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BPAL Madness!

zenvodunista

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Everything posted by zenvodunista

  1. zenvodunista

    Lex Talionis

    i had hoped this might be the single cedar i could wear, but no. a brief and fleeting moment of pure resin/wood warmth is followed by the cedar becoming stinky boy BO on me. *sighs* will pass it on to the BF. maybe he'll wear it. n.
  2. zenvodunista

    Pink Phoenix

    SWEET. Pink Phoenix on me, starts off as all honey with the usual honey-sex-musk smell. it quickly morphs into cotton candy, followed by carmelized surgar, then a bit of burnt plastic, ending at a pile of confectionary sugar so sweet it makes my teeth hurt. it's a little (well, more than a little!) too sweet for me. however, if you liked Pink Moon, or any of the other heavily sugar scents, i'm betting you'll love Pink Phoenix. i gotta go brush my teeth! n.
  3. zenvodunista

    Red Phoenix

    this is what i wished Blood Moon had been. Blood Moon didn't work on me in the slightest, but Red Phoenix! oh! it starts out spicy and becomes a plummy sweetness, followed by a dark roundness that hints at chocolate edges. it must the tonka doing this, combined with the patchouli. moments of bright mandarin in the early stage, later on i can't pick apart the scent. god, this is sexy and intriguing! i can't stop sniffing myself. i am soooo glad i ordered two bottles. n.
  4. zenvodunista

    Snow Moon

    in the bottle this was cold and chilly, and as soon as it hit my skin it went Wet GREEN, like the pulpy interior of some kind of thickly fleshed leaf. it's a scent i love and one that never lasts. it faded, true, but into a brighter version of the "girlie perfume" from Snow Bunny. there's the slightest tang of something citrus in here, all wrapped up in cool florals, and the faintest of evergreen. this is a cheerful and active scent. i look forward to wearing it to work, along with my Snow Bunny, to keep me active all day long n.
  5. zenvodunista

    Midwinter's Eve

    note: i have a tendency to amp berry. this is Jolly Rancher on me. ah well. n.
  6. zenvodunista

    Nuclear Winter

    like a lighter and prettier Talvikuu. faded too fast for a bottle though. n.
  7. zenvodunista

    Snake Oil

    By far, our most popular scent! Magnetic, mysterious, and exceedingly sexual in nature. A blend of exotic Indonesian oils sugared with vanilla. after not having gotten around to ordering an imp long ago when i first found BPAL (because i didn't think i liked vanilla!) and then after trying to swap for one forever and day, i finally ordered a bottle of Snake Oil unsniffed and just recieved it in my Anniversary package. i figured i could sell it, if it didn't work on me. in the bottle, i smell spices, especially cinnamon, vanilla, and some kind of rum or bourbon! on me, this is an intensely spicy blend. it sinks into the skin and wavers back and forth between a round vanilla supported by rich woody spices, and a spicy bubblegum. i can't tell if i love this, or don't like it at all. i will be trying it again, and i will be keeping the bottle for aging and trying more. i am hoping the vanilla will smooth out the somewhat rough edges of the spices. ETA: two days after writing this reveiw, i found myself reaching for the Snake Oil. i wondered if it smelled "rough" because of the amount i'd put on. this time, i put a dab -- just a dab mind you -- on each wrist, behind each ear, and a small swipe along each collarbone. Snake Oil lived up to it's reputation. smoky, sensual, warm, sexy, and a little bit comforting. i was wrapped in a warm blanket of vanilla supported on clouds of spice. it laaaaaasts too. really lovely. i'm glad i ordered a 5ml unsniffed. a new favorite, and definitely in my top 10. n.
  8. zenvodunista

    Hearth

    i didn't think i'd like this. butter is usually bad. in fact, Jack is ALL butter on me, until i kind of feel a bit slimy from it. and at first, it's BUTTER in the vial. but on my skin it suddenly blossoms into Sugar Skull! but really, it's Sugar Skulls made from chestnuts (my favorite!) and doing a little jig with some spruces that have been decorating a mantle. because the Sugar Skull association is so strong, and yet it's so CHristmassy with it's pine and chestnuts and open fire, it's kind of like if one were wearing a Nightmare Before Christmas perfume i really like it a lot. the only question is it too much to have a bottle of this *and* two bottles of Sugar Skull? probably not *goes off to haunt the swaps page* n.
  9. zenvodunista

    The Cracked Bell

    when i first came to BPAL, i thought i'd love the incense blends. instead, i found that they were almost always too heavy for me, too rich, to bogged down in rosaries and smoke and the like. and yet: i am always intrigued. i ended up ording a bottle of this while waiting for my Original Wacky decant set. and while i won't be getting two bottles like usually do with an LE i like, i will keep my one. this is the incense i can wear. slightly smoky, bloody at the beginning (i smell that metal tang), and then soft incense that sticks close to the skin. really lovely, and really evocative. and a nice change of pace from the heavy-incense that so often happens with incense based blends. n.
  10. zenvodunista

    Talvikuu

    Cold and outdoorsy. Reminds me of snow covered north eastern woods in the very early spring, when the tips of the trees are are the faintest green, but there is still snow on the ground and the crocus have not yet appeared. Pre-spring. I am not sure that I'll wear the bottle I ordered unsniffed. and yet, i don't think i want to swap or sell it either... hrm. i am so undecided. perhaps rather than a perfume, this one will be used for a body scrub or lotion. it's... invigorating. like walking in the snow can be. n.
  11. zenvodunista

    Tombstone

    i have a bad history with cedar. it usually goes all .... B/O on me surprisingly enough, that doesn't happen here. instead i get a manly sort of rootbeer type smell. but not bad sweet root beer, a dry rootbeer -- a root ale really. i won't order a bottle, that Cedar BO thing is coming and going, and with batch variations, i'd be scared to own a bottle. but much better than i expected. i think this would be absolutely stunning on a man. n.
  12. zenvodunista

    Yuletide

    there's something in this that I don’t like. It's a little smoky and kind of spicy, but it's the kind of spice that I find cloying, not intrigueing or delicious. n.
  13. zenvodunista

    Mistletoe

    a lovely pine based scent that isn't all PINE. a soft and pretty pine. i can't really smell the berries that much, though that may be what keeps the pine from being PINE. if you like piney-stuff. get it! n.
  14. zenvodunista

    Antique Lace

    when this was still discontinued and i was pretty new to BPAL, the Lab sent me a frimp of this. i sniffed it and went "NO WAY" as it smelled just like baby powder to me, which is a scent that makes gag a bit. i had arranged for a swap, and the day after i sent it off, the BF was over and asked me where "that lace imp" went. i had no idea he'd tried it, and he LOVED it. he asked me to get him a bottle, but obviously, i couldn't as it was discontiued, and bottles on Ebay were way over my price range. when it came back, i ordered him a bottle as part of his xmas BPAL haul. he was thrilled. this morning i dabbed a bit on my arm. in the bottle, it still smells like baby powder in the worst way, but within 30 seconds it became a gorgeous soft vanilla that i actually *like*. i couldn't believe it! while it's a bit too soft and sweet for me, it's a pleasure to know that i can wear this if i'm at his house. for me, i'll stick to Snow White for driving him mad. he can have the AL. however, it's still a pleasureable surprise, and a lesson in BPAL's morphing on the skin. the vial is no indication! n.
  15. zenvodunista

    What scents are masculine? Gender-neutral?

    i *wish* i could wear some of the more "masculine" scents. sadly, thoses tend to have a lot of wood in them, and while i love cedar and cypress, on me they turn into bad B/O. too bad we can't swap skin chemistry that said, some of my favorites are worn by men too - i'm thinking in particular of Tezcatlipoca (Blue Star and i share a favorite!) meanwhile, my BF likes to wear pretty darn girlie stuff. his favorite to wear (not to smell on me, to *wear himself*) is Antique Lace! don't impose gender on your perfume! free perfume from the constraints of gender! free your perfume and your mind will follow!!!! (giggling) n.
  16. zenvodunista

    Lick It

    strong pepperming and soft vanilla. it's nice enough, but it's not really my thing. however, i had a bad stomach this afternoon, and smelling it helped me out quite a bit. i'll keep the imp for it's medicinal properties, but i don't really want to smell like it. dries down (after a LONG time) to a soft minty vanilla which is nice. n.
  17. zenvodunista

    The Peacock Queen

    Rose Red broke my heart with her fleeting beauty. the Peacock Queen healed it again with her voluptuous and ripe scent. magnificent. gorgeous. strong. just stunning. n.
  18. zenvodunista

    Loviatar

    leather is an iffy note for me. when i put on DeSade, i smelled like a slaughter house , but i can wear Wanda, Perversion and Tezcatlipoca beautifully. in those, the leather note is what it's meant to be, and just *gorgeous*. i had high hopes for Loviatar. i love myrrh, and was curious about the rest. dark, rich scents are a favorite. sadly for me, the leather in Loviatar gets amped up beyond belief right into the slaugterhouse that DeSade lives in. that's OK though. i have 5 ml of Wanda on it's way to me n.
  19. zenvodunista

    Sugar Cookie

    i just recently discovered the joy of the foody perfume in the form of Beaver Moon. i recieved my decant of Sugar Cookie '05 from OriginalWacky last night and immediately tried it. at first, SC is exactly that, plus a little bit of lemon zest thrown into the cookie. but as it remained on my skin, rather than getting more "baked" it got less so. i ended up with a doughy mess on my skin, and slightly playdoh-y as well. i was supersad about this! i had hoped to be able to support it with the discovery that i can totally wear Beaver Moon. so sad! if it stays true on your skin, this is such a lovely fun scent. n.
  20. zenvodunista

    Snow White

    Snow White is a BPAL classic, and if you've gotten this far in the thread and can't figure out why... well. this review won't help you! basically more of the same, soft, round, mellow sweeness. creamy. nutty. and i will add in that it reminds me of Pieris japonica, a white flowering bush that flowers in early spring. not much else to add. lovely. a classic. ETA: the BF says this is the one to wear to bed. and not the sleepy kind of bed either! n.
  21. zenvodunista

    Rose Red

    that florist smell. How will it bloom? Soft rose spiced with the greenery of the stem, leaf and thorn. there's a reason this scent is a BPAL classic. the only problem is that she fades right quick on me. but, she'll be in my soap, my lotion... n.
  22. zenvodunista

    Stardust

    oh no! Stardust seems to fall right into my olafactory blindspot! If I sniff carefully, I get the faintest whiff of florals and powder. I am SO sad! i was looking forward to Stardust so much! n.
  23. zenvodunista

    Snow Bunny

    not what I expected. Crisp evergreens - more than I thought there would be. A slight spicyness. And a kind of peppermint floating in the background. as it drys it becomes more berry like. with luck, i won't amp out the berries 100% like i usually do. as it is, i may have to save snow bunny for when it's hot out. theres something in this that makes my nose cold when i sniffi it! that's not a bad thing, but it makes me feel very chilly! really lovely, i'm glad i bought a bottle. n.
  24. zenvodunista

    Turn around time

    the lab will send you a CnS when they ship out your order. n.
  25. zenvodunista

    Limited editions equivalents in the general catalog?

    i used to be scared of patchouli, in fact, disliked it intensely, and yet i LOVE tezcatlipoca! another one to try with a strong cocoa note is Centzon Totochtin. my most recent bottle of CT is really strong on the cocoa note -- in fact, i wish it had a bit more of the metallic blood that i liked so much in the imp. i'm hoping a touch of aging will let the cocoa step back a bit. but yes, very cocoa, with NO patchouli. n.
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