ceiswyn

In the imp: At second sniff, this is a lot more 'green', and a lot less 'floral'. A dry green, rather than a wet one; light and a little astringent, with an unexpected soft sweetness. But... is that just the teeniest hint of aquatic? On the wrist: Light, dry, astringent, oddly warm; that must be the tonka coming through. A gentle hint of sandalwood. The sharpness of rice wine. A subtle, sophisticated scent that seems to change every few seconds. One hour later: Gentle. Subtle. Sophisticated. Slightly powdery. Light and sweet, but with an astringent quality to it. Sadly, it's fading very quickly. A commendable 7/10.

In the imp: An initial rose-sweetness is almost immediately overpowered by patchouli and wood, inextricably blended together. It's a little dirty, earthy, but still with that rose-sweetness layered over the top, that I couldn't smell last night (presumably interference from all the other imps I had out is to blame for that). On the wrist: An earthy, warm rose, quite gritty. I'm sensing a lot of clod and very little pebble. The rose is stronger in the throw, the patchouli and woods close to the wrist. The clove and nutmeg are barely detectable, but as I begin to crave hot cross buns I begin to suspect them of sneaking in under cover of patchouli and just adding an extra richness and warmth. One hour later: The rose is now faint, and no longer as fresh or sweet, and it's the gritty, earthy, dirty patchouli and woods that are the strongest note in this scent. It's rather faded, though, and has developed a trace of 'perfume'. Nice, but a little disappointing.

(Note: I always do the first sniff without looking at the description) In the imp: It smells sweet, backed by something dry. After further sniffing and some brain-wracking, the sweetness is a little peachy, which surely can't be right? It also has a flower quality to it, and something like tobacco - but not, I think, actually tobacco - behind it. Oh, yes. Patchouli. You'd've thought I'd've recognised patchouli, wouldn't you? But for some reason I never, ever do. On the wrist: At first this is a faint wreathing of peach (I know it says apricot, but it really does smell more like peach) twining through smoky patchouli. Then the patchouli seems to suddenly catch fire. It smells almost hot, now; smoky and spicy and, yes, dirty and dark, lifted by a tenuous veil of peach (admit it, BPAL, it's peach really, isn't it?) One hour later: This is strongly patchouli; a kind of earthy, gritty patchouli, blended with a hint of peach. I rather like it, actually. 8/10

In the imp: What a lovely warm tawny colour. This biases me favourably towards it even before I sniff And oh, it has a lovely nose. Serene flowers; a rose/neroli quality, slightly sweet, and I think there's a trace of something woody in the background too, grounding it. This is a scent with depth, richness and calm. ...and then there's a bit of an applicator-nose issue as I try to analyse it more. On the wrist: In the imp, the scent was strongly rose/jasmine. They're still there, but now the lemongrass comes through sharply. Really quite sharply. Yes, there is definitely lemongrass, especially on my left wrist. Behind it is just the faintest trace of sandalwood, and I see I once again failed to recognise the patchouli. The right wrist is balancing better, with the lemongrass just sharpening the rose, and the woods and patchouli giving it depth. It seems to have good throw, although that could just be because I've got it on my sodding nose. One hour later: The flowers and lemongrass have faded, and this is now a dusty cedarwood on both wrists. The right seems to be dustier, while the left has more of a touch of sandalwood and rose to it. Still, it's a shame.

In the imp: I'm feeling wary of this. Florals so often go wrong on me. But when they go right, I like them so much... It's a lighter colour than Snake Oil, or the other members of the Snake Pit; the amber of malt whisky. I'm putting off opening it, aren't I? OK, let's have a sniff. ... That's gorgeous. Really, really gorgeous. Apple's the prominent scent, with a backing of spring blossoms. I can't detect the Snake Oil at all. On the wrist: Still mostly apple (quite sharp apple), but now it's balanced by Snake Oil's vanilla in the throw, though close to the hand it's all sharp, fresh, fruits and florals. Did I mention that this is gorgeous? One hour later: It's no longer quite as sharp, especially on the right wrist where the Snake Oil has come through a little, but still... I'm overusing the word 'gorgeous', aren't I? Fresh, sweet apples, light, fresh flowers that don't smell at all 'perfumey', all mellowed and sweetened by vanilla... This is like a picnic in an orchard on a bright spring day, with everyone wearing frilly and lacy confections of dresses, with the apple blossom thick on the trees and falling around like snow. Strangely, a new bottle seems to have appeared in my next order.

In the imp: A deep, rich, sweet, almost edible flower scent, with a dark and solemn woody backdrop. On the wrist: The cinnamon really comes through, mixing with the violet to make a rich, sweet, foody smell, anchored by the frankincense. This smells like... mmm... opulence and power and temptation. The throw doesn't seem strong at first, but I'm catching whiffs of it, first violet and cinnamon, then frankincense, then all three inextricably intermingled, like robes of soft purple velvet. For OWoD fans, this is the scent of the Hermetic Order One hour later: This is mostly violet, but still given depth by the cinnamon and frankincense, just detectable in the background. As time wears on, the frankincense slowly strengthens. A lovely, unusual scent.

In the imp: Oooooooooohhhhhh . This smells of distilled gorgeous. Smooth, dark and woody/resinous, and cigar-smoky, with just a trace of something dry-floral, or maybe citrussy to sharpen it. It lies on a scale somewhere between Red Lantern and The Pit And The Pendulum, but has a quality to it that distinguishes it as a scent in its own right. On the wrist: On the wrist this becomes a little dryer, but still; this is an old-style men's smoking room, with leather sofas and leather-bound books, late at night with heavy curtains drawn over the windows and a haze of white smoke lazily drifting and whorling about the ceiling. There may be no whisky in the ingredients but I can smell it anyway, just because it has to be there. One hour later: It seems to have faded quite quickly. Close to the wrist it's still incense and tobacco, with a hint of wood, but no longer quite the glorious scent it was. 8/10

It's apricot jam. Definitely apricot jam. If it's a tart, then possibly it's the filling of the tart right after it's come out of the oven and is bubbling hot and caramelising around the edges. That seems quite plausible, actually. Maybe it's the hint of clove that's giving it that 'warm' feeling, because heaven knows it's not making itself known any other way. Nice, though.

In the imp: This smells like pure Amaretto. Mmm. I love Amaretto. On the wrist: Amaretto and something. I think it's something a little green, but it's hard to tell. A hint of rose, perhaps? A trace of something woody? This is turning quite complex... One hour later: Talc. Just... talc. I think I should avoid almond.

In the imp: There's gotta be orange blossom/neroli in this. And rose, too, I think, though those can be very similar scents at times. But there's something else too; a soft, rich, spicy note that mellows and enriches. I know what it is - I recognise it - but I can't separate it out enough to identify it; wait. Marzipan? Yes, marzipan. Must be almond, then. On the wrist: Did I say neroli? I meant rose. I meant rose a lot. Brightened by other florals and a trace of herb green. It's particularly sharp and bright on the left wrist; on the right there's just a hint of something warm behind it. One hour later: Yep, that was definitely rose all right. Rose, orange blossom, and soap. Quite strong on the soap.

In the bottle: Ooh, yes. Very smoky. I think I can detect frankincense and sandalwood, but they're definitely a bit charred around the edges. On the wrist: Smoky incense thrown on a wood fire. The throw is more incensey, but close to the wrist it's all charred wood; mostly the sharp woodiness of cedar, I think, with a little sandalwood and frankincense to make it aromatic. One hour later: Woodsmoke and incense. This is really quite lovely. Definitely a keeper.

There are times when I wonder whether I have the same sense of smell everyone else does, and this is one of them. Because on opening the bottle, all I can smell is slightly sweet ethanol. Not overwhelmingly so, but still; ethanol, like the commercial perfumes I avoid. On the wrist: It still smells of ethanoly perfume base. Wait; there's something a little musky coming through. And just a hint of vanilla. One hour later: Faint and musky, with smoky tobacco, and sweetened by vanilla. A subtle and sophisticated scent but not, I think, for me.

A very short review, since I put it only quickly just to find out if it was a must-have scent and haven't analysed it... Pure vetiver to start with, then vetiver sliced through with lemon and a hint of thyme, then a blend of musk, smoke, lemon, thyme and wet earth that gradually fades away. 8/10

A very short review, since I put it only quickly just to find out if it was a must-have scent and haven't analysed it... Cocoa and dragon's blood, a little reminiscent of Vice (though not so edible, and certainly not so artificial-smelling) fades gradually to something a little woodier, and oddly reminiscent of The Perilous Parlour. An 8/10.

In the imp: I'm getting rather attuned to the smell of vetiver How I love vetiver... Anyway. I'm mostly smelling vetiver, but there's a hint of leather behind it somewhere. And something just a little flower-sweet, though I can't place what. On the wrist: The bitterness I have come to expect of vetiver, cut through with sweetness (jasmine? It's sharp-sweet), with a rounded hint of leather in the afterscent. I'm doing this analysis with my nose two feet from my wrists, which may give you some idea of the throw. One hour later: This smells of leather, with a hint of vetiver. I disbelieve in the flowers and the cinnamon. I do like leather, though As time goes on it gradually becomes more leathery; six hours after applying I'm still catching odd whiffs of leather, though turning increasingly myrrhy with age. Which is odd, as there's no myrrh in here. Still, not complaining