phedre

Oakmoss, vetiver, black musk, champaca flower, leather, patchouli, ginger, Japanese pittosporum, ambergris and white pepper. In vial: deep moss and vetiver, a bit of spice from the ginger and pepper. Patchouli? There's a lot going on here. Wet: peppery and fiery. The vetiver doesn't overwhelm like it normally does on my skin. Petrol? Something very strong, like gas fumes. Drydown: wow, something interesting is coming out here. It must be the pittosporum, because I don't recognize it at all. It's sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. It's now turned to cologne, and is slightly aquatic with more moss and vetiver. The lovely sweetness has disappeared. It'd be lovely on someone who enjoyed more masculine scents, though.

In bottle: A floral I can't identify, which must be the devils trumpet. A touch of orchid and coconut. A bit of spicy smoke. On skin: Orchid is my nemesis, and the main reason I was leery of ordering this scent. It immediately leaps to the foreground. There's a musky note too, but the orchid is almost headache inducing. I'm crossing my fingers for it to fade quickly. Drydown: I smell cocoa here, along with sweet resin and patchouli. This stuff has some POWER to it. Normally, BPAL scents linger so close to my skin, but this one's leaping around shouting "HI! I'm HERE!" The fruit gums are emerging. This is pretty, and definitely growing on me. The headache-inducing orchid is now under control, but still very present. This is nice! I'm not sure if I love it yet or not; I'll have to try it a few more times to make up my mind.

In vial: Lavender and jasmine. Very relaxing. Wet: Bergamot coming out a little more, and something earthy. The mugwort? Lots of lavender. Drydown: Lavender without soapiness. This is good! There's a touch of wood to this; it's relaxing and nice.

In vial: Vetiver and wood. Wet: More salty cedarwood and vetiver, but nicely balanced. Drydown: Cedar, but not the obnoxious cedar I normally get from BPAL's blends. This is light and lovely, and completely not what I expected. It's masculine, but not too much so for me to wear it.

In vial: Sweet white flowers and tea leaves. Wet: Light tea and carnations. A touch of rose. Drydown: the tea's staying nicely in the background, with the carnation and rose taking center stage. This is a very light scent, barely there. Very pretty; gentle is a good description for this scent.

In vial: Pine gum. This is sharp and astringent. Wet: Pine sol and evergreen bark. Drydown: This is the smell of the mop bucket after cleaning the floors with pine sol. Yikes.

In vial: Sweet sugar, musk, and bourbon? Wet: There's a candy sweetness to this, but it's not cloying. So far, I really like this. It's one of the few foody scents that isn't TOO foody. Drydown: This is pretty, creamy and sweet without being overwhelming. It's rich and complex! I really like this. Must try and find a bottle!

In vial: Whoa, sweet berries and green leaves. Wet: cranberries, for sure. It's tart-sweet, with a sharp green scent. There's an astringent note here that's irritating my nose. Drydown: the sharpness is gone, and now it's pure berry and pretty green notes. There's a subtle pine note behind the blend, but it's barely there.

In vial: Spicy cinnamon and flowers. Wet: old spice. Eep. Drydown: It's very light, but still quite old spice-ish. Not a blend for me.

In vial: Whoa. Rose. Perfect red rose. On skin: Juicy red rose. This has a sweetness to it that Peacock Queen is missing; whereas the Queen is the haughty lady, this is the approachable garden rose. Drydown: This stays very true to the vial. Pure, lovely, fresh roses. I love this, but it's quite overwhelming. Definitely one to apply with a light hand.

In vial: opium and narcissus. Something sweet and smoky. Wet: opium smoke. This is opium incense. drydown: opium incense with just a touch of florals. I'm not sure if I like this or not.

In vial: sandalwood and peach blossom. wet: wow, vanilla! It's suddenly so rich! smooth and creamy vanilla, sandalwood, and a touch of florals. drydown: this is gorgeous. it's a perfect balance of bright and creamy with pretty floral notes and vanilla.

In vial: carnation, bergamot, and juicy tangerine wet: florals and light citrus. Tons of rich flowers. Jasmine and carnation. drydown: Rich is the best word to describe this. It's floral, but there's just a luscious feeling to it. The tangerine is quite strong now, but not too overpowering. I like this.

In vial: lilies and roses wet: Tons of lily and chrysanthemum. Not much carnation though, which is disappointing. drydown: this has turned to soap. Oh well. The florals are nice, but the soapiness is overpowering.

A meditation upon death. Inspired by William Cullen Bryant’s poem. A deep, solemn earthen scent containing pine, juniper and musk. In vial: Juniper berry and pine gum overwhelm everything else. wet: sharp moss and juniper. This smells like a damp forest. drydown: something sweet is coming out. The musk? The juniper and pine are being calmed by it. I like this a lot better than most of the pine blends. Later, the musk comes out and twines around the pine and jasmine. I like this a lot more than I expected to.

In vial: wow. pure apricot. wet: pure apricot fruit. drydown: this doesn't morph at all. It's so purely apricot, with nothing else.

In vial: lemongrass, coconut, and lime wet: this is very light; i can barely smell it on my skin. Definitely lime and coconut, and a little light floral. drydown: lemon notes seem to take over on my skin. This one turned to pure lemongrass.

In bottle: neroli and rosemary, something almost licorice-like. Wet: root beer how very odd. Dry: pure root beer No good, no good at all.

In vial: wow. Magnolia and patchouli and jasmine! Something smoky and lush. Wet: Gorgeous powdery florals and thick, heady patchouli. This is sexy. Dry: Something citrusy is coming out, like tangerine. There's still a lot of floral, but the patchouli is gone. It's not nearly as sexy anymore. I wish the patchouli had stuck around and kept this anchored, but it's flown the coop.

In bottle: fruit, must be the currant. Poppy and lily. Wet: Musk and patchouli pop right out. The florals and fruit disappear. Dry: Fruity, but not overpowering. Patchouli and flowers balancing nicely. Sweet and nice.

In vial: I smell honey and herbs. wet: more honey, some myrrh. There's a creamy quality to it. Dry: Sharp honey. The herbs are really biting. There's a sharpness to it that isn't nice at all.

In vial: earthy and warm. It's all round, with no sharp edges. Wet: Earthy and soft. Lovely. Something sweet, but not cloying. Caramel maybe? Dry: Gorgeous. Sweet and warm. Coconut and vanilla caramel.

In vial: frankincense and resins. Rich and sweet. wet: sweet, almost like maple syrup Frankincense for sure, and lovely resins. This is deep and sexy. Dry: Lovely, still sexy and sweet. A little foody, but not too much so.

In vial: Jasmine and sharp herbal notes. A touch of orchid. Wet: Sandalwood and orchid, the herbs have faded a lot. Drydown: Wow. This has morphed into something gorgeous. There's almost a caramel tone to it, though I don't know where that comes from; it's just very rich. The jasmine and orchid are nicely in harmony, and the sandalwood and myrrh are keeping everything toned down.

In vial: Honey and sandalwood wet: Florals, but I can't identify them. It's sweet honey without the sharpness I usually get in BPAL's honey note. Smooth and sandalwoody. This is complex already. Drydown: The orchid's there, but not as overpowering as it normally gets on me. The honey's lovely, and the sandalwood is just smoothing over the edges. I love this so much.