steffanina

Belle Epoque- In Bottle: Very clean and light--gosh, that is pretty! What is it, tropical flower? Strawberry? Wet: Abrupt musty-dusty floral smell. In my experience that usually gets better on me. Dry: This did not stay unpleasant, but it never really turned into anything striking for me. Kind of went into generic floral hints but mostly faded. Too bad. Overall: Not for me.

Vechernyaya- In Bottle: Something a little...perfumey, amberish, sharp. Wet: This smells heavily like a commercial perfume scent to me. Doesn't appeal so far. Dry: I'm getting that insect repellent cologne-y smell here. I'm not sure I can wait on the dry-down on this one...Okay, I did wait through the dry-down, and it's better, yes. Powdery, nicer, but not anything I'm going to marry. Pity, I love white musk usually. Overall: Not for me.

A profound, complex scent that encapsulates the joy one finds in another's pain. Ylang ylang, clove, Indonesian red patchouli, and dark myrrh. Malice- In Bottle: Rich and a little nutty-smelling. Wet: Sweet, rich, a little woody. Dry: Not bad but not really striking. Woody and sweet all the way through. Overall: Not as exciting as I'd like.

Tenochtitlan- In Bottle: Sweet and fruity; I think I smell pear. Wet: Fruity again, and if there's pear it's subtle and pretty. Dry: A pretty fruit-floral scent--not as fascinating as some, but nice. Overall: Nice, not really exciting.

The Glorious Grand Dame of the Pumpkin Patch! Regal Egyptian Amber, red ginger, orange peel, mandarin, cardamom, fig leaf and warm pumpkin. Pumpkin Queen- In Bottle: Butter, and a little cinnamon, and something I identify now as straight pumpkin, knowing what I do of the pumpkin scents in BPAL. Yummy! Wet: Wow, delicious. More butter, more cinnamon, and some more spices come out too. Dry: This stays pleasant but it does fade quickly. Too bad! Wish it had stuck around longer. At least it didn't go musty. Overall: Wish it had more staying power.

Creepy- In Bottle: Butterscotch, rum, and apple. WOW. Wet: Really sweet/sour apple, and a touch of the butterscotch. Dry: The butterscotch is not so prominent, but the apple stays nice and pleasant. If I craved an apple scent, this'd be it. I think I'm going to like this most as a scent locket scent, because I love the butterscotch of it. Overall: Nice. Will use in scent lockets. ETA: I've been wearing it as a scent locket all day and it's delicious. Can't stop sniffing the butter-rum-apple goodness!

Florence- In Bottle: Berries, floral, and a little spice. Wet: Warm and rich, a little cinnamony. Berries coming out again. Dry: This is really nice. Amber and berries! Rich and pretty scent--not as beautiful an amber scent as The Lion, but lovely all the same. Overall: Nice.

Ogun- In Bottle: Melon. Wet: Melon. And is that the chili pepper? Definitely the juniper coming through, too. Dry: There's a little juniper, a little must. I'm sorry I never smelled the tobacco; this just isn't interesting enough for me. Overall: Not interesting enough for me.

Medea- In Bottle: Strong sweet plummy fruity florals. Wet: Erg. Musty-dusty something--reminds me of what I just went through in Succubus. (But that also turned nice later.) Dry: This is more like it--sweet plummy berry scent. Much nicer! I don't think it's going to be one I love, but this musty-dusty to sweet-and-fruity fascinates me. Overall: Nice.

Starry white lilies lend an eerie brightness to the deep black wooded scents of cypress and oak, layered with a touch of crushed dried leaves and the faintest aquatic note. Ulalume- In Bottle: Earth! Oh, a very strong wet earth smell. Wet: Fresh-turned earth and a few dying flowers in the mix. Dry: This changes, which pleases me. For some reason I wasn't enjoying this earth scent like I do in The Premature Burial and Zombi. But it becomes a nice pale floral scent; not anything that I love, but pretty enough. Overall: Not bad.

Bayou- In Bottle: Soapy, flowery, a little bit of sweet berry. Pretty! Wet: This is like a beautiful tropical soap. Dry: Oh, dear, that sour floral note is coming out on my skin. Disheartening. I have to go wash it off. (What IS that? It bums me out!) Overall: Not for me.

Succubus- In Bottle: Ooh, a very musty-dusty orange scent. Hope it's prettier on the skin. Wet: Musty-fussy orangey scent. Dry: Oh, this gets MUCH nicer once it's on! It's bright and pretty and sweet-fruity; it doesn't smell so much like orange as something exotic. I would not have expected this from the bottle smell! I don't think it's going to be one of my top favorites but it is very nice and I will try it again. Overall: Nice! A dry-down surprise!

Dissipation- In Bottle: Sweet, kind of floral-fruity. Wet: There's a murky note in here. Like...spearmint gum. Dry: This is a really appropriately named scent. It's kind of...indifferent. Not unnoticeable, no; instead it is the scent that is indifferent to its surroundings. Chilly, aloof, lightly sweetly floral. Above everything. I don't think it's quite for me but it's interesting! Overall: Not quite my scent.

The Cracked Bell- In Bottle: Mmm, there's a candy-and-incense scent in this! Wet: Sweet sugar and incense, resin-pine. Dry: This is lovely--it reminds me of another BPAL scent I've tried before, but I can't think what. Something resinous and sweet. It's very nice! Overall: Not a frequent flyer but one I'll try again.

Storm Moon- In Bottle: That...cologne-y smell, not as powerful as some that I dislike, though. Wet: Lemony cologne. Dry: That's a pretty aquatic. Not too sharp or eye-watering. As aquatics go, I like it. (Aquatics and I are very conditional.) Overall: Nice.

Rage- In Bottle: Oh, very sweet and dark-smelling. Wet: Cherry, soapy Dry: This one does take some time to get down to something that I like; something sweet-fruity and pleasant; not a favorite, but certainly nice. Overall: Conditional but nice after dry-down.

Holiday Moon- In Bottle: Hmm, something lightly citrus, kind of lemon-lime, and...grass. Pretty! Wet: Big lemon-lime bloom. Dry: A lime scent; pretty but I guess I'm spoiled by other wonderful complex scents of Beth's now. Overall: Doesn't quite have enough zing for me.

Cathedral- In Bottle: Candied peanuts. Wet: Very strong pine resin bloom; not just pine but pine sap, more. Woo, I feel like I'm gathering pine cones in fall. Dry: Hmm. If I wanted to smell drying pine sap, I'd like this. But it doesn't do anything for me. Overall: Not for me.

Jolly Roger- In Bottle: Oh, what is that? I smell lime and--melon! Yes, melon. Honeydew. Wet: Very strong citrus bloom. Dry: There's something lime and light and comforting about this one, but I really never got too much off it. I think this one can't be a keeper for me, sadly. I wonder where the bay rum went?--Oh, God--did I just type that? Say it with me now: "Why is all the rum gone??" Overall: Too odorless for me.

Voodoo- In Bottle: A sort of cherry-patchouli smell. Wet: The same, joined with something a little spearminty. Nice! Dry: This is interesting. I do get the clove and almost-cinnamon off this; it's not quite as yummy or lovely as I'd hope but it's not bad. Overall: Conditional.

Malediction- (I'm excited to try this one--I want to know what vetiver and patchouli smell like when I know there's no sandalwood there.) In Bottle: That rich chocolate-and-wood smell. Wet: A sweet, piercing acetone note. Dry: I wish there were something a little more fragrant and/or sweet to temper this a little. It's very dry, very staid. If I walked into a den full of books and smelled this I'd think it smelled good, but I don't think I want to smell like this as a person. Overall: Conditional. I might scent a room with it.

Umbra- In Bottle: Wood and chocolate! Is that the vetiver? Wet: Definitely patchouli and the cedarwood. A little like cherry? Dry: Patchouli and wood and vetiver, wow. When I want all that dark sweet richness, I'll know where to go. It might not be often, as it's almost too rich. But there are a lot of things about this to like. Overall: Conditional but I like.

Dragon's Hide- In Bottle: The cherry-powder smell of Dragon's Blood. Wet: Ooh! I smell the smoke and leather now. It's nice! Dry: Every time I smell a new Dragon's Blood scent I seem to love it more. This one is one of my favorites, with this lovely smoke and leather blend. Overall: I love.

Zephyr- In Bottle: Oh, beautiful. Sweet, powdery! Wet: Bright amberish florally powder scent. Dry: That is beautiful. Sweet-amberish powder; not too sharply floral at all. The floral is quite subdued. And it keeps getting better, the longer the dry-down! Vanilla comes out on this in exactly the way I love. I keep sniffing and sniffing my wrists, it's such a yummy scent! Overall: I love.

Sudha Segara- In Bottle: Flowery-gingery. Pretty! Wet: Very milky as soon as it's on! Dry: Oh, dear, this fades so quickly. Pity! I did like it, but it's like Dana O'Shee on me--lovely milky scent that doesn't last. Overall: Too bad. Wish it lasted. (I'll try it in a scent sachet, maybe.)