suki

in the imp: cherry. but not like candy, more like cherry bark. woodsy-cherry is how i want to describe it. wet on skin: now it's morphed into cherry twizzlers. seriously dry down: the cherry all but vanishes and there's a tobacco-incense note that takes it's place. in all: warm, sweet, cozy- like sitting next to a comfy grandpa type while he gets his pipe ready for a long smoke.

in the imp: very floral. a bit cloying :meh: wet on skin: the jasmine starts to peek through, but i still feels it's too sweet dry down: the jasmine simmers down and a bare hint of neroli shows itself. normally i find neroli to be too strong, but this is nice in a tiny amount. in all: i'm not big on the florals, but this is a lovely springtime scent that i could see making a LOT of people really happy.

in the imp: juniper. very wintery. wet on skin: the juniper is still strong, but it's gained a sweetness and lost it's sharp edge. it reminds me of a beautiful snowy day that starts with making angels and ends with hot cocoa. dry down: wow. this is a really wonderful juniper-pine mix. :cozy: in all: while i'm not much for wearing stuff like this on my skin, this is guaranteed to be a great room fragrance.

the chocolate BPAL formulas are mostly kind to me, but not always, and what i found with dear, dear Gula is that a little goes a long way, at least for me. the first time i tried it out, i poured a HUGE amount, prolly somewhere between a half ounce and a full ounce into my bath. my tub is pretty huge and i wanted to completely submerge myself in the glory of BPAL chocolate. well, that actually backfired and it wound up smelling like fake, plastic scratch n sniff choco hate. i was willing to give it another go, so the next time i tried Gula, i put in about half of what i'd used before, somewhere between a quarter and a third of an ounce and it was HEAVEN. this was a valuable lesson for me, because i usually go excessive with BPAL and with Guls, i have to show some respect. which is good, too, because it'll last longer now!

i have waited very, very patiently for this to arrive, and i have extremely high hopes for it- let's see if it lives up to it's hype! in the bottle: sugar buttercreme. wonderful! wet on skin: the saffron is coming through loud and clear and bringing with it the cream. the vanilla so far isn't amping out of control on my skin the way it usually does. dry down: a gorgeous blend, a great balance between those three elements. i'm getting little hints of the wintergreen everyone is talking about, but it works really well in there, doesn't overpower it at all. in all: Everything i had hoped for MB: Underpants and didn't get- i'm SO getting some back up!

in the bottle: musky and heady, this scent seems really 'dark' to me, as in, i'd wear this at night only. wet on skin: there is a euphoric aspect to this oil, like being seduced by someone in an opium den perhaps dry down: intoxicating, rich, heady, dark. very musky, and the hemp and opium give it a deep strong note. in all: this is a powerful mixture. i will not be wearing this regularly, because it's not meant for that. but on the nights when you need something that will enable you to bring down the walls of jherico, this is it. glad i'm a pisces rising!

in the bottle: sugary butter cream. yum! wet on skin: more of the same. this is what i had hoped MB:Closet would be like, but wasnt on me. dry down: oh. my. goddess. this has the currant-incense quality of Crumpet Rebellion with a dash of honey and a big dollop of cream. in all: FANTASTIC! :D

in the bottle:butter-almond-sugar-goodness- YEAH! wet on skin: lots of almond, a bit of butter cream peeking through dry down: the almond settles and a beautiful mix of creme, honey, sugar and the barest hint of hazelnut has made this easily in my top 10 in all: stock up- i can tell already that this will only get better with age!

in the imp: dragon's blood, with a very, very slight edge of vanilla. wet on skin: the dragon's blood is prominent, but it's being tapered by something undefinable- it mellows the sometimes overbearing quality of the dragon's blood. nice! dry down: a *gorgeous* mix of milk, honey and dragon's blood! in all: oh YES, i need a full size bottle right away!!!

in the imp: this smells *exactly* like Gingerbread Poppet! (fingers crossed!) wet on skin: yup. gingerbread. YUM! dry down: with my skin chemistry, this is identical to GP, which is great, because i can get *this* one anytime i want! in all: Gingerbread fans, snag some of this, a.s.a.p.!

in the imp: it reminds me strongly of marzipan in it's almondy scent. wet on skin: more almond. also smells like that burt's bees almond hand salve. nice! dry down: the almond disappears and is replaced by a strong dose of bay and clove. it is certainly reminiscent of the idea i have of Old Salts sailing the seven seas! in all: a good basic spice. i got no hint of buttered rum, and i'm pretty sad about it. meh.

in the imp: a sweet berry note i can't quite place and something that reminds me of the beach, but not the salt water aspect at all. hmmm. wet on skin: there's a sweet, very summer scent in here, but i can't place it- honeysuckle? swimming in a lake? whatever it is, it's very, very lovely. dry down: this is so well blended i can't really pick out notes, just to say that it's sweet without being cloying, floral and fruity without being food-like at all. in all: a complex perfume, reminds me a bit of the original Betsey Johnson perfume for those who know it- sweet, floral, almost candy-like. a beautiful and complex fragrance.

in the imp: the fresh flower smell of going into a florist shop- how divine! wet on skin: an orange blossom/neroli note comes out in front dry down: neroli with a dusting of chrysanthemum under it to soften the blow in all: this doesn't strike me as a 'funeral' scent per se, but it's a fine all-purpose floral, ne to wear during the day, but not really for sprucing up in the evening.

in the imp: a rich, musky rose. lovely! wet on skin: somebody mentioned dried roses, and i agree. that concentrated, but toned down rose, that's this. dry down: more of the same. it almost reminds me of the smell of rose hookah tobacco: a rich rose with a hint of molasses. in all: a rose to keep, even if you are not much of a floral person- which i'm not!

in the imp: pure neroli wet on skin: more pure neroli. the esential oil $100-a-bottle-type. dry down: that's all i'm getting from it- no rosemary, no anything else. in all: if you love orange blossom / neroli, you will adore Catherine.

i *love* my bottle of Fruit of Paradise, so i'm interested to see how this compares... in the imp: like sweet tarts thrown in a big shot glass of alcohol. and someone mentioned the dryer sheet thing? i get a whif of that too. wet on skin: the alcohol mellows and the sweet tarts and dryer sheets duke it out for who's on top. dry down: it has elements i like or love in other things- the fruity aspect, the tart pom, the sugar, but something is off, and this smells very chemical on me. in all: dryer sheets win, and i'm *so* glad for my bottle of Fruit of Paradise! :shrug:

in the imp: honeydew melon! wet on skin: more honeydew melon! only now it reminds me of the japanese honeydew candy i sometimes get. dry down: like melon candy, but not too sugary! in all: like melon? love Yemaya!

in the imp: citrus, and something that smells like voodoo. whatever that might mean to you. wet on skin: sweet fruit and heady perfume. interesting. dry down: it's very well blended. i can't pick out any notes in particular. it's sweet and perfumey, but more than that i'm actually having a really hard time defining this! in all: a sexy perfume. i imagine high-class call girls putting this on before seducing their john for the night. and if that's what you're going for, get a 10 ml of this for sure.

in the imp: a dark, musky floral. wet on skin: the amber comes out a bit, and something sweet, like lily of the valley. dry down: there's something vaguely violet about this blend, but it's gone quite powdery and dusty, like finding your great grandmother's scented hanky in the attic. in all: if you are fond of powdery nostalgic florals, you'll love this. me? i'm swapping it out!

in the imp: the kind of floral that is in old-lady perfume. meh. wet on skin: the same, but even more. dry down: the perfumy-ness is died down a bit, but it's basically everything i don't like about most florals. in all: cloying, too sweet. powdery and it doesn't smell real at all. NEXT!

in the imp: cypress, very heavy, and a bit of bay behind that. hmmm wet on skin: more of the same. it's reminding me of christmas-themed scratch n sniff books from childhood. dry down: it's settled down and become a christmas potpourri scent. in all: i could see this being great in a diffuser to scent a room. on my body, however, not so much.

in the imp: fruity and floral, but it's not pleasant. wet on skin: it's cloying, and is making me slightly queasy. dry down: the cloying goes away a bit, but it reminds me of something unpleasant, like a chemical coverup, like embalming fluid at the funeral home with fake rose on top to try to mask it. in all: a surprisingly dreadful experience :sob:

in the imp: rose. straight up. wet on skin: ROSE. a very accurate tea rose. lovely! dry down: rosey rosey rose rose rose. this is the real deal, straight shooting, 100% rose. in all: if you are a rose fan, you must NOT be without this one. i don't usually car for many florals because they always smell fake to me. but this, this is a *perfect* rose.

in the imp: like...sweet, floral bubblegum. weird. wet on skin: more of the same with a cloying undernote similar to Mr. Clean (sorry, this isn't shaping up to be a very good review, is it ) dry down: ok. mr clean has taken a hike (whew!) and out comes a yummy fruity smell, makes me think of junior high strawberry lipgloss and flowery bubblebath and, yes, bubblegum. in all: sweet, innocent. a fragrance i would let a little kid wear, or a grownup who has retained a level of wide-eyed wonder. just lovely.

in the imp: yep. forest: loads of pine - not pine cleaner - and some cypress. wet on skin: more pine. lots and lots of pine. dry down: pine with a sweet christmas-y 'other' pine mixed in, like balsa and fir together. in all: if you are really into pine, you will want to marry this oil and live with it forever