moon_lemming

When I sniffed it in the imp, I though Bat of Health contained mint. I couldn't figure out what that fresh-but-sweet semi-herbal smell was -- it wasn't minty, but that was the only thing that came to mind. Reading through the notes I'm pretty sure it was the juniper berry. I haven't smelled that note enough to know for sure, but it sounds right. When I first sniffed this Bat on my skin, I sort of recoiled a bit because it smelled exactly like cough syrup tastes. That horrible smell went away quickly and was replaced by a lovely sweet blend of sassafras and fig, with a little bit of the juniper berries still there. My overall impression is that it's a root beer-y oil with sweet (but not sugary) berries layered into it. Or at least it did. It's almost completely gone after twenty minutes. I'm always sort of thankful when that happens because it means I don't have to hunt down a bottle, ha. eta: I spoke too soon -- it seemed like this Bat was completely disappearing but the lighter scent stuck around for HOURS afterward. It was too light to smell unless my nose was close-ish to my skin, but it was there. I am almost tempted to hunt down more, but all two of my brain cells that exude common sense are hollering NO YOU WOULD NOT WEAR IT ENOUGH. It is a good-smelling oil, though.

I'm not even sure what Kubla Khan smells like in the imp. Spicy like ginger and sweet like vanilla. Maybe hay. It's really well blended, and it's hard to pick apart. On my skin it's like vanilla-coated incense, and it's good! The jasmine is not taking over like jasmine usually does on my skin. Sadly, before it's even dry, the oil takes on that powdery feel that I get with amber. I can't stand that smell. If it weren't for that, this would be an awesome cool-weather scent, but I'd never be able to get past that wet powdery stage.

I never get any fruit but pineapple from All in the Golden Afternoon: wet and in the imp it's white florals with sort-of-artificial pineapple underneath. It's not too bad, even though I'm not a fan of florals. It's got a kind of tropical feel to it. Dry, it's much the same, BUT! The tobacco amps on my skin and the scent combination is unpleasant, familiar in a bad way. This one definitely doesn't work with my chemistry.

More Bubble Yum. This time I'm smelling grape Bubble Yum in the vial. Once I stick Lobster on my skin, though, I can smell the watermelon and strawberry and a bit of citrus that I thought was lime, but must be mandarin. The strawberry gets stronger as the oil dries. There's something not fruity keeping it from being TOO MUCH. Maybe the musk? I am happy to report that the gardenia doesn't show up for me -- it's one of those florals that turns to detergent once it runs into my chemistry. I also don't get any woods. 'Tis the Voice of the Lobster, in the end, is a fruity sticky scent, heavy on the strawberry, with some sort of quiet maybe-musk base keeping it from flying away. It doesn't have a lot of throw, but it stays on my skin longer than I expected given the fruitiness.

I have absolutely no idea what quince smells like. I do know what Alice's Evidence reminds me of in the imp, though: You know those pecan rolls you can buy a plastic tray of for a buck at 7-11? This smells exactly like the cinnamon nutty paste stuff that is in those rolls. On me, the spices pick up and the rum pops as well. The cinnamon doesn't completely take over like it usually does, but balances nicely with the rum instead. Spiced rum indeed. I think that's as spot-on as the description can get. I have developed a sudden craving for Hallowe'en parties and mugs full of warm spiced rum. Delicious. I don't know if I'd WEAR it, but I'd drink it. (You know, if it wasn't perfume oil.)

Let me find something nice to say so I'm not going into this all negative: oh! Cumin, I love cumin. I've never tried it in a perfume (that I can recall) but I love cooking with it. In the imp, I smell... peanut sauce, leather. VETIVER MY OLD ENEMY. On my skin, the pine jumps out and -- that's all I can find. Where are the basil and clove smoke? WHERE DID THE VETIVER GO. I smell like a xmas tree. There we go. As it dries, Troll picks up some warm spiciness and a little smokiness. I can't tell which spices are behind the warmth, but they're reminiscent of cooking spices. It's not bad for a super-masculine scent. I'd never wear it, but it is surprisingly nice given what I was anticipating, ESPECIALLY given the fact that pine is the dominant note, and I am not a pine fan.

A previous reviewer said High-Strung Daisies is in the same family as Hope and Faith, and my nose agrees. It seems a lot sweeter than the twins do to me, though. I think it might just be the way my brain reacts to one of the floral notes. First whiff in the imp brought Bubble Yum to mind. Like a cross between the watermelon and original flavors. Wet on my skin, it's mostly the same, but as it dries, the florals start to pop. It's still SUPER sweet, but it's got a pink-and-yellow floral thing going on as well. I'm not sure what a daisy note smells like, and I've only smelled carnation in combo with other notes, so it's hard for me to tell which floral is more dominant. Pepper usually amps on my skin, but I can't smell any in Daisies. Dry, the oil is still almost bubble-gum sweet. The bright florals don't exactly balance the sweetness, but they're there. I don't think I like the smell of daisies. Or maybe I prefer my carnation with a dash of spice (like Lush's Potion scent). Whatever the case, this isn't the oil for me. Even if I liked whichever floral I'm not enjoying, it's too sweet and innocent for my tastes.

Oh deer. FLOWERS. This will be short: in the imp, Les Fleurs du Mal are flowers du DETERGENT, par for the course for the Lab's floral blends (wisteria is one of the notes that do this pretty consistently). On my skin, this oil is a dead-on imitation of baby wipes. It morphs into a sweet-ish floral that is tolerable -- I can make out the rose, and I love rose, so that's good -- but it never quite loses that baby wipe vibe.

Nooooo, night-blooming anything is the kiss of death for an oil on my skin. Medea is no exception. In the imp, I smell sharp woods, which is another bad sign since my skin amps wood. Wet, there is the familiar too-high detergent smell of florals that aren't going to play well with my nose, with a smish of berries -- the currants, I guess -- trapped underneath. Half an hour after applying, Medea is about the same. The florals aren't as headachingly sharp, but they're still in the fabric softener/laundry detergent family. I am surprised the myrrh doesn't stand out more, as it usually takes over scents that it's in on my skin. The wood only shows up in the imp. I really love the hint of juicy currant underneath that floral mess, but I'd rather have it in a blend that didn't have the floral overtone, or had florals that I enjoy wearing.

I couldn't resist the name, I admit it. BATS: HOW CAN ANYONE RESIST THEM. Also, melon sounded good during the humid summer. Once I tested Bat, though, I remembered that I am not a fan of many melon scents. Don't get me wrong, this is a GREAT melon scent while the melon lasts, and it even works on my skin, I just wouldn't wear it. (My sister wore melon scents when we were in high school so they've never really felt "me.") At first, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat is all honeydew, bright and wet and hugely refreshing. As it dries, the honeydew morphs into cantaloupe -- that sounds bizarre, but it does! -- and ten minutes later it's turned into an almost-subtle melon scent with green tea poised to take charge. By the time it's settled, it has barely any throw on my skin, but if I get close enough I can smell the green tea with an herbal backdrop. The cantaloupe practically disappears at the half-hour mark, but the green tea/herb blend is light and cool and it's not a huge loss. It's very pretty and fresh, it's just in the family of scents (even after the melon dies down) that I associate with my sister. The "feel" also reminds me of Holiday Moon, which I have plenty of, even if I did feel comfortable wearing this one.

I've been frimped this twice recently, so I guess I should take the hint. Oh, cedar. Yes, that's cedar. In the imp, I can smell a few different notes, but on my cedar-amping skin, that's about the extent of the blend. Cedar. And cedar. Oh, look, a little bit of verbena. IT'S GROWING OMG. Okay, by the time it's dry, Aelopile is equal parts cedar and verbena. Interesting combo, but not really something I'd wear.

Ha, I just retried La Bella Donna Della Mia Mente and was thinking, "Hmmm, this reminds me of an Herbal Essences shampoo, in a delicious way." Then I dabbed The Zieba Tree on and lolled because I had the exact same reaction to THAT ONE. Actually, once it dries, The Zieba Tree reminds me of a perfume I had when I was a lot younger; it's sweet and fruity and just a tiny bit floral. Whatever resins are in there behave themselves and there is no powder that I can find. The only downside is that it gets a little soapy as it finishes drying, but not overwhelmingly so. I guess lemon and orange blossoms are florals my skin can deal with. Overall, it's a really gentle, pretty scent that would be perfect for the first parts of spring. I think it might be a little TOO pretty for me to wear, but it is definitely appealig.

Everything sounds good but the amber. Amber is usually powdery on me, and I hate powder. Maybe it will behave. Oh my god, in the imp, Saint-Germain smells EXACTLY like a breakfast food I've had before. Something related to oatmeal? Ack, it's on the tip of my brain but I can't recall it. That sounds weird since it's all florals and stuff, but I swear, that's what it reminds me of. Holy moses, that lavender is sharp once it's on my skin. The two florals combined are seriously overpowering. The powder from the amber just makes for an unpleasant background for the sharpness. This one veers too far into headache territory for me.

Oh, apparently romantic cruelty smells like peanuts. That sounds about right. That's all I get from Malediction in the imp, anyway. Wet, it smells like salt, peanuts, and smoke. Dry, it smells like VETIVER IS EATING MY SOUL. Also there is still a little salt. Not for me at all.

Hey, this will shock and amaze you: HURRICANE SMELLS OF OZONE. That's all I get from the imp. That's all I get on my skin. It's sort of grounded by something after it's totally dry, but I don't readily identify it as vetiver, although I'm sure that's what it is given vetiver's huge presence in other reviews of this oil. I don't know if there will ever be an ozone scent that works for me. Certainly not this one.

When I first sniffed No. 93 Engine in the vial, I smelled something familiar. In a good way. LEMON, I love lemon. I know almost everyone thinks OH NOES PLEDGE when they smell lemon, but it always cheers me up. There was some other stuff in the background that smelled familiar, but I couldn't name any of it. My skin amps the lemon balm at first, along with something else familiar, maybe the frankincense. It's sort of an odd almost unpleasant combination, but it works. As it dries, the lemon gets fainter and something else from the myriad notes amps up... it almost smells like I've rubbed some cooking spices on my wrist. Not in a bad way, just sort of savory and spicy with a hint of sweet and the tiniest smidge of woods; oh, and a powdery feel, which is common for resinous scents on my skin. I don't think I would go through a whole bottle, but it's a weirdly compelling, complex scent nonetheless.

Oh god, the notes in Nyarlathotep might as well be "anti-Karen mixed with some Irish Spring." In the imp it is not so threatening, mostly just a dark-feeling aquatic/ozone scent. On me, it turns into... leather? and aftershave, which is how my skin generally interprets the Lab's ozone. Huh, a couple of minutes in it starts with some lemon thing. I was just reading the reviews on the forum, and they mentioned lemon, and I was like "Oh my chemistry is so weird, there is no lemon in heeeeey wait a minute." Nyarlathotep ends up settling down as a lemony powdery aftershave. I never found the incense, unless it contributed to the leather feeling I got at first. Totally not a scent I'd wear, but not as bad as I thought it would be.

I've never tried QoH because of all the white flowers, which almost never work on me. I forgot what was in it before I looked up the notes again, though, so all I thought when I opened the imp was: CHERRY! Oh, and a bit of astringent florals. Once the oil hit my skin, the cherry slooowly disappeared, leaving detergenty white florals in its wake, until I was reminded of one of those fancy new "designer" detergents Tide and everyone else puts out, like "Maraschino and White Flowers" or something like that. Fifteen minutes later it's just white florals, detergent city, but it's fading fast, unlike most detergenty florals on me. That's a plus, it means no headache! Not that I'm going to buy a bottle or anything; it's good to know I can generally count on white flowers to act in a sturdy, dependable manner.

I am wary about applying this one -- it could be headachey, with the amber and the pine. Nothing to do but try, huh? In the imp, The Piper kind of reminds me of department store perfume. It's got that high-pitched floral thing going on. On my skin, it's the same, but... dirty. Ew. I think it's the brown musk, maybe mixing with the patchouli? Musk and amber both hate my skin, so it could be either one, I guess. Oh lord, this is definitely leaving my house. It dries into a dirty medicinal rankness that is impressive in its awfulness. Don't let my review scare you off, I knew this one probably wouldn't work with my chemistry; I just had to try it for the honey and blood orange, you know? Bad decision.

I wasn't sure what I was smelling in the imp, just that it reminded me of outdoors. Sort of a wet-grass-and-something-else scent. It's not unpleasant, although I wouldn't wear it. Dry, Nowhere in Particular gets taken over by an ozone-y note, which does the same thing as aquatics on me -- turns straight to soap. This one's not for me. I wish I had gotten dirt out of it, but I couldn't find any, boo.

In the imp, I smell cologne. This is a dead-on "hi, I am aquatic" hint. Bad sign, aquatics usually turn to soap on me. Omg yes, soap. Holy crap, that was fast. It's Irish Spring with a spearmint feel? Like those white chalky mints, not red-and-white. It's not changing as it dries, it stays right there. Bye, imp.

Goodness gracious, I smell like edible flowers. In the imp, The Gaoler's Daughter is sort of a fruity rose. Peachy. A peachy rose. I know there's no rose in it, but that's what I think of. On me, the peach stays in the front, with some honey mixing in. Luckily the cream and amber behave -- those are two notes that are usually death for Lab blends. I can smell the gardenia, but it's not laundry sheets, just a nice floral backdrop for the peaches and honey. The gardenia does get stronger as it dries, though. Oh dear. Yes, the gardenia takes over after a while. I could cry, this smelled so good fresh.

The Churchyard doesn't smell NEARLY as dark as I expected. It's very pretty. Shady, but not dark. Sweet, but not overly so. On me, it's mostly a really soft rose... pink, not red... with a sweet green overtone. There's a little bit of dry incense underneath it, grounding it, but I have to sniff really hard to find it. I don't know if I'd get a bottle -- I have SO MANY rose scents I wear already -- but it is lovely.

2008 version In the vial, Huesos de Santo reminds me of those orange cream-filled Hostess cupcakes. You know, the ones that are vanilla but orange at the same time? Deelishus. On me, at first the cake bit amps up, and the oil smells like (good!) buttery cake and a bit of orange. This is a plus -- usually the Lab's custard-dotted oils tend to go sour on me. As it dries, the anise comes out, holy crap I love this! It is still cakey, but loaded with anise, which is one of my favorite scents. Thankfully the flowers are playing dead. Oh good grief, it's even better dry. The anise mellows out and balances with the buttery cake and I NEED a bottle of this. So rare for a Lab cake-y blend to work for me -- I'm sort of in shock! 2010 version Same scent (to my nose) as 2008's Huesos de Santo, which I loved so much I have a bottle. I thought the 2010 version might be a little cakier but I'm pretty sure that's just because I haven't worn the 2008 version in a while and forgot how cakey it is at first.

Oh, let's see, leather and musk, WILL THIS END WELL? While strictly leather in the imp, Brom Bones picks up other notes on my skin. It's actually smelling pretty good, omg. Is that vanilla? No sign of stanky musks and the leather is behaving! OH MY GOODNESS. Now if only I could pull off masculine scents, sigh. It is a good leather/vanilla combo, oh man. Dear Brom Bones, you sort of make me want to be a boy.