sarahj

Eve in vial: rose and apple blossom...smells similar to Delirium wet: much sweeter now that the honey has appeared dry: a beautiful blend of rose, apple blossom, and honey...lasts about 5 hours verdict: another rose scent to add to my big bottle wishlist!

Spellbound in vial: strong musk, with very faint rose and amber wet: the musk fades a bit and the rose and amber become stronger dry: mainly a rich rose scent, with just a bit of amber and musk verdict: this is a fine rose scent, but there are a couple of others that I like more (Rakshasa and Delirium), so I will use up the imp but won't be ordering a bigger bottle

White Rabbit received in a swap in vial: I can barely smell anything...a faint smell of pepper, ginger, and tea wet: Still so faint...the pepper has faded and the sweetness of the honey begins to emerge dry: Somewhere along the line this turns into a soapy floral on me...not good. verdict: soapy floral = Off to swaps!

The Ghost freebie from the Lab in vial: iris, lily, and something green (maybe the ivy?) wet: powdery lily dry: turns into a very powdery floral on me...this is definitely not for me. Off to the swaps!

Delphi freebie from the lab...how do they know?? in vial: strong honey wine wet: spicy honey and bay dry: slightly masculine, lovely combination of spice, incense, and sweet honey. Lasts about 5 hours. verdict: I must have a big bottle! And I must try this on my husband!

Jezebel in vial: cloyingly sweet orange blossom and honey wet: same, with a hint of rose dry: the orange blossom disappears, and I am left with rose and sandalwood with a hint of honey. This smells similar to a lighter version of Rakshasa on me. Lasts less than three hours. verdict: not long lasting enough for me and I prefer the stronger scent of Rakshasa. I will finish the imp, but won't be buying a larger bottle.

Dragon's Milk in vial: dragon's blood resin and vanilla wet: floral (?) and vanilla dry: my first experience with the play-doh smell...I've tried many scents with dbr, vanilla, and/or honey in them and have never had this problem before...this particular combination just doesn't seem to work for me...play-doh all the way until it completely faded away about five hours later verdict: I may give this one more chance, but this will most likely be sent to the swaps.

Kali received in a trade in vial: honey and flowers wet: smells strongly of honey and lotus with faint hints of chocolate and rose dry: this dries into a nice floral...the honey and chocolate disappear (I never did smell the wine or the tobacco) verdict: staying power is good...lasts about 7 hours on me...I will use up my imp, but most likely won't be purchasing a big bottle of this

Bayou freebie from the Lab...thank you! in vial: sickly sweet floral wet: the super-sweet scent quickly fades to unveil a great combination of unidentified florals (maybe magnolia??) and moss dry: a very balanced, soft, aquatic, mossy floral; lasts about 6 hours verdict: this goes on my big bottle list...thanks to the lab for exposing me to yet another scent I might never have ordered on my own

Allegory In the imp, wet, and dry it smells the same to me: sharp cedar and juniper. Too sharp for my tastes. The orange never shows itself, unfortunately. I usually enjoy cedar scents, as long as they are balanced out with something sweet. This is not the case with Allegory. Fortunately it didn't last long on me (only about an hour or two). Off to swaps.

(Old) Yerevan free from the lab in vial: fruit punch and plastic wet: fruity and waxy...like a box of crayons dry: fruit completely fades away and now I smell the orchid and musk, but still with a waxy undertone verdict: lasts about 5 hours, but I can't get past that waxy smell...to swaps with this one

The Hanging Gardens in vial: fruity and woodsy, with a slight plastic note wet: a nice mix of fruit and floral; it's difficult to pick out any individual notes dry: over the course of about 6 hours, the fruit slowly fades away, leaving only the florals verdict: I am undecided; I will have to try this again

Suspiro in vial: strong lily scent wet: lilies, orchid, and jasmine...VERY floral dry: the sweet ylang ylang and plum mix with the floral...I like verdict: unfortunately, this has all but disappeared from my skin in less than three hours...I will use up my imp but will not be ordering a larger bottle

Bon Vivant freebie from the lab in vial: ripe strawberries and fizzy champagne wet: same dry: unfortunately, within an hour the strawberries have disappeared and I am left with an alcohol-champagne smell, not too pleasant...within another hour this has disappeared, too verdict: I will try this again, but I have a feeling that this is headed off to swaps

Hamadryad in vial: woodsy, soapy wet: cinnamon + soap dry: soapy and floral verdict: too soapy for me...will most likely swap this one

freebie from the Lab in vial: warm amber and fruity dragon's blood wet: the rose geranium starts to come on pretty strong dry: a floral with a lovely kick...lasts about 6 hours verdict: very nice...I'm considering a big bottle of this one

Midwinter's Eve in bottle: sweet, sugary plums wet: starts to have more depth; I think I detect grapes and/or cherries in the background dry: still sweet plums plus other fruits in the background (sometimes I think I smell watermelon!) verdict: lasts over 6 hours; I love it!

Gingerbread Poppet in bottle: smells strongly of ginger and clove wet: very spicy, not foody at all dry: as it dries, the oil becomes sweeter and smells more like yummy freshly baked gingerbread. Lasts about 5 hours. *funny story*: I was working at the Reference Desk tonight (I am a reference librarian at a university library) and a patron approached the desk. Before he even asked a question he said, "Are you guys baking something? It smells so good in here!" verdict: This is a definite keeper! I only wish I had ordered more than one bottle.

Delirium in vial: lemon and rose wet: a fresh, light lemony rose. Wonderful! dry: the apple starts coming through, although the rose and lemon stay the dominant scents...lasts about 6 hours verdict: wonderful scent, especially for the summer. I can see myself ordering a big bottle in the future.

(Old) Madrid in vial: sweet cherries with a hint of red wine wet: sweet fruity cherries, wine scent is fading fast dry: same as wet...the wine has disappeared and I never smell any clove (I seem to be having this problem lately...I couldn't smell the clove when I tried March Hare yesterday, either)...lasting power is pretty good...lasted 6+ hours on me verdict: a very nondescript sweet scent on me...I will try this again later before making my final decision

March Hare A twisted teatime tart: apricot and sweet clove. in vial: waxy, buttery apricot wet: the waxy smell begins to dissipate as it dries dry: butter and apricots...no clove!! verdict: good staying power...lasts almost 8 hours on me, but the absent clove was disappointing for me I'll try this again before I make a final decision.

in vial: I smell the cinnamon, clove, and pepper...I feel like I am smelling my spice cabinet. wet: same dry: same verdict: I love this, but it doesn't last as long as I'd like. Unfortunately, after two hours it has faded away entirely.

Blood Kiss in vial: My nose is confused! Every time I sniff it's a different combination: wine and vetiver, cherry and honey, clove and vanilla, etc. wet: the predominant notes are (in order of strength) cherry, wine, and honey dry: dries into a lovely blend of honey, vanilla, and cherry, along with something (the vetiver?) that keeps it from being too sweet verdict: pretty long lasting (6 hours later and it has started to fade) and I love it! I think a big bottle is in my future.

Dana O'Shee in vial: marzipan wet: marzipan and vanilla...as it dries I can begin to smell the honey dry: this has become a lovely (but somewhat powdery) delicate honey and almond scent after 3.5 hours: faded completely verdict: I like this, but it is a bit too delicate and doesn't last as long as I'd like. O is still my favorite honey scent. I will use up this imp, but won't be buying a bottle.

Samhain Truly the scent of autumn itself -- damp woods, fir needle, and black patchouli with the gentlest touches of warm pumpkin, clove, nutmeg, allspice, sweet red apple and mullein. in bottle: apples, smoky woods, and a sharp wine smell wet: the sharp wine note becomes stronger...I also smell patchouli and something sweet, like honey dry: as it dries it becomes less sharp and morphs into a lovely blend of dry leaves, faint smokiness, patchouli, apple, spices, and honey verdict: once it dries and the sharpness fades away, I am in love. Five hours after applying it seems to be going strong, although by this time I am mostly just smelling apples and honey. I am so glad I bought this!