tempete

I got High John the Conquerer as a freebie from the Lab (thanks!). Funny, I don't get any grape from this, and typically on my skin, grape likes to boldly declare its presence. It is strongly soapy and sort of herbally green during the wet stage, but these elements back down a bit as the scent dries down. It becomes a little sweet and vaguely spicy as well. As other reviewers have stated, it's a well-rounded scent with no sharp edges. It does make me feel more confident, more capable, and the first time I wore it, my boss was very complimentary to me about my work (and he had been an asshole just a week prior). I don't think that I would wear it on a regular basis, but I'll keep an imp around when I need to deal with difficult people.

Thanks to a freebie imp of Ultraviolet from the Lab, I have realized that I like violets, so I swapped for this (wave to kithrobyn!). Wet, Le Serpent Qui Danse is all violets - yay! Unfortunately, as the scent dries down, the violet note recedes into the background, and the gardenia note takes over. I have tried a few BPALs with gardenias in them, and I have come to the conclusion that my body chemistry makes that particular note... screech (I can't think of a better term). On the plus side, the vanilla note just adds a lovely subtle sweetness to this scent and isn't overpowering. I would love this scent without the gardenia note. Oh well, off to swaps.

In the wet phase of Black Rose, I smell the musk note most strongly, along with a somewhat sharp green note in the background. As it dries down, the roses slowly take over and the scent becomes more and more powdery. In the final drydown, I can detect a trace of amber in the background, but it's not enough to make me like my imp of Black Rose enough to keep it. Spellbound remains my preferred rose/musk/amber blend, probably because the roses are in the background

Ice Queen is one of the few BPALs that conjures up an image of a specific type of person for me. She is a beautiful, regal woman who is coolly haughty, utterly in control and above all, incredibly dangerous and not to be crossed. The scent itself is a beautifully balanced blends of all its elements, with no single element overpowering the mix (generally speaking). The fruits provide a touch of sweetness, the spruce give some greenness, the musks contribute an animalistic overtone and the florals bestow the feminine touch required to remind you that this dangerous creature is a woman. My one complaint is that the musks get out of hand at times during the drydown, but that's probably the fault of my body chemistry, which loves to amp up musks. I'm so glad that I took a chance and got a bottle. If Ice Queen returns in 2005, I will definitely get another one.

(I thought that I had reviewed Muse already, but apparently not...) My hopes were not high for Muse. Jasmine routinely and reliably turns soapy on my skin, and lotus tends to be too cloyingly, nauseatingly sweet for my tastes. But lime is the magic ingredient here... I can smell it most strongly during the wet stage, but its imprint is definitely felt during the drydown: there's a clean freshness that seems to cut right through the soap and the sweetness. The end result is a white floral without any of the negatives that typically accompany pure floral scents (at least with my body chemistry). I used to think that I only liked florals when they were encased in amber and drowned in musk (preferably red), but now I can ask for them with a wedge of lime.

Hmm... I didn't think that I would find a scent containing red musk and amber that I didn't like, but apparently, Hollywood Babylon fits that niche. The red musk and Egyptian amber notes are strongest when wet, although I can detect the sweeter notes lurking in the background. As Hollywood Babylon dries down, the strawberry and cherry notes beat the musk and amber notes into submission, and together with the vanilla note, turn this scent into a sweet candy-like mess on my skin. I was hoping that the red musk and Egyptian amber would keep the sweeter notes in line, but no such luck, alas.

Wet, Othello smells vaguely spicey sweet on me. I can't really pick out the musks, and the roses are quite faint. As it dries down, Othello goes very sweet in a cloying, artificial way and turns into... Liquid Tide. I kid you not. Hopefully whoever gets my imps of Othello will have better luck with them than I did.

ChupaChup was kind enough to send me a decant of this Tarot oil Wet, the Star is spicy coconutty sweet, with a hint of green in the background. As it dries down, the spicy and green notes disappear and the sweetness intensifies into a caramel-type gooeyness, with a faint trace of the initial coconut note. Unfortunately, it gets so sweet on my skin that it is slightly nauseating. Not for me, alas.

Initially, Undertow is a creamy, cool scent on me with a transparency that does remind me of water. The mint is strongest during the initial wet phase, but goes away as Undertow dries down, allowing a darkness to permeate the scent. At this point, it evokes images of murky water which makes you think twice about swimming through because you're unsure what lies beneath. I think that I prefer a scent with a bit more going on in the background, but nevertheless, I'm so glad that I got to try out Undertow because it evoked such strong imagery for me.

Bluebeard is very sharp and cruel at first, which seems to be due to the predominance of the lavender note in the wet phase. Even before it dries down completely, however, Bluebeard almost completely disappears on my skin. I can only detect a faint whiff of something that's vaguely minty. Since it vanishes so quickly on my skin, I'll have to swap this one away.

Wet, Tum smells like grape juice which makes me suspect the presence of the BPAL wine note (which almost always smells like grape juice on me). As it dries down, Tum slowly evolves into a rich, honeyed, resiny scent that retains only a trace of grape-y goodness. While this is an interesting scent, it doesn't really suit me, so I'm sending it off to the swap pile.

I have to agree that Ra contains frankincense because it initially smells like dirt on me (which is typical of BPALs containing frankincense as a major component). As it dries down, the dirt smell disappears and Ra becomes a warm, golden but very masculine scent on me. I really suck at picking out notes blind, so that's the best you're gonna get from me

I didn't expect to like this because the somewhat similar Sudha Segara didn't blow me away, because I'm not a big fan of foodie scents, and because I thought that I didn't like almonds. Well, I must be able to tolerate almonds because the wet stage of Dana O'Shee is a gigantic blast of sweet almonds and maraschino cherries. It dries down to a creamy, slightly greenish second skin type of scent that retains a faint trace of almonds, and makes me wish that my skin smelled this good all the time. It doesn't have much staying power on me. I don't understand why this scent is so addictive, as it is completely different from what I normally like, but I thank the Lab profusely for throwing an imp into my last order. Good thing I have another imp coming in a swap and a bottle on the way.

Wet, Amsterdam is a light, slightly grassy floral with a translucence that does remind me of flowing water. As it dries down, the peony note becomes more predominant (it could also be the tulip note, but I don't remember what tulips smell like). This is very pretty, but I'm not sure that it suits my personality. I'll have to wear it a few more times before I decide on whether to keep it or swap it.

My favourite tea scent in the BPAL catalog is Kumiho (white tea and ginger), but some people find the ginger note too strong. My next favourite is Maiden, which is white tea, Damask rose and carnation - however, if you're not fond of florals, you might not like this one.

Eternal was initially pure floral powdery soap on me... but the powder and the soap quickly disappeared and I was left with mostly gardenia and tiny bit of heliotrope. Alas, I prefer that any flowers in my scents be drowned under a sea of musk or encased in amber, so this imp will be headed to the swap pile.

My first experience with Glasya was with a decant that smelled really sharp on my skin and was therefore swapped away. In the interim, however, I had ordered an imp before it got discontinued, and it is a completely different olfactory experience. Red musk and I get along really well, which is why I have so many red musk-containing BPALs, but most of these are very sensual scents. The red musk component in Glasya is amplified by my skin, no surprise there, but this time, it's got a backbone - I think that this is provided by the myrrh note. There is a faint hint of sweetness too, probably from the ylang ylang. Dragon's blood usually goes soapy on me, but thankfully there's no soapiness here. I'm sad that Glasya has been discontinued as this would have been a good scent to wear when I don't want to take any bullshit from anyone, but I'll treasure my imp and save it for those occasions.

I've resigned myself to the fact that I cannot wear red wine. Wet, Lilith smells like grape juice with a dash of pepper thrown in. As it dries, the grape juice scent disappears thankfully, although it leaves a trace of its sweetness behind, but the pepper note gains in strength. Since I don't fancy smelling like pepper (as much as I love it on my food), my imp of Lilith is headed to the swap pile.

Not being a huge fan of mint or eucalyptus, I didn't think that I would like Ultraviolet, but these notes just seem to add a brightness that's not too sharp to the lush background of violet and neroli. Wearing Ultraviolet makes me feel really alert and aware. I am definitely holding onto my imp and I will consider getting a bottle. Kudos to the Lab for throwing this as a freebie into my last order!

For the first hour or so after I apply it, I simply adore Snow White. Against a creamy background, I can detect faint echoes of almond, pineapple and coconut. Normally, I'm not a fan of foody scents at all, but this is simply gorgeous. Unfortunately, a sharp greenish note appears in the drydown that mars this lovely fragrance for me. It eventually recedes somewhat but never disappears completely. I'm willing to put up with this intrusive note, however, since I do love the initial wet phase of Snow White so much, but I wish that I could love her unequivocally.

Sybaris was very clovey on me (I actually couldn't smell any of the other notes).

The lotus note predominates in the wet phase of Forbidden Fruit. The sweetness of this note eventually gives way to the citrus notes, and then finally to the 'light florals', whatever they may be. I think that jasmine must be a component because the final drydown has a soapiness to it that's reminiscent of jasmine, although there are traces of the lotus and citrus notes. Forbidden Fruit is not for me, alas.

Initially, Cheshire Cat is pure grapefruit. As it dries down, the red currant note peeks through, and the dark musk note makes a brief appearance, but this is mostly grapefruit on me. I can't detect any of the other notes in the description for this scent. Since I'm not that fond of grapefruit, this imp will be headed to the swap pile.

Tenochtitlan is very green at first on me - not sharp at all, but very refreshing. I'm not sure if I'm identifying it correctly, but it seems that the prickly pear note dominates the initial wet phase. As Tenochtitlan dries down, the amber note comes out and mixes with the green notes. It eventually becomes an almost pure amber scent on me, although I can still faintly detect the green notes. This scent will be perfect when I'm in the mood for a green, lighter scent, and I plan on getting a bigger bottle of this.

Lovely, another note to add to my "avoid at all costs" list. My skin amplified the clove note in Sybaris to the exclusion of all others. Because I don't want to smell like I slathered myself in clove, my Sybaris imps will be heading to the swap pile.