Jilara

I had gotten an imp of this in the original 2008 incarnation, and was sorry I hadn't gotten a bottle. Now I have a chance again! Wet, it's an aquatic pine and juniper...the seacoast of Ireland? It's a fresh blast of rain and woods. Drying down, vanilla comes out to blend with the pine and juniper, reminding me a lot of Thanatopsis, but with the slight background of citrus that must be the bergamot. Not so aquatic, now. Dry, there is a distinct tang of bergamot blending into the pine/juniper, that somehow makes me think of autumn, and a slight creamy floral that wafts in and out, indistinct as to exactly what flowers I'm smelling. The creamy quality might be the vanilla and benzoin. As the day goes on, the woods start to fade and the florals linger. Seven hours after applying it, I can still smell roses and plumeria---a surprise since they weren't distinct earlier on. The citrus is entirely gone, at this point. Still the vaguest hint of pine, but it's almost all floral, at this point. Maybe I'm remembering it differently, but I recall 2008 as having a stronger floral backbone. This is very pine/juniper forward, but I rather like that. Not hoarding, but still very happy to have this revival of Ragged Wood allow me to restock with a full bottle. It's a gorgeous scent, and very evocative of Ireland! (Well, if you ignore the fact that plumeria isn't very Irish...)

This is SO different from what I was expecting! I expected something closer to Faith (which I love), and this is so much more adult and sophisticated. Wet, it has an almost foody note at the ver first. I started to wonder a little, because I thought of cupcakes. But that went away, and there was an earthy slightly green note to the violet. Not like your standard violet. Very down-in-the-leafmold violet. Drying, the violet leaf quality goes away, but there is still this rich, voluptuous darkness to the violet. Musky violet? Maybe. That lingers for a couple hours, when sweet and sugary violets finally come out to play. Finally, I get a whiff of a little Faith-like violet. The musky quality is still a rich background note, but the top is definitely sweetly sugared violets. Gorgeous and sophisticated, definitely a violet that would be great for those of us of uncertain age.

Wet is almost all light aquatic, very spring rain, very fresh. Bamboo is in the background, and comes out in the drydown. It stays light aquatic with bamboo for a couple of hours, then starts to have the white chypre background come out. At that point, it starts to go into a phase that reminds me of some light youthful commercial perfume. I'm thinking maybe the old Avon Sweet Honesty? Background of bamboo drops out at this point. Light and pretty, very youthful.

Hmm, I smell like I've been in the kitchen, baking all day. This one is sweet and light and very ripe banana. The banana is fresh, not cooked, and there is that creamy banknote with the graham crackers in it. It's a comforting, homey scent. It's a good neutral for when you don't know what you want to wear, scent-wise. I spritzed it into my hair for going ice skating, as I wanted something foody for that. It doesn't really linger long, just a few hours, even with a ton of it in my hair. It fades back to a background sweetness and creaminess, even when I put my nose to my hair, a few hours later. Still, I think this is going to be one of my favorites.

When first spritzed on, this really catches the gooey marshmallow/chocolate/cookie goodness. That lasts for maybe a half an hour, then it's whoa! bitter dark chocolate with a heavy undertone of coffee. It reminds me of a more chocolate-heavy version of Miskatonic U. As time goes on, maybe 18 hours later, it becomes all coffee, strong dark brew. And wow, it has lasting power. I was still smelling the coffee 36 hours later. Had to find a harmonizing note, so I used Honey. But wow, it lasts and lasts. Don't wear anything floral with this one. It will dominate it into submission.

Oh sweet banana cream pie, how do I love thee? So good I want to eat you up, but can't. In the bottle, definitely creamy banana. But wet....ooh, the blossoming of banana goodness! The banana is well blended with cream, and becomes so delicious. On drydown, the graham cracker crust comes out, and balances nicely with the banana cream. I had my husband sniff me and he said it was a great way to torment him, making me smell good enough to eat! Over a couple hours, the banana fades out and leaves a base of cream pie. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to last more than about 4 or 5 hours on me, but those are GOOD hours!

I used it like a moisturizer, as we are still rationing actual baths until we are sure the drought is over. Can't wait to put it into bath water, though! It's very creamy, with only a light hint of lime. I thought it might be more stimulating, what with the lime, but it's definitely a more languid lime---key lime pie indeed. And you're soaking in it. Oooh. I want this. Like lingering over a decadent dessert. So creamy lime, with just a touch of crust. I'd have a hard time getting out of this bath. Glad I got it!

This is going to sound really strange, but I get the oddest impression of a fairy tale head shop. Seriously. At once homey and hippie. It's all bright Mary Engelbreit cheery primary colors and cute, but with a hookah-smoking caterpillar in the back. The peach and patchouli walk hand-in-hand, very forward in the initial impression. But there is a strange aura of...sugar cookies? that lurks in the background. It's like an intriguing little booth at the Renaissance Faire, inviting you in for cookies and tarot. But you might want to be careful about staying too long, because it's not quite as homey and innocent as you might think. But maybe that's why you might want to stay... And on that note, after about a half hour, the cookies fade, and the amber blooms, and you get peachy incense, and a hint of something a bit more...adult. Oddly, at this stage, I had a feeling like I had tarried too long, and I needed to get away before I couldn't... I ended up lighting some white plum incense to blend with it, and felt reassured again. By the time the incense had faded, an hour or so later, it was warm and reassuring again, with a slight hint of fruity incense, but not alarming. Interesting. To me, this is a bit more than a mere home and linen spray. It catches something exotic and slightly dangerous, yet fascinating, like a sense you might go to sleep in faerie, and wake up somewhere drugged and complacent. When you consider some of the context of this collection of scents, that's quite appropriate.

Whoah! This stuff is both amazing and powerful. I am glad I tried it in the evening, at home, as I don't want to overwhelm the office. I will start by saying I'm a big fan of Drakkar Noir men's cologne. This really reminds me of those notes, but with an herbal undertone I can't quite place. It could be the nagarmotha? (BTW, I read that nagarmotha is a mosquito repellent, so this might be great to spray on before going hiking.) I got this because I am a vetiver fan, and there is serious vetiver in this gloss. The amber and leather mellow it, so it's not quite as sharp as it might be. There is a slight element of spice that's not listed, but I keep picking up in background. I like masculine-smelling herbals, so this is definitely a keeper. I keep thinking of how fantastic this would smell on Dear Husband's hair, as it's definitely something a sexy guy would totally rock. It would make an amazing expensive-smelling aftershave.

If you want to live in a scrumptious bakery kitchen, this is the atmosphere spray that will deliver it! I sprayed this and was instantly transported to an old coffee shop of my childhood, where luscious pies reposed in old-style pie safes of dark wood with screened fronts---where they baked the pies in the back, every day, so you always had a scent of pie in the air. And of course, one of their specialties was banana cream pie. No chilly pie there, no it was often body-warm and topped with fresh whipped cream right before serving. It's still my gold standard of banana cream pie, and this atmosphere spray captures it perfectly! The banana is really noticeable when you first spray this. Really banana, like baked bananas, and there is definitely a creamy undertone. And behind it all is the scent of warm graham crackers. The Trading Post has really nailed the scent of freshly-made banana cream pie. My husband came into the bedroom, where I had spritzed it, and thought there must be real baked goods present. Over the next couple hours, the banana starts to drop out, but the creamy note remains, along with the strong scent of graham crackers. It definitely has a bakery smell, and is very yummy. And talk about lasting power! The next day, you could still smell baked goods! It wasn't distinctly anything at that point, but definitely the smell of a good bakery, full of sweet treats, vaguely lingering. Dear Husband was disappointed that I hadn't been baking, again. But isn't having your home smelling like a bakery the next best thing?

This is all sandalwood, gloriously heady red sandalwood. It would make a great Lupercalia scent. There is a hint of spice that underlies it, just enough to lend balance. The saffron and honeyed amber notes are so well blended in as to be indistinguishable. It's quite soft and lovely, a fragrance at once mysterious and comfortable. The oil base on this gloss seems lighter to me, but I couldn't swear to it. For a few minutes, there is a lot of throw, then it scales back to just a hinting of fragrance, which is good, because I am wearing it to the office.

I was hoping for something similar to Rose Cross oil, and Luna Sanguinem fits the bill. I can best describe it as "creamy red rose" with a very slight undertone of frankincense. I think it's the myrrh and styrax lending the slightly creamy note. Unfortunately, the scent doesn't seem to last long, even applied directly to skin. Really nice right before bed, though.

How many ways doth rose appear? All forms would smell as sweet... Rose scent is definitely a form of infinite variation, and the rose in this is one that reminds me of my favorite tea rose perfume from Coty, back in the 1970s. The leather is very background, just enough to moderate the rose and give it a warmer depth, and seems strongest when this is first sprayed on. The rose scent is bright tea rose (the old rose tea rose scent, not hybrid tea) and very powerful on my hair. The staying power of rose on my unwashed hair was amazing. On freshly washed hair, the rose fades out a bit after a few hours, and it becomes more leathery. I'm complementing it with Rose Cross perfume, though it can definitely stand on its own.

Not getting much rum, except when first sprayed. It goes to delicious vanilla cupcakes almost immediately. Nice to pair with Vice as a companion scent.

My husband has a back that regularly gets unhappy, and I have gotten used to using arnica cream on him. Soooo, I said, why not get some massage oil with arnica, and the added bonus of BPAL magic? Wow, am I glad. His skin DRINKS the stuff, and it makes him feel much better. He says it feels warm, going on, unlike most oils. And I love the scent. An added bonus is that it makes my hands feel good, applying it. I normally have my hands get very tired, working on him (I have rheumatoid arthritis). But using this, I can just keep going, and don't feel it much at all. This is going to be a regular purchase from now on!