urbanmaenad

Lampades Wet: tart cranberry, almost grapey in its intensity, with a bit of dark, leafy green, a faint whiff of musk and light soapiness underneath that must be the lily. Very bright, purple-red scent initially. Almost stings the nose (in a good way), just slight green earthiness undercutting the berry. Dry down: not much morph during dry down. Still a quite pleasantly sharp, intense cranberry. Throw so far is light/moderate. A few minutes later the floral/musk component is moving more noticeably toward the front, taking on a softer, somewhat powdery/sweet tone under the initial bite of the cranberry and ginger. The green element from the Mediterranean herbs seems to have disappeared completely, which makes me sad. We are definitely moving toward a sweeter, slightly powdery finish, I think. I blame my skin and the presence of lilies - we do not mix well. Dry: Sigh. While the tart cranberry is still detectable with a good sniff, this unfortunately morphed from a bright, shiny red berry scent tempered by a dark green leafy background into a dull, dry red (think deep red lipstick matted by layers of powder). It’s just musky and floral enough to have a slightly dizzying/headachy effect on me. This may work for me as a locket or room scent, as I love the initial red/green burst of tart freshness (which doesn’t so much scream berry at me as it does a “walk in lush, damp woods” without the astringency of pine. I just can’t hack the musk or flowers. Maybe I’ll try blending with my beloved Red Queen, which morphs quickly into all wood on me, and thus may have the ability to temper the powder effect, and give me that wet-red-berry-wood scent I’ve been longing for… Rating (1-5 with 5 being pure awesomeness): 3.5

Deep mahogany and rich, velvety woods lacquered with sweet, black-red cherries and currant. The Red Queen In imp: bright cherries and just a bit of currant, fresh with slightly candied edge, but not overly medicinal. No cough syrup for me. Wet: cherries against a very faint background of chocolate and a touch of soft, dry wood. Drydown: pretty much instantly, this turns to almost straight wood (probably me, amping like crazy) — definitely a smooth, polished wood — eclipsing the cherries almost entirely. Dry: the cherries are back (just barely), a very faint presence around the edges of the wood. There is a very cedar-like tone to the wood itself (I’m not too familiar with mahogany, so I may just be making the closest comparison). This is a very smooth blend - there doesn’t seem to be any infighting. Very suitable for the lab’s description, and a polished, sophisticated scent once it passes the initial blast of fruitiness. Verdict: I wore nothing but the Body Shop’s woody sandalwood for years, until my chemistry (or their formula) changed and we became totally incompatible. I have been searching for something to take its place for a long time, and I had high hopes for the Red Queen. Unfortunately, on me this blend has almost no throw, and fades to a barely detectable skin scent within 20 minutes of application — so from a purely practical standpoint, it would require constant reapplication or a total dousing to achieve the results I want: moderate throw and at least a few hours between applications. That said, in the few moments before this completely disappears into my skin, it is a really beautiful, calming, comfortable scent that I am totally enamored with. Maybe it’s time to throw practicality out the window!

Jack: such high hopes…on paper, this was just the thing I was looking for… In the bottle: Holy deliciousness, Batman! Burnt caramel with an undertone of spices and a faint nuttiness - exactly what I wanted! Wet: very little change from in the bottle…really, really nice. Strong, but not overbearing. Dry-down: loosing the burnt edge, getting more spices coming through, and lots of pumpkin…still really wonderful! Dry: four hours later, Jack has mellowed out quite a bit, and something strange is happening…the initial scent remains brown-sugary with a dash of spices…and underneath…CELERY? Yup…that is the scent of cold, bitter celery. Darn. I will have to try this a few more times, I think. I’m just not ready to give up yet, but this celery business is…weird.

Blood Kiss: something awful happened here. I ordered the imp and was 90 % sure I would love it based on the description…but I was sorely mistaken. I do not have what you’d call a sophisticated nose, so I can’t separate exactly what it was that did me in…but, when introduced to my chemistry, this went horrifically METALLIC. I waited it out, hoping that it would mellow down, but every sniff sent rusty daggers into my brain. The really aggravating part was that I could tell there was something complex and potentially wonderful going on underneath the acrid smell of red-hot instruments of torture…but it could not break through! I am confused and somewhat baffled by this new aspect of my chemistry, and wish I could pin down the enemy note/s to prevent future disappointment, but I just don’t know…