ralenth

I sniffed this at my first WCWC a couple months ago and promptly went home and ordered a bottle. Ekhidna is dark, clovey musky love. As it dries, sinister doesn't even begin to cover it. The myrrh and opponax coil around my wrist so deliciously. I'm a pretty big fan of the bold, heavy scents and Ekhidna doesn't disappoint. The throw isn't too oppressive, so I'm not dominating the whole room when I enter (even if this scent makes me feel like I'm overthrowing Olympians).

2010 vintage: Smooth, boozy red musk romp. I can see why this is so popular. I actually prefer this fresh, as my older bottles smell more grapey on my skin.

At first sniff, Thoos is wham! Sharp tangerine in the face. But, as it dries, it mellows into a bright citrus with sultry musky undertones. I think this is going to get a lot of play during the hot summer months.

I think that this is the star of the Ode to Mars update. Aatos Polemoio is warm cedar with subtle spicy sweetness. I would love to slather this on a man, but it smells pretty good on me. Sharing is not an option here.

Bottle aged since 09/2007 Wet: Warm, smoky cloves. Drydown: As it dries, Wild Men gets a bit fiery, though not in the cinnamon way. Patchouli gives it a bit of a dirty romp feel without tending to the hippy-ish that some patchouli blends have. Dry: Dirty, sexy romp. Still has a warm feel, though not the flames that I was getting during the drydown. Overall: The only thing missing is leather here. That would make this even more amazing. Then again, I think everything could use more leather. Hehe.

Sweet pears and lilies. I get teensy peeps from the nasty green rose gallery, but mostly it's a creamy white floral. Once it's dry, it's very vanilla-y and the throw is incredibly strong. Symmakhia is lovely, but not really up my alley.

Wet: It reminds me a bit of Smut. Lush, juicy musk with a slight tinge of grape. Drydown: Gorgeous, warm, swirling scent, the grapiness has gone (unlike with Smut). It's red musk and cozy woods. So pretty! Dry: And it's nearly gone within 30 minutes. It remains a faint, sweet, wooden presence, but I have to press my nose to my skin to catch it. Overall: Very nice. I wish it was a little stronger on my skin. If it was, I could see it being a regular in my rotation.

Sadly, this soap didn't hold it's scent at all. I recently snagged a slice, as Perversion is one of my favorite oils, and the scent is very faint. I like the scrubby texture of the bar, but my skin felt dry afterward (though this is quite common with bar soap). I must say that the lather was impressive (so much!!!) even if the soap at this stage wasn't.

Thick, gorgeously spiced honey. There are hints of woods. I'm not getting much of the floral, but that could be because I am completely honing in on the gingery honey. It's like bathing in a golden cloud of happiness.

I remembered this being crushed sweet tarts and zealously hoarded it. However, now it gets this strange plasticky funk on drydown. Sad skin chemistry fail.

Source: Leftover partial from 2008 circle Wet: Snow Maiden in the Pines! Mmm, I am really digging on snowy pine scents lately. Drydown: The Snow Maiden vibe fades on Drydown, but it remains a lovely, soft snowy pine scent. Dry: Snow, gentle pine and crushed herbs. Very pretty and chilly. Overall: For a desert rat, I sure love snowy pine scents.

Anise and clove with a pinch of cumin. I don't get any mandarin. A bit too holiday spice for my tastes.

Wet: Violet pastilles. Drydown: As it dries, Faith almost takes on a creaminess. Dry: Creamy soft, slightly sweetened violet. This is just lovely. Overall: I certainly like Faith a lot better than her twin. If I ever wanted to feel super girly, I would go for Faith in an instant.

Rose and I don't play too nicely. Hope starts out sweet and softly rosy, but she quickly turns sharp and green. No surprises here. Skin chemistry fail.

Source: Hiding in my box untested since 2007 (How is this possible?) Wet: Thick, sticky pine. Drydown: Slightly cool, faintly herbal, predominantly pine. No Christmas tree here. Dry: Harvesting pines during a crisp winter wind. There isn't much change from the drydown stage. Overall: Love. I think the lesson is that I should keep my collection more manageable so that gems don't slip my notice.

Bright, fluffy pink marshmallow scent. This smells exactly like Velvet Unicorn did on my skin. Pretty, but I don't need both.

Softly sugar dusted violets. My skin completely eats this within five minutes. Pretty, but too ephemeral for my tastes.

This started out a bit perfumey and pretty, but pretty quickly went down to sharp green, rose and powder-lily hell. I should have known it wouldn't agree with me as these two florals are death notes, but I had to try anyway. Off to swaps.

Wet: Beautiful bright grapefruit and papaya. Super fruity and fun! Drydown: Tinges of floral, but still predominantly fruity and citrus. Dry: This scent is like a celebration in the fruit market. Sadly, after about an hour, it's pretty much gone. Overall: Nice while it lasted. I'm glad the dreaded dragon's blood is muted here.

I pulled this out during my culling pass this morning and decided to give it a test before dropping it off at the orphanage. Flower Moon has aged quite nicely. It's a slow, thick honey with soft musky florals. Honey and I don't often play well together, but this is gorgeous. The throw is medium and it seems to have staying power. I'll definitely be keeping this and putting it into rotation. Yum.

Bottle: Juicy pears with swirls of floral. Wet: Sweet pear, not as lush as the bottle sniff, but quite nice. Slightly girlier than I was expecting from the bottle art, but not crazy jasmine. Drydown: Still soft, a tad powdery. Quite pretty. Dry: All traces of the pear have faded and I am left with a sweet, powdery floral. Overall: Not quite what I hoped. I'm a little sad I don't have any more because I liked the initial stages, but not enough to hunt it down.

Sweet, creamy nutty scent, with a tinge of linen. harimise is far foodier than I was expecting. It's lovely and seems perfect for spring (even if it isn't my thing).

Wet: Super cologney. Resisting the urge to scrub this off. Dydown: Hello Ozone! As it dries further, Sarah develops into this gorgeous musky ozone Dry: Sweet, musky floral with tinges of clean ozone. It occasionally waffle back to the cologney scent, but not as overpowering as when I first applied it. Overall: Very different than most of what I own, so it may be spared the axe. Definitely a sophisticated, vampy scent.

Bottle acquired: October 2008 Wulric is all cocoa and vetiver at first sniff, but as the drydown goes on he gives off faint bits of lavender (which I normally amp like whoa, though not here). Wulric dries into this amazing tumbled sex in the sheets with a side of cocoa scent. Oh, wow. Once Wulric has shaken himself dry, he reverts to a musky lavender with no traces of cocoa and hints at the naughtiness of the drydown. Would that he smelled like that the whole time...

Bottle acquired: October 2007 Musky, green cologne. It begins a little floral, but then Pollution oozes out from the center in a glowing mass of sharp, ozoney goo. O sweet apocalypse. Nuzzle.