juniperus

Bottle: pecans, caramel, toffee, and a hefty shot of vanilla Wet: sweet, sweet, nutty decadence. Makes me want to make some home-made butterbrickle, actually. Dry: vanilla is amping, as per usual, the pralines are holding firm. Later: I'm so not into food-y scents. I like the nuttiness of this, actually, it's the rest of it that I can't manage. For those who are into smelling like a box of Turtles this is da bomb.

Bottle: sage and iris, mainly. Wet: the iris comes out on top, with a burst of sweet. the sage is at the rear, just a hint. Dry: gentle florals, the civet making an appearance, sage gone now. Later: gentle and subtle lighter floral. wistful, somber, very pretty. And it has decent staying power - I like it, but my daughter may snatch it - she's grabbed my Queen Mab and Asphodel imps!

Bottle: lily foremost, with a hint of lotus Wet: sharp and high white note in addition to the lily, the rose, I think. lotus fades back. Dry: the lily and rose are neck-and-neck in the font, barely a hint of the other notes. heady white floral. Later: The lily hasn't completely taken off on me as it's oft wont to do, and it's a very balanced, much more subtle, combination of notes, now. Yearning, lovely, with a deep sadness...pensee.

the (05) Bottle: Like going into a florist and sniffing a just-opening deep-burgundy long-stemmed rose. amazing. Wet: the sharp tang of the greenery , the rose, not-quite-blooming - I don't think I've smelled anything so real before (that wasn't, you know, the thing itself). Dry: less fresh and rosy, more herb-y, now, with a hint of rose. Later: interesting, as it fades is almost take on the effect of a rose drying, the rose scent is fading away and is replaced by an almost-dusty greenness. Fades quickly on me, I'm sad to have driven that wonderful, initial, rose away..

Bottle: holy crow is that sweet - painfully sweet. Wet: hibiscus and carnation at the fore, but backed up by a riot of sweetness. Dry: the sharpness of the carnation and sweetness of the berry are combining on me in ways most unpleasant. it's so intense I can't quite pick out the separate notes anymore. Later: strawberry and florals, still very sweet but much less sharp. This is turning into something like a cross between the old Strawberry Shortcake Doll scent and Loves Baby Soft on me. yikes.

Bottle: oozy boozy - wine and thyme. I like thyme. Wet: very sweet, the currant and berries have eclipsed the thyme completely. Dry: wine and currant, with the berries farther to the rear. no thyme at all at this point. Later: sweet berries and wine, slightly mellow finish. Not me, not at all, but would be lovely-with-a-kick on someone who can wear sweet.

Bottle: fresh and green Wet: a sweeter fresh green, almost soapy Dry: astringent and soapy all at once. definitely a green soap - maybe irish spring. Later: somewhat less soapy as time passed, but clearly something here dislikes me. If it's bottle-true on someone else it'd be a knock-out, tho.

Bottle: the order in which the notes hit at first sniff: salt, leather, wood, hint of rum Wet: the salt and leather take the lead Dry: sweet of the rum more apparent, salt still in the lead. fresh and clean affect. very interesting and very masculine. Later: Leather isn't overly fond of my skin, but I can really imagine this sexy pirate scent on a hunka-hunka-burnin' swashbuckler - now to find one whose timber needs, er, shiverin'...

Bottle: sweet and boozy and almost medicine-y, less martini-like to my nose than I had imagined. Wet: the medicine-y feel it turning almost cleanser-like. oh, my, very unpleasant. Dry: sweet and sharp and edgy..cleaning fluid. Later: This is just growing sharper and stranger, and itchy. Must. Wash. Now.

Bottle: iris, musk, and ozone all hit the nose immediately Wet: moonflower and jasmine opening up behind - I get an image of night-blooming under the stars. Dry: the iris is fading, and, interesting enough, so is the jasmine (perhaps that's the key - Moroccan jasmine doesn't amp on me? how odd!) Ozone is picking up steam, but it's not taking on that sharp edge as it oft does on me, so I'm holding out hope for this one. Later: I'm still under those stars (slowing winking out), the night-blooming flowers closing as the dawn approaches, and the ozone-y scent in the air of an approaching storm fills my head. This isn't anything like what I'm usually drawn to or able to wear well, but it seems to work. The ozone has taken on an almost-otherworldly quality, and the notes that usuall amp and turn ugly on me have not, this time, to both my amazement and my delight. (I was a more than a little concerned because this does contain notes (jasmine, moss, ozone) that aren't known to be particularly friendly to my skin..but I have this terribly silly reason for ordering it - besides Urania and Clio being my very favorite of the muses, I have a WoW character named Urania and my curiosity just got the better of me.) Very interesting combination of notes, evocative and imagery-laden.

Bottled gloom; the essence of oblivion. Blackest opium and narcissus deepened by myrrh. This was a Lab frimp. for which I am grateful. Bottle: narcissus with myrrh following. slightly sweet in a sinister way. Wet: narcissus picking up steam, opium coming up behind (yes, it's a little note derby!) Dry: the opium and narcissus are on the sweet side, but not headachy-sweet, the myrrh is there, but farther back than I would like. Later:It's still all opium and narcissus on me with barely a hint of myrrh left..like Asphodel, it's interesting and not at all unpleasant, but I'm uncertain it's really me. I think it'll take another go before I make a decision on it.

First let me say - I fear the moss. Bottle: gentle florals, woods; and, yes, moss. Wet: hint of the myrrh, now, and the moss is gaining in strength. Dry: I can't pick out any of the floral notes on their own, there is no hint of the amber, and I can barely discern the sandalwood behind the moss-monster. Why, oh why does moss amp on me so? Later: the moss has calmed some, thank goodness, and while I still get no hint of the amber (or the mandarin for that matter) the florals are still present - and the rose is somewhat more prominent than the lily, surprisingly enough as that is another note I tend to amp to high heaven. Very interesting floral, not dark, per se, but not light and airy, either. It's still sweet, but not that rot-sweet of blooms past their prime that I can get with lily in the mix thankfully. I'm not sure it's me..it's elegant and a little stand-offish in a regal sort of way.

Bottle: rose, and amber, and sweet red musk. Wet: a little sharp, the rose turning slightly sour. Uh oh. Dry: the amber is stepping forward, and the sharpness is still there, although not as prominent, and the sour seems to have passed. whew. the musk seems to be upholding the foundation of the roses, rather than setting itself aside as it was when I first applied. Later: it has the feel of Wicked on me (the darker, more mature rose) but the attitude is different - this is warmer, has a little more depth, I think, and its sexy edge isn't edgy-almost-bitchy like Joan Crawford, it's tantalizing and mysterious like Marlene Dietrich - mesmerizing, edgy and dark, casting a red-gold shadow from the cabaret lights. Yowza.

Bottle: frankincense, myrrh, and cedar, I think. If I recall correctly the other two resins should be styrax and copal, but I don't know that I am clear on what their notes smell like. Wet: heady incense. I used to burn frankincense and myrrh resin (and pine I had collected myself) back in the day. This really transports me back. Dry: one of the resins has a slight sweet edge to it - wonder if that's the copal. It's multi-layered and warm.. I can almost hear the chain of the censer clink softly as it moves through a full double-swing, the rustle of feet on the wood floors as people turn to watch it pass. Later: it fades slowly and keeps it's shape over time. I don't know that I can say more than Wow. And I am so glad I took a gamble on an Ebay LE.

Bottle: patchouli, patchouli, patchouli. And a hint of cypress and some sweet note topping it off. Wet: the cypress is getting a little footing, I think that sweet is the tonka. a hint of green. Dry: hints of the fig and ginger as the patchouli finally backs off a bit. barest hint of the dried rose, and the sweet isn't as sharp. Later: not my nemesis, I guess I didn't need any punishment today - a very nice patchuli blend that doesn't get all hippy-shop on me.

Bottle: sweet - fruit. pineapple? what does pineapple have to do with Bab Yaga or her chicken hut? I'm sincerely hoping this will pass like the maraschino cherry smell of Hecate goes away after 2 minutes and turns into something smoky/incense-y and lovely. Wet: sharp, sour, sweet...pineapple or maybe pear + honey...reminds me of the fruit cake mix of the myriad of unnatural colors that comes out at the grocery store every November. And something herb-y? yip yip yip. Dry: hints of a musk, and smoky incense coming up behind - but the really sweet upper-note is still there. gaaaaaah. Later: The sweet is growing in magnitude so I'm guessing there is honey responsible. This is very complex, and it hates me. Really hates me.

Bottle: heady floral, an explosion - I can't pick out a single note. Wet: I can separate the tulip and violet, and that sinus-grabbing sweet must be the dewdrop. Then a cacaphony of florals behind. Dry: the florals are mellowing except for that one sweet note that's driving stakes into my sinuses. Right between the eyes. Ow. Later: Oh that sweet note is just not calming down at all. It's otherwise lovely, actually, but lovelier on someone with a skin chemistry to really make it shine.

Bottle: juniper, woods, and bergamot. very masculine. Wet: juniper, sandalwood, and bergamot are joined by the musk. no hint of the florals yet. Dry: hints of lilac behind the woods. the musk isn't much taking off, unfortunately, as that would round this out nicely. Later: very quick fade on me. all woods and musk at this point, juniper nearly gone. erg.

Bottle: very sweet and very spicy. heer be cinnamon. Wet: oh, that orange is coming out, as is the ginger. no sign of the patchouli yet, interestingly enough. Dry: I can just catch the peach if I look for it, lots of spice and orange here, and an undercurrent of incense. Later: I can catch the barest hint of the patchouli under all of the syrupy-sweet spicy-ness. This smells to me like very sweet spice tea. Al-Shairan may be my enemy, too, as my skin does not like him. At all.

Bottle: Bright, bursting peach with a hint of amber behind. Wet: the ambers are getting warmer and fuller, and I'm catching a hint of the myrtle, but it's still almost all peach. Dry: much the same, the peach is leaving little room for the other notes. no hint of the musk at all, the mytrle that snuck in so subtly has snuck back out. Later: I had really hoped the ambers would hold their own to the extent that the peach wouldn't take off completely - I found something like that in Imp, the peach note was tempered. Darn.

Bottle: I'm not sure what is causing this, but it's both sharp and sour to my nose. Wet: a floral, with something almost soapy that is making my nose plug. Oh this is not good. Dry: ocean air, white roses, and something I can't quite place...citrus? green? just an edge of, really, but it's present. Later: this smells like a funeral to me..the salt, the roses, and I'd bet that's calla lily since it's increasing and lily tends to do that on me. erg.

Bottle: high, not-quite-sweet, subtle, and pale...reminds me of that moment when moonflowers open on a clear, almost damp, night and the scent just moves through me. Wet: the almost-sweet edge has passed, and now it's just a lovely, and yes ghostly, nectar. delicate and subtle. Dry: same - not a lot of shifting with this one, and its simplicity is lovely..like one true and clear soprano-range note, the voice of a choir-boy, that seems to shine of its own light. Later: ethereal, it faded into nothingness. to continue with the sound imagery I'm getting from this - it's later stages are like a cathedral bell after the pull - that ghost of a tone that hangs in the air for what seems like forever, before dissipating. not a lot of stay, but fascinating.

A scent swirling with dark rage, unbridled jealousy, and murderous intent. Violet, lavender, white musk and vetiver. Wet: vetiver, heavy violet, lavender receding some. Dry: still no sign of the musk, almost all vetiver and violet at this point, and the vetiver is turning on me as it usually does. gah. Later: The veitver has passed that odd and unpleasant 'dirt' stage, but it's still not happy on me. This is a very evocative blend - if I think about it I can pick out most of the notes - but with eyes closed a single sniff smells like..rage. This very much fits the wife-killer of the story, it's really disconcerting. And I had really hoped the other notes might tame the vetiver some for me, as I know it usually does untoward things on my skin (but I do love the other notes)...darn.

Bottle: ok, this smells like my father's foofoo juice. and that's disturbing. yai. Burberry Brit? very masculine blend. Wet: moss and mint and jasmine with a hint of rosemary. Dry: I can catch hints of the sandalwood and geranium now. Later: This would smell great on my dad. Not on me, certainly, and not on Brian - that would be...ick. But the thought of my dad as a rake in a frock coat... LOL

Bottle: creamy floral, very interesting. Wet: this reminds me of linens line-dried in the sun. calming, fresh without bring crisp, and I'm having some difficulty separating the notes. valnilla, I think, which stikes fear in me that this will so nuts), plumeria, maybe, or some other higher/lighter floral I can't quite put my finger on, and maybe a white musk...and a pale sandalwood, I think. Dry: same, more powdery. hint of..clove, maybe? I get this odd whiff of clove cigarette, it's barely there. Later: yep, vanilla. Now it's all vanilla, all the time. Damn, I hate the way my skin amps vanilla.