a_bear

I got the impression from the description that this wasn't really meant to be worn? It's a bit sharp and very bright and clean smelling. I like to use a bit when I deep clean areas of my home.

Starts with a blast of lime/lemongrass, and as those fade, the frankincense really comes out. I'm not sure what angelica or palmarosa smell like, so I can't say I smell them. I agree it's very "upscale cleaning supplies."

Personally, I would have liked this to have a more prominent cinnamon note as it's very subtle, likewise the pumpkin. On me it's predominately tobacco with a bit of coffee. None of the woods jump out at me, but they probably help to keep the scent from being too sweet. There is a creamy smoothness to the scent, which I'm attributing to the coffee bean husk, since the Lab's assorted coffee-related notes tend to smell sweet and creamy to me. That said, I've seen some people describe the Lab's pumpkin notes as buttery, so maybe it's that?

I agree it's quite cozy and warm on its own, but I'll probably experiment with layering it with something spicier, like Plunder or the Cinnamon & Clove duet.

Loads of sweet pumpkin spices, but no actual pumpkin to my nose, with a hit of brightness from the orange. The bourbon provides depth, and is boozy, but in a sort of idealized way, so it isn't harsh. This is becoming a regular in my warm, cozy, spicy autumn scents rotation.

Almost exactly what it says on the tin. I'm not big on gourmand scents, so I don't have much to compare to, but this smells shockingly realistically like cherry cream pie, especially the crust. Not sure what chypre is or what its supposed to smell like, so I can't really say whether I noticed it or not.

This is the oud that made me less afraid of oud; it's not poopy or barnyard-y at all, but rather provides a woody-ness that keeps the scent from being super sweet. Nutty, sweet (but not too much so), woody, with a hint of something bright that's almost citrusy. I don't smell the pie crust note in this like I did in Cherry Cream Pie Chypre. Pairs nicely with Pumpkin Pie Musk since it's not as sweet or gourmand as PPM.

pumpkin pie filling. I don't find it to be heavy on the spices (but I like smelling like a spice drawer, so maybe I have a high tolerance), and I don't get any of the pie crust note I smelled in Cherry Pie Chypre. I'm not a big fan of musks generally, but I think here it provides depth to the vegetal pumpkin smell and pulls it out of purely gourmand territory. Pairs really nicely with Pecan Pie Oud.

Bear Prince is a really lovely rose if you can find it or it comes back with this year's Yule/Winter collection. 

I seem to remember being slightly disappointed when I first tried this scent, but I think I was just expecting something very different - mostly spiced cider and dried grass, and this is not that. Trying it again a year later, I really like it.

Mostly apple, grass, and sage. The sage & grass combo is very fresh and reminds me a bit of Mag Mell. Although the notes say warm apple cider, this cider is not spiced at all and smells more like cool, fresh-pressed apple cider to me.

I don't know what squirreltail smells like, but I don't pick up any dirt or dandelions.

When first applied it has decent throw, but it doesn't last very long on me.

Dominated by smoke, but with a zap of citrus. The smoke is ever so slightly acrid and surprisingly cold smelling - like the remains of charred wood left in a damp stone fireplace.

Hay & grass combo smells very similar to that in Hay Moon. The tonka rounds any sharp edges, and the cacao adds a bit of depth without being too foody. A soft scent for sunny late summer/early autumn days.

This doesn't smell like actual dirt to me. Instead, it smells like a very expensive dessert with fancy single-origin, fair trade, organic ultra dark chocolate that's only sweetened with the tiniest bit of barely refined sugar in the bourbon cream. It's food-y enough that it's not one I will wear often, but the wood and tobacco really help balance it out and make it wearable for me, so I think I will keep and enjoy my imp.

My imp has a good blob of what I guess is cocoa-related oil? It requires some pretty aggressive shaking to disperse it.

Where Tweedledum is a ripe, juicy fig, this one is much drier. It reminds me of a dried fig dropped in dirt/dust, which is not the most appealing visual, but I like the way it smells!

White tea and pepper can be really sharp notes on me, but when they behave this is a bright, juicy citrus scent as the reviewer above said. I like pairing it with Tweedledum to soften and ground it.

Juicy fig backed by a soft patchouli. I don't get much mango or tea, but I really like this scent. Satisfying on its own or with Tweedledee to brighten it up a bit.

This is one of my favorite relaxing evening scents, though it's interesting enough that I would consider wearing it at other times. It has a slightly funky edge - maybe from the sugar cane? Whatever it is and the lavender help cut through the sweetness. I agree with other reviewers that there's something masculine/cologne-y that comes out in some whifs, but mostly it's pretty neutral, and I feel like I get all of the notes at least a little bit throughout wear.

I was worried this would be a smoke bomb, but I don't smell smoke at all. On wet, it's predominantly astringent lavender. As it dries it fades to mostly a dry tobacco backed by labdanum and incense.

When I first tried this I found it weirdly sweet, like sweetened cucumber juice. Retesting my imp, that extra sweetness has gone away, and it's refreshing cucumber with maybe a touch of grass. A good one for hot weather.

This scent makes me think of morning at a fancy resort in the desert with a picture-perfect succulent garden (it's funny to me how some scents just smell like the notes, and others conjure weirdly specific scenes). It's dry, but still green, with a hint of dew or something. After a couple hours the tulsi becomes more prominent - it's simultaneously a very sweet and kind of bitter herbal smell that I'm not crazy about (it's like sweet basil's funkier sibling). I preferred it when the sandalwood was reining it in.

I was worried this would be too sweet, and it is not at sweet at all. The amber, which dominates, is very mineralic and dry. Unfortunately I think this has the same mandarin note as Carnal, which smells a bit like cleaning solution to me - it's a relatively short-lived note, though. The amber becomes slightly powdery, and the orange blossom and bergamot threaten to pull it into "perfume-y" territory. I'm on the fence about this one because the amber is fascinating, but the supporting notes aren't really working for me.

I don't get any fig from my imp, just slightly cleaning solution-y orange. Bummer. Low throw and wear time.

I get a little bit of everything when first applied, but this quickly becomes all about the green herbs. I can't pick out the individual herbs in the blend, but they are slightly bitter in a refreshing sort of way.

Sweet, but realistically so - not too sweet or candied-smelling. I don't really get peel/pith, but it is ever so slightly floral. Very pretty, light, and fresh. Low throw and very low wear length, but extremely slatherable.

Ooo fun! Trying to think of a selection of things I think show off the breadth of BPAL's catalogue - biased towards scents I've actually tried myself. Probably mostly GCs just because they are easier to find. When I think of BPAL I think of something Tom said in one of the 15 min of Fume videos about being clean but smelling dirty, so there's capturing that, but also a little something for everyone.

In no particular order:

1. No. 93 Engine from Steamworks - a bunch of notes you may not have heard of but should definitely try

2. Alecto from Excolo - also kind of weird and unique

3. Les Bijoux from Ars Amatoria - sexy without containing red musk

4. Mag Mell from Wanderlust - refreshing

5. Plunder or another one of the GC pirate related scents

6. A black patchouli blend like Depraved, Nephilim, or Sin - get a little dirty

7. Anything from The Mad Tea Party - I haven't tried everything from this collection, but it seems generally kind of fun/playful

8. Anything from Picnic in Arkham - Something horror inspired seems appropriate

9. Something from the Liliths, since that's a recurring collection that's 100% unique to BPAL

10. An activism scent (personally,  I'm partial to Theoi Nomioi, but I think Civil Twilight is a popular one)

11. Snake oil and/or Smut or a variant of either/both

This is one of the first BPALs I purchased and was actually the one I was most nervous about since I'm not really into gourmands. It turned out to be the big hit from my order, though! I love it. If my house were on fire, this is one I would absolutely have to rescue. It's not too foody or sweet - I get more oats than cake, and the honey and amber are subtle. It's mostly cardamom with dry grass and grains on me. It's the perfect pleasantly warm early Fall day scent, though I've been wearing it here and there the rest of the year as well.

I also have the Hay Moon from 2008. I find it's not as warm or sweet smelling on intitial application, but after a couple hours they smell pretty much the same.

Sjöfn to me is a fresh, slightly floral apple scent, and it's in the GC. Our Little Crypt Ghoul from the most recent Liliths also smells like fresh apple to me without cider/spices (although I think it says the apple note is cider, so YMMV).