Thursdae

Shroud. I'd forgotten it was discontinued. It's woodsy with an underlying floral sweetness. I like it a lot but it vanishes very quickly from my skin.

Link to Wikipedia: A head shop is a retail outlet specializing in drug paraphernalia related to cannabis and other recreational drugs, and New Age herbs... I think of "headshoppy" as a combination of incense, dragon's blood, nag champa, and patchouli. I once walked into a room wearing the GC scent Sin and was pounced on, sniffed, and told, "You smell sexaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy."

I really love this. The lime is deep, almost nestling into the wood and moss, while the floral notes swirl with musky sweetness. There probably isn't any honey but I can imagine magical bees swarming around me searching in vain for a tree in bloom! It puts me in mind of a favorite of mine, House of Night. But I think I say that every time I love something.

The Gaoler's Daughter starts out very floral on me, with a penetrating sweetness that reminds me of lilac. After a few minutes, the peach note rises and honey winks an eye. I didn't know what would happen with this one. I love neroli but not gardenia--and on me, it doesn't smell like either one. It's florals and stone fruit. I imagine sitting in a garden on a summer afternoon, among a profusion of flowers. I've got a dish of sliced peaches and cream with a spoonful of honey drizzled across it. I can hear one lazy bumblebee rumbling from stem to stem. Smells good and makes me feel good. A bit of summer sunshine in a bottle.

It's rare for me to like jasmine. I do sometimes. I love Oneiroi. But gardenia and jasmine are two notes that have unfortunate scent associations for me. Tiki Queen smelled lovely for the first minute, and my heart began to beat fast, thinking it was one of the exceptions-to-the-rule jasmine blends. Then it moved to a gardenia/jasmine phase, so it is not a keeper for me. I think it's a pretty blend, feminine, floral, and fun--just not for me.

I love daphne. It makes me want to drink Earl Grey tea.

I had a bottle of the Possetts scent Candy Swag and its reducer cap was a pain in the neck! Cut to: Thursdae up-ends the bottle over wrist to shake a drop through the reducer cap . . . forgetting that last time she used it, she pried the damn thing out. Fastest 5-ml. I've ever emptied! I wasn't overloaded in scent, either. If that had been a bottle of any given BPAL oil, I would have been able to double as room air freshener. ETA: actual scent lost

Castitas is lovely. It reminds me of Chaste Moon.

I have to divide my review of I Married a Vampire from Planet X into two parts. If I sniff my wrist at a distance of more than two inches, I like it a lot. There's clove, always a favorite of mine, but it's wonderfully gentle here. Then there's a surge of slightly astringent, powdery sweetness. If I huff at close range, I notice a certain note that doesn't work for me, and I've never been able to pin down what it is. It might be the musk or it might be the melon. Whenever I wear a blend that has this note, no one else smells anything off, so it's definitely something about my nose and my scent preferences.

Yummy! Cake and cream are the main components I smell, with a small helping of fruit and a dash of peppery ginger to give it a spark. It's the first time a cake scent has gotten to me. (I love Midway but it's not cake, and Closet didn't push my buttons.) I can see myself wearing this a lot.

I received an unsolicited compliment on Hell's Belle polish today. I agree that it's on the sheer side (at least two coats and three's better). It dried to a smooth finish and has lasted well. And I agree also on the demure. Demure yet chic. Suitable for day or night wear.

I'd tested Desire a year ago. "I'll use up the imp," I thought. "No need for more." Today I retested Desire and it hadn't been on my wrist for more than three seconds before I was jumping up and down and sniffing in wonder! Oh me oh my! Dusky, slightly spicy and slightly floral, Desire puts me in mind of Serge Lutens' Arabie. Altogether yummy and a new world's record in getting onto my buy-a-bottle list.

Christmas Rose is from the land of snow, slush, and ice notes, and their presence in a blend usually means that I can't get much out of whatever else might be there, too.

Lucy's Kiss is a rose blend and I have good luck with only a few varieties of rose. Alas, Lucy's rose is not one that works for me. It smells of sharp greenness and of soil, which is also not a favorite note of mine. I happen to be trying Tavern of Hell on the other wrist right now, and the two smelled a little alike at first. Then the Tavern of Hell began to smell more and more delightful, and Lucy's Kiss less and less so. Both of them evoke Victoriana and tea parties on the lawn.

Give Oneiroi a test. Lavender and jasmine! It's one of my faves. I had a short craze for Sophia, too--lavender and musk. Temple of Dreams is also a magnificent lavender. Queen Gertrude is a beautiful scent. The violet is a tranquil presence. And Sybaris combines lavender and violet. Once when I wore it, I was told that it evoked happy memories of someone's childhood home.

I love chocolate. BPAL's chocolate scents haven't worked well on me. I enjoyed Velvet in the imp but not on my skin. I swapped away my 13. I gave up. So I don't know what eddy in the divine river of life caused me to order an imp of El Dia de Reyes from my wonderful decant circle. I smell like a rich, fudgy brownie with swirls of crispy cinnamon frosting, and a cappucino on the side. This is a chocolate lover's dream. On me, the coffee note is low and deep, and the cinnamon is spicy and adds a warm glow. Cocoa is the heart. Sweet and strong, El Dia de Reyes is a big winner for me. Bottle's on the way!

I'm very fond of fruitcake, and the Lab has captured it! Candied cherries, cake, and marzipan, a whisper of spice and a kiss of brandy (most of the brandy having been used for medicinal purposes, I assume). I'll wear my imp's worth with pleasure! Thank you for the delicious surprise, labbies!

I made a face as I dabbed Jailbait on the back of my hand. Repulsion. Imp dropped in swap envelope, pronto. Cut to ten minutes later, when suddenly I catch the waft of a light and bubbly cinnamon candy with a hint of sweet fruit. Now I have to go to the swap envelope and dig the imp back out. This is too good to send away!

Saint-Germain surprised me with its suave charm. I like lavender but with SG my nose doesn't register lavender in particular. Usually a mossy fragrance will give me a masculine vibe, but SG doesn't fall into that category for me. It's not foody or incense-laden or flowery or woodsy. It has maybe a hint of savory herbs, but still has what I think of as a "high tone." It has a floral component on my skin, but an introspective one. I am looking forward to wearing this out and discovering what reactions I get. I like it very much.

Loup Garou. I had no idea of the notes and was expecting a mixture of dark woods, full moon, fur, and fangs. It actually smells like the green salve my grandpa used to put on my skinned knees and scrapes. One of the ingredients of the salve is cajeput, so that's what I think is coming across to me most strongly. This will be a nice imp to wear when life hands out a few scrapes and I need to feel surrounded by grandfatherly concern. Thanks for Loup Garou!

Hermia added a hint of spice to a fruity/floral blend, in a way that stands apart from pie-and-cinnamon blends. It was quite gentle, yummy without being cloyingly sweet or foody, and I'm looking forward to slathering it and seeing what effect that will have. I'm certainly enjoying the light touch of it on my wrist!

Most of the time, the slush/ice/snow notes don't smell good to me. Kumari Kandam started out with the slush in the background but within about five minutes it was much too much slush for me.

I agree with alicia_stardust: "a soft cotton blossom and a touch of white musk." TP'ed Trees smells pretty but it's quite light and fleeting on me. Of the Trick or Treat scents, it's my favorite.

My bottle of Aziraphale arrived. The decanted imp I had was enough to tell me I needed a whole bottle of papery, woody goodness. On me, the scent starts well out of the gate, and over the course of a couple of hours, it morphs through its components: sweet musk first, woods next, then paper, then just a fading aura of glory. It's light and I feel quite angelic wearing it. Also appropriately book-loving. I'm not a fan of masculine colognes on myself, but there's nothing masculine about it to my nose. I loved Bagfish's description above: An angel, not fallen, only slightly slipped.

Egg Nog 2007 is much lighter than I expected. I was wary, thinking it might be overly sweet, but it brought a smile to my face as the scent rose from my skin--a touch of nutmeg, a drizzle of sweetness, a spoonful of cream, and an underlying richness. My skin drank it quickly, and before it vanished, it became a little powdery. I prefer winsome scents to heavier ones, like Snake Oil, because, no matter how lightly I apply it, Snake Oil wears me instead of me wearing it. I would put Egg Nog into the same category as the Unicorn, Empyreal Mist, and the Queen of Hearts: gentle, pretty, come-hither scents.