Category: Excolo
Oh, Bastet, lithe, supple, fierce goddess, I love you.
She is the pungeant, unashamed sweetness of myrrh, sweetened further by almond, warmed by amber, peppered with spice. She is warm and beautiful and wraps herself around you all day. Comparing her to, say, Anubis, which was beautiful in his own right for the mournful, solemn air he had, she is full of sunlight and life, evoking something that is languid but far from thick or sluggish. While he is down deep in the cool semi-darkness of stone preparing the dead, she is out in the sunlight, basking in life.
I really love this scent, can you tell? It's very warm, sweet, sexy and delicious. Purrrr.
She was like a breath of fresh air...for a long time I'd felt like I was seriously in a jaded slump and unable to like *anything*. I love the way the myrrh mixes with the almond. Makes me wonder what other Egyptian-themed blends will be like, as Anubis and Bastet have been the most evocative and interesting that I've experienced, by far.
Category: Rappacini's Garden
Several people have described this as 'flowery bubblegum', and I concur! It's very, very sweet -- and pretty, in its own way. I pretty much get just damp, juicy lotus, and that's it. Maybe a powdery hint of myrrh as it starts to dry, but it's mostly a floral, on me.
Forum-only scent
I get lots of fresh, green apple from this, with just a hint of carnation. It's pretty, but just a wee bit too fruity for my taste. It faded pretty quickly.
Category: Picnic In Arkham
At the very beginning, as I first drew breath to sniff it fresh from the imp, I could detect a faintly-sweet, fruity note.
And then...the cedarwood came.
The cedar completely dominates this one for me; I cannot smell anything else. And, oddly enough, the sweetly-earthy note that usually defines cedar for me takes on a sharp, high pitch early on in this blend; it reminds me more of pine trees.
So, nope...this one just didn't work.
(Just between you and me...I found myself thinking, 'This is what Azathoth uses to spray the bathroom with after he uses it'. It's *that* pine-like.)
Category: Discontinued Scents
Initially, there was a very strong lemon smell. Then the thyme and verbena and lavender insinuated themselves into the yellow haze of scent, giving it a peppery kick now and then. Mint and bergamot were faint, but there; they sort of phased in and out throughout the day. Overall, though...it was just...too...lemony! I really wanted to like this, but it just didn't work out completely.
Category: Excolo
This is lovely.
The juniper adds a very nice, grounding effect for the other woods, because for some reason sandalwood seems to do odd things on me that are not always pleasant. Together, the woods form a nice base, and there is a bit of spiciness from the juniper, I think, that creeps up every now and then, as well as bergamot. The florals lurk in the background; I can detect just a hint of lilac, just enough to make it especially sweet and pretty.
A very pleasant, romantic scent, in my opinion.
Category: Limited Editions -- Samhain 2008
There are definitely dry, dead leaves here, but they are accompanied by sweet, warm apple cider and poppies. It's a very nice autumn scent -- right smack in between the earthiness of Chant D' Autumne and the warm deliciousness of Fearful Pleasure. Unfortunately, it didn't last very long on me, which is why I'll just content myself with an imp.
Category: Limited Editions -- Halloween 2008
Admittedly, this is less-than-pleasant upon first application; you get all of the beery, boozy qualities of it, that stale, sour leftover-whiskey smell that lingers on your breath the morning after. Not nice.
However! It calms down and behaves itself really quickly. It is like a burly, scruffy man with booze on his breath, who completely surprises you by reciting a lovely poem from memory. The harsh booziness goes away, and you are left with a sweet, malty sort of aroma, like you're leaning over a freshly-drained cask of whiskey and inhaling that slightly-toasted, caramely smell that's still soaked into the wood. Once it's morphed to that stage, it stays there. I really liked this one.
If it weren't for the unpleasantness at the beginning, I would spring for a full-priced bottle. (If I had unlimted funds, I still would.) I managed to wrangle a partial bottle, and I certainly wouldn't mind buying up other people's unloved imps and adding them to it from time to time. It's inspiring borderline hoarding behavior.
Category: Bewitching Brews
Vanilla baby-powder -- that's pretty much what I get from this. And...I suppose that's what an opal *would* smell like, if it had an odor (though I get a lot more of the white, fiery opal vibe from this).
It has a decent amount of tenacity and throw -- I'd rate it a 3 out of 5, on that scale. More of a feminine, demure scent.
I'll probably hang on to my imp of this, just because it's something I'd like to share with my mom somehow, at some point.
Category -- Rappacini's Garden
In the first stages, this scent is dominated by a dark, lust, full-petaled rose, with the musk and amber lending a peppery sort of undertone to it. As it dries, the other notes come forward, so that by the end of the day a delicious warm aura of musk and amber is left on my skin. A very sexy, seductive scent that hugs the skin and just gives faint wisps of sultry lust throughout the day.
Category: Limited Editions -- The Salon -- April Fools
This...smells so familiar. And delicious. I think...I think it might be reminding me of that one magical time when I was wearing Fearful Pleasure, and it had that woody sarsparilla smell with just a hint of vanilla beans and other stuff...so hey, if cigars, coffee, and Irish creme is what makes it smell like that, FINE! There is definitely a smooth, woody tone pervading the sweetness throughout. As one reviewer noted, it does smell more like the mess left in the room afterward, as opposed to the actual doggy poker party itself...but that's fine by me. I think I need a bottle now.
Category: Wanderlust
This delicious, albeit powdery, vanilla. I just wish that it was stronger and more durable, because while it's around it smells so very nice.
Category: Limited Edition -- Yule 2007
Oh. My. God. Wonderful warm BEESWAX mixed with amber, and I think I'm even smelling the olive oil a bit...a warm, smoky sort of smell. Must...have...more!!
Category: Rappacini's Garden
This one is definitely very 'green', earthy, and has a medicinal snap to it, though it's not overwhelming or obnoxious. More or less, it feels like standing knee-deep in a clump of thin, tiny green vines -- you can smell the tartness of the plants themselves, with a hint of the earth beneath it all, and a tantalizing sweetness throughout, as if from hidden blooms amid all the twining tangle. It's really nice. I'm still not decided as to whether I need a bottle of it, but, for the time being at least, it's a fond favorite. And the green color of the oil itself is pretty cool.
Category: Ars Draconis
Upon first application, it's a very woody scent, with a vague hint of spiciness, and a delightful resinous edge. However, it wears off really quickly, leaving just a very faint blend of sweetness and sandalwood behind. Not a keeper for me.
Category: Limited Editions -- Samhain 2008
This didn't strike me as a 'rosey' scent when I initially tested it, but now that I am re-sniffing it to jog my memory as I write this, I can smell the rose. It's definitely a very sweet floral scent...any incense is just peripheral, but I can detect the undercurrent of cocoa lurking at the very, very bottom of it all.
I think I'd agree with another reviewer above, and say that this is a smokier, foodier version of Mictecacihuatl. I don't think one needs to be afraid of the rose note...so if you like a hint of cocoa in your perfume, I think you could safely give this a shot.
I'm almost regretting not having gotten a bottle...
Category -- Bewitching Brews
It's definitely a PINE scent -- but that's not to imply that it's offensive. Rather, it's a very green, fresh, 'pure' sort of pine -- the sort you'd get straight from the tree, rather than seeming like a cleaning product. Underneath is a faintly sweet, almost creamy sort of aroma -- the ambergris, perhaps, and/or the juniper.
Soon after application, I can also detect a cedary scent -- that must be the cypress. After a long moment of piney goodness, it turns into a more subdued, generally-woody scent.
It's really lovely, and perfect for wintertime, of course -- and though I don't need a bottle, I will definitely keep the imp for a day in summer when I am longing for some Christmas in July.
Unfortunately, Karl immediately said 'You smell like a car freshener!', so a bottle is definitely not in my future. But *I* like it!!!
Of all the anniversary Phoenixes, this one was my favorite. There is a strong, sort of astringent note right at the beginning, almost like the sharp tang of *very* fresh barkmulch. Thankfully, this lasts but a moment, and soon there is just a lush blooming of green plantlife. 'Earthy' is an easy word to apply here, but it's very apt; they are just deep, green-brown, earthy notes. I get cypress, maybe some tobacco leaf, and just a teensy hint of cherry lurking underneath there. It lasts all day and as just enough throw to keep constantly reminding me of how lovely it is. Very nice!
Category: Discontinued Scents
I pretty much get patchouli from this, with a bit of lavender around the edges. Unfortunately, it didn't get any more complex than that on me. Will pass it on to someone else who can appreciate it more.
I do like that patchouli. This is saying something, since I'm used to suffering exposure to it via people who seem to bathe in that instead of hot water and soap. Usually, it tends to crawl up into my sinuses, summon little knife-wielding dervishes, and then dance back and forth up and down my nose. Normally, only pollen does that.
There are other incense-like scents in the GC that work better on me than this did, so I'm not too sad about it.
There's a lot of white chocolate here, and after a few moments the violet peeks out. It's really lovely at first, but wears off all too quickly. Ah well.
Category: Bewitching Brews
Oh, wow! It took me a while to figure out just *what* this smelled like, but once I did I was in love. It smells *exactly* like those little round pieces of charcoal that you buy in rolls of six, wrapped up in white paper like Ho-Hos. (LOL) One can practically hear the gunpowdery crackle of it as it lights and gets red-hot. It's just the charcoal -- right before you drop the incense in. Absolutely fantastic
Category: Diabolus
While this shares the same note (red patchouli) as Malediction, it's sweetened considerably by the myrrh, making this a scent that's earthy in a sensual way.
Category: Ars Amatoria
At first, it gives off a very floral hue...sweet, but not overly sweet like jasmine. The other flowers seem to be tempering it. As time passes, the spiciness comes out more. It has modest throw and decent longevity. I think I'll continue to enjoy my imp.
Category: Limited Editions -- Halloween 2008 -- Sleepy Hollow
I got a variety of scents from this one over the time that I tested it...the first day, it was straight-on, overpowering apple juice, with a rather unpleasant...biological sort of edge to it. (Read: pee. Eeek.) On subsequent days, however, it played very nice. One day, I could swear that all I smelled was sarsparilla...like a smooth, creamy, home-brewed root beer with a hint of vanilla and just the barest wisp of smoke. I have NO idea what was going on, that day, but I liked it -- and if it had done that repeatedly, I'd definitely be wanting a bottle of it. Overall, however, it settles into spiced apple cider. It's a scent that's both sweet and warm and very evocative of Autumn. If you love apple scents, definitely grab some of this. It's really good, but for a foodie scent, I believe that Huesos works better for me.
