angelamaria

Either CCCLX or CCCIX, I'm not entirely sure which. I think it is more likely it is CCCIX. This is...interesting. It's a far cry from Dorian, really. To me Dorian is a bit foody, mellow and smooth. This one is...not. I can sense the Dorian base sweetening this up certainly, but over that--I would say "under that", but the non-Dorian-y qualities are front and center rather than the Dorianness--and that is SO a word, I say so--over that, there's a very striking resinous, almost incensey note. Sadly, my nose is too inexperienced to really know what note/notes I am smelling. I think frankincense, or sandalwood, or leather, or all damn three. I don't know. SOMEthing. This made me think about how I wanted Celeste to be this lovely soft vanilla-ey goodness with a touch of resins, but however it went reins with a touch of vanilla. That's what happened here. Also that resinous spiciness in Celeste? Tone it down, make it softer, and give it a manly punch, and that's what I'm smelling here. You know how Jareth is like Dorian with leather? Crank that up a notch and add woods and a softly peppery feel and maybe a hint of smoke, and you've got this one. It's actually pleasant, in a definitely masculine way. I'm almost tempted to keep this blend, just because I find it utterly fascinating, although I'd never wear it really.

In bottle: sweet gardenia, chamomile, and frankincense. It's definitely a floral, and already I'm wondering if this would be too loud for me. I mean, it's practically screaming floral. Wet on skin: gardenia, and frankincense to hold it back a bit, but really--WHOA GARDENIA. Very floral, although softer and not as I AM FLORAL HEAR ME ROAR as in the bottle, it's...well, floral. Sweet gardenia, almost candyish or bubblegummy for some reason, and frankincense, with a creamy tone. This stage is softer, and is something I can handle, and it's a very lovely gardenia blend. Verdict: right, so I think iris on me tend to go quite sweet, usually cloyingly so, before it completely turns over and goes eurgh. That cloyingly sweet, almost grandmothery scent...eh, yes, that's the iris, and it's right here. So it's not just candyish but also oily-sweet. I aged this for a couple months, and while it smooths out a fair bit and is not as oily-sweet anymore, it's still candyish-sweet. Verdict: sadly a no, although it's a very pretty blend in small doses.

In decant: foody! I'm getting fig, pear, and a hint of vanilla. Actually, my first whiff was chocolate, but the second whiff--yeah, not so much. Wet on skin: rather unexpected: pear, which makes this blend fruity as opposed to foody. The chocolate is still not present. To be honest I'm a little bemused, as I kind of expected something foody and chocolate, but rather I'm getting pear and figgy vanilla. I wish I knew what "quince" smelled like on its own. Dry: well, yeap. This is a pear scent--pear and a hint of vanilla. A bit unexpected. I am also...sort of at a loss for words. Verdict: yeah, well.

In bottle: creamy vanilla, sandalwood, and grey amber. There is another scent that I am getting that I'm not sure of, which I guess could very well be the amyris. This is a resinous sweet and creamy scent. Wet on skin: quite lovely! Vanilla, grey amber, and a resinous tuberose comes up warmed on my skin. Very beautiful--a touch floral, but I wouldn't call this a floral specifically, at this stage. It's "present", but not cloying or heavy. Dry: dry, I'm getting a hint of powdery, pleasant and so far it feels quite in tune with the blend. It's resinous and creamy with a sweet tuberose to highlight but not overwhelm. I love this stage; there's an almost-haunting sweetness to it that is feeling, which feels appropriate given the inspiration. About an hour on, however, something has turned to powder on me and I can't get much of the other notes anymore. Verdict: I did a retest of this as I really, really liked it and felt it was a keeper except for that powder in the end, but sad to say my skin doesn't like this. Oh well.

I just re-tested my imp of Orpheus, and I find it is quite strongly 'crushed green stems' on the waft. Up close, I can find other notes, but I keep catching the green stems note and feeling like I need to wash up after some weeding... It's not working for me, but I don't care for very green/fresh scents. I think I recall The Unicorn as being in the white floral family, right? It's not similar to my memory, but I can't find that one to retry. Garden Path is distinctly IVY on me, and not generic/weedy greens. I prefer it vs Orpheus, but neither is a family I really love. Hope that helps your decision. Thanks! I, ah, did end up going ahead with an unsniffed bottle purchase >.< although that doesn't sound very promising now! D: And yes, The Unicorn is a white floral. Would you know how Orpheus compares to something like...hmm Parsifal? I think that's my "greenest" keeper. Thanks on Garden Path as well!

In bottle: a clean and clear white scent, faintly floral, with hints of that blue musk. I can also sense the tea note floating in the background; definitely a "silent", pensive blend, although it does have a rather solid presence. Wet on skin: wow, this is lovely, and right up my alley. Warmed by my skin, it doesn't change too much from the bottle scent, but the warmth grounds this scent--makes it a bit more sweeter, a bit whiter, and the sandalwood and musk comes out much better as well. The latter is subdued, in the background, and adds lovely depth to a predominantly moonflower and green tea blend. Dry: clear white moonflower and tea, grounded by lovely sandalwood and musk, lightly sweetened. This doesn't change from the wet phase for me aside from a further smoothing out, a slight softening. This keeps true to the pensiveness of the blend. Verdict: I'm so glad I took a chance on this! I'm really liking this, and sad that it's been discontinued.

In decant: whoa~ banana and pineapple! Actually, the pineapple is definitely more front and center. Sweet, and like this particular candy I remember I used to have when I was a kid, a pineapple-orange candy. Wet on skin: err...something is going quickly to plastic on my skin, and I suspect it is the banana. I've tested a few other blends with banana before, and while it is from other etailers, I remember they also went plasticky on me. Also, the pineapple is disappearing! It's now mostly a vaguely pineapple scent: mint, white musk, and faint memories of fruits. Dry: plasticky, dusty mint and white musk with a whisper of fruits. I don't know if aging will help this some, but most of the interesting notes in this blend disappear, which is a shame. Not that I'd wear it, but they were interesting! Verdict: pass. I knew I wouldn't be getting this, but I was quite disappointed to see the interesting notes disappear.

In decant: definitely fruity. I immediately thought of Lemon-Scented Sticky Bat mixed with other fruits: it's predominantly a foody lemony citrus blend, with very lovely vanilla cream. I expect it will turn to plastic on my skin... Wet on skin: gosh, this is so yummy! Like lemon candy and lemon pastry rolled into one. Very lovely citruses, with the lemon topmost, and sweet yummy vanilla cream. Dry: this softens into a slightly soapy lemon and vanilla scent on my skin. Interestingly, contrary to expectation, the cream hasn't turned plasticky on my skin, hurrah! This stays sweetly foodily yummy all throughout. Verdict: I really like this one, but I don't wear fruity scents so this will be a pass.

Cool! Thanks for the ideas! Is there any word on the search feature? Seems it's been down for a while, or is that just me? You can use the BPAL.org search at http://bpal.org/search it's not part of the lab's official site but made to look like it--so the blends are incomplete but should help you start

Okay, I've been going through the reviews section after having narrowed down the blends that are promising. After going through the Salon list again I actually had thirteen (13!!! omg) blends, but thankfully I was able to remove five from the first pass. Although that still leaves me with 8 (the number I started with). I was able to remove Arrival at the Sabbath (too foody), Cupid Complaining to Venus (too fruity), Love and Pain (too lavendery), and Kiyohime/Sunrise (both too fruity-aquatic). I do have a question on Orpheus though. There are a lot of "crushed green stems" reviews for it, which I like the smell of but don't like smelling of. However, blends like The Unicorn and Berenice have been mentioned, both of which are keepers and The Unicorn being in my top three. Worth a chance? (Also, is it greener than Garden Path with Chickens?) P.S. Other Salons I've liked are: Parsifal, Haloes (both retail exclusive), Tree of Life (Klimt LE), Silence (disconned).

In decant: green floral: tobacco flower and sage, which is simply lovely, and I can sense the lemongrass and ambergris too. I can't get the vetiver, which is just peachy for me. Wet on skin: light and green floral, but slightly powdery, which is making me nervous about this. The tobacco flower is lovely, front and center. Dry: slightly soapy, and rather powdery...which breaks my heart. Otherwise it's a light floral headed by the tobacco flower, with a touch of green, hints of a citrus brightness, and grounding woods. Verdict: I had high hopes for this one, but my skin chemistry just doesn't want to cooperate. Oh well.

In decant: dirt. Cold, glittery dirt. Wet on skin: cold, glittery dirt--and radish, that gives this an almost fruity component. Dirt and cold glittery rocks--and it's actually "clean" smelling too. That sounds like a weird combination, but it's true. Masculine. Dry: doesn't morph from the wet stage. The dirt has softened out and is not as "dirty" as dirt (uhhh), but still recognizable. Verdict: I knew this was not for me, and I thought of not even skin-testing. But I'm glad I did, it was quite an interesting experience nonetheless!

In decant: lovely!! Creamy linden blossom and clean floral. Definitely freshly-washed, but not overtly soapy to me. Wet on skin: LOVELY!! I'm thinking, I will need to deathmatch this with The Unicorn, which is my super favorite linden scent. This is absolutely fabulous. Clean, light, and feminine, with that super lovely linden blossom with vanilla supporting it and giving that lovely creamy vibe. I can also sense the lab's linen note. Dare I say it, an Antique Lace for linden blossom?! Dry: I am in love. This is a simpler but creamier The Unicorn--if you mourned the loss of that one like I did (well, in hindsight anyway), then you need, need to try this out. Being such a lover of vanillas and linden blossom, this is like the ULTIMATE linden/vanilla perfume. However, much later (about an hour plus onward), the linden scent has pretty much gone, leaving this a clean and freshly laundered linen scent. I'm hoping aging will improve the longevity. Verdict: I wish the linden blossom stayed, but this is still pretty nice as it is, and I'm hoping aging helps along with keeping the linden around. I think I will still get a bottle of this, but The Unicorn is still top, for me.

It's a retail exclusive Salon http://www.bpal.org/topic/38836-haloes/

I've tried a few Salons and they haven't worked on me so far, but these are the ones I still want to try: Lucretia (Iris, black amber, sage, Kashmir wood, vanilla musk, mandarin and violet.) Orpheus (Pale musk, green mandarin, neroli, benzoin, citrus peel, blue lavender, narcissus, stephanotis, crushed green stems, willow branch and cedar.) The Arrival at the Sabbath and Homage to the Devil (Bourbon vanilla, benzoin, caramel, Mysore sandalwood, aged black patchouli, carnation, and iris florentina.) Cupid Complaining to Venus (Apple blossom, fig, white peach, honey absolute, red sandalwood, and wild thyme.) Garden Path with Chickens (Damp grass, ivy leaves, morning glory, daisy, rose geranium, heliotrope, white gardenia, climbing roses, peppery nasturtium, phlox, begonia, verbena and sun-warmed herbs.) Love and Pain (Lavender, Balkan tobacco, black musk, dark vanilla, and golden copaifera.) Schlafende Baigneuse (Skin musk, white cream, honeycomb, yellow rose, King mandarin, chrysanthemum, golden amber, honeysuckle, and wide-throated yellow monkey-flower accord.) Spirit of the Komachi Cherry Tree (Cherry blossom, blue lilac, lavender monofloral honey, white sandalwood, and Asian pear.) Not sure about the retail salons, but I've been lucky with those: Parsifal and Haloes are part of my keepers.

In decant: mostly fruits--citruses--and copal. The pink grapefruit is most prominent; the overall feel of this blend is fruity floral. Wet on skin: sweet citrus, pink grapefruit, copal, and almost-creamy black amber. I wonder if black amber also goes oily on me (like some white ambers)--because I'm getting a grandmothery/oily feel from this as well. Dry: yeah, something in black amber is giving me that same experience with some of the lab's white amber notes. Ignoring that overtone though, this is mostly citrus and creamy amber, pretty but definitely on the fruity side of the spectrum. That said, I do amp citruses so YMMV. Verdict: altogether too fruity for me. Pass!

In decant: crisp absinthe, with a faint vanilla musk, white color impression. Slightly sweet, slightly floral. Not really my type at this point, it's very, well, absinthe. Wet on skin: absinthe, vanilla musk, and is that angelica? Maybe some hyssop as well, but don't take my word for it--I don't exactly know what hyssop smells like yet. It's not as absinthe-y as it was in the decant, and it continues to die down the longer it stays on my skin...and...uh...OH GOD. It's kind of becoming REALLY PRETTY. NOOOO. DON'T DO THIS TO ME (or my wallet). Dry: dry, this is almost all soft vanilla musk and gentle flowers, slightly sweet and slightly herbal. That sharp absinthe note for me has gone, leaving this a super ladylike, almost-ethereal lovely blend. I did THREE separate tests for this and they are all super lovely in this stage, soft and gentle and subtly alluring. Verdict: RIP wallet.

In bottle: sweet incensey blend--sandalwood (as per others' reviews) sound about right. Woodsy, resinous, and masculine-leaning, with a pleasant creaminess. Wet on skin: I was a bit surprised to find it was a little cool on my skin when applied, but then I don't get any mintiness on this so it's probably nothing. Creamy and resinous, and a muskiness starts to emerge on my skin. This blend is a bit on the "dark" side, but not dark enough that I couldn't conceivably wear it (since I prefer lighter blends). I don't know if I get coconut--coconut has never worked for me so far--but there IS a pleasant, "light" sweetness to this. Dry: doesn't change from the wet phase for me, although as time goes on the sweetness does die down some more. This is a musky, creamy sandalwood, definitely masculine, super sensuous and sexy, with that creaminess that makes it almost lickable. Yum, I wouldn't mind smelling this on a guy Not at all. Verdict: I'm torn! This isn't a blend I would wear, but I'm tempted to hold on to it because of the yumminess. Absolutely sensuous.

In decant: jasmine, moss, orange, and benzoin. This is a predominantly orange/jasmine scent, a pretty light orange color impression. Wet on skin: orange, hints of jasmine, moss, and benzoin. I do tend to amp citruses, so the orange is more prominent on my skin than the jasmine. It's a nice summery scent, youthful and vibrant but not too "out there". Dry: orange, jasmine, with a creamy base of moss and benzoin. The moss and benzoin definitely developed as it dried, giving this scent more depth and "taming" it a little, though the lovely fruitiness with a dash of jasmine would still be a beautiful summer scent. Verdict: if this was more vanilla-ey, it might be a go, but I can't really grasp much of the vanilla here, making this too fruity for my wearing. Very nice though!

In decant: ...what is this?? Sour, like something spoiling. UGH. Wet on skin: ugh, that sour spoiling fruits note is still there. I hope this disappears soon! Past the sourness I can get a bit of lilac. I can't really smell anything else, it's making my stomach turn a bit. Dry: thank goodness--that spoiling smell does go away when dry. What's left is lilac, white tea, and a dash of citrus. Amazingly, the lilac doesn't go to powder on my skin! This is a good lilac. Lovely and light. Verdict: sadly, no matter how lovely that dry phase is, the wet phase is just horrible for me. Pass.

Before I get really started, there seems to be a batch variation between bottles issues at the start of the Lupers, and at the middle-to-latter end. I was on a short BPAL hiatus after the holidays, and thus only got to try Blossoms with a full bottle purchase around the middle of the Lupercalia season. I bought another bottle at the very tail end. Both bottles had dark red oil. The bottles that came out early during the Lupers had lighter, orange-colored oil. I was able to snag a decant of this early Blossoms after a while. This is the review/notes I had based on the red-oil version: In bottle: this is deep, strong honey with a boozy quality to it, with rich flowers. Slightly powdery to my nose, but with a "glowing" and sexy tone. It's similar in feel to Glowing Vulva, but this is sweeter (based on memory). Wet on skin: this softens on my skin, but stays fairly similar to bottle scent. Sweet honey, with a touch of brightness, rich but not overpowering florals--it's actually rather light, but the feel/tone I get is definitely "rich" and "lush". Also, very quickly going to powder on my skin. Damn. Dry: sigh. This has turned to powder, honey, vanilla, and flowers. It's sexy, though--and it's not listed as a note, but the oily powderiness I'm getting is very similar to how red musk reacts on my skin (as opposed to how ambers turn). Verdict: not my scent. Interesting, but no. As mentioned, recently I was able to try the orange-oil version (thank you, you know who you are!!). It is lighter, slightly sharper in feel than the red oil version, both in the decant and on my skin. The amber does turn slightly powdery, but not to the same extent as the red-oil version did, and not enough to turn me off completely. About two hours on, the powder has also mostly disappeared again, leaving behind a pleasantly "peppery" feel. In all other respects the scent is the same: sweet honeyed flowery vanilla enveloped in musky tones. Sexy, but light, almost subtle. Obviously I can't know for sure what was in the later Blossoms batches, or what Beth meant it to be, but if it WAS red musk, it makes sense. Red-oil Blossoms is sexy, orange-oil a bit more on the naughty side than full-on sexy. Verdict #2: The orange-oil Blossoms in Springtime is a keeper for me

In decant: mmm--teak and woods, almost yummy. This has a Tombstone vibe about it, but lighter, a bit more complex--it has this "light" almost citrusy note, and spicy. I don't know what spikenard smells like, that may be it; and does sugandh kokila smell like cinnamon? It seems to match. Wet on skin: doesn't change from the decant scent. Lovely woodsy teak and woods, yummy creamy tonka. Definitely channeling the Tombstone vibe here, even though it's a different wood and this has a few other notes thrown in. Dry: dried, and as it stays longer on my skin, the little foodiness present continues to lessen to become smoky, musky woods with a hint of creamy yummy tonka. I was reminded of Tree of Life for a bit, so I also took that out to sniff--this is deeper and smokier than that. Lovely, but definitely leaning towards masculine. Verdict: ultimately too masculine for my wearing! Very lovely though, this was a near keeper.

In decant: I'm not really sure what I expected from this, but this is full-on dragon's blood resin for me, with some honey. Wet on skin: that's dragon's blood resin, maybe a hint of gardenia and vanilla orchid mixed all in with the honey. I expected this to be a bit sweeter and a bit more floral, but I'm getting mostly dragon's blood resin here. It's like something I'd expect from the Ars Draconis line. Dry: not a morpher--stays true to the wet stage, although it gets smokier and smokier the longer is stays on my skin. I think the turmeric is also coming out--this is like three hours on. Spicy, smoky DBR. Verdict: I did wish this was a bit more floral! DBR hasn't been a win for me for a while though. Added: do I amp DBR or something?! Almost everyone else says floral

In decant: floral, with a definite cucumber note and a hint of that juniper berry. It's more fruity than floral, although this is something that I might wear--it's not an overt floral. There's a tinge of ozone and mint as well, sweet and light. Wet on skin: this doesn't change from the decant scent--cucumber, mint, and a hint of sweetness. The musk, if it's there, just a grounding element, not really front and center. Dry: this has gone rather soapy on me, but stays true to scent--cucumber, a softer, almost-sweeter mint, slightly fading. The other notes are just in the background. Light sweet cucumber scent, rather pleasant if it wasn't for the soap! Verdict: nope, not for me.

Yup, mostly everything that is not limited edition or co-branded are fine to go as imps. For co-branded ones, sometimes imp sets are available, i.e. for The Last Unicorn, The Salon, and I think Panacea as well? And they can't be broken up.