RavenintheWind

I bought a bottle of this (on sale) way back when it was new, and I tried it and found that the patchouli note did its usual thing on me and amped enough to make my allergies act up. And the hemp note was too harsh on me. So I sold this bottle on pretty quickly to some other happy BPALer instead of hoping it would mellow over time. It smelled interesting in the bottle, but with the way any patch heavy BPAL never works on me, I had no hope of it aging to fit my skin chemistry.

I got this as a decant, and I enjoyed it during the holiday that season. It seemed to work as a de-stresser, and I would buy it again,

I also found this too strong to use directly on the skin, but I enjoy it in the bath. My decant was used up with relish. Not sure I'd buy a whole bottle, as I am not usually a fan of fruitier scents (except apple). However, like another reviewer. I found this to be a bit more honey than currant, and that made it work for me.

I adore this in the winter.

It also layers beautifully with other scents.

This is one of my favorite BPAL rose blends, and I would love to have it as a perfume even if it cost more. I was lucky enough to get a bottle (which I paid a pretty penny for!) but I have treasured this one as a body oil ever since, and also added it to an unscented lotion to stretch it even further. It's held up nicely over the years.

Castitas is one of my all-time fave bath oils. It's lovely while bathing, but neutral enough (i.e., not overwhelming) not to interfere with a good sleep later. The vanilla is not a foodie scent to me.

I only had a sample of this that I sparingly used out on special occasions. i would love to have more--it's delightfully feminine, and I feel it's got an understatedly sexy vibe.

This is a fall /winter scent for me because of it's richness. I love it because it makes me feel like I am home--in my safe space and cozy delights await.

I love this cozy scent in the winter, and it makes me feel like curling up with a cup of tea and reading all night under a quilt. It's the scent of 221 B Baker Street, and I think Sherlock is sitting in a leather chair by the fire smoking and Watson is writing some notes at the table.

This spray is a scent memory of my childhood: early summer in the Deep South; I love the naturalness of the grass and red roses. It's fresh enough that it's not a cloying scent.

Just opening the imp was instant headache--no way would I be able to even test this one. Allergy fail....

Aged decant: I smell fruity beeswax

Wet: A honeyed fruity smell, unassumingly sweet and not very foody except for the sweetness

Dry: A light, honeyed skin musky-amber smell, very pleasant. I have others in this category, so not bottle-worthy, but I like it. It's not very foody except for the beeswax/honey note; no butter or pastry on me.

Aged half-decant: Smells spicy and gingerbready. I can get a whiff of the ginger ale folks have been mentioning, but that goes away when applied. Might be the age factor here.

Wet: Spices! So foody. I like this sort of scent in candles and room spray, but not on my skin.

Dry: Much softer (although I didn't slather, so YMMV depending on application). Pleasant if you like foody scents.

Fresh scent--the green tea and berries are predominant on me. The drydown is muted by the musk. A nice scent, not going to be one of my favorites, but no notes of death, so that's a plus. I will give this to a friend for testing.

Ugh, way too foody for me. That buttery note is really not great on my skin.

Imp fresh from the lab: I get a sweet oud, but I can't really pick out the rose or the plum notes individually. No bergamot at all, sadly. Very little sandalwood on me even on the drydown. Dry, it's a bit more rosy. It's not really my sort of scent. I usually like rose perfume, but this one isn't punching my ticket.

Lovely herbal greenery with tart apples - I like this very much, but sadly only have a half-decant.

This half-decant is 7 years old, so it might be the aging. I get a fizzy, plummy scent over a light musk--no cocoa or apricot. It's sweet, but the sugar doesn't go bad on my like it usually does. The Tahitian gardenia (tiare) keeps this floral rather than foody. It's a pleasant light scent, so I could wear it on a hot day without it being overpowering. However, it's not my style I am passing it to my friend.

In this nicely aged scent, the honey is balanced with floral/herbal notes.I love it! As noted above, low throw/scent fades pretty quickly, which makes this a great scent for work. I could also layer this. I only get apple when I smell it in the bottle or as it is wet. I was hoping for more peach, but whatever.

Not *too* honeyed, which can be the case in BPALs with honey. As it dries down, it's got a pleasant skin musky yet thyme-y herbal feel. A bit feminine, but not cloying. I have a lot of apple dominant scents and lot of heavier honey scents--I wouldn't categorize this as either, so it's a good addition to my scent palette. It's slightly fruity, but not a really heavy combo, more delicate.

Gorgeous! I'm glad I snapped up a bottle on eBay.

I get pine and patchouli from this. it smells good and would be fine as a room scent, but it's way too masculine for me to wear. Plus, patch isn't usually good for my allergies.

At this point, it's well aged, which is a bonus. Overall: a lovely resinous honeyed blend, almost skin musky, but with that depth from the pepper, saffron, and myrrh. Blessedly non-patchouli..glad I have a bottle.

In the bottle: All Resins/myrrh plus I smell patchouli, which worries me because I have a lot of trouble with BPAL patch.

Wet: Yay, honey! with beeswax. I love BPAL honey, and it loves me.

Dry: Now I get an almost floral note of sweetness as the blend steps back. It's become a honeyed, resinous skin musk with a smidge of saffron. Feminine (womanly), but not OTT. Not a lot of spice or throw, which is fine with me.

This is a nice autumn scent, but on me it's more masculine than I like to wear. I might use it as a room scent, but not for perfume. I'll give it to my brother. I get the leaves/herbals when wet, but as it dries, it loses any hint of smoke. There is some fruit, so it's not too dry. But I detect a hint of allergic reaction (itchiness in the back of my throat. Also, the dry-down is a tad soapy on my skin.

Lavender and amber should have been a great combo on my skin, and it smells good in the bottle, but... it makes me have post-nasal drip and a scratchy throat. My allergies reacted like this was a conventional commercial blend. I think it's the lavender, because my allergic reaction calms down a bit as it dries and the amber comes out. But I'll be getting rid of this, sadly. :(

Hmmm, wet, I get Juicy Fruit gum with a bit of..root beer? It's sweet, but I like it anyway, and the throw is not very strong, so I can deal with the sweet smell. I don't get sugary cotton candy, but I do get a vanilla cakey sort of sweetness.

I'd buy this for a little girl's first BPAL.

I am not a super foodie lover, but this is nice. I'll keep the imp and hope for more joy.

On the dry down, the scent mellows even more. Not sure there will be much left in an hour, but I'll come back to edit this if anything else shows up.

ETA: ACJM turns into the faintest, marshmallow-y skin musk. Like a clean baby... This would be good for a bedtime scent.

In the imp: I get a hint of leather and vanilla cardamom. Nice! Not sure if this will be masculine or gender-neutral, but it's not feminine just from a huff.

On: This is a light vanilla skin musk with some green cardamon and a bit of wood for depth. I get almost no teak.

Two hours later: It gets very soft and close to the skin quickly on me, but I love that I can slather this one on various pulse points without risking a headache, and that I can sleep with this scent.

Definitely going to get a bottle of this--a decant won't be enough. I am reminded of Haunt: Winchester in terms of the tone of the perfume: warm and cuddly and relaxed.

I edited this to add: For some reason this reminds me of candles and old leather-bound books. It turns into a library sort of BPAL, which I love.