BPAL...good, bad, indifferent? Worth it? Where to start?

[rickboone]

What can anyone tell me about these fragrances? I'm interested in trying a few yet have no clue where to start.

[donna255]

You can buy the imps(which are the sample vials) quite cheaply.
Now the only bottle I own was bought from ebay, as it was a limited edition I could never find a review for it. Longing from the Love Poem Collection. I bought it from the notes described by the seller. Rose,geranium and musk and indeed it is a rich rose fragrance. Great sillage for an oil and very long lasting on the skin. BPal themselves don't really seem to give notes in their descriptions.

[rickboone]

Yes, I've seen the imps and will probably get several. Just not sure which ones. That's the hard part. ha ha.

[My_pep_pep]

There are some gems if you feel like digging. Each category has a pretty varied range of fragrances, maybe you could just go by themes you like. Most of their scents have a list of notes in the description, and the bpal forum has reviews for just about all the scents. They are oils so it's different from wearing an alcohol based perfume.

I have a few favorites, they have a nice touch with woods, spice, musks, patchouli, and more. Let's see.....I like Mad Hatter, Baron Samedi (it's their version of bay rum, with almond and lots of vetiver), Nyarlathotep, Djinn, Plunder, many more.....

I think my favorite section is the Salon, where they have perfumes inspired by paintings. I particularly like Cloister Graveyard In The Snow. I also found a few winners in the Carnaval Diabolique section which is supposed to be limited edition, but it has been around for about 5 years.

Speaking of limited editions.....yeah. They have limited seasonal scents almost all the time, and it does get a little ridiculous trying to keep up with all the updates and limited scents, and I can totally understand how people 'get the fever' for it all.

Unfortunately the search engine has been down for a while, so you can't really search by notes right now.

[rickboone]

Know anything about a drive in fragrance?

[My_pep_pep]

Sounds like one of their retail exclusive scents from Dark Delicacies, maybe. I haven't tried it. Let me look.........

Found the reviews....

The Nameless City Drive-In Theatre......."Chrome bumpers gleaming in cold, exhaust-fume laden night air. Soggy foliage and crushed grass dotted with popcorn that has been crushed under rubber tires. Leather seats moist with skin musk and the sweat of groping hands fumbling under ceremonial robes". The reviews vary but most mention musk and grass.

I was conceived at a drive-in theater! : )

[rickboone]

I didn't see much good. Near everyone that tried it had fun sniffing it; but seemed to go into their passalong pile. I saw it for pretty cheap on the bay. Also, searching these Possets comes up a bit, too. I may try one of their sample packs. Thanks for all of your help. I'm goiing to keep searching for some imps. I'd like to just get a handful of whatever and start there.

[My_pep_pep]

Sometimes the gals on the bpal forum aren't as interested when a scent leans towards masculine. Not as a rule. But I did see those reviews mention "masculine" a few times.

I don't have as much success with Possets, but the creator is a friend here in Cincinnati. She is a pretty cool chick and her fragrances are fun to try, especially considering the cost. I do have some favorites there, too. Ribbands is a limited Yule scent that I love, spicy teatime vanilla with toasty biscuits and raspberry. Oh and Possets don't have many notes listed, the descriptions are more vague but they do give an idea of what the scent is about, or the inspiration behind it. It's more of a risk because you don't always know exactly what the notes are. But it can be fun.

I kind of went backwards in my scent journey......from Polo and Drakkar, to bpal and other small etailers, to niche fragrances, and now I'm more interested in classics and designer houses (but I love a little bit of everything).

[rickboone]

Your interests sound familiar to mine. I have a big interest for Attars and some Ouds, and for older Powerhouse fragrances. I like powerful fragrances that last and you can smell. Polo, Knize Ten, Obsession, Halston Z14, etc.