Ajila

In the bottle – Ginger, hard and fiery but with just a hint of sweetness

Wet on me – Bright red ginger

Dry on me – It goes woody (I would say sandalwood, which is odd), but sweetened by the honeysuckle

Overall – I like this a lot and as someone who is very Libran I can’t help but think that wearing a blend evocative of such a difference sign to my own will be good for me

In the bottle – Cocoa, with a fruit back drop and a hint of spiciness

Wet on me – I’m puzzled now, because I smell grapefruit and ginger with the chocolate

Dry on me – The spiced fig with a delicate dusting of cocoa is surprisingly light and spring like

Overall – So far this is my favourite 13 variation, but it still doesn’t really grab me

In the bottle – Green roses and muddy patchouli

Wet on me – On one hand soft and powdery and on the other sharp and green

Dry on me – Lush green roses

Overall – Roses really aren’t my thing, but if I had to wear them this would be how I would do it

In the bottle – Would it be too straight forward to say it smelt of orchids? A green, fresh and slightly tart floral

Wet on me – Slightly overpowering heady orchids

Dry on me – Sweet soft powdery orchids

Overall – The blend itself is pleasant enough, but it is not something that I would ever wear

In the bottle – Treacle and cider

Wet on me – Bright bubbly cider backed with rich gloopy treacle

Dry on me – Lightly candied floral, soft and whimsical

Overall – I like this a lot. At first it’s like a spring/summer version of Perversion, before drying to a lovely frothy floral reminiscent of Pink Moon 05. This may be a future 5ml purchase

In the bottle – All almond

Wet on me – Predominantly almond, with a hint of clove

Dry on me – Almonds soft and slightly bitter

Overall – Whilst I like almond I would have liked to have smelt some of the other notes

In the bottle – Some sort of harsh air freshener (the ferns I guess)

Wet on me – Quite medicinal, I get the black currant and a slight liquoricy tinge that I assume is the absinthe

Dry on me – Very faint, but warm and sweetly herbal

Overall – What’s there is nice enough, but it’s barely notice able

In the bottle – Soft red apple, with something slightly dirty behind it

Wet on me – Plain apple

Dry on me – Predominantly apple with occasional wafts of opium

Overall – I like this, but it is a little one dimensional on my skin and I can’t see me reaching for it very often

In the bottle – Very little, just a tiny bit of that musky sweet after scent I get from Antique Lace, Morocco and Faith

Wet on me – Spicy carnations, that sweet musk and a bit of sharp green. Very nice.

Dry on me – Soft clean phlox with a hint of sweet musk

Overall – This is very faint, I may try layering it with Pink Moon 05 to see if this softens the 05 version

In the bottle – Lavender

Wet on me – Lavender and papery white flowers

Dry on me – Washing powder

Overall – This was never likely to be a blend for me and my skin turned it to detergent anyway

In the bottle – Spiced patchouli, and strong

Wet on me – Spicy, woodsy furniture polish

Dry on me – Warm molten sugars

Overall – For a while it’s overkill on the patchouli, but settled it’s gorgeous. Like a melting pot of different sugars, which come briefly to the surface one by one

In the bottle – Mint humbugs, brilliant

Wet on me – Oooh, this is evil mint humbugs, in the same way that Shub-Niggurath is evil gingerbread

Dry on me – Dry dust and ashes, sometimes I hate my skin chemistry

Overall – Another compelling argument for the purchase of a scent locket.

In the bottle – Cherries in syrup

Wet on me – Something strong and warm, it’s weird, I can smell it, but not what it is

Dry on me – Cherryade, becoming warmer and spicier as the day goes on (I put it on at least 14 hours ago and it’s still going strong)

Overall – I was a little unsure at first, but the dry down is a triumph. Warm, fruity, comforting and even slightly sensual.

In the bottle – Pineapple juice, I kid you not, that’s all it smells like to me

Wet on me – Condensed milk and washing powder and something really acrid, all topped off with a remaining wash of pineapple

Dry on me – Sour milk and dust

Overall – I’m gutted by this, but my skin chemistry just kills this blend for me

In the bottle – Sweet buttery caramel

Wet on me – Sharp berries backed with a hint of rose, which is itself backed by a pastry sort of smell

Dry on me – Warm and spiced with a slightly acidic sharpness. It’s like a spiced black current compote

Overall – I like it, but for some reason I can’t see myself wearing it, may be I’ll try it again in autumn/winter

In the bottle – To me it smells of cinnamon, so I guess that’s the cassia, with just a hint of the red musk

Wet on me – Cherry cola, but with a bitter dirtiness behind it

Dry on me – Warm spices that nestle close to the skin

Overall – Logically I should love this, but it just doesn’t seem to reach me

In the bottle – Bright sugary fruits, primarily the lime

Wet on me – Now the grapefruit and the nectarine come to the fore with a gooey frothy background that I can’t quite place

Dry on me – Extremely faint, slightly sweetened musk

Overall – This disappears too quickly for me to form any real opinion of it

In the bottle – Sharp red musk

Wet on me – Sweet incense (the unguents?) and just a hint of caramel

Dry on me – Very little waft, but close to my skin, warm sensual spices, which make you feel pampered

Overall – I’m in two minds, the initial incense it too heavy for me and I’d like a little more waft on the dry down, but the final skin scent is gorgeous

In the bottle – Slightly sharp and green, with the orange blossom as the primary factor

Wet on me – Sweet green florals

Dry on me – Sweet soft powdery blossom

Overall – A little faint, but lovely all the same. I may have to experiment to see if I can find something to bulk it up a little

In the bottle – Predominantly the cinnamon with a resinous back drop

Wet on me – Dark, dirty myrrhs kick in leaving just a hint of cinnamon bark

Dry on me – Warm lightly spiced with a layer of thick myrrh

Overall – Considering that I’m not big on myrrh, I was impressed by this blend, however, I doubt that I’ll keep it

In the bottle – The orange pulp and bright green florals

Wet on me – Predominantly soap with a slight edge of pepper

Dry on me – Sweet soft florals drying down to coffee flavoured sponge cake

Overall – I like this, but I’m not crazy about it and my skin did make it soapy initially. One to contemplate think

In the bottle – Lemongrass, very similar to Concentration

Wet on me – Primarily lemongrass

Dry on me – The woods dominate, soft and spicy

Overall – This isn’t really me, but my mum is a yoga teacher so I’ll see what she makes of it

In the bottle – Wood paint?

Wet on me – It’s hard to put a finger on it. Sweet, milky, with a touch of cinnamon

Dry on me – Very similar to Boomslang, but the very final stage has warmth and spice

Overall – I like this but not as much as I expected to. I think I need to try it a few more times before I can assess it without my expectations counting against it

In the bottle – Red musk and myrrh, dark and brooding

Wet on me – Dry and woody (I would have said cedar if I couldn’t see the notes) with a layer of red musk sitting on top of it

Dry on me – The red musk is predominant with a dirty edge of myrrh which finally softens and sweetens

Overall – Whilst I liked this far more than I expected I don’t see it becoming a favourite

In the bottle – Leather with the familiar Snake Oil backdrop

Wet on me – A back bone of leather with occasional wafts of tonka and sage

Dry on me – Warm, sexy Snake Oil with salty leather to ground it and make it earthy

Overall – Of all the snakes this was the one I anticipated liking most and it did not disappoint. Tombstone mixed with Snake Oil