VioletChaos

Blackened cacao, black sandalwood, coconut, and dark, sweet musk. In The Bottle: Rich, chocolately chocolate. Like Bliss, if it were dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate. Wet On Skin: I can see the comparison to the original Candy Butcher for sure- it's like a very dark melted Belgium chocolate cut through with a dollop of cream. YUM! Dry Down: On dry-down, the chocolate becomes slightly more like a powdered chocolate- like a dark hot cocoa mix. It's warmed up a bit, too, scent-wise- I suspect that's the black sandalwood adding some depth to the mix. I might detect a *sliver* of coconut, but this isn't a Mounds bar or anything, so don't expect that. In All: Chocolate scents can be hit/miss on me. Luckily, this appears in the same family as Bliss and Candy Butcher and so it's pure win. Low throw, warm and gorgeous. I will treasure this now and anticipate more glory with age. <3

Golden-brown and sugar-dusted, plump with sweet blackcurrant jelly. Full disclosure: I am an enormous fan of the Sufganiyots of Yules past, so I blind-bought two bottles of this year's Black Currant variety, because I felt *certain* that I'd want backups of this one, too. And I was NOT wrong. In the bottle, and when first applied, this has the familiar -and delicious!- strong fried-dough scent of its siblings. And, as with raspberry and strawberry before her, black currant starts to come into her own within the context of the scent as it warmed on my skin. This years' version is perhaps a little sweeter than its predecessors, which I believe has everything to do with the chosen fruit. Both raspberry and strawberry have a bit of a tangy undertone. But black currant is more of a pure sweetness with nothing tart to counteract. It's not cloying, don't misunderstand. This is the epitome of a full fried doughnut stuffed to the gills with thick and sweet black currant jam. It's delectable! If you loved the other two, you'll be delighted to add this one to your collection. If you missed out on previous years, definitely give this one a try. I would only say proceed with caution if you're a foodie that only likes your food scents to have a little edge- you might need to tread lightly with this. Or possibly layer with a rich non-food, like sandalwood or vetiver, or layer with a spice, like the newly released Indonesian Clove SN. Now to decide if I need *another* backup bottle...

Each order placed on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Filler Whatever Sunday, or Cyber Monday will receive two 1/32 oz. imps of INCOLUMITAS, one to keep and one to share. It’s been a very challenging year for so many, and this little imp is our gesture of bottled kindness. INCOLUMITAS is a scent of safety and security, of peace of mind and freedom from harm: warm honeyed patchouli, bourbon vanilla, sweet sage, and lavender. In The Imp: A good, pure lavender. This isn't a sugared or cologne-y lavender, this is more like clean essential oil lavender. Wet On Skin: The vanilla comes into play, sweetening the lavender quite a bit, and it goes from being that almost-medicinal to a little more of the sugary lavender encountered in True Love or Day Break- two lavender scents I adore, so I'm happy with the direction this is taking! Dry Down: The scent stays mostly true from wet to dry down, with the exception that I'm getting the *slightest* edge of sage in the mix now, giving this scent something that feels bittersweet, somehow, like cherishing joy in the midst of acknowledging the hard time all around us. Which seems perfectly apt for what this scent is all about ❤️

The dry, musty wooden scent of a crumbling cedar trunk dusted upon a gleaming swath of black Byzantine silk taffeta: opoponax and opium tar, Chinese geranium, smoky patchouli, bourbon vanilla absolute, and lustrous black and white musks. In The Bottle: On first whiff, I get a hint of the mustiness that's so prevalent in Crypt Queen. On second, deeper sniff, I'm getting a mix of the bright, sweet note that is geranium and the bourbon vanilla in equal measure. I'll admit, it's a strange pairing, but I'm intrigued... Wet On Skin: Okay, this is now blooming into something far more complex. the geranium and vanilla are both still holding their own, but now the opoponax and the white musk are in the picture making this scent, at this point, surprisingly round and soft- without becoming powdery, which is great. Dry Down: Yes, this is indeed like a length of silk. Sweet, without being cloying; resiny without being overwhelming. This scent is really something special. Even as it sit on my skin, it seems multi-faceted. Unlike some other scents I've tried where there's a high morph factor, this is almost like it depends what quarter-inch of skin I'm smelling to determine what notes I get (over by my thumb, there's more vanilla/patchouli; closer to my wrist there's more of a geranium/musk vibe happening...) In All: Medium throw, a little goes a long way. Heady, sweet and sultry: I can already tell that this is going to become *sublime* when aged for a while- and it's a fabulous addition to all the "Lace" scents right now. I may need a backup bottle...or two

In the bottle, that sweet oakmoss is right at the front. I have to sniff a few times before I pick up anything else, but eventually I notice an edge of the orchid in there. Wet on skin, the scent immediately starts to shift, with the benison coming out to play almost immediately. As the fragrance continues to warm, further layers start to unfurl, blossoming outward- the ambers sweetening the scent, and the balsamic in particular is adding an interesting twist, in the same way that balsamic vinegar adds sweetness without being at all sugary (this is precisely what I was hoping it would do, so I'm delighted that it has come to pass!). Eventually the narcissus peeks out adding an interesting acrid undertone that keeps the scent from veering into cloying territory. Strangely, in spite of the name and ingredient list, I get no hyacinth on me. I've used pure essential hyacinth oil, so I'm familiar with that version of the scent- if it's in here it's either buried by the other notes or else my skin ate it. Anything is possible! However, even without the Princess Herself showing up for me, this scent is really, really lovely, one of those perfumes that's so well-blended that the individual notes blur entirely, creating a melange that's just its own beautiful, singular entity. And just in time for spring! This scent is low throw, but dense, so I'd still go easy on application until you see how it plays with your personal chemistry. Pure resin-filled love! ❤️

No. 10 Neilson place, Mercer street. This is a ladies boarding house apparently of the first class; but, as the landlady can never be seen, it is impossible to tell who is head of the house. The door is guarded by a grouty old dame, whose assumed dignity is so overpowering that most people suppose that she runs the establishment. Sweet labdanum, clove, and piquant Italian bergamot. I tested this today and it was an unfortunate miss on me. I had been hoping for a heavy hand on the labdanum and clove combination but the clove and bergamot did this thing where they combined on my skin in such a way that smelled only like floor cleaner. I had high hopes, but this was just not meant to be for me

Dusky plum oudh casts a pall over frayed strands of green cognac and tobacco leaf. This tangle of threads is stained with a smear of patchouli and opoponax and intertwined with vanilla cream lace. In The Bottle: The plum is sweet and bright right out of the gate, followed by a hint of that green cognac. That's all I get at first. Wet On Skin: The oudh settles into itself, becoming a bit more rich, but not incense-y as I had expected. The vanilla cream lace is juuuuust beginning to peek out! Dry Down: Siiiiiiigh. This is everything that I hope any in the Lace series to be: filling me with a painful nostalgia that haunts my longings and releases all my beautiful ghosts. It's sweet and dusky and gorgeous, no one note standing out, all working in gorgeous symphony. Like stepping into a sitting room full of silver print photographs and dried flowers in cut crystal vases.

I'm a fan of violet, (if you couldn't tell from my screen name) and that alone grabbed my attention here. The addition of vanilla and bergamot plus the intrigue of..."what exactly does porcelain smell like?!" and I knew I had to snag a bottle. the scent in the bottle is deceptively floral, with that iris singing lous and clear- don't be fooled, she runs off upon contact. That's when the changes begin. First, the trickle of red musk here seems to be the same variety that stole my heart in Random Brothel, and I'm definitely not mad about it. Second, that violet leaf is more violet flower from what I can tell (the leaf tends to be quite 'green' smelling, whereas I'm definitely getting violets in this mix. The bourbon vanilla bites back the acrid note of the musk before it can get too intense or stuffy. And the porcelain? Well, several minutes after application, I kid you not, there was a moment where the scent smelled mostly of...wet clay. Yep. Straight up, 'throwing on the wheel' clay situation. It was strange and, as an artist that has played with ceramics, strangely comforting. And then it was gone, to be replaced with the violet / musk combination. Chalk it up to one of Beth's genius "how does she DO that?!" moments, and marvel for a moment. Then enjoy the rest of what the scent has to offer

The mango comes on strong in the bottle but starts to fade upon contact with the skin. The scent changes rapidly, passing over the orange blossom completely, alas, and ending up a lightly spicy, vaguely incense-y pink musk, reminding me very much of the phlox-heavy Pink Moon. I'm in love with the Lab's mango note, but unfortunately for me, apart from in the bottle, it's nowhere to be found 😢

I splurged on two from the Roses and Pearls line, and this is one of them (the other being Rubies). Neither had disappointed, but Roses, Pearls, and Sapphires may prove to be my favorite, not just of this mini series, but Lupercalia 2024 as a whole (apart from the triumphant return of Glowing Vulva, but c'mon. That's a whole other realm.) In the bottle, the lavender rose (the 'rose' is a formality- this reads as lavender to my nose) and blueberry play elegantly together in a surprisingly delicate dance. Not that either note is known for being so aggressive, but I've certainly encountered scents where one of these two could be quite loud given the chance. Wet, then warming, on the skin both notes blossom and unfurl some, with lavender gently edging blueberry out for top spot, for a spell, until the coconut husk comes to reign lavender back in. "Husk" is important here: this is NOT coconut-coconut. Not the candied coconut or suntan lotion coconut you might be anticipating, so you must do away with such notions immediately. This is the scratchy, earthy bit outside of all that and here it has the not-insubstantial task of grounding this scent, to keep it from all floating away, too high, into the stratosphere. Only after husk and fully done that task does the cerulean musk stroll in, and not a moment too soon. I've been on a big ol' blue musk deep dive for about the past year, and it was THE note that made me snatch up a bottle of this here elixir and it does NOT disappoint. Every blend I try a blue musk variant in is wildly different than the last, so there's no direct comparisons here, except to say that I continue to feel vindicated by each new exploration into this lesser-known entry into the musk family. It's not a mistake that nearly all the notes in a scent with "Sapphires" in the name would have a blue allusion, but here its especially overt, a sparkling blue gem of a scent, it has a shine and hardness that align it with the crystalline icicles of late winter, but there's also a warmth here that slinks in once the scent has settled in completely, something to snuggle into when the ice outside all seems a bit too much.

The red wine is strong with this one! When sniffed in the bottle, all the way through to complete drydown, the red wine note is front and center. The note itself is one I've adored in the past, in the old-time Yule treat, Glüwein, and so I can only hope that this will age just as magnificently as that one has. There *is* quite a lot to hope for with this blend, notably the oakmoss and mandarin notes, which both play the part of insuring this scent is not a one-note wonder, even if they are working more or less behind the scenes. (I've tried one-note wine scents and they come across more or less as fussy grape juice, which is definitely NOT what's happening here, by the way.) Oakmoss is a note I personally love, adding a rich, vaguely sweet and unusually spicy depth. The Spanish mandarin is not here to lend a foodie tone, but rather a bit of tart acid, which brightens the scent and keeps it from getting lost in a sticky haze. Hours later, and it's still going strong: a little goes a long way, both with staying power and with throw, which is definitely one of the highest I've encountered: dab lightly until you know how it'll bloom on your skin. The end game is a languid and sultry drift into sweet oblivion, whether you leave enticing traces behind you during a leisurely stroll, or on a silky pillowcase after a decadent sleepover. Whichever path chosen, you'll leave them wanting

BANSHEE BEAT A tousled, sexy mix of patchouli, vanilla, and hemp. I just got my bottles (yes, bottles. I'm convinced I will love this enough to hoard, even before smelling it!) about 5 minutes ago from the freezing hands of the freezing UPS driver. I know I should wait to test this oil, but I just can't. Let's hope for the best, shall we? *Crosses Fingers* In the Bottle: a sweet, woodsy mix. the hemp is strong and reminds me of the sandalwood note in Tombstone, which i love. the sweet is all about the dark vanilla, but it's hanging back. the hemp is really the star at this stage. Wet on Skin: it's still a mix of the hemp and the vanilla, with the patchouli not really present. i'm surprised because the patchouli in Mme Moriarty and Ravenous are *very* prominent on my skin. but the hemp/vanilla mix is lovely, and if it stays this way, i won't be disappointed. Dry Down: *there's* the patchouli! it's NOT like the usual BPAL patchouli note, though. this is much, much closer to an actually patchouli root than the oil. it's lends a depth and a complexity to the hemp, supporting it, making it richer, more earthy. the dark vanilla is indeed dark, but also sweet in a rich resin way. these three notes work in perfect balance, with none overshadowing the others, all coming together in a really special way. In All: the S15Twenty site describes this scent as being "hippyish" and while it's not inaccurate, it's also not what most people are going to expect when they think of "hippy+hemp+patchouli". Yes, this is a scent that i would wear to a Rainbow Gathering. but it's also a scent i will wear to the beach, to a cafe, with my favorite silk skirt, in my hair, to a sexy dinner out with my sweetie. with a medium but not overpowering throw and all warm, sexy, earthy and cuddly, Banshee Beat is the kind of go-to scent BPALers of distinction come to cherish, whether or not it becomes the Next Covetable Thing. stock up- this is only going to get better with age! :wub:

If you took the yummy baked goods note from my most beloved Crumpet Rebellion and added in a healthy chomp of rhubarb, you come pretty close to getting the gourmand delight that is Rhubarb Custard Muffins. In the bottle and freshly applied, this scent is VERYY heavy on the tangy, tart rhubarb. It takes w while to settle into anything more balanced, and frankly, I'm glad for it, because the fresh, sharp aspect is a lovely surprise as we ease out of the darkness at the end of winter and into lighter, brighter spring. Once settled in, the scent takes on a lovely second stage, joining the ranks of other great baked goods fragrances for those of us that like to sometimes smell like we are completely edible. If you are looking for a foodie scent for daytime wear, or if you have a special place in your heart for the old BPAL greats like the afore-mentioned Crumpet Rebellion or Blackberry Jam and Scones, then you will be quite excited to add this to your repertoire.

Full disclosure, as soon as I saw that rhubarb was in the mix, this bottle fell directly into my shopping cart, but I also was definitely worried in equal measure about rose being a dominant force in this blend, as roses and I have an a tumultuous relationship over the long years. so now you know. Onward! In the bottle, I am immediately surprised, pleasantly, with the dominance of the red amber and labdanum. At this stage its not overpowering as labdanum can sometimes be. Instead it's sweet in a non-sugary way, and resinous but not overly intense. Once warmed up and dried down on the skin, the scent becomes more of a melange: the labdanum is still the front, but even less aggressively than before. The rose peeks out, but it's the incense aspect that is actually more present than the floral here. I get little whiffs that indicate the dried strawberries here, the tang of the rhubarb there. (Side note: not mad about the subtlety of the rhubarb here, partly because the slivers of tartness feel appropriate in this blend overall and partly because I picked up a bottle of the Rhubarb Custard Muffins which are GLORIOUSLY and INTENSELY an ode to rhubarb and flaky pastry, so I feel both ends of the rhubarb scent spectrum have been thoroughly satisfied with this Luper update ). Once the scent had fully and completely settled into my skin, the scents has morphed a bit further, becoming, in the end, a spicy sexy scent that has a low-medium throw that allows, with careful wear, to use during the day, like a smexy chastity belt secreted away under a corporate suit but, worn with a touch more reckless abandon, transforms easily into nighttime debauchery at the drop of a hat...or any other clothing item your devious heart desires

Favorite pastime: skulking under dining tables, waiting to abscond with unsupervised food bowls. Don’t blame the dog! Dregs of cinnamon and cocoa. In The Bottle: Oh, YES. Right off the bat, this is Mexican Hot Chocolate. Wet On Skin: The hits just keep on coming. There are two basic types Lab chocolate notes- the yummy cocoa-y ones, and the ones that turn to weird, waxy plastic on my skin. The ones that work on me are found in scents like Bliss, Boomslang and Gelt. The ones that don't work are the ones found in the Box O Chocolates and most '13' scents. This scent, fortunately, has the former. And it's *glorious*. Dry Down: This is a nice, "grownup" cocoa scent. Less foodie and, believe it or not, I would call this scent kinda sexy. The chocolate becomes this dusty, understated warm note and the cinnamon gives just a tiny amount of spice- this is NOT an overpowering spice scent, so those fearful, give it a try. In All: Not just bottle worthy, possibly hoard worthy. I predict this will be quite popular.

Frost-dappled night-blooming petals, Oman frankincense, champaca orchid resin, and opium tar accord. Oh. Oh MYYYYYYYY. To be honest, although my interest was piqued instantly when I read the notes, I also was concerned. Frost? Is that going to be like water or ozone? Because those notes almost never work with my skin chemistry. And the champaca could go either way. But the opium tar and night-blooming petals had my hopes up. And it paid off! In the bottle, I noticed right away that the scent was lighter than I'd expected given some of the notes but also given this was a Bloodmilk scent, since many of the ones I've tried tend to be very dense and rich and moody (just like their jewelry!) but this really was quite light, and even slightly powdery. As the scent warmed up and then fully dried on my skin, it just got better and better, those florals mixing gorgeously with the tar and resins to create this dreamy encounter, reminding me somehow of a passionflower incense I adored in high school. I have not been able to stop huffing myself and it's literally hours and hours later. Total, beautiful, win.

On January 7th, I announced that I was preggers to the forum, and pregnancy scents like Irrelevant and Disturbing Surreal Crawdad Dream soon followed. While I was giving birth to Lilith, Brian pulled the trigger on her two birth scents Lady Lilith and Lilith Victoria so they could come to life just as she was entering the world. This began our annual tradition of commemorating each year that we spend with Lilith with a scented scrapbook. We love you, Lilith. More than you can possibly know. The Shunga debuted for the first time, including Dream of the Fisherman's Wife, Men Ringing Bell With Penises, and Glowing Vulva at Ryogoku Bridge. This year also marked the first time that Frederic inspired by Gilbert & Sullivan began appearing every February 29th, and hes been our Leap Year guest ever since! At the December Lunacy event, we began the first of our annual toy drives. In 2008, Black Phoenix Trading Post hosted the Miskatonic Valley Junior Baseball Associations Spring Training Teds vision of little league in Lovecraft Country which ushered in a decade of our ridiculous Lovecraft-meets-Norman Rockwell serials and rotating exhibits in Arkhams Pickman Gallery. I don't have words for how much I love working on our campy Miskatonic Valley scents; how else could I experience a life filled with pancake breakfast summoning circles, demonic art openings, pre-pubescent softball-loving fish people, suave cultist tailors, and goat-headed burlesque dancers? Lilith's beloved lavender coated with sugar crystals, crawdad-bright grapefruit, and a pop of iridescent, loathsome Mi-Go musk. In The Bottle: Sugared lavender. Like TKO's daytime sibling! Wet On Skin: Same, but with the slightest edge of juicy, tart grapefruit. But only slight! Dry Down: Same. This scent stays true from first sniff to dry-down. It reminds me of Lilith's Hair Gloss and also Daybreak, from this year's batch of Lilith scents. As such, I am happy to have it! If you're a fan of those others, or if you're looking for a daytime equivalent to TKO that won't put you to sleep in the middle of the day, this scent is for you!

I got this entirely because of the cerulean musk, as I've become fairly obsessed with blue musks in the past year or so, AND, It definitely does NOT disappoint in this regard! In the bottle and when freshly applied, the orchid dominates- the flower is almost...juicy...somehow in its depth. I was a little worried about that floral before ordering but I find in application that I'm intrigued more than anything. It settles back pretty quickly and the amber, plum and musk all move into the foreground together. I definitely feel this to be the same plum note as appears in Mme Moriarty but the vibe here is *completely* different, so no worries of overlap or repetition for sure. The ivy isn't out front but I get the sense (scents!) she's keeping everything from heading into hippy-girl-incense territory and instead elevates the whole party to a sweetly sexy affair instead. I am *supremely* delighted to have gotten this and can't wait to see how it ages!

[No additional description provided.] In The Bottle: The same slightly-lemon ginger-y gingerbread I got from another in this series, with coffee bean and smoked vanilla. As with that scent, the only thing I get from first sniff in the bottle is the gingerbread and no supporting characters. Wet On Skin: INTERESTING. Rather than the death-cologne version of oudh that sometimes happens with my skin or the yummy incense version, I get neither- instead I'm getting a death of spice that's adding to the gingerbread whilst taking away its foodie aspect. Dry Down: This reminds me *strongly* of one of the really old Tree of Life / Kabala scents from around 2005 or 2006. It's definitely not Hod but I'm not sure which one it's reminding me of. There's something that reads as intense and meaningful and spiritual about this, though, which is sometimes an aspect of oudh that gets overlooked I think. It feels like there's a reverence that it carries, something that I'm going to reach for during this long, cold winter ahead on grey days when I need to remember that winter is a necessary time of contemplation. Beautiful and deep, like Frost's vision of a winter forest at nightfall.

As you have no doubt heard, during the third presidential debate, Hillary described her plan to raise taxes on the rich in order to fund Social Security. She took a swing at him over him being a tax dodger (which he is). “My Social Security payroll contribution will go up, as will Donald’s – if he can’t figure out how to get out of it.” Trump interrupted her and said, “Such a nasty woman.” These are two things uttered by the same man within the same hour: “Such a nasty woman.” “No one has more respect for women than me.” Amazing. Let’s put this pussy-grabbing, racist, predatory, misogynistic, hateful, irresponsible, ignorant, immature grotesquerie out of politics for good, and do what we can to ensure that he and his ilk never cast their miserable shadows over our political process again. Nasty Woman: black fig and patchouli, filthy bourbon vanilla, honeyed amber oud, and loukhoum. In The Bottle: A dark, dirty patchouli with a bit of our to smooth out the edges. Wet On Skin: I detect a rich tobacco, though none is listed in the notes. It's possibly the black fig, it has a similar "chewy" quality. Dry Down: The patch is back at the forefront, the kind our foremothers would've worn when burning bras and protesting the war at the Pentagon! The vanilla is a supporting character, along with that touch of honey- not sweetening the mix so much as adding further depth and preventing this scent from going over into HippyLand. It's rich and dark and not to be fucked with, just like angry women everywhere In All: Oh, she's a Nasty, Nasty Woman, alright. And she's only gonna get better with age!

Seconding the claim of "sexy"- this scent is sexy as hell in a somehow casually understated way. There's also something in here that, on my skin, makes it a very close cousin of Night after about 30 minutes. I'm deeply perplexed because there's not a single note of overlap between the two scents, and the note in question in Night is the inky musk, and there's nothing in Blizzard that seems like it would come close to that, and yet, there it is. I've no objections over a sexier version of Night, since that scent is one of my ride-or-die fragrances, so that just makes me love Blizzard that much more.

This. Scent. So. My past experience with pomegranate notes has been extremely hit or miss. Fruit notes all too frequently go full plastic on me, alas. Even when a fruit doesn't go off the deep end, I'm lucky to get anything other than fruit candy(ish) from the equation (Strawberries Moon and Suf notwithstanding). But there's that Ink to consider. Full disclosure: if you've ever wondered to yourself, "Who the HELL was interested in an India Ink Single Note, anyway?!" allow me to introduce myself, for *I* am that person. I am *SO* that person that I have BACKUP bottles of India Ink single note (and if you've got any you'd like to pawn off? I'm your person, right here ). I don't know if it's so easily explained just that I am, in fact, a visual artist (a visual artist that also ::collects:: bottles of ink at a rate only out-paced by my BPAL collection, thankyouverymuch) but regardless, the ink note is one of those extra-special BPAL mysteries that makes me go, "How does Beth DOOOO that???" So, you know, I knew I needed to try this at the very least. The scent won't be pinned down. When I first sniffed it in the vial, my heart dropped a little cause all I was getting was a vague olfactory sensation of Red Vines. 🤷‍♀️ But shortly after application, that ink, that glorious, industrial (to use Failmingo's term) ink: it took me right back to that love-at-first-sniff experience I had when India Ink SN first waltzed into my life and stole a little piece of my dark, smudgy heart. Even after full dry down, there's so much vacillating between the two points, and no settling between them! Each sniff bring s different countenance, a different configuration on the grayscale (bloodscale? That would be closer in truth, given the two notes. Hmmm...): one sniff, it's almost entirely pomm, with just a hair of metallic ink showing up as an afterthought. The next sniff, 90% ink, the fruit adding just a touch of sweet to smooth out those harsh edges. A sniff after that, and the two are in balance- or, if not in balance then at least in something resembling an uneasy truce. But every step (sniff?) of the way, I. Can't. Stop. Smelling. Myself. So, you know, I'll be getting me some backups for sure. ❤️

I'm always surprised at how radically different notes can be with small variations. The pipe tobacco in this is a RADICAL departure from, say, the blond tobacco note of Pinched With Four Aces, or the French Tobacco Single Note. I sometimes amp tobacco, so I was hesitant about this, but I also was feeling a pang of regret for having swapped my OG 2004 Hearth a bajillion years ago, so I wanted to give this update a try. And the scent does NOT disappoint. The tobacco and cherrywood set the stage for the tone of this scent, which indeed invokes feeling of warm coziness in front of a roaring fire. I in fact get a vibe more in line with the scene being set in a comfy, quiet study or private library, floor-to-ceiling cases completely filled with well-loved leather-bound volumes. A note about the leather: on me, in this blend, it's virtually non-existent, which was another surprise- given that leather notes far too frequently become a HAI I'M TANNED HIDE affair, drowning out all else. The smoke note is a mid-range, omni-present aspect, adding substantially to the overall effect and general ambience, but not overpowering the blend, merely adding a welcome extra dimension. After full dry down, the scent has morphed little, merely settling a bit more firmly into itself. I'm going to play around with my decant a bit more in the next month: if it ages in a way that deepens the scent, I will likely spring for a full bottle. If not, I will happily pull my vial out when the mood strikes on an especially cold or snowy day.

In a hotel in Baltimore, Lilith helped me color in my sign for the Womens March in DC. She had made her own two signs brimming with Girl Power and featuring a unicorn, of course but finished in time to help me get mine all dolled up. There are many criticisms of the march that are valid, but I will tell you this: being able to show my daughter thousands upon thousands of people that were demanding a government built on justice, compassion, and acceptance was something incredibly powerful. The experience she had meeting other children who were there in the hopes of a kinder, brighter future was invaluable. It was a pivotal moment, this ability to demonstrate for her /how to show up/ and how to /work/ for a better country and a better future for marginalized and under-represented groups. It was incredible being there in Washington with her, and I will never forget it. I hope this experience helped to reveal her own inner strength to her, and the strength she can find in her allies. Golden amber, vanilla oudh, and orange blossom. In The Bottle: A wave of gorgeous, nostalgia-inducing orange blossom, with a hint of dark vanilla bringing up the rear. Wet On Skin: Orange blossom is still the dominant note for sure, with the vanilla acting as something to soften the rough edges. I'm not getting any amber at this stage. Dry Down: This is the orange blossom scent of my DREAMS. I am *not* a floral person, but orange blossom generally comes across as summer days and a slight beach-y vibe and this fragrance delivers on all of the above. Upon this full dry-down, the amber comes out, just at the end, like instead of an aftertaste, its an after-smell, and it's really good, lending a warmth and depth to the whole affair. In All: So, so, so beautiful.

"The remnants of a dream laying softly on your skin: somnambulant lavender and orchid incense suffused with red labdanum, champaca orchid, patchouli root, champignon, Italian bergamot, and white oakmoss." In the bottle, and when first applied, I mostly get a rather astringent lavender, some of the bergamot, and a touch of the white oakmoss bringing up the rear. But after the scent has had a few minutes to meld with the skin, it blooms into something far more warm and rich. It's not heavy, like a blanket, but more like a soft length of cashmere that one can wrap around themselves repeatedly, being left with a feeling of comfort, but not encumbered. The lavender becomes more of a supporting background note while the orchid incense and labdanum join the oakmoss to becomes the primary players. They all play so sweetly together, after another 15 or 20 minutes, the scent morphs further, so that notes become only part of the whole, impossible to pick out any longer as individuals. The oil has a low-to-medium throw and a sexiness that invites closer contact. A "skin" scent for sure, and so aptly named. In All: This might be one of my favorite Bloodmilk scents yet!