HerbGirl

My reviews of October '07 and '10 were from August 2010 so I thought I'd bump this for it's current release. I remember '07 was more cologney than I liked and ended up rehoming that bottle. '10 and '11 (which I am running out of now!) smell almost identical to me, both beautiful dark leaves, sap, autumnal air, and they are two of my absolute favorites. 2020's version of October is (thankfully) pretty good. Red leaves, sap, cold air, a touch of a cologne (which should age out) a hint of damp dirt and just a bit of smoke. It is what I expected and hoped for based on my previous bottles. Autumn in a bottle. Eta: The drydown has gone a bit powdery and cologney? Not sure what's going on. I will update if things change. Eta2: still seems very light compared to previous versions. Hopefully it will get stronger with age.

There's a faint hint of the dead leaves note here, but as many times as I've tried to find the black currant and/or golden champa, there's no black currant or golden champa to be found. This also dries down to a strange cigarette ash scent which I have never smelled before in any of my two dozen or so bottles of dead leaves scents. Eh. ETA: And judging from the next review, my bottle was a bad pour or something. I wish I got what the reviewer below got. 😕

Blue Tansy. No hay, no grasses. Blue Tansy is an herb so, there's that.

This review is for La Calavera Catarina 2020. I am assuming it is supposed to be a reissue since the notes are identical and there was no new topic created. I figured it would be appropriate for me to write the first review for this year's incarnation since I wrote the first review of 2011's. I bought this to be a backup of one of my favorite scents and boy am I disappointed. This smells nothing like my bottles from 2011. Not a bit. It smells like a non descript field of mushy spring thaw (no cold or icy notes) with a touch of peat or some kind of old manure (not poop, just the grassyish scent from horse poo). No roses. No chamomile. No leaves. No mums. So, this isn't a backup bottle for me because it doesn't smell like I was led to believe it would. There's nothing "sharp" or loud here like I had expected and hoped for. No higher pitched loveliness like the original had. I am curious to read future reviews to see if maybe it was just my bottle. Blah. Eta: This morning there is just the faintest touch of mums or roses but it is so faint I can't tell 😞. Still nothing like the original, not even after 9 years of aging. I want to clarify that this is still a nice scent and I would wear it but it is nothing like La Calavera Catrina's previous releases. Eta: Aaaand based on the review below mine, I must have received a poorly mixed or mislabeled bottle. At least I know I was right. 😕

I don't get lavender at all but this the best smelling dryer sheet I've ever smelled.

I definitely smell the white musk but I also smell what my nose interprets as black musk.

I found myself doomscrolling this morning and grabbed my bottle just in time. Each time I use this oil it smells different! Today, it smells like a lightly sugared very potent neroli backed by a tiny bit of bergamot. If nothing else, I know I'm wearing this oil and it is supposed to help after the doomscrolling so I will do my best to relax. I love this scent.

Cold, bracing, snow flocked evergreens in 20 degree weather with the sun just coming over the mountains. This is the first BPAL bottle I ever bought, back in '07 and I can't believe I haven't written a review yet! I've been hiking in the snowy Alaskan mountains for the past week and this is the scent I was reminded of. THIS is what it smells like when the sun hits the snow flocked evergreens. As this has aged, there seems to be a tiny hint of sweet vanilla. I love this as much now as I did when I first got my bottle but it has softened a bit, smeared together a bit and has recaptured my heart. If there is one blend I would love to see return for Yules this year, it is The Snowstorm. 💜

I just wanted to say that this is absolutely beautiful. Dark, smooth patchouli, amber and dark wood. Holy wow. If you love patchouli, as I do, you just might love this.

All fresh fir, all the time. I love this. I just spent my morning hiking through fresh snow, hemlock and spruce trees at 2000 ft in AK and when the sun hits evergreens in 20 degree weather, it is magical. Very similar to this perfume oil. I knew I would put this on when I got home. 🙂

When I first got my bottle earlier this year, it had a poudh smell and I almost got rid of it but I put it away in hopes that would go away. IT DID. We had our first real lowland snow overnight and it is still snowing and I felt like trying it again. I'm so glad I kept it: dark pine forest. Dark. It's a spicy pine (must be the frankincense) and I love it. There's a blood musky element here even though the note isn't listed. Smells amazing next to Snow White, too 😉 A new love.

I'm hesitant to write a review for this, as it has become a favorite but is difficult to explain. Yes, it starts off a bit worrisome with the nagarmotha threatening to go poudh but it smooths out into the most glorious wood pulpy dark incense scent which made that worry seem almost silly. I am utterly in love with this scent. It is, like I said, a glorious wood pulpy incense. I can smell the patchouli and the dark vegetal musk and the moss but none of them stand out. I am thrilled that I was able to buy a bottle (or 2, lol) today!!! Eta: I cannot believe this oil hasn't had more love. This has become one of my top 5 and I just bought another bottle. Glorious. And grounding. And I can't wear poudh...it isn't here. (May '21) Eta2: The worrysome introduction is not lasting more than 5 minutes now (hooray for aging!) and I still love this so so much. It has become a comfort scent for me. I'm not sure if it's the moss, but there is a definite floral overtone to this that is becoming a bit more pronounced and it is intriguing. I don't understand why there isn't more love for this gem, but I will love it for everyone! (Dec '21)

Comfort is my new sleep scent. Gorgeous syrupy lavender and a shortbread-ish scent? I honestly wish I knew what exactly is in this blend! I see bits of what looks like lavender buds and that's just fine by me. Comfort lets me sleep. And it smells divine.

So snuggly, warm and comforting. I love this.

Yup. I will echo what has already been said: if you love Dorian, don't miss this. In the bottle: All Dorian. 🙂 On my skin: Dorian and bergamot 💜, then a hint of lavender, then a bit of oakmoss. Eta: I'm not sure if I actually like this or if I'm trying to like it because I typically love Dorian scents? Eh. I think the bergamot here is misplaced. Eta2 Jan. 10th: the vanilla in this has become very prominent, which I wasn't expecting, and it is very sweet. I quite like this.

Thin mint ice cream. This is perfect. I was hoping for a certain kind of foody peppermint and this is exactly what I wanted. The chocolate isn't the honeyed cloying sort, it's just nice. Peppermint is the star here but is softened around the edges by a bit of chocolate and some ice cream. Delicious. Dries down to sprinklecake ice cream 💖 And then disappears. No longevity. Maybe aging will help.

Gorgeous amber perfume backed by a creamy orris and a subdued patchouli. This is very different from any other perfume oil I have and it is just divine. Nice amount of throw and such a beautiful scent. This dries down to a very sophisticated and spicy amber. Lovely.

Good grief this is gorgeous. And PINK. It smells like rose quartz looks. I couldn't stop sniffing my wrist last night. Also, lots of throw. A little goes a long way! Another stunner. I wish I got lavender from this!

So...this is a gorgeous Raspberry scent. I hate comparing one company's scent with another's but in this case, I have to. If you like Raspberry Kobalt from another very prominent perfume oil company, you will most likely like this. Just my opinion but it is a very similar scent and I absolutely adore it. Love love love.

Ok. In the bottle: WHOA CHERRY. I honestly don't get cough drops from this, just commercially recognizable cherry. On my skin: WHOOOOOO CHERRY. Glorious! After 5 minutes: Cherry? Wait, this had cherry in it? LOL After 15 minutes: This is herbal. This is the chypre taking over...I suppose. No cherry! After 20 minutes: It is now a gorgeous blend of herbs and cherry, soft and beautiful. Of course, YMMV. What an interesting scent journey! I love it and am very curious to see how it ages.

I actually really like this. I dislike how heavy the leather usually is in book scents but I took a chance with this and I'm glad I did. I don't smell leather. I smell something akin to paper but my brain keeps saying it is a nutty scent (?) and there is just a hint of lavender. Very comforting. Very snuggly. Not a strong scent. ETA: I've been trying to figure out what smells so familiar here. It is the parchment note from Dee that I'm smelling. I love this oil so much.

My final Luper impulse buy! This is so nice. I wasn't sure what I was smelling for the first few minutes but it certainly wasn't bad. Something about my body chemistry is bringing out an extremely muted dark velvety cinnamon note which is really really nice but I'm not sure why. I definitely smell the sandalwood (hooray!) the hay and the hinoki and I love this. If the ambergris and frankincense come forward that will make it even more precious. (I get the comparison to Gloomy Day (which is a favorite of mine) but I don't think they smell similar and the vibes are completely different.) I'm so glad I took a chance on this bottle. This year's Lupers were just full of amazing blends.

THIS IS SO VELVETY SOFT, DARK AND GREEN!!! I loooooove it! Patchouli, herbs, vanilla. I feel like this is Nasty Woman's witchy counterpart.

This is truly beautiful. It is beautiful in the same way, to me, that Lady Death: Savage is beautiful. It is a lovely perfume. I am familiar with each scent note but am not smelling any of them individually. Truly a masterpiece and I am so glad I bought a bottle.

Leaves, black currant and patchouli, in that order. I absolutely adore this one and am surprised I didn't review when I got it last year! It is everything I had hoped it would be.