feline.by.design

I was another excited forumite when Manila was introduced, as my mother hails from the Philippines also (big ups to Baguio City!). Manila, though, I'm kind of *meh* with. I actually like the drydown, evocative of sweet floral incense that has an interesting "tang," as opposed to the initial sampaugita sugar rush when I first applied the oil. I was very close to just washing it off. I like sweet fragrances, but this was just out of control. Although it wasn't my cup of tea, it really fulfills the ideal of Manila really well. Good thing it doesn't smell like what Manila really smells like: smog, diesel exhaust, dust and fish sauce. I'm going to possibly hold onto Manila to give to my mother for Mother's Day (I know, it's a long way off...), or maybe do a swap or sell. Manila is something I can see is a beautiful fragrance, but just not really for me. I'm not too big on the tropical fragrances, but I was really glad to try this out anyway. -doreen

Sorry, folks, this isn't going to be a glowing review of The Unicorn. I found my imp of The Unicorn to be rather grossly sweet and too childlike for my tastes. It smells medicinal and, yet, oddly familiar. Like something I ate or some sort of obscenely flavoured lip balm. Gah! Okay, it's not a bad scent, but it just wasn't suited to me or my tastes. I think actually if I had a little five or six year old girl, this would be a fantastic scent to let her play with (diluted, of course). It's soft and evokes a sort of childish giggle from its very sniff. I don't giggle. I emit sinister laughter. -doreen

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet.... I am a Virgo (27th August, holla!) and I was surprised at first at the choice of the oils. I was hoping for something clean and brisk, something I felt most Virgos are. But of course, we are earthy, sensual beings, and this fragrance displays such traits well. I've worn it quite frequently, and I own a 10 ml bottle that's still full and being used sparingly. I love the patchouli in the oil, the spices are subtle, the rose isn't too "in your face," the white musk works wonders and the oil is just fabulous. Virgo makes me feel wonderful, both feminine yet strong and empowered. Virgo is one of the fragrances I'll wear that elicits quite a few compliments from other people. I'm rather sad that the Astrological/Celestial lines were shut down. At least I have my big fat 10 ml bottle to see me through. It will be nice while it lasts. -doreen

Spooky is the first BPAL oil I've ever had a skin reaction to, which is shocking. Hamadryad? Bring it on! Mercury? Cinnamon rocks! Minty coconut fragrance? Rash. After putting Spooky on my neck, I noticed that ten minutes later my neck was burning like Dante's Inferno. My arms, however, which also experienced sprinkles of the oil, were fine. But my neck broke out. I was at work, so I followed up a wet paper towel with an alcohol wipie, then repeated this scenario until it was gone. That said, I am uncertain as to what I will do with the *two* bottles I have. I'm tempted to keep one and just note put it anywhere near my neck, and sell the other one to a coworker of mine who enjoyed the fragrance and would like it for her daughter. In fact, I got a couple copliments despite my urge to claw my neck skin off. But yes, I did note the "thin mint" scent. It reminded me of those Andes mints (yum!). It seemed to last an acceptable amount of time for a light fragrance. I did enjoy it, enough for me not to cast aside the bottle as soon as it started to give me my first ever BPAL skin rash. I just don't know if I will hold onto the bottle, or swap it off. -doreen

Grandmother of Ghosts was a freebie imp, aka "frimp," from the Lab. I'm very glad they included this in my most recently received oil. Grandmother of Ghosts is quite a surprise. I'm first of all surprised that there isn't any patchouli in this, or at least according to the Lab's description, because GoG is a very deep, dusky fragrance. At first when wet, I wasn't certain if Granny and I would be on good terms, but she eventually settled on my skin smelling like rich wood, with a little dust. The laurel and the wood fragrances are definitely prominent notes. I am actually amazed that the florals didn't show through Grandmother of Ghosts on my skin. Perhaps my chemistry amped up the "mysterious woods" smell and ate the rest. In any case, I really like Grandmother of Ghosts, as its quite curious and a little melancholy. I will certainly keep the imp around, and once I cycle through some of my oils, I should be in the market to buy or trade for a bottle. -doreen

Sophia! Why have I never noticed you in the catalogues before?! I think this was an free imp (frimp?) from the wonderful Lab, and I am so glad they decided to include this with the order. I don't think I ordered it, but if I did, I can't recall (I had a weird ordering-amnesia with this past order, sorry). Sophia is *beautiful* and I am wholly enamoured! Right away, the lavender is the center stage note when wet, but it doesn't take long for the other notes to push past lavender's sharp cool. Jasmine is noticable after about a minute on my skin (love! love!). It's not as strong as some of the other oils with jasmine I've tried. For those of you who may be familiar with Oneiroi, picture Oneiroi Lite. Sophia is soft, and the jasmine in the blend is toned down by the other elements in the fragrance. The black rose is barely noticable, acting more as a grounding note that helps soften the spices. The black rose is the note which probably would have steered me away from this oil as I'm not a fan of roses. In this case, it works extremely well. Sophia is so gentle and feminine. This is now easily one of my favourite florals ever. I'm so glad I'm trying this on before I go to bed. Sophia is a perfect oil to use as a relaxation and sleep aid. I'll be dousing myself with a few more swipes of the wand before tucking myself in. Even though my heart is elated with this discovery of gorgeousness, I can't help but feel a bit dismayed that I can't stick to my plan of trimming down my BPAL bottles now. There's now a little demon inside me that's tugging at my wallet, going "We must buy more!!" Oh deary me, I must repeat to myself "No more BPAL, I need tuition money." But I'm weak. So very weak... -doreen

Somehow or another, I had forgotten that I ordered White Rabbit as an imp previously, thus I ordered it again with my current pending order. I've done this with a few others, as well. But there's no worry, as White Rabbit is a really enjoyable scent for me. It smells like a wonderful tea treat. White Rabbit's a perfect blend between the gourmand and light floral/green. It's not strong, like many other foody-type scents, so it's very grand office wear. My supervisor at work, who is a fan of the oils, said that it smells "just like Easter." Appropriate, eh? As well as balancing gourmand and floral, White Rabbit works well as a delightful mix of playfulness and elegance. Although it doesn't last as long as many other oils, clocking with me at around 40-90 minutes, I really enjoy White Rabbit, and I'm looking forward to my spare imp in my next order. -doreen ~~~ So, apparently I never got a bottle of White Rabbit as it gave me a sour milk smell, but having been away from the BPAL forum and having a bit of BPAL amnesia of sorts, I had recently intended to get a bottle of The White Rabbit, but had to abstain due to lack of funds. But I wound up getting a frimp from the Lab! Either tipped off by the amount of vanilla scents I was buying (Dorian and The Mouse's Long and Sad Tale) or by simple serendipity, I got a free imp and was able to try White Rabbit again. And I loved it! It's something I hope to get a big bottle of soon.

Laudanum smells very spicey. The nutmeg is very prominent on me, with the sassafrass not too far behind. Delicious. Do you remember YSL Opium? Well, Laudanum is better. Much better. Those of you who wanted to spray some Opium on back in the day will want to marinate in Laudanum. It's far spicier, with a much better bite. On me, Laudanum doesn't seem to last as long as I would like, but that's my only complaint. A big bottle is definitely in the future, and I will be sure to use my imp up. This would make an awesome fall/winter fragrance, as well as a room oil. It would make my home smell like a den of sin, which would be very cool. Yes, Laudanum definitely gets the thumbs up from me. -doreen

Dirty gets the thumbs up from me. I was very attracted to the scent description when the oil was first introduced. "Crisp white linen scent"? I'm all about that. Dirty, on me, was a clean, pretty floral. It's not unlike good scented soap, actually, but without the powdery soapyness. The flowers seem very light, yet quite fragrant. This scent is very well-balanced with a green note that adds a crispness to the scent. I love fragrances that smell like they belong on bedsheets, and Dirty does not disappoint me. It sort of makes me feel I'm in a Martha Stewart-esque home, with the bedroom containing a simple antique bed with white linens and a window is open to let the springtime breezes from a garden waft in. Clean scents really rock my block. I don't know if that has anything to do with my sun sign (Virgo) or not, but no matter. A bigger bottle of Dirty will be in order once I use up my imp. The folks at the Lab deserve high-fives for this creation. -doreen

I can't remember how I got this one... I throw all of my untried imps in a box to be uncovered later. Normally I'm really good about these things, but I can't recall where I got Temple of Dreams. I think I bought it from the Tsunami Relief auction.... Oh well, anyway, I probably should have tried this out when I was about to go to sleep. Rather, I put it on after a nap. *Ahem* Temple of Dreams is a beautiful fragrance. When wet, it is predominantly lavender, although there is something that keeps the lavender from being so sharp. Other herbs are noticable, moreso on the drydown. After wearing it for an hour I notice the rosemary note coming into play. It's a really gorgeous fragrance, very clean and comforting. When I first applied ToD, I was reminded of linen spray as well. Oh the possibilities! Maybe when I run out of my current lavender spray, I can make a concoction out of my imp. I'm definitely keeping the imp, and a big bottle would be nice eventually (but at the moment I have waaaay too much BPAL). For those of you who felt that Oneiroi was too jasmine-esque and Baku was too sharp, I think you will enjoy Temple of Dreams. -doreen

I ordered The Apothecary with the last received order as an imp. I may have to get a big bottle soon. The Apothecary is a very clean fragrance. I am reminded of the BPAL Tarot Oil The Hermit, as both are similar, but I think The Apothecary is brighter and more floral. It's like sunflowers or dandelions, yet there is an herbal kick to it that keeps the fragrance green and gender neutral. The tea is in the background, undulating silently. This is a gorgeously clean smell. This seems like what bed linens and hotel pillows should smell like: brightly clean. The Apothecary would be a lovely one for the office or for an interview. It seems to say "well-groomed, fastidious, mildly playful, polite." Man, if I could trick people into thinking this about me, it would so rock! Although it's clean, herbal, tea and all that jazz, the small swab of the imp wand is really noticable. This isn't a meek oil that one really has to kind of push the nose to the skin to smell. Definitely one for the big bottle list. Definitely. I'm somewhat peeved with myself for not trying this sooner. -doreen

When I first applied Ra, it was a scent that was very gender neutral. It was a warm scent, a little floral, a little "something dark." I was really digging it. However, about five minutes after application, the lighter, brighter notes disappeared. The base notes of Ra became more pronounced on my skin, reminding me of human sweat, strange as it sounds. This may be the frankincense note that was mentioned. It's a dark sort of fragrance on me, maybe a little dirty, even. Still very strong, though. It's as if as soon as the Sun rose, a dark cloud covered it up. After a while, the fragrance of Ra actually wound up a little soapy (!!) on my skin, which is something I don't think anyone else has mentioned. Were the florals lilies? I don't know, I'm rather confounded. It's an interesting fragrance, and while I don't dislike the frankincense (?) note, it isn't something I really care to smell like. I think I'll give this to my friend Joe, as it is a very masculine scent in the end, and it's something he might like. -doreen

Upon first application, Verdandi was kind of a sweet, fruity smell that I didn't quite take to. It didn't seem like an apple scent, more like a peach or apricot. Someone mentioned how the apple note is similar to the one in the Hesperides, a fragrance I didn't take to, either. However, after about five or ten minutes of wear, the spices come into play. I smell like potpourri chips. What's interesting is that on my wrists I can smell the spice, but in the inner crook of my elbow I still can smell the apple note (it smells like apple now) that's sweet, but, possibly due to my skin chemistry, the apples smell spoilt. Verdandi isn't quite what I expected. Perhaps if there was more amber and more spice I would enjoy it more. This would be a grand fragrance to experiment with in regards to home fragrance, but in the end, I don't think I'll be wearing it again. -doreen

For a while I was using a cotton pad with alcohol, but the rubbing alcohol I have is mint-scented, so at times the fragrance would be just wretched. Now, I just scrub lots with some oatmeal soap and add a dash of Bath & Body Works scented soap to smother the remnants of the oil. I've taken to trying on fragrances for the first time at night, when I'm not going out anywhere else in the evening and, many times, I shower in the evening as well, so it's not a major trauma. -doreen

My impie of Kostnice came courtesy of Red Hot Mama's UNICEF auction. At first, it reminded me a touch of Cathedral when first wet. But within the span of a few minutes, the florals take over. On my skin, Kostnice is consistantly very flowery. The lily, for me, is predominant, with the rose not far behind with its powdery aroma. In the end, the rose fragrance manages to outlast the other notes. Not my thing, ladies, but perhaps those of you who are more fond of lily-rose floral combos may find Kostnice dreamy. -doreen

Sensual, robust, and silken: voluptuous red rose bursting with lascivious red wine and sultry dragon’s blood resin. Blood Rose is very similar to Blood Amber. In Blood Rose, I smell something that, to me, appears to be the amber/resin note, but it's mixed with rose. I'm not a big fan of fragrances with roses, but this oil smells okay initially to me. The rose, after some more wear, becomes more apparent in the construction, though. I personally would prefer not to have it in the first place. The longer I wear Blood Rose, the stronger the rose fragrance gets. Blood Rose isn't for me, in the end, but I can see why others would enjoy it. I can appreciate that it's a beautiful scent. Blood Amber, though, suits me better. -doreen

In Wolfsbane, my nosey-posey met with a clean pine scent that had something a little extra, making the overall fragrance a little sharper and bitter. Rather than the pine tree's pokey needles, I'm smelling something more evocative of the pine tree's resin. If I may make a comparison to Val San(s) Retour, Wolfsbane is a little similar, but darker. However, like Val San(s) Retour, Wolfsbane does fade rather quickly. The pine wore off too quick to my liking, leaving something that my nose took to be a faint patchouli base, though I could be way off on that one. Wolfsbane is a good scent, however my only real problem with it is that it fades quicker than I would like it to. It would be nice to try this out as a home fragrance, but it would also work well as a unisex fragrance or as a sort of "booster" scent to add to other scents. I'm one who would welcome all sorts of pine variants, so Wolfsbane gets the thumbs up from me, although I likely will not be picking up a bottle. -doreen

Ah, Hymn... strong, floral, very "perfumey." At least that is how it was for me. The florals on me get a bit powdery. Ah, the note of rose, how fickle you are to me. Aside from my animosity towards the rose, these flowers really give one the image of "bright" flowers. Pale blossoms that radiate their own light. To a person who likes floral fragrances, Hymn is something that would no doubt please you. But for me, this just wasn't my can of Spam. -doreen

In Venus, I smell something very minty. Once I put a little dab of the oil on my skin, the minty smell steps back a little, bringing forth a light, feminine fragrance, one I cannot pinpoint easily. This smells very clean. I can see the "green and pink" connection that previous reviewers have made. I like Venus, but I'm not that crazy about it. After ten minutes of wear I can detect a rose note, or possibly another floral, peeking out of the depths. I've tried a decent number of BPAL's Celestials, and I must admit that although some are fragrances that I likely wouldn't wear often, I am really impressed with how well-made and complex these oils are. -doreen

On the first application of the BPAL oil Jupiter, it seemed like a very bitter, masculine scent. However, the fragrance did manage to become a little sweeter in an herbal (herby? herbish?) fashion. It's quite complex, and I'm afraid I'm not as adept as I'd like to be in regards to picking notes out, but for a while, Jupiter seemed like a very green fragrance, reminiscent of broken weeds and leafy herbs. Someone previously mentioned smelling a woody scent, and this is probably something along the lines that I caught as well. After a longer wear, like at after 20 or 30 minutes, the bitterness manages to return to Jupiter a little bit. Jupiter has some bite to it. It seems like a very interesting unisex scent. If this oil were still in production, I wouldn't mind having an imp lying around. It seems like something that would be good layered with Jabberwocky or other green scents. I'm waffling about what I am going to do with my 5 ml bottle, however, because at the moment I'm in a big move to purge the scents I don't wear, and Jupiter is on the chopping block. I'll have to think about it a bit more. -doreen

So here is my experience while trying Snow White for the first time: Application: Oooh! My word, it's clean and coconutty! I love coconut! It smells like a macaroon or a coconut pastie! Yummy! Five minutes later: "If you like pina coladas..." Ahem, sorry, I dislike that song, but I love Snow White. It's gorgeous and yummy and yummy and gorgeous and.... yummy.... Oh it's just fab! Seven minutes later: Eh? What's this? There appears to be some other note that is sneaking around under the coconut. Hmm... nevermind, it's gone again. Twenty or so minutes later: Snow White smells as clean and strong as it was when I first put it on. This one is definitely a keeper. It's a sweet fragrance somewhere in-between coconut-velvet and a pina colada. :::in heaven::: -doreen

You know, I don't know what's going on... I don't know if it's my nose or what, but when I tried this, all I could smell was something akin to wood, but not really. Maybe it's the vanilla. Reading the components of Hunger, one would think I'd like it, but for some reason, I just can't smell it on my wrists. It's as if my skin inhaled it and chose to emit a faint, rubber smell in its place. I don't think this smells like the wicked creamsicle others have been getting. I had asked my boyfriend to sniff me, and he says it smells like "holidays." Or maybe he said "hollandaise," but I'm pretty certain it's the former. After fifteen minutes I'm still sort of cramming my nose into my wrist to find some of the notes of this scent, unsuccessfully. I'd blame it on my now-gone cold, but I can smell plenty of other things around me. Maybe it's one of those weird reactions that one out of every thousand people get with a certain BPAL oil; the oil mysteriously disappears into the skin, much to the amazement of the wearer. I've heard of this happening to other people. I'll try this oil again maybe in a couple of days, but if I get the same reaction, I'll probably pass this along to someone who doesn't have such a bizarre experience. -doreen

Some of my favourites to wear in an office-type environment that I feel would be good for interviews would be: Zephyr The Hermit Juliet Embalming Fluid Phantasm Jabberwocky Endymion Other suggestions of oils I've tried that would also be appropriate would be: Cheshire Cat Paris Ultraviolet Queen Mab Chiroptera For gentlemen, I would recommend: Wilde Severin Villain Vicomte de Valmont Good luck to anyone up for a job! -doreen

Ultraviolet was a freebie from the Lab. I've had it for ages, but lately I've been on a kick to try out sniffies I've been sort of sitting on. On my skin, Ultraviolet smells like violet bubble bath. The oil gives of a very clean floral fragrance that's just a smidge sweet. As it dries, Ultraviolet warms up a little, but still smells bubbley. All in all, I like the fragrance, however I don't know if this will be something I would wear often. It's a wonderful floral for people who shy away from roses. It may be something I'll incorporate later on in a home fragrance spray or in an oil burner, or it may be something I may pass on to someone else. I'll think about it for a while. -doreen

At first sniff, it smells just like Hurricane, a BPAL favourite of mine. Loralei is watery-juicy in the beginning. The neroli isn't sharp and biting as I've come to expect it to be, so it just adds to the juicy fragrance. As Loralei starts to dry down, it begins to smell more like fresh, clean water. How interesting and unexpected. But now, it's become invisible unless I really, really press my nose up against the skin. Oh MAN! *snaps* Loralei... a clean scent, absolutely lush and gorgeous. You could've been a contender if only you'd lasted for longer than five minutes. I think I'll continue to rock Hurricane for the time being. -doreen