Browneyes

Imp: Wine, fruits and flowers, quite tropical/lush in feeling Wet: It's official: I amp rose. The winey note is the only other note prominent besides the rose, although if I really really try, I might be able to detect a hint of honey. Good thing is that the honey is behaving! No cocoa to speak of really. Dry: This ends up as a lovely bright and strong rose, amplified by the wine and other notes. But it is all about the rose on me.

Imp: Smoky and woodsy pine Wet: Cedarwood or something similar, quite masculine Dry: Yup still cedar... maybe it will be nice to layer this over something that needs a dry and gritty edge. But alone, this doesn't really do it for me. It smells like the insides of an old wooden cabinet.

I hope I will never have to avenge a murder. Anyhoo... Imp: Black patchouli is the strongest note Wet: Hmm the florals start to warm up alot... Dry: I'm not sure what oleander smells like, having never tried a blend with it before, but the general impression of it and the other florals is warm, heady, intoxicating blooms of pale colours. Having just googled oleander, I discovered by reading wikipedia that "Oleander is one of the most poisonous plants and contains numerous toxic compounds"... No wonder this was included in an avenger blend. I really like this scent, my only complaint is that the patchouli is now very faint, and I love me a gritty patchouli.

I thought this was a Rappaccini's Garden blend. clearly I need to read Alice again soon. I am wary of the honey... but I will give it a go: Imp: Lily I guess. It's a pretty floral note. Wet: Mmmm. Soft sweet lilies. Extremely pretty. Now I get some honey too... and it seems to be working on me! Dry: Wow I am stunned. This is so pretty. And the honey is working on me, I can't believe it. Like all florals I feel like this could be a luxury soap scent, but that doesn't matter to me. It's not "soapy" in the bad way. thank you labbies.

Imp: This smells a little like bubblegum... I fear the lotus. Wet: The rose blooms and it is a good rose on me! I will take note of that! White rose works. And the lotus is thankfully not too much like bubblegum. Dry: It does smell like rose-water. It is maybe a bit soapy, but very pretty nonetheless. This smells like I just washed my hands with expensive and luxurious rose soap. Which is not a bad thing in my book. It is very soft and feminine and wistful. I like it.

Bittersweet bay rum, bourbon, and a host of funeral flowers with a touch of graveyard dirt, magnolia and Spanish Moss. Imp: Some booze, some flowers, some dirt and something citrusy? Wet: Uh-oh... the dirt. Death and decay are not good on me. But this isn't so bad (i.e. "bad" on me = Zombi ) In fact it seems to be fading somewhat Dry: Quite nice! I recognize the rum from Port-au-Prince I think. And the florals are not too cloying, and the dirt is now a grounding (how appropriate ) note and not in-my-face-death-like. Not exciting me, but it is a very good blend, gender neutral, and not too strong.

The boy is random. He liked the poem and ordered a whole bottle unsniffed for me didn't even care to ask about the notes. I guess he just doesn't realise that some things work on people and some things don't (although I do try to explain to him these very important things). Well, he was moderately lucky I guess: Bottle: Parma violet and a mossy smell. So far so powdery (note: I actually don't mind powder if it is not too much) Wet: Perfumey-powdery violet over sweet resins and mossy loam Dry: Yeah, it's pretty. It's very sweet and feminine for sure. And soft and powdery. Powder. Pretty. Vintage-y vibes. No ylang ylang (at least not as I know it from EO's - this is my first perfume blend with it though). There's something dusty or smoky which gives it a slight edge, but not much. Yeah I might wear it occasionally for him. But I certainly didn't need a full bottle! Although maybe it ages well, we'll see. In the meantime I need to get a decant kit so I can share some of this, because I don't need it all.

Imp: Without having read any of the previous reviews my first thought was also "Cologne!" It almost smells as if it contains alcohol. Wet: Much less sharp (phew). Soft florals... Dry: Hmmm. It retains some of the "sparkling cologne" quality, but now it doesn't smell chemical or alcoholic at all. It's very soft and pretty. But it's kind of "meh" to me unfortunately. My sis might like it though

Imp: Sharp powdery rose Wet: Pretty rose. No spice to speak of... Dry: Fresh pretty pink rose with a soft twist of something (which must be the "Victorian spices"). I actually like this one! I have had a hard time finding The Rose for me, and while this might not be "My True Love ~ The Rose" blend, I do actually like it. It's not too heady on me like Black Rose or Spellbound, nor "meh" like Whip and London. Pwetty

Imp: Soft dusty resins and iris, it seems very golden yet light Wet: The iris and herbal notes sparkle a bit over the warm dusty resins Dry: Borders soap/powder but not in an unbearable way. Rather, it is softly and sweetly floral as well as woody/herby. Very pretty and feminine! PS. I love the Nefertiti bust and this scent seems very appropriate The Beautiful One is come indeed!

Samhain 2006 Imp: Mmmm... fir, patchouli, leaves, spices, apple Wet: This smells smoky dark-green, and softly spiced red apple - LOVE this stage! Dry: Same, but with a bit less fir and leaves, and a bit more buttery/roundness, from the pumpkin I presume. This is quite gorgeous and I can't wait to get more - Hope Samhain 2007 will be just as good Thank you Beth! ETA: this wafts sweetly like whoa!

Wet Very vetiver Dry I don't detect any vetiver anymore, nor any clove, nor patchouli... It's quite perfumey/cologne-y and masculine. I think I amp oakmoss and balsam - I also do it with Luperci. Not that they smell anything alike. Luperci is golden and sweet, and this is more... well, cool and autumnal I guess. I do like it okay, but I'm glad to try and test it well before Samhain comes around again. As it stands right now, I don't think I will need a full bottle if it ever returns. Will edit some more if anything changes on second or third try... ETA: Okay so here is my impression on the second try: After a bit of practice with this one, it is perhaps even better than Luperci on me. It's got the same feel, but is grittier and smokier. I guess I do detect the patch/vetiver after all, although it's subtle. But what I missed in Luperci was just this. "Grittiness" Love this. And if I manage to score a full bottle I will be happy-happy.

I actually ordered this unsniffed, more for the boy than for me, but I am excited to try it anyway because the description of it somehow just entices me Bottle: Sweet and herbal, but also perfumey Wet: Not very strong. Ah there's the soft, downy and somewhat nutty musk and the sunny amber (which works on me this time!) Still rather perfumey... Dry: This dries down very soft and light, and very "clean". I'm glad the woods don't turn into pencil shavings or wood chip on me! The amber also seems to work okay for me in this blend, although there is a slight slight sharpness/tartness, which might be due to the amber on my skin. But it could also be the grasses. Overall, I enjoy wearing this I will definately need to test it some more. It is quite evocative I think. But also not very loud. I don't think I would need a whole bottle for myself, but it will be interesting to see how it works on the boy's chemistry, and also how it ages... ETA: I should've waited about 20 mins. more to include that now it smells alot more dry-grassy, and I actually really love that! The tartness or whatever it was is gone! It's like a sweet warm skin smell. I love it now! Yay

Those are BEAUTIFUL! Thank you so much sarada! The astrological blends have the same sort of vibe I guess, and it looks great. The Minotaur is fabulous! And the Poisson is a jellyfish, yes?

I just saw the reviews for the new Monsterbaits (except for Gorija!) - and wow! The label art is just stunning! Fantastic Macha!

Can't WAIT to see what Minotaur and Tokyo Stomp (GORIJA!) look like

Vice did not work on me thanks to the cherries. Intrigue was all wood-chip and scratch n' snif sticker on me. I am glad these work for some people though Velvet is another story... Swoon! But how does Boomslang compare? I already have a bottle of Snake Oil, and I don't want to get something that fades into pure SO. And I could just get Velvet if it compares enough to Boomslang... Although my feeling is that Boomslang is *better* than Velvet. What do the experts say? I know it is very individual, but it would be so reassuring to get some feeback here.

A fiery Martial blend that embodies primal rage, lust for conquest, and all-encompassing desire. Dragon’s blood essence, heavy red musk, Indonesian patchouli and swarthy vetiver with a drop of cinnamon. Very harsh and fiery in the imp. At first it's all about the gritty patchouli and DB (which on me btw is lilac-y). Those mellow down pretty quickly though, and this settles into a lovely warm and spicy cinnamon/musk/DB/patch blend. Sweet (from the musk and DB) and strong, but not overpowering or sickly sweet. I never got any vetiver (sad, because I love vetiver) The imp was frimped to me so I have no idea how old it is... But I do in fact really like this one, and I totally wasn't expecting to. Surprise hit ETA to add description

Imp: I sniffed this yesterday before bed without knowing the notes, and thought: booze, wood, musk (I now realise the wood was probably the patchouli) Wet: Ooo rich and sultry. Is this what Lady Death smells like? Dry: This is a gorgeous combination. Patch, musk, myrrh and a teeny-tiny bit of orris. Surprise hit. Don't know if I will use it much, but I definately like it.

A very lovely, heady, "white florals" fragrance. I tested it yesterday before bed without knowing the notes, and for some reason it reminded me of Euterpe and Sacred Whore of Babylon. I guess it's the "spicy, heady floral" which they each have elements of. I did not detect the red musk and bourbon vanilla unfortunately. - I'm still learning, so perhaps I'm one of those girls who amp up the florals.

This is like sweet nothing on me. I can hardly smell it - imp, wet, OR dry, and I did give it a proper little swipe with the imp wand. I do catch a very very faint floral with a nutty/marzipany grounding note, which on other people (above) seems to translate as earthy/candy/cocoa/etc. Anyways, unfortunately this is extremely unspectacular on me

Imp: STRONG soapy floral Wet: Hm. This became very similar to Cologne #4711 all of a sudden. Only more floral and sweet. I like this phase alot. Really pretty and fresh. Dry: It goes softer and more and more floral as it dries, and ultimately it loses it's fresh edge and the floral and sweet pea become way too sweet for me to be able to wear it. Long wear and throw though.

Just writing to add much love to the Sacred Whore It's the only lush, heady "tropical" floral that has worked on me so far. (I love smelling jasmine etc. on the plant, in the tea etc. and I love magnolias, and any other sweet and hot smelling flowers like gardenias, but I didn't have any luck with those kinds of BPAL blends until I met Sacred Whore) Although I think I may just have to try out Euphrosyne now.

Imp: mainly red musk Wet: now I get red musk + amber. Amber is iffy on me. Sometimes it's awful, and in some blends it works... We shall see... Dry: Now I finally get a little bit of rose. It's peeping out under all that musk. This ends up being a nice musky, powdery (in the okay kind of way) rose scent. I prefer this than Black Rose (which has the same notes, but probably different kinds/different proportions)

Imp: juicy rose Wet: pretty rose Dry: uncomplicated pretty rose. I'm not sure I *get* the leather... I like