sarahj

Hollywood Babylon in vial: strawberries and cherries wet: strawberries, cherries, and musk dry: strawberries, cherries, and vanilla...lasts about 5 hours verdict: I think this is too sweet for me to wear very often...I will use the imp, but I don't need a big bottle

Lucy's Kiss Created to represent the essence of Bram Stoker’s tragic heroine, Lucy Westenra. Seductive, wanton and deadly, but underscored with a soft, wistful innocense. The gentle scent of rose and a blend of Victorian spices. freebie from the lab in vial: dark rose wet: plastic rose dry: dirty, sweaty rose verdict: something in this is turning into a b.o.-like odor on my skin...bleah...off to swaps

Nocnitsa freebie from the lab in vial: pine and something sweet wet: pine needles and tree sap dry: evergreens, berries, and sap...lasts about 6 hours verdict: a wonderful scent, much sweeter than I expected it to be...I think I need a big bottle

Fallen in vial: musk wet: violet and musk dry: amber and powdery violets...this is actually not too bad on me, considering violets usually hate me...lasts about 4 hours verdict: not as bad as I expected (I always expect the worst from violets), but not for me...off to swaps

Two, Five & Seven in vial: fresh cut roses wet: same dry: roses, roses, roses...lots of 'em...lasts about 6 hours verdict: lovely...goes on my big bottle wishlist

Hetairae in vial: patchouli, fig, and honey wet: mainly ylang ylang with a bit of honey dry: almost pure ylang ylang...very floral verdict: nice, but not what I was expecting. I'll use the imp, but won't be buying a big bottle.

Kyoto in vial: cherry blossom and anise wet: mostly cherry blossom with a bit of anise, very light dry: the anise gets much stronger...when I hold my wrist to my nose I can smell a nice blend, but the throw is almost completely anise, which I don't care for verdict: too much anise...not for me...off to the swaps

Venice in vial: lemon and jasmine wet: jasmine and rose dry: a nice, lemony, rosy jasmine...lasts about 5 hours verdict: this is a nice floral, but doesn't excite me enough to buy a big bottle

Wilde freebie from the lab in vial: citrus and lavender wet: very citrusy, very masculine dry: a nice blend of patchouli, bergamot, moss, and lavender verdict: too masculine for me, but smells great on my husband, so I gave the imp to him

Aureus in vial: sharp and woodsy cedar wet: dusty cedar with a little sweetness (vanilla?) dry: very sharp cedar with a tiny bit of vanilla sweetness verdict: too sharp for me...off to swaps

The Unicorn freebie from the lab in vial: smells very medicinal wet: cough drops and florals dry: the medicine-cough drop smell disappears and this turns into a soft, herbal-floral scent...lasts about 3 hours verdict: this is nice, but not exciting or long-lasting enough to temp me to buy a large bottle...I will use up my imp, though

Black Rose in vial: rose and musk wet: rose and musk with a little bit of amber dry: a nice blend of rose, musk, and amber verdict: this is nice, but there are several other rose scents that I prefer (Rakshasa, Delirium, Eve, and Zombi), so I will not be buying a big bottle

Zombi in vial: roses and soil wet: same dry: roses, dry leaves, and soil (not just any soil, but good, leafy, composted soil)...my husband (a former spelunker) says I smell earthy like the inside of a cave (this is a good thing, he says) verdict: long lasting with great throw...I think I need a big bottle

Blood Amber wonderful freebie from the lab in vial: dbr and amber wet: same dry: a perfect, warm, sweet blend of dbr and amber...lasts about 4 hours verdict: this goes on my big bottle list

The Red Queen received as a freebie in my very first order, almost a year ago, and I am just now getting around to reviewing it in vial: cherries and furniture polish wet: strong cherry cough drops dry: this fades away so quickly, it barely has time to dry verdict: not for me...off to swaps

Kweku Anansi received as a freebie in my first order, about a year ago, and I am just now getting around to reviewing it in vial: smells like hot sauce (this must be the STRONG pepper) wet: strong pepper and thyme dry: the same, very sharp with a slightly dusty spice cabinet feel...the scent stays a true pepper and thyme until about 5 hours later when the moss appears and softens it up a bit...overall, very long lasting (about 8 hours total) verdict: I like what it does after about 5 hours, but I'm not willing to wait that long. The first five hours are not me, so this is off to swaps.

Eclipse in vial: almond and cinnamon wet: same dry: plastic-y vanilla with a tiny bit of frankincense...lasts about 4 hours verdict: not for me...off to swaps

Black Pearl in vial: iris, nothing else wet: coconut and iris dry: within an hour, the coconut has disappeared and I am left with a soapy iris smell verdict: the soapiness has turned me off...this is not for me and I will most likely swap it away

Alice freebie from the lab in vial: oranges (must be the bergamot) and almond (?) wet: honey, carnation, and oranges dry: rose and carnation...lasts about 6 hours verdict: a nice floral. I'll use up the imp, but I probably don't need a big bottle.

Eden in vial: coconut and almonds (smells like an Almond Joy candy bar without the chocolate) wet: coconut and almonds and green fig leaf dry: a wonderful blend of fig, honey, coconut, and sandalwood...lasts about 5 hours verdict: this is lovely and goes on my big bottle wishlist

Desire in vial: bergamot and rose wet: bergamot and wood (this must be the teak?) dry: musk and vanilla...the patchouli and apple never show...lasts about 5 hours verdict: a nice scent but not that exciting...I will use up the imp but probably won't be buying a bigger bottle

Wings of Azrael I received this with my first order about a year ago, but have been avoiding trying it because violets hate me. Unfortunately, this is no exception. in vial: violets and myrrh wet: juniper starts to appear dry: violet soap verdict: this has good staying power, but it's definitely not for me

Nanshe freebie from the lab and the first Somnium blend I have tried smells strongly of lemongrass and something else I can't quite name (it's not lavender) I have tried this three times now. The first two nights I had very vivid dreams...so vivid that they woke me up several times throughout the night and made my sleep quite restless. Last night my dreams were not so disturbing, but still quite vivid. I think I'll use this oil occasionally, but it probably wouldn't be wise to use it every night.

Honey Moon in bottle: smells very faintly of herbs and a bit of floral...no honey at all wet: still no honey, this smells of herbs (mainly thyme) dry: the honey does make an appearance, but it's a very soft honey (much different from many of the honey BPALs I have tried so far) combined with herbs...the scent fades very quickly; in about 2 hours it has completely disappeared verdict: this is nice, but is a bit too light and delicate for my taste

Hellcat in vial: boozy almonds wet: honey and almond dry: this fades really fast, and is not nearly as strong as I expected it to be...the honey and almond scent is lovely, but I'm not sure I need a big bottle verdict: undecided ETA: this just doesn't last as long as I'd like...I'll use up the imp, but won't be buying a big bottle