Stranger in Camp

[sarada]

 

Stranger In Camp, C.M. Coolidge.

Evergreen, damp grass, woodsmoke, birch bark, cedar, and Terebinth pine.

 

I have bought so many evergreen/pine scents over the years, and loved all of them, but I have always sought that exact scent of the interior of a pine forest...the Pine Barrens... but this really, really transports me unlike anything else, even more than Jersey Devil or Yew-Trees. This is the pure, distilled essence of a deep green forest.

 

When I go into the woods I like to smear the sticky tree resin on my skin so I can take the scent with me, and this smells just like it, without the sticky.

 

Deep, deep green pine needles, dark rich soil, a breath of slightly chilled air through the woods just at the cusp of autumn, or a rain-touched early spring.

 

For those who do not love pine and evergreen the way I do, it might smell like a Christmas tree, or like a pine candle -- Sparkling Pine, or Balsam and Cedar, for example, from our friends at Yankee.

 

But for me, this is a uniquely transporting, dark green jewel. I have loved many pine scents: Black Forest, Nocnitsa, Jersey Devil, Yew Trees, Oborot, and many others...but this one takes the cake. The deepest, darkest, and earthiest of all. You might catch me picking up a second bottle because I want to carry the forest around with me in my pocket!

 

(Edited because I put the year as 2027 at first, haha...)

Edited September 13, 2007 by Shollin

[forspecial_plate]

My early impressions, which as usual may be edited:

 

At first, this was like....Whoa!! PINE, EVERGREEN....almost like a single note pine! But I could tell there was some complexity, after a little drying/warming on my skin. I'll give it another chance.......

 

I tried it again today, and I'm very much growing to love this scent! Very dark, and still lots of pine/evergreen. However.....there is more going on here, in the background. There is a sweet note that I love, and I'm not even sure what it is. The damp grass, maybe? Or possibly, the cedar has a sweetness when it's played against the pine. It's not a berry sweet like juniper. I dunno, I'm guessing it's the grass. It plays very nicely with the deep, green pine and woods.

 

This isn't a juicy fir scent, like Nocnitsa (to me!). It's an evergreen forest on a very dark night, with a little wind and smoke in the air, like there's a fire burning in the distance. I CANNOT stop sniffing my wrist right now!

 

I'm afraid someone standing next to me would ONLY smell pine in this scent. But I personally really dig the complexity and subtle supporting notes. I don't know where or how often I would wear this, but I could definitely see myself wearing it on a cool autumn night, chill in the air, bundled in a sweater. *lovestruck*

 

Edit, almost a year later. This is it. This is the epitome of a majestic forest of fir at night, with smoke in the air. I will cherish this bottle of scent.

Edited March 26, 2008 by Forspecial Plate

[edenssixthday]

Stranger in Camp - When I first applied this, I had a few moments of silly giggling because my very first thought was of the Monty Python "I'm a Lumberjack" song. "I cut down trees, I skip and jump..." Anyway, YES, this is the scent of a real-life pine forest! It takes me back some 30+ years to one of the first times I ever went camping at Lake Tahoe: It's the scent of evergreens wafting through the crisp, clean, early-morning air, the scent of pine sap oozing down tree bark, the scent of campfire on my clothes the next morning. It's so fresh and evocative of time spent outdoors in a piney, foresty wilderness. While it's not a scent I would choose to wear as a personal fragrance, it is so dead-on that I'm really impressed with it. The sillage and staying power are both very strong.

Edited April 17, 2007 by edenssixthday

[pariahsdream]

At first all I got was "OMFG PINE!" when I spilt some on my fingers. But then it dried a bit and it was this lovely campfire smoke that I wish would've stayed just a touch longer. It was a very warm, comforting scent I have to say.

 

Now that it's dried a bit more, it's definitely woodsy but not dried woods, like fresh, almost freshly cut, like you've snapped a branch that was too young to cook s'mores on or something. Interesting.

[euterpe414]

This might be my favorite foresty blend ever! Wet it is very strongly pine, but a FRESH pine, one of holding needles the you just plucked in the palm of your hand and taking a deep whiff When it dries, it gets a bit more mellow and rounded- there is the scent of smoke that comes in. Now it smells more like a campsite in the morning- dewy forest and the ashes of last night's campfire. It s a very strong scent- I bet that too much would give one a pretty big headache.

 

I really like this one a lot, and will definitely order a bottle. This is a versatile scent even though it is of something so specific; I would wear this out but also use it as a room scent. Wonderful interpretation!

[tinyvulture]

This is a perfect addition to my beloved collection of forest blends. I love how individual they all are. This one is heavy on the fresh evergreen and pine, while the woodsmoke adds a smoky dimension that turns quite sweet after it dries, similar to Nocnitsa or Hexxennacht. But while I think of those as autumn scents, this one is all summertime. The sun is shining through the tree branches as you pitch your tent and hike down to the lake and then, as the air cools down, you build your campfire and get the smores ready. Warm and comforting. A definite keeper.

[supremegoddessofall]

In bottle: Holy evergreen like whoa!

 

On me: My arm is a Christmas tree and a cedar tree. Strange and a bit overpowering.

[purplemoonshoes]

In the imp: Soft pine, like walking through a forest of mostly evergreens. Slightly sweet. Thinking I should have gotten a bottle of this.

Wet: The birch and woodsy scents come out a little, but it's hard to smell anything

Drydown: Pine is back with a vengence, stronger this time, with a throw. It tickles my nose. Something I would only wear outdoors, but would blend in nicely on a hike or at a christmas event.

Later: Lasts a while, still pretty piney. Now I'm glad I didn't get a bottle because the pine is so strong, but I'll enjoy my decant.

[Em-]

I mostly get the woodsmoke from this blend...it is a warm, piney smoke, redolent of having hiked through the woods and made camp where there are soft beds of fragrant needles, but the smoke is the most prominent note on my skin.

[harmonyfb]

This smells like my house right after we put up the Yule tree.

 

Much as I love that smell, this may be a little much for a personal fragrance. Think I'll use the imp for scenting the room, not my body.

[Electra]

Just on -- hellooooo, evergreen! That is a SUMMER forest, thankyouverymuch. All the other BPAL pine blends that I've tried have smelled quite wintry, but this one is juicy and alive.

 

Drydown -- hot damn, the pine is all gone and now that's campfire smoke! Awesome! I don't think I'd actually wear this as a perfume, but it has got to be the coolest blend I've ever tested. It is SO perfect for the painting. Brava.

[Dinerdulcinea]

This I got for the Hubby. On him, it is all PINEPINEPINE, but nice, deep evergreen pine. We don't get any campfire or smokiness.

 

He likes it, but there are some other oils he likes more, so it will probably go off to the swaps.

[penemuel]

I'm in love with this scent. Pine, pine, forest, smoke, and more pine!

 

It's gloriously fresh and bracing like sitting out in the woods near the campfire, while the air at your back is chill and brisk. Then it turns warm and inviting, like you've moved indoors, into a little cabin with a huge fireplace. Pine logs are burning on the fire and that delicious pine scent is wrapped all around you, while you laze on the rug and sip warm brandy.

 

I am SO glad I splurged for a bottle on this one!

[t_for_tau]

On me this is very similar to Loup Garou, once the initial blast of eucalyptus in LG has passed (or faded through ageing): sweet, warm, woody pine. Lovely, but I'm glad I didn't splurge on a bottle; LG fills this niche for me nicely.

[Little Bird]

The boy and I love pine/forest scents, so I snagged a partial bottle of this one for him.

 

On me, this starts out a somewhat sharp evergreen, and then mellows down to a sweet pine sap for a bit (I love this stage) before drying down into nothing but woodsmoke. It's way too smoky for me to wear, and I'm not a fan of the smoky-cedar smell. It just makes me smell/feel dirty.

 

It works out well for my boy though, because he wanted this simply for the 'woodsmoke' in the description. He has been dabbing a little bit of this underneath his other colognes (mainly Givenchy Pi, which is one of his favorite pine scents) and it just adds a sensual, foresty smokiness. It makes him smell like he's been out camping overnight, only cleaner, lol.

 

I'm glad we have a couple mls of this one. It smells delicious on the boy when it's layered underneath some of his other colognes. It's not one that I would ever wear, and the boy said he wouldn't want to wear it on its own though. Still... very fun for layering purposes .

[storme]

In the imp: very manly - lots of pine and cedar and aftershavey woodsiness.

 

On me, wet: pine, but a rich dark wet pine, not a pine-sol pine. Very aftershave-ish, still.

 

On me, dry: yup, a rich, dark, wet pine, and the trace of smoke has emerged. Hunh. Nicer than I was expecting.

 

Verdict: I like it - I don't think I have much use for it, but hey, since all I have is a tiny trace in an empty bottle, I don't mind keeping it around to sniff as I feel the need.

[shadesong]

In bottle: Mmmm. Mostly pine and evergreens - almost tactile.

 

On me: Cool, sharp - quiet in the center of these woods. Stop. Breathe. Bark under your hands, sunlight filtering through the pines. One of the things I love about BPAL forest blends is that every blend smells *different*, like every forest does. Glad I ordered a bottle of this forest-at-sunrise.

[juniperus]

bottle: woody, very piney sappy

wet: fresh pine resin knocked right off the tree or collected in an envelope (yes, I've done both. don't ask)

dry: woody with the pine resin...boughs. that's it - boughs.

later: interesting, camping in a pine forest with a smoking fire blazing (oh, that resin bubbling as the pine branches burn!). I bet I'd like to smell this on Bri...probably as much as he's not like to wear it, sadly.

[jade_starlight]

This is definitely piney and woody, like walking through an evergreen forest on a cool afternoon. Nice, but not quite for me.

[Alchemy21599]

In the vial: a faint scent of pine needles.

 

On skin: Whoa! This is a very warming blend. It smells exactly like crunching through a pine forest on a cool autumn day. A lovely room scent.

[cuervosueno]

In the bottle: holy hell, that is some strong-ass pine. And yes, Terebinth pine (which is what turpentine comes from) with that clear-out-your-sinuses sharpness.

 

This is not at all like BPAL's other pine scents, at least not the Yule ones that I love.

 

That said, I like this. In the bottle and wet it is so sharp I think I'll never ever want to put this on. It smells like pine-tar soap.

 

But on that sharpness fades, and I get a lovely foresty scent others are mentioning. Not winter forest, but summer forest: warm pine, the faintest hint of woodsmoke, and the sweetness of birch and cedar (not like a birch tree, but like the birch essence, with is lovely and almost root-beerish).

 

I like this much more than I expected to.

[asciident]

Wet: Real pine and evergreen. Like being in the great outdoors. A little smoke, and a little cedar.

 

First on: Earthy, dirty trees. In the best way possible.

 

Dry: Dark green. Windy, smoky camping in Oregon. Beautiful; not something I would wear everyday, but I like it very much.

[Browneyes]

In the bottle: Sweet evergreen tree sap. Strangely I am not frightened by this (I hated Yggdrasil... maybe my tastes have changed? Well, something happened, since I ordered this bottle)

 

Wet: Fresh fresh evergreens/pine... (honestly I'm not sure that I know the difference)

 

Drying: This warms up, becomes less "Fresh!", sweeter...

 

Dry: When dry, this is less sharp and more mellow, a sweet green scent. On me it becomes almost feminine. Then a whisper of smoke slowly develops above everything, it is very gorgeous, but faint. Maybe more will come out later (in a few hours) or after sitting for a bit in my box. In any case, the scent of pine woods with a sweet smoky haze around it is really realistic and very lovely.

 

I agree that this would also work beautifully as a room scent, but it will be great as a personal fragrance on hot summer nights in the city - the initial blast of scent is cooling and the drydown is surprisingly sexy and sofisticated on me... In a "back to nature" kind of way. Happy to have a bottle

Edited June 13, 2007 by Browneyes

[Bain]

In Bottle: Bright Evergreen - I've yet to find a green woodsy scent that appeals to me as much as this does. Yum!! It's like.. walking in the middle of the woods far away from anything else.

 

Wet - slightly more cedar, but not overpowering, with grass. Cool & green instead of the fuller sharp evergreen.

 

Drydown is all fresh pine, sweet and all Spring-y.

[Neely]

In the bottle: musty pine.

 

Wet: fresh pine, not Pinesol, but clean fresh pine as if I was holding a broken bough under my nose. This isnt pine of Winter, but a pine in Summer, or early Autumn. The sap is freely courseing through the tree and oozes out of the broken end.

 

Dry down: still freshly broken pine bough right down to the spicey, bitter tang a fresh sap has.

 

30 minutes: pine has softened and the smoke comes out. Grass is there smoothing everything. This is really evocative of the painting. A camp, under pine trees with a campfire. Lovely. I do love pine scents.

 

Conclusion: this starts off very pine, pine sap. I like it at that stage, I like the smoke and grass having a say. And in the end it becomes just a creamy vanilla scent after hours of wearing it. I like this very much and aging will only improve it. Way to go Beth!

 

Rating 1-5: on my skin this is a 4.5.