outofrhyme

In the bottle: ...different. In a cloying, kinda icky way. I was probably thrown off because I had no idea what notes were in it when I sniffed it. Seemed like it might improve on the skin, though. Dry down: It's obnoxious on me. I can pick out the cocoa and the fig, I think, now that I know what they are, but the woods have gone really nasty on me. Almost smells a little bit like licorice. Final thoughts: I tested someone else's (newish) imp, and it's definitely not something I'm going to get myself.

In the bottle: MINT. Dry down: Menacing water is actually a pretty good description. It's definitely very cold, yet very aromatic. I can pick out the lotus, juniper and mint. Final thoughts: Initially I thought I liked this, but it's too harsh for me. It doesn't work with my chemistry, or maybe I just don't like it. Not one I'm going to pursue farther.

In the bottle: Pretty. A complex floral - too complex for me to be sure about the notes. In terms of florals, I think I smell the moonflower, gardenia, and lily. I don't know what a lot of these other florals smell like, though, so I could be getting some of those as well and just be unable to ID them. I think I smell the vanilla, too. It smells perfumey and sweet. The vanilla gives it a subtle, yummy dimension. Wet: Bitter Well, that's not right. But it's not the sweet floral it was in the bottle - it's a very heavy, heady floral, very thick, very PERFUME. I think maybe it's the hyacinth...? Or the ylang ylang? Dry down: Well, it's better, but there's still some note... when I just catch a whiff of the perfume, it is GORGEOUS and exactly what I was hoping it would be - mostly moonflower, lily, touch of vanilla, I can't identify the other notes... but when I smell it up close, that offensive floral is too prominent. It is dying down as it dries down, though... Final thoughts: Hey, maybe I just overapplied. The whiffs I catch are really nice, so maybe it will live up to what I was hoping it would be. We'll see...

In the bottle: Pine, thyme, and juniper are most pronounced. It smells very deep. It's not a bright superficial green, it just smells very old and deep. I think I could also pick out the holly/mistletoe, but I'm not sure. Wet: Whoa verbana. Where did that come from? Please don't go all lemon pledge on me - you smelled so good in the bottle! Dry down: Okay, lemon pledge is backing down into a subtle sugary lemon. I can smell some of the green again, thankfully. The verbana is assisting the greens, very complementary. Some berry is starting to come out now, I think, and maybe the hemp? I have no idea what cinquefoil smells like. I also feel like I'm smelling some woods. It's now much more similar to how it was in the bottle, except that the berry comes out more and more the longer I wear it. Final thoughts: It's nice. Definitely very seasonal. I'm not sure how much it screams "YULE," aside from the connotation I automatically attribute due to its name, but it does strike me as very wintery, like a deep dark green against white snow, dotted with red berries. I'm glad I have an imp, but I probably won't spring for a bottle. Though, I have about 1.5 months to change my mind...

Nine-tailed fox demon of Korean lore who transforms into the visage of an irresistible beauty in order to seduce men and lead them to their doom. A sharp, biting blend of crisp white tea and ginger. In the bottle: Lots of sweet, tasty ginger, with a fresh clear note - probably the white tea. Actually, definitely the white tea. Wet: Citrusy tea and ginger. The white tea is now dominant, and sharp/biting is apt. Dry down: Oh, thank heavens the ginger is coming back and this is sweetening up. The white tea was really starting to become a problem. I can definitely still smell both the white tea and the ginger, but the white tea is now very pleasant. It's much sweeter now. Final thoughts: I need to investigate more ginger, because this is right up there with Sudha Segara as one of my new favorite scents. It's hauntingly familiar - I have definitely smelled this before, or something very similar... I actually might be thinking of the white tea note in Iambe, which I like much better in the context of ginger than I did in the context of bright florals. It also helps that am becoming incredibly impressed with the Lab's ginger note. ETA lab description

In the bottle: Snake Oil, but a little bit darker. Wet: Ooh. I like this a lot. It's Snake Oil, but dustier, peppery, a little bit of cinnamon. It's not as sweet - this is definitely more debauched. Makes me think of a smoky bar. Dry down: Zing! It still has the Snake Oil feel, but it takes a totally different approach. I can definitely pick out the sandalwood, patchouli and cinnamon - but the cinnamon is only barely there. The amber is there as an undertone. The sandalwood is probably the most prominent note - I believe this is what gives it the "smoky/dusty" feel, because it's very dry. It's like an old chest you find in the attic and open up to discover a stack of playboy magazines. Final thoughts: Dry and peppery but very sexy. It smells very gender neutral on me, but it's still very enticing. I like it a lot.

In the bottle: I smell the amber, honey and vanilla. It smells damp. Wet: Mostly honey and vanilla - the amber has completely taken a backseat, except in adding this tiny little kick... makes it smell a little bit like almond or shea butter. Very light and clean, with a heavy intoxicating edge. As contradictory as that sounds. Dry down: If I didn't know better, I would swear that there was milk in here, too. The amber, honey and vanilla are definitely distinct, and in mixing they give an almond feel, similar to Dana O'Shee but not quite as foody. Very sweet and pleasant, but also very heavy. Final thoughts: It smells delicious, but I think it's too heavy for me. It's like a cross between Snake Oil and Dana O'Shee, and I think that those scents are better left separate - this is too sweet and foody for it to be as heavy as it is. I'm definitely glad I tried it, though.

In the bottle: Reminds me of those rain/monsoon/whatever scented candles. In a pretty stereotypical way. Wet: Echo the above - even more so as the florals are coming out. Dry down: Ditto. Though, the florals are adding a slightly different dimension now. They make it just a little bit more perfumey. It's definitely changed a little bit from the bottle to dry... but not very much. Final thoughts: Maybe a little too "Thunderstorm" candle/incense for me to wear. Probably will end up passing this one along.

In the bottle: Coconut. This reminds me very distinctly of something... maybe a pina colada? Or coconut in a chocolate or something? It's definitely softened/sweetened by the milk and shea butter. There's also definitely something very cool and wet about the smell. Wet: Cool, sweet, coconut, shea butter. It reminds me a lot of the boardwalk, but I can't place what is giving me that association. It's also a little bit salty. Dry down: It feels very close to the skin. I can definitely smell all of the notes, though in a more balanced, sweetened blend. Final thoughts: It's yummy. I used to use coconut shampoo/conditioner for a reason - even though I don't like the taste of coconut, I like the smell. It's very buttery and foody, but it definitely reminds me more of the boardwalk than of baked goods. Maybe it reminds me of saltwater taffy? Yes, actually, I think that's it! Coconut saltwater taffy, on the boardwalk. Not sure yet how much I would wear this, but it's a yummy, unique scent.

In the bottle: Fresh florals. Very perfumey florals, not necessarily sweet ones. Wet: Overpowering perfumey florals. Kinda soapy. Dry down: It's a rose with some other notes. I'm guessing narcissus... I'm not sure what I think. Some moments it's pretty, but others it's a harsh soap. Final thoughts: I think I might just not be a fan of narcissus, but I don't know enough about the note to be sure. It's definitely a very self-assured floral, probably too self-assured for me. Just a little later: The narcissus (?) is backing off a little bit, and I like it more now. It still may end up being just a little too much for me, but I'm willing to keep an open mind towards it.

In the bottle: Something smells really good and really familiar. It might be the lavender/rosemary/lemon combo. Somehow reminds me of a tarot deck... particularly my tarot deck, actually. Very pungent. Wet: Rosemary, lemon and a touch of lavender. Like a good Bath & Body Works soap or something. The lemon definitely is a little bit "lemon pledge." Dry down: The rosemary/neroli (?) have come out a lot more. There's still some lemon pledge, but it's not screaming I AM HOUSEHOLD CLEANER anymore. The lavender is nice. My skin is sweetening it in a really tasty way. Final thoughts: It's very complex, and I really like it. It's very bright and fresh, and the notes hit me in waves in each whiff - first the lemon, then the rosemary, then the lavender, then the neroli. It smells very good. As much as I like it, though, it's not really a scent for me to wear a lot - it's just too lemony.

In the bottle: Sweet floral with just a slight touch of crisp watery plum. Wet: Wow, this is really good. Spiced plum and floral. Very sweet and utterly delicious. It's not too fruity at all - it reminds me of the idea of "sugarplums." Dry down: Still sugarplum goodness, but it might be turning a little bit plastic on me. Florals in the background. Final thoughts: I think I really, really, really like this. At least, I LOVE the wet stages. The dry stages seem just a little iffy on my chemistry... I'll definitely try it later for a final verdict.

In the bottle: Surprisingly spicy. Milk, honey and bergamot stand out the most. It's almost like chai tea without the tea. Not that chai has bergamot, but, spices. I'm also getting a slight whiff of florals, but it doesn't come out enough for me to differentiate the rose and the carnation. Wet: Much spicier than I was expecting! A little sweet, but I definitely get the bergamot. This has some attitude - it definitely fits Alice. I'm also getting the milk and the rose in particular, and maybe a little bit of carnation and honey. Dry down: Wow, really fast dry down. This is amazing. The bergamot has almost completely backed off - it's only there to give it a little kick. It's this gorgeous, warm, complex floral - I think I can tell it's carnation and rose, but I wouldn't know for sure without the notes - and I can definitely get a little bit of sweet honey and creamy milk. Very soft and feminine. Final thoughts: I likes it a lot. It feels a little bit young, though, but I'm not sure yet. It may end up on the favorites.

In the bottle: No notes to help me here... pine? Resin? Incense? Something spicy, something floral. Wet: Spice? Resin? Smoke? Wood? Citrus? Floral? Whatever's in it, it smells warm. Dry down: Okay, looked at the forum review thread to get some help. First, this had a long dry-down, and it smelled pretty different by the end. In the end, it's sweet clove, sandalwood, and a floral, probably jasmine. I think there also is incense, and maybe a hint of cinnamon. I also wouldn't be surprised if there is just a touch of pine, and I'm willing to believe that there may be dragon's blood resin in here, too. Final thoughts: This is actually very pleasant. I wasn't a big fan of the bottle/wet stages, but I actually like the morphed dry scent quite a bit. Not necessarily so much that I would wear it a lot - it goes all manly-sultry on me after a long time (I attribute this to my chemistry) and I'm not a fan of that. But the middle stage is very pleasant.

In the bottle: Earthy, earthy mint - mint in an organic mint tea way, not mint in a peppermint candy cane way. A little bit of lavender sweetens it. The lime blends right into the peppermint and it's barely noticeable, or a figure of my imagination. I would never pick it out on my own. Wet: Very herby, in an earthy way. I can definitely get the lavender, and a hint of mint, and it's very difficult but I can just barely get a touch of lime. Dry down: I'm going to say that it smells like freshly cut lavender, including the scent of freshly cut green plant and not just the scent of flower, with just a little bit of mint and lime in the background. I'm surprised at how floral it's getting on me. It does still smell very herby, though. Final thoughts: It's very pretty and I'm glad I have an imp, but I'm not sure how often I would wear it. It reminds me a little bit of my grandmother's house in the country, probably because her summer herb gardening is about as close as I get to fresh cut plants.

In the bottle: Very sweet. It smells purple. I'm smelling something very familiar... it's not grape candy or grape juice and it might not even be tangentially related to "grape" but for some reason that's what I keep thinking. Something is also vaguely medicinal. Wet: Very complex floral. I'm still getting that whiff of something purple, but I can tell there's a very lovely floral at the heart. It's very perfumey... it reminds me a lot of some perfume that I've smelled, but I can't remember which... it might be White Diamonds, which my grandma always had in her house, and which apparently has tuberose, lily and neroli - not orchid. Dry down: Sweet, powdery, grape floral. I think I can make out the orchid as being orchid now, but I'm not positive, since I don't know much about how orchid smells. Final thoughts: It's nice, but maybe a little too grape for everyday wear I'm pretty happy with the RG scents so far, though, and I think I'll try to keep exploring a few more.

In the bottle: Florals, pine, something dry? Probably wood... Wet: Lily, very lovely lily. I get the wood, too, and maybe a hint of the frankincense. Dry down: It is a lot like a church around Easter. Definitely the wood and the flowers. Final thoughts: It turns a little funny on me after awhile, but I like the early stages of it, and I think it's really pretty. Probably not something I'd wear very much, though.

In the bottle: Vanilla and florals - not getting much more than that. Wet: Creamy, vanilla, florals, and the citrus is just barely there. If I had to pick a color, it would probably be pink, or pale blue, or some other pastel. It's too creamy to just be "white," which strikes me as a very cold color. Dry down: Very nice. Cool creamy vanilla, with the hint of citrus. It's also definitely a little bit dry from the sandalwood, but that's more something I notice in the back of my nose. It smells a little bit whiter now. Final thoughts: I like it a lot.

In the bottle: Milk, ginger and a little bit of citrus. Wet: Milk, honey, ginger, a little bit of floral. This is really pleasant. There's something really warm and comforting about it. The floral note keeps it from being too foody. Dry down: Very light. I'll need to test this with a heavier application, but this is really, really nice. My skin isn't making it really sweet, which is good, because my skin turns a lot of scents to sugar. The ginger is really nice - it's clearly ginger, but it's soft, not sharp and not too strong. Final thoughts: I wasn't necessarily expecting this to be THE SCENT for me (not saying I had low expectations, but it wasn't necessarily the scent I was most excited to try), but I think it very well could be a signature scent for me. It just works so well, and it's so lovely. Soft and gentle, not too floral, not too foody. Needs further testing before I would get a bottle, though.

I've tested a few scents on my boy - Geek (yummm), Fallen and Villain. Usually he makes fun of my bpal, but today he REQUESTED to use Villain, and said that it's something he would wear regularly. I still think I prefer Geek on him, but since he likes Villain, I'd love to try some similar scents on him that he might also like. Just glancing through, I'm thinking maybe Whitechapel or Mad Hatter... but does anyone have any other suggestions?

In the bottle: My first reaction, without looking at the notes, is "almond cookies." Just vanilla and almond. After reading the notes, however, I can smell all of them. Wet: Less painfully almond cookie - not quite as sweet, but all of those elements are definitely still there. In fact, it's very rapidly mellowing out into a lovely creamy foody scent. Dry down: Creamy almond cookie. I can't keep my nose off my wrist - it just smells so good! It's a very comforting foody scent. Final thoughts: I thought from the description that I might like this scent. The idea of "almond cookie," however, is not really appealing to me, and if the description said anything like that, I probably wouldn't have gone for it. Yet, this scent is amazing. I never would have thought I would get along so well with something that smells like an almond cookie. I don't think that it's an every day scent for me - it's too foody for that. But I'm soooo glad I have it.

In the bottle: This smells really nice. Like really nice. I'm mostly getting the orange, honey, and a hint of rose. Wet: Citrus and floral working beautifully together with just a hint of foody. I love how the rose and orange are blending, and I'm surprised they do it so well. Dry down: It's a little bit like Hunger, with rose instead of vanilla. By this, I mean, the orange peel feel - it's nothing like Snake Oil. Perfumey, but unusual. The rose is definitely there, but I wouldn't describe this as "floral." The orange peel is definitely there, but it's definitely not "citrus." I'm still really impressed at how well the orange and rose go together. Final thoughts: I like it, but not enough to bump it into my favorites just yet. I think it might be a little bit better aged a bit, though... or maybe it's my chemistry today I'll try it again later.

I had all my job interviews when I only had [snake Oil, Persephone, Moon Rose, Queen Mab, Venice, Delphi, Psyche] to work with. I chose to wear Queen Mab to all of them. I'm not going to say that it Queen Mab necessarily helped me, but it definitely didn't hurt me - I essentially "got" everything I interviewed for, including Teach for America and Google! Now I just have to decide what to do next year... On a side note, now that my collection has blossomed a little bit, I think I would also recommend Nefertiti and Moon Rose. I also wore The Red Queen to an event in an old library where I needed to make a show of power, and I think that worked really well in the setting and role, but I don't know how many interviews it would be appropriate for - I think light florals are best.

In the bottle: Aquatic and spicy... beyond that, I'm having trouble identifying the notes. Something green and mildly repulsive because it's acrid. Wet: Greens, maybe a hint of myrrh? Maybe some florals? Dry down: LOTS more florals now. Slightly sweet, slightly aquatic. But I think that same damn note I didn't like in Delphi/Venice/Fallen is creeping in... it's almost certainly got something to do with the myrtle leaf in this case. It's not as bad as in those other scents. The longer I'm wearing it, the more the aquatic comes out. Something familiar hits the back of my nose, but I can't place it. Definitely not getting any currant. Final thoughts: I feel very mixed about this. Purely based on the way it smells right now, it has a lot of potential both to be a really lovely aquatic floral, and to morph into those notes that I hate. I'll try it again another time. 02/09 Update I was previously undecided about how foul this was turning on my skin. I was anxious about the myrrh and the myrtle. My fears seem to be alleviated at the moment - right now, it smells like a lovely aquatic floral. I'm definitely getting poppy and orchid, with lots of watery/green notes. It's not herby, though, nor is it rain candle. I'll keep it for now.

In the bottle: Hard to describe, but possibly because I don't have a list of notes I smell citrus, dust/musk, some pine. Almost smells vaguely masculine. Wet: Sweet unpleasantly sweet lemon, like limoncello. Musk/incense in the background. Dry down: Sweet lemon and dust. It's not as unpleasantly sweet as when it was wet, but it's still not high on my list of favorite notes. I think I'm smelling some amber as well... actually, yes, I feel like this is predominantly amber/lemon/musk-incense. The latter is what keeps it bearable. Thankfully, the sickly sweet lemon is backing off more and more the longer I wear it. Final thoughts: After dry down, it's okay. Not sure whether it's a keeper. It is different from anything else I have right now, and it gets better as I wear it, but I have a feeling that I'll pass it on some day. Though... it's actually very much a lemony amber version of Al-Shairan, with the lemony amber instead of cinnamon - the note backs away slowly and lets its place be filled with musk/incense... and I reserved my judgment on Al-Shairan at first, but came to realize that I actually liked it pretty well.