Hunger

[strawberry_star]

Evokes sheer, unadulterated carnal lust. An undeniably warm and sensual scent. Black narcissus, orange blossoms, and vanilla.

 

When I had first tried Hunger on, I had forgotten what was in it so the first thought was "is there musk in this?!" Silly thought, because I usually don't ever order anything with musk heavier than white musk anymore. Musk is too heavy on me and overwhelmes everything else. It's not musk though, it's the Black Narcissus I would assume. Underneath it, it smells sweet and I could detect the vanilla. It was still coming out a bit too strong on me and my stomach was getting nervous for some reason.

 

I definitely didn't hate it and I thought about keeping it, but I finally decided to give it to someone who would appreciate it more and she did. If I ever get another imp of it though, I may keep that one just to have around when feeling the need for musk that isn't musk.

Edited February 18, 2006 by strawberry star

[smallvoice]

This one has a sharp, medicinal quality that I just don't like. It's strange. I'm not getting any creamy orange out of this, but I'm getting a lot of smoke and dust and herbs of some sort. There's possibly a hint of sweetness under the smoke, but it's not enough to warrant keeping the imp. This is the first time I've come across the vapo-rub vibe, and it makes me sad. The concept is so very sound and fun that I was hoping to really enjoy it.

[gingersnapp]

This is a sweet, but dry smell. It's very complex and well-blended, because all of the notes are working together, instead of fighting with each other for dominance. The black narcissus is the dry smell, somewhat spicy, almost peppery. It lends a bit of dusty muskiness. The orange blossoms sweeten it up just a touch, without making it overly floral or cloying. The vanilla is underlying both of those, again, adding sweetness without making it foody or overly sweet.

[VenusFlyTrap]

This is absolutely my favorite BPAL scent with Orange Blossom!

 

One of the initial offers, it still stands the test of time and to me, deserves a place in the TOP 10 GC.

 

Vanilla creates a creamy component.

 

Sexy and sensuous.

 

WHOA!

[Beatrice33]

Well, I'm now a year into my BPAL addiction, and I'm finding that some of the scents I didn't like the first time around are becoming favorites now that my nose is more attuned to these oils. Or at least that's my explanation for it -- who knows!

 

In any case, there used to be something about Hunger that was a bit much for me, and I swapped away my bottle. I got a frimp recently, and suddenly it's all creamy vanilla with a fruity orange/floral note and an undercurrent of soft smokiness to keep it from being too sweet. I love it, and hubby couldn't stop sniffing me last night either.

 

I'll be ordering another bottle. Go figure.

[Diva Urd]

Hm, this one is interesting, certainly. I was a little surprised to learn that there's orange blossom in here, I didn't smell much of it. Sadly, the vanilla/floral combination didn't work out completely for me - after a while, it turned a little plasticky on me. Too bad, I like narcissus... Will hold on to the imp, though, I'll be interested how it fares in my oil burner.

Edited March 13, 2006 by Diva Urd

[Nekomata]

Smells like vanilla and spices, reminds me of cookies. Don't really detect the orange, either. I definately want a large bottle.

 

 

Edit: I got my large bottle and it smells -very- different. I'm getting that musky scent that other people have noted, and it's very strong. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that my imp was pretty old? Guess I'm going to try aging this!

Edited May 16, 2006 by Nekomata

[niter]

Imp

Mmm. This is sexy, warm and has the subtle hint of orange blossoms on the after scent.

 

Wet

Wet, the sweet scent of fresh oranges and orange blossom permeates my nose.

 

Dry

This blend results in a soft orange and floral blend resting on a soft vanilla note. The vanilla makes the mix very warm and sexy and the flowers add a gentile quality it. This is a very pretty blend.

[moon_lemming]

This is very pretty, definitely an identifiable "BPAL" scent.

 

I knew it smelled familiar, but I didn't recognize it a smelling similar to Snake Oil until I read other reviews. Hunger actually works better than Snake Oil for me, because while Snake Oil turns to incense once dry, Hunger is just what the description claims: a warm floral vanilla that's a little spicy. The orange blossom that is obvious in the imp disappears on my skin. The yummy floral vanilla fades after about fifteen minutes, but a subtly spicy vanilla remains and a hint of the orange blossom pops back up.

 

It's good enough to get a whole bottle, but I think I'll see how often I use the imp first.

 

eta: (May 3, 2006)

I forgot that I had tried this one already and retested it. There was a five-minute period there where it was nothing but rubber. I'm not sure if this is a badly stored imp or if my skin is acting differently right now, but I thought that was weird. After that passes, it's okay, but not as good as what I've written here. Hmm.

Edited May 4, 2006 by karen

[EauQue]

Everyone is mentioning the creamsicles and so on.

I never once got a hit of that.

This stuff becomes SOOO overwhelming on me, I ended up with a headache and having to change my clothing! Could it be the narcissus or the orange blossoms? Vanilla does not bother me.

 

BUT - and this is the kicker - this smells FABULOUS as spritzer for my shower! Seriously - I spray it on the walls, then the steam and splashing water move the scent around. Funny that...

 

I can see how this would be great for some folks, but it just didn't like my chemistry.

 

 

 

 

[PurringPulsar]

Hunger

 

In the imp: the almost sharp floral scent of narcissus and orange blossom, with a hint of sweet, deep vanilla.

Wet on skin: the tangy note of the orange blossom is more apparent. There's something almost animalistic about this scent-but in a good way.

Dry on skin: oh my. Is there a hidden civet note in here? I'm getting an almost civet like animalistic tone to this scent-but not in a bad way. I think it may be the narcissus…something in here adds a dry, slightly bitter and feral musky scent to the orange blossom's sharpness and the vanilla's sweetness. There's also a hint of something reminiscent of tobacco, smoky and ashy. This is very raw and carnal, indeed! The vanilla is surprisingly discreet here, only apparent after the initial shock of the smoky, musky florals.

After a while: ah, this is a lot smoother now. The scent is now a lovely smooth deep vanilla musk, in the same vein as Snake Oil, but without the spices. There is something odd though…I get a vetiver/tobacco note. It's not listed in the components, but I get something vetiver like in this scent.

Verdict: this smelt totally different to what the listed notes implied, but certainly fitting with it's description. It's got vanilla, narcissus and orange blossom alright, but I think there be more to this than meets the eye (or the nose) once this hits skin. It's a feral, animalistic vanilla floral with almost civet like tones to it-raw and carnal, it is sharp and intense and not for the faint hearted! After a while, the 'civet' tones down into a deep musk scent, merging with the vanilla to form an almost Snake Oil like scent, but with an undertone of something vetiver or tobacco like, again, unexpected. It's not a bad scent, I quite like it, but it's a bit too much at times and I do prefer Snake Oil and other scents in that sexy vanilla category to this…but it's very well crafted and much more complex than one would expect.

To sum it up in a smiley:

Edited April 19, 2006 by yeahbutnobut

[lysistrata]

In the vial: Bitter orange herbiness.

 

On me, wet: Sharp, herby/resiny bite. Slightly sour. Not pleasant at all.

 

On me, dry: After an hour or two, the resiny nastiness disappears and - hey presto! - a sweet floral vanilla, almost exactly like Antique Lace without the linen.

 

Verdict: I like this once it dries, but why put up with an hour or so of nasty green sharpness when I have Antique Lace and Beaver Moon for my instant vanilla fix?

[dragonryder]

Mmmmm. Hunger is definitely a bottle for me. The vanilla is not to sweet, just enough to set off the orange blossom.

[Meg]

In the bottle: Uh-oh. Heavy vanilla and narcissus, and something that makes me think of red musk.

 

Wet: Orange blossom, that's much better than in the bottle. But then the really heady musky scent comes in, with its sickly sweet scent. Eep! I also get a flower, I suppose it's the narcissus.

 

Drydown: The orange blossom has given way to red musk, a rather dry, rubbery sweet scent. I get some vanilla in the mix, but it's rather faint, swamped out by the musk. I have no idea if it's a component of the black narcissus or if it just wasn't listed as an ingredient, but it's there all right. The haughty narcissus is there, with a slightly acidic smell.

 

Overall: Red musk and orange blossom? Two of my worst enemies rolled into one bottle. I love orange blossom but it always goes bad on me, and this is no exception - though to be fair, I couldn't tell if it's the turned orange blossom or the red musk that makes this so horrid. Of course, as I hate this blend, the bottle has a leaky cap and happily leaks all over my swap box. Ick.

[cranberry]

This smells vaguely medicinal in the imp with traces of vanilla in the background. It’s reminiscent of Snake Oil without all the spices. On the skin wet, it smells a bit like tobacco and flowers that are not overpoweringly sweet. It actually reminds me a lot of an acacia essential oil that I’ve had forever. After it’s been on a couple of minutes, the vanilla comes forward strongly and this is very similar to Snake Oil. Yum!

 

As this wears, it remains predominantly vanilla, tempered a bit by the other notes. The other notes in the blend are hard for me to pick out – I’m not familiar with narcissus and they blend together well adding interest and depth to the vanilla. It’s long-lasting and although I only put a small bit on, it’s pretty strong, making me think that the throw on this oil could be great.

 

Overall, another great vanilla scent! I’m liking this a lot and I see some good possibilities for this one – alone and layered.

 

Thanks GC swap – the orange blossom in this would have kept me far away from this scent and I never would have tried it.

[DeliberateAngel]

I ordered a big bottle of this as orange notes work well with my body chemistry. And I am sooooo glad I did.

 

Wet/In the botle: This reminds me of a cross between Snake Oil and Hell's Belle (neither worked with my body chemistry).

 

Initial Application: It's very spicy and smokey, reminding me what Snake Oil should have smelled like.

1 Hour Later: The spiciness dies down and out come the orange and vanilla. These mix nicely with the smoke.

The orange isn't a foodey smell and neither is the vanilla. The orange is more of a earthy orange smell and the vanilla is smooth (someone put it best saying it's a Tombstone-like vanilla).

 

2-3 Hours Later: The orange and vanilla are smooth and gorgeous and the faint hint of smoke gives it an edge. There is also a hint of honey in there emerging.

 

4-6 Hours: The smokiness is gone and the vanilla and orange are still there mingling with the honey smell.

 

6+ Hours: This is that orange note and honey. Yummy!

 

This scent has qreat staying power and is super sexy. I swear I turn myself on by wearing it! Women seem to love this scent. Ill have to see about the men.

 

This has to be one of my favorite bpal oils!!!

[selkielass]

I haven't tried Snake oil yet, but Snake Charmer was nice, but nothing to right home about on my skin.

THIS took Snake Charmer one better, which I found a relief- a GC that smells better on me than a LE? Yay!

It *did* start out a bit bitter, as some others mention, then it settled into a lovely sweet-but-not-cloying spicy vanillaness that left me wondering if this is what everyone loves so much about the snake family?

 

It was lovely on my skin, but even better when I caught wafts of scent from my wrists- utterly delicious! I hope I get a frimp of Snake oil with my first order, but if not, this scent has made me determined to seek out an imp from some kind soul.

[edenssixthday]

Hunger - Wow! This stuff is gorgeous! I'm a huge fan of sweet creamsicle type scents, and that's what I thought this would be. But it's not. It's dark and warm and deeply resinous and the orange blossom/resin combo gives it more of a bitter orange rind scent as opposed to a sweet citrus orange scent. The narcissus does a phenomenal job of pulling the vanilla and the orange blossom together and creating a thick, spicy, resinous scent. Initially, it was a bit too "hippie-smelling" for my taste, but after a few minutes, it reeled me in and now I'm hooked. I ended up buying a 5 ml bottle that I love.

Edited July 8, 2006 by edenssixthday

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

snake oil mixed with ciggie ashes and burnt rubber.

 

yick.

[filigree_shadow]

When it's wet, this oil smells dark and powerfully sexy. It's almost all black narcissus with something deep and smoky underneath that reminds me a little bit of vetiver. As it dries I can begin to smell the orange blossom. The vanilla makes it slightly creamy. After about three hours it's not dark any more, it's just a bit powdery.

 

The first time I tried this oil a few months ago I thought it smelled like a creamsicle. This time when I tried it, it was much darker. I like it this way better. Very nice blend. I think this imp might get upgraded to a bottle.

 

ETA on 1/8/2007: I'm editing this to say that when this oil is aged, it smells like Snake Charmer with a little bit of orange blossom on me. I know it's weird, but I swear that's what it smells like. I think I need to get a bottle and let it age for a year or so. This is really nice.

Edited January 9, 2007 by filigree_shadow

[sofiaviolet]

In the imp, this is nose-curlingly sharp. On me, the vanilla comes out. I don't really know what narcissus smells like, but I suppose I smell that, too. It's a warm scent.

 

And the name has just made me giggle. As I'm sitting here reviewing today's arrrivals, my stomach is rumbling.

 

I think this could be Dorian's less innocent older sister. However, it has no throw. I'm undecided about whether I'll keep my imp.

[neuilly]

The black narcissus does have it's moments of coming off a little rubbery. Otherwise it's a nice dark creamy scent. There is definitely something slightly sinister about the scent but in a delicious way.

 

 

Not my scent but I do keep smelling my arm.

[jarvenpa]

another lovely sniffie from a generous friend.

 

Hunger is the cousin of Snake Oil and Snake Charmer (I liked Snake Charmer best, but it's LE, so...). Vanilla and spice to my nose (I check the notes and am surprised to see neroli listed--my nose doesn't pick it up; I'm assuming what nose thinks of as spicy is the black narcissus)

 

Haven't noticed it is provoking insatiable anything around me, but then I'm currently just with one of the dogs and some mostly well behaved cats. (One would not expect a cat named Jesus to be insatiable for anything except--um, maybe spiritual compassion or something. She IS looking at me oddly...

 

Pretty, but despite my apparent love of vanilla, this one isn't quite me.

 

Edited to update, because this scent, on its second wearing, literally stopped a poor innocent guy in his tracks. And I am growing fonder of it every moment.

Edited September 2, 2006 by jarvenpa

[maijasu]

I tested this without reading the notes, and after reading them, I'm really surprised to see this described as a vanilla floral scent. It smelled very sharp and slightly medicinal on me, and I smelled very little vanilla. I thought there must be some sort of incense or resin in the blend, but apparently not. It does have very strong throw and good lasting power, but it's just not a scent for me.

[Taniwha]

I've been collecting orange blossom blends, and I'm afraid this one doesn't do it for me. I get very little of the orange blossom or the vanilla that I love so much - it's just straight up narcissus. It's like I'm in a room full of paperwhites, newly opened, and the scent is too overpowering. It's too bad, and I can see that for many folks it works beautifully, just not for me.