Dee

His scent is soft English leather, rosewood and tonka with a hint of incense, parchment and soft woods.

The first BPAL I ever tried and it's still my favorite. I'm not very good at describing it, other than Mmmm. The blend of leather, wood, incense and tonka is perfect. It reminds me of when I was a kid at the library and would pull the old leather books off the shelves just to smell them. And dream about having a home with a classic library, full of old books and dark wood, with a fireplace, fancy globe and one of those giant unabridged dictionaries. Why yes, I am a librarian, why do you ask?

Also- sort of cool- my grandmother was called Dee, short for Devonah. And my mother's middle name is Dee. Nothing to do with the inspiration for the scent, I know, but it's a nice touch.

This scent is just so Me.

5/5

The Black Tower

white sandalwood, ambergris, wet ozone, galbanum and leather with ebony, teak, burnt grasses, English ivy and a hint of red wine.

So, something just smells bad when you combine this one with my skin chemistry. Most likely, I wasn't paying enough attention and burnt grasses = vetiver. It just doesn't work on me at all. Although, another possibility could be galbanum. I looked it up in one of my aromatherapy books, and part of its scent description lists "turpentine". Which could describe the scent I'm getting.

Anyhow, it's a bummer and overwhelms the entire blend. I was really hoping for a wine/leather/wood blend with some ozone shot through. This blend is really about the plants, though.

1/5

Cheshire Cat

Grapefruit, red currant, dark musk, Roman chamomile, delphinium, and lavender.

Awesome frimp from the lab. I never would have tried it, and I love it!

I really don't care for citrus scents, since they either go candy sweet or turn into cleaner. This one however, is a really nice herbal citrus. I wouldn't be able to pick out the grapefruit note if I didn't know about it, since it's so much softer than what I'm used to. It just blends together really well. I'll have to look for more citrus scents like this.

4.5/5

Ave Maria Gratia Plena

Rosewood with Sicilian lemon peel, red Mysore sandalwood, pale musks, sweet mountain sage and a dusting of lily, night-blooming jasmine and orris.

Frimp from the lab! It was on my wishlist, too.

Unfortunately, it instantly turns to soap on my skin and stays that way. The only new note for me is orris, so I'll lay the blame on it for now.

Pretty short review.

2/5

The Bow & Crown of Conquest

sage, carnation and cedar with lavender, vanilla, white musk and leather.


I really love this one, but I have a hard time separating the notes. Wet, I smell the leather and vanilla, which is nice. As it dries, the cedar and lavender get stronger. It all develops into a nice woodsy-vanilla smell. It is sort of masculine, but that never stops me.

Has average throw, lasts a little longer than average on me (6-7 hours).

If you like this one, try Dee.

5/5

Asphodel

The grey and ghostly flower that fills the fields of Hades.

I received this one as a frimp from the lab.

It's pretty much all white flowers. So, if you love white florals, this one's for you. Since I avoid them at all costs, this one was a wash-off for me. Glad I got the chance to try it, though. The lab's changed my mind about other notes.

1/5

Lust

red musk, patchouli, ylang ylang and myrrh.

In the imp, I'm a little scared of it. Mostly, I smell the ylang ylang.

Once it hits my skin, though, the myrrh becomes prominent, which is great. I love myrrh!

As it dries, the red musk comes out more, which is even better. I can't specifically pick out the patchouli, but I never can. My skin seems to absorb it. The ylang ylang sweetens it up a bit, but it not even close to cloying or overly floral.

Overall, it's red musk blended with a sweet myrrh, and it lasts all day. This is definitely one of my favorites. Balanced, feminine and unique.

4.5/5