Athenae

At first it's all vetiver, but now it's almost all burnt coconut and vanilla, dark and sexy and lovely once the vetiver chills out and goes soft. I may not need a bottle, but I'm definitely keeping my imp! A.

My skin amps the bergamot and jasmine up to OMGGETITOFF levels, unfortunately, because it's lovely in the imp. It dries down to something powdery and indistinct. Off to the swap pile it goes to look for someone to love it well. A.

Great sweet holy mother of us all. This is what I want to smell like. I know I'm a fickle scent whore who says things like that all the time, about every new scent and every GC I finally get around to trying, but man, you've got to understand, scotch was the first liquor I ever tried, it's the only drink I'm never out of, and I've been longing for something that smelled just like it ever since I found BPAL. Devil's Night was too smoky, Sugar Skull too sweet, all the wine scents turned into plastic fruit on me ... But this. THIS. I mean, Jesus, Beth ... Man. It's so strong in the bottle I can hardly stand it, just straight whiskey like I'm splashing myself with the contents of the half-bottle of Lagavulin over on my liquor cabinet. But on, the oak makes it spicy instead of dry-woodsy, until it dries down to something that isn't cardamom, but has the same kind of warmth behind it. The boozy sweetness is still there, underneath, making me feel decadent, like I'm sitting at my favorite table sipping on this while looking down at a man at the other end of the bar who can't take his eyes off me. (I'm actually in my pajamas with unwashed hair trying desperately to finish a writing assignment, but that's how this makes me feel.) Sweet baby Jesus on a pink pogo stick. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is gonna get HELLA rich off me this month. A.

My skin EATS this. Good thing I have a whole bottle. At first it's all thick heady floral, which I think is the orchid. Underneath is something spicy and a little powdery, maybe the patchouli going powder on me. It dries down to a lovely, faded, spicy-floral scent that's very, very sexy. Love. So glad I ordered this on impulse. I'm not normally a floral girl. A.

I'm sensitive to cinnamon, but I wanted to try a sniffie of her just to find out what she was like. Bitter cinnamon, like Red Hots, grounded by something smoother. I don't smell the smoke at all. She'd burn me if I applied her too heavily, but Priala isn't for me, anyway. Off to the swap pile she goes.

When this hit my skin it was bitter, bitter almond, almost too sharp, like raw almond paste, but now it's settled into something rich, lovely and spicy. I think I need a bottle. A.

Very, very, tooth-achingly sweet, like watermelon candy. It's not me, but it's lovely, very crystalline and bright. A.

At first it smelt strangely of lemon, and I was afraid the lemon would amp up and overwhelm everything, but now it's dried down to a lovely olive/woodsy scent, not as resinous as Schwarzer Mond nor as sweet. I don't know if I'll keep it yet or not. It'll take a couple of more tests to tell. A.

Citrus but not lemony, which is unusual because my skin usually amps lemon. More like an orange-cinnamon citrus, and then honeysuckle, one of the few florals I like, jumps out. It's warm and sunshine-y and lovely. I feel happier just wearing it. A.

Balsam, balsam, balsam on me. No cumin, no neroli, no patchouli, just the balsam of a middle-aged man's aftershave, and it doesn't change, it just gets lighter. I'll have to sneak some of this onto my husband, as the wintery blends (this reminds me of Talvikuu) are heaven on him and soap on me. A.

Scent: All floral at first, smooth and mixed in with the musk and spice, but then the florals fade and all I'm left with is a wonderful, exotic spice scent. Effectiveness: I wore this twice on trips recently. The first time, got hit on by a flight attendant. The second, got chatted up by the man in the seat next to me, then had people buzzing around me at an event all night. Compliments of, "mmm, you smell so good!" and compliments on my looks as well, which were definitely not deserved as I'd been on a plane all day and felt and looked like a dog's dinner. This stuff WORKS. A.

Sundew is thick, sticky honeysuckle. I can't detect anything else on me, and it stays pretty true on the drydown. My parents had a honeysuckle bush in their yard and this is what it smelled like on a hot summer day. Florals generally aren't me, but I like this, probably because of the nostalgia factor. A.

Strong sage and basil at first, but now that it's dry I can smell the musky leather, quickly turning this to bug spray on me. Oh, well, someone else will love it. A.

Pure dragon's blood resin on me, slightly less musky than Wolf's Heart but with the same "red" feel. I don't get the spice or currant at all, and it's incredibly strong. Yow. Headache inducing, in fact. Off it goes. A.

First butter and pumpkin, and then the orange comes out, but not in a Moxie-type HELLO BOYS HERE I AM kind of way. It sharpens the scent and keeps it from being too buttery. Love it. A.

Oooh. In the bottle, hardcore in-your-face come-f*ck-me butterscotch candy. On me, wet, sharp, red apples. Then on the drydown, the coconut rum comes out. Now I smell like a bar in Jamaica, and I love it! A.

Usually my skin amps acquatics, but this? Wood and spice at first, and then the florals come out, but not obnoxiously. Unfortunately, it disappears in seconds on me. I'd love for it to last, it's a beautiful scent. A.

In the imp, spicy and a hint of something like lemon. Wet: spicy, then lemon, lemon, lemon. Could it be the almonds turning lemony on me? Dry: Lemon Pledge. Bah. Off to the swap pile. A.

Wet: heavy patchouli Dry: the fruit sweetens this. I don't get vanilla at all, just a dark, spicy, dusky fruit that adores my skin. Most BPAL fruits turn plasticky on me. This is deep and mysterious and a friend leaned over at the wedding reception I wore it to and said, "Ooooh, what IS that?" Definitely ordering another bottle when I get the chance. This is lovely. A.

I love saffron. I am a Saffon Whore. In bottle: Heavy, like the cologne in antique bottles for sale, aged for years and years on a dusty shelf. Wet: Sweetness, the myrrh, sandalwood. Dry: Saffon, saffron, saffron. I love it. I am slathered in it. I am in love. A.

THIS is what I was hoping The Hesperides would be. Beth's fruits tend to turn wax on me, but this is lovely. Imp: Apple and banana, fresh apple like you get at a Farmer's Market, picked that morning with the leaf still on the stem. Wet: Apple, apple, apple. It smells like fall. Drydown: Now the apple turns more powdery, but not in a bad way, because the banana and spice come out to play. Puttin' this one on my "get a bottle sometime" list. It's a great summer scent. A.

In the imp, rich soil and the earthiness of roots. On me, baby powder. Rats. Was really hoping this one wouldn't hate me. A.

Sweet tarts. In the imp, on me, nothing but sweet tarts. Which I hate. Here's what's strange. Even though I dislike the scent ... it really did cheer me up. I was in a black mood when I put it on, just dabbed some on my wrists and temples, and later that day I was bopping around humming to myself. Weird. A.

New Favorite! In the imp it's dark and spicy to me, all clove and something else that's very ... red. On me, mmm, it warms up fast. It's sexy and though there may be florals which usually hate me, on this the overwhelming spice keeps them from amping up into headacheville. Best of all, it doesn't burn my skin like other spicy blends do. I really do feel with it on that I could get whatever I want. Placebo, voodoo, whatever works. I have a huge bottle coming and I'm so happy about it. *luffs* A.

Wet in the bottle: Red, red, red, almost like Red Phoenix but with less cinnamon. On me at first: Floral. Whoa holy hell floral. I don't know what kind of floral, but ... if there's even the slightest rose in this ... maybe that's what I'm getting. It's the floral of Dia De Los Muertos, which also amps up FLOWERPLOSION! on my skin for a minute before the foody parts kick in. Dry: Floral headache rush goes away and then I get more clove and coriander spices. And we're back to the red, red, red, but it doesn't burn my skin like Phoenix. I can't decide which one I like better. Must ponder this one a bit. A.