nikkoblue

Fox Fires on New Year's Eve at the Garment Nettle Tree at Oji, Hiroshige.Weeping cherry, watery bamboo pulp, nettle tree bark, green tea incense, soft musk, rice wine, and Japanese tree lilac. This is a nice, light watery green floral. Typically, cherry overpowers anything else on my skin but that is not the case here. My initial impression of the scent is a very light, just-identifiable lilac note which soon gets followed by the bamboo pulp and musk. I'm not getting the rice wine in this one, and the cherry is just barely floating on the other notes. The bark seems to be grounding everything; I can't find the green tea incense but you can tell that this scent is combining many elements together. This almost goes to the realmm of dry/powdery/soapy on me, but thank maude it does not and it just holds together as a nice soft not-overly-floral floral

Her lover is away on a long journey, and she is pining for him. Sleepless and disconsolate, she counts the days until he returns: blue iris, fennel, dark musk, verbena, and a drop of star anise. Oh the pressure of being the first! Bottle: POOF! very citrusy. I forgot that verbena was in this and wasn't expecting it.....I like verbena. Wet on skin: lots of verbena with the barest trace of fennel. Is that the blue iris poking its head out? It sure smells like the irises in my backyard.... Dry: It IS the iris....a real, TRUE blue/purple iris.....and the musk is taking center stage in a very sexy way....with the anise just kind of tying everything together. This is gorgeous and it just keeps morphing!!!!!! I'm going to pick myself up at a bar now. I love this. Second bottle!!!!!

I was gifted a very small amount of this, which I am grateful for......(thanks ahania!!!!!!) It's shortbready, with some currant? blackberry? jam.......it definitely has a scone QUALITY...... I like the shortbread part best, but afterwards I'm left with the jammy note which doesn't go well with my skin. It lasts about 2 hours on me. I definitely like it, but don't think I need to hunt down any more.....

what the.....? this is the first BPAL that I can't smell. seriously. no matter how much I apply, I get a fizzy fruity scent for all of about 10 seconds (and it smells really good), then it just fizzles out. weird. I've tried on 2 different days now, same thing...... for the 10 seconds, I get mild fermentation over various fruit notes......I see where people are saying 'ginger ale', although on me that's not quite it.....more like that Aranciata soda in the blue can. I like it, too bad it goes away so quickly.....

I managed to snag a bottle of this one....I always hated leather until the DPP series, so I decided to give this one a try. Glad I did cuz it's HAWT. THe leather is verrrrry similar to the leather in Bachelor's dog, and Spanked's patchouli is nice and smooth, adding depth to the leather and keeping it from being acrid, somehow. I can't identify the other notes in the scent but this is truly smooth, would be sooooo sexy on a guy, but is not so masculine as not to be unisex. Anyone who likes leather scents can wear this (oh, and it lasts forever on my skin. I smell like a warm leather jacket )

grrrrr. Weird skin strikes again. Selkie=Annabel Lee+supersweet honey+bathroom cleaner on me. I can see how this would be gorgeous on someone whose skin doesn't do the bathroom cleaner thing....but right now I feel like I've got some of those skating sudsy toilet bubbles (is it scrubbing bubbles?) mocking me and laughing derisively on my arm while sweet Annabel Lee cries in the middle of the whole thing. damn!

Whoooooaaaaa! This is one strange scent on me! In the bottle, it's light and pretty with something appealingly sinister underneath......dark woods with bright sunlight. I put in on and !!!! it turns into Bad Luck Woman Blues on me. I'm all WTF? CARAMEL? my skin must be interpreting the tonka or benzoin as caramel. Into the swap pile it goes. 15 minutes lates BLWB is gone, and I'm got a rich, slightly dark, woody, almost salty, nicely mossy scent. This may be a keeper after all. The violet isn't doing anything terrible to the scent, which I like. I'll have to try this one a couple more times.

I agree with Sarada on the vague similarity to Blue Moon; however, Cancer is what i wanted Blue Moon to be. It's a sweet, vaguely aquatic, aqua blue scent that doesn't throw any weird ozone into the mix or get too choking with the sweetness. This reminds me of sitting outside near the seashore in a place where there are still trees around you, so you get fresh breezes, the light tang of water, and that indefineable sweetness of a summer day. Beautiful! I only regret that I only purchased a single bottle.......my Aquarius rising is rearing its aquatic head.....and luckily THIS semi-aquatic actually works on me.

I think that this is hte first BPAL blend in which I sniffed the bottle and literally swooned. My world went purple for a second and a huge 'ooooooh!' came out of me. And i was PISSED because I happened to find it at the bottom of the box I had received 3 days earlier from the Lab, and for some reason it had just sat in there in the bubble wrap, and it was the day after it was taken down from the site for ordering. Simply, this is the most beautiful, sexy, rich-yet-light, tobacco blend I've ever smelled. On me, it's verrrrrrry slightly-almost-butterscotchyvanilla under light smoke and a golden musk. It doesn't really change and it lasts about 6 hours on me. Through sheer perseverance, I've managed to find a few companion bottles for my original. This and tamamo are the first bottles I've found to be truly hoard worthy for my skin....IMHO, surpassing Underpants and Snake Charmer (which are also awesome, but just don't do much for me). I'm so glad I ordered this one.

oh my. I was lucky enough to score a bottle in a swap....... Bottle: pretty. I smell vanilla, and some florals, and I too get something that's slightly dragon's bloody? But it's not as POWDERY as dragon's blood, so I don't know if that's it. There's definitely strong floral going on. Wet: uggh! Gardenia, which is nice, and something that smells very wet, like celery on me. Very strong scent. There's something else peeking through though that gives me the hint that this phase will pass. 1/2 hour: still vaguely vegetal, but beautifully gardenia........CREAMY gardenia, but not tuberosey. 2 hours: wow! This is beautiful, dark, musky vanilla with just a hint of gardenia. I will never part with this bottle. It's FANTASTIC.

*le sigh* I was so sure I would love this based on the notes, I was trying to ignore Florentine Iris, but wouldn't you know it, it's the strongest note I get (I believe my skin amps the ol' iris.....). So, all in all, this is a very pretty blend, obviously put together with great care, but it's too sweet for me, and I get that strong damned sneezy iris that ruins everything for me oh how I envy those of you that can wear this......

Just awesome. Immediate strong notes of yuzu, bitter grapefruit, and somehow, tomato leaf come out at me. It's refreshing, it's almost a cold citrus that gives you a sense of clarity right away. Yet magically, 20 minutes later, there is a very light, beautiful soft cherry with skin musk. I love this and will be wearing it all summer.

Oh my word! This looks like it might be my favorite BPAL blend evah. This is a very creamy scent with hints of tea and ginger, which blends seamlessly with the musk. For some reason I'm vaguely reminded of Dorian, yet at the same time I'm being thrown back to fourth grade and the heady scent of Little Twin Stars and Hello Kitty paraphernalia. This scent is actually edible, soft enough to wear anywhere but at the same time somewhat mysterious. On me, this scent holds true start to finish; I don't get anything initially that I can't catch a whiff of later. I bought 4 bottles of this and will treasure every single drop.

hmm. i have a bottle of the critter-label BiggerCritters, and another bottle of the general label....and they smell totally different to me. The newer one is heavier on a buttercream type scent. The drydown is similar but the original label has the more bunny musk feel......has anyone else noticed a difference between the two? So I think this new bottle warrants its own review: Bottle: BUTTERCREAM. nice, yummy buttercream with a touch of brightness On skin: the buttercream vanilla is more pronounced in this version, and the jasmine comes out at the same time as the citrus..... Half hour: at this point it's pretty much the same as the first one, but I'm still getting a sense of buttercream. the jasmine and citrus are playing nicely in the background, and I think this will turn into straight vanilla and jasmine in an hour or so. I still love it, even though it seems different to me than my original bottle.

I thought this would be my absolute least favorite of the CD scents......I finally folded and ordered a bottle. In the bottle, it's definitely mint. On me, it's light mint with light honey, just maybe a touch of tea and sugar. It's actually shaping up to be one of my favorites and reminds me of a Chaos Theory that I have which has a touch of lemon instead of the sugar. This is very suprising, as only a few BPAL honeys work on me. Perfect for summer and stays true the whole time; I'm loving this. Gennivre needs to come over for tea more often!

I'm a big fan of lavender plants and lavender EO, so I swapped for a bottle of this. The first hting that strikes me is the lavender form teh bottle, of course, and lavender has a way of kicking everything else's ass. After a few minutes, this becomes a very deep, sweet lavender on a backdrop of smokey herbs....I'm getting the incense quality as well. I don't get green from this, I get a dark, smokey blue gray. With further wear, this becomes even sweeter and though the lavender is still apparent, it becomes just another part of the whole. I find this to be nice and calming, but it would never put me to sleep; the other elements make it more of a perfume than a sleep aid. It's pretty; I wouldn't buy a second bottle but I will definitely use this one.

I also got the initial similarity to Midnight on the Midway, with the addition of Enraged Bunny Musk . At first this goes on fairly floral and kind of sharp, but in a few seconds it loses the florals and you can smell the grapefruit just lingering around. The whole time, the scent is sweet, and as it's drying down it is very similar (on me) to Bunny Musk with grapefruit. I don't really love this scent until about 30 minutes into it, then it becomes one that I will most likely never consider getting rid of. The vanilla/sugar/grapefruit combination is amazing. soft fluffy critters on my skin!

I am an odd bird. This smells exactly like Banded Sea Snake on me without the Snake Oil. I really like it....it's like the daytime version of BSS. I can't wear most BPAL aquatics so it's fantastic when it works, and this one does! It smells very blue/purple/green. Beautiful!

When I first got this imp I though 'huh' and tossed it aside. A couple of weeks later I dug it back out and tried again, and fell in love. I ordered a bottle. Today, I wore it, and hot damn if it isn't a true Granny Smith apple on me. Not sweet, not cloying, no cinnamon or baked apple scent, or fake Jolly Roger candy apple. Pure, crisp, tart granny smith. I don't even like apple scents ('cept Creepy) but i LOOOOOVE this. Perfect throw (not overpowering but you dont' have to put nose directly to wrist), doesn't change on my skin, BUT my skin eats it so I have to reapply every couple of hours. This has shot up into my GC Top Ten.

I always find it so bizarre how things can change on different people!! I am TOTALLY AMPING the cherry tobacco on this. I get almost no tonka.....the hops finally make their presence known to me after about an hour, but the first hour of this is overwhelming, sweet cherry tobacco. It finally simmers down to a warm, balanced tobacco smell, but at no point does it lose sweetness on me. I like my imp enough, I don't think I'll be purchasing a bottle, though.

I love this! I swapped for a bottle of it and am so so happy. I get a lot of musk and lily of the valley, and another scent that reminds me of sophisticated baby oil (which I love the smell of). The sandalwood keeps it from getting cloying. Gorgeous, and long lasting.

Another purchase that I was nervous about, but silly me! THis is beautiful! I'm getting a LOT of apple blossom which is why I ordered it....and the merest whiff of rose and violet actually lending the smallest touch of balance. I'm also getting a hint of mint and herb and the whole concoction is pretty and springy, and rich maybe? without being powdery or overpowering. I bought a second bottle already. I can see this getting a lot of use.

Bottle: GRASS! sweet grass. I get a hint of floral but this is very juicy and green without being sneezy Initial application: I'm getting mild Irish Spring from this but a little more fresh and natural. This scent is actually pretty strong, but it's extremely nice. Dry: THere's something about this that I just pick up every now and again. I think it's nasturtium. It's like a quick bite followed by green and yellow and light pink scents. I like it, it's a bit of a surprise and I find it.....intriguing. I was scared to order this bottle because I believe some people mentioned that it had an 'Envy' feel. I don't like envy, but this is different enough that I'm enjoying it.

hmmm. In the bottle, this is purely orgasmic. Very rich vanilla with some cherries. Yum! However, this immediately turns to cough medicine and mild cat pee on me. That's not to say I couldn't get through it, though, it's just what it reminds me of the first few minutes. Twenty minutes later it's more reminiscent of cherry vanilla but the vanilla never comes to the forefront on me. The nice thing is that the cherries aren't that awful super syrupy cherry, it's more of a candied cherry scent. I think in about an hour this might turn into vanilla, fingers crossed! This has potential but I don't know where it's going yet. edited to add: tried it later that night again after a shower and a fresh nose. Much better experience the second time around. TOTAL keeper.

This is hazelnut, wood, and something salty with the lightest touch of sweetness on me. In the bottle I could very vaguely sense something fruity, but it completely disappears upon application. First few minutes were screaming WOOD!!!!! Then the hazlenut came in and the lightest touch of salty caramel. This is verrrrry reminiscent of gluttony or Tiresias on me. edited: put this on my husband this evening. it totally works on him; if you don't like it on you, try it on a male friend or partner etc.......this serously smells incredibly sexy on him. yay!