maijasu

I am definitely getting a soda pop vibe from Voodoo. It's quite wafty, and I think it would wake me right up if I were sleepy! It's fun and effervescent, but has a deeper aroma too, which stays close to the skin. I like it, but I'm not sure I'd wear it often.

My skin must think this is really yummy, because it eats it right up. I do get a very faint sniff of dirt, but nothing else. No vanilla, nothing mushroomy. Oh well, off to swaps!

For a scent with woods, resins, spice, and tobacco, this is actually quite light and subtle. It does have a warmth and richness to it, but it's so well blended that I honestly couldn't pick out any of the individual notes when I was testing it. I've found this to be the case with lots of the Salon blends I've tested, more so than other catalog blends. It's beautiful, intriguing, and comforting at the same time. I will be keeping my decant and trying it out some more!

Velvet started with a chocolate bang, but that was, unfortunately, short-lived. Once the chocolate disappears, all I can smell is the myrrh, as my skin eats sandalwood right up. It's kind of sweet and incensey, but definitely not the chocolate scent I was hoping for.

Belle Epoque is very sophisticated and feminine. It also has a hint of sweetness. It's a happy scent, but it's a restrained kind of happiness. All the notes blend together so well that it's impossible for me to pick them out. Very pretty, although I probably won't get a bottle, just because there are so many others I love more!

Uruk is a very complex blend, and a real morpher. At first, as other reviewers have mentioned, it is all almond--and to me, it's a very sweet, almost candyish almond. But then, it changes character entirely, and I'm not sure I can even describe it. It's a little bit herbal, a little bit floral, a little bit incensey, kind of sharp. There's something about it that's just not "me," although I'm glad I got to try it and would definitely recommend that others do so as well. I've just never smelled anything like it!

This one just screams ylang ylang for the first hour or so, and it's just too much for me. After it calms down, it's a really beautiful, deep honeyed floral. I love the second stage, but I'm not sure I'm prepared to put up with so much ylanginess to get there. Further testing of my imp is in order.

Tombstone is such a morpher on me! Just applied, it is all root beer. Strong, wafty root beer. Uh-oh. I don't wanna smell like root beer! Then, as it's drying, the throw becomes more of a syrupy sweet vanilla, while a sniff up close to my wrist reveals that the root beer is still hanging around. Later, the cedar peeps out, but it's well-tempered by the vanilla and doesn't turn into eau de hamster cage or pencil shavings. The longer I had this on, the more I liked it...and, wonder of wonders, my extremely picky husband liked it too! I wear scents for my own enjoyment, but finding something we both like is a very rare occurrence, so this will be a big bottle purchase!

This is a gorgeous citrussy-fresh aquatic! It smells so clean and sparkly, but it has a certain depth to it too. I am in love with this and will be buying a bottle come springtime!

Ravenous smells like orange candy on me. But yummy orange candy, not weird orange candy like Kunstkammer. It doesn't really smell that spicy to me, and the red patchouli is smooth and sexy. I really prefer it to the black patchouli in Vixen, which is another orangey scent. I might try layering Ravenous with something gingery, to get a similar feel to Vixen, but lighter and sweeter, although Ravenous works quite well on its own. Straight to the wishlist!

A mournful, poignant scent, thick with foreboding. Soft golden amber darkened with a touch of murky black musk. This smells kind of sharp on me. I'm not sure if it's the amber or musk that's doing that, but I think it's the musk since amber usually just turns powdery. It does smell very perfumey, and I'm not getting the lemon that others are. It's ok, but I'm not in love, so I'll be passing this one on.

I love ginger and orange blossom. Patchouli is a bit iffy, but I've found some BPAL patchouli blends that I really love. So, I decided I needed to try this, and... Vixen is OMG beautiful! Upon application, the orange blossoms burst forth, along with a deep, sweet, syrupy smell. Then a hint of gingery spiciness peeks out, along with the deep patchouli. But the patchouli isn't sharp like it can be sometimes; it's very smooth and refined (and no, my imp is not aged--I just got it yesterday from the Lab). I disagree with the Snake Oil comparisons, although that could just be a matter of individual chemistry. To me, the orange blossom and the ginger really make this one different. The scents do share a certain sexy earthiness from the patchouli, and they "feel" similar, but they definitely don't smell the same on me. Love love love!

Wow, what a unique blend! Many pumpkin blends are very foody, but this isn't at all. I smell smooth woods, sweet creamy pumpkin, and a hint of spice. My only complaint is that I'm not getting much of a fresh, green ivy note. Still, it's lovely and very autumnal.

This is a light, sweet, airy, and never cloying floral. It's beautiful and one of the few BPAL florals that has worked for me--lots of them turn soapy or powdery, but not this one! I was afraid of the gardenia, but it's not overpowering at all. If anything, the peach blossom is more prominent, which is fine with me! It's really a seamless blend though, and it's very light and cheerful. I agree with others who say it's more of a springtime scent, so I will be saving it for then. I only ordered one bottle of Kindly Moon because it sounded so very floral, but I am so glad that I didn't pass it over entirely. Beth might make a floral lover out of me yet. Beautiful!

This, to me, is Snake Oil without the vanilla. I don't really get a lot of cinnamon from it. It's very smooth, earthy, and sexy. Rrowr! It also reminds me a little bit of Baghdad. I bought this to enable a friend but am fighting the urge to keep the imp for myself. But I will make the sacrifice and share the love. I'm not sure about a bottle just because it's so similar in feel, if not exactly identical, to Snake Oil, which I already have 10ml of. Only time will tell whether I yield to the temptation, but I have a feeling I won't be sorry if I do. Oh, and once again, Beth has proven to me that I CAN wear patchouli, despite numerous protestations to the contrary before my discovery of BPAL.

I ordered 3 bottles and just got them last week. MCCCXLI- This one is floral with perhaps a bit of amber. My skin brings out the powdery aspects of each of these notes, so I hope this one will find a better home. MCCCXLII- At first, I get an almost medicinal tinge from this, but that disappears within seconds, so it's not a deal-breaker. Then, it turns into--get this--Midway! It doesn't have that saltwater taffy thing going on, but it is so sweet and foody and delicious, and the throw is awesome! MCCCXLIII- This one is kind of hard to describe. I get something herbal, something sweet, and a hint of something floral. There's also something dark and mysterious going on here, and it seems like a kind of unisex scent, definitely more masculine than the other two. It's nice, but I'm not in love. Buying these was a gamble, and I think I'll only be keeping one of them, but it was still lots of fun to try them out!

In the bottle, this has an odd, herbal, slightly sharp smell to it--not what I was expecting at all! On my skin, it still has a kind of "green-ness" to it, but it starts to smell like honey, too. Once it's dry, it's a very subtle, honeyed-sandalwood skin scent that's really beautiful. I'm so glad to have a bottle of this!

Yay, another floral I can wear! When this is still wet, I smell mostly florals...worrying. But when it's dry, it is gorgeously smooth honey musk with just a hint of florals to make it a touch more perfumey. As others have mentioned, it's seamlessly blended. Beautiful!

The absence of light: motia attar, black orchid, mugwort, English pear, cucumber, blue lotus, jonquil, massoia, calamus and crystal musk. This is a soft, airy floral scent. It reminds me of Bat-woman in feel, though it doesn't smell the same. I was actually hoping for more cucumber and pear, but I can barely smell them at all. It does smell nice layered with Schwarzer Mond, but I don't think I need to keep both of the bottles that I ordered. Maybe one. It's well-done, but smells more like a traditional floral perfume than I would prefer.

Wow! This scent, is dark, deep, and mysterious, just like I knew it would be. What I didn't know was how wearable it would be. I thought it might be too sharp or masculine, but I can actually pull it off quite nicely. It has great throw, and the amber adds just enough powdery sweetness to keep the patchouli in check. I wish I'd ordered a backup bottle!

This smells like spicy, plummy apple cider! It immediately brings the holiday season to mind, and it would be perfect to wear in cold weather, as it just smells so warm and delicious! Plus I love the name...so this is going on the big bottle list for sure!

At first, this one is all cherry sweetness and I love it! Unfortunately, as it dries, it turns into a generic soapy floral on my skin. Off to swaps!

Hmmm...I love BPAL's amber blends, and generally like vanilla and sandalwood, so I'm guessing it's the sweetpea which is turning this into sweet powder and soap on my skin. I thought I'd love it, but if I want to smell like powdery vanilla, I can just wear Antique Lace.

1. Snake Oil 2. Dirty 3. Aglaea 4. Midway 5. Dorian 6. O 7. Scherezade 8. Fae 9. Candy Butcher 10. Embalming Fluid (although this one doesn't work on me) 11. Alice (ditto) 12. Aizen-Myoo I'm sure I'm missing some, but I think those all qualify as well-done scents which are really creative and unique, with widespread appeal.

If Baghdad and Snake Oil got together and had a baby, its name would be Morocco. It has the dry, dusty, slightly spicy feel of Baghdad and the deep vanilla of Snake Oil. It's beautiful, and I might eventually get a bottle.