My well-beloved was stripped. Knowing my whim,
She wore her tinkling gems, but naught besides:
And showed such pride as, while her luck betides,
A sultan’s favored slave may show to him.
When it lets off its lively, crackling sound,
This blazing blend of metal crossed with stone
Gives me an ecstasy I’ve only known
Where league of sound and lustre can be found.
She let herself be loved: then, drowsy-eyed,
Smiled down from her high couch in languid ease.
My love was deep and gentle as the seas
And rose to her as to a cliff the tide.
My own approval of each dreamy pose,
Like a tamed tiger, cunningly she sighted:
And candour, with lubricity united,
Gave piquancy to every one she chose.
Her limbs and hips, burnished with changing lustres
Before my eyes, clairvoyant and serene,
Swanned themselves, undulating in their sheen;
Her breasts and belly, of my vine the clusters,
Like evil angels rose, my fancy twitting,
To kill the peace which over me she’d thrown,
And to disturb her from the crystal throne
Where, calm and solitary, she was sitting.
So swerved her pelvis that, in one design,
Antiope’s white rump it seemed to graft
To a boy’s torso, merging fore and aft.
The talc on her brown tan seemed half-divine.
The lamp resigned its dying flame. Within,
The hearth alone lit up the darkened air,
And every time it sighed a crimson flare
It drowned in blood that amber-coloured skin.
Skin musk and honey, blood-red rose, orange blossom, white peach, red apple, frankincense and myrrh.
tamara.aguilar –
I picked up a bunch of imps cuz I’ve never shopped here before and this perfume was an INSTANT love. I like close smells so I dumped some in a small container of Lush’s Dream Cream. It’s light and I have to sniff my arm to smell it, but the scent lasts most of the day. Once I get through the samples and see what else I like, I will definitely be buying a full bottle of this.
Dry, it smells vaguely vanilla amberish, but it’s hard to pick out individual notes. I really, really like that. I dislike perfumes that come off one-note’y. If I want one note, I buy a bottle of essential oils. Looking forward to finding other winners.
Rane. –
BPAL vanilla is the only vanilla I like. This scent smells a lot like Sed Non Satiata to me. I use this & Sed as bedtime scents, because the warmth & sweetness helps me fall asleep faster. I applied from a frimp last night, & woke up still smelling like it! Not faint whiffs either, but waves of warm, sweet, & sugary. The amber note makes this a more serious, sultry, draw-you-in effect. Gotta add to my shopping list now.
Claire –
This was sent to me as a free sample and while each ingredient is one I like individually together I’m finding it’s not really working for me. It’s too sweet, especially when I first put it on. There’s an undertone to it as well that I don’t really like and it doesn’t smell like any of the ingredients listed.
regan –
Very sweet, very unique. It is one of my absolute favorites and has aged well. On my skin, all of the notes played well together. One did not tend to overpower the other and the fragrance, while remaining close to the skin, lasted all day!
Kristin –
I got this as a freebie at some point, and wasn’t expecting it to be as good as it was. I assumed it’d be a safe vanilla, but it’s much more than that. The honey makes it even sweeter, but there’s something about amber notes that just work well with my skin. O is definitely mostly vanilla, but that amber makes it very warm and very sexy. Definitely one of my favorites.
jenmha –
I don’t know if it smells like sex, as others have said, but it’s definitely sexy. On me, it’s warm, sweet and a more than a little musky. As soon as I smelled it on me I decided that it needs to be my new signature scent. My only complaint is that I wish it lasted a bit longer and had more throw.
Elizabeth –
Very yummy and mouth wateringly sweet, but alas, it faded almost instantly on me. I will stick with Hunger for a sexy foody vanilla.
Janice –
I wear this layered underneath perfume to give it a stronger base tone and to make the perfume last longer… I love this!
lookingglass –
This is delicious: sticky vanilla, slightly green, with a resinous tang. I feel like I could wear this anywhere: to work, out, to bed…it’s like having on sexy underwear.
Mija –
Love this scent and it is so very sexy and warm.
artimisia –
Lots of people are using the term “sweet” to describe this perfume. It definitely is that. Unfortunately for me, I’ve tried a couple of different perfumes that have honey in them and they’ve all turned cloying, sickeningly sweet on me (White Rabbit did, as did Spiced Autumn Cider). O is no exception. It’s a shame because the Amber smell is lovely. I really wanted to like it. But the undercurrent of sweetness combined with the sensual Amber smell combined to make me smell like I was rotting. Like Amber with an undertow of carrion. So not a winner with my skin chemistry.
I guess the takeaway is that if sweet smells don’t work on you, ignore the five star rating and give this one a miss.
kristydiez2 –
What can I say but, “I love it!” It was everything the reviews promised. I have to use oils very sparingly so I was worried that at first this wouldn’t have much of a throw or fade quickly. I’m happy to say it has wonderful presence and longevity. When I first put it on, it was a little strong but as the day wore on it faded to this lovely scent of warm, raw honey. Very sexy and definitely a short list pick.
darthsnuggles –
Easily one of my favorite BPAL scents. In the bottle, it smells almost overpoweringly sweet, which made me a little wary at first, as “sweet” smells tend not to work on me. (As a bigger girl, I don’t necessarily want the association of smelling like a sugar cookie.) However, on my skin the amber emerges and it takes on an almost fruity note. The drydown is a nice marriage of amber and vanilla, and once dry, it’s a very soft, surprisingly lasting scent; sweet, but not overpoweringly so. A little dab of this in the morning will last me through an eight-hour work shift, and provokes the occasional “wow, something smells good!” comment.
I’ve also noticed that I get a lot more male attention when I go out with this on, even if I’m just going about my business, which is a nice bonus.
Tori H –
I absolutely LOVE this scent! It is full-on sexy, so for me it’s a night out scent rather than a day-to-day scent; for that I stick to Dragon’s Milk or Dragon’s Musk, both of which have certain similarities to O but are still very different.
Maria –
I received this one a few days ago, and immediately had the try it. At first I don’t know if I liked it or not, my nose got a bit confused.? But tonight, the 3rd time wearing it, I “got it”.. The memory O rekindles in my mind is of when I was young, and would smell that cherry pipe tobacco that you smoked in a pipe. I just loved that smokey, fruity Tabasco smell, and this oil reminds me of that just as i remember it.. wonderful scent..!!
Teamama67 –
Wearing O, I smell like the most fabulous honey cake ever, plus Amber. I get complimented all the time when I wear it. Sweet!
Jessica –
Lovely scent. I can smell the amber and honey with a hint of vanilla. Reminds me of an incense I used to burn and love. MMM so wonderful.
Empornium –
On my skin it smells of old school PlayDough, from the mid to late 90’s. That sort of almost-vanilla. The drydown is nice though when the amber warms and becomes a very “innocence defiled” fragrance
Anebra –
I ordered a nice batch of Imp’s to try out since I was new to BPAL. I got a lot of samples too, so thank you so much for the great service! Anyway, I was sniffing my way through my stash and felt kind of nauseated – not because they smelled bad, but because they were so concentrated. I’m not used to perfume oil at all, it was a lot to take in, and I had to take a time out so I wouldn’t get sick – I’m very sensitive towards fragrances. But when I opened O and smelled it I was intrigued.
Even though it made a very strong impact, the scent had a heady, drowsy, sexy and snuggly effect that made me instantly like it. My mouth popped into a small ‘o’ when I smelled it, so the overall description and name is spot on. This is sexy and mysterious, and so pleasant compared to other typical “sex” scents. The vanilla is very finely balanced with the amber, and the honey just wrap it all together and makes it wearable and sweet without suffocating me.
This is a very “down boy” sort of perfume, you feel very empowered, like you want to put on tight high boots and sexy lingerie. I think… I think I need to order a big bottle of this.
cindy –
I feel this is the scent I’ve been looking for all my life and it doesn’t hurt that my husband of 34 years chases me around the house when I wear it!!!! The one that I get the most compliments on!!!
xaglow –
When this one is wet the vanilla is very strong, with a hint of the honey peaking through. As this dries the amber keeps the scent warm and creamy with the honey coming out more in the vanilla.
I will be getting this in the larger bottle!
[email protected] –
On me, this scent is filled with sensual, commanding power. The only submission here would be that of someone kneeling at my feet. There is something about this blend that seems more than the three notes listed. Almost like there is leather in the back of the blend and a few other notes. This is a full bodied scent and very pleasing.
flushedwithglee –
It does actually remind me of sex. :”> It’s reminiscent of Snake Oil in that way, how they both ooze this languid sensuality, but O has an extra bit of a ‘hot breaths, flushed cheeks’ kind of vibe. It’s really lovely.
Sara –
it does smell like sex! *blush* sweet and warm and like skin somehow. then it fades to a gentle, powerdey honey scent. one of my all-time favorites here.