Randegg In The Snow With Ravens

[Seajewel]

Frosted Oman frankincense, russet brick, lemon amber, cedarwood, Moroccan almond, and gnarled, snow-laden oak. 

[doomsday_disco]

This goes on a little weird -- it's like the pith from the lemon peel is the strongest note out of the gate, followed by some almond and some snowy oak. The lemon pith note is quickly smoothed over by the almond, which is a nutty almond that doesn't have cherry almond associations to my nose. The lemon amber ends up being the dominant note after the almond calms down, along with some bright, ozone-y snow and oak. I'm not getting a ton of frankincense or cedarwood from this, although perhaps they will emerge with more time to settle. I only get something stony and brick-like when I put my nose right up against my arm and really go looking for it. Otherwise, it's mostly lemony amber sweetened by a bit of almond on a bed of snowy oak.

 

I had to get this one because my boyfriend and I traveled around Germany trying to see as many Otto Dix paintings as possible when we lived there. I wasn't sure about this scent in the bottle, but don't let the bottle sniff scare you away, because it is much nicer on the skin! But my boyfriend, who loves almond scents, already declared this a winner from the bottle sniff and didn't think it was bitter at all, so it was destined to be a keeper.

[Little Bird]

I can't pick out most of the notes listed for this, except for the amber, which goes very powdery and kind of chalky smelling on my skin.  There's a brief whiff of lemon at first and something sweet in the drydown.  Powdery and dry with what smells like a hint of vanilla.

[VetchVesper]

Powdery from the frankincense and amber.  The almond has a rich, almost fruity tone, that mixes with the lemon.  Almond pastries come to mind, dusted with powdered sugar.  It's not really foody though and becomes even less so a few seconds after application.  I'm starting to get a lot more frankincense and some oak, and I'm starting to dig this a lot more. No longer getting an obvious lemon or almond, though I think the almond is still adding depth to the scent.  I didn't really like this when it first arrived in the mail; the notes just didn't seem to work together.  I think having a week to sit has much improved things.  Lustrous, almost buttery, resins and oak with an edge of dustiness.  I think I smelled the snow note when the bottle first arrived, but I'm not getting it now. I'm going to hang on to this and see how it ages. My nose is intrigued.    

[Casablanca]

On the wand, I first notice the reddish brick and amber notes... and then a rush of lemon, cedar, almond, and frankincense. There's a faint, ghostly outline of frost, barely noticeable. This sounds like an odd mix... but the notes make more sense together now, after some time to rest, than they did for the first sampling.

 

On my skin, this starts as a lemony almond-amber. And it's a bit hollow, as though I somehow smell the absence of some notes. 

 

After a few minutes, the blend begins to fill out with some reddish cedar and frankincense, which add a meditative mood.

 

This dries into a complex incense on me --- one freighted by a heavy brick redness, cedar, and sweetening almond, with glimmers of lemon and snow.

[scentedbythesun]

This is a really beautiful perfume. At the beginning I smell the frosty snow and almond paste/amaretto, and the middle stage is like a very grown up cherry and lemon icey/slushie drink. I can also smell the bricks somewhere between those stages. At then end it dries to a pretty scent that I keep craving, I think it is the Oman incense. It's a very unique perfume.

[murqmaid]

on application i swear this smelled green at first, but then i get a hit of lemon followed by almond, the almond disappearing quickly. (i wonder if that green note is what DD described as bitter?) 

 

the oak and fruity lemon are the "high and low" notes on the bounds, while the frank sorta blends and fills in the middle. this dries down into a soft frankincense, a bit powdery and perfumey, with a pop of fruitness and oak. wish i could pick out that russet brick note, it's why I got the decant, but i dont think its pronouncd enough for me to have that Aha moment. i like this more during the dry down. not bad, but not a favorite. 

[zankoku_zen]

Peppery snow, frankincense, amber. Medium throw and wear length.