Quiara

I don't know what prompted me to try this. I mean, the description was nice, but it really didn't grab me. Plus, I'm allergic to cats and therefore think anything associated with them leads to death. And a demon kitty? Who'm I kidding? Well, I got some anyway. Impulse buy, I suppose. Wet: That's . . . interesting. I'm not sure how to describe it. There's a certain edge to it that's a little troubling to my nose. I don't smell the tangerine at all. Musk maybe? And some tea. Drying: Bit more tea. Hello, tangerine! Cinnamon and cardamom amble out into the mix as well. Dry: The most gorgeous, sexy, soft, spicy blend possible. Amazing. Very pretty and now a favorite. *edit* I love this one so much, I've tracked down 2 bottles now and could possibly be persuaded to adopt a third.

Oh why did I have to fall for the King? I snagged this as a sort of afterthought in a recent imp purchase from an LJer who is awesome, amazing and made of win. She willingly decanted an imp for me and I will love/hate her forever. Curse her for bringing me to this point only to leave me looking ever for more! But I don't really mean it because, hey, I've got an imp at least! So, speaking of my imp, let's talk sniffiness: Wet: plums. Definitely plums, but somehow floral? Weird. At first, I wasn't that taken by it. Floral is meh for me. But then, seconds later, it gets all kinds of awesome. The plums and blackberries sign a treaty and meld into an amazingly fruity scent undergirded with a fabulous, smooth and seamless sweetness lent by the coconut and vanilla -- all with an earthy anchoring that makes this a truly amazing blend. I am in awe of Beth's skill. I've never tried QoS, but if she's anything like her mate, it's probably best I never know. I can't imagine being addicted to both. I have never felt this way about another BPAL blend. Sure, I've got plenty I like, but this is the King.

I have very few hard-and-fast rules when it comes to BPAL, but one of them is NO ROSES. Except... I love Queen of Clubs. Big hearts. Insane love. It's so . . . not a rose blend on me. I smell some rose, yes, but it doesn't amp up and tread over every other note like it usually does. It sits there and behaves. So what I get is a nice, soft, earthy, sweet, vaguely floral smell that gives me a total nosegasm. Big love.

I was gifted with an imp of this in my spring package swap on the LJ community bpalanoymous. I sniffed it and couldn't get a good idea of just what was in this little impling, so I smeared a bit on my wrists. OMGHIWELCOMETOFLORALHELLI'MORCHID! For about the first 10 minutes, that's all I got. All Floral-orchid-hell. Then? Absolute magic. I'm still amazed. The orchid backs the hell off and there's an amazingly spicy-sweet earthy smell that I can't get enough of. WTF? I'm stuck here with my wrist attached to my nose, typing with one hand -- it's that good. Get some. Now. Give it 10 minutes and see the magic yourself. A-freakin'-mazing.

In the vial, I get something sweet but kind of fruity? WTF? Not what I was expecting, but hey. Anyway, a splotch on the wrist and HELLO, SANDALWOOD. For the first 10 minutes, I smell like a brand new #2 pencil. This is interesting, but not love. I can get cedar-chip smell from Cathedral, if that's what I want. Hrm. Ten minutes later, though? Love. I smell slightly sweet vanilla and sandalwood floating near my skin, maybe saffron, too, but I wouldn't know that note if it bit me. But this -- it's. . . well. . . it's sex-in-a-bottle. It's not foody on me at all. It's just made of awesome and full of win.

I got frimped this in a swap recently and it was on my list of "I'd never order that." Serves me right. At first, in the imp, I smell cherries and orange, very sweet. The minute it touches my skin, it's all bubblegum all the time. After a bit, though, there's some freaky alchemical magic and it turns into absolute awesome. How do you bottle awesome? I have no idea, but Beth does it. I <3 Jailbait. Color me surprised.

Boomslang is pretty awesome. On me, the cocoa disappears almost immediately and I'm left with an indescribable-yet-nasally-addictive scent that I think I lurve. Boomslang rocks.

Snake Oil with cocoa, teakwood, and rice milk. When I sniffed this in the imp, I thought it was . . . nice. Kinda cocoa, nothing special. I'm one who tried fresh snake oil and couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about. But this. . . when I put it on, the cocoa disappeared almost totally and left a truly delicious scent -- and I don't mean that in a foody way at all. Just an amazing, gorgeous, creamy scent. I can't wait to see what this does aged.

I got my bit of anaconda and thought I'd be wild about it because half the time, I'm a foody -- the other half, I'm so ecclectic I wouldn't know what to call me. Anyway, at first sniff, it was definitely foody, but it was really weird on me. There was an odd, suffocating note that came forward and made it smell kind of like burned plastic. I've swapped my bit for some more Gingerbread Poppet, which I <3.

I smell some almond, maybe. Myrrh, definitely. Madarin, perhaps. Mostly, I smell a gorgeous, complex and spicy scent that lingers close to my wrist making me very happy. I'm loving the snake pit. ADDED Feb. 5: This is probably among my favorite scents out of the snake pit, with Habu being at the top as well. The smell is reminiscent, to me, of Queen of Sheba, but different enough that I don't feel like I've just got a repeat of QoS. It's sweet but not foody, spicy but not abrasive, just a gentle, lovely sweet scent on me. I enjoy it quite a bit.

In the bottle, I wasn't sure if I liked this or not. And, reading the reviews, I was hesitant to try it because I'm one for whom Beth's vanilla usually winds up play-doh. At first, it's all currents, all the time. But then it settles down into a great vanilla cake and it's all kinds of love. I tested this on the back of my hand with bliss on my wrists and I had white cake with chocolate frosting! The best! I never thought I'd be a foody, not in a million years, yet here I am. . .

In the bottle, this is a nice blend of cake and something spicy. I like the way this smells. On, however, is another story. Wet: HELLO FLOWERS! Now I'm choking on flowers and incense. This is very strong on me and has a ton of throw. My roommates can smell it across the room and I only dabbed the tiniest bit on the back on one hand. Dry: On me, this is all rosey incense and . . . something I can't quite place. It's definitely strong and it lasts forever, even after showering. Overall, my bottle may need a new home.

In the vial, this is all cherry, all the time. Cherry, cherry, cherry. When I first apply it, it's cherry for about a second and then it goes through this appalling cherry cough syrup stage that I abhor. However, if I am feeling patient, the drydown is worth it. The cherries disappear altogether very quickly and I'm left with a lovely blend that must be the anise and red musk playing back and forth. Traditionally, I am not a musk lover. Guess I can't get past the idea of smelling sweaty. This, though, is truly nice -- not at all "musky" in the traditional sense, just nice and soft and warm. Lovely. I swapped for this hoping it would stay candied cherry, but I'm happy with what my skin does to it, too, so I'm not complaining.

Pumpkin Patch #2, 2005 At first sniff, it's all cocoa and hazelnut. Tasty. Upon application, it takes on a brighter, almost boozy note that hangs around for a good long while. But the magic is in the drydown. When dry, it's a soft, nutty chocolate that lingers close to the skin. Glad to have picked this up when I did, but this decanted imp is probably all I'll need.

The first time I tried this, I got a gorgeous honeyed, milky scent that dried into a slightly sweet skin scent. The next day, I got play-doh! I weep. I insist on continuing to try it, though, in hopes that it was a moon thing.

I get cherry and orange at first and no chocolate. Then I get air freshener. Stupid body chemistry. WAIT! I have to change my review! I let this develop for a while and while it still went through air freshener country, it settled into a very lovely orange/cherry with the tiniest hint of creamy chocolate. I went from hate to love in mere minutes!

I smelled the chocolate at first, but very quickly my brain was bombarded with the thought "wineygrapeychocolateBLOOD!" The wine was too grape for my tastes and sat rather badly with the chocolate and I couldn't get beyond the overwhelming impression of blood floating over the whole thing. All in all, not my thing.

Named after the primordial ocean of milk where Lord Vishnu reclines upon the thousand-headed Naga. Sweet milk and warm, healing ginger with a touch of golden honey and our blend of Ambrosia. I expected this to be sweeter somehow. I'm not disappointed, just surprised. In the vial, it's nearly all ginger and remains that way while wet initially. Soon it settles into a slightly creamier, yet still very gingery scent. I layered it with Silk Road out of curiosity and wound up with a milky ginger tea that I liked quite a bit.

Immediately out of the imp, this is straight up Irish coffee, sweet and creamy. Wet, it's very sweet and absolutely wonderful. As it begins to dry, I get a rather dusty note that I'm not quite as fond of, but eventually it gives way to the wonderful Irish coffee with a hint of oak playing around the edges. All in all, I'm very glad to have it; it's a warm and comforting scent.

At first sniff, this is cinnamon and something slightly herb-y. It doesn't grab me, but it doesn't run me off, either. Wet: CINNAMON. Yup, pretty much cinnamon -- and maybe a clove or two. Then some light florals start swirling around like dust in a sunbeam. Dry: This settles down into a deep tea scent on me. For quite a while, it smells just like cinnamon sunset tea I get at the Barnes & Nobel cafe, but then the cinnamon tones down and I'm left with a damp, sweet tea. I like it, but overall, it's not something that really grabs my attention. It doesn't demand to be worn the way Queen of Sheba does. I layered it with Sudha Segara out of curiosity and wound up with a milky ginger tea that I quite liked. I don't know yet whether I'll keep the imp.

... Her scent is a bounty of golden honeyed almonds and a whisper of African and Middle Eastern spices. I got this in a swap with hillarygayle. She couldn't wear it and I hoped I could. In the imp, it's strong almond. Nice enough, but it doesn't grab me. Wet: almond and something sharp behind it. Okay, but still not getting me. Drying: spices begin to emerge, warm and soft underneath the almond -- and hello, honey! Dry: a gorgeous spicy, honeyed almond blend. I'm in love with the drydown. This certainly on my potential big bottle list.

This was a gift from my best friend and enabler, Hillary. On her, the scent became pepper and baby powder, so she handed it off to me, hoping I'd fare better. In the imp: nice! I smell tea and linen straight off, with perhaps a bit of the pepper. I'm enjoying this so far. On, wet: Initially, I smell everything: ginger, honey, tea, milk, linen, pepper, everything! It's quite nice. Drydown: The tea fades fairly quickly, as do the ginger and linen. I'm left with milk and honey with the occasional whiff of a peppery prickle. It's nice, complex and comforting. Dry: I love it. I smell like milk and honey and the tea makes an occasional entrance, turning it alternately from bedtime to tea party. It's an inordinately comforting scent and I think the white rabbit and I are in love. I've already used half my imp. Often, I'll place a few drops in my locket to preserve the tea scent that I so love. Overall: quite nice. Perhaps on my list of big bottles, though I'm such a n00b I hate to even make a big bottle list until I've sniffed far and above the very few I've experienced.

The first time I tried this was during a sniff-session at a party last Saturday. The scent reminded me of old paper, in a good way. That evening, after my shower, I dabbed on some more and was surprised that it smelled totally different. This time, my nose kept insisting "formaldehyde!" I was all set to write Arcana off when today I decided to try again. In the imp: slightly citrus, herbal, floral. An interesting, if confusing, scent. Wet: LEMON. I like lemon and on me it's not the lemon pledge a lot of people get from it, but it's almost totally lemon for about 5 - 10 minutes. Drydown: The lemon is now completely gone. I smell lavendar and frankincense primarily. It's a sweet, deep smell that would be overpowering in larger quantities. Thankfully, I applied just a tiny dab to each wrist. The smell makes me think of falling asleep in a tranquil, holy place where incense and herbs mingle and create a sense of calm and peace. Dry: It's sweeter now. Still calming, but slightly too sweet for my tastes. With it having smelled so differently on me each time I've tried it, I think I will likely keep my imp for future testing and analysis. Later: All that's left, hours later, is a slight incense-y, smokey smell which I quite like. It reminds me of something I can't quite place. In this stage, it reminds me of my skin, only better. Interesting. I wonder, though, whether the final phase is worth the hours in which it's too sweet. I'm still undecided.

My first review! I got this imp in a swap session that involved La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente and some fabulous merino yarn. Bonnie is a sweetie. In the vial: Whoa. Muskmuskmuskmuskmuskmuskmusk. Also amber. And something else between the two, like a sliver of light peeking through dark curtains, slightly bright and bitter. This is not smelling promising. It's heady and perfumy in the commercial sense; reminds me of an older, well-aged "grown up" perfume. Not a friend, I fear. On, wet: Muskmuskmuskmuskmuskmusk. I think my skin ate the amber. Considering what musk is, "clean" is the last adjective I would choose to describe this scent. Feral, yes. Dark, yes. Clean, not so much. Sweaty and, well, musky. And strong -- did I mention strong? Cause dang; strong. 20 minutes: Hello, smoke! Where'd that come from? The amber is back, peeking out from behind the musk, but the musk is not about to back down. It's boss and it knows it. Next day: Smoke is gone, which is sad because it actually gave it a spicy, incense-y feel that I quite liked. But that lasted all of about 5 minutes after it showed up and then it fled to wherever good scents go when they die. In the end, I'm left with musk, a whisper of amber and the tiniest bright note floating between the two. All in all, not for me. Off to swaps. I hope it will find a home where it will be well and truly loved.