dixiehellcat

At last it arrived in my mailbox! In the decant my first impression was a vanilla note somewhat like my beloved Antikythera Mechanism, yet different somehow. On, it's still there, but with an herbal companion that makes a marvelous blend. After drydown, spicy and whiskey notes took over. I don't get any tobacco note at all till everything else is gone & then only a hint you have to get right next to my arm to smell. I was afraid it might be too guy for me, but I love it. (that said, I hope to gift a guy with a decant as well--it's really androgynous!) ETA to illustrate how different BPALs can be on different people, my cousin just called and informed me when she opened hers (same bottle, same decant circle) that lemon and mint hit her first, of all things. lol. She loves it too though.

Ok, y'all may slap me for this, but this is the first BPAL I've tried that reminds me of a commercial perfume. Fortunately, it's YSL Opium, which I adore. This has a similar dark, deep, yummy smell. But don't get me wrong, it's not just like it, only reminisccent. Must have more.

The keeper of secrets: opoponax, Tunisian black amber, night musk, antique patchouli, zdravetz, terebinth, myrrh, and Pimenta racemosa. I begged around & got a sample to test before I sprang for a bottle of the resurrected SM...oh my. I see what the fuss is about. IN the imp, nice and dark. On, still nice and dark. Amber, but not powdery, with the patchouli (which I love) and myrrh notes suporting it. Just delish. I'm so glad I didn't get any of this before, cuz I would have been mourning and selling off stuff to get some. (heads off to buy a bottle or 3)

An irrelevant, disturbing, and surreal scent: red currant, green tea, red musk, Hawaiian ginger, benzoin, vanilla, coriander, squash blossom, and blueberry. Wow, this is one hilarious and semi-schizophrenic scent! In the bottle, I get the blueberry. Wet, it turns into licorice. And after drydown...wtf? Cherry pipe tobacco?? I think the journey may have been hard on it...gonna let it sit a few days and try it again. If nothing else, it's entertaining as heck! And it provided my mom with a first hand understanding of Beth's genius. She can't imagine how somebody could be smart enough to mix something that morphs like this. hehe!

CCXCV See, I told y'all, I can't identify a single note in this. I can however say that it is very green smelling, lasts well, has pretty fair throw, and that it seems to like me. My first CT experience=WIN. ETA--ok, just so I don't feel quite so made of teh stoopid...I knew from the first sniff that this was reminding me of another green-noted BPAL, & in the middle of the night it hit me--I got up, rifled thru my bottle holder and found it. Noche Buena! My CT smells exactly like the green in NB, which is one of my faves. There's something else to it, spice or smoke-ish, not the slight sweetness of NB. So they are diff enough that I love them both. And now I feel a trifle more competent.

Got this in a goodie bag from my Switch Witch...never would have thought to try it, since my immediate association was 'guy scent'. But I opened it up and went 'guy scent my a$$' and dabbed it on! I get all vanilla and amber, with a hint of the juniper to give it some tang. It smells absolutely yummers on me. A guy would have to pry it from my cold ded fingerses, he would.

I get a dark rose scent from this both in the imp and on me, without much else coming out. I was so looking forward to the other notes, the wine and sandalwood and patchouli in particular, but nothin' but rose happening so far. Still, it's pretty nice. I'll keep the imp, not sure if I'd want more.

I really wasn't expecting to like this one. I only got an imp for the name, because I begged for it back when I first joined the forum. In imp--interesting, hard to define. On--I tried it with some other things, and kept getting this lovely warm smell when I typed, and finally realized it was this! Woodsy vanilla are the main things I get. Now I come here & see folks saying it's very guy? I don't think it is on me, but will other people think so if they smell it on me? Maybe I shouldn't wear it after all. ETA...I put it on again last night...and decided I lovesss it.

I second F5. If you ever liked CK One, it reminds me of that, a little. Very light and crisp. Squirting Cucumber is another one that I think is good for uber hot weather. And April Fool is a new one that I like on warm days; the light floral really perks me up.

Hm, Dragons Milk, maybe? Or Underpants, if you have some! Paradise Misplaced + Upa Upa = THUD, btw.

I'm wearing Sailors Den today & noticed that on me it is reminiscent of Black Lace. (I know SD isn't exactly a GC, but hey, it's easier to get than BL. hehe)

Hm! (thinks, mentally sniffs) The Bond part I'm thinking Casanova, but the scuffed up part, maybe Calico Jack.

I love dragons and was so disappointed when the original DM didn't work on me but HOORAY, a second chance, with notes that may work better! In the bottle--both green and floral, if that makes sense, with a light musky note. On, it just blooms! I love how it floats around me. Clearly smellable but not overwhelming. Love it.

LP is a good bit sweeter than Underpants on me, which makes me like it less. Which one you prefer, if you have a preference, is going to depend on what they do with your body chemistry.

Wow, finally I found an ultra rare worthy of the hype. This is wonderful. I love sandalwood but it usually amps like crazy on me. Not this time--the vanilla and cream mellow it out, and the saffron seems to give the whole a little kick. Oooh!! And it laaaasts--one teensy swipe on my hand was still there hours later. I love my one lonely imp, and will be trolling teh intrenets for more.

I'm so awful with notes--I just know I like this! In the bottle it's wet greeny, with a hint of sharpness. The parsley and citrus, I think. On, it softens, and the floral and lightly fruity notes come out and blend in. Oooh! Lovely. So glad I took a chance on a bottle.

It smells glorious, for about 15 minutes. Unfortunately, then it goes buh bye. I have a bottle & am happy to have it, but not sure I want to invest any more $.

i figured this would be totally foody, too much so for me. But what a surprise! The spices in the rum predominate on me. The fruits dance around in the background doing arm rolls like the Pips, but the spices are Gladys singing lead. And it lasts. Yum! I need a bottle or 2.

I was so sure this would be THE tiki for me...but it smells like Smarties. Now, I love Smarties. But I do not want to smell like them. Fortunately, I have a friend at work who adores it, and will happily take it offa my hands. For $ that I can spend on Marae or Upa Upa.

Yum! Finally a Shunga that likes me! On me the citrus and ylang ylang are predominant, and they make a very cool combination. The other flowers sing backup, and if I huff my wrist I can catch just a hint of patchouli. Delish!

I got mine last night, but my review may be thin at the monent, since my nose is stopped up & I can't smell very accurately. That said, in the bottle I smell a crisp oceaniness, but not to the extent of other watery BPALs which I usually can't wear. On, I get the patchouli and rose, and a hint of the bay rum, which I was afraid would make it too guy for me to wear, but in reality...I think I like it. (My mom doesn't think it's too guy, and if she did, believe you me, she would say so. hehe) Will have to check again once the nose unstops fully. (blows nose...sorry)

I sniffed this in the imp and it was pure cedar. Nice, but not for me, I thought. Put some on. After a few minutes some interesting spicy notes started to emerge. Still lots of cedar. Very warm. Gender neutral, but not strictly guy smelling, to my nose. My mom even said it smelled good on me, and she is picky. lol. I didn't get the nasty smoke issue other people have reported, thankfully. On the whole, a pleasant surprise! I like.

Wintergreen? Really y'all? How weird. I get none of that at all. I'm another who doesn't go for foody scents, but this one works on me! It starts off very vanilla cream, but after just a few minutes a hint of something sharper or spicier peeks thru--the saffron, I assume. This is nice. Gonna have to order me a bottle, even if I have to wait a while for the backorder.

I don't get quite the melon hit others have but definitely fruity. Not overblown though. It blends fruity and flowery in an amazing way. Reminds me a bit of Kitsune-Tsuki, which makes sense, being an Asian-inspired blend. And K-T is one of my faves. This could be too. Lasts a good long while on me too. I already tracked down a bottle.

I had the same issue as dorothy humbird--I wasn't sure how the notes would work on me or if they would at all. But this stuff is lovely! The amber and musk blend beautifully with a hint of dragons blood, which I love. The honey, which I feared would mess the mess totally up, is behaving itself and not too sweet. YUM.