Gunpowder

[ND¢]

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

The musk in this also strikes me as similar to Ivanushka, though I don't really smell it until five or so minutes in, after having been slammed around by a sharp wedge of WOOD or HAY or something really... crisp (but not in the apple way, in the... masculine soap way.) This definitely evokes oats and a stable but I'm not sure if I can really carry off the 'brightness' of the fragrance. I love the maple waddling along at the bottom of this one, though.

[goblinshark]

In the bottle: sweet carrots plus the warm, sunbaked hay note from Hay Moon

 

On me: Hay moon plus carrots plus a tinge of maple; slightly foodier and sweeter than I anticipated but I LOVE IT!!! Slightly musky undertone. Holy crapppppp I am in love.

 

A little goes a LONG way on me, though!

 

edited to add: I dabbed some of this on my wrist last night and woke up with my face planted in my arm; it smells so. good. Dabbed on a bit more this morning and it is still going strong 8+ hrs later. After a while, the oatiness DEFINITELY comes out and overpowers the sweet carrots, so it's like getting two distinct scents for the price of one! I really might try to swap for/buy another bottle. I can see myself reaching for this often.

Edited September 21, 2008 by goblinshark

[Little Bird]

In the bottle, I smell warm, maple oatmeal.

 

On my skin, oatmeal and, um, candle wax? It's like sniffing a puddle of hot candle wax next to a bowl of sweet oatmeal.

 

Weird. I don't get any carrot, apple, woods, or musk. For about five hours, this is just warm, sweetened oatmeal and candle wax. It's a very light scent on me. It clings close to the skin.

 

Gunpowder is interesting. I have a partial bottle of this for now, and I think that's all I need of this blend. I'll be interested to see how this ages. Oatmeal & molasses scented wax isn't unpleasant, but I don't know if I want to smell like it.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Pale yellow oil. Carrots, hay, grains and wood. It smells rather like a farmer's market; very rustic. It's unlike any perfume I've sniffed. Lightly maple-sweet.

 

Wet: PWoodier - oak, I think, but otherwise much the same. A bit of apple is coming through, but it's mild. The carrot, maple, and oats are strongest. The hay has amped a bit, it's lightly sweet and almost honeyish in combo with the maple and faint molasses.

 

Dry: The galangal and overall masculine feel remind me a bit of Hellhound, but the grains really dominate here. The carrot has faded and the apple disappeared, while oak and hay have amped. It's less sweet and almost a bit spicy now.

 

Later: Hay and wood continue to amp, making this quite dry. The galangal is almost gone and the carrot's a bit fainter, as are the grains and overall sweetness. The musk is soft but feral, almost furry.

 

Summary: An atmospheric, appropriately autumnal scent - though not really something I imagine many people wearing. Men, definitely, if anyone. Hay, oak, and maybe other spicy wood with softly sweet mapley oats, dusty chaff, and warm animal musk. Wisps of carrot and molasses. Low throw, good lasting power.

[Champagne]

In the imp it`s all carrot and molasses.

Wet the carrot and oat(meal) go out creating a unique fragrance, a breakfast hot oatmeal with carrots sticks for a chilly autumn morning.

No apple for me. The throw is minimal, I slathered a lot and it didn`t become stronger. I can see a horse licking this bottle!!

[rayvn1]

Hehehehehe I grew up on a horse farm surrounded by the big oafs. This smelled just like something I would take out to them as a treat. They would probably be nibbling my arm right now if they could smell it. - heck, I want to nibble on my arm!

In the imp there is sweet apple that made me think of my beloved SGA (sexy vampire horses?) but on my arm I smell OATS along with a slightly sour, musky tinge. I eagerly await the wood and hay because I'm still looking for a BPAL with those notes that will amp with my chemistry. Hmmm I think I'm getting the carrot on my wrist pulse point now.

 

I can't believe I smell like a horse treat! This is awesome!!!

[Eros]

In the bottle it's lovely - sweet molasses, apples & hay. Once it hits the skin the wood, oats and musk start to emerge and then, within seconds...dry, powdery soap :l The kind that works its way up the nose and won't leave, 'causing fits of sneezing

 

 

Love the artwork, love the scent in the bottle, on skin, *cry*.

[dawndie]

Wet: dusty apples

 

On skin: apples and dusty hay, very outdoorsy

 

Half-hour later: oats sweetened with apples

 

In conclusion: I liked the apples & hay, it smelled like a walk outside a stable. Later it smelled like I fell in the feed trough, which I didn't enjoy as much. I can't argue with the description though, it was spot-on!

[Juushika]

In the vial: Molasses, then oats, then apples—but I'm unfamiliar with many of these notes, especially in the context of a perfume, so that's just a guess. The scent is sweet, thick, and very pungent. It has food qualities, but it's not quite foody—this is horsefeed, or a cider house: being around feed or producing food, but not consuming it.

 

On me: The molasses creates sweetness on top, and it makes this scent very potent. The core is chaff and oats, a fibrous, cooked scent which is feed-but-not-food. At the base is a barely-discernible grounding of wood and a drop of musk. I also get a hint of overripe red apple—a touch of it in the throw, but not discernible up close. All in all, very similar to the scent in the vial but more nuanced. When it goes on, the throw is minimal and the molasses is a little bit overwhelming and cloying up close. Luckily, the throw rises within half an hour, and it doesn't contain so much of the molasses. This is an incredibly potent blend, and one little swipe is plenty.

 

Verdict: I can't imagine any other perfume like this. Gunpowder is evocative, unusual, and truly one of a kind. I'm reminded of visiting maple syrup and apple cider farms in Vermont, or of baking dozens of oatmeal cookies in autumn—this is the scent of food preparation or animal feed, not of eating, and it doesn't make me hungry. I'm not sure how often I'll wear this, because it's more of an experience than a perfume. But I'll hold on to my imp, and I'm thrilled that I had the chance to experience it.

[Hawke]

I'm so looking forward to this one. I get apple, carrot and a sweet hay sniff from the imp.

 

Wet on the skin, I see I was wrong. It's not the hay I was smelling, it's the oats. This is apple, oats and molasses, like a warm mash or horse treats. Oh wow. It smells gooood. A bit of a dusty, flaky scent kicks in, which I'm assuming is the chaff and the apple fades a little, but this still smells like treats or sweet feed to me, which is awesome. My horses would go nuts.

 

This dries down into oatflake dust, which is not my favorite finishing note ever, but until it gets there, it's beautiful, so I would gladly try this in a spray to see if it cuts that out or, if all else fails, in a locket. Love!

[Iceblink]

This is a fun one. Sweet, sugary carrots at first (mmm), then a stage that reminded me of vegetable stew, and then, finally a sweet oaty scent. It really does smell like something you'd feed a very happy horse. As a perfume...well, I don't think so, but it's a great concept.

[AEris]

maple maple maple maple BPAL maple maple maple

 

excuse me, *ahem,* one of my dreams just came true....

 

This tastes like an appley, mapley oatmeal. It's got a foody sweetness that is nicely shot through with crisp apple. I can also slightly detect the ambery hay note from Hay Moon.

 

I like this, very fun! It doesn't smell like horses to me, though (I guess that's not really a bad thing). Hay Moon makes me think of horses more because of the stronger hay note.

 

I do wish there was more maple, but I'm obsessed with maple so I don't know if I could ever have too much. (Can't wait to try the MVJBA Pancake scent whee hehehe)

 

I want some trail mix now : -) Yum!

 

4.1 out of 5

[Ravenclaw79]

I don't quite know what to make of this one -- I've honestly never smelled anything like it. It started with this odd... malty, maybe, scent? Now it's settled into what I'm betting is oats, 'cause it smells vaguely of food, like cereal. I may have to give this one a second test, 'cause it's such an unusual scent that I really can't figure out whether I like it.

[Wwindy]

Oh yeah -- oatmeal cookies with hints of maple and musk! Different and fascinating! I'm normally not a foodie by any means, but this is surprisingly wearable. It does fade relatively quickly on me, though.

 

ETA:

"You smell like the breakfast bar I ate this morning."

"But in a sexy way, right?"

"Um. Not really."

 

*sigh* OK, maybe not as wearable as I thought...

Edited October 3, 2008 by Wwindy

[gingiemay]

Wet in bottle - Hay, molasses, maple oats and a tinge of wood and musk. This is powerful and rich.

 

Wet on skin - Carrots, apples, maple oats and a musky, woody background. Surprisingly foodie with the maple/carrot/apple.

 

Dry on skin - Maple oats, wood and musk. The apple and carrots are completely gone. The maple is very strong, surprisingly. I'm not sure if I want to smell like "horse treats" as someone mentioned upthread. I will give this more time to age.

[blackenedsoul]

As a horse owner and trainer, I was so elated when this scent came out! YUM!!! Maple oats and apples.... ah the romantic version of horse ownership. Great job BPAL!

[Malista]

From beginning to end, I smell like Maypo -- maple flavored oatmeal. That's it. No molasses, no apples, no carrots, no hay, no wood, no musk. Maypo.

 

[Victory]

I have horses and have always hoped for a horse/stable BPAL scent. There are very distinct smells associated in my mind with horses- the smell of their sweat, the hay, sometimes cigarette smoke (because often other riders are smokers), their feed, some manure... This isn't what I had hoped it would be. (Luckily for all of you, since I can't imagine anyone else wants to smell like manure and smoke and horse sweat!) Gunpowder doesn't smell like a horse to me, but sometimes there are some reminiscences. When Gunpowder had just arrived, the maple was very prominent. Now that it's aged a little, that's receded a little, which makes me happier since I haven't smelled any maple around horses. Wet, the oat is the most prominent note. Sometimes the molasses combines with the oat, and it makes me think of the sweet feed we would use when I was a child to entice the horses in from their fields to be ridden. When dry, the oat is still the strongest note, sometimes with the molasses, alternating with the musk and the stable wood. I don't smell either the hay, chaff, carrots or the apples, which is somewhat of a surprise since apple is usually obvious on me. I'm happy that Gunpowder doesn't smell like a cookie on me- I prefer for it to keep it's faint horse-y memories for me. It's not what I had dreamed of, but I do like Gunpowder on its own merits.

[AmyAngel]

This one, to me, is pretty evocative. There was definitely a hint of horseyness there! It vaguely reminded me of the scent in my college roommate's car - she had (still has) a horse, and even when there was nothing horsey in there the scent of feed and tack would still remain a little. This isn't any of the unpleasant smells associated with horses, but definitely has a horse/barn feel to me. It's not anything I personally would wear, but I might send the decant to her as a gift. I think she'll like it!

[bookofblues]

I just got my bottle of "Gunpowder" in the mail yesterday. Here's a quick and dirty review:

In the bottle: sweet apple oatmeal with a hint of something heady (most likely hay).

On the skin: The apple recedes almost immediately, but it's still got a warm, oatmeal smell that is somehow not too foody. It's fresh and sweet. Reminds me of fall, and the fair, and hayrides somehow.

Drydown: Slightly musty, sweet, oatmeal and molasses, with a touch of hay.

Man, do I dig this scent!

[LauraB]

Approximately equal parts raw carrots and maple syrup. Seriously. After a while a little musk comes through and it does have a "pony" feel to it (this is definitely a pony rather than a thoroughbred, and a pampered Thelwell pony at that!)

 

I do like it a lot, but I'm not at all sure when I'm going to wear it - maple syrup really isn't my usual style. I will hang on to my decant and I will definitely look for more perfumes with "carrot" as a note

[Stephanie]

Love ths one! I smell fresh green hay overlaid with grains and carrots. I think I can smell chlorophyll! Like sweet leaves. Not too much maple, for me. But there is some sweet syrupy-ness, think.

 

Nice. It's something different.

Edited October 5, 2008 by Stephanie

[Saya]

In the Bottle

On first sniff I’m struck by how powerful the maple scent is. The mollasas is also strong, but I have to really sniff to pick out the apples and the wood.

 

On My Skin

Smells like maple oatmeal on me. It’s harder to pick out the individual notes now that it’s on my skin. The dominant notes are maple and molasses.

 

After a Bit

Um, strange, but this evolved into a smoky, maple, scent that had a touch of incense.

 

Rating 1-5

Scent - 1.5 Throw - 3 Longevity – 3

Overall (not an average) – 1.8

 

Final thoughts

Interesting scent, but not something I’d like to smell like. It’s going in my swap pile.

[livingdead71]

I love the way this smells in the imp and on my skin at first. It's a yummy combination of oats, apples, and carrot cake. I was starting to think I might need a bottle of this before it goes away. However, that phase did not last on me at all. Now I'm left with a vaguely musky scent lingering in the crooks of my elbows. Not bad, but no longer bottle worthy for me. I will use the imp though, just to enjoy that initial stage.

[zankoku_zen]

Mmmm. Oats. This is apple, oats hay cereal tasty warmness.

 

Oh yes. This is what dreams of having a pony is like.

 

Tasty!