thekittenkat

In the decant: Getting whiffs of the sage and the oakmoss, with a touch of myrrh, and something dark, probably the musk. Wet:The tobacco comes into play, and perhaps the hemp. The dry-down: In the end, all the notes mentioned before combine into a lovely blend that's not too sweet or too dark. I think that the oakmoss is keeping the vetiver firmly in check.

This is for the 2011 version. In the bottle: A rose dipped in mint-scented water. This doesn't bode well, alas. Wet: Minty-fresh plastic rose. The dry-down: Now, mostly mint, with a hint of a tea rose, and the aquatic note returning. This is very strange. In previous versions of Red Rose, I never experienced a mint note before, just cold water with rose stems (except for the lovely 2010).

In the bottle: Fresh, light, airy. Wet: A slight hint of a white metal and something sweet like a berry. The dry-down: The metallic note has disappeared, only to be replaced by a faint evergreen note. The ozone and the berry are giving this a light and slight fruity-sweet air. I like this a lot, and remember it somewhat from a DSWC, what, two years ago now? At any rate, I remember liking the ozone note and knew that I would want to test this when it was officially released. May have to pick up a back-up, as I like it that much. A light slightly sweet scent that stays close to the skin.

In the decant: Patch softened by the tea and the balsam. Wet: And there's the carrot seed! The dry-down: And we're back to what I sniffed from the little wand--patch with tea and balsam. Those two notes have tamed the patch into a rather mild scent, not at all what I was expecting. Was hoping for more patch than anything else.

There are few things more disturbing than a Jack in the Box. A strangely sinister, unnerving holiday scent: redwood, bitter clove, tonka, hemp accord, and tobacco with peach blossom, black currant, and red musk. Note that this is for the 2011 version. In the decant: So well-blended that it's difficult to pick out notes, but overall I would say it was a woody scent tempered with something fruit-sweet. Wet: A fruity wood. The dry-down: The clove arrives, and it is bitter. There's also hints of the peach blossom, currant, and musk, but only hints, which is interesting, as those notes usually are very front and center on me. A strange morphing scent that will probably work better on the bf.

In the decant: Mostly vetiver, but not as loud as in Yule Cat. Wet: The vetiver has calmed down, but the rose is going sharp, powdery and sour. Not a good surprise, mind you. The dry-down: Well, that's different! This has morphed into a pleasant tea rose scent, but with vetiver lurking in the depths. It's as though I had dabbed The Rose on top of Yule Cat. Strange. Will see what ages does with this.

In the bottle: Getting hints of all the notes. If this was a real tea, I would like to try it. Wet: A nice tea scent, but the blasted licorice (did I say how much I dislike anise?) is trying to take over. The dry-down: A light pleasant tea scent, with just a hint of sweetness. It's more fantastic in the bottle, and I don't like the wet phase, so this will have to become a scent locket scent. The bear on the label is amusing, but the writing at the top of the label is very difficult to read, even in rather bright light. If you know anything about heraldry (a student of medieval history or a SCAdian, for example), you will know that colours on colours and metals on metals as shades or tinctures on the coats of arms were prohibited by the various College of Arms. There's a good reason for that, as there's not enough contrast.

In the bottle: Dirt and lilac. Wet: Still a lilac-scent fresh turned soil. The dry-down: As this dries, there's faint hints of moss, blood, and something sharpish that might be the citrus. It's not bad, but not really me. But it was for the bf, anyhow. The dirt note is still present, but the lilac scent, I suppose one could call it aftershave, is becoming a bit more obvious. The oil, btw, is dark, like dirt.

Note that this is for the 2011 release. In the bottle:Light cake soaked in a delicate white wine. Wet:The olive leaf comes forward to give this warmth, and there's a hint of the pom. The dry-down:And just like last year's scent, the myrrh and frank are late to the party, but in a gentle and lovely fashion. All the notes are present and blend very well together. Do like this a lot.

Note that this is for the 2011 version. In the decant: Warm sweet sugared butter, somewhat melted. Alas, I am feeling like this might turn out like Jack (one of the few scents ever that I had to wash off as it was rancid butter). Wet: Cinnamon and a citrus note, not unlike lemon zest, show up. This is a cool scent now. The dry-down: An incredible morpher, this one. A bit like an allspice-flavoured cookie/biscuit. Very light. And yet, when I put my nose close to my arm, there's just a hint of that nasty butter note that might be turning rancid.

In the bottle: A light musk with mint and camphor. Wet: A sweet note, probably from the niaouli, is now present. The dry-down: The sweetness is slowly fading away, and the white musk (more a skin musk) is left, along with the mint. The camphor has disappeared, mostly, and the frankincense is only lightly there. The icy scent turns towards the sunny feeling of the carrot seed. The beginning stages of this remind me of Moon of Ice. But that scent stayed cool on my skin, whereas this softens and warms.

In the decant: I get the sage and the sandalwood, mostly. Wet: Much as when sniffed. The dry-down: Sage and sandalwood, with a good hit of the oakmoss and olive blossom--they give a sort of golden warming feel. The cedar and boneflower never made an appearance. I don't mind lack of boneflower, but I do miss the cedar. Like this, but it's mostly a skin scent that I had to slather.

In the decant: Dried out gingerbread with some candy hanging around. Wet: Much like the sniff test, but with a stronger presence. The dry-down: Wow, the candies really came out to play, but not in a nice way, alas. I love gingerbread. But the Lab's gingerbread note never seems to work on me, and I really want it to. Two hours later: The candies became better, rather sweet and a bit spicy. Not much gingerbread at all is left. This isn't bad now, but it took too long to get there, and the lack of gingerbread makes me a bit sad.

In the bottle: One whiff of the cap and I'm getting all the notes. Very powerful. Wet: Sweet berries and a nice medium rose. The dry-down: The incense notes are rising through the blend, but the berries and the florals are still lovely in their presence. I like this a lot.

THOOS Swift Tangerine, cypress, and white musk. When I first opened the bottle, and took a sniff, the tangerine was the only note present. It's a wonderful note, and I'm always glad to see it in a BPAL oil. It smells just like a freshly unzipped tangerine, only condensed into a little amber bottle. Once applied to the skin, the musk and cypress come out to play from where-ever they were hiding. They keep the citrus in check, so that one doesn't smell just like they just finished eating a tangerine. As this dries down, the fruit note is not so dominant any more; in fact, all three notes blend well together, with the result being greater than the sum of its parts. (I noticed the same fading away and blending of the tangerine note in Lilith vs. the Giant Crab, even though that was a tangerine cream.) Right now, I'm getting a little more cypress out of the blend than anything else. If you liked Lilith vs. the Giant Crab, but wanted something lighter and not so sweet, do give Thoos a try.

In the bottle: There's the cool ozone note, and a subtle green note that must be the lichen. Wet: Once it hits my skin, the lichen becomes sharper and brighter. The dry-down: The lichen has almost a pine note now. The oil feels cool on my skin (how does Beth do that!?), which is lovely. I think, however, that my wonky skin chemistry doesn't do right by this, and I may just put it in the scent locket or put it on my hair. Still not sure what depth hoar is, but I think that it might be permafrost, or hoarfrost.

In the bottle: Ozone, a little pine, a little stone or rock, perhaps granite. Wet: Bam! All pine, all the time! The dry-down: This warms up over a period of time, the pine mellows out some, and there's a hint of honey and some sort of red berry. It's certainly a morpher! The pine is the only consistent note. At some point I would like to compare this to Skadi and also Ice Queen. ETA: I have totally fallen in love with this scent. I adore the way it morphs from the ice cold to the piney forest to the honeyed berries. I ordered back-ups. I hope it returns at every Yule-tide.

Note that this is a cold sniff review. It smells much like the bath oil once I put the bath oil on my skin: honey, pumpkin, and lots of cinnamon. I think that I'll be passing along my 1/2 slice of the soap and my decant of the bath oil to my sweetie; he doesn't have issues with the cinnamon. It does smell gorgeous, though.

Light green apples, not like a tart Granny Smith, though. I can detect some florals and a hint of grass. This will be perfect for spring and summer. (Note that this is a cold sniff review.)

SUGAR SKULL Vibrant with the joy and sweetness of life in death! A blend of five sugars, lightly dusted with candied fruits. Hard to believe that no one had reviewed this. It's gorgeous, and smells like a lighter version of my aged bottle of Sugar Skull. This is just from a cold sniff, but it's going in the bathroom right away.

This is just a cold sniff review. If you like this year's Samhain scent, the soap is a must. It smells exactly like Samhain. Can't wait to use it in the shower.

Note: I use the bath oils as an after-shower/bath lotion. In the decant: Liquid sugar. Wet: Now it's becoming lemon sugar. The dry-down: Getting more and more like Lemon Pledge. ETA: Much further into the dry-down, the lemon note burns away, and just leaves a beautiful sugar scent.

Note: I only use the bath oils as a body lotion. In the decant: Honey and pumpkin! Wet: Smells good, but I think there's cinnamon in here, because something is burning a little on back of my hand, and the bf can smell it, also. Mostly I can still smell the honey and pumpkin. The dry-down: Still a lovely honey and pumpkin scent. Not really getting oatmeal or stout.

When first sprayed, seems a minty pom. But then it slowly changes to a white rose (and other pale florals) aquatic with mint. It seems that I would use this more in the late winter or early spring when frost could still appear. Certainly a cool note over all.

In the bottle: Sweet, pine, smoke, candy, and dirt. Wet: Lots and lots of pine and snow! The dry-down: Still lots of pine, but hints of that candy sweetness. I'm hoping that some aging will tone down the major pine note, and bring out more of the notes lurking in the background. Interestingly enough, as the scent dries down, the coolness goes away, and the scent warms up (must be the smoke and woodstove fires coming out).