Category: Bewitching Brews
Slightly-sour champagne, with candy-like strawberry. It's not bad, but it never really steps up and asserts itself much, and drifts away.
It's got a very 'cologney' type vibe to it...not that that's a bad thing, at all. It starts off on the masculine end of the spectrum, maintaining a very deep, earthy atmosphere, but you can smell the sweeter notes lying underneath, and as time passes, those come up and give it a nice, more feminine elegance. So, I would agree with another reviewer who called it a unisex scent. I think if it would have projected more, I would have really been aching for a bottle of this; it's nice, but doesn't quite cut it for me.
Fresh on, it's very strong and strident with an air of cinnamon to it, as well as sweet florals. Like a spark, it flares up, and then settles down to the grim business of burning. It smolders all day long, and hugs my skin like the ember-flames of a fire licking at wood.
It was really pretty, so I think I will hang onto the imp for a little while, at least.
Category: Ars Moriendi
It starts out sweet, feminine, and just barely resinous -- very sexy. By the end of the day, the patchouli has come to the fore, and is all that remains. I'm thinking that in the beginning I was detecting the myrrh and possibly the orris, so if you like any of those notes, go ahead and give Lady Death a turn on the dance floor. She's quite alluring -- though one dance with her is enough for me. Good eve, Lady.
Category -- Ars Amatoria
'Lotus bubblegum' is a good descriptor for it. It's a very sweet, lush scent, though on me it doesn't have a lot of throw, and wore off fast. Definitely recommended for those who like lotus, as this is the predominant tone.
Category: Bewitching Brews
In the imp, there is the sweetness of the lavender, spiced around the edges with the prickly sharpness of rosemary.
As it goes on, there's still that very sweet tone with the herbal note throughout...I think I can detect the neroli now.
As it dries, it gets light and peppery...herbs and perhaps frankincense.
While I'm not exactly a huge fan of lavender, it's a nice, soothing, pretty scent, and would make for a great room scent IMHO. Unfortunately it evaporates pretty quickly on me. But if you're a fan of lavender, well, here you go.
Category: Limited Editions: Yule 2007
I didn't really get any tartness from this; sweetness, yes, but never shrill or sickly...it had a nice, full body to it. I think my only complaint about it would be that it doesn't throw quite as far or last as long as I would like. But it's quite a lovely scent, and sensual in its own way (which I suppose is appropriate...)
Category -- Sin and Salvation
The magnolia and jasmine blend really nicely, creating a sweet floral effect. There is a hint of rose there, as well. I don't get any amber at all...nothing but florals, here. For me, it falls in along the lines of Bathsheba, and Sacred Whore of Babylon...so if you like those scents, give this one a try, too.
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!!!
Category -- Diabolus
Sweet cherry-rose, with maybe a very faint hint of almond. Throw and staying power are both of average quality. Recommended if sweet rosey blends like Kurukulla work well on you.
Out of the nine scents I've tried so far, there have only been two that I didn't like: Akuma and Tushnamatay. The rest I would love to keep around, though I don't need bottles of all of them. In order of preference, I would rank them:
Wrath
Absinthe
Aglaea
Aeval
Aizen Myoo
Al Azif
Fruitcake
So far, I seem to like citrusy/fruity scents, florals, and just sweetness in general. I despise raspberry. It amuses me that I seem to amp musk and clove (or whatever that sweet scent in Wrath was). The verdict is still out on incense and foodie scents; I liked Al Azif and Fruitcake, but need to experiment more in that regard.
My second order has arrived and is waiting patiently for me to experience it. Awaiting me are Alecto, Alice, Al-Shairan, Amsterdam, Anathema, Anne Bonney, Asphodel, Clio, Erato, and Urania. I also have a bottle of Angeronalia! I'm looking forward to discovering more lovely scents.
Category: Ars Amatoria
In the imp I could smell musk and a hint of lemon. It was a very elegant mix.
As it joined with my body chemistry, the lemon grew a little bit stronger. Unfortunately, it grew faint and wore off really quickly. Just not for me.
Category: Illyria
In the imp I can detect incense with a great deal of sweetness to it...the sweet herbs and grasses, perhaps. As it goes on, it gets more of a woodsy tone to it -- the frankencense, perhaps? Over time, as it dries, it turns spicy (and most stereotypically manly) to me.
Overall, it's a nice scent...while it does not scream 'HI I'M A DUDE' to me, that's fine with me, as most of the 'mainstream' male scents have a nasty overspiced air to them, while this is a lot more mellow and subtle...and besides, I like wearing it. I'm half-tempted to smear some on the BF and see what effect it might have.
What I liked: It's nice and mellow.
What I didn't like: Nothing in it really seems to stand out for me. Like the vast majority of these scents, it's nice, but not a must-have. Then again, isn't half the fun having something new to experiment with all the time? So I guess I shouldn't feel so bad about not going OMG MUST HAVE BOTTLE for more of these guys.
Category: Bewitching Brews
In the imp, it's vanilla and mandarin; once on me, the florals start coming out, but there is always a continual theme of vanilla to it. In fact, the vanilla amps and throws the most in this one. There is a slight powdery quality to it. If you like vanilla, go ahead and give this one a try.
Probably not bottle-worthy for me, though it is enjoyable. It reminds me a bit of Antique Lace.
Category: Wanderlust
I think that, for me, cedar is going to be one of those scents that shoulders its way to the front and tries to hog all the attention, and that's certainly what it does here. Fresh out of the imp and wet on my skin, all I can smell is the cedar. As it dries, thankfully, the creamier, refreshing vanilla note becomes evident. This mostly becomes a balance of the vanilla and the wood, though the sassafras does peek out from time to time in sweet, delicious little wafts. Unfortunately, however, on me the cedar note just turns a bit rank and ruins whatever sweet dusty qualities this blend might have had. If one likes vanilla and can have the wood note behave on them, though, I think they will enjoy it.
There's definitely lots of cedar...it's a wet sort of smell, very definitely like freshly-upturned earth and roots, and it's very fascinating in that regard.
It has little throw, and clings very close to the skin. While appropriate, it lessens the enjoyment somewhat for me, personally. And it seems to wear off pretty fast. Not for me.
Category -- Ars Amatoria
As a rose scent, it's very nice and pretty. It actually reminds me of what a little girl's room would smell like -- very light and floral and feminine. Not very harloty AT ALL.
It faded very quickly on me, and didn't have much throw while it was there. Pretty, but fleeting.
Category -- Rappacini's Garden
A rather innocuous rose. The dragon's blood gives it a sweetness that threatens to send it into the same icky rose territory that I amped like crazy in Rose Cross, but it stays okay for the most part. It actually ends up smelling soapy more than anything. Decent throw and staying power, just not for me.
Category: Marchen
I get a lot of peach from this, though this perfume is in general a very light scent. There may be some other florals hovering around, but they never really seem to take anything over. The faint aroma lingers all day long. This reminds me of the Gaoler's Daughter, but Belle Vinu is braver and possesses more personality.
Category: Rappacini's Garden
In the imp, it is a very moist, almost dewy green scent, one one might expect to find in the stem or bulb of a plant, rather than nestled between its petals, although there is also a faint, sugary sort of note as well.
Once on, it gets a bit of tartness and bite to it. As if one has plucked it from its watery nesting place, crushing the stem in the process; it is pungeantly sweet, like oranges, and yet when I place my nose close against my wrist, I can smell the peppery tartness of clove, the serpent's bite amidst its strangely-configured petals.
Oddly enough, the edge to it never gets horribly overwhelming. It is very tantalizing, in fact.
This also had a fairly strong throw, and lasted throughout the day. Very nice. I'm finding I like the Garden scents quite a lot, and this one wants to edge into my favorites.
Someone else compared this to a 'high-end soap', and I totally agree! Not that it's soapy in a bad way; it's just really, really fresh and clean-smelling. It's almost minty, in a way. There is a definite air of teal-blue; brisk, cleansing water sudsed with sea-foam. Like nearly all the Phoenixes, it tended to hug very close to my skin, but was quite strong should I come nodding back for a sniff. I'd say it had about average staying power, say five or six hours.
Category: Phoenix Steamworks
Dark wood, seasoned with a splash of manly vanilla. (Do you doubt that there is such a thing as manly vanilla?) It hugs fairly close to the skin, and seemed to evaporate after a while...didn't last the whole day on me.
Category: Wanderlust
I could definitely smell the cinnamon in this one. Oddly enough, there was also a strong chocolate smell as well. I constantly had images of a cup of dark hot chocolate spiked with cinnamon...either that, or a cinnamon-colored, chocolate-striped tiger. It's not bad! Must have been the way the clove and honey were mingling together, with perhaps the ginger as well...it fooled me. All in all, I like it.
The good news: It smells exactly like it says it's supposed to. One instantly gets an air of fine, misty rain, permeated by the dust on one's sandals, and the incense burning in the sheltering temple atop the mountain. It's beautiful, and it sums up the concept of 'rain' perfectly. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it smells like a purifying, Oregon rain -- the kind you'd feel sweeping in straight off the ocean, as you stand on the beach.
The bad news: It lasts about six seconds on me, then evaporates.
I can see how some reviewers get a 'Sprite' vibe from it. There's definitely a citrus/lime tone to it, probably to preserve that fresh, purifiying aquatic quality of the perfume. I rather liked it.
Category: Ars Amatoria
This is a very pleasant, mellow floral that is nicely balanced by the neroli. It has a very slight bit of warmth to it. It has staying power, but I didn't detect all that much throw out of it. I feel it could possibly be a good 'crossover' scent for people who don't usually like florals, as the other notes keep it from getting too sweet or overpowering. Unfortunately, it just doesn't have enough kick to qualify as a favorite for me.
