juniperus

Bottle: I must admit this is a no-brainer for me - I love frankincense and myrrh together and, once upon a time, when I used coals and resins in my practice, I used to burn them togethter often. At first sniff the frankincense dominates. Wet: Frank is still ahead but graceful myrrh has a clear presence. my love for resin incenses is funny, considering I was raised in a protestant denomination that doesn't use incense instead of Catholic, Orthodox, or Episcopalian. Dry: incense-y, but not dry. a little sharp, like the resin fresh from the tree, before it's dry and brittle. Later: this remains oddly sharp. hmmm.

Bottle: sweet pea and vanilla are such a lovely combination! Wet: sweet pea with a background of amber..I know sweet pea most intimately from my grandmother's backyard and the very old sweet pea bush there, but this isn't taking me there, it's charming, antique, and elegant. Dry: the vanilla is taking over as it usually does, but the sweet pea is still holding strong. I'll hold out a little hope, for now. Later: The vanilla is close to the only thing I can detect here, but it's such a lovely blend when it's not on my skin...

Bottle: sharp lavender, orange, and woods. the smell of a used bookstore filled with very old, forgotten books. Wet: hints of the amber behind the lavender. ever smelled very old vellum...? this is something between that and very old, yellowed paper... Dry: the patchouli has awoken and warmed - this is fantastic, a hippy-antique-y used book shop, you know - the kind with the fat tortoiseshell that has it's basket in a sunny corner...? Later: this is evocative and fabulous - I have found another keeper, definitely!

Bottle: rose and lemon. Could be lots of foodiness here. I fear. Wet: heavy rose, none of the apple, a hint of the lemon. Dry: rose remains most prominent, and as much as I do well with rose as a floral the lemon is sweetening it up in a strange way..not unpleasant, but strange - clearly it's not just the rose, but the other notes don't stand on their own enough for me to tag. Later: Still with the rose, but calmer. I think it's ok on me.

bottle: sweet cocoa, hint of spiced rum wet: the same dry: the tang of the blood is behind a more pronounced scent of rum. cocoa is warm and balancing the rum nicely later: although I usually can't manage red wine notes this is surprisingly mellow and hasn't gone oddly sour. It's really rather pleasant on me - a nice surprise!

Bottle: spicy! not immediately foody - the depth of the spices (and lack of immediate sweetness) gives an almost resinous quality to the scent Wet: anise, ginger, and thyme are forward, hints of allspice behind Dry: still smells a bit like the inside of Penzeys, the thyme and anise particularly strong Later: OMG, do I amp anise? rly!!?! I want to love this--and behind the anise there are all things spicy and beautiful--but the anise is aggressive. I'm undecided.

Bottle: foody, the cocoa and vanilla primary Wet: the same, but with a fresh floral feel behind them Dry: much more floral, the cocoa and vanilla almost entirely in the background with amber and leaves coming forward, giving an almost forest-floor sort of feel Later: we have achieved balance between the subtle foody, floral, and the forest!

Bottle: soft pear, almost a hint of a scent rather than the scent itself Wet: pear is no longer soft nor merely a hint--this is a pear that wants my attention Dry: the vanilla has a muskiness behind it, now, and the pear is no longer 'O HAI I M PEAR!1eleventy!11!!!', although it's gotten sweeter. Later: you know that sort of sharpness fo the skin of a bosc pear--not the smell of the flesh, but the not-quite-earthy undertones the skin has? this is now that--plus a s*hit-ton of vanilla, because I'm amping it to high heaven.

Bottle: bright and shiny and floral Wet: the florals are still forward, but behind them is both sweetness and darkness (the latter moreso the tobacco than the gunpowder, I think) Dry: that thing that my skin does, that amping of tobacco and sweet florals? ugh. Later: and now the flowers are in that sickly-sweet-rotting-cut-flowers phase and appear to have been put in a room in which there were just two dozen smokers lighting up really stale cigs. Woe.

Bottle: metal and musk, sharp and slightly dangerous Wet: more sharply metallic, but warm instead of cold Dry: oh the musk, increasing the warmth (now red-tinged, not golden) and a bit of sweetness. Later: this is really complex and interesting, but just not for me--it really can't pull off metallic to this extent, and it's got an edge that feels like stabbity between the eyes.

Bottle: complex, fresh, warm wood and pale green... like evening air afer a short, but cleansing, summer rain Wet: I can pick out the vanilla and cardamom ifI concentrate, but still it's layers of browns and greens Dry: golden and spicy overlays the fresh pale green of before - this is going from lovely to gorgeous Later: the vanilla is coming forward (I amp vanilla), but it's not done so obnoxiously enough to bury the rest... if the vanilla calms, in time, perhaps it'll go back to gorgeous from lovely (again)

Bottle: rose and musk, lovely and warm Wet: the rose really pops, the musk and amber are singular but complimentary of each other (like they're circling? I'm getting imagery here, not words) Dry: the rose has mellowed some, but remains prominent... and the amber and musk seem to have merged together as warm bronze with the oak elements coloring its edges Later: the rose is still really forward, almost drowning out the rest of the notes... very pretty and warm overall, but I'd really hoped for more of the musk and amber to stick around.

I know I reviewed this in, like, 2006. September is when I posted it in my lj, and at that point I was doing both simultaneously. But it isn't here. So here we go again: Bottle: beautiful (and I have no idea how old this is, FWIW), slightly sweet. I hope the vanilla does not amp too badly on me, I could really love this one. Wet: sinuous...I can almost feel the steamy heat of the jungle in the warmth here. really lovely - why did it take me so long to try this? Dry: so far the vanilla is behaving- miraculous that is, let me tell you. Later: the vanilla is likely louder than is should be, but since is hasn't completely taken over I'll call this a success. ETA: Aged, this is AMAZING on me. Fresh it's less so, so I buy ahead and hold on to them awhile.

This. Is. BRILLIANT! I heart you so hard right now, I don't even... After multiple attempts (with subsequent dropping), I finally managed to import all 21 pages of reviews. I am so in awe!!

Bottle: sharp lavender swirled in blackness. Wet: both darker and sharper, the the added sharpness is something coming up behind the lavender that I can't quite place. Dry: oh sharp, oh ouch, oh headache! Later: no, no, no, and no again.