angelamaria

In decant: herbal, cool and a touch sweet. Of the herbs, I'm getting sage and lavender; a hint of magnolia and woods here gives a nice depth. Wet on skin: this is slightly powdery-soft on me, but not in a bad way--it's almost cuddly which is weird given it's a dragon moon It keeps its coolness and sweetness along with those herbs, but it really smoothes out and blends even more. The dragon's blood resin gives this an understated cherry sweetness. The patchouli is not recognizable to my nose. Dry: sadly, that soft powderiness in the wet stage just keeps going on and on...the other notes just sort of disappear and hide behind it. Slightly smoky, although not in an incense way, and it's gone slightly soapy. It's a nice enough blend, but these powdery-soapy cherry-ish herbs isnt working for my skin chemistry or me. Verdict: no, not for me, but I'm not surprised. None of the Ars Draconis line has worked for me, despite a momentary fling with Dragon's Eye.

In bottle: somewhat perfume-y, but mostly gentle creamy flowers. Yes on the sweet honeyed lilies. It's pretty, but feels a bit too floral for me. Wet on skin: wow. I think that dry lotus root just needed a bit of warming up--it's not as all-out floral as it felt in the bottle. There is a slight "muskiness" to the blend that gives a good base to the flowers, sweet and pretty. Man, I had this bottle in my "to test" box for a loo~oong time, why did I not test it sooner?! This might actually be in the running of surpassing Evening Star as my favorite DIMV-to-wear scent. Dry: yes, I've definitely missed out so long by not testing this when I received it. This is a gently honey-sweet floral, with lily edging out at the front, but mostly quiet/pensive flowers, slightly vague but definitely present without being overwhelming. A muted musky scent keeps them grounded well. Verdict: definitely a yes!

In imp: yes on the "urban metallics": a hint of ozone, light and pale flowers, and light fruits. It definitely has that Asian vibe to it (like the shungas) but also a "city" vibe, which is appropriate. I'd assume this light of a scent needs a bit of slathering. Wet on skin: very pretty, although it's a bit dusty on my skin--something like ozone and dusty crisp air. Aside from that, the rest of the blend is very evenly balanced and well-blended--it's hard to pick out specific notes but looking at the list and sniffing, I can pinpoint each note--the orchid, the vague fruits, the bamboo. Dry: this doesn't change from the wet phase for me, although it feels even lighter somehow--but that may just be my skin chemistry. This rather reminds me of The Unicorn, which has the same kind of "ethereality" but The Unicorn is sweeter, and this is dustier and a bit more fleeting. Closer to it would be Unseelie, if my memory serves. Verdict: I can tell why this is so sought-after, but I'm somewhat relieved by the dustiness, as I have managed to dodge a bullet!

In imp: clean, light, and gender neutral, although leaning towards the masculine side. Mostly well-balanced notes, but I think the bergamot edges out a little bit more than the rest (but not enough to be bergamot-heavy). Wet on skin: bergamot, orchid, and white musk. This makes me think of clean skin, freshly out from the shower--definitely more on the masculine side. Very, very nice--would love to smell this on a guy. It's an understated sexy scent, like maybe something he might wear to work but you'd like to jump him anyway. As this dries, the juniper berries are coming out to sweeten this up a bit more--but it's very subtle, almost not there, and if I didn't have the components on hand I wouldn't be able to say it's berries. Dry: all warmed up on my skin, this is fabulous. This doesn't change so much from the wet phase, aside from that slight sweetening thing from the berries, but it's still a masculine, bergamod/orchid/musk blend. I don't get the patchouli, but I think it's definitely present to give this a bit of an "edge", a sexy base for the other notes to build on. Verdict: not for me, but it would be a definite yes from me for a guy

I just tried Witch-cursed Castle last night (from The Last Unicorn) and oh boy that was definitely stone Adding the description: "Weed-strewn oak, opoponax, wet stone, creaking redwood, and desolate olibanum."

In tester: when I sniffed this, I breathed, "wow". Definitely honeydew to me, but not overly fruity. A hint of creamy canilla and faint flowers completely this pretty scent in the tester. Wet on skin: the vanilla came out quickly, although it does recede back into a creamy sweetness that just envelopes the rest of the notes. This is a soft, very pretty blend. The honeydew remains, but the fruity sweetness is tempered with a slight dustiness that doesn't detract, and the spicy carnation starts to come up lending this blend a decidedly non-fruity feel. Almost muskier. So, so pretty in this stage--I was elated AND half-panicked at the thought of hunting this blend down. Right here, right now, it's a definite winner. Dry: and as expected--and which is why I always need to watch out for it--that carnation goes clovey on me. Dry, it's a mix of carnation, vanilla, and honeydew sweetness, maybe a hint of the oakmoss. Much later (like maybe after an hour and a half), an almost sickening sweetness has overcome the blend on the two places on my arm I put it (I was that excited in the wet/almost dry phase!!), the similar oily grandmothery sweetness I get from white musk. Though there ISN'T any white musk here. Looking at the notes list, the only note I think comes close would be the lychee, and I don't have enough experience with that note specifically to say if that's the culprit here. Verdict: skin chemistry "saves" the day--or, anyway, keeps my wallet happy. The wet phase was definitely to DIE for, though.

Definitely incense in the decant, and some heavy dark flowers. On my skin, almost immediately evident is clove, and a nice dark resin comes inching its way forward. Somewhat unisex, and turning powdery, but that just adds to the incensey-ness of this blend. Dry, this is all clove and hints of amber and spices, and reminds me of Silk Road a bit.

Full on white lemon cake, heavy on the frosting. The frosting, and possibly the filling between cake layers, initially came across as berry-like to me, although it turned into a vague fruit scent, mingling so much with the lemon cake scent that it's hard to distinguish.

In the decant, to my nose it's cologney, light and with very present dark flowers. Fairly unisex, slightly soapy. On my skin however, it goes INSTANTLY into soap. Initially laundry soap, and then it went to commercial bath soap--nice smelling, but, well, bath soap. This is the bath-soap-iest blend I've ever smelled from the lab. No florals, and all dry on my skin it's slightly powdery (rose, lilac, amber can all do that to me--so take your pick).

In bottle: a light floral blend--definitely luminous, a touch refreshing. The greens are a perfect backdrop to the almost-delicate flowers here, giving a bit of "permanence" to the daintiness and seemingly fragility of the flowers. Wet on skin: sweet, dainty floral, a touch candylike but not tipping over completely. Some reviews mention a similarity to The Unicorn, and I agree, the feel is the same: clean, white, gentle, luminous, faintly shining. I started writing in caps here in my original notes: "I MUST HAVE MORE OF THIS". Definitely appropriate for a denizen of an enchanted wood. (The blend, not the caps.) Dry: this stays true to the wet stage for me, no morphing, although as expected the throw is light and will likely need a few reapplications throughout the day. The greens and floral notes mesh together really well, without overpowering one another. Verdict: definite keeper! I had many words in caps in my original notes

In bottle: creamy carnation and orange blossom. Dainty and soft, yet the orange blossom has that citrus bite to it at the end. Wet on skin: this starts out as quite a faint blend on my skin. Carnation and a touch of iris, sweet and creamy. I can't seem to get any orange blossom out of this at this stage, which is a shame Dry: sweet and creamy vague white florals with a faint touch of orange blossom. Beautiful, soft and almost childlike--the cream reminds me a bit of milk--but not innocent, no. As it stays longer on my skin, a soapiness starts to develop, and the clove note in the carnation (which always amps on me) starts to turn this blend a bit weird on me--but maybe it's not altogether unintended, because this combination does smell like a plastic doll. I wouldn't call it "plasticky", but it smells like a plastic doll, from my memories of childhood (or, well, spring cleaning old toys when I was older). Verdict: an interesting scent, but no, not for me.

In bottle: fruity, candyish, with a fizzy champagne note. Not promising so far. Wet on skin: okay, I think I stand corrected: is that a fizzy champagne note, or just an effervescent mint? It definitely felt like champagne in the bottle, but on my skin, it's straight mint that is leaning towards the toothpastey kind...not very promising at all. Definitely fruity, sweet, and candyish in its sweetness. Thankfully, the mint note smooths out quickly and stops being toothpastey on my skin in short order. Dry: wow, dry, this is not as fruity as it was during the wet phase and in the bottle--not by a long shot. This one seems to juuu~ust border on the fruitiness, tempered by a surprisingly soft and "warm" mint note (I love oxymorons lately, I see). Still, it retains its refreshing tone, a bright blend suitable for a hot summer's day relaxing on a beach with a cool tropical drink beside you. As it stays longer on my skin though, there is a definite plasticky note thing going on... Verdict: this is the sort of fruit scent that I used to say was part of my keeper list--meaning, it's not full-on fruity but very beautiful and wearable, but well, I really don't wear any fruity blends anymore :/

In imp: floral, with a crisp pear note. The florals are quite well-blended, I can't really tell them apart. Wet on skin: this time I can pick out magnolia and plumeria from the florals. This is a heady combination, sliding more towards the heavy side for me, although thankfully it smoothes out a little as it dries. The rose seems to be gearing up to get powdery, we'll see. Even with the headiness of the flowers, I'd categorize this as a light scent, elegant--but that may be because I'm not getting a lot of throw from this. Dry: amazingly, the rose powder isn't overwhelming the scent, but I suspect it has disappeared and is powdery in some dark corner--I can't really smell any rose here. It's a faint, somewhat elegant floral, white and quite fleeting. Definitely magnolias and plumerias for me. Verdict: pretty as it is, but not too much of a fan of magnolia and plumeria for this to be a keeper.

In decant: a light, beautiful, bright floral. Sweet and honeyed, and faintly citrusy. There are so many florals in this, and it's well-blended that I can't really pick out floral notes. It's light and summery-y, white with a hint of color. Wet on skin: this is a weird way of saying it, but the first thing I thought of this was "golden white". That doesn't make sense, but that's how it is to me. Creamy, bright floral, sweet and happy and cheerful. A bit of honey, but also slightly dusty. Creamy and citrusy. This is so beautiful and alive! Feminine and youthful, but not girly. I wouldn't say this is "bouncy", but it IS an uplifting, cheerful kind of scent, a kind of happy contentment in a bottle. Dry: this doesn't really change on my skin, dry. Beautiful, creamy citrus/floral, bright and cheerful. As it stays longer on my skin, an almost resinous note creeps in and grounds this wonderfully, I'm guessing that's the amber. Verdict: definitely a keeper blend. Very lovely and cheerful, this is like a gentle pick-me-up.

In bottle: translucent: faint, yellow-white flowers. There's an almost citrusy feel to this, a yellow tinge, but this is mostly white florals, a hint of a creamy base, and ozone. Very lovely. Wet on skin: very lovely--it's slightly warmer, but retains its loveliness in the bottle. At first, it's a bit sharper on the first sniff, with a faintly powdery tinge. Hopefully that powderiness won't develop more. It's slightly ozoney, which is appropriate for the blend, but it's soft and inviting. It's also not as creamy as I originally thought it was. Dry: doesn't morph so much--it's largely the same as the wet phase, and thank goodness the powdery note stays at bay, and actually gives this blend a soft texture, a kind of reassuring pleasantness. I'm getting ozone, and a faint yellow-white almost-citrusy floral. As it stays longer on my skin though, this yellow-white floral continues to slide into the "yellow" side little by little, and a sour note develops--not too unpleasant, but a little jarring. Verdict: I had to retest this, it was so pretty as it was. That sour note in the end quite ruined it for me

In imp: warm, check. Sensual, check. I'm getting orange blossom, a hint of narcissus, and the vanilla creaminess. The orange blossom gives this an almost cologney vibe--very fresh and juicy but tempered by the rest of the notes. Wet on skin: first on, the narcissus takes center stage on my skin, with a tart orange blossom trailing behind. The vanilla is nonexistent. It does soften up fairly quickly, with the orange blossom and narcissus coming together on the same level and the vanilla making its presence known with a sweet creaminess. Slightly dusty, although I'm not sure where that is coming from. Dry: this one doesn't morph on my skin. I wish there was more vanilla--I'm really liking the even blend of orange blossom and narcissus, and while the vanilla does give this a creamy sweetness that is pleasant, if the vanilla was more recognizable (not so much to be foody--just recognizable), I would be all over it. The dusty note is still there, but it's not developing, thankfully. Verdict: nah, I won't be wearing this much, although it is a pretty blend.

It's definitely one of the Beaver Moons, though which one, I'm not sure. I've only ever tried the 2005 version, and that's straight cake on me. Beaver Moon 2005/Beaver'versary Beaver Moon 2007 Beaver Moon 2010 Beaver Moon 2011 I'm pretty sure that's all of them. Ooh thank you! It's definitely not the 2011 one, and strawberry doesn't seem to fit with the berry scent I'm getting--while it's a light berry, it's not a tangy berry like strawberry usually is for my nose. Curious. I have a sniffie of the 2005 Beaver Moon, which I just sniffed alongside this, and the 2005 one is a lot sweeter and cakey. So that leaves...2007 or 2010! I wish my nose was better at this the '10 was very very fruity to my nose, so my guess is the 07 based on all that Yay! Thank you 2007 it is then I'm relabeling it but I'll still add in that it was a mystery imp, and just frimp it away to someone, heheh.

It's definitely one of the Beaver Moons, though which one, I'm not sure. I've only ever tried the 2005 version, and that's straight cake on me. Beaver Moon 2005/Beaver'versary Beaver Moon 2007 Beaver Moon 2010 Beaver Moon 2011 I'm pretty sure that's all of them. Ooh thank you! It's definitely not the 2011 one, and strawberry doesn't seem to fit with the berry scent I'm getting--while it's a light berry, it's not a tangy berry like strawberry usually is for my nose. Curious. I have a sniffie of the 2005 Beaver Moon, which I just sniffed alongside this, and the 2005 one is a lot sweeter and cakey. So that leaves...2007 or 2010! I wish my nose was better at this

Halp! I received this from a lovely swapper, but unfortunately some of its siblings leaked and so the label was rather blurry by the time I received it. I have no idea what it is, and my swapper doesn't remember so I'm turning to you, o forum. Halp! I have a photo: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/95416/mystery-decant.png It's foody, slightly cake-y to my nose, and dry on my skin I think it has berries in it. Not a heavy berry scent, but something like berries, or jam, that sort of thing. As you can see the oil color is yellow. Any ideas?

In decant: oh, so excited to try this! I'm getting a light floral scent, pleasant--linden, and a demure lily. Definitely not Snake Oily, but I'm getting creamy vanilla, slightly dark and musky. Wet on skin: hello there, pretty linden blossom and lily. You are lovely, and I love this blend. We've got linden and lily and a slightly spicy vanilla; I can "sense" the presence of Snake Oil, but definitely light. There's also a slightly cinnamony spice thing going on here, sweet and softly spicy. This is working really well so far. Lovely! Dry: aaaaaand hello, powder Sigh. That's definitely another nail in the coffin: Snake Oil does not work for my skin chemistry, in any amount. It's now a nice spicy floral powder on me, faintly sneezy. Sigh. Verdict: well, I suppose I should be thankful I don't have to go hunting for this discontinued blend!

In imp: foody, and slightly nutty on the first whiff. The second brings to me vanilla, sassafras, and full-bodied woods. Yummy. Wet on skin: vanilla and woods, and a hint of that sassafras reminding me of a cross between Tree of Life and The Anti-Saloon League--and considering what this blend represents, it's just fitting. This is really fabulous, and I'm liking this a lot. So yummy! Dry: this is a very a yummy mix of vanilla, sassafras and woods, and the result is a sometimes-nutty and sometimes-chocolatey overtone. The woods tone down the foodiness of this blend, but not entirely; it's a very nice backdrop against the sweetness of the sassafras and vanilla. This is like ASL with woods, or Tree of Lie with sassafras. Verdict: I really love the smell of this, just like how I loved ASL, but like ASL, I am not going to be wearing this so much so it's a pass, but oh man, this is so yummy.

In decant: hmm, the first thought that hit me as I sniffed this was "cologne". That's how my nose interpreted the blast of moss I first sniffed, followed by the cherry blossom and that lovely vanilla musk. Wet on skin: ohh, this is so pretty. The strongly cologney feel is gone, and it's now a super creamy moss/cherry blossom/vanilla blend. It's beautiful, ladylike, and yummy without being foody. Absolute love! There is a bright, pleasing coolness to the blend, not minty but definitely cool. I don't have any idea where that is coming from, but it's very pretty. Dry: wait...this is quite a morpher. On me, anyway. As it dries and stays longer on my skin, it slowly loses its femininity slowly but surely, creeping ever onwards to a gender neutral scent and then on to a rather masculine (if slightly unisex) scent. Looks like the cherry blossom has all burned off It also fluctuates between being soapy and not. Verdict: oh, I'm so sad at how this dried on me. The wet phase, with the cherry blossom at the forefront and the moss keeping things in check, was absolutely divine. The dry phase is another matter entirely, with the moss just rampaging all over the place and the shy cherry blossom retreating all the way.

In the imp: description is pretty spot on: it's a green herbal--something close to lavender to my nose-- with a kind of rose/peony tone, but not light, not "friendly": a kind of dark, almost-brooding flower. Wet on skin: this is a creamy green/herbal scent with a bit of those florals in it. It's actually refreshing without being bright or light: a more "quiet introspection" sort of refreshing (does that even make sense), like the feeling you get after you've wrestled with an idea for a while. This feels alive and vibrant without being sharp or bright or cloying. Dry: the florals have come out more now, on par with the green herbal notes. It's creamy and almost heady, but the green/herbal notes do keep the flowers in line, resulting is a very pretty and girlish scent that does not go towards childish or even teen-ish. It's very well balanced, a simple, uncomplicated, beautiful scent. Verdict: the blends in this category just doesn't get a lot of love, I feel. I suppose it's a bit too simple for most folks, but that's the beauty of it for me. This is very pretty, and I've gone and ordered a bottle.

In decant: dark, slightly sharp. I'm getting plum, musk, beeeswax, and a hint of heliotrope almost smothered by incense. Not a very good beginning for me :/ Wet on skin: plum, musk, heliotrope, beeswax, and incense. Actually, the incense is not too bad here, its actually somewhat nice-smelling. It's a bit heavier than I'd like, but it doesn't automatically break this blend for me. The calla lily and heliotrope is divine, but sadly, the red musk is slowly getting quite powdery. Dry: dry, I'm quite amazed: It's sweet and creamy without going overboard, a pleasant blend of calla lily, heliotrope, and beeswax. It's turned to something almost stunning...if the red musk wasn't there stomping over everything with its oily-powder-iness. I suppose this kind of makes sense to have the Witch Queen seem so young and sweet and pretty and then suddenly go all weird on you. I mean, I'm sure it works for those who don't have my skin chemistry, but red musk has never really worked for me Verdict: oh well, it was a nice try.

In decant: ohhh, this is so nice. It's a gentle, light floral, mostly white with a few hints of pale colors. Nice! Why did I not test this before? Wet on skin: right off, I can tell that the white sandalwood grounds this and makes it a bit dry, white the florals are so...beautiful, and light, and uplifting. The florals are well blended, there is not one that lords over the rest to my nose: there's a bit of spice, a bit of sweetness, a bit of a bite, and oh! Is that the crystal musk? It's GORGEOUS. OH MY I WANT THIS NAO. Dry: musky-soft florals, with a slight powderiness that isn't out of place. Oh love. It's a very pretty musky floral, well balanced, and delicate-feeling but ever so present and with a smile that makes you wonder if it knows more than it's letting on. As it stays on my skin, the throw intensifies, but sadly there's this weird sour/grandmothery vibe that has started to bother me: one of those flowers aren't playing well, or possibly the petitgrain; and I'm betting whatever makes some white musks turn grandmothery on me, something of that is in this crystal musk. Verdict: I was quite, quite sad upon finding that sour/grandmothery thing at the later stages. It was such, such a pretty blend before that, and I was already planning to update my ISOs and decant this wonderful thing into a roller bottle for my own use. Sigh, the horrors of skin chem