Review: Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab - Snake Oil

Review: Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab (BPAL) - Snake Oil

Waaaay back in the day, BPAL had some sort of themed Snake Oil event and I lusted after all of the mixes. Much to my dismay, before knowing about decanting (I don't even know if that was around then) and swapping imps, all of them sold out. All except Snake Oil. I like to look at this as a blessing, because all those different Snake Oil versions are discontinued now but Snake Oil is still available.

Description: A blend of exotic Indonesian oils sugared with vanilla.

In the Bottle: Its a thick, sticky oil with a heavy scent.  

Wet:  It smells like a dimly candle lit bedroom after sex, with an edge of sugar. 

Drydown: It smells the same as when wet.

Throw: High

Wear Time: 12 hours for a single application. It also lasts forever and clings to everything. Its intoxicating and a little goes a super long way.

Verdict: My favourite. This has been my go-to indie perfume for easily 11 years.

While I originally expected to have complaints about it from people, I've surprisingly never got one. The reaction I've gotten has been people trying to sniff me and be all discreet about it, failing and just giving up and asking me, "What is that amazing scent you're wearing?"

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab's full size bottle is 5mL is and it has a screw top, so make sure to close it tightly so it doesn't leak! It comes with a gothic label with an easy to read font. 

(Yes, my label is blotchy. A sample had leaked in the bag my BPALs were in.)

Review: Cocoa Pink - Santa's Cookies Voluptuous Body Butter

Review: Cocoa Pink - Santa's Cookies Voluptuous Body Butter


This was a sample I received with my White Sugar Voluptuous Body Butter order. I didn't really know anything about this so I went and looked it up.

Description: Vanilla Bean Noel, Sugar Cookies, Marshmallow Sugar, and a splash of Harajuku Banana.

Upon opening this my nose was assaulted by the hyper sweet faux banana smell. It was overpowering, allowing no other notes through as I put it on. This body butter didn't feel as thick as White Sugar, it was more along the consistency of Haus of Gloi's which is a bit lighter and thinner. It absorbed quickly into the skin, leaving it smooth and silky feeling.

Thankfully, this faux banana scent died down fairly quickly, within the first hour. 4 hours later there is just the light fresh but sweet scent of the Vanilla Bean Noel that lingers. This was surprising to me considering how strong that faux banana smell was at the beginning.

The Cocoa Pink sample size was in a small 0.5 oz plastic black snap top container. The label was not as nice looking as the larger sizes but I attribute this to the small sample size packaging. There was no sealed cover inside. 0.5 oz was enough for two full body applications. 

Review: Madame Josephine - Babette

Review: Madame Josephine - Babette

This is the perfume that nudged me to go through all my perfume oils and led me to writing this blog. I was looking at Madame Josephine's etsy shop and came across this perfume and thought "I should order this it sounds like something I want to try". I have three full size roller balls of other Madame Josephine scents, because her product is great, but I couldn't recall what samples I had. Low and behold, I already had this sample! I'm glad I went through and cataloged all of my perfumes so I don't order duplicates. It also made me realize how many I have.

Description: Babette is a sultry dame as she catches the attention of many with her sheer scarf, kissed with the scent of antique Ambers darkened with Moroccan Myrrh topped with Frankincense and Dark Vanillas.

In the Bottle: It just smells like stale old lady perfume to me.

Wet: I love vanilla scents, and myrrh and frankincense so this sounded to me like a total winner. 

Drydown: On me however its a big flop. The ambers are overpowering and with just a bit of the vanilla and myrrh to add a sweet note, this smells like a heavy old lady perfume. 

Throw: High

Wear Time: 3 hours for a single application.

Verdict: Fail. I was so disappointed. I had super high hopes for this sample. 

Madame Josephine's sample vial is the standard stoppered 1ml vial. It came clearly labeled with an easily readable font.

Review: Haus of Gloi - Satyr Pumpkin Butter

Review: Haus of Gloi - Satyr Pumpkin Butter

Another body butter I picked up in an attempt to repair my skin from the frigid Canadian winter. I love the scent of citrus and vanilla together so when I saw that Satyr combined these two I knew I had to order some. This was part of my first order with Haus of Gloi and it won't be my last.

Description: Italian blood orange drizzled with blackened vanilla.

Sounds delicious right? It smells delicious too, except for one thing that has been bugging me. I thought maybe it was just me but I've tried this body butter five times now and the lingering base of rot / mold hangs with this scent. 

The top notes are exactly as described, sweet yet tart Italian blood orange with a dark, almost musky vanilla. It smells amazing. Maybe it's the way these two combine or something, I am not really sure but I can't get rid of the lingering rot /mold smell. I even tried the pants test (what I did with the Cocoa Pink White Sugar Body Butter) and the smell that clung to a fresh pair of yoga pants was sweet tart oranges and...you guessed it, that rot / mold smell. 

Other than that scent issue, which truly could just be me, this body butter is amazing. Its lighter than Cocoa Pink's and takes a little bit longer to absorb in the skin but your skin will feel soft in no time at all. Over time the scent does mellow, after about 6 hours. 

I ordered the mini-jar which was 2oz. It came packaged just beautifully in a clear tub, with a sealed top underneath the black screw top so no product could escape during transit. The label is very professional looking and easy to read.  Haus of Gloi also puts the scent description on the side of the label which I found super helpful.

Review: Cocoa Pink - White Sugar Voluptuous Body Butter

Review: Cocoa Pink - White Sugar Voluptuous Body Butter

I live in a pretty warm humid place most of the year. This year we ended up in Canada for a good portion of time and I have forgotten what winter does to my skin. So when I returned from Canada I went on the hunt for something to repair my skin and that smelled good. It's been years since my skin has required a heavier moisturizer but I am glad it did or I may have never tried Cocoa Pink's Voluptuous Body Butters!

Description: Marshmallow, Vanilla Cream, Sugar Cookies, a drop of Pink Sugar.

This body butter is thick but melts right into your skin leaving it soft without a greasy feeling. I put this on once a day after my morning shower. It repaired my chapped elbows in only a couple days of application. Not only that but the scent sticks around. The first day I used this and tossed on a pair of jeans to run an errand, came home and changed. A week later I put the same (unwashed) jeans on, without having used the Voluptuous Body Butter and the jeans smelled deliciously of this Voluptuous Body Butter.

It smells like everything delicious in a bakery minus a bread or fruit smell. Is like sugar and butter cream frosting and sugar cookies all together. I admit to drooling a wee bit when smelling it.

It lasts FOREVER! All day, from application post morning shower until the next day's shower.

I ordered Cocoa Pink's 4.75 oz size the first time and it took me about 1 month to finish it. I've since reordered. It comes well packaged in a black plastic tub with a sealed top underneath the screw top so no product will escape during transit. The label is cute and labeled with an easy to read font.

Review: Solstice Scents - Snowshoe Pass

Review: Solstice Scents - Snowshoe Pass

The lovely ladies (and gents) over at r/indiemakeupandmore were raving about this scent over the winter holiday. All the raving about this scent is what got me into buying indie perfumes and my first order was the Winter Collection 2014 sample from Solstice Scents. Once I swiped this I was hooked. I couldn't stop sniffing my wrists because Snowshoe Pass smelled that good!!!  I've never been a big fan of amber, musk or peppermint - this scent completely changed my mind.

I tried to order a full size but they were sold out so I shot an email out to Greg and Angela and they were kind enough to reply that it would be back in stock soon and they would let me know when. Obviously once it was in stock I purchased it (and more samples). The customer service was great!

Description: White Amber, White Musk, Vanilla Accord, Peppermint Cream, Cold Winds.

In the Bottle: Minty, musky, and cool.

Wet: On me the white musk is sweetened by the vanilla and those stay the main notes until about two hours in when the peppermint starts to climb out, it's a crisp and refreshing peppermint or maybe its that way with the cold winds. I cannot detect any of the white amber on me, but it may be too subtle for me to pick up.

Drydown: It remains musky, vanilla, and cool peppermint.

Throw: Medium-High

Wear Time: 6 hours for a single application.

Verdict: Obviously, this was a keeper since I bought the full size. 

Solstice Scents' sample vial is the standard stoppered 1ml vial. Their full size of this came in a beautiful cobalt blue glass roller ball with a black cap, size of .35 ounces. Both were clearly labeled with an easily readable font.

Review: Solstice Scents - Sycamore Chai

Review: Solstice Scents - Sycamore Chai

Another spicy autumn scent. Chai is my favourite tea and this scent captured all the spiciness of Chai.

Description: Vanilla Chai Tea & A Ginger Pumpkin Roll Filled with Marshmallow Creme. 

In the Bottle: So much cardamom with a hint of ginger.

Wet: On me this begins super spicy, I can really smell the cardamon. I didn't actually get any notes of ginger even though I could smell them in the bottle.

Drydown:  About an hour in it mellows out a little and the smooth sweetness of the marshmallow comes through with some vanilla. Six hours after the heavier spicy notes have faded to a sweet vanilla marshmallow scent.I didn't get any heavy ginger, which I was expecting, or any pumpkin - both are okay with me since I actually really enjoy that it smells more Chai than dessert.

Throw: Medium-High

Wear Time: 4 hours for a single application.  6 hours after I need to raise my wrist fairly close to my nose to catch the scent.

Verdict: Another winner, I love it. 

Solstice Scents' sample vial is the standard stoppered 1ml vial. The vial is clearly labeled with an easily readable font.

Review: Cocoa Pink - Perfect Pumpkin.

Review: Cocoa Pink - Perfect Pumpkin.

I love autumn and all the scents that come with it. I also absolutely adore pumpkin *everything*. So when going through the list of Cocoa Pink's scents I knew Perfect Pumpkin would be ordered.

Description:  This is fresh pumpkin pie straight out of the oven.

In the bottle: Straight up pumpkin pie spice, it smells delicious.

Wet: On me this smells super spicy, which I really like. I get a lot of nutmeg and cinnamon scents with the underlying sweetness of pumpkin.

Drydown: Still spicy, lots of nutmeg, cinnamon, and sweetness.

Throw: High

Wear time: It lasts forever. Easily 12 hours on me for a single application.

Verdict: Its a keeper if you love spicy pumpkin pie scents.

Cocoa Pink's sample vial size is a dram (1/8 oz/3.55ml) with a twist cap. The bottles are clearly labeled with an easily readable font.

Review List 30 January 2015

Hello there!

www.reddit.com/r/indiemakeupandmore has been a bad influence and gotten me hooked on trying out perfume oils from indie companies. As my collection grew I decided to quit cluttering up the subreddit with my reviews and compile them all in one place, here. I'll also be reviewing any body products I happen to try or receive as a free sample for my order.  What I won't be reviewing is indie makeup since I do not purchase any.

All names are perfume oils unless otherwise noted. 

If you'd like one of these to move to the head of my testing list please feel free to leave a comment with your request.

Current List as of 30 Jan 2015.

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab

1. Absinthe
2. Azathoth
3. Bengal
4. Bien Loin d'Ici
5. Bliss
6. Blood Kiss
7. Blood Pearl
8. Bread-and-Butterfly
9. Cheshire Cat
10. Cobra Lilly
11. Dee
12. Defututa
13. Dragon's Milk
14. Drink Me
15. Hunger
16. Jack
17. Jezebel
18. Lampades
19. London
20. Namaste
21. Plunder
22. Prinella
23. Rome
24. Roses, Pearls, and Diamonds
25. Saint-Germain
26. Siren
27. Snake Oil
28. Sri Lanka
29. Vice
30. Wrath

Cocoa Pink

1. Angelica
2. Coeur de Vahine
3. Heavenly Vanilla
4. Maple Bacon Cupcake
5. Marshmallow Pumpkin
6. Mint Eyelet
7. Peppermint Snow Angels
8. Perfect Pumpkin
9. Pumpkin Buttercream Frosting
10. The Un-Red
11. Vanilla Bean Noel
12. White Sugar - Voluptuous Body Butter
13. Witches Delight

Madame Josephine

1. Spirit of Halloween
2. Sugared Flames
3. Sweet Muertos

Solstice Scents

1. Black Mallow
2. Buttered Rum Mallow
3. Dark Ginger Spicecake
4. Flintlock
5. High Desert
6. Jack and the Devil
7. Kitchen
8. Lemon Ginger Creams
9. Loggia
10. Nightstar
11. Outpost
12. Snowmint Mallow
13. Snowshoe Pass
14. Sugarvale
15. Winslow's