Vixen

[Splendid Molerat]

Lascivious, flirtatious, and vampy as hell. A true heartbreaker’s perfume. The innocence of orange blossom tainted by the beguiling scents of ginger and patchouli.

Vixen has fox-red hair and glowing brown eyes. Those eyes tilt up at the corners, and you know she's silently laughing at you the whole time.

Dry, yet compelling. Somewhere between Shalimar and a torte with cream and citrus zest.

[quimerula]

Patchouli makes this scent deep, and ginger gives it a playful and different tone.

Lasts quite a long time.

 

That's all.

[Racecar Gibson]

Vixen is (probably) my favorite so far of my (relatively small, I admit) collection of oils.

 

In the vial, I smelled a dark burnt orange scent that I was unsure of. On, the patchouli comes out, but it's sweeter and less obtrusive. A sophisticated patchouli. While wearing it, I've never had anyone come near and me and say "Hey, who's wearing patchouli?" like I did back when I wore head-shop patchouli oil (The tiniest of dabs! I swear!!). I love the sweet spiciness that the ginger gives and this is the oil that made me want to smell at least a little ginger-y ALL THE TIME!

 

Once a few hours have passed, it turns more powdery on me and I can almost convince myself that I'd be just fine wearing this even in the middle of the sweltering, humid SoFla summer. It's far too heady for that though, I know.

 

I should be getting my 5 ml of this any day now.

[blaqpearl]

I really love patchouli and ginger. I was hoping that the patchouli would stand out more for me. It is lovely but not for me. This one goes straight to my head like I smoked too much ganja the evening before and I wake up with a slight headache. Off to the swap pile.

 

ADDED June 14:

 

This one is very strong. I am not too much a fan of orange blossom as I have discovered recently. This one bum rushed my head and made me lightheaded. This is almost a single note. I dont sense any ginger or patchouli. Off to the swap pile.

[misfitroxy]

In the imp, Vixen has a honey-ed, candied fruit sort of smell with maybe a touch of smoke behind it.

 

Once applied, it turns to a deep blood orange kind of smell. The one you’d find in dark chocolate with orange confections (I’m thinking specifically of Green and Black’s Maya Gold bars). There’s a subtle spice lingering over it which must be from the ginger. It makes the scent very warm yet mysterious. The kind you’d expect to smell on a woman who walks past you and then turns back to give you an all-knowing stare.

 

The patchouli is also present but not incense-y and heady as it can tend to be. Instead, it only further complicates the blend, giving it and added depth and allure. The fruit of the oranges helps stabilize the overall effect and keeps the patchouli veering on the lighter side.

 

I think this blend is a very loud one, a “come and get me” scent which doesn’t quite align with my personal tastes. However, I don’t think I can bring myself to part with it just yet. It’s nice for times when I’m feeling more sensual and beguiling. And it absolutely suits its name to a T.

[em_h]

In the vial: warm, spicy, very appealing

 

Wet: uh-oh, suddenly I smell like a big pile of grated ginger-root. Very sharp, very vegetabley/earthy. "It's not unpleasant," says my husband tactfully. "It's ... different."

 

Dry: okay, this is just one of those scents that needs time to soften. Once it dries, it's much more like the smell from the vial -- warm spicy scent, kind of like a just-baked ginger cookie. Doesn't strike me as especially lascivious or vampy; actually rather domestic, what with the cookie-baking overtones. Nice, though. And has lots of lasting power -- many hours later I could still smell it, now more like gingerbread and whipped cream.

 

I don't adore it, but it's probably a keeper.

 

ETA: Tried it some months later (and I bought the imp used, so it's probably a year or more old), and it's become almost pure vanilla. None of the identified notes are prominent at all -- even the ginger is subdued -- but there's a powerful rich vanilla scent that lasts well into the next day. How odd.

Edited November 23, 2005 by em_h

[cuervosueno]

Vixen--what a surprise!

I thought I didn't like florals, so even though I am obsessed with all things foxy, I didn't order this. I was sure I would dislike it. Now nearly a year and many many imps into my BPAL addiction, I decided I'd like to try it and got it in a swap.

I love this!

In the bottle it is acrid as people have noticed, bitter, and I didn't know what it smelled like.

On, it is glorious! The neroli is sweet and lovely (and I forgot I love the scent of citrus flowers), and yet is grounded by the underlying pachouli--how I love incense scents. With a nice ginger bite--this little fox has teeth!

After a couple of hours, it dries down to a sweet incense spice note....hard to pick out the individual scents, but it is glorious.

and as a bonus, my latest crush loves neroli, so I made him smell it, and he didn't like it in the bottle but did on my wrist, so here's hoping it works some fox-magic on him.

[wickedgoddess]

Wet - patchouli and a bit of a green scent.

 

Dry - faint and almost sickly sweet. Oranges and patchouli with barely any ginger in sight. This is odd; I get most of the scent from the throw; when I sniff my wrists I barely get anything at all. It ends up fading to a powder. This is one of the two bottles I bought in my first order, unsniffed, and sadly, I don't think it's working for me at all. Time to swap.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being best, this rates a 2 .

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Sharp. That's all I can think of, is sharp.

 

Just On: Wow, pepper and sharpness. With ashes.

 

An hour or two later: Whew. It's like I picked up a pepper shaker and inhaled, but without the sneezing. I'm going to try to hold out, but I would much rather wash this right off.

 

Around 6 hours: This is all that peppery spicey smell, but I can now tell that it isn't pepper. I don't know what it is though, so pepper is the closest I can come to describing it. I doubt I'll be able to wear this ever, seeing as I don't like pepper.

 

12 hours: It finally faded a bit, but never lost that peppery scent.

 

Overall: I can't imagine what is in this that makes it so harsh to my nose. This is probably the first non floral scent that I don't think I will ever wear. It really seems to hate my skin (or my skin really amps up something awful in this... either way, it's not something that smells good).

 

After reading other reviews: After reading the other reviews, I SO wish this had worked on me, and not turned into the inside of a pepper shaker. I may have to give it another try in a couple of weeks, but it doesn't look too promising. Unless this changes drastically, it's going to become a swap at some point, and since it's not terribly full, maybe a gift instead.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Orange and ginger.

 

On Skin: On my skin the patchouli comes out strong. The orange is sweet and I like it, but patchouli is one of my least favorite scents and I can’t get past it. The ginger is spicy and exotic. I like the combination though and part of me wants to keep this scent but then the patchouli shines through and I can’t decide. I think I will keep it and try again.

[tesao]

i tried vixen today. too strong/wafty/incensy for my taste. it was spicy, but still very incensy. i wonder if this has musk????

 

okay, i checked, vixen does NOT have musk. it does, however, have patchouli, which may be what my nose is picking up on.

 

i just can't figure this out. there seems to be a sort of red musk thing going on that's kind of overpowering everything else, but red musk isn't in the description, and neither is vanilla, which is what is smells like after about 20 minutes. the vanilla is overpowering and is starting to make me feel icky.

 

i TRIED to like vixen, but it just didn't happen, i had to wash it off. and that was a struggle. i used hand soap, liquid soap, RUBBING ALCOHOL, and i could STILL smell it. gah.

 

interestingly enough, once i have "cleaned" my wrists with rubbing alcohol, what is left behind -- and yes, even the rubbing alcohol doesn't get it all, not by a long ways! we are talking CONCENTRATED here!! -- is the incense/vanilla/musk fragrance, which i am attributing to the patchouli....

[Little Bird]

Orange blossom why do you hate me so??

 

I love ginger and I love patchouli... but orange blossom always turns into something rancid and smoky on my skin. A sort of burning green wood scent, where the smoke makes my nose tingle. It's bad. I can't smell any ginger at all and the patchouli mixed with the orange blossom is a bad combo on me (though I normally love patchouli if it is by itself or paired with something sweeter).

 

Thus, vixen just smells like something strange and burnt on my skin

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 5/5

Summarised in a word or two: Vampy!

 

In the imp/bottle: Orange blossom, ginger, and earthy patchouli.

 

On skin, wet: Another one that smells like Snake Oil, though this smells a bit... bloody. Spicy, earthy and bloody, with a bit of sweetness.

 

On skin, dry: There's a lovely smoothness to this after a while. Spicy and bloody and very vampy.

 

Conclusion: Gorgeous. Vampy is great way to describe it.

Edited December 19, 2005 by Aredhel

[Witch's Dagger]

Vixen

 

Preconceived notions: A dark, spicy orange, but I forgot all about the orange between when I had my preconceived notions (August) and when I tested the oil (today).

 

In the vial:

Dragon’s blood? Vetiver? Patchouli? Maybe some kind of spice?

 

On me:

This smells a lot like dragon’s blood and red patchouli on me. It’s a very sensual red scent with a black core. Visceral.

 

In 15 minutes:

This is still very sensual. The patchouli has deepened and softenent, and the dragon’s blood (orange???) has that lush red sweetness. It’s very strong and wafts well. No forgetting you’re wearing this one.

 

In 1 hour:

Still about the same.

 

Overall:

Keeper. I’ll have to check it with other lusty red scents to see which one I like most. I don’t want to have too many that are similar...

[arabella]

First impression: I just get a light resin-y incense smell - patchouli, I think.

 

Dries down to: A very faint floral undertone (the orange blossom?) and something else that gives it interest (the ginger). The patchouli has faded.

 

Additional comments: Although I love patchouli, this isn't one of my faves. But, it does last some time on me, which is a big point in its favour, and it gets better as the notes blend together..

 

Lasted: Over 5 hours

 

Rating: 2 out of 5

[grrrlennyl]

at first: the lab included this as a free imp in my order. i can definitely smell the patchouli, but i don't think i like it when combined with ginger.

on: very strong. definitely ginger and patchouli. i like it much more on than in the vial.

1 hour later: this is really strong on me. i love patchouli, and this definitely is patchouli i'm smelling. the ginger gives it an interesting edge.

2 hours later: this is sweeter on me now, but still gorgeous.

overall: i really didn't think i'd like this, but i adore it! i'm definitely keeping my imp.

[JazzieCazzie]

During my long layover between newly-arrived scents to try, I got on an organizational kick and decided it was time to go through my "keeper box" of imps, find the ones that I'd only used once and neglected to review, and catch up on everything ... in the course of doing so, I rediscovered a few scents that inspired me to put them on my "big bottle" order list, and found others that while I liked them, I realized I would probably never voluntarily wear them when I have so many others I love so they went into the swap box ...

 

But Vixen is different. I cannot for the life of me figure out why it ended up in my keeper box to start with unless my aim was off that day

 

BOTTLE: Sweet orange. So not me.

WET: Cloyingly sweet orange. Even more not me. Shades of Triaminic. I love ginger but if this is ginger, it is not my beloved Shub ginger. And the (nasty to me) orange blossom just jumps out and the patchouli, my comfort scent, is nowhere to be found.

Maybe it dried down well and that's why I kept it?

DRYDOWN: Nope. Way too sweet. Ick.

 

On a scale of 1-5, 1.

 

BUT that said, I can see why this would be popular if you like that sort of thing.

[aidenraine]

You know what happens when you put Vixen on while alone?

 

You start thinking... "wow.. I'm sexy"

I can't stop slathering this on my wrists.

It's got my favorite ingredients- orange blossom, ginger, and patchouli.

 

The result is a sweet-spicy-heady combination. It's somewhat like molasses at times, but better (or I'd save some money)

 

I smell cookies in it, but not in a sugary way. The patchouli isn't too overbearing.

 

Please don't ever stop making this, lab. It's sexiness in a bottle.

[~AmusedMuse~]

My Impression: Patchouli,ginger & orange blossom in that order... To me the patchouli, (not one of my favorite notes) is a little overpowering in this one although I have to admit it certainly has staying power and does not fade away as fast as some of the other blends do...If patchouli is a good note for you, then you should love this one...

[sookster]

ok...omg.....

patchouli and ginger....

omfg.....

 

i am so f*cking in love with this scent i can barely stand it...................

so amazing with my chemistry....*****slurp*****......yup...big bottle order........

[olympia301]

This one is dripping with red musk, and that is its personality to a tee. Beth has combined the smell elements common in red musk with orange blossom and come up with a completely harmonious scent. Throwing in a bit of patchouli and ginger, and whatever is the underlying similarity among all those things really presents itself in Vixen. I would say this blend is a thorough success in terms of its harmony. It is long lasting and glorious in the vial as well, tawny and appealing as a vixen's coat.

 

Alas, I am not a red musk person (though I can appreciate it), so I am giving this to someone who I think will enjoy it. I would be surprised if they didn't.

[rellyjean]

I had such high hopes for this.

 

On me, the orange is sickly-sweet, but even that is drowned out by the OMG I JUST SPENT THE WEEKEND HANGING OUT WITH POT SMOKERS vibe. It's loud and pushy and strong. It's very earthy and hemp-ish and - well. Again. Like you spent the weekend hanging around some stoners.

 

Not for me. To the swap pile it goes.

[Miss Lynx]

I am totally in love with this scent. There have only been a few BPAL scents so far that were really love at first sniff for me, but this was one of them.

 

The ingredients are beautifully balanced -- the patchouli does what I like patchouli to do in a blend, which is give it a rich earthiness without jumping out in front of everything and yelling "Hi! I'm patchouli!" The ginger gives it some kick, without being too aggressively spicy. The orange blossom is sweet, almost intoxicatingly so, but the spiciness of the ginger and the earthiness of the patchouli temper it so that it's not overpowering. It's just really rich, warm, and beautiful -- the overall image I get is sharing some Grand Marnier with someone special while really nice incense is burning in the background.

 

There's also a definite foxiness to it, as someone else mentioned -- and I don't mean just in the colloquial sense of sexiness. The colour-sense I get from it is fox-red, and it feels magical and mischievous. I'm reminded of a bit from an Eartha Kitt song:

 

"I use my eyes to invite you, my lips to excite you,

And you never known just when I'll use my teeth to bite you..."

 

It's the scent of a sexy, witchy, tricksy fox-woman, and I am so definitely getting a big bottle of this one.

 

My only complaints are that it doesn't last as long as I'd like, and, like my beloved Chimera, it can burn a little when applied to sensitive skin, like on the insides of my arms (the ginger, I presume). Sensitive skin and a liking for spicy scents don't mix well. But really, that's a small price to pay for how gorgeous this smells.

 

Grade: A

Edited August 21, 2005 by Miss Lynx

[jewelbug]

Bottle: Reminds me of snake oil without the vanilla.

 

Wet: Similar to snake oil, but not as syrupy sweet/fake candleish, hint of powdery floral instead of vanilla.

 

Drying: Hmmm, if this is patchouli, it is not bad. It is dark and sweet and I don't smell like a dirty hippy. This really reminds me of snake oil without the vanilla--just the spicy stuff that was underneath a day later when the vanilla faded and I liked it better.

 

Late dry: still very much like snake oil without the syrupy sweetness, and less vanilla (but still feels like there is some). I like it.

 

Overall: Lasts about 4.5 hours. Very nice. The spicy half of snake oil that I liked without the sickeningly overpowering candle/playdoh vanilla half that I didn’t. Great blend. I'd keep the imp, but it broke.

[kakiphony]

In the imp: I smell oranges, but spicy oranges with no sweetness. I would say this is a "thick" citrus rather than a clean one. The patchouli coming through is adding depth and keeping the orange from being cloying. It's not a hippy incense patchouli smell, it's more like a woody, bottom of a grandma's cedar chest smell. The ginger is there, but very faintly. I'm intrigued.

 

Wet: The orange is still the most prevalent component, but that patchouli is kicking up a notch, as is the ginger. After a few minutes, the ginger is kicking up even more, and suddenly the smell has morphed from a warm, kitcheny spice smell to something much sharper. It doesn't smell like incense exactly, but it smells like the inside of certain new age/pagan shops when all the incense and oil scents have blended together to form a strong odor that can't be reproduced by buying one or two types of scent.

 

Early dry down: After about half an hour the patchouli has come to the front and I have almost entirely lost the oranges. They've just completely disappeared into the spice. (I can smell more orange on the wrist I placed the oil on than the wrist I patted against it.) It's not an unpleasant scent, just very VERY patchouli. The ginger is an underlying sharp note which wafts up occasionally. It's a slightly astringent, slightly woodsy and spicy scent which reminds me very strongly of the inside of the palmist's I used to frequent in Boston.

 

Final dry down: After about an hour, the scent faded into a sweet, slightly gingery, warm and food-like scent. My boyfriend stuck to assessments of "vanilla" and "yum" while I thought it smelled like a molasses cookie from the Amish bakery in Shipshewana. Neither of us smelled orange. However, we both agreed that it was a delicious scent. It just smells like me, only better. This one is a definite keeper for me, and I've already ordered a bottle!