Incendiare

The first sniff of this is quite multi-layered. First, I am greeted by the patchouli, then the oakmoss, then the plum musk which adds a sweetness to this at the very end. Wet, it's actually more herbal and fresher on me, like a lemon green tea. It's a pleasant surprise. I don't smell the plum anymore, and I'm starting to smell the ambergris mixing in with the lemon green tea. It's pleasant but I can't see myself ever wearing this.

Out of the vial, right away, the patchouli pushes its way through to the top. Not surprised. The vetiver, another note I hate, surprisingly behaves. Guess that bourbon makes it pipe down a bit. Wet, it's a little more pleasant. The sweetness from the honey tones down the patchouli and I think the rose is making this a bit soapy, although I can't actually smell straight up rose. It's actually a very unique combination. Soapiness and earthiness. Throughout, the patchouli ties everything together. The more this dries, the more the vetiver comes out, but to me, it's actually not this bad in this blend. It adds a subtle darkness to this without going crazy, taking this over, and making it smell burnt or blackened, as it usually does for me. Ultimately, not for me, but earthier lovers should definitely check this one out.

Whoo, now that's strong in the vial. Lots of lavender. My mom commented that she thought this was very cologne-y in the vial. I can also smell the lime behind the lavender. Very unusual combination. On me, it's still so lavender-y. I just can't get past it. This gets a bit balsamy over time, and something dry shows up too. Like a dry, slightly bitter wood. Not my thing.

It's cool that I finally get to try an extrait. Weird to smell alcohol in a BPAL blend! On me, it's very dry, as expected. Patchouli tends to hate me so I actually expected to hate this. It's not really that bad. I think the pomegranate and amber soften the blow a bit. The ylang ylang comes and goes every time I sniff. The red sandalwood is on the drier side here too. I can see earthy lovers loving this one, for sure.

In the bottle, this is on the gourmand side. I get the chocolate and vanilla, followed by the pomegranate, then myrrh, and then nutmeg at the very end. No florals, at least not yet. Yep, I just knew it. As soon as I applied this to my skin, the rose fell from the sky and is already starting to take over. After only a few minutes, this is 95% rose on me. Hello, Ampville. Most of the notes got scared and ran away. Too bad since the rose in the bath oil behaves very well and is almost not even detectable through and through. It's weird going back to the vial and smelling it, because the scent in the vial and on my skin are worlds apart. After fifteen minutes this reminds me of these rose petal soaps my mom had. I actually like rose but this is just way too much for me. Oh well.

This is obvious red musk in the vial, and I swear I smell something barn-like. I have a feeling that it's just how the carnation and myrrh are playing with the red musk, because if I try get past that smell, I can break it down and detect a bit of carnation in there. Ech, yeah, on me it gets even more barn-like. What the hell is wrong with me? I love all the notes in here but I guess my nose merely doesn't approve of the combination. At least after a few minutes, the carnation is starting to separate itself from the rest of the notes and become more prominent. It's been about fifteen minutes in and nothing is changing. No dice for me.

This really does make me think of bubblegum spiked with black pepper. Wet, the bubblegum actually gets stronger on me and turns vaguely spicier. After twenty minutes, it has faded to a softer bubblegum with a touch of spice. No chocolate. It's alright but not bottle-worthy.

This is definitely strawberry sugar in the vial. Like those strawberry marshmallows covered in pink sugar. It kind of reminds me of the strawberry side of Beaver Moon '10. The scent is on the lighter side, though. As soon as I apply this to my skin, the orange blossom pops out. The florals are getting stronger and stronger, and after just a few minutes, I can hardly detect any strawberry at all. It's not just orange blossom either. I swear there is rose or something in the floral mix. Give it another five minute the strawberry returns to the scene. Interesting. Now there's a balance of strawberry, sugar, and orange blossom. I like it but if I were to get a bottle of this, I'd probably sooner reach for my other strawberry blends.

Very intriguing blend. In the bottle, I get white chocolate mixed with florals. Maybe some rose, but no champaca. At first, I actually thought there was something like ylang ylang in there but I guess not. Very rich. I tried this in the shower earlier and it stayed true to its itself when I applied it to my skin. Didn't morph at all. It lasted on me for the rest of the evening. It's pleasant and I'll gladly use up the entire decant but I won't bother buying a full bottle.

Normally, I appreciate foodie scents but the chocolate boxes usually underwhelm. This is an exception. I love violet so I'm not surprised that this jives incredibly well with me. It's very much like Faith with the additional creamy velvet cocoa butteriness from the white chocolate. Overall, there is less violet in here and after a couple hours, I smell the white chocolate more than the sugared violet.

Hmm, automatically reminds me of balsamy outdoor freshness. There's also a touch of earth, like moss and/or leaves. Wet, this takes a musky turn. Not really my thing, but this blend definitely evokes impressions of the outdoors and the colour green.

How do I always overlook this one? I somehow never noticed it as I'd scroll down and consider new stuff to try. It's a juicy strawberry red musk in the vial. The grapefruit comes out once I apply this to my skin. It kind of reminds me of other fruity red musk blends that I already own, so I'd probably never buy it, but it's not as three-dimensional. Red musk and/or red-type fruit lovers would probably appreciate this one. It has a light throw, though. I can't see this lasting more than an hour tops.

This definitely reminds me of a lighter, airy cologne. While it reminds me of the airy commercial colognes, this is nonetheless more refined and not as stark and aggressive. Wet, this turns rather sharp and citrusy on me, but still remains airy and on the lighter side. I wouldn't mind wearing this myself, but I'd totally recommend this to a dude any day.

In the vial, this reminds me of Bengal except take the honey out and replace it with a dry, herbal note. Wet, it's the exact same, although as Silk Road dries, the dry herbal notes grow stronger and stronger, as they normally do on me. I'm glad I was able to try this, but I prefer the smoother quality in Bengal.

Yummy soap. At first it seemed to lack a lot of scent but once I lathered up, the warm gingerbread really came out. There's maybe a hint of chocolate in there too but it is barely noticeable. And I can't smell any coffee, but there is some nice scrubby courser ground coffee beans that aren't too harsh. Glad I was able to try this.

I really don't know what to make of this in the bottle. I imagined this to be boozy strawberry with a swirl of incense in the background, but instead, it's incredibly cloying. I imagined this to be strawberry à la Beaver Moon '10 but instead I get the strawberry from Kitty, which is personally a bit too sharp and syrupy sweet. Wet, it's not much different. The tobacco starts to come out after a minute or two but it's kind of an awkward entrance. At this point, it seems like a very odd choice to pair with this particular strawberry. The tobacco and incense dry out the strawberry but it's just not working for me during this stage. It's a freaking miracle, though. As the clock is ticking, slowly but surely, the strawberry and incense learn how to cooperate with each other and after about twenty minutes, I'm left with a wonderful strawberry cream incense. I don't know what happened, but somehow, the cloying strawberry calmed down and the tobacco and incense lost their dry vibe and everything became just a little more realistic. On the final dry down, the strawberries are smoother and the incense actually smells like incense sticks that haven't been lit yet. It's just a shame that I have to sit through 20+ minutes of a messy olfactory roller coaster before this gets its shit together and becomes awesome.

I imagined Mourning Lace to be a strong scent, much like Black Lace, but it's actually very light. Seems to be the trend with the more recent laces. In the bottle, it's clove and something sweet. The first time I cracked open the bottle and took a whiff, that sweet note translated as a faint marshmallow. As soon as I apply this to my skin, the sweetness disappears into thin air. The frankincense and myrrh come out and play with the clove. As Mourning Lace starts on its journey to the final dry down, the resins and clove meld into a cloud that reminds me of Djarums. It takes a good twenty minutes for this to settle into my skin once and for all and turn into a very true clove incense. It's a beautiful blend. I just wish it had a stronger throw.

Carnation and wine are two of my favourite notes so I just had to try this. In the bottle, it's doesn't even smell like those two notes combined. It smells more like a tarter grape twisted with something citrusy. There's a floral note in there too but it's more along the lines of a white floral, oddly. Wet, it's even fruitier, but still no carnation. After about five minutes, the carnation peeks out a bit but the random lemon note is still the strongest. Actually, going back to smell this in the bottle makes me realize just how much more sugary it is in the bottle. Now that I think about it, on me, it reminds me of Spun Sugar Spectre bath oil, which goes weirdly lemony on me. This is much nicer in the bottle and this will give me an excuse to wear my scent locket more often.

Normally, I'm not really a lavender fan. It's usually too medicinal for me, but this is one of the first lavender blends that has won my heart. In the bottle, it's like a very strong lavender with Dorian in the background. Wet, I can detect the slightest hint of Snake Oil, and after about ten minutes, the Snake Oil becomes even more prominent. It's a beautiful, innocent blend. Not my favourite lavender blend, but still glad I was able to track this down.

The very first impression of Black Lace that I got was cologne. It's probably the sharp cotton note mixed in with the musk. Wet, it's the same. But after a few minutes, it lightens up at bit. I can't smell the vanilla straight up but I'm guessing that the softer, warmer notes such as the vanilla and cream are pulling the other aggressive notes back. This has some seriously insane throw. I actually really like this one, but I especially like it layered over Black Heart. Glad I swiped a bottle of this one. It's a type of blend that I don't normally go for but it's ultra unique, dark, and mysterious.

Absolutely scrumptious in the bottle. This is all gingerbread and fruitcake. Interestingly enough, as I was applying this, I caught a whiff of eggnog in there too. Wet, the rum comes out, and the ginger strengthens. I love spice so I'm not surprised that this one works really well for me. It has great throw. I almost bought a back-up last time I made a DD order but because I have so much already, maybe one will be enough despite it being so awesome. Simply put, if you like spice, try this. It's damn good.

A blend with patchouli that I actually really like. Probably because I can't smell it at all. In the bottle, this is like a musky raspberry. It remains as a musky raspberry through and through, whether it's in the bottle, just freshly applied, or two hours after. I'm happy with my partial bottle.

I was able to snag the Res'd version on eBay. I don't know if my nose is broken, but this barely has any scent in the bottle. Mind you, I've had others smell this too and they've all said that they could barely smell anything in the bottle. Maybe like a soft waft of a liqueur-filled chocolate but that's it. It actually smells really nice at this point but I just wish the scent were a lot more palpable. A lot more comes out once I slather this on my wrist. It turns slightly plasticky on me wrist and seriously has an Aveeno lotion element to it, which I actually like but is just weird in this situation. To me, it's like a cross between a chocolate fudge candle and Aveeno lotion. It stays the same on me from here on out. I'm going to have to try it in my scent locket since I like it in the bottle. Overall, I love foodie blends but this one is a disappointment. I just don't see the hype, and sadly get no sugar nor cotton candy nor funnel cakes, etc.

This has a cool tropical feel in the vial. Predominantly coconut with wafts of flowers. On me, it's pretty much the same, although for the first while, it smells a bit soapy, but in an ok way. It eventually dries down to a coconut with a touch of tropical flowers and loses some of that soapiness. I never got any Snow White-like wafts from this one but it wasn't until my mom got me to smell it on her and it goes SW on her. It's not my favourite coconut blend but I still really like it and love wearing this during the summer.

Last year I wore Khajuraho, but this year I felt like something sweeter and pink, so I chose Beaver Moon '10. Maybe I'll put some Cthulhu in Love on my wrists later too.