yellowrose

for me the issue is neither resin nor incense, rather it's what else is present. I can wear about 1/2-2/3 of the above list - and what ruins things are the other players in the blend.

 

 

 

The lovely incense in The Caterpillar couldn't make it through the jasmine, which my skin amps until there are no other notes left.

 

By contrast, how can something like Snake Charmer work wonderfully and Jacob's Ladder cause a very bad allergic reaction? Doesn't make sense without knowing exactly what the components are.

question... so far every orange one i've tried has been really bright and just ... i dunno ... not right to me. i love citrus typically, but ... what gives? are there any darker more fuller and deeper orange scents?

 

for instance, i got an imp of akuma with my last order and i tried it again last night. despite having an obsession with blood oranges ... it's just stinging kinda brightness. and kuang shi was all potpourri!! of the ones that were recommended, does there tend to be much variance?

 

Yes, in my experience there is a lot of variance between orange notes. It depends on the oil and the supporting notes. Orange blossom smells totally different on me than blood orange.

 

Kunstkammer is all kinds of wonderful on me and for me.

 

The much-lauded Moxie did not work on me.

 

Although its citrus note is kumquat, try Tweedledee and see what you think.

This decanted imp of Gingerbread Poppet '05 is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

Not to repeat any other posts or reviews, but cinnamon oil typically causes a horrible reaction on my skin. Who says I can't sniff?!?

 

Ah, I understand why so many forumites are in love with this scent. It is truly THE very scent of warm gingerbread. Lovely. Rich. Spicy. Very evocative of the holiday kitchen. Happy to have had the opportunity to at least get a whiff of it. Thanks, brownbear.

 

Safe travels wandering imp!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

The Caterpillar. Not thinking or smelling, I swabbed it on and immediately regreted it. Jasmine.

 

It's a very old-fashioned smoky floral and instantly brings to mind that hookah smoking caterpillar. But jasmine. Yes, this note gets amped up to the exclusion of all others. This scent and its incense is no exception. It was so powerful, I'm afraid I had to wash it off. And it still refuses to budge.

 

Ah well, there are other mad things in the tea party to love.

 

Safe travels wandering imp!

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

I have been eager to try this. It's been on my wishlist for some time now. Yay!

 

Wet: musk and sandalwood with a touch of lemon. Why? Mmmm.

 

Drying: not much else in the mix. Not so much as a hint of mango. The mandarin must be responsible for what I get as lemon. It's mostly musk and sandalwood, which I like, I just wish the other notes would come out and play.

 

Vanishes in less than 30 minutes to a sour hint of scent. Drats!

 

Glad I was able to try this.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

Upon opening Catherine, there is a note that reminds me of jasmine, but isn't. It's sharp, bitter, and not something I want to put on my skin. I'm sticking to sniffing in the bottle and good thing.

 

My nose has not stopped running since the initial exploratory sniff and now, it's completely stuffy. Neroli is the most likely culprit. And it's on my fingers. Ack!

 

Safe travels little imp.

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

Hurricane is one I'm sniffing in the bottle. It is a sharpish aquatic, a type of scent that usually doesn't fare well on my skin. Very brash with a deep note, probably vetivert.

 

Safe travels little imp!

Baku was a gifted imp. I tried it on a night when I was exceedingly anxious and hoped it would help me sleep. I wore Calliope as well. I was restless and had horrible dreams the entire night. I don't know if using it in tandem with Calliope (also a lavendar scent) somehow changed the efficacy of the sleep formula. The anise note was disconcerting, but ... I'm not sure if I've done it justice, but I am wary of trying it again. I need my sleep!

This imp of Eris is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap brought to you by the lovely quikslvr and generous participants including brownbear!

 

Wet: Fruity!

 

Drying: melons and flowers and fruits and where was this for curing the summertime blues circa 2006?

 

Drying: Oh yeah! There’s some funky note that I really like in the mix. Yes, it is the promised gleeful mayhem. This is an adult glee. The fruits and florals are very regal and statuesque. Well, I could see Angelica Huston working this, if you get what I mean. Dries a little dusty. But, wow!

 

I thought I’d love to have a imp of Eris to wear in on hot summer nights in rotation with Numb and Ephemera and Asphodel. It screams of summer and does so boldly. Sadly, it became too much during the dry-down. Had some breathing problems about an hour after the first application. It’s still a lovely scent. I may give it another go some day.

 

Save travels imp! Go forth and enable!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

Ah, the fabled Embalming Fluid. Why have I never sniffed you?!

 

Wet: Lemon of doom!

 

Drying: Scent mellows some, but still LEMON OF DOOM! No welts, which can happen with lemon oil. This is good. But my throat did begin to tighten the longer I wore it. What happened to the musk, tea, and aloe? Yeah, hidden by the amped lemon.

 

Although I loathe comparing any one oil to another oil (as I think each has its merits and should be able to be reviewed independently), Embalming Fluid is the kissing cousin of Zephyr, which really wasn’t my thing either.

 

Pass.

 

Safe travels lemony implet!

Those who love Kunstkammer might try Tweedledee. It's very similar to Kunstkammer or at least my bottle of Kunstkammer as it has aged right up to dry down. The dry down is lovely.

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

This particular batch of imps -- Ava Maria Gratia Plena, Hymn to Propserine, Jazz Funeral, Jolly Roger, Juke Joint – consists almost exclusively of notes that give me trouble. These include booze, apple and jasmine.

 

Because I’m way, way behind and want to get the imps circulating, I’m sending it on its way having sniffed it in the bottle and determining that, well, for all the BPAL scents I love, I just don’t want to risk not loving it. Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans? Le sigh.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

This particular batch of imps -- Ava Maria Gratia Plena, Hymn to Propserine, Jazz Funeral, Jolly Roger, Juke Joint – consists almost exclusively of notes that give me trouble. These include booze, apple and jasmine.

 

Because I’m way, way behind and want to get the imps circulating, I’m sending it on its way having sniffed it in the bottle and determining that, well, for all the BPAL scents I love, I just don’t want to risk not loving it as Jack Sparrow might.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

This particular batch of imps -- Ava Maria Gratia Plena, Hymn to Propserine, Jazz Funeral, Jolly Roger, Juke Joint – consists almost exclusively of notes that give me trouble. These include booze, apple and jasmine.

 

Because I’m way, way behind and want to get the imps circulating, I’m sending it on its way having sniffed it in the bottle and determining that, well, for all the BPAL scents I love, I just don’t want to risk not loving it.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

This particular batch of imps -- Ava Maria Gratia Plena, Hymn to Propserine, Jazz Funeral, Jolly Roger, Juke Joint – consists almost exclusively of notes that give me trouble. These include booze, jasmine and … well, what fruits are Prosperine’s? Apple?? Although I'm guessing pomegranate, I can't risk it.

 

Because I’m way, way behind and want to get the imps circulating, I’m sending it on its way, I just don’t want to risk an allergic reaction even sniffing. I may have to contact the Lab to see if there is apple ... yes, I'm intrigued.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is traveling as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

This particular batch of imps -- Ava Maria Gratia Plena, Hymn to Propserine, Jazz Funeral, Jolly Roger, Juke Joint – consists almost exclusively of notes that give me trouble. These include booze, jasmine and … well Here it's the jasmine.

 

Because I’m way, way behind and want to get the imps circulating, I’m sending it on its way having sniffed it in the bottle and determining that, well, for all the BPAL scents I love, I just don’t want to risk not loving it.

 

Safe travels little imp!

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

In the interest of time and because others are patiently waiting, I'm just sniffing some scents in the bottle. This is one of those.

 

My impression of Neo-Toyko is that it is an aquatic-green scent. Because I am leery of green scents (since they often = grass), I'm not going to apply this on my skin. And I do have my own imp, which I'll apply to my skin when I have the time and inclination. Someone else needs to sniff this!

 

Safe travels imp!

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

In the interest of time and because others are patiently waiting, I'm just sniffing some scents in the bottle. This is one of those.

 

My impression of Leanan Sidhe is that it is an aquatic floral with a decidedly green note. Because I am leery of green scents (since they often = grass), I'm not going to apply this on my skin.

 

Safe travels imp!

This decanted imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

In the bottle: A mysteriously syrupy and dark amber liquid. Yowza! Very heavy scent and I want to put it on my skin immediately!

 

Wet: Initally, it stains like Betadine. Just as someone else observed. Very much redolent of neroli and patchouli. Exceedingly dark and earthy with a hint of ginger.

 

I'm trying this when I am hungry and my stomach is rockin' and rollin' so it may be the scent as much as the hunger that is making my stomach flip and sending my sinuses into overdrive. The scent is very soft, rich and on the verge of being cloying.

 

Since I'm rushing through reviews, I'll add comments if they happen to be germane.

 

This would be a great night on the town scent! But drats! Goes plastic within the hour on me. Started so promising!

 

Safe travels wandering imp!

 

edited to add important info

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

In the bottle: fruit bouquet. None of the expected acidic tartness that you get when you bite into a kumquat rind.

 

Wet: Ridiculously yum! Fruity and floral and spicy without being cloying. Youthful and happy. Summery green-orange scent.

 

Drying: Morphs into sweet, sweet, sweet candyish scent in about an hour. Unexpected! Becomes a tad dusty-powdery. Lasts about four hours.

 

Conclusion: Hmmm. I'm fence-sitting on this one. Cousin to Kunstkammer, at least the sweeter scent it's become with age. Worth trying again eventually.

 

Safe travels wandering imp.

 

edited to add additional info

For those looking for a lavender sleep blend, Calliope is what I've been using. I have a big bottle and am slathering it in lieu of Black Cat, which is a rose blend that is very nice at bedtime.

 

Those are my two faves. I'm eager to try TKO.

Oddly enough, the two enabling scents that launched interest among a group of local women were Dana O'Shee and Satyr. I am not making this up. Those two IMHO show the contrast or extremes of BPAL. One of my friends ordered immediately after that -- and neither of those scents either, which says a lot.

 

Faustus and Bengal got ooohs and ahhhhs on a recent night.

 

A good rule of thumb, I'd say have a couple of light scents, a couple of spicy scents, a couple of dark scents, a couple of florals (rose and jasmine), a fruity, one with dragon's blood, and a foody. There will be overlap. I would also have what I consider the Lab's signature scents at hand -- Black Phoenix, O, Snake Oil, Dana O'Shee. YMMV.

 

What you DO NOT want to do is be wearing something you're on the fence about and have your friend tell you it smells like granny's lingerie drawer. Have more than one scent at the ready.

 

Oh, and LE? I'd have to say Snake Charmer. Hands down.

This imp is part of the General Catalogue Swap.

 

Obatala has been on my wish list, so I was eager to try this scent interpretation of one of the Orishas.

 

OH. MY. ... OBATALA.

 

Let's dispense with convention. This scent is a true coconut scent. It is the smell of coconut meat, not the mad scientist's interpretation of what a schoolgirl thinks coconut should be -- sticky cream pie and hyper-candy sweetness. None of that cloying youthful pretense.

 

It's amazing.

 

Some sweet scents go plastic-y on me and I feared that. I was distracted and sweaty while I had it on and didn't pay great attention to the lasting rate or whether it eventually morphed. I enjoyed wearing it and the acquatic hint was nice, especially on a hot walk with the cottonwoods' rustling in the wind sounding exactly like a crisp, refreshing waterfall.

 

If I try it again, I fear censure or by the other participants, and, honestly, everyone should have the opportunity to try Obatala.

 

I'll surely buy an imp and do my own testing before investing in a 5 ml.

 

Safe travels wandering imp!

Discovered Golden Priapus is very similar to Tombstone. It's the slightly more manly kissing cousin.

This imp is circulating as part of the General Catalogue swap.

 

I've been testing lots of imps and I fear I have reached a saturation point because all I can smell is ozone and ozone only. Masculine.

 

Safe travels little imp.