empi girl

The apple blossom, honey, cream and caramel come out at first. It's sweet, but not cloying, and I really like it at this stage. It eventually dries down to a soft musk, with a slight dusty edge, still very sweet. I don't like the dusty edge, and as my husband doesn't like this one, I doubt I'll be getting a bottle, though I might keep my decant.

I agree with reviewers who smell coconut. I do too, just a little, under the green of the grass. I love this in the bottle, but on it develops into a languid green grass-musky-powdery scent that doesn't play well with me. I think it is the "sun-baked" aspect that is doing it. I will be passing my bottle along to someone who loves it.

Dorian (and a hint of Theodosius, to my nose) mingled perfectly with Snake Oil. The tea and citrus of Dorian and the subtle warmth and spice of Snake Oil. Initially Dorian is stronger, but over time the Snake Oil gains the upper hand. This is one of the few scents that made my husband actually nuzzle my neck (tmi?), and paid the high compliment of "that one's nice". I agree. I love it, will be keeping this bottle, and possibly getting another.

Not my cup of tea, unfortunately. Powdery orris root, which doesn't agree with me, with a hint of carnation.

I got this on a whim, sure it wouldn't work, but had to try it. And it's a surprise hit. Practically single note honey (which I'm assuming is the agave nectar). It smells like honeycomb-the sweet freshness of the honey. And since practically nothing with honey works on me, this is even more surprising and pleasing. The tobacco makes itself known by pinning down the sweetness and giving it depth, and I suppose the rose could be combining with the agave also. Lasts a long time. Tried it on in the evening and could still smell it the next morning, easily. No woods, no copal. Maybe when it ages? Definitely a bottle puchase!

In the decant, this didn't smell very good-sharp, bitter, and I immediately put it in the pile of ones I didn't think I'd like. But once on, it completely changes to a soft sweet muguet with cream and sugar. After a bit, the beeswax comes out and gives the scent more depth. It actually gives the scent the "feel" of fabric, a thick comforting weight, without in any way actually having the scent of "wool". Most interesting. I didn't really get the tea, or the wool, or even the pepper. Which is fine, because what I get is lovely. And it has good staying power, too. I ended up really liking this, and will probably be getting a bottle. edited to add: I tried wearing it today, and the beeswax note just doesn't sit well with me. I had the same problem with Luperci. Sort of a heavy, almost muddy-musk quality, just under the muguet, but present enough to throw off the blend for me. I'm a little sad. I was hoping to have both Katrina and Ichabod!

I got to try this last night at a MnS. Straight-up Kool-Aid powder. You know, from the packet, sans sugar, and you sniff it, and it lingers on the back of your tongue? Like that for me. Others in the group ended up liking it, and getting the sugar and sweetness, but not me. Not one I'll be needing.

I totally didn't know that!

I love red musk, too. I second Hollywood Babylon, and would add Spellbound also.

luscious creamy chocolate with equal amounts cherry and orange blossom, but each balanced so neither knocks you over the head. Chocolate predominates, and while it usually goes dusty on me, here it's beautiful. Lovely, soft, sweet but not cloying. Stays true from imp to drydown, and then it disappears. Within 30 minutes, it was gone! I'll try it again, and hope it lasts longer, because it is definitely a big bottle contender!

I love this one. It's almost foodily sweet for me at first, with the amber and vanilla and carnation combining together. It reminds me slightly of Chimera at this point. On the dry down the foodiness leaves, but the amber and carnation don't, and they mingle beautifully. This is a great scent, one of my favorites.

I was very excited for this, since it combines some of my favorite notes. At first, it is just beautiful out of the bottle and on when wet. At that point, it's a combination of blueberry, red currant, a hint of musk and a hint of vanilla. But it rapidly changes into, basically, a Red Currant single-note. It stays there for hours, a bright, sharp, piercing red currant, and then gradually fades enough that the hint of musk and a bit of ginger show through. The jury is out for me on this one. I want to love it. But I don't, although I can see it's potential. I think I'll age it, and hope it mellows out a bit.

Softly violet aquatic with a hint of mint. The mint fades, the violet strengthens. Dries down to a soft, sweet aquatic scent with the suggestion of violets. A very good warm weather scent. Nice, but probably not a keeper for me. I was hoping for more mint on this one.

I love this, so much that I did something I almost never do, and bought a second bottle. On me, when wet, it's a sweet vanilla caramel. In fact, I was driving to work and realized it smells kind of like a caramel steamer (steamed milk with caramel). I think it's the saffron that turns the vanilla into caramel for me. And underneath it all, there is the faintest edge of coolness, like mint, but without being discernable as mint. I don't think of this as foody, though, caramel steamer comparison notwithstanding! It dries to a soft, creamy scent, with that tickling of mint hidden underneath. It stays beautiful all the way through. I don't get plastic, icing, anything cloying.

Lots of clover and ivy, with a little carnation thrown into the mix. Very much a grassy scent, evocative of the poem. It's nice, though I was hoping for a little of the rose to come out to play, sweeten this up and round out the greeness. It doesn't, but that's ok. What isn't is that it hits my sinuses, so I think I'll pass this on to a better home.

I love aquatics, but unfortunately, on me this isn't aquatic at all! At all, folks. In the bottle, I get a scent that is decades old perfume combined with hairspray. Tickles my nose and goes right into my sinuses. But I thought, "hey, it might be better on", screwed up my courage and tried it. Nope. Still the ancient perfumy hairspray awfulness. No aquatic, no honey, no mint. It stays like this for a while. A long while. Hours. And eventually I think I might smell some honey. But then again, it could be some lotion that I put on during the day, too. How can this be? I'm almost hoping it's a mislabeled bottle, and am thinking about scaring up a decant of it, just in case. At the moment, though, it's a little sadness for me.

It's funny about skin chemistry, because I've tried Silk Road at least twice, and all I get is a light (barely there!) hint of tea and dust before it dissapears. As for your recs: I'd say that Othello will be a no. Very rosey from what I remember. Scherezade and Morocco have a similar feel to me. I think of heavy sweeter incense and musk. I'd recommend the Lion (dry amber, if a lion's purr had a scent, this would be it), Mama-ji (spicy, dry, not sweet), War (musk and ginger and spicy hot, but she's not sweet). I think best bet will be Mama-ji. Snake Oil has a 'burnt spice' smell to me when fresh, but aged it is lovely, a deep rich and golden scent. I get hints of sweetness, but not cloying, or over the top. There are loads, so I'm sure you'll find something. Good luck!

I was on the fence about this one, but tried it after all the reviews came pouring in. My experience seems a little different, because this doesn't have anything foody about it to me. It is a soft melange of notes, with a hint of coconut in the beginning, that fades away and I have a soft, perfumy incense blend. The main notes in it seem to be the raisin, the cedar, and the sandalwood. It is unlike any incense blend I've tried, but it just doesn't quite work for me. Actually, it makes my nose itch a little bit. So even though I want this to be a love, it isn't.

I swapped for this after reading the reviews, and I hoped for a softer Agnes Nutter, with coffee and treacle. Instead I got the woodsmoke, and I think requiemblack has it right when she says mesquite wood chip smoke. On me the smoke amps, along with a note that keeps reminding me of Liquid Smoke. The smoke is high-pitched and sweet (but not treacle-like) and the mesquite is savory. I prefer Agnes Nutter as my smoke scent after all, and will be swapping this bottle away to someone who can love it.

Sweet, buttery pumpkin that almost immediately on the skin morphs and becomes more spiced while retaining the sweet. Initially, and for quite a while, I get no hint of creamy cheesecake. The spicy pumpkin stays for a long time, the sweetness slowly fading. Eventually, after several hours, I am left with a beautiful, sweet, creamy vanilla scent that is soft but lingers. I love the final stage the best, but the others are growing on me, and I'm definitly keeping it.

Each review seems different, so here goes mine! In the bottle and on at first, this is a lovely sweetly aquatic garden, twilight time, a little cool, fresh and incredibly beautiful. But within 30 minutes it morphs completely-the scent becomes warm, sultry, almost incensy, perfumy. It remains sweet, but not in an aquatic way. Of all things, the only comparison I can make is to imagine a spicy-sweet amber and carnation scent, then add heavy and sweet "carnivorous blooms" to the mix. I know neither the amber or the carnation are in the description-but it's what I get. Since I like them both, it's a good comparison. It is also very sensual and heady. I've tried this a few different times, since it makes such a 180 turn. I even had my husband sniff at different stages. He doesn't have much of a nose, but he did notice the difference, and also said, "that's nice". I'm still making my mind up, however, so will try it a few more times. It is nice, but heavier than what I usually wear. I prefer the sweet aquatic, so this could become a scent locket one for me, with wearing it on the skin when I want to go out, perhaps. Certainly worth a try! And the bottle art is beautiful.

Another vote for Golden Priapus. My husband likes it, and I love it on him. It has vanilla, but it's not sweet or softly creamy in the least, more spicy, and has a nice depth to it. Probably my favorite scent on him, actually.

Red ginger, black spices, patchouli, honeysuckle, and three blood-soaked red musks. This is a lot softer than I expected. This is ginger, with a hint of musk in the background. I like ginger and red musk, so this one is right up my alley. The patchouli doesn't really stand out, and the musks remain indistinct. Usually I amp musk, so I'm surprised I don't in this, since there are 3 of them! I like it, but will have to try it again to make a final decision on this one.

Woodsmoke (I'd say cedar, actually), with gunpowder. A hint of sweetness and a definite saltiness to it. I got a decant mainly for the novelty, but actually like this a lot more than expected. As it dries, it loses it's heaviness and it's salty quality, and becomes gentler and a little sweeter. But it is still a bonfire, just the difference between being in front of one roasting marshmallows and avoiding the smoke, and smelling one on the breeze, a fair distance away. I doubt I'll get a bottle, but I'll be keeping the decant.

In the imp this was quite lavender-y, but on it lost it's astringency. It stayed lavender when wet, then over a 15-30 minute period lost the lavender, gained the magnolia, and stays soft and sweet and beautiful for hours. It is 6 hours and 1 sweaty 3-mile walk later, and it is still there. A close-to-the-skin scent, but lovely. I keep sniffing, so I might need a bottle.