Search the Community
Showing results for tags '2008'.
Found 38 results
-
By God, what floats in this ghastly jar? Cinnamon, clove, vanilla, and pine sap. Pickled Imp - I don't tend to like cinnamon blends, but this one rocks really, really hard. Every single note stands out in this blend and each is perfectly complimentary of all the others. The vanilla sweetens up the spicy cinnamon and clove but the pine sap gives it depth without making it too dark or sticky. It's been three hours since I left Will Call where I had applied this scent, and it's just as strong as it was when I first applied it. I really love it. I'm anxiously looking forward to the CD scents arriving on my doorstep and I'm very excited to wear it again.
-
You hear a clatter on the ground, and a small bleached bone smacks against your foot. Cloaked in shadows between the tents, three men crouch playing knucklebones. Distress clouds the face of one of the men, while another bursts into a wicked smile and the last one sighs in relief. Scooping up his winnings and shaking his head, the victor makes a soft 'tsk' noise as he reaches towards the loser's chest, positioning his hand over the man's heart. Pressing forward, his hand moves through cloth, flesh, muscle, and bone to extract the beating organ. Tossing the heart onto the ground, he says to you, "Mind handing me those bones, buddy? I've got a game to run here." Black musk, bay rum, lime fougere, orange blossom water, gin, and tobacco. Knucklebones - Of the huge number of scents I tested at Will Call, this was my second-favorite of all of them. My first reaction when I sniffed this in the bottle is tht it's effervescent and fizzy. When I tried it on, the booze notes were definitely the strongest, backed up by the lime note. It's remarkable how it can be a fizzy, effervescent scent at the same time that it is kind of dark masculine. It strikes me as the masculine equivalent of Bon Vivant in its overall feeling. It's masculine, but not something a woman couldn't wear - God knows when I get my latest CD order in the mail, I will enjoy wearing this one very much! The scent is very long-lasting on my skin and just soo incredibly sexy.
-
Rose otto, tonka, orchid, Calla lily, skin musk, coconut, and Spanish sage. I just wanted to take a minute to thank the Lab for letting me take part in this. I adore the portrait Jenn did (Yes, that is my hair, but not my boobs.) and the scent that Beth cooked up is just lovely. At first: A fresh, springtime floral. Rose is dominant, but I can catch a bit of sweet tonka, too. On: Mostly rose. Very pretty. 5 minutes later: This smells light and sweet on me now. Lovely. Half an hour later: A gorgeous floral. This is more fo a green, Spring floral than anything heady or even potpourri-ish. Very nice. 3 hours later: A nice combination of lily and sage, with a base of rose. 4 hours later: A smooth, slightly powdery rose scent. I'm getting a tiny bit of coconut and a nice hint of musk. Overall: Just lovely. If Spring would decide to come and actually stay this year, this would be the perfect scent for it. I guess I'll just have to keep wearing it until that happens.
-
Red musk, bergamot, black currant, mimosa, orchid, patchouli, and lotus root. Wow, wow wow wow! It's so awesome and such an honor to get to be a part of this project, and how Jenn managed to create a portrait that is so incredibly flattering and yet looks so very much like me, I will never know! I'm going to be a toothless old woman petting that portrait. On to the scent: At first it's all red musk; very reminiscent of Scherezade which is one of my very favorites, but more of a warm red than a savory yellow as Scherezade is made by all the saffron. I've noticed, if I dab this one on it stays predominately red musk all day, but if I apply generously and particularly in places that generate a lot of body heat, it goes through all sorts of gorgeous stages. Within an hour, the flowers bloom out in a big cloud that is so achingly beautiful, the first time I experienced it I actually burst into happy tears (which also, of course, had to do with how flabbergasted I was that this was going to be the stuff with my picture on it!). Later in the day, the sweetness of the currant and the lotus root come to the fore and the bergamot keeps an edge on them. (Although it's a very different scent, the way the bergamot asserts itself in the later drydown reminds me very much of Ides of March, also one of my favorites.) The patchouli is just barely evident to my nose, anchoring the whole thing with a faint warm earthiness. It's like when there are two low instruments playing the same line of music in unison and one is slightly brassier than the other, you almost can't hear the deeper one but you know it's there because it makes the sound richer--that's how the patchouli interacts with the red musk. I am very excited to see how the patchouli in this will age, though! The next morning, the sweet, soft skin musk still lingering in the crook of my arm is a thing of such barely-there beauty, in some ways it's the best stage of all. I am beyond honored to be associated with this scent.
-
The fingertips themselves are aflame, yet the desiccated skin is not being consumed. Beeswax, dry leather, black pepper, saltpeter, nutmeg, Mysore sandalwood, and oak bark. Bottle: Waxy and sweet, with a tiny bit of nutmeg's comforting spice. Wet: Tons of beeswax, and then soft & supple well-worn leather. After a few minutes, it starts smelling like fetish night at the local goth club: wet leather, skin musk, and just a touch of smoke (presumably the black pepper trying to mimic cloves). I think it'd smell great on a guy. Dry: It's...dry. Dry hot leather, dry tree bark, dry sandalwood, cold melted beeswax pooled into a hard disc. I don't know how best to describe what type of scent I'd categorize this as. It's evocative of its inspiration, and that's a little creepy. I'm not recoiling from the notes themselves, and I love the artwork, but it's not something I will reach for again and again.
-
TABULA SMARAGDINA True, without error, certain and most true. Rosicrucian incense. In the bottle: Rating (1-5): 4 Notes: Woody rose, sandalwood or frankincense?, incense powder Comment: Smells very similar to my Chinese brand of rose soap, but powdery smelling like incense. There are other notes present but I cannot identify them. Wet on skin: Rating (1-5): 4 Notes: woody rose, frankincense? Comment: Less rose and more incense-y on the skin. Dry on skin: Rating (1-5): 4 Notes: woody rose, incense powder Scent Intensity (1-5): 3 Comment: Very consistent scent that hasn't changed much from bottle to skin. I need to be in relatively close proximity to smell it -- I don't have an aura of it surrounding me and I don't have to place my nose on my skin before I can smell it. Update: There is still residual incense smell on my arms after I bathed. I'm quite surprised by that, really. Misc: Duration: N/A Keyword(s): wood, rose, incense Color: Mahogany Smells like: Chinese rose incense scented soap.
-
THE MALTESE CROSS OF SANCTUS GERMANUS Could this contain the secret of eternal life? Golden amber, blood orange, ambergris, lilac, frankincense, and agarwood. In the bottle: Rating (1-5): 5 Notes: blood orange, frankincense Comment: I was excited about this because French Huguenots also identified with the Maltese Cross and that's part of my family tree. Very sharp and intense in the bottle. Wet on skin: Rating (1-5): 4 Notes: blood orange, golden amber Comment: My nose is a bit fried from weather and allergies at the moment, so I'm not picking up much other than orange. Dry on skin: Rating (1-5): 4 Notes: golden amber, lilac, agarwood, frankincense, maybe ambergris? Scent Intensity (1-5): 4 Comment: I don't generally enjoy floral notes, but this is quite pleasant because it's not at the forefront. In your face stabby orange subdued by pretty golden amber. Misc: Duration: N/A Keyword(s): non-floral floral Color: Marigold Smells like: N/A
-
LICWIGLUNGA What language is this? I have never seen graphemes such as this before. Hemp paper, frankincense, dried pomegranate juice, lavender, gum mastic, verbena, fennel, star anise, and Dittany of Crete. Starting a thread for a new BPAL has never given me pause. I have met my match in Licwiglunga. I do love herbals but find this one totally unique. Without notes listed, earlier today I kept thinking cherry or lotus but find it's dried pomegranate. Emphasis on dried. This must be a variation on the usual note Beth uses? So this is an herbal incense with a smooth character and a touch of fruit. It smells better as time goes on . Thank heavens, cause in the bottle it is quite sharp to my nose. Ultimately, it dries to pomegranate incense. This is very pleasant. Which sounds like faint praise but is meant in the best sense of the word. I've a hard time imagining someone outright NOT liking this. Besides being a nice casual blend for everyday wear, I think this would make awesome room scent. Here's the extra-fun part, researching the Scent's name and notes: Licwiglunga- Incantation or Magic Circle for conjuring the dead (necromancy), usually for advice. Dittany of Crete- an herb "used in divination and contact with spirits. When using Dittany of Crete as an incense, it is cautioned that spirits materialize in the smoke." Related to oregano and marjoram. Gum Mastic- Resin from trees related to pistachio which grow only on the southern part of the island of Chios, Greece and nowhere else in the world. Egypt imported this as a key ingredient in their Kyphi recipes. "Mastic creates a light, balsamlike, fresh, lemony, gentle fragrance. It is cleansing, clarifying and mentally refreshing."
-
You come to a building that seems to have been hastily erected from splintered wood, stone, and plaster. Flickering light from within sparkles out through blood-tinged chunks of glass that have been wedged into the arch entrance. You push open the thick velvet curtain that covers the mouth of the building and look inside. The chapel is small and cramped, and the air is thick with heavy incense, bitter wine, sulphur, and the coppery scent of blood. A massive stained glass window is set against the back wall, glowing brightly. In the center of the room, a groveling figure is crouched before a woman draped in purple-black clerical robes. The woman's eyes are filled with righteous hellfire, and she extends a hand in benediction to the man who has fallen prostrate at her feet. He murmurs, "Libera Te Ex Caelum", and she gestures for him to rise. As he gets to his knees he winces in pain and moans in a strange expression of ecstasy, and you see small horns growing from his skull. Black incense, bitter wine, brimstone, and blood. In bottle: gritty dirt On skin: wowee, this is a dark blend. The incense is as black as charcoal, smoldering on a stone altar Half-hour later: sweetens up a bit with the wine, but this is the scariest, spookiest wine blend I've ever tried In conclusion: this blend sounded almost too dark for me, but I'm hypnotically lured by any wine blend. This one is a great combination of the sweeter wine with the pitch-black eeeevil.
-
How gruesome and absurd! Dark musk, pimento berry, oakmoss, birch wood, and petitgrain. This is an instant top 5 favorite for me. I don't find this oil gruesome or absurd at all. In fact, I think when it comes to sexy and masculine blends, this even trumps Schwarzer Mond. It has a very slick and well polished feel to it yet it is also dark, spicy, woodsy, very full bodied, heavy and dense feeling. I've never smelled petitgrain before (I think) so I can't comment on that note, but at first this goes on as oakmoss and pimento berry which eventually opens up the dark musk and woods. As is the case with all the Wunderkammer set, this is a very unique scent and nothing like any bpal I've ever tried with the exception of maybe Schwarzer Mond... this stuff feels like SM's distant brother. This will be the first scent I stock up on to an embarassing degree.
-
No single thing holds secrets so well as one's shroud. Rotting linen, white sandalwood, hyssop, and dust. At first this goes on as a super decayed/antique perfume that smells confusing and mysterious. I can't pick out individual notes here at all, but I definitely get the rotting linen reference. It is really old and ghostlike smelling to me, dusty, old perfume, expensive linens, dim hallways. Very stately. After the first hour the perfume-y element fades drastically and the rotting linen note is exactly what I hoped it would be. This is a very comfortable scent to me and one I'll definitely use as a room scent.
-
THE BLASPHEMARE RELIQUARY But, which saint's remains does this vessel hold Ethiopian myrrh, Damascus rose, boswellia, galbanum, and copal. OK, so I bought this unsniffed, because it had roses and incense. I was hoping it would be perfect for me... ...and it is! The roses come on first - they're dry, but not soapy. The rest of it smells kind of like Cathedral, which is an all-time favorite of mine. It dries down sweetly mysterious, and very balanced between the floral essences and the resins - the flowers are light and not overpowering, and the incense is divine. It's like a more sophisticated Rose Cross. Love it.
-
I dare not open this scroll. Temptation is the plague of men's spirits. Parchment, Siamese benzoin, infernal incense, red musk, brimstone, and daemonorops. The Wunderkammer collection looks like it's going to be my favorite thing in the entire history of BPAL -- the notes, the concepts, the art -- it's just everything that I read and think about! If I had time I'd write my review in the style of an HP Lovecraft story opening and talk about the trepidation with which I crack open this vial and let forth the wisps of forgotten nightmares, but since it's the first review let's just get down to business! Being a lover of incense scents above most things on earth I was very excited for this one. I've always liked red musk as well because it is so incensy -- such a rich, spicy, deep scent that one might imagine would infuse the tapestries and brocade pillows in a den of beaded curtains and hookahs. I do get quite a hit of red musk for this -- a dry, smoky red musk, that has long since seeped into the fabric and wood of the room. Hypnotic and arcane, not overly smoky, but it drifts around me and hangs in the air as though I've been burning all of my favorite incenses throughout the night. There's a nice dryness to it that I would imagine is from the parchment and brimstone -- but it's not acridly smoky, it doesn't smell like Brimstone the BPAL oil, for example. Benzoin adds a resiny incense kick, and I imagine that the daemonorops is making it just a teeny bit more of a glistening blood red. Overall a lovely, dry incensy red musk blend that incense lovers like me should adore. Scherezade fans take note! But this is a bit darker and smokier than that, and never powdery or perfumey.
