kawaiiferreto

Holy cow. WHISKEY! Wet... dry... in the decant... on my wrist: to me it smells dead on like a finely aged whiskey. It almost has a bit of smoke to it which reminds me of scotch (which is a type of whiskey I suppose.) My boyfriend seems to think it smells a bit to osweet to be pure whiskey, but I didn't get that personally. The verdict is that I like it, and I like the smell of whiskey, but I don't think I'd actually wear this... I might keep the decant around for when the mood strikes me to smell fine and barrel aged.

Shub is proof that you really need to try all BPAL on your skin, and not dismiss a note purely because you've had problems with it in the past. In War and Saw Scaled Viper ginger went horrible on me. I mean really YECH as in I had to go wash it off because it was making me feel vaguelly ill. Not so with shub. This really is glorious spicy yummy ginger bread. I know I've said I don't like smelling like dessert, but this is more rich and spicy than sweet; in short, it's a "desserty" blend I can wear. This is so good, in fact, that I'm almost tempted to hunt down a decant of War to see if my chemistry has changed (I know my tastes have!)

Wet: ...Pickles? Cucumbers? Wait, I know; Tzatziki! I think the vertiver is being naughty. Dry: Still tzatziki. I can tell there's violet in there, just barely, but otherwise this is all not so pleasant tzatziki. I'm not overly fond of it on food, and I certainly don't want to smell like it. Verdict: To swaps!

Wet: Tart! In a weird way, like lemon scented playdoh, but oddly enough I don't think that's a bad smell? Dry: Teaaaaa tea tea glorious tea, and not sweet sugared tea, just tea! (I like tea; can you tell?) I also get a light and fresh floral, which calms the TEA down just a bit. Overall, this is a wacky little scent. I agree with other reviewers that this is a "crisp" scent. And I can certainly see where some might get green apple and/or lemon. It's fresh and fun and silly, and I could see me wearing this particularly during the summer. A keeper for me!

Wet: Holy cow... Butter and a sweet smelling pastry (I'm guessing a combo of the cherry tart and the buttered toast.) Dry: As this dries I get more and more cherry tart. There might be just a tad of pineapple blending in there, but it's not obvious I don't smell turkey, but maybe that's why this isn't smelling overly sweet on me. However, much like any fragrant dessert-y smell (either on me or in an area I'm in really) eventually I get tired of smelling this. A unique scent, and certainly worth trying at least once for pure amusement, but not something I'd want to wear.

The most bizarre thing I ever tried was Ogun. I hated it, but it certainly fits the bill of strange. Lab description: Ogun’s ofrenda is heavy and dark cigar tobacco, gin and juniper, melon, chili pepper and a touch of honey. I remember it being something like spicy cucumbers and tobacco. Not for me, but maybe you'd like it. And well, Hermia is a little fruity, and a little floral, but if you ever decide to test more from that direction, it's certainly unique. Something about adding pink pepper makes it very spicy and sassy.

Wet: This is pretty bizarre when it's wet; it's some combination of a strong perfume smell (I blame the cognac) with a super strong clean linen scent. I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out. Dry: The longer I wear this for the more I like it. The vanilla comes more and more to the forefront. It reminds me quite a bit of Antique Lace, but stronger, and unfortunately for me, less wearable. I can smell the incense, which adds a bit of sophistication, and a little bit of something else adding more complexity to the blend, which must be the cognac and tobacco. I like it, but it's a bit too heady for me, especially during this time of year. Verdict: Something I like to smell, but that I wouldn't really wear.

I'm tempted to leave it at that... but anyhow: Wet: Yummy floral with a bit of berry fruitiness. Dry: This is just the kind of floral I like. Sweet but not too sweet, fresh but not too fresh, with a sassy kick to it. It's feminine without being girly girl. The poppy in this has a nice spice to it, which takes this from everyday floral to awesome. I suppose seeing as I love carnations (mmmm spicy floral), and I also love "pretty" blends with a kick, like Hermia, it's no surprise that I LOVE this stuff. The acai doesn't come out as much on the skin for me as in the imp, but it does show up a bit to liven things up a bit with extra juiciness. The honey is there only enough to sweeten the blend a bit; I can't smell anything distinctly "honey" ish about it. A note: If you like Flower by Kenzo you should try this stuff. It's got a similar feel (which I suppose makes sense because Flower is supposed to be based on Poppy), but this is so much more vibrant and juicy and, well, none of that generic "perfume" smell to it.

Wet: Is that caramel? Wet I don't really get any distinct notes except for the sugar cane, which is apparently pure gooey caramel on me. I don't like smelling like dessert, so we'll see how this dries. Dry: The caramel sugary richness backs off a bit, but this is still very sweet. The berries come out pretty strongly and I can't say that's a good things... much like the cherry in Monster Bait: Bloody Mary went on me, the berries smell more fake/candy-ish, and maybe a tinge medicinal... which is too bad since I love the smell of actual berries. The florals just barely come into the background, and I almost get the sense of the mahogany and teak grounding the blend, but it doesn't really come out enough to be a definable part of the scent. Overall, the notes all sound nice but none of them really play very well with my skin chemistry. In a way I'm glad since I passed the opportunity to buy this when it was still up for sale. Yay for decants!

Oh yum! This is lovely. Wet: The rum is a bit strong, but it smells like a lovely refreshing summer cocktail. Dry: The rum backs down on me a lot after about 15 minutes. This is mostly sugar syrup, mint, and citrus - it reminds me quite a bit of a mojito or a margarita maybe. The rum keeps the rest of the notes in check, keeping the blend from smelling too sweet. I don't get the black cherry or the almond liqueur very clearly. Overall, this is a light summery blend, with just the right hint of sweetness without being too sweet or gourmand. On me the booze behaves, so I could see wearing this just about anywhere, work included. The throw was light on me, which is perfect for my tastes, but maybe not for people who like a more intense/outspoken blend.

I'm so sad. I really wanted to love this but all I get is ginger! Luckily it doesn't have a super strong throw, because I'm not overly fond of ginger. For someone who amps things differently and gets any of the other notes, I imagine this would be a nice scent.

In the imp I wasn't sure about this one, but I'm really glad I gave it a try. When I first put this on I get mostly pepper with a little bit of sweetness. But after 15 minutes or so when the oil has dried this is divine: the amber, honeysuckle, and passion fruit blend together seamlessly to smell like a tart tropical fruit. The pepper dances around the edges giving the juicy fruit smell a bit of a bite. I find as I wear it the pepper fades in and out in strength, but it's nice in all of it's stages. Another keeper for me! ETA (7.6.2012): As this ages I like it less and less, sadly. (Or perhaps not sadly, since it's been disconned? ) The amber has gotten stronger as it ages, and the tart, peppery notes have faded more. I loved it when it was mostly tart/ peppery, with that amber as an undertone to smooth it out, but with amber prominent this is sooooo meh!

Oh wow. I knew this would be great on me; I don't know why I waited so long to try it! Wet on me this reminds me a lot of Smut but without the booze note: very very musk, but with a little bit of sweetness. Dry this is still mostly the red musk, but the saffron and other spices soften it up and make it less harsh. It's still reminding me a lot of Smut, but this is much more subtle. For me this is daytime Smut .

I really wanted to like this one. I love Snake Oil. I love cinnamon. I love cassia. But on me this is ALL ginger. I can stand ginger in small amounts as a complement to other smells, but this is too much! In short, this is nice and spicy, but not the spices I wanted it to be. I'm so sad.

Ooooh I love this one! Wet: Cinnamon and Clove with sweetness and almost a boozy smell. Dry: Dry I get a lot of cinnamon and pepper out of this, but as it dries it smells like cinnamon and clove. It's also got a fair amount of sweetness to it. The pepper mostly falls to the background for me, giving it a bit of an edge, but not overwhelming the other notes. I must have more!!

In the bottle: carnations and sugary sweetness Wet: About the same as in the bottle, but the sweetness calms down a little. Dry down: The more I wear this the more I fall in love with it. Carnations and I always get along well, so I guess that's not a huge surprise. This turns into a delightfully light and fluffy scent: like the sugar from cotton candy tempered by carnations. It's a perfect scent for me as I like some sweetness and some florals, but not overwhelming amounts of either. I don't know exactly what phlox smells like but I'm guessing it's what is blending with the sugar to give me that cotton candy smell.

When wet and for the first hour or 2 wearing this the scent stays nearly the same on me: vanilla with dryer sheets. That might sound like a bad thing but I love the smell of dryer sheets and the smell of vanilla. I assume any florals in this blend fall into the "dryer sheet" smell. After a couple hours with this on the dryer sheet smell fades quite a bit and then it smells nearly identical to a delicate vanilla cookie. I love love love this oil and I've been wearing it twice as much as my other imps; I'm going to need a bottle before long.

Carnation, roses, honey, and milk are all high on my list of favorite notes so I guess it isn't surprising that I love this. In the bottle this smells like sweet carnation. Wet on the skin it still screams CARNATION! I love carnations so this is fine, but then comes the drydown. At first the rose starts to pop out, and I love roses and carnations, YUM! Finally at about 15 to 20 minutes the honey and the milk emerge. I'm not sure when the bergamot comes out because I am not familiar with that note, but I'm guessing it's blended in with the other florals. I think I'm in love! This is positively the most delicate and beautiful scent. I MUST have a big bottle.

When I first put this on I was a bit underwhelmed. My fresh from the lab imp when wet, and in early stages of drydown, smells almost identical to the sweet muskiness of the drydown of Smut and I already bought a partial bottle of Smut that will last me forever. However, three or four hours later . . . OMG. This is gorgeous! The vanilla finally came out to play and the musk and spices fall more into the background. I'm assuming as it ages this stage is going to come sooner and last longer; I can't wait!

In bottle: Almond and clove Wet: Faint almond, clove, powderiness(maybe the sassafras?) Dry: The buttered rum comes out and the almond pretty much fades completely. The rum combines with the clove to make a decadent spicy blend, with a hint of warmth and creamyness in the background from the buttered rum. Overall: Although I wasn't sure how I would like this at first. The drydown is amazing!

I really hoped this one would smell more like fresh strawberries. When I first put this on from the imp I was overwhelmed by a sweet, artificial strawberry smell. After the dry down it smelled a little bit more like real strawberries but it's still a little too sweet for my tastes. I'll probably give this one another try during a different time of the month to see if it reacts better with my chemistry. Either way, I could see me being in the mood to wear this at least occasionally!