MadameGorgon

I doubt I ever would have chosen Urd on my own, but someone lovely picked this out just for me. The notes made me a little nervous. I'm rarely a fan of fruit. And Nag Champa and I do not have a good history, although I ADORE champaca flower. Then there's my love/loathe relationship with patchouli. But when I put this on, it turned into pure win. It was the nostalgic scent of a certain used record store from my high school and college days, but without the unwashed hippy/punk college angst smell. And then again, that doesn't do it justice. The grapes are tart and refreshingly juicy without being sour, the cereus (I assume) lends a breezy light floral nectar sweetness. These fresher scents mellow out the dirt/earth tones that can make patchouli a little too dark and sweaty... Too dirty hippy. The nag Champa kind of floats through the whole blend adding a bare hint of smoke and that unmistakeable exotic Champa spicy floral. Actual Nag Champa incense is completely overwhelming and headache inducing to my sensitive nose. But the Nag Champa in this blend was just the right exotic touch. It made me think more of India then Headshop. Once again, Beth has worked magic. Juicy, resinous, sexy and exotic. Love.

This is so VANILLA IN YO FACE that I am having trouble putting it on my skin. It is so strong and so rich it makes me think of drinking melted butter mixed with vanilla and maybe a drop of rum. I really love vanilla, so I am hoping that my nose is having a sensitive moment and that I will enjoy it more when I'm not so sick. ETA: To steal an idea from another review I read... This scent must really resent being bottled up. It comes out of the bottle and socks you in the nose. I found that it mellowed considerably when I finally got the balls to put it on my skin. The buttery-ness only sticks around for a couple of seconds before this settles into a dark, warm, sugary scent. It makes me think of a very old bottle of spiced rum where most of the alcohol has evaporated off and left a dark brown sludge of sugar crystals in the bottom of the bottle. Very sweet, very dark, a little spicy, a little boozy. Once on skin, I don't get much vanilla which I find weird and disappointing. I don't smell a great deal of booze on my skin, but strangely, I DO get a whiff of booze in the air in the room where I applied the oil. So maybe I am just not smelling it on myself? I was hoping for a more resinous vanilla scent like the vanilla in Snake Oil, but this is more Kill Devil than Snake Oil

My first impression is sweet pipe tobacco. It is a lovely, round, golden scent. Quite pretty and somewhat innocent. I like it quite a bit, but not sure if it is dirty enough for me. I'm guessing that Hubs will love it. ETA: I was going through my imp pile the other night, deciding what to keep and what to swap and ran across Tamora. I gave it a sniff and absentmindedly swiped a bit on my wrist, then continued on my sniff-orgy. As I was going through the rest of my imps, I kept getting whiffs of this and really liking it. So after I was done testing, I did the full slather and I have to say, I really ADORE this! This was a bit of a surprise since I usually am not a fan of florals OR fruits. If "O" is innocence defiled, then Tamora is innocence not yet defiled. But it's an innocence that knows and use its sexuality. It ~may~ skew a bit young to some because it is quite sweet, but I felt quite comfortable wearing it and I'm not young anymore. Where "O" can go a little dirty and sweaty (in the best possible way!),Tamora has the earthiness of the vanilla/amber combo, but the heliotrope and peach lend it a fresh, almost dew-kissed quality. So glad I decided to give this a second try. It is going on my short list for bottle purchases. Nice job, Beth!

I got the barest hint of dusty, flinty cocoa when I first applied, but it vanished almost instantly. It then went through a quick incense phase. But through all stages it is almost overwhelmingly floral. They are pretty tropical florals, if you like florals. But I don't usually get along we'll with these kinds of heady florals. It is interesting enough to try again. Picking up a couple of whiffs of incense now that its dry, but will have to try sometime when my nose isn't feeling so sensitive. The leather in this is actually well behaved and smells like leather, not "new car smell" which is what usually happens.

Holy fucking oak moss, Batman! This is about 90% oak moss and cedar, 10 % all the rest. Cue sad clown music. I do smell the chocolate & mint, but they are completely over shadowed by the very masculine oak moss. Maybe age will help?

As reported by the others, it is predominantly pine. I also got some refreshing chilly mint. It most definitely has something dark and sexy in there. It has a little bit of a sporty open air feel to it and makes me think of the old days of riding the fresh powder on a Colorado ski mountain while sipping from a thermos of hot chocolate spiked with peppermint schnapps. Surprisingly, Hubs gave it the thumbs up, so I will have to do a more thorough test and see how it goes. I agree that this might be a sleeper hit. If pine turns to Pine-sol on you, it probably won't work. But if you like The sinus clearing freshness of Jabberwocky, you will probably like this, too.

Guiacwood has a very unusual fragrance. It is very sweet, fruity, and floral but with a little light sappy wood. Guaiacwood is woody like like petigrain is woody (i.e. um, not woody at all). First impression of Miss Jessel is a lightly incensed rose, but with something mysterious, sharp and warm like black pepper, lurking in the background. I will give it a more thorough skin test and report back , but it seemed a little strong at first.

I had a very similar reaction with some of the rose based oils like Catherine. My suggestion is to yes, sorry, wash it off. Unfortunately, if you continue to use an oil that irritates your skin, you can become sensitized to the point that most anything irritates that same skin. I couldn't wear Plunder at all. The cinnamon/black pepper set my ass on fire. Not that I used it on my ass. When my skin was all bumpy and itchy from the Rose, I took several days off from wearing any scented anything in that area. I waited at least a few months before I tried another rose scent. I had actually forgotten about the sensitivity issue. Surprisingly enough I didn't have the same reaction later. That said, I think that if cinnamon bothers you, it will probably always bother you. You ~can~ wear it on your clothing (just not underwear, haha), in your hair, or in a scent locket or other scentable body adornment that doesn't touch your actual skin. I'm currently wanting a wood or bone hair stick that I can saturate with oil and wear in my hair and I actually really enjoy scenting my scarves and winter coats. As my body heat warms the fibers, the scent kind of rises up around me. Sigh. Nice. If you must wear it on your skin, you might consider diluting it (maybe in a favorite unscented lotion or carrier oil) and/or putting it in places that don't get sweaty or have tender skin (back of hands, shoulders, kneecaps, feet). I've had lovely results with mixing oils with unscented lotion and slathering on arms, shoulders, and legs. I actually think it made the scent last much much longer, but with more subtle throw. Last bit of advice that i learned the hard way - showering and sweating opens your pores and allows the oils greater access to irritate if they are so inclined. Also, I'm not quite sure how to word this, so forgive if it rambles... When I get out of the shower, I dry off briskly with a rough towel to exfoliate. This exposes fresh, bright & shiny, virgin-type skin. Freshly exfoliates skin is much more likely to become irritated. So try not to put irritating oils on tender, freshly exfoliated skin. I ~so~ hope you find a way to wear it!!

I got this as a frimp from the lab and was absolutely blown away. I would never have chosen this because I wouldn't have thought that peach would work for me. But it is GORgeous. As others have said before me, it is a juicy, ripe white peach that does not overwhelm. Yellow peaches have a sour note that this does not have, and its a bit dirtier than this peach, thus the white peach. I had no idea that this had musk, but it explains the wallop this packs and it explains the lasting power. This stuff is STRONG and it lasts FOR-EV-ER. I barely dotted my pulse points and it was too much. I ended up mixing it into an unscented shower gel and after using it 1/2 an hour ago, I can still catch light whiffs. The peach is beautiful, but it is the back-up of amber/musk/patch that really makes this blend. They give the base a warm, golden woodsy feeling. I was certain this had cedar before I read the notes. The mixture ends up being quite sexy in a sensual earthy kind of way, but wearable outside bedroom / date night. I think it could be worn in an office as long as application was kept light, but maybe a little much for the parent teacher conference. It makes me think of watching an amazing autumn sunset on one of the last really warm evenings while I sit on my wooden porch swing and eat a lusciously ripe white peach. Contented sigh.

As most of the other reviews have mentioned, the coconut is the subtle star of this soft blend. One of the other reviews mention Japanese plums and I agree, a kind of sweet salty aspect. Some reviews have pointed to ambergris as the "salty" note, but it has never struck me as salty before. I can't help but think of suntan oil when I smell a coconut fragrance and I do get a bit of that association with this blend, but it certainly doesn't scream "SUNTAN OIL" at me. What I get is a lovely, soft, "brown" scent that is quite sweet and a bit sexy. It doesn't change at all from bottle to skin on me. And I get none of the chemical smell that others have mentioned. But I also get none of the champaca flower. Champaca is usually a BIG HONKING floral on me, and one of the few that I like, so I was a little disappointed that it didn't make more of a showing. I find that this is all base notes on me and that I , surprisingly, miss the top notes. Maybe if the champaca were stronger for me, I wouldn't feel that it needs something high and light. I didn't swoon with love/lust over this, but it is so pretty that I will likely keep my bottle and use it when I feel like wrapping myself in something soft and lovely like luscious blond suede or cashmere.

O hai, Lookingglass! O hai, Herb Girl! Why in the world am I surprised to see you here? Whell, hell. Does this have cardamom??? This smells eerily similar to "Milk Chocolate, Coconut, Cardamom, Rum, and Ginger Truffle", which didn't work for me. Or maybe its the honey. Much as Honey sounds like pure unadulterated win to me, it is hit or miss on my skin. O = ....... Against Idleness & Mischief = My only hope is that I had the pink & green 13 (white chocolate, peach, massoia bark) leftovers on my skin from last night and the dregs are messing with my smeller. Because right now, it smells a little like sour milk, artificial fragrance note, and ancient essence of crotch sweat. <Trudges off to bathroom to wash, while a lone tear streaks down her face> ETA: My Moms tried this on today and it smelled much better on her. I could pick out the cocoa and patchouli, but none of the lovely incense notes I love so well. ETA2: I am compelled to add that I was so certain that this would work for me that I tried it again. Guess my sniffer was having an off day because, while not my favorite, it is MUCH MUCH MUCH nicer than my first experience. I've been wearing it for two days straight. I must say, it is VERY subtle on my skin. Maybe its the oak or hiba, but there is a ~not~ sweet note where I am expecting something sweet and it keeps throwing my nose off balance. Maybe that's not a bad thing. Could even be right in keeping with the spirit of Friday the 13th.

Homigod- lycanthrope, you made me snort. It was a rose-luscious snort. Aaaaanyway- my decant arrived today. I was a little meh on the lupers, but gave some a try. What a surprise! Liz of Bohemia is NOT the dark, resinous rose I was anticipating. The rose portion is light, almost lemony. It is very intensely rose, don't get me wrong. But it is more of the white/yellow/pink variety or a very innocent red. Not a deep burgandy/purple that looks like it could drip blood. The oude gives it a slightly incense smoke background. I keep imagining the incense smoke twining to the heavens in wispy little tendrils rather than fogging up a closed room. It doesn't seem possible that an intense rose with a sticky black resin could meld into a clean, light, uplifting, feminine fragrance, but they do. Now before I remembered that my skin is quite sensitive to BPAL rose, I slathered this all over my wrists and neck. The next 24 hours will tell if I break out in itchy bumps. ETA: NO RASH!?!?!!!! Awesome, but why do i get rashy with the other rose scents I have? If it stays nice through the dry-down, this is worth a full bottle purchase. I don't like to have lots of similar scents, so two or three versions of rose are what I am looking for. Considering how many beautiful rose themes Beth makes, it says a lot that I choose this to be among my purchases.

I would just like to add my love song to Velvet. In the vial: It is superrich cocoa. Like maybe melted bittersweet chocolate maybe? Only not so sweet. On the skin: Sexy dark chocolate, raspy sandalwood, and a bedrock of solid incense to hold it all together. There's a post somewhere on this forum where the poster made a batch of brownies flavored with Velvet. Um, yeah. Don't think I would take it that far because incense doesn't taste very good, but I do want Husband to wear it so I can nuzzle up next to him and bury my nose in his skin. Drydown: whoosh, WET cocoa settles into the background a bit and the sandalwoode grittiness comes forward, but it stays pretty true. I can't tell you anything about throw because I could take a bath in this stuff and not get enough. But my kids tell me that I smell like spicy chocolate. This is a 5/5 for me. Sheer perfection. I never thought I would find something that I loved as much as Boomslang, but I did and its GC. Please don't ever discontinue this because I want to smell like this even when I am an old lady.

I got a testable sniffie of this in a swap (Thanks Glitterlips). I was really suprised by this one!! It is a soft, cool, comforting scent. Like a delicious cool breeze on a hot day. Nothing sharp or shocking. Just smooth, watery coconut. I agree with another poster who said coconut usually calls to mind warmth (sun tan lotion & whatnot). But this is more like the cool refreshment of cracking open a real coconut on a steamy tropical day, and drinking refreshing sips of the water sloshing around inside.. Yeah. Thats it. Coconut water. Cool.

Well I am very glad to know that it might go away. I am having seasonal allergies and probably hormone shifts as well. Now that I think about it, my skin has been acting seriously touchy lately because of a medicine I take. And khazakant - that's just weird! You can wear rose from other companies, but not BPAL? Philly cheesesteak?? archionblu - that's a good idea. I hadn't thought of that. In truth, I had never heard of scent lockets before BPAL, so I kinda thought they invented it. Ha! I suppose one could wear any kind of locket as long as it can be opened to add scent. Brilliant! Halation - love the idea of scenting a scarf!! I have a favorite cotton scarf that I wore with Milk Chocolate, coconut, cardamom, rum ginger truffle. I could smell its spicy goodness all night, but it didn't overpower those around me. I did dot an old scrap of silk with some Alice last night and put it under my pillowcase. It was lovely, but not nearly strong enough.

Ok, Just recently, my skin began to reject all BPAL rose scents I have tried on it. Small, raised, itchy welts. OH NO!! It has happened with Dance of the Mirlitons, #20 Love Oil, and Catherine. Haven't had the guts to try anything else. I am seriously bummed because rose is a favorite of mine and I have a long list of rose based BPALs I want to try. What makes it even weirder is that I do not appear to be allergic to rose in other forms. I don't have any problems with the actual flowers and I use a rose hydrosol to wash my face with no problems. (BTW - I have MEGA oily skin. Like puddles. So cleansers and lotions can be an issue. But I am 40 years old, so I can't go w/out moisturizer. I find that rose hydrosol cuts the grease, takes off any last traces of makeup, and leaves my skin feeling clean, but not tight. No additional moisturizer needed.) I know that rose oil can be outrageously expensive, so wondering if I am dealing with a reaction to a synthetic fragrance oil or if it is some other issue. I haven't gotten all scientific on it yet, just noted itchy rash a day or so after wearing my rosy precious. I don't want to get rid of them and can't afford a scent locket right now. Has this happened to you? What did you do?

What to do when your skin rejects a favorite scent.

This THEfirst scent I ordered from the lab. I was so excited! Good thing I only ordered an imp. This smell is "hangover in a bottle" for me. Including the headache and nausea. :cries: I put it on and am instantly transported back to the mad bad days of my misspent youth. I get the impression of waking up in the backseat of a car with the horrid dawn rays searing my dried out eyeballs. I have some kind is sticky rum drink spilled in my hair and a crease on my face from the leather upholstery. I don't know where I am or who I am with, but I know I did something stupid. I don't usually like to leave reviews so negative, so I must say that I have since come to realize that I can wear NONE of the BPAL scents with leather notes. :cries eyes out: Not even Coyote where it is so soft or Western Diamond back mixed with my beloved SO. I apparently amp leather like CRAZY and (Sorry Beth!) I get "new car scent" which has ALWAYS made me nauseated.

Thought I would really like this. I mean, if it were a drink, I'd drink it. But I'm finding that hazelnut doesn't agree with me. This is a very rich, buttery scent. Very foody on me. Usually, that's OK, but in this case it smelled like I had been fronting a cake, got it all over myself, and didn't wash up. It made me feel like I might be sticky. I can understand why someone might love this, but it wasn't for me.

I tried this fresh out of the hot mailbox. Wait - schmait. One word description: unusual Grains of Paradise: "A New York Times article written by Amanda Hesser has popularized grains of paradise. She wrote, "I put a few between my teeth and crunched. They cracked like coriander releasing a billowing aroma, and then a slowly intensifying heat, like pepper at the back of my mouth. The taste changes in a second. The heat lingered. But the spice flavor was pleasantly tempered, ripe with flavors reminiscent of jasmine, hazelnut, butter and citrus, and with the kind of oiliness you get from nuts" Cubeb: "They have an aroma and flavor similar to peppercorns, but with a note of allspice. The berries' pungent flavor with a touch of bitterness and camphor make it a specialty item. Cubeb is still used in the flavoring of cigarettes and spirits like gin and vodka and incense." Devil's Bit: "The leaves and shoots are edible, and the leaves also provide a green dye traditionally used for tartans. Bees, butterflies, and caterpillars love the flowers, which have a light honey scent. Devil's bit is protective in Hoodoo magic as well. Pieces of the root are added to incense burned to repel negative magic, put into protective mojo bags along with herbs like rue, and placed around the house or under the stoop for protection from baneful work. Growing some by your steps is a great way of protecting your home from violent magical attack" I got the slightest hint of cocoa. A fairly earthy, dusty cocoa. Then ZINGGGG!! ZINGADING DING DING! Citrus. Definitely a lemony zinginess, but not 100% recognizable as lemon. The lemony zing does seem to float around above a core of what must be patchouli and the jasmine element of the grains of paradise. Maybe it smells a little like the cloth that was wrapped around that magical crystal you bought off that blond dreadie chick dressed like a hippie fairy. Seriously, not what I expected. The description made me think of chewy, foody, dark, dank, sweaty, sexy, dirty-luscious. What I got was breezy with a hint of earthy. Above poster described it well. Sunshine, blue skies, grassy, herbal, tiniest hint of floral. I can't resist the 13s. I mean, really. A line of scents based on CHOCOLATE and the number 13? What's not to love? But I haven't decided if I LOVE this one. It was actually warm when it came out of the vial, so I will let it settle a good bit before I make my final decision. Maybe the citrus component was just particularly volitile.

This scent blew me the Hell away. I understand that it is based on an actual flower. I'll check that out and edit later. I bought an imp of this based on the chocolate / floral mix. St. Valentine from DSH is a favorite, but seems very specific. Chocolate and roses pretty much says "date night" and not much else. Love-lies-bleeding, aside from having an awesomely goth-tactic name is milky chocolate, sweet floral (daffodils, violets, and lilac those soft, old fashioned Spring flowers come to mind, not sharp lavender or herbal or heady), and luscious green sap. When I wear this, I think of a translucent, syrupy, grass green sap surging rhythmically through a tender stem. It's topped with a deep purple-ish blush pink flower with a smell that would subtly entice you to get closer and closer until the vine-et tendrils grab you by the arms and ankles, then the throat, wrap you in a beautiful chartreuse leaf pod and devour you. All the while, looking sweetly demure and innocent. Yup, it takes my mind on a strange little journey, but it comes down to a fragrance that is enticing and sweet, but with a serious hint of power and menace under the femininity. Probably not a work appropriate scent, since its kinda sexy and lickable (as in you want to lick it) and the coy femininity. I really loved this, in case you can't tell, and plan to buy a bottle as soon as funds allow.

I bought a bottle of this sniffed based on a forumite recommendation. It was purported to be "summer in a bottle". And I must confess that I do not normally like fruit based scents, with berries being particularly problematic because they end up smelling artificial or candle-like. I would actually describe it as "Spring in a bottle" since that's when strawberries come into season in my part of the world. I would agree with other posters who describe this as "real" berries. My instant 1st impression was the strawberries my grandmother would "put up". She would sprinkle them generously with sugar and freeze them in season, then thaw them and mix them with cream or use in a recipe. This is the top note / sniffed from bottle scent. It usually goes soapy on me at this point, although not in a bad way. Someone else mentioned high-end strawberry soap and I concur. Clean and fruit. BUT ( see? A big but!) I'm finding that my nose will interpret scents it can't place as "soapy". I'm going to try it again with a mind toward trying to find the dandilion ( sp?) and grass and I might not smell soap anymore. Final verdict: a very pleasant, refreshing, clean scent that is unmistakably strawberry. Perfect for days when you want something light, playful and youthful.

Menacing, maniacal, and slick with the one-liners … this guy does it all with a wink and a smile! Savage apricot, depraved dry woods, and psychopathic patchouli covered by a disarmingly sweet mishmosh of caramel, brown sugar, hazelnut, and butterscotch. Be warned: this oil will instigate possession in most puppets, including some marionettes and the occasional finger puppet. I like the notes listed and I love the description and artwork. I've always been creeped out by ventriloquist dummies, especially since I saw that movie. You know... The one where the dummy comes to life and starts killing people. There's only one of those, right? But I amped this fragrance to the point of nausea. It's sad, because after I washed off as much as I could, I really liked the faded, soft wood scent. Tried to use just the tiniest dot and still a fume factory. The smell was so strong for me that I could smell it through 2 closed doors and a tightly capped bottle. And for reasons unknown, my Id decided that this scent was highly disturbing. I gave it to my 60 y o mother to try and it smelled good on her. It still smelled the same to me, but not overwhelming and not disturbing. Now, she's hooked!! She took my sample of another BPAL ( I should say, she hounded me until I gave it to her) and asked me how to find it on the interwebs. Yeah BPAL!

I got 2 imps of this in a swap because I was so certain I would love it. It smells very different than I imagined. I get clove, soap, and smoke. Maybe a little Sasparilla now that I'm at the 4 hour mark. I can deal with the smoke (I think this is actually the brown sugar), but the soap is a deal-breaker. Alice's Evidence went soapy on me too, but eventually it stopped. I think that sometimes my nose interprets notes that it doesn't understand as soap? I'm hoping that's the case and that I like this more the next time I try it or I will just have to let someone else pick out my BPALs for me.

Snake Oil with cinnamon, cassia, and red ginger. Thanks to Herb Girl for insisting that I try this. I was happy with my plain SO and Boomslang. Then Herb Girl came along and sent me more of the Snake Pits. Thanks for helping me empty my bank account! This is some ANGRY cinnamon. Almost harsh and burning. Like the cinnamon toothpicks I used to buy in middle school. Lip tingling! I assume it's Cassia that gives it the serious dryness. I'm not smelling Ginger but it may just be contributing to the heat. I like cinnamon and this is STRONG cinnamon with THROW like crazy. But after 30 minutes or so, the cinnamon backs down and the vanilla and SO come forward. I do get tiny hints of the same soapiness that I got from Alice's Evidence, which is odd. The cassia does lend an almost watery cinnamon note. Don't know quite how to describe it, because it's certainly not aquatic. Once the initial cinnamon heat blasts off, its a super sweet cinnamon/vanilla scent with some extra warmth from the SO which stays in the background. Why didn't the cinnamon/vanilla combo in Pickled Imp work this well?