alston78

In the bottle: Oh, yeah. That's chocolate. On my wrist: Chocolate and peanut butter? Chocolate and hazelnut? It's coming on way too strong for me, and only getting stronger. This softened out to a nice hot chocolate smell- but I vastly prefer to drink my chocolate, and I just can't get into smells that are (for me, anyway) pure food smells. I'll be swapping this.

In the bottle: Butterscotch? Butter popcorn? I almost didn't try it on! On my wrist: Thank goodness I'm not a complete idiot. I put this on and fell head over heels for it. After about 30 seconds the buttery smell disappeared and creamy sweet floral goodness took over. This is beautiful!!! As has been said before, it wafts very nicely and lasts for a long time, but isn't overpowering at all. It's just a lovely smell that drifts around you and makes everything seem a bit nicer than usual. I love how on drydown it fades until there's just the teensiest bit of sweetness and an impression of coolness left on my wrist. There's something lovely and a bit remote about it. ETA: Oh, and a weird association: For the first half hour or so, all I could think of was a scented Strawberry Shortcake doll I had when I was little. Not sure why- the smell was similar, but without fake strawberry or plastic involved. Maybe it's the whole innocent childhood thing. Who knows?

At first sniff: The sweet pea really jumps out in the bottle! On my wrist: Oh, man...I didn't think I was going to like this- it was sweet, floral, and slightly grassy in the bottle. But on my wrist it turns into a perfect balance among herbal, sweet, and floral notes. The tonka is noticeable on me but not overwhelming- another note is holding it back from being too strong. I like this very much!! Several hours later: It's faded quite a bit, but I can still smell the tonka and sage, which is a pleasant sweet/herbal smell. I went to bed after about 3 hours of wear, so I'm not sure about the full duration of this scent on my skin. This is a winner for me! I'm definitely keeping my imp, and might get a 5 mL eventually. It would be awesome for spring/summer wear.

At first sniff: spicy and woodsy On application: I smell vanilla, sandalwood, patchouli, and pine? Maybe that's just the patchouli. This went away quickly on me, leaving the vague masculine not-quite-BO smell that patchouli tends to leave on me. I think overall it's a bit too masculine for me, and I don't follow yoga, so I'll pass this on to someone who might enjoy it more.

At first sniff: Alcohol!!! On application: Minty alcohol!!! Seriously, I'm getting a sweet, boozy smell with a hint of vanilla and mint hanging out in the background. And I'm lovin' it. Juke Joint was great for me- lasted for hours and had a mild sweet smell the whole time, with something in it that really did smell like bourbon and gave the whole thing a dirty note it wouldn't have had otherwise. Not that I'm usually a fan of the "dirty" scents- they're usually overkill for me- but this one is terrific. Definitely a keeper. Now if only real bars could smell like this instead of nasty cigarette smoke and too many commercial aftershaves...

At first application- I get a sweet floral that, for some reason, reminds me of jellybeans . I'm not savvy enough to pick out individual florals very often, especially not in a more complex blend like this- but I don't really smell the spiciness that I associate with carnation. I think I'm getting more jasmine and lily. 1 hour later- nice morphing in-between- the sweetness faded and I was left with a clean, fresh floral- definitely some jasmine playing in there, it always goes a little soapy on me. AFter an hour or so, I can smell what I *think* is the amber- it lends a nice warm note to the floral. The scent is rich, but still light- I wouldn't call it heavy at all Several hours later- I'm left with a very warm floral- I think it's probably mostly musk and amber at this point, maybe with some lily left?? I'm not getting jasmine anymore at all. Still very enjoyable. I'm not sure I'd order a 5 mL because I have so many florals- but this is a light, pleasant blend with nice wafting and a certain richness underneath. I'll definitely hang on to my imp!

At first sniff: woodsy and clean. The apple blossom and myrtle stand out most, with carnation falling a bit behind. Oddly enough, I didn't smell the amber very much till I applied it. Just after application: Not initially what I expected, but I like it- it's a fresh, feminine scent. The amber is coming out but not strongly, and I'm getting a sweet/floral/spicy scent, in that order. It's a bit heavy on me at first, but it wafts around me so nicely, and there's a nice amber/carnation mix in the wafty scent. Perfect! It's a bit strong and medicinal if I sniff my wrist, though. 2-3 hours later: Still wafting, but bee-yoo-ti-ful on my wrist. It's gorgeous, warm, golden, spicy, sexy!!! Oh my goodness...this is exactly what I was hoping for when I ordered this. A definite new favorite 5+ hours: It's fading, but still very much present. Mostly the amber is left, which is still fine with me. I'm absolutely delighted with this, and so glad I ordered a 5 mL!!!

In the bottle- whoa...patchouli and incense. It was so strong I was a bit afraid to put it on for a while! on first application- it made my wrist feel warm! Also, the patchouli was very strong at first- Anne Bonny is on the attack! I couldn't get much else out of it for about 15 minutes. Then, the spiciness mellowed out, and I could smell a woodsy smell underneath. The later spiciness was much nicer as well- the sandalwood and patchouli blended well, making for one of the better experiences I've had with patchouli in perfumes. Anne Bonny only lasted a couple of hours on me. Overall, I liked it better than I had expected, but not well enough to keep in a collection that's already overflowing, so off to swaps! I'm glad I got to try it, though.

I got asked about a perfume vial once- it was at the Smithsonian in DC, though, not at an airport. The guard was searching my purse, asked what it was, and didn't confiscate it or check further when I replied it was perfume. Like the others, I would say that if you tape them, put them with other make-up/feminine articles, and answer truthfully if asked, it won't be a big deal. I wouldn't go to any effort to get them out of sight because from what I've heard, that attracts much more attention than just leaving things in the open. Good luck and have fun! I hope you and your sister have a good time with all those imps!

In the bottle: This smells sharp and spicy- pine and sandalwood is what comes to my mind, though I know that's not the case. I don't smell almonds or honey at all- perhaps a very faint sweetness in the background, but nothing else. On my wrist: For the first 15 minutes or so, I get the same smell that I got in the imp, softened slightly. Then it changes into a gorgeous warm, sweet, honey-spicy smell that is at once intoxicating and steadying. I experience few changes after the first change, just a continued softening and fading, though Queen of Sheba lasts for at least 8 hours on me. This is a wonderful scent. I had tried it once before and liked it, but I really appreciated it today. Today was a terrible, no-good, awful day, and my temper was calmed and mind restored every time I sniffed my wrist. I will definitely be keeping this around!

In the bottle : Confusion...I smell a fruity incense smell, if that makes any sense at all. This is nothing like what others described, so something must be going weird with my nose. On my wrist : Yow! Is that what gardenias smell like? There's an extremely heavy floral jumping out at me, and that's about all I smell for the first 15 minutes. Then a spicy scent starts to come through, and an herbal smell...cinnamon, maybe, maybe a bit of mint? Something is stinging my nose slightly, and cinnamon doesn't usually do that. I also smell a softer floral- I'm not sure if that's just the gardenia backing off, or if there's something else in here, like honeysuckle or carnation. Once it has dried, this is a very creamy, spicy floral. After about 2 hours, this morphs into a buttery spicy scent that leaves the floral out almost completely. This is just lovely, though the first 15 minutes were rather overwhelming. It also got complimented by my best friend/sometime-boyfriend, who can be rather picky about what he likes. It didn't inspire an evening of unrepentant lust...but I'm having too much fun sniffing my wrists to care. I have 2 imps of this (2 freebies from the Lab and another forumite, thanks so much!) that I will use and enjoy, and then I'll see where I am from there. This is a terrific scent, but I'd like to see how comfortable I am with it in regular use before I commit to a bigger bottle.

In the bottle: I smell Lavender- but lavender doesn't usually sting my nose. That must be the cinnamon! There's also a cool breeze going up my nose- is there mint in this? On my wrist: The lavender and cinnamon are much more balanced, and make for a lovely combined scent. If there's mint in this, it fades into the background once it's on my skin. Mercury lasted a fairly long time- 6-8 hours- and while I didn't use it for any particular mental challenge, I can say that it made me feel more alert and present in my surroundings. As I'm a person who tends to daydream and loves afternoon naps, the effect was a big bonus. I didn't experience any burning on my skin, but none of the BPAL oils have had that effect on me. Final decision: This isn't a scent I would wear all the time- for example, I probably wouldn't go with this for a party or a bedtime scent. The lavender is nice and calming, but either the cinnamon or something else (I swear I smell mint!) would keep me awake. I did order a big bottle before this was discontinued, however- it is composed of two of my favorite single notes, smells terrific, and kept me awake at 2:00 in the afternoon. What more could I want?

In the imp: Flowers! Two favorites, actually- neither jasmine nor honeysuckle sticks out very much at first sniff. I do catch a hint of the lemon underneath, though. On my wrist: This is unusual, and I wouldn't wear it all the time, but I like it very much. The honeysuckle is very strong on me- the jasmine is present as well, and I think is what causes the scent to go soapy at first, but only for about 5 minutes. After that the blend becomes sweeter and I get intense honeysuckle, which lasts for about 6 hours on me. After about an hour I get a hint of something spicy, but it's unusually gentle under the honeysuckle. I've never been to New Orleans, but I can verify that this is the scent of dying honeysuckle on a humid summer night. The hint of decay in the blend is amazing- I've never smelled anything that captured the slight sadness and beauty and heaviness in this way. As I said, I'm not sure I'd wear it all the time- but I will definitely keep an imp around.

Maybe Lust would be a good option? - it was all patchouli/musk on me!

In the bottle: Lust is a spicy, somewhat sweet, incense-laden scent. I can't pick out individual notes like I can with some of the other oils. On my wrist: Oh my goodness, this is thick! I applied a lot more than I meant to, and it wasn't even very much- my imp is essentially still full. The drydown on this took forever, and wasn't as pleasant as I had hoped. The red musk gives off a dusty scent that makes me want to sneeze, and although this is obviously very well-blended, it's so full of spicy/resin/incense type notes that it's a bit overpowering. I was never a huge fan of patchouli- I like it okay in blends, but usually need it lightened by something. Since ylang-ylang is a pretty heavy floral oil, it's not making a difference, and I can't smell it anyway for the patchouli, musk, and myrrh. After about two hours, I could get close enough to my wrist to take a deeper sniff. Ahh- there's the ylang-ylang. It also turned slightly powdery, though not in a bad way at all. It's still heady, but in a lighter, gentler way that I like very much. If only those first two hours hadn't happened! I'll likely swap this, as the first two hours gave me a mild headache. I'm feeling sad about it, though- I really like what it morphs into later!

In the bottle: A light, sweet fruity/floral smell. I can get a hint of herbs with a deep sniff, but I think I'm probably smelling mostly linden. My best friend likes it very much, which is a good sign- he's pretty picky. On my wrist: For some reason, about 10 minutes after I applied it, I thought I smelled cucumber. The Unicorn remained very light and fresh, and stayed close to my skin. For the first hour, the floral scent dominated and the sweet fruity scent I smelled in the bottle was in the background; in the second hour, I smelled more of a floral/herbal smell. Both stages were lovely- I can understand others' comments that The Unicorn sparkles and twinkles! Unfortunately, I only got about two hours' worth of smelling good from my initial application. I'll keep the imp, but I'm not sure I'll wear it again- I may try to make a spray or something instead.

In the bottle: I'd agree with many of the others- Black Pearl has a creamy tone, and coconut is motioning wildly for attention. There's a dusty smell underneath, though, that I can't identify- I would say maybe it's the musk, but it's making my nose tickle a bit. The only other scent that does anything similar is Kabuki. On my skin: I'm not sure what to think! Tropical beach images come to mind, but the scent is heavier and darker in some way. The coconut is fighting to stay on top, but there's another scent that's weighting it down a bit, and making it sweeter than I would think it is naturally. Maybe that's the hazelnut? I can smell the musk in the background, but I don't think I can really smell the iris at all. I didn't notice much change over time in the scent itself- it stayed a heavy, sweet, dusty coconut. It was long lasting- I put it on several hours before I went to bed, slept 6 hours, and could still smell it the next morning! Overall, though, I don't think it's for me- it's pretty in a way, but something about the hazelnut/coconut combination isn't working on my skin. I'll be putting my imp up for swaps.

In the bottle: I smelled a lovely lavender floral with a hint of citrus to it. On my wrist: Wow, it changed- I can still smell the lavender, but it's in the background. Lemon and orange are at the forefront, with something a bit more savory-herby- I guess it's the thyme? I don't smell the mint so much as get a slight cool sensation in my nose when I sniff. This is also an exceedingly light fragrance on me- I can barely smell it, even with my nose to my wrist. One hour later: Let's see how it's changed...wait! Where'd it go? My wrist smells like it did pre-Calliope. Shoot, I was looking forward to seeing how this one would develop. My gloves and coat may have eaten all the Calliope, though, so I'll reapply and check in later. I've liked the scent so far- it has a light, gentle, clean smell. It would make a fabulous scent for a lighter day or mood, or a wonderful kitchen soap. I'll definitely use the imp- and quickly, at this rate! ETA: My reapplication of Calliope also disappeared quickly- it was completely gone after 2 hours. I'll probably keep the imp, but I might use it for soap or a spray rather than putting it on myself.

In the bottle: A rather strong floral. I can't pick out any distinct notes- not that I'm very good at it... On my wrist: Erato starts out very strong and fresh- floral notes in abundance! Although I can usually detect roses pretty quickly, I can't in this scent. It's a bit overwhelming at first, and slightly soapy. After an hour or so, Erato calms down to a rich rosy floral. I would agree with others in saying that it smells like a richer, older version of Juliet. I like it, but it's much more womanly and richer than what I usually wear. I washed off Erato after about 4 hours- not that it was bothering me, it was just shower time. Actually, I was enjoying the scent at that point. It faded nicely but not too quickly, and didn't lose the richness that I smelled after about an hour. I'm not sure I would wear this often, but I'll try it on several more times.

In the bottle: Very soapy floral smell. I don't think what I'm smelling is violet- perhaps it's the iris? I'm not familiar with iris as a single note, so I'm not sure. On my wrist: Oh, MUCH better. The violet (which I happen to like) comes out almost immediately, with the sandalwood backing it up in a nice way. I think this is the first time I really experienced mental imagery with one of these oils- or at least this quickly- just a shiny black, smooth, quiet, elegant, mysterious. Not ominous, though, like the poem- just quiet. After about an hour something (the violet? the musk?) turned powdery on me. It's the rare powdery scent that I like, though. The Raven becomes very soft and sweet and gentle, and maybe a bit wistful about something. It reminds me very much of some violet bath cubes and lotion I had a long time ago- can't remember the brand. It's been about 2.5 hours now- The Raven has faded to a sweeter smell which is definitely musky and spicy. It's still powdery, but I don't care. I love every stage of this! It's fading faster on me than most of the BPAL oils, but I'll gladly reapply. I might have to get a 5mL of this on my next order, as I'd love to wear this and try to make some bath goodies with it, too!

At first sniff: A very familiar smell. I sat around for 10 minutes or so trying to remember what smell it was- all I could discern was that it was grape and from my childhood. At first applicaton: Wait a minute...sniff...sniff...colds...HEY! Dimetapp?! Robitussin?! I'm getting a battle between the two. I smell grape and cherry and herbs, but the sweetness and fruitiness of this blend reminds me distinctly of the medicines I always took for a cold when I was little. Fortunately, I happen to be a fan of both Robitussin and Dimetapp, so I don't mind. 4 hours later: The herbiness has left somewhat, and I still smell a sweet, primarily grape blend. I'll be sending this to swaps- although I like the smell perfectly well, the childhood medicine association won't go away, and it's not exactly the smell I want to present to everyone else.

In the bottle: A masculine, warm, spicy scent. Yum! On my skin: I'm not sure what happened?! Everyone else described cinnamon and orange and frankincense, which I love- I"m just getting frankincense. Too much of it. On me, Ra is heavy, masculine, and smells way too much of incense- in fact, solely of incense. The smell dried and didn't change much on my wrist and after about 6 hours of smelling too incense-y and too masculine for my taste, I washed it off. I'm so sad- I was looking forward to this one! Oh well- off to swaps.

In the bottle: Bubble-gum. Big time. I wasn't really sure I could handle the bubble gum, but knowing how things change, I put it on anyway. At first application: It's still extremely sweet, but it turned fruity on my skin, so it didn't have the fake-sweet candy smell anymore. Drydown: This got much milder very quickly, to my relief and delight. It started out strong and remained strong enough that I got a whiff from time to time, but was much milder in tone. After several hours, the sweet fruity smell faded into a sweet floral that I enjoyed. Overall: I'm not sure about the effect on my mood, as I was pretty depressed. I feel better today, though- I'm willing to give it another shot! I'll definitely make my way through the imp.

If you haven't done this already, try making a spreadsheet with the oils you've tried and which essential oils they include, and similarities might start to pop out at you. That's how I figured out that orange blossom turns to orange baby powder on me. I know, too, that amber doesn't work for a lot of people, and some people have trouble with spicy scents like sandalwood, clove, and frankincense. If you have any non-BPAL favorite perfumes, look around online and see if you can find out what the dominant notes in those are, too- that might help you identify things that you'd like. Good luck!

In the bottle: Cinnamon and cinnamon! On first application: I smell like a freshly-opened bag of Red Hots or package of Big Red gum. It's not bringing on a headache or necessarily bad...but not exactly what I want to smell like, either. After 20 minutes: Big Red is fading! Yippee! Now there's a spicier smell...maybe it's cinnamon and clove, because I only caught a brief whiff of the pepper in the very beginning. Whatever it is, the scent is retaining a dominant cinnamon note while becoming sweeter, though not candy sweet on me. One hour later: Ohhhh....this is lovely. It's developed into a very pretty cinnamon floral, which I can only assume is the dragon's blood coming out, since I've never tried a BPAL oil with dragon's blood before. The clove is decidedly in the background, and I don't smell pepper at all. This didn't last as long on me as some other BPAL oils- maybe 6 hours or so? Still a rather long time, though. I'm not very fond of the beginning stage, but it doesn't last long, and I really like the last and longest stage of Wrath. I'll definitely keep the imp!