Return of BPAL Roundup

[joiedecombat]

There is an amusing randomness to the freebie imps the lab throws into one's orders. As with Forrest Gump's box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.

In this particular case, it is:

Antique Lace - A soft, wistful blend of dry flowers, aged linens, and the faint breath of long-faded perfumes. Vanilla! I might have tried this one sooner if I'd known it had vanilla in. It's a sweet, soft, mellow vanilla which does give me an impression of antique linens, gone soft and off-white with time and use. ...Or possibly toasted marshmallow.

Athens - A reformulation and modernization of a true Classical Greek perfume, myrrhine: voluptuous myrrh, golden honey, red wine, and sweet flowers. I am coming to the conclusion that BPAL's honey notes go nuts on my skin; it's the honey that takes hold of this one, but the other notes combine to make it less cloying than Skuld and less murky in the initial wet stage than Terpsichore. It's certainly got a powerful throw. Woo.

Brisingamen, which I've already reviewed.

Dance of Death - Dry, bone-white orris, black musk, serpentine patchouli and our murkiest myrrh. Have only sniffed the vial of this one. Patchouli and I tend to really not get on, but it didn't leap out of the imp and crawl up my sinuses the way it usually does. I may actually give this one a proper try. ...nope, still don't like patchouli. Setting it aside for the folks that do.

Magus - Galangal, high john essence, frankincense, cedar, and sandalwood. Magus turns out to be a very pleasant scent, smooth and warm and dry wood with a faint hint of clean spiciness. The cedar is recognizable. It's too masculine for me to really want to wear it, but I like it a lot. If I had a boyfriend I'd make him wear it.

and Venice - Lemon, red currant, wisteria, red rose petals, heady jasmine, Florentine orris root, waterlily, red sandalwood, violet plum, and violet leaf. Currently on the other wrist. In contrast to Athens, this one isn't doing a whole lot beyond being generally floral, probably a casualty of jasmine's dislike of my skin.

Plus qara_isuke generously traded me Kumiho and Queen of Hearts.

Kumiho actually reminds me a lot of Embalming Fluid, which I continue to adore in spite of its terrible name. It has a slightly sharper quality from the ginger, in place of the lemon of Embalming Fluid, and if I were to pick one of the two it'd have to be EB. Even though Kumiho's name is cooler.

Queen of Hearts is more complicated - soft powdery white flowers mixed incongruously with cherry. Haven't quite made up my mind about it yet. - On second testing, the cherry leaps out first, but on my skin the florals turn kind of soapy and it doesn't quite work.

Comments

[qara-isuke.livejournal.com]

Ooooh. I've been wanting to try Brisingamen for FOREVER.

[joiedecombat.livejournal.com]

It is one of the nicest amber scents I have tried thus far. And since the lab sent me the frimp of it, I now have two imps, and could spare you one if you'd like.

[qara-isuke.livejournal.com]

I'd love that.