cranberry

Mata Hari

At first sniff I smell jasmine underlain with notes that I can’t identify. It’s warm, rich, and sensual smelling. It reminds me a lot of some of the Lupercalia blends. Nothing in particular – no spot on equivalent, but something about the attitude and tone of this scent that brings out the association for me.

There’s something vaguely edible about this scent. I remember when I first tried it I noticed coffee right away but this time I can’t smell it in the least. Maybe it's age? Maybe it's my nose? Regardless it smells different now than how I remember it smelling. I remember thinking this was an odd scent and one I wasn’t too taken with. Now, I’m really enjoying it and glad that I hung onto my imp. (Thanks GC swap for getting me to pull it out again!)

Wolf's Heart

This is a bright red oil along the lines of any of the Ars Draconis oils, Love Me or Fiery Wall of Protection. Once applied, the first thing I smell is dragon’s blood. This reminds me a lot of Love Me, which I adore, and Fiery Wall of Protection, which I like very much (and find to be quite effective). The properties of this oil call for it to grant courage and strengthen fortitude, which is definitely related to the properties of Fiery Wall of Protection. At this point, I need some fortitude in business so this is a good oil for me to test. I could probably use some Road Opener too or Block Buster but that’s a different discussion.

After this has been on a bit, it remains a pretty straight dragon’s blood scent. It’s a bit floral – I can’t tell if it’s actually an addition of jasmine or just the jasmine-like qualities of dragon’s blood. There’s something a bit spicy in the background, again similar to Fiery Wall.

Overall impression – it doesn’t last too long, so frequent reapplication would be necessary, but I like the scent and like it’s intentions, so that wouldn’t be a problem. I’m very glad that I got to try this – thanks GC swap!

Seraphim

This is a heady, creamy floral blend that smells almost like gardenia to me. I can smell the lily and a touch of rose but these are dominated by another rich, heady floral. Looking at the notes I suppose that’s the wisteria but I don’t know what that smells like. There’s a nice base underneath the florals. Smelling it after I’ve just applied it, it brings to mind Sleepy Moon oh so slightly, which I ADORE. When I first sniffed this in the imp I was rather uncertain and thinking that I wouldn’t mind passing this imp along, but as it wears I find myself sniffing my wrist repeatedly. The frankincense adds a touch of astringency to it and bit of sharpness to the florals. As it wears the base become stronger. Nice, I like it! Thanks GC swap!

edited slightly because I have a crazy nose but it's all good now (I think)...

Follow Me Boy

I’m just trying this for the scent as I’m not in a position right now to try it for it’s intent (currently alone at home gardening and doing laundry) but I’d like to try it for it’s purpose sometime.

God, how to describe this…powder. Baby powder. There’s something there too that's a bit sickly and cloying. Man this is strong! The florals in the background are hard to identify, buried beneath the powder or mineral oil scent. I do not like this scent at all. I cannot believe this blend would attract, seduce or enthrall nor that it would bring increased financial gain and profits. This is not good scent on me. After wearing it for a while it didn’t improve – damn chemistry. Maybe it’s a time of month thing. I sure wish I got the creamy vanilla that some have described. Ah well - there's lots of BPAL out there that I adore so it's just as well. It was great to try this just the same.

Hunger

Notes: narcissus, orange blossoms, vanilla

This smells vaguely medicinal in the imp with traces of vanilla in the background. It’s reminiscent of Snake Oil without all the spices. On the skin wet, it smells a bit like tobacco and flowers that are not overpoweringly sweet. It actually reminds me a lot of an acacia essential oil that I’ve had forever. After it’s been on a couple of minutes, the vanilla comes forward strongly and this is very similar to Snake Oil. Yum!

As this wears, it remains predominantly vanilla, tempered a bit by the other notes. The other notes in the blend are hard for me to pick out – I’m not familiar with narcissus and they blend together well adding interest and depth to the vanilla. It’s long-lasting and although I only put a small bit on, it’s pretty strong, making me think that the throw on this oil could be great.

Overall, another great vanilla scent! I’m liking this a lot and I see some good possibilities for this one – alone and layered.

Thanks GC swap – the orange blossom in this would have kept me far away from this scent and I never would have tried it.

Blood Countess

Notes: black plum, opium, dead roses, hungarian lilac, white gardenia, wild berry

Juicy, luscious dark red fruit, slightly spicy. When I first applied this I got a bit of the opium haze but that receded pretty quick leaving only the rich, jeweled fruits. This is how I imagined Frumious Bandersnatch would smell like. Yum! From my memory of that scent, they are pretty similar. As it wears it stays pretty true, not changing much. It’s all juicy plum with a touch of spice. Wow, this is a delicious scent!

Aizen-Myoo

This is a bright scent, slightly tart and astringent. It reminds me of the Asian moons, Holiday Moon, or Budding Moon. I smell sweet grapefruit and a touch of florals. There’s tea in the background. This is a super refreshing scent and perfect for summer. If I come across an imp I’ll hang onto it. Thanks GC swap – I probably would have never tried this scent!

Asphodel

This is an elusive scent, it doesn’t have the big name florals that are easy to recognize. There’s something smooth and slightly creamy about this scent. It says subdued floral to me but at the same time it’s rather fresh.

After its been on for a couple hrs, I’m getting carnation - I didn’t expect that! Slightly spicy and sweet. This is really pretty, I love carnations. In this phase, it reminds me a bit of Morocco (carnation). I really like this phase of the scent.

Magdalene

notes: white roses, labdanum, wild orchid

Initially Magdalene smells herbal to me, a bit dry and dusty. Then the rose comes out, but it’s a subdued rose, a quiet rose unlike the brash rose in Peacock Queen or the forthright rose of Rose Red. The herbs and rose remain and interplay, I can’t name what that herb is – maybe sage? It’s dry, a bit sharp and sucks all the life out of the roses. As it wears on, it smells like there’s a bit of honey in here. It’s reminding me of the honeyed apricots/oranges of Thaleia. Maybe there’s apricot in here? Wow – this is turning into Thaleia – that is so weird! Not what I expected at all based on the notes.

Anyway, this has not been a scent for me.

Jester

Notes: huckleberry, red currant, neroli

On, this is ripe and juicy berries, dripping with juice. There’s a faint note far in the background that must be the neroli – neroli to me has always had a sharp, bitter quality. There’s something here that forms a point or a pinnacle in the background. It almost smells like there could be jasmine in here but I think it’s the bite of the neroli.

This smells like the same berry that’s in Florence. I love those berries. There’s a fair bit of similarity. After the oil has been on a bit, the neroli smoothes out and Jester turns into this very nice berry-floral scent (this is where the similarity to Florence comes in). It makes a good perfume but I think it would be even better in bath gel or bubble bath.

Kostnice

Notes: frankincense, rosewood, lily, geranium rose

Weird, this smells like nuts on me. There’s a slight floral in the background, along with something slightly astringent. I found my frankincense EO, and after sniffing that, then my hand, I can detect frankincense slightly in the background. This is a really odd scent. I think it must be how it’s reacting with me and my chemistry.

After it’s been on a while, the weird nutty smell softens and I can smell the rosewood and lily. Soft and woody, slightly herbal. Behind it though remain the nuts.

This has been an interesting scent to test, and I’ll hang onto my imp just in case it’s due to a time of the month issue. But, at the same time, I’m in no hurry to repeat this experience.

Seance

Notes: rosewood, rose leaf, hazel

My first impression of Séance is: roses! Rich, moist, lush roses. Slightly green. My second thought is that this is a good sub for Rose Red. It has that same fresh rose with a touch of greenery. After I’ve had it on for a couple minutes, the rosewood comes out and it’s not an exact dupe of Rose Red but still very nice.

After it’s been on a while, this still remains a beautiful rose scent, slightly woody. Beautiful. Just beautiful. Thanks GC swap – I probably wouldn’t have gotten around to my imp of this otherwise!

Penitence

Notes: frankincense and myrrh.

I can’t tell the difference between frankincense and myrrh, and I can’t find my essential oil box right now, but this reminds me of a rich perfume, of the traditional type. Smoky, sultry, of the oriental genre. To me, it’s slightly reminiscent of Youth Dew. I think there must be some similarity of scent but even more so of the vibe. When I think of frankincense and myrrh, I think of churches and burning resins. I have to say, this scent doesn’t make me think of church.

I like it a lot. Rich, sexy, confident, slightly spicy.

Thaleia

Notes: honey, ylang ylang, apricot, ciste, blood orange and gardenia with earthy, warm tonka.

Initially I smell honey and blood orange. This is a really interesting scent and quite unusual. It’s rather offputting. Normally I find BPAL to be very well blended and I often have a hard time picking out individual notes. Thaleia, on the other hand is a cacophony of notes. There’s something almost herbal in here, dry smelling and arid (I think that’s a combination of the honey and apricot). Wow, there’s apricot there. Maybe that’s what I’m finding offputting, I’m not a fan of apricot scents. As it wears, the scent darkens and deepens at bit. Overall, this is all about honeyed apricots with a lesser amount of honeyed oranges. Personally, I’m glad I got to try this, but this is not a scent for me.

Florence

Notes: iris, bright berries, gilded amber and velvety spices

I love Florence so much and it’s a pleasure to finally review it. Initially, I smell iris and amber. There’s a touch of sweetness from the berries. The iris is oh so slightly dry and powdery and the amber adds warmth and roundness, with a touch of spice. The elements combine to a sweet, feminine, sophisticated scent that is so pretty. This is what I wanted the Haunted Palace to smell like (despite the fact that HP notes indicate it wouldn’t smell at all like this, I think it was more the description fits this scent so well). After a while, the berries recede and I’m left with a beautiful spiced amber that has a touch of powdery iris. Beautiful.

Roadhouse

Notes: dandelion, hops, tobacco, hemp and booze

For some reason, Roadhouse smells like apples on me. At first, there was a whiff of booze, the same booze that’s in Devil’s Night, but that vanished pretty quick leaving only apples. I like apples and actually have Verdandi, a wonderful apple-amber scent. Do I need another?

Taking a whiff from farther back, the booze makes itself known again. As it wears on, the crispness of the apples backs off a bit and is replaced by greenery – hello dandelion! Overall, this is a wonderfully green, fresh scent. It would be perfect for summer days and probably not so good for work. Very nice!

Eternal

Notes: stephanotis, cyclamen, heliotrope, white rose and gardenia

Eternal is all flowers on me. Gardenia is prominent along with rose and other flowers that I can’t identify. This isn’t my usual style of scent so it’s a departure for me to try this. It reminds me slightly of one of the Lupercalia oils – maybe the Perfumed Garden? It’s interesting because there’s really no common notes listed, but to me, there’s definitely a similarity. It’s a heady scent, all tropical blooms. It was good to try but not for me.

The Ghost

Notes: iris, osmanthus, calla lily, ivy, gladiolus, lisianthus, delphinium

In the imp: unsweetly floral, bulbous

On the skin: this is a soft, pretty, floral, almost but not quite aquatic. It’s well blended but I can pick out the iris. I’m not familiar with most of the notes in this so I can’t really identify them more. It’s a lush scent and brings to mind the color pale green. There is a touch of green in this scent. As it wears on, it turns a bit sharp and bit soapy. It’s been an interesting scent to try but not one that I need.

Grandmother of Ghosts

Notes: laurel, stargazer lily, splintered woods, peony, mandarin, white musk, pale pepper

In the imp: mmm. Very nice. It smells sort of musky and woody, just my sort of scent.

On the skin: slightly floral and a bit musky.

On the skin, dry: wow, this reminds me a bit of a commercial perfume, not the synthetic aspect, but it’s the more traditional take with florals with an underpinning of woods, and musk. Very pretty. I think that my mom would really like this.

Akuma

Initial impression: wow – neroli! Behind the dryness of the neroli, there’s the sweetness and juiciness of the raspberry. I find neroli to be almost acrid – it has a sharp-ish scent that almost makes the breath catch at the back of my throat. There’s a slight sweetness to this scent and as it wears, the raspberry and blood orange become more prominent.

Wow, this is a strong scent. As it wears on, it becomes more fruity and the blood orange becomes stronger. It has an almost candy orange type smell. After a couple hours its all blood orange. Definitely a fruity scent for grown-ups.

Dragon's Bone

Notes: dragon’s blood, white sandalwood, orris, blondwood

In the imp, I can smell the dragon’s blood most strongly of any of the notes. Once applied, the dragon’s blood remains a dominant note, seconded by the iris-like orris. I’m not getting any sandalwood or blondwood (not sure how that should smell but I can imagine), but I think they may be providing a base to the orris and dragon’s blood.

This is a dry, dusty scent due to the orris. I’m sure that the sandalwood contributes to this feeling as well. I usually find dragon’s blood to be fairly succulant so the orris and sandalwood combination must be stronger than I had originally thought. It’s interesting, as the scent wears on it smells similar to sarsaparilla or something vaguely rootbeer-like. This doesn’t last too long but it was completely unexpected! After it’s been on a while, the orris remains the dominant note. I like it but I think that my imp is just right.

Dragon's Musk

The GC swap has made me pull out my Dragon’s Musk imp and give it a whirl. In the imp, it smells a bit musty and a slight note of dragon’s blood. Once on, it’s nicely balanced between the musks and the dragon’s blood. It’s not a sweet scent by any means. The dragon’s blood is here more to accent the musk rather than play a starring role. It’s a very masculine scent. The perfect compliment to Dragon’s Milk. Dragon’s Musk and Smut share some of the same musks. For someone looking for Smut, this may be a good substitute. It evokes the same kinda vibe to me. It’s a long lasting scent – hrs later I can still smell it. As it wears on, the dragon’s blood resins seem to come out, but still with the musks dominating the show. As it wears on, I’m not getting the Smut vibe as strongly as I was earlier. Overall, pretty good!

Dragon's Eye

I’ve been inspired to test my Dragon’s Eye imp by the GC swap.

Wow – I can really smell the lily of the valley and the lilac. This oil reminds me of my grandmothers house for some reason and hot summer days when I was growing up. I’m not sure what galbanum smells like. In all of the Ars Draconis scents that I’ve tried, the dragon’s blood is a very small component in the scents; this oil is no different. It seems to be there more in a supporting role rather than taking central stage. This reminds me more of a traditional, old fashioned perfume or toilet water than a BPAL oil. As it wears on, the florals continue to dominate.

Overall thoughts, scentwise it's not for me but it's certainly a very evocative oil.

Dragon's Heart

I was inspired to test my imp through the GC swap.

In the imp it smell like musky, dark fruit, maybe fruit that is slightly off. Not a great smell but not a bad one either.

On the skin, it blooms. Wow, this is amazing. A blend of musks (esp. red musk, yum!) with a fruity tang and a touch of the herbal, resiny jasmine-like dragon’s blood. This is a very strong scent and only a little is needed. After a few hrs what remains is the musks tempered a bit by the dragon’s blood. Overall, this is a great scent!

La Petit Mort – Love Potions

Notes: skin, ylang ylang, myrrh

I’m trying this courtesy of the General Catalog swap. I’ve tried this before but it was a long time ago and didn’t have a good response to La Petit Mort, so I passed it along and didn't bother to review.

Initially, I smell honey, that same top note as I smelled in O. Roaring up behind the honey is ylang ylang. It’s a good combination and it smells a lot better than I remember. It’s grounded by the myrrh. As it wears it’s not changing much, from wet to dry. It is a good lesson to me in that even if you have a bad reaction/bad chemistry with an oil, it doesn’t hurt to give it a second chance. I’m liking this quite a bit which is a shocker to me because I can remember distinctly not liking this much at all.

edited to reflect correct category.