galahad

In The Bottle Just a faint whiff of orange On Application Orange and then the narcissus blasts out. Yum Dry Down I was so looking forward to trying my first narcissus blend and this is showing such promise. This becomes a smokey narcissus with an incense edge 5 minutes into the drydown - very spicey. This started off bright and pretty and has dried down to a dark, spicey and incensey scent. Beautiful but not sure if bottle-worthy. I will have to retry. Rating (0-5) 4

In The Bottle I get vanilla in the bottle with a dry kick On Application Beeswax and musky vanilla. I am going to love this! Dry Down The woods start to emerge giving this a slightly more resinous and dry feeling. This smells like our local museum....creepy. I get occasional kicks of black pepper (black pepper is one of my favourite oils). I have been trying to pin something down in this and have just got the incense and charred wood. Sarada mentioned the smell of birthday cake candles that have been just blown out. I think that is a great image which works for this scent. I adore this already. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle Very floral but definitely tropical flowers On Application Jasmine first off Dry Down Once this starts to dry down the jasmine behaves itself and it becomes quite soft and lovely. There is definitely a beachy scent here for me. This reminds me too much of sunscreen once it has dried down completely. Not for me. Rating (0-5) 2

In The Bottle Violet and vetiver. This is the first violet scent I have tried so I have high hopes that violet works on my skin. On Application Initial application was quite strong violet - yay - but the vetiver is attempting to take over. Dry Down This has incredible throw and is absolutely lovely. Darker than I originally expected, I smell the violet quite strongly and the lavender gives a sharper edge. There is almost an anise scent in the initial drydown stages. There is nothing gentle or soft about this scent, as you'd expect from the concept, but I really love it even if it may be a touch too floral for me. I will need to try again but at this stage this may be a big bottle order for me. Rating (0-5) 4

In The Bottle Very viscous. I don't get much vanilla in the bottle On Application Incense and strong vanilla. Not as sweet as I thought it would be, which is a good thing. Dry Down Warm smokey vanilla. Looks to be a staple in my collection. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Lavender, pretty much straight up. On Application Lavender amd moss. A little disturbing Dry Down This dries down beautifully. It has morphed from the lavender with the herby mossiness to a sweet and spicy, almost non-floral scent (courtesy of the carnation and amber). Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle This is quite herbal in the bottle. On Application Initially lavender and melissa. Soon after, I can pick the Ylang Ylang. Becomes very floral in the initial stages of the drydown. Dry Down This is a very complex scent. I am so glad this has got the tobacco and woods to hold back the florals. It becomes quite nice about 20 minutes in but is reminding me of air freshener. It's such a shame that this doesn't work on me. I was really intrigued by the notes. Rating (0-5) 1

In The Bottle OMG! Gorgeous. I can't pick any particular notes. Smooth and charming. On Application Very much a gentleman's cologne. Stunning. Warm and round bit fairly light. Dry Down I was trying to figure out what was familiar about this and have just realised it smelled like a shaving foam I used to use and loved. Surprisingly, I can't pick out the lavender until much later (my skin sucks up lavender pretty much immediately). I am so in love with this one. Big bottle for sure. Rating (0-5) 5 Edt: The final drydown has the mildewed raincoat note that is mentioned in one of the Neil Gaiman scents. Very comforting and lovely.

In The Bottle Sharp and astringent. On Application Definitely salty marine air. This is really sharp and tangy. Dry Down This does sweeten up and round out more as it dries down. What I really like about it is the saltiness stays around for quite a while. I am going to try ths on a warm day. I suspect this will be a keeper. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Lightly resinous fir and damp cold air. Nice. On Application As above but with more power and i can pick up quite a bit of the damp earth scent. This is lovely. Dry Down I find green scents difficult but I am loving this. Very fresh without blasting the sinuses. This has attempted to turn to a berry scent at several stages but gets pulled back to the piney fir. Finally the berry scent wins. Shame Rating (0-5) 2.5

In The Bottle Pine! On Application Pine with a smokey background Dry Down 5 minutes into the drydown I can definitely detect ginger which is making this more bearable. Actually quite nice when it has completely dried down but not for me. Rating (0-5) 1.5

In The Bottle Broken and crushed green stems. Airy and sappy. Interesting. On Application Astringent, airy and wet. Dry Down Ah this becomes a little spicy with a touch of the floral note coming through. I would class this as an aquatic scent at this point. I get quite a bit of hemlock in this, which I like. 20 minutes in I get a slight beery note reminiscent of Roadhouse but with Peony. Odd. I like it and I am not overly fond of florals and I don't really get the teas. Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Berry and sage in the bottle gives a surprisingly refreshing scent. On Application As above but a little warmer. Dry Down I really like this. The sage gives this a green edge and the musk which appears as it warms starts to sweeten up the mix. This is berries in the wild, growing amongst weeds and ferns. The green tea isn't really evident until about 10 minutes in and lends a green airiness. This is lovely and not too cloying. Oh.....20 minutes later this is becoming darker. I guess the musks are kicking in. A bottle for sure. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Light musk with a tinge of vanilla. On Application Hmm....quite foody at first. Vanilla and what smells like berry. Kind of smells like a sweeter Eat Me. No tea...drat. Dry Down I still get the berry and vanilla but the muskiness of the tea is coming through. Much better after it has been on a while. Good throw and great lasting power. Rating (0-5) 4.5

Rose geranium, Spanish moss, Irish yew, and graveyard dirt. In The Bottle Dirt. I love it. Can smell the rose geranium vaguely. I really dislike rose scents. On Application Rose geranium, first up. Darn. The dirt is still there but definitely less pronounced than in the bottle. I think it really does stay true to the concept though. Dry Down The moss starts to rein in the rose fairly quickly, thankfully. The rose comes in and out. I will have to try this a few times as i love the dirt however I don't really rate this against Jazz Funeral Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Fragrantly herbal. It took a while to cach the scent in the bottle. On Application A hint of lemon over a strong balm of Gilead prescence. I can also detect the sage. Dry Down This is the first scent I have tried with beeswax and I am suprised it is really detectable. I like! I am really glad the lemon from the lemon balm isn't too overpowering. Lemon has to be my least favourite note. This is quite a crisp fragrance with some warmth in the background (saffron, frankincense and benzoin). This gets sharper and drier as it wears. I would classify this as a unisex scent. I like this very much. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Sweet musk with the vetiver giving a slight sour undertone On Application A very sweet powdery scent. Smells moist and cologny Dry Down 5 mins into the drydown there is a rich herby scent coming to the foreground underpinned by the leather as the skins warms it up. He musk still dominates. I want to say this a generic scent but it's not....quite. I am undecided if I like this. It might be a bit powdery. 10 minutes in, I have decided I do like Iago. Everything blends together to give a smooth, sweet musky scent. Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Pure, ripe apricot. Oh, this will be good. On Application The clove adds it's mark fairly quickly but doesn't overpower. Dry Down On drydown, this turns to spiced dried apricots as opposed to the fresh apricot of the opening or maybe thick apricot jam. This is definitely a winter or autumn scent for me. Warming and tartly sweet. Rating (0-5) 5 Full Wear Test This was odd when I wore for a full day. The scent seemed to be completely sucked into my skin so I coudn't really smell it yet all day I got whiffs of the apricot and clove. I was flying too so it seemed to be non-invasive in the plane cabin. I will definitely be needing a bottle of this.

In The Bottle Not a lot in the bottle. A whiff of unsweetened cocoa. On Application Actually more leather than cocoa on application. Dry Down The leather takes a back seat to the patchouli and incense in the first few minutes and the cocoa re-emerges slightly sweeter than previously. There are definitely some flowers which emerge during the early stages of the drydown - night-blooming flowers. 10 minutes in, all of these notes are nicely blended. I think this is a little too floral for me. Rating (0-5) 2

In The Bottle Spicey, boozy (?). On Application Well there's some leather in there Dry Down Smokey, spiced leather. Cinnamon comes out to play after 5 minutes perhaps with clove. This is such a familiar scent. Ah, I think there is some cedar and/or sandalwood peeking out. I'm really not sure if I like this. It is certainly powerful. Rating (0-5) 3

In The Bottle Almost nothing in the bottle On Application Ah, there we go. Soft dry leather. Dry Down Holy **** This is gorgeous. As it warms and dries it becomes richer and crueller. It starts as the smell of a good leather jacket and morphs into jack-boots and whips. Overall not overpowering and would be great to layer. I'm in love. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle Sweet musk with a touch of bergamot On Application The neroli and bergamot emerge quickly to lighten up the musk. Dry Down Lemon after about 5 minutes which alternates with the bergamot. Nice. This ends up being quite a light scent and I would definitely classify it as masculine or unisex , at least. This constantly morphs from sweet musk to sharp lemon and the more rounded bergamot in between. I will definitely wear this. Not alot of wear length, though. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Berryliscious. On Application Luscious, tart berries. Dry Down This is just incredible! There is very little sweetness here. It's all tart juciness. The neroli makes a gentle appearance about 20 minutes into the drydown. Lickable and lovely. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle A little bit of plum with a touch of spicey carnation On Application Definitely spicy carnation rounded out by the chrysanthemum (which has it's own spicey scent)! Dry Down The plum really doesn't come through for me until this warms up and dries down. It has a bit of a grape-like scent. I love this. Definitely a keeper. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Smokey sweetness. Kind of a powdery scent. Not what i was expecting. On Application Man this is interesting. At first I got a good whiff of anise which I love but it was then overshadowed by civet So far loving it. Dry Down Despite the sweetness of this, this is a really dark scent. The anise becomes really strong which is great as far as I am concerned and, yes, there is a real earthiness which appears. I originally would have said this is quite a feminine scent but after it dries down it gets really dark and dry, losing some of it's initial sweetness. Huge throw and staying power. Rating (0-5) 4