Carnal

[Ishtar]

Bold, bright mandarin paired with the sweet, sensual earthiness of fig.

Very sweet and fruity in the vial. I can distinctly smell the fig note, which is good news since I love figs. Unfortunately on my skin it is the mandarin that strongly comes through and I don't care for it as much as I love fig. Bummer.

It is a gorgeous scent though, and if you are looking for a fruity blend with an orangey note, you would probably love Carnal.

ETA: I am reading the reviews posted earlier and I agree with Shadow, I guess I actually prefer the scent of a fig tree to that of the fruit itself. I am off to the Suggestions forum to beg for a fig leaf scent. Edited September 28, 2005 by Shollin

[Tesseljoan]

Bubbly, fruity. There is a creamy scent to it when I first apply it. The fig seems to be the deeper and sweeter note, with the mandarin on top, making it fresh and slightly bitter at the edges.

[TrayLynn]

In the bottle: an earthy, sweet, fruity mix.

 

Wearing: I love me some Carnal. The fig really stands out on me and the mandarin just softly accents the scent. I keep meaning to get a bigger bottle but my wishlist is already as long as my leg.

[Merteuil]

This isn't a tart orange scent. In the tube, it's pure sweet candied orange slices, yummy but not the tangy orange peel and freshly sectioned fruit I was expecting from the descriptions.

 

On my wrists it becomes a warm cherry-strawberry-plum tart. I have to agree with the "Fruit Roll Up" comparison someone made above, but what Carnal instantly brought to my mind was my childhood box of Strawberry Shortcake dolls and all their little plastic pets and accessories.

 

It's a cozy girlish scent. Not one I'd wear out clubbing or to work, but certainly when I'm feeling a little down and want to snuggle up with my flannel pajamas and a favorite old book.

Edited August 30, 2004 by Merteuil

[Effluvia]

in the vial: A soft, pale, flowery creamsicle on the other side of the room. Veeeery faint. You stand on the outside of this scent, you don't get to go inside. Maybe things will amp up when it's on my skin...

 

on my skin: Yay! It's gotten a little stronger...I smell honey. Is there honey in this? No, fig. Well, yeah, okay, now I smell fig in there, but I wouldn't know it unless you told me. I still smell honey. I smell mandarin oranges and a honey/vanilla creamy, maybe even yogurty kind of thing. It smells very tasty. It's unspeakably delicate. You almost feel like you have to be careful with it because it might break, that's how delicate it is. This is in NO WAY carnal. This is very innocent smelling to me.

 

drying a bit, on my skin: I'm starting to get this. It's starting to smell sexy to me. I don't think this girl's hedonistic side likes to come out until she's dry. This is more like a debauched innocence scent. It smells light and fruity and pretty until it dries and the fig comes out and balances it out. It's much earthier now. I think I really like this.

[summer]

What the heck??? In the vial, on my skin, and even hours later, this smelled like Strawberry Shortcake doll heads. I mean, exactly like them. Rarely has a scent evoked something so specific for me, but this one did.

 

So perplexing. I wanted to like this so much! The ingredients sound right up my alley. But the Strawberry Shortcake doll head scent is so overpowering that when I sniff it, it's as if the smell STAYS in my nose! Even if I sniff other oils afterwards, all I can smell is Strawberry Shortcake doll heads.

 

I like to think that I am an imaginitive sniffer, so I'm particularly annoyed at myself for not being able to get beyond this particular association. Perhaps I will try it again in a week or so and hope for a better skin chemistry reception. But for now, this one is on my "don't go near with a ten-foot-pole" list. Not because it smells bad -- I used to love sniffing my Strawberry Shortcake dolls! -- but just because it's so strong and smells so specifically like them. I just can't wear it! Waaaaahh.

 

Edited to add: A-ha! After getting the single-note Fig, I realized that FIG is the Strawberry-Shortcake doll head component. So I'm NOT going crazy! I guess that the fig note is clearly what stands out for me in Carnal. So fig lovers, Carnal is your oil.

 

I haven't tried it again since my review, but I think I will just to see if I can think of it as figgy and foody rather than plastic-like.

Edited January 2, 2005 by summer

[MilkAndSugar]

I love Carnal.

It's a fruity scent, and I'm not usually a fan of fruit scents, but I love fig and I love mandarines so this is fantastic. Very sweet and juicy, and smells like sunshine.

 

TMI: The scent in itself isn't "carnal" to me, but I put it on before going to bed the other night and had very vivid dreams of the explicit kind.

It was fun, might have to try if it happens again.

 

-Milk

[Astarte]

This smells so luscious at first, there's something about that mandarin note that sets my head spinning. But the fig kicks in and brings an earthly warm tone to the smell which disagrees with me. As a scent its very exciting and promises so much, this blend really has captured what I perceive as carnal.

[danuv]

Carnal on me seems to be one of the oils that changes the least from bottle to skin and through dry down and wearing, which is fine because I adore it.

 

Peculiarly, I don't find it the slightest bit carnal. Like others it seems incredibly innocent to me, like watching a baby sleep type of innocent. I seem to want to wear it a lot when I go to bed. It is very peaceful and relaxing and reminds me of something from my childhood that I can't quite place my finger on.

 

The fig in Carnal is instantly recognizable to me but while I know there is something else aside from the fig I wouldn't be able to name it without having read the description.

 

It is one of my favorite BPAL oils so far.

[diabolique]

I agree with everyone else when they say this isn't the slightest bit Carnal.

 

I received this as a wonderful gift from Mandarin. It's been sitting in the "unused" portion of my oil box. It was on my wishlist, but I didn't like the way it smelled in the vial. It smelled almost urinal to me, but it didn't smella acidic. Just very, very light, somewhat like an aftertaste of something, and I only really like scents that waft around me. I never put it on.

 

I've been in a mood today where I want to try new things, so I put a tiny amount of Carnal on. Immediately I noticed that it smelled much more presentable on my skin than it does in the imp. It's very cathartic and clean. It's slightly sweet, not cloying at all; this would be great for steamy, humid weather when all you want to do is jump into an icy pool. I don't know if I'll wear this often, but I'll use my imp in the warmer months.

[grrrlennyl]

carnal

 

at first: the imp tossed this into my order as a freebie. wow. this is very sweet and red. it's a very autumnal scent. this one should be fun to wear.

on: sweet. i can't really figure out what the notes are, though.

1 hour later: still sweet. i think i smell some pomegranate, but with something more thickly sweet underneath. very nice.

2.5 hours later: this is still mostly pomegranate on me. woo hoo! however, there's still that extra sweetness underneath. very nice.

5 hours later: fading a bit, but still pretty.

overall: this is very nice. it'll be a nice alternative to swank when i want something a bit heavier. i'm not sure i'd buy a bottle, but i'll enjoy using up my imp.

[stardreamer]

Very strong, very sweet, not much orange that I can detect. R. doesn't object to it, but I've been thinking it's too sweet for my taste. I think I'll have to try this one a second time before I make a final decision about it.

 

Something I definitely notice about the BPAL oils -- they don't give me headaches! Even when the scent is really strong and not terribly appealing, I can go all day wearing one of these without problems. That's very unusual for me in the perfume world, and I'm beginning to suspect that it's something else in most perfumes that I'm reacting to, not the odor per se.

 

EDIT after second attempt: I put less of it on this time, and I like the result better. I can smell more of the orange, and it's not as sweet. The fact that it doesn't get an "Ew, yuck" reaction from R. is a strong reason to keep it! I think the key is just to take it a little easy on the application.

Edited November 6, 2004 by stardreamer

[k00kaburra]

In bottle: Muted oranges. Almost spicy somehow. Overall, I think 'earthy orange' would be a good description.

 

On me: Very similar to the bottle. Sweet, slightly spiced oranges - this definitely isn't as fierce as I expcted it to be. I guess I either don't know what fig smells like or it is reacting strangely to my skin - but not in an unpleasant way.

[springsea]

Ok, I don't get much carnality from this, but I can't stop smelling my arm. The mandarin and fig blend perfectly on my to create a nice warm, spicy, sweet scent. It smells exactly like the Harvest Spice tea my friends and I drank in high school. I could be sitting on my advisor's couch right now with all of them.

 

I have to order imps for my friends and probably a 5ML for myself.

[sh1mm3r]

For some reason, I had it in my head that I would like fig, so in my last order I ordered every fig scent. But I forgot how sweet and sticky fig can smell (brain fart, I guess). This is so not for me. The scent just smells like a huge holiday bazaar or a bowl of potpourri.

 

One bonus - the mandarin didn't turn bitter and rancid smelling like most orange scents do, so maybe I can be safe ordering future impies with some citrus.

 

I'm not too disappointed though; I have 14 more to try, and I have a friend who really wants my imp of this.

 

[feline.by.design]

Curious... this smelled like strawberry candle wax on me. I didn't realise that there was mandarin and fig, but maybe the combo just made it fruity, and I associated the fruity-ness with strawberries... I don't know.

 

It's not a very strong scent, but oddly long-lasting in a faint way. This is a good scent for maybe a youngster, or maybe just someone else. It didn't impress me much, though, too bright and fruity for my taste. Plus, I swear my skin just swallowed it without giving it much of a chance.

 

Strange.

 

-doreen

 

(corrected for spelling mistake)

Edited August 11, 2005 by feline.by.design

[Donnababe]

Carnal

 

I was nervous about this as I don't like orange scents on my skin.

 

However, Carnal is gorgeous. Sweet, warm fig and just a touch of zing from the mandarin. I adore this. I don't think the name is particularly appropriate as Carnal makes me feel warm, comfortable and cozy instead of what it should but who cares?

 

It's exquisite. A top 3 and a must have in a big bottle. Why didn't I try this sooner?

[Faerykin]

Carnal

 

Swiped across wrists and along collarbone.

 

Initial Wet (8-8:30am): This goes on thick and sweet. The thicker fig is the most predominant scent, and it is surrounded by a lighter sweetness.

 

Initial Dry (8:30-10am): This continues to sweeten. I can no longer detect one specific note that stands on top. Instead, I get a very sweet, very earthy, bright fruitiness. Very nummy.

 

Throughout the Day (10am-on): This tones down quickly. I am surrounded by faint whispers of fruity, earthy sweetness.

 

This continues to fade to a familiar-foodiness. Not unpleasant, but I just don’t see myself wearing it that often – so off to the Swap Pile.

[xoe]

Interestingly, Carnal smells like a candle to me. A nice candle, but a candle nonetheless. It's nice, but not really me. OH well.

[JazzieCazzie]

Figgy figgy fig fig fig! And I do love my fig. Problem is, from within a few minutes of application, the mandarin rose up and took away my lovely fig and replaced it with orangeyness. Strong and sweet and rather nice but too fruity for me in the long run, I'm afraid. It's something I would regift to someone I really like, because I think it's unique and lovely, just too fruity-sweet to be me.

[klowey]

I thought this would be really wonderful. In the vial it was all mandarin, directly on my skin it was nice and figgy. But within an hour I ended up smelling like a really high-quality candle (à la xoe.) Like the ones you find in a kitchen etc store.

Edited January 1, 2005 by klowey

[Splendid Molerat]

Carnal gets together with my skin and does some odd things. I've tried it several times, with very little variation in the outcome.

 

Initially I get a craft shop and citrus peel scent. Then the mandarin turns brightly metallic. The skin-warmth of the fig appears, and I soon receive a kind of blood-metallic flavour.

 

After the ten minute progression, Carnal is fresh citrus over a really high quality cut of meat. The scent-pun is a bit comical, but I can't leave the house smelling this way.

 

Once again, I've got a powerful craving for a blue rare striploin.

[judifruit]

At first I couldn't place the scent...I knew it reminded me of something. The second time I wore it, it came to me: Glade Berries candle scent.

I've never been fond of berry scents to begin with, but when I finally hit the nail on the head it just sealed the deal.

Carnal is a very sweet, fruity scent...very deep, juicy, syrupy berry.

[Northernminx]

Fruity and a lot sweeter than I anticipated, I got a lot of fig out of this. Fig, fig, more fig, and a little more fig. No mandarin, not much else, just sweet juicy yummy fig. Simple but not quite what I had imagined and since my chemistry just eats this up and it's gone in ten minutes, off to swaps for someone who can properly adore it.

[byrdie]

Note ~ I'm heading towards the end of my period -- I'm past the heaviest flow, but it's still there. We'll see what happens with this oil, as this may be my first try with it.

 

Bottle ~ a very cold, sweet drink. That's all that really comes to mind, and then a bit of grape hits me. But at first, all I really smell are "cold" and "sweet," if that makes any sense.

 

Wet ~ light grape candy.

 

Drying ~ I'm not really familiar with fig, so I don't know if the fact that the sweet edge is fading while the, ah, "purple" foundation remains means that I'm getting fig, or if it means that I've finally snapped. I'm liking it so far, though.

 

Dry ~ It's starting to get a little dull and powdery, or maybe there's a musk coming out that isn't thrilling me. It's a little disappointing, because the scent is starting to smell stale. Not hideous, just ... tired.

 

Final thoughts ~ Hrm. I wonder if a lotion or some other foundation may help to keep this oil in the "drying" stage? Or maybe just slathering it on or multiple touch-ups? I'm not sure, but it'd be worth investigating. It's a fun little scent, otherwise.