Aurelius

An ethereal bouquet of night-blooming flowers. Evening primrose, ruellia, flowering nicotiana, wild petunia, panani-o-kai, night phlox, night gladiolus, moonflower and the elusive scent of Nottingham Catchfly. This was a generous freebie imp. I couldn't stop myself from ordering more while my first order was still en route, so I ordered this. But I don't mind! This is lovely! In the bottle: This smells dark and rich. Wet: Wow. Flowers. A big fat bouquet. I'm not sure about this. Dry: Oooh, pretty! The flowers have calmed down. This is a very pleasant, calming scent on me. It smells like my mom, and that's a good thing. I feel like she's giving me a hug! This is gorgeous. Not too flowery on me, but just the right amount. Yay! Thanks, Lab! You rock! ETA: I wore this a second time. This time I smelled a slight bitter note, something with an edge. It still makes me feel like my Mom is giving me a hug, but also telling me to go kick some ass. I felt both calm and slightly bitchy, if that makes sense, as if I'm having a bad day, but I know it'll pass (and if you cross me, god help you). I like this even more!

Hee! I smell like a root beer float! Frothy, vaguely carbonated, and sweet. After about twenty minutes something goes a bit off. Bring the float back!

I was so excited when I got Spanked by the Trading Post! I knew I was naughty. Sadly, so is my skin chemistry. This smells jaw-droppingly good in the bottle. A spicy, leathery scent with just a hint of boozy goodness. But my skin doesn't like leather (heh) and it gets very loud and then very powdery. None of the other notes stand a chance when up against such a mighty foe. But don't worry! I've Spanked a forumite!

Yum. A lot like Snake Oil, but almost...carbonated? Thick, even sticky. I almost feel like I'm supposed to take a tablespoon of this to make everything better! Rich and spicy.

Earth notes don't tend to work on me, and as expcted, well...they don't. Something about the combination of eathy, fruit, and my skin turns things slightly off, like overripe fruit; not rotten, but not right. Fantastic in the bottle though. Ah well. It's already been swapped.

First cold. Then icy. Then metallic. From metallic to ozone-y. Back and forth until... powdery. Interesting, but a little too ozone-y for me. Brrrrr!

A bombardment of edible carnival indulgences. Funnel cake, caramel apple, cotton candy, salt water taffy and sugar tart. Salt and sugar! I have to admit, I was a little afraid of this scent. The reviews were fantastic, but really? Popcorn and taffy? I mean, wouldn't that smell...odd? No, it smells fantastic. This isn't a blend I wear often, as it's markedly different from my "usual" picks, but damn it's good. I just have to be careful not to, uh, lick my arm. Yum yum yum.

Upon application it's a nice, vaguely medicinal scent. Then, hello balsam! From then on it's an almost frothy scent, still with the medicinal background. Not quite for me.

In the vial and at first on my skin this smells like a ripe apricot with just a tiny bit of spice. It really does smell tasty and edible. Sadly, it suddenly turns sour and loud on my skin. I'm not sure why as both notes seem to work well on me in other blends. Then again, my skin chemistry just loves to mess with me.

I didn't review this? Probably because I got cranky after I spilled my imp. This was one of my favorites. Rich and thick, although used sparingly as a little goes a long, looooong way. I'm not sure if it really inspired much lust, but it did seem to amp up my confidence.

Rose. And sadly, rose overpowers everything else. Why is rose so hit or miss with me? Already swapped with a lovely forumite.

When first applied Kunstkammer smells like rich orange, almost deep red, with a peppery kick. As it dries it becomes a dusty orange, the pepper becoming more unpleasant on my skin until I smell like an orange you really, really wouldn't want to be near. I'd love to smell this on someone else who can wear it well. It's such an intriguing scent!

On my skin Kostnice smells how I imagined Zombi would smell. Instead of flowery and insence-y, as I expected, I smell like rich earth and florals. Very nice, but for me.

Damn you, bitter almond! Man, I really wanted Macha's reaction to this. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. At first I smelled fantastic: dark, earthy, a bit naughty. And then...just off. Another fatality of wonky body chemistry.

Sadly, this one just didn't work on my skin. It smelled quite pleasant and floral, but my skin clearly wasn't in the mood. I smelled like acrid flowers and was just plain wrong. I didn't notice a positive change, but then again, I was scrubbing it off. Bah. Lovely, just not on me.

The other night I was so sad for no reason. I felt awful, and nothing seemed to be helping. I figured I'd try some of my imps. I stumbled upon Has No Hanna and figured it was worth a shot. I've tried several of the voodoo blends, but nothing yet had really struck a chord. It was worth the wait: Has No Hanna is wonderful. To my nose, it's a light rose. I'm not partial to rose, but this was so delicate I had to (once again) rethink rose. Beth just does it so well! Anyway, after putting this on I felt a gradual sense of relief. No, the world wasn't suddenly perfect. I didn't win the lotto. But I was much calmer, happier even. It was as if I'd gotten a hug and knew I'd be okay. I went to bed feeling content, and woke up MUCH happier than I'd been in a long time. Has No Hanna is my new secret weapon against the blues. I it. Thanks, Beth. This is incredible.

I love the weirdness of Geek in the bottle: wild and earthy. And for a while that's exactly how it smells on my skin. And then, oddly, I smell like pencil shavings. No lie! Woody and metallic. Ah, geek, you were good while you lasted!

I AM a naughy bakesale! The 2005 version smells spicier on my skin but it's just as warm and tasty. This one usually goes in the burner because otherwise I'm constantly craving cookies...or attempting to eat my arm. Lovely!

This blend is warm and red. After a while it gets a little too enamored of my skin and goes all crazy and loud.

Well, this lives up to its name. I smell a bit freaky, the scent is disconcerting and I'm just not sure about this one. It's a jumble of scents that won't calm down on my skin. It certainly doesn't smell bad, but it won't settle enough for me to pick things out. Off to swap with someone a bit more adventerous.

Sweet and fruity. I'd probably grab it from the tree too! After a while, my skin chemistry starts to amp up the sweetness and well, it becomes a bit evil.

Lightly floral, and almost airy. I must admit I swapped this. And I think I may regret it. It's so soft and understated.

In the vial this smells earthy, fruity, and a tiny bit spicy. Yum! At first my skin plays nicely with the oil and then WHAM! I turn into an apple candy: way too sweet and sugary. Stupid body! Why can't I play nicely wich such a gorgeous blend? Off to swap.

Musk? Yum. Honey? Sure. Peppers? Yay! Clove? Drool. Cinnamon bark? Yup. Ginger? Yes, please. All those notes are fantastic, but for some reason once the mixture hits my skin I turn into a scary sickly sweet mess. Just...ew. Damn skin chemistry. This is gorgeous in the bottle, but I smell like a candy that's gone off. Maaaaaan. I'm so bummed.

Sharp, shining, metallic: rubbed iron with a dry wooden base. I'll be honest: I bought this for the name alone. A woody and metallic scent didn't seem all that appealing. But call it Bed of Nails? How could I resist? Bed of Nails is true to its description. The wooden base quickly escapes my skin and I smell metallic and ozone-y. It's not unpleasant, but it's not really my thing either. Ah, but the name...