O

[PrettyPenny]

The scent of sexual obsession, slavery to sensual pleasure, and the undercurrent of innocence defiled utterly. Amber and honey with a touch of vanilla.

In the imp, this smelled a lot like Honey Moon to me. However, once I put it on it became a bit softer, and I could smell the amber starting to come out. As it dried, the amber continued to gain strength while the honey sweetened. Very nice scent overall. Edited February 7, 2006 by Shollin

[angharad]

It's so pretty! O is a very rich, golden scent on me that turns vaguely spicy after drydown. I never pick out the vanilla or the honey specifically, but this is very sweet. For a while the scent threatens to turn powdery but never does, for which I am very grateful. It has average throw and lasts for several hours, and I love how this puts me in such a good mood.

[josja]

This really is lovely, very sweet, calming, and lasts for hours. I put it on before I went to bed and could still smell it in the morning. It's almost all honey on me, with just a slight vanilla note.

 

Ordered a 5 ml without sniffing, and I have no regrets, this is a lovely comforting scent. It instantly makes me feel good.

[Neely]

Frimp luvn' from my pal Mandragora! You sexy swapper you!

 

In the bottle: fruity musk??? Wth? There isn't fruit listed as an ingredient!

 

Wet: fruity musk with very musty undertone. I almost washed it off at this point, but refrained all in the name of BPAL. I must do my duty and faithfully give a scent time. So, I soldiered on.

 

Dry down: The musty tone disappeared completely and in its place was a scent so delightful and surprising I didn't know what to think. It smelled fruity and musky with a fresh light mint top note. I swear, mint! There is no mint listed! I would take a stick to my body chemistry, but it turned the scent so pleasant and bright, how could I? Oh my, this is nice.

 

30 minutes: light vanilla and heliotrope (yet another note, not listed). It has lightened up and can only be sniffed by applying nose to skin at this point.

 

Conclusion: I don't know about a big bottle of this one for me. Can't decide if the musty note is worth putting up with. I will be keeping my imp and trying it again. This doesn't have much throw, and it really didn't speak of sex to me, like Spanked (which needs to be a catalogue scent in this category). O was lovely almost smelling like innocence to me.

 

Rating 1-5 on my skin this is a 3.

[Kiera]

In the bottle: Sweet vanilla and something else that smells "musky" (probably the amber, I'm horrible with picking out notes.

 

On the skin: Yummy sweet powdery vanilla. Doesn't change or morph.

 

Throw: Lasts all day. Most scents eem too with my chemistry though.

 

One of my favorite scents.

[undream]

First whiff out of the imp gave me strong honey. Second whiff gave me, oddly, cherry. Third whiff gave me neither of these, but instead smelled like cake!

 

This is a very sweet, warm scent, very foody on me. I cannot pick any one note out no matter how hard I concentrate on doing so, it is that well-blended to my nose, but longer drydown does bring out the vanilla more & more. I usually adore vanilla in its pure form (as opposed to cheap vanilla perfumes or fake vanilla soaps & dthe like), but I think that the amber is making this vanilla just too heavy for me, too something. It is making my tummy a little uneasy.

 

It is a rich, delicious scent, definitely, but one that I would much rather smell wafting from a kitchen than on me, I'm afraid.

[Naamah_Darling]

In the bottle, a mouthwatering and succulent honey-smell, chased with vanilla and amber. Utterly tempting. Yes, this actually does smell like honey, that slightly grainy purr, thick and dark.

 

The amber just unfolds once it hits the skin, unravelling into a glorious, warm scent, with the honey melting off it, hot and soft. I'm reminded very strongly of vanilla beeswax candles, but this is not a cheap air-freshener vanilla scent, this is a rich, darkly golden vanilla that is crushed and herbal, not too highly refined.

 

This isn't a perfumey scent. It's personal, subtle, sexual; a close, mammalian, skin-smell. Like the smell of sex you can't ever quite wash off your fingers. The smell of a woman comfortable in her own skin, where there is no good or evil applied to pleasure.

 

It's sweet, undeniably, but there's that smoky rasp to it from the amber that keeps it from being cloying. This is innocence, yes, but it's not the untouched kind – this is innocence lying sweaty and trembling, slippery and dewy, wondering what the hell just happened. This is so pure, so pefectly its own, that it just doesn't understand the concept of degradation, so no matter how you bend it it remains unsullied. This is sin, and wanting to do it again.

 

It dries smooth. The vanilla and honey slowly and steadily fade, leaving the slightly musky amber. This is a very fleshy amber, too, almost dirty. I don't know how else to put it. It smells like sex. Undeniably one of the most sensual smells I've tried yet. And, no, that's not just the fact that Story of O is one of my best-loved books talking. It really is that good.

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 5/5

Summarised in a word or two: *mumbles incoherently*

 

In the bottle: Simply? The perfect blend of vanilla and honey.

 

On skin, wet: Suh-weet. Smoky honey, impossibly smooth and sweet vanilla and warm amber.

 

On skin, dry: Sweet, sweaty, musky skin. The honey easily dominates the blend, but the vanilla and amber don't let themselves be forgotten for a second. I'm not a honey-nut, but the honey in O is divine. The whole blend is divine.

 

Conclusion: I admit, I'd forgotten how much I love O. Hell, for some reason, for the longest time I thought O had suddenly hated me. I have no idea why I sold my first bottle of it, or really, what made me want to give it "another shot." Whatever it was, I thank it. O has regained its rightful place in my Top 10. The only "problem" with this blend is, as others have said, O doesn't fuck around: you'd damn well better know what you could possibly get yourself into (in a good way!) when smelling this fan-fucking-tastic.

 

Note: O was the very first BPAL scent I ever sniffed, "way back" in March 2005. I was one of the very lucky few that fell completely for their very first BPAL scent. I think, on some level, O will always be a representative of BPAL in scent-form for me, which I must say, is a glorious thing. I can't believe it took me so long to get a bottle of or write a review for it. Silly Aredhel.

[Brianne]

In the bottle:

Mmmm soft, sweet, fluffed honey

 

On me:

Usually, Amber goes a bit powdery and wierd on me and honey doesn't always work out for me either. But somehow - the two combined with vanilla, just turns out great. It's soft and romantic and lightly sweet. It's really lovely and has a very comforting feel to it. I say this is the cashmere of scent lol. You just want to bury yourself in it!

 

Final note:

Delicious, and not too sweet. The light quality and airiness really help keep this grounded, and it's very sensual but comforting. Love it!

[telesilla]

Why I tried it: I liked all the notes and it's one of the Lab's most popular scent.

 

In bottle and Wet: Sweet amber

 

Drying down: I can actually get each note here. It's still overwhelmingly sweet, and right now the vanilla's on top. Also I either put on too much or for some weird reason it's not drying down as fast as stuff usually does.

 

Dry: It's a little more balanced, but still quite sweet. I like the way the amber is just a little powdery and the honey is very warm in a way. It so totally does not make me think of O at any point in her journey; it's too simple, to be honest. O was a little more complex and even before she went to the Chateau, a little too sophisticated to wear anything like this. Makes me think more of her friend's sister, the young girl that got pulled into the whole thing.

 

Later: The blend's mellowed out some, and it's not as sweet as it was. It's also quite sexy in an interesting way. I'm thinking I might use this to layer under things I want to sweeten up. I need to do an ingredient search too, this would smell really good with some almond under it to give a little bit of a bitter note. In short, I like it and I might even order a big bottle.

[seamor]

Wet: No vanilla here - almond extract, fresh out of the bottle. Well, that’s okay – I like almond.

 

15 minutes: Sweet almond oil, with an impression of a darker note (the amber?) underneath. So far, this is a pleasant, unassuming fragrance that I could comfortably wear every day, but I’m not in love with it.

 

30 minutes: The almond effect is finally dying back. I now smell more amber, with just a hint of vanilla.

 

1 hour: Now it’s all soft amber. My skin seems to do that – eats everything but the amber/incense notes. Oh well. Good thing I like amber and incense.

 

1 ½ hours: It’s not over, after all! The vanilla has resurrected in an altered form – rounder, darker, with (finally!) some presence.

 

2 hours: Well, that didn’t last. The scent is a faint golden vanilla amber now - quite beautiful, but almost undetectable.

 

O is not what I expected, but it's a good “comfort” scent on me in each of its various morphings. It is rather timid, though, with no throw. If I could get either of those last two effects in a “louder” form, I’d love it.

 

Maybe if I just slather gobs of it all over me…

 

So, okay. I tried that. About 20 minutes into the second, much heavier, application (about four times what I used the first time), I am getting a non-sweet, non-floral, slightly musky vanilla scent that I like just fine. Something like Nefaerious’ The Queen’s Royal Vanilla, and thoroughly yummy. This time it lasts about five hours with no morphing at all. Still mild, gentle, not much throw, but nice.

 

This is quite nice really (Notice how I keep saying "nice"? That's because that's what it is. Very nice.) , but it just doesn't make me wanna shout. I may use the imp, but then again, maybe I'll trade it for something else.

 

[Aviance]

From the description on the site to the reviews that I read on here before ordering, I was dying to smell O. When I put it on, however, I was incredibly disappointed... and came here to post about the terrible smell and refresh myself on why I was so excited to smell this.

 

I get the cherry, I get the almond, and I definitely smell the similarities between this and B Never To Busy to Be Beautiful. I just smelled that this week, and I didn't get the hype when I smelled it. In the shower, I came to like it, though.

 

This smelled like honey and urine on me. The urine was hidden under the sweetness of the honey, but definitely easily to identify. I thought I'd lost my mind. Before posting, I read all of the reviews, and I'm glad to know that I'm not alone in the urine smell.

 

But... the urine only lasted about an hour. And I think I like what's left. It's smokey-sweet... and if I inhale deeply I can pick up the vanilla. Sort of a sticky smell. I'm not sure that *I* get the sex from it, but I do think it'd be a scent to wear when you want to get some.

 

The scent has pretty significant throw on me (much more than the other 2 BPAL scents I've tried--Midway and Bengal).

 

I'm going to try it again. I like what I smell now that it's been about 3 hours since I put it on. I'm not sure if I like it enough to go through the urine stage. I'm definitely going to try this again to get a definitive verdict. And I'm excited to wear it around the boy to see if he has a reaction similar to others.

[astridclaire]

Somehow I thought that O was going to be really soft and light because of what's in it. Most amber/honey/vanilla blends aren't what I'd call strong on me. They usually fade really fast on my skin. But oh my good goddess was I wrong with this one! O is very strong on me and I LOVE it!!! It's just so sweet and lush! I mostly get honey from this scent. Honey with a bit of vanilla with a bit of something that I would almost describe as orange blossom from the amber. You know how some ambers have this kind of floral/powdery kick at the end of their sweetness? Well the amber in O has it and flaunts it beautifully.

 

I just can't get over how well this lasts on me! 8 hours on and still going. I'm definitely getting a big bottle.

[loves_requiem]

Damn it to hell.

 

I guess I cant wear ambers either.

 

Turned to straight up Baby Powder on me...how i smelled when I accidently dumped a whole canister of the stuff on me jeans....

[jasper17]

At first, I didn't want to try O at all and then I ordered an imp for a friend and just wanted to grab a sniff before I sent it off to her. Needless to say, it kind of never made it to her.

 

Now, though... I love this scent. Plain and simple.

 

From the bottle until it wears off or I wash it off, I get a sweet, but not overpowering, slightly vanilla'ed honey and warm skin. I like that it's not overly complex - I think that may be part of the reason why it works so well for me. It has great staying power - it's been lasting about 18 - 24 hours each time I apply it with no real change in the scent - it basically just fades away and then it's done.

 

Really, really love this one - it is truly my favorite and has quickly become my daily scent.

[Rhowan]

I love anything vanilla and warm so I don't know how I have managed to avoid O all of this time! I guess it's because this whole time I have been a member of the forum and wearing BPAL, I have been thinking O had rose in it - and I try to avoid rose.

 

Last week, I was updating my spreadsheet and came across the scent description of O and decided to read it - What the hec?! No roses?! Amber, Honey Vanilla? somebody SMACK ME! Needless to say, I put a 5ml. order, without smelling this. My good friend Venusflytrap, gifted me an imp of O so I could take it for a whirl while I waited..... Thank you VenusFT!!!

 

In the bottle and wet on my skin, I am getting a soft, warm amber. This is gorgeous! A beautiful, golden scent - warm and glowing.

 

When O dries down? *sigh* Wonderful and sensual and just a great big O. My skin warms it up and the vanilla starts to round out and sweeten the scent of warm amber. This is just incredible! No honey turning into powder on me either!It seems to me that my skin is actually warmer where I applied this, almost as if it is throwing off a hot, sensual, call for attention! Wow.

 

Conclusion? Run, don't walk! and go out and buy a 10ml. Every woman needs to have O handy. I am so glad I ordered the bottle I did, I only wish it was a 10 instead of a 5.

[ovxi]

I don't really get the sex-smell aspect. The Ex did, and loved it a lot, so I wore it for him, but to me O was rather thin, and almost sour. Oddly, I found it blended better with my chemistry if I wore it in my armpits rather than the usual scent-application places. It's nice enough, but the honey and amber make it too floaty and whispery for me. Doesn't turn to sex on everyone. I don't know, maybe I just never quite pegged the right time of the month. I still have half the imp, and will try it again, but it really doesn't seem to work on me quite as I'd hoped it would. Ah, well.

[filigree_shadow]

Not much I can say that hasn't been said. On me, it's honey and vanilla -- after a while it warms up into a honey musk.

 

After reading the reviews I was expecting O to bowl me over with sexiness, but it doesn't. (I guess Scherezade is still the reigning champ of sexy, for me.) It's not really what I expected.

 

ETA: After trying many BPAL blends, I now know why O didn't work for me -- my skin turns the BPAL honey note to play-doh. However I have found that Mouse's Long and Sad Tale works great on me and is sort of what I was expecting O to smell like.

Edited August 2, 2006 by filigree_shadow

[sestina]

Primarily based on reviews, I ordered a 5ml bottle of O - it was the very first thing I put in my shopping cart on my very first order. I was slightly worried that it couldn't live up to its hype. I had most of an imp from a sweet swapper but, you know - maybe the imp was just great and the bottle, or another batch, be different. I mean, amber, honey and vanilla? That's just too good to be true. There must be something in there that will make me tilt my head and squint.

 

But no... sweet dreamy goodness, this is the smoothest, most lickable scent I have ever had the pleasure of oiling myself down with. I wish my whole house smelled like this. It's the smell of golden honey and sugary warm amber.

 

O is just exquisite.

[valentina]

Ah, the legendary O, I finally tried it. I even bought a bottle from a forum member, because I was so sure I'd like it. And my initial experiences lived up to the legend, but in a way I didn't anticipate.

 

I sniffed it in the bottle and thought it smelled way sweet but also a little pungent. I put in on my skin and I thought it smelled like really sweet b.o. and I wasn't at all fond of it. It became a little sweeter-spicy after a bit, but still vaguely b.o.-ish. Like you'd had a really sweaty roll in the sack and used a bucket of honey. I was so bummed. I really didn't think it was my thing. I was ready to sell it bargain-basement on the forum ASAP.

 

But... that's what my nose and brain said. My DH sniffed it and liked it a lot. He semi-begged me not to get rid of it. So I tried it again and it grew on me a bit. He still liked it a lot. I decided to wear in into work and let my cadre of workplace man-noses sniff it. They too liked it a lot... even the resident Urd addict was fond of it. I noticed they all wanted to keep sniffing and sniffing and sniffing it. They rather acted like bunch of man-dogs around a bitch in heat, if you ask me. One of my more impartial female sniffers took one whiff, got wide-eyed and insisted that O should become my signature scent. (I said: No! That's Urd!)

 

So that sweet, honeyed, amber, vanilla scent has its effect. My, it has an effect. I'm getting used to it -- it's a sweet, lush skin fragrance, not traditionally perfumey, but very enveloping. It's like there's a cloud of sex around you, so wear with caution or with wild abandon, depending on the circumstances!

[pale]

In bottle: amber and honey. Mmm.

 

On me: Starts out amber and honey, ends up honey. Very strong honey. The honey has shouldered the amber out of the way, and just takes over. I dont really get any vanilla notes. I smell like an accident with a honey jar.... so, I passed along my imp to a friend tho who described it as 'beautiful nectar' and immediately got a 5ml because she would 'cry' when she ran out...

[nancybridget]

Oh, how yummy!

 

Honey and Vanilla....this is my type of scent!

 

Reminds me a bit of L'Occitane's Eau de Miel, which I also have and adore, and O is just a great anytime gal.

 

Anyway, I'm gonna need more.

[Miss_Trisha]

My first review ever! Whee!

 

Out of the imp, I can get a strong amber with vanilla floating in the background. It's sultry and warm and delicious.

 

Dry down, the amber dies down a little bit and lets a sweeter, yet bold scent break through. It must be the honey, a very robust honey. The vanilla is still noticable, but plays as a side note to the honeyed amber.

 

An hour later, and I feel like a powerful, sexual creature. The smoothness of the honey and deepness of the amber play so well off of each other and the vanilla adds the most subtle, yet gorgeous layer. I am positively in love with this! Usually amber doesn't like me too much but this is devine! I smell delictable and my boyfriend agrees!

 

For first time users of BPAL, I would totally recommend O. It is sweet, yet sultry...not too cloying, and scrumptous! I'm on my way to order a 10mL of this!

[aymee]

I love O!

 

On me, it's lovely honey and amber, with just a little bit of vanilla. Amber and honey are both amazing on me, and the amber seems to become the dominant note the longer I wear it. It's sexy and comforting at the same time, and it even smells good mixed with a lil sweat. As if it wasn't awesome enough, O is one of the only scents that lasts all day on me. Fantastic!

[abberlaine]

O's about a half-step up from the edible honey powder you'd buy at a sex store. (I dare you to layer her with Kama Sutra's honey dust, actually.)

 

On the skin, she's a straight-up concoction of honey, amber, and a little bit of vanilla that's dead heavy and overwhelmingly saccharine. A quick swipe'll take care of both your wrists. She's nicer than not, but way too eager to throw herself at anyone who'll take her.

Edited March 30, 2006 by Abberlaine Arrol