akiko

I was worried about the tobacco in this, because that always turns to stinky ashtray on me, but I had nothing to fear! In the vial, it smells sweet & spicy, cinnamony (enough so that I said, "oh, damn, this is going to irritate my skin," but there's no cinnamon). On my skin, this morphs: from the cinnamon-sweet smell to a slightly tobacco smell to a soft, spicy resin. I love you, Fire Phoenix!

I'm a fan, I have to say. It gives an impression of Bliss, but it's got something a little deeper in it (the amber, I presume.) There's a brief plastic-y phase, but once it passes, it's back to a nice cocoa. Nice. I likes it.

(2008 version) Most of what I'm getting from this is an aquatic. In the imp, it smells minty, but once it hits my skin, nothing. Just a slightly floral aquatic. Not for me.

I can't decide if I like this one. It captures autumn well, but I'm not sure it's good on me. Imp: Apples. Caramel apples. Wet: Caramel apples. As it dries down. a more aquatic scent comes out, as well as the rotting leaves smell. Dry: The aquatic leaves smell comes and goes; I prefer it more when it goes. Right now, it's more caramel apple. Unfortunately, I think this is the same caramel note that goes plastic on me.

This reminds me mostly of last year's November. It's got the same cologne-y scent to it. Sometimes I get a whiff of something woody, but mostly it smells like men's cologne. It's oddly aquatic, too.

2008 version In the imp, this smells a lot more pine-y than 2007. After application, it starts out astringent pine with a touch of cider stuff. I don't really like it at that stage. As it dries, it becomes more of the scent I fell in love with in 2007's, but I just don't like it as much. I'd love it as a room scent, though.

The first of this year's 'weenies to say "BUY ME IN A BOTTLE!" Imp: Apples. Red apples. Wet: Mulled cider. I smelled so much cinnamon that I worried it would make me itch, but it must have been a combination of other smells. Dry: It's a fall evening by the fire. I'm not getting smoke per se, mostly the cider and orangey-spice, but it evokes the fireplace. I need you in a bottle. Yes, I do.

I liked the idea of this scent, so I got a decant. I still like the idea of the scent, but not so much on my skin. Imp: Smells like inside a barn, except without the icky horsey part. Wet: Apples, sweet grains. Dry: Apples fade out, sweetness comes to the fore. Turns plasticy, though. Verdict: Keeping my decant for now.

Dusty black wool, tea with cream, black pepper, muguet, and beeswax candle drippings. This is the first of the Halloweenies I'm trying this year. Imp: Smells weird and slightly perfumey, but with a touch of sweetness. Wet: Sweetly floral. Dry: Honey (beeswax). I'm not getting the wool or pepper, though. I'll keep my decant, at least for a while, but I don't think I'll be needing a bottle. (edited to add lab description)

Harvest Moon: balsam fir, cedar, juniper berry, clove, saffron, damson plum, sage, black cherry, and fennel with the crushed wine grapes of Dionysus and Janus' lingum aloes. - intriguing! But it probably won't work on me. HELLHOUND ON MY TRAIL: nope. Sorry. A BLADE OF GRASS: Autumn leaves scattered among blades of grass. Not really. AUTUMN COOLNESS: The scent of wisteria, Cymbidium, lotus blossom, and cassia buds drifting on a breeze through gently swaying bamboo reeds. Probably not. JOHN BARLEYCORN: Barley, beer, blood, and whiskey. NO. CHANT D'AUTOMNE:The scent of the year's fall and the setting sun, ominous and foreboding: dried leaves, charred wood, blood musk, amber, khus, and Nicotiana tabacum. NO. DAY OF THE SKULLS: White sandalwood, beeswax, and frankincense crowned by hydrangea, rose, and kantuta blossoms, dressed with tobacco, cocoa leaves and flowers from the sacred Cactus of the Four Winds. No. GRAVEYARD DIRT 2008: NONONO. HUESOS DE SANTO: Orange-glazed cake, dotted with anise seed, and filled with custard, set beside a bouquet of celebratory funeral flowers. You know, I'm a foody, but this doesn't sound good to me at all. MEDITATION IN AUTUMN: A desolate scent, dusty, bleak, and withered: old wood, burnt brown sandalwood, and twisted vines. Maybe. Decant? MICTECACIHUATL: Copal, precious woods, South American spices, agave nectar, cigar tobacco, and roses. Nope. Samhain 2008: I love 2007. Will I love 2008? Probably. STICKY PILLOWCASE: Smushed candy corn, rock candy dust, marshmallow gunk, strawberry goo, spun blue sugar, globs of salt water taffy, and lint. See Huesos. SUGAR SKULL 2008: Vibrant with the joy and sweetness of life in death! A blend of five sugars, lightly dusted with candied fruits. Sugar doesn't work so well on me. TO AUTUMN: Mist and mellow fruitfulness: mist-swirled, moss-covered bark and dry red leaves, apple pulp and knotty galangal, with poppy juice and nutmeat. I want to like this, but I don't think I will. Decant? PUMPKIN I: Pumpkin with mango, persimmon, coconut, and myrrh. No? PUMPKIN II: Pumpkin with black musk, leather accord, tonka, teak, orange wood, and opoponax. No leather PUMPKIN III: Pumpkin with pink grapefruit, lemon verbena, yuzu, lime, parsley, and mint. Sounds weird. PUMPKIN IV: Pumpkin with white sage, cherry tobacco, honey, smoky vanilla, cedar, and pine. Tobacco is a no-go PUMPKIN V: Pumpkin with cranberry, strawberry, red musk, red rose, rosehip, frankincense, fig, jasmine, and carnation. Probably not. BROM BONES: The butchest, manliest of musks covered in well-worn leather. NO. THE CHURCHYARD: Overgrown dark green bullrush, midnight roses, dwarf St. John's Wort, frankincense, blackberry leaf, and moss-covered, half-buried tree bark. Not really. ICHABOD CRANE: Dusty black wool, tea with cream, black pepper, muguet, and beeswax candle drippings. Interesting. Decant. FEARFUL PLEASURE: Dried orange peels floating in simmering cider, roasted apples, smoldering firewood, chimney smoke, sassafras beer, warm hawthorn wood, and oakmoss. Decant? Too many iffies in there. THE GOBLIN RIDER: The scent of fear, and terrifying pursuit: wind-whipped, chilly night air, oppressive black pine, globs of dark opopponax, and bleak cedar, and distant, unreachable church incense. Not really. GUNPOWDER: Carrot peelings, hay, chaff, molasses, maple oats, red apples, stable wood, and musk. Maybe. Decant. THE HESSIAN OF THE HOLLOW: Grave moss and bone-white sandalwood, with vetiver, gunpowder, artillery shrapnel, and blood. NO. THE SCHOOL-HOUSE: Dandelion, white clover, balsam fir logs, and birchwood switches. Meh. THE SHATTERED PUMPKIN: Soil-covered crushed pumpkin, water-weeds, saddle-leather, and pine pitch. No. KATRINA VAN TASSEL: White rose and honeyed cream. Definitely not. WILEY'S SWAMP: Water-logged and rotting wood, fallen chestnuts, oak leaf, bog laurel, and Virginia creeper. No. THE WITCHING TIME OF NIGHT: Moonflower, night-blooming cereus, white hellebore, English ivy, monkshood, angel's trumpet, oleander, and eastern hemlock. No.

This is like Madame Moriarty and War got together and made a sexy love child. Imp: Red musk sweetness with a kick of darkness. Wet: Sweet red musk, dark patchouli. Dry: The fruity sweetness of red musk mixed with the darkness of patchouli. I really like this.

Oh, Inez, I want to like you. It's not you, it's me. It just isn't meant to be. Imp: Nice, soft, slightly powdery sweet with a hint of something spicy in it Wet: Sweet powder. Dry: I can get a hint of vanilla and amber, but mostly it's powdery. Must be the myrrh? *sigh*

Cocoa? Where are you? Patchouli? Imp: Fruity sweet. I can't identify the fruit. Wet: Same. Very fruity. Dry: Reminiscent of Bordello or other plum blends, though I'm guessing it's peach and my nose is playing tricks on me. Nice enough, but nothing special.

Oh poo, I wanted this to be awesome, since pomegranate is so very me. Imp: Sweetly floral - like Shadow Witch Orchid. Wet: Fruity floral, mostly plum - which generally goes candle/plasticy on me. Dry: Fruity? Seems to have faded. *sad* I wanted to need a bottle of this, but I guess I don't, really.

Ooh. Clemence is like Samhain without the apple/honey sweetness. Imp: CLOVE! CINNAMON! (which is really carnation.) Wet: CLOVE! CINNAMON! Dry: See above. There's a hint of something sweet, but I can't place it. I need more of this, o yes.