Red_Hot_Mama

The best way for me to review this is to give you an example of some of the comments I heard when I wore it. I walked downstairs: "MMMMM, you smell good! Just like hot gingerbread." I went to the store: "Oh, what are you wearing? You smell so good." At the dry cleaners: "Someone smells GOOD!" In line at Sears: "Is someone baking? It smells just like gingerbread cookies. Have you had lunch? I'm hungry." When I put on my bathrobe: (This is me thinking to myself.) "This smells so nice! What was I wearing? Oh yeah, GINGERBREAD POPPET!!" Update: After a while, this just got to be too much for me. A little is nice but I got tired of smelling it everywhere I went. It seemed to completely overwhelm everything else around me. Eventually, I couldn't wear it at all. The compliments were nice but I just didn't like the pervasiveness of the blend. On the other hand, this is soooo popular that I swapped my two bottles for some great stuff!

Thank you all! Love Me is divine! "O" & "Love Me" are orgasmic together! Regan is very nice but didn't last very long, or my "sniffer" is blinky. Rose Red, Whip, Persephone are all on order already. I'll see if I can find Nyx, Twilight & Wicked on the swaps board or if not, I'll get some of the combos you all suggested as Imps. I put up a "Wanted" post in Swaps & included some stuff for my fella. Thanks again for all the suggestions. Man....I gotta get me a big bottle of Love Me & O!

Persephone is on order. Spellbound & Alice were....well, not so good. I'd like to try Belle Epoque, New Orleans & Le Serpent Qui Danse, although violet does very, very wonky things on me. I just found an Imp of "O", so I'll give that a "go".

I really like Tamora but again, it seems more like a Summertime perfume. I checked out the honey & Eve, Blood Kiss & Jezebel looks interesting. "O" might be a possibility. White Rabbit is on order. Funny story about the Sherrer 2. A cab driver in Boston pulled the car over & said "You smell SO FRENCH! What are you wearing? I have to get this for my sister!" That was a first! Thanks for the honey suggestion. I remember people really liked the Honey single note Beth uses.

I have noticed a pattern in the perfumes I absolutely adore: vanilla & florals...especially Jasmine or Rose. The BPAL selection is limited in these combos. I love Siren but it's more of a warm weather perfume. Mata Hari didn't work at all for me, the coffee became prominent. Desire was "ok" but not "special", if you know what I mean. Golden P, I haven't tried because it's rosewood, not rose. As far as non-BPAL fragrances I love Burberry's London, J'dore (no vanilla listed but it turns vanillish on me), Jean Louie Scherrer 2 and DSH Antique Rose. Scherrer 2 was my signature fragrance for many years. Unfortunately, it's too closely associated with an old flame of mine. Since it's not as familiar as the other one's, here's the notes to give you some ideas. SCHERRER 2 By JEAN LOUIS SCHERRER YEAR INTRODUCED - 1950 FRAGRANCE NOTES - Bergamot, pineapple, anise, jasmine, tuberose, honey, vanilla, sandal, heliotrope, benzoin. I'd really like to use just BPAL, any blend suggestions?

Nothing to add, that hasn't already been said, except about spreadsheets. Quite a few on the forum maintain extensive spreadsheets. Just put the word out that you would like one or pm andrabell. I'm sure she can help you. (BTW... andra is a mod on bpal chatter.)

Snake Oil in it's "fresh from the lab" form did not work well on me. However, there was a thread discussing how Snake Oil changes with age. So of course, I had to try it again. After all, how could Beth's number one blend NOT work on me? I have tried several "ages" of Snake Oil, thanks to several members of our online forum (Boots, kimmer & lorajc, so far). Here's what I found. Snake Oil ages like a very fine scotch. It gets better & better, deeper, richer more mellow. It's probably due to the resins in this blend. Whatever the reason for it's improvement, if Snake Oil didn't "work" for you, you owe it to yourself to try an aged rendition of this incomparable blend. At six months it begins to darken in color & thicken in consistency. That's ok, only a tiny, tiny amount is needed to produce the most exquisite sillage and unbelievable staying power. I am throughly enjoying my "gran dame" Snake Oil!

Siren, strong femine energy Wolf's Heart - emotonial & physical strength when you need it Van Van for protection Love me just because it kicks ass

All very good suggestions here, I just wanted to add a

Samhain Truly the scent of autumn itself -- damp woods, fir needle, and black patchouli with the gentlest touches of warm pumpkin, clove, nutmeg, allspice, sweet red apple and mullein. In the bottle: MMMMM goodness..."Fall" in a jar. On Application: the "damp woods & black patchouli" are doin' bad things with my chemistry. Smells a lot like BO. I do not like this phase. On Dry Down: Lovely, spicy that Fall Holiday fragrance but warmed up. I'm a bit divided on this one. The blend is obviously well loved but knowing that everyone's chemistry reacts differently, I can't honestly say I "love" Samhain. I like it but may elect to sell or swap it to a better home. ADDED Nov. 12: Plese add this to my original review of Samhain above & consider it my "update". I didn't much care for this on my skin. It smells wonderful in the bottle & wonderful after several hours drydown. In the meanwhile it smells...well, "funky" on me. I'll have to decide if I want to keep this for the drydown phase. In the meanwhile I've sent surprise decants to fellow forumites. EDIT: As you wish. Followup post archived. --Shollin

My daughter likes Bon Vivant, Aisen-Myoo, Block Buster, Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo, Sugar Skull (this would have to be a decant though), Three Witches & The Empress. Hope it helps!

I applied All Saints last night before going to bed. Perhaps it was because Sugar Skull had taken over my sense of smell but I really couldn't smell All Saints at all. (And this was after I had showered!) This morning is a different story. The scent remained with me throughout the night. It's not "heavy", rather I would describe it as "steadfast" and most definitely comforting. This is one of those "come closer" blends. The fragrance is rich as you would expect of a combination of frankincense, myrrh & Damascus rose. It's a wonderful combination with my chemistry. (Although, I did not smell gardenia, cassia or lily of the valley.) I'll try it again tomorrow & update my review, should anything change.

Sea of Glass reminds me of the most beautiful emeralds. In fact, much of what the fragrance evokes is described here. The fragrance is light, clean, "clear", fresh but with depth. I imagine that Sea of Glass would have a very soothing effect on the emotional body and an uplifting effect on the spiritual body. Sea of Glass beyond my sight. Healing all my fears. Gentle strength abounds.

One think immediately comes to mind: a black silk nightie! I mean it. This "smells" like the finest black silk. The fragrance is "fluid", clings to the skin, soft & most definitely, silky. Black Pearl is also one of the most complex, morphing blends I've ever tried. A classy, rich blend. Brava, Elizabeth!

I have a feeling that the reviews of this one will be fairly consistent, as Sugar Skull, at least on me, is very true to the descriptions I've read here. I'll just emphasize that you need to use a very light hand with this one. The blend is "thin" in consistency & comes out of the bottle much faster than I expected. As a result, I have much more Sugar Skull on me than I would like. Teriffic "throw" with this one. I can sooo see this as a soap or a candle. (Hint, hint!) The dry down of this does become "burnt" toasted marshmallow. Not a bad thing, mind you, quite nostalgic actually.

I didn't think I had written a review for Perversion yet. Honestly, I really don't like ALL of Beth's blends but I do tend to review the one's I like. My first Persersion was an Imp tucked into one of my orders. It was quite awhile before I tried it but when I did, I was smitten. The fragrance is really yummy. Perversion reminds me of sitting in a brand new car with lux leather interior & (god forbid) eating a Cadbury Milk Cocolate bar. But..... It's even better than that because there's no mess, no calories & the scent lasts & lasts. I bought a 5 ml. Added: This settles down into the most exquisite floral. It's really wonderful for this time of year; particularly if you can't wear blends with cinnamon oil.

Queen Mab! Other women always notice this & compliment favorably. Good Luck!

Wolf's Heart is absolutely lovely! It's a warm, "cosy" scent. Think of a warm mound of wolf pups sleeping soundly one on top of the other. Alpha Male & Alpha Female standing guard close by. Strong, steady....grounded but DO NOT provoke them for they are fierce as well. Sleep safe my loves.

One of my all time favorites is Siren. You don't hear a lot about it on the board but it is incredible. Be forwarned, it smells awful in the Imp...do not be put off by that. It's really worth trying. Oh & use sparingly. My 2 cents.

Believe it or not, Incantation. My husband always, how shall we say..., "respnds" to me when I wear it. My daughter has complimented me on Horn of Plenty, The Hesperides, Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo, Three Witches & Bon Vivant. She has permanently "borrowed" all of my Bon Vivant imps. RHM

Well, ladies, let me tell you this is one HOT blend! My husband never notices my perfume. In fact, I've made a bit of a game of it...to see if he notices what I'm wearing. Oh my goodness, does he EVER notice. Pm me if you want the "details": this is unbelievable. I sometimes get the "body odor" from the vetivert but not every time. Incantation then becomes a complex sandlewood, musky cloud surrounding me. This perfume is deep, rich, sexy & lasts a long time. What more could a girl ask for? I bought a 10ml. RHM

Mmmmm...."toilet cleaner"! That's it! I couldn't think of what the Red Queen reminded me of at first. Thank goodness it does get very pretty, but floral on me...not red berries. Me wants my red berries! Thank goodness kimmer is sending the Lampades. RHM

Many thanks to the lovely kimmer for sending me an Imp of Lampades to try! :D RHM

I understand, honey. Time to sleep. RHM

Let's see... Blood Rose was "OK" but I like Black Rose & Dragon's Bone better. I've tried Bon Vivant...Sofie comandered it. (Beth must know that Sofie really likes it because I've gotten 3 freebie imps of it in my last couple of orders. Beth is "The Perfume Lady" in our house.) It's too, too sweet for me. I think I've tried Zephyr; need to check my spreadsheet. Carnivale has carnation in it which has been know to give me violent headaches. Lady MacBeth was the only blend that had "red currant" & "wild berries". The reformualtion turns too "apricot-y" on me. As for the others, I've not tried any of those. I'll add them to my Wish List. Thank you!!! RHM