Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener

[cosmoblue]

Sassafras, vanilla extract, oak leaf, CO2 butter extract, and onycha.

In Vial Sweet saffafrass,

Wet, Sweet herbal sasafrass.

Dry, Yummy herbal sassafras. Really nice and sort of like root beer candy and ice cream.

[Vaudevillain]

Oh, I love this so much! Bright, orange, tangy, and sweet, it's invigorating and cozy at the same time- like cuddling in the grass under a bright blue sky. I *love* this one. Suits me so well, and I think it'll be a signature scent for me. 5 out of 5!

[littlesparrow]

This was a frimp from the lab Thanks lab!

 

In the imp: Something refreshing and slightly spicy/minty. Certainly a bit medicinal but in a pleasant way.

 

Wet: I'm getting a vanilla ice-creamy smell with a spicy kick. Some people have described root-beer ice cream so I'm assuming it's the sassafras that gives it the kick. Neither sassafras nor root beer are things I would recognise the smell of but whatever it is I like it!

 

Drydown: Yep, it's like a spicy vanilla ice-cream. Yum.

 

The Verdict: I like it a lot, especially when I need to be alert and awake. I wore it for my most-feared exam in June and it went well! I think it could be nice on a man, too.

 

I've had a few compliments wearing it. The funniest of which was during a terrifying car ride with a few of my classmates. We were being driven down a mountain at high-speed by a lecturer and we had all huddled together and thrown our limbs over one another in fear, but in spite of this one of the girls actually stopped to tell me how nice I smelled! The imp is a keeper and I would consider a bottle.

[whataboutprom]

I've had a frimp of this hanging around for a while, and for some reason I had never tried it before today. The most prominent note is a beautiful sassafras, like fine root beer with a dash of vanilla syrup. Sassafras is kind of medicinal on its own, but the butter and vanilla round this out and make it delightful to wear. I think this would work equally well as a cold or warm weather scent. It's cozy enough for winter, but sassafras always reminds me of digging for the root to make tea in the peak of summer. Beautiful and uplifting.

 

It doesn't have a strong throw on me, so this is a great scent for wearing at work.

Edited July 11, 2012 by whataboutprom

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Fizzy and sweet.

 

Drydown: LOTS of vanilla zapped with somewhat sharp CO2. There's just a hint of oak in the background. I’m not really getting sassafras, it smells more like cream soda to me.

 

Dry: Sweet, creamy vanilla with a light touch of spice and fizz.

 

 

 

 

7 out of 10 bones

Edited July 11, 2013 by BoneBone24

[hexnut]

In Vitro Tested blind. In the imp this was sweet with vague spice and maybe vanilla.

Wet In the first minute on my wrist it was an unknown, still sweet, still possibly vanilla. After a minute I got a bit of root beer and also something like wintergreen. Then an herbal quality that was slightly medicinal, like horehound. Pleasant but not strong.

Drying Wintergreen root beer, very good although faint. But twelve minutes in, a soapy smell dominated, and seven minutes after that there was a tiny bit of slightly rancid butter. Where did my delicious medicine go? The butter went away after a while and the soapiness receded enough to reveal some lingering sweetness, but it was too little, too late.

Another scent for which I had high hopes, now consigned to the growing "cloth/locket only" pile. Even the most sovereign remedy is powerless against the corrupting power of my skin.

[Monday]

Lots of sugary vanilla and sassafras whee! There is a hint of something medicinal in the background though, like Listerine?

Okay the Listerine fades when it dries down. The sassafras is a bit sharper than it was when I had just applied it. I'm really liking the vanilla in this.

When it's fully dry it's a foody vanilla and sassafras blend. Nice!

[jsolarski]

By far this is one of my favorites. Reminds me of going to MI and digging up sassafras root when I go camping.

when I first put it on, it smells like fresh sassafras with a little sweetness, then fades to a rootbeer float after a few hours.

I would recomend this one to any one who likes rootbeer/sassafras.

[lucycat]

Sweet, creamy root beer. I get a fizzy carbonated note, especially when first applied. As it dries the oak leaf comes out ever so slightly.

 

This is delicious. I spent the day wanting to eat my arm.

 

Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener will be a comfort scent for me. It evokes happy childhood memories of drinking root beer and root beer floats.

[Vonotar]

I got this in an imp today.

 

All I can say is Huzzah! Root Beer!

 

I love sassafras in all of it's forms. This reminds me of the Birch Beer I was fortunate enough to sample once upon a time. Ah, memories. Delicious, delicious memories.

[Jangzonrice]

Got this as an Imp. At first it smells unpleasant, sharp, and medicinal even though I love root beer and sassafras soda. When applied it gains a warmer spicier edge from the skin...much better! It dries to a vanilla root beer (the good stuff, not the cheap crap)! Not sure if I will get a full bottle, but will probably buy another imp when I run out. It lasted about 10-12 hours on me.

[Lunasariel]

I also got this as a (fr)imp - not something I would have necessarily ordered for myself, as I'm more into ambers and floral orientals. But BPAL must be paying their psychics some good money, because this one works!

 

In the bottle: sharp and herbal, with, of all things, a hint of lemon. I'm not familiar with actual sassafras root, so maybe that was in there and I'm just not identifying it.

 

Wet: I actually got more of an Italian soda vibe than root beer. Definitely something creamy and sweet.

 

Dry: As it dried, the sharp herbal note (which I assume is the sassafras) steps forward, and the creamy sweetness fade back to give it some room. It eventually fades to a vague (not particularly creamy) sweetness.

 

Interestingly, when I tried it on my boyfriend (because he's cool like that), it pulled much more lemon-drops-and-honey than herbal/sassafras-y.

 

TL;DR: While I don't think I'll order a full bottle, this frimp was a pleasantly foody surprise. I found the Italian soda note especially interesting, since it occupies the place in my childhood memories most people have for root beer - summer vacation, end-of-school treats, watching them mix it together at the ice cream place.

[doomsday_disco]

In the imp: Root beer barrel candies!

Wet: Yep, this reminds me of those root beer barrel candies (as opposed to root beer itself). The sassafras is somewhat spicy, and somewhat minty. It makes my skin somewhat tingly where it was applied, but the tingly-ness isn't too bad.

Dry: It's softer and creamier now. It still makes me think of root beer barrel candies, but I could also see it being a particularly creamy root beer.

Verdict: Why did I wait so long to try this!? I love root beer.

I don't like this as much a Tombstone (which is more like a root beer float on me with a hint of cedar... and when it is aged, it contains the most amazing creamy vanilla note), but I really do like this. I will be keeping my imp, and if I use it often, I will order a bottle. (I am pretty sure a bottle will end up falling into my cart sometime in the future, though!)

[tyche]

Discovered a forgotten imp of this tucked away in my writing desk. It is totally a root beer float with french vanilla ice cream. Mmmm. I've probably had this imp for 4 or 5 years, and it has held up well.

[dangerbunnygirl]

It definitely smelled like rootbeer at first, yum yum. Then as it dried went slightly like Dorian(?) Now is slightly medicinal and sweet. Wish it would have stayed more in the rootbeer stage.

[Fjaer]

Wow, this is my first review in a long time! I sold off all of my BPAL collection, which I later grew to realize was a very silly decision! So I'm building up my collection once again

 

I was so excited to receive this through the post, all the notes sounded wonderful.

Here goes,

 

In Bottle:

This smells sweet, herbal and almost fizzy, like vanilla root beer.

 

Wet on Skin:

I definitely get the vanilla, and still smells fizzy! That must be what they meant by 'CO2' !

The butter is there, then there's the sassafras. I have no experience with the actual plant sassafras as I live in England and I don't think there's much of it around. But I have had root beer, and I definitely recognize the scent of it in this perfume.

 

Dry

Beautiful, slightly medicinal too (which I'm loving)

Genuinely conjures images of an old Victorian apothecary, full of botanical tinctures and medicines! (Or perhaps that's my over active imagination )

.

Fantastic, evocative blend.

 

I'll be keeping this one! 5/5

Edited March 13, 2015 by Fjaer

[WickedSage]

Reminds me of Rootbeer floats, Rootbeer barrel candies, as well as Birch beer. If your thinking you like these things but dont want to smell like that it will surprise you because this blend works on the skin. Definitely worthy of an imp to test this one out for yourself.

[Soupy Twist]

Sassafras and vanilla in the bottle and on the wrist. Quickly dries to root beer, and then some creaminess comes in. Finishes as the perfect rendition of a root beer float. Beautifully executed; not something I'd wear.

[LizziesLuck]

I had high hopes for this, and it did not disappoint! Though it smells nothing like I thought it would.

 

Wet, it's mostly Sassafras and something herbal and medicinal.

 

Dry, it's the loveliest vanilla with hints of creamy rootbeer. It's buttery and amazing. I need more!

[kscha2017]

Smells like the world's most expensive root beer float! Rich and creamy, only the finest ingredients. Got an imp, need a bottle.

[Nicnivin]

Effervescent, creamy rootbeer. It's lovely to sniff in the imp, but I can't wear it - it's going to my niece.

[BeyondBad1313]

I received an imp of this in a swap and it is super nice, it is like soft bubbly vanilla rootbeer. Unfortunately this scent is really light on my skin and fades much too quickly, but my skin tends to eat foodie scents. I still like it and will most likely wear it in a scent locket.

[Teamama]

Sassafras, sweet vanilla, some herbs. Very nice, soft, reminds me a little bit of Love's Philosophy.

[Mermaid-on-Land]

Sharp, biting sassafras! Herbal and sweet. I love this note! This scent is fizzy and very much 'root beer'. The butter and vanilla notes make it creamy, like a root beer float, but it's still zingy and energized without going sugary sweet. I can see where "stimulating" comes in, it's a bright energetic scent. I get a touch of oak moss, similar to Black Annis, but only a little. I'm not sure on the onycha, I don't seem to overly notice it aside from perhaps a resinous depth to the sweetness of the drydown. Soon the biting herbal quality fades a bit and I'm left with sweet, root beer-y sassafras. The throw isn't terribly strong, but it lasts fairly well as a skin scent. The color feeling is translucent ambery brown with off-white (like a root beer float lol) and it has a summery feeling to it overall. Overall I enjoyed it, but I prefer Laudanum as my sassafras scent. It's darker and more mysterious, and to my nose a bit more complex. Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener is like Laudanum's bright preppy sister lol

[lizabelle]

Gosh I love the lab's fizzy scents. This one is straight-up root beer, complete with lots of bubbles. It's even giving me that tickly carbonation feeling in my nose! (Or I might be imagining it because the smell is so dead-on. Either way, impressive.) Dries down to a vanilla/root beer hard candy-esque thing that's pretty great. Probably getting a bottle because who am I kidding--I never knew I wanted to smell like bubbly things until BPAL, but now I need them all.