LiberAmoris

Gennivre is so refreshing, like drinking down an iced green tea that's been embellished with mint, honey, and a sprig of orange blossom. It's a 'light' blend, but it has great staying power and throw. The honey gets stronger and stronger the longer it wears, and it's wonderful, like touring an apiary surrounded by wildflowers. The tea slowly wears off on my skin but infuses the blend with a green edge that melds with the honey. Love this one. Macha, you smell good!

Antonio is another CD blend that uses verbena to advantage (at least on me), like Phantom Calliope. It's primarily verbena and lavender, with white musk. I would love to get more black coconut (I can never get enough coconut!) and less vetiver, but I'm actually fairly surprised and pleased that the vetiver that's here does not completely take over the blend, as it usually does with my chemistry. Because I can still smell the small amounts of spiky sourness that vetiver imparts whenever I wear it, this might not be for me. But I'll definitely be trying it again, as I love the way the plum and fig come out after a while and give this a rich purpley feel.

Carnaval Diabolique is like tropical coconut meets lemongrass meets opium smoke on me. It's only after ten minutes or so that the floral notes emerge. I am very happy that the tuberose is behaving itself---it normally smells like bananas on me, but I think it's held in check by the other notes. I really like this, and it strikes me as a great summer nighttime blend, as it's got that tropical side but also the darkness of the opium smoke and black musk. At points it smells like a lemony-floral Perversion on me, which is great, since I love Perversion. This is very bright and cheerful on me without being twee. I'll wear it if we get some more warm days before the fall and then put it away for next summer.

The Phantom Calliope is dark spiced cherries in the bottle, cherries so ripe they're nearly black. I'm not even a cherry note kind of girl, but this smells gooood. Like a topping that might be spooned on top of a dessert at a fancy restaurant. Once on, the verbena puts a greenish yellow spike through the heart of the blend, like an exclamation point. It is such a strange combination, and yet it really works. The patchouli, cassis and cardamom are indeed reminiscent of Blood Moon, Alone, and Red Phoenix. It's also similar to the spices in Bengal. As it dries, the cherry note holds and it's almost like brandied cherries on my skin. Spicy and dark, with an almost raisin-y note that's rich like figs. It's truly unusual and will be great in the fall and winter when I reach for the spicy blends.

I'm not sure I'm in teak or cedar's prime demographic, because wood notes are not generally my favorite, but I really wanted to try Pulcinella & Teresina for the rose. I cannot resist a rose blend. In the bottle and first applied to my skin, there's an acrid, bitter, almost pickley and briny note. I'm thinking it might be the labdanum, since I believe I recall smelling the same note in both Magdalene and Hymn. Whatever it is, it's strong. It merges with the cedar and teak to smell like tangy fresh-cut red wood. It does fade slightly as it dries, but it remains dominant. The red rose is in the background, and serves to kind of scallop the edges of the blend a bit in red. Overall, this smells a bit like church incense to me. It's far too strong for me to wear on my skin, but would be incredible in my oil burner, so I think that's where I will happily use it.

Melisande is sweet violets and jasmine with a heavy musk base. It's a simple and straightforward blend that smells both juicy and powdery, even though that sounds contradictory. Really, the violets and musk are the star here, at least on my skin. After a few hours this still smells like violet-jasmine-musk. There's very little change. Although it's not a complicated blend, the violet really works for me, and I'm always a sucker for musk. I have a feeling this is another CD blend that will grow on me.

Dorian. On. Steroids. This is pure earl grey tea on me, just lightly rounded out with the jasmine leaf and white musk. The vanilla bean is very slight, just enough to keep the tea from being bitter. I love it on myself but will also put some on the guy when we go out. I can wear Dorian and we can waft yummy sexy tea goodness.

The Organ Grinder is really perplexing to me---I love the almond milk and sarsaparilla, but I'm not sure if I like them with the other notes. Like zenvodunista, I also smell coconut meat, which is another plus for the blend, but there's a combo of notes in here that on my skin, makes it smell a little bit like a crayon for some reason. It's got kind of a waxy smell, almost candle-like. The longer I wore this though, the more it mellowed until it finally settled into a combo of almond, milk, coconut, and smoky patchouli . Hmmm. This might be a blend that I keep coming back to out of curiosity and eventually flat-out enjoy. In the meantime, I think this would make an excellent his-and-hers pairing with Obatala.

I have to echo what others are saying above---Midnight on the Midway reminds me of nag champa! And I love nag champa. I tried a few drops of this in my oil burner last night and my entire apartment was filled with smokeless incense. My neighbor came by to say hello, and he was utterly amazed by how good it smelled and couldn't believe that it wasn't actually incense. There's also something about this that reminds me of Snow Angel. On my skin, it's kind of like Snow Angel (minus the slushy snow note) plus nag champa. This makes me very happy. After I few hours I smell a slight buttery note that reminds me of Midway, but it's very faint. This truly is midnight on the midway, with most of the sweets put away and just the lingering smell of them mixing with the smell of night flowers and incense. I think I might have to get another bottle of this before the Carnavale ends just to use in my oil burner!

Lyonesse is one of my favorites from my latest order---smooth, nearly liquid vanilla, unearthly warm ambergris/grey amber, stargazer lily, and the musk and white sandalwood...it's absolutely luscious. The sea moss does give this a marine feeling, although this is no aquatic. It's just a very subtle sea note, like sea minerals. Lyonesse is brilliantly simple without being simplistic and rich without being foody. It's tremendously evocative and even elegant. It's the kind of blend I would include if I was putting together a Just-Try-To-Resist-BPAL-Introductory-Imp-Pack for a friend.

Manhattan is an oil I've been looking forward to for a long time. I work in the city and have lived there in the past, and the experience of the city is so rich---overwhelming, enriching, frustrating, wonderful, and full. I was really excited to see how Beth would envision the city through perfume, and I'm very excited to find that I really love it! Manhattan strikes me as a very upscale and sophisticated citrus-floral centered on the solid base of amber, leather, and teakwood. It reminds me of a glossy, modern skyscraper. This is what living well in the city smells like (not that I'd know, ). The throw is mostly grapefruit-orchid-teakwood on me, but it's tempered by the other notes so it comes across as more complex than that sounds. Because of the citrus oils, the top part of this blend doesn't last very long on my skin, but the drydown is warm and comfortable. It reminds me of when I first moved here and would get lost. If I walked a few blocks, eventually I'd turn a corner and recognize where I was and how to get home.

Doc Constantine smells like coming in from being outside in late fall. Like the way one's clothes might smell after taking in all of those scents from the outdoors. Very sexy in a natural way. The leather here is just perfect. Not too much, not too little. Eventually this becomes a smoky black amber on me, like the smell of burning leaves in the air. It's something I would love to smell on my boyfriend, not just to see what his chemistry does with it, but also just because. Like nineveh, I also smell parallels between the good Doc and two other amazing blends---Dee and Geek.

Mme. Moriarty is another instant Carnavale classic! I had the same experience as most people above---it has parallels to Snake Oil, Snake Charmer, and Smut. If you like those oils, Mme. Moriarty is a fairly safe bet! The thing I'm loving about this oil is that it has all the appeal of BPAL's sexpot classics but the throw isn't as strong. I've worn Snake Oil to work before and people down the hall can smell it. But Mme. Moriarty seems to allow me to smell the patchouli-laced goodness without knocking out my coworkers. I'm also a red musk lover, so that with the vanilla bean is heaven to me.

Mmmm, chocolate. Candy Butcher is very chocolate in the bottle, with a little bit of hazelnut, perhaps? But on my skin, the chocolate note slowly melts away and a buttercreamy note emerges. Bliss is just plain chocolate on me, Lump of Coal is chocolate brownie. But Candy Butcher is like leaning into a blender that's making short work out of cream, sugar, butter, and pure melted chocolate. It smells like chocolate cake batter!

In the bottle, Three Brides smells like some kind of divine, decorated orange. The citrus is not strong---it's perfectly balanced with the floral notes. On my skin, the carnation and tonka flare up for a few minutes and wow, they are so wonderful together. The king mandarin orange note is very subtle, as is the rose. The orchid, lily, and vanilla flower give it a little spice and edge, and the Egyptian amber and benzoin give it a delectable resinous base. The end result is an exotic, slightly spicy floral that is both very sexy and very classy. Because of the pairing of the rose and orange, I initially wondered if Three Brides might bear a resemblance to The Haunted Palace. But it doesn't. The orange/rose are much quieter here, and on my skin at least, Three Brides is all about the tonka, carnation, orchid, and Egyptian amber. The orange and rose notes support but don't overwhelm. Three Brides is very seductive and rich. Another Salon stunner!

Tanin'iver has the cassia I recognize from other blends, and it's just too cinnamon-y for me. I love all the other notes, but the cassia is just amped up by my skin until I can't smell anything else. It does smell hot and fiery like the breath of a dragon, though! Deep into the drydown, this goes musky-DB-sexpot on my skin, but it's a long time to wait for the cassia to die down like a fire. I think I'll be passing this one on for someone else to try!

Wow, I just love the white rose note. It's so lovely. Penthus is definitely a dolorous blend, beautiful but sad. The white rose and underlying notes remind me a bit of Parlement of Foules. It's a serious blend, one that would be good on a rainy afternoon when I sit down to read or watch a film.

Muse is so tuberosey! Tuberose is one of those notes that I'm not crazy about. For some reason, it always smells a little like bananas and band-aids to me. Beyond the tuberose, I can smell the bubblegummy lotus and then the jasmine and the barest breath of lime. The combination strikes me as something I'd like in the air, or perhaps on someone else. But on my skin, it's just too many notes that don't normally do well with my chemistry. If you like tuberose and lotus, though, Muse would be fantastic!

Mag Mell is a strange blend on me because it smells very fruity, but there's no fruit listed. I can smell the verbena and a smidge of the ginger, and a bit of sage, and then there's that phantom fruity note I can't place. There's also something vaguely tropical about Mag Mell that I enjoy. It smells like a day spent romping around on an island. And it does have a golden feel to it, as mentioned above. This would be a great late spring blend, as it feels like a celebration of the kinds of things that return at that time, like lush grass, sunshine, and warm rain. I'll definitely put away the imp for next spring, when I think this will really hit the spot.

Bat-Woman is definitely a nighttime blend on me, like drowsy closed flowers nodding under a slight breeze on a night when there's just a sliver of moon. The lavender here is really unusual. The way it's blended, it makes the oil smell dusky purple-grey. The honeysuckle is sweet but the lavender keeps it in balance. This is an oil that is very strong on me---the tiniest dab is more than enough. Too much and it's a little overpowering. But with the right amount, I find it beautiful and perfect for a summer night out. I think this would also be a great room scent, and I might try a few drops in my oil burner tonight.

Ogun is one of the more unusual BPAL oils I've tried. First on, it is indeed a blast of melon, very strong. But a minute later it starts to get all smoky and hazy as the tobacco and chili pepper come forward. The honey appears last on me and takes it in a skin-scent direction. It almost smells like beeswax, which with the tobacco definitely does give the impression of a candle burning. After a half hour, it's so different from the wet stage that I can barely believe it. It's almost like a melony Luperci. Or like waking up after a long night of Midori shots and chain smoking. This isn't something that I need more of, but I'll use the rest of the imp on my boyfriend, because I have a feeling this will smell quite good on him.

... His ofrenda is the soft shea he shares with Obatala, forest herbs, and sprucewood arrow shafts. Ochosi is like the sharp green tang inside a twisted bough on a flowering spring tree. It's really green and bright, even though the shea note tempers that slightly. There's a hint of something almost aquatic to it, and the woods are very soft. I was also reminded of Nosferatu---to my nose, it definitely shares a tangy note with that blend. The drydown is much better than the wet stage on me. It's more foresty and less green-fresh. It's not really my kind of blend, but I'll definitely keep the imp and give it another try sometime.

Honeyed lilies, dry lotus root and fae flowers. Al-Araaf is a one that I didn't pick up when the DIMV series went live, because lily and lotus are not always my favorite notes. But I'm really glad for the opportunity to try this, and am very surprised by how lovely the lotus is here. It is, as others have said, a honeyed lily with a slight vanilla edge and a warm, mellow lotus. As it dries down, it's almost a second skin scent on me, very relaxing and comfortable. Sadly, as it continues to dry, the honey goes a bit acidic on me, something that almost never happens---and it ends up smelling a bit murky. Even so, I think I'll try it again, just to make sure it's not some aberrant chemistry. I don't think this will unseat Honey Moon as my fave honey blend, but I can see why so many people have enjoyed it!

I had the same response as Shelldoo, as soon as I opened up Harvest Moon and took in a deep sniff, I thought: Mabon? And there definitely is a resemblance here, even on the drydown. At first it's very appley, but after just a few minutes on the skin I could smell the chrysanthemum and bamboo and green tea. It's like dusk in autumn, with warm sun falling on flowers, and a tray full of seasonal fruits on a wood table---only smoother than that would suggest. It smells like the colors of turning leaves. There's something slightly tart in it as well, like a leaf when you press your fingernail into it in order to smell that good leaf smell. This will be wonderful in the fall. It's too hot here still for me to wear it now, so I'll secret it away until the leaves start to turn.

Compelling, complex, and utterly enigmatic: a luxuriant, exotic blend of cherry, red musk, and star anise. Kabuki smells like cherry, black licorice, and red musk to me. It sounds like a strange mix, but I find it surprisingly appealing. It reminds me of, pardon the comparison, my favorite Scratch n' Sniff sticker when I was a kid. I think I might have to keep the imp for that reason alone.