BPAL: Laudanum

[rikibeth]

So, despite my resistance, atalantapendrag got me started with Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab scents, with the classic pusher's trick of "first taste is free." She sent me imps of Laudanum, Nyx, Blood, Tamora, Centzon Totochtin, Hell's Belle, and a full sized vial of Beltane, mostly full.

She had packed them all in bubble wrap in a pill vial. When I opened it, all the scents combined reminded me powerfully of stepping into Arsenic and Old Lace back around 1987. Nice effect.

I could hardly decide what to try first! Laudanum won because of how much I'd like a supply of the real stuff.

Laudanum's part of the Sin and Salvation group. Here's BPAL's description:

The essence of the most debauched hunger encapsulated into a perfume. Desire beyond love, anguish beyond sanity. Nutmeg, sassafras, black poppy and myrrh. (Traditionally masculine)

My notes:

In the vial: Sweet! Really really syrupy sweet. Which makes sense, considering how sweet pure opium resin smells. Also, yeah, lots of myrrh. Which I already know smells hormone-carbonating fantastic on my friend Nancy, but on me it just doesn't have the same effect. I can't really detect much sassafras (that ought to smell like root beer, right?) or nutmeg, just a general sort of warmth to it that's probably their effect. And I LOVE nutmeg and considered it the secret to my very popular quiche at Michaele's, not to mention an essential element of my beloved bread pudding. No, I can't smell any nutmeg at all.

Wet: Oh, THERE'S the sassafras! Wow, root beer. Still no goddamn nutmeg. And the myrrh and black poppy have disappeared under the overpowering scent of root beer barrel candy, or maybe it's root beer schnapps. Hey, I haven't had that in a long time. Maybe it's time to pick up some and have boozeoriffic root beer floats.

Dry: How long do I have to wait for dry? misia and matociquala don't say. I asked atalantapendrag and she said ten minutes and then half an hour... *checks clock* *drums fingers*

There was something dried-herbal as it was drying off, probably the sassafras. It's still there but going further back. The myrrh-poppy sweetness is back full force. I STILL can't smell the nutmeg. I even went outside on my front porch away from the leftover cooking smells of dinner, and I can't smell it.

Okay, I just hauled out my Microplane and my supply of whole nutmeg, and I'm still not convinced there's much in there. It's blending in and just adding some overall warmth, I guess.

Overall: It smells like a witchcraft store. Or someone who's just been to the perfume-oils merchant at a Renaissance Faire. It's probably going to turn too powdery on me, the way myrrh pretty much always does. I like it, but I'm not sure it does much for me. Since it's "traditionally masculine" (seriously? the overall impression is MUCH too sweet for me to think of it as masculine) maybe I'll try it on shadowflyer, although it hasn't got any citrus or oakmoss, both of which tend to improve resin scents on him.

However, it appears to be as addictive as the name would suggest. Even though I'm not thrilled with it, I can't stop sniffing it.


Wear it at your own risk.

Comments

[gentlyepigrams]

All this has made me pull out my old oils and start wearing them again.

[surelle.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, I've wanted to check them out!

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

You will be assimilated.

[theladyfeylene.livejournal.com]

W00t! Everyone has been jumping on BPAL! I've ordered:

From Diabolus

Dracul
Black Annis
Villain
Serpents Kiss
Loup Garou

And from Ars Draconis

Dragon's Bone

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

The Fragrances That Ate Fandom! I swear, I need to start a comm for HP-loving BPALers and call it "Order of the Black Phoenix".

Serpent's Kiss is spicylicious. And in one of my "What BPAL scent would this character wear?" polls, kebechet said Lucius Malfoy would wear Villain (interestingly enough, she was one of the few who didn't suggest an Ars Draconis scent for Charlie Weasley), so I had to try that too; lovely sharp clean smell, and it's going into my enabler's starter pack to threeoranges.

[theladyfeylene.livejournal.com]

If you did, I would join.

Oooh, good. I love spicy, sharp and musky scents. I've just been hearing so much about these scents, I had to try some! I'm eagerly awaiting my order. :D

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

You do know that you can get imps from folks on alchemylab and the folks on the forums at bpal.org, as well as on eBay? Most of the time if someone's got an imp of something that just doesn't work on them, they'll see if they can swap it for something on their wishlist, or sell it to someone who wants it.

[theladyfeylene.livejournal.com]

I do now. :D Thanks for the tip!

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

bpalmarketplace and bpal_swaps are also useful.

[ame-chan.livejournal.com]

I wear Tamora almost every day. Lurve it.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

Have you tried Bastet? It's another lovely golden scent.

[dphearson.livejournal.com]

Yes, another addict to the Black Phoenix!

[tamidon.livejournal.com]

My personal favorite is Dorian, and the sample packs rock, they sent me 3 extra just for the hell of it.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

Bonus imps are so cool; either you fall for something you'd have never thought to try, or you have a nice clean fresh-from-the-lab imp to swap.

[ceilidh71.livejournal.com]

::goes over to the dark side:: :)
i just went nuts and ordered 12 sample vials - how very very cool.

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

*snicker* And while you're waiting on those, alchemylab beckons...

[(Anonymous)]

::goes further into the dark side::
;)

[ceilidh71.livejournal.com]

not sure why that posted anonymously, but that was me...

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

BPAL Anonymous? ;)