Jenjin

The Days of Wine and Roses I just typed a lengthy review which somehow disappeared into the internet ethermist. Needless to say, this is a mysterious black tobacco rose, she's got her fishnets on and some long tall sexy beast is smoking a swisher sweet down the street. I'm going to need a cigarette after wearing this, it is so damn smoldering sexy Whew, those dang elephants seriously know how to shake my hut. Burns down to a deep rich burgundy smoked merlot rose (ding-dong, can you keep a secret? this is pure epic classic BPAL lux.

Sweet and simple, nothing too fancy, this a treat to wear. A nice light youthful fragrance, the apple is crisp while the amber and vanilla keep it grounded. A very ladylike apple, and most definitely red. It's not dark to me at all, more bright and summery. I could see myself wearing this as a mood lifter, or casually around the house.

John Downman An incense to call the Erinyes: opoponax steeped in black wine, spindle tree sap, nightshade accord, yew needles, and a drop of blood. Black wine with a touch of sticky sap just after application. This ghost is floating in velvety purple darkness. I can detect the darkest, woozy flowers just beyond the moss covered tomb in the midst of a forest. The Ghost of Clytemnestra is elegant and honestly, makes me feel like a raven while wearing it. I can see it being quite useful for ritual or other transformative ventures. Sleek black feathers and rumbling black clouds of fury. I am beautiful and perfect in this moonless night. (Clytemnestra): "I was slaughtered by the hands of a matricide. See these blows, see them with your heart! the mind asleep is given clear light by the eyes. You licked up many enough things from me, libations without wine, plain offerings of appeasement."

The Kahun papyrus, authored in ancient Egypt, described a “fallen womb”; essentially, it was believed that a woman’s uterus – due to the frustrations of abstinence or chastity - could dislocate itself and travel throughout the body, causing distress, mental illness, disease, and infirmity: "When her womb moves towards her liver, she suddenly loses her voice and her teeth chatter and her colouring turns dark. This condition can occur suddenly, while she is in good health. The problem particularly affects old maids and widows-young women who have been widowed after having had children." The solution? "You should fumigate her under her nose, burning some wool and adding to the fire some asphalt, castoreum, sulfur and pitch. Rub her groin and the interior of her thighs with a very sweet-smelling unguent." Of course, the condition was sometimes far more dire, and required more strenuous measures: "If her womb moves towards her hips, her periods stop coming, and pain develops in her lower stomach and abdomen. If you touch her with your finger, you will see the mouth of the womb turned towards her hip. "When this condition occurs, wash the woman with warm water, make her eat as much garlic as she can, and have her drink undiluted sheep's milk after her meals. Then fumigate her and give her a laxative. After the laxative has taken effect, fumigate the womb once again, using a preparation of fennel and wormwood mixed together. Right after the fumigation, pull the mouth of the womb with your finger. Then insert a pessary made with squills; leave it in for a while, and then insert a pessary made with opium poppies. If you think the condition has been corrected, insert a pessary of bitter almond oil, and on the next day, a pessary of rose perfume. She should stop inserting pessaries on the first day of her period, and start again the day after it stops. The blood during the period provides a normal interruption. If there is no flow, she should drink four cantharid beetle with their legs, wings and heads removed, four dark peony seeds, cuttlefish eggs, and a little parsley seed in wine. If she has a pain and irregular flow, she should sit in warm water, and drink honey mixed with water. If she is not cured by the first procedure, she should drink it again, until her period comes. When it comes, she should abstain from food and have intercourse with her husband. During her period she should eat mercury plant, and boiled squid, and keep to soft foods. If she becomes pregnant she will be cured of this disease..." Plato chimes in: "Hence it is that in men the privy member is disobedient and self-willed, like a creature that will not listen to reason, and because of frenzied appetite [is] bent upon carrying all before it. In women again, for the same reason, what is called the mat or womb, a living creature within them with a desire for child-bearing, if it be left lo unfruitful beyond the due season, is vexed and aggrieved, and wandering through the body and blocking the channels of the breath, by forbidding respiration brings sufferer to extreme distress and causes all manner of disorders; until at last the Eros of the one and the Desire of the other bring the pair together, pluck as it we the fruit from the tree and sow the ploughland of the womb with living creatures still unformed and too small to be seen…" Now, we make no claims that this perfume has any medical or recuperative powers whatsoever, but if you’d like to experience the scents of a bit of Egyptian medicine, we’ve got the cure for what ails you: an incense of cassia and myrrh with opium tar accord, peony seed, honey water, a pinch of pitch, the smoke of burning wool, a handful of dried squill petals, castoreum accord, and pessaries of rose perfume and bitter almond oil. This is the QUEEN of soft goth nostalgia. Upon application, the almond and rose are upfront and center. I'm really loving how the resins are mingling with the dark rose. Mother's scent, childhood memories and just a little bit old fashioned. This is a warm, vintage fragrance that is subtle, yet still noticeable and melts with my own natural scent perfectly. It really smells cheery, but becomes something deeper, smoky and herbal after drydown. I can imagine myself in a Lolita sundress, eating strawberries in the forest, braiding each other's hair and breathing in perfumed air.

Yuuuuuuuuum, smooshy, smashed up squishy marshmallows and warm, sugary cardamom cake, this gives me the coziness I crave. Just lovely, addictive even, like being in a warm, cakey sugar shack. Wonderfully delicious subtle cardamom spice, it smells edible, covering me with its wild floofy magic. It's perfect and comforting for lounging around the house, undercovers marshmallow cakesmashing noms. More than the sum of its parts, I can't stop thinking "My Little Grotesque", mixed with "Stekkjarstaur", two of my all time faves.

I adore a cuddly smooth amber, and this is one smooth operator. Faster Kittycat is a lovely veil of scent that wears like a sheer scarf, with a transparency crafted through blending these sometimes heavy notes, with a light touch. It is graceful, and speaks in a gentle whisper and soft purr. The secret weapon here is the orris I suspect, which keeps the perfume close to the body, yet gives the overall experience a kind of elegance. The cashmere amber and white chypre give me whiffs of warm sweetness, very exotic from a far away land reminiscent to Shalimar to me also, except with a bit more "bite" from the patchouli. I urge you to give this a try before the Lilith's come down, especially if you are a fan of seductive and gracefully smooth orris fragrance. It is discreet, refined and eminently wearable. Another GORGEOUS modern classic from the lab.

I'm just a little obsessed with "In Night When Colors All to Black Are Cast". This is such a beautiful and distinctive fragrance, i'm getting whiffs of elegant resin and musks that are strangely intoxicating. Sexy, gothic and dare I say, moody. All the notes swirl together into a kind of melancholy elixir, fragile yet powerful, like a doomed romance. As the scent dries down, the distinct, sweet and smooth myrrh is serenaded by the juicy plum and a touch of earthiness from the nagarmotha. A sudden tenderness hits, like the bittersweet solitude we have all been a part of, the dark folds of words left unspoken. Is the essence something just sitting upon the skin, or has it somehow sunk underneath and become part of me?

The Queen of Hearts Commands This is so familiar to me, an elegant and mystical perfume. This is a wonderful ensemble of many elements with jammy fruit, flowers, and musk notes swirling together to make a communion wine. Womanly, rounded and oh so rich with the ability to transform the day, evoke memories. stir emotions by effecting mood, hopes and dreams. I'm getting a delicate creaminess, almost like a stream of white chocolate mixing with the luscious RED notes. The honey is low and slow in the background, never becoming "buzzy" or astringent. Something about it takes me back to my childhood, filling teacups with wild rose petals in the garden, plump bumblebees watching. Something from that time smelled very much like this. If a perfume can recall happy, sunlit memories, it is so worth it to possess, to wear and adore. Blessed Be! Long live the Queen of Hearts....Long May She Reign

I am SHOOK! This is the most divine oudh, the best kind: warm, glowing and exotic. Some oudh fragrances can be "too strong" or "too anamalic" for my taste, but this is a different story. Very much like burning actual oudh wood, sitting beside the smoky air in the flickering light. Dark and smoky, thanks to artisjok, I'm using doomsday's decant and I love it. The most heavenly oudh smoke of the rarest kind. Perfect cool weather wear.

Will try Meditation Buddy, but she can't have my bottle

Daughter is obsessed with Juliette Has a Gun Vanilla Vibes. It's not really vanilla and more 'beach musk' than anything. Any BPAL suggestions?

Gangleri said: “What was the beginning, or how began it, or what was before it?” Hárr answered: “As is told in Völuspá: Erst was the age | when nothing was: Nor sand nor sea, | nor chilling stream-waves; Earth was not found, | nor Ether-Heaven,– A Yawning Gap, | but grass was none.” The darkness beyond darkness, nothing before nothing, the time before all: an opium-dark void, lightless in nihility, silent in nonbeing. This is like a dark sorceress potion, swirling you around in a star filled sky. Seductive, slightly sweet, coca/opium at the front, it takes my breath away with its exotic smoke. It is not heavy or overbearing in any way, beautifully blended and smooth. There's mischief here, creeping into your head as if trying to intoxicate or subdue. I see this as more of a nighttime fragrance, but could definitely wear it during the day myself. Addictive and enchanting, I can't shake the memory of this one, it is velvety, mysterious and overall "noir". I can see this aging exquisitely

I was gifted this bottle and worth a shot right? It's fine in the bottle, I didn't notice anything unusual, but on the skin it takes a turn. I can't say i'm getting an an indolic smell, but it does give me a "public restroom" sort of vibe. Clingy and strangely floral (warm skin is the culprit here). It does dry down to something mildly soapy, like fresh out the shower type vibe.

Weird, this one reminds me of something in Paper Phoenix but the notes are completely different. Could be the sugar? It's a bit like Paper Phoenix with much more creaminess. I get mostly hay just after application and as it dries all the sweetness rises up. It really captures my heart, shimmering citrus over a squishy-creamy backdrop, not quite strong or distinct enough to register as "rice milk". The drydown stays relatively pale, but the finish has just enough of a punch to keep things warm and delicious. Rendevous in the Rice Straws is simple yet transformative, like a vacation in a bottle. This reminds me of being someplace tropical, wandering into a spa where you get into a warm bath filled with flowers, then a sugar scrub and massage. A fragrant, cuddly, musky cloud makes the air smell like paradise.

This is so delicious, like a spice cabinet filled with fresh tobacco and sugared vanilla. I love the warm, seductive vibe and the tobacco is almost rum-boozy at the beginning, which burns off into a golden spice brown sugar. Why am I wanting to drink a White Russian? Almost a creamy candy overall, like those hard, milky coffee candies except the zinger is resinous tobacco. This is what angels smell like

Brown spices, bread, woods and resins mixed in with the fir. This is an unusual combo I could see someone wear to a holiday pageant, maybe dressed as a gingerbread person with those striped socks and mitten hands. The polished mahogany note comes on strong after a few minutes, like spicy, shiny wood with the a tiny bit of evergreen myrrh smoldering below.

Same banana note from Sloth coming on strong in the first inning. It smells like banana candy and a tiny bit of vanilla. Banana perfumes make me happy, so novel and fun. After a few minutes, like other reviewers, the coconut becomes the top note along with the creaminess of the chocolate. Poof! the banana is completely gone and this is all yummy coconut creaminess, like eating the top, fluffy layer of cream pie. Wonderful for hot summer days, but I could also see wearing this on a cold, frosty night. Delish!!

Soft, green and figgy just at first, the sweeter woodsy notes come out during the drydown. I am in my second year of growing figs in my backyard, and finally they have fruited. This is very much like smelling my little plump figs. Hints of harvest day, walking through a wooded outdoor market filled with winter squashes, melons and fruits. I love the gentle sweetness from the sugary honey, mixed with evergreens and mosses. Delicately beautiful, this is another unexpected gem I am so glad I got to try.

Oh WOW! I passed this by when it first came out, thinking it would be darker and too masculine for me. This takes be immediately back to my childhood. My Mom would buy the glass jars of Lipton instant ice tea. I hated to drink it, but loved the scent of the powder just after the paper was torn off the top and a "poof" of tea smoke would rise above. I'm getting little wiffs of that experience, along with the smoothness of gorgeous cashmere. The leather is rich and smooth in the background, mixing with the tobacco it really does smell expensive!

Salty, sweaty leathered hides, i'm picturing pirates working the deck of a creaky ship tied to ocean shores. Barnacle crusted trunks down below and burnt candlesticks stubbed out. This smells like a classic BPAL to me, another one from "A Picnic in Arkham" mashed with the lab's beeswax note. Editing to add the drydown is luscious, shaggy leather, really nice.

Pink, pearly beachy aquatic without going soapy! I could see this in the GC sitting right next to The Sea Foams Milk and Y'ha-Nthlei. They would be the coolest mermaids. I do get a tiny bit of bubblegum just after slathering it on that fades away. The pink musk is very gentle, smooth without being overly sweet, a strong crystalline water note jumps forward on me after it's completely dry. This is uplifting, fresh and makes me feel like i'm on an exotic vacation, sitting by pink oceans illuminated by the amber setting sun. An experience to wear and the perfect 'tropical' for me.

A smoky, Japanese incense bomb upfront. It's alot like straight up smelling a joss stick, maybe sinking your face into the whole box. This is the good stuff, think the ultimate Shoyeido, all aromatic woods, resins and spices. I'm getting myrrh, frankincense and Egyptian amber along with the floral, a goth lover's dream. After a few minutes the blood red carnation opens it's dewy petals, swirling around with the deep-dark background in a magnificent way. I could definitely see this in the OLLA collection. Meditative and relaxing, I want to languish in this scent. Lazing around on brocade cushions with bamboo wind-chimes, the breeze blowing through carnations in the garden dreaming of long-lost love.

This is rich and has my favorite, rooty patchouli in it, syrupy, with tiny whiffs of something "purple" like sweet grapes or wine. What a warm, spicy treat! The copal is sticky and ceremonial, a luscious little nugget. This isn't the smoke when the resin is burned, but more like the plant itself, deep-green, earthy, husky weeping golden sap. The vanilla is deep, like freshly sliced vanilla pods and sweetens in the drydown, grounding down the velvety sandalwood. All the notes swirl together beautifully into a transformative dream: I am sitting at the base of the World Tree. The fires that burn at the "Gate to Heaven" are being prepared, and I am breathing in deeply as our passage slowly comes to light.

Obsessed with finding something similar to Rendezvous at the Bath, my favorite green tea blend. Also, i've been smashing and burning tons of juniper berries lately. They are so sweet and fill the air with sugared sap, so I was hoping this might take me to that same tranquil space. This goes on very similar, clean, spa-like and i'm getting all those fat, plump little berries. Juniper berry is VERY different from straight up Juniper, I think of them as little conifer raisins. The green tea and sandalwood are also there, mingling and giving it a deeper richness. I'm not getting much of the bamboo, which typically goes bitter on me, and here is mostly a 'still-water' note. The drydown becomes even sweeter, almost ladylike, and i'm picturing a Japanese garden with a beautiful geisha sipping sugared green tea.

High-end elegance, like an ethereal jumpsuit with a jaunty birdcage hat. I'm a huge fan of spicy tuberose, and the lab's couture-type fragrances, perfect for wearing to a fancy pants outdoor soirèe, or between satin sheets. What beauty lies beneath the surface upon warm, sun-lit skin. Reminds me a bit of "Ava" and "The Bride", while coming across as even more complex, and enchanted.