jehrichardson

In the bottle: Musty grains On the skin: Musty grains, hay, and a touch of an all night bender. After a while: A bit of buttery vanilla pokes through, sweetening it. Still strong on those musty, beery grains. Verdict: Cool concept, well executed. I can't imagine when I'm going to want to smell like boy-who-has-been-on-all-night-bender, but it might be fun to get in the mood before a party. I could see myself wearing this layered with something very feminine, like a sweet musk or a strong rose to truly get that bordello feel. ADDED Nov. 29: Wow... beery, grainy, and a bit bitter. I'm getting strong banana tones too. On the skin it starts to mellow out a bit, the weird banana tone fades a bit and I start getting hay/straw. Barley. Beer. That's it. Interesting fragrance, and nice, but I'm not sure I'm going to want to smell like this though. Smells a bit like a bender gone bad to me. We'll see if aging mellows this out - otherwise I might try layering it with something astringent like Jabberwocky to try and overpower the weird high notes, so it can just be a soft base. ETA: After a while, this is much less strange on the skin. It gets a rich haylike tone, sweet and deep. Now, I quite like it! I would wear this on its own now.

In the Bottle: Sharp and herbal, with a background of wood and pine. On the Skin: Still very sharp and herbal, a bit more woody/piney aroma. After a While: Fir, Cedar, Pine, Juniper. Quite lovely and woodsy, with a sharp herbal tang, which must be the bitter aloes, sage, and fennel. On a deeeep inhale, I start to get clove - nice and subtle, it so often totally overwhelms its neighbors. Of the saffron, plum, cherry, or grape - I get not a whiff. I'm hoping once the blend ages a bit that may help. This may benefit from an open-bottle rest for a few hours to bleed off some of the bitter and sharp high notes. I'll test with a small sample and see. Verdict: I like it, but I don't love it with an all consuming passion like some. Playing around with aging and open-bottle rest may help mellow it a bit.

In the Bottle: Pepper and tea, sweet and incensy. Just the barest hint of honeywax On the Skin: Pepper and honeywax! Not a spicy pepper though, mellow and smooth. After a While: Pepper honeywax. No floral at all... The tea is subtle, but it always is on me *sigh*. I'm not getting wool, but that's just fine. I'm also not getting the cream, and again that's fine since it usually turns into Yankee Candle var Muffin on me, which I don't like I'm sad to say. Verdict: Quite lovely and unusual, not one of my favorites but it will definitely find a place in the rotation! ADDED Nov. 8: Wet, this is all wool and pepper. Very unusual! As it dries I start to get the waxy notes and some of that creamy sweetness. The faintest floral note then appears, but it is mainly musty wooly pepper. This is unusual, and pleasant, but I'm just not sure that I like it. Perhaps aging with mellow this out a bit.

In the Bottle: Any English people out there? This smells like the fruit for Christmas Cake - raisins and rum and spices and citrus. Mmmmm! *slurp* Just kidding on the *slurp*, but I'm seriously tempted. On the Skin: Mint and Pine and a soupcon of Chloraseptic Throat Lozenges. The Christmas Cake is completely gone. After a While: Chloraseptic and pine. Nice, but not a wowzer. Verdict: Seriously? Christmas Cake room scent? Bring it on! I'll not be wearing this one but will liberally splash the proverbial halls with it for that wee bit of extra Christmas cheer. Plus, it might come in handy if I get a cold. ETA: Wow, it changed again! See below: After a While Longer: Christmas Cake and a bit of chloraseptic - just enough to be nice. Verdict: Lovely! I adore it, just have to tough it out through 20 minutes of a sore throat in a piney wood - worth it though. Yum!! As a side note, also smells nice when accidentally layered with Aizen-Myoo.

In the Bottle: Sweet and rich and delicious, but not foody. Reminds me of Shalimar by Guerlain - exotic, spicy, and smooth. Very sexy. Tiny backnote of coffee. On the Skin: Same as above, but the notes coalesce - sweet tobacco leaf, a bit of woods, a tiny bit of the bite of bpal honey, and that ambery backnote that is so distinctive in bpal. After a While: Softer, sweeter, smoother, richer. Woods and spices and tobacco leaf with a honeybite. I don't get any rose. Verdict: Absolutely gorgeous.

In the bottle: Sweet and rich - nicotiana, blood musk, and amber. Very pretty! On the skin: Ooh.. goes a bit weird, amber comes forth and khus (which always seems to revert to bug spray on me) and a definite whiff of charred wood. After a while: Bug spray, charred wood, leaves, and nicotiana. Curiously, this is a pretty accurate smell of camping! I just wish there wasn't the bug spray . Verdict: Going to have to retest later - but it appears that I've got confirmation that khus = vetiver = bug spray on me. I like this in the bottle, so this may have to be a room scent.

In the Bottle: Green green grass - juicy summertime lawn. On the Skin: Ah... grass, and the unmistakeable deep earthiness of autumn leaves. After a While: Grass fades a touch, leaves remain with a touch of an earth backnote Verdict: This is the smell of 'why of course I've been doing yardwork, why do you ask?" It is unusual and a very nice juxtaposition of earthy leaf and fresh green grass. Intriguing blend - I like it very much!! Caveat: It is very light and fades quickly (after ten minutes I can barely find it, but I did spend ten minutes with nose firmly planted in elbow, so that might not have helped), but has a good throw when fresh. ETA Some Time Later: I just put this on today to mow the lawn. It is slightly dusted with the first crispy leaves of fall, and smelled exactly like this scent - it was wonderful. I came in and reapplied to bask in the "I just mowed the lawn" glow. I think this will be a great comfort in the depths of winter when you look out the window and wonder how and if it will all ever come to life again. *sigh*

In the Bottle: Dry and dusty leather with a bit of a tangy back note. There's a bit of dirt in there... this is not warm supple oiled leather, but cracked and put away wet. Weird! On the Skin: The same dry and dusty leather, but with a touch of the warmth of musk in there. After a While: The leather fades, and a distant and cool musk remains. Verdict: I really like this - it doesn't have the deliciousness of the musk in Galvanic Goggles , it's darker, dryer, and more remote. It's a keeper, and I'm going to save it for days when I need to channel my inner badass.

In the Imp: Sweetgrass! I didn't realize that I knew what that smelled like... On the Skin: Almost boozy - sweetgrass and sunshine, fermenting hay and breezes. After a While: Barn on a hot day in a drought. Verdict: Very nice - a great concept fragrance, but I can't see myself wanting to wear this regularly. You know, just on those days when I want to smell like barn. Hot dry barn.

In the Imp: Boozy, Leathery, and sweet. Very nice! On the Skin: Tobacco and sweet leather - the boozy note fades, and I'm sure the tonka is the sweetness I'm sensing. After a While: Smoky dark and dirty, but a bit sweet too. Verdict: Absolutely awesome.

In the Imp: Sweet floral and oranges! On the Skin: Oranges oranges oranges! After a While: Faint - soapy florals and oranges. Verdict: Quite lovely! Will need a retest when my fall allergies have passed as it was quite faint. I think I like it!

In the Imp: Spicy and complex woods. Very nice! On the Skin: Softer and sweeter musky woods. After a While: Musky floral with an undertone of woods. Verdict: Gorgeous! Really like!

In the Imp: Faint faint leather. Aromatic and light. Very pleasant. On the Skin: Citrus and leather... faint After a While: So faint.. but lovely. Citrus and leather with some of the crispness of tea. The part of tea that smells like rose? It's ever so barely in there. I'm not really getting bergamot and that's a-ok with me as I can't claim to be a fan. Verdict: I love it. Want more. Mmm.

In the Imp: Vanilla and honey - powerful!! On the Skin: Overpowering vanilla and honey with a generous helping of butter. Wow is this strong. After a While: Vanilla butter candle. Verdict: Nah... not my bag, baby.

In the Imp: Sweet sweet booziness! On the Skin: Dirty and boozy. Sweetness in there too. Some of the florals starting to rear up. A bit of musky leather mellowing it all out. After a While: The booze is gone, now we are left with floral musky leather. Verdict: This is lovely! Kinda smells a bit dirty, but good dirty. Like well loved leather gloves that are stained with perfume.

In the Imp: Orange and grape and roses - complex, sweet and pretty. On the Skin: Grape Kool-Aid with some musty back notes - the rosemary and orange flower I think. After a While: The grape kool-aid is fading, and there is a lovely, complex sweet floral herby mixture. Very well blended. Very nice! I'm not really getting lemon and mint, but my allergies are bad today so I can't smell terribly well, and this is really well blended. Verdict: I'm surprised to find any deliberate grape notes in this - as far as I know, grape spirit is like grappa, highly alcoholic and not at all grapey. To find literal grape fruit notes in here is weird, but they pass very quickly. This, after two minutes, turns into a delightful and sophisticated scent. I really like it!! Mmm!

In the Imp: All oranges and honey! Weird... orange blossom doesn't usually smell of oranges to me. On the Skin: Delicious. Must not lick the bpal. Mmmm. Oranges and Honey. After a While: Aha! Here's the rose - oranges, roses, and honey... wow. Verdict: Spectacular, I deeply covet a bottle of this. Mmmm!

In The Imp: Barely smells of dusty dry roses. On the Skin: Overly sweet - like rotting roses, fermenting juice, and honey. Odd... really not getting much rose from this. After a While: Ah, there we go - nice sweet, soft rose. Background notes of raisin and prune (don't ask me how!). This is delicate, with low throw. Verdict: I love rose. It amps all over the place on me, and I really don't mind. This is softer... it's lovely. Not certain that it's my omigod rose, but I'll enjoy the imp.

In the Imp: I'm excited for this one - I love pine, tomato leaf, and cedar!! OO... I can smell the pine and cedar very well blended, and the green tomato leaf behind it all. Very very nice! On the Skin: Pine and cedar mostly, but just a bit of sweet green in there. After a While: Cedar, tomato leaf, and pine. Very consistent! I didn't get much cranberry (but I did get a bit!), but I wasn't particularly excited about that note so that's no biggie. Verdict: Likes. Likes much. Wants. Wants lots.

In the Imp: Flowery and sweet and incensy. Complex and lovely. On the Skin: Not just flowery, but floral. Make that Floral. Big f. I get a bit of fruity sweetness in the back, and a heady whiff of incense. After a While: Soapy. srsly. I'm wondering if this is my allergies, because this week EVERYTHING is soapy or gross. I actually clunked an entire order - nothing smelled good. Has got to be the schnoz. Might have to lay off stalking bpal for a month until this clears up. Verdict: Soap, but the theory is excellent. Am going to have to retest. May consider a nose replacement... think it would help?

In the Imp: Sharp dusty woods with warm musky goodness. Masculine and lovely! Almost a touch of patchouli in there. On the Skin: Sweet dry and musky. Mm I like. *wachoo* Sneezed. Don't know if it's related. After a While: Musty musky and low profile and sweet. This is gorgeous! Verdict: I really like this - I don't know if it's big bottle worthy, but I'm definitely going to keep track of the imp

In the Imp: Strong soapy general floral note. Does not have that warm honey smell of pansies. On the skin: WOW.. Helluva throw on this one - put a tiny drop on my thumb and it's so strong it's leaving a soapy taste in my mouth. Very intense floral with green notes. After a while: Strong persisent floral. Quite nice smelling, but too strong for my tastes. Verdict: Lovely, but too floral.

In the Imp: Faint cinnamon and woods... like cinnamon sticks in a wooden box. On the Skin: Faint candy cinnamon. After While: Faint candy cinnamon, but the woods are back. Verdict: Nah. I don't like cinnamon much. Felt honour-bound to try it as it was a generous frimp (thanks!!). I'll give it another go in a few weeks. Perhaps the situation will improve.

In the Imp: Faint rose and leather. Wow. On the Skin: Strong rose and leather. Wow. After a While: Strong rose and leather. Wow. Almost turns a bit soapy, which is odd for me, as rose doesn't tend to do that. Verdict: Wow. Weird. I love it! Also, who doesn't just LOVE that description??

In the Imp: Incredible tangy citrus! Reminds me (like so many others) of Calyx by Prescriptives. It is bright and tart and gorgeous! On the Skin: Strong citrus still, with the addition of just a note of bitterness to temper it. A bit of floral in the background. Mmm! The citrus is really grapefruity, though I know it is yuzu. After a While: Citrus, with just the barest bit of tealike depth and blossom notes. Verdict: Big bottle is on the way - this is GORGEOUS.