Destroying Angel

[Nekomata]

One of the deadliest mushrooms to ever pop through Gaia’s soil. Papery white notes evoke the grace of this fungi, grounded by thin, crisp soil.

 

Wow, just...wow. Wet this scent is sharp and dry. It smells like wet earth and mushrooms, they kind of smell you get when you're cleaning mushrooms to eat. It is very earthy and almost spicy in the dry down. I'll have to try this a few times to know how I feel about it.

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is a delicate, mushroom scent....

applied this changes and gets a sweet, sugary quality...

unfortunately, i just don't have much luck with the more earthy lab

blends as they all end up smelling simply like freshly turned soil

and not much more....*le sigh*

[edenssixthday]

Destroying Angel - This scent is almost entirely the scent of dirt. I'm really bad about distinguishing the subtleties in dirt scents, as my skin amps up the dirt to the point where it pretty much overpowers all other notes. This scent isn't as complex as Graveyard Dirt or The Premature Burial. It's very simple, and there is another note underneath the dirt note, but it's not like anything I've smelled before. The closest I can compare it to is white sandalwood -- except it's not. The scent only lasts about an hour on my skin, and the throw is light to moderate. This isn't for me, but anyone would loves dirt/soil scents could possibly really like this one.

[Caltha]

Destroying Angel

Mushroom alright, mushroom and earth, at least in my hair. Quite musty, perhaps too much so for me. According to my note from when I tried it on my skin it seemed more bitter and herbal and green then, and dried more artificial or soapy, but in my hair it's clearly mushroomy. I don't know if I like it but it sure is fascinating. Can't see when I would wear it but it might be good for layering with some more green and crisp scent, a piney one perhaps, that needs more depth.

[theshapeshifter]

This was surprisingly herbal/cologne-y when wet (but in a very pleasant, fresh sort of way)... and the drydown is divine. It's not a terribly strong scent, but it's the PERFECT damp rich earthy scent I've been looking for - like a much-less-dry Graveyard Dirt. There's a hint of woodiness in it as well, like walking through a damp old forest and finding fungi growing out of a crumbling tree trunk.

 

I foresee this being a regular in the rotation - it's very unique.

[Shannihilation]

To me, this scent doesn't really match the description. There is a definite soil note, but to me this more of a murky scent. Wet and loamy. It reminds me of being in a New Orleans swamp on a hot, still day. The green water, the damp soil, the Cypress trees...

 

It's slightly unpleasant when I first put it on, it's very sharp and heavy. But within a minute or two it smoothes out and turns so pretty. It's very light with just a hint of floral underneath the water and the soil...

[fairy]

I was surprised because when I read the description I thought this wouldn't work with me...but it did. It's got a very unique and complex blend. On one hand I smell citrus...on the other I smell some sort of floral. The combination works. It smells very pretty without going to girlie perfume

[Dinerdulcinea]

in imp: very dry smelling. It is light, but has an air like a room that has been sealed and airless for some time. I think what I smell is actually a light wood of some kind. (?)

 

on wet---an interesting lovely dry-ness. Same as above with a greater sense of airlessness.

 

Dry--Still a light woody dryness with a tiny hint of sweetness in the background. Very creepy and heavy-air smelling even if the perfume is not strong.

 

Eventually this becomes a nice, one-dimensional light wood on me. I got compliments from a co-worker.

 

Summary: I might wear this every now and then, but it is not something I would seek out as a signature scent for me.

[columbus]

In the bottle: sharp and white, like a papercut.

On the skin, though, it definitely transforms to more of a fungal, earthy smell. You still have the essense of lightweight white, but it definitely has the scent of mushroom gills and freshly turned dirt.

 

Which might not sound like the best combination for a perfume, but it’s actually quite delicate and lovely.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Very earthy – and yes, somehow, a little mushroomy. The mushroom part is bright white – imagine the very best white mushrooms you can get at the grocery store, and that’s what this smells like.

 

Wearing: Almost nonexistent. I have to concentrate to smell anything.

[theseagrows]

got this as a frimp from the lab. at first it smelled just like damp soil with a bit of sharp greenery maybe? now a few hours later it has morphed into a completely different scent, that's kind of a sweet and dry scent with a sort of musky undertone, or close to musk...i can't quite place what it is, but it smells very familair. i am pleasantly surprised by this one!

[Heavenlyrabbit]

Dirty, chartreuse. Not absolutely unpleasant but I'd never want to smell like this.

[shadow]

Hmm. I'm not sure this actually belongs here, but I don't remember ever seeing this scent released, and I didn't find it in the search on the website. I have to warn that I'm horrible with notes and feel like I have odd chemistry, but I'll give it a shot.

 

In the imp - this is a sharp, clean floral with some slightly herbal notes. I think I'm getting lavender, but there's something else in here - something that seems a bit sweeter.

 

On application - I'm worried I may regret the swipe on my arm. It's very, very sharp now, and I think I might be catching the faintest whiff of vetiver (though I'm never actually sure that what I think is vetiver is really vetiver).

 

Shortly thereafter - I smell like soap. Not like drugstore soap, but super expensive French soap. And there's quite a bit of sweetness now. Maybe there's a touch of lily mixed in with the lavender? I don't know, but it's very pleasant and clean. Not comforting, just very white and... well, clean.

 

Half hour later - It's even sweeter and softer now. I'm not getting any lavender at this point, which makes me wonder if I imagined it at the beginning. It's a lovely skin scent (maybe there's a touch of white musk). When I feel like I need to smell like me but better, I think I'll be pulling this one out. It's completely melted into my skin, which not many scents do. It's not gone, it just feels like me. I'll be very interested to see what notes are in this if it's ever released. I like it much more than I thought I would upon first sniff.

 

Merged with existing thread. --Shollin

[girl_android]

Based on the description, I have not a clue what I'm about to have a sniffle of ...!

 

In the imp ... it's sharp and earthy and green and ... oddly clean. Not antiseptic, or artificial clean, more clean like a forest. Not in the same way that bathroom/laundry cleaning agents try to do pine or foresty green smells, more real than that. It's like the smell of a hike through the bush after a big rainstorm, once the water's had time to sink in enough that it's not so muddy.

 

Wet on skin: Freshly turned forest soil, with some recently trampled flowers nearby?

 

Dry: it's a rather sweet green soil kind of thing on me ... I don't think it's me, but I might have to try this on the DH ...

[slave1]

DESTROYING ANGEL

 

In Bottle: Funky dirt

 

On Skin: The dry dirt is the dominant note, but there is a “funky” feel to it. Sour and slightly metallic. Eeeekk! This scent is not working on me at all. It does really remind me of mushrooms, and I do not like mushrooms. It’s musty, funky and much too earthy for my tastes. Sorry for the short review, I need to wash this one off. Strong throw and I’m note sure about the wearlength since I wahed it off.

[PurringPulsar]

Destroying Angel

 

In the imp: earthy, gritty cologne, very much like the Rat King or the sharp parchment of Clio, but with more greenery and soil.

Wet on skin: much more dirty and earthy, the soil note is stronger now.

Dry: damp, dirty parchment. This is indeed papery and pale, but also very earthy and with lots of wet soil. There’s some greenness as well, like sharp green herbs, and also something almost cologne like, which is almost masculine…it smells like neroli or even petitgrain. It’s an unusual scent.

After a while: very masculine and sharp citrus-cologne-green scent. The fresh wet earth has vanished but the scent does have a fresh, almost wet feel to it, but it’s like men’s perfume here. There might be a patchouli note here adding darkness to this scent. There’s also a scent like citrus peel mixed with tree bark and parchment, and a less floral variant of orange blossom, possibly also a pale sandalwood or cedar note, maybe a hint of moss. This scent becomes much too sharp over time, there’s a sourness to it that reminds me of aftershave at best, and at worst, it smells a little bit like…vomit. Not good. The scent becomes very bitter and bile-like at the end.

Verdict: at first this is very much like a damper Rat King, like decomposing paper thrown on rain soaked soil with a hint of green, fresh cologne. It wasn’t too bad, a little manly, but not offensive, and I really liked the wet soil note. It seemed like the masculine mushroom scent in RG, whilst Death Cap seems more feminine to me. But once this soil scent faded, the fragrance gradually started to disagree with my skin. It became too masculine smelling at first (like RK but greener) but then started to develop a sharp bitter-sour scent which smelt sickly, it smelt like vomit on my skin, I’m afraid to say. This scent is certainly not for me, but I’m not too worried because there are many other earth scents which I love more than this. One for the swap pile.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? No. Death Cap is my ‘mushroom’ scent of choice.

If you like this, try: Clio, the Rat King, Death Cap, Penny Dreadful, Zombi

[supremegoddessofall]

This is very earthy, with a touch of aquatics. Not really my thing, but not unpleasant.

[cuervosueno]

So I pretty much hate dirt/earth scents. But I got this as frimp and felt I must try it, even though in the imp it is all dirt, which smells like beets, which I hate.

 

So funny thing....while I don't like this, I don't hate it. there is something interesting about the scent which is all clean potting soil with an unexpected sweetness. That sweetness is a floral of some sort, and what this smells like is a play on the title, rather than a real mushroom scent--it's like earth with something that suggests mushrooms, but also a sweet ethereal scent that is the angel part.

 

I won't keep it, but glad I got to try it.

[fiddledragon]

In the imp: rubbing alcohol and mushrooms. Unpleasant and weird.

 

On me: It *feels* cold at first, like there really is rubbing alcohol in this, but the evil antiseptic note goes away quickly, thankfully. From wet to drydown it stays a lovely earth/mushroom scent. Delicate sweet white raw button mushrooms. There's a hint of sweet and a hint of spicy -- maybe pepper? I would never have thought of making a perfume that smelled like mushrooms, but this is actually really lovely!

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Dirt and mosses, dark and autumnal

 

Wet on me - Leaf litter in the autumn

 

Dry on me - Deep and earthy and somewhat musty

 

Overall - This is an incredibly evocative blend, but I can't imagine ever wanting to smell like it.

[Voleuse]

Dirt. Dry dirt, but not unpleasant. It does remind me of Graveyard Dirt and Zombi, but it's nowhere near as rich. (I don't get any similarities to Rat King, as some did.) As it dries, the blend gets a little sweeter, and hints at mushrooms. After a while, it does remind me of paper. Particularly, the paper note of Clio. Neat!

[SeaLady]

A frimp from the lab, thanks lab!

 

This smells like a dirty, spicy mushroom. This is amazing! I actually got a little on my nose sniffing the applicator I could be lying on the ground in a forest. I'll wear this when I need to feel grounded, or just want to appreciate some seriously incredible and evocative sniffy art.

[insanecatposse]

My first review *nervous*

 

In the imp: Lovely rich soil, a distant floral and a moist undertone. I love this.

 

Wet on the skin: Much the same.

 

Drying down: I'm losing a lot of the rich soil note and the floral is amplified. It has a dry dusty lavendar scent and there is a slight sourness. Not bad at all.

 

Dry after about two hours: A nice throw, but I smell no soil at all. It's gone totally floral...definately a blend but I smell lavendar in the forefront. Very dry and almost cologne-y. Perhaps this is the "dry soil" in the catalogue description versus the "moist soil" I detected in the imp. It's not bad at all, I like it, but I liked it better wet. I'm not ready for a big bottle yet but I will definately use the imp and see how it works with my skin chemistry on another day.

[Jilara]

Wow, this is another one of BPAL's scents that evokes a STRONG scent-memory, of finding a Destroying Angel mushroom!

 

I'm 9 years old, and I've found the coolest white mushroom under a bush on the vacant lot above our house. I know from the cup it springs from that it must be an Amanita, which means mondo poisonous, but what kind? I happily pick it and take to show my mother, sniffing it all the while, because it has this fascinating sweetish fungus smell. My mother keys it out in the mushroom book, then freaks out, and makes me take it waaaaay down the street to throw it away, and makes me wash my hands repeatedly with pine tar soap, afterward. This is the embodiment of that memory, captured in a bottle!

 

Wet: moist earth full of organic matter and mushroom mycelia.

Drydown: a sweet and almost papery scent comes up to join the fungus smell and the earth.

Dry: the earth fades, leaving the pure essence of Amanita mushroom scent, delicious and yet somehow dangerous. I realize from sniffing this how it is that Amanita is considered among the most delicious mushrooms; people say so before they die of mushroom poisoning. I want to wash my hands thoroughly, before handling food. It smells exactly like Deadly Mushroom. I am utterly amazed at how thoroughly this scent captures the exact scent of a Destroying Angel and its home environment. I might just end up with a bottle of this. It's so cool, in a creepy sort of way.

[taramarie]

First review. My nose is completely untrained, so here goes.

 

One whiff of Destroying Angel and I'm reminded of the time I tried to press a bunch of rose petals. It didn't work -- they ended up decomposing instead. Destroying Angel is the scent of plantlife slowly going back to the soil. I can smell a hint of floral, as if dead roses were still clinging to the very last of their scent. The floral note seems to get stronger as the oil dries. There seems to be hardly any throw -- I have to hold my wrists right up to my nose to smell anything at all.

 

All things considered, I don't think I'll be buying a bottle of this anytime soon, but it's a pleasant enough scent, so it'll probably end up in the "nice to have" section of my wishlist.

Edited March 31, 2007 by whiterosepetals