silver_dollar

Frimp from the Lab I don't get any kind of flowers or much fruit out of this, just mostly resins and spices. It actually does kind of strike me as an 'angry' blend, but in a pleasant, wearable way. It's more like what I expected from Blood when I was new to BPAL. Oh, and the blackcurrant actually behaves itself in this - I couldn't even tell it was there until I read the description, a definite plus. I like this one pretty good, but I don't know about buying a bottle or anything. Rating: 3.5

First blast is extremely buttery dirt. Very... unique. Luckily, the initial butter phase fades relatively quickly, and it's mostly floral perfume after that. Eh, I'll keep the imp. Rating: 2

In the imp, it's just like fresh green mango. On, it's like a mango and madarin duet, at least at first, still with that fresh green note, like the whole fruits are in here, rind and all. It's very tart, sharp, juicy, and wonderful. As it dries, it slowly fades to white musk. Rating: 4.5

Frimp in my re-shipped order, which was shipped remarkably fast. Probably wouldn't have ordered it myself since I'm not any kind of religious, but boy am I glad the lab sent me this. It's extremely sexy, at least to me. Mostly dragon's blood and cinnamon Red Hots, spicy but very sweet. There must be some kind of floral in there too, 'cause that's what I'm getting. Maybe jasmine, but not killer jasmine of doom or anything. I didn't think I was much of a floral girl, but I think the lab might be causing me to warm up to them a little. Rating: 4.5

Like... smoky mango tea. In the imp and otherwise. I liked it; that's about all I can say about it, really. Rating: 3

In the imp, it's the mixed cherry/anise notes from Kabuki; very oriental (imagine that). On me, it immediately was ANISE! Then it calmed down to anise and bamboo top notes, which was very different; kind of like bamboo licorice but nicer than it sounds. Somebody said this was very wet and rainy and I agree. After a few minutes, it gets a little flowery - like the bamboo suddenly grew little white flowers. It's very sweet. After about 30 minutes, the metallics come out. Rating: 3

Mmmmm, leather. Later: Mmmmm, musky leather. Mom thinks it smells like English Leather cologne. All I know is I need a bottle, now.

In the imp: A little sharp, but yup, berries and green tea. On my skin: I was afraid the sage was gonna have that sweaty note I hate in the actual plant, but nope. It just kind of blends with the green tea in the background, while the berries are in the forefront. I am *not* getting blackberries out of this blend, by the way. I'm not completely sure what I'm getting but it's not blackberries. Later: Oh. Blackcurrant. The same kind as in Bordello. That's what it is. Blackcurrant gives me a headache I actually like the wet stage and the final drydown (which is pure green tea), but I might have to swap this. I'll give it a couple more tries first.

In the imp: I don't know what's wrong with me that's making everything smell like custard. On my skin: Whoo, that is strong. Kinda made me wrinkle my nose for a minute. Better after it dries down a little, but still sinister and intense. There's cigar smoke, and fireplace smoke, but everything else is so well blended I couldn't tell you any note just from sniffing. On drydown, this sweet musky scent comes out, making this blend not so scary. Drydown after a few hours: Omgsex. Keeping it.

In the imp: Jasmine, ugh. On my skin: Spicy jasmine! Much nicer than in the imp. I usually hate jasmine, but this is actually very nice. A tiny bit of honeysuckle under that. No lemon. I don't think lemon shows up on me very well - I don't get any in Dorian either. That's fine with me. Seems like the same spice as in Bengal, probably ginger. It's very heady, exotic and a little overripe, just how I prefer florals. As it dries down more, the honeysuckle slowly overtakes the jasmine and ginger. God, I love honeysuckle, and this lasts for hours. After a while it smells like honeysuckle candy instead of the actual flower. One of my faves!

In the imp: RUM. On my skin: Mysteriously spicy, green-smelling rum at first. A few seconds later, smoky rum and coconut. After a minute or so, coconut becomes the dominant note, mixed with rum and maybe a hint of leather. Definately some smoke too. So glad the rum doesn't drown everything else out in this blend, 'cause it's a gorgeous blend, maybe even one of my favorites so far. Later, something sweet and very faintly vanilla comes forward - maybe the tonka? It mixes with the coconut and remains of the rum and becomes what I hoped Elegba would be. A lot of BPAL fades on me quickly, but the rum gives this one some staying power. Damn, this is sexy. Rum's becoming very hit-or-miss on me lately, but I absolutely love this at every stage. Definite bottle - eventually.

Swank is very nice, judging by what spilled on my fingers when I tried to open the broken cap.

In the imp: Strawberry. Medicine-y and a little burnt. On my skin: Still strawberry with a strong Snake Oil-like undercurrent. In a minute or so, it loses its sharpness and I start to see the comparisons to Strawberry Shortcake dolls. I still don't consider it 'childish', though. It has a bite. A few hours later and all I keep thinking is 'strawberries and cream'. It's like that. Oh, and it's got the red musk I liked so much in Kabuki. I like this one.

In the imp: A little perfumy-er than I thought it was going to be, but I like it. It kind of has a "buttery" note (smells better than it sounds). On my skin: Kind of a weird buttery-coconut note. Very summery and exotic. It definately reminds me of the beach, or the ocean. I'm liking this a lot. I can already see a bottle of this in my future. Unfortunately, like everything I like, it fades fast. Oh well.

The enemy of God, also named Iblis, He Who Despaired of the Mercy of God. Al-Shairan is the leader of the Jinn, a tempter who whispers false suggestions to men enticing them into evil and perfidious acts, and is the sworn enemy of all of Adam’s children. His scent is fiery, bright and thick with sweet sinfulness: clove, peach and orange with cinnamon, patchouli and dark incense notes. In the imp: I'm getting the custard vibe I got from Bengal, but spicier. Maybe that's the cloves that's doing that? On my skin: It really has a 'hot' bite. I can feel it in the back of my throat when I sniff my wrist. Probably the cinnamon. I'm not getting custard any more. I'm also not getting peach or orange. Okay, now the orange is coming out, much better. I can also pick out the peach if I really try. I guess this is more of a winter scent, though, so maybe I'll save it for then. It dries down to mainly patchouli. It's okay. I just wish the orange and peach had been a little stronger. ETA lab description.

In the bottle: Ugh. Very medicinal. Kind of like this stuff I used to take for strep throat when I was a kid. Well, here goes nothing... On my skin: Okay, definately better. Now it's mostly booze with some kind of berry note. Very nice. Just goes to show you shouldn't be scared away by the first sniff. It also turns into powder within an hour, so I'm glad it came in a big-ish bottle.

In the imp: Vicks Vaporub. On my skin: It calms down a bit, but it's still quite astringent. This is another one my dog likes, by the way. After a minute, the astringency fades so although it's still there, it's not so noticeable, and some kind of floral note comes out. I'm not usually a floral girl, but this one's pretty nice. I think there might be some kind of tea in here, too. After a while, the floral starts to smell more and more like honeysuckle. So yeah, this one's a keeper.

In the imp: Cherry, but not the cherry bathroom fragrance I got from Blood. More like spicy cherry. On my skin: Spicy cherry. The anise come outs immediately and doesn't overpower the cherry. It doesn't smell at all like Twizzlers to me. I think I like this better than Blood. My dog likes it too. I know I keep comparing this to Blood, but it's like Blood's exotic cousin. I think I've got another one for the big bottle list.

In the imp: It's a lot sweeter than I expected. I guess I was expecting more ginger. It's pretty, though. On my skin: It doesn't change any from what it was in the imp. There's not a lot of throw, and like almost everyone else, it does fade very fast on me. It's a shame, because I really like this. It would maybe have been nice if there was a little more ginger, as well. I think I might buy it again. We'll see.

In the imp: Spicy vanilla custard. On my skin: More spice, less custard, though it's still there in the background. That 'custard' smell must be the honey and musk together. Maybe it's the peppers or cinnamon bark doing that? It is kind of like Snake Oil without the vanilla, but it's not exactly the same. Pretty sexy in an exotic way. I think the cinnamon's the top note, but it's very well-blended so it's hard to tell. I can see why everybody says it reminds them of chai. This is gonna be a big bottle for me.

In the imp: Very fruity in an unidentifiable way. That must be the currant. On my skin: Fruity with a funky undertone that goes away immediately. I think I'm smelling the amaretto beneath the fruitiness. It's an unusual scent. Now I think maybe the wine is coming out. It smells 'dirty' in a way I can't really explain, and it's very, very sweet, but I like it. There's kind of a nuttiness behind it now. This scent actually strikes me as kind of foreboding. This is more like a cathouse in a ghost town, with the velvet ripped and dusty and the snarls of pleasure ghostly echoes. I like it, but not enough to buy a big bottle. It's very interesting.

In the imp: I smell the moss and flowers. It's a lot more perfume-y than I thought it was going to be, but I like it. On my skin: The dirt's coming out now, and the moss is getting stronger, making this a little sharper and more complex. Right now I'm getting a very strong moss note that's definitely somber. I really like this. I was worried the rum would swallow up everything else like it usually does, but I can't even smell it, which is good. Now I'm getting a stronger floral note, all mixed together with the moss and dirt. I'm sitting here sniffing my wrist as I type this and it really does seem to shift and change a lot. So far, I'm absolutely in love. It does make me think of hot days and funerals. Gorgeous. I've never been to New Orleans, but I second what Electra said about this smelling like Savannah. That's what it reminds me of, Savannah and all its cemeteries. I'm in love.

In the imp: It's a little fruity and a little sweet, and I think there might be green tea in it. On my skin: It becomes somewhat floral. It's very light so I'm slathering it on. Later: I've been sniffing myself a lot, wondering what it is this reminds me of. I just realized this smells exactly like The Healing Gardens Honey after a while. It isn't really floral as much as it is very honey and amber on me, which could be why this is fading fast - I think amber has a tendecy to do that on my skin. I really like it, and I think it's what's responsible for that green-tea-and-honey smell I got when I opened my BPAL package. I might have to invest in this one again. Lab, you must be psychic.

In the imp: Uh-oh. It's just like Red Lantern. Oh please don't let this go all funky on me like that did. Please let me be able to wear rum scents. On my skin: Still Red Lantern Lite. All I can smell is rum, but at least it isn't going weird on me. Yet. This might do better as a room scent. Later: There's still mostly rum, but there's also a smoky sweet note behind that that I'm liking a little better than straight-up rum. Now: It's mostly gone, leaving behind a powdery, slightly smoky scent. It doesn't last a long time, and doesn't have an ungodly amount of throw, which is kind of a good thing because smelling this too long might be capable of giving me a headache. It never went wonky like the rum in Red Lantern did, though. Strangely enough, this strikes me as more pirate-y than voodoo-y. It's okay. I'll probably use up the imp. I just really wish the rum didn't amp and drown out all the other notes.

In the vial: Ginger and vanilla. On my skin: Womanly and very old-fashioned. This is something a Gypsy fortune teller would wear. This really is delicious. I can't really find the words to describe it, it's so good. It's in fierce competition with Dorian as my number one favorite so far. I wear this when I want people to take me seriously, and it seems to work.