![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
In this BPAL revival, I've found a number of unreviewed scents from 2011/2012 hidden in my "rejects/testing/????" box. I stopped actively collecting for financial reasons, but can't remember why those final scents never got tested. Rediscovering them has been a welcome surprise; testing is a distraction, a source of curiosity and newness, of miniature accomplishment. And they're autumn/winter scents, which is appropriate.
DEAD LEAVES AND COFFEE BEANS (LE, Halloweenie 2018: Pile of Leaves)
In vial: Coffee overtone, dead leaf undertone.
On me: A morpher. I've been getting a weird wet note from some of the dead leaf blends which is a sharp, dirty cousin to tobacco. It's gross, and in full force here. Things settle out in drydown, becoming a rich, roasted coffee/leaves combo, deep and warm and red. It reminds me of The Ta-Ta (boiled leather, carnation blossom, coffee absolute, and tobacco), but without the spicy carnation to add texture and bite to the dirty, rich vegetal coffee; this is samey in tone, but I like its warmth. After an hour or two the scent leans sweeter, dead leaves losing the battle to creamy, sugared coffee. I'm not convinced I like it—the creamy/sweet/vegetal combo is a little off-putting. This final stage is long-lasting but has minimal throw.
Verdict: If it were just that roasted coffee/dead leaves combo, I'd enjoy this—but the other stages are a little icky. I'm curious if this will come into itself with aging, so I'll hold onto my imp.
INSIDE THE GOLDEN AMBER OF HER EYEBALLS (LE, Halloweenie 2018)
Sleek black fur and gleaming amber shining in the shadows, a rumble of myrrh, and claws as sharp as ti leaf.
In vial: Astringent, lemony, with something darker hidden underneath. This reminds me of Haunted (soft golden amber darkened with a touch of murky black musk) before drydown, which has a similar lemony topnote.
On me: Lemony and astringent when wet, drying down into a more complex scent: a sharp lemony/green golden topnote overlaying a darker, fuzzier combination of myrrh, amber, and (I would argue) musk. It reminds me of Haunted-with-additions; the amber/musk is familiar. I'm not convinced I like the top note (which may be ti leaf?); I'm not a fan of astringency and it goes sharp, almost citrus.
Verdict: The first time I tested this, almost all I could get was a Haunted-clone, which was pleasant but redundant; I can pick out more notes from the blend now, and admire how it fits the inspiration, a glowing light, a sharpness, against a convincingly fuzzy base. But I don't really like it.
WITCH DANCE (LE: Halloweenie 2012)
Bonfire smoke rising through a cloud of ceremonial incense, encircled by swirling autumn leaves and a dribble of blood red musk.
In vial: Red musk and—sometimes I get sandalwood, or at least a powdery resin; sometime a touch of incense.
On me: Red musk backed up by a smokey vetiver. Red musk tends to amp on me and this is no exception, but it's almost balanced here. A distinctly red scent, warm, smokey, resinous; a little spicy, a little sweet; it tends powdery, but the thin vetiver helps balance that. The throw is enticing and a touch elusive, thin as smoke; the skin scent is distinctive and prickly in the nose.
Verdict: Not quite so good as the description (I love musk, but wish red musk weren't so overpowering on me), but still a success. The witchy, slightly feral warmth of this is pleasant when I'm in the mood for red musk. The bonfire smoke is its saving grace.
MAISON EN PAIN D'ÉPICES (LE: Yule 2011)
In vial: Warm, spicy, bready.
On me: This goes on as warm spice with a jumble of other notes—a hint of El Dia de los Reyes (hot cocoa with cinnamon, coffee, and brown sugar)-style powdery chocolate with cinnamon, a distinct sweetness; no mint or fruit to speak of. But it stabilizes after drydown to a warm, spicy, nose-tickling, slightly powdery gingerbread with a top note of candied red fruit. Despite the different notes, it feels very like Enraged Groundhog Musk (cranky groundhog musk sweetened up by chocolate-covered black cherries, cardamom, French vanilla, and caramel), a powdery/spicy brown base with a sticky-sweet tart red heart.
Verdict: Red fruits amp on me, and I particularly regret that here. The gingerbread is heavily spiced and I really want to enjoy it, but I find that fruitiness a distracting and unwelcome addition.
DEAD LEAVES AND COFFEE BEANS (LE, Halloweenie 2018: Pile of Leaves)
In vial: Coffee overtone, dead leaf undertone.
On me: A morpher. I've been getting a weird wet note from some of the dead leaf blends which is a sharp, dirty cousin to tobacco. It's gross, and in full force here. Things settle out in drydown, becoming a rich, roasted coffee/leaves combo, deep and warm and red. It reminds me of The Ta-Ta (boiled leather, carnation blossom, coffee absolute, and tobacco), but without the spicy carnation to add texture and bite to the dirty, rich vegetal coffee; this is samey in tone, but I like its warmth. After an hour or two the scent leans sweeter, dead leaves losing the battle to creamy, sugared coffee. I'm not convinced I like it—the creamy/sweet/vegetal combo is a little off-putting. This final stage is long-lasting but has minimal throw.
Verdict: If it were just that roasted coffee/dead leaves combo, I'd enjoy this—but the other stages are a little icky. I'm curious if this will come into itself with aging, so I'll hold onto my imp.
INSIDE THE GOLDEN AMBER OF HER EYEBALLS (LE, Halloweenie 2018)
Sleek black fur and gleaming amber shining in the shadows, a rumble of myrrh, and claws as sharp as ti leaf.
In vial: Astringent, lemony, with something darker hidden underneath. This reminds me of Haunted (soft golden amber darkened with a touch of murky black musk) before drydown, which has a similar lemony topnote.
On me: Lemony and astringent when wet, drying down into a more complex scent: a sharp lemony/green golden topnote overlaying a darker, fuzzier combination of myrrh, amber, and (I would argue) musk. It reminds me of Haunted-with-additions; the amber/musk is familiar. I'm not convinced I like the top note (which may be ti leaf?); I'm not a fan of astringency and it goes sharp, almost citrus.
Verdict: The first time I tested this, almost all I could get was a Haunted-clone, which was pleasant but redundant; I can pick out more notes from the blend now, and admire how it fits the inspiration, a glowing light, a sharpness, against a convincingly fuzzy base. But I don't really like it.
WITCH DANCE (LE: Halloweenie 2012)
Bonfire smoke rising through a cloud of ceremonial incense, encircled by swirling autumn leaves and a dribble of blood red musk.
In vial: Red musk and—sometimes I get sandalwood, or at least a powdery resin; sometime a touch of incense.
On me: Red musk backed up by a smokey vetiver. Red musk tends to amp on me and this is no exception, but it's almost balanced here. A distinctly red scent, warm, smokey, resinous; a little spicy, a little sweet; it tends powdery, but the thin vetiver helps balance that. The throw is enticing and a touch elusive, thin as smoke; the skin scent is distinctive and prickly in the nose.
Verdict: Not quite so good as the description (I love musk, but wish red musk weren't so overpowering on me), but still a success. The witchy, slightly feral warmth of this is pleasant when I'm in the mood for red musk. The bonfire smoke is its saving grace.
MAISON EN PAIN D'ÉPICES (LE: Yule 2011)
In vial: Warm, spicy, bready.
On me: This goes on as warm spice with a jumble of other notes—a hint of El Dia de los Reyes (hot cocoa with cinnamon, coffee, and brown sugar)-style powdery chocolate with cinnamon, a distinct sweetness; no mint or fruit to speak of. But it stabilizes after drydown to a warm, spicy, nose-tickling, slightly powdery gingerbread with a top note of candied red fruit. Despite the different notes, it feels very like Enraged Groundhog Musk (cranky groundhog musk sweetened up by chocolate-covered black cherries, cardamom, French vanilla, and caramel), a powdery/spicy brown base with a sticky-sweet tart red heart.
Verdict: Red fruits amp on me, and I particularly regret that here. The gingerbread is heavily spiced and I really want to enjoy it, but I find that fruitiness a distracting and unwelcome addition.
