malati

I haven't heard anything about my 30th Dec order to the UK either. I can only recall seeing one international order in the click and ship thread since the Wolf Moon orders went out and that was Miggins's.

My first impression was of soapy lavender but it was quickly joined by smokey incense, a combination which didn't gel. I was thrown by the next change as it reminded me of pencil lead - quite bizarre. No sign at all of the lavender now. The final stage was woody becoming richer as the sandalwood developed. There's another scent in addition to the wood which I'm guessing is labdanum rather than a combination of the earlier notes. It's warm and a little musky. The end result is a warm, comforting scent that has depth but isn't overwhelming.

When applied this was pure almond for about 10 minutes until I got a sniff of buttercream. As the almond was being replaced by rum the buttercream became more prominent. This stage was delicious triggering thoughts of ice cream toppings and I was hoping that some hazelnut would come through to enhance this. Two hours later still no sign of hazelnut, the buttercream is disappearing but rum is quite strong. By the third hour it had taken on a definite honey note but rum was hanging on in there. Another half hour and honey was declared the victor although it did retain some essence of rum. I suspect that the honey is too strong for me in this but I need to wear it again to be sure.

When wet this was briefly very dark chocolate surrounded by pipe tobacco until balsam pushed its way to the front. During dry down it became very sweet and juicy with the earlier notes disappearing to leaving a scent that was the exact replica of bordello. It must be the wine note that they have in common. The wine faded to be replaced by honey which became muskier as the day wore on. Although I could detect florals and a hint of balsam deep in the background this was overwhelmingly honey and musk, a sexual rather than sensual blend.

I applied this without checking the description first so had no idea what to expect. In the vial and immediately on my skin this was sweet which I hadn't expected from the name. The sweetness became woody, almost herbal. There was a green-ness there but it was faded and yellowing rather than sharp. Before an hour had passed the scent was beginning to fade and before the 3 hour mark there seemed to be nothing left at all although I'd applied it heavily. It was much later in the day that I realised a faint muskiness had developed. I was very attracted to this in its woody phase but the fragrance is just too short lived to warrant buying again.

My first impression upon application was that this was incredibly buttery which was quickly replaced by coconut reminiscent of the toasted coconut mushroom sweets. Within 10 minutes it had changed to marzipan, bitter rather than sweet, before becoming floral. By this time I was absolutely confused and unsure as to whether I liked this. The process then reversed back through marzipan and stopped again at coconut. At various times during the day I thought I could sense pineapple with the coconut, sweet rather than acidic, and the marzipan was to and fro in the mix. I can still smell this on my wrist nearly 12 hours later and it still puzzles me. My strongest feeling is one of intrigue. I can't say I love this but I want to wear it again.

When first applied this was a watery, insipid rose. As it dried down the rose become stronger and warmer backed by amber and the musk gave it a soft spiciness. The rose, warmth and spice are perfectly blended, at no point does one threaten to overwhelm another. On me this is not the sensual fragrance of the description but a well balanced scent ideal for everyday wear. It lasted at least 7 hours which will make it ideal for workdays.

I wanted to try this as I'd read it was similar to Lush's middle earth soap which also contains patchouli and vetiver. Wet: as the description says this was evil incarnate - a foul, acrid stench, quite revolting. I was tempted to wash it off but curious to see if it improved. Drying: thankfully it softened and did become remarkably like the soap being warm and earthy. Dry: I was starting to enjoy this when I noticed a stronger scent intruding from the background which I think was the vetiver growling away underneath it all. Eventually this became all I could focus on and although not as bad as the initial scent it was too strong for me. I would not wear this again.

When I sniffed the bottle there appeared to be the faintest hint of mint at the edge of the rose which I couldn't detect on application. The scent barely changed as it was drying although the green-ness did fade away. This really is a beautiful natural scent, I know I've worked with rose bushes where the blooms had this exact fragrance. It really is like a deep red rose with the wetness of dew and the green of the leaves. I'm so glad I made a last minute order of this, if I had known how good it was I would have got 2 bottles.

I haven't paid much attention to the dream oils as I don't generally have many sleep problems but this came as an extra so I thought I'd give it a go. I've now tried it three times with the same result each time. The last thing I do before settling into bed is apply it to my neck rather than my wrists as I assume it will work better closer to my nose. It's a soapy lavender scent, cheap cologne was the first thought that came to mind. I can't say I'm falling asleep any quicker but where I would normally wake up briefly during the night with this I sleep straight through. It seems to be a deeper, heavier sleep as I'm slightly groggy on waking and I struggle to recall any dreams. I'm not sure if this is too strong for me or maybe I should just apply to my wrists in future. From time to time I suffer from anxiety and at those times I can barely sleep at all. I think I will put the oil away until the next attack and see if it helps at all.

I was apprehensive about trying this one as it contains the dreaded violet albeit in leaf form. Whilst wet it was fruity by which I mean plum and red currant rather than lemon. This was the stage I liked the most. During drydown it became very floral with the fruitiness disappearing. It's a very complex, heady scent which I expected from the ingredient listing. Just when I thought I'd got away with it a definite murkiness developed behind the florals which dragged the whole scent down for me. I'm assuming it's the violet leaf although I don't know that both the violet leaf and flowers would have the same effect.

I took a deep sniff of this directly after applying and boy did I get a shock. Not only was this pipe tobacco it's my grandad's pipe tobacco. He passed away 5 years ago and I can't believe I'd forgotten he smoked a pipe. During dry down the tobacco faded into the background. I could sense leather, grey leather, and I wondered how a scent could have a colour. The leather stage was brief and turned into an aromatic tea. I'm wondering if this was my interpretation of the incense. This too was brief and the tobacco returned. Grandad was back, he could have been in the room with me. I can't wear this as a perfume, the connotations are too strong. But I will keep this to remind me of Paddy Jack.

I tried this without checking the composition which was a bad move as the lab's violet seems to hate me. This is the third scent with violet I've tried and they've all been awful on me. This time I'm getting stale rotten nuts with a side of soapiness - I'll have to pass this one on.

I was concerned to smell bubblegum when sniffing the imp. Once it was on my skin I realised how fruity this is and there's no trace of gum. It's sweet without being cloying and it's delectable. Previous reviewers have suggested they want to eat or drink this - add me to the list. When dry this smells just like the rich syrupy plum wine that a family friend used to make. I just want to slather it on, it would be so easy for me to overdo it. I love the scent and have received compliments from two colleagues when wearing it.

When first applied I get the very yummy cherry/almond smell. As it dries out this deepens to a woody scent and finally rounds out to a highly polished wood. I'm getting images of old furniture in stately homes. I did wonder if I wanted to smell like furniture polish but I couldn't stop sniffing my arm. It's gorgeous - it shouldn't work but somehow it does. It lasted an amazingly long time and it's such a deep scent that a little goes a long way. In fact I could still detect traces of it after bathing. I can't see myself using it in the Summer but I very much doubt I'll have any left by then.