Wwindy

PATCHOULI! Plus a bit of sage and smoke -- that's really all I get on my skin, and the sage and the smoke don't even stick around as long as the patchouli does. Fortunately, I am a total patchouli hoor. I would have said "prickly" about this scent rather than uncertain, but yeah... something along those lines. It's not soft or inviting or comforting, that's for sure.

First sniff in the bottle: Ooooh, nice! OK, the foolishly fearless slatherer will now slather fearlessly! And foolishly! Five minutes later: Uh-oh. Wait a minute. Is that turning into... cigarette smoke?!? Six minutes later: Uh-oh. Isn't today Thursday? Baby gym class day? Twenty minutes later: I am now reeking up the 12 to 19-month gym class with wafts of strong coffee and cigarettes enlivened by an occasional hint of whiskey. I cannot even begin to imagine what the other mothers think I've been up to... at 10 a.m. *sigh* Two hours later: Hey, this is mellowing out nicely! Now we've got a little cream, a little wood... reminds me a tiny bit of Glowing Vulva plus coffee! *SIGH* So, um, VDPP? Is there a reason you couldn't have gone to this part right off the bat and spared me the BAD MOTHER TRAUMA HOUR?!? Yeah. Anyway. I think I need to test this again, preferably not on a day when I'll be at work. Or around my parents. Or, uh... anyone who might not already know whether I'm a chain-smoking alcoholic or not.

This is the best luck I've had with a "green" BPAL blend so far, so that's good... In the bottle, it just smells odd. Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead -- I'm going for my normal slathering level! On my skin I get a lot of dusty gray-green shades right up front -- mostly the sage, cedar, and slightly smoky vetiver -- with flashes of brighter green, sharp, fresh sparkling notes. There's an odd elusive tang that I would swear is lime but might be a citrus-y overtone from the coriander... and something that reminds me of the horseradish bite that wasabi has on your tongue, without actually smelling overtly like the little green mound on the side of your sushi plate. The tea is an astringent, tannic presence in the background blending all the other notes together. Over time, the frankincense and myrrh start rounding out and mellowing the harsher notes, but the blend retains a very green, vegetative quality. This doesn't have much throw and doesn't last long at all on me -- not even on my shirt at the crooks of my arms, and usually at least the fabric holds onto something there. Not in this case. Still a very interesting scent, though! I think I said something similar in another review not long ago, but it's true here too -- I believe this one will make a nice spring/summer choice for those of us who can't wear the classic citrus-y clean "fresh" scents.

Some of the blends I've tried lately have really broken my head as far as notes I thought I liked/could wear vs. what I thought I hated/couldn't go near... but I'm now reassured (in an odd way) to find that grapefruit is still a giant NO WAY NO HOW on me. I knew Cheshire Cat was going to be iffy for me -- I love lavender and musk, but dislike chamomile, fruit and florals in general. As it turns out, I think the blend might have worked if not for the dreaded grapefruit, which smells a little like I spilled that bright pink imitation lemonade stuff down my arm. I can definitely see how it would be a nice springtime scent for some people, but on my skin it winds up as mostly bad fake grapefruit with powdery overtones and a faint whiff of blue-toned florals.

Not too sweet, creamy vanilla-y root beer with herbal overtones, yep. Reapplied in the late afternoon, the scent seemed a little more butch than it had in the morning. This might be nice as a seasonal transition scent for those of us who tend to like the heavier resinous blends but want something a little more effervescent (heh!) for spring -- it's got a very faint hint of something incense-y from the onycha.

The mint notes are surprisingly appealing for a minute or two, but vanish almost immediately on me. This winds up being an androgynous, mossy cologne with salty aquatic overtones. If I put my nose to my skin and sniff *really* hard, there's just a very faint trace of fresh green mint -- spearmint, I think -- but the moss and ambergris are pretty much all I'm getting out of this blend.

In a nutshell: Woody musky patchouli with overtones of smoke and spice. Very, very sexy. It's true that in the bottle, the teak smell is indeed penetrating. If you're not down with Beth's teak, this is definitely not the blend for you! On application, the clove is the next strongest immediate contender, along with an almost burnt note -- I don't know if that's the tobacco or if that's all I'm going to get out of the alleged caramel. I can't specifically identify anything sweet (or fruity, for that matter) here. As Melainis starts drying down and balancing out, it turns into a rich, dark, resinous swirl of gorgeousness. The initial blast of teak might be scary, but everything here melds beautifully after just a little while -- be brave and wait it out if you can. This is one of those fascinating, mysterious scents where you keep huffing yourself, trying to figure out what's going on. I think I can pick out whiffs of the star anise and the frankincense, but that's with the stated note list right in front of me... Ack! I don't know! What can I tell you -- this just smells really good and really sexy! (isn't that useful as a review? ) Despite being one intense scent, I don't think it has a huge amount of throw; it seems to be sticking pretty close to my skin. I can see that Melainis wouldn't be for right everybody... but I think I'm in love! If you favor dark, complex blends, you need to try this.

So pretty, and so hard to describe! This reminds me a tiny bit of Brides of Dracula, but Lovers in a Ricefield is a much warmer, sweeter scent. It does seem a little bit like a particularly yummy, creamy dessert -- possibly Indian? The floral and sandalwood overtones keep it from being too overtly candylike, though. It really doesn't read like plum specifically to me; I'm getting floral rather than fruity, with some nice vanilla in the mix. The nutmeg is stronger in the bottle than it is on my skin. On my fingertips I can definitely pick out an identifiable rice note, but that aspect is much better blended elsewhere -- it's just a bit player in the crooks of my elbows and on my neck. This may be a little too flowery to go into heavy rotation for me, but it's nice...

This smells like spring to me, not summer! On my skin it starts out all crushed green stems mixed with lemon pulp and zingy dried ginger (my nose definitely reads this as powdered ginger rather than fresh, don't ask me why). The bright green and citrus notes die down a little over time, mingling with something clean and airy. The amber stays far in the background. This didn't seem like it had a particularly long duration as far as I could tell, but when my husband sniffed me after about six hours of wear time, his assessment was that it smelled like an orchard -- so he must have picked up at least the greenery and lemon verbena. Overall, this is a very pleasant, bright scent... and such a fantastic concept! I think the lemony element might be a little strong in the beginning stages for my personal anti-citrus inclinations, but anyone looking for a good scent for work or other situations where you don't need the heady musky incense-y stuff will want to check this one out.

Gorgeous, but a heartbreaker! Wet, the marigold seems a little more prominent than the chrysanthemum to me -- the floral aspect has a very bright golden-orange, late summer/early autumn feel. The flowers blend smoothly with swirls of sweet cinnamon and smoky incense. It's a lovely, lovely scent, but... gone so quickly! I slathered this morning, and within two hours there was barely any trace left on my clothes. Very sad...

Androgynous indeed -- or metrosexual, maybe. In the bottle, Glukupikros is lightly herbal with mossy overtones and a bit of an evergreen edge. On my skin, this is a surprisingly clean scent. The overall impression is actually on the floral side of herbal, but not sweet; the lavender is prominent, shaded by the narcissus. The musk and woodmoss seem to be combining with the lavender for a light cologne effect. The woods are in there if I sniff for them, but very faint -- in fact, I don't really smell any of what I would have thought would be the dominant "heavy" notes in this blend. After reapplying in a couple of different spots, I notice the amber coming out a tiny bit more (the backs of my hands seem to have totally different chemistry from the rest of my body!). If I hadn't dabbed in the new locations, I wouldn't have picked out the amber at all. It's still not strong, and I'm still not getting any "vanilla caramel" in the slightest. Overall, this is a very subdued, clean, gender-neutral blend. The throw is minimal. Like Lycanthrope, I'm baffled by the contrast between the note list and the actual scent!

What a quirky scent! Weird, but very appealing. I get mostly the vanilla licorice cookie scent that others are reporting, underpinned by the leather from De Sade. To my nose the coal just adds a little edge of smokiness, BUT -- beware! -- there are some people who'll find that the dominant note. A friend of mine with a sensitive nose had a bad reaction to my merely opening the bottle in the same room with him ("Ack, I smell the coal, close it close it CLOSE IT!"). I still think it's pretty neat, though.

It's a little aquatic, but otherwise I thought Lyonesse (Golden vanilla and gilded musk, stargazer lily, white sandalwood, grey amber, elemi, orris root, ambergris and sea moss) had a similar feel to L'Estate (Nepalese amber, vanilla infused amber, golden musk, sandalwood, golden lily, sunflower, and honey myrtle). Lyonesse is one of the Wanderlust blends. You could also try Inez (Golden amber, vanilla musk, myrrh, cedar, carnation, and red sandalwood) -- that's a Carnaval Diabolique and thus will be going away at some point in the not-too-distant future, but at least you still have time to stock up on it if it works for you.

Two words: Moldy basement. I don't think I've ever had a BPAL blend go quite so horribly wrong on me; on my skin this really does smell exactly like a damp, mildewy cellar. Not in anything remotely resembling a good way, either. *sigh* Well, I'm glad other people are getting earthy rooty goodness out of this, anyway!

I would start making noise ASAP. If the tracking says it was already delivered, there are three likely options -- it went to the wrong address, your doorpeople are sitting on it, or it's somehow gotten lost/misfiled in the system. Whichever it is, you probably want to get the investigation going...

Is it wrong how much I'm into the artwork for Piper at the Gates of Dawn? I think it might be...

Even though I was a little dubious about the orange and floral notes, I ordered this unsniffed because I loved the concept so much! On initial application... whew, that is one shrill, high-pitched blast of orange and pine! Sopranino panpipes?!? As things start drying down and mellowing out, though, Piper turns into a gorgeous musky patchouli with a hint of citrusy sparkle, rounded out with sweet warm honey and amber. I think this is the same heliotrope note I liked so much in The Sportive Sun; I'm not normally a floral fan but there's something about that heliotrope-amber combination that really seems to work. There wasn't a whole lot of throw for such an earthy scent, and it didn't stick around very long, but I'm hoping that's because I was experimenting with lotion today. I'll try again and see how it does on clean skin tomorrow. This is a beautiful concept and a beautiful blend, even if I do have to keep slathering. Anyway, I'm so in love with the label art that I'd be keeping my bottle no matter what!

Very evocative! It does smell dark: a hazy, purple kind of darkness. The clean herbal lavender and grounding rosewood balance it nicely at first, but as it dries down the thick sweet poppy comes out more and more, and I wind up with a lot of heavy perfume-y sweetness over a little powder from the amber. This is a very sophisticated, interesting blend -- not quite working for me, though.

I knew there was something sexy about the way he wooed Lady Anne, but who knew Richard III smelled so good?!? This reminds me a lot of Mort de Cesar (that wonderful dark clove/balsam/cypress combination) and a little of Valentine of Rome (the incense, cypress, and myrrh) -- but WooD (heh!) starts out with an added lighter, tangier note from the mandarin. I get a bit of the rosewood but not much if any of the nutmeg; I'm not sure what artemisia smells like, but there is something here a little more floral than MdC or VoR were for me. The evergreen sharpness fades down fairly quickly. Once on for a few hours, what's left is mostly musk and myrrh, spiced with clove. Not very Christmas-y on me, I don't think! Much more "dark Shakespearean villain"...

This smells exactly like Hershey's Kisses on me. I don't know what happened! I love amber and amber loves me! Not here, apparently... *sigh*

Holy morphing magic powers, BPAL! Wet, De Sade was SMOKE SMOKE SMOKE and MORE SMOKE on my skin, very much like the smoky scent/flavor you get in good Lapsang Souchong. Right around the time I was about to give the concept of leather up as a lost cause, abracadabra presto chango! Ta-da! It's a leather coat! I'd actually say this *isn't* a Coach bag or pair of high-end boots or an aged jacket -- to me it smells more like newish mid-range leather. To be specific, like maybe you just went out and bought a new flogger. (Not that I know what that smells like, Mom, honest!) ... Oh. Well, of course it would. O hai Beth, I see what you did there! This doesn't have a huge amount of throw and fades out fairly quickly, but it's certainly evocative while it lasts!

Hi systemaurora! I've had the same thing happen a bunch of times. I've been following the discussions about aging (for Lab imps) and decanting techniques (for non-Lab imps), but honestly I've just sort of decided that it's like that "No one ever steps in the same river twice" aphorism. The BPAL keeps on flowing, and we (or our noses/preferences/skin chemistries!) keep on changing...

Does exactly what the label says! This is warm and resinous, a little woody and maybe even a little powdery, but not too sweet. It doesn't morph much, except that the peppery frankincense steps back a bit and lets the myrrh move more to the front as it dries. This is very straightforward. It's lovely, but I think I prefer some of the Lab's more complex blends.

Ditto on To Autumn! It starts out with a very strong hazelnut note -- to my nose, that element fades down as the blend dries, but it's still really nice.

I should start out by noting that my skin apparently does not do "cold" or "chilly" or "snowy." I don't know if it's because I'm a brunette or a Leo or what, but my chemistry will do backflips to keep any of the Lab's wintry notes from having anything like their intended effect. Having said that... When I put this on, I get a faint fleeting hint of pine and something slightly masculine -- but within five minutes it's turned into 100% cedar and sandalwood. It reminds me a lot of the Pit & the Pendulum, as mentioned above. Sniffing the vial I can indeed smell the dark and chill... but my skin just isn't having any of that. *sigh*