Tess

In the bottle - So much myrrh, dear gods! o_o There's a touch of that mimosa and some dust, but no currant at all. Wet - MYRRH. MYRRH. Drying - Oh, ew, the mandrake is not working well on me at all. It and the mimosa are just so sour on me. There's a gorgeous halo of myrrh floating on top, but it's so sour on my skin. Gah. Dry (2 hours) - Well, it's myrrh? Overall - I love myrrh, I really do, especially the Lab's myrrh, but the other notes just did not work for me.

In the bottle - There is carnation in this, which I love, giving it a certain spice. The aquatics are heavy and warm to my nose, like fog on a warm day over a pond and some wildflowers. Not nearly as oppressive as I thought it would be. Wet - Here comes that metallic tang aquatics give me. Drying - As strange as this sounds, this is -the- most aquatic scent I think I've had the chance to try. The florals are a massive presence here, with some sort of white floral (lotus, I think) drowning out my lovely carnation and giving the aquatic notes a run for their money. And the entire thing is STRONG. Very, very strong. Dry (2 hours) - This dries to a non-discript white floral. Soft, unassuming, bland. Overall - An interesting scent, very much a nice aquatic for people who like those sorts of scents.

In the bottle - Very leafy with an astringent hazel bite to it. I'm getting a touch of rosewood, but the green is so jarring that it's hard to focus on it. Wet - I use witch hazel on my face and this smells so strongly of it... Drying - Rosewood is THERE, it's just under all that astringent green. It seriously is smelling like I'm wearing rosewood perfume right after having used my witch hazel toner, it's that strong. It just needs to calm the hell down and mellow out and it could be nice. Right now it's headache making territory. >_< Dry (3 hours) - It stayed green until it had faded to a light, soapy rosewood. That's all it is now. Overall - I could sense the things I wanted from this, but it was just stomped on by that darned leafy note. Grr.

In the bottle - I'm finding this surprisingly good for a floral blend. There's just a hint of mint for zing and a decent amount of thyme for an herbal edge. The rose -is- a bit soapy, but it's white. The daisy is a lovely, cheerful top. Not overpowering at all, thank goodness, just a light blend. Wet - Ever more floral. Drying - The rose is really coming forward, sadly. It's making this very, very floral and very soapy. It's no longer that nice, white rose that I enjoy, it's starting to turn either yellow or pink, drowning out some of the nicer elements to this. Dry (2 hours) - Hrm, this is very generic floral. Very light. Very unassuming. Overall - Nope.

In the bottle - Coconut milk, fig, honey and some 'grante in there. Very fruit and creamy and light. I really like this one! Wet - Calming right down on me, less coconut. Drying - The milk fades away on me and the sweet becomes more understated, making this a very creamy fig-honey scent. Which I love. There's some serious 'granate in here, too, although the grapes are very light. This is just lovely. So, so nice. Dry (2 hours) - Fig stays in the front, with a nice light honey plays in the back. It's very figgy, which I love. Overall - This is probably my favorite of the moons ever. It's so delightfully light and fruity, with just a hint of sweet and creaminess. So very much love!

In the bottle - Cherry and lily are very front-loaded in this. I'm not usually a cherry fan, but the lily is really mixing in a very nice way with it, keeping it from being overly sweet. Wet - Cheeeeeeerry! Drying - Really, I feel like I shouldn't like this but I somehow do! It's a strong oil with lots of throw and it's all lilies in cherry syrup. But somehow it works! I know a lot of people in reviews say this doesn't remind them of the Queen of Hearts, but it really does for me. Story time: When I was a little girl, my parents encouraged me to try out for a kiddy musical, "Alice in Wonderland." At first I very much wanted to be the Cheshire Cat (another favorite oil, BTW!), but due to height and my low, booming voice, I was cast as the Queen. My family was beside themselves and worked hard to make my part a success. My grandmother helped with the costume, my sister got us a videocamera to tape it... It was such a fantastic experience that I stayed with drama for many, many years. And this scent brings up that memory for me. It's cherry candy for the Queen's overly fake-sweet treatment of Alice with a regal lily perfume that she could anoint herself to show her station. Dry (2 hours) - And sadly, it soaps all the way out. Overall - Darn it, I wanted this to work.

In the bottle - Musky, smokey and almost... minty? There's an unwashed feeling to this scent, which I'm not sure I like very much. Wet - Seriously, what is this mint I'm getting? Drying - Wow, this is settling into a very... dirty scent. Not Graveyard Dirt dirt, but unwashed body dirty. And musty. It's so far very unpleasant on me. I'm also getting tobacco and leather, which is good. But it's just so unwashed on me! Dry (2 hours) - Super settled. And it's nothing but sweet musk. And that's all. Overall - Not for me at all. I thought it would be, but no.

In the bottle - This is very interesting and well blended. It's hard for me to pick up notes here, but I'm getting some aquatic florals. That's not to say it's "flowery" because it's not, that's just the only for sure note I can get. Wet - Much more lily now. Drying - Night over a calm pond with lilies. It's that captured in a perfume, which just enough musk to make it smell like it IS a perfume. As it warms with my skin, it's becoming more and more a perfume scent, mostly with those lilies and musk, but it's still very aquatic. Dry (3 hours) - Frankly? I smell like a grandmother. Soft floral and slightly musky. Overall - Not for me at all, bah.

In the bottle - The cherry isn't at all strong to my nose and it has a booze feel to it. It's creamy and sweet. It's also very, very LIGHT. Wet - Uh oh. The cherry seems to be turning... Drying - It's not turning as badly as I thought. The sweetness has really disappeared, being replaced by a very dark, sort of fake smelling cherry. I take that back. The cherry isn't so much that it's fake, it's just very, very dark and lightly powdery. When I think of "fake cherry," it's that overly sweet flavoring kind. This is not sweet. Not sweet at all anymore, actually, nor is it creamy. Just spooky black cherry. Dry (2 hours) - Okay, NOW it's fake cherry on me. Overall - Blah, I have no luck with foody scents at all.

In the bottle - Very, very strong rose. It's heady like mad. There's something else in there, but the rose is just destroying everything else. Wet - Okay, a musky spice is coming out now. Drying - This is just so very rose. Almost pure rose with nothing else to it. I can almost get some musk, but it's just really, well, ROSE. Dry (2 hours) - Rose. Overall - This was rose from start to finish. My skin didn't like it.

A scent that captures a meeting of the serenity and elegance of ancient Japan, the vibrant, shining, neon-lit and ultra-modern splendor of today's Tokyo and the fantastic electric fantasyland of post-modern manga fantasy. Urban metallics and an ozone-tinged breath of electric light mingled with reedy bamboo, crisp mountain air, cherry blossoms, delicate orchid and a splash of playful, wet fruits. In the bottle - I'm getting a lot of the florals, orchid in particular, although cherry blossom is making itself known, too. The ozone and the bamboo are coming through behind, giving it a zing. Wet - Orchid really isn't that bad of a floral to my nose so far. Drying - ...okay, I didn't SLATHER, but I put quite a bit of this on and it is very, very light. I'm pressing my nose to my wrist to pick up anything. What I -am- getting is quite a lovely, understated yellow floral scent. Somehow cherry blossom (white/pink) plus orchid (white/purple) makes yellow! Dry (2 hours ) - This has dried down to cherry blossom, which is sweet and powdery on my skin. And very soft still. Overall - I liked this more than I thought, but it was all so very faint on me. I guess that fits with the idea of a closely packed population where they pack you into subway cars like sardines.

In the bottle - Very heavy on the wood and the patchouli, with a sweet undertone that I actually find very disturbing. It's like the caramel is trying to tempt me into some old attic. Wet - Even sweeter now, if you can believe that! Drying - The caramel has backed off to a low, glowing sweetness, thank goodness. It's very, very patchouli, though, with a touch of hazelnut wood, but extremely patchouli. Not as dark a patchouli as in some other blends, at least, and the other notes are at least keeping it from becoming simplistic, but I'm not sure about smelling so heavily of the stuff. Dry (3 hours) - This has stayed very true to before. I smell like I'm an old, dirty wooden crate with bits of dried caramel on me. Overall - ....yeah, not the best image to have. LOL

In the bottle - Oh, this is glorious! A smooth lemon with musk and opium, with just a touch of the apricot flower. Smooth and just sweet enough, with a darkness lurking in the background. So lovely. Wet - The opium has a bitter bite to it right now. Drying - Just like in the bottle, only with a softer lemon. It's very, very faint, however. My skin is eating this right up. Dry (2 hours) - It's so faint, but so GOOD. The coconut came out and mixed with the scent in beautiful ways. It still has that smooth lemon and the musk, although the opium has faded. Overall - So NICE, but so FAINT. : /

In the bottle - This is very oddly put together. The cherry is very at the front and very sweet, but not "sticky" if that makes sense. The patchouli and cardamom are very prevalent and it's jarring. It's an uneven scent. Wet - Even more cherry than before. Drying - Wow, this is disappearing rapidly! In about 1 minute it went from being uncertain about a strong scent to being utterly gone. Utterly! There is nothing left at all but the very faint scent of unscented oil. This is the strangest thing I've ever had happen. Dry (30 minutes) - I feel like I should wait around for my wrist to start smelling again. I even reapplied, hoping to inspire it to do something. But... no. Overall - What can I say about something that doesn't stick around at all?

In the bottle - Black amber with a fruity kick and then (hi there!) lots of that floral scent I always get from dragon's blood. Wet - Er, fruity florals. Drying - Wow, this backed off like nobody's business. And it's pure, strong floral. Just the florals from the dragon's blood bouquet, not any of that lovely rose geranium that I love. So in other words, I smell like a very strong lilac bush with some jasmine in it. Ugh. Dry (3 hours) - I have a headache from this. It's settled into something I can't name, something musky and basic. Overall - Not for me.

In the bottle - A very complex scent! Rose, tobacco and sandalwood are most upfront, but there's honey and clove in there sweetening the deal. Wet - The tobacco popped out for just a second... Drying - ...and then was pushed away by the rose. The sweetness seems to be mostly disappearing on me. The floral notes are getting tied down to some extent by the incense and the deeper scents, but rose is still right there in the front. (What is it with roses doing that to me, lately?) I am -not- getting carnation, which makes me sad, since I love that note. Dry (2 hours) - Hrm, powdery but actually a very nice honey/rose/sandalwood. Surprisingly decent throw still, too. Overall - If it didn't take the rose so long to settle down (and if the rose didn't powder out so much), this'd be a keeper. Oh well, it's still quite a lovely scent.

In the bottle - I -think- I have the 2007 version of this, since it's spelled right on the label... I'm getting a lot of champaca and rose, with a touch of the incense and a smidge of honey and vanilla. I strangely like it despite it being a floral. Wet - Holy... hello, flower!!! Drying - The rose is heady and overpowering everything else in this. I get the sense of what I was smelling in the bottle underneath, but the rose is popping out to the point where it's extremely difficult to smell anything else except as a slight "aura." Boo. Dry (3 hours) - Well, it's less heady, but it's still FLOWERS with other stuff just lingering in the background. Overall - I didn't expect this to be quite so floral on me. I'm sure on someone else it'll work nicely, as it seems awesome in the bottle.

In the bottle - Smoke and wood, wet wood, and sweaty skin. The wood is almost a fruit wood (apple bark?), but not quite. It is very smokey, but sweeter than I expected. Wet - Somehow this got even -more- smokey. Drying - Oh, the smell of the forest is coming out. I can completely see why people said this smells like camping! Living trees and forest and smoke with just a hit of skin to it. This is absolutely lovely, absolutely. It doesn't smell terribly "wild woman" to me, but more "outdoors." Dry (2 hours) - Hrm, the smoke is mostly gone. It's become a nice musk and incense scent. Still quite nice, but not nearly as complex as before. Also it seems even sweeter. Overall - It really is a lovely, lovely scent. I'm actually finding myself enjoying this far more than I thought I would and I might be hardpressed to give it up!

In the bottle - This is heavy on the vetiver and the dragon's blood to my nose. The musk and cocoa are there, though, lingering with it. It's a very dark scent over all. Wet - There's something almost minty here tingling the back of my throat. Drying - And odd scent. I'm having trouble picking up individual notes from this now. My impression of it is just dark, dark, dark with a bit of florals. (Yes, it's the dragon's blood making it floral to my nose.) This reminds me of a slightly more complex version of Dragon's Heart. Dry (3 hours) - Dusty dragon's blood (real dragon's blood, I mean, the resin scent) with some musk to it. But faint. Overall - Too dark for my tastes.

In the bottle - This smells exactly like a Mudslide, no lie! Well, like a mudslide cake. Wet - This backed off to a very faint "cake batter." Drying - I demand more Kalua to this mudslide! I smell nothing unless my nose is RIGHT up against my wrist. What I do get is cake batter with some faint cream and chocolate. However it's almost all cake batter, at least what I can pick up at all. Dry (2 hours) - Pure cake batter now. Bah. A little on the playdoh, too. Overall - Did I expect it to work for me? Nah, not really.

DXXII In the bottle - So very grapefruit. There's a faint of something else that is keeping it from getting too tart. I'm tempted to say something evergreen. Wet - I so love grapefruit. Drying - Oh yes, I'm getting either fir or juniper here. The grapefruit is backing off as it usually does, but this is a very, very nice halo I've got going on. It's a happy scent that isn't overpowering at all. This is fantastic, I'm really loving it. Dry (2 hours) - This is still very true to the drying stage. I'm almost positive that it's juniper in there with the grapefruit and the combination just WORKS. Overall - Very, very nice. Not terribly strong on me, but very nice. I'm quite happy with this one, it's lovely!

In the bottle - Mmm, grapefruity tea with a little kick of ginger. Yum, yum, yum! Wet - Oh hey, there's the apple blossom. Kinda candy-ish. Drying - O-oh hey, there's the apple blossom. Lots and lots of apple blossom. Soapy apple blossom. Okay, there's some tea left, but the grapefruit and the ginger have hit the trails. This smells exactly like soap to my nose. Dry (2 hours) - This is just gone. Overall - If only my skin hadn't taken the apple blossom and exploded it.

In the bottle - Very sweet, but it seems deeper than candy corn to me. It's hard to explain, but there's more there than pure sugar that I associate with candy corn. Wet - This somehow got even SWEETER. Drying - That deepness I was talking about I think was vanilla, a rich vanilla. This is so much more grown-up than simple candy corn. It's like a warm bourbon vanilla. Much more lovely than I had expected, which I can't say I'm sad about! Dry (4 hours) - This dries down to candy corn. EXACTLY like candy corn. There was a stage there where I smelt of playdo, but right now it's pure candy. Faint, but candy. Overall - This is one of my favorite candy scents, I must say. It actually works with my skin, it's amazing!

In the bottle - This smells LOVELY. Sweet and woody and musky. I cannot WAIT to put this on! Wet - Mmm, saffron... Drying - Okay, it's a bit "alcohol" smelling. Not in a "yum alcohol!" but in a perfume alcohol way. But even with that, it's just fantastic. Deeply musky with woods and sweet spice. It reminds me of a woody, deeper version of Oisin. Which makes me happy. Dry (45 minutes) - It hasn't been that long, but I'm just adoring this so much! It's very true to the previous stages and really is the darker, more woody Oisin. Overall - YES. This is a big, big YES. Gods, this is such a bottle scent for me.

In the bottle - The usual florals that make up the lab's dragon's blood added to a very strong salt wiff. If I weren't a dedicated scent reviewer, I would completely pass this up. Wet - Lilac and lily, as per usual, with no brine in sight. Drying - There really is no salt here for me. This is like Dragon's Blood, only a bit softer on the nose. As if the salt isn't there but the oil is holding back the full flower punch of the lab's dragon's blood bouquet. Can't say I'm angry about that. The lilac and lily, while strong, aren't intense to the point of headache. At least not yet. Dry (2 hours) - Wow, the salt has made this smell more like dragon's blood than any other BPAL I think I've tried! It still has quite a bit of lilac to it, but I can actually smell dragon's blood! The salt picked up a nice tang to it, but I don't like the combination of the scents. Overall - Nope, not for me. I need to find a good "salt" scent someday, though.