BPAL: Miscellenia

[gwydion]

The Frimps:
ACE of PENTACLES (Discontinued, Tarot Oils): (Company says: Black pine, patchouli, honeysuckle, oakmoss, almond and other soft earthen tones.)

In bottle: This reminds me of forest floor. The pine, oakmoss and earth create the illusion of pine needles and moss decaying into rich, black topsoil. Patchouli supports the earth while slightly lifting it’s feel. The honeysuckle and almond are understated and well blended, serving to sweeten it slightly without undermining the dominant effect. Wet: sharper on the skin, with the oakmoss dominant and pine a close second. The earth and patchouli fade into third. The honeysuckle separates more from the almond on the skin. Dry: Mostly oakmoss with a touch of patchouli and pine. It is not as exciting on the skin just generally as it was in the bottle.

ARKHAM (A picnic in Arkham): (Company says: Behind everything crouched the brooding, festering horror of the ancient town, and of the A shadowy, unapproachable forest of maple, birch, dogwood, cypress and pine softened by a garland of New England wildflowers: bergamot, columbine, rue anemone, blue violet, creeping phlox, bloodroot, toadflax, and pixie moss.

In bottle: I expected this to be woody, but it’s very bright floral. It’s violet dominant, with the other florals in support painted across a delicate canvas of very soft woods and herbs. I am not good enough at florals to tell which of the less common ones here is which. It’s very pretty, but I can’t carry violet, so I’m not skin testing.

DRUID (RPG): (Company says: A woolen robe infused with the scent of a vast, primordial forest: ancient trees, fertile soil, wild herbs, spring grasses, and burgundy pitch incense.

In bottle: The tree combination in this is a bit unusual and complex. It blends beautifully with the soil note, which I consider mildly dominant over the woods. Pitch incense supports the woods, the herbs and grasses are soft, but distinct. This is very up my alley. Wet: Paler, juicier, and greener on the skin. The herbs and grasses step up to dance with the trees. There is a sweet wet note similar to slobbering pine. It’s surprisingly complex and fluid. Dry: Fades to a pleasant slightly sweet melange of woods with an opalescent herbal halo.

THE GRAND INQUISITOR’S HERETIC”S FORK (LE, Carnival Diabolique, Act V: The Wunderkammer): (Company says: Coppery dried blood, metal, vetiver, and bonfire smoke.)

In bottle: Surprisingly sweet with blood as the strongest note, supported by soft metallic. The smoke and vetiver circle under the surface like sharks. I will not be skin testing due to vetiver.

PALLAS ATHENE (LE, The Salon: Benefit for RAINN): (Company says:
Antiqued amber, cumin, saffron, frankincense, Atlas cedar, myrrh, mandarin, Ceylon cinnamon bark, and osmanthus.)

In bottle: sweet powdery insense, with amber as the strongest note. Osmanthus, cedar, and mandarin support the amber, while cumin, saffron, and cinnamon form a second faction that twines with and comments on the central Amber faction. Frankinsence and myrrh form a sort of background wash. This is absolutely gorgeous, but there is no chance of it working on my skin, to my great regret.

THE TRIUMPH OF DEATH 2011 (LE, Halloweenie, Pickman Gallery: Torment & Reverie): (Company says: East Indian black patchouli, red sandalwood, dark musk, peru balsam, ambrette seed, vetiver, and ambergris accord.)

In bottle: Well blended. Patchouli dominant with strong vetiver support. The musk and balsam also join the dominant cabal. Sandalwood, ambrette, and ambergris form a second, brighter toned cabal. This is really well designed for it’s concept, with a dark earthiness lifted by incense. Alas, there is no chance of this working on my skin, so no skin test.



Ordered:
OLD MOON 2011 (LE, Lunacy): (Company says: The scent of things drifting just on the edge of memory, hiding in shadowed corners. Old, yellowing books, dust-covered toys pushed to the back of the attic, windows obscured by thick, thorny vines, letters discarded, and photographs of people long-forgotten.

In bottle: Bibliophile heaven. This is the rich scent of Library: books, wood, vines, dust, cologne. I suspect I am reading the toys as cologne and wood. I don’t care. This scent is so gloriously tactile. I want to run my hands all over it and snuffle it’s neck. Wet: Less intensely Book on my skin. The Vines press forward, though the books and toys and dust swirl about behind the dark green curtains. It is still beautiful, but it’s no longer calling an irresistible come hither to my hind brain. I am fascinated by the way the delicate dust accord swirls around the vibes and books. I love the way the cloth tangles with the wood and books. It is more subtle in it’s allure than in the bottle, but it is seducing me more by the minute. Dry: Mostly books and wood.

PEACH I 2013 (LE, Dragon Con 2013 Exclusive): (Company says: Golden peach, tobacco absolute, tonka bean, and honey with a squirt of red musk.)

In bottle: Very, very peach, maybe a little too sweet with the honey and tonka bean support. Tobacco and red musk try to create a counter point. I waver on whether or not this works in practice. Wet: Much better balanced on the skin. The peach is still dominant and the honey may still be a drop too far, but the tonka is working with it and the peach smoothes out. Meanwhile, the tobacco steps out as a strong second to the peach with the musk still in support, but blending better. This is much closer what I was imagining when I read the description. As it warms, the honey suddenly makes sense as it stretches like a bridge between peach and tobacco. This one’s a grower not a shower, best to give it time to reveal itself. Dry: Okay, now I love it. The edges wear off the peach, so that you get a gentle tonka and peachy sweetness without it being overwhelming. The tobacco honey fades to a ghost. The red musk gives the sexy without coming on to strong. This evolves on the shin to something sublime, so if the initial brashness startles you, give it a little time.

SKEKNA THE SLAVEMASTER 2013 (LE, Dark Crystal): (Company says: The essence of vile gluttony: an abundance of spices, sweet cakes, thick creams, and opulent liqueurs mixed with the scent of whip leather and rusted padlocks.)

In bottle: A little overwhelming in the bottle. It’s as if the liqueurs have slightly curdled the cream. I blame the rum I strongly suspect is the dominant note. The spices are lovely and blending well with both liqueur and cream as well as tying them together with the soft cake background. The leather and rust form a second faction in counterpoint to the dominant foodie faction. On further consideration, it might be one of these pulling the cream slightly off. The leather is the stronger of the two in this faction, but the rust is dancing with the spice in some interesting ways. I’m not convinced it works in bottle, but my fingers are crossed for how it smells on skin. Wet: Still liqueur dominant, but softer and sweeter on the skin as the cake is now strong enough to smooth the edges. The cream is purer now, so it’s disentangled from whatever was throwing it off. The spices are softer, but continue to tie things together. The cream and spices melt into the leather accord around the edges and the metallics fade into an accent. As it wears, the spices move to dominance as the liqueurs settle down. This is when it really starts to work for me, though I think there may be a scootch too much rum. Dry: Mostly spice over a sweet wash of cake and liqueur.

THE SOLDIER 2010 (LE, Yule, The Nutcracker: Acts 1 & 2): (Company says:
Red musk, vanilla cream, black tea, black pepper, leather, and pie.)

In bottle: It’s an unusual blend. The combination of tea and pepper is about coequal with the pie and vanilla cream combination in strength. The leather and musk are much softer, but distinct, both inclining to the tea/pepper faction. Wet: Black tea moves into prominence with its strong pepper support. The pie and vanilla cream are third, with the musk edging slowly into position with them. The leather accord frays into tatters of components, dancing with stronger elements. The sharpness of the pepper does really interesting things with the smoother elements, adding an unexpected sharpness. The power and distinctness of the pepper is so different than the more typical usage in other blends as accent rather than scent. Dry:Mostly read musk with a hint of vanilla and leather.

SLIPPING INTO MADNESS 2013 (LE, BPTP): (Company says: A slow, murky sojourn into bedlam: slick, black Arabian musk, aged red patchouli, tobacco absolute, wild salvia, and a sliver of screeching, high-pitched zdravetz.)

In bottle: Note bene: I have no idea what zdravetz is or smells like, and I have limited knowledge of what salvia smells like. This is strongly patchouli dominant with musk in support, and an herbal edge that is likely the salvia, with the tobacco bridging the dominant scents and the herbal edge. There is also a very faint touch of something lighter, vaguely floral and blended with the herbal scent which I’m guessing is the zdravetz. This is assuming they went with salvia leaves and zdravetz flowers. It’s possible that they did the opposite or leaves and flowers both. The scent is creating a peculiar vaguely psychotropic effect when I get too close to the open bottle. It consists of a headachey feel and a sort of rippling, like staring into a fish tank from close up, or as if my brain is trying to fold itself down the center line between the right and left lobe. I suspect I’m having an allergic reaction either to the zdravetz or whatever they did to make the salvia scent, so YMMV. However, I have to give them credit for the Lovecraftian Slipping into Madness feel this gave me. Dayumn. Weirder still, I could move away from the bottle and feel fine, but closer in, the effect kicked right back in. On! Off! On! Off! Uncomfortable but weirdly compelling and fascinating. As my eyes are itching, I’m just going to take an anti-histamine and not skin test it, as clearly that way madness DOES lie.



Winners: Old Moon
Runners Up: Druid