fierylioness

Blood Rose... ah how you baffle me. Wine scents normally make me sick. Something about smelling like a dank alleyway outside of a bar where someone's recently been sick just... doesn't appeal. (And that is what most wine scents do on me.) Blood Rose, however, does not do that. This is a rich, voluptuous red rose, the kind that florists never have, and prized rose-gardeners always do. It reminds me, to my minds' eye, of a Lincoln rose-bud, color and texture. Add to that a soft sweetness of wine, and the faint waft of a gentle incense.. This is a singularly beautiful scent.

A deceptively sweet scent; just like the Critters themselves, the perfume is fluffy, poofy, soft, snuggly, and googly! Five vanillas with Moroccan jasmine, white gardenia, and pink grapefruit. Ahhh, BiggerCritter. Wet, this is an almost alarming combination of "oh so super sweet" and "eep!Floral!" with just a hint of "OMG grapefruit". However, when it dries on my skin, it turns to a warm, sweet lightly grapefruit spritzed angel food cake with a small vase of jasmine and other white flowers nearby. This was the scent that convinced me to reconsider what I think of as "too foody". Love this.

This is a wonderful, wood-filled musk-touched blend. On me, the rosewood plays heavily at the forefront, leaving the amber and musk to play quietly but sweetly in the background. Not an instant love, but a good snuggle in and wait for brighter days kind of scent. On my fiance, however, this turns from 'wood with a bit of musk' to "MUSK! and woods".... not that I'm complaining. The red sandalwood and musk imitate a much more heated version of his natural scent that it is very... alluring. This is definitely a WIN on him.

When I opened the imp, I was struck by how much it smelled like my favorite (and now impossible for me to find) black vanilla tea. On, it did not change that much, but the musk warmed to my skin and made it almost sweeter. In fact, it turned to a lovely, almost gooey scent that was pure vanilla with a dark tea undertone, even through drydown. Unfortunately, my wonderful husband has declared that it smells exactly like one of his classmates--and therefore I can't wear it often.

For me, Antique Lace is a near perfect match for a blend a friend of mine makes-- Vanilla Musk. Except, of course, the Lab's is sweet and soft and not cloying, where hers still has a very strident edge. This is a perfect "I'm having a bad day and need snuggles" scent. It makes me fee like I'm wrapped up in a favorite blanket after someone's been playing with vanilla. While I don't pick out the florals in this wet or freshly dry, after a few hours (or a day ), I do pick up a light girly floral that is very hard to pick out.

Morocco has quickly become my ultimate 'perfect' scent. Slightly spicy, gently warm, and with a hint of vanilla to tie it all together, my skin warms it to an almost golden goodness. My only problem is that my skin chemistry tries to eat it up.. but that's quickly solved by keeping an imp handy and a scent locket on. This is what Snake Oil should smell like, to my rather new nose. (But I will give S.O. a try.. later.) My personal rating: Off The Charts.

First sniff, I got a ton of rose, with a hint of wood at the base. Wet... rose. Lots and lots of rose. A vaguely sweet note... don't know if it's my skin interacting with the oil, or the patchouli. (Or at least patchouli as I know it.) Drying, the rose and sandalwood make a nice, comforting, warm scent. No sign of the patchouli. At all. Definitely a must-have for me.

In the imp: Jasmine and rose fight it out. No hint of the myrrh at all. On the skin, wet: Ditto above. My skin seems to adore the floralness of rose and jasmine. Dry: Florals fade into something more dark--like a burnt stick of floral incense. Must be the myrrh extending a hand to calm everyone else down. Overall: Love it. It seems to be the scent that everyone likes once it reacts to my chemistry. Sweet and feminine.

I've tested this a few times, and I have to say, all I pick up from Mata Hari is intense rose, a whisper of jasmine when my skin gets it right, and then the (faint) bitterness of coffee after a few hours' worth of dry-time. I love it, and I plan on keeping it... after I get an imp for a friend. I only wish I could pick out more of the vanilla or the fig.. I think my skin amps the florals something fierce.