femmefatale

The sticky sweet scent of candy corn! Even cornier for 2009! - cuz corny is how we roll at BPAL! So out of the entire update this was the one I was most excited about. I have a bottle of the original and I love it and have always wondered what it smelled like fresh. Even though I knew this wouldn't be exactly the same, I had to try it. When I sniffed this in the bottle I was...surprised and not really in a good way. It smelled boozy and too sweet. So sad and a little afraid to try it. Well, after letting it sit on the table for a few hours, I kept looking at it. Even though I had intended on waiting a couple days, I just couldn't help myself. I had to know. So a bit hesitantly I apllied a little on the back of my hand and held my breath. I was really hoping it wouldn't make me ill. So I took a sniff and.... omg...... what is this??? It is DELICIOUS. All the booze and sickening sweetness went away and I was left with the most unbelievable foody scent. It smells like yummy snickerdoodles and candy corn. OMG. This is really heavenly, I can't even tell you. This smells like why I gain weight during fall. After it dries further down, the cookie scent fades a bit and it smells more like candy corn with a hint of spice. Yet there is something that makes this more than just a foody scent. I don't know what it is, but it makes the blend very wearable. I'm usually more of a smoky/musky/incense girl (with some coconut during the summer), but I will be wearing this alot, esp. once the weather begins to cool. I can't tell you how much I love this one. Need. Many. Bottles. It just makes me happy.

At first, it's all Dragon's Musk, but then a lovely sweet musk comes out. Starts to smell a bit powdery, though not in a bad way. Very pretty and much lighter than I expected. Might keep the imp, but can't see wearing it enough for a full bottle. ETA: Ok, I can't seem to stop sniffing myself. I'm not getting a wonderful blend of red musk and a slightly powdery note. Sounds like it should be awful right, but it's actually wonderful. I might have to reconsider the bottle thing.

It does remind me of a bit Goblin, but an older brother version. It's woodsy and does have the same sweetness as the coconut in Goblin. There seems to be something vaguely...salty here? Whatever it is, it smells fabulous. I prefer Goblin for myself, but this might be a good one for dh, though I might steal it now and then this fall.

I'm an so happy someone sent me a testable amount of this. Now I can stop coveting something I'll never have. It's pretty, though a bit on the perfumey side on me, mixed with incense. It reminds me of a classier woman standing in a head shop, having no idea why she's there. LOL But honestly, it's not as unique as I expected. I like my Snake Charmer better.

Creammy, slightly foody, very feminine, but perhaps a bit older smelling than I prefer. It seems to have the vanilla that I'm just so-so on. I'm so glad I got to try it, but I'm even happier that I don't feel the need to hunt any down.

This smells like someone who is chewing a fruity bubblegum while wearing lavender oil. Then sadly it morphs into one of those lavender scented natural cleaning products. Boo.

This smells like a commercial violet perfume on me. So sad.

Mint and....metal? Very weird. The lavender is starting come out, and though I love lavender, this smells....weird. It has a very chemical smell to it. Do. Not. Like.

At first this is very green and herbal. Nice. As it dries a sweet floral comes out. Not jasmine (I am jasmine and it gives me a headache), but something more like honeysuckle, maybe plumeria like another poster mentioned. Very lush, not to sweet or cloying. The greenery and herbs are still there, which creates a nice balance. I like this a lot more than I expected. It reminds me of walking in town next to the small gardens where they grown all the herbs and flowers. Lots of mingling scents and rich greenery. Lovely.

At first it's a sweet floral aquatic. Very feminine and definitely southern feeling. As it dries the green notes come out more, along with something that's slightly bitter. Sounds gross, I know, but it really works. It's balanced out by the sweetness of the flowers and it does have a hot, humid feel to it. Very pretty, unique, distinctive, but completely wearable.

Ok, I've come to realize that vetiver smells awesome on me. This smells like heady, rich, smokey, slightly sweet incense. Wonderful! This will be fantastic once the cooler weather comes.

Ok, so I keep trying dragon's blood blends because I keep hoping I will find 1 more I like (Dragon's Tears seems to be the only one that works on me). I love red musk, patchouli, cinnamon, and vetiver, but the dragon's blood, as usual, goes soapy on me and it turning this a little...odd..smelling. Luckily, as it dries, the soapiness fades and it's actually rather nice. The red musk comes out more and the vetiver calms down. It's not as spicy as I expected, but that's ok. The patchouli adds some earthiness to the blend and helps to ground it (pardon the pun ). I wouldn't buy a bottle, but I'll probably keep the imp. I'm also curious to see how it smells on dh.

Sadly, this really did smell stinky on me. It went off the same way Gladdener did. And of course, it was super stubborn and when I tried to wash it off I think I just made it angry. I'm so happy I at least have Diabolical Offspring for my lovely powder with a twist scent. Love the label though!

Chocolate peppermint, mint-soaked vanilla, pistachio, oakmoss, and green cedar. I love this. At first it's all yummy chocolate mint, but it dries down to a sweeter tombostone with a hint of mint. Love Love Love!

Wow! This is amazing. It's warm and spicy with a bit of herbs and resins. This is how I imagined Sunbird to smell when I read the description. Somehow it's totally wearable during the summer because there is something in this blend that keeps it from being heavy or foody smelling. It's a dry scent and sexy in an understated, mysterious way. If you like spice, but don't want to smell foody or like a holiday candle, or you like resin but don't want to smell like incense, this is the blend for you.

I can't really seperate out the notes in this, other than the mint, but it's a very nice sweet, somewhat powdery, mint scent. After it's dried a bit, I think I can catch the dark musk and it helps to balance the other notes. I like this a lot more than I expected and it's actually a good scent for tonight since I'm feeling stressed and have a headache. I'll definitely keep my imp and wouldn't mind a couple more, though I'm not sure about a bottle right now.

I don't usually like florals. I never like violets. Anything that smells "romantic", "timeless", etc usually will not work on me. My skin normally likes it down and dirty. But I *love* this one. At first I can definitely smell the violets, but they aren't overwhelming. There is also a slight sweetness to this and a wonderful mint note (though not peppermint, more like an herbal mint) that balances everything wonderfully. There is a brief stage where I get a dried rose scent (which somehow doesn't smell stale) but that fades quickly. Once it's been on for a couple hours the violet note is almost gone and there seems to be an ever so light sugared booziness to this, or a boozy sort of vanilla. It's not heavy at all and quite beautiful. I must say that this was the biggest surprise for me out of the 3 I tried. I really really love this.

This is so gorgeous. It's fresh, clean, hot, and dry all at the same time. I can't pick out the individual notes, it's so well blended, but this is definitely one of the more unique, but wearable, scents I've tried. I know this is a California scent, but it reminds me of when I was growing up in Fla and I would get up early to go canoeing. It would be so hot, but not humid yet and the air was a mix of greenery and hot cement. It smells awesome, which is why I am so sad that my skin just soaks it up. And since I have vowed not to keep anything that doesn't really work (whether it's the scent or strength), it might have to be sent to a home that wouldn't have to slather it.

Ok, so I know it's best to let perfumes sit for a day or so after being mailed, but I just couldn't wait. I would like to first say that I am not a floral lover, unless it's in a blend with dirt or snake oil. Almost all florals go soapy or stale on me. That's why I am so surprised at how lovely this is! I'm not sure exactly what flowers are in this, but they are slightly sweet, slightly green and just fresh and beautiful. There is a very short (like 2 minute) stage where there is a slight hint of soap (to me, dh said I was nuts ). There seems to be a hint of an aquatic note to this, but it's different from other aquatics (and believe me, I've tried a LOT). It doesn't turn to air freshener (like pretty much all aquatics do). It's very interesting and hard to describe. Perhaps it's the wet cement that others are getting, though I don't really think of "cement" when I smell it. There definitely is something here though that keeps it from being a "floral" scent and turns it into something unique and different, but very wearable. There is something about this blend that makes me think of hot afternoons. I'm not sure why, but I think of standing on a bridge on a hot summer afternoon, with my sundress clinging to me, wanting to dip my feet in the cool water. It's quite beautiful and I'm so happy a kind and wonderful soul swapped me this bottle. I her (and the oil!).

I am so so so happy I was able to get a bottle of this (and a kind soul is selling me hers so that dh and I have our own bottles!). It is really amazing. Yes, there is vetiver in it but so much more. I don't know if it's just my skin chemistry, but there is a stage where is smells like Anne Bonny, but during battle with the smoke of buring pirate ships around her, along with a sweet note underneath it all. The smoke note comes and goes and there is this wonderful sweetness that reminds me of a dark vanilla, though is not strong and is more of an undertone. It balances out the other notes nicely. At one point I thought I caught some dark plum also, but it was short lived. I need to try it a third time to see if I can pin it down better. I would love to know the notes in this to see how far off I was. This is such a wonderful scent that both dh and I can wear (on him it's much smokier) and it's something I can actually wear year round. For all of you that sniffed it and passed it by.... You missed out on something special.

On me this smells like vanilla powder with a bit of soft musk and the barest hint of lemon. It's a very clean and comforting scent. I can't believe it took me so long to try this!

I loooove this! It starts out a tart citrus like grapefruit or yuzu, but sugared and with a bit of a sweet floral (honeysuckle?). But it's mostly a bright sweetened yuzu scent. After it's been on a while, a musky note comes out. Verrrry interesting. And the citrus is hanging around a lot longer than expected. It takes a while, but the citrus fades and I swear there is something a bit smoky in this. This scent is a summer day in a bottle. Bright and uplifting at the beginning, but slowly becoming darker and more subdued as it goes on. I am so thrilled I gave this a chance.

Wow, this is not at all what I expected. Somehow this manages to smell like a desert and a beach at the same. Or maybe not quite the beach (this does not have a salty quality to it), but a watery oasis or the Nile. It's very dry and warm smelling, with just a hint of water (which doesn't go air freshener on me! woohoo!) and perhaps a golden amber, though it's in no way powdery. It's a very warm and golden smell, but not spicy or smoky, and it's somehow sandy smelling (if that makes sense) but not dusty. I'm not sure this is me, but it is absolutely GORGEOUS. It's mysterious and makes me think of exotic lands, desert tents, shimmering oasis', and warm perfumed bodies. It's sexy in a completely different way from any other blend I've tried.

Oooh, this is nicer than I expected. I usually can't do the candy/sugar scent, but this isn't as heavy or gooey smelling. There seems to be a bit of spice from something, along with the red jelly. I don't get white sugar from this, more of a brown sugar. On me it reminds me of a slightly light Sugar Skull with a bit of jelly. It's very yummy and even though it's not as heavy as I expected, it's not really something I will wear during the summer, but will probably be wonderful during the fall/winter.

Ooooh, yay!!! I'm so happy I like this since this was the one I was most excited to try. And the girl on the label reminds me of my daughters. It is definitely heaviest on the baby powder, but in the best way possible. I also swear there is something like cherry way in the back? It adds something to the powder, but it's just barely there. I really have to look for it. I think I'm getting a touch of the brimstone, but it's not really smoky. I think that's what is keeping it from being too sweet or babyish. It's far more wearable than I expected and I might have to break my new "no more multi-bottles" rule. I can see reaching for it a lot during the warm weather since it's not too heavy or sweet, but very pretty and interesting, and just a touch dark. I can't stop sniffing myself and dh loves it too! ETA: So it's been on for longer now and I just can't believe how dead on Beth got this. How does she do it? It really does smell innocent and sweet and evil and just...off...all at the same time. I love it! ETA again: Now that it's been about 4 or 5 hours, it's dried down to something sweet and smooth. It smells like a blend of soft honey and amber. My nose or chemistry must be really off. But whatever, it smells wonderful! There also seems to be something a bit...pink....to this. Very light pink, but pink. Maybe it's the cherry (or some sort of berry) I thought I caught earlier?