SmellsPrettyGood2Me
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Tuberose, Wild Tobacco Flower, and Red Clover
SmellsPrettyGood2Me replied to Seajewel's topic in Duets & Menage A Trois
A beautifully creamy, clean trio that perfectly portends the transition between spring and summer. All three notes appear in the bottle in equal strength, but the waxy tuberose takes center stage on skin right away. About 10 minutes in I start to get the grassy green sweetness of the red clover and another pale white flower that must be from the tobacco. The balance here between the notes is exquisite; if all florals were this well constructed, I'd like a heck of a lot more floral fragrances! Medium projection and reasonably good longevity at just under 6 hours of wear. Very likely on the fringes of workplace and small space safe as long as it is applied with a light touch. My partial, secondhand bottle is from a less BPAL-centric period of my fragrance journey, which is unfortunate because I would grab 3 extra bottles of this now if I could. The gentle, creamy sweetness here somehow reminds me of another beloved discontinued favorite, Armani's Si Fiori. I will be saving this for special occasions like spring or summer weddings while I hope for a Trio Comeback Tour. -
2022 version! This is a gem worth cherishing. Time has aged the musk from red to a deep purple that fills your nose with each sniff from the bottle and goes jammy on skin. I'm getting vanilla sugar crystals and a touch of amber as it dries down. The booze is either a port wine or fruit cordial, high proof but not overtly alcoholic. I do also detect the vegetal Snake Oil musk here. Perfect for both days and evenings in every season except summer, when it might be just a bit too much. Big, bold projection and 10 good hours of wear on my skin. Will return to review 2024 and 2025 versions in good time...
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The petrichor here is absolute perfection. It's watery and deep in the bottle, and transitions to skin in a gloriously clean (mildly cucumber-y) burst of freshness and renewal. It's now less classically aquatic and more a little bit mineralic, not salty like an ocean note. The silk and vanilla notes appear promptly, within 5 minutes, and the scent shifts from the cool spring rain to the smell of the forest nymphs frolicking in dewy woods. Per usual, the Lab's fabric accords are award worthy and the silk note shimmers in the air. The vanilla is sweet, powdery and dry. Despite being delicate, projection here is moderate and lasts a good six hours. This is a fragrance for a gentle mood, whether it's present already and needs a scent to match, or if one needs to evoke feelings of mental escape into an outdoor woodland fantasy. Ideal also for an intimate, bedtime perfume.
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The Inexorable Finger
SmellsPrettyGood2Me replied to caith_bpal's topic in Black Phoenix Trading Post
2025 version! Sweet, sticky and dark in the bottle, it goes on skin a purple-y grape scent and gives Big League Chew vibes for the duration of the wet open. The oud is there, barely, but gets a bit stronger as it dries down. I don't think the patchouli is as strong in this iteration as in past seasons; it takes over an hour to present and does so a lot more gently than expected. Projection is relatively bold and longevity is very good at 8+ hours. It must be the obsidian note that is leading the charge in this version. While I like it, I think it could benefit from a good rest. -
I love reading when a scent really hits for other people; it makes me happy for them and excited to try it for myself. I went into this wearing experience with high expectations, but I did not have the same love-at-first-sniff as everyone else. What I got, mostly, was Honey Nut Cheerios in a bowl of vanilla almond milk. Tasty smelling, more oats than toasted bread, with a bit of sweetness from the amber and the vanilla. Projection was strong and it lasted over 8 hours on my skin. I like it, but it has to be kept aside for days when I want to smell like breakfast.
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At 16 years aged, there's no nutmeg here anymore; both in the bottle and on skin is just the quietly creamy black sandalwood, the sweet benzoin and vanilla adjacent tonka. Throw is low, and soft, but beautiful. Like others, I only got two hours wear, but it was really nice. If you are like me and love getting to experience a piece of BPAL history, this is worth a grab if and when you see it.
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Big honey cream, the woodiness of the mahogany, and the crinkle of red silk are present in the initial wet sniff from the bottle. Upon application, the earthiness of the lotus root and a the smallest whiff of a lightly tanned leather emerge. The red sandalwood here reads like the "red" in red musk, but doesn't otherwise leave much of an impression. Moderate projection and a good 6+ hours of wear. My favorite parts of this scent are the red silk note (I bow once more to BPAL's fabric accords) and the mahogany. Unfortunately, the honey cream somewhat curdles on my skin and just doesn't hit right, giving "who has cheese in their pocket" vibes that refused to quit me.
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Almost a decade aged, the lavender leaps out of the bottle, less a thread and more like a ball that rolls up into your nose with a big smack. On skin, it amps up quickly like a flash round before fading just as fast, largely gone about 35 minutes later. The ambergris is briny-sweet instead of briny-stank, and the amber is indeed present with a very light hand. My experience is similar to others in that it doesn't last long (about 2.5 hours for me) but it's very pretty and airy while it's around. Perfect ethereal summer bedtime scent, despite being one of the Yules!
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Ceaselessly By My Side the Demon Stirs
SmellsPrettyGood2Me replied to doomsday_disco's topic in Limited Editions
Quite a dusty sweetness in the bottle; is that the vetiver root and amber? On skin it gets even softer and fuzzier, with a counterbalance of light spice (cinnamon?) from the non-tannic tea. If the tonka bean is smoked, it's with incense and not campfire. I'm having trouble detecting any vanilla or patchouli at the 1 hour mark, but I keep checking for it. There is most definitely a yin/yang thing going on between the sharper and softer notes, but rather than competing with each other they sit nicely next to each other as if one is there for each side of your nose. The "brownness" is actually pretty prominent for me, and I agree with others who mention it seems fabric-like. I like it, but have to figure out where it fits in my rotation from a season and mood perspective. I can see putting it on before bed to both induce relaxation and act as a talisman against bad dreams. -
Hmmm, this smells a lot more oud-y in the bottle! On skin, the eucalyptus leaf and ambergris bring out an aquatic coldness that hangs around in watery pallor for an hour. The incense gets it's turn next, with the woodiness of the oud getting somewhat washed out by the remnants of the ambergris. Projection is low to moderate, and it lasts just under 5 hours on skin. I was not familiar with the poem that inspired this scent, but I can see how it fits. As soon as I put this on, my first thought was "Winter is Coming". This is a very Ned Stark coded scent to me, evoking a vision of bands of masculine travelers roaming around the countryside.
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Beautifully dusty honey and deep, chocolate-y patchouli in the bottle. Applied to skin, the honey gets even lighter and more floral, while the patchouli almost seems to have a bite to it (not animalic, but with a smooth pungency). I used the tiniest dab from the cap to apply it to my wrist and it filled quite a scent bubble around me. Please apply sparingly and mindfully if wearing in public spaces! Lasted well over 9 hours. This is a gorgeous, perfume-y scent that begs to be worn with leather, tightly pulled laces, and come-hither 5 inch stilettos. These Blood Milk scents have all been a big hit, well worth the slightly more premium pricing.
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A true pleasure to wear such a beautifully aged scent! Soft, clean, lightly fuzzy sage, sweet sandalwood, a warm incense, slightly soapy muguet, and a very unassuming patchouli all meld together with delightful results. I'm not much into florals and find the intensity of them here to be just right. I can't recall if this is the first scent I have tried with Balsam of Mecca as a note, but I love it. Despite starting off quietly, the intensity and projection increases significantly as it dries down. I put this on mid-day and could still detect it 10 hours later at bed time. Catching a whiff of myself while wearing this was a joy every time. Time has only made it more lovely, perfect for all seasons and situations.
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Smells completely different between the bottle and skin! Wet in the bottle is the somewhat dank stickiness of the opium tar mashed up with the lightly sweet earthiness of the patchouli root. Applying to skin completely transforms the scent; floral, fragrant, sweet berries are front and center, intermingled with a powdery backdrop. Wow, this smells amazing!! Reminds me of a premium early 90's perfume in it's sophistication. I normally don't care for opium as a note, but it blends well underneath the overall caramelization. This patchouli root isn't stinky or particularly potent at all. The berries stick around for quite some time, and the scent as a whole lasts 8 good hours. I can easily see this as a daily wear option in cooler months, and I desperately hope it returns some day so that I can grab a few more bottles.
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Glittering gold and loss beyond understanding: antiqued amber, English lavender, vetiver, and tea rose. Time has burnished this scent down to a faded dried bundle of lavender and dribbles of vetiver in the bottle, evoking a "past life" type of nostaglia. highly remniscent of a Victorian era gentleman. On skin, this impression persists with the arrival of the tea rose (almost rosewood-esque, that must be connected to the antiquing quality of the amber). It sits softly close to skin, with a light, glimmering echo of copal giving it some warmth. Reading historical reviews, I think the scent packs much less of a masculine punch now that it has rested well, although it still leans that way. As a person of the female persuasion, I think it smells pretty nice on me, too. Although it is a Yule, there isn't anything specifically winter or holiday coded about it.
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"Intoxicating" is the first word that comes to mind when sniffing it from the bottle. There is a dark, plummy, purple sweetness from the black kyphi that dominates, and the myrrh swims alongside it. On skin, the scent blooms and becomes even jammier. The red musk and indigo oud are present, but restrained. Two hours later, the overwhelmingly beautiful sparkle of the scent is largely gone, leaving behind a sweet, dry woodiness. This gives an incredibly premium, sophisticated open that was truly incredible to experience, but then pretty rapidly disappears. For the sake of comparison, I applied a dab to a tester strip to see if my skin was the culprit in chasing it away. Although it took a bit longer for the top notes to fade (maybe another 30 min) the end result was the same. The quick retreat of intensity makes it a little challenging to wear; your choices are to apply more liberally and risk overdoing the open, or to reapply more often not to lose the bloom entirely. I rarely wish for a scent in EDP format, but this may be one of those fringe cases where the blend needs a different base to "stick" a bit better. Truly a gorgeous blend, just needs a bit more enduring potency. 9/10, highly recommend. (Note: The label and official Blood Milk website spell the scent name "Bhelena".)