cranberry

Weird, this smells like nuts on me. There’s a slight floral in the background, along with something slightly astringent. I found my frankincense EO, and after sniffing that, then my hand, I can detect frankincense slightly in the background. This is a really odd scent. I think it must be how it’s reacting with me and my chemistry. After it’s been on a while, the weird nutty smell softens and I can smell the rosewood and lily. Soft and woody, slightly herbal. Behind it, there's the nuts. This has been an interesting scent to test, and I’ll hang onto my imp just in case it’s due to a time of the month issue. But, at the same time, I’m in no hurry to repeat this experience.

My first impression of Séance is: roses! Rich, moist, lush roses. Slightly green. My second thought is that this is a good sub for Rose Red. It has that same fresh rose with a touch of greenery. After I’ve had it on for a couple minutes, the rosewood comes out and it’s not an exact dupe of Rose Red but still very nice. After it’s been on a while, this still remains a beautiful rose scent, slightly woody. Beautiful. Just beautiful. Thanks GC swap – I probably wouldn’t have gotten around to my imp of this otherwise!

Seance Notes: rosewood, rose leaf, hazel My first impression of Séance is: roses! Rich, moist, lush roses. Slightly green. My second thought is that this is a good sub for Rose Red. It has that same fresh rose with a touch of greenery. After I’ve had it on for a couple minutes, the rosewood comes out and it’s not an exact dupe of Rose Red but still very nice. After it’s been on a while, this still remains a beautiful rose scent, slightly woody. Beautiful. Just beautiful. Thanks GC swap – I probably wouldn’t have gotten around to my imp of this otherwise!

Penitence Notes: frankincense and myrrh. I can’t tell the difference between frankincense and myrrh, and I can’t find my essential oil box right now, but this reminds me of a rich perfume, of the traditional type. Smoky, sultry, of the oriental genre. To me, it’s slightly reminiscent of Youth Dew. I think there must be some similarity of scent but even more so of the vibe. When I think of frankincense and myrrh, I think of churches and burning resins. I have to say, this scent doesn’t make me think of church. I like it a lot. Rich, sexy, confident, slightly spicy.

I can’t tell the difference between frankincense and myrrh, and I can’t find my essential oil box right now, but this reminds me of a rich perfume, of the traditional type. Smoky, sultry, of the oriental genre. To me, it’s slightly reminiscent of Youth Dew. I think there must be some similarity of scent but even more so of the vibe. When I think of frankincense and myrrh, I think of churches and burning resins. I have to say, this scent doesn’t make me think of church. I like it a lot. Rich, sexy, confident, slightly spicy.

Thaleia Notes: honey, ylang ylang, apricot, ciste, blood orange and gardenia with earthy, warm tonka. Initially I smell honey and blood orange. This is a really interesting scent and quite unusual. It’s rather offputting. Normally I find BPAL to be very well blended and I often have a hard time picking out individual notes. Thaleia, on the other hand is a cacophony of notes. There’s something almost herbal in here, dry smelling and arid (I think that’s a combination of the honey and apricot). Wow, there’s apricot there. Maybe that’s what I’m finding offputting, I’m not a fan of apricot scents. As it wears, the scent darkens and deepens at bit. Overall, this is all about honeyed apricots with a lesser amount of honeyed oranges. Personally, I’m glad I got to try this, but this is not a scent for me.

Florence Notes: iris, bright berries, gilded amber and velvety spices I love Florence so much and it’s a pleasure to finally review it. Initially, I smell iris and amber. There’s a touch of sweetness from the berries. The iris is oh so slightly dry and powdery and the amber adds warmth and roundness, with a touch of spice. The elements combine to a sweet, feminine, sophisticated scent that is so pretty. This is what I wanted the Haunted Palace to smell like (despite the fact that HP notes indicate it wouldn’t smell at all like this, I think it was more the description fits this scent so well). After a while, the berries recede and I’m left with a beautiful spiced amber that has a touch of powdery iris. Beautiful.

Initially I smell honey and blood orange. This is a really interesting scent and quite unusual. It’s rather offputting. Normally I find BPAL to be very well blended and I often have a hard time picking out individual notes. Thaleia, on the other hand is a cacophony of notes. There’s something almost herbal in here, dry smelling and arid (I think that’s a combination of the honey and apricot). Wow, there’s apricot there. Maybe that’s what I’m finding offputting, I’m not a fan of apricot scents. As it wears, the scent darkens and deepens at bit. Overall, this is all about honeyed apricots with a lesser amount of honeyed oranges. Personally, I’m glad I got to try this, but this is not a scent for me.

I love Florence so much and it’s a pleasure to finally review it. Initially, I smell iris and amber. There’s a touch of sweetness from the berries. The iris is oh so slightly dry and powdery and the amber adds warmth and roundness, with a touch of spice. The elements combine to a sweet, feminine, sophisticated scent that is so pretty. This is what I wanted the Haunted Palace to smell like (despite the fact that HP notes indicate it wouldn’t smell at all like this, I think it was more the description fits this scent so well). After a while, the berries recede and I’m left with a beautiful spiced amber that has a touch of powdery iris. Beautiful.

Roadhouse Notes: dandelion, hops, tobacco, hemp and booze For some reason, Roadhouse smells like apples on me. At first, there was a whiff of booze, the same booze that’s in Devil’s Night, but that vanished pretty quick leaving only apples. I like apples and actually have Verdandi, a wonderful apple-amber scent. Do I need another? Taking a whiff from farther back, the booze makes itself known again. As it wears on, the crispness of the apples backs off a bit and is replaced by greenery – hello dandelion! Overall, this is a wonderfully green, fresh scent. It would be perfect for summer days and probably not so good for work. Very nice!

For some reason, Roadhouse smells like apples on me. At first, there was a whiff of booze, the same booze that’s in Devil’s Night, but that vanished pretty quick leaving only apples. I like apples and actually have Verdandi, a wonderful apple-amber scent. Do I need another? Taking a whiff from farther back, the booze makes itself known again. As it wears on, the crispness of the apples backs off a bit and is replaced by greenery – hello dandelion! Overall, this is a wonderfully green, fresh scent. It would be perfect for summer days and probably not so good for work. Very nice!

Eternal Notes: stephanotis, cyclamen, heliotrope, white rose and gardenia Eternal is all flowers on me. Gardenia is prominent along with rose and other flowers that I can’t identify. This isn’t my usual style of scent so it’s a departure for me to try this. It reminds me slightly of one of the Lupercalia oils – maybe the Perfumed Garden? It’s interesting because there’s really no common notes listed, but to me, there’s definitely a similarity. It’s a heady scent, all tropical blooms. It was good to try but not for me.

Eternal is all flowers on me. Gardenia is prominent along with rose and other flowers that I can’t identify. This isn’t my usual style of scent so it’s a departure for me to try this. It reminds me slightly of one of the Lupercalia oils – maybe the Perfumed Garden? It’s interesting because there’s really no common notes listed, but to me, there’s definitely a similarity. It’s a heady scent, all tropical blooms. It was good to try but not for me.

The Ghost Notes: iris, osmanthus, calla lily, ivy, gladiolus, lisianthus, delphinium In the imp: unsweetly floral, bulbous On the skin: this is a soft, pretty, floral, almost but not quite aquatic. It’s well blended but I can pick out the iris. I’m not familiar with most of the notes in this so I can’t really identify them more. It’s a lush scent and brings to mind the color pale green. There is a touch of green in this scent. As it wears on, it turns a bit sharp and bit soapy. It’s been an interesting scent to try but not one that I need.

In the imp: unsweetly floral, bulbous On the skin: this is a soft, pretty, floral, almost but not quite aquatic. It’s well blended but I can pick out the iris. I’m not familiar with most of the notes in this so I can’t really identify them more. It’s a lush scent and brings to mind the color pale green. There is a touch of green in this scent. As it wears on, it turns a bit sharp and bit soapy. It’s been an interesting scent to try but not one that I need.

Grandmother of Ghosts Notes: laurel, stargazer lily, splintered woods, peony, mandarin, white musk, pale pepper In the imp: mmm. Very nice. It smells sort of musky and woody, just my sort of scent. On the skin: slightly floral and a bit musky. On the skin, dry: wow, this reminds me a bit of a commercial perfume, not the synthetic aspect, but it’s the more traditional take with florals with an underpinning of woods, and musk. Very pretty. I think that my mom would really like this.

In the imp: mmm. Very nice. It smells sort of musky and woody, just my sort of scent. On the skin: slightly floral and a bit musky. On the skin, dry: wow, this reminds me a bit of a commercial perfume, not the synthetic aspect, but it’s the more traditional take with florals with an underpinning of woods, and musk. Very pretty. I think that my mom would really like this.

Akuma Initial impression: wow – neroli! Behind the dryness of the neroli, there’s the sweetness and juiciness of the raspberry. I find neroli to be almost acrid – it has a sharp-ish scent that almost makes the breath catch at the back of my throat. There’s a slight sweetness to this scent and as it wears, the raspberry and blood orange become more prominent. Wow, this is a strong scent. As it wears on, it becomes more fruity and the blood orange becomes stronger. It has an almost candy orange type smell. After a couple hours its all blood orange. Definitely a fruity scent for grown-ups.

Initial impression: wow – neroli! Behind the dryness of the neroli, there’s the sweetness and juiciness of the raspberry. I find neroli to be almost acrid – it has a sharp-ish scent that almost makes the breath catch at the back of my throat. There’s a slight sweetness to this scent and as it wears, the raspberry and blood orange become more prominent. Wow, this is a strong scent. As it wears on, it becomes more fruity and the blood orange becomes stronger. It has an almost candy orange type smell. After a couple hours its all blood orange. Definitely a fruity scent for grown-ups.

received 6-2-06 from spacekitty Dragon's Bone - reviewed Dragon's Eye - reviewed Dragon's Blood ** Dragon's Hide** Dragon's Tears** Dragon's Musk - reviewed Dragon's Milk - already reviewed along with this one, I got filigree_shadow's #2 & #3, plus Aryllkin#2. I am OVERFLOWING with imps! wahoo! ETA: I've either got imps or bottles of all of these, so rather than testing any of these, I dropped this off in the mail to cordia tonight along with the package from spacekitty. But most of them I've only had a quick swipe (except Dragon's Milk - yum! and Dragon's Hide - smokey and sexy) so now I have to test and review them!

Dragon's Bone Notes: dragon’s blood, white sandalwood, orris, blondwood In the imp, I can smell the dragon’s blood most strongly of any of the notes. Once applied, the dragon’s blood remains a dominant note, seconded by the iris-like orris. I’m not getting any sandalwood or blondwood (not sure how that should smell but I can imagine), but I think they may be providing a base to the orris and dragon’s blood. This is a dry, dusty scent due to the orris. I’m sure that the sandalwood contributes to this feeling as well. I usually find dragon’s blood to be fairly succulant so the orris and sandalwood combination must be stronger than I had originally thought. It’s interesting, as the scent wears on it smells similar to sarsaparilla or something vaguely rootbeer-like. This doesn’t last too long but it was completely unexpected! After it’s been on a while, the orris remains the dominant note. I like it but I think that my imp is just right.

In the imp, I can smell the dragon’s blood most strongly of any of the notes. Once applied, the dragon’s blood remains a dominant note, seconded by the iris-like orris. I’m not getting any sandalwood or blondwood (not sure how that should smell but I can imagine), but I think they may be providing a base to the orris and dragon’s blood. This is a dry, dusty scent due to the orris. I’m sure that the sandalwood contributes to this feeling as well. I usually find dragon’s blood to be fairly succulant so the orris and sandalwood combination must be stronger than I had originally thought. It’s interesting, as the scent wears on it smells similar to sarsaparilla or something vaguely rootbeer-like. This doesn’t last too long but it was completely unexpected! After it’s been on a while, the orris remains the dominant note. I like it but I think that my imp is just right.

Dragon's Musk The GC swap has made me pull out my Dragon’s Musk imp and give it a whirl. In the imp, it smells a bit musty and a slight note of dragon’s blood. Once on, it’s nicely balanced between the musks and the dragon’s blood. It’s not a sweet scent by any means. The dragon’s blood is here more to accent the musk rather than play a starring role. It’s a very masculine scent. The perfect compliment to Dragon’s Milk. Dragon’s Musk and Smut share some of the same musks. For someone looking for Smut, this may be a good substitute. It evokes the same kinda vibe to me. It’s a long lasting scent – hrs later I can still smell it. As it wears on, the dragon’s blood resins seem to come out, but still with the musks dominating the show. As it wears on, I’m not getting the Smut vibe as strongly as I was earlier. Overall, pretty good!

Dragon's Eye I’ve been inspired to test my Dragon’s Eye imp by the GC swap. Wow – I can really smell the lily of the valley and the lilac. This oil reminds me of my grandmothers house for some reason and hot summer days when I was growing up. I’m not sure what galbanum smells like. In all of the Ars Draconis scents that I’ve tried, the dragon’s blood is a very small component in the scents; this oil is no different. It seems to be there more in a supporting role rather than taking central stage. This reminds me more of a traditional, old fashioned perfume or toilet water than a BPAL oil. As it wears on, the florals continue to dominate. Overall thoughts, scentwise it's not for me but it's certainly a very evocative oil.

Dragon's Heart I was inspired to test my imp through the GC swap. In the imp it smell like musky, dark fruit, maybe fruit that is slightly off. Not a great smell but not a bad one either. On the skin, it blooms. Wow, this is amazing. A blend of musks (esp. red musk, yum!) with a fruity tang and a touch of the herbal, resiny jasmine-like dragon’s blood. This is a very strong scent and only a little is needed. After a few hrs what remains is the musks tempered a bit by the dragon’s blood. Overall, this is a great scent!