inkstone

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Green florals. Wet: Oh, rosebuds! Drydown: Soft, gentle roses. Final thoughts: This is a nice, gentle rose blend. Although it's green in tone, I don't get the herbal or minty goodness that other people reference. Very feminine, very elegant and very stylish.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Cinnamon & lavendar? Wet: An evergreen wood mingling with the cinnamon. It's really confusing my nose. Drydown: Okay, so it is definitely cinnamon but it's not the red hot kind I'm used to. It's more woody. I can also smell the lavendar in this stage. Final thoughts: It's an herbal woody, vaguely spicy scent. I don't think this is something I would wear very often.

In the bottle: Pink sugar. The first thing I thought was: Pink Sugar Skull. Wet: Pink sugary cotton candy. I love it in this stage. The florals are muted and it's very nice. Drydown: And then the sugar goes away and the traditional lunar oils come out. Which is fine, because those usually work well on me. But the phlox comes out like no one's business and then I start smelling like grass for some reason and this is not working out well. Final thoughts: It's definitely spring. I'm really hoping it was just a fluke and then if I try it again, I'll get more pink sugar florals instead of a bouquet for allergy sufferers. I didn't get the strawberry at all.

In the bottle: Green floral. Wet: Light florals. Something vaguely citrus on here, maybe lime? It has that same tone to it. It's definitely not lemon and I don't think it's orange. It's very springlike. Drydown: There is definitely something herbal in here. And it's a note that's in Vinland. I'm almost positive. Vinland is a stronger herbal while Beltane is a stronger floral but they're cousins on me. Final thoughts: This is nice and soft. I'm not sure if I'm in love with it though. I'll have to think on it and see.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Clean, green florals. It's slightly soapy. Wet: White musk and geranium are what I smell first. This is definitely florally. Drydown: The rose never really comes out on me, but after a little while, I can smell the ylang ylang and apple. It's crisp and crunchy. Final thoughts: Not for me, but very nice!

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Dragon's blood. Wet: Cinnamon. As I expected from a blend named after Mars. Drydown: This isn't the same red-hot cinnamon I'm used to. It's not even the cinnamon in Inferno that raised welts on my arms. This is a more mellow, dusty cinnamon. I don't know if that's a result of the clove and the dragon's blood mingling in this blend as well, but it's not as spicy biting as I'm used to. Final thoughts: This is a fun blend. I'm glad I got the chance to try it.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Sweet. I'm not sure what notes I'm detecting; it's nicely well-blended, but it's definitely sweet. Wet: Ah, sandalwood, juniper and lime. Interesting. Drydown: Oh, this is bright and pretty. The juniper and lime fade to the background while the sandalwood serves as a base. The heliotrope and orange is lovely. Final thoughts: This is a lovely blend. Very, very nice.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Musky with something lighter -- ginger? Like k00kaburra, I also detected a wood note. Wet: Pepper. Definitely black pepper. Drydown: Well, this is definitely a fire sign! I don't get the ginger very much, which is a bit odd, but my skin tends to amplify spice and incense. And I'm DEFINITELY getting the black pepper and frankincense here! Final thoughts: It's very evocative of the sign, but as it's more on the masculine side, it's not for me. I'm very much so a girly girl.

CLEANSING - PURIFICATION - IMAGINATION - DREAM WORK EMOTIONAL GROWTH & HEALING - MYSTERY - VEILING - DECEPTION - IMPULSE CAPRICIOUSNESS - BEWITCHMENTS - GLAMOR - DELIGHT - PLEASURE Courtesy of the Celestial circular swap! In the imp: Soft, fruity florals. Wet: Jasmine and ylang ylang. It's very soft though and not at all overpowering like jasmine and ylang ylang can be on me. Drydown:The jasmine and ylang ylang are still there, but I've figured out the fruity note that's tempering them. Cherries! How lovely! Final thoughts: This is such a soft, gentle scent. I would love to have a bottle of this, if I still could!

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Woo! Sharp wood. Wet: Cedar, cedar, cedar. Wow, this is very potent and strong. Drydown: Still cedar. There's a hint of vetiver and patchouli, but this is overwhelmingly cedar. Final thoughts: This is a very masculine blend. I don't think I would have ever worn it.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Musty wood. Er? Wet: Oh! It's redwood! Ahahaha, I'm so dumb. Drydown: This is a almost fruity woody blend, if such a thing is possible. It's also somewhat cozy because my skin sucks it up and close, so I have to jam my nose against my wrist to smell it. Final thoughts: This is a nice blend. I don't think it's for me, but I'm very glad I had the chance to try it.

Courtesy of the Celestials circular swap! In the imp: Woody. Definitely some cedar in her. Wet: Yikes! Vetiver, patchouli and... is this the infamous civet? Oh geez, I've never tried anything before that had civet in it and wow, does it not work well on me at all! Drydown: The vetiver and civet get stronger and drown out the wood. Final thoughts: No. Just. No.

This is sharp, herbal, soapy cleaning fluid. I honestly cannot pick out a single note, other than getting the impression "soapy." I didn't test this out to see if it does what it implies though, because I'm afraid to test out voodoo blends at work. Lots of scary people there and the thought of this doing what it intends at work is a little too much to bear. I'm not sure if I plan to keep this or not. We'll have to see.

In the imp: Berries. Juicy berries bursting with sweetness. Wet: Holy cow! This is the craziest berry scent I've ever tried! I'm drenched in berry juice! Drydown: The berry note is tempered by the neroli. It's still strong, but not as overpoweringly berry as before. Final thoughts: I really like this scent, but I'm going to have to try it a few times. I've been sneezing and sniffling all morning and I'm really hoping it's not because of this blend.

In the imp: Musky plum. Wet: A sweet musk. Interesting. Drydown: Vaguely spicy plum -- I assume that's a result of the carnation -- against a background of musk. There's a slightly "oiled" quality about this blend. Final thoughts: This is a very pretty, sensual blend. I'm not sure it's very me though. I'll have to test it out a few more times to figure that out.

In the imp: Soft, fruity floral. Wet: Aw, the fruitiness barely comes out at all! That makes me sad. I wanted the peach and pomegranate. It's almost entirely aquatic, rose and myrtle. Drydown: Oh dear, this gets worse and worse. It goes to soap. Final thoughts: I had such high hopes for this one. It's light and gentle and I think for someone with the right skin chemistry, it could be quite pretty. Alas, my skin chemistry isn't it.

In the imp: Pear and florals. Wet: Very sleepy, somnolent florals. It's very light and not cloying. Drydown: Tuberose and plumeria. Final thoughts: The pear never comes out all that strongly. It's a nice scent. Very light but not wispy. But while it's nice, it's not one that I'd reach for so I think this will go into the swap pile in the hopes that it'll find a better home.

In the imp: Fruity floral. Wet: Definitely watermelon jolly rancher candies. There's some sort of musky undertone, but there's no mistaking the jolly rancher association. Drydown: The candy smell goes away and leaves behind a mimosa/sweet floral smell. It reminds me of orchids, but I'm not sure that's what I'm entirely smelling. It has the same wispy elusive quality that I associate with orchids. Final thoughts: I never got the spicy note and after the initial candy stage, it's sort of one-dimensional. I'm not sure I like this. It's nice, but I'm not very convinced it's me. It also fades pretty quickly.

In the imp: Sparkling, shiny, sweet peaches. Wet: The musk gives this some body. It's not a heavy musk, just a light one. The peach wine smells oddly plasticky on me. Oh no! I can also smell the myrtle coming out. Double oh no! Drydown: However the myrtle goes away and the musk retreats to the background. The peach wine balances itself out with the amber, so the strange plastic smell is gone. Final thoughts: This initial wet stages are a bit weird, but the drydown is pretty. It's definitely golden summer encapsulated in a scent. I really like this! I don't think it's knocked Tamora out as my favorite peach scent, but it ranks up there.

In the bottle: Butterscotch. Hmm, I wonder how that'll work on my skin. Wet: In this stage, it reminds me of Snow White. (Minus the violent adverse physical reaction that blend causes.) It's very milky. Drydown: I can still smell the butterscotch, but there's also that mlik background and what I swear smells like pineapple. I can smell some gentle florals too, but I can't identify what they are. Final thoughts: This is a gentle, quiet and very clean scent. It clings very closely to the skin. It doesn't waft on me at all.

Courtesy of the Oblation Caravan! In the imp: Pineapple mixed with something else. Wet: Stays pretty true to what I smelled in the imp -- pineapple mixed with something else. I really wish I knew what that something else was. I recognize it, but can't identify it. Drydown: Dryer sheets? Um. What? O_o Final thoughts: I really wish I could figure out what that other note was. But yeah, it smelled like dryer sheets. I don't know what my skin went and did.

Courtesy of the Oblation Caravan! In the imp: Sweet musk. Wet: Still musky. I'm unsure about this stage. I don't really like it. Drydown: Fig, walnut and berry. Final thoughts: The drydown is very nice. The initial stages I'm not too keen on.

Courtesy of the Oblation Caravan! In the imp: Florals. Well, let's give this a go. Wet: Shoot me. I should have checked the notes before I tried this on. Nightblooming flowers. The bane of my existence. Drydown: Okay, I think for a moment that maybe this won't be so bad. It balances out with the other notes pretty well for about an hour or so. Final thoughts: But in the end, the nightblooming flowers win. Boo! I washed this off before the nightblooming flowers could give me a headache.

Courtesy of the Oblation Caravan! In the imp: Sweet, fruity amber. I'm going to take a guess and say that's the mango making it have that fruity sweetness. Wet: Musky amber. Hmm, I don't like it so much in this stage. Drydown: It's not bad exactly in this stage, but it's somewhat powdery. I can smell the lavendar in this stage. Final thoughts: I don't think this blend is for me.

Courtesy of the Oblation Caravan! In the imp: Musky. It's not overpowering musk. More like a clean musk. Wet: Woody and chypre. Drydown: Definitely a masculine scent. Mind you, I might be skewed a bit since I'm a very fruity scent loving girl. Final thoughts: This is a very cleanly masculine blend. Not overwhelming masculine, but it is masculine.