mspixieears

Voluptuous and indulgent! A deep chocolate scent, with black cherry and orange blossom. Gorgeous deep chocolate scent with cherry (specifically, black cherry though I can't admit to being able to fully identify that!) and oddly enough, orange blossom which is very easy to pick out. It sounds like a mismatched combination but it is anything but and this is actually a wonderful gourmand scent. Sadly, as it dries down it loses a lot of its gourmand appeal and strength – a great shame. I'd ideally love for this to have longer staying power.

Darn! I wish it had've been like that on me, alas. 'Twas not so.

What other scents would you recommend? I'm trying to enable a friend to BPAL and she loved Spellbound so thought I might be able to entice her into ordering some other things as she wants a bottle of that. Thanks in advance!

Not as sweet as I was hoping instantly but fairly floral. Wasn’t overly captivated the first time I tested this but it feels like a very complex fragrance that wants some time to develop. I can’t name the fruity, sweet note off the top of my head in this but it is beautiful. I was sort of hoping that more of the vanilla would come through but I think I’m finally picking up the fabled skin musk that everyone is so enamoured with – and for good reason. A sweet, sensual fragrance.

Reminds me of a heady, coriander-like scent that I first encountered on the bouquet/garland of flowers I received in Fiji when visiting a school – this must be the vetiver. Beautiful and dark – very masculine though it could be a good unisex scent.

I can smell the roses in this but it’s not sweet and I’m glad – probably the myrrh and ylang ylang ground this composition. Truthfully, this is nothing special to me and the lasting power is not at all very long. It dries down to a faint powdery note that is almost soapy.

Feted as the truest gardenia in the BPAL catalogue which I only got upon initial application. When the drydown begins, I get a note reminiscent of lemon verbena which makes it a sweeter gardenia composition than I’d like. There is a sweet, cloying, lingering note that I can’t identify it and it slightly detracts from the pleasant experience for me. Thankfully, three hours later the true gardenia note returns – it smells exactly like a plucked gardenia that is dying from heat – sad, but beautiful.

Sweet and floral but has an odd note that reminds me of a slightly musty house. It actually reminds me of a very specific house in England, so also of my childhood. There is one note in this that bugs me and I can’t quite put my finger on it so I think this one is up for swap.

Queen Mab is delicious the same way Jezebel is, and relaxing the same way Psyche is. So far, it’s very instant love. It’s a very womanly fragrance and not too floral. There is a hint of something gourmandy in it, something that reminds me of almond, perhaps?

Heavy base of sandalwood on this one. There is a sweetness about it but so far very similar to a lot of other sandalwood-based BPAL fragrances. It’s like a much sweeter Salome, something I prefer as a room fragrance. This is slightly more wearable, however.

The smoky rose is evident first off though there is a hint of a dark chocolate note which softens the floral composition. I get all rose first – wet and on immediate drydown. I can smell the black amber though wouldn’t have identified it unless I knew the notes beforehand. The magnolia and jasmine aren’t discernible to me though I can smell the stereotypical white florals. I would prefer the magnolia to shine through more. An hour and a half and it’s still far too rosy for my taste. It ended up being swapped away, alas.

A pale, delicate, truly angelic blend. A scent created to emulate Adonis' halo of beauty: fragile, distant, and radiant. Rosewood with Sicilian lemon peel, red Mysore sandalwood, pale musks, sweet mountain sage and a dusting of lily, night-blooming jasmine and orris. This reminds me a lot of Delight, Jezebel and Psyche – though more floral. It has that lovely powdery quality that is soothing and intoxicating at the same time. It’s very nice, cannot stop slathering it on but it is similar to something I already have in imp form.

Beautiful, sensual floral – not too heady but excellent throw, and nice and strong when wet. Ylang ylang, possibly a hint of jasmine? Loving being surrounded by this scent – perfect for spring or summer. Reminds me of rained-on florals and how heady a garden can get when it’s all lush from the rain. Unfortunately the drydown is not really very remarkable, it’s very perfumey. I still think this is worth keeping.

Despite being a gourmand pumpkin fragrance hater I tried this on anyway to get it out of the way as it was one of many in a batch of imps then received. I was shocked by how much I adored this! Generally, there is a slightly offensive note in pumpkin that doesn’t work on me but this only made the briefest of appearances before thankfully dashing off. This would be a winner during winter and autumn and I am so lucky to have got a bottle of this after I devoured my imp!

A very strong fragrance at frist and not really to my taste at first but some promising notes as it starts to dry down on my wrists. This has very similar notes to Maiden – the same gentle, sweet, floral notes without being cloying, like Maiden. It’s very pleasant and something I can imagine wearing for bedtime. Beautifully feminine.

One of the fresher florals I’ve sampled, this has so many familiar notes yet I am unable to identify them despite deep, slow inhalation! I think this is a keeper for me and really reacts well to the warmth of my body.

This is one of the less remarkable ones I’ve sampled – it’s dried down and smells very similar to Harlot. Beautiful rose fragrance. I cannot tell what it is wet and straight out of the vial. It almost has a hint of something gourmand and reminds me of yummy fattening Indian sweets and there is a prominent note of lemon balm, or verbena. I do love how this note is rarely antiseptic in BPAL blends and adds so much depth and freshness. On one arm this has faded to powdery sweetness. Though it’s lovely, it’s not essential and not yet sure if I’ll keep my imp, will definitely retest.

Oleander with black patchouli, ylang ylang, and neroli. Stronger in vial but surprisingly gentle and floral when wet on skin, a nice floral/evening primrose-type note is what comes out most at me initially. A beautiful soapiness that Fyrinnae often attempts but gets disasterously wrong. BPAL truly has a gift for the melding of fragrances. This is perhaps a tad too gentle for me, I’d prefer something more long-lasting but it is lovely and soothing.

Strong, fresh-breeze scent - at first very commercial but calming down into something floral and perhaps a hint of fruit. The balance of fruitiness and powdery florals is just right but I find that I want the fruitiness to emerge more as it's very yummy. This ended up being too masculine to my nose and it's not a keeper for me.

So no idea what the scent notes are in this as they are simply not stated! This is a gorgeous, creamy, slightly gourmand fragrance which has hints of light florals and fruitiness. This is unexpected bliss for me and the oil in my imp at least seems thicker than my other imps tried thus far. I think I detect some almond and/or primrose oil notes in this. Overall, a very calming and pleasing experience. I expected something a bit more 'masculine' based purely on the name, silly me!

Almost masculine, balsam-fir beginning with something like sandalwood and even a touch of sweet cinnamon (that must be the clove). There isn't actually sandalwood listed in the notes for this fragrance so it could be the black musk I'm picking up? The notes mingle very well together. Because it was so strong, I only applied once on each wrist in case later it threatened to be overpowering. This would do well as a unisex fragrance, and might even be suited to men more. It fades down to a nice, sandalwood-powder type scent - nice but not as amazing as some similar such scents I've tried thus far.

Spicy, woodsy, a touch of cinnamon (again, that must be the clove - I seem to get the two confused often enough!). The clove does grow more prominent and takes on a yummy foody turn! Upon drydown, it stays woodsy and fresh in that unisex, uplifting way. I like the way the clove softens it (oddly enough!) and that it could be suitable on either gender. The patchouli and incense notes are very reminiscent of sandalwood to my nose. I thought I could live without this in my collection but I'm definitely holding onto the imp after a re-test! Really lovely.

Heavenly, flirty combination that reminds me of both Jezebel and the Little Shop of Beauty ‘Island Baby’ fragrance, but better! I think that this is more floral than Jezebel, which is sweeter. The faintest hint of jasmine when wet and much fruitier then dries down to that soft powdery floral with a touch of tropical fruit – with just the barest hint of that faecal-type jasmine note – just a hint! Truly breathtaking and very reminiscent of life in the Philippines (in my experience, anyway), especially after a nice, fresh rainfall. The smallest trace is still evident even six hours after applying, though I did reapply so perhaps that isn’t fully accurate. It does last behind ears a real treat though!

What a curious gourmand mixture this is that I can’t seem to fully define but what delight. Almost baby-soft in its scent but very feminine and adult in its allure. Unbelievably there is that funny lemon verbena antiseptic note that hates me and yet it smells delicious in conjunction with all the other lovelies wafting! My mother loves this scent on me and felt compelled to ask me what I was wearing when she went past me and I ended up reapplying my imp of this half a dozen times. I needed it, and ordered it as soon as I was able! What started off as a delicious gourmand fragrance ends in a gentle floral that really lingers on in the day!

Like its name in many ways imaginable! This starts off very much like Harlot minus the cinnamon and with orchid/honeysuckle-type notes that remind me of Nyx, Salome and similar such fragrances. There are plenty of fragrances that remind me of this one but this is captivating! Pretty sure I’ve seen this compared to Cacharel’s Anais Anais and while I do see the comparison, I disagree as there is an initial sweetness that the Cacharel fragrance has that is not evident in Rapture. This has a gourmand hint at the very beginning before its drydown that reminds me of Psyche. I love this!