enigmae

Like Samhain, but softened. I can detect the oakmoss and balsam, and the vetiver too, which luckily is not too strong. It’s darker and more subdued than Samhain. In fact I prefer Samhain, but this is a nice alternative for something softer. This is the nighttime counterpart to Samhain’s daytime fruitiness. I really like it, but it stops short of love.

First impression: I love love love this. I get the pine and tomato leaf right away, followed by the cranberry and blackberry leaf. I wasn’t sure what to expect from tomato leaf, but it adds a nice spiciness. This blend is just so HAPPY to me. It’s a tad Christmas-y, so maybe that’s what’s doing it, but not overly so. It’s not a “keep sniffing your wrist” blend, it’s a “hold your wrist to your nose until you have to come up for air” blend. It’s been a long time since I had one of these gorgeous discoveries. Apparently it’s also a cure for a stomachache, since I’ve had one for the past hour or so and now it’s vanished. Probably a Top 10…but I think my top 10 might have to turn into a top 20 pretty soon. The much-later faint drydown is even better than I could have imagined.

Very, very fresh and green, almost like a freshly cut pumpkin stem. That's the apples too. Now it’s becoming a little spicy. It tones down a lot and turns into soft, spicy apples, positively beautiful and cheery, and I can almost taste them! A clear, crisp, clean apple note. But maybe a little candle-y for wear as opposed to a room scent. I’ll have to try it again.

Initially reminds me of the Body Shop Mango perfume, which was pretty much what I wore a decade ago. It is spicier though, more full-bodied and less one-noted. The clove makes it rather autumnal. I like it a lot, but the clove is rather strong so I'm not sure how often I would wear it.

Initially it’s water and woods, with a hint of greenery. Somewhat masculine. It gets greener and greener and more floral, very pungent and almost bitter. Soon enough that goes away though, and it’s just a very fresh, clean outdoors scent that’s very evocative. I'm not sure if it's "me", but I like it enough that I'll try it a few more times before reaching a verdict.

An attendant of the Goddess Venus. She presides over nocturnal pleasure, nighttime festivities, and all the joy and delight that can be found in the darkness. In later ages, it became the name of the all-night festival that closed the Eleusinian Mysteries. Night-blooming jasmine, moonflower, cardamom, sandalwood, black currant, ylang ylang, frankincense and lily. This has the GOOD jasmine (night-blooming). It’s not as cloying or overwhelming as regular jasmine to me. The beginning stage is a soft and sexy floral, but then the ylang-ylang makes it go all generic powder on me.

I get the aquatics and the florals, but there is an overlying smoothness and dirtiness that is almost creamy – it must be the clay. I also get the “spike of frost” which is rather piney. It’s like a floral, darker Snow Moon, which is one of my favorites. I really like the beginning stage. However, after drydown it’s a little too sharply floral so I’ll have to try it again.

I ordered this because of the mouth-watering “fruit salad” description, though I was leery about the banana. This is one of the few blends in which I think I can actually pick out *all* of the notes. The banana is not too overpowering, and the coconut is perfect – gives it a creaminess so it’s not pure fruit salad. It’s wow – gorgeous. It’s blended so well that it smells more like perfume than food. 5 ml for sure.

Fruity and refined at the same time. Definitely lavender and lotus. The colors I’m seeing are purple and green. It is very regal-feeling. I like it, but I’m not a huge lotus fan so it’s not extraordinary enough for me to keep, and it gets a little too “dry” for me. However, in terms of interpreting the concept I think it’s dead-on.

Dragon’s blood plus uncomfortably sharp floral. It softens and gets better, but is ultimately just too floral for me and the other components don't come out enough.

Somewhat salty and aquatic, but toned down by the creaminess of the dragon’s blood. Becomes a little ozoney. I usually like dragon’s blood but can occasionally get tired of it. I don’t know what to think about this one – it starts doing the powdery-ick thing but then it turns into something better – maybe try again.

Berries and snow, with pine. I love this at first, but then the almond creeps in and sweetens it up too much. I’m glad I got to try this, but there are other snow/pine blends I like much better, that aren't so...nutty. Me and almond are just not friends.

For some reason Tenochtitlan is extremely sad to me. Almost too effective to wear it, and it's such a lovely scent.

I wrote this review last year and never posted it - just got out my bottle since we had our first snow of the season this week. First I should probably say that the pine/fir notes are possibly my favorite. Snow Moon goes on a sharp pine with a touch of cold sweetness (the flowers), and dries down into the most lovely floral/pine scent that is almost more fruity than floral. The floral aspect is perfect because it's not "traditionally" floral, not cloying or powdery at all. I can detect the white rose, which is the only one that works for me and one of my favorites (think Dublin). It's a great substitute for Skadi – in fact I like it better as it’s missing the touch of bitterness Skadi had. The flowers also have a similar vibe to Arkham. Just gorgeous, and makes me happy. Top 10.

I find Aegis does exactly what it says - gives peace of mind. I'm not sure about the protection or guidance part of the description, but I used it last night after a particularly anxious day and was immediately calmed. I put a dab on each wrist before going to sleep, and it felt very powerful, like it was radiating soothing energy.