to the blend, while still staying simple - it is not an overbearing, "heady" type floral at all...more like catching whiffs of flower blossoms on a cool breeze.

while wet, it's a rich, almost pollen-y honey. dry - this becomes much lighter, and fades quickly...the honey is super-sweet, yet subtle. the lotus is candy-sweet for a a few minutes then fades away...it's very pretty, youthful and uncomplicated. the honey and lotus blend well into a pleasant sweet scent.