innocent

On and wet this is a very sticky, overly-sweet molasses. I was about to wash it off when it suddenly lightened, getting that citrus note that several reviewers have mentioned. Dry, Kill-Devil has become a pleasant brown sugar sort of scent, slightly spiced but not burnt. I like the dry stage, but its awfully faint and the too-sweet wet phase makes me feel a bit ill. I won't need a bottle, but I'll keep the imp around to play with.

I loves me some rose, and I loves me some Gwyneth even more. First on this is a lush, rich rose, still wet with dew. There's a sweetness to it that reminds me of honey, though there's no honey listed. I suspect what I'm smelling is the tonka - it makes the rose almost edible. Once the rose begins to calm I can smell the skin musk (which whispers dirty things to me whenever I wear it) and the slightest hint of coconut (just enough, because more than a little tends to go to plastic on me). I'm not really picking up on the sage or the other florals - I'm glad the lily isn't making this soapy on me. I really like this one, it and Ashlultum are probably my favorites of the Grindhouse ladies.

The throw is a sort of spicy-sweet myrrh, very nice. But whenever I try to get a closer sniff I get a nose full of vetiver (which always reminds me of damp cigarette butts). It's not OH GOD OH GOD GET IT OFF, which is what I was expecting, but it's not good either. If you don't like vetiver this is not the scent to change your mind!

The throw on me is mostly a yummy green fig, the first time I've really found a BPAL where the fig comes out to play. Sadly, one of the florals (not sure if it's the apple blossom or the lily) is going very sharp and soapy on me. After about an hour the soapiness calms down, but the rest of the scent has become very faint as well. I can see myself trying this imp again, to get the yummy figgy throw, but there are other florals I much prefer.

The scent is pleasant, a sort of herbal musk. It works. I'd been using Blockbuster to help with my writing (also works, but a topic for a different thread) but I recently got a decant of HtoP and decided to try that instead. I've used it a few times now (I just apply to my wrists, neck, and the eyes on my Hands of Fatima tattoos) and its worked every time. It feels very different than using Blockbuster. HtoP tends to inspire me with new ideas and revisions to current ones. It has more bubbly, changable feeling than Blockbuster (if that makes any sense). I haven't experienced any debauch yet... but I've only worn it while at home.

First on, Pinched reminded me very strongly of Mr. Nancy, but without the lime. This is good, as I really like Mr. Nancy. Dry, Pinched lightens quite a bit and ends up smelling like cinnamon cookies! I never really got the coffee, which is just as well (I like to drink it, but I don't wanna smell like it!). Pinched is wonderful and I'm sad I only have a sniffy of it (I was a little afraid to test it, I didn't want to fall in love!). I can live without a big bottle... but only because I don't have any other option!

I'm another who loves rose, so I'm disappointed that Marguerite is not for me. I do get very prominent rose here, but it's quickly overpowered by the rose geranium - which for some reason always makes my nose itch. I like both it and ylang-ylang in small quantities, or in room scents, but they're a little too prominent here. I like florals, but the geranium makes this one a bit too strong for me. I'd rather get my rose fix from Catherine (though from the reviews I seem to be about the only one who likes that one!). I have yet to try some of the other floral Grindhouse ladies - hopefully one of them will be a big bottle purchase for me.

This is just wonderful. Soft honey and sugared flowers with a herbal hint of tea and no soap to be seen. I really like this one. For some reason it reminds me of Ephemera, but without the "old lady floral" vibe that I got from Ephemera. Yummy. An unexpected love (tea normally goes sharp and soapy on me).

Lovely. Lively. And Very Lemony. I amp lemon, so Cheshire Moon smells mostly of lemongrass on me. I get hints of the other notes, but no more. I really like the smell of lemongrass, so I like Cheshire Moon, but its not as complicated as I was hoping.

Something in this turns into spicy soap after a few minutes on my skin. Bah. *kicks a rock* I really wanted to like Mama-ji, both because I like the character and because I wanted a scent that would remind me of the time I've spent in India. *kicks another rock, goes to fondle saris to cheer self up*

*fresh out of the bottle* Whoa... WHOA! *Innocent staggers back from her arm, eyes watering at the attack of the COTTON* I think I put too much on... This was very strong at first, a sort of floral soap that assaulted my nose. I braved it out, never got a hint of the lemon so many other people are mentioning, and was eventually rewarded. Enraged Bunny Musk softened into a lovely, sexy, springtime smell (I loves me some musk!). I'll have to give it another try and pay closer attention to how long it takes before it softens down - I'm currently undecided if the wait is worth it.

Snow White (2007) Snow White is a creamy, vague smell with hints of coconut and (maybe) vanilla. I understand how some people are calling this a "warm" winter scent. After it dries on my skin, Snow White smells like nothing so much as fresh My Little Pony plastic. This is not bad, I've always loved that smell. I enjoy this one and will keep my decant around, but it's faintness and the My Little Pony aroma means I won't really be wearing it as a perfume. ETA: I lied. Snow White STILL smells like My Little Ponies to me, and yet I crave it. If it comes back I'd buy a bottle.

Midway Resurrected Wet: Aaargh! Too sweet! Too sweet! *feels teeth rot and fall out of head* Drying: Cotton Candy! Dry: Very faint cotton candy. Not a winner for me as far as perfume goes, but it is very evocative of going to a summer carnival.

Key Lime Pie!! I smell wonderful. The drydown is shaping up to be lovely too - the lime dying down slightly while the tobacco and rum come out to play. Mr. Nancy, that charming old coot, is going on the list of "Bottles to Buy Once CD Stops Eating All My Money".

!!! Marianne is amazing on me. Amazing. She's nothing like Mme Moriarty (which I like but is often a bit to murky and dirty for my taste). Marianne is a cool, smooth, clean scent with a musk base and hints of currant and patchouli playing at the edges. Nothing like I expected from the notes and the reviews. This is a scent I could wear anywhere - it's sexy enough for going out but not too sexy for work - which it good because I'm going to be wearing it everywhere. Best of all - whatever note is making Marianne so cool and clean on my skin (lotus root maybe?) is the SAME note that dominates my CT: IV (and I love). *does the happy dance* I had no idea. I almost skipped this decant in my decant circle to save money. I'm so stunned that I almost missed this wonderful scent that I'm going to go and find decants of the few grindhouse ladies I decided not to try - just in case. When I place my lunacy order Marianne will be coming home to me.

I like violets. A lot. I like mint a lot. Something in Faeu Boulanger goes very wrong on me. Once on my skin this becomes a heachache-inducing sweet floral with no relief in sight. Even now, about two hours after I put it on, sniffing my arm too closely makes my eyes water. It might be the aquatic smell which other reviewers have mentioned that's going wrong - generally aquatics turn into OMG DRYER SHEETS on me. I'm glad I got a decant of this one first! I was convinced it was going to LOOOVE it.

The Grindhouse is sweeeet on my skin, candy-sweet. The red musk is singing an alto line while some sort of SWEET floral (iris, mimosa? I'm not certain.) is piping up - a bit too high and squeaky. I like red musk, but I was really hoping to get the vanilla, clove, and rose in this one. Sadly they're MIA. This has some throw on me... it's not unpleasant but rather reminds me of Pez. I'll be keeping my imp to see how the red musk ages, but I won't be getting a bottle.

I've been holding off on reviewing Mme. Moriarty. I've applied and sat down at my computer at least four times now, ready to review - and couldn't do it. I just can't decide how I feel about her. I'm mostly getting the musk and patchouli, with occasional faint whiffs of vanilla. She's much drier than I expected and that makes me unhappy. However, my bottle is very new, and reviews seem to indicate that aging with help balance everything out. I think I'll hold onto her a few months and see how I feel. If I decide she's not for me at least there should be plenty of people willing to love her in my steed. I'm glad I got a bottle though, I didn't realize they came with a tarot card and that's awesome! I collect tarot decks (don't read the cards though) and it's cool to have my own Mme. Moriarty card.

Vanilla. Musk. Clean linen. This was a frimp from a lovely forumnite and so far I like better than the decants I actually bought! Despite hearing so many people rave about this one, I was worried the "clean linen" would turn into "nasty soap". But it doesn't. The throw is entirely vanilla and musk, the linene sticks close to my skin. Very lovely. This is going onto the GC Bottle list. It would make a wonderful linen spray (for those of you whose partners allow you to spray the linens - mine protests!).

When I first put on the Wild Men I was dismayed... it was so good! It was ruining my bottle budget for the month! I'm mostly getting clove with the rest of the bottles forming coherent base and only occasionally popping their heads up to say hello. But once it dries something in this blend falls flat on my skin. I want to point fingers at the ambergris and moss, but I'm not sure. In any case it just becomes dull and slightly soapy on me. I'd put King Cobra on my other wrist to compare (no, they're not really similar, but Wild Men wet is the sort of perfume I'd wear on similar occasions as King Cobra. I only need one, and I wanted to see which one I liked more) and it just gets better as it dries. My wallet, at least, is breathing a sigh of relief.

I loves me some rose, but cedar and I do not get along - I amp both. In Pulcinella & Teresina this results in a painfully sweet, strong blend with a faint hint of... pickles? Not exactly pickles, but the "something sour" that other reviewers mentioned. This one is not for me. Which, honestly, is just as well considering the number of CD bottles I already want to get with my August order.

Me: Vetiver, hey Vetiver, can we talk? Vetiver: SURE ANN, WHAT'S UP?! Me: Could you umm... could you not yell? You know I hate that. Vetiver: WHAT? OH Sure. Sorry. Me: I just don't think this is working out. You know? Our relationship. Vetiver: But what... what did I do? Me: It's not you, it's me. The chemistry just isn't there... hey is that coconut? And vanilla? *sniffs* Vetiver: Yeah, they came over to hang out. Me: I... you know what Veti? Nevermind. I think I can give this another chance. Vetiver is usually one of my death notes. But it death adder I can tell how it's SUPPOSED to smell. It's not overpowering the blend (like it usually does) and it's actually... pleasant. I don't think I'll be getting a bottle - I like others in the snake pit better and the SO never really emerges in the drydown of this one - but this is the first vetiver blend I've tried where the idea of getting a bottle even crossed my mind.

I use a ceramic chopstick to apply from my BPAL bottles and clean it with alcohol when I'm done. TALs and things like sleep oils (TKO etc) I just apply by blocking the bottle with my thumb and tipping (since I'm not worried about someday trading these / changing the scent). I have to be careful with heavier scents to dip just the tip of the chopstick in - it carries a lot more oil than an imp wand.

Pickled Imp (along with Boomslang) was a decant I got in order to See What All the Fuss Was About. I didn't really get Boomslang, but I've joined the Pickled Imp bandwagon. I can pick out each of the notes, and they combine into something delicious but not foody, creamy, but so sharp it actually stings my nose when I first apply it. The drydown softens it quite a bit, but the spice remains for a good long time, eventually dying away into a whisper of vanilla and pine sap. Watch out for the imp if you have sensitive skin, it might bite! I see a 5ml in my future.

((First off <3 to Ms. Tania for her lovely lot of CD decants, as I've mentioned elsewhere they arrived on a day when I sorely needed a pick-me-up.)) Arachnina was one of those decants you decide to try, but aren't expecting to actually like. While none of the notes screamed DEATH to me, the frequent mentions of this one smelling "perfumey" made me wary. And people are right, Arachnina does smell perfumey. But it's a good perfume. The notes combine to be greater than the sum of their parts and the scent seems to evolve constantly - I couldn't even smell the patchouli (which normally POPS on me) until I'd had it on an hour. This is a full-bodied scent, mature, rich, and (as others have said) a touch malevolent. I agree that this scent is evocative of an older woman - but once it begins to dry it softens a touch, and honestly I think anyone could wear it (and if you like it, you definitely SHOULD wear it!). I'm not decided on a bottle yet, mainly due to lack of storage and budget (my next order is already looking HUGE and I'm still waiting on some decants to try ). Reality being what it is, I'm not sure I'll wear this one enough to warrent a bottle, especially as it reminds me a bit of Penumbra and the Misfortune Teller. I'll have to test it against those two (and against Ashlultum, my other potential "adult lady" scent) before I decide.