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In the vial: Hello, cocoa! This smells exactly like Velvet to me. I'm not getting anything else but cocoa and something woody; I don't know if calamus or tonka are wood notes, but that's the only explanation I can think of. As I keep on smelling, I start to get the lemon, so that it smells like one of those chocolate oranges, except lemon instead of orange. Wet: Unsurprisingly, my skin brings out the musk, turning this instantly into a deeper, darker scent. A few seconds later, and I think I can smell the vanilla, too. The cocoa is still prominent, however, while the lemon fades into the background. What a strange and complicated blend this is! Dry: Mmmmm, sweet, warm, toasted cocoa. But then another sniff and the lemon is back. And another sniff and it's full sandalwood again! This keeps changing by the second! First it resembles Snake Oil, then it turns around and resembles Dorian, and then it's back to Velvet. This is making me mad! An hour later: I forgot to come back and add in the last stage of the review and now I forget what Freak Show turned out to be. So I'll have to review it again, eventually! Overall: Ditto.

In the vial: Oh precious, darling dragon's blood... how I love you so. I have a tendency to compare each new dragon's blood blend to the others, and especially to the single note of Dragon's Blood. Dragon's Heart is less sweet and more musky than pure Dragon's Blood. This is a great balance between Blood Lotus and Dragon's Musk. Wet: Brighter than it was in the imp, and leaning more towards the Blood Lotus side of the spectrum. There's definite musk in this, though, and if I try really hard, I can catch the fig as well. Dry: Oh my god, so sensual and so gorgeous. There's not much more to say in the way of description. It really is an even mix of Blood Lotus and Dragon's Musk! An hour later: Still the same gorgeous scent. Overall: I'm trying not to like this more than Blood Lotus, since I just ordered a 10ml of Blood Lotus, and I won't be able to get a bottle of Dragon's Heart for awhile. But this is definitely the best Ars Draconis blend I've tried yet! Perfect for the person who loves dragon's blood with a bit of darkness.

In the vial: Overwhelmingly musk in a way that reminds me of The Body Shop's White Musk oil, but it's darkened by the sandalwood amber. There's a teensy bit of sweetness that might be the nutmeg, but I'm not getting a real nutmeg scent out of this. I can smell the mandarin very faintly in the background, but no rose whatsoever; and I'm not sure what saffron or bergamot smell like so I can't be sure if I am or am not catching these. Wet: Goes very sweet and almondy for the briefest second before the sweetness disappears completely and I'm left with almost pure sandalwood. If I try really hard I can still catch the musk in there, but I'm not getting any other note. Dry: The musk and amber have returned, and possibly the nutmeg, but it's still predominantly sandalwood. There are no traces of mandarin or rose. Normally I love sandalwood, but something in this blend is making giving it a strange bodily odor. An hour later: Why do I smell almonds? Otherwise, the sandalwood and musk, and I assume the other notes, have all melded into something undistinguishable, which I can describe by repeating those three words: strange bodily odor. Overall: I need to find out which note turns into sweat stench on me, because this keeps happening with theoretically nice blends. Baghdad is one place I won't be visiting if this is what it smells like.

In the vial: When I got this in the mail yesterday and first sniffed it, it was a nice autumn scent, but those signature lunar oils that seem to ruin every lunar blend for me were there and made it unpleasant. But now... it's all apple and pumpkin and wine goodness! I don't know what a single one of the floral notes smells like but this isn't floral in the least, nor do I have any idea of what amaranth or lingum aloes are so I couldn't tell you whether or not these show up. This reminds me a lot of Verdandi (why do so many blends do that?) but without the strong herbs. Wet: The apple goes on very flat due to the pumpkin, but very quickly the pumpkin steps aside and lets the apple tart up and comes alive. Sadly, it's goes powdery at the end of inhalation; I assume that's the woodsmoke. Dry: Oh no, the apple is... gone! Now it's all woods, still with that strange powdery smoke. There is something very faintly fruity, but I don't think it's apple, so it could be the grapes or berries. About a half hour in, the apple returns, and now it's a beautiful spicy, woodsy, sweet apple that I love! An hour later: The berries have joined the apple in a wondrous fruity celebration! The woods and wine are still there in the background, very faint, just strong enough to ground the fruits with a sense of autumn dryness. Overall: Very autumn, and therefore, I love it. Not quite as much as my other autumn scents, but well enough to keep it and use it throughout the next couple of months. Finally, a lunar blend that works on me!

In the vial: Almonds and cherry. Nothing overly spicy. I'm not sure why I wanted this, because honey and almond both don't like my skin, but here goes nothing... Wet: Almonds and cherry! It isn't changing at all. Maybe getting a little sweeter. Dry: Oh, there are the spices, although they're very woodsy and musky, and not sweet spice as in Snake Oil or Verdandi. Otherwise, the almond is still there in full force, but that cherry scent has disappeared completely. An hour later: Still very almond, though now there's an extra twist to it... it reminds me of sweet nutty bread. I can smell more of the honey now, and it's doing that unpleasant thing honey tends to do on me: it's a sickly sweet, rotten powder smell. Overall: I knew I wouldn't like this. Swap pile, here it comes!

In the vial: Candy! That is the first thing that popped into my head, though I couldn't tell you what sort of candy. The peach is definitely there, but very faint, and I can only smell the vanilla because I know it's what's making this so sweet. I catch the amber in the background, making this a tiny bit resiny, and keeping it from being purely foody. Very sweet, very sticky, very warm. Wet: The peach comes out a bit more, but it's still not the authentic tart peach I would like; then again, this is peach blossom so that's probably why. As the seconds pass I start to smell the sandalwood. This is still very sweet, but it doesn't smell like vanilla to me. Dry: It's starting to remind me of Dorian with its fruity sweetness. It's also grown a tad bit smoky in a very interesting way, and it could be my imagination but I think I'm smelling a bit of cold mint as well. I'm still not picking up any floral whatsoever. An hour later: Now the peach smells more like a real peach! Except it's not, because it's much too sweet and sugary to be a real peach. This is Fuzzy Peach candy, oh yes, that's exactly what is it. I no longer smell the sandalwood or amber, but that's all right, possibly even for the better because this is so damn delicious! Overall: Yum, yum, yum! I want to eat myself up! Anyone who loves sweet foody scents, as I do, will not be able to resist Tamora. I can't wait to walk around smelling like such delicious candy! This might even have to go onto my bottle wishlist!

In the vial: "This is one evil flower," I thought to myself when I first smelled this. After reading the description, I was amused to see how right I was: Belladonna is the devil's herb. Like the oil itself, this scent is utterly green, very dark, all floral and wood and grass. There's a bite of eucalyptus in the background, giving both a mint and medicinal smell that strangely enough reminds me a bit of Snake Oil. My overall impression of this scent is that it's an evil, corrupted flesh-eating plant. Wet: Pine screams out angrily for a few seconds before the eucalyptus pulls ahead. There's also a very unpleasant body odor going on here; I wonder if it could be because I put Belladonna on my wrist where I had a different blend earlier today. Let me put it on elsewhere... all right. Yes, there's the flash of pine again, and the chilly eucalyptus... and that gross body odor! What the hell! Dry: The scent has softened so much I can hardly smell it anymore! Luckily, that means I can hardly smell that disgusting sweaty odor, either. What I can smell is almost nothing like it was in the imp, sadly. It's still green and floral, but it's no longer evil. It's a mix between Bayou and Snake Oil. An hour later: It's faded even more; it's almost fully gone. There's still the tiniest bit of green woods, and cooling eucalyptus... I think. It's really so faint that I'm half guessing here. Overall: Obviously not a keeper. Between the funky body odor effect and the fact that this doesn't even last an hour, it's safe to say Belladonna is not for me.

In the vial: Lemon so bright and sharp it smacks me right in the face. Not quite the lemon Pledge scent others have remarked on... this is, to me, quite an authentic lemon scent, very sour and juicy. If there are other flowers in this but the obvious lemon verbena, they're lost on me. Wet: The lemon darkens and sweetens immediately. I can also smell something like rain in this, but it might just be that the description is playing tricks on my mind; more accurately, I feel rain in this, because it's so deliciously wet and steamy. Dry: It's softening very slowly as the minutes pass. The lemon is growing less bold and sharp, and more warm and husky, and the slightest bit sweeter. But overall, this blend is still completely lemon. Fifteen minutes or so later, it's even sweeter, and smells almost candyish or like lemon sherbert. Mmmmm! I'm really starting to like this! An hour later: Ugh. What happened to that lovely sweetness? It disappeared completely and was replaced by the floral, finally, very green and weedy. It's also gotten powdery. Overall: I'm so disappointed. It was pretty nice in the initial strong lemon stage, and it was beautiful for a brief while when it picked up that candy sweetness. But the end result is... unpleasant. Lemon floral is much better left to Empyreal Mist, if you ask me.

I've found my perfect lilac scent: SEA OF GLASS. It's such lovely lilacy goodness!

In the vial: Oh my god, is that... lilac? IT IS. I'M GOING TO CRY IN SHEER ECSTASY. Except that it's muffled a bit by an unpleasant aquatic note that brings this scent halfway between fabric softener and soap. I'm going to cling for life to that hint of lilac as I dab it on... Wet: Fabric softener is down for the count, and it's now a battle between lilac and soap. Soap is unfortunately pulling ahead. It's a lightly floral-tinted Dove sort of soap, not the same soap I get from rose. Dry: YES! The lilac finally told the soap to sit down and shut the hell up. Could it be? Could I finally have found a blend with my precious, precious lilac as the star of the show? I keep breathing it in in disbelief. Yes, it's still a little soapy, but it's undoubtedly lilac. An hour later: LILAC IS VICTORIOUS! All traces of soap are pretty much gone, and the lilac is dominant. It is pure and authentic. It's not a fresh, dewy bouquet but one that has been sitting in a glass vase for a few days, throwing it's scent around the room as it dries out slowly. Since I can only connect this scent to lilacs, I don't get the imagery that I imagine this blend was supposed to provoke, of water and serenity; however, I can certainly see the purity, crystalline grace, and light in this blend. It's innocent, chaste, and elegant. Overall: Why is it that the day after I made my third pending order to the lab, I find the lilac blend of my dreams? This simply is not fair. Now I'll have to hunt the swapperies for a bottle, or accept painfully that it'll be a few months at the least until I get one from the lab. Regardless, Sea of Glass is most definitely on my bottle list!

In the vial: Corrupted plum and wild berry, indeed. This is very fruity, but very dark and sensual and erotic all at the same time. I can catch the gardenia as well, spicing it all up. This reminds me of a bodily smell, a sex smell... in a way that's both exciting and disturbing. Wet: My skin makes everything musky. Blood Countess is now a fruity musk. Dry: This dries quickly, and becomes slightly powdery, though it's still quite fruity and musky. I'm picking up the slightest hint of dragon's blood, which isn't shown in the description, but judging by the name of this blend there's a good chance that there is dragon's blood in this. An hour later: Any trace of dragon's blood, whether real or my imagination, is gone now. The fruit has come back with a vengeance, very tart and dark. Overall: Nice, but I'm not in love with it. If the dragon's blood had have stuck around, I probably would have kept this imp, but as it is, it's going to a better home.

In the vial: A lush, wet garden with hundreds of roses, backed by other less prominent flowers. This is not the dry, dusty scent I was expecting. It already has a bit of Play-Doh smell to it, which is strange, because I usually don't get that from rose. Wet: The Play-Doh disappears and Seance becomes total rose. Wet, lush, deep red rose, with something spicy backing it up. It's actually very nice, nicer than roses usually smell to me. Dry: The sweet and spicy is gone, and has been replaced with the scent I should realize I get with every single rose note known to man... soap. An hour later: Still rose, and still soap, but more of a floral-scented shampoo than anything else. Overall: It's a better rose blend than many I've tried, but doesn't convince me that roses are any better for me than I'd previously thought. I'm very disappointed that this was not at all what I had expected.

In the vial: Woodsy, herby, and sweet... almost a little foody in a strange way. It's too bright and smooth to be musky, if that makes sense. I can see the animalistic nature of this if I use my imagination, but it's not overly wild or feral. Wet: The musk is coming out on my skin, very nicely. It's getting a little spicy, and slightly more sweet. It's like a much softer and appleless Verdandi. Dry: Oh god, this reminds me so much of something, but as always, I can't put my finger on what. The woods are bright and wet now, and the musk has become a little powdery. An hour later: Much sweeter, and much more musky. That mystery resemblance is still confounding me. Buck Moon really is a nice scent, and I think it'd be amazing on a man. This is hiking all day and setting up camp in time to watch the sunset in the arms of a man who is all too willing to let you bury your face into his neck to breathe in this feral scent. Overall: A very lovely blend, surely, but not something I would wear as a fragrance. This would be more suited to a man, or perhaps to more earthy women.

In the vial: Strong dragon's blood, deepened with woods and leather, and made sharp with wine. I usually love dragon's blood, but I'm not sure I like it so much mixed with all these other notes. Wet: The dragon's blood shines for a very brief moment, but there is still that strange dryness to it coming from the woods. This dries and changes extremely quickly... Dry: The dragon's blood has all but disappeared, and I'm left with a very woodsy wine scent. Is that a bit of cinnamon I'm smelling, too? It's definitely more masculine than feminine, and I think this would smell very lovely on a man. An hour later: Ew. This has turned into an old man's cigar smoke and leather armchair, like Hellfire and Fire of Love. I can make out a bit of dragon's blood, but it's been raped and ravaged into something horrible. Overall: I take back what I said about this smelling lovely on a man. It won't, unless that man is a grandfather. I don't like the end result of Tintagel at all.

In the vial: A lemon scent very similar to Embalming Fluid, Shanghai, and Phantasm. There is something sweet and floral backing up the lemon in Empyreal Mist, though, which is what sets it out from the crowd. Wet: The floral fades out completely while the scent grows very green, a little sweeter, and possibly with a faint hint of tea. This is reminding me more of Dorian now than anything else, except without the vanilla. Dry: It just did a completely 360. The greenery and tea has disappeared, and the lemon and floral are back loud and clear. This evokes an image of children selling sweet homemade lemonade from their front garden on a cool summer morning. An hour later: So delicious! It's stayed the same sweet lemon and floral, and I love it! Overall: I'm so sorry I swapped this without testing it first, thinking it was just another lemon scent. That will teach me! I'll have to find another imp of Empyreal Mist to keep for myself, because this is definitely something I would wear on a regular basis.

In the vial: A bit of dewy grass and spring flowers, but I'm getting the same feel of fabric softener that I did from Lightning, and didn't like. I think that must be an aquatic note. If I try to ignore that, this is a sunny scent, not noon bright but soft and misty like the sunrise. Wet: More floral than aquatic now, thankfully. I'm not getting any berry or grass. There's a slightly foody feel to it that I thought I got the faintest hint of sniffing from the imp, but I ignored, thinking it was my imagination; but it's still there on my skin, something like almonds or bread. Dry: The aquatic note is still present, but not as unpleasant as aquatics usually are to me. This has grown much more floral in a soft, feminine way. I also detect the faintest bit of citrus, which could be attributed to the berries. And... this is clean and soapy, but in a nice way! Imagine that! An hour later: Wow, this has turned out so beautiful! It immediately reminded me of my best friend and body wash and/or spray she used to use. Bright dewy floral with a soapy background. Overall: I'm amazed that I actually like something with an aquatic note! However, this isn't something I'd wear as perfume. Clean, soapy scents just aren't for me. But for someone who does like that sort of scent, Rosalind would be perfect.

I got an enormous amount of wine from Delphi, and although the description says it's honey wine, it smelled like red wine to me.

I get hints of cherry, but not a foody cherry and not a medicinal cherry, from Seraglio and The Raven. So those might work for you.

In the vial: The description is right on: this certainly is a crisp, clean scent, and it's most definitely green tea and lemon, and probably honeysuckle but I'm not sure what that smells like so I can't look for it. There's a strong note of greenery lying underneath it all, like dewy grass. This is the scent of a fresh summer morning. Wet: The lemon demands all the attention, completely shutting out everything else. Dry: After a very quick drying, the lemon quiets down and decides to share the spotlight with the other notes once again. The tea makes a dazzling comeback, smelling sweeter and warmer now. There's a definite sweetness to this that is reminding me of Dorian... almost like the faintest vanila, but not at all foody. Is that the honeysuckle? An hour later: Still very much the same. Thank god it didn't become dishsoap! Overall: This is the perfectly bright lemon and tea scent I've been praying to find! And the strange thing is, it's reminiscent of so many other scents: it's like Dorian without the vanilla, like Embalming Fluid but warmer and not at all soapy, like The Dormouse without the flowers. And yet Shanghai is it's very own scent. It's brilliant, I love it!

In the vial: When I sniffed this upon its arrival yesterday, it smelled wholly different from what it does right now. Today, it's a popular perfume scent I've smelled many women wearing in my lifetime, but I couldn't name it to save my life. This is golden sunny warmth. This is sophisticated femininity with a hint of sensuality, the scent one should wear on a dinner date with a doctor or lawyer. The musk is definitely there, but it's jumping back and forth from being bright and wet and being deep and sandy. If I try really hard, I can pick out a floral note that must be the carnation, and the slightest hint of sandalwood. Wet: Soapy musk... no, warm, hot, dry musk... a little sweetness... spice... smoke... good god, does this change rapidly! It has the same feel as it did in the imp, but the scent has changed, and to something much less generic and much nicer. It's incredibly sensual, but in a subtle way, like crossing your legs and letting your skirt slip a inch or two up your thigh. Dry: This is surprisingly gorgeous! The sandalwood is popping out now and creating a lovely dry, dusty feel; there's also a soft sweetness floating in on a desert breeze. It's growing ever more exotic and less and less common. An hour later: It's not quite been an hour, but there's definitely been yet another alteration in this scent that I need to mention. For reasons I can't imagine, it strangely makes me think of skin, made slick with sweat in the throes of passion. Morocco was already packed full of sensuality, and now it has a definite air of carnal sexuality as well. Overall: When I initially sniffed this yesterday, I was pretty sure it would be hitting the swap pile, but now, there's no way I'm getting rid of this. This is by far the most sexual blend I've tried yet—it's the sparking chemistry and heated passion that comes before the afterglow that is Dorian. I can't wait to try this out on unsuspecting victims to see if they pick up the same carnal aura that I do with Morocco!

In the vial: This smells frighteningly like the Axe deordorant my ex-boyfriend wore, and it's also reminiscent of the Calvin Klein scents that boys used to wear when I was a young teenager. A sharp, bright, tingly, sparkling, masculine scent. It is sensual, but only because this evokes memories of various experiences with the opposite sex at various points of my life. I'm terrible at picking out notes unless they're listed for me, so I won't even try! Wet: The overwhelming strength of the scent tones down greatly on my skin, to the point where I have to really breathe deeply in order to smell it. It is quickly turning soapy, but I think that could be the aquatic notes coming out to play. It is still quite sharp and all masculine. Dry: The sharpness has faded somewhat, although I wonder if it's just that I've gotten used to it, after breathing Cthulhu in for several minutes now. In any case, this is staying pretty much the same bright, aquatic, soapy, masculine scent that it was from the very beginning. The throw of it is quite different, though... strangely like another cologne other men in my past wore! I think that could be the result of Cthulhu mixing in the air with the other oils I'm wearing right now. An hour later: Pretty much the same, although slightly musky in a bodily way. Overall: This is obviously not something I would wear, since it's entirely masculine, and I don't think I'd like it on a man, either. This isn't my type of scent.

In the vial: This is another supposedly sexy scent that I do not find sexy at all. It's strong, sharp, biting, musky, and acidic. There's also a very feral, body heat scent to it, which is intriguing, but not necessarily nice. This is overtly masculine. Wet: The sharp acidity wears off as my skin heats this up, and that helps slightly, but doesn't save this scent. I tried to ignore it before, but it's too strong to now: this reminds me of my grandfather. It's old-fashioned masculinity, a genteel elderly man sitting in his worn chesterfield and reading the Sunday newspaper. Dry: No major changes occur on the drydown, except that this is striking a memory of my grandparents' house in general, more than simply my grandfather. An hour later: Oh god, this almost makes me gag. A very clear stench of sweat has wormed its way in. Remember that genteel elderly man? It's now the end of his day and his once-crisp plaid shirt is now limp and slightly damp with perspiration, his steely-gray hair lank against his forehead. Overall: I cannot imagine how anyone could consider this sexual or sensual, unless they're geriatrophiles, or whatever the opposite of a pedophile is. Add Fire of Love to the list of most disgusting BPAL blends I've had the dishonor to experience!

In the vial: A very faint scent; I have to breathe pretty deeply to get a good impression. There's a lot of orange citrus here, and noticeable tea. After a few very deep sniffs, the chocolate hit me out of nowhere. This is the chocolate orange that everyone gets violent with! Wet: The tea perks up brilliantly, and I think the iris is making a breakthrough as well. The chocolate has taken a nosedive into nonexistance, sadly. I can't tell very much else because it dries extremely quickly. Dry: All of the notes I could distinguish before are melded into one singular scent that I can't pick apart. It's sour that wants to be sweet, bright that wants to be dark... it's full of contradictions, and usually that's an interesting aspect of a blend, but with 13 it's honestly a bit annoying. As the drydown continues I'm smelling a bit of mint in a way that reminds me of Snake Oil. An hour later: Wow, this has changed so much! It's dry, sweet, bright, and soft. I can't pick out a single discernable note; everything is blended so well, and so different from its original state. Overall: I wasn't too pleased with this at first, but after awhile this is a very pretty scent! I think I love it mostly because it's so confusing and confounding. I'm not sure if I like this enough to keep and wear it, but I can't bear to add it to the swap pile just yet.

In the vial: I've sniffed this a few times before today, and each time I didn't really like it all that much... but right now, it's smelling so nice! It's tea with a whole lot of lemon, and a soft, sweet flower in the background. Very light, airy, innocent, and playful. Wet: Not much of a change at first. After a few moments, it goes a little bit soapy, and a little bit after that, powdery. One second it seems more sweet, the next second it seems more sour, so I'm not sure what to make of that. Dry: The wet lemon scent has dried out in a very pretty way, probably due to the dryness of the teas. The fight between sweet and sour has finally ended and sweet is the victor, but it's very subtle and shy. The powdery feel is still there, and I'm assuming this is due to the peony; it's actually very nice, unlike most scents that turn powdery on me. An hour later: Very, very faint, which is very, very sad, because this turned out to be very, very nice. It's gotten sweeter, and that paired with the lemon and tea makes The Dormouse reminiscent of Dorian, though without any of the sexual undertones. It's Dorian's older, more mature, modest and prudent brother. Overall: Anything that resembles Dorian is fabulous, so I obviously love The Dormouse! I'll have to slather it on the next time to keep the scent going strong, though.

In the vial: Oh, lovely, lovely dragon's blood! I'm not exactly sure what lotus smells like, so I can't pick it out in this, but perhaps that's the slightly musky and fruity note I'm detecting far, far in the background? In any case, this is divine. Sweet yet tough all at the same time. Wet: Immediately turns more musky and darker on my skin, which is a very nice development, as I love dark scents! It's still extremely dragon's blood, but the floral is starting to come out as well. Dry: The scent becomes dry and flat, and ever so slightly powdery. The dragon's blood is still very prominent. It's romantic, dizzying, dreamy. This is a warm breeze on a summer's eve as the sun is setting and casting a soft blue glow on the world. An hour later: It's gone even more musky and darker, which again, is a good thing. Also, there's the tiniest bit of fruity tang coming back. Overall: Love, love, love this. It's such a fantastic dragon's blood blend! This is perfect for summer nights, so I'm not sure how it'll fare in the upcoming winter, but I know I'll be wearing this no matter what season it is!