Penance

I got this as a generous freebie in my latest order. First sniff: Cherry! It reminds me of Luden's Wild Cherry coughdrops, which isn't at all a bad thing. This is so different from The Red Queen, which I absolutely despised, that it's amazing. If I get my nose right down to my wrist, I can smell the faintest whiff of flowers. Wet on skin: Cherry, but more natural smelling now and less like artifical flavoring, with a flowery undertone. The flowers are coming out more strongly now that it's on my skin and, surprisingly, I like what I'm smelling. I don't normally care for fruity scents or flowers, but this is quite pretty. Dry down: The cherry and floral notes have balanced each other out now and it's much lighter than it was in the bottle. This is surprisingly nice in spite of my aversions to fruit and floral notes in my perfumes. The bottom line: This may end up being too light of a scent for me, but, for now, it's a keeper.

I tried this hoping for a replacement for my beloved Damnation ( ), and while it's not anywhere near being the perfect replacement, it's lovely. First sniff: Cedar and something sweet that smells liky myrrh. I'm not sure what it is, to tell the truth, since I have no idea what galangal or high john essence smell like...I guess maybe it's one of them. This is nowhere near Damnation, which was dry and strong and almost arid smelling, while this is sweet but woody, but I love cedar, so I'll give it a go. Wet on skin: Cedar and sandalwood. The sweetness disappears as soon as it hits my skin, which is okay because I don't care for sweet scents. I wish this was more cedary, but it's quite beautiful all the same. I love both cedar and sandalwood, and this reminds me quite a bit of Tushnamatay instead of Damnation. Dry down: Very light sandalwood. It went strong for a couple hours and then started becoming fainter and fainter and losing that wonderful dry cedar edge, but I can deal with having to reapply this one, it's too pretty to pass up just because it doesn't stay strong on me. The bottom line: This reminds me of Tushnamatay but more cedary. I was hoping for a Damnation replacement and, while this isn't even a close contender, it's still beautiful. I'll definitely be wearing this one quite often.

Thick, sugared and bloated with sweetness. Dark chocolate, vanilla, buttercream, and hops with pralines, hazelnut, toffee and caramel. First sniff: Whoa, mama, is that sweet! My teeth ache just smelling it. I smell toffee very strongly and a soft nutty note underneath it. It reminds me of MunchNCrunch - that toffee-covered popcorn and nut concoction that tastes so damn good but makes you sick as a dog if you overdo it. I'm actually afraid to put this on. I'm not a foody scent kind of girl and this is almost making me gag it's so sweet, but I'll give it a go, I've got a reputation for masochism to preserve, after all. Wet on skin: Pretty much the same as in the vial. It puts me in mind of those pralines you get down south and it's walking the fine line between nauseating and tolerably decadent on me. I'm admittedly not a person who enjoys super sweet scents for the most part, so maybe I'm just not used to smelling like I've been dipped in toffee and rolled in chopped pecans and vanilla extract. Either way, I'm sure even now that this is not for me. Dry down: Not so cloying or nauseating now, but still rot-your-teeth sweet. I don't think I'm the right kind of person for this scent, actually. I don't really like candy or sweets in general very much and smelling like them is even worse, although there are exceptions to that rule; Sugar Skull for example. The bottom line: Aptly named, that's for sure. I feel like a glutton just wearing this. So far, it's the most apltly named of all the Deadly Sins scents I've tried, but it's definitely not for me. I prefer potato chips to candy.

Got a 5mL of this from lorajc. First sniff: Oh...my...God. Juniper and musk and pine? Can you say love at first sniff? This is gorgeously woodsy smelling! I love this already. It reminds me of the deepest reaches of a pine forest where even the trails don't reach. I wouldn't say this smells solemn. To me, it smells peaceful and calm and perfectly tranquil. Wet on skin: The juniper and pine are even more prominent on my skin, which is a wonderful thing since I love both of them. This reminds me of a mix between Loup Garou and Burial, two of my absolute favorite BPAL scents. Dry down: This, like Black Forest, goes slightly powdery on me on the dry down. I'm guessing it's the juniper that's to blame and it gets more prominent the longer it's been since the oil has been applied. I don't really mind it, but I wish that it wasn't there. It's not enough to make me dislike this scent, though; nothing can stay my love for juniper and pine. Nothing! The bottom line: If Loup Garou and Burial mated, this would be the kind of child they'd have. It's gorgeous and woodsy and tranquil smelling although I wish the dry down wasn't so powdery.

I got a 5mL of this from belladonnastrap. First sniff: Very strong pipe tobacco, it smells almost exactly like the inside of a fresh packet of the stuff. This isn't pipe smoke, it's the tobacco itself: dark and rich and deep. I can't smell anything else right out of the bottle even though I know there's more to this scent than tobacco. This is very masculine smelling and I don't normally consider too many scents to be clearly masculine. I don't shy away from strong masculine scents though, so that won't put me off. Wet on skin: Much lighter than in the bottle somehow. It's not as overpowering as it was straight out of the bottle, either. I can smell the faintest hint of leather now that it's on my skin and maybe even the tiniest hint of incense. I really expected this to be much stronger than it is. On me, it reminds me of the smell of a library in a mansion somewhere. I can just imagine some rich aristocrat smoking a pipe and reading Le Mort D'Arthur. But, at the same time, it's very cozy smelling, like the inside of my grandparents' house when I was very small and only knew pipe tobacco as the smell that I associated with grandpa. Dry down: A light waft of pipe tobacco mingling with the faintest scent of a leather sofa that's been polished with wear. If I inhale very deeply, I can smell the faintest breath of incense smoke, but mainly it's a very warm, comforting masculine scent that makes me feel warm and protected. An odd association for a scent named after the Hellfire Club, to be sure, but one I can't seem to shake all the same. The bottom line: Surprisingly comforting and deceptively subtle. An enigma and a paradox; simultaneously sophisticated and folksy and full of conflicting associations. I really like this one in spite of my worries that it might be a bit too masculine even for me. EDIT: It would help if I could spell.

Thanks, Andra!

Those of you who have actual bottles of Formula 54...was it labeled or just the plain bottle? I'm just dying of curiosity to see what the final product looks like. I know what the bottle itself looks like, but I've been feverishly wondering about the label (if there even is one).

Whoo! I was right about Ulalume! I feel all smart now.

Even though no one's asked, I'm just tossing my two cents in on pronunciation of one of my favorite scents...I figure someone out there is probably wondering and, besides, it makes me sound all smart and sophisticated to know how to pronounce it. Loup Garou is pronounced LOO GAROO, but I have a tendency to pronounce it the way it looks, even though I know the correct French pronunciation. My french is very rusty...very rusty indeed. And, on a side note, it should be hyphented rather than two words, but that's beside the point...I'm rambling now, so I should go to bed... And on the subject of Ulalume...I always said OOH-LA-LOOM. But, then, I could be entirely wrong. *Edited because apparently my English is rusty, too. *

I keep meaning to review this and keep forgetting to, so here is the world's most overdue review. First sniff: Vanilla, but not the artificial, rot-your-teeth sweet vanilla most people think of when they hear the word "vanilla." I'm talking about vanilla bean. Dark and rich and almost spicy smelling. This smells goreous and expensive somehow. Wet on skin: The spices really pick up once it hits my skin and I get the most wonderful combination of vanilla bean and sultry spice. No matter how many other oils I try, this one remains one of my favorites simply because it manages to smell sultry and innocent and womanly all at the same time. Dry down: Snake Oil mellows somewhat as it dries, becoming more rounded and blended and reminding me somehow of aged rum. The difference between Snake Oil wet and Snake Oil dry is like the difference between fresh-malted scotch and 12-year-old scotch. At least on me at any rate. The bottom line: A perenial favorite and one I'll keep coming back to time and again. It's rich and dark and seductive and innocent all at the same time. Snake Oil was love at first sniff and will always hold a special place in my BPAL heart.

This is the first one of the Tarot oils I've tried and I have to say, I think it's going to remain my favorite. Preconceived notions: Green and loamy at the same time. The oil itself is a light green color, so I would expect something woodsy but earthy at the same time. Maybe with a hint of aquatic notes. This is the interpretation of The World after all. First sniff: Sandalwood and something spicy. Cinnamon, maybe? I wasn't expecting this at all. This is beautiful, but nowhere near what I thought it would be like. This almost reminds me ofa cross between Sin and Tushnamatay straight out of the bottle. Wet on skin: The cinnamon seems to have disappeared and been replaced by eucalyptus. There's the green I was expecting! It's beautiful, fresh and invigorating but calming at the same time and quite lovely. Dry down: Resiny and spicy and vaguely herbal. This one's a real shapeshifter on me. I've loved all the stages so far; it's really lived up to what I expected out of it and even exceeded those expectations. The bottom line: I love this. I was afraid that it would be too complicated for me or that there would be one note that would ruin the entire scent for me (like lemon, it tends to pop up and ruin a lot of otherwise wonderful scents), but this is absolutely gorgeous. A definite winner!

First sniff: Dragon's blood. Very strong dragon's blood. I don't know what else is in this (I don't have the description in front of me) because all I can smell is that beautiful resin right out of the vial. Wet on skin: Still almost pure dragon's blood. It's resiny and vaguely spicy and thankfully there's none of that dreaded rose scent coming out to play. I expected this to be more woodsy smelling, but it's very resiny and spicy instead. This is really beautiful. Dry down: Pretty much the same as it was wet. There wasn't really a change from the initial bottle stage on this one. Even dry it's almost pure dragon's blood with a hint of spice. There's no florals to be found, which is fine by me because I don't care for floral scents and the woodsy notes that I was anticipating seem to be completely absent, which is somewhat of a disappointment, but more than made up for by the beautiful resin smell. The bottom line: Lovely. I love dragon's blood as long as it doesn't turn into cherries on me and Wildfire passed that test with flying colors. I expected this particular scent to be more complex, but I love it just the way it is.

Whoa, this one was a total surprise! I was convinced I'd gotten a mislabeled bottle until I read the reviews, but apparently I didn't...how odd. That being said, here's my review as originally written... First sniff: Did I get a mislabeled bottle or something? This smells exactly like a lighter version of Dia De Los Muertos. I don't smell anything resembling incense or flowers. What I'm getng is almost like what Harvest Moon smelled like...buttery and warm and cozy rather than eccelsiastical. That's really bizarre...I can't wait for my other bottle to come to be sure that this is right, it's so differnt than what I was expecting. Wet on skin: Still very buttery and autumnal smelling, like a cross between Dia De Los Muertos and Harvest Moon. I dpn't smell anything even remotely resembling incense in this. Maybe it's Hunter Moon instead? I really have no idea since I haven't smelled Hunter Moon and haven't gotten my second bottle of All Saint's yet. I could very well be mistaken and this is how it's supposed to smell, but it doesnt' smell anything like the description. Dry down: Now it smells exactly like Harvest Moon. Slightly buttery and autumnal smelling and [i[very[/i] foody. If I didn't know better, I'd swear this was Harvest Moon. The bottom line: Beautiful, but it doesn't smell like I thought All Saint's would smell like. I was expecting strong, dry resins and a touch of florals and instead got something very sweet and foody smelling which is beautiful but nowhere near what I was expecting.

Okay, this is one of those love/hate scents for me. I love it because it works wonders and I hate it because I really don't care for the smell. First sniff: Lavender, I think. It's more herbal than floral and it reminds me of the last time I smelled fresh lavender flowers. It's not a bad smell, but not one I would have picked. But then, I didn't buy this for the scent, I bought it to help me sleep. Wet on skin: Almost unpleasantly herbal smelling. It's got a strange soapy herbal smell to it that's not agreeing with me at all, but at the same time I already feel more relaxed. I can only compare the effect this has on me to the effect that strong painkillers do. When I put it on, all the tension drains out of my muscles and I feel almost like I'm floating. Needless to say, it's a wonderful sensation. Dry down: Honestly, I have no idea what it smells like once it's dry...I fell asleep before it finished drying and it was gone when I woke up in the morning. The bottom line: I don't care for the scent, but, my God, does it work! This stuff is fantastic.

This scent is pure nostaglia for me in the best possible way. First sniff: Wow! Rich, sweet and sinfully, tooth-rottingly delicious smelling. It smells exactly like the rum glaze my mom used to make for rum rolls when I was little...it was basically brown sugar, butter and rum extract. It had the most delicious, rot-your-teeth smell to it and it tasted even better. I was worried about the fruit in this one, but I don't smell any at all. Wet on skin: Carmelized brown sugar...I'm addicted to the smell of brown sugar so this is a very good thing. I don't normally go for foody or overly sweet scents, but for some reason this one's pushing all my buttons in just the right way. Dry down: Back to the rum glaze again! Hurrah! This smells so good to me, my teeth are almost aching just from the pure sugary heaven of it! I'm definitely glad I got two bottles of this one. The bottom line: Bottled childhood happiness. This brings back so many good memories (and makes me hungry for rum rolls, I might add). I love it! Kudos to Beth and the Lab for the happy memories!

I think Zombi's a hit or miss scent for rose fans. On me, there's absolutely no rose at all, which is fantastic since I hate rose. I know, blasphemy, right?

Okay, I've never tried O, so I can't say if this is a close cousin or not, but... First sniff: Honey and ylang-ylang maybe? There's something that smells like honey and something spicy and floral at the same time, which I'm guessing is the ylang-ylang. I could be wrong, though. It wouldn't surprise me. Wet on skin: Very almondy for some reason. I'm sorely tempted to wash it off because of my infamous almond phobia, but I'll wait it out since it smelled quite nice in the vial. Dry down: There we go. No more almonds of doom. Now it smells like honey and spice/florals again. There's a smidgen more spice now than there was in the beginning and I'm finding I really like this. I'm not sure if it's me or not, though. The bottom line: I think this one's going to need a couple more tries before I can decide for sure and certain whether or not it's for me. I like it on one whiff, love it on another and feel kind of queasy on a third, so time shall tell whether or not this one will be a success or a failure.

First sniff: Mmm, earthy and resiny at the same time. I definitely smell patchouli in here which is wonderful since I love patchouli with a passion. Wet on skin: The earthiness drowns out the resin notes, leaving an almost pure patchouli smell that I absolutely adore. I love resins, too, but patchouli is my first love and the one that I pick over all other smells. This is fantastic. Dry down: Very earthy and musty. I don't smell any resin notes anymore, only patchouli. This is so wonderful. I never would have expected it to be so earthy from the description. To me, it's not golden, it's a dark, earthy brown, very grounded and calm smelling. The bottom line: An instant favorite. This is definitely going on the big bottle wishlist immediately!

This is one of my all-time favorite scents. I don't know why I ordered a 5mL bottle and not a 10mL one, but I think I'm getting another bottle in my next order. First sniff: Incense and cinnamon. Oh, God, this has my name written all over it. This is so beautiful and smoky and spicy and just...perfect. Wet on skin: Sweet incense smoke, like the inside of a Cathedral on Christmas Eve. This is so beautiful I can't even begin to describe it. It's like this was created just for me. It's resiny without being headache inducing (for those around me, not for me, resins never give me a headache) and it's spicy without smelling like a bakery. In short, this is pure perfection. Dry down: A light waft of sweet incense, like the smell that's left on your clothes after you've been to Mass. This is so beautiful, an instant favorite. I can't believe I waited to long to review it. The bottom line: Gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous. It's so beautiful and calming and peaceful smelling to me. I love this even more than I love Cathedral and I adore Cathedral.

Got an imp of this from SoapyRN. First sniff: Fig and...cocoa? I don't know where in the hell that's coming from. There's also something that smells like crushed grape leaves (not sure what that is, either) and something very earthy which is probably the patchouli. Wet on skin: Dried figs and cocoa (what in the hell is that?!). There's also an undertone of crushed greens and earthiness. I was worried I wouldn't like this, but this is fantastic! I get the distinct impression of a trampled path in the forest, beautiful but ruined at the same time. Dry down: Nephilim dries down to a very light scent on me. It turns into very light dried figs and something vaguely sweet (maybe the tamarind?). This is beautiful in all its stages, although I wish it would stay stronger since I like a strong scent. The bottom line: I tried this on a whim and I'm thrilled with the result! This is really beautiful; it's fruity without being too fruity (a huge plus for me), it's earthy (I love earthy) and it's woodsy (I love woodsy, too) all at once. A definite winner.

I got an imp of Chaos Theory XCIX from grrrlennyl. First sniff: Pine and...cinnamon maybe? I smell something spicy underneath the pine topnote. I'm guessing it's cinnamon, which is fine by me because I love cinnamon. Wet on skin: The pine really amplifies as soon as it hits my skin, but the cinnamon (I'm sure it's cinnamon now) starts popping up again within seconds. The result is surprisingly beautiful...it almost reminds me of Hamadryad in that it's spicy and woodsy at the same time. Very interesting! Dry down: Both the pine and cinnamon are at about equal intensity now. It's very Christmasy smelling, actually, like a pine wreath hanging in a kitchen where cinnamon cookies are baking. The bottom line: I really like this! I love cinnamon and pine, so this is a definite, hands-down winner for me.

I really like this one...let's just leave it at that for now. First sniff: Cinnamon? There's something else there, too, but I'm getting a very distinct impression of cinnamon. I love cinnamon so that's fine by me. Wet on skin: Cinnamon red hots! Wow, that's pretty freaky, but wonderful because I love that smell even if I don't like the taste. Dry down: Cinnamon red hots and a vague powdery undertone. Does it work? I think I can answer that with an emphatic yes. I'll leave it at that for now, since I don't want to go offending anyone with the details, so...uh...yeah. " The bottom line: I wouldn't care what it smelled like as long as it works, but I got a bonus in this one in that it smells fantastic and it works! And I do mean works.

This was part of my very first BPAL order and I thought I'd love it, but I've since learned aquatics are not my friend. First sniff: Aquatic but almost sweet at the same time. I was expecting something salty like...well, like tears, but I got something that smelled vaguely like slightly salty water mixed with some sort of sweet syrup. It's an odd combination and not at all what I expected. Maybe my nose is out of whack, since no one else seems to have gotten this, but I'm just calling it as I see it...or, in this case, smell it. Wet on skin: This reminds me of Bayou only without the floral notes. It's aquatic and vaguely salty but almost floral at the same time. The sweetness seems to have disappeared leaving me with a pure aquatic note. I'm having a somewhat unsettling reaction to this one and I'm not sure why. It's not that it reminds me of anything troubling, it just makes me feel a little uncomfortable for no apparent reason. Dry down: Pretty much the same as wet. It reminds me of the smell of dried tears on my cheeks after I've been crying and I really don't feel comfortable wearing it. It's not because it brings back bad memories, it just makes me feel a little creeped out for some reason. I wanted to like this, but apparently it doesn't like me. The bottom line: Another aquatic scent that doesn't get along with me. This one really made me feel uncomfortable and a little creeped out, so I'm going to get rid of it.

Got this as a freebie in my first Halloween order and I was thrilled because it was on my wishlist and I thought I'd love it, but...things didn't quite work out... First sniff: Minty and aquatic. I've never smelled lotus on its own, so I'm guessing that's what's causing the aquatic vibe I'm picking up. I don't smell any juniper, which is a shame because I love juniper. All I'm getting it mint and something that smells almost like salt water but slightly...sour? I'm no good at describing aquatic scents, so bear with me. Wet on skin: The mint disappears as soon as it hits my skin, leaving an aquatic, almost floral, note behind. It's an odd aquatic note, almost impossible to describe, and it's threatening to turn into something that smells like toilet bowl cleaner on me. I'm thinking it's the lotus doing this, since Blood Lotus did the same thing on my skin. Dry down: The toilet bowl cleaner stage is gone and I'm left with a slightly minty aquatic/floral note again. I really don't know where to begin in describing this scent, which I suppose must be the lotus. It's aquatic but almost sour (which I'm sure is the result of my body chemistry and not the scent) and vaguely floral at the same time. The bottom line: This is definitely not for me. I really don't think aquatic notes get along too well with my skin chemistry since most of the ones I've tried have turned sour and bordered on crossing into toilet bowl cleaner territory. I guess it's time to give up the ghost on aquatics. Off to swaps with it; I'm sure someone out there will be able to wear it and make it smell beautiful.

I'd say March Hare might be a good choice, it's not too grown up smelling although I, personally, wear it quite often. It's very pretty and I could see a little girl wearing it. I'd also say Bon Vivant would probably be a good choice even though I hate it (it smells too much like strawberry lipgloss to me and brings back some bad memories). Alice would also be a good choice, even though (once again) I don't like it.