anmorata

Leo: Let me preface this review by stating that I am a Leo. I had a gut feeling that this blend would be perfect for me. How right I was. Wet: Starts off very citrussy, very lemony. During drydown, sandalwood comes through and balances out the citrus with the heliotrope. Longterm wear: Gods, this is gorgeous, and very "me". I love it. I don't get a lot of the "whoa, Juniper!" smell that I was expecting, as when Juniper is in a scent I can usually detect it first and foremost. It's complex and well-blended, and I love it.

Empyreal Mist: All I can say about Empyreal Mist is that I suspect that this is exactly what heaven smells like. White and green, light and sweet. Perfect.

Ulalume: Wet: Very aquatic. Drydown: Hints of.. tree smell. It's like a forest at night, but not an evergreen forest but a maple or oak forest. It's very nice. Longterm wear: I don't know that I'd wear this often, but I really like it. I'll probably keep the imp, and decide later if it's a big bottle scent.

Bewitched: Wet: Slight berry hints, slightly spicy. Drydown: The green tea really makes quite a debut during the drydown, as does the sage. Longterm wear: Gorgeous. The notes mingle well, and are very well-blended. Hurrah!

Tombstone: Wet: VANILLA. Drydown: Still vanilla. Could we have a winner? Longterm wear: The sassafrass pops up and leaves a rather unpleasant smell.. and the cedar reminds me of mothballs. Not for me.

Morgause: Wet: strongly violet. Drydown: I detect some fruity hints in the background, but this is remaining mostly violet. Longterm wear: I'm thinking that I really don't care for Violet. :/ That's really all I got out of this.. violet. Shame, I think I really could've liked this one.

Kyoto: Wet: Cherry blossoms! Drydown: Cherry blossoms & sandalwood, with hints of anise. Longterm wear: My skin really amps up the anise, making this a very spicy smell. After about an hour, the cherry blossom starts coming back as the strength of the anise fades. I'm not sure how I feel about that.. I like the smell of anise, but it makes me think of the little candy-coated anise seeds at Indian restaurants. I'll have to give this one another shot.

(Old) Madrid: Wet, in the imp: Juicy Fruit gum. Wet on me: The boldness of the fruityness fades, and the clove starts to make its presence known. Drydown: The wine really comes through during the drydown. Longterm wear: Well, my husband summed up Madrid as "It smells like oranges, then old leather furniture, then shit." I detect the clove above all, but he doesn't. Doesn't look like I'll be keeping Madrid.

Amsterdam: Wet: perfume-y. soapy. meh. Drydown: Water. Soap. Maybe some tulips, but not really. Longterm wear: Too soapy.

Port-au-Prince: Wet: Rum and almonds! Drydown: ... almonds. And clove. And bay leaf. Longterm wear: Not bad. Will have to give it another shot.. too many scents at once.

Snow White: Wet: ... oil? Hints of floral. Drydown: *baffled* nothing? hints of something sweet? Gabe says foody. I don't smell it at all. Longterm wear: Try again at a future date. I rolled the imp to make sure it was properly mixed, but I'm getting next to nothing.

Hearth: Wet: red licorice? very strong scent. Drydown: the cherry and tobacco really start to come through as the intenseness of the scent fades. Longterm wear: Hearth is another scent that I feel would make a great room or bath product scent, but not a personal perfume. Ahh well.

Gingerbread Poppet: Wet: Whoo, gingerbread and allspice and grandma's kitchen. Drydown: Is that hints of rum I smell in those gingerbread cookies? Longterm wear: Gingerbread Poppet is pretty much spot-on to its description. I absolutely love the scent, but I don't know that I'd wear it as a personal perfume. It smells much more like something I'd want in a bath bomb, a candle, or a room scent of some sort. I'll have to explore.

Three Witches: Wet: Highly cinnamon. Drydown: still moderately spicy, but very very cinnamon. Longterm wear: everyone in my household is in agreement that Three Witches, on me, smells just like Big Red cinnamon gum. I'm strangely baffled by this. I love the smell, though, and I can't wait to see what the reformulation will smell like.

Centzon Totochtin: Wet: Wow, this is baker's chocolate and raw cocoa with rum. Deep, bitter, and strong. Drydown: The cocoa mellows out and the wine peeks in, but barely. Longterm wear: I don't know if I would wear this scent often, but it's so different that I can't help but to like it. I'll have to try it another time or two and see how it holds up as a regular scent.

La Belle Au Bois Dormant: Pear. Pear pear pear. My skin loves pear. Sadly, I do not like pear as much as my skin does, so this one's off in the swap pile.

Eve: All apple blossom. I'm not familliar with the smell of ylang-ylang, so I can't comment on that. The rose peeks through, and I don't smell the honey at all. The apple blossom in Eve reminds me of the apple blossom in Phantom Queen, which I like quite a bit. I don't know that I'd wear Eve often enough for a big bottle, but I know I'd use up the imp.

Faustus: Wet: all frankincense. Drydown: ooh, spicy cinnamon and violets. Where did the frankincense go, though? Longterm wear: This is a scent that I could see as a shampoo or bodywash, but not as a perfume scent. I doubt I'd wear it that often, so off it goes.

The Red Queen: Wet: the site description is spot on. Deep mahogany and cherrywood, almost reminds me of cherry pipe tobacco. Drydown: the tobacco smell fades, leaving me with a dark spiced cherry smell. Longterm wear: after roughly 1/2 hour, The Red Queen morphed into.. mouthwash smell. Oh, Red Queen, how I wanted to love you.

Saturnalia: I had an experience to Shelldoo.. holy whopping vetiver. Never even got violets out of this. I had to scrub it off after about an hour, because I just couldn't take the smell anymore. Sorry, Beth!

I have to preface this with: This is the oddest, most bizarre review I've ever done. (Old) Yerevan: Wet:.. popcorn? Smells like Popcorn-flavored Jelly Bellies. Drydown: The plum and apricot start to come up, but I still smell popcorn. Longterm wear: Several hours later, and I *still* smell like popcorn. ?!? What is up with my body chemistry that makes this smell like popcorn?!

Whitechapel: Wet: Lemon Pledge. Drydown: Lemon-lime Pledge. Longterm wear: I'd rather not smell like Lemon-lime Pledge, but that's what Whitechapel does with my body chemistry, apparently. I'll pass.

Nemesis: Wet: Some sort of weird fig/patchouli blend with overwhelming cypress. Drydown: Stays overwhelmingly cypress on my skin. Can't really detect any of the other notes. Longterm wear: Nemesis turns into some sort of evergreen-laced powdery floral. Into the swaps pile it goes!

Severin: Wet: Grapefruit? Lemon? Some sort of citrus. Drydown: scent almost immediately fades, and I can barely detect the citrus. Longterm wear: Not once did I ever get leather or tea out of this scent. Severin faded within 10 minutes of application and never returned. Sad.

Calliope: Wet: Almond goodness. That's all I smell is something akin to amaretto. Drydown: An herbally kitchen of delights. The thyme really, really stands out. Longterm wear: This scent makes me want to be a long-haired Pagan kitchen witch. I can't explain it exactly, but that's what comes to mind. I suppose Calliope inspires us all in different ways, though. I love this scent. It's very calm, gentle and herbally-green.