Leo 2007

[arsenicsauce]

Fixed Fire: the essence of pride.
Egyptian amber, walnut bark, chamomile, frankincense, and saffron.

In the bottle: Woooah, I try not to take how oils smell in the bottle too seriously but this is a lot frutier than I expected with the listed notes.

wet: This smells like a pack of smarties when it goes on. I think I recognize this as the same powdery candy amber combo that coyote turned to on me. I soon get the citrus that people are talking about (on me, distinctly lemon), but like I said, it's candied and powdered even as it starts to dry. What's causing that sweetness?

Long-term it settles mostly into a pleasant golden sweet scent that reminds me somehow of both lemons and peach candy rings. Strange. I think the walnut bark is coming out and making it dry and dusty, I keep sneezing when I sniff too closely. Woods sometimes do that to me (Misk U, I'm looking at you). It's not bad, but nearly the opposite of what I was expecting.

[jtb2008]

In the bottle and on the skin, I smell something that reminds me of gummies. Thats the best thing I can liken it to. I don't know if thats the amber or not.

Its a smell I like, but don't really want to smell LIKE.

[milo]

Ooh, I really like this!! A generous forumite frimped me this one, and I am forever grateful! This is a spicy, golden blend, though I really couldn't tell you what the spices are. Kind of cinnamony with a bit of resin, though I don't see cinnamon listed. Whatever it is, I LOVE it, and will treasure my imp for special occasions.

[surlygurl]

Can I just say how awesome this blend is? Right away on my skin it's walnut & amber, and it's surprisingly subtle. (Does the lab have any other scents with walnut? I don't think so.) If it were just these 2 notes it would be a warm earthy scent, but the frankincense, saffron & chamomile add a bright, youthful feel. This scent without the walnut would be pretty & fun, but the walnut adds a certain...... more than grounding. A solemnity, maybe. The scent is warm & pretty and rather shy - I get occasional wafts of it hours after it "disappeared". Did I mention it's awesomeness?

[lilwhiterabbit]

I'm going to try to review this scent and I literally have no idea where to start. I really can't seem to find the words.

 

I wasn't into BPAL when it came out, and I know how rare it is, and I am seriously kicking myself that I didn't know about it before now. At the same time I'm completely in awe of how lucky I am, that I managed to snag a full bottle of this completely on accident--completely on a *whim*--and ended up with a scent that is so thoroughly perfect for me that I'm left speechless. My boyfriend actually had to talk me into the swap, mind you. He's a Leo. I'm not. I'm a Gemini. He wanted to smell the scent because it matched his astrological sign. I decided to humor him.

 

Leo is warm, sexy nutty amber that just wraps around you and fills the room. It announces your presence and doesn't let people forget you're there. There is something slightly spicy citrus about it, but it's very, very subtle. It reminds me of the pulp of pecan shells, so my guess is it has something to do with the walnut bark, or perhaps the chamomile. Regardless, this is a very regal, take-charge scent. It's very warm, dusky and elegant. It's a scent that *purrs*.

 

I love it. I have to be careful with it, because I want to wear it every day. People I've never met stop me to ask me what I'm wearing, whenever I have it on. People who you wouldn't even think would care about perfume want to know where they can get a bottle. It's fascinating.

 

I've heard people talk about their BPAL holy grail. I think this may be mine.

[Teaotter]

In the bottle: sweet frankincense and amber

 

Wet: Sweet clove and dried chamomile. The clove drops out quickly while the chamomile amps up.

 

Dry: The frankincense and amber come back out, blended together perfectly. The chamomile is the only other note I can pick out separately. It's a warm and dry smell.

 

We have an herb drawer in our kitchen where we keep the incense and medicinal tea herbs all together. This reminds me of that drawer, the resins and chamomile and other spices all blended together. I love it immensely!

[Diva Urd]

In the vial: Huh. Smells like a spiced orange... but there are no citrus fruits listed...

 

On: An evil orange fruit gummi with a hint of cinnamon? I can honestly say I did not expect this.

 

Later: Straight up spiced orange fruit gummi. It seems to maintain strength pretty well, but... orange fruit gummi. Not my thing.

[Schmoozy]

Spicy, warm and golden. The Egyptian amber is the star of this blend, and it is very reminescent of Pumpkin Queen without the pumpkin. It's resiny, woody and extremely comforting. 3 years ago it was like a fizzy cola scent, but aging has done wonders for Leo. I've I fallen in love all over again!

Edited July 8, 2011 by Schmoozy

[saralaughs]

This blend was way more floral than I expected. The amber is very quiet in the background on me, until it's very dry. Then it is the star of the show but the show has almost left town by then. Not what I'm looking for.

[JazzieCazzie]

I had never tried the "original" Leo blend but was intrigued by the "reboot," if only because I love love love amber, frankincense and saffron. So when I saw a partial bottle for sale, it seemed a worthwhile gamble even if I wasn't sure how the walnut bark and chamomile would work for me (and the reviews were varied). So finally got my package and doubled back to the Ls on my amazing journey through all of my BPAL sniffies, A-Z, as I review, re-visit and compile a comprehensive swap list and wish list (didn't have to double TOO far back since I'm only up to P).

 

IN THE IMP: Very oddly fruity and aquatic, neither of which I would have expected from the listed notes.

 

Dabbed on wrist and into crook of arm, admittedly confused.

 

WET: This is NOTHING like I would have expected (or wanted). Aquatic. Fruity. Wafting some licorice or anisette, oddly enough. I'm also getting something sort of plastic. To say that NONE of the notes I'd hoped for (amber, frankincense, saffron) are at all evident is an understatement.

 

DRYDOWN: Oddly enough, as it dries, what I presume is the "nuttiness" is the lone redeeming value for me and the one note that sort of pulls all these odd random notes together, softens them, gives them a little spice and warmth. I'm getting the tiniest bit of the medicinal comfort of the amber but more of a plastic-y coconut.

 

OVERALL: Really, for me, a huge disappointment. But of course one person's disappointment is another person's holy grail so soon when I post my swap list, hopefully someone will be thrilled to find their beloved Leo 2007

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 2.

[MCS4096]

I cant remember for the life of me when or from whom I got this bottle.. I've had it for a few years now and I'm sure I picked it up in passing because I like cats and big cats. I'm not a Leo and dont have much interest in astrology anyhow (how very stubborn and Taurus-like of me....)

 

The walnut is a true novelty- I've never seen it in another bpal blend. This is a nuanced, and special amber for you amber lovers (me) out there. The other notes serve to emphasize certain characteristics of this particular amber. It's spicy and a smidge floral, a tiny bit soapy (in a great, clean way). Nutty, candied, and warm and yes, a bit like oranges (but not really, I dont care much for the smell of orange).

 

There is some small similarity to the GC blend the Lion, there must be some of this amber in that one.

[Missy_killer]

I'm a Leo, so of course I had to go for this!

In the bottle: It's very perfumey with strong accents of amber. I'm not sure whether I also smell the frankincense or the walnut bark. It's very strong and ....smooth?

 

On: Chamomile is the first note that jumps towards me, and then it gets strangely fruity. Is it the walnut bark that makes this fruity? I know that saffron typically smells like yeast on me and tends to amp, but here I don't smell it at all.

I really thought Leo would be more warm and dry than what it is..

 

A couple of minutes in there's a woody grass-scent. I guess that's the bark and the chamomile that mixed together, and those are the two most dominant notes. I will try this again and if it hasn't changed I'll probably swap it.

[follis]

Turns out I really like Egyptian amber! It has that resin tone to it without being overly heady. The florals in this are edgy without being girly and I love the hint of spice. That saffron is reminding me a lot of that dark/warm edge that Gingerbread and More Ginger gives me which I love. Slightly carnation dry down (peppery). 

[torischroeder9]

Decant received as swap freebie. 

 

In the decant: I can pick out amber, chamomile, frankincense, and saffron. It gives the impression of a slightly sweet, lightly spiced... almost nutty? like almond, but not almond... resin. 

 

On my skin: 

 

Wet, I get the Egyptian amber and walnut bark (which, it just now occurs to me that that might account for the nuttiness of my first impression)... though in this iteration of the scent, the walnut bark is very much detectable as such. 

 

I missed a lot of the interim stages as I got busy and only have a tester, but this develops into something warm and sensuous on me. Definitely amber and saffron, and you could certainly convince me that walnut bark is deepening it as frankincense is lightening it. There's also a depth to it that I can't quite identify, which might be the chamomile interacting with the other notes. 

 

I like this quite a lot and would consider trying to acquire a bottle of it if I though that would be an easier task.