inurbanus

As good as this one sounded in the middle of the night when the update went up, I was skeptical because I usually have a hard time wearing cake scents. Not so with Huesos. Out of the bottle, this is so delicious and yummy -- it's sweet orangey, creamy goodness that's more like a creamsicle than a cake. A few minutes letter, it dries down to something drier and more like a poundcake, and the anise comes into the picture. I love anise, but I really wish that I could freeze this one in its first incarnation, since it is so, so good. Still, anyone who loves cake scents needs to try this.

 

4/5

This is for the 2008 version.

 

I love resiny perfume, so I was thrilled when Schwarzer Mond returned. Finally, a chance to try the king of resin blends! I waited a while to try this since I wanted it to age a little bit. I am not disappointed. This is gorgeous, and very interesting because it keeps shifting from one scent to another. At the beginning, it's fruity, then deep and smoky, and now it's gentler with a strong hint of myrrh. It's definitely dark and mysterious. And awesome.

 

4.5/5

I really think that Fearful Pleasure is going to be the breakout scent of Halloweenies. I can't stop sniffing myself and going, "Damn, that's good!" The spices here are a lot gentler than in other spicy BPAL blends, and when they combine with the oranges and the apples, it's a match made in heaven. The apple note is really sweet, and it reminds me a little bit of Bath and Body Works' Winter Candy Apple scent, which I'm a big fan of. However, I would also agree that this is potpourri-ish, and in fact, I can't help but think of orange pomanders when I smell this. Fearful Pleasure is such a lovely, comforting scent. I would heavily encourage everyone to at least try it.

 

4.5/5

This is very similar to White Rabbit, except it's a little bit creamier and more floral. Since I love White Rabbit, I'm really digging this. I do wish I got more of the muguet, since I love lilies, but other than that this is really nice. The beeswax does some interesting things here - it has almost a glowing quality that's very pretty. As for the wool that I was worried about, I could smell it in the bottle (and I have to say, I didn't think it was very appealing), but not after putting it on. Lastly, I just wanted to say that I love the artwork on the label!

 

4/5

For the first minutes, this was out of control cassia, but luckily it disappeared, revealing a lovely lotus-bamboo blend. This is very cooling and refreshing. I wish I'd had it this summer, as it seems perfect for warm weather. Those who like some of the other Asian themed blends might want to try this, although I will say that the BPAL scent Autumn Coolness reminds me the most of is Peacocks, one of the retail-only salons. I'm also reminded a little bit of Sea of Tranquility, which has the same relaxed vibe as this.

 

3.5/5

This smells almost exactly like Bengal to me, except there's something musty in the background that's not very appealing. The spice seems to be primarily cinnamon or cassia, but I can smell a little bit of ginger too. I guess I was hoping for a more incensey vibe from this. I'm sure it's a good blend for spice-lovers, but it's not really for me.

 

3/5

I know that vetiver is a tricky note for some people. I don't really mind it the way I do, say, jasmine, but I was a little taken aback by how vetivery Chant D'Automne is. There's something about it that sets my teeth on edge. Luckily, after the first fifteen minutes, whatever was bothering me disappeared, so I could appreciate the beautiful dry leaves smell that Chant turned into. This one moves in stages -- for a while I could smell some tobacco, but now all I'm left with is the smell of sweet amber. Overall, I like this because it's very different than any other BPAL scent I've tried. I never smelled The Death of Autumn, so I can't compare them, but in a strange way this reminded me just a little bit of Anactoria, only way more sinister.

 

3.5/5

I put this on last night before studying for my British Empire quiz. It seemed kind of topical. Anyway, Port Royal really surprised me. It's too masculine for me to wear, but it's such an evocative scent that I couldn't stop smelling it. It's exactly what I think a pirate ship would smell like: salt caked wood, a little bit of rum, spices, and something vaguely floral, which must be the perfume. So cool! There's something vaguely aquatic about this, so those who love either aquatics or pirates, check this out.

 

4/5

I applied this with a toothpick and not my usual glass wand, so it was pretty light. From what I could tell, this has two stages: a caramel stage and a sugary strawberry / cotton stage. I didn't care for the first one, but I'm really enjoying the second one. The strawberry note in this reminds me a lot of the strawberry in Beaver Moon 2007, without the cake. I can't wait to really lay this one on thick when I can use my wands. Anyone who likes strawberry or sweet scents needs to try this!

 

4/5

In the imp, this was the same waxy honey smell that grossed me out in Skuld and Mead Moon. Luckily, most of the waxy effect goes away when I put it on -- it becomes a lot sweeter, and I was immediately reminded of Lush's Snowcake soap. However, there's still a hint of "public restroom" that's keeping me from really enjoying this one. I can see why others would, though.

 

3/5

The Churchyard strikes me as a "nighttime scent", not because it's not appropriate for day wear, but it really embodies the idea of an overgrown graveyard at night, under a glowing moon. It's spooky stuff. This is indeed deep and herbal, but it's a very fresh scent, along the lines of The Passionate Shepherd. I can't smell the blackberry leaf, but I can smell the rose and the frankincense, and the two are a very interesting combination. I agree with Katherynne -- this is definitely a scent to be appreciated mostly by its wearer. I don't know how often I will wear this, but I'm definitely going to keep it. I feel the same way about it as I do October -- not a scent I really want to wear, but I love the way it embodies a concept and want to keep it on hand to smell it from time to time.

 

3.5/5

This was somewhat of a risky scent to try, since I don't really like fir, cedar, or juniper berry. However, I am utterly loving this! As soon as I dabbed this on I was wrapped in a cloud of spicy plums. Not the thin, Kool-Aidy plums like in Bordello, but the rich juicy ones in Bathsheba. I can see the comparisons to pie filling, because the spices are very prominent, but the fruits in this smell a lot darker to me than apples. Comparing this to L'Inverno (because I expected them to be quite similar), I like Harvest Moon a lot better. I can't even smell the fir in this, and the plum note is a lot fresher smelling than the syrupy one in L'Inverno. Still, if you liked L'Inverno, I would say that there's a strong chance that you will like this one too.

 

4.5/5

Bengal smells primarily like cinnamon to me, but if I concentrate I can smell some sweet honey in the background. I have to say, most spice blends smell almost indistinguishable to me, but Bengal definitely seems like the ultimate blend for cinnamon lovers. It's a little too medicinal for my taste, but I can see why others would enjoy it. This is the second time that I've tested it, since something drew me back in to try it again. If this continues, I might just use my imp up!

 

Right now, a 3.5/5, but subject to change.

I have a hard time reviewing things that I LOVE because I usually am so focused on how good I smell that I have a hard time picking out notes. Such is the case with Libertine, one of my favorite BPAL florals. I thought I would make the effort, though, because I don't see Libertine crop up very often on people's favorites list, and every bit of attention helps, I guess.

 

An accurate description of Libertine (at least to my nose) is that it's a sweet floral. However, this description does not really get to the heart of what makes Libertine so great. It's a very opulent scent, and I remember the first time I smelled it, when I was just beginning to get into BPAL (Libertine was one of the first couple of frimps I ever received from the Lab), I went "Whoa! Now this is perfume!" Because it doesn't read to me as a naturalistic scent, even though it smells like sweet flowers and herbs, but something specifically blended for someone's adornment. The two most prominent notes are the chamomile and the primrose, with just a touch of violet in the background. The notes mingle and form a cloud of scent that's enveloping and welcoming.

 

My only complaint with this is that it used to have such great throw -- this was, for a while, the strongest BPAL scent I've tried, but I put it on yesterday and it was significantly lighter. I hope aging doesn't weaken it too much!

 

4.5/5

I'm having a hard time deciding how much I like Autumn. It's very similar to Samhain, but without the sweetness of apples that makes Samhain so delectable. Instead, Autumn has a very distinct floral element, and overall the scent is drier than Samhain. There's something in Autumn that's keeping me from really enjoying it, and I suspect that it's the osmanthus, which smells too much like jasmine for my liking. The overall feeling of this is one of melancholy. I'm not sure that this is the interpretation I would go with for the beautiful painting that inspired this, but both the scent and the piece of art share a wistfulness that it is very moving.

 

3.5/5

This is pretty plasticky on me, but I can sniff a little bit of something sweet (it smells like sugary coconuts) in the background. While I'm sad this didn't work, it's making me even more excited about Tilt-A-Whirl in the next Carnaval Diabolique act, which might turn out better.

2/5

ETA: This was the resurrected version.

I'm confused -- are you looking for primarily tea scents? If so, Nostrum Remedium and Torture Queen are both very nice.

 

If not, here are some others (some of which have tea as a supporting note):

 

Embalming Fluid - Like a cool glass of lemonade

Phantasm - Smells like sugary lemon candy

Earth Rat - Melon!

Titania - Sweet pea and sugary fruit

Fae - Fresh, juicy peach

Swank - Pomegranate martini

Maenad - Pretty strawberry orange blend

The Apothecary - Smells like green tea and fresh grass, very refreshing

Silence (from The Salon) - Hard to describe, but light fruity floral

Crawdad Dream - Blueberries

Cheshire Cat - Grapefruit and currant, really invigorating

Shoggoth - Smells like fresh lime

Aizen-Myoo - A little tart at first, but blossoms into something incredibly cool and fresh

Absinthe - A really neat citrusy-herb smell -- very light and not cloying at all

Blood Countess is rose, wine, and something sour. It reminds me very strongly of Bordello -- I think the plum note is the same in both of them, since the two blends share a thin Kool-Aid quality. I really wanted to like this, but I don't think it's me. It smells too much like potpourri, and there are notes clashing in the background, which makes this a no-go.

 

3/5

For the first fifteen minutes of Orpheus, the crushed green stems are really prominent. They smelled strong and bitter, and reminded me of walking through a field on a hot summer day. I really liked this stage -- it was similar to the pond water smell at the beginning of The Black Swan. Eventually, the citrus fruits took over and Orpheus became very fruity. The perfume developed a commercial vibe. I immediately thought of DKNY Be Delicious (which is a favorite of mine) or something from Escada. I was really surprised by how much I liked this. I think I see a bottle of this in my future.

 

4.5/5

The first fifteen minutes of this is dark chocolate and orange, and reminded me of Vixen. At first I was a little worried, since it seemed to be heading into Midnight Kiss territory, but I actually ended up liking it. It was more seductive than I usually go for, but it was interesting. Then, as soon as I got used to the chocolate, it disappeared, leaving behind a nice cherry and orange scent. If you like Vixen, Kali, or Maenad, I would definitely suggest this one.

 

3.5/5

I keep going back and forth on whether I need a bottle of Midnight on the Midway. The first half hour of this isn't great -- there's a medicinal smell that's not very appealing. But it soon blossoms into a beautifully lush, sugary floral that I can't get enough of. Mood-wise, this is definitely a "nighttime" scent, and it embodies its concept wonderfully. I think I might have to go ahead and get this -- right now, I can't stop sniffing my wrist.

 

4/5

Whew! This is a lot harsher than I was expecting. The two notes that I can pick out are the rose and the musk. There's also a combination of spices that smells weird and kind of ashy. I think my skin reads this combination of notes as TOO MUCH, unfortunately. I can tell that it's one of those scents that could bloom beautifully on someone with a certain skin chemistry.

 

2.5/5

Lucretia was the first Salon blend I tried, when I was beginning to get into BPAL, so I have a special place in my heart for this one. I remembered it being extremely opulent and old-fashioned, but there was something about it that I couldn't get enough of. Well, I tried it again today, and it's different. It has the same luxurious feel, and it's definitely got a vintage vibe, but there's a powdery quality that I don't remember it having, putting it in the same company as Three Brides and Inez from Carnaval Diabolique. I can smell the vanilla and the woods, with a little bit of violet in the background. This is a very melancholy smell -- when I say it smells vintage, I'm thinking of old-school commercial perfumes. But actually, this seems to go even further back, it makes me think of a Victorian woman in mourning. I can't decide if this is bottle-worthy, since it's just so "not me." But for some reason, I keep thinking about it.

 

4/5

There's a shop where I live that sells little anise candies. My grandparents always bought them around Christmas, and I think the memory of those candies is what drives my love of the scent of anise. Absinthe smells exactly like those candies. It's soft (a lot mellower than I thought it would be), with a little bit of citrus and some herbs thrown in. Mint in perfume scares me, but I couldn't smell any in this. I can't compare this to actual Absinthe, but even without smelling the real thing, I enjoyed wearing this. If it were stronger, I might contemplate buying a bottle.

 

4/5

A very pretty white floral -- like if Bat-Woman and White Moon mated, this would be their offspring. I didn't apply this with a glass wand, as I normally do, so I can't really judge how much throw this has, but it smells lush and a little decadent. This doesn't really smell "dark" to me at all. It's sweet, but stately. I think I'm going to have to retry this a couple more times before I can figure out how much I like it.

 

3.5/5, for now