Ishtar

I wasn't really off to a good start with White Rabbit since I spilled my imp all over me while applying it for the first time (note to self: wait for the hand lotion to dry before grabbing an imp). Thank goodness it is a fairly light blend, otherwise I would be gasping for air by now! White Rabbit starts off quite spicy, with an underlying milkiness. I can distinctly smell both the pepper and the ginger, while the blend becomes creamier and sweeter as it dries down. I didn't notice the tea note at first but all of a sudden I find myself daydreaming about a chai latte, so I suppose that the tea is present indeed, even if it is only on a subliminal level! As I love tea scents, I was expecting to madly adore White Rabbit, but I have to say it isn't quite the case. It is a very nice blend, don't get me wrong, but on me it is a little too tame. A little too innocent. Or maybe I just need to accept that even though I love the sound of them, creamy scents don't really work on me. Now that I think of it, they are quite hit-and-miss on my skin. So I will just try, say, a dozen more of them (it is all in the name of science, you see) and if they don't work either, then maybe I'll give them up Stubborn, me? Noooooo

Bastet is like a ray of golden light. Warm and soft and comforting, it makes me want to purr. Unlike most reviewers, I didn't find that this blend started off overly almondy, but I cannot get enough almond anyway, so please don't mind me My first impression was of a soft amber scent, with some Middle Eastern spices dancing in the background. The amber is gentle and feminine, yet at the same time there is something fierce and animal going on here. Which is quite fitting for Bastet, since her wrathful and bloothirsty incarnation as Sekhmet cannot be very far... In this blend, though, it is definitely the most gentle side of the goddess that predominates. The drydown is all soft musk with a touch of cardamom and saffron. It took me a little while to give Bastet the attention it deserves, as it is rather discreet for such a warm scent. It is well worth the effort and will reward you with an exotic, sexy scent that is nonetheless perfectly suitable for daytime and work. Spectacular yet understated and with an Egyptian goddess as its inspiration, what more could I ask for in a perfume?

Everyone did such a great job of reviewing Dorian, there is little I can add! I really, really like this blend of vanilla, musk and lemon: same notes as Zephyr, but an entirely different personality. Dorian just oozes charm and charisma. On me it has little in common with Snake Oil: it is much more understated and refined; the overall mood is more dangerously seductive than outrageously sexy. All things considered, I would describe Dorian as a more gender-neutral Antique Lace. I will be getting a bottle of this once my beloved and short-lived Antique Lace is gone.

This will quite possibly be seen as blasphemous, but I have to say it: On me, for some reason, Spooky smells mostly like... celery That's right, a bright, green, happy stalk of celery. Uhm. Not really what I expected. If I sniff hard, I can smell some mint and a faint whiff of coconut, which keeps me hoping for the best. Maybe the celery will go away and I will be able to enjoy the beautiful sweetness everyone mentions. Let's wait. ... Well, this is one stubborn chunk of celery... ... Ah, after a couple of hours, at long last, the odoriferous vegetable starts fading away! Now the blend is much creamier and quite soft. This is more like it, even though there is still something vaguely herbal happening in the background that prevents me from really enjoying this scent. After complete drydown, Spooky is reminiscent of Snow White (which I adore), with an odd herb undertone that reminds me of cilantro. Much to my despair, I think we can safely say that Spooky and I are not made for each other, so I guess I will give it to a friend, hoping it will work better on her.

I must admit that I deliberately passed on Hearth when it was offered because it sounded way too smoky for my taste. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to smell it during a sniffing session with two other forumites and found it to be nothing like what I had imagined it to be. In the bottle, Hearth smelled mostly of cherry and nuts. I wasn't too sure about the nutty notes, they rarely work well on me. Yet after applying, I was relieved to see that as usual, my skin amplified the sweet notes more than anything else. So on me Hearth is a sweet, rich, deep burgundy red blend with a prominent cherry scent, an underlying tobacco note and a hint of bitterness that keeps things really layered and interesting. I know that the description mentions pipe tobacco, but it was so fruity and sweet that it actually reminded me of shisha tobacco, the one used with hookah pipes. Hearth is delicious both as a perfume and as a room scent. In French, we use the same word, "foyer", to say both hearth and home. This is the exact impression I get from Hearth when I put it in my burner: it is so warm, comforting and cozy that it could turn any empty, sterile space into a home. Well-being in a bottle.

Antique Lace was another imp given to me by the lovely and ever-generous Chin In the imp, Antique Lace struck me as extremely soft, both in an olfactive and tactile way. It reminds me of cottonballs, or maybe of a very old piece of fabric, so worn out that it is all shiny and soft. This smells lovely in the vial, but I have no idea how it is going to turn on my skin. It could go either way: dry, dusty and old-ladyish, or unassuming and softly seductive. Well, after a few minutes on, Antique Lace turns out to be mostly vanilla and a soft underlying floral. This is a delicious combination for anyone who likes vanilla, which I do. As usual, my skin seems to amplify sweet notes: this is quite sweet indeed, but not cloying at all. After drydown, the vanilla fades a little and is replaced by a definite powderiness, which I quite enjoy. This is much closer to the description now: this is a blend that softly speaks of things past, of a more delicate and elegant era. It is nostalgic without being sad and its colour is a beautiful shade of ivory that is only seen nowadays in the finest stationery. After wearing it twice, I am completely in love with Antique Lace. This is a scent that will perfectly fit certain moods and will be ideal to wear before bed. I highly recommend it to any vanilla lover, with one caveat though: if you don't like powdery scents, you might want to avoid this one.

I got my imp of Ave Maria Gratia Plena from the lovely Chin during our latest sniffing session In one word, this is simply fabulous! On me, it starts off as a deceptively simple creamy floral. Like others mentioned, it is a white scent, but not blindingly or aggressively so. This is a soft, muted, off-white that soon reveals its full complexity and its many layers. The rosewood and sandalwood ground the blend beautifully, the lemon and sage keep it vibrant and pure, and I would imagine that it is the musk that imparts the soft creaminess. This is a truly inspired blend, reverent without being austere. It is radiant yet restrained, innocent yet womanly and terribly elegant. Needless to say, this is a keeper!

I too got grapes when I first applied High John the Conqueror, with an underlying bubble gum sweetness that makes me wonder if there could be lotus in this. The overall impression is that of a sweet, soapy blend underscored by something thick and resiney. It gets soapier and soapier as time goes by, almost a bit sharp but not unpleasant at all. Since this is the first time I try it, I have not experienced its Voodoo properties yet, but it definitely feels like an energizing blend that helps you get things done

Many thanks to the wonderful Brownbat who decanted this for me! In the vial, All Saints smelled extremely buttery and a little heady, a la Hellcat. On my skin, it immediately turned into a very sweet and thick scent. In the early stages, this didn't smell ecclesiastical to me at all. There was a chocolate-tobacco foodiness to it that reminded me of Dia de los Muertos. This works much better on me than Dia de los Muertos did, though. Very well-balanced, maybe because the florals cut through the sweetness. After one hour of wearing, the resins start coming through and completely change the mood of this blend. The foodiness is gone, All Saints becomes much more solemn and closer to the description. Wood and incense. Once it settles down, All Saints is a serious, spiritual scent, maybe a tad austere for me to wear on its own, but that should be stunning layered with a rose blend. I am currently wearing Black Cat on my other wrist and the combination of both is simply beautiful

In the vial and wet, Black Cat was a nice, sweet floral with a tinge of something medicinal, like rubbing alcohol. As it started to dry, the rose became obvious, accompanied by a minty note and maybe a hint of lotus? It is still sweet, but there is a mix of rose and green going on that reminds me of my beloved (and sadly missed) Virgo. I am a huge fan of this and after using it a couple times (both in ritual and on my skin), I think I can confidently say that it works! Another wonderful Voodoo blend

In the imp and wet, Midnight smelled like a delicious bunch of white flowers. Complex, elegant and sophisticated, with a hint of powderiness. A very white/pale blue scent. After a few minutes, the powderiness becomes more prominent. Midinght turns into a very round, silky scent. It is soft in a tactile sort of way, but it certainly doesn't lack intensity. There is something in the texture of this blend that I instinctively associate with white silky fabric. However, the downside is that when it dries down, the intense floral powderiness of Midnight also reminds me of fabric softener. For one or two hours, this association becomes so strong that I am afraid it will completely ruin this scent for me. Thankfully, after complete drydown, the powderiness fades away, leaving only a gorgeous bouquet of white flowers on my skin. I will have to try Midnight a couple more times to see how the drydown goes. I think it is a keeper anyway. This is a lovely floral, but don't think whispy, faint floral here. It is quite intense. I applied sparingly this morning and it is still going strong four hours later.

I wore Skadi out today on our first snowy day in Vancouver and I am amazed at how dead-on this is. The very embodiment of winter indeed. Like many others, I passed on ordering Skadi because the description sounded too close to that of Ice Queen and also because pine and I don't always get along. Now I know I should have done exactly the opposite. Skadi is as smooth and comforting as the Ice Queen was sharp and chilly. On me the berries and sweet notes are the most prominent. My skin tends to amplify them, which is fine since I like them. The pine is well blended with the other notes and never gets too green or sharp. It actually only makes its presence known on me at the end of the wet stage/early drydown, then fades as the scent begins to mellow. After complete drydown, a clean, crisp, yet warm and sweet scent emanates from my skin and it is to die for! Many, many thanks to the forumite who swapped an imp of Skadi with me, and more thanks to Beth for creating such a beautiful fragrance!

My experience with Saint-Germain was unusual in that it completely changed personalities between my first and second application. The first time I tried it, I was with another forumite. The imp was in her swap pile and I instantly fell in love with Saint-Germain. What I smelled was what most of you described: a sophisticated masculine blend, indeed fitting for a man of superior intellect (funny how we all got the impression that this was made for an intelligent chap ). Alas, the second time around was nothing like the first: all I got was an unpleasantly sharp, green scent with none of the roundness and warmth that amber usually imparts. I am confused now. I will obviously have to try it again before deciding what to do with my imp.

The perfected winter rose, dew covered and freshly cut. Rose Red is indeed beautiful. As everyone said, it has that "just cut rose" quality to it. It also has that definite mix of rose and green that could be found in Virgo. Since I dearly loved Virgo and was so sad to see it go, this was very good news. Unfortunately, Rose Red has next to no staying power on my skin (2 hours at most), which is unusual for a rose blend. I love it, but it fades so fast that I am considering swapping my only imp to someone who will enjoy it more. It is beautiful nonetheless

You might also like Cairo (previously Old Cairo), a very aromatic and fruity incense; and Scherezade, at the seductive and sophisticated end of the incense spectrum. If you like rose, I found Wanton to be lovely and undeservedly underrrated. From your list you seem to favour feminine scents, but if you ever want to branch out and try more masculine scents, I have to mention Nyarlathotep. Oh, and if you like Eclipse, you have to try Black Phoenix!

Not being a huge fan of aquatic scents, I would never have tried Szepasszony if the Lab had not added it to my order. I must admit that I was favourably impressed! It is aquatic indeed, but this is the purest water, neither salty nor metallic nor soapy. It doesn't have that cold sharpness that most aquatics have to them either. To me this is a warm spring rain, that makes the scent of surrounding flowers stand out more. Quite charming; and even if it is not "me" enough for me to get more, I might well use up my imp this spring

As many others said, Gaueko was not nearly as dark and forbidding as I expected it to be from the description. Wet, this brought back happy memories of long walks in the hills of Southern France. There is a French word, Garrigue, for the native vegetation (mostly low shrubs and herbs) that grows on these hills: lavender, thyme, rosemary, laurel and olive trees. That is exactly what Gaueko smells like on me during the initial stage As it dries, the sandalwood and incense get stronger. My dear garrigue is gone and I miss it, but this is still a lovely scent, if a little on the masculine side. The final stage is warm, spicy and comforting. Perfect as a lounging scent, or maybe as a bedtime scent. A keeper, if only for the nice memories it brings back

Has No Hanna will have to be for ritual use only. It didn't agree with my skin at all as a perfume. As others said, it changes very little from the imp to drydown. On me it was sharp, strong, almost overwhelming. A very dark scent. I wondered at one point if my arch-enemy the vetiver was in this blend, but now that it has mellowed a bit, I can detect a sharp/sweetish floral (odd combination!) and something dark and thick underneath, myrrh maybe? Since I got surprisingly good results with Beth's voodoo blends in the past, I have no reason to doubt that this one works too. However, I can't see myself wearing it as a perfume. It will perfect for dressing candles during ritual, though.

In the imp, Scarecrow smelled very chemical. This did not overly worry me, as I already found several BPALs to have a medicinal/chemical smell at first and then mellow into something completely different. On my skin, the wet stage was definitely the nail polish smell that other people described. Hrm. After a good 30 mn, a recognizable straw note started coming through, unfortunately overpowered by the chemical smell that didn't want to die. I was beginning to think this would never work on me when suddenly, the dry barren field scent everyone described eventually showed up. Whew. This was much better. The drydown was really nice, reminiscent of an elegant and traditional masculine blend that I can't quite place but have smelled before. I am not quite sure yet whether I will keep Scarecrow or not; if I do, I will probably only wear it when staying at home as it turns really masculine on me (in a very nice way, mind you)

Penthus definitely belongs in the Funereal collection. Wearing it put me in a strange mood, not quite brooding, not quite melancholy... a little upsetting. This emotional reaction was so immediate that I almost forgot to pay any attention to the actual notes in this blend. On my skin the salty notes are most prominent, leaving next to no space to the rose to express itself. I am not surprised; I usually can't do salty scents, Dragon's Tears being the only exception so far. Upon drydown, Penthus suddenly changes personality and goes from sharp and salty to soapy without warning. Hopefully this imp will find a home with someone who will wear it better than I do.

Ack! Raging vetiver in the imp! Oh dear. Vetiver and I don't get along at all... but I'll be brave. Let's apply an infinitesimal drop and see what happens! The first ten minutes are pure, strong vetiver and I can't say that I am enjoying it. But as Sloth dries down, the vetiver seems to take a backseat to the myrrh. It is getting more wearable for me, spicier and a little smoother. It is a very heavy, languid kind of scent, quite fitting for Sloth, but really not my thing.

At long last I am reviewing the Chaos Theory that the lovely Oceandessa decanted for me a couple months ago. I can't believe I never reviewed it because I dearly love it! This is a decidedly spicy blend: clove and cinnamon burst out of the imp as soon as I open it! However, this is gentle and smooth in spite of all the spiciness. If I had to compare it to an oil from the catalogue, I would say that the wet stage reminds me of Mercury, with more clove and less cinnamon. Lovely As it dries down, the spices mellow a little bit. There definitely is more clove than cinnamon in this blend, with a base that could be musk. While the wet stage was markedly Christmassy, reminiscent of pot-pourri and mulling spices, the drydown is more understated and has more of an Asian feel to it. I am beginning to wonder if there could be star anise in it. For such a spicy scent, this wears remarkably smooth and light. A chaos masterpiece!

Add me to the list of those who expected Nyarlathotep to smell completely different. On my skin, the wet stage is all lemon and ozone, with an underlying softness/powderiness that reminds me of white musk. It wears very fresh and clean. Interesting but nothing like the description: somewhat chilly and cruel, yes, potentially dangerous, maybe, but black and brooding, not at all. Let's give it time to dry down and see where it takes us. Ah, after 30 mn, this begins to change significantly: the lemon has completely disappeared and here is the incense coming through. The ozone is getting stronger and now I can feel the menacing/electric bipolarity of this blend. It is sharper and more masculine than in the early stage. Not what I would call a dark scent, though. Nyarlathotep is a pleasant surprise for me. I usually am not a fan of ozone scents, yet I quite liked this. After complete drydown it gets a little too electric and masculine for me to wear, though, but I would recommend it to anyone who likes fresh, clean scents

Oh Egyptian Amber, how much I love you! Like everyone said, this is incredibly smooth and soft. However, Egyptian Amber has lots of depth, so much so that it is difficult to believe that it is a single note. It is so rich and textured that I feel like biting in it. It is that delicious! This is not too smokey an amber, a very good thing in my book. This single note is so beautiful that it is probably the one I will miss the most. Thankfully, Haunted has the same amber note, which means that I will still be able to get my amber fix regularly!

This is the best white musk note I have ever smelled. Period. It is smooth, gentle and creamy, without the spicy bite most musks from other companies have. Rather than being animalistic and all-out provocative, this white musk has class, restraint and elegance. My kind of seduction and I am, indeed, utterly seduced