AliBabble

this is green, refreshing yet rich, in the imp. i'm getting mostly melon, but mixed beautifully with the freesia - a gentle fruity/floral blend...the greeness reminds me of the lightness and airiness i associate with bamboo. there is also something slightly tropical in feeling here. the complexity of this scent is apparent mostly in the wet stage. as it dries down, it becomes a bit more nondescript on me. but this still conjures a up a cool, glowing light green color. 51 would be a clean, cooling scent for warm weather. it would be perfect to wear out on a summer night.

this smells amazing in the imp - slightly boozy/wine-y and like burnt sugar - the treacle, i guess. on my skin, i'm still getting a good deal of treacle, but then - slowly - the spicy carnation emerges. i can't tell if i smell the posies at all, but i do smell a bit of amber, which really rounds out the scent, and gives a glistening quality to queen alice. the cider note, is really subtle, in the background. this is a really unusual, dreamy and somewhat dark scent - i have to say that the prominent notes on my skin are carnation and treacle, with a bit of something booze-like. queen alice definitely has a storybook/fairytale quality to it. carnations are always a bit weird on my skin, but i really like this anyway.

this is such a happy, fun energetic scent. it's softly fruity and tangy, but not at all overly-citrussy or sharp. the other notes - the rose, sage and bergamot - add interest and balance, so this is not an "all-fruit" blend, at all. it's somewhat herbal too. the patchouli is very soft and subtle, and the musk just lends a sweet haze to the whole thing. i almost wish the initial pink grapefruit and lime tang stuck around longer. they are prominent at first, but soon recede into the overall scent. i end up with something vaguely sweet, but less distinct. still, this is a nice, light, carefree scent, that would be fantastic on a summer morning..

in the imp, this smells almost too sweet to me...i think it is the honey and moroccon unguents that are giving me this impression - like overly-sweet incense. it smells like an indian shop, or a buddhist temple. there is a slight fruitiness too, like fruity honey. on my skin though, it immediately smells spicier, and deeper - again, very incense-y, and what i think of as "eastern spices". it's actually a really interesting scent, if not exactly a "me" sort of scent. after a while, the caramel comes out, but this is very well-blended...the notes are completely merged with one another. i'm on the fence about it - if you like "eastern" incense/spicy blends, you would probably adore this. i'm not sure it works that well on me. however, i have a thing for morocco, so i'm gonna see if these moroccan unguents grow on me. it's actually very pretty, but smells more like an incense i'd burn, rather than a perfume i'd wear.

in the imp, i just smell a bright, tart green apple, and i think: here we go again, it's a very nice, realistic apple, but that's about it. on my skin however, this gets much more interesting: at first, i get plantlike, outdoorsy, green smells, mixing with the apple - the hemlock perhaps? the scent develops on my skin, becoming quite a bit sultrier and darker...i guess i'm smelling the opium...it works really well with the apple. opium is often awful on me - sickly sweet. but in some combinations it works wonderfully, and in this case it seems to actually work. there's a touch of floral - the oliander i suppose - but it's also dark, and not a high, sweet, soapy floral at all. i think this is a really nice, unusual apple scent: a sexy, dark, smoky apple. i'm really happy to find another of the few rare scents w/ opium that work on me. thumbs way up!

i get mostly carnation from this...carnations are always kind of weird on me, but i just love their spiciness so much, i usually just weather it out. there's a sugared edge for sure, but it's not super-sweet...still with that weird underside to the carnations that always happens to me. i don't know...carnations always smell the same on me. i wish this was a bit sweeter, but i do like it - it's simple and reminds me more of a muted light pink, rather than a bright, glaring pink.

whoa! i love this! out of the bottle, it's really zingy and fresh - bright and fruity, citrussy - reminds me of holiday moon, for some reason - it smells like vibrant yellow sunshine. on my skin, the fruitiness comes out even more, as do the other notes, slowly. first it gets a bit flowery, i get daffodil, i think, and undeneath i think i can smell something resiny, maybe the benzoin? now the scent feels more orange, a little deeper. this scent starts off light, but deepens - there are several layers to this. this scent falls on the bright/clean side of things...it is refreshing, perky, and very natural-smelling. thumbs up!

i sniffed this at a meet and sniff, and realy liked it. i love the lab's lavender blends: sleepy moon, tko, and others. the lavender in DSN is prominent at first, but dissapears pretty quickly when it hits my skin. i then smell a faint rosiness w/ a little jasmine - it's very light. i can see why people say this disappears - it quickly goes very light and slightly soapy - it's clean and barely there. but then, as a grand finale, the musk comes out, and it becomes very soft, pretty, and gently sexy. a very feminine scent, but not overpowering. nice.

Snake Oil with cocoa, teakwood, and rice milk. in the bottle i smell the cocoa, of course, on top of something very oily and sweet - i was indifferent about snake oil, but this is a promising combo. on my skin, it's still quite patchouli-esque to my nose - i wish i was smelling more cocoa, and less snake oil. i dunno, so far it's smelling better in the bottle, than it does on my skin. i'm having the experience others have mentioned - the cocoa practically vanishes, and i'm left with sort of a basic snake oil smell, which, on me, smells a bit like a smelly leather shoe. sadly, i guess this doesn't smell that good on me. rats.

EGM doesn't really hit me out of the bottle...my first thought is that it reminds me of 3 witches - spicy cassia, a little rough and abrasive...i search for the chocolate cherries, and i smell them faintly, but i wish they were more in the foreground. on my skin, the cinnamon is still dominant, like it just doesn't want to join with the other notes. but i will say that i can at least smell the chocolate cherries and the vanilla a little more, once it dries down. i dunno...i *should* love this, but i think i need to warm up to it a bit more...it's a very "dry" scent and doesn't seem to have much depth on my skin. however, it is warm, spicy, and not overly sweet...pretty wearable, for cinnamon-y moods, and yummy in its own subtle way. eta - a week or so later, and i like this a lot better. it gets softer and muskier on my skin, the longer it wears. it's got good staying power. this is better than i thought.

how the hell did this arrive so fast? i just ordered it, like, 2 days ago... here are my thoughts...at first, i thought it smelled nondescript in the bottle, slightly floral and mysterious. the more i smell it tho, the more i like it, tho the flowers are slightly abrasive. on my skin, a lot bit more begins to happen...i smell night flowers - what i'm guessing is the devil's trumpet, cause it smells like night-blooming blossoms i've smelled, slightly tropical (this may be the orchid too) - like bat-woman in feeling, but with more darkness lurking...quite spooky/swampy...like creeping around a dark lagoon at night. a spicy, resin-y incense begins to emerge, and at this point the scent has really taken on its character, and is quite interesting. i'm not getting the coconut, so much, but i'm pretty sure i smell most of the other notes - it is smoky and incense-y, but also tropically floral - it reminds me a bit of black moon for some reason, in its "moonlit lagoon" feeling, but with smoky incense thrown in. i think this is a pretty unusual scent - it's definitely got a night time, spooky, swampy-garden feeling to me. quite sinister, actually. the more it dries, it does threaten with some soapiness, but the smoky resins and patchouli help counteract that. eventually i do get the tiniest peek of coconut meat. eta: after a few hours, this did end up extremely soapy/"perfumey" on me. i'll try applying less, next time?...the throw was quite strong. this may not work on me after all.

a frimp from the lab..love the name, don't know anything about this oil... in the vial it smells pleasant and familiar, tho i can't place it..looking at the notes, i see that it is mostly the orange blossom i'm getting, and the patchouli, but it's a very light and sweet patchouli - not the down and dirty dark kind. on my skin, this, again, is mostly orange blossom. something is lurking beneath it tho, and as it develops, it doesn't do well w/ my chemistry...carnations are usually not a problem...could this be ambergris? i hate to be negative, but it's almost like a stinky sock smell...eventually, as this dries down, the strange odor disipates, and settles on a nice, spicy-ish orange scent. it's fairly pleasant, but something is still not quite right with this on my skin. oh well - i can see how this would be good on someone, i just don't think it's my cup o' tea (tho it does remind me of celestial seasonings madarin orange spice..)

this was a frimp w/ my last order.. i think this is a lovely, juicy (slobbering!) pine - somewhat fruity and tart - zingy like grapefruit or kumquat, and actually reminds me of pear. it becomes almost equal parts pine/fruity freshness. i see the comparison to snow moon et al, though it doesn't strike me as all that snowy... i see it more in the camp of jersey devil. fresh, outdoorsy, and a little wild.

wow - out of the bottle this is incredible - i have to preface this by saying that i love all the lab's chocolate scents...but this one is really different from any other that i've smelled -- it's dark, rich and very deep, but somehow, doesn't have an overly-heavy feel. it's got something almost metallic at the bottom, like iron or steel..i like to think this is the birch tar, and the lavendar is apparant too, just gorgeous. on my skin the lavendar jumps out, and it becomes more sharp and herbal...a medicinal chocolate syrup. it's just fantastic - earthy and deep from the vetiver, sage...it is not super vetiver-y, by the way...mixed with the chocolate, vanilla, musk...this is not a sweet dessert scent at all, it is much more of an herbal chocolate, and though rich and deep, surprisingly it is not at all overbearing and is an almost light scent. and i'm just tickled that i got a bottle, cause i'll be wearing this a lot.

out of the bottle, i am shocked and pleasantly surprised that this smells quite rich and foody...the cream is almost nutty and buttery, in an almost pumpkin queen way, with the orange blossom peeking out behind the cream. yum! on my skin, more subtle notes develop...fresh flowers and stems and petals...but rather light, next to the buttery creaminess. still, - delicious. i can smell a touch of the spicy carnation, and definitely the orange blossom, again, they're a little dwarfed by the cream, or maybe just very thoroughly blended...the iris is a little lost on me, however -- i just love this. i was worried it might be too "flowery orange blossom", with not enough cream ---but in fact, zarita has the opposit sort of balance...this is cream-covered blossoms, or carnations dipped in cream. this is luscious and feminine, like a delicate flower-custard! fun!

those snake pit labels are so beautiful...i was kinda on the fence about the snakes, but now that i see the labels...all is lost...must have a snake or two..and the faces of the heroines...oh my lord... more pics! more reviews! bring it on, sisters..

Saturnalia is rather dark...

well, out of the bottle, it reminds me right away of lycaon, only without the berry-ish sweetness, and without the cola smell. on my skin i did a comparison of typhon, lycaon, schwarzer mond, and mme. moriarity. typhon is in the same patchouli-family as all of them, but less sweet than the others - rougher around the edges, very earthy with something dark like burning rubber tires and leather. i like all of these scents, and typhon is equally wearable, when i'm in the mood for something harsher, heavier and less sweet.

well, what i get here is sweetish dirt, and a very fungal mushroom smell. since i adore mushrooms, i like this. underneath is something coconutty. when wet, it's almost like a coconut rum, with dirt in it. as it dries, it's sweet dirt and coconuts. i usually don't care for the dirt scents, but this one i like! it's got a calm, happy smell, somehow, and captures the lovely smell of mushrooms well. when it dries completely, it starts to smell a bit moldy; this could be a problem. but i'm glad i got to try it.

The Perfumed Garden is an incredible jasmine blend...the jasmine has "bite" and substance. This is an intoxicating blend, and very different than the typical, "heady" jasmine...

i don't know if this scent would match your dress/era...but Hollywood Babylon, is super-retro, i think. very 1950's, glamorous...musky cherry/strawberry...whenever i wear it, i feel lke a 50's hollywood starlet! also, Red Lantern has a 30's feel...very "charlie chan" opium den. yes! maybe that's a good one...it's very heady...opium smoke, and boozy caramel...

this was a a lab frimp - in the imp, it smells sweet and light, almost honey-like and nectar-y. it is a golden yellow color. i can't tell what i'm smelling, tho... on my skin, the oil smells more exciting - very herbal, in fact, but still light. a bit woody, sandalwoody - but not overpowering. i don't get much lavender - it must be blended very smoothly with the other scents. this is a pleasant scent, but it doesn't totally grab me. somehow it strikes me as masculine (not something that usually bothers me..) - like "old spice" or something...but not bad. the woodyness is probably what i smell most here, but again, i don't think this is really "me".

very ginger-y. at the same time cake-y, a la "eat me". it is pretty great. also pretty strange - the ginger, and a sort of lemony freshness, that smells a bit like cleaning product. but there's so much yummy rich cake-smell that it's ok - like cake that fell into some floor-cleaner, but you don't care cause the cake's so good you eat it anyway. no seriously though, i think i really like this, but i'm not sure - it might be actually too much ginger for me - like astringent gingerbread. either way, this is a fascinating scent - yummy, perky and - gingery!

well, from the bottle i can't tell what i'm smelling...i know i like it - it is very smooth, but mysterious. on my skin, the different notes unfurl...for a split second, i get the schwarzer mond comparison, because it is at this moment that i get the classic schwarzer mond "cola syrup" scent - is this the opponax, maybe? it's softer, sweeter, and lighter than schwarzer mond. this is so interesting and really pleasant...i think i can detect the olive leaf (warm), ginger (spicy warm), and the cypress - evergreen-y. it's slightly herby/medicinal, yet sweet and soft. it goes a bit powdery, but still has a resiny richness -- i'm just guessing it's the opponax doin it's thing here...the cola-ness is still there, almost chocolate-y, somehow. well, yes - i like it.

oh! it's beautiful! smells just like a forest with snow falling. at dusk...cold, crisp...lots of evergreen trees and berries. it's not as sweety-fru-fru as snow bunny, but it is in that same camp. in the bottle and on my skin it is mostly the tree smells - pine, juniper and a drop of berry, not too much. i know there is musk in here too, it's pretty faint tho, next to all that winter greenery. the tonka is in there, tho sorta faint..it comes out more as the scent dries down, providing a warm, cozy undercurrent. i dunno what else i can add - i really like it - it is a very "true to nature" facsimile of the woods, and for that reason alone, it puts me in a great, free-feeling mood.