After my disappointment at hearing that the Black Baccara was permanently closing down, I decided to try out some samples from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. I was overwhelmed by both how close the samples were to the descriptions on the website and how many I genuinely loved the smell of.
One particular scent called The Chicken Legged Hut, based on the tale of Baba Yaga, intoxicated me so much that I bought the full 5ml bottle of it with the second lot of samples I ordered. I just can't get enough of it (and my husband says it really suits me so that's always a good thing).
I have done a little review below of each sample, but do bare in mind that they will smell different on different people and that my descriptions are also really weird since I'm a synaesthete and mainly judge smells by their shape and colour rather than their actual smell sometimes!
Baba Yaga - I can't quite make up my mind about this one as it's a really strange scent. To me, it smells floral and medicinal (like a chemical smell) with something sharp and fresh poking through.
Black Lotus - A very strong, almost overpowering scent on me. Darkly sweet and little fruity.
Black Pearl - A very strange scent which I can't make up my mind up about either. I definitely get the coconut and hazelnut that's meant to be there as well as a neutral soap scent. The only bad thing is that I think I'm allergic to it. I get an itch wherever I put it on my skin. I've always said that I was allergic to coconut, but no-one believes me!
Bliss - Smells like sugar cookies in the bottle and rich milk chocolate on my skin. I like the smell although the constant smell of sweet chocolate can put me off food when I'm wearing it which isn't very good. Maybe a good scent to wear if you're on a diet! Haha.
Blood Lotus - Smells dark, floral and electric in the bottle and, on my skin, gives of a light but strong nostalgic smell which is very fruity and sweet, almost like a child's fruit drink.
The Chicken Legged Hut - My absolute favourite so far. Both in the bottle and on my skin, it's smells like strong spices perfectly mixed with the heavy smell of honey. The 'sun-dried thatching' is definitely there too in the form of a burnt, woody aftersmell. It's a decadent, indulgent, almost ticklish scent.
Djinn - A strong, masculine scent. I love the initial smoldering smell, but the scent turns soapy after a minute on my skin which I'm not too keen on. Also, people think you're saying that you smell of 'Gin' unless you spell it out!
Event Horizon - I mainly bought this because of it's name (I love the film with the same title and a science fiction themed perfume was too fun an idea to pass on). To me, it's a strong, purple and red smell. It's quite close to the smell of a traditional perfume for my usual taste, but it's very pleasant; dark and fresh. It's not very strong on my skin unfortunately.
Fire For Thy Stepmother's Daughters - A really nice burning scent. A good replacement for Black Baccara's Ancient Fire although not quite the same obviously.
Lightning - A fresh cool scent. Very clean and light.
The Lights of Men's Lives - A strong, fleshy smell with a tiny bit of something sweet like vanilla or spice. There's a hint something smokey there too.
Rumpelstilzchen - My second favourite BPAL scent I've tried so far. A manly, foresty smell with hints of spice and wood. It goes really well on my skin.
The Sea Foams Blood - Does what it says on the tin: a fresh, strong ocean scent with a hint of metal aftersmell. Very pleasant.
Yorick - I really like this one. Fresh, floral and mossy, but somehow almost a bit foosty and musty. A sad, blue smell.
