astridclaire

Ah, Dorian...... it's f-ing fantastic!!! I was a little worried about the musks listed because my skin hates them. However, they play very very nice with my chemistry and turn this oil into southern sweet tea with lots of lemon. Sweet, a little vanilla, refreshing, creamy lemon goodness. It doesn't last all day, but I don't mind slathering every 3 hours.

I was so hopping that Smut would work for me, even though it had 3 deadly musks in it. What can I say? I love the word "SMUT" so much that I was willing to ignore my skin chemistry's desperate cries of rebellion. Smut just completely bombs on me. I don't get any sweetness or booziness or any loveliness. All I get is harsh, cheap, imitation musk mens after-shave. So now I'm off to find it a new home....

Wet: Oh! What is this? There's a base of amber, yes, but it's lighter and drier than most ambers. And then there's the spice! Cinnamon bark with cardamon and clove maybe? It's so well blended that I can't tell. It almost smells floral. Dry: Sunbaked honey colored grasses on the African plains. If this were a color it would be a carmelized orange. The slight floral note is there wafting in the background. I can't stop smelling my wrist! Overall: I absolutely adore this!!! I must get a 10ml right away!!!

Holy sweet resins! I'm so kicking myself for not buying more than one bottle of this stuff. Midnight Mass is thick, sweet resins with a cedar aftertaste. Absolutely fantastic! I hope Beth brings this back next Yule :bowdown:

The meeting of Heaven and Earth: golden amber, galbanum, benzoin, ambrette, rockrose, costus and tonka. First of all, I have to say that I LOVE amber. So based on the description and the reviews alone, I ended up getting two bottles of this stuff. My first two bottle purchase.... and I'm so glad I did! The amber in this scent is sweet without being cloying and the rockrose blends with it wonderfully. On me, it doesn't smell perfumey at all and I would say that it would work for both men and women. For me, this is an every day kind of scent vs. for a special occasion. It's comforting, warm, and has just enough incense to it to make it really interesting.

Somehow I thought that O was going to be really soft and light because of what's in it. Most amber/honey/vanilla blends aren't what I'd call strong on me. They usually fade really fast on my skin. But oh my good goddess was I wrong with this one! O is very strong on me and I LOVE it!!! It's just so sweet and lush! I mostly get honey from this scent. Honey with a bit of vanilla with a bit of something that I would almost describe as orange blossom from the amber. You know how some ambers have this kind of floral/powdery kick at the end of their sweetness? Well the amber in O has it and flaunts it beautifully. I just can't get over how well this lasts on me! 8 hours on and still going. I'm definitely getting a big bottle.

I have to say that this is the most wearable carnation blend that I've ever come across. I usually can't wear florals like jasmine, lily, or carnation, but the carnation note in this is so light and smooth. In fact, the whole scent is light and smooth with a little sweetness and a little creaminess. And best of all, the musk in this doesn't turn powdery on me like most musk does. Yay! I do need to mention that it doesn't last very long and it doesn't have much throw. I would call it a skin scent that would probably be better suited for warmer months. However, I love how it smells so much that I'm willing to slather more on throughout the day. I'm definitely buying a big bottle ASAP. Oh! And my boyfriend adores this as well. He said, "Mmmm.... creamy vanilla spices" ETA: I took my big bottle of this and made it into a perfume spray and oh what a difference in staying power! In spray form it has amazing throw and lasts all day!

Honey Moon contains five different honeys, ranging from pale and sweet to deep and heady, with hints of jasmine, white gardenia, Hawaiian white ginger and thyme. Absolutely lovely in the bottle. I adore the smell of honey. I'm hoping this works..... *keeps fingers crossed* Oh no!!!! The dreaded jasmine blooms and takes over as soon as it hits my skin. If there is a drop of jasmine in a scent, my skin will find it and amplify it until it is overwhelming. Luckily, this oil fades quickly. If you love the smell of honey, and play well with jasmine, you'll probably adore this scent. I like the way it smells in the bottle so much that I'll be using it as a room scent.

This rose variant smells like a deep velvety rose to me. A wise grown-up rose..... the crone of roses wearing a black velvet cape at midnight. I love it! I don't smell much of the amber, but I can tell it's warming up the rose a bit, and the musk just lurks in the background. For a rose scent, I give it 4/5.

I wanted to adore this one because I absolutely love amber. Unfortunately, the musk in it completely overpowers the amber and all I get is a powdery old lady smell. I might take the suggestion of another reviewer and age it awhile. Perhaps with aging the amber will get stronger.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I placed an order on Jan. 14th with a bottle of Jacob's Ladder and imps of Haunted, O, Old Scratch, and Bastet... among others. It sounds like they'll be right up my alley. I was a little worried Jacob's Ladder wouldn't be very strong on the amber. I like heavy amber. What do you guys think about it? I guess in my next order I need to get The Lion, Fallen, Verdandi, Aureus, Fenris Wolf, and Coyote. Mmmmmmmmmm....... amber

White florals like gardenia tend to give me a headache, but this blend is truly lovely! I had to try this because I'm a HUGE Anne of Green Gables fan, and I just couldn't resist a scent named after poetry Anne loved. In Bottle: It's an aquatic, herbal, melancholy floral. A young maiden with porcelain skin that will die before she's lost her virginity. On: Smells like rain on a lake surrounded by blooming gardenias.

From the description I thought I would love this, but all I get is lemon, lemon, lemon on my skin. It is lovely as a room scent, however.

In Bottle: I definitely get the feral musk with a touch of cherry. It's almost almondy, but not quite. I've never smelled vetiver by itself, but I'm guessing the odd, unplaceable smell is the vetiver. On Wet: Rich and intoxicating... and naughty. This is not something I'd want my mother to smell on me. Dry: Most of the sweetness goes away and I'm left with that odd feral smell. Odd, but I can't help but like it. My bf says it smells like I had sweaty sex with a really good smelling werewolf.

I am turning to the wisdom of all the smell-good gurus on this forum! I need suggestions for amber blends that are strong, Strong, STRONG on the amber. Think amber with spice/resin/herbal/or floral undertones. I've tried Brisingamen but it's too much carnation and not nearly enough amber. Thank-you!

I'm new to BPAL, and I'm learning what works and doesn't work on my skin. I really wanted to like Mata Hari, but all I can smell is JASMINE while it's wet. It's overpowering and it is giving me a headache. What's interesting though is that when it dries down, I smell ylang-ylang behind the jasmine even though the discription doesn't list it. At least I know now to stay away from scents with jasmine in them!