Laurel the Woodfairy

This is gorgeous when wet: it's the strong delicious spices of chai with something akin to Yankee Candle's Autumn Leaves (my favorite fall candle). The drydown is a little odd on me, though, sort of sickly? I think I'll use up my decant but not get a big bottle.

Mmmmm This is delectable, and on me it unfolds in distinct layers: first caramel, then green apple (definitely green to my nose), then sugar cookie. It's like eating your way through the caramel coating to the apple and then a cookie center. It has a lot of throw at first, but the cookie note disappears quickly, leaving caramel apple to linger nicely. A perfect scent for a fall day at the state fair or a hayride.

Wet, I got a flash of...bubblegum?! Not sure what that was; lotus does that on me, but it isn't listed in the note, so who knows. Then I got the red wine note from Lady Macbeth, mixed with foody and sweet notes. This is turning into more of a grape candy scent on me, which isn't what I was expecting although I can see how the notes could do that. A decant will be sufficient, as my skin doesn't seem to want to amp the richer notes here.

Wet: violet pastilles candy! And...maple syrup? I can't imagine what is turning to maple syrup on me, but it's definitely there. Nice but kind of weird.

Dry: The maple is gone; it's now the nice soft violet sugar scent I hoped it would be. It fades pretty quickly on me but still leaves a pleasant faint trace.

I was very curious to try this one, because the only GC BPAL with frangipani is Delight, which was bad on me due to jasmine. I wanted to see what frangipani smells like blended with notes I can wear, and the answer is: it smells great! This is a rich, creamy white floral that is so lush it's "chewy", in the sense that some wines are described that way. It's tropical and feminine and I absolutely love it!

Completely delicious, one of those can't-stop-sniffing-my-arm scents. It's exactly what I was hoping for: Dragon's Milk but sexier. Wet, it smells exactly like Dragon's Milk on me (dragon's blood, cream, and honey), but with an undercurrent of what reminded me of Snake Oil, although that's not listed. It must be something about the way resins react with my skin. I don't really get pear, but I get complete yumminess!

At first I got a delicious burnt-honey topnote, but there's something under it that isn't so good on me while wet...I think it's the teak, but it's almost more like motor oil than woods. Very strange. It settles into a sweet drydown with a hint of tobacco. Better, but rather masculine for me.

I've been referring to this as Microbrewery because I couldn't recall the full name; I guess a marsh woman's brewery probably would be on the micro side? It doesn't smell like beer on me though; it's smells mainly like sweetgrass, blended with soft herbal/floral notes. It smells like a kindly witch's herb garden to me!

A clean, soapy base with topnotes of salt, seaweed, and aquatic...reminds me strongly of Sea Vegetable soap from LUSH. Not my usual style, but I'll keep the frimp because having an imp labeled Cthulhu makes me laugh--only at BPAL!!!

Oh yeah, this is a BAMF scent! It opens with a blast of dark cocoa, but then becomes all Posh Spice. I haven't had a spice BPAL with this much pepper since the long-defunct Three Witches (RIP). It settles into a sexy clove cigarettes and vanilla base that still has a lot of throw. Three distinct phases, all really good!

This was an immediate big-bottle buy, as the notes are the closest to Red Lantern in this year's Lupers, and I've been regretting not getting more R.L. since it was last available...which was what, 8 years ago? Yeah, that's a long time. To His Mistress has the delicious smokey caramel topnotes I was hoping for, and a rich dark figgy drydown as well. It's been so long since Red Lantern that I couldn't say how similar it really is, but it has the burned caramel over a sexy base that I was seeking, so I am content.

On my skin, Instruction Manuel started as something like honeyed peaches before becoming recognizably strawberries and vanilla: the sweet + fruity theme remains! The cherry blossoms are a lovely base. This reminds me of The Fairy Market: fruit, flowers, and then musk on the drydown.

Wow, comparisons to The Hesperides are bang-on--this is a spring apple scent instead of an autumn apple scent; it smells like crisp green Granny Smith and/or Golden Delicious apples plus a sweet hint of apple blossom. It's tart, fresh, and delicious!

Black Pearl is a generous frimp from the Lab, and the name makes me want to talk like a pirate. Arrrrrr, let's test it then, mateys!

In the imp: lightly hazelnutty, like a Ferrero Rocher candy

Wet: mmm, hazelnut and coconut, well-blended and a bit buttery...like a Samoa girl school cookie

Dry: the iris finally comes out, making this much less foody and more perfume-y

Verdict: a treasure for a mermaid rather than a pirate, as the white musk and iris make it delicate and pretty with a tropical touch

2015 version! I like the idea of a sexy Lupercalia-style scent available at Yule.

In the vial: bright red in color, and smells a lot like Dragon's Milk.

Wet, on me: a blast of caramel for a hot second, then patchouli dominates, then red musk emerges to soften and warm it.

Dry, on me: beautifully blended on the drydown, with the patchouli fading into the base and a balanced spiced honey-caramel / red musk on top. Comparisons to Red Lantern are apt. Perfect for a hot date on a cold winter's night!

A generous frimp from the Lab, with so many notes I don't know what to expect!

In the vial: medium-gold color, the scent of well-blended spices

On my skin, wet: yum! Spicy, gardenia, and molasses (?!). Sweet-foody-floral all at once. Reminds me of Lady of Shalott but with spice instead of aquatic.

Drydown: Gardenia continues to dominate as the spice fades. I really like this; I don't know if I need a bottle but will use up the imp.

I thought I had already tried this, but I had it mixed up with the now-discontinued Midnight. I avoided Twilight because of the jasmine, but I have a frimp from the Lab and am curious.

In the vial: light golden color, pure lavender scent--the dry, spicy lavender of the fields, not the sweeter perfumey version

Wet on my skin: My skin amps jasmine, so that quickly overtakes the lavender. The two are fighting, not blending on me.

Dry: It's calmed down and reminds me of Somnus, a good lavender sleepy-time scent. But the jasmine makes it not my favorite.

First of all, what an awesome name! This is a frimp from the Lab.

In the vial: very pale yellow color, smells of...huh. Someone upthread said Chanel, and that's exactly it! It smells like a high-end women's cologne with aldehyde notes.

Wet on my skin: like Chanel Cristalle. White/green floral notes. No dirt. No 'shrooms.

Drydown: I never did get any dirt; my skin ate the clean "green" topnotes and it settled into a warmer white floral. Really pretty, and not what I expected at all!

A frimp from the Lab...I'm expecting a deathmatch, honestly, because rose is great on me but jasmine is awful. To the thunderdome!

In the vial: light golden color; a light scent of jasmine

Wet on my skin: Much lighter than I would have thought! Reminds me of Beltane: a pretty spring bouquet, a white floral with a bit of citrus to keep it fresh

Drydown: It's not the "bad" jasmine; in fact, it reminds me of LUSH bath bombs--clean floral. It's odd that I'm not getting the rose more clearly, but I think it's just really well-blended. A nice GC option if you like Beltane, which I do.

Avenging unrequited love sounds like the best job ever. This was a generous frimp from the Lab.

In the vial: very dark orange color, smells like patchouli and red musk, deep and rich but not "heavy"

Wet on my skin: patchouli dominates but it's spicy and not overly hippie-smelling

Drydown: Much more interesting as it dries! This is well-blended and hard to pick out specific notes, but there's some vanilla and red musk with a lighter twist of currant freshening and brightening it. I really like it dry! The currant makes all the difference. It's like a less sweet but more sexy Eat Me, and also reminds me of the discontinued Masquerade. Gender neutral.

Inferno smells like Christmas! I know that's odd, given the name, but it smells like almond cookies and cinnamon--in other words, like holiday baking to me. A happy scent, not hellish at all. It would be a great home scent as well as perfume.

In the vial: pale clear golden color, a whiff of incense

On me: Hymn is beautiful and has the distinctive "old school" BPAL quality I know and love--it's hard to quantify, but this is Beth's unique take on both rose and incense. It reminds me of Love in the Asylum and a number of other scents, without being identical to any. It stays close to the skin but lasts, though the florals fade on drydown and it becomes mostly myrrh. I want to give it to my Mom, the most holy woman I know.

I'm feeling rather envious lately; let's see if this fits my mood!

In the imp: English lavender, which I love. Not sweet in the least; just that pure, perfect crisp lavender and maybe something minty.

On me: A tricky scent, straddling the line between good lavender and too-sharp herbal something. Yep, it does evoke a certain petulance. I don't think I really like it on me, but it captures the green-eyed monster nicely.

In the imp: pale golden color, smells sweet but alcoholic (in the cologne sense)

On me: Much lighter than I expected. Gently sweet, like white honey, while wet, but drying it turns to ambergris. Ambergris doesn't play nice on me; it turns too sharp. This would make a lovely dandy's cologne for a Byronic hero *or* heroine if ambergris is ok with your chemistry.