PurringPulsar

Helios In the decant: ohhhh…glorious frankincense with a tinge of citrus! Wet on skin: frankincense, saffron, cedar, neroli…reminds me of Labores Solis and No 93 Engine. Dry on skin: gorgeous frankincense and saffron. This is a wonderful golden sunny scent. The resins are strongest, especially the frankincense, which smells really sappy and almost like fresh pine resin, backed up by the smokier copal. The saffron adds a golden, dry, arid touch, it’s very strong here. The cedar forms a lovely solid base for the glowing notes, whilst neroli adds a lovely flash of citrus. This is absolutely stunning. It’s a strong, powerful sun scent. After a while: this becomes very similar to Zenobia, the same frankincense, saffron and slightly woodsy base. This doesn’t have the shadowy patchouli and clove, this is brighter, more golden, and with a different type of spice to it. It smells dry and sandy, a true desert spice scent. This is the sun at its fiercest, not sweetened with amber or heliotrope, but fiery, but not harsh. I love how warm this scent is, how vividly golden-yellow it is. Verdict: yet again, Beth successfully bottles sunshine in scent. This is what I wanted to smell in Gold Phoenix. Golden resins heated by saffron, with a piercing note of neroli, and a bit of dry wood to ground it. This is the summer sun at midday in the desert, the sun laid bare. Commaning, sometimes unforgiving, its blinding light dominates all and its presence demands to be worshipped…yet this is also warm, uplifting and inviting, especially at drydown, when it softens, turning to the mellow golden shades of late afternoon. It’s a perfect antidote to damp, wet grey days. Compared to Ra, Sol Invictus and Labores Solis, I’d say this is more like LS but without all the dark eclipsing notes, and it’s a lot heavier on the frankincense. I have a feeling that, like LS, this will become spectacular with age. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? definitely-I need at least two bottles. If you like this, try: Labores Solis, No 93 Engine, Zenobia, Robotic Scarab, Sol Invictus, Ra, Sol

Left His Nurse While In a Crowd In the imp: an odd dusty chocolate and creamy berry scent. Wet on skin: berry liqueur chocolates and a dusty furry musk. Dry on skin: now I smell cake, and it smells like a spicy fruity cake, moist and containing golden syrup, stem ginger, various dried fruits like dates and maybe raisins or prunes. I also smell lemon tea, and some chocolates too, with a red berry liqueur filling. It really smells like what it says it should, all these sweet teatime treats laid out, tempting and delicious. I smell a hint of furry fuzzy musk, a golden and dry musk, but I think the lemony tea is strongest. After a while: the scent goes through a lot of morphing. Some stages are nicer than others. Sometimes I smell dusty musk, at other times lemongrassy tea, at other times ginger cake, and then it seems to settle into a smooth sweet chocolate and berry scent. It smells like chocolates filled with a berry fondant. The berry note is identical to the one in Miller vs California. Indeed, by the end, this is very similar to Miller vs CA, right down to the hint of booze and something reminiscent of fig, and with the leather replaced by cake. The musk is dry and brownish, a little dusty, reminiscent of Miller’s paper bag note. It’s not as big and furry as I expected, nor does it remind me of the Lion. The scent then settles into a chocolate-berry. It reminds me of a 13, maybe the March 09 version, but it’s a little flatter, not as interesting, to my nose. It’s lost all the complexity of the cake, tea, musk, spices…there’s an odd boozy thing to it that smells a bit weird? Verdict: this had so much potential and complexity to it, but something about it means it isn’t really perfect on me. There are moments when it shines…the wet stage is a glorious mix of ginger cake and lemon tea served with Quality Street chocolates. But something in it isn’t quite right? Is it the musk? I normally have no trouble with golden musk. There’s a weird lemon note that I seem to smell in a lot of the Inquisitions in this round. It works well here, like lemon tea or lemon drizzle cake. The drydown of this scent is a weird dusty musky chocolate with a pleasant berry fondant filling. It’s nice, but I preferred the first stage when I could smell everything in here, the cakes, the tea, the chocolate and musk, and nothing really clashed, but the drydown is a little flat in comparison. I think I’ll stick to Eat Me and Huesos de Santo for my cake fix. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? I swapped the bottle off, but I'm keeping a decant.

Trinket In the imp: a rich, deep red fruit. Cherry maybe, but I also think damsons. And wine. Wet on skin: raspberry? Is that you? Now here’s a note that’s rare in perfume… Dry on skin: raspberry and patchouli, with that almost animalistic ‘filth’ note I got in Cupcake Splatter. This smells like that with velvety red fruit instead of cupcakes…plus some blood accord. It’s unusual. This is a very adult trinket and it has sinister origins. It smells like blood red and bruise-purple fruit: pomegranate, raspberry, cherry (real cherry, not sugared or over-almondy cherry) and currants, maybe some prunes, and a dark and dirty earthy-musky blend of patchouli with tobacco and possibly even spikenard, and a splash of deep wine. After a while: reminds me of one of the blood-themed scents…and smells like what I wanted to get from Dionysia, but with hints of Crypt Queen or Zombi. It’s a very velvety yet dirty and dark scent, with something feral and even a bit vampiric? Eventually this turns to a rich red scent, wine and raspberry with that musky-earthy undertone and that perfumey scent, maybe a bit of spice and possibly subtle rose. I never got any amber from this scent. Resin, perhaps, but not anything that leaps out as amber, at least not to me. It’s really nice once the odd dirt note fades, very sophisticated, a tiny bit perfumey, in a good way. Verdict: this is a lot darker and more intriguing than expected. This trinket is a ruby or garnet pendant on a tarnished silver chain, with quite a history behind it. I smell deep crimson fruit. I can’t say what but it’s not blatant cherry, to me it’s like raspberry and cranberry and red wine, with hints of blood accord, animalic musk and dirt, and spice, maybe incense too, it’s a bit smoky. A vampire’s trinket, perhaps? It manages to smell both luxurious and sinister. I like it, but I was hoping for a little sweetness for balance, and something about the dirty note under those lush red fruits turns odd and funky on me. But this is a fascinating little trinket of a scent that seems to tell the story of an ornament with a mysterious, possibly blood stained past. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? not sure…may need re-testing?

Xmvlzencab In vial: rich honey and a gingery floral. On skin: sharp honey, not as sharp as Tomoe Gozen, more along the lines of Oceans of Love with a bit of O. I think some of this sharpness is caused by the ginger, which is of the tangy, almost citrus variety as opposed to the gingerbread/spicy type. I’m not sure what black laurel smells like, but the plumeria is a rich exotic floral scent here, a bit like monoi or frangipani, but with honey. This smells lush and tropical. It’s not like Honey Moon, sadly, it’s more like Flower Moon 09, but this is nicer, the floral note is not as muddled, it’s a lot more straightforward. It’s also a lot sweeter, the honey and flowers here are very nectar-like, indulgently sweet, but not cloying. The scent becomes sweeter and more floral at drydown. It’s a very pretty scent, but I would have liked the honey note to be a bit richer, like the one in Oceans of Love which had beeswaxy nuances, or that awesome Honey Moon/Hony Mone honey which is my favourite honey note of all…I probably won’t get a bottle, but I may keep my decant, and may try bathing in this. I think this scent-with a name that would win Scrabble points-would make a lovely base for other floral honey scents.

Vampire Tarot: the Priestess In the imp: sandalwood, a bit of smoke, a bit of something medicinal, like ho wood? Wet on skin: this is nice, reminds me of a less sweet Silver Phoenix, or Smoky Moon with less smoke. Dry on skin: ooh, this is full of iris. I do love iris, and this type is more like orris to me, a bit pale and powdery in a very agreeable way-but it’s not as dry as orris. The dryness here is thanks to the sandalwood, which is really lovely, and has an unusual ho-wood/rosewood type scent to it. The juniper is discreet, like the juniper in Silver Phoenix and even the troublesome nicotiana is behaving-I smell it, adding a hint of smoke, but for now it isn’t turning to Ashtray Flower. After a while: this smells smokier but it’s not turning to ashtray at all, like I feared it would! It’s more like a haze of subtle tobacco over an ethereal silvery iris and a velvety sandalwood base. I really like it! This is what I wanted from Smoky Moon, which sadly turned too tobacco-y for me, and the delphinium in that scent turned weird. This one is a lot more straightforward: smoky woody iris, shimmering, sultry and mysterious. It’s also quite warm, like a moonlit summer’s night-this does have a lunar feel to it. Verdict: this one is surprising, as I like it a lot more than expected. This is very different to the original High Priestess scent, which smells like almond, pennyroyal/mint, lotus and something like mushy dead leaves to me. This one is so much nicer. I just hope the nicotiana doesn’t get too strong/smoky with age because it’s perfect as it is. It smells like a beautiful iris and silvery sandalwood mix, with a sultry haze of subtle smoke to it, a tiny bit of juniper that doesn’t smell like gin on me. It’s like Silver Phoenix meets Smoky Moon, somewhere in between the two. With the cool shimmering iris of SP, but with the sandalwood of SM, and a hint of the warm tobacco flower that in here is more restrained than in SM. I’m currently on a bit of an iris kick so this satisfies it. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? yes-I’m going to finish the decant and then get a bottle (if the nicotiana stays subtle). If you like this, try: Silver Phoenix, Smoky Moon, Lulu, Black Pearl, Bony Moon

In the imp: mmm, a lemony rose scent with a brush of herbs and neroli. Wet on skin: surprisingly effervescent honeyed rose. The lime is really strong in here. Dry on skin: this is really good! It reminds me a bit of Venice, I think…a floral citrus rose with a watery and fruity aspect to it. It also reminds me a bit of something else I can’t quite place…Helena maybe, or maybe Moscow, or Versailles? The tarragon and coriander are really intriguing here; they add a greenish, herbal, and spicy distraction from a scent that’s warm, rosy, yet also bubbly and citrus-y. It almost reminds me of Lush bath bombs-fizzy, flower filled, and warm. I can’t tell if the notes are meshing well or not though, but I like it. After a while: hmm, I’m not sure. Maybe I don’t like heliotrope as much as I used to? Because this reminds me of Et Lux Fuit now, and I am not crazy about that scents despite the fact that it contains a lot of notes of win…this scent just smells flat and weird and even a bit soapy. It’s lost the warm fizzy and complex scent, the bright lime has burnt off, and even those unusual herbal notes have gone. Even though jasmine is not a listed note, there’s something here that reminds me of it, as well as something that smells like something burnt, or even popcorn (what the?) on me. Verdict: this one saddened me…its note list had so much potential, so many wonderful notes. But it wound up smelling unimpressive and plain on me, with none of the notes shining out and doing their best on my skin. I liked the beginning when it was a citrus rose, fizzing with colourful flowers and with intriguing hints of herbal spice, a warm effervescence that reminds me of bathing with a fizzy bath bomb full of rose petals. But things that are fizzy tend to go flat, and I’m afraid to say this one does go flat. I’m disappointed as to how something that could have been so good just wasn’t. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? no. If you like this, try: Et Lux Fuit, Moscow, Dolce Stil Nuovo, Two Loves, Haunted Palace, Venice, Versailles

XCDL13 In the imp: boozy vanilla extract…like Antique Lace’s grown up sister. Wet on skin: mmm, this is nice. A bit like the vanilla-rum in Underpants, but boozier. Dry on skin: I like this! It smells like vanilla extract and a strong dark sweet booze undertone. At first I thought it was rum but now I wonder if it’s a bit like brandy or sherry, there’s a fruity aspect, like a hint of wine, to it. The vanilla is sublime. It’s Antique/Black Lace or Underpants vanilla, smooth and sexy and a bit musky-linen in scent. There’s a tad more caramel to this though, and a lot more alcohol. Actually the more I smell it, I think it’s actually cognac. A gentle and sweet cognac, usually that note dislikes me but in here it works. After a while: this is strong! It’s a lot less linen-y than Antique Lace, the vanilla scent here has a wonderful Bourbon vanilla depth to it. It’s intoxicating and powerful vanilla. I’m not so crazy about the cognac at the back of the vanilla, it’s doing the weird thing that cognac notes do on my skin, but this is very similar to Black Lace but without the thick tobacco that I disliked in BL. I adore the vanilla here. Verdict: I can see why this is so beloved, as I myself have fallen for this. It’s a sexed up Antique Lace. It’s like Black Lace without all the things I disliked in Black Lace. It’s the same creamy sexy vanilla, sophisticated and gorgeous. Similar to Underpants in that it’s a bit woodsy, and boozy like a vanilla liqueur, only this smells more like cognac instead of rum. Cognac usually disagrees with me and at the beginning it’s strong and incredibly boozy, but in here it fades away leaving a wonderful voluptuous vanilla behind. At once creamy like the finest ice cream yet also musky and classy, not foody or buttery in the slightest, it’s like the musky vanilla of Antique Lace (but a lot less innocent and gentle) or the sandalwood vanilla of Underpants, and I think it may be Bourbon vanilla, my favourite vanilla note of all. This wonderful vanilla lasts and lasts and lasts. It’s vanilla perfection and I do hope that one day something like this comes out, heavy with this type of vanilla. but I am so glad I found a bottle of this because it will be cherished. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? definitely!

Gold Phoenix In the imp: definitely verbena, with a hint of resin and metal. Wet on skin: very, very lemony. It reminds me of Et Lux Fuit. Dry on skin: where’s the amber and frankincense? This is overwhelmingly verbena to me. In small amounts I can tolerate it but in here it’s not a small amount, and it’s my least favourite of the citrus-type notes. I can smell some heliotrope, a bit of metal, and a weird sort of oily undertone that I’m sure is a side effect of the verbena. But there’s very little of the resins and the amber. Just traces-at times I swear I smell a hint of frankincense, and the blend of heliotrope and a lemony note is highly reminiscent of Et Lux Fuit, but it’s the weird oily-bitter undertone this has that I’m not crazy about. Where is the amber overload I hoped for? I can’t even smell the amber! After a while: interestingly, I smell something a little metallic, a hint of a gold note, but it’s not at all like ozone or the cologney metal note I’m used to. But sadly the verbena just won’t budge. This is unusual because citrus notes usually burn off fast, even the ‘faux’ citruses (like lemongrass and verbena), but in here it sticks around for ages, and I’m not sure if it’s the angelica or heliotrope, but there’s a floral note that doesn’t work here. I smell a bit more frankincense, which I love, but where the heck is the amber? Verdict: this ranks as one of my biggest ever BPAL heartbreaks. It was supposed to be made of pure and utter win. I was hoping that one day there’d be a Gold Phoenix scent. and when there was and I saw the notes, I squeed with joy. I mean, three ambers, frankincense, just those alone should make this stunning and amberrific and resinous and golden. But then there’s the verbena note. it has a habit of amping to turn into the dreaded lemon soap smell of death, but I thought resins would subdue this troublesome note. Hell no. Verbena stomps all over the resins and completely owns the scent, turning it to overwhelming lemon that turns to lemon soap with a bitter oily undertone and the other floral notes turn to soap. I wanted resins with a hint of lemon, not the other way round! Gold Phoenix, or rather, lemon verbena and florals + my skin chemistry, you broke my heart into a thousand pieces, and ruined what could have been the most awesome scent of awesomeness. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? *sobs* no! If you like this, try: Litha, Et Lux Fuit, Helios, No 93 Engine, Sol Invictus, Arcana, Lilith and the Jarocho

Malignant Dreams of Cthulhu in Love In the imp: seaweed chocolate. It’s odd, but it seems to work. Wet on skin: now this smells like the aquatic cologne I get with many sea scents, and chocolate. Dry on skin: this one is weird, but so intriguing! It reminds me a bit of the 13 series, but this is even more unusual. It’s aquatic notes with chocolate, mainly dark choc. The chocolate and seaweed combination reminds me of some kind of adventurous chocolate experiment concocted by a high end chocolatier. Has there ever been seaweed chocolate available? I wouldn’t be surprised if there is. There’s also a lot of sea breeze in here, but sadly this sea note smells a bit too clean and soapy for me. A bit like the aquatic note in the pirate scents, which turns to washing powder on me, but here there’s a bit more cologne to it. It’s very fresh and almost ‘sporty’ which contrasts the chocolate greatly. I don’t smell any incense. After a while: this then settles into a blend of aquatic salty linen stained with dark chocolate. There’s an odd and almost buttery (I’d say more oily, but it reminds me of salted butter) scent to the chocolate, and yet it is also very bitter, a little like the ‘raw chocolate’ I’ve seen available. It still smells like one of those ‘avant garde’ savoury chocolate truffles, like if chocolate was blended with Japanese seaweed. Verdict: this scent is weird! I’ve not encountered a chocolate aquatic scent before, and I wasn’t sure such a thing could work as chocolate and aquatics are opposites to me-chocolate is rich and sweet and indulgent, aquatics are fresh and clean and on me they tend to smell like sporty deodorant. But this mix of contradictory notes does work! It’s not my thing, but it’s unusual and intriguing and I like it for that. it helps that the chocolate note smells more like dark chocolate than milk/white chocolate, and as such it reminds me of those experimental chocolate flavours, like a chocolate and seaweed and sea salt bar (that would be an interesting idea for a chocolate flavour actually). Sadly, I don’t get the incense, and the sea note ends up smelling of soap on me and there’s a weird buttery note I don’t like. so not a scent I want to keep. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? not really.

Womb Furie In the imp: I smell SO but very little honey. Maybe more vanilla? Wet on skin: ah, now I smell honey! Dry on skin: Snake Oil and honey-the perfect couple. I see why people say it’s like O, but it’s a lot sweeter. The honey does have a hint of that dry, biting, musky edge to it but it’s not as blatant. This is actually a really balanced blend of the heavy, heady vanilla of SO with the lighter sweetness and pollen-y scent of honey on top. It’s delightful! I also see why people say this smells a bit Play-doh-y, and I got a similar scent with Golden Priapus, a fluffy and semi-foody vanilla. This may fade with age though. This reminds me very much of a honeyed Snake Oil Chaos Theory I have, which is one of my favourites, only that CT also has coconut which this one lacks. After a while: the Play-Doh smell does fade, as does the sharp aspect of the honey, and this seems to become much more Snake Oily. It’s still honeyed, there’s no doubt. It smells more like ‘set honey’, the honey that’s opaque and grainy as opposed to syrupy and translucent. The vanilla here smells more like the slightly gourmand vanilla which can get oversweet, but I think that’s a fresh Snake Oil thing. To be honest, this smell reminds me of sweet sticky cakes drizzled in honey, the vanilla has gone all crumbly and foody and reminds me of cake-in fact, I don’t know why, but I smell cinnamon here! Yes! Is cinnamon a usual component of Snake Oil? It smells like cinnamon buns with honey, or spicy sticky toffee cake. I know this is billed as a sexy scent but I actually find it very cosy, a luxurious and languid comfort scent that makes me feel pampered…perfect for, well, those times of month when the womb gets furious! (At the risk of sounding TMI, I’m testing this at this particular time-how fitting!) Verdict: believe the hype, because this is a fantastic blend-I always thought Snake Oil would be a soulmate of honey. This is proof that this is a match made in heaven. The honey is a bit like O but this is much better than O. I am not keen on O on it’s own but I have a CT with O which is one of my all time favourite scents (honey with red musk and spicy resins) and this reminds me that this sort of sharp yet vanilla-sweetened honey is really enhanced with a deep, sexy and musky base like SO. Despite a slight Play-Doh stage, this turns into the most delectable cinnamon-vanilla-honey Snake Oil scent ever after a while. It’s a surprisingly cosy scent, with a very indulgent side to it as well; it smells like some kind of sticky sweet exotic dessert. I will need to compare this with my honeyed Snake Oil CT though, to see whether I need one bottle or two. I know I’m getting one bottle, and aging it. I cannot wait to smell this in after a year. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? I’m getting a bottle because this can only get better with age! If you like this, try: Snake Oil, O, any of the Snake Pit, Snake Charmer, any of the Snake Oil Chaos Theories, Smut, Hony Mone, Mead Moon

I remember a thread talking about a special manner in which to roll the oils, and that it was the best way? Not sure how that would work for the cocoa-heavy oils, or for some of the citrus-amber scents like Khrysee and Lilith vs the Giant Crab which have separation in the oils, or the bath oils. Yeah, I've always been doubtful of 'travel shock', and when some talk of their oils as if they have feelings and didn't like being jostled about in the mail and so will smell jumbled and bad once they've arrived. I think the oils are a lot tougher than we think. I don't think they suffer from the jetlag we get. I do, however, think that the temperature outside may affect the scent temporarily. Like if I've just got the oil through the mail and it's a very cold day, and the bottles are very cold-there isn't much of a smell. Once they get to room temperature, they smell stronger-that's logical, warmer temperature does aid diffusion. Similarly in hot weather the oil may smell a bit different because the bottle is warmer than room temperature. However I don't think, unless the bottle's been stored in direct sunlight (now that is very detrimental to perfume) or put in the oven or the microwave, that a little bit of hot weather will damage your BPAL too much, after all your skin is warm and that heat makes the perfume morph in interesting ways. I could be talking rubbish here but those are my thoughts.

I was thinking that...I'm also sceptical about the 'not shaking' idea. But maybe it quickens oxidisation because by shaking, you're introducing more air into the scent? Shameless wrist-smasher here too!

When the Winter Chrysanthemums Go In the imp: the BPAL snow note. This reminds me of the Darkling Thrush. Wet on skin: snow, snow, snow, a bit of amber and floral? Dry on skin: this is actually very pretty. I get snowy amber, very similar to Ded Moroz, actually. It’s also a little bit like the Darkling Thrush. The chrysanthemums are very subtle here. Nowhere near as strong as the ‘mums in Flowering Chrysanthemums. So encased in snow, it seems that their smell is subdued. The snow note is a cool, crisp and sugared icy sweetness, and it seems to be full of white amber, maybe with a dash of golden amber for the sunlight note. It’s quite different from the snow notes in most other BPALs, it’s a lot more like Ded Moroz, ambery and shimmering, a little minty. After a while: sadly, this fades very fast on me. My skin eats it, or it seems to melt away, like frost touched by morning sun. There are hints of white amber and a little of the snow note, but this doesn’t stick around for long, even the floral notes here disappear. Within a couple of hours it is hard to smell anything at all. Verdict: beautiful yet ephemeral, this is a very delicate, gentle scent which is one of the nicest chrysanthemum scents I’ve tried. This floral note can be tricky and either too sour or with a green scent I can find grating, but here it is really nice. This has a sweet minty snow like the one in Snow Flakes; with a warm yet pale amber that is less like golden amber and more like the white amber in Ded Moroz. This is one of the prettiest winter scents. I just wish it stuck around for longer on me-the fact that it faded so fast means I didn’t keep it; I have other snow scents that stay longer on my skin. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? so lovely but so short lived! If you like this, try: Ded Moroz, Darkling Thrush, Snow Flakes, Flowering Chrysanthemums, Cloister Graveyard in the Snow

In the imp: no red peppers, but I do smell something floral. Wet on skin: hmm, that’s interesting, I smell green salad peppers here, as well as camellia. Dry on skin: a greenish, grassy note, salad peppers (what an intriguing note!) and a floral note that I’m sure is camellia. Indeed, the whole scent has a feel of salad about it; I swear there’s lettuce or some other green leafy wet note to it as well. The peppers smell more like green peppers than red ones, it’s lacking the sweetness I get from red peppers (and I eat loads of those). Not at all spicy peppers, these are mild juicy salad peppers. The camellia is a little too strong, and I can’t really smell the maple leaves or the frosty branches, and nor can I smell the musky notes. In fact, the strongest note I smell here is, sadly, soap. The whole thing seems to be turning straight to soapy salad on me. After a while: soap, soap and more soap. Where are my peppers? Where are my delicate snows and maple leaves? Where’s the musk? I think the snowy branches have turned bad as well. It’s just turning to a soapy and nondescript mess on me. Not even the musks come up to save the day. Verdict: the best thing about this scent for me is the red pepper note. Though not like red peppers per se, this smells like green salad peppers, unripe red peppers, sweet and juicy and wet. This whole scent has a fresh salad thing going on, but there are also floral and airy and frosty notes in the mix. But sadly this all turns to soap and bitter greenery, the floral notes also don’t work out. It’s a shame because this had a lot of potential and sounded so intriguing! Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? Nope. If you like this, try: Green Party, Planting Moon, Snow Maiden, Vinland, Shivering Boy

Julia Stone In the imp: crisp wet lettuce, cucumber and a white flower of some kind. Wet on skin: a sweet blossom with wet cucumber or melon. Dry on skin: so this is supposed to smell like rotting cloth? That’s not at all what it smells like-and that’s what makes this so lovely. The only thing that reminds me of cloth is a scent of laundered cotton, this smells like a very pleasant laundry detergent-a little too clean and soapy, but very pleasant. But no mould! What I do smell are things like lettuce, cucumber, sweet spring blossoms (linden?) and something that could be lily of the valley. I smell cotton blossom too. After a while: this turns into a white floral. A pure white floral with slightly waxy petals, dappled with dew, a hint of green. Not soapy, and not as cloth-like as I expected. Other than what could be a bit of moss, there is nothing at all mouldy here-this smells fresh, and almost innocent, a very pure white flower, like some kind of lily. Verdict: not what the description implies. This is cleaner, prettier and more pleasant than what the rotting cloth notes suggest. There’s certainly a hint of linen or cotton to it, and maybe some moss for the mould and mildew, but the overwhelming scent I get is delicate white flowers, green watery notes like cucumber and leaves with dew. To me it’s more of a ghostly scent than a vampiric one. The floral notes gradually turn to soap, which means this is not a keeper, but it’s a lot nicer than I expected. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? Not really. If you like this, try: Wensleydale, Rapunzel, Dirty, The Ghost, Faeu Boulanger

East African patchouli, bay, tobacco, golden amber, blackened sandalwood, orange peel, lemon verbena, clove, and a touch of lime. Black Death In the imp: citrus and tobacco. Very heavy and dry smoky tobacco with an almost vetiver-y scent. Wet on skin: lime, orange, clove and sweet tobacco. A drier take on Mr Nancy. Dry on skin: this is quite nice. A bit too tobacco-y for my tastes, but for now it’s nicely balanced. I love the citrus, clove and bay mix here. The lime sparkles, and the verbena doesn’t go crazy, it plays very nicely with the orange and lime. The bay is pleasantly herbal without smelling very savoury on me. The clove adds a dark spicy depth. The amber is gorgeous as ever, adding warmth and sweetness and a golden gleam. But the main notes, other than citrus, are tobacco and sandalwood. The sandalwood is really lovely, very dry sandalwood that has a hint of incense and smoke to it but doesn’t smell charred. The tobacco is very strong but this may just be the type of tobacco I agree with-a dry, crisp kind as opposed to an ashy, heavily smoky kind. After a while: the bay then turns a tiny bit savoury and there are moments when this smells a bit like curry (what the?) and the citrus notes fade, and then the scent goes faint. But I’m pleasantly surprised, the tobacco is not turning to ashtrays on me like it can do, not devouring the other notes, I still smell loads of spicy sandalwood. The patchouli is subtle but adds a darker undertone. Verdict: neither black nor deathly on me (though it does smell smoky and deep at times), this is actually really nice! It’s a crisp, smart scent that is unisex and sophisticated yet complex and full of layers-brilliant citrus notes that are nice and strong (though they do fade at drydown), a gorgeous amber and sandalwood middle, a bit of spice and a very agreeable dry tobacco leaf note and patchouli. The scent becomes a little savoury at the end thanks to the bay, and the sweetness of the amber isn’t strong enough to counter that, and I preferred the just applied stage when the citrus was strongest, but overall this is good. I probably won’t keep it because there are other scents I prefer but this is a lot nicer than Mr Nancy to me (the sugar note in there got too caramelised). Out of the Black scents, this one is the one I like most-Lace was too smoky, Heart was too sweet, but this strikes a good balance. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? I have a small sniffie on the way which I will keep. If you like this, try: Mr Nancy, Lilith and the Jarocho, Knucklebones, Velvet Tiger

Those are wonderful labels! I myself love the way the green details on the chocolate labels seem to be glowing! I'm also curious about Womb Furie though!

Semiramis Bath Oil In bottle: mmm, blood orange, a hint of cherry and pomegranate. On skin: wow, this is stunning! Beautiful rich red fruit with a sexy musk undertone and a touch of deep myrrh. I can smell all the fruit here-the tangy and full-bodied blood orange, the crisp pomegranate, the sweeter cherry which in here smells like cherries, not almonds. It smells like that wonderful cherry note in the March 09 version of 13. Uniting the fruits is that awesome red musk. I love red musk with fruit, so this combination is fantastic-lots of fruit boosted and sexed up by a rich red musk that is slightly sweet and creamy. I can smell a tiny bit of myrrh, just enough resin to add a little touch of incense. The drydown is more of a blood orange and red musk blend, which is delicious. The bittersweet and gutsy red orange scent is stunning in here and it blends so well with the musk, which still has hints of pomegranate to it. It reminds me of the Haunted Palace, but without the sweetness of amber and vanilla. This is much more of a fruit scent. The scent moves between musk and orange but then becomes a balanced blend of the orange and musk with just hints of myrrh and pom at the back. This is a little fainter than the perfume, but I bet it’ll smell devastatingly sexy as a body oil to wear all over. I love this so much and I don’t want to waste it on the bath so I’ll use this as perfume and body oil!

Tomoe Gozen Bath Oil In bottle: hyper-acidic red currant and honey. Not gentle and sweet like fairy Wine. On skin: holy crap this is too sharp for me…I don’t know if I’ve become over-sensitive to these sorts of scents, but this is so sour it is making my nose wrinkle up! I got a similar reaction with the TG perfume, and this may be even sharper. This is not Fairy Wine’s mellow, sublime and sweet currant-honey scent. This is a currant that is sharp, strong and takes no prisoners. Punchy and powerful, quite fitting for a kick-ass warrior queen. And the honey here-nope, not sweet. This is a sharp honey. However this does sweeten quite nicely, the currant develops the delightful sweet scent I got in Fairy Wine, and the honey mellows as well. It’s a lovely drydown but it’s not worth waiting through that sour scent I get at the beginning. I haven’t tried this in the bath-maybe it would have been gentler? But I swapped it off because I found it too tart for my likings.

Lilith and the Jarocho In the imp: jasmine and verbena, with a bit of lime. Wet on skin: very citrus-with the lime and verbena dominating. Dry on skin: oh, the lime is stunning in here! It’s not often that this note dominates but when it does, it is fantastic-sparkling, bright and lively. The verbena with its lemony scent definitely boosts it, but it’s undeniably lime. I also smell a hint of salty clear booze, the margarita note. Maybe a hint of tamarind? The jasmine is there but it’s not too loud, and for now, not turning bad. I think I smell cedar and moss? The scent is both zingy and yet also sultry, like a summer’s evening. After a while: not sure if I like this as much now? The lime has faded and the scent has lost its zing a little. I think I can smell the jasmine starting to turn. I also smell a kind of juniper-y note, a bit like the kind of clear booze that tends to take over on my skin? Some other florals I can’t identify. I can’t detect any of the sweeter notes-the vanilla, the Snake Oil, the Dorian. Just a slightly bitter verbena and jasmine with juniper. Having said that, it’s not unpleasant, and still has potential. But sadly this seems to turn into a wilted jasmine and juniper type scent that I am not crazy about, plus that odd oily-soapy drydown I get from verbena. Verdict: this had a lot of death notes in it but I got it hoping the Snake Oil, Dorian, and more pleasant notes would show up, because I adore the sentiment behind this scent. As a child, music always fascinated me and, at least according to my mum, sometimes moved me to tears, and I’ve never grown out of this. So a scent related to a child’s love of music and her mother’s joy in seeing this love of music really got to me. But sadly, the jasmine, verbena and margarita notes mean that this scent doesn’t work on me, despite a dazzling lime stage at the beginning. So, not for me. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? Not really. If you like this, try: Phantasm, Perfumed Garden, BiggerCritters, Gold Phoenix

In the imp: strawberry sweets soaked in gin. Wet on skin: strawberries and gin. Dry on skin: thr gin amps completely! This smells predominantly like strong sharp gin on me, with a hint of candied sweetness. It’s a shame because I actually really like the strawberry here! For once it’s not turning to sugared acid on me, it smells sweet and sugared but I smell more of the rock candy, and I am reminded of Treat 1. The only difference is all that booze. The gin is a little too strong for me. I think I smell a bit of grenadine too-which is fruity and blends better with the candy notes. After a while: this wavers between smelling of gorgeous sweet strawberry liqueur and hard gin. I love the strawberry stage-I don’t know what’s keeping the strawberry under control, maybe the cream or the grenadine? But something is making sure this smells like strawberry, and stops it from turning sickly or sharp. And the sugar is perfect-it reminds me of the sugar in Xanthe. But then the gin comes in and interrupts this sweet strawberry scent. It reminds me of how the gin spoiled Blue Fire for me. Verdict: this is Treat 1-the adult version. Imagine Bon Vivant with the champagne replaced by hard booze. Or maybe Blue Fire with the blueberry replaced by strawberry. It is strawberry gin, pure and simple, with a shot of sugar. The strawberry note is actually really nice in here, it doesn’t screw up on my skin, despite being the candied variety. It smells like my ideal strawberry note. But the gin is so strong, so intrusive, and it amps on my skin, blotting out the strawberry. So sadly this is not a hit for me, despite the cuteness of the pink kitty art! Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? maybe the decant. If you like this, try: Blue Fire, Bon Vivant, Floating Brain, Sticky Pillowcase, Velvet Unicorn, White Chocolate Strawberry

The new Phoenix labels are incredible! I'd love it if someone could post photos of them here (I could try, but I'm not sure my camera would take good pics of them.)

Mircalla In the imp: like Marianne-the same musk and patchouli combo, a hint of floral, plus spice. Wet on skin: oh, now the frankincense and clove really come out! Dry on skin: mmm, this is good. A dry, crumbly blend of red musk and patchouli with a slight nag champa and powdery floral (orchid?) thing to it is the dominant scent here, and it does remind me of Marianne. But there are other things here that make this different. I smell something almost like thyme here, or maybe sage, which I’m sure is the herb note. I also smell a hint of frankincense, and a lot of bitter clove, which is smoky and gorgeous. It reminds me of Red Rose’s clove note. I can’t smell the sweeter notes of tonka and vanilla yet, but this smells smouldering, crimson and sexy, a warm and passionate yet very dark scent. After a while: hmm, not so sure about this now. After a promising start, this has become, sadly, a little meh? It’s not wowing me. Where are the sweet notes? Where’s the frankincense hiding? I smell lots of clove but I think the musk, patch and orchid-especially the orchid-have gone up quite dramatically. The result is an oddly flat, dry and powdery dark incense. It’s nice, but at times it’s identical to Marianne, which I love, but this seems to have a floral note that I am not as keen on. Verdict: I have no idea where this went wrong. It starts off nicely but then becomes very meh. On paper almost all the notes (save the orchid) would have meant this scent would have been a roaring success on me-musk, resins, spices! But I think the orchid may have turned this scent against me. Or maybe the patchouli, clove and red musk blend here was of a particular combination that didn’t work-it’s rare, but it happened previously with the Grindhouse, and this smells very similar. The red musk has an odd nag champa thing to it, the floral note is too strong, and I can’t smell the delicious resin or vanilla. The clove is nice for a while but then the odd flowery dry and flat incense takes over and this just smells a little unremarkable on me. Not a keeper, I’m afraid. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? regrettably, no. If you like this, try: Marianne, Grindhouse, Semiramis, Red Rose, High Priest Not to Be Described

Alien Invasion In the imp: turns out that space fruit and tentacle goo smells like grapefruit. Wet on skin: bitter grapefruit. I now think there’s yuzu in here too. Dry on skin: this is the grapefruitiest BPAL ever! Probably my holy grail for grapefruit, as it smells strongly of this citrus fruit, tart and zingy, bitter without being unpleasant, and juicy. I think its scent is enhanced by the turbo-charged grapefruit scent that is yuzu, as well as something that may be bergamot. Whatever is in here, I can be sure that the space fruit is citrus, though I think there may be some starfruit too, which would be fitting. As for the residual goo? I can’t smell anything gooey but I do smell a soft sweetness, a touch of crisp white tea, something a little floral that could be neroli, as well as some white amber and green musk similar to 51. After a while: the grapefruit gradually mellows and the scent turns even lovelier! It smells very similar to 51 at this point, that same citrus-fruity-white amber and musk with a tiny hint of ozone that actually works, a tiny bit of sweet metal as well. It smells luminescent and bright, a soft yet zingy perfumed white amber and musk scent with that hint of yuzu lingering. Verdict: I’m not usually a fan of yuzu, and I smell it here, but I adore this! It’s like 51 on steroids. Forget speculations and conspiracies about maybe being aliens in the area, this is a full on, flying saucer hovering overhead, pulling you up with an anti-gravity beam, and before you even think of calling Mulder and Scully they’re sticking probes in every orifice! And who could have thought it could smell so good! Turns out the alien fruit smells very similar to earth’s grapefruit and various other citruses. Indeed I’m sure this is the most grapefruity BPAL I’ve come across. But this is more than citrus, as there seems to be a grounding yet ethereal, luminous base of clean green musk, neroli/orange blossom and white amber, maybe some davana, very similar to Pollution and 51. This ensures that, unlike most citrus scents, the scent lasts for ages on me. I think this is one of my favourite grapefruit scents and one of my favourite of the DD Blockbusters series. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? Definitely. If you like this, try: 51, Pollution, Night Gaunt, Aizen Myoo, Schrodinger’s Cat

Citrinitas In the imp: citrus! I can’t say what citrus but it reminds me a little bit of the Olive Branch. Wet on skin: very citrus-y, lots of bergamot and mandarin. Dry on skin: this is gorgeous. Simply put, this is the Olive Branch, BPAL style. Yup, I am not kidding, this smells very similar. Olive Branch is one of my favourite Lush scents so it’s wonderful to smell something like it in BPAL. It is bergamot, orange blossom, mandarin and white musk, bright and vivid and sparkling. Granted, this doesn’t smell identical to OB, I have to say. The citrus in here is sharper and fizzier, for starters. There’s a scent to it that reminds me of cologne, and this could turn funny on me, but for now it is behaving. There’s also a hint of something seltzer-y as well. After a while: this has morphed dramatically, and not in a good way I’m afraid. I don’t smell anything remotely like Olive Branch now. I still smell bergamot, and maybe some lemon verbena, but I also smell a plastic-y floral scent and a strange chalky sugary smell. There’s something a little herbal. Whatever this smells like, it isn’t sitting right on me. There is some guava, it seems, which I do like but it is soft. But this just seems to have gone wrong on me. Verdict: this was so promising at the start-I thought I’d found the BPAL version of Olive Branch. A similar blend of fresh citrus/orange blossom with a grounding base of smooth white musk. it smelt fantastic, lively and cheerful citrus blossom and musk with an underlying fizz. But sadly, then it goes bad. It turns to a strange floral-citrus plastic and odd powdery base, and not a nice powder, it’s almost like plaster or cardboard, with a bitter flower note. Whilst it’s a shame this didn’t work out, I’m rather glad it didn’t because I don’t need to hunt down more of this HTF scent. Emoticon rating: Is it a keeper? sadly not.