Invidiana

This is very "humid" feeling and green, slightly lemony like the perfume oil (though the perfume oil is really lemony on me since I amp myrtle to no avail). Not really my type of thing, but I can appreciate the thoughts of Anne Rice's visions of New Orleans that it evokes.

I love this; it definitely creates an "autumn grove" atmosphere right in my room. I get mostly the dry leaves and smoky oak bark, with something nutty in the background which I take to be the acorn note. This also has a "cool" feeling to it too, like a brisk autumn breeze whipping through skeletal branches.

Red, bloody, sensual pomegranate. I'm saving this one for Valentine's season! Unless I end up craving it ravenously and uncontrollably before that of course.

This reminds me of shoving my face in my plastic pumpkin bucket and huffing deeply after trick-or-treating. It's like a melange of every Halloween candy imaginable (except those ghastly Charleston Chews--yeccch), sweet but not cloying, and now I can huff it without sticking my head in a pumpkin.

This smells just like Samhain does on me, really. It's warm and smoky with that same honeyed qulity that the oil gets on my skin, which I'm assuming is coming from the apple, pumpkin and sweet resin combined. Good thing I have enough to last me till next Halloween!

This reminds me very much of Tricksy bath oil, but sweeter with the apple; still strong enough to leave a scent trail behind, perfect for layering with other autumnal stuff. Actually come to think of it, it's something like the love child of Tricksy and Samhain. For me that's love.

The perfect creamy and buttery (but not too buttery) balance of sweet pumpkin, vanilla and something nutty, possibly some honey in there too? The overall impression is a warm and creamy pumpkin custard-type thing--not quite creme brulee because there is no burnt sugar note, but defintiely pumpkin custard cream with nutty undertones. Of course since I don't have the gallons of this to spare that I wish I did I'm going to be really picky about when I wear it!

This is smoky, woody autumnal love. If you're into L'Autunno, you'll be a fan of this one too. It's great that I don't need much to scent not just my tub but my entire bathroom afterwards (and a good part of the hall too!). I definitely get the patchouli and smoky woods the most; I sense a very slight sweetness from the honey but if you want it sweeter, do like I did and mix with a honey or vanilla-scented bubble bath; you'll never want to get out of the tub! It's also great that this lingers on my skin and provides a warm and sexy base for another autumnal scent like October.

This turns out warm and grainy/woody with a slightly sweet/musky drydown from the amber, but then again most drydowns end up somewhat musky on my skin. Not really for me, but for anyone who liked Traipsing Through the Crop Circles, I definitely recommend this one.

This is very, very strong on what I believe is vetiver/clove/earth; I do get something slightly tangy in the background which I'm taking to be the blood accord, but alas it's just too masculine for me.

I can't believe I never posted a review for this one--it's raw, highly sexual honey that's predominantly honey wet and dries down to reveal a musky amber base and swirls of vanilla. One of my GC holy grails.

This is an absolutely delicious, golden honeyed almond scent with an extra ribbon of sensuality in the background; I don't know exactly what spices, definitely not cardamom since that would definitely show up on me, maybe a hint of cinnamon? Whatever else is in this, it's mostly dominated by the honey and almond in all their thick, luscious glory and I love it. ADDED Jan. 24: This is amazing on me; all golden honeyed almonds with whispers of spice, but it's really the thick golden honey and sweet almond that steal the show. For some reason it makes me think of Cleopatra getting naughty with Marc Antony and a jar of honey.

I had such high hopes for this, thinking maybe the jasmine wouldn't show up...but it did, and trampleda ll over everything else. Behind the cat pee jasmine overtones, which is what my skin typcially does with BPAL jasmine. I can sense the sweet almond with a sultry muskiness, but it's too far gone with the jasmine to distinguish everything else.

A sweet and slightly fruity floral, very appropriate for the name and theme. There is a little bit of bubblegumminess in there from the lotus and resinous muskiness from the amber. Not unpleasant, but not sure it's really for me.

This is just about a rose single note on me; I can detect the slightest whisper of cinnamon somewhere, and the fact I don't get more surprises me because I usually amp it, but I also amp rose in many cases so in this case it seems that in the battle to amp the rose won. This is pretty for someone who is into fresh rose scents like Rose Red and Peacock Queen but I personally much prefer the proto because it's backed by what I believe are dark resins and tonka.

Unfortunately this spider bit me with a vengeance. Most all BPAL jasmine does not agree wtih my skin, so anything else was basically destroyed by strong sour cat pee overtones. What a shame, because I could tell there was something potentially dark and beautiful going on with the wine, myrrh, sandalwood and patchouli but the jasmine amped to infinity and ruined it.

Here comes the carnation to haunt me again. Wet it actually smelled sweet, even a hint candyish from what I believe is the treacle, and seemed somewhat promising but it dried down to essentially all carnation on me--what do I expect, I amp the stuff like the devil. So on me this basically turned into candied carnation.

Fruity and effervescent; initially fizzy tangerine, and dries down to reveal a still sweet-tart but more "pink" feel from the passionfruit and guava that compliments the tangerine very well. This isn't really boozy per se, just has an extra kick of fizz from the gin and tonic.

This is a cool autumn day captured in a bottle. The falling leaves aspect is not as strong as October but is still adrift in there giving it a distinctly autumnal feel. It's not a screeching floral at all; the orris gives it a "downy" feel because it does go slightly powdery on me (but in a good way) and the other flowers are not overbearing but delicate and crystalline. Thankfully I don't get any intense greenness or manliness from the chypre but it is a white chypre after all. Overall this is oddly comforting and eerily beautiful.

I'm not alwasy quite the best of friends with orange blossom, but whatever kind is in this behaves beautifully. It's really more of a fierce--not sharp, just full-bodied--citrusy scent fired up with red patchouli. Maybe it's the blending of the orange blossom and patchouli that has that effect with my chemistry, I don't know but I couldn't stop huffing my wrist.

For something based off a nasty insect this is actually pretty yummy. It's very much like orange spice tea, like that Southern sweet orange pekoe tea, but more resinous and spiced with hints of pepper , cinnamon and cardamom. Thankfully this type of cardamom is the newer one that behaves on my skin because there is a certain type from I think it was before '07 that I turn to nutty plastic but not this one. Thank you Labbies for the awesome gift and fantastic weekend, and we hope you come by here again next year!

This is very much like a sprayable Midway , though a bit more on the cakey side but still with plenty of sugary and caramelly goodness to balance it out as well. I also detect a bit of spice which isn't in Midway but still delicious. I didn't really detect the wood note too much but then again I was inundated with scents that day so I'll give it some closer inspection soon.

This is a fresh green scent with a certain "humid" quality to it evocative of the New Orleans atmosphere, probably from the moss. I can definitely smell some sort of myrtle in there too, not quite sure what type but possibly lemon myrtle. Not really for me, but definitely one for green fans to check out.

I just bathed in this today and have to keep reminding myself not to lick it (as Ted said when I was huffing it at the NYCC booth "no funny business!" ) It's like candy apple perfectly balanced with sweet-tart lemon drops. Yum.

Here's to one of the few aquatics I can actually wear without turning it into generic soap. I would have passed this by had it not been for the "balsamic" in the description; I love balsam and also have a certain fondness for sweetgrass in the right blend (like L'Autunno bath oil). Thankfully I don't turn it to swamp and amp the balsam and sweetgrass the most, with the greener and "reedy" notes staying well-behaved in the background. There is enough green and salty water to stay true to the theme but it's not overwhelmingly seaweedy. It actually reminds me more of the smell outside after an autumn rainstorm rather than a swamp. Overall it's a resinous dark green scent with aquatic elements, very unique and strangely attractive.