inurbanus

Red velvet cake slathered in cream cheese frosting is my idea of heaven, so I was very excited to test this, especially after hearing so many good things about it from other BPALers. Unfortunately, Cake Smash doesn't like me very much. On my wrist, it's pretty much just cream cheese without any sugar or vanilla. It definitely smells odd and I know I'd feel awkward walking around smelling like a dairy case. Later, the Snake Oil pops out but it's really powdery and doesn't seem to mix well with "frosting." I am saddened but not really surprised - I should have learned by now that foodies don't usually play nice with me.

2/5

I had always wanted to try Trick #1 but never really made an effort to get a decant, so I was thrilled when a kind swapper included some in a package. In the vial this one smells fizzy and almost like Dr. Pepper. I know, what? I did a double take. After I applied, this turned into straight up black leather. It was a little too intense for my taste, but I decided to keep wearing it in the hope that the leather would calm down a bit. And it has, considerably. The final scent is a little muddled, but I can pick out a bunch of musk, something sweet (vanilla? honey?), and a few flower petals. I could see myself really going for this if it were stronger, but alas, I don't think it's meant to be.

3/5

The Lab in their infinite wisdom scent me this as a frimp. I'm not really a tiki person since a lot of them contain booze notes and those don't usually do well on me. But Pahoehoe is a lot of fun and I would consider getting a bottle of it if the banana lasted longer on me. The banana in this is not realistic nor do I think it's meant to be. It's super sweet and creamy with a sugary edge - I was instantly reminded of Banana Laffy Taffy, one of my favorite candies. Unfortunately it fades pretty quickly, leaving behind a background of fruity rum. This is such a yummy blend. It's not the most sophisticated thing ever, but I don't think perfume always has to be SERIOUS BUSINESS. Pahoehoe made me smile and that's good enough for me.

4/5

I bought Ysabel randomly off a LJ-member's sales page. I had been thinking about buying it when the Inquisition came out, but I was concerned that it would turn out to be another heavy rose blend and I didn't need any more of those. I was *so* wrong. Ysabel is a gorgeous spiced incense scent, the likes of which I've never smelled from the Lab before. It's rich and strong, with a little bit of sweetness and a peppery bite that contrasts nicely with its warm musky background. I like incense, but a lot of fragrances with resins smell just like a church or a headshop. Not Ysabel - she's a fully realized perfume all the way through. I could not be more pleased with this one!

5/5

By reading the reviews of Blue Pumpkin Floss, I'd learned ahead of time that this would definitely not be they sticky, sugary Halloween scent of my dreams. But I wasn't quite prepared for how spicy this really is. The cinnamon jumps out immediately while all the other notes cower in the background. Seriously, this makes my nose tingle, and not really in a good way. BPF reminds me of a room spray that I used to own. It was nice for a few minutes after you sprayed it but soon wore out its welcome - it was just too intense to smell for a long period of time. That pretty much fits BPF to a T. It's a shame - the BPF in the description sounds so lovely. It's so sad that the actual scent doesn't really match it.

2.5 / 5

I'm a huge fan of The Turn of the Screw so as soon as I saw that there was a Halloween scent dedicated to it I knew that I had to try it. Tea notes usually work pretty well on me but they're not something I regularly seek out, so I was curious to see how much I would like this. I got my decant today and the answer is...a lot. Probably not enough for me to a buy a bottle of it, but TUG (heh) is perfectly pleasant. The tea is light with a little bit of humid citrus and bordered with just the teensiest bit of violet. I am disappointed about that - I like violet leaf and wish there was more of it in here. This doesn't really scream "Halloween" to me - I think if it had been released at the beginning of summer I would be much more receptive to it, but it is a good representation of all the outdoor scenes that take place in Screw, so I guess it's thematically appropriate.

3.5 / 5

XXII

This is deep and luscious in the bottle but I can't pick out anything. On me, it's completely different. The honey is sweet and not too strong, complimented by some very subtle musk. The most noticeable note in this is pine pitch. It through me for a loop for a little while (at first I thought it was mint) but once I figured it out, it was undeniable. And so, this Chaos Theory smells almost exactly like The Illustrated Woman, sans the smoky vanilla. Now, I know I should be pleased since I love TIW so much, but it's so similar that it's almost like having two of the same blend. Still, it's gorgeous.

XXXIII

In the bottle, this is lemon combined with Dorian's sugary vanilla. On me, it's the same, about equal parts lemon and vanilla. I know a lot of people don't like lemon, but I really like this. The lemon isn't Pledge-y at all - it's the cool, refreshing lemon from Embalming Fluid. In fact, the more that I think about it, this really does smell like a cross between Dorian and Embalming Fluid. Yum! It's the sweet citrus candy smell that I was hoping Teenage Cannibal would provide but didn't deliver. I know I'll be wearing this all Summer long.

XIV

In the bottle this is light and creamy, with a little bit of resin. Penitence is my favorite GC resin blend because of its gorgeous myrrh note so I was really hoping this would have a smoky element. No such luck. When I dabbed this on, I got something sweet and fruity / floral. It's one of those scents where you're not sure where the fruit ends and the floral note begins - just one big haze of sweetness. Luckily, I kept the Q-Tip I tested this with and have figured out that the sweet note is ylang ylang, without a doubt. Hmm... That's usually a note which doesn't really do anything for me but its nice here. I just wish I got some Penitence out of this.

I'm looking for a summer scent too...

but I don't like sweet scents, lavander, mint, amber, vanilla and star anise...

what could possibly suit me?

I've been planing to order Embalming Fluid and Aizen Miyo (?), but Squirting Cucumber sounds nice too... any other ideas for a fresh, non-sweet nor minty scent?

Do you like ozone? It's tangy and fresh, kinda like citrus but not sweet. If so, Tempest, Lightening, Sea of Glass, and Ether would be scents to look into.

Was anyone hoping this would be a substitute for The Candy Butcher? If so, it's not. It's a million times better than The Candy Butcher, and I'm saying this as someone who liked CB. This might be the most delicious BPAL foodie blend I've ever smelled. Yes, it's that good. And I don't even like the Lab's chocolate blends half the time. Thick, rich chocolate over a layer of sweet sugary cream. If you don't like sugary scents, this isn't for you. But for those who do, this is awesome!

On me, Floating Brain is 100% cake with no strawberry or grapefruit. It's the same white cake note that's in Huesos de Santo (yay!), but it's lacking a certain creaminess that Huesos has. I like this, but it's really light and I wish I could smell some of the fruit. As much as it pains me to diss cake, I think Floating Brain is a bit boring on me.

3/5

This is the 2008 version, warm vanilla enhanced with butter and cinnamon. It's good, but not as good as I was expecting. I'm starting to wonder if cinnamon is going to a problem note, since it seems to take over blends and choke the life out of them. Sugar Cookie is pretty similar to Butter Rum Cookie on me, with SC having a slight edge because I really like vanilla. Cobalt Blends' Sexe de Sucre is also a lot like this.

3.5/5

As an amber-lover, I was really looking forward to trying Jacob's Ladder, which seems to be one of BPAL's "ultimate amber" blends. Luckily, I was not disappointed! JL is a great fusion of amber and resin - it's a very fluid scent, and the resin notes fluctuate between dominating the blend and hovering in the background, providing some smokiness. Jacob's Ladder isn't exactly "golden" to my nose - it's paler, softer, a little more vanilla-y than I was expecting, but it might just be that this is a scent that needs to be aged before its true nature can be appreciated. I would agree with those who have said that this has an old-school vibe. I can't wait to try this after it's aged for a while.

4/5

I had some reservations about On Darkness - I don't like lavender and floral incense is a scent category that usually turns out smelling rotten on me, but it sounded "me" and was getting good reviews, so I added it to my Xmas wish list. I'm so glad I did. This is beautiful. I agree with the person above who mentioned Black Lace, since it has the same dark, moody, Victorian feel as BL, but with a floral component instead of vanilla. I also agree with those mentioning a fruity element, which is delicious and unexpected. The only problem I have with OD is that it goes slightly powdery on me. Hopefully aging will take care of that. In the meantime, if you're considering a bottle of On Darkness, go ahead and do it. Even if it doesn't work, I have a feeling this will be quite sought after once the Yules come down.

4/5

This smelled *so* good in the bottle - the combination of rum, almond, and sugar made my mouth water. On me, it's very different, just spice (cinnamon, I think) against a warm, orange-y background. I like it, but I wish I could get what's in the bottle to stay on me. Still, I think this is a worthy successor to Gingerbread Poppet. I know I'll be keeping warm with Butter Rum Cookie this winter.

3.5/5

I *love* the Lab's coconut note, so I've wanted to try Obatala for a long time. Unfortunately, it didn't turn out well on me. I can barely smell coconut - just shea and a soft aquatic note. Other posters have mentioned a sour milk note, and there's certainly something a bit off here, so that might be it. Overall, this is interesting, but not what I was hoping for.

3/5

I am so bad at differentiating between spice notes, so I won't embarrass myself trying to do so here. Let me just say that Plunder smells like hot spiced tea, with a warm undercurrent of sandalwood and tobacco. I think I must amp cassia, because that's primarily what I get out of this. The spices in this are not as in-your-face as Silk Road nor subtle like in Bengal. Because of this, I think Plunder would be a good pick for someone new to spicy BPAL scents. Clemence is still my favorite "spice" scent, but Plunder was nice to try.

3/5

This is a review of the 2008 version. For about a half an hour, Snow Bunny has the same slushy snow note as Perchta, which I ended up liking, but unlike Perchta it does not have anything interesting going on in the background. Luckily, the snow note melted away and left behind a soft veil of something sweet and pink. I didn't get a really good sense of it, but it was definitely soft, a little powdery, and not especially fruity. I would like to spend some more time with Snow Bunny and figure out what exactly is going on in it. Its one of those scents that perfectly embodies its name. Perhaps the best way to describe this is "cute" - it's perfect for those days when you're feeling young, giggly, or both.

3/5, for now.

This is a "second skin" type of scent on me - it's light and clings to my wrist effortlessly. Because of this, though, it's hard to smell Hetairae's individual components. I can catch whiffs of honey (a little waxy, but not overwhelmingly so), fig (which lends a certain girlishness), and ylang ylang. The patchouli's also in there, somewhere, providing depth and earthiness. Hetairae is not something I would reach for often, but when I compare it to the other Greek-themed BPAL scents I've smelled, I think it fits in very well with these. It's definitely a nice portal to the past.

3/5

Well, first of all, Perchta wins the "most potent Yule in the bottle prize", which really freaked me out, since all my Yule blends smelled like pine, and when I finally smelled this one I was able to figure out who the culprit was. Because of this, I was nervous to try Perchta, as I don't like pine. But I'm glad I did, because Perchta is very different on me. It's got that cold, slushy snow note that a lot of people like, but in this case it's sweetened with soft flowers. I'm not a huge fan of the BPAL snow note, but I kind of like it here, surprisingly. It doesn't seem as aggressive when it's paired with floral notes. I wish this was a little bit stronger, but I'm out of wand caps, so it might just be that my application method is lacking. Anyway, Perchta was a nice surprise. I would recommend it to snow and floral lovers alike, or anyone who lives in a warm climate, as I'm sure this would be great for cooling down.

3.5/5

Gelt is one of those rollercoaster scents on me - it starts out a certain way, morphs back and forth, and you're not sure if it's going to remain consistently wearable. In the bottle and for about five seconds on me, Gelt smelled like delicious chocolate cupcakes. Then it quickly changed into something metal-y and strange. My face did an instant , but after a couple minutes, Gelt shifted into a soft, powdery amber. Right now, it reminds me of my school's church, with remnants of incense and dusty wood hanging in the air. It's definitely an unusual scent, and my mother says she can smell the chocolate in this so my nose might be off, but I don't know how "me" it is. If you like amber, this is worth checking out.

3/5

My bottle of Blood Kiss is at least two years old, so I can't attest to how it smells fresh, but the stuff I have is good. I remember being really dismayed when I first tried BK because it's very similar to Athens - who knew wine, cherries, and clove would smell just like wine, myrrh, and honey? Blood Kiss is definitely sexier and more of an in-your-face kind of scent while Athens is more refined and distant. The two notes in BK that really stand out are the cherries and clove, although at times I can catch slight whiffs of honey. Overall, this deserves to be a BPAL classic. I think it's one of those scents that every BPAL fan should try at some point - it really captures that decadent feeling that the Lab does so well.

4/5

On a map showing the similarities between BPAL scents, I think Miss Lupescu would be close to Snake Oil. It has that same blast of smoky resin that I get when I open my bottle of SO, and the overall vibe of Miss Lupescu has the same dark sensuality I get with scents in the Snake Oil family. However, Miss Lupescu is definitely lighter. There's a delicate quality in Miss Lupescu that's very interesting - I think it must be a combination of spice and almond that makes this almost foody. I would love to know how this is going to age, but until I can get my mitts on a big bottle, I'll be content with my decant.

3.5/5

This is wet, slushy snow. I've finally figured out that BPAL's snow note doesn't do that much for me, but I'm sure that anyone who does appreciate it will like this. Unfortunately, all I smell is a thick blanket of slush, kind of like Cloister Graveyard in the Snow without the soil note. I don't get anything floral out of The Macabray, just snow and a little hint of mint hiding in the background. Nice, but not for me.

2.5/5