kscha2017

Demeter, bright goddess, was joined in sweet love with the hero Iasion in a thrice-ploughed fallow in the rich land of Krete, and bare Ploutos, a kindly god who goes everywhere over land and the sea’s wide back, and him who finds him and into whose hands he comes he makes rich, bestowing great wealth upon him. Hay absolute, honey, oats, and patchouli. Lovely. Smells like sweet, dry hay with just a hint of green (like a memory). Stays consistent from bottle to drydown. Very beautifully balanced/blended, I cannot pick out the individual notes. Very close to a beloved perfume I had as a kid in '79 of which I've been desperately trying to remember the name. Oh, for a big bottle of this. *sigh*

I'm a fan of the original Zombi as well as Frostbitten Zombi, so I had to get a bottle of this, too. The snow really amps the rose! It's strong in throw, but soft and powdery, a remarkably gentle and pretty scent in this form. As it dries and dies back a bit, the moss comes out as well as what I sense as dirt and wood.

What an unusual scent. The tart bite of crisp, cold cranberries mixed with a dark, forest honey. Even though there are no common ingredients, it reminds me strongly of Frozen Chypre HG from 2017 & gives me the same nostalgic imagery of Christmas Eve.

On me, this smells like a freshly opened bottle of saffron. It manages to be both warm and cool simultaneously. Warm and dry from the boot leather, cool and wet from the leaves and sweetgrass. I will need another bottle.

I am a fan of Zombi and think it has a slightly sinister vibe underlying the beauty. Adding apple softens the sinister aspect for me. In the bottle and wet, it's very apple-forward and juicy. Then it tones down to Zombi with the apple just hovering in the background. Very pretty and positive in this form.

Gleaming black and green! Dark chocolate rum and chilly mint! I think I am getting tipsy just sniffing this! Dark chocolate rum, the very best and most expensive; icy cold crème de menthe; mixed with the richest chocolate ganache. So delicious! I need a backup bottle or two.

When I was a teenager, I had a lilac perfume. Can't remember the maker. I loved it and wore it all summer for a few years. We had lilacs in our yard then, too. Happy memories of hot summer nights, looking at the stars, full of hope for my future. This smells just like that perfume (but much higher quality) and those memories. BPAL so often makes me cry. Thank you.

Soft and dusty, ancient power. Red musk dominates with a sweet undercurrent of honey and a little spice of saffron. Gorgeous. No "dripping gore" at all. Perhaps a bit of sadness.

In the bottle: reptilian green, sharp and foreboding. On the skin: fresh, juicy green apple, soft, musky, inviting.

Happy to a snag a bottle from BPAL Etsy, apparently 11 years aged. I'm a huge fan of Traipsing Through the Crop Circles from this same group, so thought I'd like this one too. I love piney scents and this opens with a blast of fresh piney goodness. It quickly fades and I swore I next detected something that gave the impression of concrete. Then came the spicy florals, herbals, and something sweet but slightly slightly sinister. Perhaps it's just my mind knowing the storyline that makes it sinister, but I'm fine with that. I delight in the scents that move and change and provide a visual. This one does exactly that.

Somewhere, I thought someone had reviewed this and mentioned how it smelled something along the lines of "not the nice kind of peppermint and pine". I didn't understand that concept. I love pine, I love peppermint. I could be happy smelling either/both all day long. But I sniffed the bottle and totally understood: this is not happy peppermint, not happy pine. This is death and desolation peppermint and pine. I get a strong, vivid vision of dry white bones sticking out of the frozen mud under a snowy pine tree in mid-January. Dark, a bit foreboding, slightly creepy. Love it. Quite strong on both scents, blending perfectly.

Omg, pretty sure I can't pass a breathalyzer for awhile. Took a huge whiff from the bottle and my mouth and throat were immediately full of deep, dark, strong, piratey rum. Good rum. Old rum, in oak barrels, carried across the sea. Thick enough to eat for breakfast, sweet and fortifying. Strong and bold and in your face! I want to slather this on and find my nearest Ren Faire. Or lay on the beach. Definitely want to drink this.

Dark, rich, warm, luxuriant. Sophisticated, not sickly sticky sweet like candy. I can smell each element. Normally not much of a foodie fan, I do love vetiver and this strikes my nose as having a strong vetiver undertone, although it's not listed.

On me, it goes on as a light, soft, comforting scent of dry woods and vanilla, tending towards a masculine cologne. Then it flips to strong, bold, bitter and menacing. Then back to gentle, then back to bitter, repeat. Perfect. Glad I bought two bottles. This should age beautifully.

I screamed out loud, sorry. I smell cinnamon French toast fried in butter, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, drowned in sweet sticky syrup. Could almost hear the sizzle, somehow the frying is going on right as the scent touches my skin and slowly fades. It "feels" hot, very much an experience of being right there as the treat is made. Reminds me alot of BPAL's King Cake as I seem to be picking up some almond too.

The subject of our latest #BPAL7wordstory contest was Pride. The winning entry was submitted by Cam Collins: The alligator selfie was a bad idea A swampy blend of Spanish moss, green tea, green oakmoss, celery seed, cucumber, and murky black patchouli. I really love this. Very green, very black. Simultaneously bright/fresh, dark/dank. Perfectly liminal, it captures the scene that is the story. I can smell the precise moment when that exhuberant, innocent, determination and foolish pride change to surprise, realization of error, fear, and regret. This is a malevolent alligator! What were you thinking?! On me, the bright/fresh greens quickly fade, leaving primarily the mosses and black patch, but ever-so-often a whiff of the brightness bobs to the surface. I am so going to enjoy telling people about this ascent when they ask what I'm wearing!

Light, bright, and refreshing. All three balanced perfectly, none dominates. Crisp juicy green apple. Patchouli and vetiver are gentler than anticipated. However, it fades fast and completely on me with nary a tell it was ever there. Probably will use it in my locket. Oddly enough, I would love this scent as a deodorant. 🤷🏽‍♀️

My new favorite, flat-out orgasmic. Thick, rich, bold, not-too-sweet, sun-warmed, overpowering honey (just the way I like it) and cool, sharp lavender. The beeswax is a light background note, holding it together. Bought 2 bottles so far, likely to get another. Can't praise it enough.

Just like it says: lavender, sea salt, and rain. Image of standing on the shore as wind blows salt spray in my face, a gentle mist of rain falls, and I'm holding a large bunch of fresh-cut lavender. A hint of melancholy, echoes of lost love or tragedy. Reminds me also of BPTP Sleet Hair Gloss, there's slushy, winter on the verge of spring coolness about it. Love it enough to order another bottle.

Reminds me of our yard in spring as a kid. We had a cherry tree that burst into white flowers and scattered petals all around. This smells like the memory of that scene. Cool, wet with dew, real red cherries and a lovely natural red rose, not overpowering on either. Maybe a hint of green grass.

Wow, my nose says expensive handmade black licorice and cherry licorice had a baby. Nice depth, rich. I'm not usually a big fan of cherry but I love patchouli. Glad I went ahead and ordered.

This called to me. Normally, while I like to eat chocolate, the chocolate scents don't usually become keepers. This one is a keeper, and I'm ordering another. It's reminiscent of a forest, dark, deep, old, fragrant with black earth. Yes, I smell chocolate; yes, I smell moss. Together, a forest. Images of the forest in the movie Legend when the bear passes by.

Unearthly howls reverberate in the shadows of a darkened wood: black cedar, yew berries, juniper and frost-crusted moss, crushed beneath a shaggy spectral black musk. Frostbitten Malediction and Skadi had a baby in a pine forest. Love it! Goes on sweet, slowly turns dark.

Nag champa, patchouli, and red sandalwood. Oh yeah, this is sheer perfection. A beautifully balanced blend, gentle and sweet. Just like I remember my favorite store in my college town where I used to buy incense, prayer shawls, Tibetan beads, henna, and Buddha icons. I usually only spray twice but I sprayed 5 times. I need all my stuff to smell like this: hair, skin, clothes, car, etc.

Thou didst smite the head of Keila, Smash Kjallandi altogether, Ere thou slewest Lútr and Leidi, Didst spill the blood of Búseyra; Didst hold back Hengjankjapta, Hyrrokkin died before; Yet sooner in like fashion Svívör from life was taken. Hringhorni, Baldr’s ship, was the largest of all such vessels and was to serve as the god’s funeral ship. When Loki murdered Baldur, the gods built the funeral pyre on his ship, Hringhorni. Hringhorni was massive, and none of the Aesir could move it, so they begged help of the Jötun, Hyrrokkin. Fire-smoked and flame-haired, the giantess arrived on a gargantuan wolf harnessed by reins made of live vipers. Hyrrokkin was able to push Baldur’s funeral ship out to sea, but the force of her strength caused the earth to quake and the rollers to burst into flame. Thor, angered by the quake and the conflagration, was intent on murdering Hyrrokkin until the Aesir stayed his hand. Viper-green and smoldering: smoke-swirled black pine, patchouli leaf, coriander, and sweet green vetiver. I get pine, patchouli, and green vetiver, nicely balanced. I was worried about too much smoke or coriander but I don't sense either too much at all. It goes on strong but fades quickly on me. It feels powerful, dignified, sombre, awe-inspiring, a tad frightening ... just as if I was witnessing the jotun herself arriving. I wore it when I went out to vote yesterday because I needed her presence.