pickman's model

My partner and I were lucky enough to get two imps of this from winning one of the Lab's ebay auctions. Wet: I'm getting none of the grapefruit. Odd, I usually pick it up if there's any. Mostly patchouli and cedarwood, actually. I was worried about the violet, too, but I can't even find a trace of that either. Dry: Oh my. This is GORGEOUS! A very assertive, but really wearable woody-spicy blend. The pepper comes out and is all warm and gorgeous, and the vetiver, cedarwood and patchouli back it up beautifully. It's actually similar to a less aggressively masculine Umbra, but with pepper. Thank you Lab!

I love foody-sweet smells, and I love cherries, so it stands to reason that this one would be a winner. In the bottle, it smells like some kind of delicious cocktail, rich, cherry-y (real ones, fake cherry flavour and maybe a maraschino in there too). When it's on, it morphs through every cherry dessert in history, with a sugary almost whipped cream (the real kind) note in there. Where The Red Queen is a dignified cherry-red, this is fun, a bit boozy and wet. I love it so!

I got this one as a frimp with my last order. I've been meaning to check it out for a while now, and I'm kicking myself for not doing so earlier! When I put it on, it was really rosy and sweet. Then, as it dried, I got the milk (which stayed nice and fresh and didn't go sour-plasticky like it sometimes does), and then...MMMMMM it turned into chai. Really, really good chai, with honey. Dry, it was sitting in a rose garden, drinking the best chai ever. I am in total, utter complete love. It's delicate, feminine, happy and sweet. I need a bottle of this one. ten out of ten, two thumbs and any other high ratings that can be given.

I was a bit afraid to try this one, from the "floral". I love vanilla, but I've been floral-phobic for so long (and only starting to break fromt hat), that it just stayed on the "nahhh" list. In the imp: Hey, it's my friend Vanilla! Wet: The florals are definitely soft. And quiet. And...fading into the background. Dry: Really, really good vanilla ice cream. Soft and sweet and creamy-rich. My skin loves vanilla, and this is no exception. Verdict: Love. Pure, delicious, vanilla-ey love. This makes me smile. I think a bottle may be necessary.

So I just start on a rose quest, and this falls into my lap. Score. In the imp: This yells "I am rose!" There's a bit of other stuff, but mostly just red roses, in profusion. Wet: Red sandalwood is always a friend of mine, and here, it's no exception. This is like hot sex on a bed of rose petals. Yum! Dry: The rose turns sweeter, which is nice, and the sandalwood is still there, with the rose, just hanging out, being absolutely sexy. The patchouli's at the base, not being overt, just sort of comfy at the base of things, not feeling the need to make a scene. Final verdict: I was looking for a nice, sexy, femmey rose. The only other rose blend I've been keen on was Zombi, but that's sort of quiet and modest. This is exactly what I was looking for. *squee*

I assumed that this one would either be delightful, or OMGnoooo! In the imp: I smell ambery sweetness. That's it. Just a pile of amber with syrup poured onto it. Wet: The vanilla kicks in, as well as the sweet pea, making this smell like distilled cuteness. Dry: The amber and sandalwood take over completely, with the vanilla makng feeble protestations in the back. It's perfumy and powdery in ways that just don't suit me. Edit (shortly after): Okay, the vanilla and sweet pea have rallied together and this is not only distilled cuteness, but very wearable distilled cuteness. Yay for surprises!

I just got a decant of this one in a mystery pack from the swaps. It wasn't something I'd have picked for myself (that being the point of surprise packs. ) but I'm impressed. In the imp: Well, that's certainly evergreens. Uber-evergreens, like standing in a forest. Not unlike Nocnitsa. Wet: Definitely snowy evergreens now, there's a coolness that I'm quite liking. Dry:I'm getting the apple now, with the evergreen. And a tiny, tiny, sweetness that I'm guessing has to be the almond. This one smells like an idealized midwinter, with clean snow and curling up. I think it would work really well on either gender (Which is good, I suppose, as The Mate will likely borrow this, with his lve of piney smells.) Strange, but gorgeous and happy.

I've not tried Fee, but Ogun turned into ubermelon with some interestingly complex notes all around it. Don't be put off by the description, I got it for The Mate, but it ended up being ubermelony, and went to me.

I went on a quest for this one to accompany my Borg costume for this past Halloween. I knew mint never, ever lasts on me, but I was intrigued to try the rest of the notes. I know oakmoss is always good to me. Wet: Minty, aquatic. This was really refreshing, and made me think "mermaid" more than "Borg". Though I'm not at all an aquatic kind of person, this was pretty. Green enough that I didn't just run away going "Eek! Watery!" Dry: This smells like the idealized version of the sea on me. It's what I always imagine the ocean should smell like. Watery, clean, cool, with a bit of driftwoodiness. Verdict: I may be afraid of deep water in real life, but this aquatic was delightful. (Not to mention my very Piscean girlfriend's very positive reaction. )

Nuclear Winter's an LE, but it's so perfectly chilly. Undertow is nice and refreshing, and a lot easier to wear than I thought it would be. And I just discovered Tarot: The Star so perfect for summer. Lime, light, light coconut and mint. Embalming Fluid's another solid bet. Mmm green tea with lemon.

Unsurprisingly, I was scared to try this one. But I got it in a swap as a frimp, and as usual, curiosity overcomes. I know vetiver is usually a Very Bad Idea, moss is a great one, and I've been too frightened to try civet. I sniffed the imp, and I get anise, just straight anise, with a bit of something damp and cold. Thus far, not too scared. So I dabbed a bit on. Holy black licorice, Batman! This was crazy-strong black licorice, sitting on a rock in a cave. Oookay, the civet is out, I think. This is civet, as it's pretty animalistic. I will preface the folowing statment with the note that I can't wear animal scents. Musk (save really light white musk) turns into the nastiest thing ever on me. Why then, does civet work? I don't smell like poo, or unwashed bum, or cat pee. I smell pretty good in civet. Vetiver and I don't play well. It usually goes nasty and sharp, and it's working here. Rather well. There was a point in the drydown where I had this sort of bug-spray thig going, but it lasted like 2 minutes and is gone now. My only complaint is that this is too masculine for me when it's done morphing around. This is quite possibly the strangest scent I've ever smelled, but it just calmed down into this sorta good-cologne thing on me. Makes me a bit dizzy, but it smells okay. I'm really confused. It's not for me, but I think I'd like it on someone.

In the imp: Nothing. Seriously, can't smell anything but maybe a hint of sugary water. *confused face* After a disastrous first try involving redness, burning and "Oh God the cinnamon!", I was determined to try again. This time on the back of my wrists. Wet: Cinnamon hearts and honey. Yummy! Dry: Pretty much unchanged. I've no idea why my skin would have freaked out over this, I wear tons of cinnamon-y BPALs all the time. Try it on somewhere less sensitive if, like me, you think cinnamon hearts and honey seems a brilliant idea but have crazy skin.

I second the Embalming Fluid! Mmmm lemony green tea has kept me awake and alert so many times now. The mint in Nuclear Winter is nice that way too.

Wet: I get a gin martini. I can almost taste it. This is eerily bang-on. Dry: Odd, somehow the drink on my wrist has turned into a gin and tonic. Good gin, sparkly, bubbles climbing up the glass and just enough lemon. This is oddly wearable. Bright, silvery and playful. I think I'll have topair this with the body shop's olive shower gel and make myself into a proper martini. Strange, but I like that. ETA: Now that it's been a bit longer, I detected a frankincense note. Baffled, I stuck my face into my bag of frankincense tears for confimation. Yep. Somehow, smelling like a gin-drinking priest is working for me. it's awesome, I love it but it's so very weird!

Wet: Cactus pears, tulips and odd herbs. Intriguing. Dry:Bright, airy, greenish floral. I get the above things, but with the amber adding a bit of sunniness to it. Verdict: This is gorgeous! Fesh, light and perfect for summer. I'm really getting into the wanderlust stuff.