capncait

you know, i felt a little let down by dragon's blood. it gave me a bit of a headache, and although it was interesting, it wasn't something i would wear that often. but i'm glad i didn't dislike it to the point that i would avoid anything with dragon's blood in it, because it seems the lab puts it in tons of blends. thanks to a generous frimper, i was able to give blood a try. i was excited, i like spicey scents and i thought that the lilac/cherry couch syrup smell of dragon's blood would be helped by clove and myrrh. in the imp: very cherry dragon's blood. no surprise there. the clove and myrrh really start to develop and bloom. its warm. i would say the cherry really fades into the background on this scent, and it is not gourmand at all. it seems that spicey notes have helped to dry the juicy sweet cherry note that was coming out of the imp. i wouldn't say that this blend gives me a dry impression, but it isn't a wet scent either. there is balance. the dragon's blood isn't overly floral or intense. i really think i like this one.

This isn't 100% dead-on to the description, and I haven't smelled Kate Spade... or any of my suggestions (blind leading the blind?) but I just ran a few quick searches, and this is what I got (I focused on the GC cause you can order IMPs pretty easily over trying to hunt down an imp and a bottle of an LE if its something you decide you love). New Orleans has both honeysuckle and jasmine in it. However, it also has citrus and spice to finish it off. Eos is "that of softly glowing skin, jasmine, buttercup and honeysuckle". See this review for Cobra Lily. Chuparosa- some reviews have suggested notes of honeysuckle, rose, jasmine, gardenia, etc. Good luck! edit: removed a scent that didn't fit!

Your dress is GORGEOUS! I love the idea of a tea-length dress and sleeves for a wedding dress. Props to you and a big congratulations! TrailerTrashPrincess and I must think alike! You could either go the sweet/innocent route with Agrat-Baht-Mahlaht for the sugary notes or go soft floral like Helena or Twilight. Or on the flip side, i think that dress says a bit more than sweet and pretty. I think its sultry! And with that, I'd go with Spellbound. While the roses say 'pretty', the red musk and amber make it a bit more seductive. Another thought along straddling the sweet and sultry vibe is Sed Non Satiata. If you don't amp booze like crazy, it hits the sultry notes very hard, but isn't like SEX SEX SEX I SMELL LIKE SEX (however, if you amp booze, my grandma likes to say, "nothing tackier than a drunk bride". But I'd probably wear it either way ). And both those scents seem to last on me, and I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to be repeat slathering at my wedding. Do update everyone on what you decide!

in the imp: HELLO VETIVER! when i intend to do something 'right', i try to be very thorough, so i go through any imps i get in a very organized manner, i create a spread sheet, and open each and every one, sniff, and write down notes. i don't skin test them like that, but just get initial impressions of what i want to skin test next... what did i write for santa muerte? "SMOKEY floral". wet: this is quite earthy, but not in the dirt sense, just organic. there is a note here that i can't pinpoint (what's new?). i am surprised by the amount of throw this little stripe on my arm has! dry: i can smell this wafting off my arm. nice throw. now i don't mind a bit a vetiver. i repeat: A BIT. a drop, a tad. this is HEAVY on the vetiver. while it gives off a smokey quality, it isn't dry or ashy like an actual smoke note, its like a *green* scent. there is a perfumey floral hiding behind the vetiver, but its not like the rose has taken over on this one, they are definitely well blended. i live in michigan, so cactus flower? i have no idea what that smells like. my grandma used to have cacti, but i don't remember the flowers smelling like anything... interesting scent, but i'll be passing this one along.

... this is the essence of Victorian-era spiritualism: rosewood, oak and teak notes with wispy blue lilac, tea rose, dried white rose and ethereal osmanthus. this reminds me of some type of candy, but i can't quite put my finger on exactly what. haha, now that i read the last few posts... IT IS NECCO WAFERS! however, on my skin, its a little closer to flowers and necco wafers. in the imp, this was really woody with a floral undercurrent. once it hit my skin, it was all necco wafers. as it started to warm up, and settle into my skin, the flowers came alive again. i can smell lilac and what i guess could be roses (but not the lush, beautiful rose scent that you just want to bury your face in, those roses that are less fragrant and smell somewhat green). i wish i had a reference for what osmanthus smells like. i don't. drydown: the necco wafer smell is starting to disolve to a much lovelier floral scent. this is much prettier than i expected! dry: it has only been 30 minutes or so, whatever was making this a funky licorice scent has disappeared, and this has mellowed into a beautiful floral. the rose is much more prominent, but isn't trying to kick ass and take names. the wood notes are still there, but are just helping this floral blend to have a bit more character. there is very little throw on this, i have to get CLOSE to smell it. be patient with this one, guys, let it sink into your skin!

i tried this once and i wasn't in love. my notes say, "too green? Is that possible? Did not like." well i went to my parents house with the newly acquired imp collection, and testing everything on her that wasn't going to give her an asthma attack (she did, however, have an allergic reaction to SOMETHING. but something she smelled, not something she skin tested). she loved this. loved loved loved. and it smelled gorgeous on her arm! so i was convinced to test again. and you know what? i did like it better the second time around. i got much more of the frankincense the second time around, which helped make the tiger-lily and neroli much less intense. i am planning on getting the sis a bottle for a present, but i will be keeping the imp, and testing it a few more times. we shall see.

I can't lie... I was kinda hoping for a more intense version of Lush's Karma (which is orange, patchouli, a hint of lemongrass, and i swear a bit of pine and eucalyptus). well jabberwocky is fun. but it is also a christmas tree scented candle. or some sort of generic scent they seem to market around christmas time. does that mean i am going to banish this one? no. i probably would still wear it (assume the boyfriend won't be smelling me. i imagine him gagging). does this mean i am planning on buying a bottle? no. i'll stick to Lush for an orange and pine combo (and patchouli to boot! i love patchouli!).

what did i write in my notes after smelling the imp? BEAUTIFUL FLORAL. what did i write down after the skin test? BEAUTIFUL FLORAL. i wouldn't say anything about this scent makes gives it any real character to distinguish it from anything else. but it is very very pretty. and that's worth something.

Coconut comes out of the bottle with her little sidekick fig, stomping all over this scent. but through the fight of notes in the dry down, fig got scared and ran home to mama, and sandalwood (which i tend to amp like CRAZY) and coconut teamed up to snuff the rest of the glorious and beautiful notes. maybe almond was there too.

wow. nothing about this scent screamed to me that i HAD to try it. I love fruity notes... but fruit and booze? who knew!? out of the imp, this is gushingly sweet, straight out of the jar maraschino cherries. it has this cloyingly, syrupy tinge to it that really made me gag to think i would even wear it... i don't tend to be a really FOODIE type girl, and this has shirly temple/ naughty kiddie cocktail written all over it. either way, once its on my arm, the booze makes this little girl's scent a little more like a teenage girl trying to get into a 21+ club by wearing the sluttiest clothes, lots of eye makeup, and the highest heels she could find... AND I LIKE IT. it does stay really really sweet and syrupy. but it is appealing in the oddest way, and i can't be more taken aback by how much i like it. but i really do. the boyfriend can't stand it... but oh well, he can suffer.

I really think I need this scent tempered by something else. Its not bad, but I need a little something more to balance it out. I'm sure its lovely on other people, but by itself on my skin? Lilac and cherry cough syrup. And something about Dragon's Blood dry just is a bit... sour. It doesn't work on me. I am intrigued, however, to smell this in other blends, with other notes to help it along (testing Wrath on my left arm now).

I had really high hopes about this one... despite the sandalwood (I just can't do sandalwood. A scent will start out gorgeous, lush, and 30 minutes later... you end up with dry, intense sandalwood, nothing else). Wet, it has this wonderful floral nuttiness (? I don't know how else to describe it) and as it dries, the honey and sandalwood become much more prominent. I really liked this, I did... but its just not perfect for me. it becomes sugary sweet sandalwood, and that just won't do.

I was frimped this, and it was an unexpected surprise (Thanks Quikslvr! Something about the prunes with booze and spices and quince smells somewhat like spiced cider on my skin! I really liked the scent though, and only wished it lasted longer and had more throw. On me, there was no throw, and within an hour or two, it was completely gone.

in the imp: nose tickling spices, juicy orange, and a hint of chocolate (where did you come from?) dry, the spices have mellowed out a bit, the orange and peach have lost their juiciness, and the blend is quite nice. too bad it disappeared on my arm after only a couple hours. i miss it! eta: grammar mistakes. damn.

I was so excited to get this in the mail... and I was not disappointed. I may end up trolling the SWAPS section to hoard. I was enjoying this perfume, and it finally occurred to me why this scent is really evocative to me, and its because it reminds me of the *scent* of hugging my mom when I was really little, and of smelling the perfume powder puff she kept in her bottom drawer. Maybe its Cote D'Ivoire by Balmain? My dad can be counted on to buy pretty predictable gifts, but one year he bought my mom this perfume gift set for Christmas, and she was so excited, I had never seen my mother so surprised and taken aback by a gift before. She still says this perfume is her all-time favorite. But Lydia is fresh, floral, and green and perfect for spring. It stays close to the skin.

I just got this from a sale here on the forum and wanted to try it right away! I am surprised at how mellow this cherry is. I thought it would be, but it is not like Bordello at all! It definitely is like a cherry pie filling or cherry jam rather than the fresh fruit as another reviewer noted. It is very soft and muted rather than the tartness of the fresh fruit. I definitely detect the creamy/buttery note right off the bat. I would say overall this scent has a sexy innocence to it. while being so sweet and unassumingly powdery, there is this almost buttery booziness that makes it edging on sultry. I don't know when I'll wear it... but I like it and I am glad I bought it unsniffed!

Holy heady rose! I just got Emma as a freebie decant from schackjj and wanted to try it right away. I knew from reviews how intensely floral she was, and so it should have been no surprise how TEA ROSE it really was. I do get subtle tinges of jasmine, and the pepper seems to attempt to temper the rose a bit... but the rose is elbowing everyone out the way for dominance in this scent. I just wish I had gotten patchouli at all! I want to love this... maybe I need to try it again another day, give it a little more time to mellow. But I may have to gift this to my mom.