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BPAL Madness!

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A sultry, exotic scent that inspires devious plotting and clandestine affairs. It is a scent painted in artifice, veiled in deceit, and slithering with whispered secrets. Black palm, with cocoa, fig and shadowy wooded notes.


In the vial: I can't really pick out any individual notes, so I will just say it's strong, almost chemical-y.

On my skin: Chocolate? Fig, with another fruity note I can't identify underneath. (Kiwi? Banana? Blueberry? My brain isn't working today.) No wait, I think it's strawberry-banana. This smells a bit like walking into a candle shop.

Later: This is really well-blended, because I still can't identify any one note, just the general scent of the blend. I can't say I'd buy this again, but I will use the imp up. Edited by Shollin

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I love the description on the Lab's site. I love it almost as much as I love actual intrigue.

 

In the imp, it's definitely woody and mysterious - not so much deceitful mysterious, but more stranded-on-an-island mysterious. I don't get the cocoa at all, or the fig. I smell palm and woods, and that's about it.

 

The blend sweetens when it hits my skin. I think it's the fig. Still no chocolate, but the woods are fading. A cedarwood note stays, though, and the fragrance becomes a fresh green ... soon becoming a heap of pencil shavings, and it stays that way through the drydown. Still no chocolate. It's an elementary school classroom without the afternoon snack.

 

I might have to pass this on to my best friend, who's my partner-in-crime. 3/10.

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Yet another triumph. I don't know why i picked this one exactly, since i have no idea what black palm smells like, and if the cocoa smelled chocolatey i would not like it (but of course it doesn't). But i have it, and it's sweet but not too sweet, and lightly woody. It's hard for me to describe, but i like it a lot, even though it's pretty light on me. I'm still getting little whiffs as i sit at my desk from time to time though, so that's good. Intrigue is definitely intriguing. It's a keeper.

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at first i get a coffee-like smell. then it smells exactly like a strawberry shortcake doll.

 

fruity is totally not me. but it's interesting nevertheless!

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Very interesting... intriguing, if you will. :P The cocoa and woods are definitely present, but there is also something a little sharp and tangy, maybe a quality in the wood? Anyway for me it's a tad too masculine, even without the tanginess.

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I'm a fan of woody scents, and the palm in this one is nice and deep. I also get cedar, fig, and a hint of coconut. There's no cocoa that I can discern.

 

This is a good tropics-invoking scent with some strength. It's similar to Manila, but less complex. I'll keep the imp for layering.

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This reminds me a LOT of Cerberus. Yum, Cerberus.

 

This goes on a heady, chocolately-fig, deep, earthy blend, but not quite as heavy as Cerberus. It stays that way all through the day. The woodsy notes tend to stay as base notes way off in the background. It's definitely an interesting blend, and pretty. Very comforting and warm.

 

I like this a lot, but it's way less complex (and to me less interesting) than my beloved Cerberus. If the day ever comes when I run out, then I will come running to this blend with some lemons in hand.

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Sweet and soft in the opening notes, as the fruit notes and the cocoa dominate. But then the woods emerge and take over. Not as unpleasant as cedar tends to be on me, but it does smell a little too much like furniture for my liking.

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Sublime, in the compelling/scary sort of way.

 

This started out gritty mortar 'n pestle cocoa bean with a sharp green bite.

 

The sweetness of the figs helps this out, but there's still a sharp woody, pencil shavings sort of zinger at the back of my throat.

 

Definitely masculine in the way that compels and repels at exactly the same time.

 

I'll sniff this again, but if I get the same "run away! jump my bones!" I might have to gimp elsewhere.

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Fresh From The Imp: Bitter.

 

Wet On My Flesh: Wood, and a touch of sweet that might be the fig.

 

Drying Down: Definitely a touch of fig, underlying the musty wood that is either cedar or sandalwood.

 

Hour To Integrate: I have determined that my skin amps woody scents, since this is the fourth blend that I've tried that comes out where I can only really make out the wood, though the wood isn't listed as a major component.

 

End Of Day/Final Report: Unfortunately, not a keeper.

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I think I've had this free imp of Intrigue for a while now, as I had at first thought I'd reviewed it already. Nope, I hadn't. So here I am now.

 

I dabbed a bit of Intrigue on a freckle and took a whiff. Cedar! Cedar is a note I'm kind of ambivalent with. It's not something I care for on its own, but mixed with the right combination of other scents, it can be great. In this scenario with Intrigue, the cocoa notes sweeten up the cedar, creating a very agreeable fragrance that would be nice on a guy or a woman. I find it nice, sort of like eating a dark chocolate bar amid the stacks of a library, hoping the librarian won't see you. Intrigue seems very mild, but with an illicit streak, like a nun with a wicked smirk.

 

Or something.

 

In any case, although I don't normally care for fragrances with a foody edge, I find Intrigue a wonderful blend with the cocoa and woods. Very enjoyable, and a solid contender for a bigger bottle if the scent stays true.

 

-doreen

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In the imp: mm, chocolate and wood and fig and soft creamy spiciness - and maybe a waft of coconut?

 

On me, wet: a very strong fig and wood note, and not much else. It smells like the boxes of dates my father used to buy.

 

On me, dry: the cocoa doesn't seem very strong to me (though my SO did his normal 'urgh... coffee?' response that he has to all cocoa scents here) but the fig is very very strong, and there's hints of musky woods with it. There's also the faintest hint of coconut again.

 

Verdict: I like this a lot, though I can't imagine a situation where I'd want to wear this. My SO dislikes this (he dislikes the BPAL cocoa scent, and doesn't like figs in any form) so if I did wear it, I'd have to make sure it wasn't around him. Sigh.

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I love this one, I can't believe I haven't reviewed it yet! This is a gorgeous, dark cocoa scent. The cocoa is the first thing I notice, and it's undershadowed by a beautiful, fruity fig note. This is cocoa straight out of the spice cabinet, and it's strong and sexy. I love Beth's fig note, and fig combined with anything is good, especially when it's chocolate! This is a lovely, unique scent, and I really like it. :P

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I got an imp of Intrigue in a swap, and it's easily the scent that has lasted the longest amount of time on my skin. When wet it sort of smelled woody and made me sneeze a bit, but after dry down Intrigue smells dark and mysterious. I'm not sure if I want to buy a big bottle, but I will definitely pick up another imp when this one is empty!

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In the imp: The unholy scent of crayon melted on the stovetop.

 

Wet: Woodsy with a touch of fig, but mostly melted crayon.

 

Drydown: Scorched plastic.

 

Verdict: Since this is my first experience with palm, I'm going to point my figure at said black palm and give it the evil eye. That went wrong superfast.

Edited by Medici

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What an interesting smell!

In the bottle I can pick out chocolate but it isn't really a foody chocolate scent to me. This isn't sweet at all. I can make out the fig and even that isn't very sweet. This is a very rich scent all tied together with something green. This is such an amazing combination of scents that all work together so well. I know this seems like such a cheesy thing to say but this really is an intriguing scent!!

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Intrigue smells like a dry, non-foody cocoa, wood, and black palm. The cocoa is the strongest scent when first applied, but it fades away to a green, wood and palm scent. The fig is just a light touch that emerges after the cocoa fades.

 

Intrigue is interesting, but it's neither feminine enough nor green enough for me to wear.

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Hmmm... intriguing. :P Sorry, I just *had* to.

 

*GET ON WITH IT!!*

 

Okay okay....

 

At first whiff I get bitter chocolate and wood notes. Heavy on the wood... like there's a 2 X 4 shoved so far up my nose, my toes are getting splinters. Hard to pin down which wood though... I'm getting whiffs of cedar and oak though.

 

Woods just don't seem to be my thing, but if you like them, this is a good scent for you. Then again, I could just be burned out from Brimstone....

 

Get it? Burned out? From Brimstone? :D Gads, I crack myself up!

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bottle:

slightly cocoa but not sweet, fig

 

wet:

same - pretty nice!

 

dry:

nice - spicy, almost leathery quality, hint of food but not sweet

 

overall:

I'm liking this - a dark sexy scent!

 

rating: 7/10

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straight sniff from imp is cedarwood and a bit of sweetness...i am guessing the fig

 

applied i get a hint of the cocoa...the fig and wood notes amp up to a great degree with my chemistry...after 20 minutes or so, it has a distinct similarity to freakshow and then changes within 5 more minutes to mostly all cedarwood with a smidge of a figgy tartness....it is interesting and i am glad i was able to try this :P

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In the bottle, all I could smell was the fig, and it stayed that way for a little while.

 

After about 10 minutes, though, the cedar came through, and I could detect just a whiff of cocoa, which normally scares me (as it doesn't like me), but here it worked.

 

Lovely, after the drydown. :P I'll keep my imp, I think.

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Oh my, everything that I love in one little imp - fruit, chocolate and wood. The way that it starts out in the imp is pretty much how it smells on my skin. I can smell the fig with the cocoa. I love the way that Beth uses cocoa because it gives this an earthiness and combines well with the fig. I'm drawn to anything with wood and palm so this is a blend that I absolutely could not resist. Another one that goes on my ever growing list.

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In the imp: There be cocoa in them thar imps. I know this isn't straight cocoa, but I can't smell much else.

 

Wet: I don't know if I'm picking up on the fig or the palm leaf, but it does not mix with the cocoa.

 

Drydown and wear: It is pretty same from the wet stage, and there's something about the particular combination that does not work with my skin.

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In imp: Deep, dark chocolate. I'm afraid of the sweetness.

 

On, wet: Beautiful. It morphed completely from what I sniffed in the imp. Spicy woods and smoke.

 

Drydown: Chocolate, woods, and a hint of incense. Lovely.

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