fairnymph

In the bottle: Lemon (it's a little cleanerish), dark, almost incensey musk (or maybe that's the bark?), and a faintly sweet touch of coconut. Wet: Coconut most strongly on my skin! Then musk, then lemon - a strange reversal of note prominence! It's smoother and more blended. Dry: The lemon perks back up, but it's a fresher, true lemon, not cleanerish. It doesn't smell like blossoms to me, but like freshly squeezed juice. The coconut is natural, creamy and a little foody, but not very sweet or overly strong. The musk is dark and sexy and mingles well. I find it harder to detect the bark note, but it's sort of dusty and dry. Summary: Fresh lemon juice, dark musk and dusty bark, and creamy, warm coconut. A unisex scent that would probably work optimally on a man. Low throw, decent lasting power. It's not feminine enough for me and I don't like the almost incensey bark note, but it is a well blended scent.

In the bottle: Spicy carnation, deep fruit, dark musk. Reminds me of a gentler Mme. Moriarty. Wet: More floral, lighter - the carnation opens up. Less sweet. The plum is fruitier. Muskier. Dry: Dries extremely rapidly and fades too. Dark, dark musk! Summary: Amps back up, with good throw and lasting power. Dark, deep musk with hints of ripe plum and spicy carnation. Very much a gentler, lighter version of Mme. Moriarty. Too spicy-dark for me.

In the bottle: Fresh ginger, tea, grass, moss. Green, herbal and refreshing. Wet: Very similar, maybe a touch floral, and a bit soapy. Fairly heady, actually. The spicy ginger makes my nose tingle. Dry: Ginger, tea, soapy mosses. Not getting any fig. The grass notes are gone,and this is sharper and less fresh. Summary: The oakmoss amps and a hint of fruity fig emerges. It's still a touch soapy, but never overwhelmingly. This reminds me a fair deal of Ebisu, but with a sharp ginger note. If I didn't like Ebisu more, I'd get a bottle of this.

May 2006 version In the bottle: Sharply fresh and green, with white florals. The green is sort of grassy cucumber. Wet: Sweeter, less green and fresh, more floral. Still white (thought not traditionals like jasmine, gardenia, magnolia - not heady whites) but also some wildflower like floral notes. Tulips and/or daffodils? I feel like the sweetness is from flowers (honeysuckle? phlox?), not honey, fruit, or sugar variants. And the sort of fresh-sharp floral is marigold, I think? Dry: There's a coolness here, like a fresh spring breeze - maybe a light mint, or something in the evergreen family. A citrusy scent is emerging, I'm guessing lemongrass? The citrus note and cool note do give this a breezy-aquatic feel. It's becoming a more balanced scent (as opposed to sweetish floral while wet). Summary: Musky spring flowers, blowing in a cool breeze, woods in the distance. What I imagined Oisin would be like but totally wasn't (on me). It's also the bpal scent that, so far, most closely reminds me of my favourite traditional perfume - Ralph Lauren Romance.

In the bottle: Sweet, buttery-foody floral. Wet: Pretty faint. The floral has gone soapy, the buttery scent is more pure butter. Not getting any incense or fruit. Dry: Powdery, soapy, slightly sweet butter. Very very weak in both throw and lasting power. The buttery smell is almost completely gone within 15 minutes, leaving a clean, dry soap scent.

In the bottle: Sweet, green, and resiny. Wet: CITRUS (verbena, but not the crazy lemon cleaning solution type) and resin. The sweetness is mellower and distinctly honey, now. More herbal, softer overall. Thyme! Dry: The verbena, which was very nice, has faded and the honey has amped. The herbs and resins remain. Strong, strong throw. Summary: Herbs and resin dipped in rich honey. I find it very soothing and comforting, and it reminds me of Gennivre (but stronger on the honey, and warmer) and the herbs are very reminiscent of Chiroptera. Really nice - I'd love my apt to smell like this - but I doubt it's something I'll wear much. I'll enjoy my imp, though.

In the bottle: Sweet fruit, spices, and chocolate. It smells like spiced christmas fruitcake dipped in chocolate. Wet: Less sweet, and much less fruity. Mainly spiced chocolate - both white and dark; the cardamom, sandalwood, clove, and fig are all coming out distinctly for me. Sadly I don't think clove works on my skin. It's too cloying. Still, this is probably something I'd love to EAT. Dry: Chocolate and sweet, cloying clove. Must wash off.

In the bottle: Pomegranate, spice, citrus, and light alcohol (vermouth/vodka). Wet: A little boozier; more citrus. Dry: A sugary note has emerged, but it's not cloying. Summary: Vermouth, vodka, and citrus over masculine musk. Herbal notes and a hint of pomegranate. Great lasting power. Need to retest to see if I want a bottle...I do love how refreshing and yet fruity and sexy it is.

In the bottle: Sharp, resiny-green, and sickly-sweet. Wet: Much nicer; less sweet, gentler. Dry, warm sandalwood and some soapy white florals. Dry: Sandalwood with soapy flowers and a hint of a sort of citrusy scent that I quite like, but never quite fully emerges. Too dry and sandalwood-y for my tastes.

In the bottle: Lily, mosses, myrtle. Slightly sweet. Delicately floral and feminine. Wet: The myrtle lends a distinct citrusy note that is very fresh and reminds me of lemon balm/melissa. The stargazer lily shines strongly. The mosses here lend a vague earthy, herbal note. There is also a strange dryness to this, though no dust. Dry: Slow-drying. Lemony myrtle and feminine lily reign. The dustiness does sort of take away from the freshness of the blend, giving it an appropriate ethereal, ghostly feel. Summary: Dusty, delicate, stargazer lily and citrusy myrtle. A touch dry for my tastes, but a lovely blend. Good throw, great lasting power.

In the bottle: Pink grapefruit. Wet: Still sweetly grapefruity, but something floral hiding. Dry: Mostly floral (a nice, classic, white sort of floral) with a hint of lingering fruity-sweetness. Summary: Sadly it doesn't hold all that well, and the citrus fades too much, but I still really like this. For some reason, white grapefruit smells like pink grapefruit and vice versa, with all the lab's grapefruit notes. This is oil is one I need to retest to see if it's bottle-worthy.

Crisp northern wind blowing over loganberry, wild roses, prairie crocus, iris versicolor Linné, mountain avens, yellow birch bark, mayflower and maple leaf. In the bottle: Light herbal-floral, hints of soapy cologne. Wet: More herbal, in a medicinal way...and I'm getting a whiff of urinal? Astrigent, despite the florals. I can smell the iris and wild roses, and other flowers that have that classic perfume 'white floral' note. I'm not getting any fruit or woods. This is a really weird blend. Dry: Slightly sweet and fruity, delicate mixed florals. No woods. The herbal scent is much lighter now; no longer astringent or urinalesque. Summary: Musky floral woods, a wee bit powdery - though it went through a more heavily powder stage.

(New version.) In the bottle: Green, fresh, herbal. Grassy-planty, almost sharply so. Wet: More floral, softer, but still very grassy-green and fresh. The floral is white, clean, and feminine. The oil is quite soft; not much throw. The grassy-green/fresh notes disappear within minutes. Dry: Floral-herby, slightly soap. Very mild. Summary: It's not bad, but it's not thrilling either.

Inspired by and created for my beloved Tedwin: my eternal, beautiful, wicked Dorian Gray. Refined, elegant, and lovely, with a noble bearing and seemingly gentle air. This blend is an artful deception: a sweet gilded blossom lying over a twisted and corrupted core. A Victorian fougere with three pale musks and dark, sugared vanilla tea. In the bottle: Sweet vanilla, citrus, tea and light spice. Wet: Sweeter, more vanilla-foody-tea, much lighter spice, citrus gone within seconds. Dry: Musk coming out quite noticeably, tea growing in strength. Still strong on the vanilla and light on the spice. Something very light and herbal, lavender I think. Summary: Musky vanilla tea with a hint of herbal spice. I like that it's a really natural, true vanilla scent that is not overpowering or sickly sweet. Good throw and wearlength. Much more pleasant than I expected, but I'm not into spice or 'foody' scents.

In the bottle: Slightly soapy fruit, flowers, and herbs. Wet: Similar. Less fruity, more herbal. It does have a berryish scent, but I wouldn't know it was blackberry. It's quite faint on me. The heather is delicious - very faintly sweet and herbal. Dry: The berry has come out a lot more, as has the heather - amazing! It's definitely blackberry now. It's quite fresh though, that soapy-cleanness. Also much stronger than it was wet. Summary: Fresh, sweet meadows of rose and heather in the early summer, with a hint of blackberry fruit to come. Quite nice, but not compelling enough for me to buy a bottle.

In the bottle: Very traditional, lily-based white floral classic perfume-y, with a strong clean, almost soapy scent. The florals hit HARD. Wet: More floral, but also soapier. Crazy strong throw! I amp all florals usually but especially lilies, it seems! No rose yet. I'm betting the ghostly mist is moonflower and/or tuberose as those go to instant soap on me. Dry: The rose is peeking through, but only the barest little bit. But so did some powder; this is weird, it's a bit less soapy, as if some of the soap turned to powder. Which makes me really think tuberose as that's exactly what it does on my skin. Summary: It doesn't last for that long, which is good because the lily-tuberose powdery soap thing was making me eye the faucet

In the bottle: Whoa, strong! Citrus-lavender with some other herbal notes. Wet: Citron, some licorice (?) or something anise-y. The jasmine is very faint. Lavender still quite strong. I'm smelling a hint of orange blossom. Unfortunately, this smells a bit like a cleaning solution I've smelled. Dry: Lavender-anise cleaning solution. Summary: I had to wash it off. Yech. I think this one would be much better suited on a man - it's not a very feminine scent at all, but it could work well with male skin chemistry, I suspect.

In the bottle: Lemony fresh - smells sort of like lemon verbena to me, but I'm guessing that's the citron. I can smell a bit of lime, and a faint hint of lilac and musk. Wet: Citron, lime, and musk, in that order. My skin has amped the musk as usual, but the lilac isn't any stronger, much to my dismay (I adore lilac). This is a slow-drying and potent oil. Dry: The lime is mostly gone, but the citron and musk are still strong, and the lilac has crept out a bit. Summary: I'm sad there wasn't more lilac, and the citron is just too overpowering for me. If it were a milder note, I'd like this much more.

In the bottle: Fresh, clean, and green. Slightly aquatic. Wet: More floral. Oooh I really like the florals in this - very delicate, light, and feminine. Perfumey in a traditional sort of way that's very nice. Dry: Strong floral with a hint of fruit and woods; the latter and the musks come out in full force as it dries down further. Summary: One of my favourites for sure. This is really feminine yet clean and sexy. Flowers, musk, woods.

In the bottle: Minty fruit, with lots of sharpness from the juniper. Does lotus usually seem really sweet and fruity? Wet: Very similar - maybe a bit fruitier. Still sharp. Dry: Juniper overwhelming, mint still going strong, but the sweetness that must come from the lotus is fading fast. Summary: This is too junipery for me, and the combo of sweet and sharp makes me feel ill.

In the bottle: Red wine and dark fruit (berries), but not too sweet or boozy. A little spicy. Wet: Spicier - definitely that opium, which adds gorgeous dark depth without being too incensey or overwhelming. Very berry-fruity, but still not sweet or cloying. Very faint florals - I wouldn't have guessed gardenia or lilac. Dry: Okay, I think a little cinnamon or some spice along those lines is coming out, and it seems to be taking over. And there's a hint of clean yummy lilac emerging. Summary: Spicy (definitely an edible spice, maybe clove on top of cinnamon) opium on the dry down with only faint hints of flowers and berries. Bizarre morphing! This doesn't really work for me, alas.

In the bottle: Fresh, aquatic, slightly citrusy floral. Wet: Tart grapefruit zest, clean rain, a faint hint of something piney-green, cologney ozone, fresh white flowers. Dry: Clean floral cologne. Less citrus, more ozone. Summary: Clean, masculine cologne tinged with ozone and classic white flowers. Goes a bit soapy at the end. Good throw, great lasting power.

The eldest of the Muses, she is Eloquence, and thus, governs heroic and epic poetry, and her eloquence has served to calm quarrels even amongst the surliest of Gods. She is crowned in gold, and holds a roll of parchment or stylus and tablet. Hers is the scent of creative inspiration, and it is a boon to writers, poets and arbitrators: lavender and bright mint with bergamot, verbena, thyme and a touch of sweet orange and warm almond. In the bottle: I can smell all the notes distinctly! But the astringent ones are definitely strongest. It's quite sharp and herbal. Wet: Crazy strong lavender, bergamot, and mint. The other notes are still there but much fainter. I'd call this a pretty masculine blend. Dry: Verbena is majorly in command. Summary: Thyme and verbena with a hint of mint and almond. Really interesting evolution, but this one is not for me.

In the bottle: Fresh; bright citrus and white flowers. Wet: A straight white, perfumey floral. A wee bit heady. Clean and feminine. Faintly, herbs, woods, and powder cast shadows. Dry: Definitely going more to powdery soap as it dries. Summary: White florals over mild powdery soap. Low throw, moderate lasting power.

In the bottle: Sharply herbal. Lavender, patchouli, benzoin, and woods. Wet: Still strong on the lavender and patchouli. I think this is the 'dirty' sort of patchouli, or else there is some sort of 'soil' scent which I don't like. No, I really don't like 'dirt' smells. Dry: The dirt note does fade, leaving a dusty lavender, amber, and patchouli blend. Not my thing, but I could see it working on the right male skin chemistry.