glampyre

Sage with orris, Florentine iris and a drop of civet. I agree with foolssilver on Morella. I, too, am a resiny smell addict, and am very happy to have found a floral that isn't supersweet. Morella is light and fresh, not heavy.

Ave Maria Gratia Plena On my skin, Ave Maria is a beautiful incensey floral. It's darker on me than others describe above, the sandalwood and musk being much more dominant than the flowers. I really like it, I love sandalwood and find that the florals in Ave Maria compliment it well. I have not yet tested it in a Love Potion way...I'll let you know.

Aureus. A friend gave me a bottle of sandalwood oil as a birthday present several years ago, and I used it as a calming aromatherapy during late nights studying in grad school. Aureus smells just like that. It's deep, sandalwoody, soothing, incensey, relaxing, meditative...I love it. I could wear this every day.

Penitence is one of the many deep, golden scents that the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab creates so masterfully. It's lighter than Old Morocco, and less sweet than Snake Oil. A lighter version of what falls somewhere in between the two. A very rich blend, very pure. I will definitely wear this often.

Brimstone. Stark landscape, dry brittle branhes from long-dead trees litter the baked earth. Big black leather boots crush them underfoot... Brimstone certainly does embody strength, willpower, standing alone. This is one for my 'Urban Warrior"-feeling days. Very Dune.

I love every ingredient in Malice, and together they are a showstopper. I wore Malice for the first time today and haven't been able to stop sniffing my wrists. Malice is a very elegant perfume, deep and mysterious. It doesn't smell like Ladylatemar's grampy to me...I've never met him, but I can picture how he smells...

Snake Oil. I ordered Snake Oil without ever having sniffed it. My decision was based on the reviews of a few close friends, one of whom tends to like the same scents that smell good on me. I'm SO infinitely glad that I made that gamble. Snake Oil is so luscious and smells fully edible...like milk and honey with delicate spices to give it a sexy edge. And sexy it is. Everyone loves this one and asks what it is. The first time I wore Snake Oil, I applied it by touching the mouth of the bottle (Yes, I jumped right in with a big bottle on this one) onto my wrist. With some scents, this is just the right amount, but with Snake Oil it was too much. A little dab with a Q-tip is all you need. A bottle will last through hundreds of applications. Which is fortunate, because I'll wear this a LOT.

Nine Mysteries On first application, Nine Mysteries has a light fresh mint scent. Not like candy, but actual mint from the garden, which is so refreshing and nice. As the mint settles, the undertones gradually evolve into a deep, dark floral. I don't know the exact flower, but it's dark and gorgeous. I agree that there's something eles there as well, possibly a wood, but I don't find the coconut mentioned by others. It's really an olfactory adventure, and one that I absolutely love. I told myself to wear each scent for a whole day before reviewing, so I can really live with the scent and get to know it...and I wore Nine Mysteries for three days because I really love the way it changes from being so fresh to so dark. I kept reapplying it, just so I could experience that. If you haven't tried it yet, it's really worth it!

My husband likes: Old Morocco, O, Sherezade, and Crucible of Courage.

Swallow's Blood. I ordered this voo-doo blend because we've been doing a lot of travelling. I normally don't sleep well in hotels and I'm really glad I gave this one a try. I've taken it with me on two trips. I put some on before going to bed and, like Amberbella said, it lulled me to sleep. The flowery scent of Swallow's Blood is lighter than it's light red-hot pink color looks like it will be. Delicate and pretty.

High Priestess. Clarity, Intuition, Peace. Inititally very strongly pine, peppermint, cool-smelling spices. After about two minutes, the High Priestess calms down into an amazingly clear scent. It's making me feel bright, alert, awake. My eyes are open wider, I'm sitting up straighter...I still smell the pine and mint, and they are joined by a nice deep white pepper. I think this scent really embodies the clear silvery blue color that Crowley associated with his version of the Priestess. I'm going to wear the BPAL High Priestess on the days that I specifically want to channel her energy. edited b/c I can't type.

Queen Mab is, for me, a very delicate floral with warm musky (sandalwoody?) undertones. Quite beautiful. It's a good one for me to wear to work, because it isn't overwhelmingly strong for other people.

Blue Moon Fresh, light, really beautiful. Fruity, but not in a sugary way. It's so purely pretty. And I'm happy to know that this is what blue smells like. Like something so white it's blue.

June gloom. For me, the lemon is very intense initially, then softens and is joined by a gentle musk and something creamy. I find that this is really good for rainy days when I just can't get myself to move out the door to work. (I also reeeally like it in the oil burner.)

How have I lived so long without Roadhouse in my life? At first, it's a superbright yellow floral, perfect first thing in the morning. As the florals calm down a little bit, I start to smell the tobacco, which is really very succulent. I love being around cigarette smoke, and it really makes me happy that it's mixed with such delicate flowers. Later, it dries down to a heady musk. Genius name, too... The wildflowers in the ditches, icecold lager on tap, smoking outside chatting up strangers, driving home in the dark. Beautiful. I'm soooo glad I have 5 whole mls of this all to myself. My husband likes this one on me, too...and he normally doesn't really care about perfumes. He even told our cat to smell me this morning.

I put High John the Conqueror on both wrists this morning as I was leaving for work. Immediately, I felt awake and alert. Normally, it takes me about an hour of actually being at work to wake up and get going. So far, I feel very centered and capable, and am really listening to my own instinct regarding choices that I have to make today. Just generally walking tall. I have worn perfume to work before with no comment from my coworkers, but this one is drawing people to me. It's really strange, because my coworkers are relatively serious scientists, few of whom wear any makeup or perfume. I think it smells like fresh herbs...not like food, but like pretty green grassy stuff, it's a little musky or spicy or ambery, too...if there are grapes, they are white...High John is very pleasant and bright. Golden-greenish...Gold with slight green and white undertones. (...later...) I just have to add something about High John. I asked last week at work if I could order a new keyboard. I got a *very* grudging 'yes'. Today, I got the ok to order a whole new computer. I didn't even have to ask.

Crucible of Courage ...smells like Eastern spices, honey, and tea. It's so edible and delicious. I wore this all day yesterday to rave reviews from my co workers. One of them was so enamoured of it that she asked what it was. Today, she told me that she kept catching whiffs of it later in the day yesterday, at the store, at home...so it really left a memorable impression on her. Today I am trying another oil on my skin, and she knew it was different. This morning, I put two drops of Crucible of Courage in my oil burner as I was getting ready for work. As I drank my coffee and got dressed, I really thought about the things that I need to face with courage today, and continued to think about them as I rode my bike to work. The effect is really centering. I feel the brevity as a concentration of energy. A focus of mind as regards the taks at hand. I have been feeling intimidated by a project I have a work, and today I'm working on it with confidence and a centered sense of being. (edited b/c I can not type)

All of the BPALs are great, but on ME, this one is too fruity.

Hamadryad fucking kicks ass. It's perfect for me. My skin normally doesn't let any of the wooden notes be smelled. But THIS is there. Awesome Awesome Awesome. Absolutely a Strong Lady smell. (If you've read my other reviews, you know you have to look to someone else to describe the exact sniffs.) I get cinnamon, leather, and hot.

Pele is a nice floral. I don't find it overwhelming, but my skin really likes the deep resinous musky BPALS, and this sort of gets lost. It's really pretty. There are others that I prefer more, though.

SO completely drool-inducing. I really thought my husband was going to eat my arm off when I offered him a sniff. We both love this rich, deep, red, musky, resiny scent. Do NOT wear this if you are shy and want people to ignore you.

This one is: Walk in the door, drop the suitcases, grab him and start fucking on the floor good. I have no idea what the individual parts are, nor do I care. I have been clobbered over the head. Deep, dark, musky, resiny...I don't detect any flowers or trees. They might be there, but I really can't think or care about them at all. I can't even think.

Have you ever been to a campfire where the people were burning an apple tree? Probably not, because it isn't often. It's a rare, luscious treat. The Hesperides from Black Phoenix is an absoluteley (I cannot spell) unmissable treat. You owe it to yourself to smell this at least once in your lifetime. I have so many associations with this smell that I almost cry. It's like innocence with musky, smoky things in the background watching. I think I have to have a big bottle of this. This was a surprise.

This is just too sweet for my skin. I'm a musk, amber, deep green, wood-type person and this just doesn't suit my chemistry.

Wanda is so lavish. I'm unable to distinguish the musk from the leather from the wine...but that mixture is amazingly well-crafted. Initially, I smelled the florals, which soon gave way to those deeper notes. Luscious, decadent, perfect! (I've already ordered a big bottle of this!)