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Showing results for tags 'Lupercalia 2011'.
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Many legends surround St. Valentine, and history has yet to show, conclusively, which ones are true and which are fiction. One tale claims that Valentine was a 3rd century Christian priest. When Emperor Claudius II declared that his soldiers were never to marry - the emperor believed that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and children - Valentine continued to perform wedding ceremonies in secret. When the emperor learned of Valentine's disobedience, he imprisoned the priest. The emperor chose to interrogate the priest himself, and despite his fury at his orders being flagrantly disobeyed, he was impressed with the priest's intelligence, wisdom, and passion. He attempted to convert the priest to the Roman faith, and was furious when he failed. While incarcerated, Valentine fell in love with his jailor's blind daughter. Through God's grace and the power of Valentine's pure and true love for this woman, he was able to cure her blindness with a touch. Before he was beaten and beheaded, he sent her a letter expressing his feelings for her, signed 'From Your Valentine'. Ecclesiastical incense, Roman flora, and the fruits of martyrdom: cypress, olive blossom, frankincense, myrrh, and blood accord. Wow, looks like I'm the first one on this? I searched and couldn't find it so here goes! Wet in the bottle, I got worried. It has a sharp, astringent, green quality that reminds me strongly of Ides of March 2007. I almost liked Ides but it went on and stayed sharp and was itchy in the sinuses. NO! Please behave, Roman flora! Wet on skin -- what's this? Almost as soon as it hits my skin the smell warms. It must be the incense, I smell what is almost cinnamon but can't be cinnamon because BPAL's cinnamon note makes me welt and burn. HOORAY! This is getting really good, very round-smelling, savory is a good word for it. Like compelling in a way that sweet usually is, but yet not sweet. For a minute, there is what oddly smells like a flash of minty?? But only for a moment then it blends back in. Not unpleasant, just startling. On drydown: Total love. I took a huge chance with this one unsniffed, without reviews, based on the notes because I am a resin nut and an incense fiend. I am so so glad! The cypress doesn't get woody, it only grounds it some, the herbal aspect goes from sharp smelling to sort of 'fresh', and I just want to curl up and huff my wrist. I smell amazingly good, as rich as when I am wearing Gypsy Queen even but with a cleaner feel, not so bump-and-grind, more soothing. Oh lord. Now all I need is to hit the Lotto so I can get five more bottles of this stuff before Lupercalia comes down!
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WOMB FURIE In the middle of the flanks of women lies the womb, a female viscus, closely resembling an animal; for it is moved of itself hither and thither in the flanks, also upwards in a direct line to below the cartilage of the thorax and also obliquely to the right or to the left, either to the liver or spleen; and it likewise is subject to falling downwards, and, in a word, it is altogether erratic. It delights, also, in fragrant smells, and advances towards them; and it has an aversion to fetid smells, and flees from them; and on the whole the womb is like an animal within an animal. -- Aretaeus the Cappadocian Oh, that wily womb! Hippocrates and his followers considered the womb a mobile creature, causing mayhem as it writhed its way through a woman's body. Sometimes this ornery organ, due to lack of sexual activity, would create conflicts within a woman's system or would become blocked itself, causing anxiety, nervousness, water retention, and sleeplessness. With the assistance of doctors, nursemaids, hand tools, or, occasionally, self-manipulation, this vexing condition could be alleviated through hysterical paroxysms. Or, as we call it nowadays: orgasm. An itch that needs to be scratched: Snake Oil and three types of honey. To be honest, and snake oil have a less than great record. Straight up snake oil makes me deal with two hours of annoying spice before it gives me the soft vanilla, and none of the Snake pit were a success. This however, has PROMISE!!! The honey cuts out the harshness that the indonesian oils do when they're on my skin, and they're not taking over. I can still tell i'm wearing snake oil, but it's got some honey underneath. The honey and the vanilla also last for a long time, so i'm definetly not getting the disappearing act that I usually associate with snake oil blends. I highly recommend giving it a try!!
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A tribute to the opium den cum bawdyhouses of Shanghai in the 1930's. Golden amber, blonde tobacco, Sudanese black coconut, rich caramel, black currant, white opium and delphinium laced with a sensual blend of Asian spice. I'm reviewing VERY early, just so people can have a chance to make a decision on this while it's still possible to do something about it. In the bottle: sweet ”” the caramel is a much stronger primary note than I would have expected. There is also a faint hint of what I would think was a sweet orange blossom. On skin, wet: Oh goodness. Yeah, this IS the stuff. The sweetness dies off almost immediately, leaving a haze of amber layered over spice and a gentle tobacco (which to my nose ends up smelling like really good incense rather than tobacco.) There's something slightly astringent, but it's not unpleasant. Red Lantern is passing the first test, which is that I have my wrist glued to my nose while I inhale deeply (let me tell you, that makes it hard to type.) This is a hard scent to review honestly. It's difficult to verbalize why I love it so much, except to say, you know "it's pretty." What the hell: it's pretty! Update: 4 hours later, this has turned into a slightly sweet and very exotic incense. Gorgeous.
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Piss off, Saint Valentine! Lupercalia is an ancient Roman celebration, held on February 15th, that kicked in the advent of Spring with a very, very festive purification, fertility and sexuality ritual. The ritual began near the cave of Lupercal on the Palatine, an area sacred to Faunus, as well as Ruminia, Romulus and Remus. During Lupercalia, Vestal Virgins first made offerings of sacred cakes to the fig tree under which the she-wolf suckled the Sacred Twins. A dog and two goats were then offered in sacrifice to Faunus. The blood of the sacrifice was smeared onto two naked patrician youths, who were assisted by the Virgins, and the blood was wiped clean with sacred wool dipped in milk. The youths donned the skins of the sacrificial goats, wielding whips made from the goat skins, and then led the priests and the Virgins around the pomarium, and around the base hills of Rome. This was a ceremony of great happiness and merriment, and was of particular interest to young women: being touched by the goat-whips young men that led the procession ensured their fertility in the coming year. It is believed that, after the initial rite, male participants would draw the name of an available maiden, with whom he spent the rest of the night. This scent is for the Luperci, the Chosen of Faunus, the Brothers of the Wolf: raw, down and dirty patchouli, Gurjam balsam, and essence of Sampson Root sweetened with the heightened sexuality of beeswax, virile juniper, oakmoss, ambrette seed over honey and East African musk. ... am I really the first? Oh dear! Stage fright. In the bottle: Patchouli, smacking me in the nose! Beeswax, moss, earthy, dirty, powerful. The husband likes this. Wet on skin: Patchouli and juniper, with a honey-sweet undertone, but the sharp woody note is on top. Dry on skin: Patchouli and a heavy, sweet musk. Juniper's still there, but the musk is overpowering it. Over time: Woody and sweet and musky. This is a heavy, woody, honey-sweet scent; patchouli likes me, as usual, and is sticking around as the strongest note. The juniper has receded almost entirely, leaving me with only a quiet sharpness in the woody scent to remind me of its presence. Overall: I expected to like this, and I'm not disappointed. It's a very earthy, sexy kind of scent, not a pretty or delicate scent; this is precisely what I wanted and expected out of it. Elf still likes it, too. Bonus. I used to wear patchouli straight, but I like this more; it's more complex and appealing. 4.5/5 - not hoarding like I do with Geek, but I'm glad I got a bottle, so it will last me a nice long time.
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She Who Blesses Brides White rose, apple blossom, spun sugar, mango, cucumber, freesia, coconut, and lavender. If you are a fan of the Tikis, odds are good you'll enjoy Nymphia. It started off very coconut-heavy (sweet, fruity drink coconut). Mango was instantly noticeable, as well. As it dries, the other notes start to poke out. The coconut and the mango are still prominent, but they relax into a creamy-sweet, less potent form. The rose isn't obvious, but serves as a base note, with the apple blossom peeking out every once in a while. The spun sugar gives it a general sort of sweetness, rather than CANDY. Overall, on me, this is like Katrina Von Tassel took a tropical vacation. Sweet without being candy-like, fruity and creamy florals.
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Antiqued amber, frankincense, patchouli, hay, oakmoss, skin musk, and white mint. In the bottle, I'm getting amber, skin musk, and hay. On my skin, primarily skin musk and hay. Huh. It's actually so realistic that it's triggering my hay fever. The rest is kind of dusty, and very evocative of a barn (in a good way). Not quite my thing.
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What a great freakin' word. BPAL LOVES TEH SMUT! Three swarthy, smutty musks sweetened with sugar and woozy with dark booze notes. BPAL loves teh smut! I know Beth warned us about this one, that it'd smell a bit aggressive in the bottle but is positively wonderful once on. I haven't smelt Sed Non Satiata yet, which is the scent Beth said this is a lot like, so I have no basis for comparison there. Sorry, guys? In the bottle, yes, it's definitely aggressive. It almost smells like Robitussin cough syrup - that same boozy, quasi-fruity medicinal quality. It has the potential to be sexy, though, I can definitely see/smell that. Smut immediately sweetens when it hits my skin. It's pretty much musky sugar sweetness after a few drinks, precisely what the description says. There's no more medicinal smell to be had, but it's definitely warmer - do I smell vanilla? Very sophisticated and womanly, almost reminiscent of Jean-Paul Gaultier, only without the headache J-P gives me. A seductive, sophisticated, heady, little-black-dress-and-stilettos, 'take me now' scent. I love teh smut. If you haven't already, GET SOME. 9/10. P.S. Throw is amazingly good.
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Love always finds shelter in the gentle heart. Dolce Stil Nuovo is a 13th & 14th century Florentine literary style that celebrates love and womanhood through heartfelt, delicate, and melodious sonnets, ballate, and canzones. This is fin'amor, Courtly Love, in its most moving form, and the emotions that these words express reflect love that both spiritual and idealized. Within this literary movement, earthly love reaches for the Divine. Who is she coming, whom all gaze upon, Who makes the air tremulous with light, And at whose side is Love himself? that none Dare speak, but each man's sighs are infinite. Ah me! how she looks round from left to right, Let Love discourse: I may not speak thereon. Lady she seems of such high benison As makes all others graceless in men's sight. The honor which is hers cannot be said; To whom are subject all things virtuous, While all things beauteous own her deity. Ne'er was the mind of man so nobly led Nor yet was such redemption granted us That we should ever know her perfectly. Our interpretation of Dolce Stil Nuovo is a blend of rose otto, carnation, vanilla flower, lavender and jasmine with the clarity of crystalline white musk and the warmth of golden amber. In the bottle: A very clean floral. On my wrist, wet: Sweet and floral with an almost candy-like muskiness. After 20 minutes: Creamy, subtle floral with the amber providing a little warm powderiness. This doesn't smell like flowers as much as it smells like the ghosts of flowers. After 40 minutes: Dolce Stil Nuovo is primarily a subdued floral, but there is also a warm creaminess to the blend that adds an entirely different dimension to it in all stages of drydown. The choice of muted floral components is complimented by the subtle musk and amber notes. This is a blend that suits a woman who is feminine, understated and confident. Lovely!
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The fabled Khajuraho temples of India are shrines of love in all its myriad forms. They are a celebration of love itself -- transcendental, spiritual and erotic. This is a rejection of sorrow, spiritual ennui and despair. The sexual motifs that adorn the temples, and the temples themselves, are monuments to ecstasy and to passion, and through that, they are also monuments to spiritual fulfillment. It is believed that the realization of moksha by dedicating oneself to adhyatma and dharma can be attained only by first experiencing sexual satisfaction. In the midst of the drudgery and struggle that we sometimes endure during the course of our Earthly lives, it is vitally important that we remember the joy found in kama, and that in kama we can achieve transformation of the body and soul. This is a blissful, euphoric blend based on an ancient Indian love potion: honey, date palm, tuberose, davana blossom, amber, white sandalwood, vanilla bean, Damask rose, and champaca flower. I'm the first to review this one! Before we begin, I would like to note that on the forum, it's spelled "Khajuraho" but it says "Khajurajo" on my bottle. In the bottle it smells very woodsy--more sandalwood than anything else. Same goes for initial application, but then the rose starts to come out. Something about it smells a little bit tropical to me--it may be the tuberose (which does funny things on me) but I don't know what some of the other notes even smell like. As it starts to dry, the sandalwood fades to a more comfortable "throw" and the earthy sweetness of honey comes out. This blend is very complex. I'm going to keep testing it but so far I like it!
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Deceptive One Black fig, green tea, opoponax, ciste absolute, myrrh, carnation, nutmeg, and Brazilian vetiver. Apatouros is definitely not what I expected! I'm getting mostly green tea (kind of warm and vegetal, not light or clean) and fig (thick, chewy, dry) with a bit of dusty nutmeg. So it's a green and fruity scent (but neither fresh nor sweet) with spice. Rather an odd combination. The darker resins and vetiver are, surprisingly, almost entirely absent (maybe a bit of myrrh peeks through). Not a sign of carnation either, as far as I can tell. It doesn't seem to change very much between the bottle and my skin. Well, it's not really what I was hoping for (a smoky carnation resinfest), but I like the black fig note. I can't see myself wearing it often enough to warrant the bottle, but I'll hold on to it for awhile to see.
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Cream, clove, ginger, and honey. Oh young pine saplings, you smell so spicily sweet in the bottle. And actually a lot like Mother ginger in my opinion. On my skin however, you do show the deeper, warm, gingery spiciness (as opposed to the fresh zingy note in MG). I get the cream in there too way at the bottom, as is usual for me. For whatever reason this one did not last too long on me, except if I sniff with my wrist right up to my nose.. Which actually I dont mind because really strong spicy scents that are very persistent just remind me of old ladies perfume. Overall, I think this is a very nice scent, that is a bit more wearable than mother ginger or gingerbread poppet. As I said to a friend, all these shungas smell really nice to me! and there was only 2 that I wasnt totally in love with... but they are both still worthy of getting a bottle.
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SPANKED REVISITED Whip leather, cardamom, patchouli, and bourbon. I tested Spanked Revisited at Will Call last weekend with much apprehension. Leather? However, if there is leather in this scent, I couldn't find it. To me, Spanked in the vial smells like a warm cinnamon deepened by a trickle of patchouli, and it stayed consistent through all stages on my skin. It was pretty, but too simple to keep me wanting more. In fact, it could almost be a single note of cinnamon, even though that note wasn't even listed (points finger at cardamom). If I had been excited for the leather note, I would be disappointed, however fans of spicy, foody scents might like this.
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Dark musk, linen, and red chypre. Origin: 5mL from the Lab. Preconceived notions: I immediately had to order a bottle of Male Nude even though I'm not entirely sure exactly what it's going to smell like. I'm finding that I really enjoy dark musk and I generally like the Lab's linen note. The questionable factor here is going to be the "red chypre," which I'm not quite sure about. Chypre-based scents can go wrong on me because of the floral and citrus, although I love moss and musks. First sniff: Very chypre..y? I know, that's not a word, but I'm making it one. I get a very cologne-type vibe from this that I associate with chypre-based scents. It reminds me a bit of Dracul in that it has the same sort of oddly musky, mossy, citrusy, powdery thing going on. Wet on skin: Basically the same as in the bottle. It's hard for me to describe exactly what Male Nude smells like, except to say that it's (all at the same time) mossy, powdery musky, dry and papery. It reminds me a little bit of The Wild Men of Jezirat Al Tennyn and a bit of Dracul. Unfortunately, neither one really works all that well on me and both ended up finding new homes when I owned them. Dry down: Still smells like the lovechild of Wild Men and Dracul on me. I wouldn't call this chypre "red," personally, but that's probably because I have strong color/scent associations in my head that don't necessarily reflect the actual notes (which I'm unsure of in this case). To me, if Male Nude had a color, it would be a lichen-like grey-green with hints of brown. Totally unhelpful, I'm sure, but I feel like I need to say what color it smells like since I don't think it smells red. Basically, Male Nude smells like...well, a chypre blend. It's mossy and musky with an almost mint-like smell to it underneath (like Dracul does to my nose). The bottom line: This is just too cologne-like for me. I'm learning that chypre scents are misses more often than hits for me, but it doesn't stop me from trying them. This one's moving on to a new home with someone who loves it.
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She Who Expels Sinful Lusts A complex Eastern musk with orange blossom, peppermint, lime peel, spikenard, petitgrain, and white cedar. Wet: ooh wow. Strong spicy eastern musk with a multitude of ingredients that heighten my senses. The eastern musk is beautiful, sweet, spicy, slightly watery, and a little mournful. How romantic! The additions, oddly enough, stand apart on my skin instead of blending and amplifying the musk. I can smell the peppermint, orange blossom, lime rind, and petitgrain.. (aka: zzzing!! I'm awake!) Very green, with watery spicy notes from the musk. Drydown: ok everything is settling and melding with the musk finally. I think the wet phase caused me to experience a new level of clarity and awareness...Thanks bpal! wheeee! The petitgrain and spikenard stick around, adding brown and orange color impressions, and the eastern musk is pretty damn gorgeous with some lasting power. the orange blossom went slightly powdery, but that's fine and expected. Strange.. each time I sniff my wrist, I feel refreshed and release a nice sigh.
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She Who Strikes From a Distance Red patchouli, myrrh, lemongrass, gurjum balsam, lemongrass, lavender, and honey. In the bottle, this is patchouli and myrrh to me, maybe a bit of the sharpness of the lavender. On my skin, definitely patchouli and myrrh amping, as they tend to do on me. Very dark, very militaristic. The lavender's mellowing it out, but not killing it like it usually does on my skin. Very interesting.
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Milk chocolate, cassia, and bacon. OOOOO! I guess I was one of the few brave enough to give this one a try! In the bottle: mostly I get the cassia with smokey goodness. On me wet: at first it mostly cassia with the smokey bacon in the background. Dry: Finally getting the chocolate now that the cassia has died down. Overall I really like this one! However people with sensitive skin shouldn't use this on delicate areas. I used the back of my hand and the cassia burned my skin a little.
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Wild plum, lemongrass, frankincense, honeysuckle, and teak. I find this one a resiny, mildly fruity, tart, floral blend. I get soft, but very present, frankincense, lemongrass (I don't find it quite as sharp as it usually is), plum, and soft honeysuckle. ETA: After a short while the plum really amps up and it started to remind me of Dionysia.
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Bergamot, clove, hazelnut, pecan, lavender, tonka, and thyme. Oddly enough, this smelled very creamy to me out of the bottle. Maybe a mixture of the tonka, hazelnut, and pecan? Wet on my skin there is a slight freshness from the bergamot and herbs, but this is still waaay creamy goodness. Which is actually a big change for me as most creamy, milky scents only stay very close to my skin and can only be appreciated hours later. Either way, I'm really liking this! Dry, this is still mainly a creamy smell on me with kind of a provincal feel. Like a nice milk tea, but not really too herbal.. just creamy with a little bit of the herbs. I dont notice the nuts individually at any point while wearing this, it is a very well balanced perfume on me.
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OLISBOS As for old flames and lovers-they're none left. And since Milesians went against us, I've not seen a decent eight-fingered dildo. Yes, it's just leather, but it helps us out. The ancient Greeks sure weren't shy about taking care of business. The port city of Miletus was once famed throughout the Mediterranean as a source of excellent stone, wood, and padded leather dildos. This scent is the celebration of an age-old pastime: polished wood, well-loved leather, and olive oil. Old leather (!!!!!), aka Dead Man's Hand style leather, some sort of delicious fruity-tart-citrusy note, and a deep wood note - oak, or mahogany, or maybe a sandalwood, or a mixture? Definitely smells polished. But instead of olive oil, I'm getting some sort of delicious fruit. Not that I'm complaining! Ohhhhh myyy godddddd I missed you so, old delicious worn leather. *rolls around like a cat with catnip* Still that delicious citrusy note, though it's somewhat smothered by the leather which is first and foremost - I think it's got to be sweet orange. Yes. This is like Dead Man's Hand layered over Gaiman's Orange with an extra jolt of fresh squeezed OJ. Which may sound strange but it is DELICIOUS. The wood is much lighter on my skin, and sort of musky, so I'm guessing it's either sandalwood or oak, as those are the nicest, sexiest woods on my skin. Still no olive oil, unless it's super fruity oiive oil! Not much morphing here - maybe a little fading of the OJ, but otherwise not much. This has fantastic throw (much like Dead Man's Hand) and I'm really surprised by how faint (and thus unidentifiable) the wood is. I'm leaning towards white sandalwood because it's so light and because this has a musky sort of feel to me, as white sandalwood often does. I completely took a random chance on this bottle and it was a brilliant risk. I am huffing my arm here! Yeah, this is really not a morpher. After a couple hours it's Dead Man's Hand with hints of orange juice and musky sandalwood. All which I adore so it's pretty much a slightly feminized, even more delicious DMH. I am over the moon! Great throw, but it does fade fairly quickly. I have now tried 6 Lupers, and all but one have been fabulous.
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Female Nude, Three-Quarter Length, Beside Her Left an Apple Tree
AnArtfuldodger posted a topic in Lupercalia
Mahogany, rosewood, and red apple. I was super excited for this blend! Apple + wood?! YES PLEASE! Wet on wrist: I get the faintest hint of apple, and a sort of floral-y sweet overtone. On the drydown: The wood is slowly coming out to play, but the apple and floral hints still are predominant. The apple is coming to the front, but it's a very light sweet apple, not crunchy, not mulled/mushy, just....a plain little apple. With a little hint of a floral and wood. Throw: low I think I might need to let this sit some more, and maybe age. Right now, it's just very faint on my skin, but I want this to work and become a little heftier so badly, so I'm going to give it another try in a few days (it's been sitting for a day now, but maybe that wasn't enough). Edit on 2/7/11: I tried this blend again today, and it's still basically just a light sweet apple blend on me. Very Valentine-y and light and sweet. -
Darjeeling tea, lemon verbena, star anise, and honeycomb. Wet on wrist: This is so true to the description, it's uncanny. Lemon verbena, tea, and the honeycomb are all mingling so perfectly, it really is like sniffing a steaming cup of tea with some lemon verbena fresh from the garden. On the drydown: It stays true! So far, I'm not morphing into anything else. It really is straight up tea-lemon-honey on me. I get the ever so slight whiff of the star anise as well, which is a really nice compliment to the tea-lemon verbena-honey. I'm going to need, like, 2 more bottles STAT. My husband says it's sort of chemical-y, but I attribute that to the lemon scent, which *could* smell sort of like lemon dusting spray...but my husband has a notoriously bad sense of scent as far as BPAL is concerned, so I still give this an A++ in my book.
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Foam Born Orris root, iris, white honey, white sandalwood, coconut, and cherry blossom. Aphrogenes is nice. It starts off smelling of iris and coconut, similar to Black Pearl from the Bewitching Brews category, only without the hazelnut or musk. There is an airy cherry blossom note floating behind the iris and coconut. The florals are not sharp. The honey note is light and closely tied to the floral notes, unlike other honey scents where the honey smells golden and viscous (e.g. Door or Valse Finale et Apothéose). I was worried that the white sandalwood note would take over and smell unpleasantly dry, but it is not a note that stands out. The white sandalwood tempers the coconut, keeping the coconut from smelling tropical or gourmand. This perfume makes me think of pale silk, or a very expensive face cream. It is light and soft. The perfume lasted on my skin through most of my workday. After about nine hours I can smell coconut, sandalwood, and a faint trace of honey lingering on my wrist. The iris and cherry blossom went away within the first few hours.
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She Who Furnishes Pregnancy Peru balsam, vanilla bean, Rainier cherry, bitter almond, golden honey, rose water, lemon peel, sugar cane, and benzoin. While Kypris is wet I can smell cherry, almond, and a bit of lemon. It dries down to a pleasant, soft skin scent. It's nice.
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TIME DOES NOT BRING RELIEF Time does not bring relief; you all have lied Who told me time would ease me of my pain! I miss him in the weeping of the rain; I want him at the shrinking of the tide; The old snows melt from every mountain-side, And last year's leaves are smoke in every lane; But last year's bitter loving must remain Heaped on my heart, and my old thoughts abide. There are a hundred places where I fear To go - so with his memory they brim. And entering with relief some quiet place Where never fell his foot or shone his face I say, 'There is no memory of him here!' And so stand stricken, so remembering him. (Edna St Vincent Millay) Remembrance: Parma violet and leather accord with beeswax, Egyptian musk, orange blossom, white tea, lavender, myrrh, and copal. I find this one a very complex scent. It starts out as fresh white tea, Parma violets, lavender, orange blossom (which keeps threatening to amp but thankfully stays soft) with a backdrop of Egyptian Musk and beeswax. The other notes are also there, but remain well-blended and don't stick out on me but give it more complexity. I was hoping for more leather but I'm hardly getting any. Once dry, the Egyptian Musk starts amping, and the violets turn slightly powdery and vanillaic (similar to violet pastilles), the tea gets a little sharp (this usually happens with tea-blends on my skin),I get a bit more lavender and orange blossom and now I get hint of leather but it's still very soft.
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She Who Conceals Love-Affairs Black narcissus, purple orchid, neroli, white sandalwood, ambergris, plum musk, jonquil, thyme, oakmoss, and grapefruit. I can't believe I'm the first to review this! In the bottle: sort of clean but fruity. I'm getting mainly plum and grapefruit with maybe some jonquil. First on: Not very strong. Very clean and sort of cold. I think I'm picking up oakmoss. Much less fruity, with the narcissus, orchid, and sandalwood starting to peek out. It's sort of a haughty floral. Definitely on the sophisticated side of things. Very well blended, and nothing really stands out and screams "I'm X note, look at me!" when I wear it. I was worried about the thyme, but I'm not picking up it at all. The ambergris is also very low key on me, although it does come to play more once it's fully dry. Dry I'd say it reminds me a tiny bit of Lamia, which could be the orchid Overall verdict: I really like this one. It's a somewhat muted floral that smells both clean and dark at the same time.
