vegasblueblood

Yum! The gentle jasmine is quite prominent but not in an overpowering way. It is surrounded and cushioned by the sweetness of the honey and smoky vanilla and there is a touch of the spicy cinnamon underneath everything. This is really beautiful. Sometimes when I wear it, the cinnamon is more dominant while at other times I get lots of vanilla and jasmine. This is a very sexy blend, very creamy and warm.

Oh yum, this is a foodie lover's paradise! A caramel coconut apple dream! A little of this goes a very long way and it's caramel, caramel and more caramel. The tart juiciness of the apple comes through underneath and stops it from being cloying. The butterscotch is very buttery, for lack of a better term, but buttery in a very, very good way. And somewhere under all that buttery caramel goodness, the coconut and rum are adding just that extra kick of sweetness. This is one of the greatest foodie blends ever.

One of my favorite paintings and one of my favorite BPALs! I love this blend and wear it a lot. It's so complex and starts off full of the herbal poisons sweetened by the honey. It then becomes so gorgeously sweet and almost ripe yet full of that poisonous slightly green undertone. It also has a touch of dryness, it's not moist at all. This scent embodies Cleopatra and ancient Egypt to me. It simply stunning in it's complexity. I adore it. Not only that, it last for HOURS.

Olive oil, beeswax, glowing amber, sweet sufganiyot, pomegranate, and fig. This is a glowing, sophisticated foodie blend. The baked goods smell just emanates from it while the underlying fruits give it a tart note that keeps it from becoming too sweet. Normally I am not a huge fan of amber but the amber in this is so soft that it simply gives it a gorgeous warmth that is really evocative of the holidays and the glowing candles of Hannukah. The beeswax gently comes out and adds to the golden quality of this blend. Really gorgeous and special.

This is so much more candy-like than I expected! I love the sweet blends and Tiki Queen is just that. Very, very sweet. I thought that the tropical blooms would be more prominent but I get lots of coconut and vanilla mingling with ylang ylang. It's very lush at the same time and has a delicate quality to it. I'm not a huge fan of neroli so luckily it is staying in the background. I put this on about 3 hours ago and it is still going strong. The last time I wore it, it lasted something like 10 hours. I knew I would like this one when I read the notes and I was right! Great bottle artwork as well.

This one is very spicy and warm. It almost reminds me of Christmas which is probably the mulled wine--a scent I always associate with winter and the holidays. On me, the juniper and bayberry is very prominent though the sweetness of the dragon's blood is starting to emerge. I start to picture the Tintagel feasting hall during Yule time of Arthur's era when I wear this, complete with huge roaring fire. It would probably be absolutely amazing as a room scent.

Yummy, yummy, yummy! This is deliciously lighthearted and super sweet. It has a gorgeous tart note that keeps is from being cloying and has a buttery note down underneath everything as well that someone else mentioned is akin to pastry crust. This is one of my favorites and instantly puts me in a happy little mood. I definitely get more cherry than strawberry--maybe even sour cherry? It smells like some kind of amazing dessert!

Wicked is not for the faint of heart. Lots and lots of haughty jasmine with a strong undercurrent of myrrh that gives it lots of bite. I think I am starting to detect the rose emerging and it's a dark, elegant rose, not a young and fresh one. This is definitely representative of the long and interesting line of wicked stepmothers and queens in fairytale history. You can almost see the swirling robes of their dresses and catch a whiff of Wicked as they go by in your mind's eye. Fascinating and strong blend.

I get lots and lots of incense from this blend. The incense is almost woody which I'm thinking is the myrrh and underneath the resin-y woodiness is the faint hint of the offeratory cakes. On me, this is not foody at all and I don't really get anything sugary. It is also quite strong and vaguely perfumy. A little bit goes a long way. It has a sense of that mustiness that one finds in the gorgeous old churches and cathedrals. Really interesting blend!

To me, this is a sugared carnation dipped in orange juice. It simultaneously sugary sweet, spicy and fruity. The sugar is really coming out on me, faintly reminiscent of the sugar in Sugar Skull, and it is becoming quite foody. I love the foodie blends so this a good thing. It's very creamy with just enough bite. Another beautiful blend from Beth.

Curiouser and curiouser. Milk and honey with rose, carnation and bergamot. This perfectly captures the innocence and essence of Alice. It is sweet and creamy with a hint of that little clever carnation that gives it some kick and spice and cheekiness. One of my favorite BPAL blends, not to mention that I'm a huge Alice in Wonderland fan. The milk and honey makes this beautifully creamy and I can almost see the blend as a soft glowing pink. Really wonderful.

I always jump on any BPAL blend that has milk and honey notes in it. Milk Moon is a gorgeously sweet and ripe scent that is indeed reminiscent of a pina colada. The fruit in this seems to be extremely ripe, at the moment in its life where it is about to turn from delicious ripeness to going rotten, and it gives Milk Moon a really amazing depth. I can actually see rich ripe dates and figs dripping with honey in my mind and the pomegranante and white grape give this the sharp note that prevents this blend from becoming cloying. This one is not for the faint of heart as it is very sweet and very strong. I applied several hours ago and it shows no signs of fading away.

Oh, Black Lace In the bottle, this is much more cologne-y than I would have thought, probably due to the tobacco and cognac. It still retains a feminity though and it truly is reminiscent of a Victorian funeral with its sweet smokiness. This has lots of gorgeous layers that slowly unveil themselves over the first hour, ending in a absolutely stunning smoky incensy vanilla, kind of like Antique Lace's dark twin sister. I am so lucky to have found myself a bottle of this!

I opened the bottle when I got it and went yum. Honey and carnation are two of my most beloved notes and on me, Judith & Holofernes has lots of both. It is a slighty dusty sweet blend and it's actually hard to pick out the individual notes because it's so well blended. It is quite soft and not overpowering (all the more reason to slather it on!) and it is pretty sophisticated. It actually reminds me a bit of a sweeter Schlafende Baigneuse. Awesome blend and a great painting!

Definitely Salome, Hellcat and Hecate for almond

I got this as a frimp from the Lab and it is a really nice surprise! It has that gorgeous earthiness of patchouli on initial application with just a hint of a creamy orange but after about 10 minutes the creamy orange really comes out and takes control though not in an overpowering way. The patchouli and orange blossom mingle together in a perfectly choreographed dance and become a sexy spicy citrus blend.

I love anything Alice in Wonderland and love Beth's scent interpretations of the characters. Tweedledum is a whimsical fruity blend that has that grounded woodiness of patchouli underneath to keep it from spiraling into fruity madness. Very fun and sort of out there, kind of like Tweedledum!

I adore BPAL's honey and this has lots of it! This blend is very sweet and in the imp, it's all honey. Shortly after applying, the ylang ylang comes out and adds a floral note to the sweetness. I am hoping that the two musks come to the forefront a bit more and I am a big fan of both Egyptian and Arabian musks and their gorgeous spiciness. After about give minutes, the spice is starting to emerge a touch more but the dominant notes seem to be the honey and ylang ylang. This is very, very sweet, almost candy-like but I enjoy sweet scents so I really like this one.

I got this as a frimp from the Lab and I'm really glad I did because it's not something I probably would have tried out on my own. I love the Lab's wine and boozy scents and Wanda, in the imp and on initial application, opens up with a thick red wine scent. The wine quickly takes a curtsy and moves into the background allowing the florals and musk to come through, leaving a feminine, deep yet strong boozy floral. It's really beautifully blended so no one floral really sticks out, they just come together in a slightly greenish bouquet that is warmed by the wine and the musk. This is very sensual and very womanly and feminine but in a way that befits a strong woman, it's not girly at all. Very nice.

Lots and lots of florals! In the bottle, it is a soft, almost watery floral, not much of the benzoin or vanilla going on and after applying, I get a ton of lily of the valley and the jasmine. It briefly goes soapy on me, which is very rare for me with the BPAL jasmine or other florals, but to my relief, the soapiness is going away pretty quickly and it's settling down into a soft, extremely feminine floral. After about 15 minutes, I'm getting hints of the vanilla which makes me happy. I got a little nervous when it went soapy but now I really love the floral bouquet with a touch of vanilla that this blend has become.

Something about this really does remind me of ancient Egypt. This is all fruity pomegranate wine on me without being overly boozy. The lotus adds a lot of sweetness but not in an overwhelming way. Anybody who loves the fruity blends will really like this one. It's gentle and soft and has an almost candy-like scent with barley as an undertone. Really lovely!

I find that I always love the Lab's rose blends and Parlement of Foules is really lovely. It's all soft white rose with a hint of resins to ground it. It's so incredibly ladylike and courtly. The resins add a touch of thickness to this, almost like molasses as someone mentioned, though with a spicy woodiness instead of plain spice. Really beautiful and a must for any rose fans. The rose stays true on my skin and doesn't morph at all. I think this will age really nicely because of the resins.

2008 version: In the bottle, I get an exotic almost woody feel. It's not very sweet and after applying it, I am getting lots of floral. It's not overly strong and I'm hoping that the sweet honey emerges more. This is almost green at the moment and I'm getting some of the powdery amber. I'm not a huge amber fan so I'm hoping that the other notes bury the amber deep in there. This is quite soft and very pretty. I'm not sure about previous years versions but this year's is definitely all about the florals to me. As it dries, the honey and vanilla are starting to emerge. Yay!

I ordered a bottle of this on a whim with my Lupercalia order and I'm so glad I did. I absolutely love the lab's honey and Defututa does not disappoint. In the bottle, I get gorgeous golden honey and olive blossom and very little jasmine or cinnamon. I can also detect what I think is the champaca flower. On initial application, it's still that golden honey and olive blossom scent but after about 15 minutes, the jasmine is starting to emerge very lightly. The jasmine does not overpower at all. It is quietly in the background filling out the scent. The champaca adds a lovely exotic note to this. It slightly smoky and the vanilla is light but quite sweet. I adore this blend! Absolutely lovely!

On initially sniffing the bottle, I went 'mmmm!'. It is a gorgeous buttercreamy vanilla scent, very much like the vanilla frosting some have mentioned. A few minutes after applying, the odd little wintergreen note starts to emerge on me though I am not sure I would call it wintergreen. It's crisp and vaguely minty, almost like a breath of fresh cool air, but I can't quite put my finger on what it is. Luckily, it doesn't overpower and the lovely buttercream vanilla scent is starting to come back to the forefront and the saffron is also starting to emerge. This is really beautiful and I'm hoping that funny little 'minty' note will mellow out as the bottle ages. Really great vanilla scent! Edited to add: It's now about 15 minutes after applying and this now smells like Midway! Seriously. I looooove Midway, it's probably my favorite BPAL scent. It has that same delicious sugary sweetness that Midway has on me. I might need another bottle of this before the Lupercalia scents retire!