Fire of Love

[urraca]

A catalytic, potent love oil used to spark (or rekindle) the flame of desire between lovers.

In the vial I get something almost minty sweet and alcoholic smelling. And once I got a scent that reminded me of the aftershave my uncle wore in the 1960s. On, it is a dark, disturbing, wild scent. I'm going to go out on a limb and say it is civet and a dark musk. Too masculine for me to enjoy them but I do appreciate them, if that makes sense. I can see why if you permitted yourself, civet could recall a daiper pail but it's not that hard for me to fight the association and see it as a much more pleasant though slightly feral scent. As to its effects, worn on the right man, I can imagine it might have an effect on me. I tried it with Queen on the other arm, and they come across as a pair.

[quimerula]

I can't put this one on my skin because...

 

I don't have any problem with ginger, jasmine or pepper, but I can't pick any single note from this one, just

 

I will try its magic with candles!

[Dark Angel]

I got this in a swap with Decemberine. Thanks!

 

Wow, this is...odd. Unlike any BPAL (or any other) scent I've tried. Wet, and for the first half-hour to 45 minutes, it smells, on me, almost exactly like sawn lumber. Someone mentioned a comparison to Tombstone, and I can see that, but it's not as cedery as Tombstone. Just--wood, newly cut. A very dry scent. Underneath there's a burnt kind of smell, like charred wood, or ashes. I know this isn't making it sound very attractive, but somehow I actually kind of like this stage. I don't get any lemon, ginger, or pepper, or any cat pee, diaper pail, or sweat, either. I can't detect anything rank or 'off' about it, it's just very, very dry and woody.

 

As it dries down, something sweet and incensy begins to come up. I like this a lot, although unfortunately it seems to fade quite quickly. I can see why it might strike people as a masculine smell; I think it might smell quite wonderful on my husband (haven't tried it yet). But yet, to me it doesn't seem either masculine or feminine. It's so unlike any traditional perfume or cologne that it doesn't give off any particular gender vibe to me.

 

As for the 'intended effect:' I am starting to believe in the Voodoo! My husband says this smells fantastic on me, and according to him, 'it works, too.' He's woken in the night ready for action several times now when I've worn this. It's true that it doesn't smell, to me, like 'pure undiluted sex,' but that's how it seems to work! Actually, to me it smells kind of comforting somehow; it reminds me of something strong and secure. But even though I had a sinus headache and was feeling rather 'off' last night, I didn't have any trouble enjoying myself once we go into bed! I tend to be a bit sceptical about this sort of thing, and it could just be the power of suggestion, but still...

Edited October 5, 2005 by Dark Angel

[aidenraine]

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

 

 

*I am fleeing in terror from my own wrist*

 

This is the scent of the Salvation Army, in a bad way. In the dankest corners. It's kinda body odor plus mildew. I honestly can't imagine a scent less likely to get me in the mood.

 

Yargggggg...

 

*flail*

 

Oh my lord I need to wash this off now!

[ancilla_morte]

I'm so undecided.

 

wet on skin:I smell patchouli. very dark dark patchouli. there is something else added to that which may be what others describe as a 'bad breath' smell (meaning, the worst kind you can have, like death-breath lol). it does sort of smell like baby diapers. and also I hate to say it, but... poo.

but at the same time not really. because I know it is the patchouli. I can also detect the slightest hint of jasmine. but I agree it is incredibly musky, very very animal.

 

dry: I can understand how it smells like sex. but its pure animal sex. in a desperate, completely uninhibited 'who cares how we smell, let's get it on!' way. which excites me a bit. (actually quite a lot)

the 'death-breath' smell is almost undetectable. the patchouli is sweetened.

 

edited to add: PINE! I could not notice it at first as it is a high note and so very high I thought I was the smell of rubbing alcohol (as I was using it earlier to remove another tested scent). I don't know if it is exactly pine, but it definitely smells like a sharp evergreen.

 

final: so I don't know. to me it is really an interesting smell and I'd like to try it out on my boyfriend, just after it dries and the 'death-breath' baby diaper smell has gone. but then again, the turd smell is kind of still there. ehhhh. I like it because it excites me, but I don't like the scents very much. I don't know I might want to try something else.

Edited November 5, 2005 by ancilla

[ViolentKitten]

This is the last one reviewed of my first lot of 26 Imps I got back in January '04. Last for a few reasons: 1. I just couldn't pick the notes (especially as I had just been deflowered by BPAL at the time), 2. I am the slowest reviewer in the universe and 3. It's horrifically bad on me. Hideous. In fact, I had never had such a visceral response to a perfume, and have not had since... Oh, well except for DSH Erotica, which is the most intense leather and *&%$ I've ever tried. So, I needed to give Fire of Love a little more time (as I did with Erotica too), to see if I could get anything else out of it or at least understand it a bit better.

 

First try: Gahhh! Smells like .... ..... poop! I've been walloped by a poop! I feel bad saying something so negative, but I've never been so put off by a scent. My man thought it smelled like ammonia. I thought it was just us, as some of the early reviews were most definitely not along the lines of what we could smell and were actually quite favourable. I'll give it another go when I can bear it.

 

Second try a month or so later: Ack. It still smells as above. With maybe some mint. Drydown is a bit better. Becomes rather woody. Or maybe ginger when it's just been pulled from the dirt. It's grazed, so you can smell the ginger and the dirt. But that icky undertone is still there. It's definitely sparked something, but it ain't love, unfortunately. It's gotta be the civet.

 

20.11.05, Today ~ I've been too scared to open the vial. Like it's going to jump out and bite me. Here goes...Ahhh! So potent! The barest drop is SO potent! Okay, trying here, with help from the reviews, I can smell ginger, pepper, lemon and wood, possibly a very dry cedar. There is something almost nice there, but underneath it all, simmers a steaming, hot...I guess I shouldn't be ashamed that I'm one of the people that civet really pops out on the skin into poop (or pee in some cases), as that's what civet actually does smell like, so Beth has created a pretty damn good bouquet. It's the same civet that I smell in Debauchery, and I like Debauchery, so I can take civet in small amounts and mixed with certain other notes. On the drydown though, Fire of Love is all civet on me. So, no can do. And as for the Voodoo aspect, I'm glad it works for others, but for me, the man still has the same reaction, “Argghhh! Get away from me!” I think I better go put some Snake Charmer on...

[gingersnapp]

This smells like a very dry, sticky mouth full of nasty breath. It's making me very sick to my stomach and put a major headache on deck.

[pinkpoodle]

It's interesting to read the reviews after trying this one just because the reactions are so diverse. I'm guessing that this scent is supposed to smell feral because of its name. On my skin, it ends up more "fecal" than feral. Like many others, I had to scrub my arms right away, and it took some serious scrubbing to get the dirty diaper smell off my skin. Weird. This one goes in the swap bin.

[AlaskaSnows]

Wet: This smells like.. embers. Firey, ashy, embers. There's some sort of nasty smelling background, took me a while to realize it smelled like uncleaned birdcage. Okay.

 

Dry: Pure unadulterated uncleaned birdcage. I have no idea how that happened but it is unbearable. It reeks. I imagine it's more meant to have meaningful ingredients than a meaningful scent?

[herongale]

preconceived notion: I might be a little high on caffeine. My reviews from here in are not to be trusted. This one will be the last one I do tonight because I am starting to get a little agitated with the BPAL and I don't want to snap and have the federal marshals come hunt me down.

 

in the imp: Ooooh, easy. THIS ONE HAS PATCHOULI. I know because it is helping to make me high.

 

wet: this is delta-of-venus sexy. I'm guessing it has a secret blend of five rapturous patchoulis plus green tea.

 

drydown: Mmm.... I actually love this, even though I am not usually a patchouli fan. Ergo, I must be mistaken and there is probably also sandalwood in. The sexiness is mysterious. Maybe also there is some hemp flowers and nicotinia in here.

 

verdict: yes?

 

postconceived notion: I AM CUTTING MYSELF OFF.

[BlueStar]

Too bad this has Civet. Civet and I do NOT get along.

 

In The Bottle: Civety cedar with civet on top of smokey civet

 

Wet on Skin: Maybe this will be OK. Maybe the Civet won't react with my skin and turn into a smell which can only be summed up as "Hot Rum-buttered Buggery with a Side Order of Dirty Sanchez" I like it as it goes on. This is raw animal passion. It is a dog headed man deity like Anubis hammering away at some sacrifical virgin's hymen. It is raw sex, plain and simple.

 

Drydown: Caca y mierda! Again my betraying flesh has taken a really hot smoky primal and feral scent and turned it into "Hot Rum-buttered Buggery with a Side Order of Dirty Sanchez". Damn my skin. I had to wash it off. Even after I washed it off it was still there and it made me queasy. I wish I could wear civet because it is positively beastial!

 

Verdict: Another gimp for my friend Ben. Fucker can wear civet without a problem. Here is what it smells like on Ben.

 

Wet on Ben's Skin: This is raw animal passion. If I weren;t straight... It is a dog headed man deity like Anubis hammering away at some sacrifical virgin's hymen. It is raw animal passion, period.

 

Drydown on Ben's Skin: That is fucking hot. Go away before I go gay.

[Thaleia]

This was a frimp from the Lab. I'm currently single (sadly) so I don't need to spice up any relationship except the one with my thesis, so ...

 

In the vial: Hello, wood scent. That's really strong. Strong and woodsy and spicy, just the way I like my men. I mean ... *cough* I'm not sure if it's because I know this is part of the Voodoo Collection, but I seem to remember going into a voodoo shop in New Orleans when I was last down there (a long time ago now) and it smelt sort of like this.

 

Wet: Hotel furniture. That hotel-furniture scent from the lower-end hotels, multiplied by twenty. I hate saying things like this, but ... it just isn't going over well on me. From a distance (and I mean, my arm is on the desk while I'm typing this), it sort of smells like a disinfectant/kitty litter (not that I've had a cat for twenty years, once it was revealed that I have a virulent cat allergy) combination.

 

I just Googled 'civet' and it turns out it's some sort of cat. Am I totally off base here? It would explain the cat-litter scent I'm getting.

 

Drydown: Oh, God. I wanted to be able to say that I love all of Beth's creations, and while I love the way she puts scents together, this one, unfortunately, is giving me a bit of a headache, not to mention my stomach's feeling a bit funny.

 

Dry: I don't really want to smell my arm again, but I can smell it from here. Tobacco, woods, something spicy, bad kitty.

 

I might just keep this until I have occasion to use it, because it might come in handy then, even though I'm not fond of the smell now, or let a friend try it, even though I really don't want to know what they'll use it for ... and I am most certainly NOT giving it to my parents.

 

Rating: I'm not fond of this at all. I'd give it a 1 and hope that I'll find someone who'll appreciate it more.

Edited December 16, 2005 by rabid hauteur

[Mary Mayhem]

I'd like to preface this by saying I have 4 kids, and you'd think I didn't *need* Fire of Love, but then maybe you don't have 4 kids. (; My youngest is 4 months, with a 2 year old on her heels. I feel decidedly unsexy 98% of the time. I need a very "for non-creational purposes only" sex boost.

 

Wet: I smell Ginger root. It's not all the way warm, it's actually goes back and forth between warm and green.

 

Drying down: Gets warmer.

 

Later: I don't know why, but ginger always smells like cedar to me. That's where it's going as it dries down and settles in.

 

It reminds me quite a bit of Red Queen -minus the cherry and add ginger. There's also a bit of sickly sweet in there I can't identify. Almost like sassafras. I have a single note civet and there might be a tiny half drop of civet in there, but generally civet doesn't offend me much. The sweet. Oh man, makes me want to die. *perserveres*

 

It's not as sweet as Follow Me Boy, so there's at least that for me.

 

And I'll be checking out the "affects" soon and editing my post. (:

Edited December 17, 2005 by Mary Mayhem

[aedes]

Aaaaayup, patchouli-hatahs (like me) beware. I get the dirty, musty, grimy, unwashed-human in unwashed-clothes (and not even in the hot Continental way) smell of patchouli through and through. Get it offa me! Get it offa me! *scrubs vigorously*

[stardreamer]

This is a dark, reddish oil, and I was afraid it was going to have red musk in it. There is indeed something sharp on first application, but I think it's more an evergreen/resinous note than a musky/incense one. I wasn't sure how well I was going to like it; it seemed as though it was going to be too strong.

 

A lot of the reviews for this one talk about civet, but if there is any of that in here I never found it. After about half an hour, it was Vanilla City (my skin amps vanilla like crazy) with a dark undertone that I think may have been patchouli. It reminded me quite a bit of Snake Oil, only without the incense-y base note.

 

I'm still not quite sure about this blend; I think I'm going to have to wear it a few more times. I do like the similarity to Snake Oil, and the way the vanilla lasts -- it's taken close to 12 hours to fade away. I don't like the first 20-30 minutes all that much, but it may be worth that to get to the vanillafest.

 

As far as the claimed effect goes... I don't feel anything different, and R. is too scent-averse to even think about trying it on him. He'd have a headache for sure!

 

Bottom line: Undecided. Keep and test again.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: dark and herbal.

on: on: a hot scent. i think i smell pepper and ginger.

1.5 hours later: ginger and patchouli, i think. definitely very hot, but with a lot of earthiness to it.

7.5 hours later: gone.

overall: i haven't tested this out yet, but i really like it.

[sookster]

omg....upon application this smells XactLEE the way my grandparent's deck

of playing cards used to smell!!

yes for some odd reason, when my grandparents used to break out the cards

for their monthly penny poker game i would actually beg to take the cards from

the box just so i could whiff them......an odd woodsy/farmhouse scent.....the smell

is so exact is it frightening....

after 15 minutes or so, this scent turns into an "oil painting on barn board with a touch

of turpentine".... i know, i know.....too strange... but my mom used to paint on old

barn boards back when i was only 5 or 6....i remember it as clearly as today.....

 

soooooooooooooo, after all this what can i say??

 

this scent brings back some fantastically wonderful memories for me.....i cannot say it

is a pretty scent by any means but it certainly gave me the most wonderful dream

of my beloved gramma and grandpa .... they appeared to me much younger

than i knew either of them and they were both playing and loving my grandchildren...

we were on the most beautiful porch of a white house......everyone happy .... it certainly

was wonderful......

 

i think i may need a bottle of this for when i want to have some beautiful dreams of

my grandparents and my mother and how things might be when we meet

up together and finally "go home".......really amazing experience.........

 

thank you for this one Beth........

Edited January 9, 2006 by sookster

[desu]

In the bottle: Sharp, spicy wood note.

 

On my skin: Patchouli and civet come to the front rather quickly upon application. Not that I mind since I'm beginning to like the smell of patchouli, and civet and I love each other. The little man would says this belongs on a boy, but I can't get enough of Beth's musky, civety offerings.

 

Later on: The patchouli has mostly burnt itself out, leaving the enticing aroma of civet behind.

[parrot_suspect]

This starts out as a lightly spicy blend (think Red Phoenix or Blood Moon), but it quickly becomes apparent there's lots of wood in here as well. I'm thinking spices and sandalwood? Definitely patchouli in the drydown. Not a bad blend, but if you're looking for spices and woods, there are others that are better (Sin, for instance).

[jazlyn]

Whoa! Fire of Love is a really strong and bitter wood at first and I think what I'm smelling is patchouli and... the something that I must not like is probably civet (what everyone is mentioning). After a few minutes it's not quite as potent, but I think I can safely say I won't be wearing this again.

[PurringPulsar]

Fire of Love

 

In the imp: patchouli! Or more precisely, patchouli with a hint of embers, smoke, and smouldering resins/incense, very fitting with the name. Just a faint undercurrent of civet-and I hope this civet doesn’t go crazy on me!

Wet on skin: oh oh. Here comes the civet! It’s not too bad yet though…but I can also smell resins, polished woods, and patchouli, and possibly some ginger as well.

Dry: yup, civet. This scent is definitely animalistic, but it’s not the smell of un-wiped arse or cat piss on me (thank goodness)-though it does have a hint of farmyard/horse about it, though it’s more like a country breeze than a full on dirty stable stink. With that, I get something that could be frankincense and cedar, with patchouli and perhaps a touch of ginger or pepper. I like the resin-wood-incense vibe this has, it seems to be balanced with the civet, and it’s also quite masculine in feel.

After a while: whoa. The civet in here is strong, oh boy. But it’s not making me recoil in disgust either, in fact I keep sniffing it…I’m intrigued by that beastly little note! There’s something ‘equine’ about civet, to me, reminiscent of the smell of the horses when I went riding last summer. It rests on its polished wood and incense base quite nicely. With its similar fiery lusty name and civet note, I think this scent seems to be the more masculine version of the TAL Flame of Desire.

The more I sniff this, the more it seems to grow on me. It’s not something I love, but I am becoming more accustomed to civet with each sniff, it seems. This note seems to have mellowed out nicely, blending with the resinous wood underneath. I don’t think it’s something that everyone will enjoy the smell of though-I know that my mum or friends will probably gag with a scent like this!

After an hour or two the civet strengthens again and patchouli returns to the scent.

But then, just when I think civet is playing nice with my skin, it then turns to a smell that reminds me of...one of my university lecturer's bad breath. Dangit. There's also a smell of smoke which I think is now tobacco. So it smells like my uni tutor has taken up smoking now...

Thankfully this doesn't last. The final drydown of this scent after a few hours is less civety, and amber has suddenly appeared, which is nice.

Verdict: I was a bit scared about this because I’ve read the civet horror stories on the reviews of the more civet-heavy blends, including this. But it seems the civet beast is quite tame on me, because this isn’t as bad as I expected! It’s definitely animalistic, very feral, quite farmyard-ish at times but not as yucky as I feared. Along with the civet, I get cedar, patchouli, possibly some hot spices (ginger or pepper?) and maybe some incense/resins. It’s definitely fiery. This is, to me, Flame of Desire’s more masculine counterpart. However, though the civet scents aren’t too bad on me, they aren’t my favourite scents either (the drydown smells too much like bad breath!), and I don’t plan on using it for its purpose yet so this one’s going to swap. I’m glad I tried it though. Maybe I shall give Czernobog or Satyr a try next!!! (well, I do have a Puck decant on the way, so I’m less scared of trying that!)

Edited February 5, 2006 by yeahbutnobut

[littletingoddess]

My husband said I smelled like "college". In other words, I smelled like the incense we'd burn to hide the smell of pot smoke. Then when I went to work, a coworker said I smelled like I'd been partying. Instead of inspiring a spark of love, this seems to inspire people to spark up a bong!

 

[Colère]

When Fire of Love first arrived it smelled like really awful morning breath that could've potentially lead to divorce if the offending party didn't learn how to keep their mouth shut when sleeping. A few months later it settled down to a top notch patchouli (little on the dry side rather than the thick, syrupy kind I'm use to). If I smell REALLY HARD, though, I can still detect that bad breath note, but it's WAY at the bottom of the blend.

 

Once on I'm the sexiest seasoned cedar box you'll ever hope to meet (or smell - but that's gonna cost your extra, sweetheart). The cedar exudes an aura of dry warmth, but it lacks that cottonmouth, 'super absorbent of any all moisture in the entire world' note that I'm more familiar with. I'm sort've wondering now if maybe I'm picking up cinnamon bark (a woody, more subtle cinnamon), or if it's cedar cutting through the patchouli I got earlier. Either way, it goes all Chicago Hope on me. The sexiest seasoned cedar box (ever) has turned into a medicinal smelling wet band-aide limply hanging off a scabbing wound. I mean, I could go all graphic and exaggerate the reaction, but, dude, is that REALLY necessary?

 

DUH, OF COURSE!

 

...the sexiest seasoned cedar box (ever) has turned into a medicinal smelling wet band-aide limply hanging off a scabbing wound with debris caught in the adhesive (OH MY GOD, IS THAT A USED CONDOM AND EMPTY SODA CAN?!), and the adhesive's left sticky patches that've begun forming little black dirt rolls on the skin that get stuck beneath your nails when you try picking them off, and the skin beneath the half-hanging band-aide is all sweaty and clammy and sort've rank smelling, and the scab's gone all soft and mushy, and if you touch it plasma breaks the oatmeal-like surface and oozes over the festering wound and...

[Rock Geisha]

In the bottle: Ginger with a bit of cedar and patchouli.

Wet: Straight cedar.

Drydown: A very smoky, spicy cedar.

 

Would I buy it in a bottle? I don't think so but I'll use up the vial.

[GemmaCat]

In the imp: potent, woody-musk.

 

On my skin, initial: a spicy-warm wood note.

 

Drydown: lots of ginger, and that wood again.

 

Surprisingly nice considering I'm not a huge fan of wood notes, but not really for me.