Sheila

I bought this because I love blackberries (Bewitched is one of my favorites), I love heather, and I love Scotland. In the imp and on wet, this is all ozone on me--I'm assuming it's used here to capture the breeze in the description. Unfortunately, on my skin, BPAL's ozone note comes across as dryer sheets, or a very sneezy white flower. In 20 minutes or so the ozone calms down and the heather emerges. It's very pretty at this stage. The blackberries are there, but they're definitely in the background. This is OK on me, but I wish there were more berries and less breeze.

At first, a soft amber that's sharpened by acidic apple blossom (both notes I love). As it dries, the carnation peeks out--just a bit--to add some spice. This amber is less spicy and strong than in The Lion--it's more sweet and powdery. I love it! Onto the big-bottle list it goes.

Not much to add that hasn't already been said. This is fruity, juicy, bubbly, floral, and just gorgeous. The pomegranate really makes the rose sparkle. Very lovely. If you're looking for a unique or more complex rose, this is a good choice.

On me, this is very powdery and definitely feminine. (Luckily, I love powdery scents! I think it's the sandalwood that turns to baby powder on me.) I don't get much lemon, which is fine with me, but rather just a hint of citrus. Mostly I smell the musk and sandalwood--but they have a floral layer over them. It's sweet but not cloying, and very light. Perfect for summer. Onto my big-bottle list it goes!

Wow, this smells totally different on me than on anyone else! It's like reading reviews for a completely different oil. On me, this smells like Bewitched, but with creamy mandarin instead of blackberry. (Bewitched is one of my top-ten scents, so this is not a bad thing!) When I first smell the bottle, it smells like creamy oranges--almost like a creamsicle, but a little more sharp (I'm assuming that's the tangerine). I think the creaminess comes from the iris and white chocolate. It smells delicious. On, it becomes a strong white tea note, with bright, cheerful fruit. It's sweet and foody. I love it.

This was a giftimp from the lab. Thank you so much! I'm very glad I got to try it. At first, this is very cinnamony. Then, as it dries, it becomes cinnamon and flowers. I really like it at this stage. Unfortunately, after an hour or so, it does what every voodoo blend does--turns into herbal soap. Ah well. The first stage is lovely on me--I'll swap it with someone who has better skin chemistry.

I didn't order this at Yule because it didn't appeal to me. But then I sniffed Byrdie's (does that sound dirty?!) at the Seattle meet-up this weekend and fell in love. On me, it's very sweet and cherryish. The smoke and leather notes remind me of Perversion. In fact, this smells like Perversion with sweet cherries added! Yum. It's very long lasting, too. This will be wonderful for cold winter nights.

This wasn't even on my wish list, but I sniffed an imp at the Seattle meet-up this weekend. It was love at first sniff! Barb25 had an extra imp that she gave me--thanks hon! This is bright and sparkling. The pomegranate is sweet and tart at the same time. It's fruitiness reminds me of Bewitched--but the champagne-like bubbliness gives it an added spark. Really fun and perfect for any occasion. This is going on my big-bottle list!

FIRST: Make sure you always gently swirl this oil before wearing! Otherwise you'll get more of a single note: fruit or single note: earth rather than the complex blend. I was worried when I saw this compared to Zombi and Graveyard Dirt. Not scents I enjoy! However, I was pleasantly surprised by this--it's dark and earthy, without smelling like dirt. It's fruity and sweet, but also spicy and incensey. Everything is so well blended that the parts become a glorious, indescribable whole. (My favorite kind of scent!) I'm surprised that this didn't last very long on my skin--4 hours tops. But it's so lovely that I don't mind reapplying. This will be my sexy, earth-mother scent. I don't have many "dark" scents in my collection, so I'm very glad this works on me. Now I wish I had ordered the king, too....

CCVIII (208) (This is Brumbjorn's Chaos Theory; we did an imp-for-imp swap at the Seattle meet-up this weekend. Thank you!) In the bottle, this smelled sweet and foody--like buttery cookies. However, when on, it reminds me of All Saints' (which also smells foody in the bottle). In other words, flowery incense! Smokey blooms! It's not as heavy as All Saints'--I don't think there's rose or gardenia in here, like there is in All Saints'. This is a lighter, springier version. It's very nice.

CLXXIII (173) All hail the power of chaos--this is a blend I would never have ordered (because of the mint), but I do like it. CLXXIII smells like Silk Road (herbal, light, spicy, and sweet) with added mint (I think it's spearmint). I'm not usually a mint fan, but this is delicate and lovely. The mint fades in 30 minutes or so, and the scent that remains is beautiful. Perfect for summer.

YUM. This is what I wanted Chaste Moon to smell like. Creamy, milky, soft, sweet--maybe a touch of coconut, a bit of honey, a dab of vanilla--this is truly lovely. It reminds me a bit of Burt's Bees Baby Bee lotion, but sweeter and brighter. Glad I swapped for a bottle of this! ETA: And even though this is a soft scent, it's incredibly long lasting--I could smell it when I went to bed at 11 pm after applying it at 8 am! The Bewitched I had applied at 5 pm was gone, but Milk Moon was still there--just lovely.

Holy cow, this is nice! Very sexy and incensey yet sweet (from the tonka). I was scared of this because of the rum and leather--not my favorite notes--but all the ingredients combine together wonderfully and they're not really noticeable. Very nice...and very, very sexy. On the big-bottle list for sure.

At first, almond. Then a sharp, bitter, dark scent that reminds me of patchouli--I'm guessing the combo of oakmoss and sandalwood. After about 30 minutes, I get a lovely, almost sweet, spice. This is very exotic and seductive, as others have noted. Golden and evocative of its name.

Pele is a beautiful, tropical, lush white floral. It's very pretty and feminine, and smells like moist jungle flowers.

Oh, this is gorgeous. It is indeed floral, but I'm picking up something spicy too. (I don't think it's carnation--maybe the same lilies that are in Tiger Lily?) It's a bit like Eos, but with that added spice. It's light, buttery-yellow in color, and very pretty. Feminine. Perfect for Beltane.

*Sniff, eyes roll, swoon* This is one of my "OMFG" BPALs. It's nice to know, after all these months, that a regular catalog scent can surprise me. This scent is utterly creamy, and creamy is my favorite BPAL adjective. It smells mostly like coconut and iris (so smooth and rich!). I wasn't expecting this lovely floral at all--what a gorgeous scent. The iris reminds me of orchid--sweet and vanillaish, creamy (there's that word again) and rich. The musk stays in the background and helps the scent last longer. I don't smell the hazelnut, which is just as well. Definitely need a big bottle.

Yep, this is all amber: spicy, smokey, sexy, and golden. I love amber (and I'm a Leo!), so this is going on my big-bottle list. (This would be perfect for layering with other amber-based scents to emphasize the amber.)

This is herbal without being bitter. It's gently spicy and softly sweet, but not too foody. It's very lovely, and like others have said, very well blended. It does remind me a bit of Hamadryad (but without the musk). It's light and would make a great lotion.

The description for this is so accurate. It's starry, jewel-clad, and glittering...in the vial, at least. When I first sniffed the imp, I almost swooned. It's floral, but the flowers are deepened by the incense, moss, and musk. It smells like a starry night sky should smell. Unfortunately, on my skin, all I smell is jasmine. I think I'll use this in my oil burner so I can enjoy this lovely scent without my skin's chemistry getting in the way.

Good cheer indeed! As others have noted, this is bright, bubbly, and happy. I mostly smell pear, with the plumeria adding a lovely floral note. It's also a bit "sparkly," which I think is the champagne (but it doesn't smell boozy). This is a wonderful scent for summer or happy occasions. It's going on my big-bottle list.

Mmmmm, orchid! On wet and in the imp, this is mostly roses. As it dries, the gorgeous, sweet, creamy orchid--one of my favorite notes--comes out. The labdanum adds a thickness and a bit of darkness, which keeps the scent from becoming too "flowery." This is lovely, but I think I like Queen Mab/Phantom Queen better for orchid scents. However, I will use up and enjoy my imp.

In the imp, this is one dark, thick oil! On me, this isn't the scent of lust (it's missing an animalistic, raw element), but rather the scent of seduction. It's very sophisticated and womanly. It's heavy on the patchouli and myrrh, but the ylang ylang softens it up a bit. A little bit goes a long way! I like this scent, but it isn't really "me." Off to swaps.

In the bottle and on wet, this is very sharp--strong bitter chocolate and rum. It makes my eyes sting at this stage. Dry at first, it's still very sharp and alcoholic--reminds me of Dia de los Muertos a bit. It's almost coffee-ish, with coconut underneath. Ah, and there's that plasticy scent others have noticed. As it dries down (after an hour or so), the sharpness/platic goes away and I'm left with a creamy vanilla coconut scent. Yum--at this stage, it's lovely. I don't get any mint (which is just as well), and the rum and cocoa go away quickly. I like the coconut and vanilla scent that remains.

Does anyone else think Silky Underwear = The Living Flame?