themerrybaker

Mum Moon improves with wear for me. After a full day, I get the dusty-sharp mum scent. It starts out a bit masculine and musky, though. The bottle has been improving since I received it, and will likely get better and better over time. edited to add: wore it about 2 weeks later, and yes it has improved. Still not so hot when wet, but every so often during the day it catches my attention by sending little messages of goodsmell.

F5, Good Buddy. The overall impression is a nice long shower after a long, grungy, day on the road. 12 - 50 Over and Out.

Tanin'iver (the name reminds me of a cross between Mrs Minniver and Puff the Magic Dragon - maybe a ghostly dragon consoling a widow?) Is so far my favorite of the dragon's blood blends. The cassia is pleasantly scratchy, smoky and scaley and is counterbalanced by an almost marzipan slippery sweetness. Definitely fun to try.

Mag Mell is best for me when it has been dry awhile: sugar-dusted lemon with subtle hints of ginger. At first, the verbena is very pronounced, with a rooty sage undertone and a little grass. It's amazing how the notes eventually harmonize to a delightful scent that sticks close to the skin and could definitely be a staple.

Everyone knew this would be wonderful and it is. One thing that surprised me is that it is wearable without aging. Ahh instant gratification!! I get musk and plum and patchouli leaf with little noticable vanilla. On and off there is a little "fermenty thing" going on for added interest.

Also check the Voodoo Oils section reviews. The Lab doesn't list notes, but I recall All Night Long was "all" spicy cinnamon.

Although I'm neither a fan of dragon's blood nor of musk, Dragon's Heart is much better than the sum of its parts. On me the musk predominates and I'm surprised at how much I like this one.

Kether - it smells like whatever happy comforting thing you can imagine. For me it smells like zweiback, but everyone has his/her own take. And for an added attaction it has "Beth" by its name on the diagram.

Wow. This is a happy accident. At first Faustus reminded me of the yule blends with conifer. Much to my surprise, the predominant note is incense. Yeah. On second thought, I could believe that. Many of the Lab's incense blends don't work for me (too sweet) but this is smokily, woodily, spicily wonderful. I love it when this happens with a frimp.

Red Lantern sticks like hot caramel close to my skin. It morphs a great deal between caramel and bitter/weedy herbal (like Roadhouse). The floral parts peak out now and again. This is really interesting - glad I got to try it.

Not a berry fan, but the bitterness from the opium makes this more interesting than most.

And I thought Red Phoenix was cinnamon! Sin is toasted cinnamon stick on me. This is good.

Alice seemed like dry (maybe the bergamot?) rosepetals on me and didn't stick around very long. Although rose scents are not my faves, Alice is up there with Othello as good 'uns.

Sweet and powdery with subtle vanilla. O sticks close to the skin and is work-friendly. Smells great!

Serious vanilla - as in the vanilla fabric softeners. So, the impression is clean fresh clothes. Very work friendly.

The famous Embalming Fluid belongs to the Kumiho, Cheshire Cat, Sudha, Holiday Moon, EBM Family in my mind. I can see why this one is a fave, the addition of the white musk makes the tea, aloe, and lemon more rounded and dimensional. I really really like it.

Put an impload on my outsides And I hear the lutin' It's a Big, Fig ..... Courtesan? Hetairae is mostly honey on me and reminds me of my total fave, Khajuraho. Het is a little sharper and less woody with the fig replacing the date. Needless to say, I could roll in this one.

Atomic Apples burst from the bottle, but Harvest Moon 2006 dries down to mostly spicy (sage) wood with the fruit well in the background. The warm, dry wood perfectly captures the idea of autumn for me. Glad it's mine all mine.

It was a Dark and Stormy Moon. Yes aquatic, but herbal aquatic as if Ida March and King Sport crafted a lovechild. It wouldn't surprise me if the herbs were basil and bay, among others, but Storm Moon is not a "name that component" type of scent.

At first Temple of Dreams reminds me of Vick Vaporub - pungent menthol?-eucalyptus with maybe a little thyme. It does not strike me as particularly lavender. As it dries, the smell of extinguished candle comes out. How fitting.This is probably not meant as a perfume, but it is very relaxing. I seriously could see using it on my feet because of the minty herbalisciousness. But then if my foot fell asleep would it dream?

Arggh. The first time I've kicked myself for not getting a big bottle when I had the opportunity. Geek is the love side of the love-hate relationship with leather. Definitely along the lines of Spanked and Lex Talonis, at first I thought there was cardamom in here, but the cinnamon is just as good.

My nose was fooling around with this one at first: telling me that rose geranium is in Lucretia. After reading the notes, yes I believe there is orris root and sage. But I don't think the point of the Salon blends is to guess the particular notes, just to enjoy the overall impression. Which is...Feminine, elegant, and powdery. Picture 1930's french cinema?

A generous gift in a swap. And so timely, with the recent Pirate movie.. Yo Ho Ho thar be Rum Raisin Ice Cream in yonder imp. Not much to add to the previous, just that the cakey buttery sweetness is somewhat "anchored" by spiced rum. Great at what it does, but foody isn't an everyday thing for me. But this will be perfect for a trip to the theater.

You also might want to try "wood" scents. Jupiter was amazing in an oil burner but not so much on the skin. Nocnitsa, Black Forest, Yew Trees show up with the Lab search engine for "wood", or particular types like "oak". I could see burning Black Forest, haven't tried the others.

It's Howdy Kweku Thyme, it's Howdy Kweku Thyme. I definitely get the vetiver, and maybe the saltiness comes from the pepper, but the thyme is stealing the show here. Glad I got to try it, Kweku is really interesting because of the way the notes interact.