cranberry

In the imp, this smells lemony and slightly spicy.

 

On the skin, this is similar to Enraged Bunny Musk, only it’s not as musky, without the cotton, and more lemony. The lemon is not tart, it’s more like a representation or interpretation of lemon. It is very much like a lemony-fresh cleaning product.

 

But with a bit spice too.

When first applied, this smells of orchid, lotus and lavender, underlain by soft white musk. This is so pretty. For a sec, this made me think of a much aged Lotus Moon. But only for a second.

 

As it dries, it deepens and there’s sandalwood and sugar too. But still the sweet lavender and other flowers remain. This is light, pretty, and sweet. Just gorgeous.

 

This also reminds me of Yvaine, but softer and sweeter. I’m so glad that I have a bottle.

so... i am in love with both Lurid Library and Black Lace. i'm almost positive that the musk of infernal servants in LL is the indian musk that's in BL, and my skin absolutely loves it. i could roll around in the stuff!

 

i used the search function on the Lab's page, but nothing came up. is there a GC scent that uses this same musk? i've heard some people comparing antique lace to black lace, but i've never smelled it. is it the musk that makes them similar or just the vanilla?

 

if there isn't: Beth, pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease use this musk in a GC scent, especially with a bit of vanilla and/or incense.

 

you know, I may be crazy, but I think that Euterpe is similar to Black Lace. Black Lace is on the vanilla side and a bit warmer and sweeter, while Euterpe is on the floral carnation side. But they both have an amazing musk base. if got an imp laying around try it and see what you think.

When first applied this smells strongly of very dry, white sandalwood. Earth and loam. Maybe some roses too. As it wears there’s a herbal smell there too. As this point, the roses are strongest followed by the herbs and loam. The sandalwood scent is pretty much gone now but I’m sure it’s there in the background anchoring this scent.

wet: Damn this is sweet! Orchids? Yes that’s orchid all right. Also something cool, like menthol or eucalyptus.

 

dry: the orchids are still there dominating the scent. It’s the same orchid from Dark Delicacies that I loved, but this is a much different take. For some reason this scent is evoking a visceral reaction from me. It is just so strong.

 

As it wears, I can smell the stone now. This is a very evocative scent and I can just imagine thick jungles, high humidity, lush flowers and dripping caves. This is just beautiful.

Wow – this one is unusual. When first applied, this smells green, watery, and like melons. There’s something bitter there in the background, almost like a black tea scent. Or, a bitter stalk. I wouldn’t have guessed this is wormwood. I’ve picked wormwood before and it smells nothing like this. Fresh wormwood is pretty distinctive and I can’t describe it, but it’s very unique. Maybe that first blast of bitterness represented the wormwood, but that vanished so quick I can’t be sure.

This actually reminds me of a watermelon berry plant – the stalks taste a bit like cucumbers and the berries have a watery fresh taste to them.

As it wears, it’s becoming a light pretty floral. There’s something vaguely minty there too. I can see this being really nice in the spring or summer.

Ohhh, this is gorgeous! When first applied this smells cold, sweet and of evergreens. As it dries mint starts peeking through. It’s like the watery mint in Snowflakes or Tulzcha, plus maybe a bit of cucumber too.

 

There’s berries too, melding beautifully with the snow, mint and slush notes. This is absolutely gorgeous, as is the bottle artwork.

 

This is similar to Skadi, but I think this one is slushier, mintier, and with a touch of cucumber. And without the spices/cider that Skadi has. They’re not identical but near cousins for sure.

I’ve put off testing this as I just have a tiny drop. I got Old Moon today, along with the Snow Storm, so I figured it was time to do a comparison.

 

This is a gorgeous scent. Once applied it smells of snow, ice, and pine, but with sweetness. There’s something vaguely spicy here, maybe a drop of cinnamon or clove along with the berry. This is absolutely gorgeous. To me, this is becoming more of a snow-spice scent than a snow-berry scent. It’s almost like the cinnamon in the old-school Hamadryad. This is really interesting, the spices are still pretty strong, but there’s something fruity there – maybe it’s the berry reappearing, but it almost smells like apple cider, or the mulling spices used to make apple cider. The pine and snow are pretty much gone now, but if you concentrate you can still smell them faintly in the background.

 

Beautiful, I’m so glad that I got to try it.

I haven’t reviewed this one yet, but it’s been a favorite from the Snake Pit to start, and it may just be my very favorite. I think that Slave1’s description of this being a lighter, brighter Snake Oil is dead on.

 

When it’s first applied, the moss is the strongest smell, with vanilla and incense in the background. As it wears, it quickly becomes quite sweet. The vanilla gets really strong, so it’s like a very vanilla-mossy-bright-Snake Oil.

 

I wouldn’t classify this as aquatic at all. Nor masculine. Of all the BPAL scents out there, it reminds me most strongly of Ravenous and Vixen, but the patchouli is not as strong. To me, the singular characterizing scent here is vanilla. It’s quite wonderful, and reminds me of the vanilla from Dragon’s Milk.

 

This is a multiple bottle purchase for sure.

First sniff, Bitter, green and sweet – this smells like a light green color of a scent. The lily is definite, yet there’s greenness there too, like the flower and the stalk, all represented in this imp.

 

This reminds me strongly of Strength, which is all lily and amber, but this is without the amber. Or of One to Tie, Two to Win. When I first tried that one, I thought it was dandelions, but now I’m thinking that maybe it’s a scent of lilies.

 

As it wears, there’s hints of red apple, and rose too, but it’s the greenness of Rose Red rather than the lush rose of Peacock Queen. The dandelion/lily scent is being overtaken by the apple and rose and it’s turning more floral than the green bitterness that I associate with lily and just adore. But still, this scent screams freshness.

 

It’s been on a couple hours now, and is fairly faint. Sniffing closely, it smells like light bright flowers. It’s hard to go beyond that.

 

In sum, I really liked the start of this scent. It made me think that I had maybe found a replacement for my beloved Strength. The middle notes are also quite nice and I do like that stage too. The rose and apple work really nicely with the weedy lily dandelion scent. The ending I’m not blown away with but all in all, I like this scent a lot. I'm not sure if I'll get a bottle but I'm tempted.

me too! green is just gorgeous and mechanical is pretty damn cool looking.

Wet: Lilies, strong lily.

 

Dry: as it dries, I can smell the vanilla musk. This is just gorgeous; the vanilla musk mixes wonderfully with the florals. I think AliBabble nailed it – this also reminds me of Berenice, but sweeter and more floral, and I think it’s the stargazer lily. I love that note and it is strong here. On me, this oil is a mix between the vanilla musk and the stargazer lily. I can’t really smell any of the other notes.

In sum: Absolutely gorgeous, I’m so glad that I have a bottle.

This is a beautiful, bright, crystalline floral – it’s like a cross between Kindly Moon and an aquatic of some kind – maybe Kingsport? When applied for the first time I thought it was a bit too sharp but after trying it a couple times I really like it.

 

I’m not getting any mint note but there is something chilly about this blend. There’s something quite sweet about this blend, especially after it’s been on a while. Initially I’d think it was sugared flowers, but looking at the notes it must be honeysuckle. Just beautiful. This reminds me of frozen flowers in watery, winter sunlight.

echoing Love and Pain. It's just about my favorite lavender blend. Agony of Loss is good too, but I think that Love and Pain might be a smidge better.

2007

When I smell them together, 2005 and 2007 smell virtually identical. But for some reason I keep thinking that the 2007 version is stronger, but when I compare them I really don’t get that at all.

 

However it compares, it’s a masterpiece and one of my all-time ever favorite scents. I’m so thankful this was brought back this year.

 

It smells of creamy honeyed coconut, vanilla, a hint of cream, something cold like a chill north wind and a touch of fresh green. When I smell it without trying to identify notes or describe the scent, I do think of flowers yet when I try to describe them I’m at a loss.

 

It’s so beautiful and indeed deserves its legendary status.

This is resinous heaven. It reminds me of Schwarzer Mond, a very good thing as that is an amazing oil. It has a little bit of a root beer vibe when first applied, more sarsaparilla really than root beer, but in that family nonetheless. It could be the basil mingling with the opponax and as it wears the basil comes out more strongly. This is such a gorgeous scent – rich, dark, resinous, musky, and sexy as hell. In terms of perfume it’s definitely in the Oriental category. I never thought basil would smell so damn good in an oil. At this point, after about a ½ hr, it’s mainly basil, opponax and musk. And just fucking gorgeous. I haven’t gotten any wormwood yet, maybe I’m biased as it makes me remember picking and sniffing it on the side of the road on a hot sunny day overlooking Kachemak Bay (and this oil just does not evoke that image to me). Wormwood is also known as stinkweed, has a distinctive smell and is used as a traditional medicine. Anyway, this is a gorgeous blend and I’m so glad that I tried it.

 

Although I’m a Libra, I do have a Scorpio Moon, so I don’t feel bad that this is my absolute favorite of the Zodiacs so far.

there's a number of types of coconut oil. virgin coconut oil has that coconut smell so that wouldn't be a good choice, but regular coconut oil (likely 76* or what it is, 92* or something) is super stable, resists rancidity, and has a long shelf life. the 76* and 9x* degree coconut oil has absolutely no smell.

 

the only thing is that they are solid until 76 or 9X degrees. so maybe 76 mixed with something else so it would be more liquid phase.

jojoba is lovely but it's pretty thin. I'd try avocado or sweet almond oil. the SAO goes rancid relatively quickly from what I understand so make sure that it's fresh and stored properly when you get it (if you go that route).

This smells of sweet, smooth sandalwood, incense, sweet woods and a touch of tobacco. It is just gorgeous. There’s something green and fresh too, I can’t identify it but it adds a lightness to the scent. It actually reminds me strongly of Sleepy Moon – mainly because of the sandalwood and fresh green elements.

 

After it’s been on a bit, the red musk peeks out a bit but it never overpowers. This is so gorgeous and made even better because it’s a celebration of Beth and Ted’s wedding.

 

Love it!

2007:

This is just like Rose Red 2005 – absolutely beautiful. Rose can go terribly wrong on me depending on the rose, but this one is always perfect.

 

In the bottle and on the skin, this smells of fresh, dewy roses. What makes this so amazing is that you can also smell the fresh, green, crisp stem. It makes this scent alive. It is absolutely gorgeous and I can’t stop huffing my wrist.

 

This is the quintessential rose scent.

In the bottle this smells of sweet fruit and amber.

On the skin, this is reminding me strongly of how I remember Hymn to Proserpine – sweet fruit and amber.

Comparing the two, Hymn to Proserpine is much sweeter and stronger on the amber, but they are similar. This is a bit tarter and I can tell that it’s mango now and not pomegranate. There’s a touch of coconut but it’s very faint and something green and very fresh. This is a very well blended scent and everything is meshing together so well. There’s something similar here to Hungry Ghost Moon – I’m thinking it must be the rice flower. As it wears the incense comes out and mixes with the amber and fruit.

After it’s been on a bit, the spices are starting to come out – not in an overpowering way, but in a way that just hints at them. They are very soft but definitely there in the background adding so nicely to the incense, amber and fruits.

If I had to summarize in a sentence, I’d say rich dark fruits, amber, and incense.

I’m so glad that I got a bottle of this – it’s beautiful.


eta: OMG - I just tried this again and it's reminding me of Feminite du Bois (which I adore!)! It's not exact, but I think it may be better in fact. Woods, incense, amber and fruit. I have to get another bottle before this goes away.

Any recommendations for a BPAL GC that smells like Sleepy Moon? I'm totally obsessed!

 

I love sleepy moon - it's one of my all time favorites. I didn't think there was much that smelled like it, but after wearing Pirate Moon for a few days, I think it's pretty similar. It's not exact, but it has that wonderful smooth sandalwood that Sleepy Moon has.

Maybe Al-Azif. It's quite sweet, with incense but not the OMG INCENSE like Midnight Mass, Cathedral or Pit and the Pendulum. It's a great blend.

 

Shub Niggurath also has a fantastic incense once the ginger and/or lemon (depending on the age of the oil) recedes. It's not a real strong incense blend though, but just enough to make it really special.

 

Tezcatlipoca is also an amazing incense blend behind the patchouli, leather and cocoa. The incense gets stronger the longer it wears and it becomes mainly an incense-patchouli blend. Yum!

In the imp: berries or plum. Deep red-purple fruits

 

On the skin: Initially I smell the purple fruit, then another notes comes forward – a bit musky and a bit herbal (almost). I don’t know how to describe what I’m smelling here but it’s interesting and I like it. I think it’s the wine but I’m not sure.

 

Dry the purple fruit are predominant. There’s still a bit of an herbal smell there, must be the tannins in the wine. I like this scent a lot but for berries I have Florence.

Hmm – this smells like wood and ivy most strongly. Moss is there in the background.

 

As it wears, the ivy gets stronger and stronger and I totally agree this is similar to the Black Tower, which I very much enjoy. I was expecting more dark wood from this scent rather than a predominantly ivy scent.