Heavenly Love & Earthly Love

[naeelah]

Ambergris accord, benzoin, teakwood, frankincense, myrrh, Mysore sandalwood, and incense.

I have tried probably every BPAL incense blend at this point, and by far, this is my favorite. Every other blend has been too much of something -- too much sandalwood (I amp it and it becomes bone dry), too much frankincense (aggressively smoky and biting, on my skin), too much myrrh (cool and subdued), too many other components calling attention to themselves (cedar, black musk, etc).

This one, though, is the perfect balance of soft smoky resins, dark, honeyed incense, and wood. No single note stands out, dominating the blend. It's not overly golden, not overly dark, not overly dry and woody, not overly anything. It's smooth and round with wood and smoke on the edges. A little sweet, and no sharpness. It glows, but it also has a soft haze.

In short, this is the best of everything.

I think I tend to amp sweet, so this takes one more of a honey characteristic as I wear it. It's quite similar to the Pit and the Pendulum, only sunnier, with more woods. It's soft but noticeable and the wear length is about average. Edited December 8, 2008 by naeelah

[levelek]

Incense and sandalwood - a wonderful blend for lovers of these notes.

 

On drydown, the overall effect on my skin is baby powder.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: The incense is rich and complex. There is less wood than I was hoping for and it’s vaguely floral. Wet: That’s a lot of benzoin. It’s a sweet, womanly incense with a vaguely floral edge. It has an astonishing amount of throw. It comes across as vaguely exotic, without being something one can pin down. It is arresting and attractive without being overtly sexual. It does rather suit the idea of an angel in love with a woman. It’s genuinely pleasing, though odd on me. Dry: More incense, less floral. I think I can actually smell the wood. It is way more my thing on the dry down.

[Miss Lynx]

I love nearly every note listed for this, so I figured it really couldn't go wrong. And yet, I'm finding myself strangely underwhelmed by it now that I've finally gotten a chance to try it.

 

There's a nice resinous, incensey aspect to it like I expected, but there's also something odd in there that doesn't quite fit. At first it smelled almost like that fake-butter note that puts me off so many of the foody scents, but as the scent settled into my skin, it began smelling more like soap.

 

There are still aspects of it that I like, but that off-note is really throwing me -- I'm not sure what could smell like toxic fake butter, soap or just general synthetic-ness rolled into one, unless maybe it's the ambergris accord, somehow? Whatever it is, it's making this really not work on me, which is sad, because I expected greatness.

 

Grade: B-

 

[rayvn1]

Very light incense and sandalwood blend. One I'm definitely adding to my beloved BPAL incense group. The only thing I wish for is that it would have more throw on me. Dusty and sweet

[CreamyJade]

In the bottle: Oh, resins, I loves you.

Wet on skin: Soft frankincense, resins, light woods, incense. Delicious!

Dry on skin: The drydown has much more character on me than a straight sniff from the bottle. Frankincense, a bit of wood, incense smoke. There's nothing acrid, or too sharp.

Final thoughts: I'm so happy I got hold of half a bottle of this! It's glorious! This contains all sorts of lovely resiny goodness. The blend is also full of smoky incense, but not too heady. *swoons* Perfect! It's a fairly gender neutral blend, so I'll definately try this on the boyfriend, if I'm feeling generous ^_~

[stellans]

wonderful incense blend, lighter than the Midnight Mass blends, but still with the smoky incense that I love. It starts out a little 'fresh' on my skin but quickly warms up to the smoky incense goodness, the kind one might like to enjoy during the day. It's not somber, but lively; not dark, but light; and finally, not cold, but warm.

Edited June 4, 2011 by stellans

[Suu4LC]

In the imp this is rich, resiny sandalwood and incense. Much what you would imagine from reading the notes.

 

Ok sandalwood/incense aren't my cup of tea, but this is really beautiful on-very subtle, a little sweet. Woods can get overwhelming, but it is so well behaved here.

 

DARN, unfortunately my skin chemistry does something REALLY weird to this blend-I don't know which note it is but it goes all funky and sour *CRY* I can imagine this is super gorgeous and amazing on the right people, but my skin messed it up! The weird note goes away on full and complete drydown, but most of the unique gorgeousness of the initial wet smell is gone too ]: Stupid skin chemistry!!!

[cranberry]

I think this is the most perfect of all the sandalwood and incense blends. On me, there is a strong sandalwood/wood note underlain with sweet, sticky resins and incense. The frankincense and myrrh add a bit of bite to it, but overall this is a very smooth, golden-dark type blend.

 

The only problem is that it is a very faint smell and stays close to the skin. I guess that’s not too surprising since it is all middle and base notes. Regardless, I love this scent. Wish it was stronger, so I’m glad that it’s a Salon and I can get more when my bottle runs dry.

[Vega]

(Wow, a year went by without any reviews for this? )

 

Sniffed: Thick, syrupy, almost cloying sweetness.

 

On skin: Oh no. Blends this sweet are repulsive to me. Heavenly Love and Earthly Love is full, syrupy, cloying, resinous sweetness without nuance, dryness, or "edges". It must be the ambergris, although I wonder if benzoin and unlisted "incense" are playing into it. Oh dear, where are my frankincense, myrrh and woods? This is totally not what I was expecting! I can't wear this.

 

Verdict: Heavenly Love and Earthly Love had so many of my favourite notes, so I'm devastated that this turned out to be a scent I just can't wear. It looked so good, so promising...! Sigh...

[Gold Dust Kitten]

THIS is my HG incense perfume, and thanks to the lovely TrailerTrashPrincess for offering to be a pickup fairy.

 

All of the notes in this are made of win. It's a dark, rich and sweet incensey sandalwood/teak blend. I reminds me a little of Midnight Mass, but it's less heavy on frankincense and myrrh. I really don't need to go on about how beautiful this is and how much I love it. Truly hoard-worthy and most definitely fantastic aged.

[Deceitfuldescender]

I may have to re-test this... but this may actually be an ambergris accord scent that works on me. I get this sort of creamy, incensy sweet scent that is quite nice. Must be the teak and the myrrh, because those are mostly what I get.

Something on my arm is giving my a headache though, so off everything goes.

Definitely worthy a re-test.

[theseagrows]

hmm, i can't even begin to describe this scent. all the notes are blended seamlessly. it's kind of a frankincense-amber-sandalwood on me. at least, those seem to be the strongest notes on my skin. this seems kind of masculine, but not entirely. i think in a review i read, someone said that it was a very classic scent, and i think so too. now as it dries, there seems to be a bit of a sweetness coming through, which is making it read as more typically feminine to my nose. could be the benzoin, i think. this is a very pretty scent, and does remind me of a scent my grandmother used to wear. i am just not sure if it's my type of scent.. seems a bit borderline for my tastes.

 

 

[mistressfizz]

Sniff: Beautiful deep resin, with hints of warm amber

 

Wet: A complex & dark frankincense, woodsy and dense and soft, with a comforting solid warmth, like having a wool blanket wrapped about you. Glorious!

 

Dry: And here is where I break down -- as this dries, it turns into total baby wipes on me. Occasionally, I get a whiff of the amazing incense notes, but then it goes back to a sour powdery mess. This is the first time a resin blend has done this to me...

[ami226]

I may have to retest this again since it hasn't had long to sit out of the box since it arrived. Couldn't help testing it though!

 

On the skin: Pretty! Amber, musk, and sandalwood. Very pleasant in a clean, comforting way. Like mistressfizz, I get a bit of a baby wipe vibe, but overall it is still pretty.

[Balame]

Gwydion is right, there's a sweet floral feel in this. I'm not sure what from. I love all the notes, but perhaps it's the myrrh, which can sometimes come across as a bit perfume-y? Coupled with the powdery feel of ambergris, that's all I can think of. This is definitely in the same category as Penitence and Midnight Mass, but I actually think I like MM the most between all of them. Penitence is awesome but can be too harsh to wear daily, and this is too stereotypically feminine. Since I don't like florals, I'm not digging how it dries down. Goes a bit baby wipe on me, and sort of reminds me of shampoo as well. Dang! I tested this earlier and it was more dominant on the woods, but maybe I just hadn't waited long enough for it to dry before writing down my thoughts.

[riddel]

Oh, there's BPAL's beautiful frankincense note. This is like a thicker, richer Midnight Mass on me. There's a dark, molasses-like quality to it. A little sweetly-sour, even. Somebody above said "syrup-y," which I can see. Not food-y, though. No, no.

 

I do prefer the lighter, smoother Midnight Mass; but I can definitely see myself reaching for this in certain moods. It's lovely.

 

I miss the Salons. I'm glad they are back, if only in a limited, traveling form.

Edited December 9, 2014 by riddel

[Atrous]

In Templum Dei and Antikythera Mechanism had a child.

 

It reminds me greatly of ITD but darker. It certainly has that lovely, deep resin, church vibe.

The teakwood is very present and gets me thinking of AM.

 

If you love both those scents you'll love this one.

[gentle-twig]

So beautiful. Wet this is all ambergris, an almost citrusy frank, and benzoin. Dry the sandalwood comes to the fore, supported by the ambergris and resins. I feel like most sandalwood scents don't quite do it for me even though I love sandalwood itself. This preserves what for me is an austere note (sandalwood) while adding some excitement in the best possible way.

[LizziesLuck]

I have recently discovered that I think I love ambergris, and I love incense, so I had to try this!

 

 

Wet: Strangely soapy...that's unexpected. But not bad. It's like the best soap ever. Mmmm. The Frank stands out. And the ambergris. And it's sweet, and it kind of swirls around as I sniff it, morphing even while I am taking a whiff. Oh ya. That's good so far. Hard to pick out the notes. But good! Somehow it smells very clean, I think soapy was the wrong word. It's clean smelling.

 

Dry: Wow. Stunning. The reviewer above me described the frank in this as "almost citrusy" and I have to agree. It's really bright in this, sort of zesty. The ambergris is lovely, and the sweetness of the benzoin is just right. I believe I will wear this in the Spring, when I want something a bit heavier than the florals I favour during that season, but still bright and uplifting. This scent glitters.

 

ETA: Not a hint of soap once dry!

Edited January 14, 2016 by LizziesLuck

[whisperstilled]

Wet: Frankincense, sandalwood, and incense. Softer than I was expecting, with a woody background. This reminds me a bit of St. Clare, but it lacks the punch.

Dry: Soft on the drydown. An extremely pleasant incense and woods scent. There are definitely other, more easily accessible BPALs that fit the bill of profile one for me these days, but I like it a lot!

[Samuraibrarian]

This one's a new favorite. A beautiful, incensey blend of resins and woods with frankincense and sandalwood up front, that's not so heavy or overpowering that I can't wear it through the summer in Atlanta.

[tinyvulture]

Wham! A powerful, heavy incense blend that assails my senses! I find it has something in common with Midnight Mass, almost a sweet banana incense note? Tons of frankincense...chunks of raw frankincense in a teakwood chest. It's very similar to other church incense blaneds so I'm not sure I need to hoard it, but it's very rich and decadent!