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Budding Moon - The first time I sniffed and tried Budding Moon, in my enthusiasm, I proclaimed it to be my favorite BPAL scent of all time. I have since recanted that claim. While it is positively gorgeous, and among my favorite Lunacies, it isn’t my favorite BPAL. But it is a nice one! The scent is initially sharply fruit-sweet with a soft, pink floral background, but after about 20 minutes on my skin, the sharpness of the fruit fades. At this point, a scent that must be the lovely soft peony blended with white musk and the tiniest hint of dry lotus root becomes the scent I experience for the next couple of hours until it fades. As with almost all of the Lunacies, this blend doesn’t last on my skin for very long, but it’s so pretty that it’s worth applying. When I wear it in a scent locket, the fruit note doesn’t fade, and serves to enhance the musk/peony/lotus blend just beautifully. It’s a bright and fresh scent that I think will be absolutely irresistible when spring bursts forth in a few weeks.

Buck Moon - I originally tracked down a bottle of Buck Moon as a gift for my sister because it's a Lunacy blend that was released for one day only, and that day happened to be my sister's most recent birthday. Combine that with the fact that she loves musks, and well, it was a perfect gift for her. The bottle didn't arrive from the seller when I had expected it to, and as I started to worry that I wasn't going to get it on time, I decided to track down another bottle so I would have something to give to her. Well, the first bottle arrived followed shortly by the second bottle, which meant not only did my sister get a bottle, but I did, too. My sister loves it. She thinks it's incredibly beautiful. I can barely smell it. When I open the bottle, I catch the faintest whiff of something that's a little different from the air I normally breath, but not much different. When I apply it to my skin, I may as well be applying water that has a few crushed herbs in it. It does nothing for me. If I apply it to cotton and wear it in a scent locket -- again, nothing. It's the strangest scent for me in the way it completely does not show up.

Dragon Moon - This is a really pretty scent that reminds me a lot of aspects of Holiday Moon and Sleepy Moon. It smells strongly of bamboo and tea, with the tiniest hint of dragon’s blood in the background – just enough to make it interesting, but probably not enough to drive away dragon’s blood haters. The scent is very pretty on my skin, but incredibly subtle with absolutely zero throw. Once it has dried down, I have to press my nose against my skin to detect the scent. Around the 45 minute point, all of the notes in this scent have disappeared completely, with the exception of the cherry blossom, which I can finally smell for the first time in this blend. My Cherry Blossom SN is one of my favorite scents, so I am thrilled to smell the cherry blossom in this scent. Sadly, because Dragon Moon has no throw on me and minimal staying power, I’m not going to be drawn toward it when I’m picking out my scents for the day, so I will likely end up passing this one along.

Spectre - The very first note I detect is rose – pretty, soft, sweet rose. As it begins to dry, a trace of something woody becomes noticeable. I also begin to detect the soft and “rounded” scent of lilies. It’s a strong floral, yet it is also somehow ethereal and wispy. It’s a pretty scent, yet it’s not particularly unforgettable – it’s just not very unique. It reminds me a lot of several of Beth’s other blends (Sepulcher and Venus, in particular) and I just don’t see myself lusting for more of this one. The scent lasts for several hours on my skin and it’s got some really great throw for such an “ethereal” scent – I keep catching beautiful, lovely wafts of the scent swirling around me despite applying only a small amount of the oil.

Single Note: Orange smells absolutely heavenly in the vial and I’m positive I’ve found a SN that I simply have to track down. However, the moment it touches my skin, it becomes incredibly subdued and fades almost instantly, and the orange scent is incredibly light, although it is pretty. Upon dry-down, it turns into very faint, orange plastic on my skin. After smelling how gorgeous it is in the vial, this is such a huge disappointment.

Single Note: Red Musk - This is gorgeous. I knew I loved most red musk scents, but smelling BPAL red musk pure and alone has me understanding exactly what it is that I love about so many of my favorite BPAL scents. I love red musk in general, but BPAL red musk is deeper and swarthier than any other brand of red musk single note I’ve ever encountered. It’s so thick and dark you can’t see through it. The scent is rich, deep, warm, and sweetly feral on my skin and is incredibly sexy. It lasts for a good six to eight hours on my skin and has a really amazing level of throw – a little dab on my wrists will keep me going all day. I love it!

Single Note: Dandelion - This is a very strong scent! It’s incredibly true-to-life and reminds me of being a kid and sitting on the front lawn with my sister, pulling dandelion weeds out of the grass, and examining the milk-colored juice that runs within the dandelion stalks. Beth managed to capture the scent of the flower, the green, weedy stalk, and that milky substance in the dandelion itself. It’s simply spectacular how genuine this scent is! It’s not one I would choose to wear by itself because I feel like I smell a bit too much like a giant green weed, but I imagine that blended with a scent that’s spicy and not otherwise floral (Bengal, perhaps?) it could work really well. It has a moderate level of throw and lasts over three hours on my skin.

Single Note: Violet - Violet is one of my favorite floral scents and I can't seem to find enough BPAL scents that have violet in it that I actually like and would wear, so I was just thrilled to come upon this imp of Violet SN. The violet is sweet, deep, and murky -- exactly the way violet should smell. It's gorgeous and while I probably won't wear it on its own as a single note, I may use it to make some of my favorite BPAL scents with violet (e.g., Faustus, The Raven) just a tad bit more violet. On its own, the throw is light and it only lasts about 3 hours on my skin. By hour 4, I can't detect it in the least.

Single Note: Coconut is an absolutely gorgeous single note! I wish this was still around and I’d buy bottles and bottles of it! It’s sweet, creamy coconut from the first moment it’s applied until about 4 hours later, when it starts to fade. There is a lovely level of throw and the tiniest bit on my wrist has the scent of coconut coming and going about me as I go through my daily activities. It’s positively divine. I will lovingly use up what I have and will probably layer it with my multitude of Coconut Hut lotions, body butters, and soufflés for an even stronger coconutty scent. Love it!

Single Note: Cherry Blossom - I don’t like most BPAL blends or other potions or lotions that have cherry blossom in them, so I didn’t expect to like the single note. As usual, Beth managed to completely surprise me. The Cherry Blossom single note is gorgeous! It is really strong, incredibly pink and floral, and reminds me of walking through Washington D.C. during the first week of April when all of the cherry trees are in bloom. It’s stunningly gorgeous, incredibly fragrant, has phenomenal staying power and a lovely level of throw – so much throw that this oil must be applied lightly. This is definitely not one I layer with any other notes/blends. I wear it on its own, and it’s proven to be a perfect spring time scent that doubles wonderfully as a “pick me up” scent.

Single Note: Honey - This smells exactly like the honey note in BPAL blends. It's sweet and heavy and to me, smells nothing like real honey (yes, I stood there with a big jug of honey and my honey single note and did a sniff-comparison!) I can understand why people who like honey in BPAL blends would go crazy over this particular single note, because it is very distinctive and unique, but it's definitely not a scent for me. The throw is also very faint, and the scent fades almost completely within 2 hours after application.

Single Note: Hyssop - When first applied, I went crazy over this scent. It’s bright and powerful with just the tiniest touch of bitterness, and it had some amazing throw. Unfortunately, upon full dry-down, it also becomes a touch soapy on my skin. When sniffed up close, I still smell the bright scent I initially smelled wet out of the vial, but when I catch wafts of it in the air, it smells soapy. It does last for a good long while and although the throw decreases upon dry-down, it’s still good and strong.

Single Note: Black Cherry - When first applied, this is not the über-sweet, medicinal, cough-syrup cherry that I often get from BPAL cherry scents. Rather, it is deep and mellow, and only has the slightest touch of sweetness. It’s a beautiful scent. As it dries down, it becomes very rubber-smelling, almost like a band-aid, and while I can still smell the cherry in it, that “hospital supply cabinet” scent detracts from the the nice aspects of the scent. This is a single note I was really hoping I’d like, but I can’t wear it. Not to mention that it sticks very close to my skin and doesn’t even last a full hour.

Single Note: Georgia Peach - this is a gorgeous scent, and from the first moment the tiniest dab of it touched my skin I could tell it had amazing throw. It’s has a slight bit of “artificial peach” scent to it (think of Nehi peach soda or Jolly Rancher peach candy), but for the most part, it smells like a summertime, fresh, juicy peach and it makes me want cobbler. And I just remembered I saved peaches last summer in the freezer so that on a cold winter day like this, I could have peach cobber with summer peaches! Not only does it have good throw, but it stays for a long time, too. Fabulous.

Single Note: Apricot - When I first apply this, it smells exactly like dried apricots and I absolutely love it. I’m positive it’s going to be a favorite among single notes. Unfortunately, as soon as it dries down, it takes on a weird smell that reminds me exactly like the scent of cheap drug store lipstick. It’s heavy and chemical and very artificial smelling, and doesn’t smell at all like apricot. Yet another single note that doesn’t work on my skin. It’s also very faint with virtually no throw and fades on my skin after about 75-90 minutes.

Single Note: Coffee Bean is a true-to-life coffee scent. It’s like sticking my nose in a pile of freshly roasted coffee beans – slightly bitter, yet invigorating. The scent is really strong on me and has throw that’s completely overwhelming. It works a lot better if I layer it with something like Bliss, Lump of Coal, or Misk U. The scent lasts about 2.5-3 hours on me, which is not too shabby for a BPAL scent on my dry skin. Coffee-scents have never been my favorite, but this one is genuine and I have to give it two thumbs up even if it’s not my particular taste in fragrance.

Single Note: French Lavender - I find almost all BPAL scents with French Lavender to be somewhat “gamey” to my senses, although I have been able to get used to some after regular use (e.g., Somnus). The French Lavender SN, however, didn’t have that gamey quality that I expected. Neither was it strong and powerful like most lavender is on my skin. Rather, it was light and soft and smelled like my favorite lavender room oil, which is a no-name brand from a craft store. I love that I have something like that room-oil scent to wear on my skin. However, it’s incredibly light and subtle and sticks very close to my skin. The lasting power is adequate, but it’s too subtle for my taste. I may use it to layer, or just use it at night when I don’t want throw, but just want something to mellow me out before bed.

Single Note: Gardenia - Wow, is this ever strong, heady, and a very bitter floral. The instant I apply it, it reminds me of the very first BPAL scent I ever tried, and I realize that’s definitely the dominant note in Sacred Whore. I could never, ever wear this alone. While it’s a dead-ringer of a true, southern gardenia, it’s way too heady and strong for me to wear by itself. I like it in Sacred Whore because there are other notes that smooth and mellow it out. By itself, it’s just too overwhelming and I worry that I smell like old lady. It has incredible throw and it lasts all day long.

Single Note: Red Ginger - This is incredibly strong, powerful, and bitter. It’s sharp and biting and smells like freshly-sliced ginger root x10 – only not as sweet. It’s almost too overwhelming in it’s pure form. Fortunately, after it fully dries down, it fades just enough to be bearable and is not so frightening anymore. The scent is true ginger and while it doesn’t have enough texture or depth to wear it by itself, I just know that if I layer it lightly it with some of my favorite ginger scents (e.g., Shub!) it will really bring out the ginger aspect of those blends. The trick is going to be not going overboard since this is the most powerful BPAL I’ve encountered. On its own, the scent has really good staying power – a good four to six hours.

Single Note: Sweet Almond - When I first apply this, it is the incredibly gorgeous scent of almond, and reminds me immediately of the first note I detect in scents like Seraglio, Black Phoenix, and Baron Samedi. It’s beautiful and I kept help but breath it in, almost tasting the sweet, fleshy scent with each breath. The moment it begins to dry down, however, it becomes almond-plastic on me. It gains the plastic scent about it that before this, I have only ever gotten from gourmand-type foody scents. While the scent lasts for hours, it’s all plastic almond, and it’s a very sad experience for me. Almond almost always fades on me right away in BPAL blends – I guess I should be happy that in the blends, the other notes cover up the plastic scent which it turns to on my skin in pure form. I’ll be finding a new home for this one.

Single Note: Carnation smells exactly like I hoped it would – it’s spicy and floral and a simply wonderful scent. The spiciness is strongest when I first apply it, and it mellows over the time I wear the oil. It remains spicy, just not as much as when I first apply. The lovely spicy-floral scent of carnation is one of my favorite BPAL notes, so I’m just thrilled to have the chance to try the single note on its own. I was really bummed out the first time I thought I tried it, because someone sent me a fake that smelled entirely like strong soap, but since carnation notes in the blends works so well on me, I was sure it had to be a fake. Two lovely BPALers came to my rescue, each of them sending me a couple drops of real Carnation SN so I could compare and both of theirs smelled exactly like I expected them to, while the soapy one was determined to most definitely be a fake. I’m now waiting on my very own full imp of real Carnation SN to arrive, and I’m very excited about it!

Single Note: White Musk - It didn’t smell like much on me. It was light, very subtle, and faded within minutes. It was the final bit of evidence that I needed that white musk shows up on me about as strong as water does. I swapped it away and have never missed it.

Single Note: Fig - This is by far the prettiest single note I’ve smelled so far. I didn’t think I was going to like it since I have yet to find a single other fig scent out there that I like (anyone want my B&BW Fig & Brown Sugar body spray?), despite the fact that I love the taste and smell of fresh figs. However, the BPAL Fig SN is simply amazing. It’s almost spicy when I first apply it, but then it dries down to a sweet, creamy, and fleshy-fruit type scent, not exactly “juicy”, yet still “fruity”. There isn’t much throw, but the staying power seems to be about 2½ to 3 hours on my skin, which isn’t too bad. I haven’t cared for most of the BPAL scents that have fig in them, but now that I’ve smelled the single note and have gained a great appreciation for it, I think I may want to try some of the BPAL fig blends again and give them a second chance.

Single Note: D'Anjou Pear - This is such a pretty single note! If I had access to bottles of this, I'd be several! It's so light and fresh and pretty. It smells nothing like an actual real-life pear -- it's more of an artificially-flavored sweet-candy scent, like what you'd find if Jolly Rancher made a D'Anjou Pear flavored candy. However, it's still a fabulous scent, and now that I've tried this single note, I definitely understand why I like Glitter so much -- because it's predominantly D'Anjou Pear scented! Sadly, there's virtually no throw and I can only smell it up close on my skin, and it fades totally and completely within a couple of hours, sometimes even quicker than that if I'm having a particularly dry-skin day.

Lobban - Almost instantly, I’m enchanted by the scent of blossoming lilacs! It’s an even stronger lilac than Dragon’s Eye. (I can't believe the other reviewers don't smell lilac!) It reminds me of a beautiful spring day when everything is in bloom, and the scent of lilacs fills the air. There is a hint of something similar to lemon underneath the lilac (way underneath it) but it’s not a lemon Pledge scent as much as a light lemon zest scent. About 45 minutes after application, I notice something green peeking through, like the scent of green leaves or grass. The scent doesn’t morph any more beyond this point, and remains beautiful and for the first hour or so, I get lovely wafts of lilac, but during the second hour, it begins to fade fast, and by the end of the 2nd hour, it has almost completely disappeared. It’s a beautiful fragrance that I won’t be giving up any time soon. I wish Beth would re-release it!