Meg

In the bottle: Vetiver and roses, I think. Wet: Vetiver, faint flowers and a smooth dark leathery scent. Drydown: I get vetiver thinly layered over roses and jasmine. There's a salty, grimy element from the vetiver and a smooth cleanliness from the very faint leather. It smells... black, somehow. Like it would smell in a very dark carriage with someone dressed all in leather and perfumed with roses. Overall: It recalls a dark stormy night, the vetiver is quite gruesome and dark, the leather hints at violence and the flowers seem to sweeten the deal a bit - this Highwayman is sexy. It's a scent that I'm not sure I could wear myself, but it's dark and broody and quite beautiful.

We've finally caved in to years of requests for vampiric scents. As soft as grave dust and as dry as a breath drawn within a long forgotten crypt, this is Nosferatu: desiccated herbs and gritty earth brought to life with a swell of robust and sanguineous red wines. In the bottle: Ozony wine and dust. Not earth, but acrid dust. Wet: Rather green, grassy ozone, with a wine note emerging. Drydown: I get juicy dark grass and wine, with a dusty, acidic "spray" around it. You can really smell how dry and barren the ground is, where this grass grows. The wine is very sweet and actually I'm reminded of the smell of apples rather than grapes. Oh, and... I think it smells of tobacco. Strange. Overall: It's a very sweet and green blend. This wine is sticky berry juice, falling into extremely dry soil and dark grasses. It's nearly like blackberry and is quite seductive and hypnotising - a little bit like Dior's Poison. While it's pleasant and even quite pretty, I don't find myself liking it very much, I'm not a big fan of the gritty earth, I think, it's a bit too powdery and perfumy.

You're very welcome! I had the same thing with the Black Tower, I'd forgotten it on my wishlist and didn't bother to go back and read the description again for a while (my reason was the leather, I'm a junkie). Then suddenly I went back to read about it and just at the same time, the Lab sends it to me as a frimp! It was instant love, got a 10ml, though I don't think I'll ever use that much. But I fangirl it all the same, really magical.

A scent that's a bit underrated but that I personally adore, and that has ivy, is "The Black Tower". It also has galbanum, which accounts for the green scent, and as I don't know exactly how ivy smells (I'm guessing green and bitter?), I'm not sure which I'm smelling. But it's mixed with wine, ozone and leather, it's a complex scent, not a pure ivy/greenery one. I think that I also smelled a bit of ivy in Harvest Moon 2005 (I think 2004 may also have it, not sure, though), but that's much more difficult to get your hands on, and it's also a really complex blend with loads of different scents colliding into each other. *sighs happily*

In the bottle: Lavender and something herby and green, perhaps the delphinium. Wet: Cologney lavender and greenery, with spice emerging. Drydown: Definitely cool, aquatic and green delphinium over the lavender, and a hint of spices I can't quite name, possibly cinnamon or clove. I end up getting mostly delphinium and spice, I think. Later on, the jasmine comes out, it's of the slightly powdery kind but goes well with the delphinium. Overall: It smells a bit like a very nice floral soap. It's lavender/delphinium/jasmine, and it's both fresh and spicy, which is unsual but pleasant. It dries down into a very smooth and soft scent, finally letting a bit of rose out. It's a calm, soothing blend, very representative of a goddess of Wisdom.

In the bottle: Dusty jasmine, iris and carnation, with patchouli, I think. Wet: Jasmine and vetiver, it's still pretty dusty. Carnation comes out of the mix, too. Drydown: Patchouli and incense cut in and makes the blend quite dry and smoky, with the jasmine in the background, and the green bitterness of iris, I think. There's this salty, a bit dirty smell that comes with vetiver, too. Overall: I really see this as a rather masculine blend. The jasmine isn't sweet, and the incence, patchouli and vetiver dominate on me to make it quite gender neutral, or even downright masculine. It smells a bit oriental, and certainly lazy and sensual, but it's not my thing.

In the bottle: Honey, herbs and... rose? Wet: Honey and herbs, very sweet and lovely, with a spicy side. Drydown: It dries down to powdery herbs, sweet grass probably, and it smells more and more like baby powder, the herbs completely taking over the honey. I can smell rose in the background, becoming stronger. It settles into a rosey, herby honey scent. Overall: This reminds me of the voodoo blends, because of the herbs. It's soft and discreet, and very sensual too. The herbs sometimes go into powdery territory, but the rest of the time I get thick, rich honey. A very pleasant blend, comforting and soothing.

In the bottle: Ooh. I'm reminded of Sol. Smoke and dark orange. Wet: Lots of dark incense and smoke, a resin that smells a bit like turpentine, with orange lurking in the background. Drydown: Er... turpentine, dust and grime over orange. I suppose that this could be qualified as smoke or incense, but as I'm not a specialist with that type of scents, all I smell is something a bit grubby. After a while the dirty scent lifts, leaving smoke over orange and clove. Overall: It still reminds me of Sol, but I prefer Sol by far. It's a spicy, smoky orange, but it doesn't have any of the uplifting feel I get in Sol. Instead, I get a bit of a rubbery feel in this, it's not really my cup of tea.

In the bottle: Lavender and something sweet and resinous, probably the labdanum. Wet: Lavender, sweet smoke and resin, then sandalwood, sweet and strong. Drydown: Sensual sandalwood, mostly. There's a very smoky, incensy thing going on, and a smell that I tend to equate with... well, sex but also something very etheral, a tiny bit like chrysanthemum. Very strange. Is that the nag champa, perhaps? It comes and goes, though, and doesn't really disturb me. There's some resin in there that I recognise from Medea, labdanum, and it's lovely. Overall: A very interesting blend that I wouldn't have thought of trying. It's mostly incense and sandalwood with resins, the lavender disappears very fast and I'm left with a very mysterious sandalwood blend. It's a blend I would use for meditation or for calming myself, very sensual and even a bit ethereal. However it gets quite perfumy spicy sandalwood at the end, and I'm not sure how I feel about that...

In the bottle: Coconutty, sweet creamy butter Wet: It gets slightly dry and thin and papery, like pop corn, but still with a creamy background. Butter popcorn, wow!! Drydown: As it dries, a slightly salty taste emerges along with the rich buttery goodness, and yes, it still smells like popcorn - but not only popcorn. There's still this creamy coconut scent in the background, yum! And there's a very slight chocolatey note to it, as well. Overall: I thought that this was going to be disgusting, but it's quite the contrary, it's white and creamy and very light, and reminds me of a sort of vanilla mousse confectionry. It's perfect to layer with other blends to make them richer, or to wear if you want a light, foody and creamy scent. Wow.

In the bottle: Uh-oh. Heavy vanilla and narcissus, and something that makes me think of red musk. Wet: Orange blossom, that's much better than in the bottle. But then the really heady musky scent comes in, with its sickly sweet scent. Eep! I also get a flower, I suppose it's the narcissus. Drydown: The orange blossom has given way to red musk, a rather dry, rubbery sweet scent. I get some vanilla in the mix, but it's rather faint, swamped out by the musk. I have no idea if it's a component of the black narcissus or if it just wasn't listed as an ingredient, but it's there all right. The haughty narcissus is there, with a slightly acidic smell. Overall: Red musk and orange blossom? Two of my worst enemies rolled into one bottle. I love orange blossom but it always goes bad on me, and this is no exception - though to be fair, I couldn't tell if it's the turned orange blossom or the red musk that makes this so horrid. Of course, as I hate this blend, the bottle has a leaky cap and happily leaks all over my swap box. Ick.

In the bottle: Vanilla, white musk and lemon, I think. Wet: Lemony fougere, a bit artificial smelling, and vanilla emerging. Drydown: I still get the fougere, but that's about it, at first. Then there are hints of vanilla and tea that start peeking out. Finally the tea settles in as the main component, it's a light and rather sweet tea, like tea that didn't have quite enough time to infuse. There's still lemon hanging around, too. Overall: It ends up as soapy vanilla and tea, pale musks don't love my skin. Everything smells quite artificial on me, a bit like a detergent with a vanilla tea note. I can see this working extremely well on a man, and it does make me think of Dorian Gray, with his Victorian elegance and sweetness. Unfortunately, Dorian doesn't like me.

In the bottle: Coconut and almond milk liek whoa with a slightly tart fig scent. Wet: An oily coconut and almond scent. Drydown: Still coconut and almond, with something a bit green coming out over it, certainly the fig leaf. Then the fig fruit comes out, still quite green and tartly juicy. And then the honey starts to come out and make the blend lush and sensual. Very foody. Overall: A rather tropical scent, woody, nutty and full of slightly green fig goodness. It's a rather heady, thick and luscious blend, not over-sweet and great for coconut and fig lovers. I seem to be a bit immune to the coconut/almond notes, so I wouldn't wear it myself as a perfume. Would be wonderful as a bath cream, though.

In the bottle: Ozone, lavender and blackcurrant. Zingy. Wet: Very thick musk and fresh lavender, with touches of ozone. Makes me think of a "marine" kind of shower gel. I also get sweet resins. Drydown: The sweet resins turn into sweet resinous blackcurrants, while the lavender fades to the background and only becomes a sort of tangy afternote with the ozone. The blend a bit like the Body Shop's "White Musk" line, actually, but with a tart and sweet blackcurrant vibe. Overall: Blackcurrant aftershave with a zing. It's a desperately masculine scent, with thick white musk, lavender and an ozone tang along with the blackcurrant. A pleasant energetic scent, but absolutely not me, specially as it goes quite soapy - it's quite masculine, I think. It has great staying power too.

In the bottle: There are two sides to this - a lovely flowery sweet scent and a rather funky smell that I can't quite place. Wet: The funky note amps like hell - I think it's the bergamot because it smells a bit citrusy, and the oakmoss which seems to come out all plastic on me. Eep. Drydown: It settles down into vague bergamot, plasticky/funky oakmoss scent for a long while, before developing a sort of fruity, very sweet and actually quite juicy peach smell which, on its own, would smell beautiful. But something in there really disagrees with me and makes it smell a bit like feet, sort of salty and nearly fishy. Overall: Oh my god, ew. This becomes sickly sweet peach, sweaty feet and soapy white musk. It's really disgusting on me, oversweet, powdery and sickly. An absolute yick! And of course, because my skin hates it, it also amps it like mad and has huge staying power.

In the bottle: Violent citrus with a hint of lilac. Wet: Dish cleaner? Citric acid? Seriously, this packs a very artificial-lemon punch. Drydown: I still get the detergent lemon smell, with a veil of lilac over it. It's a pity that there's the detergent smell in there, because the lilac is the most gorgeous, realistic sweet lilac scent ever. It just regularly gets drowned out completely by the citrus. And the musks smell plasticky on me, as a bonus. Overall: Plastic lemon detergent with a hint of lilac. No, it doesn't work with me at all. I love lemon blends and I like the lilac note, but this really didn't work out for me. Pity, it was a good idea in theory. In practise, it smells sickly sweet from the lilac and violetly acid from the citrus. Dang.

In the bottle: A very acidic scent, probably lavender and orris. Wet: A green floral, orris and lavender come out quite strong, and a tiny touch of ylang-ylang. Drydown: It goes bad. I think the orris hates me, or another flower in there. And eep, something in there is giving me a headache, it's a first in BPAL - could be the lavender or the gardenia. There's a very soft veil of lilac and violet over the piercing other flowers. Overall: Ow. It's an aggressive scent, and it doesn't work well with me. The orris turns to plasticky greennery and something is hurting my sinuses. The remaining lilac and violet are too soft and gentle for me, and the orris smells like gastric acid on me.

In the bottle: lavender, a bit of lemon and some herbs or flowers that I recognise but can't quite name. It smells very nocturnal, but I can't explain why. Wet: lavender and something very soft. I also get sage and some rather spicy thyme. There's a creamy soft floral playing about in there, too. Drydown: Everything calms down into a very soothing, soft scent. I think that this might be evening primrose, at any rate, it's flowers I've smelled at night. There's something a bit plasticky in there, too, which I don't find so great and I think is the honeysuckle. It's generally a very soft, understated blend. Overall: Lovely scent, but so quiet! It's a bit like being in a garden at twilight and smelling the night flowers starting to come out, and the remains of different herbs and flowers heated by a warm day still wafting around. I mostly get thyme, slight lemon and a soft floral out of it, it's relaxing and gentle. Very evocative of nighttime in Southern Europe, for me.

In the bottle: I think rose and a very green, slightly spicy note that I can't place. Wet: The green smell takes over, I've smelled it elsewhere but I don't know what it is - I wonder if it isn't a component of Beth's tea rose actually. Then it gets quite warm and dry as various woods kick in. Drydown: It's a spicy green and woody scent. The rose is intermingling with it, a white rose smell. The woods are very soft and warm and mix well with the rose. I don't get any other flower, or at least nothing obvious. There's a slight bitterness to this from the woods. Overall: There's a "polished table" feel to this scent, along with the perfume of roses that makes everything smell elegant. It smells rich and woody with very sweet roses all around it. A nice scent for a ouija session, though I see it as rather bright instead of mysterious. Also, one of the components smells a bit like burnt rubber in an afterscent, which isn't something I want to smell of...

In the bottle: Very sweet, quasi sickly milk, honey and I think bergamot. Wet: Bergamot and carnation coming out over it. It smells sticky. Drydown: Carnation, milk and honey, mostly. After a while the milk/honey combination comes out very strongly, with added slightly plasticky spice from the carnation, and the vaguely citrusy scent of bergamot. I don't get any rose whatsoever... Overall: It's very sweet and innocent, and yes, a bit curious. I'm not a bergamot lover, so that note really doesn't work with me, and neither does the milk. It's... pink. I can't describe it in an other way than a gentle creamy pink scent, with a slightly spicy side.

In the bottle: A very fresh, sweet and crisp ozone. Wet: Same as in the bottle, I think that there are some florals in there, like daisies, and some green. Drydown: Very green moist grass, with a pleasant sweetness hanging around it. It does have a bit of a "room deodoriser" smell to me. There's a mix of vague florals with green notes, making it slightly bitter as well as quite sweet. It ends in a very fresh, rainy and metallic scent, which is lovely, but still stifled by the sweetness. Overall: I know that it reminds me of another perfume, and afrer a while thinking, I believe that Anais Anais by Cacharel smells a hell of a lot like this on me. It's been a long time since I've smelled it, but this scent is triggering lots of memories. Unfortunately, just like Anais Anais, this scent is too sour for me, and has a "toilet deodoriser" vibe to it. Pity. (and it lasts and lasts - 24 hours, people! that's staying power)

In the bottle: Green leaves and herbs. Very evocative of a forest in spring. Wet: Sharp green leaves, which turn into warm woods with a hint of green. Drydown: Clean, warm wood and slightly tart herbs and leaves. It's hard to put a name on the wood or the leaves, really, but they're not in the pine category, at least to my nose. There's lots of stuff in there, including something a bit lemony, and the buttery note of cedar, I think. There's even a very vague floral, I think. Overall: It starts out a as a lovely spring-like tree scent, with green leaves and warm woods - very representative of Yggdrasil. But after a while, the wood and leaves take on a rather strong citrus note that make them quite tart. It's not unpleasant, but I liked it better before. It develops a slightly soapy and powdery quality that's not so great - I suspect one of the herbs, here. It ends up being very perfumy and unpleasant, which is a shame. Maybe it would work better as a room scent...

In the bottle: A spicy cologney perfume, it smells quite medicinal. Wet: Incense, incense, incense, a spicy one. Also, tonka, eep. There's something vaguely foody in here, like nuts. Drydown: Dry spicy woods, spices and smoke. There's a very dry papery-leathery note in there that makes me think of parchment, but I nearly taste it more than I smell it. There's still that slightly foody note in the background, I wonder if it's the tonka. And I get the leather scent of old worn seats. Overall: This is a masculine scent, for me, the smell of a librarian who has a side job doing weird rituals. Heh, it smells like Giles in Buffy. I mostly get a rather aftershavey scent that stays around, with the parchment, incense and leather wafting over it. I wouldn't wear it, but I'll keep my imp.

In the bottle: Ozone of the grassy green kind. Wet: Green grass, with hints of lemon. Drydown: It's mostly grassy and lemony ozone, with something sweet dropped into the mix. The grass slightly fades and lets the sweetness in, and then I smell fig. I think I also get a little bit of tea, very discreetly. It's quite a subtle blend, behind the insistent ozone. Overall: A summery, soft and green blend. It's one of the rare grasses that I don't find headachy, and the fig is pleasant. It doesn't evoke much to me, particularly not an apothecary - it's too outdoorsy. I don't think much about it myself, it's not unpleasant, but it's not particularly interesting for me either.

In the bottle: Sweet pea, oh yeah. Very very sweet, might I add, probably because of the added lily and honeysuckle. I also get the pear, which is nice. Wet: Sweet pea and lilies, I think, plus the pear. Drydown: I get a mix of slightly waxy flowers, fortunately it's a bit less sweet now. I can pick out the sweet pea, honeysuckl and lily, and still the pear as a sort of base. It goes quite soapy on me after a while, which is common for me when there's white musk involved. It seems to have a lot of throw, for the first time ever I feel surrounded by the sweet pea, and there was only a small dab on my wrist. Overall: The sweet pea note really isn't something I can appreciate. It smells plasticky and unfortunately I associate it automatically with the smell of an antiseptic cream I have. So to me, this smells medicinal. Actually, it also smells too sweet and youthful for me, it's a really girly scent that doesn't fit my personality. It does fit Juliet, though, as a shiny, romantic and pretty blend.