themerrybaker

Aeval is vanilla (tonka?) sweet pea on me. It is a young, girly, scent and sweet but not cloying. If I needed another bottle, I might consider it but as for now will just enjoy the imp.

I have just about despaired of finding a true violet or muguet scent and Ephemera not helping things much. However, after getting past that disappointment, I notice that Ephemera smells a lot like skin with a faint "generic BPAL" floral, and a bit of leafy dustiness. The overall impression is damp, leathery Victorian gloves/skin!! Not that there is any leather here. I think that it was a feat to keep the chamomile from making this puckery, that Ephemera is really well blended, and that it is really interesting scent. Other than that, I'm not sure what to think - maybe 7.5/10? Darn. Why do I never get the Cat Pee?

Baobhan Sith is a wonderful new green tea and may replace my Kumiho when it is gone. Check out Sudha - it reminds me a little of tea also. I have ordered but not yet tried the Salon "Satan" but have high hopes for it. Good Luck - Spirits is one of my all time faves, too.

Baobhan Sith makes me want to haunt the Forum and scream and wail very loudly: "Baobhan Sith is another BPAL favorite!!". If I did not have Sudha and Kumiho, this would definitely positively absolutely be a big honking bottle for me. The apple blossoms add a little bit of softness missing from the above. But the overall impression is very fresh tea with true ginger spice.

Red wine is not my friend. It seems to be lending a squashed bug gut taint to the wonderful BPAL honey that I love so much. The juxtaposition of the two senses remind me of the expression: " You can catch more flies with honey..." Not a happy situation.

Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of vetiver! Actually Blue Beard reminds me a lot of Saturnalia, but cleaner and lighter. The dry-down is pretty nice, with the white musk and the purple flowers. I liked this one much more than I expected to. And it would be so cool to layer it with Brass Balls.

I pictured the carnival lemon-and-peppermint-stick thing, and apparently so did my skin, which sucked this baby up like the vortex of doom. Before I blinked and missed it, there was some subtle lotus. I'm not sure the champagne notes ever made it to the surface. Shattered is a beautiful scent, but needs to come in buckets because it throws like a t-ball pitcher.

The 2006 Beltane is wonderful. Happy, tart, fresh and a bit fruity. And it even comes with wearing instructions! I'm so thrilled to have a bottle of this.

2006 Version I was so pleased when Snake Charmer came back, since it is a huge forum favorite. It smells a bit like root beer in the bottle, and major musk-eh on my skin. Snake Charmer also lasts a long time on me, but goes through a burned-plastic stage. I tried it again this morning, after using lotion. This was a much better experience. The musk is less pronounced and there are hints of saffron and wood. 'twill be interesting to see how this one ages. Edited to add: aging did improve it. now it smells more like aged SO, but less salty less vanilla and more resin-spicy.

2006 Version In the great grapefruit sniff-off: Phobos is Ozone Grapefruit. If the Grapefruit Guys existed this would be an analogy to Scary Spice of the Girls! No sweetness here: slightly bitter, very tart, perhaps lemon-oily citrus goodness. As it dries, there is a green, weedy undertone. Phobos is a very interesting and evocative scent, but not very "perfumey". I think this would be better as a lotion.

Cheshire is nicely balanced, with the fruity currant and (very subtle) lavender keeping the chamomile and grapefruit from holding a pucker fest. This is so perfect for hot summer days. And it has the word "Cat" on the label!!

Bayou starts out as an oily sharp perfumey floral but as it dries, it developes a "skin" or leathery feel. The description says cypress and evergreen are included, but unless the "leathery" is woody cypress, there is no conifer that I can detect. I really like the complexity of this one - it seems to be good for hot days and doesn't lapse into the chemical sharpness that can be a problem with some of the other aquatics.

I've heard of chocolate decadence and chocolate Bliss is more of the same. I couldn't see wearing this as a perfume, but liked the idea that a lot of people use Bliss to layer with other scents.

Tell Tale Heart is dusty cocoa powder & curry powder on me. It is heavy on vetiver after several hours. I don't notice any dragon blood or musk, but consider that to be good news since neither is a favorite note. So, TTH is a like rather than a love right now.

I get um, Dragon's Blood? This is much more "floral" than Arachne, and less tart than Unicorn (which I always think of as white). Asphodel seems to be along the lines of Danube, and Endymion and many others. This is a nice scent, but does not really stand out in the BPAL crowd.

Oh goodie, no tuna. I get pungent aromatic/herbal rosy lavender. Black Cat is energizing and frisky and makes me want to pounce on the Mouse's Long Sad Tale. Although I've never found the Voodoo oils to be all that great as perfumes and wear them for the effect, Black Cat is one of the better-smelling blends.

Ogun may hate me, or may just take some getting used to. I definitely smell cigars, but also something gamey and sweaty. There doesn't seem to be much throw, either. This one is "confusion in a bottle" on me.

It's a steamy hot day and good for trying out Jazz Funeral. At first, there is a smell of Bananas Foster. It dries down to tart-herbal-cinnamon-spicy. This is not a boozy scent on me, it is clean and a little aquatic. Obviously, after the banana phase I really can't describe this complex blend very well. But I like it a lot.

Honey Rose drying to Honey Strawberry. Osun is happy and uncomplicated; love my imp but likely won't need a big bottle. ADDED June 8: Wore it for a second time and thought, "Dang that smells good". It turned out to be Osun.

Beatrice was a really happy surprise, especially since I thought Berenice was coming my way. Ah, reaping sweet the rewards of sidlexia. No overpowering rose or jasmine in mine. At first, Beatrice smells to me like heavy poppy with some ylang-ylang or honeysuckle. There is a musky, baby-oily, vanilla very like Snake Oil but without the saffron. It doesn't morph radically, and has medium throw. Although Berenice is a favorite, I will be wearing Beatrice a lot. She is wunnerful.

Budding Moon was way-in-my-face too sweet for me. It was a very nice and well blended lunar oil, but not my type.

Black Hellebore is one of the few big bottles in my collection that I would not consider swapping. I agree with the previous reviewers about the peony. BH is green, herbal, and fresh rather than overtly floral. In comparision to Peony Moon, BH is tart and creamy with maybe a vanilla as opposed to juicy and berry-sweet. On the basis of what size nose you wish you had when wearing it: Elephant.

Hemlock starts out as conifer resin - it brings to mind shopping for Christmas trees, or camping in on pine needles. It goes through a sour, gamey, phase a little like Grandmother of Ghosts, and then has sweet berries on top of pine needles. Maybe this is the juniper part. This is a very evocative scent, I get woods rather than potions. I'm just not sure it would be an everyday kind of thing for me.

I would have thought almond, straight out of the imp. Then a brief rush of intense cleaning fluid (note to self: need to clean microwave). Drydown: not very pleasant - still cleaning fluid and maybe a little rootbeer. Not a fave. Caveat: Some of the above posts mentioned "deep, dark, red" my imp is thick viscous yellow-brown and it came with a rolled label in a swap. Maybe Kabuki doesn't "age" well. I can empathize.

Initially, Dia reminded me of Samhain. They both reminded me a bit of Ricola or other herbal lozenge. Hence the wristly sniff-off. On the left, it's Samhain: Cinnamon, oak, conifer. And in the right corner it's Dia de los Muertes: Dusty, aromatic, cocoa and floral. Never would have said "floral" before the comparison w/ Samhain and this is not the overall impression for me. And the winner is???? Kind of a tie. I got this one to wear on Dia, since I make a little altar for someone. This will be one more happy experience to go with the marigolds, candles, and other good things.