Akurarei

Samhain 2007 I was definitely on the fence about this one - I really, really wanted to try it, but I wanted to read some '07 reviews before taking the plunge. Well, the reviews were quite helpful in mentioning that there was no patchouli overtones - only a small number even mention it in their reviews at all. Also, the bottle is awesome! In the Bottle: PINE! it's like a mini forest in there! I really don't get any other notes from the bottle. My skin does like the wood notes quite a bit - so I'm not worried. On my Skin, Wet: A tiny bit of patchouli - it's quite subtle, but I'm not happy about it anyway. some more pine - or maybe it's the fir....either way it dominates the patchouli - so I will encourage it! WAY TO GO WOOD NOTE!! On my Skin, Dry: Some spiciness that I can't really identify. it almost smells like incense, but not really. the wood note is still there but it's more in the background now - like a backdrop forest to a Halloween gathering of costumed mortals and genuine beasties 3 Hours later: no patchouli no wood note no spiciness ALL DARK CHOCOLATE I never experienced the spiced apples, so I'm a little sad about that - but frankly, I'm super excited about a chocolate Samhain!! It's possible that I need another few hours to see if the apples show up - so maybe I could wind up with DARK CHOCOLATE COVERED SPICED APPLES!!!! ::SQUEE!!!:: Verdict: I need another bottle!! 10 of 10 rating!! Gorgeous, gorgeous blend Beth! ETA: I DID get dark chocolate covered spiced apples after about 7 hours!!!!

Vampire Tears In the Bottle: Kind of a mix of sweet & bitter fruits...maybe some kind of incensy note in there too. On my Skin, Wet: Black Licorice? Hmm. Weird. oh, wait - it's black licorice & gardenia. definitely weird - really not what I was expecting at all! On my Skin, Dry: the licorice smell goes away now - I can pick out the neroli. this is starting to remind me of The Raven but with Grapefruit or Tea or something other than voilets. Verdict: Interesting, interesting. I like it for some strange reason (I hate black licorice) but this one morphs quite a bit in subtle ways - it's too interesting to be disappointing!

Beaver Moon 2007 After reading such fabulous reviews of the original Beaver; I don't think I even looked at the ingredients before ordering! In the bottle; Smells an awful lot like MB:Bloody Mary, which was almost nothing but sour milk on me - but this is the Beaver Moon, surely it will behave more to my liking! ::crosses fingers:: On my Skin, Wet: OMG - strawberry delight!! This reminds me of the strawberry & bavarian cream dessert at La Madeliene! ONLY INFINITELY BETTER!!!! On my Skin, Dry: Sugary sweet strawberry! luscious cream! And something a little bit pie-crust like....hmmm...... Verdict: Thank you, thank you Beth for bringing this moon back this year!!

Crypt Queen In the bottle: kind of musty roses & some just-about-to-turn-rotten fruit On my Skin, Wet: Pepper! Patchouli! Roses! The patchouli is stronger than I was hoping for - but thankfully it's not "hippie" patchouli, just kind of earthy & grounding. The pepper tickles my nose a little - but not enough to make me sneeze The roses smell like they are just slightly dry (like when your bouquet is a day or two away from becoming papery) On my Skin, Dry: Roses & Raspberry(?) The rose note is fairly noticeable, though not overpowering. Still a little on the dry side. I don't think I've come across a perfume with raspberry before (even in BPAL! ::gasp!: so I'm not positive that the fruity note is raspberry; but I can say that it doesn't smell like pomgranate to me 3 - 4 Hours later: Pretty good staying power, though after puttering around in some dusty old books, I think the dust overrides CQ somewhat. It still smells like drying roses, but also the pepper comes back out a little - and kind of flashes back and forth with the raspberry note. Verdict: Very interesting & thankfully not patchouli heavy! I really am interested in the raspberry note - it's so pretty & subtle. the roses have that GREAT quality of being borderline papery - it's an astounding note! Well done, Beth! 8 of 10 ranking! Note on the coffin: The moss was a great touch! The coffin itself is nice and substantial with some beautiful golden finishes on it. Lovely & perfect for Halloween!

All Souls 2007 In the Bottle: Heavy heavy incense - and nothing else. On my Skin, Wet: Still heavy incense, but with a sugary fruit note in the background. On my Skin, Dry: Incense and sugared currant. in that order. Verdict: I really, really like this blend. I greatly enjoy an incense blend if done well. All Souls 2007 is one of those blends! (Also, currant and my chemistry have a BBF clique thing going on - so I figured this one would work out well. And it sure did!)

October 2007 In the Bottle: Its smells like a dark version of Ulalume to me. On my Skin, Wet: yep- Ulalume with smoke instead of lilies. On my Skin, Dry: Red leaves, smoke and a slight touch of sap. I do not notice a "cold" feel to it, more just "masculine" Verdict: This oil is not really my taste - but I do like it for some reason. If it ages well it could become really, really nice or just awful. I do want to wait and see though.

13 - July 2007 I was very, very excited about a 13 with an orchid note! I bought 2 bottles right away In the Bottle: Smells very much like some kind of expensive candy shop. Quite foody but not necessarily sweet - and there are bouquets of fresh flowers throughout this store, so there are wafts of floral notes mixed in with the overall gourmand flavor of this version of 13. On my Skin, Wet: Lots and lots of Honey! I should know by now that honey is a note that will either amp like crazy or swallow the rest of the perfume. at least I have honey this time instead of an oil disappearing act On my Skin, Dry: Honey. Oh, wait - and Orchid! And Starfruit! OMG STARFRUIT!!! WOW!! I am definitely impressed that the honey did not remain the dominant note! OMG STARFRUIT!!! This is AMAZING! ::LOVES:: Verdict: At first this was nothing but honey on me and I had given up hope that there would be anything else to it. Then there was Orchid with the honey - and my nose was exceedingly joyous! THEN the Starfruit joined the party and it was all over for me - TRUE 13 LOVE!! 10 of 10 rating!

Black Lily In the Bottle: Clean, airy Lily - with an underlying shadow that is somehow creamy. On my Skin, Wet: Creamy shadowed Lily. I smell what seems to be the onset of Vanilla. On my Skin, Dry: Spicy, creamy Lily & Vanilla. it subtly reminds me of Peitho for some reason. Verdict: Not one that I'll reach for often but definitely one that I'll keep a 5ml around for. Like fiddledragon stated: "I can see the "black" connotation, but it's an elegant dinner black, not a sinister black" I couldn't have said it better! thanks fiddledragon!

Allison Gross I bought this one more out of curiosity than anything else... In the Bottle: Very very herbalicious! This is so strong in the bottle that I'm leary of putting it on - All I smell are herbs; no Dragon's Blood, no Moonflower, nothing except herbs! On my Skin, Wet: The herbs amp somewhat now (oh-no! ) but there also seems to be an undercurrent of orange or something floral - though at this stage I still cannot pinpoint anything except herbs On my Skin, Dry: Still herby but definitely subdued. I get the warmth of the Dragon's Blood now, but cannot say that I actually smell it. I am also smelling what seems to be the sunflower! The sunflower just glows on the surface - and is very lovely. Verdict: I was not expecting the herbs to dominate the early stages as they did - but the end result is worth the journey. 6 of 10 rating.

Cottonmouth - The Snake Pit In the Bottle: Fresh and floral! I can smell the Snake Oil spices and vanilla, but they are the base for the lovely, lovely florals. On my Skin, Wet: Stronger Florals and Snake Oil vanilla mostly - very nice! It does have that 'clean' feeling to it that other forumites have mentioned - loving this so far! On my Skin, Dry: Spicy creamy florals on me. I cannot pick out the Snake Oil anymore, though it's presence is still definitely felt in the spices and creamy-ness that vanilla tends to do on my skin. Verdict: I love this wonderous snake! I have to admit that I'm torn between Cottonmouth, Coral Snake and Boomslang. I also really really want to try Habu, King Cobra and Green Tree Viper and on the fence about either Asp Viper or Saw-Scaled Viper.... so many snakes, only so much $$$$ I want to try other snakes from the pit until I decide on a favorite!

Thunder Moon 2007 Preface: I LOVE thunderstorms and a full moon - there was no way I wasn't going to buy this one. In the Bottle: Ozone - lots and lots of Ozone! Ozone actually works on me 95% of the time so I'm excited! On my Skin, Wet: More Ozone, but I also smell a little bit of the 'water soaked summer blooms' peeking out now and then - I don't smell any of the wood notes though, nor the grasses. On my Skin, Dry: Less Ozone now, more florals and a note that reminds me vaguely of BPAL's Lightning - maybe it's the amber or rain note... Verdict: Thunder Moon 2007 is a sister to BPAL's Tempest - I have always pictured Lightning as being a 'male' Ozone scent and Tempest being a 'female' Ozone scent....Thunder Moon 2007 is the floral version of Tempest. I have a 10mL of both Lightning and Tempest so I HAD to get two bottles of Thunder Moon 2007 Wonderful Lunacy Beth!! Thank you so much!!

Voodoo Blends: Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo Well, I DEFINITELY needed a pick-me up yesterday - being on the verge of crying as a result of other peoples shortcomings is most certainly not a happy place. In the Imp: (Freebie!! Thanks BPAL!!) Very intense sugar! It's not a pink sugar for me like other reviewers seem to get - my sugar is golden and silvery! There is also a tiny dab of cinnamon to my nose here. I couldn't pinpoint the warm note though - which other Forumites have described as berries/cherry. I'll go with that for the warm note - I can definitely picture sugared cherries now On my Skin, Wet: OOOO - More sugar! and the cinnamon & cherries kindof fade into the background a little bit, not much though. THIS IS WONDERFUL!!! I no longer feel like I'm about to cry (please note that the situation hasn't changed any between pre-ACJM and application) I'm even feeling less depressed/enraged!! AMAZING! On my Skin, Dry: Golden Sugared Cherries!! with a cinnamon stick in the background - carried on the breeze Maybe there's a tiny tiny touch of anise or some other spice - It's wonderfully subtle! Verdict: I MISS THE 10mL BOTTLES NOW!!!! Phooey! Oh well, I guess it's going to be two 5mL instead (but with the next Lunacy update- can't let the moon travel alone ) 5 of 5 rating!

Monster Bait: Bloody Mary In the Bottle: Almost sour! This must be the cream note. I can smell the red fruits - they remind me of cherries. The sour note is the most prevalent though - almost entirely overpowering. On my Skin, Wet: ::wrinkles nose:: Still sour - the fruits come out some more, but they don't really make it to front & centerstage. They remind me more of the roadies for the Sour Cream Band. On my Skin, Dry: Not as sour now, but nor has the sourness dissipated enough to make the fruits worthwhile. There does seem to be a little more sweetness at this stage than any other stage. This must be the powdered sugar note! This note really does smell exactly like powdered sugar! amazing! Trouble is - Bloody Mary is still mostly sour cream on me. Verdict: 4 of 10 I will be aging my bottles of this to see if the cream note calms down any. if the results are the same after 6 months then it will be time to find new homes (or a single home) for my bottles.

Red Lantern 2007: First off - I had no idea that tobacco notes smelled so good on me! When I saw the tobacco mentioned, my first thought was "cigarettes? PASS!" I was sooooo wrong. Sorry to ever doubt you, BPAL. In the Bottle: I get mostly tobacco but also something sweet which I will guess is the caramel. On my Skin, Wet: Oh.My.Goodness. The tobacco has subsided somewhat but the caramel comes out to play & Tangoes with the Opium and the delphinium. I can't really pin down the coconut though. I assume it's bringing the creaminess feel to the overall experience. On my Skin, Dry: A softer version of the dance from the wet stage. All the notes seem to be taking turns and just swaying back and forth between each other... much like a breezy day outside the Opium Den ^_~ Verdict: 9 of 10! Even the fiance kept nuzzling my neck! Extra Bonus!! I suppose next year I'll buy 2 or more Red Lantern 2008!! (PLEASE BPAL?!) P.S. I happened to wear this the same day as going to see '300' at the movies. from now on I always associate Red Lantern 2007 with excessive exposed flesh. I suppose it's fitting since it was a Valentine's scent! LOL!!

I haven't seen this scent mentioned in this thread, so I'll mention it. BLOOD KISS. For me, it was so creepy it literally gave me goosebumps and gave me the impression that someone was standing too close to my back for the 30 minutes I wore it. I love the vanilla and cherries that BPAL produces, but Blood Kiss did not exhibit either of those scents for me. Instead it reminded me of being in an old rickety house full of cobwebs and no lights - right down to the windows being boarded or covered somehow. It even went so far as making me feel downright 'hunted' in the house by some ill spirit or person. I will never wear this scent again. I don't mind a good scare once in a while, but to be as transported as I was when I tried Blood Kiss is far too overwhelming. It was a bright sunny day and 9:30 AM - I should not have been dragged into a horror movie over a scent!

Monster Bait: BiggerCritters OOOO - Nothing but components that love my skin?! SIGN ME UP RIGHT AWAY! In the Bottle: I smell jasmine! but this is a soft jasmine, not the overpowering jasmine that I love so much (& loves me right back) there is also some juicyness coming through - must be the grapefruit! On my Skin, Wet: Yummy! I'm amping the soft jasmine somewhat, and the vanillas are starting to peek around the corner too. Maybe there's a little bit of shy gardenia making an appearance as well, but it's very very faint at this point. On my Skin, Dry: Less jasmine now, but lots more vanilla and gardenia! I think the grapefruit note has gone a touch over-ripe on me, but it's barely noticeable. the jasmine waves from behind the curtain of vanilla and gardenia once in a while. Just lovely! This Monster Bait doesn't have a whole lot of throw on me - which is a little strange, since I typically amp jasmine in particular and in most cases vanilla as well. It's been hit or miss with amping the gardenia on my skin, so I'm not sure what causes gardenia to amp or remain sutble. My experiences with grapefruit are rather limited, but so far I have loved this note in my perfumes! Verdict: Very cuddly, just like the description says! Definitely glad I bought two bottles outright! I like this one so much that I may have to buy another one! 8 of 10!

Dragon's Bone In the Bottle: Dry and sharp. The Dragon's Blood is pretty minimal here, but I can pick out the Blondewood & Sandalwood without any issues. Or maybe the Sandalwood is the Orris? hmmm.... On my Skin, Wet: Still dry and sharp. somewhat floraly; I guess that the Orris is doing some blooming on my wrist. I can still pick out a wood smell, I suppose it's the blondewood - I don't think any other BPAL scent has Blondewood in it, so I'm not sure about this. On my Skin, Dry: Dry and floral. The Dragon's Blood is peeking out just a wee bit here. it's still vaguely sharp - I cannot place the origin of the sharp note though. Verdict: I think the BF likes this one on me better than I like it. I just don't like sharp scents. I think I'll try it out on him and see if that arrangement works better. As a perfume, however - I would rate this one as a 6 of 10. It's lovely in it's own way, if just not for me.

Carnaval Diabolique: The Candy Butcher The only BPAL chocolate scent I've had any kind of good fortune with has been the 13 series. I tried Vice for the chocolate and cherries primarily, but got thwarted by the orange blossom In the Bottle: This smells like Vice did. But since there doesn't seem to be a citrusy note, I'll give it a whirl. On my Skin, Wet: This smells really dry somehow. It does smell like cocoa, not chocolate though. nor is it turning plastic-y on me so far. I can vaguely smell somethink like sour milk, which I suppose is the cream note. On my Skin, Dry: Well, there is no plastic transformation, so that's very good news The Candy Butcher doesn't ever turn chocolate on me, but remains a dusty cocoa with a thin line of something sweet. So, the good news is that the cream note does not stay 'sour milk' either. Verdict: I am glad I have a bottle, but I'm still on the hunt for a BPAL chocolate scent that I can wear that doesn't turn dusty on me. Overall The Candy Butcher did live up to her description though, and she faded into the background some so that I wasn't surrounded by dusty sweet cocoa. I would rate the Butcher as a 4 of 10.

Rose Red 2005 In the Bottle: WOW! It smells like the purest natural rose I have ever, ever, ever come across - it smells even more natural than a rose in a garden!! ::can't wait to wear this!!:: On my Skin, Wet: OMG - an ENORMOUS bouquet of fresh cut red roses! right down to the foliage of the bouquet! This is TRULY an amazing scent! WOW! On my Skin, Dry: Still the most amazing natural rose smell EVER! I can't get over how wonderful this smells!! ::nuzzles wrists!!:: Verdict: SOOOOO happy that I bought 2 bottles!! Wonderful! Phenominal! Indeed - The Perfect Rose, winter or otherwise! 10 of 10!

Carnaval Diabolique: Faith Having tried Numb and finding out that it contains violets, I wasn't sure about Faith. In the Bottle: OOO - How wrong was I about doubting Faith? EXTREMELY! She really is the sister of Hope! Where Hope had mountains of sugar with an undercurrent of Rose, so Faith is a mountain of sugar with an undercurrent of delicious violets! LOVE! On my Skin, Wet: Uh-Oh! Here I go amping violets again!! Phew! ok - the sugar is coming out to play, so far so good! mmmmm - sugared candied violets, sort of juicy in a weird way too. but weird in a very good way! On my Skin, Dry: Wonderous sugary voilet candy - but not at all little-girl-ish. These are vixen sugared voilet candies not toddler sugar violet candies! This somehow retains it's weird juiciness. I am very pleased with the notion that Faith is a JUICY sugared violet, I just wish I could place the juicy note. Maybe a single drop of peach or plum? Verdict: Ah, screw it - I don't care what the juicy note is! Beautiful Faith! I adore you and your sister!! You are what I had hoped Numb would be - except that you are FAR superior than my anticipations of the violet notes! ooooo - wouldn't it be GREAT if there were more sugared flowers in the GC?

Carnaval Diabolique: Hope I have not yet met a BPAL rose that I didn't like - so the prospect of a SUGARED rose was irrisistable! In the Bottle: I smell mostly sugar with a faint undercurrent of rose. The rose does not seem to be the same fresh rose found in Rose Red 2005. It is far more subdued; or there is a massive sugar rush in a bottle here! LOL On my Skin, Wet: ::drool:: ::snuggles wrist:: Can happiness be a sugared rose? Of all the rose scents I've tried from BPAL - this one is the most beautiful! Rose Red 2005 is the most natural, literally. But Hope is the most prized rose of the rose garden - she is the one that redefines loveliness and is the epitome of the ideal pink rose. Simply Marvelous! On my Skin, Dry: It's a lovely tango between the sugar and rose. Each note takes it's turn between coming to the forefront and being the supporting role. I am continually impressed by the fluctuations. oooo - I think there might even be just a tiny, tiny dash of something green in here! If I am smelling something green (which I'm not entirely sure about) then it's probably a very, very delicate herb or a tiny pinch of grass. Astounding! Verdict: I don't usually want to hoard a BPAL scent, but Hope might make the exception for the Siamese Twins! BTW, my definition of hoarding would be 5 bottles or more. Problem is - there is a mortgage payment in between me and hoarding. LOL! Phenominal!

Mad Tea Party: Croquet I'm not a patchouli fan - but from the reviews this sounded promising regardless. In the Bottle: I get mostly fruit and not very much else. The fruits smell wonderful though! They DO smell very pink too! On my Skin, Wet: Pink Lime!! How amazing!! Mmmm - Grapefruit too! But not the prototypical sour pink grapefruit - this is a pink grapfruit grown in sugar, not soil. Absolutely delightful! I don't detect any of that nasty patchouli, either - so this is great so far! On my Skin, Dry: Still sugary pink fruits but there's something else creeping into the picture now... It does not smell like patchouli - maybe it's the musk. Well, whatever it is - I refuse to let it take over the sugared pink fruits! ::shakes finger at creeping note!:: Verdict: The finger shake worked! Croquet never really settles back into the sugared fruits that I flipped over, but the musk stays calm. The dreaded patchouli never makes an appearance with me - a fact I am DELIGHTED about! Other Notations: As mentioned before, I am not a patchouli fan at all. I dread patchouli and typically dismiss any perfume with patchouli listed outright and never consider it at all. The same thing happened with Croquet. I read the description and listed notes and dismissed it outright - despite the fact that it otherwise sounded delicious. Then after reading reviews on BPAL Madness about the patchouli almost being non-existant I decided to give it a shot (because BPAL is always amazing) Please note - I simply dread patchouli - I do not amp it. Soooo; if you simply do not LIKE patchouli then Croquet is worth an imp at least. if you AMP patchouli, then you should probably follow your own judgement about sampling (imp)/purchasing (bottle) Croquet.

Lady Luck Blues: I have to admit, I was on the fence about this one. While I have had excellent luck with BPAL's plum scents, I had my doubts about the honeyed bit of the rose. In the Bottle: Strong rose. Very pretty and feminine. Definitely not the same type of rose as Rose Red 2005. This is a much sweeter rose than Rose Red 2005, but it's not the sugared rose from Hope & Faith either. Very Promising! On my Skin, Wet: Honeyed rose indeed! This is just gorgeous - if somehow not quite what I was expecting. I definitely was hoping for some of the plum to shine through, but it hasn't made an appearance yet. I can vaguely pick out the iris note - but it's extraordinarily subtle. The fact that the note is so subtle just re-affirms my belief that the Labbies are absolutely amazing and REALLY know and love what they do! On my Skin, Dry: Oh, no! the honey note has done it again! BPAL's honey note tends to swallow up all other notes and just vanish from my skin! Oh, wait - I spoke too soon. I get a very tiny bit of honeyed rose wafting around whenever I move my hands. So all is not lost! Hooray!! ::dances:: Verdict: Well, I am disappointed that the plum never made an appearance, but this is an otherwise very lovely floral blend. I'm not sure that it's one that I will wear all that often, but it's distinctive enough that I'm definitely keeping it around for special occassions. Lady Luck Blues is indeed very much a lady. Thanks BPAL!

Poisson D'Avril: I was SOOO excited about this one for some reason - there was no single note that caught my attention, so I don't know why I ordered 2 bottles right away. In the Bottle: Sugared flowers - definitely springy! I think I can pick out the daffodil note right away - my BF gave me the Snow Maiden for Christmas & all I could smell out of that one was a frigid, snow covered, gorgeous daffodil. On my Skin, Wet: Amplified sugared flowers! I can definitely pick out the daffodil - no question. the rest of the bouquet starts to make itself known here and there - but on me, the daffodil is Queen. On my Skin, Dry: Hey, where'd my scent go? Poof. Gone. Verdict: I'm glad I have two bottles so I can continuously reapply

Monster Bait: Tokyo Stomp Oh, such high expectations but also fearful that this one would turn into Numb's aweful powder & extreme amplification as well. I wasn't sure if BPAL's mint note was what made Numb give me a headache, but I know that BPAL's vanilla is AWESOME. In the Bottle: Kinda reminds me of Listerine's Vanilla Mint mouthwash here.... ::worries about the mint note!!:: On my Skin, Wet: Sticky? no, literally. hmmm... ooooooo!!! ::drools!!:: creamy mint! how wonderful! This is both a creamy and powdery mint - more creamy than powdery, but there is definitely a dry tone to this one. On my Skin, Dry: Well, I don't get the chocolate/cocoa note that most other reviewers are getting, so my Tokyo Stomp smells extremely true to the description - no chocolate thin mints here, sorry! Verdict: Monster Bait: Tokyo Stomp, on me, is very true to the Lab's description. (a Sweet & Crisp Vanilla Mint) I had been looking for a mint scent that I could wear and not pass out from the intensity of it - so there is definitely another little lovable nuclear lizard on his way home! Hooray!!