jesvet

In the bottle, it was ten kinds of mint. MINT! I AM HERE! it proclaimed, and proceeded to smack me around a little. But as soon as it was applied, it calmed down, and whatever sharp note I picked up on quickly faded. The drydown is lovely- mint tea. Think minty Dorian (one of my top three all time favorites.)

This is a flat out gorgeous aquatic. I was a little worried based on the description that it would be too green, salty pungent, but it isn't that at all. It's light ocean breeze salt, not rotting kelp salt. Frankincense has a history of going to pencil shavings on me but it behaves quite nicely here. Beautifuly blended. Definitely a bottle purchase.

This is one of those "Oh YES!!!!" BPALs for me. And I'm so excited about it because I had really no expectations at all. I thought I would like TKO, but something in it was off for me. This, on the other hand, is the one I was looking for- the bamboo and lavender is very soft as opposed to astringent or cloying, and the opium smoke is indeed narcotic. Sleepy Moon and White Light are the two that for me, I feel an immediate change right upon sniffing. Wonderful and cozy at night, and I'm in the process of trying to snatch up all I can!

This one went nutso on me. It turned all to pepper. It almost smells like peppered bacon. What the....?? I don't want to smell like processed meat! *sob*

When I sniffed it out of the imp, I got butter rummy goodness and was thrilled that I might have a subsitute for my precious Underpants. But as an experiment, I put them on me one on each wrist, and the joy didn't last. It's still good, don't get me wrong, but the wine note went a tad sharp and sour on me; the drydown wasn't sweet at all. If I hadn't alreay fallen for the 'pants, I might be more inclined to like it.

I LOVE when you randomly grab an imp laying around, put some on for the heck of it having no idea what it's going to be like, and fall head over heels. Bordello is fabulous- bawdy is just the word. Lusty and sexy and fun all at the same time. It's the madam at the Best Little Whorehouse in Texas giving you a wink and calling you darlin' as she invites you in for a little fun.

Wow, I wish I had found this sooner. The notes are very similar to the new 13- cocoa, vanilla, and sandalwood- and I was so sad when 13 didn't work. THIS is what I wanted it to be. Yummy smooth chocolate mellowing to a lovely soft sandalwood. Love it.

In the vial, it was definitely reminiscent of Snow White. Snow White plus mint. Wet, the mint evaporated pretty quickly and the coconutty-smell of Snow White emerged, but softer and less LOUDCOCONUT. Maybe a touch of vanilla under it? Hard to tell. The drydown has a surprising amount of throw and staying power for such a soft scent. Like others have said, it's cool yet comforting at the same time.

Cake frosted with sawdust. Interesting, but not for me.

I had such high hopes when I saw the initial "white sugar" reviews, but as I was waiting for my order to come in the rest of the reviews loomed ominously. And they were right in my case. It's maple syrup, caramelized brown sugar- but someone left the heat on too long. Burnt syrup and sugar, with off and on wafts of plastic. *sobs*

This is gorgeous. This is the almond I wanted from Dana O'Shee, the amber I wanted from O- two huge disappointments on me. The almond doesn't amp into OMGCHERRYALMONDBOMB like it usually does; it's a nice grounding note; the musk is quietly humming in the background; the amber is soft and golden. Perfectly blended. Definitely bottle worthy.

This is a crazy scent on me. Wet, it smells like a hangover. The combination of perfume and tobacco smoke after a heavy night drinking, heady and intense. It dries to a sweeter, nutty buttercream; apparently the combination of the two was what was reading to my nose as sweet tobacco, but as it dries the toffee tones it down. Gluttony, yes- hedonism and overindulgence in a bottle. Not sure if I could go for a 5 ml, but the imp is interesting enough to keep around.

I like lighter florals; this one is a bit too heady for me. The combination of magnolia and jasmine are RIGHTTHEREINYOURFACE, a deep purple scent, almost black. It's beautiful, and I think someone with a strong presence can carry off such a strong scent. It reminds me of my sister who prefers these types of scents, the Liz Taylor big league florals. She would dig this one. Exactly what it purports to be, and well done, but not for me.

The most complex BPAL I've tried so far, and very different from previous 13 formulations. In the bottle- it smells orange; not only like orange rind, but actually like the late afternoon orange light shining through an attic window, dancing on dust motes. An old portrait, slightly yellowed around the edges. I'm not sure what is causing the dust note that others have mentioned but I definitely get it too. Wet, it's a little cocoa, a little orange, a little sweet. I can't decide if it's good or bad- the combination is very nostalgic in some way I can't put my finger on. Must be the tea coming out to play. Dry, the major emergent notes are the vanilla and sandalwood. It has a slightly sweet smell as well so I can see the Dorian mention- not like it at all, but notes that are reminiscent. This scent is quite the olfactory journey. ETA: Several hours later and still going strong, which is rare for me. The final drydown is more floral and it smells almost like it would if you mixed Dorian with some Antique Lace.

I stuck some of this on as a lark, not expecting much. In the imp, it had a bit of a 'generic cologne' scent- but to my great delight, that wore off almost immediately after application. This turned into a smooth, feminine floral. The musk is gorgeous and definitely keeps the jasmine in check. It's more of an "mmmm, what is that flower? Oh, jasmine! How lovely," as opposed to my more usual experience of being smacked upside the sinuses. I don't get vanilla at all, but I can believe it is there as a base. I may very well be going for a bottle here.

Wow, bubble-yum. All Bubble-yum. Not bad, since I like that scent, though. Cheery. As it dries, the guava comes out to play and smacks the cheery gum chomper around, so I guess that is why it starts weeping? Guava is a slightly sour smell to me- or I guess 'tart' is a better word. It's quite unlike anything I have smelled before. Not sure if I want a whole bottle, but I may hunt down another decant.

In the vial: ugh! Sharp peppery rancid something. It's overpowering any other scent that may be in there. But in the name of science I put some on anyway. wet: still sharp and sour, like someone was downing Tabasco and vodka then started breathing all over you. Gardenia! Where are you? Under the wood? dry: finally, the drunkard passed out on the floor and let the florals peep through, but only a peep. Gardenia and a bit of tobacco flower. It was nice enough after all that, but not an experience I'm going to repeat.

I love this scent. I had it on a to-try list on a lark, since the notes sound beautiful but sure it would be too dark and masculine on me. This is a beautifully evocative scent. In the imp, it smells cold and grey and aquatic- like standing on the edge of a cliff looking down into a gray swirling mass of nothing. As it dries, the spices come out and warm up the scent- not to the point of actual warmth, but it takes off the chill. My body is amping the musk and keeping the woods and patchouli at low low levels, which is just perfect. Bravo!

Very pretty scent. On me it's not very spicy at all, it's all vanilla and musk. I'm still waiting to see if the cassia comes out to mae my skin erupt in angry hives, but so far the carnation has beaten it into submission. It's like a spicier, less floral version of Antique Lace. I likey!

I took a chance on this, as I love real apple smell but I really dislike the typical faux scents. I'm so glad I did! This really is a true apple scent, tart and juicy. The mulling spice is incredible, and tones down the sweet factor quite a bit. It's very yummy on but for me, it's perfection as a room scent. Really brings me back to New England and hayrides and all that autumn goodness.

This is one of my favorite florals. I wasn't so sure smelling the bottle- mostly light rose. On, the sandalwood swirls around the rose and the spices ground it. The drydown is a beautiful, creamy floral that seems more blue to me than anything. It's also lasting longer on my oil eating skin than most lighter florals do. Just gorgeous.

This is a really fun scent. In the bottle, ALL lemon. When I put it on I was sure I was going to suffer from the Lemon Pledge smell effect, and it tottered precariously close but wound up on the side of lively sweet lemon instead. phew. As it dries, a sinister smoke note creeps up on the unsuspecting happy lemon. It is perfectly diabolical. Love it. The two meld together into a spicy sugary smoky smorgasbord of god knows what, but it's wonderful. So glad I picked up a bottle.

I was so excited and yet a little nervous to get this one- chocolate scents are notoriously awful on me. However. This scent is fabulous. In the bottle, chocolate candy. Much less rich than the usual chocolate scents. Wet, the chocolate quickly melts away and lets the other notes come forward- mmm, coconut, fig, the whole sampler pack. It dries surprisingly bright and sugary, with the underlying creaminess keeping it from going over the top sweet. It's just delectable, and definitely the more grownup of the two treats.

This is what is so fun about BPAL- the ones you think you'll love and the ones you end up loving are two such different beasts. I ordered an imp just for fun, since I'm always looking for the perfect lemon/sugar scent and there is always something wrong with it- too sharp, too perfumey, not authentic. My expectations for this were not high. I got this in an imp pack and after a succession of disappointments from the "sure thing" scents, I got to Dorian- and I'm in love. In the imp, sweet lemony sugar with an undercurrent of proper tea balancing the cloying sweetness. On, the lemon and sugar are bright and happy, and utterly delectable. The tea is a subtle swirl underneath. When it dries, the lemon recedes to the background, the sweetness dies down- and here comes the musk! Oh, you naughty, naughty Dorian. It is sexy and delectable and yummy all rolled into one cup of tarty tea. This scent is just perfect and I MUST have a bottle, asap.

I'm going to wait a few days and try this one again, because it seems so off I wonder if my nose or my skin chemistry is funky right now. In the imp- something smells off, and I can't for the life of me figure out what. Maybe the amber? It's just...pungent...? Wet: Oh no, it finally happened. Play Doh. Play Doh and pungent something. Kind of like, ugh, saliva? Dry: Ah, there's the honey. Very nice. Still sitting on top of the funky play-doh, sadly.