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I got a brand new bottle in June. It was a little different than the imp I'd been using, but it was obviously just a little sharper because it hadn't had enough time to marry together. The notes were the same, as far as I could tell (sweet/spicy!), just a little different in tone.

I've had an imp of this for some time, unwilling to try it out because it smelled so powerful that I was a little intimidated. "Road Opener" can cause swift change in directions that you might not have intended, so I was a little cautious. This morning, though, I found myself at a rough point in my novel, and really needed a push, so I went through my ritual oils - and lo and behold, instead of intimidating, it smelled sweet and inviting. So I swiped a bit on my wrists. Scent-wise, it's green and powdery, with the generic 'herbal' scent I associate with magickal blends and perhaps just a hint of musk underneath. With regards to magickal use, I was worried about coming up with money for a particular bill, and got a phone call first thing this morning with a creative solution. I'm hoping that it'll work the same quick magick when I sit down for my writing session this afternoon.

You know...you may have gotten a mislabeled imp. It happens sometimes. 'Silk Road' should smell spicy, very similar to Snake Oil (without the vanilla note). If it doesn't seem to have any of the same notes, you might want to email the lab about it. Sometimes label mix-ups happen.

I didn't order a bottle of this because I was afraid that the caramel apple note would overwhelm it, as the butter-based scents tend to do on me. But when I tried an imp? ::swoon:: It smells like funnel cake, sweet and greasy. Yum! I smell good enough to eat.

In the bottle: Spicy and floral. Initial application: Mostly sweet pea, with a little sweetness. Mellowed to: Vaaaaanilla, but not a foody smell. The amber underneath it darkens the vanilla and keeps it from sliding into bakery territory. The longer it's on my skin, the more I like it. Verdict: Hmm. I think I'll have to wear it a couple of times to see how I like it.

This was a very mercurial scent, in every sense of the word. A group of us all tried it on last night, and each and every one of us had a different changeable scent. In the imp, I was a bit afraid that I'd have an allergic reaction because it smelled so very sharp. But happily, I did not. When I first applied the scent, I smelled just like a cinnamon stick! After a bit, the cinnamon receded, but never went entirely away. Sadly, it had no staying power on me at all - in an hour and a half it was completely gone. On my friends? On one woman, it smelled of spice tea - clove, cinnamon, and hint of orange peel. On another, it smelled of oregano, pleasant but overwhelmingly herbal. On a third, the predominate note was lime. What a fun blend!

... Offerings of ginger candy, sugar cane, smoky vanilla and rice wine mingle with a ghost’s perfume of white sandalwood, ho wood, ti, white grapefruit, crystalline musk and aloe. This scent is tapered by the presence of seven herbs, woods and resins used in the purification of the spirit and the purging of earthly concerns from the soul. I adore the label of this scent. I'm tempted to keep it just for the label. Unfortunately, I don't really care for the perfume itself. I don't really smell any grapefruit; it's all musky and green on me. Bleah. Obviously, not for me. Happily, I have the t-shirt, which is beautiful and looks divine. But the perfume? Off to swap.

In the vial, and when it first touched my skin, it was deep, dark chocolate - yummy! Sadly, that lasted about fifteen seconds, before becoming a hideous collage of filthy hippie and raw leather stink. I couldn't wash it off fast enough to prevent a pounding headache from it.

When I opened the imp, I was struck by how much this snelled like Fee. On my skin, even, it has the same rounded fruity smell, even though this is peach, and Fee is lychee. Both have the tang of oakmoss; the real difference here is that Fee is all sugar, while Fae has a deeper, darker base note. All in all, not for me.

I'm so disappointed. In the bottle, it smelled like buttercream frosting. Oh, man, so tasty. On my skin, it bloomed to a less sweet frosting smell...for about three minutes. Then the currants rose up from hell and made me smell like medicine. Ew. Three hours later, I'm finally to the 'vanilla cake' phase, but I can't take smelling like liniment to get there.

In the imp, all I smell is jasmine. Wet, it smells like...ew, old-lady perfume smell. Underneath that is the bite of frankincense, which I hatehatehate. Off to swap.

Jasmine, jasmine, jasmine, thick and gagging. Off to swap.

Hold the vial still and work the cap slowly back and forth until it comes free. I just swipe on my wrist - if your skin is clean, there shouldn't be that big a problem.

My teenager loves all the Asian-inspired scents, and the more single rose scents. Her bpal box includes: Holiday Moon, Kumiho, Kitsune-Tsuki, 2, 5 and 7, Rose Red, Shanghai, etc. Oh, honey - not even remotely! In fact, years from now you'll look back and think, "Thank the Gods I don't have to go through THAT again." ::chuckle::

Vanillavanillavanillavanilla. This is the vanilla of Snake Oil without the spices. Honestly, I don't smell any other note besides vanilla. No flowers, no linen, no nothing. It's very nice, but it seems to be giving me a bit of a headache. I might put it aside to try again later.

This is a beautiful aquatic floral, all wildflowers and rain. Where I disliked the 2005 Beltane because it was all jasmine, I love this one. It's a very happy scent, it didn't ping my allergies, and it lifted my spirits whenever I caught a whiff from my wrists.

The night before I recieved the decant of this oil, I dreamed that a pair of doves nested in my house. Since doves are sacred to Venus, I'm pretty sure that buying it was a good move. I haven't yet touched this to my skin - right now, I'm using it to anoint a candle that I burn while I prepare supper each night. I'm working to create a happier, more loving environment (since we've been a bit stressed 'round here.) When I light it, I pray to Venus/Aphrodite, asking her to lend me her mantle as she lent it to Hera. I don't smell cloves at all. Instead, I get a sharp, minty-metallic note with a recognizable 'voodoo' base. Given my negative history with minty scents such as Cathode and Ultraviolet, I'm leery of putting Mantle of Venus on my skin, though I may give it a try at some point. I have a feeling that this will be the TAL I order an entire bottle of.

I love wearing Snow Bunny when it's hot outside - the snowy notes and sweet pine remind me of winter.

On me? Smells like a candle shop. Off to swap.

This smells just like Milk Moon, without the vanilla. And that makes me so darn happy.

In the imp, it was all red wine. On my skin, the honey flared, and then gave way to a heady floral blend, heavy on the osmanthus and hibiscus. I can just barely detect the tobacco, but it only gives a smoky base to the rest of the flowers. I like it, but the husband opined that it was waaaay too strong (this has big, big throw) and that it was making him a bit ill. Since I have a bunch of other faves, this one'll go in the swap pile.

This went on so refreshing! Grapefruit, all tangy and happy! Sadly, that topnote lasted only a few minutes before it matured into a slightly spicy floral perfume. My husband liked it, but I thought it was a bit flowery for my tastes. Too bad the grapefruit didn't last longer.

This largely smelt of wild cherry cough drops on me. (My 5 year old mentioned that it was a 'caramel' smell, but he held his nose when he said so.) It later faded to the smell of stale cigarettes. I really have terrible luck with BPAL's foody scents. ::sigh::

I thougt Severin was very like it, actually (aside from the leather finish).

The bottle I got in a swap says "Old Yerevan", so I'm guessing it's good and aged. In the bottle: Fruity. Wet: APRICOT Dry: Apricot-y musk. Ew. This is really nasty. From my reaction to a couple of other scents, I figured that apricot does not play well with my skin. This would seem to confirm it. Bleah.