undream

wet in the vial, this smells to me exactly like walking into a new age shop, that same unusual, sweet and lovely scent that i never really know where it's coming from and i can never seem to get enough of. it's just gorgeous. once applied, it becomes spicy! like the spicy cinnamon smell of one of those stores full of wicker and wreaths, christmas decorations, natural decor. it's lovely. for one split second on the drydown, i caught the whiff of something almost plastic-smelling, but it disappeared as quickly as i had registered it. i get no florals, really, i think i'm picking up the plum more than anything? mostly, this just seems to be a very spicy, cinnamon scent with enormous christmas associations for me. it really is very nice, and i may keep it just for the holidays. OR, perhaps it is just a peculiar time of month for me to be trying new oils , and i will wait and see how this one does on me at a later time. either way, i do like it very much.

in the imp, this smells like a very clean rose, more like a rose scented soap than the actual flower. lovely! as soon as it hits my skin it becomes mostly sandalwood? or maybe it is just doing what sandalwood always does on me, and so it's all my nose really recognizes, just a sweet, powdery scent. oh, wait! the rose is coming out more now, very pure against the skin and more lush and warm in the throw. overall a very sweet, powdered rose scent. i'm not certain yet if i will be keeping this or not as it does remind me of a few oils i already have - actually, it smells exactly like what two, five and seven does on me! - but it really is beautiful, and a must-try for rose scent lovers.

there is really very little i can add to what everyone else has said thus far, but i will try! zombi is actually what i am always hoping the aquatic/ozone scents will turn out to be. very earthy and clean, like sitting on the soft, gently turned dark soil of a forest bed after a spring rain. mmmmm, i am really really loving this. there is a slight decayed sweetening after application which is clearly the dried roses coming out. <3 i am not sure exactly what oakmoss smells like, but i'm thinking i like it. and oddly, i can detect a very subtle and soft fresh rose in the throw here and there, as though maybe there are a scant few fresh petals mixed in with the ones already dried out. haunting and beautiful. (i do love me some rose.) this is such an unusual, unique oil, unlike anything i've tried in a very long while. i think it would be a great scent to wear on halloween.

vanilla & spice!! oh, yum. it's gorgeous wet right from the vial all the way through drydown, all spiced cookies and candles, incense, soft eastern music. this is simply beautiful. i feel like a sultry hindu princess wearing it. ETA: gosh, it feels like i am always editing my reviews with bad news a few hours later these days! but alas. despite snake oil's sex appeal, i think it may ultimately be a little too foody for me? delicious but very, very heavy. i just have this sensitive tummy with some sweet scents, and this is one of them. on the bright side, because this seems to be such a loved oil, i am sure i am about to make someone very happy with a future swap!

my initial impression was really exactly what i expected! bright, fizzy champagne and strawberry; just a very light, clear, sweet scent, playful and fun. once applied, it nearly disappeared altogether to my nose, but everyone around me could smell it very well and thought it was beautiful. on the drydown, i could really only smell it if i whiffed up close to my skin, but i guess it wafts nicely for everyone else in vicinity of me. after a while, it's keeping that same bubbly champagne and strawberry smell - even becoming a little spicy somehow? cinnamon maybe? which was a pleasant surprise - but the strawberry does go a little plasticy on me. strawberry notes do tend to do that on me, though, and i am still so happy that i got to try this one. (thank you, CaffinatedAngel!) on to the next!

wet: men's cologne. first applied: woodsy, almost like the cedar chips i used to purchase for the lining of my hamster's cage when i was in high school. just very fresh and ... well, woodsy. drydown: i can smell the leather now, and something spicy. i can only detect the tonka wafting and not up close to the skin, but it is lovely. the longer it is on, the warmer it seems, a slightly powdery, spicy cedar smell, with a faint vanilla wafting about every once in a while. it's not a scent i'm terribly interested in for myself - it's just too masculine for me - but i'd definitely like to try it on the boy.

i'm a fairly nervous, anxious person on the inside, especially when in most social situations , so i was really really looking forward to trying this particular oil. i think i fell in love the moment i removed the cap and just took a quick whiff! it's so soft and beautiful and immediately i can see(smell) that, yes, this is absolute calm in a vial. oh, bliss. oh, thank you thank you thank you, beth. wet, it's a soft, gorgeous violet for me, with a verrrrry subtle citrus just sort of peek-a-boo dancing out around the edges. i thought maybe i was a little crazy with that note, but i've seen other reviewers saying the same thing here, so i know i'm on the right track! once on, that already incredibly faint hint of citrus disappears and it's all violet and . . . is that rose? oh, this is so beautiful. it wafts so beautifully as well, and although i did slather it on it is not at all too strong or overpowering for me. it also is watery but not in the sense of "flowers in a pond" sort of watery? for me it's more like a rose water or violet water, that pond filled with violet water and velvety rose petals under a lush summer purple evening sky. gorgeous and soft and sweet, delicate, beautiful. i love it. ETA: uh oh, is there any jasmine in this? because i am getting this faint hairspray thing that jasmine always does on my skin. it's coming and going, and really i'm unsure if i am smelling it at all sometimes, but something in this is worrying me now. nooooooo, my special place!

wet in the imp: grapefruit! i love the smell of grapefruit. on application: wow, this is very fresh and lovely, very complex! it reminds me of something but i cannot for the life of me put my finger on it? i keep wanting to say it's like the scent of a freshly cleaned bathroom. like the quality cleaning used in the public ladies room of a high-end hotel or something. just very clean and fresh and mmmm. drydown: well, all that clean and fresh and mmmm went right out the window. sadly, it's gone a bit sour and stale on me. perhaps the next owner will be a better match! sorry, tempest.

in the vial, this is very herby, almost medicinal. i'm guessing that's the lavender. i get no cherry. no rose. first applied and on drydown, the king smells almost exactly like ... love's baby soft perfume! it's very sweet and very powdery. it's really lovely, but i already went through my love's baby soft phase as a teenager, so it's off to a better home for this one!

ophelia is not at all what i expected, but oh, this is just so beautiful. breathtaking, really. a gorgeous watery floral, so lush and heady. it has the same lush, full, almost soapy quality that the queen of hearts has (but not at all in a bad way, i love the queen of hearts!), so i am guessing it's the lily that i am picking up the most? i can also detect the rose, however, and rose for me is just LOVE. in my mind i'm seeing big soft white blooms entangled in vines along the water of a crystal clear, softly moving river. this is just intoxicating. ETA: as the hours wear on, this becomes more and more a single solid, gorgeous rose, and i am coveting a big bottle of this so hard that i could cry. ungh. THANK YOU, BETH.

wow, this is very nice! i don't really get any tea at all, it's mostly just a lovely vanilla aaaand ... something that smells a little too masculine/cologney on me. the throw is beautiful, soft, creamy, ohhh so yummy, but up close i feel like a boy! not for me, but i'd definitely love to try this one on the boyfriend! /lick! ETA: ah! after about twenty minutes the boy smell fades into the back (yay!) and the whole thing becomes just a very soft, beautiful vanilla. LOVE!

i originally wanted to try this for the boyfriend as i was curious after reading all of the reviews, and i didn't think i would enjoy it for myself too much (anything piney/cedary usually scares me away) but it really is such a nice scent! and very unisex. i don't know what notes i was getting in the imp, but it was lovely enough to tempt me, not frightening at all. once applied, it's a cool moonlit night in the forest. walking through the kitchen right after i applied it, my mother told me, "you smell great!" so far so surprisingly good!! after a bit it warms up and now i can smell the orange blossom. an interesting mix! both cool and piney (slowly fading) but also spicy and warm, citrusy, just slightly powdery. i'm not sure how it will morph on me over the next hour or two, but for now it's lovely!

omg, what a beautiful, unique scent! in the imp it was all creamy & sweet for me, rummy but not overly so - in fact it took me a few minutes to realize that it was a coconut that i was detecting - with just a hint of tobacco hitting me high up in my nose (as opposed to being able to really smell it directly?). once applied it becomes a gorgeous blend of mostly tonka and tobacco, a deliciously lovely sweetened pipe tobacco. exactly what i was hoping it would do on me. i am seriously swooning here. i love love looove this. wearing it, i feel kittenish and sexy, as though i should be ensconced in long and slinky red satin gown, my hair tumbled high, lipstick smile playing along my lips and a playful, knowing glint in my eye, drink in hand; entirely bent on having a little dirty fun with the handsome card dealer at the blackjack table. altogether a very elegant, mischievous, naughty girl!

i have died and gone to heaven. i have been desperately wanting to try Two, Five & Seven for some time now, because i absolutely love rose, and this has got to be, hands down, one of the most beautiful roses that i have ever tried. it is so sweet, so dewy and young, so heady and just absolutely divine. a precious, powdery comfort scent, a refreshing and beautiful floral. thick, young roses in spring rain. i could wrap myself all up within this garden and die a happy woman. omg. big bottle FOR SURE.

oh. my. god. this is one of those rare oils that i'm just. i love it so much i can hardly even talk about it. just an eyes-rolling-back-into-your-head divine experience. at first, it is very incensy, very warm and musky and beautiful. there is also a hint of something almost juicy here. ten minutes on my skin and it is joined/softened by a sweet, powdery floral, turning it into something that i want to say reminds me sooo much of thanatos. (it has been some time since i've worn that particular oil so i could have the notes all wrong, but tisiphone is giving me that same sexy, sleepy feeling that thanatos always does.) it's strong with a pretty heavy throw, i think - like being wrapped up in a dark, sexy cloud all around you - and it has made me sneeze once or twice from breathing it in so much. i can also detect something in there that smells almost soap-like, a clean, soapy smell? overall, though, this is such a gorgeous, spicy, powdery floral and omg askjdhkajsdhsklf I LOVE IT. ETA the next day: Alas. I think it may be the patchouli that disagrees with me; after a few hours' wear this turns into a patchouli-only scent, and - although I really do like the scent of patchouli, I simply can't take the scent of patchouli on ME - so I think I must regrettably and forlornly break up with Tisiphone. Although I suppose I could attempt just applying it to my hair and/or clothing to see if that will help keep the patchouli tied up and under control (heh heh), so there is hope yet! Otherwise, swaps it is. Boo.

In the imp and freshly applied, this is ALL Chocolate Mint Girl Scout Cookie! (I've seen others compare it to Thin Mints as well, and yes yes yes. Spot on!) I was somewhat afraid to try this, to be honest, as I am not a big fan of mint scents, but I was pleasantly surprised! The strong initial foodiness of it was a bit overwhelming for me at first, but after about an hour or so this warmed up and mellowed out into SUCH A GORGEOUS vanilla; just so pure and soft and golden and so so delicious. I kept catching whiffs of it and thought I was in heaven, it is absolutely that beautiful. And I am a SNOB when it comes to my vanillas - so many of them out there are just so perfumey and wrong and irritating to my sinuses - but this one had me singing praises. After all that, I still am unsure on whether or not I'll be keeping this imp! The vanilla is heartbreakingly lovely, but I don't know if I've the patience to wait through the initial minty, foody scent. I think I may give it another couple of tries before making any definite decision, but in the meantime I give Tokyo Stomp a resounding HALLELUJAH!

Berry bubblegum! Bubblicious! Profoundly fruity and sweet, and man, it hits you like a tsunami. It's a very uplifting scent, very young and very bubbly. Fitting for its namesake! After about an hour or two, sadly, it turns into a strawberry plastic on me - it smells, to me, exactly like my Strawberry Shortcake doll that I owned as a little girl; not a particularly awful smell, but not one that I would care to smell like myself. Alas! I'm very glad that I got the chance to try this one (thanks, Becca!), but it's off to the swaps pile with Jester!

I almost could not smell it at first and found myself slathering it on, but after about twenty minutes or so it finally warmed up and bloomed a bit. That said, White Rabbit is not at all what I expected - I was hoping for more tea, less creamy dessert? - but I cannot imagine it being anything other than what it is! I am unsure of what notes I am picking up other than the vanilla, but to me the only thing that comes to mind while wearing this oil is cakes cakes cakes. Little round cakes, small porcelain teacups and tiny white gloves! It is subtle and light, clean and creamy and really quite delicious; it is the White Rabbit exactly. Edited a few hours later to add; ohhhhh my goodness. This has warmed and settled into such a gorgeous, creamy and spicy scent. I can't stop sniffing my own arms! (And truth be told, although it may be TMI, sticking my face down into my own top, as I slathered a bit of White Rabbit in my cleavage earlier!) I told my boyfriend I smell like spiced cakes. I'm not sure if I'll keep this imp based on the initial scent - although it's very nice, incredibly lovely, but not a thing I would sell my belongings for - but this thing it has morphed into? Ohmygod! I think we may need to go on a couple of more dates, White Rabbit and I, before I decide for certain. But to anyone who enjoys unique, creamy, desserty scents? Highly recommended!!!

in the imp; a cherry syrup scent, sweet and candy-like; maraschinos? &i happen to love the cherry (almond) notes, so this one holds promise. dry; gorgeous!! light, musky, powdery - and something almost creamy in the background . . . just luscious. i can't stop sniffing my own wrists. i absolutely love it.

in the imp, this to me smells sharp & herbal. on, it takes a little while, but eventually it warms into this soft, powdery incense (i keep wanting to say there is something sweet here as well, faintly cherry-like?). it is absolutely delicious and beautiful and mild. also, i can't quite put my finger on what it reminds me of, but it is very comforting, calming. i quite simply love it(!), so much.

in the imp: sweet, dark/red and juicy! i agree with marlatiara's "bubblegum." wearing: as soon as it hits my skin, the "sweet" turns into "spicy" and a mild incense moves in. i think this is the lotus coming out as well? it's shy, but it is there. this is absolutely beautiful. oddly, although i've noticed a few call this a sort of "head shop" scent, i got more of the head shop feel from blood rose than this? this reminds me more of an elegant, ambiently lit, high-end dessert shoppe! sensual and classy. through the drydown it remains a gorgeous, subtle floral and spice - like the spice of carrot cake, just achingly delicious, and with a very faint creamy undertone. ungh, just yum. YUM.

i looove my roses, and this one is no exception. it is a very full rose in the imp, but not at all cloying or overwhelming to me; that hovering sweetness found in lighter, more innocent roses has been rained away, here. this rose prefers the gloom. drying, it becomes very sharp and somewhat spicy, definitely the aura of a darkened rose, and there is something almost strangely fresh and green happening (i can see why indicolite mentioned cucumber!). overall an absolutely gorgeous, haunting - and haunted - scent. i love it!! ETA: ohmygod, i am deliriously in love. about 30 minutes of wear turns this oil, on me, into a strange but very pleasant soap? (and a thing that strongly reminds me of some other time/place, but i can't quite recall when or where!) but an hour of wear and it morphs beautifully into this gorgeous warm, sweet, dusty, calming, almost powdery scent, completely breathing-in-and-eyes-rolling-back delicious; it reminds me of the same warm, dusty, powdery feel of thanatos, which i love madly, and even libertine, which i also wildly adore - i use them both often for bedtime scents, and this, on me, has become their long lost sister. the sleepytime triplets! sooo beautiful.

wow. wow. ohmy. luscious rose & wine, juicy and fruity, humid and sweet. it's quite resiny for me when first applied, like a sweet incense, but that fades somewhat the longer i wear it, stepping into the background and letting the moist rose slink sexily to the fore, glass of wine in hand (&platter of ripe, sensual fruit in the other!). this is just glorious. so elegant, dark and seductive. i am purring! ETA; after a few days of spending time with miss blood rose, we've decided that we will always love each other but really need to follow our own separate paths right now. i stand by my claim that this is one gorgeous scent, but unfortunately, she becomes a little too heady (& head-shoppy) on me, after a while. still a beautiful scent, just not right on my skin. however, i'd love to hang out with a friend who was wearing this!

Oh. My. God. Right out of the imp and I'm dying because I love it so much! This is the scent of laying in a gorgeous patch of dark, damp, freshly turned earth, there beside a forest, languidly daydreaming, staring up into the sky on a cool, cloudy evening. Everything soft and moist but with a chill, somehow, and something like a faint, sweet floral in the air (although I almost want to say it's closer to vanilla). I do not know what dreamplace it was that Beth took a piece of and bottled up just for us, but I want to be there. This is me, swooning! Once on the skin, the chill disappears, warmed up by a warm, dry, spicy note, something sweet and woodsy; a beautiful incense burning in a small circle of mushrooms in that same patch of soil, now drying in the light of a fire. It's a light scent in that I have to be close to the skin to detect it, but it is completely unique, absolutely delicious, warm, ripe with nature's dark (but nurturing) and ancient mystique. I am sooo in love.

in the imp: cold, sharp and biting. on my skin: warm, sharp and biting. hah. there is, to me, something almost eucalyptusy about this oil? but not. but i know that no such note is in it, so i am thinking it is the mandarin orange giving me that idea? regardless, despite the sharp, herbal note, it is also rather sweet and creamy. a very intriguing oil! i do like it. i think i may need to try this one again.