BPAL update
Since I haven't blathered in awhile. I put in my first order in quite some time-- I got a 5ml of Litha.
Litha:: Midsummer, Ukon Juhla, Alban Heruin, the Light of the Shore. This is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, marking the sun’s highest path across the sky. The Sun God and the Lord of the Forest are at the apex of their strength, and the Holy Day itself is a celebration of light’s triumph over darkness. The world around us is teeming with light and life, and on this day fertility rituals for both the land and its people are observed. Honey mead with honeysuckle, oak wood, ivy leaf, wild thyme, carnation, daisy, vervain, gum arabic, frankincense, yauhtli, and liquid copal.
Litha is one of my favorite points in the wheel of the year-- it's that tenuous time between the light half and the dark half of the year, a celebratory and magical time, and but also a sobering one, as each day hence until Imbolc, the sun will grow weaker and weaker in the sky. For us in the USA, we've generally still got sweltering weather straight through Lammas, but in an astrological sense, Litha really is the dividing point. Perhaps of note to some of my newer friends, as you might know, MidSummer is a traditional marriage time, when in some theologies, the Goddess is wed to the God, and fairy magic is afoot. In my mind, it's a matured Beltane-- a continuation of the first riotous burst of the fertility and sensuality of May Day.
I can't wait to read the reviews on some of the Salon scents. On one hand, I'd love to jump straight into a decant circle or buy a few promising bottles, but $23 per 5ml is a little steep for me. I'm doing the wait and see dance. Of course, that worked out pretty well for me with the Maelstrom scents, and I only tried the two scents that I was certain would work on me. Anyway.
BAT-WOMAN:: Ratkirani, calla lily, moonflower, honeysuckle, night-blooming jasmine, French lavender, verbena, grey amber and nighttime air.
It sounds almost like a cross between Chiroptera and Twilight. Jasmine usually works terribly on my skin, but tempered by the other notes, this has potential.
AND THERE WAS A GREAT CRY IN EGYPT:: Dark myrrh, white sandalwood, amber, hyssop, frankincense, honey, cypress, red musk, cardamom and saffron.
Sounds spicy and incensy. This might be very nice.
CARCERI d'INVENZIONE:: Redwood, red sandalwood, black pepper, blonde tobacco and frankincense.
Might be too acrid for me-- black pepper, tobacco, and red sandalwood are all hit or miss with me.
THE DEATH OF SARDANAPAL:: Red wine, gurjum balsam, dark myrrh, honey, cassia, lemongrass, palmarosa, elemi, cognac and olibanum.
A little boozy, a little spicy, a little soporific. Maybe.
THE ISLE OF THE DEAD:: Cypress, labdanum, stargazer lily, juniper, yew, black rose, white sandalwood, benzoin and aquatic notes.
Juniper, you say? Mmm. The only thing that gives me pause are the aquatic notes.
LUCRETIA :: Iris, black amber, sage, Kashmir wood, vanilla musk, mandarin and violet.
I don't know how all of those elements will smell together, but if the violet is strong, I'm sure to like it.
ORPHEUS:: Pale musk, green mandarin, neroli, benzoin, citrus peel, blue lavender, narcissus, stephanotis, crushed green stems, willow branch and cedar.
Cedar and neroli rule this one right out.
RESURRECTION OF THE FLESH:: Frankincense, hyssop, heliochrysum, ylang ylang, copal, angelica, and rose geranium.
This sounds like one of the very first annointing oils I ever used. It could be a good ritual scent.
SATAN AND DEATH WITH SIN INTERVENING:: Opoponax, benzoin, orange blossom, mahogany, karakarounde, white tea and vetiver.
Opoponax is lovely, and underused. I was really okay until I got to orange blossom and vetiver.
TWO MONSTERS:: Oakmoss, vetiver, black musk, champaca flower, leather, patchouli, ginger, Japanese pittosporum, ambergris and white pepper.
This sounds mischievous in the extreme. I can't wait to read the reviews here.
Litha:: Midsummer, Ukon Juhla, Alban Heruin, the Light of the Shore. This is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, marking the sun’s highest path across the sky. The Sun God and the Lord of the Forest are at the apex of their strength, and the Holy Day itself is a celebration of light’s triumph over darkness. The world around us is teeming with light and life, and on this day fertility rituals for both the land and its people are observed. Honey mead with honeysuckle, oak wood, ivy leaf, wild thyme, carnation, daisy, vervain, gum arabic, frankincense, yauhtli, and liquid copal.
Litha is one of my favorite points in the wheel of the year-- it's that tenuous time between the light half and the dark half of the year, a celebratory and magical time, and but also a sobering one, as each day hence until Imbolc, the sun will grow weaker and weaker in the sky. For us in the USA, we've generally still got sweltering weather straight through Lammas, but in an astrological sense, Litha really is the dividing point. Perhaps of note to some of my newer friends, as you might know, MidSummer is a traditional marriage time, when in some theologies, the Goddess is wed to the God, and fairy magic is afoot. In my mind, it's a matured Beltane-- a continuation of the first riotous burst of the fertility and sensuality of May Day.
I can't wait to read the reviews on some of the Salon scents. On one hand, I'd love to jump straight into a decant circle or buy a few promising bottles, but $23 per 5ml is a little steep for me. I'm doing the wait and see dance. Of course, that worked out pretty well for me with the Maelstrom scents, and I only tried the two scents that I was certain would work on me. Anyway.
BAT-WOMAN:: Ratkirani, calla lily, moonflower, honeysuckle, night-blooming jasmine, French lavender, verbena, grey amber and nighttime air.
It sounds almost like a cross between Chiroptera and Twilight. Jasmine usually works terribly on my skin, but tempered by the other notes, this has potential.
AND THERE WAS A GREAT CRY IN EGYPT:: Dark myrrh, white sandalwood, amber, hyssop, frankincense, honey, cypress, red musk, cardamom and saffron.
Sounds spicy and incensy. This might be very nice.
CARCERI d'INVENZIONE:: Redwood, red sandalwood, black pepper, blonde tobacco and frankincense.
Might be too acrid for me-- black pepper, tobacco, and red sandalwood are all hit or miss with me.
THE DEATH OF SARDANAPAL:: Red wine, gurjum balsam, dark myrrh, honey, cassia, lemongrass, palmarosa, elemi, cognac and olibanum.
A little boozy, a little spicy, a little soporific. Maybe.
THE ISLE OF THE DEAD:: Cypress, labdanum, stargazer lily, juniper, yew, black rose, white sandalwood, benzoin and aquatic notes.
Juniper, you say? Mmm. The only thing that gives me pause are the aquatic notes.
LUCRETIA :: Iris, black amber, sage, Kashmir wood, vanilla musk, mandarin and violet.
I don't know how all of those elements will smell together, but if the violet is strong, I'm sure to like it.
ORPHEUS:: Pale musk, green mandarin, neroli, benzoin, citrus peel, blue lavender, narcissus, stephanotis, crushed green stems, willow branch and cedar.
Cedar and neroli rule this one right out.
RESURRECTION OF THE FLESH:: Frankincense, hyssop, heliochrysum, ylang ylang, copal, angelica, and rose geranium.
This sounds like one of the very first annointing oils I ever used. It could be a good ritual scent.
SATAN AND DEATH WITH SIN INTERVENING:: Opoponax, benzoin, orange blossom, mahogany, karakarounde, white tea and vetiver.
Opoponax is lovely, and underused. I was really okay until I got to orange blossom and vetiver.
TWO MONSTERS:: Oakmoss, vetiver, black musk, champaca flower, leather, patchouli, ginger, Japanese pittosporum, ambergris and white pepper.
This sounds mischievous in the extreme. I can't wait to read the reviews here.