kjirstiben

This goes on boozy, with a slight cocoa-buttery character. As it dries down, the booziness burns off and there's a chocolate-buttery smell to it that is almost exactly what I would expect a buttercream chocolate to smell like. Over time, however, it starts going sour on me… and unfortunately, it's one of those that goes sour after an hour and doesn't come back from it until 7 or 8 hours later. I can smell a weird sourness over what would be a nice comfy cocoa… in its end stages, the sourness goes away and the cocoa sweetness comes out in full. Sadly, this is ruined by a bad reaction with my skin chemistry, something that seems to happen with a large number of sweet scents. I haven't nailed down the culprit yet but I'm working on it. Recaplet: A rancid buttercream bonbon… stupid skin chemistry! My rating: 1 of 5 (I'm not fond of it.) Color impression: Milk chocolate brown.

In the bottle, this is sweet vanilla, with something almost buttery-smelling with it. On my skin, however, all the sweetness disappears and I am left with a funny, sharp, non-sweet smell. Might it be the red ginger? I can't tell. As it dries down, that odd, distinctive smell stays with me close to the skin. The scent I get far away, though, is a lovely vanilla-ginger. After two hours, the scent goes from "funny" to sour, in the distinctive way that things go bad for me. I held out hope that this would just be a transitional stage, but after several hours, I had to admit defeat. Such a pretty scent in the bottle, and I read such good things about it! Unfortunately, between an ingredient that didn't like me right away, and then the vanilla that doesn't like my skin chemistry, this one just didn't have a chance. Sigh. Because I liked it in the bottle, I'm still going to try it in my hair and/or in a scent locket, and see if that way I get a better experience! Recaplet: Went from funny to sour--a skin chemistry disaster. My rating: 1 of 5 (I'm not fond of it.) Color impression: Yellowy beige.

When I first put this on, I can smell roses and cloves, primarily, with a hint of something evergreen beneath it. It's nice--spicy without being too sharp. Over time, this turns into a primarily clove scent. I like the scent of cloves, so this is great, but that's really all that I can smell--single-note clove, because the rose scent disappears as soon as the oil has dried. Worn with White Rose: The initial scent is definitely rose, with spices and fruit together creating a more balanced, full sensory experience than either of the roses on its own. Oddly, however, the combination goes a little soapy-smelling on me, where neither of the individual scents did so on its own. I think I actually prefer these as separate scents! Recaplet: Rose and clove, swiftly becoming clove alone. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Clove-brown.

Putting this on, I initially smelled a spiced berry scent, rather like mulled cider, only with a tart red berry instead of apples. This scent is familiar--it's the one that you get in the red Christmas scented candles… bayberry, is it? Anyway, it's a tart, red, berry scent, and unlike most berries, it doesn't turn candy-sweet on me. This continues to dry down to a lovely, sweet, environmental scent--a green, spiced, tart berry scent, then over time as it fades away, it turns to a faint evergreen. Very, very Christmassy and very lovely in every stage. An unexpected pleasure! (My luck so far with fruit--particularly berries--has been bad.) Recaplet: Spiced, tart berries and Christmas greens. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Red and green.

The immediate scent of this is citrussy, a fruity coconut. I am reminded of Snow White (probably the coconut). While it's wet, I can smell a touch of the rose, but that disappears pretty quickly. As it dries down, the scent develops a sweeter, fruitier tone. The fruits, oddly, smell like dried fruit to me--sweeter and more concentrated than fresh fruit. After a bit, the fruity scent becomes oddly dusty-smelling. Now it's a bit more like dried fruits that have been left out and gathered dust. Hmmm. Strange. (Another indicator that my skin does not like fruit…) Worn with Red Rose: The initial scent is definitely rose, with spices and fruit together creating a more balanced, full sensory experience than either of the roses on its own. Oddly, however, the combination goes a little soapy-smelling on me, where neither of the individual scents did so by itself. I think I actually prefer these as separate scents! Recaplet: Bright, citrussy coconut that becomes dusty dried fruits. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Apricot.

To start out, this is definitely recognizable as a tropical floral--I can distinctly smell the plumeria in it. After an hour or so, there's still plumeria, but underneath it, there's also a fruity-champagne scent fizzing and juicy behind it, and only barely-there. Two hours in, the scent as a whole starts to fade; the floral is becoming soapy and there aren't any base notes to the scent to keep it around. After a while, it's definitely soapy as it fades out into oblivion. Recaplet: Strong plumeria that fades quickly. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: White and yellow.

Amber, cream accord, white honey, apple blossom, skin musk, caramel, and teak. As I initially apply this oil, the apple blossom fights with the warmer, sweeter notes for prominence (apple blossom has been a problem for me before). There's a rich, foody character to this scent that has me looking around for something to eat… Over time, it smells caramelly, and rather too richly foody for my taste. I'm not getting the amber in here at all… And then it goes really weird--it turns into a funky scent layered over the caramel... I suspect this is just a matter of notes not working together correctly on my skin; since I've had issues with apple blossom and caramel before, and I'm starting to have some suspicions about teak and my skin chemistry… I think this was just not meant to be. Recaplet: Funky, sweaty caramel. Nah, not so much. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Caramel brown.

This smells very floral going on--is that the neroli? Yes--it smells just like orange blossom on me; a rather sharp high-pitched white floral. I can smell a little bit of white peach with it, too, but only a little bit. As it dries down, I know I'm definitely smelling the neroli--a bitter orange blossom scent--and for the first hour and a half, that's the only note I can smell. After a while, there's still the neroli present, but ambergris has emerged as a backdrop to it. I like the backdrop scent, but I'm not fond of the shrieking, amping top note of neroli-white-floral. Hours later, the amping bitter floral smell seems to have cleared out, and I'm left with a sweeter ambergris and honey scent. I like this, but it's not worth waiting the hours of screaming, bitter floral in order to get here. Recaplet: Screaming bitter-floral for hours, then honey-ambergris. My rating: 1 of 5 (I'm not fond of it.) Color impression: White with a faint yellow-green undertone.

This goes on in a wash of spicy herbal, floral scent, with an almost-peppery overtone. I think it might be the parsley I'm smelling--it's very familiar and an edible smell, almost. The combination becomes a mélange of unfamiliar bitter and herbal notes, unpleasant at first, but they soften over time into a greenness that's fresh-smelling. As time goes on, this fades away to a barely-herbal skin-close scent. It's an interesting and different scent than I usually go for, and I can see it being very good for the summertime, with its green freshness. Recaplet: Spicy herbs that blend into summertime freshness. My rating: 3 of 5 (Nice enough.) Color impression: Green, and green, and green.

Oh man, this is GOOD! Immediately applied, it smells JUST like the way a rose smells in a park's rose garden--the same rounded, greeny-wet, gorgeous, delightful, sunny floral. I haven't EVER smelled a rose scent this close to the way a rose smells in real life, in BPAL or elsewhere, and I'm floored. (Because I love roses but rarely rose scents.) On the drydown, the immediacy of the rose recedes (which makes me a little sad), but there is a lovely honeyed floral sweetness in its place that is equally delightful. What a scent! Honey and roses! Over time, it becomes quieter, at times flirting with the notion of developing soapiness, but it never actually goes there. There's still a definite honey-rose quality to this, golden, but more floral than sweet as it develops through the day. Its endstage is a barely-there floral aura that is everything a floral should be. (I am not usually able to wear or enjoy florals… this is a first!) Recaplet: An ultimate golden, honeyed floral. My rating: 5 of 5 (I LOVE IT!!!) Color impression: Golden yellow, a yellow rose.

In the bottle, this has an odd, chemical smell to it that is a little off-putting. Indeed, when I initially apply it, it's sharp and reminds me of ammonia and other unpleasant things with ammonia in them. After a half-hour, the sharp ammonia smell tones down, and what emerges is floral and a little powdery. After a while, that floral, powdery scent has very much taken over--I am reminded distinctly of the smell of cosmetics… floral-scented powder makeup (does such a thing exist?). I can appreciate that this is actually a very pretty scent, but it doesn't feel like me, even when it moves away from smelling like makeup and turns into its later stages, a very nice, soft, lightweight floral. Something about this floral just never felt like "me". Recaplet: A soft floral after ammonia and powder stages. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: White and gray.

Initially applied, Madrid is a smoky red wine scent. Deep fruitiness emerges in the drydown, merged well with the wine. This is, indeed, a delightful sangria! After a few hours, the wine mostly goes away and I have a smoky spice scent left behind, a slightly sweet, dark spicy scent. Oddly, in its last stage, this turns almost foody, like a gingerbread spice scent. It's all quite nice--a rich, dark scent. Recaplet: Smoky spicy dark wine--with a gingerbread ending. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Deep purple-red.

This goes on a little herbal and floral -- I'm pretty sure I'm smelling the prickly pear at this point because it smells resoundingly familiar to me, like desert vegetation (I lived in Tucson, AZ for a year, and this is like that). It's an herbal but tangy scent. After an hour, the fruity scent has turned candy-sweet, now -- as seems to be normal on my skin, the candy-fruit scent is amping like crazy and taking over everything else. However, after a while longer, the candy scent does tone down, and the scent becomes a warm amber with some unusual spices. Then the fruit disappears completely. I love this final stage, but I'm not sure if it's worth it to me to make it through the watermelon Jolly Ranger-amping stage in order to get here. Hmmm. Recaplet: Desert vegetation, a candy stage, then spiced amber--quite a morpher! My rating: 3 of 5 (Nice enough.) Color impression: Pink and sage green.

A wet, waterlogged floral. It's definitely deepened by the scent of ivy (bitter and green), and the white rose comes out noticeably. Over time, this remains a study in in contrasts: wet, bitter, rose, ivy. It leaves an impression of watery gloom. (Though I might be reading into it because of the name!) Very evocative, but I think this has solidified for me that I'm not terribly thrilled with aquatics. Recaplet: Watery rose and gloomy, bitter ivy. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Light filtered through green river water.

Initially, this is a strongly wine (grape) scent, with a certain… floral? herbal?... quality behind it. A bouquet of red fruits with red grapes… on the drydown, it turns into a candied version of itself on my skin. An hour later, this is an amping berry-currant candy scent, a pinky-red scent like the biggest red lollipop ever. The herbal quality that must have been the thyme has completely disappeared, and all I can smell is the red candy scent. After a while, the candy scent does start to tone down somewhat, and what was sweet is now starting to smell tart, a bright-red fruit and berry scent now… and then the sugary scent goes a little burnt and sour on me. Sadly, this just wasn't going to work on my skin chemistry, which turns berries into The Candy That Ate The World! and turns sugar into burnt charcoally sugary ickiness. At least now I know for sure that this family of scents aren't really my thing. Recaplet: Red, red, RED candy with a side of burnt sugar. My rating: 1 of 5 (I'm not fond of it.) Color impression: Red as red can be.

Going on, this is a vaguely fruity and grassy scent. However, as it dries down, it turns (on me) into a soapy herbal. I am reminded of a "fresh-scent" laundry detergent. After several hours, it becomes mostly herbal in nature. Recaplet: Laundry detergent herbal. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Bluey-green like detergent.

... However, this bottle was not marked `poison,' so Alice ventured to taste it, and finding it very nice, (it had, in fact, a sort of mixed flavour of cherry-tart, custard, pine-apple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast,) she very soon finished it off. Heavy pineapple and toffee to start out… it's rather like the sticky sweet dregs at the bottom of a flavored coffee drink -- way too strong, and way too sweet, enough to make me wince. On the drydown, it becomes much softer (surprisingly!), and the scent now is pineapple, a little butter, and I am reminded of the smell of fruit-flavored syrup and butter over waffles--the scent has that kind of sweetness. After a while, there is a toasted-coconut topping to the overall fruit syrup on buttered waffles scent, and from this point on, that's what the scent remains. Recaplet: Fruit syrup over buttered waffles, after a knock-you-over wet stage. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Golden brown.

Initially applied, Fairy Wine is a breath of honey and dandelions. As it dries down, another floral emerges through the dandelion for a second, but not for long--I'm shortly smelling only honey-wine with a slight tinge of dandelions. Over time, this remains a scent of honey and fresh florals (not the overwhelming kind that amp out of control). It's very nice! I'm getting mostly honey, but honey with a floral quality to it, like a good single-flower honey. Recaplet: Honey and dandelions; sweet and fresh. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Pure golden liquid.

... Her scent is that of a lightless fir wood, nighttime air, wet forest mosses and upturned earth. First on, this scent is a bright, almost citrussy evergreen scent. As it dries down I can smell a hint of loam underneath it. It turns into a foresty scent, with evergreens and green leaf scents mixed together in a way that reminds me of Jersey Devil or Black Forest, but underlaid with the loamy scent of Graveyard Dirt or Death Cap. It's earthy and damp-smelling. A few hours in, it had a brief (~15 min) stage where it smelled slightly sour underneath the evergreens, but quickly emerged out of that transitional stage as a dark evergreen. At that point, all of the "dirt" had disappeared on me (it's a short-lived note on my skin) and the scent became a slowly-fading deep evergreen forest scent. Recaplet: Forest and earth, then pure forest. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Dark green and dark brown.

Initially applied, Pain is a very sharp mint and herb scent. I know it's there, but the herb isn't recognizable to my nose as lavender. Drying down, it becomes a slightly softer, but still unsweetened mint. After an hour, I get a fresh-smelling un-sweet soft mint… it smells almost "fuzzy" to me, the way that most mints do over time. Oddly, the final drydown smelled very familiar to me, and I finally placed the scent--it was waxy, smelling just like crayons! How odd! I think that mint doesn't quite work right on me… it never seems to achieve quite the stage I want it to, and it softens into an indistinct "fuzzy" scent that is ok but not gripping. Probably a skin chemistry issue. Sigh. Recaplet: Sharp herbal-mint that goes fuzzy and soft. My rating: 3 of 5 (Nice enough.) Color impression: Spearmint green.

Initially on, the Jersey Devil was all about pine and green leaves, mixed with a little bit of cedar. It is a lovely, sweet but fresh mix of outdoorsy scents. As it dries down, it is evergreen, woodsy, and still sweet, green, and very tangy. I love it--it's quite foresty in nature. Over time, it continues to be foresty, and it eventually fades into a faint foresty evergreen scent. Very much a scent of the outdoors and the woods, delightful and fresh. Recaplet: Evergreens and green leaves, sweet, fresh, and foresty. My rating: 5 of 5 (I LOVE IT!!!) Color impression: Deep dark green.

This went on pungent, evergreeny, and herbal times ten, and continued true to form. After a couple hours it smelled like evergreens and herbs… or evergreens with soap, a rather odd combination. Eventually it comes around to being a soapy herbal with an evergreen component. An interesting blend, but not something I'd be seeking out again soon. Recaplet: Herbal evergreen soap. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Deep green.

As I apply this oil, I can definitely smell dried flowers and linens, with some vanilla sweetness. It's a non-foody vanilla, though. As it dries down, this develops a funny stale, almost quality about it. It's definitely sweet as well as being lineny. Something in this, though, smells "off" to me, like the scents aren't coming together correctly. I get vanilla with a bitter "aftertaste". Since I have had definite problems with a good portion of vanilla scents, I suspect that there's a particular vanilla that just doesn't work with my skin chemistry, and that's what is in this scent. Too bad! But I'm sure it will be a good one to use to enable other people I know, judging from this scent's popularity. Recaplet: Musty linens with bad vanilla. Sigh. My rating: 1 of 5 (I'm not fond of it.) Color impression: Tea-stained ivory.

This went on in a burst of woody, vetiver-like smokiness, evergreeny, with an earthy note underneath. As it dried down, some sweetness emerged with it. After a while, it becomes a pungent, sweet and herbal scent, with an evergreen-vetiver backdrop. The throw is funny, almost plasticky smelling, at this point… And as time goes on, it metamorphoses into even more of a plasticky evergreen smell, and stays that way. Recaplet: Funny, plasticky trees. My rating: 2 of 5 (Meh.) Color impression: Dark evergreen trees.

This goes on as weedy and green with yellow dandelions and a slightly boozy backdrop, but as it dries down it becomes a faint scent of greens and hops. It's a great combination, but it fades out within a couple hours, so this isn't a long-term scent. Recaplet: Weedy and playful, but gone really fast. My rating: 4 of 5 (I really like this!) Color impression: Bright yellow.