VioletChaos

in the bottle: i get a very light violet and a sweet mint, like spearmint. wet on skin: the violet is still the dominant note, though "dominant" might be the wrong word- this is the *lightest* violet i've encountered in ANY BPAL scent i've tried- and given my SN, you can assume that i've tried quite a few. dry down: violet without being soapy, minty without being overpowering. this is a lovely perfume in the true olde sense of the word. in all: a perfect summer scent for an enchanted, timeless evening out among the stars. i will cherish my bottle for always. :wub2:

marsmomma, that goddess, picked all the C:15 scents, and i am eternally grateful. so here's the first of the lot: in the bottle: absolutely a combination of Milk Moon and Nonae. personally, i hope that changes, as neither of those liked my skin too much. wet on skin: definitely sweeter than either of the aforementioned. it reminds me of babies, drinking either formula or breast milk- that sweet milkiness. hmmm. dry down: back to the love child of MM and Nonae. in all: if your skin is like mine, don't bother. but if you were into Nonae or Milk Moon, stock up while you can.

Pink Flamingo is everything I wanted Marshmallow Poof to be and wasn't. my problem with Poof was that it struck me as really one-dimensional, and ended with a faint wiff of just sugar a short time later. not so with Flamingo. it's absolutely sweet marshmallow, but it's more than that. i can see why some folks thing it's like Velvet Unicorn- it's got that same rock-candy kind of sweetness to it- but there's something more to it. the sap absolutely adds something special here, but this isn't a "green" scent. mostly, it reminds me of cotton candy scented play-doh, in the best possible meaning of that description this will require a big bottle, oh yes it will

fizzy? check. boozy? check. total headache nightmare on contact with my skin?....*sigh*....check.

went through a bit of a rough patch in my life, and just happened to grab my imp of DH. the name got me figuring that it might give me strength. i wasn't wrong. but it's a quiet strength, just getting me through the tasks at hand in a gentle way. the smell, on me, is pure champa. the DB and the musks come together in such a way that champa is all that can be found. i will absolutely be getting a bottle of this.

in the bottle: thick, dark brown sugar molasses. wet on skin: this is becoming all about the moss, i'm afraid. dry down: the patchouli pops out after a bit, and mixes with oakmoss and the red currant. i sadly get no vanilla cream from this. in all: a close-to-the-skin scent, more earthy and far less foody than i anticipated based on the listed notes. i like it, and think it might do well with some aging, but i don't think it'll be one i reach for all that often.

in the bottle: spicy mexican hot chocolate, Abuelita, to be exact wet on skin: same, but a bit stronger now as it warms on my skin. dry down: the scent becomes a bit more balanced now. i get none of the wine, but it's absolutely cocoa, corn paste and spices. total. love. in all: medium throw, rich and heady, this is a perfect oil for worshipping the summer gods. it's not a question of getting a back up bottle, it's a question of how many to get!

the day i got this in the post, of course i was compelled to try it instantly. however, it seemed too "fresh" somehow, and i decided i'd give it a little bit of time to blend itself together a bit. it's been about 8, 9 days, so i'm ready to do this for realz... in the bottle: goat's milk and fig in equal measure. not the usual cream, this has the 'sour' note of goat's milk. i'm intrigued. wet on skin: still with the mix of the two. i've yet to get any myrrh. dry down: remind me somehow of soap. like, high quality, thrice milled french soap, smelling of garden plants, but without actually being soapy. in all: light to medium throw, i get no myrrh, just a soft even mix of fig and goat's milk. i don't find that it smells like the most recent Milk Moon the way other folks have, but this is absolutely a summer scent- it would disappear in cold weather. i will love my bottle for all it's worth, but i don't think i'll be getting a backup or anything.

this is pretty fine stuff, i must say. there is the honey that showed up in my beloved Lupenar, for sure, and it's just as beautiful and rich here. but then this really well behaved frankincense note is adding a resin-filled balance that cuts through the sweetness of the honey. it's really a lovely mixture. in all: i predict this will be very sought after.

in the bottle: honey? check! currant? check! wet on skin: currant is dominating at this stage, in pretty much the same way the bath oil did on my skin while wet. dry down: while i'm getting little wafts of blackberry, this scent, like it's bath oil buddy, is still mostly red currant with a bit of honey tossed in. in all: i think this one might improve with a bit of aging (as with the bath oil) so i believe i'll have to leave this be for a month and try again later. for now, i think this would mix well with something that can bring the fruit into perspective, like Obatala, or even Bliss. but on it's own it's a little too pungent, even for my foodie-loving nose.

in the bottle: super tart, super yummy red currants! wet on skin: still mostly currant, but the honey is absolutely present. dry down: the fruit is definitely stronger than the honey. i don't personally find a balance here. in all: this was all on my skin and really, i use the bath oils mostly in my hair, so i feel i'll have to give this another try with that application in mind. but so far my verdict is that it's a bit too strong and overpowering for the applications i give it.

i, too, use the bath oils in an unusual way. i sometimes use them on my skin, but mostly i use them in my hair. for the purpose of this review, it'll be about the oil on my skin, but i may edit later after i try it out in my hair if the scent is much different. in the bottle: the orris is strong, with a bit of a powder-y undertone to it that's making me a touch nervous. wet on skin: the frankincense is balancing the orris at this point, taking away the powder, but leaving the woodsy aspect. dry down: a lovely mix of the two, but no sign of the other notes on my skin. in all: i can tell that this will be something i'll want to put in my hair after being at the beach all day, when my skin has been crusted in salt. a perfect reprieve for sure.

O. Mi. GODDESS. this, THIS is the strawberry scent i've been waiting for my whole life! every other strawberry from BPAL does one of two things on me: it either becomes all plastic so i smell like a Strawberry Shortcake doll, or it goes all candy-like on me, like i just rubbed Twizzlers all over my arms. but this, this does neither. it's amazing. this smells *exactly* like real, warm, late summer, TART strawberries, maybe the slightest, and i MEAN slightest, hint of green in the background. on my skin, it stays true, just beautiful, real ripe strawberry to the last. the throw is low, but the hint of it stays on my skin for a long while. why, oh WHY did i only buy ONE bottle of this?! still, i will treasure this bottle for all my days :wub:

this is fruit-flavored rock candy, pure and simple. it's crunchy, sparkling candy edge is matched only by it's fruitness. this is not like Sugar Skull, though. the sugar in that amps on me like crazy, where as in this it strangely stays in place. this is not an everyday sort of scent, but when the mood is just so, it's the only thing that will do.

for me, Velvet Panther started out as a full-blown nightmare. in the bottle i couldn't pick out any notes, but as soon as it touched my skin, it became the black licorice horror of NyQuil. but then, within a minute or two, a miraculous thing happened. the NyQuil vanished entirely and a gorgeous and sexy blend of dark vanilla and musk with a touch of rootiness all bloomed on my skin in a mad rush. it's amazing. i'm really, really glad that i have a bottle with this, because my feeling is that it's only going to get better with age.

ah, fibro fog. boy, that's something i'd be happy to see disappear from my life *forever* anyway, i have to echo what other folks have said about the magic of TKO. it's absolutely my first-line defense for helping me to sleep when the pain or anxiety becomes too unbearable. it's the only BPAL that doesn't live in a big box- i keep it on my night table for constant access. i also really like Antique Lace because it's scent isn't overpowering during those fabulous times when Fibro makes all my senses a wee too strong. it's really gentle and is a really comforting one, i've found. Bitch, i find, is good for lethargy, big time. Perfect for the days when getting out of bed is needed and yet seems like the most enormous effort imaginable. and last but not least, i strongly recommend High John The Conqueror for any time one has to leave the house and get needs met. i wear it on the days that i'm in so much pain i HAVE to use my cane and i am in no mood to have to yell at someone to give me a seat on the bus. everyone just makes room for me, automatically. hope this helps, and welcome aboard- lots of folks around here have chronic conditions and although not everyone has ours, there's generally lots of support and empathy, cause we all know how hard things can get.

based on the ingredients, i had assumed this would be a cross between white musk and Sugar Moon. sadly, i got neither from it. the musk was light enough, but on me the flowering sugar cane just did that thing that many of the Lab's Spring Florals do on my skin, and that's become some nice-smelling shower/soap thing. *sigh* >< still, i'm glad i got to try it, even if it's to find out it's *not* for me.

i haven't had a chance yet to try out the Lab's wasabi note, so i was very interested in seeing about this particular Velvet. the throw was *much* lighter than i anticipated, given the other notes present in this blend. also, i thought it would be more spicy, perhaps a little peppery, or at least a bit heavy, but it wasn't at all, it was just wet cucumbers, green tea and fresh cut grass from start to finish. a lovely spring-into-summer scent, for those that are interested in this sort of thing. for me, however, i'm glad i got to try it, but equally glad i didn't get a whole bottle.

in the vial and wet on the skin, this seemed like the perfect mixed girlie drink: sweet, fruity and with a WHOLE LOT of alcohol. unfortunately, the juniper aspect of the gin, once dry, began to dominate and ceased to smell like gin- and just became a straight up juniper berry tree on me, mixed with a tiny bit of rock candy. the scent is fun and sweet, something to be worn for a "girls' night out", but as for me, i'm gonna let someone else adopt this baby cat.

i was a big fan of some of the Tiki scents that came out last year, so i was *very* interested in what this hommage would be like. as others have said, in the bottle and while wet on the skin, this is pure awesome. for me it was like finding a way to turn a pint of Haagen Daas pineapple coconut ice cream into a perfume. trouble came after dry down, when all those yummy foodie notes vanished, it became a floral so soft i could barely discern what it was, and then it just vanished off me entirely. sigh. i think for me i'll stick with moai, tiki king and upa upa from now on... :shrug:

in the vial, i got cassia (!?) and the Mandarin orange. wet on the skin and after dry down, it became a spicy/orange scent, that reminded me a lot of those orange pommander things i made as a kid around the holidays, with cloves stuck into a whole orange and left to scent the air. the problem for me is 1. this scent really wasn't strong enough for it to be worn around the holidays or used as a room scent and, 2. it's not really something i would personally wear as a "warm weather" scent. so i'll pass, though i'm really glad i got to try it!

this is my third Panacea oil, and i'm starting to deal with the fact that sometimes, nearing my moon time, i'm just a wee bit difficult to be around. sigh. anyway, it's not *quite* to that part of the month, but as i'm rather familiar with aromatherapy and what it can do, i figured i'd give this a go right now, as i just got it in the post today. in the bottle: straight up yellow chamomile and some mint behind it. i'll say spearmint for now, but i reserve the right to change that later. wet on skin: same as above, but something else might be in there too, that i can't quite put my finger on. hmmm. dry down: catmint. that's what it is. catmint (aka catnip) has a bit more of an herby edge to it, likely to be the "herb" aspect so many other folks here have noticed. the chamomile is still there, of course, but now it's more of a partnership than a mean dom/sub relationship in all: i don't think i used enough to actually feel much of anything, but you better believe i'll be reaching for this bottle at the first sign of grumpiness!

in the bottle: this reminds me strongly of the incense display at this one place that i worked about 17 years ago. it wasn't just one item- it was the WHOLE rack, all coming together to make something inclusive yet different from everything present. that's what this smells like in the bottle. incense and yummy, but nothing more distinct. wet on skin: much the same, actually. which is cool, since, you know, i've never found it in one single bottle (or incense stick for that matter!) before. dry down: the incense wins! in all: now, i'm not big on florals. i generally only like two. but the champaca and the poppy have totally won me over in this blend, probably because they don't smell like fresh flowers, they smell like an incense version of themselves. which is SO perfect and swoonworthy! i can't say how pleased i am to have obtained a bottle of this!

i was surprised by Montresor. i was expecting it to be a combination of, i don't know, Gluwhein and spicy cherry bark. but instead it became the slightly more aggressive sibling to Tell Tale Heart, all vanilla and tobacco. don't get me wrong, i'm really into it, it's just not at all what i expected. maybe i'll try again in a few days and see if anything changes.

i love most of the notes in this and so was really bewildered and disappointed when none of them seemed to be present incense? plum? musk? nay all around. what i got, in fact, was very similar to the composition of Hanami, which, unfortunately, became total cloying, perfume-y soap on me. this oil, on the other hand, became cloying perfume-y shampoo on me. when will i learn? the only florals i have any real luck with are violet, rose and sometimes verbena. i need to just leave it at that, and make way for floral lovers to get their hands on stuff like this. sigh.