Block Buster

[grrrlennyl]

Used to open up options in your life, overcome obstacles, and create opportunities. This blend increases your potential for success, inspires creativity and quick thinking, and helps you to be more flexible, adaptable and open to change.

at first: sweet, but also...uh-oh. i smell cinnamon. i'll have to be very, very careful with this one.
on: sweet, but with a tinge of something herbal. i think the sweetness may be from some sort of fruit, but i can't place it.
1.5 hours later: still that fruit. there's still the herbal scent underneath. for some reason, i can't place the notes in this one.
4.5 hours later: it's much, much lighter now, but i didn't put a lot on to begin with. the scent hasn't really changed besides that, though.
overall: wonderful. it does "what it says on the tin", so i'm happy.
note: i just have to say that this really helped me focus at 2 important time. first, i was able to concentrate pretty well while writing the essays for my gre, which tends to be a struggle, since the topics are usually quite boring. most recently, i helped me complete a draft of something for work that i was feeling really scattered and muddled about. it's fabulous!

NOTE: This review thread is for BPAL's Bewitching Brew. If you're looking for the Twilight Alchemy Lab oil of the same name, those reviews are here. --Shollin

[Nepthys]

Yummalicious. I can't attest to the efficacy of this oil yet - I just used it last night for the first time during a money rite - but it smells divine. No clue what the notes are. On me it's a very rich sweet golden scent and really does connote luxury and success. I had planned to just use this ritually but it smells so awesome that I will definitely order a 5 ml just to wear around and keep my prosperity vibes up.

[Ina Garten Davita]

I wanted Block Buster for when I'm working on a new crochet pattern and it's not coming out right. I'm hoping it works. Here's the news on the scent...

 

First Impression: There is cinnamon in here, I think.

 

Second Impression: A very quiet scent of cinnamon and a delicate floral.

 

Final Analysis: This scent is very homey and calming.

[silverangel]

I adore this blend. It helped me not put a girl through a wall when I REALLY wanted to. And it's got this great warm, cinnamony scent. It kind of makes me warm inside when I wear it. And it reminds me vaguely of cinnamon in hot apple cider. I need a big bottle of this!

[Becky]

I also get a cinnamon note in this one, like the other reviews. it also seems quite sweet to me, but not really in a cinnamon candy sort of way. just really sweet with a touch of sweet cinnamon, if that makes sense. I really liked it at first, and it didn't change much at all on me, but after about an hour I coulden't smell it at all! I'm going to have to try again another day!

[jessamynit]

I was very skeptical of this one: boring name, blandish smelling in the bottle. when I smell it in the bottle it's kind of, "oh better take my herbal voodoo medicine".

but I wanted quick thinking and success today! so I gave it a shot. the moment it hits my skin it turns into a lovely version of good earth's cinnamon tea. which I don't like to drink, but do like to smell like.

as for the success/ creativity/ open to change thing... hard to say. today I woke feeling very out of it and headachey, and was pleased that the headache didn't develop into a wicked migraine-type one later in the day... I did work and dealt with some sticky situations and stuff... so maybe on a small scale I was successful. I'm waiting for the thousands to pour in though!

still, I didn't think I'd like this one, and now it's on my big bottle wishlist. that's why the lab includes the freebies, eh?

[Ishtar]

Block Buster, as a scent, is a major shape-shifter on me.

 

The first few times I sniffed it in the imp, it smelled, well, really unpleasant. Sharp and animalistic. I promptly shut the imp, thinking it was strictly for ritual use. And I moved on to all the other shiny, "instant gratification" imps in my order.

 

Then last night, I peeked into my box and Block Buster was the last untested imp. I decided to give it a try, after all. If I really hated it, I could always wash it off, it is not like it was going to kill me, right? So I applied, ever so sparingly and... miracle!

Block Buster literally bloomed as soon as it touched my skin, pulling notes of spices and sweet flowers from out of nowhere, or so it seemed, for it certainly smelled nothing like it did in the imp! Joy! Awe!

 

I am overjoyed to discover that I can wear this, because I can definitely use some help in the job search department and I think my main problem is precisely that I am not making the most of the opportunities I have. I will keep you updated, but since I recently got some very good results with some of the Voodoo blends, I have no reason to doubt Block Buster will work as well

[hypothermya]

Block Buster

 

Initial Impression

 

Out of the vial this smells fruity and almost buttery. Almost as though there were pear or peach or some other juicy fruit in there. There's also the slightest hint of cinnamon coming from the vial. Interesting. Kinda smells like some of the fruit coblers that my mother makes. It's making me hungry, though....

 

Wearing It

 

While wet, the cinnamon really comes to the forefront. My skin, however, just adores cinnamon, so I wouldn't be surprised if it were less cinnamony on others. There's still a nice fruity scent underneath that hasn't gone super sweet yet (another weird thing my skin does), and it almost smells like March Hare...fruity, almost like potpourri, but more real smelling. Very nice. Another reviewer mentioned that this smelled like Good Earth tea, and while it is similar, Tarot: The World has more resemblance to that tea blend than this does.

 

The oil isn't terribly strong. I normally only dab a bit on when I'm testing an oil (as a result of being overpowered by my initial tests of oils such as Scherezade, and Oberon, etc.). This, however, stays very close to my skin, and is just a very homey, comforting scent lingering near my wrist.

 

I guess we'll see if it does any good throughout the rest of the day.

[monet]

OK. I can attest to this oil working. It smells lightly cinnamony good. But the cool thing was when I wore it I felt lighter, more positive, more optimisitic. So, I had a meeting with a big retailer in my city to see if she wanted to carry my wares. I was very nervous because I heard she was very obnoxious and can be cruel. So, I put on the block buster and off I went. My meeting was a success. We actually bonded (albeit briefly) when I mentioned my BPAL scent and she whipped out her own personl talisman. Under her blouse was a long leather cord with an arabic symbol on it that she said she never takes off. It was a riot.

Block Buster

[xoe]

Wow, BlockBuster inspired this sort of semi-poetic review:

 

smells like a summer festival. Like drinking an icy cold fruit slush in a crowd of young people, while the blazing sun heats your skin on a hectic, carefree day. Later it morphs into something softer, as if some clouds have come rolling in, or the sun has set.

 

Very interesting.

 

And I do feel as though I've busted through some blocks. So Yay!

[Penance]

Got a 5mL of this beauty from lorajc.

 

First sniff:

 

Oh my God, this is so different than what I was expecting and in such a good way! I associate the voodoo blends (in general) with a sort of herbal smell, but Block Buster is the absolute antithesis to herbal. It's...comforting smelling, somehow. To me, Block Buster smells exactly like the cinnamon flavored organic honey straws I used to eat when I was little. They were basically just plastic straws filled with flavored honey and crimped at both ends and Block Buster is instant, comforting nostaliga for me. It's rich and golden and has that familiar honey smell to it with a soft background of cinnamon. Real cinnamon, not cinnamon red hots. I'm in desperate need of some flexibility right now with thesis revisions and finals looming large, so hopefully Block Buster will help me loosen up a little. If not, I'll still smell gorgeous, which is almost as good.

 

Wet on skin:

 

More cinnamon than honey now, but definitely a variation on the same scent combination. It's got a nice cozy spice to it and sort of sweet honey richness underneath. I don't know if this is making me more open to change, but it's certainly very calming.

 

Dry down:

 

Back to the cinnamon flavored honey it was in the vial and it's gorgeous. I haven't started on my revisions and studying yet, but I do feel more able to tackle the whole motherload of work I have ahead of me, which is wonderful in and of itself. I really love this one, and I'm so glad I went straight for the 5mL instead of trying an imp first; I can see myself wearing this one all the time.

 

The bottom line:

 

Gorgeous and very comforting. I feel like I can face the world wearing this one and maybe even get some work done without having my brain explode.

[ViolentKitten]

This is like a strong fruity candy first on. With a hint of herbaliness.

 

As it dries down though, it's reminding me quite a lot of Tamora! Tamora (with its amber, heliotrope, golden sandalwood, peach blossom and vanilla bean) is prettier, softer, and powdery musky. Block Buster is no less lovely, but bolder, with a touch of cinnamon, and I can smell the peach and sandalwood that I smell in Tamora. The final dry down is a rounded, peachy floral, still with a hint of cinnamon.

 

I'm not sure if I can vouch for it's Voodooishness, I didn't necessarily feel more creative or any of the other things it mentions, but it is a happy feeling scent and I'm not discounting the other effects just yet!

[LaLisa]

Sweet, slightly spicy, inspirational. The cinnamon make my skin slighty tingle

 

Looking forward to dressing candles with this and wearing it for it magickal purposes--it seems very effective so far.

[surf-tormented]

Smells like fruit, kinda nice. The best smelling voodoo oil I have tried.

 

I don't get any cinnamon in this, maybe ginger?

[luxuria]

Smells like herbal fruit in the imp. Except sort of..flat. I didn't like it, but tried it anyway..

 

This reminds me of babies. Like baby wipes, unused diapers, and other dainty but still vaguely unpleasant things. The fruit entirely went away and I can smell an undercurrent of herbs but this still overwhelmingly reminds me of babies. I don't smell any cinnamon and it isn't sweet in a typical sort of way. It in no way smells like candy.

 

As it dries the unpleasant part fades, but still remains largely the same.

 

I'd use this as a room scent in a nursery or something else along those lines. I just can't kill the "small children" assocation!

 

Probably not an imp I'll keep.

 

[edit] I tried again later and it smelled like bad breath on drydown. stupid skin.

Edited April 11, 2005 by luxuria

[Wren]

In The Imp: Sandalwood is the first smell I got. And something sweet...possibly cherry?

 

Wet On Skin: No more sandalwood, but definitely more of the sweet smell. There's something powdery in the background. More sniffing finds a nice warm spiciness that's slowly coming out as well. Cinnamon perhaps? Another scent that isn't overly cloying, but nice. For some reason I wanna say there's a touch of anise, but that's probably dead off. As it dries more, the cinnamon is really popping out.

 

Dried: The spiciness tones down and the sweet (vaguely fruity) and powdery notes come out. Niiiiiice. Lingered on my skin for quite a few hours.

 

Overall Opinion: Again, the word that comes to mind is NICE. Not something I'd walk over hot coals to obtain, but a very pleasing scent none-the-less. I would definitely wear it.

[quinkel]

Clover decanted me a cute little bottle of this I had the feeling that it could be helpful because in my new job I encountered some blocks with calling new customers.

First, the scent: Cinnamon, candy and something very dirty/animalistic underneath.

 

Voodoo properties: This one smells very magical/loaded, and somehow it feels "heavy" to put it on, somedays I cannot use it...how bizarre! It has happend also with High John the conqueror. I want to use it but my whole body refuses, when i force myself to use it anyway, I get ill!

First time I used it the calling went well and i even managed to score a appointment with a customer. Today i try again because the blocks are not cured completely

[shelldoo]

in the vial it is a sweet fruity fun scent

 

on me it is a buttery cinnamon, sweet, very nice smell, i get a very red color from this i may get a big bottle

[stardust]

Gift from the lab!

 

From start to finish, this smells like slightly honeyed tea with lemon and the tiniest hint of cinnamon--usually cinnamon drowns out all other notes on my skin, but fortunately, this is not the case here.

 

I love this one! It's a brilliant match with the intended results; I envision someone quietly sipping on tea in the corner of a coffee or tea shop, concentrating on writing his or her novel.

 

Definitely getting a big bottle of this.

Edited March 6, 2005 by stardust

[lady_pandora]

This didn't smell good to me in the vial. Not really bad, either, though--just kind of "and why would I bother wearing this?"

 

I didn't even mean to put any on, but I spilled a little bit on my fingers. A little while later, I had my hand near my face and wondered, "What is that YUMMY smell?" I figured out eventually that I must have spilled Block Buster on myself, and that clearly it loves my body chemistry.

 

It's really sweet on me and a little fruity. I didn't even notice the cinnamon everyone is talking about, oddly enough. I might order this next order. I haven't made up my mind. It smells great on me but there are other scents I prefer.

[wolfie13]

I have to agree completely with Penance's analysis - this DOES smell like those cinnamon honey straws!

 

It smells pretty much the same to me in the vial, upon application and during drydown, although the honey is most prevalent on me.

 

It's funny - others have said it's light, but on me it's very loud and sweet (b/c as I've mentioned on many other reviews - my skin blows honey up like crazy)

 

It's not something I would generally wear at all, so I've relegated it to strictly use with intention.

 

I use this whenever i need creative inspiration in a hurry on a design project, and let me tell you this WORKS. Of all the bpal voodoo blends I have tried so far, this has been the one that works best for me for it's intended purpose.

[cuervosueno]

I used this in a bath the other day and liked it....nice light cinnamony note with an additional aquatic note if that makes any sense...

on me...its odd. Same as in bath...but did turn to wierd bad breath smell on me that someone else noted, so its no go for me, I'm afraid...

[velvet]

smells exactly like spiced apples.

i dont like apples

but i am sticking through it, there are a lot of things i need to get done tonight!

the cinnamon is very strong. i dont know if its my allergies that are making my eyes water or the cinnamon.

it smells good. i just dont like apples

hopefully i will get more of a floral smell soon.

 

im off to my homework!!!

[Finny]

Cinnamon, and sweetness.

 

This one reminds me of apple pie, a spicy fresh baked apple pie. Spicy, sweet, and a fruity, it tickles my nose. Golden, and delicious, a definite keeper, now to see about the properties.

 

Just for scent alone, a keeper, will update later on voodoo properties.

[cupide430]

Block Buster

 

At first, light, sweet cinnamon with a touch of something fruity-- maybe cherry? The cinnamon is deepening and getting stronger as it dries. Now it smells like cinnamon-y potpourri with a touch of something sweet. It smells something like cinnamon apple potpourri, emphasis on the cinnamon. Just a hint of the apple. Sweet potpourri, that's all this is.