September 24, 2010

BPAL - Khephra

A random BPAL, this time a discontinued one (it was from The Stations of the Sun: The Midnight Sun):
Hail unto thee who art Khephra in Thy hiding, even unto Thee who art Khephra in Thy silence, who travellest over the heavens in Thy bark at the Midnight Hour of the Sun.
Tahuti standeth in His splendour at the prow, and Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm.
Hail unto Thee from the Abodes of Evening.
Wet: I can't pick out any specific note but some cardamom ... this is just something golden and warm to me (I usually write my own thoughts before I go to the lab and read their description - somehow I wouldn't have thought the Midnight Sun to be such a warm and golden scent!).

Dry: The cardamom fades a bit, some soap appears ... and something herbal comes out to play. Herbal-floral. Perhaps camomille?! Nice but light. Suits this rainy day. Despite the soapy undertone in this one it's a very nice and warm scent which gives me a comfortable feeling.

Verdict: It's okay, even nice - but nothing I need more of. Other BPALs suit me much better and give me a warmer feeling overall.

September 23, 2010

BPAL - Bon Vivant

Random BPAL from Bewitching Brews. The lab writes:
An effervescent blend of crystalline champagne notes and sweet strawberry.
Wet: Artifical boozy scent, sparkling and fresh. No strawberries yet.

Dry: Gets sweeter and looses the sparkling scent and becomes nicer - reminds me of a bodyscrub I once had. I still don't get strawberries which is too bad because I love strawberries ...

Becomes a fresh and fruity, light scent. Pleasant but just not the right thing for me.

September 22, 2010

BPAL - Jailbait

The next random BPAL comes from Sin & Salvation:
Innocence defiled. Sticky pink bubblegum and the thick, sweet scent of orange and cherry lollipops smeared over a breath of heady womanly perfume.
Wet: Bubblegum!

For german readers: Do you remember the pink "Fix und Foxy Kaugummi" that was sold in the 80s? This smells dead on like those bubblegums!

Dry: Something sweet, soft and fruity, candylike. Artifical - but not bad. I think this is a typical little girl scent - I know I'd have loved it when I was a little girl. But for now it's too ... well simple - I miss the "heady womanly perfume". Perhaps I should give this one to my niece (to be) - she is 6 and I think she would appreciate this one.

September 21, 2010

BPAL - Kill-Devil

Lets grab a new random BPAL! Again from Bewitching Brews:
"Rum punch is not improperly called Kill-Devil; for thousands lose their lives by its means. When newcomers use it to the least excess, they expose themselves to imminent peril, for it heats the blood and brings on fevers, which in a very few hours send them to their graves."

Sugar cane, molasses, oak wood, and honey.
Wet: Very sirupy.

Dry: Sweet, a bit mossy with a hint of wood. Not unpleasant but also not really my thing. And somehow this one is a very flat scent - I more fond of the complex BPALs. But this one could be nice for layering!

Still this one would be a good choice for a cold and sunny day, perhaps for a walk on a fair or something like that.

And while this is sweet, I'd still consider it to be unisex because it's sweet + masculine undertone.

September 18, 2010

BPAL - Black Forrest

Another random BPAL from Bewitching Brews.
This is the captured scent of a cold, moonless night, lost deep within the darkest wood. Haunting and desolate, this scent evokes images of fairy tale tragedy and half-remembered nightmares. Thick, viscous pine with ambergris, black musk, juniper and cypress.
Wet: Shower gel "Aqua". Cheap, soapy, blue with something sweet underneath (well, no wonder, I ruen everything sweet, right?!)

Dry: Still soapy, a bit piney - only the sweet note is a bit more prominent.

I don't really get the picture of a forrest from this one since there is a sweetness to it, I can't see any dark night or cold or desolate feeling in it.

After 1h: soap + shower gel seem to vanish and leave a nice sweet piney scent with something sour behind ...

My skin might spoil it - I think I'll try it once on my dragon, otherwise it gets a "no" from me.

September 17, 2010

BPAL - Bliss

A favorite of mine :o)

It's from Bewitching Brews and the lab description says
A shot of pure, self-indulgent euphoria! A scent that is very, very wicked in its own way: the serotonin-slathered scent of pure milk chocolate.
This is far from milk chocolate on me! It's the scent of my favorite chocolate cake the moment you take it from the oven and the whole room becomes one big yummy!

It's not too sweet and has a tart edge. I really love it!

My dragon and my mom think that it is masculine - and they don't get the chocolate at all - while my coworker agreed with the hot chocolate cake.

This scent is just perfect for cold and rainy days because it's like a blanket I can wrap around me. It definitively cheers me up and gives a warm feeling - and makes me crave for chocolate :o(

September 16, 2010

BPAL - Cathedral

The next random BPAL from Sin & Salvation:

Venerable and solemn: the scent of incense smoke wafting through an ancient church. A true ecclesiatical blend of pure resins.

Wet: Somehow soapy with a nice spicy background and a touch of eucalyptus.

5min: This reminds me of Aureus, I think ... it's somehow pleasant but the soapy note is distracting.

Dry: The soap is gone, the spice (guess it's the incense) is still there and is now accompanied by a very dry, wooden scent. Nice!

After 1h - either the scent almost gone or nose is stuck! There is only a light scent left, a bit spicy and somewhat nice but I really have to put my nose on my skin to smell it.

Verdict: A nice scent but somehow unsigificant on my skin and too faint. But I'll revisit it on another day to rule our that my nose is the culprit!

September 13, 2010

BPAL - Gluttony

I know when I ordered this one I was sooooo thrilled. Gluttony from Sin & Salvation:
Thick, sugared and bloated with sweetness. Dark chocolate, vanilla, buttercream, and hops with pralines, hazelnut, toffee and caramel.
Sounds great, right? Foody, yummy ... but on me it is really ugly! No chocolate, no cream, nothing of the nice things that should be there! On me it is very powerfulf, very spicy a bit smokey and it makes me nauseous! I guess by now that it's my skin + BPALs caramel - they just don't go together.

I let the dragon sniff at this and he even claimed that the scent reminds him of a oddly sweet broth.

Definitively a scent I won't need ...

September 9, 2010

BPAL - Eclipse

Again a random BPAL: Eclipse from Bewitching Brews. The lab tells us
All the glory, warmth and majesty of the sun -- darkened. A delicious blend of bitter almond, vanilla, frankincense and heliotrope, with a drop of cinnamon.
Well, wet this is wonderful. It's cherry/almond, wonderful, not too sweet, just perfection.

Wet on my skin I almost went nuts: Perfect!! Still like in the imp!

Dry: Huh?! Where did all the cherries go ... ahm, almonds?! After 10 minutes I barely can pick up any scent at all! My skin ate Eclipse!!! And my skin is tingling a bit where I applied the oil. Strange. Everything left is a slight sugary note - absolutely nice, but nothing more or less, far too subtle for a perfume! I have to attach my nose to my skin to guess that there is something to smell!

2nd try: A bit of oil in my hair - perhaps the scent stays there! But again ... after some minutes there's only a faint sweet scent, not as sugary as on my skin - but no almonds, no vanilla.

This is sad - wet it's such a great scent!! Perhaps I should use it as roomscent in an oillamp - that could work.

Well, perhaps good for me: I escaped another "have to buy a bottle!"-trap.

Supplement: After one hour the scent came back. Well, not THE scent, more a scent. I'd say its a bit cinnamon and some vanilla ... it's nice but still not very intense. This is really a funny kind of morphing! From great to nice to nothing back to nice.

2nd supplement: And one hour later there is even some cherry in scent! (this time really cherry, no almond) - I'm not so sure anymore that I won't need a bottle of this ... damn! Make this a half favorite ;o)

3rd supplement: Okay, make this a favorite! I ordered a bottle! On most days it's a bit like Antique Lace + some almond - just beautiful!

September 6, 2010

BPAL - Miskatonic University

The next random BPAL is from A Picnic in Arkham and the lab discribes it as
A venerable New England university, whose vast library holds many rare, diabolical and obscure arcane works, including one of the few surviving legitimate copies of the Necronomicon. Home to innumerable scholars of the esoteric and the occult, and the notorious Dr. Herbert West.

The scent of Irish coffee, dusty tomes and polished oakwood halls.

In the first moment this ist pure coffee - and I'm not too fond of coffee, but this is sweet and kind of soft, not the harsh scent I know from our coffeemachine. No dust or wood to my nose.

After drydown: This pretty much stays soft, warm, sweet and creamy coffee - I can wear it, I even like it, but it is so not me. I'd consider this scent comforting and cozy - it smells like a rainy day on the couch with a great book - and well, coffee I guess ;o)

After a few hours: Now this is spicier and a bit woody - not so sweet anymore.

September 3, 2010

BPAL - Obatala

Again time for a random BPAL. Obatala from the Excolo Collection. The lab says:
The King of the White Cloth, King of the Orishas, the First Among Equals. He is the King of Power, and his weapon is wisdom. He is the essence of honored maturity, wisdom through age and experience, purity of intention, virtue, humility, tolerance, judicious use of power, the knowledge of what is truly right and wrong, the moral code, and the obligation to do what is right. Obatala is the Creator God, who first fashioned mankind from clay; thus, he is also the first sculptor and potter. The human head itself is Obatala’s creation, and it is through it that he grants us the ability to discern genuine morality as opposed to oppressive, mistaken and arrogant self-righteousness. His is not the falsehood of societal boundaries, His Truth is the understanding of one’s own character and the obligations that we all have to our world, our Gods, and one another. He is the Benevolent Judge, calm and lucid, and he governs rational deliberation. His color is white, as His spirit is free from any soil or stain, and His energy radiates sanctified purity, great wisdom, happiness and internal peace. He is associated with cloth, as that was one of His gifts to mankind. The aspects of Obatala are symbolized by the chameleon, boa constrictor, elephant, gorilla, and snail. Obatala is the Lord of Laughter, for it is through wisdom that one may see the joy in life, and through laughter we are able to see the follies of mankind not with cynicism and derision, but with humor, compassion and understanding. Obatala’s Laughter helps soothe the pain of life’s rigors, and takes the sting out of the harshest of life’s lessons. Obatala’s ofrenda is soft, white and pure: milk, coconut meat, shea butter and cool, refreshing water.
Whoa, this is sweet! I don't remember it beeing so sweet when I first tried it! But my imp is aged by now, so perhaps I got sweeter over the time.

Wet: very sweet and coconutty with somethig underneath I'm not too fond of. Almost like the milk in it turned sour ;o)

Later: It starts to behave ... it's not cavity giving sweet anymore - now it's just sweet and there is something similar to Lush Silky Underwear to it.

My verdict: Nice but too sweet on me - and I think my skin doesn't work well with the milk, so this won't become a favorite.

1. Co-workers verdict: Pure coconut! She's in love ;o)
2. Co-workers verdict: Something smells like coconut! - It's me - Never wear that again, it reminds my of those candys I like and I get hungry!