Chrysantza

In the imp: Very jasmine with a spicy/resinous undercurrent. No rose that I can tell. On me: AUGH! The myrrh has amped up and gone bad! I smell like a bouquet of jasmine inside a container of burning plastic! I've worn both myrrh and jasmine with great success, but something in this does not agree with my body chemistry at all. Off to the swap pile.

I thought I was going to be able to wear this because the florals are balanced by resins and sandalwood, and it smelled heavenly in the bottle - a sophisticated, crisp floral with spicy and citrus undertones. Alas, my skin chemistry turned the "touch of Mandarin" sour. My nose loves citrus but my body chemistry does not. And the florals combined with sandalwood somehow managed to turn baby-powdery. Altogether it was too light and dry and powdery a scent for my taste. I'm going to take this to a citrus-loving BPAL-addict I know and swap it, as Viola would be truely lovely on the right person, I think.

In the bottle: Greenish? Sharp. I can't tell where the stephanotis is. On me: I cannot wear orchid. This is my conclusion after trying two orchid-based perfumes which have gone sour on me. Regan has a horrible weird grass-clippings or squashed-lettuce reek on me. Not that those are foul smells per se but I don't want to smell like them! And, to boot, it has a powdery undertone. Verdict: Swap pile. And NO MORE ORCHID. I love orchids but I don't like what my body chemistry does with their smell on me.

I ordered this as part of an imp pack because I like florals. In the bottle: Bright, sharp floral. On me: Oh oh, this went sideways. I smell like a cross between a fruit vinaigrette and cheap air freshener. I'm beginning to suspect that orchid isn't the greatest with my body chemistry. Plus it lost potency about 15 minutes into wearing, and what's left is mostly baby powder vinaigrette. Verdict: Swaparoonie.

I ordered an imp of this from the lab because I like white florals, especially gardenia. In the bottle: The strongest, sweetest floral I've ever smelled in my life. Sweety McSweeterson from Planet Sweet. Very very gardenia and jasmine plus a smell almost like orange marmalade or lemon curd or an extremely sweet fruit. On me: Still extremely sweet - I get mostly the gardenia and jasmine. It reminds me almost of Fracas commercial perfume. Dries down to a very pretty floral. Yes, it's sweet, but I like sweet florals; gardenia and jasmine combine well with my skin chemistry. A lot of the potence wears off after a half hour or so and I'm left with a pretty, tropical floral that reminds me of pikake and other lei flowers. This is a little like Pele but sweeter. Verdict: Keep and wear, maybe get a bottle, but this is definitely a spring/summer warm weather scent.

In the bottle: Rosy, rosy, rich and spicy. Wet: A potent, sultry rose with spicy undertones. Dry: Beautifully rosy with an undercurrent of spices. Unlike most blends with a resin, the amber didn't amp up and dominate the blend. I suppose because there is just enough amber and musk to provide a background to the dominant rose note. This is a dark and slightly dangerous rose - not the dewy, pink rose that is Moon Rose but more of a femme fatale, deep blood-red rose. The amber and musk add depth and somehow make it smell even more rosy while preventing it from going soapy on me. Verdict: Bottle, oh yes. I love how floral and rosy, yet how rich and sophisticated, this one is. A real winner!

2005 version: In the bottle: Floral-y incense, with prominent rose and gardenia, like bouquets on the altar Wet: elegant, sophisticated florals over an incense base. Dry: Am I the only one who gets frankincense like whoa? The gardenia and frankincense are having an epic battle over who gets to reign supreme in Scentland. As time goes on, this gets more resiny. My skin loves resins and amps them right up and this is no exception. Good thing I'm a resin fan. And this is a sweet, spicy, incensy smell on me; the flowers still manage to mingle with the very pushy frankincense. ETA a little later: Heeeeere's Myrrh! All I need is some gold and I'm a walking wise woman. Verdict: Keep. It smells sophisticated and warm; and it will also be a good ritual/purification oil. Edit, one week later: I've upgraded this from "nice" to OMG WONDERFUL SQUEE! I don't know if it's the time of the month or the fact that I wore this again tonight after it had sat and marinated for a week - but the resins have toned down a bit and I can smell more of the gardenia, lily and rose. The florals and resins blend together beautifully - it's rich, creamy and spicy all at once.

I got this as a gift from a friend who also loves BPAL. In the bottle it's rose + green, almost as if fern leaves were added to the rose petals. On me it's a fresh, watery, translucent rose. It dries down to a bit of a soapy note but this is a nice soap, rather like that "just showered with Ivory" smell. And unlike some florals I've tried this one does last and has a decent throw. Wore this to class and a woman sitting next to me commented how nice I smelled and that this didn't throw a six-foot wall of stink around me like some perfumes! I would definitely wear Moon Rose, but this to me is more a spring/summer fragrance so any bottle ordering will wait until then. In the meantime, I'd say this is a nice scent to wear for casual occasions or when you want a sweet but subtle rose/green scent.

By far, our most popular scent! Magnetic, mysterious, and exceedingly sexual in nature. A blend of exotic Indonesian oils sugared with vanilla. In the bottle: Holy moly, I uncork the imp and am almost knocked backward by the smell. This is VERY VERY VERY strong and sweet - spicy/incense sweet, not floral sweet. On me: Well, this one lasts and lasts and lasts without fading. And it smells really good - another scent in the Opium family, very rich and spicy and there is that vanilla note. However, Snake Oil is a very in-your-face (in-your-nose?) scent. I would not wear it for casual occasions or work. It smells good on me, but it's so very assertive that I feel overwhelmed by it. It's a special-occasion scent, or for a hot date with someone wonderful whom you want to allure. This also lasted and lasted AND LASTED on me which is rare. Twelve hours later, I still smelled good. But on the downside, I put one tiny dab on each wrist and one on my neck - and those three little dabs managed to permeate just about everything they touched. My whole bedroom smelled of Snake Oil for hours and when I put my dirty clothes in the hamper that night, so did my clothes hamper! Snake Oil is "a little dab'll do ya," definitely. I'm keeping the imp, but breaking it out judiciously. For every day/work, I would wear a spicy but less assertive scent. Snake oil is, "HELLO! MY NAME IS SNAKE OIL! NOTICE MEEEEE!" It wore me not the other way around.

In the bottle: Spicy cherry marzipan. When first applied: This goes through a VERY brief OMGWTF? stage when it smells like an almond sugar cookie which has been doused in Triaminic cherry cough syrup. Luckily, this calms down within one or two minutes and I smell a warm sweet blend of almond, myrrh, amber and saffron. Dries down to: My skin chemistry gives resins the courage to Be All They Can Be, so Bastet dries down to a strongly amber scent with touches of musk and myrrh. The almond, saffron, lotus and cardamom are there but as more of a background note. This is a very solar, leonine, feline scent that makes me think of cats lying in the warm sun. The sun that Bastet invokes is not the hot summer drenched-in-milk sun but more of an autumn or springtime sun where she is gentle and warm and caressing. Bastet is a favorite of mine - I got an imp as a giftie and then was inspired to order a bottle with my very first BPAL order.

The Lab sent me this as a frimp in my last order. In the bottle: Intensely and sweetly cherry, like cherry syrup When first applied: Any moment I expect Charming Billy to ask me if I can bake a cherry pie. I'm a-slathered in Kirsch. Dries down to: The stephanotis and lilies peek out, lending more sweetness, but the cherry's a pushy beeyatch. And it is another ephemeral blend, mostly disappearing after half an hour and leaving only the faintest whiff after two. Conclusion: Too cherry + too fugitive = swaparoonie. With rare exceptions, I can't do florals that don't have a resin or musk in them to keep them from turning weird or going bye-bye within a half hour.

In the bottle: Strong tropical white floral. Very very sweet and summery and like the essence of the tropics. On me: Well, THIS floral works, and has lasted. It's lovely, very sweet and almost sun-tan-lotionish. Makes me think I'm wearing a lei in the warm tropical rain. I can smell the ginger, and I think there's gardenia in there somewhere as well. Makes my "inner hippie chick" happy. Verdict: This is definitely a summery, warm-weather scent; it reminds me very much of Kauai. I'll get a bottle in the springtime, as I don't think this scent is suitable for this time of year. Caveat: This is sweet - and I mean with a capital S. I'm a lover of the sweet stuff and if I think it's sweet chances are others will think it's VERY sweet.

This arrived as a frimp from the Lab, and, ironically, my pending order has an imp pack which includes Morocco. In bottle: Sweet, warm and spicy, reminiscent of a less overpowering YSL Opium. Freshly applied: Spicy and musky; I definitely smell the musk, sandalwood and carnation as well as "exotic spices." Dries down to: Mmmmm, a lovely warm autumn scent; the musk and sandalwood are what really stay on me. I also smell hints of the cassia and other spices, but the carnation flies away. Verdict: It's like taking a deep whiff of spices from an opened sandalwood chest. Warm, seductive, and alluring. Definitely worth ordering a bottle.

In the bottle: Sweet, sweet, creamy carnation and rose slathered in honey. When first applied: I don't smell any bergamot, but I do smell the honey mixed with carnation; the milk and rose are definitely secondary notes. A lovely sweet, innocent scent. Dries down to: Alice, where did you go? The drydown gives a note of soap that, thankfully, disappears as quickly as it appears, leaving a honeyed floral with a touch of cream, carnation being the most prominent note. But two hours later I can barely smell anything! It does smell lovely but it's so faint. I know people whose skin chemistry seizes on and amps up florals. I'm just the opposite. Sweet florals usually smell divine on me but my skin clings to them like a jealous lover - flowers, flowers, you shall not leave me! While I love florals, I'm beginning to wonder if they're not best combined with an incense/spice/resin note on me to keep them from disappearing. (This is the beauty of trying and reviewing the BPAL smellies. Knowing what notes go into what scent is an eye-opener.) Verdict: Keep and use up imp, layered with Bastet or amber essence or something else spicy/resinous. Alice smells lovely on me but has ziparoonie throw and no staying power.

I ordered Beatrice as part of my very first BPAL order. I can't pass up an LE, and normally I do florals very well, but... In the bottle: Sweet face powder. Wet: Face powder + gramma's perfume Dry: Still face powder, alas! Now with added hand lotion and Tums. Two hours later: I smell like the bottom of my gramma's purse. The same inimitable blend of face powder, Tums, hand lotion and powdery-smelling perfume. I loved her very much but do not want to smell like her! Verdict: Swap-a-roonie. Normally I love florals - Moon Rose is great on me, for instance - but Beatrice, alas, broke my heart and turned to old-lady juice on me!