hexnut

Sweet brown leather, cacao absolute, coffee bean absolute, and teakwood. Blind tested on my right wrist, and accidentally slathered instead of dabbed. In Vitro Pleasant but not strong. Wet Immediate deep sniffing: sweet and spicy. An earthy note joined in a few minutes later for a very nice scent overall. Unfortunately it faded significantly by the twenty minute mark despite the relatively large amount still gleaming on my skin. Drying Again with the plastic note. It's now one hour and twenty five minutes since application and what remains is vague and sweet with a faint whiff of plastic. Despite the disappointing drydown I have high hopes for this on my hair and/or clothing, and I will edit to reflect further tests. Even on my wretched skin, the wet phase started out beautifully.

In Vitro The scent of the roasted seeds of Coffea arabica, so intoxicating in real life, has resisted capture again. What I do get from sniffing the bottle is the sweet and playful smell of coffee-flavored candy, and that is not a bad thing. ETA: on skin The sweet note was first, but almost immediately something else swelled up. Something slightly scorched and somewhat acrid that was strongest next to my wrist. It's not as bad on me as Miskatonic University or The Two Old Men, but it is not pleasant. second addendum: Eight hours after application, having literally slept on it, the unpleasant note is gone and what remains on my wrist is faint but slightly sweet and smells almost like - dare I say it - brewed coffee. Now this, I like! If only it was stronger. If I can figure out a way around the thuggish middle note, I will declare GVCB a success. As with any Single Note, I need to make a room spray of it before I pass final judgement.

BARUCH’S PHOENIX And he took me and led me where the sun goes forth; and he showed me a chariot and four, under which burnt a fire, and in the chariot was sitting a man, wearing a crown of fire, (and) the chariot (was) drawn by forty angels. And behold a bird circling before the sun, about nine cubits away. And I said to the angel, What is this bird? And he said to me, This is the guardian of the earth. And I said, Lord, how is he the guardian of the earth? Teach me. And the angel said to me, This bird flies alongside of the sun, and expanding his wings receives its fiery rays. For if he were not receiving them, the human race would not be preserved, nor any other living creature. But God appointed this bird thereto. And he expanded his wings, and I saw on his right wing very large letters, as large as the space of a threshing-floor, the size of about four thousand modii; and the letters were of gold. And the angel said to me, Read them. And I read, and they ran thus: Neither earth nor heaven bring me forth, but wings of fire bring me forth. And I said, Lord, what is this bird, and what is his name? And the angel said to me, His name is called Phoenix. (And I said), And what does he eat ? And he said to me, The manna of heaven and the dew of earth. And I said, Does the bird excrete? And he said to me, He excretes a worm, and the excrement of the worm is cinnamon, which kings and princes use. But wait and thou shalt see the glory of God. And while he was conversing with me, there was as a thunder-clap, and the place was shaken on which we were standing. And I asked the angel, My Lord, what is this sound? And the angel said to me, Even now the angels are opening the three hundred and sixty-five gates of heaven, and the light is being separated from the darkness. And a voice came which said, Light giver, give to the world radiance. And when I heard the noise of the bird, I said, Lord, what is this noise? And he said, This is the bird who awakens from slumber the cocks upon earth. For as men do through the mouth, so also does the cock signify to those in the world, in his own speech. For the sun is made ready by the angels, and the cock crows. And I said, And where does the sun begin its labours, after the cock crows? And the angel said to me, Listen, Baruch: All things whatsoever I showed thee are in the first and second heaven, and in the third heaven the sun passes through and gives light to the world. But wait, and thou shall see the glory of God. And while I was conversing with him, I saw the bird, and he appeared in front, and grew less and less, and at length returned to his full size. And behind him I saw the shining sun, and the angels which draw it, and a crown upon its head, the sight of which we were not able to gaze upon; and behold. And as soon as the sun shone, the Phoenix also stretched out his wings. But I, when I beheld such great glory, was brought low with great fear, and I fled and hid in the wings of the angel. And the angel said to me, Fear not, Baruch, but wait and thou shalt also see their setting. And he took me and led me towards the west; and when the time of the setting came, I saw again the bird coming before it, and as soon as he came I saw the angels, and they lifted the crown from its head. But the bird stood exhausted and with wings contracted. And beholding these things, I said, Lord, wherefore did they lift the crown from the head of the sun, and wherefore is the bird so exhausted? And the angel said to me, The crown of the sun, when it has run through the day four angels take it, and bear it up to heaven, and renew it, because it and its rays have been defiled upon earth; moreover it is so renewed each day. And I Baruch said, Lord, and wherefore are its beams defiled upon earth? And the angel said to me, Because it beholds the lawlessness and unrighteousness of men, namely fornications, adulteries, thefts, extortions, idolatries, drunkenness, murders, strife, jealousies, evil-speakings, murmurings, whisperings, divinations, and such like, which are not well-pleasing to God. On account of these things is it defiled, and therefore is it renewed. But thou askest concerning the bird, how it is exhausted. Because by restraining the rays of the sun through the fire and burning heat of the whole day, it is exhausted thereby. For, as we said before, unless his wings were screening the rays of the sun, no living, creature would be preserved. - Greek Apocalypse of Baruch Born in radiance, defiled, and resplendently renewed: Atlas cedar, white fig, sugared date, sweet orange, golden honey, white sandalwood, benzoin, galbanum, and bitter almond. In Vitro Sweet, orange-y, and cedar-y. Wet Sweet orange with cedar wood. After two minutes it was less orange and more wood. Two minutes later it was mildly sweet, non-astringent, non-musty wood, and very nice. Drying Eight minutes after application this settled into sweet and woody, and a half hour later it was less woody and more of a sweet spice. There was an extremely faint trace on my wrist ten hours later. With the formal test out of the way, I am delighted to report that Baruch's Phoenix evoked sunshine for me. Yes, I picked out a few notes, but the overall impression was a fair match for the creator's intent, something that I am rarely privileged to experience. Bravo, Beth!

PROSPEROUS FLOWERS OF THE ELEGANT TWELVE SEASONS Patchouli and honeyed saffron with labdanum, leather accord, and wood vanilla. In Vitro A very rich honey and resin kind of scent. I should mention that I have not checked the notes list recently and all I remembered going into the test was patchouli, honey, and saffron. Wet The oil is light orange-brown. Freshly applied it was slightly less intense but gained and almost creamy sweetness. This subsided after a minute or two and and the overall scent was more spicy. Drying It became less sweet and hinted at a woody or even musty quality, but was not at all unpleasant. ETA: Two hours after application, the leather is prominent but not harsh, with underlying sweetness. This is both lovely and sexy.

This is gorgeous. I guessed Theoi Nomioi would be conifer and little else on me, and I would have purchased it anyway, but this surpasses my expectations. There is conifer but it is balanced by a sweet herbal note that I think is White sage, and the whole both is comforting and piercing. I want to walk surrounded by a cloud of this scent, like an aura and an aegis against corruption.

Damask rose, white carnation, lychee, Himalayan cedar, and white honey. In a final battle with The Dream at Will Call last night, this came out on top. Fresh on my skin this was all rose. After a bit the carnation poked up a bit, a pleasant surprise because the Spanish Red Carnation single note of a few years ago was nearly odorless on me. Later on I got bits of the cedar, and although rose remained dominant it combined with the other notes to make an overall lovely scent. It lasted a good while on my skin, all through the drive home and long after the smell of The Dream had faded away from my other arm. I don't know what lychee smells like - I only know it's an Asian fruit - but possibly it was reinforcing the citrusy quality that I get from some rose blossoms. Whatever it was doing in the Large Harem, it can keep on doing it. I'm delighted to have a bottle of this.

Leather and black tea with champa blossom, incense, ambrette seed, and black truffle accord. Blind tested on my left wrist. In Vitro Rich and resinous, and somehow reminiscent of Destructive Vagina of the Fox Spirit despite lacking the cola/incense note. Wet Still resinous, but joined by a floral note that came to predominate over the next six minutes. Drying Aw, crud. Plastic, although thankfully faint. After a half hour I was getting some sweetness again, but it's now an hour and fifteen minutes after application and what remains is unremarkable sweetness with a hint of plastic. I refuse to be discouraged because my other Shungas aren't at their best on my skin (nothing is!) and I have yet to test this on clothing or hair.

In Vitro Coconut, sweet but not cloying. Wet A nearly colorless oil. The throw was coconut, but up close I got honey and spice for the first few minutes. The skin scent then morphed into a mildly sweet woody note, but the throw remained coconut dominant for a bit longer. Drying Twelve minutes after application the coconut was gone. There was still a bit of throw but it was a faint and sweeter version of the scent on my skin, which remained woody. It was reminiscent of the GC oil Intrigue ("Black palm, with cocoa, fig, and shadowy wooded notes") despite the dissimilar notes. I would have liked the coconut to stick around longer but it's one of those "volatile" BPAL notes on me. As a skin scent Lovers and a Fan is quite nice, if perplexing, and although I don't need another bottle I'll happily use this one.

White sage is a potent herb of purification, protection, and healing, and has been used as a ceremonial incense for hundreds of years. Medicinally, white sage can be used as an antiseptic, and I think this makes an excellent metaphor: the herb and oil are spiritual disinfectants, preventing putrefaction of the soul. Salvia apiana is a California native with personal significance for me, and I literally gasped when I saw this single note announced. It's weak on my wrist but that's typical of BPAL single notes; the skin test was really just a formality. On my sleeve it bloomed into a mildly sweet scent, neither entirely herbal nor floral but somehow botanical. I am well acquainted with the actual plant and this oil isn't as pungent as the smell I remember but it has an insistent throw. Like many of our native sages, this smell has a quality that threatens a headache if inhaled for too long and at too great a strength, but IMO that's part of the "purification" aspect. This goes into an atomizer ASAP and I might get another bottle if it's as good a room scent as I think it will be. ETA: room/linen spray Sweet Celestia, this is wonderful! I've been misting this all week and it's like I'm addicted. The scent is still mellow and subtle, with nary a headache in sight, and yet has the power to banish staleness and funk. I have never before purchased multiple bottles of a BPAL oil that I can't/won't wear on my skin, but White Sage is in a class by itself. 104

In Vitro Sweet mild cedar. skin test Two separate trials on my wrist, first on the day I received the bottle and then a few days later. The cedar was joined by a sweet floral note, and soon the cedar faded out to leave a very soft woody/herbal floral scent. Drying down, the individual notes became less distinct. During the second test it went through a phase of the dreaded plastic smell, but this passed after less than an hour. Many hours after application the scent remained very faint and skin-close but persistent. Sometimes I imagined I smelled white sage, and the cedar bobbed up again a few times. scent locket A very soft but pretty floral with faint cedar and herbal tones, never strong but lasting a long time (almost 24 hours as of this writing). room spray 1:1 mix with distilled water. A subtle but beautiful sweet herbal floral. I chanced a blind purchase of this mainly for the chaparral and white sage, hoping that these two components would be prominent, but they are not. The remaining notes are proven winners for me in BPAL blends and if the overall result was stronger I would try for backups. As it is, Amicitia is an absolutely gorgeous blend and I want it to work so badly... but it's just too weak, and I can't justify the purchase of another bottle. However am glad that I bought this one, especially if it encourages Beth to use more chaparral and other California natives in the future.

A frimp from Will Call, at least five months old when tested. The oil is brown. In Vitro A rich sweet scent. That usually means vanilla, tobacco, or spice, but I couldn't detect any of those. I did get a soap association. Wet "Masculine soap" was my first impression; a sweet "brown" scent, rather pleasant. After two minutes I thought there might be lemon balm underneath. Drying Man soap and lemon balm. It stayed that way for the first hour or so, and faded to a sweet vanilla-ish trace. I can see getting lemon balm out of this because certain roses have a citrus component to my nose, and amber often reads as vanilla. That leaves red musk as the primary candidate for the men's soap association. Spellbound is nice and didn't go bad on my skin but it's not my style.

A frimp that was at least five months old when I blind tested it. The oil is orange-brown. In Vitro Floral? Dragon's blood? Wet A mild spicy floral that developed a "commercial perfume" smell. This was fairly strong during the wet phase. Drying Slightly powdery "perfume spice" that faded away over the next two hours. The label reveal was a surprise. I would have bet money that there was dragon's blood in this, and I didn't get leather at all. On the bright side I didn't detect frankincense or star anise either, but while The Robotic Scarab wasn't bad on me it isn't a scent I'd reach for.

A frimp from a Will Call, tested blind. The oil is very pale yellow. In Vitro Citrus, possibly floral as well. Wet A pleasant but weak citrus scent. A few minutes on I thought it might contain grapefruit. Drying Faint citrus with a soapy note. Embalming Fluid was on my want-to-try list from way back, so I'm glad I received as a sample instead of buying it. That would have been a big disappointment.

Not a blind test, but all I remembered of the notes were grain and pears. In Vitro Mild, possibly floral. Wet A short-ranged, sweet throw during application. On my wrist it was pears and spice. The throw actually strengthened, which has not happened for me before, and on the skin the pear was joined by a rich wine-like scent. Very, very good. Drying The throw lasted for half an hour, which for me is unprecedented. This initially dried to pear and spice and possible floral, with less of the wine note, but still very good. As the overall scent weakened the "floral" was replaced by wine, and it settled to a rich and lovely blend of pears, spice, and wine as it faded away. Aside from opening once for a sniff when I received it, my bottle of the Harvesters has been untouched until this week so I can't compare aged to fresh. But I know I love the stuff I have now, and I will absolutely cherish this while it lasts because it not only smells great but also behaves beautifully on me.

DESTRUCTIVE VAGINA OF THE FOX SPIRIT In Vitro Chocolate and incense. I hoped to smell coffee bean, but it stubbornly reads as chocolate to my nose. Since I love the Lab's chocolate note, this is still a winning combination. Wet Fresh on, wonderful chocolate and incense. If only it would stay this way... Over the next few minutes the chocolate faded and the incense was joined by a floral or woody note, which soon faded in its turn as the scent became a bit spicier. There was some throw in this phase. Drying Very faded and... oh no, nooo. Plastic. Faint plastic close up. Although if I backed off about 10 cm from my wrist I got a sweet throw. Fortunately the plastic retreated gradually until I could only catch it very close up, but the remaining scent was faint and undistinguishable sweetness. Four hours after application a tiny hint of plastic remained but a pseudo-chocolate note was at the forefront. Six hours on, there was a soft incense smell and no plastic at all. The final version, some fifteen hours after putting on a few drops, was a soft sweet smell that I associate with musk. Hair On the same day as the skin test I put a bit of DVotFS on the end of my ponytail and the initial scent was utterly fabulous cola incense. The elusive BPAL "cola" note, which I've only smelled before in Steamworks' No. 93 Engine, was just as fleeting here as in that oil. The final lingering hair scent was mild incense, and as usual was more noticeable when I showered. To sum up: mildly disappointed by absence of coffee, thrilled by combination of chocolate and incense, crushed by appearance of plastic, relieved by eventual sweetening, and tantalized by cola. I'm glad I bought this, and I am curious to see how it ages.

THE SWORD OF SURTUR In Vitro Lemony, and not very sweet. Wet Immediately on it was sharp, lemony ginger, which over the next few minutes lost the lemon smell and became true fresh ginger root, pungent and almost bitter. I have complained reported here before that BPAL's ginger turns to citrus on me, so I was delighted to smell the real thing. Ten minutes after application my wrist began to itch; I had used more oil than usual, so I blotted off the excess with a tissue, but the itch continued for at least ten more minutes. Fortunately there was no lingering pain and no redness, so this seems to have been an irritant but not an allergen. Drying Still slightly bitter ginger root, fading slowly. At the half hour mark the scent finally began to sweeten up, and at forty-five minutes I got a hint of the dreaded plastic note but fortunately it didn't last. Finally, later in the day and when the scent was almost gone, some of the other components dared to come out and made this sweet and nice. This isn't the first time an oil that I brought home has behaved quite differently than it did at Will Call, but I refuse to be discouraged. The ginger is painfully strong and sharp - appropriate for a blade! - but I think The Sword of Surtur will be a great one for combining with sweeter scents that could use a punch, and it should age well.

DEADLY NIGHTSHADE HONEY BONBON In Vitro Dark sweet chocolate. Wet Freshly applied this was honey with chocolate. Over the next few minutes the chocolate was replaced by a herbal background, which in turn faded to just a suggestion of chocolate in the honey. There was some throw during this phase. Drying Slightly herbal honey, lacking the sharpness that I get from more "pure" honey scents. As it faded it was less distinguishable as honey until, an hour and a half on, there remained a faint sweet scent. I was testing this before bedtime, and sometime during the night I awoke and smelled faint chocolate on my wrist. I love BPAL's chocolate and its honey, so it was a good bet that I'd like this and I certainly do. The nightshade part made me hesitate because of my skin's issues with floral notes, but this was more of a leafy tone than a flowery one. It occurs to me that the way this scent unfolded was like consuming an actual bonbon - the initial burst of chocolate coating, mixed with and eventually washed away by sweet honey filling that lingered in the mouth. And finally just a smidge more chocolate from the crumbs licked of the candy wrapper. I'm looking forward to slathering this.

PEITHO Blind tested two days ago but bumped to the head of the review queue because it's on the March cull list. This frimp is one of a rediscovered stash from Will Call last April so it is aged at least ten months. The oil is yellow. In Vitro Bright floral; plumeria? Wet A strong white floral with some throw when freshly applied. Not plumeria, sadly. Drying Fifteen minutes on this was still a sweet floral but with an additional sour note. As the scent faded over the next hour, the sour note became equally strong and then receded leaving the floral only. If nothing else this test suggested that jasmine and/or stargazer lily are notes for me to avoid because boy howdy, they stomped over everything. Peitho was vaguely pleasant but I would have preferred to smell the other components in this blend.

LOVE-LIES-BLEEDING I ordered this as part of an imp pack mainly because reviewers mentioned chocolate. Aglaea was also in this group which is why I kept guessing at fruit during the blind test. In Vitro Very pale amber color. First sniff was lovely and sweet, possibly cocoa or fruit. Wet Throw during application. Sweet, probably chocolate, a hint of spice. Over the next seven minutes it remained sweet and went from maybe-chocolate to a slightly foody fruit and/or floral. Drying Less sweet; slightly overripe fruit? Not unpleasant. Three hours after application I wrote, "faint but present, sweet, very nice". One month later I blind tested a frimp that I got at a Will Call, which turned out to also be Love-Lies-Bleeding, but... not. More on that below. In Vitro Orange-brown in the imp. Spicy, woody. Wet Some throw. Sweet, slightly spicy; floral or dragon's blood. A faint booze note appeared and over the next few minutes the scent developed into a boozy spicy floral. Drying The same notes as the wet phase but blended and mellower; an overall improvement, and still reasonably strong on my skin. Over the next hour it got milder and more floral-ish, and faded out during the third hour. Before I tested the second imp I had Love-Lies-Bleeding as a possible bottle candidate. The difference between the two samples gives me pause, because although they're both nice I like the first one better and with my luck any bottle I ordered would smell like the second batch. Since it's being discontinued soon anyway I'm going to pass on this one, not without some regret. 108

SOOTHING SYSTEM At the May 2013 Will Call I finally tried the three Gris Grimly scents, and last week I formally tested my bottle of System for this review. In Vitro Wine! More grape than alcohol, but inarguably wine. Wet Fresh on my wrist this was sweet and tangy grape with something underneath that wasn't alcohol but still suggested wine rather than plain juice. After ten minutes it was mainly pleasant dark fruitiness. Drying Less juicy and dryer but still lively wine. It remained a pleasant wine scent as it faded within the first hour. In its very faint end stage I got phantom whiffs that could have been actual throw or an olfactory memory; strange, but nice. Cloth As is my wont, I dribbled a bit of the oil on my shirtsleeves so I could sniff it during the day. It lasted over four hours in this form but remained a very grapey wine smell without the complexity of the skin scent. In a reverse of the usual BPAL experience, I like Soothing System better on me than on my clothing, and either way I shall quite enjoy this bottle. 103

This is the 2012 version. I bought a bottle to go with my Anniversary Phoenix order last year, then shelved it because I had other scents to try first. I finally opened and tested it on the last day of September. In Vitro Lovely smooth milk chocolate. Wet Freshly applied this was beautiful chocolate with an additional mellow sweetness. Not quite vanilla, almost floral. After a few minutes it 'sharpened up' a bit a morphed towards spicy chocolate or chocolate-scented spice, and remained reasonably strong. So far, so good... Drying Uh-oh. Half an hour along and it was vague sweetness with a faint suggestion of plastic. Amber, I thought you were my friend! At the one hour mark I smelled faint plastic up close but there was also a light sillage of chocolate further away. Which is better than the reverse, I suppose. My last note at an hour and a half was faint plastic. Well, crap. Whatever caused the fail in this wasn't cured by nearly a year of aging. Gelt should have been perfect on me, and now it's another bottle for the "alternate use" group.

(spoiler: I LOVE THIS!) Sampled and purchased at March 2013 Will Call, formally tested for this review, and worn often betweentimes. In Vitro Sweet and honey-like, with a slight tang. Wet Sweet honey, less sharp than in the bottle. I assumed the musk was smoothing the scent. Drying Predominantly honey plus some other source of sweetness, but a slight edge appeared and developed into relatively mild leather that both contrasted with and complimented the honey. There was little to no change over a long fadeout. This was very skin-close the first time I tried it, but fortunately I persisted in huffing the test spot and ultimately bought a bottle. Which is no mean feat considering that Sara was competing with Crowley at the same Will Call. I have never worn a BPAL scent that behaved so beautifully on my skin, and it's wonderful on clothing too. Honey, leather, and musk sounds simple enough but all together Sara Pezzini is more than the sum of its parts - sophisticated but not complicated, lively during the day yet comforting enough for bedtime. I want my skin to smell like this forever. 100

Sampled and purchased at a spring Will Call, occasionally worn at bed time, and formally tested recently for this review. The oil separates upon standing and needs to be agitated before dispensing. In Vitro Very strong and slightly sweet. It smelled 'dark brown' and masculine. I got possible citrus or a similar note. Wet The same strong, sweet, 'brown' smell; I couldn't pick out any notes. The 'masculine' quality made it at once pleasant and... inappropriate, for lack of a better term. Like, "This smells good but I feel like I shouldn't be caught wearing it." Drying Half an hour after application it was much the same, a little less strong and a bit less sweet. Two hours on the 'controversial' notes had vanished and what remained was faint cocoa and perhaps vanilla. Yum. To quote this scent's namesake: "Whoo-ee"! One dab of Crowley cut through the cacaphony of scents at Will Call and pretty much guaranteed I would take it home. On me it starts out naughty and dries down cuddly, and while it's not for daily wear I am very happy to have this bottle.

13 September 2013 My first Thirteen. This bottle has an orange label with a black cat and the number thirteen but no month or year. The oil is light brown. In Vitro Chocolate plus. Wet Freshly applied this was rich chocolate similar to Mayan Chocolate With Anatto et al but without the chile heat. After only two minutes some almost-bitter earthiness emerged, presumably the spices and herbs although I couldn't identify any of them. Six minutes after application I characterized the scent as spicy-herby, slightly sweet, with subtle chocolate. Drying Definitely herbal and dry, and slightly sweet, with cocoa a mere suggestion. At one point there was a worrisome hint of mustiness, and I was afraid that cumin or one of its allies was getting ready to trash the celebration, but luckily (heh) it never did. This settled for a while into a barely sweet, "dry" herbal scent, decidedly of powdered spices and herbs rather than the fresh plants. I liked it even though I couldn't detect the cocoa. A bit later it was spicy dry goodness with a mild sweetness that wasn't quite chocolate but was similar. My final observation before I went to sleep, an hour after application, was "dry and mildly sweet, hint of chocolate". Nearly six hours later I awakened enough to sniff my wrist and the herbs were gone but there was the cocoa, faint but faithful. I'm glad I took the chance and sprung for a bottle of this Thirteen. It's not so fabulous that I'll mourn it forever and haunt the swaps when it's gone, but it's a unique and intriguing scent and I look forward to wearing it it daytime. 102

HUNTER Tested and purchased at February 2013 Will Call. In Vitro Sweet and mild clary sage and clove. Wet Strong clary sage and clove with a hint of hide, and subtly sweet. Through the wet phase the clove strengthened and became dominant but the other elements remained present. Drying Twenty minutes after application this was clove, clary sage, and leather, with some sweetness that I presume was the amber. The scent remained skin close on me with no throw. There's nothing I don't like about Hunter (except the label art, but that's for another thread). I love clove and it shines in this blend. I was worried that the clary sage would remind me of a spray cleaner I use that's scented with it, along with cedar, but thankfully I got no scent association. I've had mixed results with leather but the version in Hunter is soft and non-chemical on me, and although I can't identify the amber as such I like its contribution. I would definitely buy another bottle when this one is used up. 98