puellacaerulea

This one's very citrusy, but the incense keeps it from going full Lemon Pledge/bug spray. The incense note is lighter than I generally expect, which helps make it warm weather friendly along with balancing out the lemon peel. We've been having summer-like weather where I am, and I've found myself reaching for this scent quite a lot lately. As a bonus, it has great wear length on me -- I've been applying it in the early AM and can still smell it on my wrists 12+ hours later. Overall, this is a really nice, light, fresh citrus with some depth from the incense, perfect for spring/summer.

The black tea and vanilla notes led me to expect something along the lines of Dorian, but this is surprisingly very different! I mostly pick up the honey and vanilla notes in the imp and upon application, but a very clean, fresh, almost sharp note (the linen?) amps up fast. After it dries down, the honey, vanilla, and milk notes come back out, but they're balanced out by the linen/white pepper notes in a way that keeps it from getting overly sweet/foody. It's a unexpectedly clean/fresh take on foody scents, and I really like it! Likely to grab a bottle once my imp runs out.

In the imp and right after applying: super sweet plum! The floral notes take over as it dries down -- I mostly get jasmine and a more sharp and stereotypically "perfumey" floral (the daffodil?). I can't pick out the white musk at any stage. This could be a great spring/summer scent, especially if sweeter florals are your thing, but it's a little too much for me.

In the imp and right after applying, this is intense honey and vanilla plus something spicy and almost resinous to me (definitely the clove, and maybe also the vetiver?). After drydown, it calms down a lot -- I end up with soft honey, vanilla, and cherry, with some clove still faintly hanging out in the background. It's like O, but with a subtle added spicy sweetness (although I think the honey note is more intense in O). If you find the vanilla/honey combo in O too in-your-face but otherwise like foody scents, this is worth trying. (I'm on the fence about whether I need a bottle of this, but I'll definitely keep trying the imp.)

This scent's really interesting in that manages to be dark/woodsy and fresh simultaneously. In the imp, I get slightly smoky woods and lots of citrus -- it's almost like a stripped-down, darker version of Manhattan. When it dries down, the lemon tones itself down quite a bit, and the wood notes get a bit softer and more pronounced. It stays surprisingly close to the skin on me. It's still basically woods and citrus, but much less in-your-face and borderline Lemon Pledge/Irish Spring as it is in the imp. I'm really glad I was frimped this, because I don't know if I would have tried it otherwise. Seriously considering a bottle once the imp runs out.

Rose generally doesn't work well on me, but I liked the other notes (and the concept), so I decided to take a chance on this. In the bottle and immediately after putting it on, it's definitely myrrh-dominant, to the extent that I'm not able to distinguish the other notes. I also noticed a weird, sharp, almost astringent stage as it started to dry down (maybe the vetiver?), but fortunately, it calms down after a little while. This might be one case where rose's tendency to go powdery on me works in my favor -- once that happens and the vanilla comes out a little more after drydown, I get a soft, slightly powdery, but still myrrh-forward scent. I really like this once it reaches its post-drydown stage. If you like myrrh, you'll probably like this.

Was frimped this with my last order. I had reservations about this since BPAL's rose tends to go straight to baby powder on me, but something about the bergamot-rose combination keeps this from going in that direction on me. I mostly get the rose and citrus notes -- the plum, oud, and sandalwood are too subtle for me to really pick out. Instead of baby powder, I get a nice, fresh, citrus/floral blend. I probably don't need a 5ml of this, but I can definitely see myself reaching for the imp in warmer weather.

In the imp, this is really intense, sharp oak, with something slightly herbal and spicy in the background (maybe the chamomile?). For some reason it reminds me of the smell of old, polished church pews. The rhubarb comes out in a big way after it's been on for a bit, making the overall scent surprisingly sweet -- the difference between what I'm smelling on my wrist and in the imp is huge. The end result is a sweet rhubarb that's grounded a little bit by the oak in the background. It reminds me a lot of Libra 2016, with the morphing in reverse -- Libra's aggressively sweet in the bottle but gets balanced out nicely with the wood notes after applying, while Lawful gets almost too sweet as it dries down. I don't think I need a 5ml of this, but this is one to consider if you like sweeter, strawberry-esque scents.

This is the first 13 I've gotten, and it seems like it was a good choice. In the bottle, I mostly get the chocolate, coconut, and almond notes. Once it's on, my skin really amps the coconut and almond, but it eventually settles down to a pleasant, slightly nutty dry cocoa scent. Sweet and foody, but definitely wearable.

I loved the pink pepper note in Fake News (along with everything else about Fake News), so I was eager to give this version of the dead leaves a try. It's sweeter in the bottle than the other dead leaf scents, but that weirdly green, aquatic, cologne-like element of the dead leaf note is still there. I'm not sure if the dead leaf note is morphing a lot on me or if my skin really amps the pink pepper, but this really warms up on me after applying. There's the same spicy-sweet pink pepper from Fake News, with a drier, much less cologne-y version of the dead leaves hanging around in the background. While I wish it lasted a bit longer (it mostly fades on me halfway through the day), I really love this and am glad I sprung for a blind bottle.

In the bottle, I get intense apple pie spice -- almost a bit too seasonal-candle for my liking. Fortunately, once it's on, fresher apple notes plus the grass note come out and balance out the spice really nicely -- like previous reviews said, it's sort of like a fresh/clean apple pie scent. My skin chemistry seems to do something weird with the grass note such that it becomes borderline plasticky after it's been on for a while, but it's not intense enough to be a dealbreaker. Definitely a good fall scent if apple is at all your thing.

2017 version In the bottle, it's much more aquatic than I expected. The dead leaf note is there, but it's more like wet, just-fallen leaves on a rainy day. I can't pick up the smoke or sap yet. After applying, it goes weirdly soapy on me for a bit, but it warms up and de-soaps considerably as it dries down, with what I'm guessing must be the smoke note. By the time it dries down, it reminds me a lot of Hallowe-en, 1914, with less sickly sweetness in the background. If you're not into the dead leaf note, I'd avoid this, but if you like unisex green scents, it's worth trying.

Mutable fire: the essence of optimism. This is a perfume of energetic positivity, freedom, exploration, tolerant idealism, and spontaneity. This is the scent of the wandering philosopher, the fearless adventurer, and the outspoken activist. Rugged cedar and white pine, wise rowan and California white sage, soft mosses, well-worn leather, peppery tomato leaf, and fiery saffron. As a Sag rising and someone who loves BPAL's leather note, I decided this was worth going for. It smells *amazing* in the bottle -- fresh pine and woods with something bright and spicy hanging around (the saffron, maybe?). Once it's on, the pine unfortunately fades on me fast, but the leather note amps up more -- the sort of softer leather note in scents like Dead Leaves, Raw Leather, etc. The tomato leaf also gets more prominent, bringing something green and peppery to the scent. The end result is a slightly spicy green scent with the leather note grounding it. Throw is fairly good, and it does last long. While I like the end result on well enough, I do miss the pine note once it goes away. It is a little bit on the masculine side, but I still think anyone could wear it.

Got this as a frimp with my last order. It's like a less foody/boozy version of Miskatonic University -- the wood notes stay front and center on me even after drydown, with the vanilla very subtly sweetening it. The tobacco note is a little more prominent, but has the same function of adding a little sweetness to the wood notes. I really love this -- it's sophisticated, androgynous, and not overwhelming in terms of throw. It's close enough to Miskatonic University that I don't know yet if I need a bottle, but I'll definitely be thinking it over as I go through the imp.

This scent was part of a friend's Weenie haul, so I got to test it for myself. I've never had a scent morph so intensely on me before. In the bottle, the cardamom note is very strong, but I don't get the usual Lab dead leaf note. Instead, it smells like a mixture of soap and pine to me. Once it's on, it got extremely soapy, but rapidly got sweeter as it dried down. The end result was actually quite nice, and almost a complete 180 from where the scent started in the bottle. While I still didn't get any detectable leaf note in the final version on me, I did get a sweet, foody, subtly spicy cardamom scent. Unfortunately, that end phase didn't last very long; this one faded on me after about two hours. Going to pass on this one.

I got to sample a friend's bottle of this today to figure out if I want my own. I wasn't sure about this one at first -- in the bottle, it's very much an ocean-air sort of aquatic scent, but with some sour, funky undertone that wasn't working for me (not sure if it's the ambergris or the salt). Once on, said funky note amped up, but after a few more minutes it dies down and blends in as the light musk notes amp up. The end result is a really lovely aquatic -- more reminiscent of salt air than a typically perfume-y aquatic. It also has good staying power and throw; five hours and one workout later, I can still get whiffs of it. I'm either going to have to steal my friend's bottle or get my own.

I snagged a bottle of this last fall and apparently forgot to review it, so, here's my take on a year-old bottle! I don't know if the oil itself changed with age or my nose did -- when I first got this, the apple note (which is pretty much all you get in the bottle) was cloyingly sweet and almost medicinal-smelling to me. After not wearing it for most of a year (it's very much a fall scent), I picked it back up and found the apple note is still really strong in the bottle, but it doesn't seem as aggressively sweet or artificial. Now it's more like sticking my nose into a bag of fresh red apples. My skin really amps up the other notes once it's on, especially the oats and vanilla -- the goat's milk is there, but it's not the strong, slightly sour smell I get with other goat's milk blends. Same for the hay and honey notes -- I'm sure they're there, but they're hard to pick out individually. The apple stays strong for the first few hours, but this gradually fades on me to a pleasant creamy vanilla scent with a vague hint of apple. Overall, if you like the idea of a warm, foody apple scent, snag a bottle of this if you find one floating around. I've found myself reaching for it often this fall.

In the bottle, I mostly get strawberry and vanilla, with the other notes hanging out in the background -- it's like a grown-up, sophisticated strawberries and cream scent. Once it's on, the strawberry fades fast on me and my skin amps up the rose (which, unfortunately, goes powdery on me) and woods. The other notes are there, but very well-blended -- I'd have a hard time picking them out without the list of notes. After a while, the strawberry continues to hang out in the background, and the powdery rose dies down. The overall effect is resins, woods, and musk with a subtle sweetness. I'm a bit bummed about the rose note going powdery (rose might be my death note), but overall, this is subtle and sophisticated. This Libra/Scorpio cusp approves.

In the imp: Lots of strong florals and incense -- not normally my thing, but it's kind of appealing. A poster above said it's like a grande dame's perfume, and that seems accurate to me. Sophisticated and maybe a little old-fashioned, but not necessarily a bad thing! After applying: Still florals and incense, but it's going powdery on me. After a couple hours: The baby powder dies down some, while my skin amps the incense. The end result is incense with relatively faint florals and a touch of powder. Not normally my style, so no bottle for me, but I'll hang onto the imp.

In the imp: PINE! So much pine. Wet: All of the pine. Drydown: The orange starts to really amp up, adding some sweetness to the pine/eucalyptus combo (though I think I'd rather a sharper, less sweet citrus note -- on me, the orange is kind of cloyingly sweet). The end result: pine with a weirdly sweet undertone that lasts about four hours. I don't need a bottle of this, but I can see myself reaching for the imp this summer.

In the bottle: Coffee with something syrupy sweet. Yikes. After applying: Vanilla's nowhere in sight; otherwise, coffee and baby powder. Yikes. After drydown: The vanilla comes out to play and the coffee notes move into the background. The vetiver and resin notes get less powdery and blend really nicely with the vanilla. The overall effect is a warm, dry vanilla with the vetiver/resin notes keeping the whole thing from being overly sweet. Much better.

In the imp: Strong citrus notes and something woody/incense-y, like a weirdly pleasant version of Lemon Pledge and polished wood furniture. Once it's on: The citrus is still there, but my skin really starts amping the wood and incense notes, along with a trace of something powdery (the oud, maybe?). A few hours later: Mostly just soft wood notes and that powdery note. I wish the citrus hadn't gone away so quickly, but this is still really pleasant. This has a lot of staying power; I could still get a whiff on my wrists 6-7 hours later. Overall, it's a really warm scent that would probably work well on both men and women. Will keep the imp and might consider a bottle once it runs out.

At first sniff, I was worried that the cinnamon would end up being too much for me, as it seemed to completely overwhelm the floral and slightly smoky vanilla/honey notes. On dry-down, the cinnamon took a back seat, and the honey and vanilla notes really amped up, with some nice, subtle floral notes in the background. It's very warm and languid (definitely the closest thing I would imagine to a "post-coital" sort of perfume). Maybe I just really amp the honey and vanilla notes, but this really reminds me of O (one of my favorites), with some spice and floral notes floating around in the background to give it some more complexity.

This is one BPAL scent I consistently get compliments on! While it goes slightly powdery on me (oddly, I don't seem to have any issues with soapiness or laundryesque notes), it fortunately doesn't morph all that much on me. This is a really wonderful warm weather scent, with a perfect balance of fruity, green, and slightly rosy floral notes. I'm very likely to get a 5ml after the imp runs out.

In the imp and upon application, The Lion is pawing me in the nose *hard* with cinnamon. For the first couple of hours I don't get any discernible amber, just Red Hots-esque cinnamon. After a couple of hours, though, softer and resinous notes start coming out and balance the cinnamon very nicely. The end result is a scent that to me is evocative of warm, dry days -- spicy and lightly resinous without being overpowering. I could see myself wearing this more often provided I think far ahead enough to apply it with enough time to let the hardcore cinnamon die down before I go anywhere.