karihan

I put País de la Canela on my wish list shortly after it came out because I love cinnamon scents, but I was in no particular hurry to try it, not being a fan of, well, any of the other notes. When some kind soul sent me a frimp of it, I shrugged, cracked it open and took a whiff. Spank me silly and call me Spongebob, this stuff is gorgeous. From wet to drydown, PdlC stays remarkably true to that first sniff, morphing only subtly. The leaves, lichens, orchids and palm wood are all present, but they do not go sharp and musty on me as so many foliage scents do, nor do they go pencil-shavy like so many woods. Instead they stay fresh, deep and vibrant. I do get a hint of the creamy note mentioned by others; I wonder if the orchid does that? The cinnamon without a doubt takes center stage here, but this is not any other incarnation of the spice I've ever known, not baking spice, red hot or stick in a wassail glass. This fresher, gentler cinnamon pervades the whole scent and ties it together, blending deliciously with that creaminess and a delicate floral caress from the orchid. More than a spice, this cinnamon entices. If I ever found a country that smelled like this, I'd never leave. Needless to say, I've bought a bottle since my first test. País de la Canela, I predict a long and happy relationship between us.

I wasn't at all sure what to expect from Infernal Lover, but honey loves me and I've liked Beth's red musk blends lately, so I had to give it a try. IN BOTTLE: Definitely RED MUSK with some honey. Not a whole lot of complexity, as others have observed. ON WET: This settles down almost immediately on me. I definitely get honey in addition to the musk, but this blend is far more subtle than I expected. Touches of fruitiness drift in and out, but the overall effect is deep, sweet musk. DRYDOWN: A hint of powder comes out, but it's very slight. The scent goes smooth and almost-creamy on me, and clings close to the skin. The honey doesn't amp as much as it usually does on me, but there's still enough to sweeten the musk. CONCLUSION: Definitely a coy, close-to-the-skin blend, the kind of thing to share with someone up close and personal. I like it very much on its own, but I'll also try layering it with O as an earlier reviewer suggested, to bring out the honey a little more. I'll probably also try it with Ravenous, which is drop-dead sexy on me and has a bit more throw.

Roight, I've just finished testing my newly arrived bottles, and Ghoulish gets the honor of the first review. IN BOTTLE: Oh MAI, we have cherry and almond doing the charleston with plenty of sweetness and a hint of something almost spicy in the background. Foody scent lover that I am, this smells promising! ON WET: Cherry and almond still front and center, but the saffron joins the dance now, adding a sunny warmth and elevating the blend to something more interesting than sugary candy or pastry. The coconut is there, but lurking in the background. DRYDOWN: Ooooohh, everything's blending beautifully now. The coconut comes forward a bit and smells sweet and moist, not dessicated and dry like some coconut notes. It provides a rich base for the other notes, which are settling into something gently warm and delicious, still with that saffron spark. I never got more than a hint of booziness from the amaretto, which is typical for me. CONCLUSION: This is a foody scent, but far more sophisticated than most foody scents that I've tried. My only very mild complaint is that I could wish for more throw, but I do not regret buying this 5ml unsniffed.

Turbulent, disordered beauty: sensitive to initial conditions, topologically mixed, and approached by periodic orbits with abandon. A dynamical system expressed through scent. I had the dubious pleasure of receiving bottle #55. Why dubious? Allow me to share: In bottle: VINEGAR STANK OMG! At this point I had to put the bottle down for a bit and ask myself whether I or not I really wanted to skin-test the contents. But I am either terribly brave or an utter moron, so onward! Appearance: Brownish-red, skin-staining ... and sticky. Plus I could just make out a blob of undefined glop at the bottom of the bottle that stubbornly refused to mix with the rest of it. By now I sympathized. Wet: VINEGAR STANK OMG! Now with something mineral-y added, maybe a slight hint of sulfur? Dry: It seemed to have faded slightly, but I really couldn't tell if that was due to drydown or if my nose was saying, "Screw this, I've had enough!" Suffice to say it never morphed into something better, nor did it want to wash off. Just in case my nose was having the off day to end all off days, I brought the bottle to the next Meet 'n Sniff I attended to share the joy. Everyone else confirmed the vinegar horrors ("It's like dyeing Easter eggs in that really strong vinegar dye!"), and one person insisted it smelled like a surgical prep room. Which of course identified the mineral component: iodine! Yum yum! Let me just add that no one there was dumb enough to skin-test. The story does have a happy ending, though. Over on sinandsalvation on LJ, not only did I have a lolarious discussion on what to do with the ... scent, I have actually found people willing to buy the fourteen half-decants I got out of the extremely full bottle! One person said she wants to layer it with Gore-Shock as the perfect accent for her zombie chicken Halloween costume. After postage, I should make back nearly all of what I paid for the ick. Plus there was about a third of a decant left over for me to keep for nostalgia purposes ... sealed in its own tiny baggie to keep the rest of my stash safe. I love you, fellow BPALers! EDIT: Welp, after 9 long years, ol' #55 has mellowed quite a bit, or at least what I have left of her has. Still a wee bit tangy, but no vinegar; I can agree with the reviewers who got a wine note out of their decants. The chocolate others found is more obvious, along with a soft, subtle earthiness. She's still not in my scent wheelhouse, per se, but she's much more agreeable to my nose!

Oh, but I had high hopes for this one when I sniffed it in the bottle. Lovely yummy cake, with a shot of tea and a hint of cucumber. Alas, when it dried on my skin the EVIL GLOWING CUKE NOTE OF DOOOOOOM took over and beat down all the cakiness. The tea tried gamely to stand out, but the cukes won the day. One to be rehomed, I'm afraid!

Gilded amber, tiare, golden sandalwood, vanilla, cardamom, and tagetes. Oh DANG. I was so sure I'd love this from the notes list, but something in this is going to pencil shavings on me. Cedar sometimes does that, but sandalwood normally doesn't! Maybe the tagetes is confusing the issue. *sigh*

Oh, oh oh oh. This is gorgeous. In the bottle it's mostly plum blossom with a bit of sweet vanilla. On my skin the gently fruity floral of the plum blossom blends with not only the vanilla, but the warm sandalwood, and the rice lends a softness that's just delicious. The nutmeg is very subtle, just the right touch of spice and darkness to add depth to what would otherwise be a very light scent. I am soooooo so glad that I got a full bottle of this. A lovely and unique scent for spring!

Drat. Drat, drat, DRAT I say! All the notes in Candy Phoenix have worked beautifully on me in other blends, so I was sure I would adore this. So what happens? It goes sour. No, scratch that, it goes SOUR. Sour almost to the point of making my nose hairs curl. Where is all the sugar that everyone else is getting? I only wish I had that much sweetness to offset the tang. Alas, the foody in me must pout, and my bottle must find another home.

Oh. My. WORD. I bought a bottle of this wondering if it would be too floral for my tastes, but knowing that some of Beth's Asian blends work very well on me. Well, this is floral, but it is gorgeous on me and only gently Asian. In bottle and wet: Definite wisteria and other florals with sweetness from the lotus blossom. There's a bit of fruitiness in there. Dry: A hint of spice from the cassia buds come out to play, and then the lovely cool green bamboo. The sweet floral-and-fruit aren't overwhelmed, but rather rounded out. It lasts for hours on my normally scent eating skin, with some nice throw. I may have to keep an eye out for another bottle of this.

Mmmm, nice. I agree with sarada's comparison with Flower Moon. Here we also have an assortment of florals, all in excellent balance so that one isn't dominating the other. I find E Pluribus Unum to be a little lighter than Flower Moon though, a little more subtle, sticking a bit closer to the skin. This particular profusion of flowers also smells a little warmer, a touch spicier even, as opposed to the hint of fruitiness Flower Moon has on me. It's a lovely blend over all, and doesn't morph much from bottle to skin. I think this would be an excellent floral for those who normally find floral blends to be too overwhelming.

O. M. G. My skin doesn't kill Sugar Cookie '08 in ten seconds flat the way it did '05!!! *weeps with joy* This blend doesn't morph a whole lot from bottle to dry stage, at least not on me. I get buttery cookie dough throughout, very lightly spiced with cinnamon. The "very lightly spiced" is another pleasant surprise, as cinnamon does sometimes go overboard on my skin. This stays sweet and delicious, and I agree with everyone who's said "snickerdoodles" for this version. I shall have to score another bottle to give to my sugar-cookie-loving niece. *sings* C is for cookie, that's good enough for me. Cookie cookie cookie starts with C ....

Those who purchased the Election 2008 scents (Tabella and E Pluribus Unum) also received a frimp of a scent representing one of the parties of the Presidential candidates, one for each bottle bought. Independent was one of my frimps. In the imp: Mmmm, tangy! Citrus most definitely. On wet: The predominant note on me is a sweet citrus rather than a sharp one, mandarin or tangerine I think. There's something floral there too, but it's well blended in. Possibly orange blossom? Dry: There's a tingly-freshness to the scent that I think might be ozone, but I really can't be certain. Something breezy anyway, and very light. The citrus and florals are more equal partners now, very nice! Overall: Ooooh, I like this one! It kinda reminds me of a lighter Aizen-myoo, without the yuzu sharpness. Very fresh and delicious. This one's a keeper! (Accidentally made another post for this scent, so I'm moving my review here and asked the mods to remove the duplicate.)

GAH. I was positive I was going to adore this one, but unfortunately I get too much of the Pillowcase and not enough of the Sticky! I do get a bit of fruity candy, but unfortunately the cottony smell stands out, and I'm just not big on smelling like linen. *LESIGH* Off to the out-box with this one ....

Oh, man, did this morph on me! In the imp it was fruity with a bit of spice and sex from the patchouli and amber. The minute it hit my skin, however, it went pretty much straight patchouli and stayed that way. Granted, it's a very nice patchouli, not the stanky version I sometimes get from the note, but still ... just patchouli and a hint of amber. No fruits, and I never did get any violet. *sigh* Off to swaps with this one.

Dragon's Milk is one of my first BPAL loves, so it's long past time for me to review it. In the bottle: Vanilla and sweet, subtly floral spice. On wet: The vanilla and honey well up almost immediately in a cloud of sweetness, but the spice is still there. Dry: The dragon's blood starts to come out, with a smoky, fruity spiciness that blends beautifully with the honey/vanilla to make something rich and creamy, but warm and intriguing at the same time. If dragons drank milk, it would taste like this smells! This has good throw and staying power on me. I get little wafts of it for hours after applying, and it's SO delicious ... both decadent and comforting at the same time.

Hello, raccoon-dog! May I say you have some fascinating bottle art! In the bottle: Tangy fruit and pine predominantly. On wet: The pine dies down almost immediately, and the fruits are joined by gentle flowers and the bamboo reed. Very Asian, very fresh. Drydown: The pine peeks out again, just a bit, and the bamboo reed strengthens, greening the scent up a little. It's still very well blended though, and very pretty, though not as rollicking-sassy on me as I was expecting. Overall: A very fresh, sweet, gentle Asian blend. Tanuki smells like Budding Moon and Fire Pig's love child on me, so I think I've got a keeper!

Oh YUM. What a lovely little surprise to get with my Tanuki order! In the imp I smell warm spices, nuts and definitely candied cherries. Shortly after I dabbed some on, the spice-and-fruitiness merged with this wonderful warm cakey smell. It hasn't morphed much on the dry down, which suits me right down to my toes, it's so delicious! In short, this reminds me of my mother's fruitcake, which is the only kind I'll eat. I'll be sure to wear this on Christmas! Many thanks to Beth and the Labbies!

In imp: *first sniff* mmm ... *second sniff* mmMMM!!! This is a beautifully balanced blend of sweetness, spice and flowers, with a nice hint of fruitiness to it, probably from the passion flower. Wet on skin: The pepper-spice surges to the fore a bit, but it doesn't overwhelm. The other notes are still quite present. Drydown and dry stage: This one is a rather subtle morpher. One minute it's amber-honeysuckle, the next it's more flowery, then more peppery (though without the harshness black pepper sometimes has on me, yay for pink!). But it remains a really nice, warm, rather flirty-zesty scent throughout. Hermia sticks fairly close to the skin, not a ton of throw on me, though I get little wafts occasionally. Moderate-to-good staying power, I'd probably have to reapply this two or three times over the course of a day. Conclusion: The Illyria blends continue to do delightful things on my skin. Hermia, you is one spicy-sweet-sexy short woman!

My favorite non-sweet fruit scent is Rosalind. The berries are definitely there, but the grass and light florals give it a just-after-a-rainshower freshness. You might also want to try Tweedledee ... bright citrus and floral, with a little spark from the white pepper.

Oh, YES! I swapped for a bottle of this at a Meet 'n Sniff last weekend and couldn't keep my nose away from it for much of the afternoon. I told everyone I had to smell my Fish. In bottle: Wet spring florals, very bright and intense. On wet: It gentled a little, and the sugar and honey notes came out, but just a tiny bit. This is fresh and sweet and happy-bouncy stuff! I can smell all the flowers in the bouquet, but they're beautifully balanced. Fortunately the rose does not overpower. Dry: This stays very consistent, doesn't morph much, which is a-ok with me. Poisson is above all a very happy, feel-good scent, a perfect pick-me-up for Spring. The throw and staying power are both fairly good, and this is from someone with scent-eating skin. I am SO glad I got a bottle after all!

Oh, MY. I dabbed this on an hour ago, and I still can't keep my nose away from the spot! In imp: Spicy, resiny sweetness, with just a hint of herb, I presume from the hyssop. On wet: LUSCIOUS. Champaca flower is a note I never encountered before Kajurajo, but my skin adores its warm, slightly fruity sweetness. Add in the sugar cane, the lovely resiny frankincense and the Snake Oil spices and I am in LOVE. The other notes fell to the background pretty quickly, but they're still lending a touch of depth. On dry: This one hasn't morphed much at all, which is just fine by me. It smells like a slightly subtler, spicier Kajurajo on me, and Kajurajo is one of my faves. The throw is light to moderate. It has only been an hour or so, but so far it hasn't faded much at all, so I have hopes for it lasting reasonably well. Absolutely must get at least one bottle of this one!

My first review here! I figured after engineering a shared Snake Pit order to get my hands on an imp of Anaconda, I really ought to review the silly snake. In imp: WOAH. Caramel-butter-sugar-spice, right in my face. Very reminiscent of Gluttony, if Gluttony had spices instead of nuts. Wet: The Snake-Oiliness starts to come out almost immediately, kind of winding around the caramelly-foodiness. Very intriguing! Dry: Wow! This scent has gone far more sophisticated on me than I was expecting! There's still a rich, sugary undercurrent, but the slinky spiciness has toned everything down. It's as if Gluttony suddenly turned suave and debonair and had a love child with Scherezade. DANG, this is foodiness turned upscale! TEH LURVE!