Lycanthrope

THE WORM SHALL REVIVE THEE WITH KISSES But the worm shall revive thee with kisses; Thou shalt change and transmute as a god, As the rod to a serpent that hisses, As the serpent again to a rod. Thy life shall not cease though thou doff it; Thou shalt live until evil be slain, And good shall die first, said thy prophet, Our Lady of Pain. Bourbon vetiver, oakmoss, and pomegranate. So... weird... Starts off this very dischordant blend of dark dark vetiver and moss, with the fruity blast of pomegranate. On the skin, the pomegranate turns more to candy, like candy dipped in vetiver oil. Oh, no... not playing well in my skin, it's both syrupy sweet yet fundamentally spicy and gritty. I'm not sure I'm liking the two together, it smells on my skin at least like a scorched pomegranate. Sorry!

It is the lady of midnight and she has arrived! She of Two Faces, She Who Eats Filth, the Death Caused by Lust – Tlazolteotl – is the Aztec goddess of the regenerative function of the earth, human sexuality, and fertility. She represents the active female principle in the eternal cycle of life feeding death and death feeding life. Her arms, dressed in flayed skins, embrace mirrored principles of sin and purification: she inspires lust, depravity, overindulgence, vice, lechery, and licentiousness, and is also empowered to cleanse and forgive moral, spiritual, and fleshly sins. Her scent is a melding of her symbols and offerings: chapapote and black copal with cacao, black honey, maize, and cotton blossoms. Hooray! I hope this doesn't smell like teh pewp. Or, if it does, it will be my precious BPAL PEWP. Sweet. From the bottle, this smells like a little gritty, chewy, resinous chocolate. Wet, the initial cocoa rises to the surface, and reminds me just a touch of a less-lavender Wulric. It has hints of that delicious Boomslang-like cocoa absolute! It is marvelous in this initial wet stage. Over a little more time something slightly remniscent of corn flakes does arise, but only in the best way possible, giving the entire scent a touch more of a mild food-y vibe without veering into cake or cookie territory. I don't get much floral, but there is a gentle sweetness suffusing the scent, reminding me a touch of the Xmvlzencab soap, which was more sweet ginger honey floral to my nose. With more drydown, the copal is maybe a hint more noticeable, and I have no idea if what I am smelling is cotton blossom. Definitely no strong florals in this one. This reads and projects like an awesome, deep, dirty cocoa that I could swear has patchouli in it due to the wonderfully deep, chewy and rich chocolate, that dries down into a smoky, complicated slightly foody drydown. I think the pitch/chapapote is manifest as the slighty dirt-y but mostly sand-like essence that is granting the cocoa some wondrous complexity. I have my bottle, and I will HOAAAARD.

"Hey," said Shadow. "Huginn or Muninn, or whoever you are." The bird turned, head tipped, suspiciously, on one side, and it stared at him with bright eyes. "Say 'Nevermore,'" said Shadow. "Fuck you," said the raven." Glossy black, rough, and gravelly: violet-gilded opoponax, black patchouli, myrrh, and oak leaf. Smokey in the bottle. Rocks. Gray gravel. On, wet, a weirdly sweet, dark, biting caramelly resin. The topnotes of the resin recede a bit and I'm getting a bit of the burnt/dried leaves note, but not much, and it's tempered by a dry woodsiness. There's a depth beneath this all with the patchouli and myrrh lending a soft, but solid base. I was hoping for a bit more front-forward violet, but I'm not getting that as much with the initial drydown. Over time, the resins/woods unify and turn more towards a very excellent, subdued but dark patchouli, with a touch of rockiness - not Black Opal rockiness, but... still a huskiness. There are whispers of violet petals but don't be afraid if you're not a floral person. This is just enough to lend a glint to the feathers. I will not F this blend! It's quite good!

By day, these tiny blossoms of white, pink, and purple appear withered, fragile, and weedy, but as evening approaches, they reveal their true magnificence: their petals open, and a rich, melodic perfume fills the night air. Initially, wet, from the bottle, this smells like a plush, round, puffy light purple flower, like wisteria. On my skin, the aroma develops a markedly sharper tone, like a... perfume, powdery aroma. Not really honey, per se, but this sweetens up and goes up in pitch and tone, such that it becomes a sweet, more light blue note, if that makes sense. An ethereal, light, night floral for sure.

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Olibanum, labdanum, spikenard, cade, cardamom pod, and olive blossom. Super light and airy wet from the bottle. On skin, it's a very wonderful topnote of frankincense (olibanum), with a bit of creaminess and thrummy warm gumminess of labdanum. The olive blossom reminds me of Succor (I love(d) that blend!). The spikenard/cade/cardamom add a little herbal spiciness to the resins and it ends up feeling very comforting, supportive... for me those resins send up meditation vibes. It's still very light, not too 'churchy,' though as it dries down sparkles of the frankincense resin predominate. Cardamom is nice but not too powerful, as it can be, just a kiss. Wonderful!

A dry perfume, solemn and riddled with ancient, whispered secrets: brittle bones, the well-worn leather spines of forgotten books, crumbling papyrus, and the warm, strange scent of yellowed, crumbling manuscripts. A soft, musty and a little sharp (bone?) leather-patchouli. This is a neutral leather in terms of warmth, so more like 'Dee' leather rather than Quincy Morris / Brom Bones (cool, slick) and not fiery or red like The Red Rider. It kind of smells like paper, but is more of a dust and deep, thrummy woods kind of scent. I like it a lot but it's more atmospheric on me than pleasant, to my nose. Fitting!

Iron and fire: red-hot ginger, fossilized amber, prickly poppy, red cedar, cubeb, star anise, and scorpion pepper. This scent is very hot. Crimson red oil. I can feel my nostrils singe a little smelling it. On my skin, it's immediately spicy and I get a whiff of pepper rind, like in the Mayan/Annatto/Pepper chocolate scent. That fleshy warm pepper foodiness. This goes away pretty fast. Anise and cedar are there to add a very potent dry twangy chord to the overall scent. This amber is not sweet, but there is that powderiness on me. Ambers tend to go sweet on me, and this is starting to go that way. I get no poppy, but I'm notoriously bad at finding that note in perfumes. It's very jarring, doesn't quite mesh into one thing on my skin. I can't tell if this is trying to be purposely cacophonous, but it's doing a good job of being very fragmented and chaotic. I smell more fire than iron. Over time this is trying to settle into a spicy wood. It is not melding well with me, but if you like warm, woodsy resins and are okay with ginger, I would give this a whirl.

Violet wolf checking in. Sniff from the bottle, a sharper, slightly green and gritty mist over a subtle violet. Fresh on skin, quite sharp, getting a lot of initial ambergris, some sweetness from the opium segueing into a resinous mossy green, I think maybe a hiiiiint of coconut. Right now I can't find the violet, oh no! It's reading very much as a somewhat sharper aquatic misty ambergris musk. There's a shadow of patchouli lurking in the background. Coconut and orris is giving it a bit of a Black Pearl vibe. On for about an hour... ok, there's a bit of violet base now, but like the painting, I think this scent is more about the ethereal, airy white gauziness of the dress and the violets are a complement, not the main focus. It's quieted down a bit so that most of what I can smell is a bit of powdery violet petal, with a planty, leafy moss-musk. It's a very interesting blend of scents. I think from afar I get whiffs of pure violet but just like the ionones do, the petals peek into and out of presence, hiding in the folds of the misty white of the dress and the shadowy gritty dark of the patchouli/oakmoss. It's definitely unique! I would say: if you love violets, and are expecting them, they are here but not front and forwards. If you usually dislike violets, this won't whomp you on the head with them, and may be a more tolerable experience of them. It's a very beautiful interpretation of the painting.

Then said Jafnhárr: It was many ages before the earth was shaped that the Mist-World was made; and midmost within it lies the well that is called Hvergelmir, from which spring the rivers called Svöl, Gunnthrá, Fjörm, Fimbulthul, Slídr and Hríd, Sylgr and Ylgr, Víd, Leiptr; Gjöll is hard by Hel-gates. The first vision, obfuscated by fog sprung from Hvergelmir: a world within dream, formed of nebulous possibility. Thin strands of white resin-smoke, star jasmine, and white violet. This is a very pleasant, light incensey scent that reads primarily as a soft violet. It's not as lush as in Sybaris, per se, and definitely not as 'chewy' as Fleurette's Purple Snails, which was a robust, unfurling PURPLE violet. On the skin it's sweet, gentle violets, mixed with maybe a wisp of light sandalwood. The star jasmine I guess reads as a hint of misty floral, but this is not a jasmine-forward blend at all. It's mostly a slightly dewy absolutely beautiful violet, and I must get tons of it. Light overall throw, but it's delicious.

I really love the concept of this scent! Alas, it is perhaps one of the least rosey Rose scents from BPAL that I own, and it is a bit cacophonous and chaotic. Overall, it reads as a fruity tropical floral, which may be totally up someone's alley - it's not quite the type of scent I wear or reach for often (the fruits - I'm a tropical floral wolf for sure) Whiff from the bottle and immediately on is a very sweet blackberry, primarily, on the skin and for the first few moments it's really orchid forward, with a smidge of sweet opium-like smoke, but not very much of that lingers or remains. As a violet lover I was really hoping for that to be up center, but I can't really detect that. It must be, like the rose and blue musk, sort of lending an undercurrent of sweet - but I think the blackberry and orchid really steal the show here. Even with more time, I can't get much more than a very well blended and chewy blackberry scent, with a floral backdrop, but not a classic rose at all. I'll still keep and reach for this here and there, the bottle and concept are wonderful, a bit of a miss on this violet and blue musk lover.

Snow drifting on black pine, blood red apple, rosewood, osmanthus, and lemon peel. Wet, this is pine, and a hint of the slushy delicious wintry notes of Beth's Yules. The comparison for sure would be to Snow, Glass, Apples, which this does have some relation to, but the pine is definitely present in this scent. It doesn't make it masculine, but it does take the scent from a purely poisonous, translucent apple (SGA) to a more grounded, earthy kind of scent. On me, the snow/slush note goes more into the 'sweet snow' note, similar to the room spray Christmas Present, so not the spearminty/eucalyptus snow present in things like Nuclear Winter/Country of Eternal Light. This is a cold scent but illuminated by an unearthly warmth, even if the lady's skin is pale white you know beneath it there's blood, pulsing, purring. The apple note is also not a green/winesap type of scent, but rather the fleshy, slightly mealy (in a good way) red delicious, one that gives way under the teeth a bit too well and lets your incisors rend through its flesh. I don't get a huge amount of lemon peel, or the rose part of rosewood. I think the osmanthus and rosewood are lending a bit of complexity to the scent but not overpowering in any way. This reads most forward as a top note pine/forest that segues into a snow-kissed apple resting on an ornate perfume box carved of rich, brown wood, sparkling with devilish, cold intent.

LADY AMALTHEA Molly Grue had taken the white girl's head onto her lap, and was whispering over and over, "What have you done?" The girl's face, quiet in sleep and close to smiling, was the most beautiful that Schmendrick had ever seen. It hurt him and warmed him at the same time. Molly smoothed the strange hair, and Schmendrick noticed on the forehead, above and between the closed eyes, a small, raised mark, darker than the rest of the skin. It was neither a scar nor a bruise. It looked like a flower. A luminous white winter musk with lilac, wisteria, white chocolate, white mint, and tuberose. This is a cool, very light purple scent, definitely strong on the lilac and wisteria, so it's quite sharply floral, but in a good way. I mostly get an undercurrent of neutral mint. There's the waxiness of tuberose, and it is reminding me of lying in near a snowdrift, with tons of petals, the small delicate lilac flowers with drippy purply cold, fleshy wisteria, and the icy tuberose... drydown is more towards lilac wax in only the best way possible. The mint is also present as a freshness behind the whole thing. It has a Yule-feel without being overly Yuley, if that makes sense. Drydown is not to strong on chocolate, mostly sweet hint of mint and mixed florals / cold flowers.

A whisper of the vanilla mint, and on me, the honeyed sugar and strawberries brings to mind Pink Moons of yore with a smidge of chilly snow. It's pretty much perfect and a great transition scent balancing Yule and Lupers! On me the red wine comes out more and more as times passes, to lend a bit of Athens-like goopiness to the whole blend. I could have swore this had rose in it but maybe it's my mind inventing florals when I think 'Valentine!'

For me, foody to start with the buttercream but veers straight into cinnamon and clove territory, and slight pistachio nutmeat in the dry down. Very excellent if you’re a spice gourmand lover.

If you missed out on Stealthily, Stealthily, this feels a very similar type of fragrance. It reads as a well blended misty and puffy purple scent, a bit powdery from the orris, and some sweetness from the violet. I think it has more of a honeyed aroma and a smidge salty from the ambergris. I like it bunches.

Eau de Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. The cumulative weight of hundreds of scents -- a cacophony of mythology, fiction, folk magic, and other arcane influences, all clamoring for your attention at once. Wet... this smells like... chocolate? A waxy kind of chocolate scent? And then maybe the... touch of a cookie-like vanilla. It's surprisingly foody but then also registers as 'weird floral.' On me, the color of the oil is a faint slippery translucent green. As it first dries, I definitely get a mishmash of leafy... chocolate... malt?... This is giving me flashbacks to Chaos Theories of past. Is that... caramel? No... I ... what. This is like the equivalent of nose static. I can't identify any one thing, but it just smells... pleasantly everything, but nothing. So it's not super sharp or overbearing. I keep saying 'wafer?' Like those square wafer cookies you can buy, Manner, I think. I smell crunched up Manner cookies, but like the same slightly neutral powderiness. If you've had those wafers before they're pleasantly bland but not terribly powerful in terms of their flavor. Oh. Bother. I think I'm getting a hint of... formaldehyde??!?! That can't be right, but it's like the weird mishmash of all smells merging into a vaguely rubbery everything. Oh GOD, why is it doing THAT. As a former medical student, how is THIS the smell I'm getting? Holy cow. Yikes! Oh... a little more time and the chemical scent starts going orange/citrus? Man, I'm so confused. Starts off foodie, then goes totes chemical, then... fruit rinds? I can't even.

The name of this moon refers to the color of wild ground phlox, a primary component of this Lunacy Blend, which is one of the most widespread floral signposts of springtime in North America. This Lunar blend is soft with phlox, tulip, daffodil, pink columbine, delphinium, pink carnation, peony, and muscari, dusted with pink sugar and honey, bourbon vanilla, a hint of white chocolate, and a touch of the first strawberries of the season. Pink Moon is very different from prior incarnations while still being very 'pink.' From the bottle, it smells like wet strawberry flesh and a strong hint of cocoa butter. On the skin, it starts off as a summery blast of strawberry and white chocolate, with a floral that may be stemmier/greener than most. There is carnation that is lending a ruffly floral note, but it's definitely not predominantly a carnation blend like some of the prior Pink Moons. On the skin, the blend retains the top note of strawberry, but with an undercurrent of white chocolate. This chocolate aroma is also, like, white, as in buttery, but a cold, vanilla butter, blended with pips of strawberries and seeds. Further drydown, the florals come up but as a whisper behind the slightly foodiness of the oil. All in all, it has aspects from many families of perfume, while not really being too predominant in any one. The end result is a very complex, sugary, and yes, pink (although it took a while to get there from 'squishy red' for me) scent.

Dark chocolate and clove bud with smoked amber, bourbon vanilla tar, and black and pink peppers. Whoa. This is a little weird from the bottle, definitely spicy, and peppery. I definitely get a potent black pepper vibe, like black pepper essential oil. The chocolate is a dusky, dusty dark cocoa thing, definitely not sugary sweet! On my skin the pepper and cloves bloom immediately into a cloud of potent heat, with the cocoa riding along. After a few minutes, the immediate spiciness recedes, leaving a very sexy gourmand, cocoa-kissed incensy resin. I'm still getting a good deal of clove, kissed with depth with the amber and vanilla, which are not front and center. The cocoa always remains a slight foody twang on an otherwise beautifully sensual spice blend. Over a bit more time, this actually is veering towards Gelt (but like, sexier?) Grandma's handing out fake coin candies but watch out! She's dangerous (and in lingerie). I like this! I'll have to give it a few wears, but I do have my single bottle now lol. #blindbottlelifeyolo

A song of meagre comfort, lilting in the wind: orris root, white sandalwood, grey amber, and soft white chocolate. I really like this one! From the sprayer and spritzer it's a very buttery chocolate. I get actually a bit more milk chocolate, but not sure if it's because of the slight smoky sandalwood. I get a chocolatey violet, like a fine French confection. Sprayed in the air it definitely is a blast of foody, buttery vanilla-chocolate, with a dusty but violet/orris powderiness. I think there's definitely a bit of grounding from the sandalwood but by no means is it a very powerful woodsiness. The amber probably makes this glitter a bit, but I recall the grey amber being uber-smooth, and not terribly sweet. This reads as a slightly floral gourmand, in the violet-chocolate family. I kind of love it. Backups, plox.

Snow and black leather. Very snowy, like Snowball fight in NYC snowy. A sweet, fruitier slush. I'm trying to seek out the black leather. I'm sure it's there, but this is not a leather-forward scent. I get a few hints of the cleaner, crisper cold black leather note but it's supporting the snow. I can imagine this would be a discarded riding crop lying in a snowbank. It's nice, and straightforward, striking more of the pine-slush-snow note buttons rather than leather, which was the opposite of what I hoped. Will take some more wears to get a full impression.

I'm really not sure what's that different, except this is definitely more black musky than the usual red musk. Less woodsy, that I can tell, it has a bit of spice. Maybe cinnamon?

Ok, this is weird. It's definitely an interesting, teeter-totter mix of foodie and floral, but also kind of... woodsy? Initially I get a ton of frosting like buttercream, and the sandalwood supports this with a bit of chewy smokiness. The main floral I'm getting is actually the gardenia. There are sparks of Sugar Skull's sugar throughout, and then gardenia makes the floral more sassy. The tropical floral background is not overpowering and it adds a floof, like tutus, but overall this remains mostly a lightly floral foody vanilla buttercream. It's very interesting, I don't think I need more than one bottle, but I'll see how this ages. It's definitely quite unique.

OGYGIA On to Pieria he stepped from the upper air, and swooped down upon the sea, and then sped over the wave like a bird, the cormorant, which in quest of fish over the dread gulfs of the unresting sea wets its thick plumage in the brine. In such wise did Hermes ride upon the multitudinous waves. But when he had reached the island which lay afar, then forth from the violet sea he came to land, and went his way until he came to a great cave, wherein dwelt the fair-tressed nymph; and he found her within. A great fire was burning on the hearth, and from afar over the isle there was a fragrance of cleft cedar and juniper, as they burned; but she within was singing with a sweet voice as she went to and fro before the loom, weaving with a golden shuttle. Round about the cave grew a luxuriant wood, alder and poplar and sweet-smelling cypress, wherein birds long of wing were wont to nest, owls and falcons and sea-crows with chattering tongues, who ply their business on the sea. And right there about the hollow cave ran trailing a garden vine, in pride of its prime, richly laden with clusters. And fountains four in a row were flowing with bright water hard by one another, turned one this way, one that. And round about soft meadows of violets and parsley were blooming. There even an immortal, who chanced to come, might gaze and marvel, and delight his soul; and there the messenger Argeiphontes stood and marvelled. Sea air, kelp, and climbing vines, flame-singed cedarwood and juniper branches, cypress boughs, alder wood, violets, selino, parsley, glistritha, and white sage. I was super looking forwards to this, as it's an aquatic, and Lycanthrope and aquatics are like THIS. *awkward gesture with paws* The only thing that gave me pause was all the fresh green notes, but there were violets, so I grabbed a bottle. In the bottle, it's definitely super salty, fresh air, a crisp biting aquatic. On the skin, there's an odd experience of the scent almost separating into two different entities. I can smell the airy salt, which is getting even more 'blue and bright' on my skin, a hybrid between Tempest (which was a fresher, deeper watery marine) and Lightning (which was to me more sharp, 'dryer sheet' ozonic). There's a hint of the violet but it's mostly adding a muddy cool floral note, and there's a TON of this background lemony, herby tone over the salty aquatic. It's almost a bit much, actually, the herbs give a frightening brightness to this blend that, combined with the already existing ozone, send it into hyperdrive. Underneath it there is definitely a floating woodsy scent (alder? violets?) It's quite intriguing, but I don't know if it's all me. Definitely sharper, brighter, less 'watery' than I thought.

The Lord of All Waters, Master of Wealth, Keeper of the Secrets in the Depths of the Ocean, Lord of the Lightless Deep, God of the Unknown. This secretive and enigmatic Orisha is symbolized by the Seven Seas, and the vast riches and unplumbed mysteries of the ocean are His. Though His reach extends over three-quarters of earth’s surface, He concedes the right to rule to Obatala out of respect for the age, wisdom and discretion of the venerable King of the White Cloth. Olokun is the depth of the ocean at which the sun’s light fails to penetrate. He is perpetual darkness, incomprehensible pressure, and his abode is the birthplace of mythical monsters. The ocean floor is also a Land of the Dead: in its darkness, all will fall to rest, and in this darkness is the Home of the Spirits, souls that, in the cold and dark, rest awaiting reincarnation. Olokun represents all things that remain unknown to man, and all questions may be answered in the halls of His Kingdom. In this, he holds sway over the power of divination. Though decaying matter settles in His home, the Kingdom itself does not decay or erode. He is represented by the mudfish and his favor is shown through red coral and shark spines. His ofrenda is the scent of the lightless deep: the glorious, unknowable gloom of the ocean floor. This is a remarkably fresh, bright marine. It reminds me of Jolly Roger without the leather and wood notes, a fresher, saltier scent... which may be a good alternative when JR is too pirate! for me. Over time this goes really, really grassy on me. Like fresh cut grass. Edited to add description - clover

Thanks to the much-needed winter rains this year, my little river nymph was finally able to see the creeks in Eaton Canyon as something other than dry, fawn-beige, tumbleweed-strewn strips of sandwash. In the past, shes always been ambivalent about hiking, but something about the rushing streams and sparkling waters enchanted her, and she fell in love. Honeysuckle and honey, water lilies and white sage. Wet, in bottle: A swirly melange of slightly brackish leafy notes. I get a strong, reedy dry grassiness. Shortly after application: A little bit of mud? Or is that my bias due to the copy? I'm getting more of that sappy green, perhaps the honeysuckle and white sage together. I'm also getting a distinctly fleshy lily note, but unlike others I've experienced before, there's an interesting... cold waxiness to it? On for a bit: Oh, there's a kiss of honey. I guess that sort of chewy sweetness is what I was detecting changing my usual experience of lily, which is strong, brash, and not at all demure. I think the leafiness is transitioning more and more to sage, as opposed to pure grass. I'm enjoying it. As time passes, this stays more of a grassy herbal floral, with a little incensy/southwestern smokiness or haziness (more haze!) from the sage. There is an undercurrent of warm honey lurking in the background, and I can detect the honeysuckle as soaring backdrop to the herbal. I think the lilies are rounding out the purely sweet honeysuckle and giving a bit of round waxiness and 'substance' to the scent. This is certainly, to me at least, not an aquatic. I can see it as a warm afternoon spent in a sun-dappled park where daylilies and honeysuckle grow by the side of a stream, with wild sage adding a haze to the air while little bumblebees doddle around, attacking flowers. Not sure what I have in my collection that resembles this... it's very unique!