VioletChaos

A very warm thank you again to my Witch and Angel, Gypsy Rose Red for making all my Bat's Day wishes come true this year! xoxo In the Bottle: Yep- that's AquaNet, alright! It's a sweet, sticky chemical floral that makes me surprisingly nostalgic for LA's Helter Skelter, the first goth club I ever went to, some 20 years ago...sigh. *ahem!* pulled from reverie, here's the rest of the review Wet On Skin: This light green oil has gotten very, very herby, actually. i think it's the olibanum note. Very green and sharp, like BPAL's Fern note. It's a bit of a surprise from what it was in the bottle, but I'm intrigued. Dry Down: Ah yes, there's the spicy benzoin. It reminds me a tad of carnation and also of the spice one gets from heliotrope, where it almost feels like the back of my throat is scratchy, if that makes sense. In All: A real morpher. Sweetly sexy, like Slade doing Ballroom Blitz. This oil strikes me as in the same family as Et Lux Fuit and Tarot: The Sun. Extremely high throw, the type that starts off quiet but gets stronger as the moments pass- do NOT slather or you will be in for a long day. This is one for late spring and throughout the summer. I can't personally decide if this scent is "me" but I'll hold onto it and see how I feel when Seattle actually warms up in another month. ETA- throw changes!

A very warm thank you to my Witch and Angel, Gypsy Rose Red for making all my Bat's Day wishes come true this year! xoxo On to the review! In the Bottle: A very light, clean lavender -like, essential oil kind of clean- and a sparkling touch of brass. Wet On Skin: The brass note is coming out more strongly. Usually I'm not a fan of the metallic notes, but this, mixing with the aftershave- which is now blooming- is just lovely. Dry Down: I understand the herby quality that Mellifluous was talking about, but to me it comes across as a really good Victorian men's cologne. This is where the metal note really comes in handy- this might be too floral for anyone but a Dandy, but the Brass really grounds the scent, makes it have a depth it would be lacking otherwise. In All: Light throw and subtle, but definitely with it's own presence. This is actually the only one of the five 2011 Goth scents my boyfriend purchased, and, while I am not interested in wearing this mySelf, I'm very much looking forward to smelling it on him! A true Gentlemen's scent.

NINON: HER BATH Lavender and three ambers with rose otto, orris root, bourbon vanilla, and red sandalwood. OK, first of all, when I opened the box from the Lab, there was a sizeable oil stain on the inside of the box! Nothing in the contents were damaged or injured in any way, but I mention this to illustrate the over-the-top quantity of yummy liquid was mixed in to these bath salts, because THAT'S what caused the stain! the oils were literally bursting from the various envelopes that held them! what this means in the long run: well, for starters, I am a person that saves BPAL bath products for special occasions, to make them last longer. Anyone who treats this stuff as precious is bound to have some concerns about how long the fragrance will last, how quickly will these salts dry out, that sort of thing. what this level of saturation says to me, is that there is No need to worry- Ninon is going to be good for the long haul! Now, onto the scent. I knew immediately that I was going to want Ninon's perfume, but the lavender made me iffy on the salts, and amber notes frequently go all baby-powder on me. But if I was going to get a complete set of any courtesan, nino was the one. So I took the plunge. And am I glad I did!!! The lavender here is not the sleepy, snoozy lavender of, say, TKO. This is more what I think of with English Lavender, like, lavender cologne. the type that a handsome, and slighty cheeky nobleman would have worn to the court 160 years ago. A lovely and somehow slightly sexy lavender, in fact. the orris helps with the sexy part for sure- I can clearly smell the two interacting with each other, playing and balancing. Likewise, there's interplay between the vanilla, ambers and sandalwood that is really, really special. The vanilla is less a presence than I would expect from a Bourbon varietal. Here it's more of a support for the amber and sandalwood to play upon. About those two: it almost seems to me like I have to really focus on which of those two notes I want to smell more, and then I smell it! I don't know if that indicates that the two are so perfectly balanced or what, but it sure is interesting, not to mention beautiful. Thankfully, I'm getting NONE of the usual powder I experience with amber generally- I'm wondering if the salts are a good vehicle for those of us that usually get it all powdery?! THAT would be rather exciting! I'm also wondering if, like the oils, the salts will change and blend more over time. the vehicle might not lend itself so easilly to that, but it doesn't really matter, as Ninon's salts are fabulous as is. For the record, I've not gotten any rose at all from this, but perhaps that is something that will appear with aging as well. In all, total win.

In the Bottle: Yup, very orchid. I, too am seeing where the comparisons of this to Lune Noir are coming from- which is a scent I love, so I've got my fingers crossed! Wet On Skin: The orchid is strong and sweet, but yes, it's "black". This is no sunny orchid, for sure. I'm also getting a hint of the phlox note someone mentioned. That's an iffy one for me, but so far it's adding just a little depth and spice to the mix and not going powdery, so it's looking good. Dry Down: There's an edge of a green note, like a real sharp fresh herby green, like the dandelion sap from Strawberry Moon '09. but it's very subtle in here, not at the fore at all. Mostly it's the orchid being all sexy and pretty. This is indeed a very "perfumy" scent, reminding me some of the White Shoulders my aunt wore when I was a kid. but as much as I usually dislike scents that smell like Perfume, I really, really like this one. In All: low to medium throw, a classy scent for an evening out in late spring, or perhaps mixed with Smut for a midnight seduction A keeper!

In the bottle: WHOA, violet! Hi violet. Hello. Hi. Hi. Hi. You have my full attention! (there is a hint of creaminess that others mentioned, but the violet is SO intense that's it's like an afterthought. Wet On Skin: This stuff has CRAZY amounts of throw. I was testing another oil on my other hand and i had to put miss AF5 hand behind my BACK before i could smell the other one without it being tainted! the violet is pure and true. I, too, am reminded of C Howard's violet candies. the gum to be exact. It's strong and sweet like that. Not at all in a Faith way, which is very gentle by comparison. But I've been looking for a more "direct" violet, and i think this might be the one! *fingers crossed* Dry Down: I'm getting little hints of the gardenia in this, which makes me wonder if this was a proto for Le Serpent qui Danse. the violet in this isn't going all soapy the way it did in that blend though, so perhaps whatever third element is in that one is lacking in here. which is fine by me! In All: Despite the gardenia, this is still 98% straight violet. which i exactly what I was hoping for, so i'm super excited about it. Like I said, the throw is HIGH- i applied just a drop from the cap and whoa, nelly is it POWERFUL. this is a truly beautiful violet for those of us that are fans and i can see wearing it alone, layering it with another violet scent to amp up the note in that blend (like Ultraviolet, Faith or Marie) or else layering it with something that could use another touch of class (Like Victorian Rose Milk, B340 or possibly something totally different, like sugar Skull). In other words, this is very near a Single Note, so use in any manner you wish!

In The Bottle: soft vanilla butterscotch! Wet On Skin: More yumminess, but there's something else in here too- it's in the background, so it's hard to pin, but it's calling to mind the florals of late springtime when I was a kid. the stuff that blooms in nyc for three days right before it becomes unbearably hot Dry Down: Oh, this is GOOD. the florals have become more woodsy, and the vanilla/butterscotch combo has become less over the top foody, making for a warm, rich scent that is sweet but not in a i-wanna-chew-my-arm kind of way. more sexy, less cakey. In all: Low throw, warm and delectible. I'm finding that this proto of Hod is FAr better suited to my skin chemistry. the released version(s) amped some odd dark musk note that went all wet-cardboard on me. but this version is exactly what i'd hoped the release would be and wasn't. NOW i know what all the fuss is about!

Huh- usually the *slightest* hint of leather in a mix comes right out and amps up on me. This? I get none. What I DO get is a beautiful, sweet mix of lilac and plum. This isn't the uber-fresh lilac of Lilac Wood, this is definitely a softer, more perfume-y lilac. but the plum note seems to be the same juicy, candy-like sweet plum from Sugar Plum Fairy. After this scent has completely and totally dried down I'm getting just a razor's edge of the leather. It's not even enough to come across as leather, just enough to give a bit of salty balance to all the sweet. It might just be the scent equivalent to those yummy dried salty plums one can pick up in Chinatown in New York, in fact! I'm on the fence as to whether I'll get a whole bottle of this, but I have to say, there is something really unusual about this scent that keeps pulling me back in, again and again.

This was the thing I was most oveting from this recent trunk show and I owe a million thanks to marsmomma for getting this to me! In The Bottle: This is a *cream* alright. I get the rose, but then there's this other note that, in the bottle, anyway, smells like almond to me. Almond paste, actually. Marzipan. While that's confusing, I'm deterred in the least. Wet On Skin: Ah, there we go. The almond has left the building, and what remains is a soft milky rose. This reminds me of something my grandmother's sister would have had on her dressing table. something that would have made her skin luminous or softened her hands before bed. Dry Down: A soft, pink rose. I'm personally picky about my florals. I don't like most of them, but I've been in the modd for Rose as of late in particular, and I think this just scratched that itch! In All: Medium to Strong throw (I put just a drop on my hand and it's presence is noticeable) This is a rose's rose. A lady's rose. Not a rose in the garden, but one a Victorian Madame would have scented her sheets with. A keeper to be sure!

In the interest of total transparency, I'll say that I absolutely adored Strawberry Moon '09, but did NOT like the '05 version in the least. but based on the previous reviews, I was willing to take a chance, as this sounds closer to the one I love. Let's see how this pans out, shall we? In the Bottle: A slightly greener, but just as juicy version of '09. so far, so good Wet On Skin: Yes, I'm getting that sharp green edge for sure. It's very fresh. Not like wearing a fresh scent, but like I am actually IN the field of these lush strawberry plants. Spectacular. Dry Down: As angelicruin had happen, I, too, am getting a combination of soft strawberry and skin musk. It's very sweet, very gentle. I'm glad I have this now, because I know I'm going to wear this on Easter day to my family's house. It seems to be the perfect thing. In All: Light throw, pretty, a daytime scent to be sure. This also falls into the realm of what I would call a "child's" scent: fine for us grownups, but also something I'd have no problem letting a 7 year old wear if she wanted to. It won't replace my love of SM '09, but it's a great addition to the family

I was intrigued by the prior reviews enough to ask my WC angel marsmomma to pick one up for me. I will say I'm a little worried about what's being perceived as pine, but I'm hopeful. *fingers crossed* In the bottle: Yes, I too get the clove. and I can see where the balsa comparisons come into it. but at least at this point, it's smoky, not piney, at all. Wet On Skin: Wow. this is *really* spicy! It's got the clove...maybe some bay in there and I'm thinking the smokiness might actually be vetiver, not balsa. It's reminding me of the sweet smoke in Death of Autumn, which was all about that vetiver... Dry Down: Pure spice. the only other scent that I have in the spice family is Smiling Spider. Now, both these have clove as a main note. But whereas that scent is in the realm of Clove Cigarettes, this is more what it's namesake would imply, the spice markets of the Arabic world. Complex and heady, but somehow easily a daytime scent, there is a sweetness here that really makes this balanced. In All: Light throw, good for most times of the year. We're going into spring now, and I'm curious to see how this scent will "feel" on when it gets warmer. If not, I'll be favoring this all next fall and winter for sure.

Thanks to Dorian who swapped this imp to me! In the vial: delicious, yummy yummy yummy mint cream icing Wet On Skin: more of the same. I get how Shollin got chocolate mint, though. There's that fine type of good vanilla that can be interpreted as chocolate as well. I'm loving it so far, either way Dry Down: Yup, it's Peppermint Patty, alright. enough so that I kinda might need to run out to the grocery to get one! In All: low throw, and it fades quickly. I love this, but if I'm going to really make some time for it, it's going to require a full bottle, as I will have to do as many others talked about, which is slathering myself in it to make it last on my skin for any length of time...

Yup, this is pretty much exactly as awesome as I knew it would be. (Many thanks to Dark Alice for frimping me this!!! ) So, basically, I'm finidng that Gypsy Queen is like Crypt Queen's understated, brooding older sister. Where as the rose in Crypt sort of went dead-powder on me, Gypsy speaks of dried flowers keepsakes and love won and lost, perhaps due to tragedy. I get incense and the spiciness of carnation for sure, but it's mostly the smoky rose that's pulling me back again and again. Oh lordy, how do I fins a bottle of this?!?!? :wub:

In the imp: I get tons of green tea and a touch of the lemon verbena. Oh! This is just gorgeous! Wet On Skin: It's a dead ringer for tea with lemon at this stage, no sugar or cream. Crisp and floral, even though I'm getting only the two notes just mentioned. It seems rather dense, too, for such a light combination of scents. I'm really, really liking this so far. Dry Down: No flowers, no musk. This scent stays true on my skin. Years ago I had a friend who wore some commercial perfume who's main note was green tea. This is what it smelled like on her, but when I got a bottle, it smelled *nothing* like that on me. Leave it to BPAL to come up with a green tea note that works with my spicy skin chemistry! In All: Low to moderate throw, this is the perfect scent for a warm spring day, out in the sunshine, maybe having a picnic in the grass. I shall treasure my imp forever!

Happy Dance! i got this as a frimp in a recent BPTP order and I, too, hope for a formal release of this lovely room spray! I agree that this is predominantly rose. for me, it's more like a rose water than a rose oil. It's light and very fresh, but I wouldn't compare it to an actual garden or anything. This is something that would be found in a Lady's boudoir, for sure! I'm also picking up on the violet, but again, there's a freshness, a light quality to the florals all around that is just heart-breakingly beautiful. In all, perfect for the upcoming spring days- release big bottles, pleeeeze!

In the bottle: Mostly clean bright lavender, a bit of the amber making it sweet and the orris root adding a nice dry note. Wet On Skin: the lavender is starting to amp. At this point, this is not the sugar lavender of TKO or the English Lavender of Ninon's bath salts. This is straight up Spike Essential Oil Lavender. It's a bit much for me right now, but I can see that there's potential here. *Fingers Crossed* Dry Down: Oh, hello there, honey musk! I was wondering when you'd show up! The musk and amber are intertwining with each other in a fabulous, sweet heady way. Normally ambers go all baby powder on me, but the lavender seems to be doing a great job of keeping that element in check. If I put my nose right against my wrist, I get tiny, tiny impressions of both the Rose and Vanilla notes, but they're *extremely* ephemeral and fleeting. There is great potential here with all the tip-toeing notes and I have a strong feeling that this is one of those scents that will be much improved by againg, in the same way that aging is required to give scents like Snake Oil and Red Lantern their full depth. I look very forward to checking in with this oil in a month or two. In All: Medium to high throw, but it's deceptive- although strong, this is definitely a "skin" scent, and one is inclined to rub one's face against the surface containing the fragrance. Ninon becomes more and more sexy with every passing second but be warned: she is no shy violet, and should not be treated as such. in other words, I personally find this to be more of a "night" scent, something that will likely be too strong for daytime use. Unless you're bringing her along for an Afternoon Delight Because of her strength, I don't personally think I'll need more than her one bottle to last me, but I can see how others will find her hoard-worthy. Just Beautiful.

In the Bottle: Mostly honey, a bit of cognac, and a hint of tea (the tea is VERY reminicent of Dorian's tea, which, all things considered, makes perfect sense.) *fingers crossed* Wet On Skin: I'm getting the amber note from Et Lux Fuit someone else mentioned. I'm hoping it goes away quietly in the dry-down, because that could be a deal breaker for me. Dry Down: Well, it's somewhere between Et Lux Fuit and O now that it's dried completely. It doesn't have the Baby Powder of Death that Et Lux has, but there is something slightly grating for me with this scent. Also, I'd had hopes of the Bourbon Vanilla, the Cognac, the Tea Rose, and I get *none* of those things on my skin, at all. In all: Low to moderate throw, Sybil is a skin musk scent for those that adore the "sunshine" BPAL notes like amber and honey. But, considering how many people are simply dying for a little bit of this, I have to say I'm likely to swap my bottle so it gets the love it deserves and can't get from me.

In the bottle, this bath oil is absolute *heaven*. It's all rich vanilla and cream, like Love's Philosophy in bath format. and then, it goes kinda wrong. At some point early on in the bath, the cream...evaporates? and what's left is the rice flower, which, for some reason, becomes Egyptian Musk, big time. I can't figure out what happens, how it goes from being so true to being something else entirely like this. What's more, because of the tenacity of the scent, it not only clung to my skin (and my towel) but also to my pyjamas for WEEKS. Now, were it a scent that I could drown in (Glowing Vulva, I'm looking at you), all this would have been fine. Maybe even more than fine. But as it stands, that sort of musk is something I only have a taste for once in a while, so this was somewhat disasterous for me. I hope this finds a more appreciative home than mine, since for me this was an Epic Fail.

In the Bottle: I get the rich cream note of Love's Philosophy and just a hint of the saffron. the saffron comes across with a little more kick than it does in Celeste's bath salts, which immediately intrigues me. Wet On Skin: the orchid note is doing something odd on my skin, and is making this smell, at this stage, like Love's Philosphy with a heavy dose of Rubbing Alcohol added in the equation. I hope this changes... Dry Down: okay, the orchid/alcohol note seems to have calmed down some and is being held in place more by the orris root. it's still there, though, that rubbing alcohol scent, but if i don't put my hand too close to my nose, then the whole thing mixes more and becomes a vanilla-musk blend. Hmmm. In All: Medium throw, I can see on casual sniff why this got the rep of Cotton Candy at Will Call. noy having tried the proto at the last WC I attended, I can't compare, but I can see how that would happen. However, this is not foodie to me, in spite of all the vanillas involved. this is a skin musk, first and formost. And, if either of the vanilla notes is the same as one in Love's Philosphy, then I predict this, too, will get richer and creamier with some age. I'm hoping that aging will aslo take care of that Alcohol edge that I'm getting, but if it's not improved on me in a month, then I may not keep Celeste around, which would be a pity to be sure.

Ok, so I have to admit, I usually *don't* use my BPTP Bath oils in the actual bath. Oh, I've done some of them once, maybe twice. but my skin is already oily, and since the base for these is SO rich, my skin usually can't handle it, even if I do half the amount recommended. so, I generally use my BPAL bath oils either as perfumes or in my hair as a sort of leave-in conditioner and styling aid- for which it works really, really well in my overly-chemically processed hair, and of course makes me smell all nummy! Now, having given my disclaimer, I can proceed! In the bottle, this is Glowing vulva, alright. the only thing I notice that's different is that this seems a little more heavy on the cream than the perfume. That's only in the bottle, though. after I rubed some into my hands, much the way a person might do with a moisturizing lotion, the extra cream goes away, and leaves a lighter version of pure Glowing vulva in it's place. There is an addition, though, as it sinks into my skin, which I'm thinking might be just the bath base- the shea oil, specifically, which is bringing in a light nuttiness to the whole affair. i could that being a hinderance for some of the other bath oils if you use them in non-bath ways as I do. but in Gv it works brilliantly, as a light nutty note makes for a great addition with the cream and teak. As with the perfume, I don't personally get the lotus note. In All: if you use BPTP bath products as intended- that is, in the bath- and you are a fan of GV Perfume, you'll likely want to stock up on several bottles of this lovely. I, however, am going to do my best to NOT buy seven bottles of this, and remind myself that for my purposes, a little of this yummy, rich mixture goes a long, long way

I, too join the bandwagon of those that have been hearing the praises of spanked for eons, but have never had the fortune to try any. i bought a bottle unsniffed since i know it's very loved and figure if it doesn't pan out for me, I won't have trouble finding it a more suitable home. Let's see if it's a keeper, shall we? In the Bottle: Sweet and spicy. Whoever said a comparison to the '05 version of Blood Moon is in order is right on the money. I can see where the cinnamon comparisons have been coming from. However, for me, I'm getting the cassia note instead. (yes, yes, I understand that those are suppossedly the same, but the cassia in, say MB:Underbed or Chocolate, Cassia and Bacon to my nose is NOT the same as the cinnamon in some other blends where cinnamon, not cassia, is specifically listed as a note. Just sayin'.) Anyhoo, it does smell like cassia, but also slightly different, which I guess is why it's cardamon instead- if I *had* to put my finger on the difference, I'd say it's that cassia in BPAL formulas tends to have a dry, cacao quality as an undertone, whereas what I'm smelling here is missing that aspect of it. Wet On Skin: Much of the same strong cardomom, but the bourbon is starting to show itself in all the right ways. It's not coming across to me as boozy, exactly, but as adding a sweet, heady depth, in much the way the booze notes add to Smut. Dry Down: Yeah, this is sexy as HELL. I can see why folks have been willing to sell their first born for a bottle, or even a decant, of this heady, heady substance. NO leather on me whatsoever, which is surprising, as that usually amps on my skin. Instead this is predominantly Cardamom, followed by the Bourbon and the Patchouli mincing in as a distant third. Of that note, it's not even dirty, it's just adding another layer of depth. I'm thinking that with some aging it might show itself a bit more as patchouli often does, but even if that happens, I don't see it overpowering this blend in the least, just piling on more richness to an already rich scent. In All: Surprisingly low to medium throw, I'm not having the problem of my skin eating it up as some other folks have reported, but it definitely stays closer to the skin than I would expect from these particular notes. It smells to me like a night version of MB:Underbed. Whereas that one is something to wear to work or school or a coffee klatch, this one is for seduction, for night prowling, for dark corners in smoky clubs where dirty, sticky deeds get done Verdict: Stockpile this one, you'll thank me later. :luv2:

In the Vial: VERY English Garden- all roses and green things in bloom, with a hiny of earthiness in the background. Like walking through a garden after a rain storm. Lovely! Wet On Skin: Hi Rose! Hi, hello! Hi! This is seriously rose. Like, all rose, all the time. A tea rose- slightly sharp, definitely pungent and clearly holding it's own! Dry Down: Still pretty much all rose. The rose has shifted, though, from tea to a more powdery rose, with a bit of dust and incense under it. More like being in a Victorian sitting room with the heavy velvet drapes drawn and vases full of dead, dried flowers arranged artfully in each corner In All: Medium throw, a strong rose with mere hintings at anything else, this, as with Romanti.Goth, easily lives up to it's namesake Now, to track down a whole bottle...

In the Bottle: As others mentioned, the first whiff is almost identical to the original Sugar Moon- it's sweet, but not foodie, and the floral is subtle with some tang. If it had a flavor it might be a sour-sweet gumball. Wet On skin: I find it to be the same as in the bottle. Dry Down: There's a bit more pronounced floral in this version than in the last Sugar Moon. Which actually is very much working in it's favor. I personally am very picky about my floral notes, but this one is just beautiful. In All: Low to medium throw with real staying power, Sugar Moon 2011 is a good cross-over season scent- it's both appraopriate as we slog through the last of winter, but I can already tell I'm really going to enjoy wearing this one come full springtime too. Also, it occurs to me if you enjoy that tart floral edge of Lady Lillith? You will absolutely *love* this new version of Sugar Moon. Win!

In the Bottle: Sweet, deep and resin-y, this actually, on first sniff, reminds me most of original Black Lace, the tobacco-cognac aspect of it. so, it's off to a great start Wet On Skin: Yup, still getting a variation of Black Lace, but perhaps with some...amber? in the mix. Dry Down: My boyfriend is perceiving a "soapy" note, but I think it's the musk starting to shine through. To me, this has morphed into a combo of Black Lace and the White Musk I used to buy at the Body Shop back in High School In All: Medium throw, this is a "skin" scent, which means to me that even as it moves around and extends itself, there's something that still reads as being close to the skin. intimate and romantic, this scent lives up to it's name. For keeps!

In the Bottle: Lemony-sweet. Somewhere between Lemonheads candy and the Lemon Merangue Strawberry Shortcake doll I had as a wee lass in the early 1980's Wet On Skin: Totally the same. Dry Down: Same. In All: Not a morpher in the slightest, with low throw, this is a beautiful sweet scent. Years ago I used to get perfumes at health food stores, and I had one i loved wearing in the summer that was lemon verbena. That one was actually *physically* sticky, which made it dangerous to wear in the hot months, but the lemon-sugar aspect of it kept me coming back for more- that's what this scent invokes for me. total keeper!

In the imp: All graveyard dirt, all the time (oh, and a hint of vanilla. which is odd, but actually rather nice.) Wet On Skin: The dirt and vanilla are more in balance now. the combination becomes somehow like cake, but not at all foodie. Dry Down: There's a sweet *something* in here that is reminding me of Crumpet Rebellion. I can't quite place it, like currant buns or something. Not the straight up sugar note of, say Sugar Skull, but certainly like a sweet baked good, a sticky bun, perhaps. The grave loam is absolutely still present, but adding something lovely and unusual. In All: I can't believe it's taken me this long to trying this and seeing it for what it is. clearly several bottle purchases are in order, as this is somehow the perfect combination of freshly-tilled earth and vanilla cake mix!