zankoku_zen

On application I get roses and almost a spicy, resinous incense with a hint of powder. It might be violet powder actually. I find this scent to stay very close to your skin... and after an hour, on me, it just smells like really good talcum powder. BOO.

So upon application, this is a medicinal/herby honey. And you really can't smell it if you put your nose close to your skin. The honey bouquet smell really wafts around you and I find that to be able to appreciate it, you really have to smell it from far away (meaning, no nose to wrist). I basically get a cloud of honey around my wrist, and it's pretty noticeable. It's not obnoxiously sweet or aggressive, like when honey is part of other blends. That might be because of the aging.

This is a dark, and sweet floral. It's subtle and pretty, but unfortunately in the drydown, I get something that smells like pinesol on me. Sad.

Wow, this one is really a banana! It smells like sweet bananas and dirt! Over time, I get bananas, dirt and a hint of something that smells like raisins. ... What an olfactory experience. It is surprisingly more wearable than I imagined. If you're looking for a banana scent, this is totally it! Move over Manila!

This one is a dragon's blood resin on me - sweet, spicy with hints of sugared mints and herbs. Overall, it doesn't change much from that except to get a little more flowery. Yeah. It didn't work out for us.

This smells like cake batter! Slightly coconutty, buttery cake batter. Unfortunately, as it dries, it goes to plastic on me. Ah well.

So far, this has GOT to be my favorite of the Phoenixs... It's a green, soft aquatic a mix of salty and sweet. I do think there might be some sweet pea in it but it isn't aggressive. It smells pretty, feminine and comforting. I might have to track a partial of this!

I think there's dragon blood resin and jasmine in this. This is a sweet, spicy incensey blend with a jasmine overlay. Seeing how I don't love jasmine, this isn't the kind of blend I'd wear. But I do have to agree --- it is seductive in its vibe!

Part of me really enjoys this. I get a lot of the cherry blossom - it's young, spring like, festive. Cute. It's a bright and happy floral. Very simple. Delicate without being wilting. Pretty. And I would think very appropriate for a young girl.

This one is a dark blend! I get the smoky bacon/vetivert with an edge of pine but it turns into smoky bacon and sexy musk. Go figure.

Ohgod, I get the jasmine of doom in this blend. It's sharp, floral, and the jasmine is so predominant, and it gets the dreaded cat pee edge. Even my son, whose not into describing smells and is going through that lovely stage in which farts and fart jokes are the best thing in the world, went "Ew!"

I get some of the light musk, dusty paper and linen --- but really, it just smells like pencil shavings on me. Nice pencil shavings, but still... pencil shavings. SAD!

Oh man, this was a sweet red wine and roses scent. It's got a bit of a bite and it's very sensual. As it dries however, it just becomes red red roses. You know the kind. Big. Voluptous. Sensual. Ah, if I only liked slutty roses.

Okay, this is basically dragon's blood resin and amber on me. It's a sweet, spicy amber blend. Unfortunately the amber goes powdery on me after about an hour.

Wow, this is the fruitiest thirteen... ever. I definitely get the peach, the starfruit, the overlay of honey. If there is chocolate it is way way in the background. It's like a dessert of honeyed peaches with shaved chocolate on top. Damn... now I'm hungry...

Oh man, this one is like a cookie version of 13 --- I get the cocoa, the spices and something that just screams "Cookie!" at me. I think its the combination of vanilla and sandalwood that is the most prevalent.

Thanks to Dark Alice for the sniffie frimp of this! Whew! Another bullet dodge here. I mean, sure I get the eggnog + coffee thing going on. It's creamy and just like eggnog with the strong coffee base --- and then it veers straight into plastic egg nog land. Ah well... it could be worse I suppose.

Oh man, I'm kinda confused about what is in this thing --- I think it's pear and not apple, definitely cinnamon and some other spice, I get both the pine and a hint of wine as a base. It smells Christmassy and festive and like a party scent. Definitely has that red-brown-golden vibe to it. Mmm. Tasty.

Pine trees and gin! This is what it smells like. I get the pine, which on me is amped up with the juniper. If this is what lycanthropes smell like, they must be Santa's bodyguards! I can't fear something that smells like it could be hoisted on top of a Christmas tree in a moment of drunken revels. I mean, just ask Anthony Bourdain about that....

Ah, yes, evil maple syrup incense. That's pretty much what is smells like. Deep, dark, lurking evil incense with just enough sweetness to make it all that more... well, evil.

Urd started as a smoky floral, and now has just debased herself to a floral patchouli. ... It makes me sad, it does.

This one is a nice softly green scent - limey, fizzy currants with herbs. Very pretty, crisp and clear. Yum!

Flowers! Flowers! I mean, really, it's a giant bouquet and mish-mashed and while floral, I feel like I smell something a bit different every time I sniff. Once I think I got parsley leaf, the other daffodil, the other time I swear it might have been tulip. It makes my nose explode.

Oh god, this is green. Green grass, moss and cucumber. It's light and fresh, and smells utterly clean. Yeah, I don't exactly know what to do with this... I kinda like it and kinda wish I didn't. Since its so rare. But yeah.... GREEN love. Which just seems appropriate. Really. ETA: Now that I've have had it for a while, I def. smell a hint of melon (which may or may not be lettuce) at the beginning and clover. On the drydown it shares a lot of similarities with Host of Air. Which is totally okay with me.

GOP does start out fairly masculine, with a fairly polished woodsy scent with curls of cigar smoke. It smells moneyed, powerful. There's a splash of cologne in this mix as well. After about an hour, the drydown is a smidge powdery, like the guy has grown a potbelly from too many good dinners.