Ishtar

What would you recommend for a very mellow, subdued patchouli scent? I am looking for a patchouli note that would be in the background, giving depth and complexity to the scent, but nothing too aggressive or heady. Usually, patchouli is really not my cup of tea, but given that Beth already performed a few small miracles (ie making me enjoy, nay, love, floral and frankincense scents), I thought I would give it a try. Looking forward to reading your recommendations. Thanks!

A very light green scent on me - the first comparison that comes to mind is high-end shampoo. Not unpleasant, but this is not my favourite fragrance family and I already have a couple of scents that fit the bill nicely on the rare occasion when I feel like wearing something green. Still, I am keeping the imp to scent some lotion or hand cream, as it really has that spotless modern spa vibe to it.

I am with stellamaris on this - I can hardly smell it, alas. In the bottle, it is an unusual combination of airy, dry and cloying that is a bit offputting. As I apply it to my hair, I can tell it starts blooming to something else - there is an appealing dry leaves / smokiness autumnal theme going on here... and then - poof! It's gone. Oh well.

I absolutely love this - my first BPAL bath oil! Like many people, I use it mainly as a moisturizer, but I have tried it both in the bathtub and applied directly to damp skin, and both ways work well for me. The cream / pie crust note is noticeable at first, but it is fairly unobtrusive and dissipates after a while. It reminds me of the pastry note in Blackberry Jam and Scones, only much milder. The banana smells fairly realistic to me. Overall, this is a fun, sunny scent that never fails to put me in a good mood! It's been wonderful at soothing the tight, itchy winter skin on my lower back, but I sometimes apply it to my hands only when I have a craving for the scent. It sinks in right away and doesn't leave my hands greasy. My only regret is not having ordered two, as the bottle is on the small side and sees almost daily use.

La Befana (the version from several years ago, I haven't tried this year's) has a lovely violet-flavoured licorice tinge to it. It is a multilayered scent - at least to my nose - so the licorice is not necessarily front and centre, but it's definitely there! It's a quirky but not too bold gourmand-type scent that's very wearable.

This is fairly different from what I had imagined based on the scent description - which can only be a good thing, as I really dislike carnations! I was pleasantly surprised at first when I got the red fruit/apple cider combination several other people have described. The wine note seemed promising. Unfortunately, Queen Alice became fairly nondescript as soon as it started to dry down. The carnation did make its presence known for a moment or two, but melded back into the spicy background after a while. All in all this is not an unpleasant scent, but it tends towards musty and slightly soapy on my skin. While the spicy sweetness is an interesting twist on the usual floral blends, it is ultimately too old-fashioned and too similar to several other GC for me to keep.

This is very light on me, which perhaps was to be expected given the number of airy notes in this blend. Still, I was surprised to find the black musk unconspicuous to the point of being nearly unnoticeable. There's none of its usual lemon-tinged powderiness to be found here. The most prominent notes on my skin are the jonquil, tea leaf and clove. What I had pictured in my mind as an opulent, exotic scent turns out to be a well-behaved floral with a slight touch of honey. Very pretty and office-appropriate. - Updating this review several years later to mention that Liaison has aged spectacularly well. I didn't have high hopes in that department given how light this had started out, but... wow! The black musk and honey have both come into their own after years of aging, and the whole blend has blossomed into one of those warm, creamy florals with a touch of powderiness that BPAL does so well. It has gone from pretty and rather innocuous to sensual and elegant at the same time. Simply fantastic!

This is pretty low key for a leather and dragon's blood blend. All the notes listed seem to point to a sweet warm scent, but on me Creeper Dragon is unexpectedly dry and green. I get no honey nor cream, and the dragon's blood comes across as almost brittle - certainly a lot drier than the bold, fruity DB the Lab usually uses. The concept and the illustration were too good to pass up, although I wasn't convinced this was going to work on my skin. After wearing it a few times, I came to the conclusion it's not really "me". It's not bad by any means, but it's a bit disjointed and a touch too dry for me.

On me, Öndurdis is very, very similar to Snow Bunny, only a bit sharper and more bracing. It has that same fragrant pine and berry combination hovering above a pristine bed of fresh snow. As airy and crisp as it is, it has quite a bit of substance to it. Far from being ethereal, this is a full-bodied fruity/green scent that still manages to smell cold, wintry and wild. Really lovely, and quite fitting for Ôndurdis!

Playful Wooden Mallets has always smelled outrageously sexy to me and it is one of my all-time favourites. However, I would only recommend it to dedicated black musk fans. It does go powdery on me, but when powder is this warm, deep and sophisticated, I happen to love it. One thing is for sure, there is nothing coy about this scent - it is powerful, both in mood and throw. A little goes a very long way on my skin, although I do tend to amp black musk. The cinnamon plays a supporting role, but it does so quite beautifully, adding a welcome edge and depth to the blend. Wonderfully complex and gorgeous, especially for such a (seemingly) simple blend.

Venus Genetrix seems to be getting mixed reviews, but to me it is absolutely gorgeous. I am a big fan of tea-based scents, and this one is no exception. The jasmine in this is very soft, and it melds seamlessly with the tea - an elegant combination. The amber and vanilla blur into a sweet accord that forms a soft, tender base for the jasmine tea to rest on. This is one of these two-register scents, with the florals hovering above a heavier base. In this particular case, it reads as a sugared note that reminds me of a jasmine version of Faith. I very seldom upgrade from decant to bottle as decants tend to last me a while, but I will probably make an exception for Venus Genetrix if I see a bottle up for swaps

Strong jasmine and a hint of rose, with thick, almost chewy amber in the very background. Given all its deeper base notes, I expected this one would be a morpher, but other than becoming slightly darker after drydown, it pretty much stays the same throughout. The resins and other richer notes never get a chance to shine, and I have to sniff my arm really closely to even detect the presence of patchouli. Too bad, as I would have loved to get the full olfactory experience all these lovely notes had to offer.

White musk and fruit is usually a reliably good combination on my skin, and this is no exception. I was curious to see how different it would be from Endymion and, while they are definitely similar, Pleasant Embrace has an added fizziness and slight hint of spice that I am liking a lot. The lemon works exceptionally well with the pear here. The two notes harmonise yet always remain distinct from each other. Pleasant Embrace dries into a fairly classic sparkly / fruity clean musk, but the interplay of lemon and pear adds tension and interest to the blend. Truly well done!

This is initially nothing but an intense burst of concentrated, sweet apricot. Like a tidal wave, the apricot engulfs everything in its wake, and it takes a good long while before a tiny hint of spice and vanilla manage to make their presence felt. For a moment, Aristocratic Couple is very reminiscent of Tamora - one of my favourite GCs - but as it dries, the scent sort of collapses on itself and suddenly goes flat. What remains of it after complete drydown is a pleasant, if rather faint, apricot version of the very last stages of Tamora.

Revisiting Prosperous Flowers after a few months' aging, I was suprised at how much more prominent the leather has become. Right after applying, I get a big blast of really nice sweet patchouli. For a short while, it feels like this could be one of these fabulously deep and complex fruity/woodsy blends, and i can't wait to see where it's going to take me. Then the leather takes over. To be fair, this is a soft, sophisticated, unobtrusive brown leather note that will probably smell lovely to leather aficionados. Unfortunately, this is a note that I can only take in small doses, and it is just a tad too front and centre here for me to fully enjoy it. It's really too bad, as this is an otherwise gorgeous scent.

I wasn't totally in love with Mars Ultor when I first got it, but the notes looked like they could have excellent aging potential, so I decided to let it sit for a few months before trying it again. That certainly did the trick. The initial soapiness has completely disappeared, and Mars Ultor has mellowed into a rather unisex, wonderfully well-blended scent. It is sophisticated yet fresh, and very easy to wear. The dark amber is beautiful in this, and melds very well with the warm woodsiness of the cistus. Definitely a keeper!

The mimosa note is quite noticeable at first. It never fails to bring a smile to my face, as it instantly reminds me of the long departed Madrid that I used to wear a lot. The almond in this is a bit muted and powdery, closer to the smell of almond oil than the usual bright and bold BPAL almond note. The cream accord threatens to go sour as it moves from the wet stage to drydown, but fortunately it gives way to a sweet, cuddly vanilla after a few minutes. After complete drydown, Comparison of Celebrated Beauties reminds me of a freshly baked almond biscotti: slightly gourmand but not overly sweet, almondy but subtly so, comforting in an unassuming sort of way. The mimosa gives it some depth, but I think I was hoping for something with slightly more intrigue, maybe. Nonetheless, Comparison is a very nice and highly wearable scent that I will definitely enjoy and use up.

The first few times I tried Ivory Vulva, I was put off by the macadamia. Nutty notes can make me a little queasy, so I put my decant away, hoping the macademia would become less noticeable over time. Much to my relief, it did blend into the other notes, and quite beautifully at that! After 8 months of aging, what I am getting now is very similar to Boo with a tiny dollop of coconut added to it. After about an hour on my skin, Ivory Vulva settles into a very realstic rice pudding scent - silky, milky, and flavoured with the barest hint of spice. Really lovely. I don't know if I need much more than my decant, as I have a full bottle of Boo, but Ivory Vulva does make for a subtler, more natural-smelling alternative that would be appropriate for the office, or pretty much any occasion for that matter.

Scent-wise, I find Bildungsroman extremely similar to Milk & Honey, with that same slightly sour underlying note. Bildungsroman is more eucalyptus than lemon, and initially smells sharper than Milk & Honey, but after a few hours, it mellows into a softer scent with a touch of woodsiness. I got this oil to help me face frozen grief and wounding that dates back to my childhood and that needs to be released if I am to fully step into my own self as an adult. It is a slow and often painful process, but I have a good feeling about Bildungsroman. I wore it today while journaling, and I found it easier than usual to access certain emotions and just sit with them. I am not sure wearing it is the best way to work with this oil, and I am still figuring out how to best use it. Like patina said above, it has a serious, perhaps even solemn feel to it that seems to call for a more structured ritual.

Thank you very much for the additional recommendations! Voodoo is one of my staple blends - I don't necessarily wear it very often, but I like to keep it on hand for whenever a hankering for pine + lime + vanilla hits. It is certainly one of the most interesting / unique blends in my collection On me, Golden Priapus is a fairly gender-neutral, rather bracing vanilla blend. The woodsiness is there, but the vanilla is definitely predominant, without it being fluffy or gourmand. I find it eminently wearable, and it's my everyday, go-to vanilla blend, the way I guess Snake Oil is for many people. Now I look forward to my decant of Prosperous Flowers even more! Re: buying older LEs, I am actually finding it easier to track them down these days, and blends that used to be considered rare a few years ago can now be had at reasonable prices. La Befana in particular pops up in sales thread on a semi-regular basis, so there's hope yet!

Hi AlectoFurious! Wow, many thanks for the great recommendations! I have had my eye on Third Charm for a while now, but of the ones you listed, I have only tried (and do love) Tombstone. I look forward to trying the others Yes, I love complex scents and tend to gravitate towards the warm, sweet ones. On me, Bakeneko and Khandita are pretty spicy, but the fuzzy warmth of the dark musk grounds them beautifully

Hi VetchVesper Not sure what you meant by "Not in the general catalogue", as the GC scents can be ordered as imps, which means you sample them before committing to a big bottle. Anyway, my recommendations will fall into both categories, GC and limited editions. Fair warning: I have just started catching up after a hiatus of several years, so I apologise in advance if some of the general catalogues have been discontinued since I last was truly active! For Kyoto: you could try Kabuki (GC - Ars Amatoria), although it is a sweeter, heavier scent, what with the cherry and red musk. If you like the idea of florals + anise/liquorice, I would recommend La Befana (LE - predominently sugared violet + liquorice on me). If you want to try something more complex, Aquarius (2007 LE) is one of my favourites, and it has an airy feel to it that is somewhat reminiscent of the lightness of Kyoto. For Kitsune-Tsuki: Budding Moon, Dragon Moon (LE from a while back - 2006-2007, maybe?), or many of the Chinese New Year scents- of these, I have only tried Fire Pig (LE), which was quite fruity, but then again I do amp the fruit in Kitsune-Tsuki too... On me, The Caterpillar is nothing both bold patchouli and lazy incense. My other favourite patchouli blend is Anne Bonny (GC), so this would be my recommendation. It has a pretty different feel though - a much more active and bolder scent than The Caterpillar for sure, but the red patchouli note is just fantastic... I hope this helps! __________________ My turn! My enduring favourites are: - Bakeneko - Khandita - Golden Priapus - Red Lantern - Arcana layered with Snake Oil (OK, I know that's cheating Basically, if someone can recommend a sweet, bold scent with a layer of herbal or forest-like crispness, that would be fantastic. Other favourites in this category are Snow White, Snow Bunny, Pontarlier, etc.) Thanks in advance!

I tracked this one down specifically for the mango, and it certainly is front and centre in this blend! The pomegranate brings a hint of tartness and helps cut through the sticky tropical sweetness of the mango. The berries never really show up, and it's not until complete drydown that the sage and thyme introduce a faint dusting of savoury powderiness. You know how sometimes mangoes can taste a bit chalky? This is what this hint of powderiness reminds me of. It's a nice twist on the usual berry / fruit + musk theme, but it is probably a bit too young and girly for me to wear often.

This is interestingly savoury-sweet in the opening stages: sweet myrrh, a touch of ginger, and black pepper... ... lots and lots of black pepper, that quickly ends up drowning out the other notes, alas. No rose otto whatsoever, and no citrus either. Drat. I don't know if I'm particularly amping the pepper, but it completely spoils this scent for me.

All Souls 2010. The cake accord is predominant in the imp, although it's not particularly sweet - a lot less so than in Eat Me, for example. Surprisingly, I am getting a strong white floral note (reminiscent of lily of the valley) throughout the wet stage, powerful enough to drown the cake, and then it goes straight to... floral baby powder. Huh? As for the incense, it's AWOL. I have a feeling All Souls is not working on me the way it's supposed to. However, as powdery scents go (and I happen to quite like them), it's actually lovely, so I think I'll be able to enjoy it just the way it is, even though it's not what I was expecting at all!