Gunpowder

[greenranger]

GUNPOWDER
That he might make his appearance before his mistress in the true style of a cavalier, he borrowed a horse from the farmer with whom he was domiciliated, a choleric old Dutchman, of the name of Hans Van Ripper, and, thus gallantly mounted, issued forth, like a knight-errant in quest of adventures. But it is meet I should, in the true spirit of romantic story, give some account of the looks and equipments of my hero and his steed. The animal he bestrode was a broken-down plough-horse, that had outlived almost every thing but his viciousness. He was gaunt and shagged, with a ewe neck and a head like a hammer; his rusty mane and tail were tangled and knotted with burrs; one eye had lost its pupil, and was glaring and spectral; but the other had the gleam of a genuine devil in it. Still he must have had fire and mettle in his day, if we may judge from the name he bore of Gunpowder. He had, in fact, been a favorite steed of his master's, the choleric Van Ripper, who was a furious rider, and had infused, very probably, some of his own spirit into the animal; for, old and broken-down as he looked, there was more of the lurking devil in him than in any young filly in the country.

Carrot peelings, hay, chaff, molasses, maple oats, red apples, stable wood, and musk.

I love the label, but, I am still horse crazy to some extent.

In the bottle, grains, maybe the carrots.

On me, wet, I smell the molasses and maple oats, and then the apples. These are nice apples; they smell crunchy, and I don't know how that is managed with just a scent.

Drying, the scent is all wholesome grain mash. I imagine it would be even more foody to a horse. There's still a whisp of sweetness from the carrots, apples, and molasses. Of all of those, the apples fade first.

After a couple hours, the foodyness of it fades and I am left with mostly the hay, chaff and stable wood. The chaff and wood, though, last for hours on my skin.

[ravenfeathers]

i love horses. i don't even ride, i just keep a small herd because i enjoy them so much. what i enjoy even more is the aroma of horses, everything from linament to cobwebby stable dust. gunpowder? no brainer.

 

in the bottle this smells like that cereal with the little bits of dried fruit in it. honey bunches of oats with strawberry clusters?

wet on skin fruity and oaty. hellishly oaty.

dry on skin no hay/chaff, no molasses, just a touch of maple here and a nice waft of musk. i agree with the first reviewer, this smells like a hot mash with drop apples sliced up in it and the little bit of horsey smell that even makes its way into a closed feed room. and later, it's still the oats that won't quit.

 

this is tremendous fun for me and i'm looking forward to see what changes as it settles and ages, if anything.

 

eta after a retest and a lot of thought, i have to admit that i'm disappointed by this scent through no fault of its own. it just doesn't capture the horsiness for me. retest is bland, sweet oatmeal with a blot of artificial maple syrup. i think it's distinctly too foody for wear, unfortunately.

Edited September 16, 2008 by ravenfeathers

[marared]

Right off the bat, it smelled like carrot cake to me - carrot and sweet molasses and maple. As it dries, the carrot is less prominent and less sweet. The molasses/maple went to the background, and I now get the hay and the chaff -- in short, it turns into slightly sweet grains, kind of a good maple & brown sugar oatmeal just out of the pot. There's almost no wood in this that I can detect.

[Dark Alice]

Wet in bottle: In the previous review I can now understand why marared smelled carrot cake. The combination of the molasses, oat, may be musk and apples with a hint of carrot elude to the scent of carrot cake!

 

Drydown on skin: Sweet Hay and Oats with a hint of molasses. Every horse's culinary dream come true???

 

Final Drydown: Yep, this is a Horse's dream come true! Oats, sweet hay, with a hint of molasses. Funny, I don't get any carrot in this and the apples and musk go away quickly.

This is definitely a unique blend! I don't think I will need another bottle though!

 

BTW: The artwork is adorably creepy for this time of year and for my favorite Halloween story!

[kjirstiben]

It's a good thing that I like this one, because I accidentally ordered it twice! (I didn't realize it was in my previous order because I didn't take good notes.)

 

In the bottle, and initially on my skin, Gunpowder is sweet but in a scone-like, wholesome, substantial way. It's sweet like something you'd eat for breakfast, not for dessert. The carrots and apples come to the forefront, grounded by the hay and chaff notes.

 

Over time, the coffeecake-like sweetness of it fades, and you're left with hay, chaff, and stable wood... it's dry and a little dusty and pleasant. It might be the hay note that's reminding me so much of Hay Moon. (easy guess...)

 

Gunpowder is definitely a keeper! (If you like sweet, green, and woody scents the way I do.)

[hkhm]

bottle: this has a sweet cut fruit and vegetables feel to the scent. the carrot is glorious!

 

wet: this is all wet fruits and grain. sort of like when you add lots of yummy, fresh-chopped fruits to oatmeal. this is a very bright, nice scent.

 

dry: getting more oats and wood when dry. however, there is still a nice vegetabley/fruity feel in the background. very impressed with this scent.

[Heavenlyrabbit]

Carrot Cake > Oatmeal Cookie > Oatmeal Gruel

 

On first application, I love the Carrot Cake. Later on in the Oatmeal Cookie phase, it's still nice.

 

Into drydown, the foodie sweetness dissipates.

 

IMO, this is an interesting novelty scent.

 

Not enough foodie character to make this Nom-alicious. Not enough base notes to make this a good, wearable perfume.

 

My prediction- this is going to vary widely depending on how the sweet/foody notes play out.

 

If I didn't already have a huge BPAL stash, I'd keep this for the sheer joy of it.

Edited September 7, 2008 by Heavenlyrabbit

[cam]

In the bottle, this smells very edible. It's carrots and hay with a lot of molasses and maple oats. On wet, it's pretty much the same, but the musk also begins to come through. Dry, it's pretty much the same again. This is very nice; it smells warm and cozy. It's comforting. Unfortunately, it's not a scent I would wear, much as I love foodie scents. I think it will be great in an oil burner or something like that, though.

[IronMollyBlack]

As a horse owner for 30 years, I know horse scents!

 

Wet on the skin, this is a bucket of "sweet feed" in the grain room. It goes a bit maple-y, which doesn't quite fit. Then it turns to cut oats, with a bit of dry hay, and a bit of musk. Like standing very close to a horse who's eating oats for dinner. A bit of apple coming through. Someone threw a treat in the feed bucket. Very light wood in the background. The maple keeps coming up, though, and it's throwing me off. Molasses, yes, but no maple in any feed I've ever fed.

 

It's a keeper, but I think one bottle will do. And I LOVE the artwork on the bottle!

[foxroses]

bottle: NGH. maple oats. SO GOOD.

 

just put on it smells more molasses-y, appley, and the hay or wood is coming through. still very oaty.

 

i think i am going to LOVE this.

 

still very, very oaty. yum.

 

i'm wearing this the next a.m. and yep, maple apple oats. very delicious. very simple, and wonderful.

[scarletgenesis]

In the bottle, this is distinctly carrots and grain, with a tiny bit of musk.

 

Once on and as it dries, Gunpowder becomes OATS and musk. But the musk is very clean musk, with a hint of crispness, perhaps the apple? The carrot is still there in the background and I might get a tiny bit of molasses every now and then but it's faint.

 

I can't imagine how Beth got this to smell exactly like oats, but she did a wonderful job at it! This is a good fall scent for wearing outside. It's not my favorite, but it is very nice and I am impressed with the artistry that went into creating it.

[Brianne]

Definitely oat-y with a touch of maple (not overwhelming, it only sweetens up the oats a bit), and a bit of hay. On my skin, this is very simple and straightforward - really nice!

[Scanmike]

Something must be wrong with my nose. When I first applied it the smell of peanuts came through. Then after awhile it reminded me of black pearl, only a bit woodier. I don't get any oatmeal, hay or molasses at all. I will try again, but next time not after a hot shower.

[iiinterstate]

wet: Oh damn this is going to be so good. Initially it is carrots and grain and musk. Much lighter than I expected though. With molasses in there I thought this ran this risk of being too heavy.

 

Dry: Someone described this as wholesome and breakfast foody, and I definitely agree. The oats are much more prominent now, and the apple is there too, but it's very light and fresh. (I'm glad. I've got so many apple scents coming to me now I don't need another one with an apple-y base!)

 

I like this very much, and will be getting a bottle.

[forspecial_plate]

I have to say from a perfume standpoint, this is one of the strangest things I've smelled yet! It's light and sweet, with a bit of fruit. The apple stands out at the beginning, but backs off and then the carrot comes out. Later as it dries, it definitely smells like sweet carroty oats. Very, very unusual! If I wore this and a stranger stood next to me, I simply can't imagine what they would make of it. I agree that it's like a sweet, whole grain breakfast scent. For anyone who has wanted a carrot cake scent, this might be a close match, although it's not cakey or spicy. But I can't remember another perfume with this much carrot, ever.

[sookster]

straight sniff from the imp is sweet hay and apples...yum!!

 

once applied the sweetness fades fast and carrorts, oats and wood become apparent....

this scent is surprisingly light to me and the musk balances this out nicely...

a unique and unusual scent...

[diamondstars]

a unique and unusual scent...

 

I'll second that!

 

This is certainly unique and unusual. I like it but can't work out why it seems so familiar, and I can't even seem to detect any notes from it either!

 

I'll edit this in time if I can tell what it is..!

[Ahania]

In the bottle, this is sweet, rich grain and carrot. It smells like breakfast that is both tasty and healthy (which I have yet to find in real life).

 

On, wet: I now smell like cumin. Word to your mother, cumin.

 

On, dry: I still smell like cumin, but a bit sweeter as the molasses starts to come out a bit.

[UploadedLobster]

Faint maple and apple add a bit of sweetness, but mostly it's OAT.

 

Dry, dusty, magnificent OAT.

 

And a little hay. And a little musk to help it last, which it does. And more OAT.

 

I am beyond delighted with Gunpowder. This isn't the smell of a pony, or even of a pony's food, though there are definitely elements of both in here. This is the scent of the innocent, wholesome joy of pony ownership.

 

Only without the poo. And the manual labor. And the inevitable young-adult-book moment when your pony gets old and dies. None of that. Just the love. <3 <3 <3

 

 

Lobster Rating

better than: Old Yeller

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Sweet apple-maple flavored oats.

 

Immediately on skin: This smells exactly like a bowl of oatmeal on my skin. It’s warm and sweet with a hint of apple and some maple syrup. This is very rich, but there’s also a bit of dry hay coming from it.

 

After a little while: As this dries, the wood and hay come out a bit more. Even the musk lingers a little in the background. This becomes sort of a sweetened oatmeal and wood scent with lingering whiffs of apple, maple, and musk. Unfortunately the musk turns a bit powdery but it’s far in the background.

 

Overall Impressions: This scent is very interesting. I think it’s quite unique and I’ve never smelled oatmeal perfume before… but that’s what it smells like, especially at first. It gains some complexity as I wear it though, and the wood, hay, and musk make it a bit less foody.

[tartchef]

Woo! A wet slap of maple-brown sugar oatmeal, with a handful of walnuts thrown in... there's a trace of clean, sweet carrot & a bit of hay, maddening because it's getting drowned out by the super-foody notes. As it dries, there's a bit of apple peel & musk peeking out. I don't normally like the extremely edible scents, but this is nice... don't know that I'd ever wear it, though.

 

EAT: Oh plurrrrb. It's the same musk as in Ivanushka - lovely at first, but ultimately exploding into Powder of DOOM on my skin.

Edited September 15, 2008 by tartchef

[sarahmarie]

After a few minutes on my skin, this guy is really cool. I don't know if I'll ultimately like it or not, but it's really interesting! I smell fresh carrot peelings. maple, apple, and oats! Oats! It's so weird! Oh, and there's the hay. This scent is very fun, for sure.

 

The drydown leaves me with a sweet oatiness, which is really likable, but there's also a sharpness on my skin that I don't particularly like. I'll have to give it some time and another try to be sure how I feel about it.

[tinyvulture]

recently, i was baking oatmeal cookies and i thought, “i wish there was an oatmeal cookie bpal.” there’s just something about that combination of oats, butter and brown sugar. Gunpowder isn’t really an oatmeal cookie scent, but it's close. i am loving the combination of maple oats and molasses! the carrot note stands out, too. this actually smells like the carrot halwa dessert that you get at indian restaurants. i can’t think of another BPAL blend with carrot, but it reminds me of some burt’s bees carrot lotion that i’ve used in the past. the hay and chaff are noticeable in the background. they smell like cereal. i don’t smell the apples at all but that’s fine since i have other halloweenie blends with plenty of apple! this isn’t a strong, “notice me!” kind of blend, but it is sweet and comforting -- so glad i got a bottle!

[merivelle]

This is a fun scent and a MUST if you are a horse owner or horse lover. This is a light scent and is touched by maple, musk, and apple notes. To me, the oat note is more like oat hay than oat meal. It doesn't have an amazing throw and dries down to a light musky/powdery note. A very unique BPAL.

 

For the other horse folks: not really a bran mash, more like a combo of oat hay with maple and apples.

[jewelbug]

Wet: Very grainy scent, quite sweet (of the maple/brown sugar persuasion). I also get a fair amount of fruit in this stage--it doesn't really smell like apples which are listed, its almost citrusy--maybe its the combo of carrot/apple together? The grains are really cool--oatmeal, yes, but I swear I smell corn, too. I'm guessing that's part of the chaff.

 

Dry: It smells of grains sweetened with maple/brown sugar, and it gets progressively muskier as time passes. I believe its one of the same musks that is in Devil's Night (which I love). I love the musk and sweet grains combo.

 

Overall: This is one of the most unique blends I've tried. Now, I ordered it hoping for musky carrot cake, which didn't happen, but it really does smell interesting, and I'm quite happy with it.

 

Oh, and DH had a great review. After a few baffled sniffs, he exclaimed "Frosted Flakes!!"