likie

Swank is strongly 60's/70's to me. Although I feel a little Sinatra with it.. maybe it's the 40's? I am useless.

I have read many reviews where people describe scents as "soapy," and I've never experienced it myself. But with Lulu, that is all I could smell: soap. Period. Like, raw, freshly-milled, barely-scented soap. On my skin it was mostly the same. I suppose that's probably the gardenia, but I'm not certain.

I love rose, and wish I could smell more of it in this, but basically all I got was jasmine. There were other elements around the edges, mostly a sort of powdery floral, but the jasmine just stomped everything else to bits.

The use of the word "heady" in the description sort of made me want to push this away, but as soon as I smelled it I knew I wanted it all the time. It is a suspect in headaches (as I got one afterward, but I'm not sure what the cause was). But if I rule that possibility out, this is a fabulous everyday semi-conservative perfume. I adore it. Nothing wrong with simplicity!

This seems, from the description (and the other reviews), like it would be a really strong, dark sort of scent that isn't for me. However, I found that I liked it a lot, and it fits well into my draw toward "spicy/fruity" oils. I did not find it to be very musky, which I often do. I like it even more than I originally liked Snake Charmer (which was a lot), because I find it to be lighter and more wearable. Also not chocolatey, despite it being the first word in the description.

Wow! This is a strong fruit with a punch, surrounded by the afterthought of flowers. The fruits really smell like the "base," if you will, while the floral elements are very faint in the bottle. The flowers became stronger for me on the skin, but it retained its slightly sharp quality. I think I like it a lot.

edit for lab desc.

Jack is like a big old pumpkin pie on me. Pumpkin Queen is like an incensey jackolantern in a garden. The Monarch, to me, has even less pumpkin than either of them, and as such is more ginger and more mandarin. I really like it a lot as a perfume. It's on par with PQ in my opinion. It's a little different, but also a little more perfumey. I'm really glad I got it.

Once again, an oil somehow smells 'fizzy.' That is such a strange effect!

 

In the bottle, it's like the most awesome fruit soda ever. Much like the description - strawberries and peaches, maybe with some cherry syrup and a little mandarin orange. Once on my skin, it mostly maintains this quality, but begins to both fade and warm up. It's a little more orangey now, and smells more of straight fruits (without added sugariness). Later, it's like an orangey peach still on the tree on a dewy morning. I like the eventual effect even better than the original one. Although, I do have to say it's a blend that could be mistaken for a Bath & Body Works type scent. (I mean this in the most delicious way!)

This is easily the weirdest oil I have ever tried. In the decant it was rather planty, kind of outer spacey seeming. Like what Mars foliage might smell like. Once it was on my skin, however, it almost immediately turned sweet. It's not a familiar vanilla sweetness, almost like the Martian plants are now bearing fruit and I'm smelling it. If I sniff very closely I can smell the vanilla, but otherwise it's this kind of creepy sweet smell. I'm a little weirded out by it!

please, Ins't there somebody from Italy to contact me, to get some informations faster, I'don't have time enough to spend to read everything...

Do you have any specific questions? Here is what the Lab says on international shipping:

 

International shipping costs vary depending on the location we're shipping to and the weight of the package. The latter is determined by the number of bottles that we're sending out.

 

We use USPS Flat Rate on most international shipments. The Flat Rate service offered by USPS features a fixed price per package, regardless of weight. As a rule, we can fit up to 20 items in International Flat Rate packaging with occasional exceptions.

 

The International Flat Rate shipping fee is $14.00 for all orders up to 20 bottles (or 240 imps); the rate jumps to $29.00 on orders containing more that 20 items that won’t entirely fit in the Flat Rate box. Shipping is free for all orders that exceed $500.

I think when I bought this I was just buying into a little LE fever. I remember trying it when it arrived and thinking, 'why did I buy this?' and putting it away. Years later I miraculously did not swap it (though I am about to sell it for financial reasons :/), and either I have changed, it has changed, or both.

 

While I think this would be really, really terrific on a man (more so than many other masculine scents I've tried), it also works for women. I'm not sure which note I'm smelling, but I smell clove at the forefront (both in bottle and on), with vanilla muskiness in the background. No plantiness, which I was kind of expecting but probably wouldn't add anything really. A light whiff of tobacco. It's not an office perfume, but not as overwhelming as some. You could wear it for an evening and not expect to have folks weirded out by your smell (I am nervous about this with some BPALs ).

 

eta: Ahh... and there it is, that headache that about 60% of BPAL gives me.

Definitely the booziest of the original Atomic Luau Lounge series. I also agree with the cherry cola assessment, although I have no idea how the Lab manages to make something smell fizzy. It's quite spicy, and headache-inducing for me I'm afraid.

I never wrote a review when I originally got the bottle, so I decided to write a review since it has now aged.

In the bottle, it is very sweet, almost like tangy candied flowers. It almost makes me crave candy. It's not overwhelming, though, and doesn't give me a headache like some. It seems well-blended, as no notes in particular stand out to me (although I am hardly an olfactory expert).

On my skin, it is slowly becoming less tangy, though still very sweet. Also, NOT MUSKY! Thank God, as musk usually makes everything smell like powdery awful nothing on me. It's drying well, not deteriorating too much.

This is very feminine, and sort of straddles the border between floral and foodie (due to its sweetness). It's great for spring or summer, and strikes me as something that could be worn in more professional atmospheres.

eta lab description.

That dress is seriously fabulous. It makes me think of scents like Alice, Dorian, Carnal (though not for the name ) and maybe if you wanted to be a little daring, Vice. But I have no idea what your tastes are, these are just me!

So I decide to finally test this properly for the first time and I dropped it, open, 3 times, spilling 2/3 of it. I hate my life.

 

In bottle: Very creamy and buttery. Warm. Like the pumpkin note without the pumpkiny part.

 

Wet: Bit of spice now, a comfortable sort of creamy, spicy, somewhat musky scent.

 

Dry: Oh wow, the lotus is beautiful. Most of the spice is gone, and it just seems to be vanilla with lotus. I do know what lotus smells like, after all! Still, I wouldn't call it an orgasmic scent. A stellar daytime scent, slightly flirty, but mostly professional. However, I think I'll opt for something a little less expensive as a regular.

In bottle: Sharp lavender, and not much else.

 

Wet: Immediately gets sweeter, and carnation bursts out to the forefront. The lavender's still there, though, making it seem fresher and a little sharper. I can usually get amber, but not yet.

 

Dry: Wow, I feel like I know this smell but I can't place it at all. It's neat to sniff, but I don't think I would want to smell it either on a person or as a room scent. Maybe a bath oil or something. It's like the most lovely of "old lady perfumes." I don't find it masculine in the least. Classic, powdery old lady.

In bottle: Classic BPAL floral. These aren't wispy, light flowers, nor are they musky and sensual. They are full, rich, and beautiful. I smell a ton of fruity roses, though I don't really know what lotus smells like. It's quite strong.

 

Wet: ROSE. Not rosewater, but rose - almost like if rose bushes had a fruit. It is the sweet, strong center of the flower, rather than the delicate petals. A woman who wears light, sandalwoody florals during the day wears this as her intimate evening perfume.

 

Dry: Hmm. I'm happy to say it never went powdery on me. It hasn't changed much at all - it has a hint of spice, like it's developed a slight edge. But it's still a beautiful bouquet of red, peach, and pink roses.

Liz Claiborne Mambo is my favorite traditional perfume - its notes:

 

Top Notes

Mango, Mandarin.

 

Middle Notes

Ginger, Orange blossom.

 

Base Notes

Sandalwood

 

I would also love to find something similar to this, although for me the mandarin, ginger and to some degree orange blossom are all more important than the mango or sandalwood. So far Fire Pig is a bit like a BPAL version. I'd also like to try Kubla Khan:

 

Through sunlit caves of ice, roses unfurl amidst dancing waves of serpentine opium smoke and amber tobacco, golden sandalwood, champaca, tea leaf, sugared lily, ginger, rich hay absolute, leather, dark vanilla, mandarin, peru balsam, and Moroccan jasmine.

 

Or Vixen might be kind of close, though I don't remember liking it myself:

 

The innocence of orange blossom tainted by the beguiling scents of ginger and patchouli.

 

I'd love to hear some other suggestions though.

Bottle: As most others have said, crisp apples. I'd say red apples, but an overall "green" smell. No other notes are individually obvious. It's got a touch of sweetness.

 

Wet: Wow, headache. My head and jaw already hurt after just a few minutes, usually it takes a while. It hasn't morphed noticeably except that it's harsher, and smells somewhat like cleaner.

 

Dry: After 20 minutes it's far more pleasant (and my headache is gone!). It's a light (in color), sweet, appley perfume. Beautiful and wintry. If only I could get it to this stage immediately! I never did get any mint, and I usually amp mint so I suppose this isn't the lab's typical mint.

 

Medium to low throw, and medium wearlength. ~4 hours later I still have sweet apples on my skin. I'm glad it stayed apple all the way (bodes well for other apple scents, as I haven't tried many!), but the pain in the beginning means I'll probably swap it out. I think it deserves some aging first though.

Doubt you're still looking, but I would say Priala from Carnaval Diabolique fits this very well.

Wow, I have no idea why I initially put this into the 'can't stand' category. What was I thinking?! I just got it out again and it's gorgeous! Downright foody in the imp, almost like mint cake. For some reason my skin absorbed all the vanilla (very unusual for me!) and I'm left with mostly mint, but it's a very refreshing smell. I think it might give me a headache if I left it on all day, but then, most things do. For the moment it's quite pleasant!

Oh my God. I might have to swap this away because of how much it smells exactly like caramel corn. I've never wanted to eat my arm so badly in my life. FOOOD.

 

It does have a bit of a toffee smell, which is similar to the smell of heavily sweetened coffee. The toffee gets a little stronger and less buttery on my skin, and stays deliciously sweet. Excuse me, I'm going to go raid the pantry.

I used to get mine at Nature's Gift, because I could go pick them up and not have to pay the usually very high shipping charges for those things. People sell 1 ml or 1/32 oz. sample vials semi-frequently on ebay too, that's where I got my current lot (about 1800 vials!)

 

There's also a thread in the BPAL FAQ's on this general topic that I'm probably going to be too lazy to go look up and then edit this post about.

Bottle: At first shot, it was all musky patchouli. The more I inhale, it's growing increasingly woody. I'm getting some rum, too... it definitely makes me think of a ship, like a massive 17th century British naval vessel. A little abrasive for me, though.

 

Wet: Mmmm, it's warming up a lot. Way softer, too, almost immediately. The throw is surprisingly minimal, which I like. The abrasiveness of the wood is about gone, and there's a coy sweetness in the background.

 

Dry: After about 30 minutes it's a delicious, gentle, woody patchouli with a bitty hint of sweet. Very masculine. Pretty similar to how I remember the dry-down on Montresor, if I'm recalling it correctly. Throw is low to moderate.

 

As a side note, the oil itself seems to be unusually thin.

I have no idea how this is possible, but I found Defututa to be hugely similar to Snow White (both wet and dry), albeit with a little sugar on top. I honestly like it even better.