joyfulgirl

this turns to powdered floral soap on me. sadness.

this is a dead-ringer for smut, in my opinion. third charm is a bit more complex, less boozy and less tooth-achingly sweet, but something about the combination of notes registers like the cherry in smut, and the red musks are exactly the same. it's lovely, but i'm not sure i need another red musk-heavy scent. i'll let it settle for a few days before i decide.

oh NUM. strongly boozy and sweet. butter schnapps, anyone??

 

on my skin it quiets down a bit after a few minutes to a warm, mild, almond-y butterscotch. this is so delightful! i kind of want to eat my hand.

 

very quiet, light scent. like most of the SNs, i'm not sure if this is something i'd wear on its own, but i'm really glad i got to try it!

whoa, this smells yellow to me. intensely yellow. and yes, very stong. it reminds me of a yellow dandelion torn to shreds. bitter and yellow-green and juicy. on my skin the juiciness of it dies down after a few minutes, but the bitter intenseness remains. whew. also glad i got to try it, but not something i'd ever wear on its own.

seconding (or thirding or whatever):

 

raven moon

cathedral

al azif

aged snake oil (new is very sweet, aged mellows out a lot)

svadhinaopatika

mme. moriarty (although she is more plum and patchouli on me, she is so beautiful i'd really recommend her to anyone)

 

and i'll throw the RPG scents cleric and mage in there. added bonus: you can get imps of those.

in the bottle: wow, for me this was overWHELMINGLY pumpkin.

 

wet: it's ALL pumpkin, ALL the time. a little spice underneath it (is that cinnamon? ).

 

drying down: the pumpkin is fading a bit. what emerges is a spicy, creamy cloud of plum and currant. this definitely feels more cinnamon-y than the description would have me believe, which sucks cause i amp it a bunch. but the fruitiness is keeping it pretty in-check. is this - dare i say it - a spicy, cinnamon-y scent i can actually wear?

 

bottom line: i like it! i'm not sure how it will wear in a day-to-day setting (it is VERY foody) but i am enjoying the smell now that the pumpkin has faded a bit. i think i'll keep my bottle.

this is the first TAL i ever smelled or used. talk about powerful. i was/am very new to the whole world of ritual, but i picked this up thinking it was a good place to start.

people, this changed my life.

i was working in a leadership role at a huge corporation. i would regularly bring this oil to work and use it before meetings in a quiet moment of meditation and setting intention. i started kicking ass at work. and i mean REALLY kicking ass. i felt like i was going places and making things happen. and yet, i found myself unhappy. i finally (after too many years!) started listening INSIDE to what i really wanted. i realized i didn't want to work in corporate america anymore.

still using the oil regularly, i set a background intention of finding a new job that i love. i am now (less than 6 months later) working for an amazing, mission-driven, passionate non-profit that is SO MUCH more aligned with who i am as a person. everything feels better since i started here. i have stopped using senelion - for the time being - mostly because i feel like i achieved a plateau for now where i can learn A LOT about myself and do a lot of good in the world. that said, it's still sitting on my altar, just waiting. in case i ever need it again, i know it works.

also: it smells wonderful. complex, warm and bright. a beautiful pick me up in addition to a powerful tool.

beth and the TA labbies: thank you for making this oil. you've changed at least one life.

i definitely get all the tropical/sunscreen similarities, but i LOVE the coconut/vanilla combination, so i am really excited to have a nice big decant of it.

 

as for the gloss itself: my main concern was that since i have fine, greasy hair, the gloss would weigh it down or make it look greasy. it really didn't at all. i put a big squirt in the palm of each hand and worked it through my hair, starting with the ends and finally smoothing down the top. it looks great...my hair almost shimmers. (if i had more hair, i'd probably use more, but i'm sporting a chin-length bob right now.)

 

regarding the summery nature of the scent...it's mid-october and i decided to give this a little "oomph" by layering it with a darker, heavier scent: mme. moriarty. it. is. gorgeous. the vanillas in both scents intertwine beautifully...the coconut/tiare sit on top while the deeper aspects of ms. moriarty round things out. i highly recommend layering deeper/darker scents with this...just find something with a couple common/complementary notes and run with it!

2012 version

 

bought this on a whim, was very scared of the red chili, but the rest of the notes sounded so amazing, i couldn't say no.

 

in the bottle: dark. spicy. dark. i imagine something sweet and slick and black. it's very well blended.

 

wet on my skin: whew, this bloooooms! patchouli! musk! vanilla! all the lighter/softer notes come out of this and it becomes absolutely gorgeous. as others have noted, the nutmeg + chili combo reads as "clove" to my nose, and i am 100% okay with that.

 

dry on my skin: this actually has some similarity to a darker, insence-ier version of snake oil now that it's dried down a bit...i'm guessing the vanilla/musk/nutmeg combination is doing it? in any case, i am loving this blend. my only wish would be for a bit more throw and lasting power. next time i will prime with lotion first.

 

bottom line: besides luna negra, i'd call this my favorite lunacy so far. i'm really excited to see how it ages, and i'll be looking for a backup bottle.

BEAVER MOON...Y U NO TELL ME YOU HAVE CINNAMON?!

 

no for real, this is a beautiful, buttery apple scent in the bottle.

 

unnnfortunately once it hits my skin the cinnamon makes itself known and since my body chemistry amps cinnamon all to high heaven, it is ALL CINNAMONS ALL THE TIME on me. it basically turns to fall-esque, cinnamon and apple potpourri. boo. it's too bad...if my skin wasn't wonky, i bet this would be great. the scent in the bottle is gorgeous!

whoaaa complexity! smelling/wearing this was an EXPERIENCE. i had never been able to detect vetiver as a note in a blended scent, and NOW i know why. (and this is why i was so excited about SNs!)

 

when i opened the bottle i smelled...bacon. that's it. applewood smoked bacon. as a vegetarian, you can imagine, this was simultaneously kind of appealing and kind of appalling. i sat it down and moved onto sniffing my other newly-arrived bottles, but there was something lurking just beneath that waft of bacon that drew me back in, so a little while later, i decided to skin test it.

 

open the bottle: more bacon. deep whiff...bacon and...something woodsy? green? hard to tell...onto the skin it goes!

 

wet on the skin: heavy. medicinal (oh no, there it goes, that was a quick impression). smoky. dark green. deep and warm to the point that it's almost uncomfortable...clinging, humid. there is just SO MUCH HERE.

 

dry on the skin: wow, does this ever have throw and ongoing complexity. the two strongest impressions i get from it are smoke and greenery. it is absolutely delicious. and i totally agree with beth's description: it is earthy and grounding and has a softly relaxing effect (despite how STRONG it seemed).

 

and uhhh... this may be TMI/coincidence, but i feel compelled to mention it: after skin testing this, i crawled into bed with my sweetie and despite him whining all evening about how tired he was, he seemed to have plenty of energy for some seriously rockin' booty...perhaps this was vetiver-induced booty?

 

verdict: i am SO glad i snagged a bottle of this, and i will certainly be interested to see how it ages. and now that i know what to look for, i will be interested to try blends with vetiver!

death-matching this with woods in winter right now. this is a COLD one. the minty snow note in this one is even colder and more refreshing than woods in winter, but they are quite similar. i'm getting a distinctly air-y note from monastery though (vs. an earthy note in WiW). it's very evocative of a feeling of the thin, crisp, cold air one encounters at altitude. i get a tiny bit of burning incense on the dry down, but it's low key and fleeting underneath the snow and pine-y greens. a beautiful winter scent - although i agree with stellamaris - this would be a fun one to wear in the summer!

in the bottle: CLOVES!

 

on my skin: cloves and cloves and a little vanilla incense and cloves. christmasy, autumny, quiet and warming. this is pretty much exactly what i wanted "the smiling spider" to be. i LOVE it. i got a bottle unsniffed and now i'm glad i did. i may need to snag another before this goes away. it's lovely and quiet and i think it will be perfect for fall and wintertime.

in the bottle, this smells very much like some kind of candy that i can't quite put my finger on. my sweetie and several friends agreed...something cherry or berry or...something? like a cherry gummy or a sour cherry ball? in any case, it's completely mouth watering.

 

when i put it on, i find that i amp the apple a bit, but the berries keep it juicy and it's overall a nice, fruity tart blend without being over the top. i haven't gotten any nuttiness at all, but my bottle only arrived a few days ago, so it could very well develop more nuttiness with age.

 

unfortunately, after only 3 or 4 hours, it's faded to the point that i can barely smell it at all (even in my hair). but i like it enough that it may be worth carrying an imp around with me for touch-ups throughout the day. it's a gorgeous late summer/early autumn scent. we'll see how it ages and how i start feeling about the duration...if it's a slather + reapply often type scent, i may snag another bottle before it goes away.

DEFINITELY check out the witch's garden...i know it lists morning glory vines, but i got literally NO floral at all from this...it was all green and herbal. "Morning glory vines twisting around a patch of rampion, carrot, and parsley, with monkshood, hemlock, elfwort, sage, wormwood, and mandrake."

 

http://www.bpal.org/topic/50716-the-witchs-garden/

 

also maybe karme, if you can hunt down an imp..."Sun-warmed squashes, peppers, salad greens, snap peas, radishes, green onions, and silphium."

 

http://www.bpal.org/topic/75407-karme/

 

good luck!

wow, this really feels to me like snake oil and mme. moriarty had a love child. and it is quite a sexy, delicious, amazing love child. beth's incredible plum note just absolutely hits a home run in this one...dark, sensual and blending oh-so-well with the other notes. i was lucky enough to get a little decant of the original and it is unbelievably beautiful...i will totally cherish this tiny vial.

holy MOLY, this smells EXACTLY like the incense used at catholic church when i was young, as it was being burned...charcoal, harsh smoke and all. wow, very evocative. i am going to see if it smells good on my sweetie...definitely not a scent for me, but it might smell amazing on him. if i can get past the weird catholic association...

i'll throw cleric into the ring. beautiful frankincense with a nice blend of spices along for the ride. just be ready for a dose of rose...but i promise it works with the rest of the notes!

oddly enough, i find TKO to be SUGARY on me. literally it smells to me like i am wearing lavender scented sugar...it's kind of overpowering for me and does not at all make me sleepy (as i was hoping), but you might give it a shot.

 

also, skytyping with chemtrails (if you can find it) went all sugar on me.

have you tried eat me? it's got an almond punch to it, but it is very sweet!

not a pure RPG combo but uh...i tried rogue and snake oil together today. most sexy, spicy, delicious leather EVER. i HIGHLY recommend this combo.

in the bottle: chocolate! dusty dark chocolate with a little bite of something spicy. not quite snake oil (yet).

 

wet on my skin: gods, i want to eat my arm. delicious rich, dark chocolate with smears of snake oil over the top. sexy, foody, warm, inviting and distinctively BPAL.

 

dry on my skin: mostly snake oil, as others have mentioned. there is definitely another dimension to it though. i can smell the wood more now, which is adding a dark depth to it...and although neither the chocolate or rice milk are perceptible individually, there is definitely a sweetness to the scent that can only be these foody elements.

 

bottom line: i am SO glad i was able to snag a few bottles of this, even though i found BPAL after CD had gone dark. i will absolutely treasure them and cross my fingers for a reincarnation!

 

notes: i tried this a few weeks ago and didn't really like it...i am currently ovulating, so i am wondering if skin chemistry and hormones didn't throw me for a loop earlier. i'll have to make a note that this may be one of those "certain time in the cycle" scents.

in the bottle: uh...dusty...something? musk and berries. smells nice, but not very complex.

 

on my skin: sandalwood, sandalwood, sandalwood! somehow, this smells like nanny ashtoreth on me. i'm guessing the berries + wood combination? the wood smells "polished" like it does in nanny ash. and really dude, where is the patchouli? I WAS PROMISED PATCHOULI!! *pout*

 

bottom line: gonna give it a few days, maybe try it again. i'm putting it in the "maybe" pile. thankfully, based on this thread, if it needs to be re-homed, it won't be a problem!

i thought for sure i'd reviewed this! ah well, might as well get to it.

 

in the bottle: lemon! lemon lemon lemon! like lemon pledge furniture polish.

 

wet on my skin: lemongrass like whoa. i remember when i first got an imp of this, i thought i wouldn't like it because i figured for sure i'd walk around smelling like pledge all day. eventually the lemon calms down and i start to get whiffs of other notes...mostly cedarwood at first, then a smidge of patchouli.

 

dry on my skin: the lemon has faded significantly and i'm now getting lots of cedar with a touch of earthy patchouli and sweetened (i'm assuming) by the jasmine. i do not get much in the way of sandalwood or rose.

 

note: i also put some in my hair and i am still getting a definite lemon vibe from my hair. i am guessing my skin either ate or burned the lemongrass.

 

overall: i really enjoy this blend. i think it's great for focusing (as most citrus blends tend to be for me) and fades to a lovely earthy scent. i'm glad i have a bottle, and i will probably replace it when i run out.

necrobump! my mom is/was a HUGE fan of simply, but it has been discontinued. i am looking for mother's day and b-day presents for her...anything bpal that has that lovely soy/soy milk note?