sunshinedaisybliss

Yeah.. it is... and honestly - for me - it's nothing at all like Glowing Vulva so by all means try and find some to test, because it is a beautiful scent, but don't go crazy paying loads for it in the hope that it will be a GV-alike Sadly, Glowing Vulva was not my friend - something about the teak + lotus + cream went sharp, sour and nasty on my skin - so it's not something I have tried to replicate. However I would agree with the suggestion of Haloes - it doesn't really smell like GV at all, but it has a similar feel with that 'glowing' creamy vibe that GV has. Also, the Mahogany Hall atmo spray reminded me of GV quite a bit. Another blend that got a lot of GV references in reviews is Goblin Sack, however Blossoms in Springtime is definitely the one that draws the most comparisons. I just wanted to mention that there's a partial bottle of Glowing Vulva on eBay at the moment

Due to the mention of honey, I dithered over whether to buy this when it first came out - even though every other note is a fave. I do love my patchouli, so I wasn't sure about this 'honeyed patchouli' business - would the dreaded honey mess up my beloved patchouli? But when a lovely forum buddy offered me her backup bottle, I knew I had to give it a try So when Imaginer first hits my skin... guess what I get a big blast of? Yep - honey. Uh-oh, I think, this is like a nightmare straight from a Clive Barker story - one in which an evil fiend creates a perfume blend with perfect notes but they add honey without telling me.. as I apply it to my wrist there's a tortured shrieking sound and I look down in horror to find my skin is peeling off down my arm in one long piece and then it goes running off at full speed on the fleshy stubs of what used to be my fingers to scrub itself clean of the ghastly honey. But I tell myself to just wait... be patient... maybe the honey will calm down... and praise the perfume gods - it does! In fact it almost disappears completely after about ten minutes, at which stage a beautiful earthy/woodsy vibe comes out - the patchouli and bark together create a lovely deep warmth. And I can also smell a nice clean myrrh down at the base, with a delicate pepper just playing around the edges. The beeswax is definitely in there, creamy and soft - just how I like it. Later on - about 20 minutes in - a gorgeous golden amber glow comes in, brightened softly by just a teensy hint of the saffron - gorgeous. It's all dreamy, luxurious and mysterious now - dark but golden, smokey but sweet - really enjoyable at this point. Unfortunately, after Imaginer has been on for about 30 minutes it's kinda lost all that lovely complexity - everything has melded together and I'm getting pretty much just a sweet honeyed amber with a hint of woodsy earthiness - it's quite... uhm... perfume-y - thankfully the patchouli stops it from ever completely crossing the border into Soapville, but it's verrrrry close. And after an hour, I'm left with just a very soft powdery honey-ish sweetness as a memory of where I applied the oil. So I guess the honey ultimately did its usual evil and overstepped its boundaries... I do like Imaginer, but I'm disappointed that the middle stage - when I was getting less honey and more everything else - didn't stick around to the end. And overall, it's just a bit too diluted for me - I like my smells to have a lot more depth and presence. Side note - if you liked Feed Me and Fill Me With Pleasure but found the patchouli too strong... give Imaginer a try, it's very FM&FMWP-ish but has far less oomph (and lacks the lovely warm vanilla). I also think Tricksy lovers will enjoy Imaginer - the honey/patchouli combination is very similar.

Err hello... are you me? This is the exact same problem that I have with rose - and I actually love the smell of rose, I think that a gorgeous full-bodied red rose in the garden is one of the most magnificent smells in the world - but as a perfume note on my skin it just drowns out everything else The only rose blends I've had any success with are Sibyl - lovely soft/dusky tea rose, but even that one is borderline too much rose sometimes - and Lucy, Kissed (BPTP) wherein the rose is no match for the patchouli/red musk/oude/etc. i have learned that black rose is occasionally OK, and sometimes the paler roses like white or pink might behave themselves, but overall rose is a bust for me. I think it's just a case of try everything you can - if you see something where the other notes are winners, you may get lucky... otherwise, like me, you'll just have to concede defeat and accept that rose is not your friend.

I have a bit of a love-hate thing with cherry (and BPAL's almond note, which almost always smells like cherry on me - like in Black Phoenix), but Gothabilly is an exception... love that one. Sadly, it is hard to find

The first thing that came to my mind was Absinthe

Nope - it's not a leather blend at all.. the notes are: Bay rum, bourbon vanilla, galangal, hyssop, High John the Conqueror root, tobacco, life everlasting, and brimstone. which honestly isn't very helpful because it's hard to imagine what all that smells like! But what made me think of it for you is the gorgeous spicy/peppery feel that it has - it doesn't smell 'spicy' as such, more smokey maybe... like a smokey pepper with a really deep warmth. I know it's not what the 'leather and pepper' you were asking about, but I do love a good leather/spice mix myself and Hellhound is not that but I like it very much and I think you might too The only down side is that it's kind of hard to find, but maybe read through the reviews and see if you think it's worth hunting some down

It's not actually leather/pepper, but have you tried Hellhound On My Trail?

Hmm... this is definitely very very naughty When I first apply the glop there's a full-on battle happening between the red musk and the leather for title of Dominant Note - at first the leather is KAPOW in your face, all hot black and steamy, then the red musk bubbles up to the surface with its warm rich cola-like syrupy goodness, then the leather comes back BLAM but the red musk comes back POW and so it goes for a few rounds until they finally settle down and let the patchouli come out. The patchouli is all like "dude, mellow out" to the leather, wraps its sweet earthy arms around the red musk and says "it's ok bro, you don't have to win", and because red patchouli is just that persuasive the leather and red musk do what they're told and calm down a little. That's when the red patchouli grabs its friend bourbon vanilla and says "you can come out now, it's safe" and suddenly there's a riot of dark rich vanilla goodness wafting under my nose. All together, the musk and leather and vanilla and patchouli create a hot, wickedly naughty mix that is definitely not subtle - it's very rich and strong - and yes, very much like Eldritch Dark but without the rose. Definitely not for those who enjoy soft fragrances... this smell doesn't just follow you round the room, it runs around smashing into all the furniture and scaring the cat. So that's the good side of Naughty Glop... the not-so-good side of it for me is the consistency. It's very runny - moreso even than a lotion or creme - this is almost as liquid/thin as water, it's actually about the same as my coconut oil when that's melted. And it's very greasy/oily on the skin - it doesn't absorb for a long time, so there's an oily film on my skin for quite a while.. even after I've rubbed it in as best I can. I really don't like things that feel greasy on my skin, and this definitely does. And here's the thing... although the smell of this is pretty amazing, it's also pretty full-on... to the point where it's kind of too much. It's rare for me to say that - I generally like my BPALs to be rich and dark and strong, but this is taking things a bit too far. In future, I'm going to put just a few drops of this glop into a mix with another moisturiser and use it that way, because I'm not sure I can walk around all day with this uber-strong naughty business wafting around me, it's overwhelming. .

2013 version - via a tester generously gifted to me by the lovely OctoberGwen! So this is pretty much the same as the original Skadi, but just fresher and more vibrant. The only slight difference I can tell is that the pine in here is much more subtle than it is in my decant of the original. I find that BPAL's 'snow' notes vary greatly - some are nasty soapy ozone on me, some are minty-cool, and others are sweet and bright. This one is the latter - fresh, sweet, wet snow. The berries here are a major player, but they're not really 'fruity' as such - like raspberries or similar - more like forest berries... green, woodsy, dry rather than sweet. Overall I find Skadi translates as green - like forest green... so it smells exactly like walking through a lush pine forest that's blanketed in snow. As with the original Skadi, I find that this is a lovely scent experience but not something I would wear as a perfume. But I'm very happy that this one made a return, since it's so loved by so many

Many thanks to the lovely OctoberGwen for passing her tester of this along to me! So this is that slushy kind of snow note that translates to ozone soap on my skin... it does smell like a grey winter's day, but unfortunately that's just not a smell that works nicely on my skin - nor does it appeal to me in any way as a perfume. I don't get anything 'trees' related, nor any kind of smoke, so I'm not sure what that aspect of the description is about. Ultimately this ends up smelling like shampoo on me - ozoney and soapy. With a hint of sharpess... like a cheap after-shave or men's cologne. Not for me at all.

OctoberGwen, being the fabulous lady she is, generously passed her tester of this on to me Soooo... hmmm... what an interesting little mix this is! When I first took the cap off of the vial (before I knew what any of the notes were), I swear I smelled apples. But no - no apples in here! So now I see the notes list, and I guess it was the pear that initially hit me... but this isn't the pear I'm used to with BPAL... it's beautifully juicy but not sweet, and with a distinctive woodsy undertone - not really obviously PEAR like it often is (like in The Vine, which was obvious PEAR to me). Then when it first meets my skin - I get that warm, buttery, powdery-cloying thing that honey always gives me... so I'm thinking 'oh no, there's honey in here!' but no - no honey in here! So that must be the oats? Then that honey-like sweetness completely disappears (I mean - completely disappears!) and I can really smell the oats/wheat - it's a fresh, warm smell - kind of like the scent of bread baking, but not quite. Underneath all this is a subtle hint of the wine - nothing too obvious, but there's a definite bed of soft fruit with a hint of spice underneath everything else. Once everything fully dries down, I am left with a soft and slightly woodsy pear that's lost the 'juicy' aspect and gone quite dry and dusky. And just the slightest hint of the spice/fruit from the wine. Very pretty, and quite unlike any other 'fruity' blend I've had from BPAL before. This does have a gorgeous summery-outdoorsy feel, but somehow it also feels like a cosy kitchen filled with the smells of warm bread and juicy wine.

It might take some effort to find these, as they've been discontinued for a while now, but for tropical scents you really can't go past the Atomic Luau Lounge series. Reviews here In particular: MAHANA Peach liquor, almond syrup, orgeat syrup, and pineapple cream de cacao. PAHOEHOE Grenadine, banana, and coconut rum. UPA-UPA Spiced rum, coconut, pineapple, and vanilla. And of course, this one: : TIKI PRINCESS A frothy, cold coconut perfume, pure and sweet, with gentle wafts of plumeria, pikake, and ala ala wai nui. I always get a lovely tropical vibe from Shango (red apples, banana, chili pepper, coconut, pineapple, pomegranate and sugar cane), and Black Pearl has a gorgeous coconut/musk/nutty with a hint of tropical floral thing going on. Another one to consider is Wembley (white musk, banana, orange blossom honey, pineapple, and mint), and also Pet Magah Bird (blood orange, black plum, sugar cane, guava, frangipani, coconut, pimento berry, violet, caramel, and pear) is also a full-on tropical fruity fest. Another beautiful tropical-island LE to look for is Velvet Tiki (Gold-washed frangipani, vanilla flower, vanilla bean, coconut, hibiscus, papaya, pineapple, bouganvilla, passion fruit, and three orchids). I also heartily second OctoberGwen's suggestion of Nightmarchers - that one's quite unusual but really sumptuous. Sorry for recommending things that are no longer available, but an ISO post should be able to help

The Miskatonic Valley’s premiere sex shop. Black and red musks with honey, leather, and sugared black rose. I never tried the ED bath oil, so I can't compare this perfume to it, but here's my review anyway What I get - above all else - is the sugared black rose. I always have problems with rose... it amps like crazy on me, but I think it's the leather that's keeping the rose in check here - the soft warmness of the leather is a perfect partner to the lovely dark rose. Honey is another note I usually have trouble with, but not here! Another YAY!! Actually, I can hardly detect any honey at all - if it wasn't a listed note, I probably wouldn't know it's there, except for the powdery feel of this blend which is likely coming from the combination of black musk and the honey. The red musk is a nice touch - it doesn't really stand out on its own at all, but along with the leather it gives the whole thing a nice warm base. I nearly let this one pass me by, because of the honey and the rose, but I'm glad I tried it because the musk/leather combination is stunning. Unfortunately - as usual - the rose eventually drowns out all that other good stuff and what I end up with is pretty much all sugared rose with warm leather in the background. Boo.

It would be easy to say that this smells like pink bubblegum,,, and it kind of does - but it's so much more than that. This is such a beautiful fragrance - I love the innocent sweet fruitiness of the strawberry and vanilla, and I love how the red musk is so subtle, and I love how the black cherry adds a bit of darkess, but what I love the most is the gorgeous Egyptian amber and heliotrope that together turn this from just a pretty perfume into a lush, glowing extravaganza of pink glittery naughtiness.

I was rummaging through my GC bottles today, and picked up The Hamptons. I couldn't remember what it was like, so I slathered some on. I'm so glad I did! I had forgotten all about this little beauty I haven't ever tried a Cosmopolitan cocktail, and I generally stay away from anything that might have white spirits such as gin (ick, nasty sourness on my skin!), but there's nothing obviously 'alcoholic' smelling about The Hamptons... just a slight hint of a boozy smell. Mostly what I get is a dark, rich orange that smells syrupy - like a liquer (Cointreau comes to mind). But mixing with the orange is something red - like a pomegranate or cranberry. And there's a touch of a zesty citrus - lime, I guess.. since that's what everyone else is reporting. The interesting thing about The Hamptons is that for something so obviously fruity, it doesn't really smell like a fruit blend per se. It ends up quite dry, rather than fizzy, but retains that lovely orange top note all the way through to the last little bit of fragrance that remains on my skin after a few hours. PS - just for the record, my bottle is well aged, circa early 2007. If this is what The Hamptons really smell like, then - as Liz Lemon would say - I want to go to there.

The very best I've tried in the 'sweet, sugary, cotton candy type scents' would definitely be Midway (or Midway Res), but that can be hard to find. For me, Mouse Circus runs a very close second... I don't get any popcorn or peanut butter (thankfully!!) - just a lovely sweet cotton candy with-a-touch-of-warm-doughnuts from that one... it's really pretty, and a good substitute for Midway. As a comparison - on me, Boo is all vanilla all the time - like a really rich, syrupy vanilla essence - with a kind of buttercream tone. Like I've just whipped up a batch of buttercream icing and put a whole splash of vanilla essence in the bowl. So it's definitely sweet and sugary, but I don't get cotton candy from it. High Strung Daisies is gorgeous - it pulls a little 'pink' on me, but the pepper gives it a bit of interest and it's a lovely fresh, sweet and almost-candylike scent. And of course there's Marshmallow Poof, but that one is very hard to find. I know a lot of people loved the vanilla in Celeste, and got a soft cotton candy sweetness from it - personally, it was the kind of vanilla that goes sharp and nasty on me, but it's a huge favourite for a lot of people so that might also be worth a try. I would also suggest looking for a tester of this one from BPTP: L'ESSENCE DE L'ENGOUEMENTFrench vanilla, pink candies, strawberry sugar, and orange blossom. It's soooooo pretty... for me, it was more strawberry sugar/candy and orange creamsicle, but a few reviewers mentioned a cotton candy feel to it. And for something just a little different, also from BPTP: CHEWING LITTLE BITS OF STRINGMarshmallows, a bit of limp lettuce, and wads of soggy cotton soaking in a stew of tea (with lemon and honey!). For me, this was a gorgeous marshmallow-y delight! Not quite cotton candy, but really soft and sweet and pretty. Don't let the lettuce put you off Good luck with your search!

I find it interesting that so far most people are saying that blonde = all the soft/pink/fruity/pretty scents. As a (natural) blonde... I do appreciate those kinds of things but the BPALs I reach for are more the dark, resinous, voluptuous type - from gnarly patchoulis through to smokey incenses and snuggly leathers. And I stay far far away from any 'white' notes. But to be fair, I'm definitely not a bubblegum-chewing flowery-dress-wearing type of blonde

I was able to see the photo by clicking the little 'gallery' button under your avatar in your post I'm curious now, too! I know my bottles are pretty old (2008-ish) so I suspect that the coloured snake is younger, but I don't know for sure. I have a vague recollection of the Snake Pit labels being re-done at some stage, with slightly different designs and more colour, but I could be completely wrong about that. Hopefully someone around here has got a bottle of Australian Copperhead that they bought right back when it first came out, and we'll be able to find out PS to put an image into a post, just grab its location (right-click/copy image location) then use the 'insert picture' button inside your post to paste that in. Here's your pic:

All my bottles of Australian Copperhead are around five years old, and they have this label: The label itself is not shiny - it's the 'parchment paper' style. Hope that helps!

Salty, woody, slimy. It smells like mushroom and coconut soup poured over seaweed. Nasty.

So... on me, his smells like dirty socks that have been soaked in orange juice then sprayed with pine disinfectant.

This is a very strange blend indeed - there's the black rose, rosewood and oudh which for me just blend together into dark rose... but over the top of all that is a very salty, clean and almost menthol-like aroma which I guess must be the 'sea-kissed' aspect. It's the olfactory equivalent of pushing a heavy curtain aside to look into a room... I really have to push past the saltiness to get to the rose. I'm not finding anything related to the candle at all. After fully drying down (about 30 minutes), all I have here is a weird mix of saltiness and soapiness with rose. So as usual, the rose here amps on my skin so that eventually it's all I can smell. Note to self: give up on these rose blends! No matter what other notes are there to tempt me, I should know by now that rose always wins

Thank you to the lovely Mellifluous for frimping this to me! The first thing to hit my nose here is the laurel honey - very fresh, and almost 'green' smelling. But right behind it is a gorgeous glowing amber softness, and then the bright saffron peeks through the honey-amber haze. A few minutes later, the waxy sweetness of the heliotrope appears. The only thing I never really find in its own right is the cedar, but there is a 'woodsy' kind of undertone to this blend. Unfortunately, the honey drowns out everything else here... that's just how honey rolls when it gets on my skin. BOO! I love all the golden warmth and brightness of Progressus, but that damn honey just spoils it... this ends up being just all honey all the time

I had to try this one, because I'm a fan of the perfect and absolute mental collapse I don't get the OMG VETIVERRRRRRRR thing that others have mentioned - not at all... what I do get straight away is a gorgeous smokey cacao - imagine a chocolate factory on fire - that's the smell, and it's fan-freakin-tastic! Quite unlike any other scent experience I've had in BPALania so far. But then - just as I'm swooning in a cloud of smokey cacoa... the black pomegranate shows up - like a dark red hard-boiled candy... all sticky juicy dark sweetness, which adds a whole new dimension to that smokey chocolate. I investigate this business a little further - lean in for a deeper sniff - and there's just a teensy hint of rose, and I notice the smoke isn't like a black/ash smell but a softly sweet smoke which must be the vetiver + myrrh working together. And hey - there's my beloved red patchouli in there too! The patchouli comes out at about the 5-minute mark, by which stage the smokiness has mellowed right out. i'm not picking up any bitterness at all from the rue, and I expected a tinge of orange/citrus from the petitgrain... it's there, but it's very much a subtle top note rather than a key player. Unfortunately, that lovely smokey/chocolate/pomegranate/patchouli combination that I enjoyed so much at the start doesn't hold strong through the dry-down... for a blend that started off with so much oomph, this one fades fairly quickly into a mix of mostly pomegranate and rose on my skin - sweet, almost sickly, and a bit powdery. That's what happens with rose for me - it almost always ends up drowning everything else out So... sadly... this is not a winner for me. Bummer, because those first ten minutes of it were glorious.

My first thoughts on this one... Snow White + mint, with something floral - lily, maybe. It has the exact same vanilla with a touch of tropical sweetness that I love so much from Snow White, but also a cool, crisp mint element that I wasn't expecting. Perhaps I should have expected it, since 99% of the time the BPAL 'snow' note translates straight into mint on my skin As it dries down, the mintiness subdues a little and everything sweetens up, but I never really get a true 'spun-sugar' because the mint stays there the whole time and that floral tone is also quite obvious. The whole thing fades rather quickly (in less than an hour, it's almost completely gone and it fades down to something that smells kind of stale), where a dab of Snow White lasts on my skin all day. So although it seems unfair to directly compare this to Snow White - that's honestly what it is on me... Snow White + mint. Lovely in its own right, but it's just not doing it for me.