alicia_stardust

This is a breathtaking rose scent. While wet I can detect the subtleties between the rose, gardenia, and violet. It's as if they're swirling through the air in separate clouds and only from farther away does my nose "mix" them. As this dries, my skin amps the rose until that's all I can smell. No other notes. This is going to be one of those that I keep for scent locket purposes but never wear on my skin. It is so lovely until my skin chemistry messes it up.

I get a lot of carnation at first, but after a while all I can smell is a combination of lemon balm, juniper, and cedar. While I do like those notes in other mixtures, the three together just doesn't work for me. Don't get me wrong, this is a lovely blend and I adore this piece of art by Klimt. For that, the scent is worth trying.

Midnight on the Midway is one of my top 3 Carnaval Diabolique scents so far. I get a mysteriously smoky blanket that sits lightly on top of cotton candy, sugar, and incense. It's divine. On my skin, at least, it has a strong throw and it wafts around me into a nice carnaval-like cloud. The concept and art combine so well with this scent. This is a multiple bottle purchase for me. I wouldn't want to run out!

Great recommendations, but I didn't see Undine listed. I really like the way that one smells. Depending on your tastes I think it could fit the mermaid bill.

This is straight-forward yet amazing: mandarin and fig. I get the perfect mix of those two scents and it makes for an intoxicating, decadent, enticing scent. Carnal is a great name for it. This is in my top 10 general catalogue scents. LOVE!

The amber, ozone, and citrus rind are perfect in this. Beyond those notes, I have no idea what it is that makes this blend work so well, but it is amazing. Once again I lucked out on my birthday month (February). Hunger Moon gives this sense of not-quite-comfort, a sense of biting winds and cold hunger, but then the amber seems to warm it up into a tantalizing, inviting scent. It mesmerizes me whenever I wear it.

I get a sense of purity, stillness, a silent winter's night with the bite of pine, a soft hint of winter blooms, and slushy snow. There's even a slight hint of berry there that almost reminds me of Skadi. This is one of my all-time favorite winter/December scents!

Budding Moon has always been in my "favorites" group. It's a bonus that it is for my birthday month (February), but really what I love about it is that it smells so inexplicably like springtime. There's that sense of bright, flourescent green shoots that are peeking out of the ground, buds that are just waiting to burst open. It's invigorating yet gentle. It brings a sense of hope and freshness.

Red Moon is gorgeous! I do love the old Red Moon, but I like this new version better. It has a gilded golden red feel to it, and the amber/red musk combo is to die for! The thing I like the most about this blend is that it has a very definite touch of Autumn in there. It's that late summer/early autumn scent that tends to make me long for autumn, and Red Moon does just that.

This came as a frimp of all things, and it was so much fun to test it out. It was gone before I ever made my first BPAL order. Wet, I smell earth with a bite to it. Dry, I get instant vetiver but there's a soft edge in there. I can't tell what it is at first, but after a short while I discover that there's a hint of heady gardenia in there. The bay is a nice twist to it. Overall this seems to be somewhat sinister and surly, but at the same time there's a tiny sparkle of gardenia in there to lend a sweet spot.

I cannot believe I haven't reviewed this before now, but it's amazing. I think it's my favorite Salon, period. The caramel, vanilla, and patchouli combination is just incredible. Aside from smelling great on my skin, it makes a fabulous room scent. Every time I put it in my oil burner I get comments on it, no matter what.

This starts out as a soft, herbal lavender but it doesn't take long for that to change. After a while I get the back musk and the golden copaifera and those are tempered and sweetened by the vanilla and lavender. What a nice duality that those notes create; they seem to mirror Love and Pain quite well.

I love BPAL surprises, where you don't expect to like something and then it sneaks up on you from behind and wins you over. This one did that to me. Wet, I smell a strong vein of thick, heady, viscous resins and honey... and something that reminds me of chocolate and figs and dates. Really, I have no idea where my nose is getting that since it's not listed in the description. As it dries, I get a lot more honey, a touch of floral, and at that point I think I can pick out the bitter almond. I think that plus the honey might be what's making this smell so very rich and exotic to me. I love that the almond doesn't take over too much. It's just right. This has a very strong throw, but OH it is so gorgeous. It's one of my favorite Salons so far!

Oh gods this is sexy. This is the kind of sexy that makes your eyes momentarily roll into the back of your head while your knees start to give out. It's just amazing on my man. I can't personally wear blends where the patchouli is a strong note, but on my man it starts out as a fiery patchouli that's very refined. When that calms down, the leather really amps and it is sweetened and softened by the citrus, vanilla, and oakmoss. This one is now in his top 3 BPAL scents, both for how he likes it and for my reaction!

I get a waft of golden resin, light sweet smoke, and dewy damp grass. The grass seems to sit at the top of everything and from there all the other notes cascade together. They swirl around and mix at times; other times they do not mix. I can't individually pick out the lavender, but all those fairy flowers are definitely billowing about. The sugared candy aspect goes really well with the flowers, dew, golden incense, and grass. The most notable thing about Fairy Market is how well it mirrors the market in the book. If I had the gift for creating art out of scent, Fairy Market is exactly what I would have made. Beautiful!

In the bottle: I smell a juicy, dark plum scent coupled with a touch of ylang and tuberose. On my skin: The plum warms and steps forward, while the other notes mingle into an intoxicating and heady background. I get that slightly sharp ylang ylang kick, but immediately behind that I can smell a strong vein of tuberose. I love how tuberose is dusky without being powdery. I can detect faint traces of the other notes in there, and the lily especially, but for the most part those notes sort of meld together to complement the stronger notes. The florals at this stage are beautiful and intoxicating, hypnotic and almost sensual. After a while: The red musk eventually makes an appearance but it's not the characteristic red musk that I'm used to. Normally red musk dominates a blend due to my chemistry, but in Witch Queen it does not. It plays with the plum and the florals just right. As a finale, the Witch Queen sends a blanket of purple, hazy incense smoke to blanket everything. Final thoughts: The thing I love the most about this scent is that it smells so very purple, and yet no violets. I just love that and the way the plum and incense play off of the florals.

Yvaine! I cried when this update went live. Stardust really means a lot to me. I love Neil Gaiman, I discovered Stardust at a pivotal point in my life, and I also really identified with Yvaine and the magic of the fairy tale. Beth is a goddess. She has made my entire year. YVAINE In the bottle: I smell a soft, slightly astringent lavender with a slight bite. On my skin: The scent immediately spreads out into an amorphously soft nighttime scent. The lavender jumps right to the top of things and is fairly strong for about 10 minutes. It gives it that glittering quality that reminds me of stars in the night sky. After a while: The lavender softens up and blends with the magnolia and whatever other notes might be hiding in there. The magnolia is soft, magical, heady. There's almost a sweet, pungent quality to it. I expected the lavender to swallow this up but it absolutely does not! It's intoxicating without being overpowering and as it settles it gets almost a sweet twist to it. Final thoughts? It's perfect. So perfect. Edit: Wear time seems to be just over 3 hours on my skin, at which point it sits very close to the skin then fades off completely.

This is an artistic, beautiful representation of the art for which it is named. I get a buzz-tingle from the ozone, so lightning is indeed accurate. The steel is sharp and metallic and gives me a tang in my mouth like blood. The dominant part of this blend is the leather. It's dry and dusty and sort of envelopes the rest of the notes. I didn't expect to like this, but I do! A word to the wise, though: be mindful of where you wear this! I tested it then went to the dentist and the ozone-metal aspect of this was not comforting!

Thick, salty seafoam. Then comes a kick of pear to add to the seafoam, but it's only lightly there. Overall the freesia dominates this blend. It is so refreshing and cool. The seafoam and amber complement it well, and the rest of the notes seem to blend together. I know they're there, but I can't pick them out individually. A very nice aquatic!

Wet, this is amazing. I get juicy cherry blossoms and a touch of soft pear. Dry, this changes very quickly. Cherry blossoms still dominate this blend, but I also detect the lavender monofloral honey, and then a few minutes later I detect a touch of that dry sandalwood bite. The cherry blossom in this reminds me of Portland's cherry blossom season. They just burst forth all at once and you can walk on the waterfront surrounded by soft pink trees. It's surreal. There are so many that the spent blossoms constantly fall down like a slow, lazy rain. This blend reminds me of all of that.

Sunflower is my favorite of the Salon IIIs so far. Wet, I smell a resin and floral combination. It has a bit of a bite. Dry, I get a yellow, earthy floral that reminds me of late summer. The height of the sun's time, and yet there is an edge of darkness. There is something about this that is very regal. It's a commanding floral that says, "Here I Am." I am head over heels. This is such a different floral than I am used to wearing and yet I love it. I will be buying more.

Wet: I get pomegranate mostly, with a touch of floral and hyssop. Dry: I still get a lot of pomegranate. At this point I can actually distinguish the iris and orchid, but the pomegranate still dominates. For a short while this reminds me of Trick 2, but then it morphs again and that impression is lost. This is a very lovely mixture of pomegranate, resin, florals, and earth. After a while: The frankincense and patchouli come out in full force. I am left with mostly a dry, slightly sharp resinous earth scent. Lovely!

I get a sort of dry, dark, heavy sort of scent, redolent of dark caves and hot fires. I can detect earth, fire, a touch of cinnamon, and a whole lotta vetiver. This is once again, an artful scent representation of the painting. This isn't the sort of scent I normally wear, but anyone who likes earthy scents should definitely check this out.

The chocolate, cardamom, fig, and rice notes blend beautifully into a creamy spicy cocoa scent that makes my mouth water. This is decadent and comforting at the same time. It brings a smile to my face every time I get a whiff of it, whether from my wrist or the scent locket. I love all three versions of 13 very dearly, but I must say that this one is a little ahead of the others. It's just gorgeous.

Tamamo-no-Mae is a gorgeously soft, smooth Asian blend. It reminds me ever so slightly of Hungry Ghost Moon, but Tamamo is much more sultry and delicate. It is more refined. On my skin I can really detect the skin musk and rice flower above all else, but I do detect the benzoin gum and it's among my favorite of all the resins. I love the quality that the tea leaf lends to this. I agree that there's a bright note in this somewhere, but I don't get fruit or peach from it. It's light and breezy without being ozone-like. It's feminine and eloquent. This is breathtakingly soft and delicate and I love it. I will definitely keep my bottle.