batsy

In the vial: rose/sandalwood. Strong. On the skin: Again the jasmine strikes! The roses were strong along with the musk but as it dried down the jasmine ran in and destroyed me. I just can't win with anything jasmine.

In the vial: ylang ylang. Strong! On the skin: Normally I pick up roses right off, if they're a note in something, but this time it's like a ylang ylang party. Which is okay if you love ylang ylang, I suppose. As it dried down, the roses began to pop (or "bloom"...) It's a beautiful rose scent as it dries and deepens. Reminds me of a Catholic church for some reason.

My first unreleased scent! In the vial: pine and lemon, after a sudden rain storm On the skin: it's manly, the undertone is smoky which juxtaposes with the clean pine/citrus. It's a most interesting combo. Not my thing but really good for a guy.

In the vial: drunken blackberries! On the skin: this is like Beaver Moon, but with blackberries and bourbon. Seriously delicious. The throw isn't as strong as Beaver Moon (boo!) but there's just something distinct about juicy berries over sugary cake...yum! I'm *so* glad I snagged a 5ml!

In the vial: wet cherries/cherry blossoms On the skin: Neo-Tokyo is like Akuma's sophisticated older cousin. It's aquatic and ozone-y, like cherries smashed all over wet pavement. There's a wet fruit undertone as well, very clean and crisp. If you like cherries, you'd love this.

In the vial: oh damn FLORALS! On the skin: Strawberry hibiscus... which isn't bad, really. Just sounds odd. It's almost a burny smell to me, but I think that's the carnations (which I don't get along with) I'm not sure how to classify this one. I just can't breathe in too much of it.

In the vial: mmm gin! Crystal clear aquatic here. On the skin: I've never had an actual martini but in perfume form they smell awesome! The juniper berries and the gin are strongest, with a whiff of pine as a background note. Yummy!

In the vial: raw leather On the skin: It's a smoky leather, like Beth just distilled leather into a bottle. Very very manly! If you like the scent of leather in any form, you'd like De Sade. I need a man to slather this on...

Normally anything with jasmine is a no-no, but I tried it. At first it was all black orchids, musk, and rose in the vial but as soon as I got it on my skin JASMINE. Argh! It's still a nice blend and has a "dreamy" quality to it. Very girly.

Really, I wished I'd tried this sooner! The warm carmel is all spicy and exotic, and the amber deepens it. This is sex in a bottle! The carmel always pops first for me, then gets spicy as it dries down. The coconut and currants are always back notes, and the tobacco makes it smoky. I could live in Red Lantern, truly!

I got a imp of this as a freebie, perfectly timed to a test I had to take. Plus, having spent the entire winter in a deep depression I've just come out of, I hoped it'd remind me of the good days. Boy did it ever! This is a spicy blend -- it reminds me a tad of Toture King, only far more spicy -- and honestly I can say this is what I always though voodoo rituals to smell like. (Even though I've never been party to one, and never set foot in NOLA; I've got a crazy imagination.) The throw is spicy, almost a burning my nose and throat, but when I sniff my wrists real close it's roses and floral, very sweet. It's hard to say; depending on how close up on it you are it's either really girly or really manly. I honestly have *zero* idea what could be in this. It did start out incense-y, like this record store I used to go in, but moved quickly into the spicy sassy scent and it's still strong hours later! God I need a bottle.

Vial: old rose. That's the best I can describe. Skin: There's a distinct smell to geraniums, and you either love it or hate it. Yeah. Cut with the rosewood and lily, it's very adult, very sophisticated. The backnote of frankincense deepens it and ages it. I'm particular about rose scents and this just isn't me. But very a lovely scent.

Vial: Eucalyptus-minty-burn? Ow... my nose... Skin: Wow, awake now! This is very medicinal to me, almost like one of those natural eyemasks with lavender you'd use to fall asleep. Something akin to that. The eucalyptus is very very strong and I can pick out the pine. No orange at all for me. It would probably work best in a diffuser for me, to make me wide awake in the morning, but as perfume, no.

Vial: ...booze? And nuts. Skin: Yes there's very much a bite to this. The rum and the almond are most strong for me, followed by the hazelnut. Oregon has a lot of hazelnut farms and you distinctly know hazelnut. It's very much a foody scent, that's for sure! I like it, but it'd be one I wouldn't wear often -- very opposite my main staples. But it sure makes you hungry!

In the vial: apricot-y! On the skin: I'm very much a fan of clove, so that was pretty much why I went for this. Apricot wasn't really given much thought -- oddly I got Grand Guignol shortly before this and fell in love with it! -- then promptly forgot I was getting March Hare. Oy. It's a really strange mix but it works. Seriously. It will change. One minute you think you're smelling cloves, the next it's apricot. Very much a keeper for me!

For some reason aquatics don't like me. (I wonder if it's because I'm such a serious Earth sign?) There seems to be a hint of citrus, a lot of salt, and something I can't place in this. Anyway, it's not going to work for me.

In the vial: manly! Salty sweet. On the skin: For some reason, I just don't have luck with most rum scents. The salt aquatics too, they just don't agree with me. This one isn't doing anything for me. Bleh.

In the vial: nutmeg and clove, spicy pumpkin pie! On the skin: Pretty much the same. It's a warm foody scent that reminds me of that whole period of time between Hallowe'en and Thanksgiving. A bit over powering at first, but it's quite tasty to keep smelling.

In the vial: really really sweet, like ripe fruit On the skin: It's a lot like cherry candies, that sickening sweet smell. It's honestly not bad at all. The lillies are very nice.

I'm not sure exactly what caused it, but I sniffed this and it smelled like a cheap perfume gone bad. Needless to say, it's going to the swaps.

At first it was just ginger and honey with white pepper. Not notes I'm normally a fan of or wear much of. But as it's dried down, the sweetness is tinged with spicy and it honestly smells good. A huge departure from what I'd wear. I was totally sure at first I wouldn't end up liking it at all, but it's grown on me.

In the vial: musky, heady, darkness. On the skin: After the intial "omg NO!" because I knocked the imp over (saved it just before it spilled, luckily) now I have a ton on my hands. I was afraid I'd hate it, but now that I'm getting an over abundance of it... I'm lucky I don't. It's actually powdery as it's drying down. The myrrh and musks blend wonderfully together and you almost can imagine being in the dark with Czernobog in a daper suit from the 30's, smiling charmingly at you. I'd actually honestly wear this! All right, the gods speak in strange ways... I get the hint!

In the vial: rosemary orange mint... hmm... On the skin: This is a crisp scent... quite a mix of notes really. Strong rosemary for a long time. A very "wide awake now!" mix. It wouldn't be something I'd normally wear, but I can almost imagine Queen Elizabeth I's court being obsessed with this scent!

All right, I started into BPAL back in February... it's nearly April and I've already managed to try 57 scents. I must be on a roll. I've got about 32 I liked/loved. 25 that didn't work/I liked but not enough to keep. Which I assume is a good ratio. I've honestly only kept about 20-25 of the ones I liked, which will probably go down again because I need to really be ruthless. Gluttony... good god that stuff is killing me. I only tried a tiny bit!! Guess I'll go recull my keep box.

In the vial: spicy vanilla. Oh lord, my mom's going to steal this. On the skin: I can almost understand why everyone ages this one. It's one of those exotic vanilla scents. I like vanilla, but it's just not me. I like Snake Oil though -- it's one of those "classics" I can see using once in a while for a change. In terms of the vanillas I've tried, this is #2, after Tombstone. Excellent!