puck_nc

Origin: Ordered the 3-imp pack with a decant circle. Initial Thoughts: Every once in a while I get a whopper of a headache (though without the starry vision or nausea of a full migraine). Since I wanted the sinus relief Oof, I went ahead and got the pack. In the vial: Very bracing, chilly peppermint. I think I also get a bit of eucalyptus as well. Wet: Skin contact warms up the peppermint quite a bit and it develops a quiet background of herby quality. Drydown: Not a whole lot of morphing. But after several deep inhales, the stress headache after an afternoon of rushing from meeting to meeting to meeting is a little less there. If I were to apply on my temples and rest a bit it would probably knock the pain out. Alas, I have to fetch the child instead. Verdict: Glad to have the imp and we'll see if a bottle becomes necessary.

Origin: Ordered the 3-imp pack with a decant circle Initial Thoughts: Having suffered allergies most of my life, I get sinus issues on a regular basis. I've had this on my must-try list for ages. In the vial: As others have said, very prominent menthol and eucalyptus. It feels a little lighter and smoother in the "after-inhale" when I'd be dealing with a bit of burn or harshness. My impression is that there's another herb or two working in the background. Wet: The harshness is cut a bit more being on my skin and it seems to be a more soothing scent, stronger on the eucalyptus. Drydown: It doesn't morph much, but it does sink in and become less strong of a scent. When I first opened it I was worried that I might not be able to use it at work, it seemed so strong. The drydown lessens that fear - very low throw. Verdict: I can definitely see myself using this on sniffly and stuffy days.

Origin: Bought in person at Dragon*Con Initial Thoughts: I have loved a number of the Lab's bath oils, using them as after-shower moisturizers for the most part since our tub isn't really adult-sized. When the notes are right I love the silkiness it brings to my skin and the scents that last all day. Sweet peach was never in question - I had to try this. In the Bottle: Beautiful golden peaches dripping in sweetness. When I sniffed at Dragon*Con my first thought was honey. Sniffing this morning, I agree that it's more sugar than honey. On the skin: I also get a buttery note that nudges the scent toward foody. And I am totally okay with that. Verdict: I am so very glad to have this and will probably be on the lookout for more turning up on Etsy or eBay.

Origin: Bought in person at Dragon*Con Initial Thoughts: This was the one D*C Peach exclusive that immediately made my hands go grabby. No death notes, no iffy notes, just sweet and floral goodness. In the Bottle: Peach, honey and tea in a gorgeous balance. Wet: Heavy on the honey and the neroli comes out of nowhere to take over. It's a rich creamy floral at this stage, but I await further developments. Drydown: The peach and tea re-emerge, and I get the rare experience of being able to detect every note listed. The result is almost like a heavily-sweetened hot cup of peach tea. It's gently romantic and yet soothing at the same time. Verdict: I'm very glad I got a bottle. Tempted to get a spare tomorrow if nothing else speaks to me.

Origin: Frimp from the Lab Initial Thoughts: I'm going to guess that either the rose, the red sandalwood, or the violet leaf has prevented me from seeking this out. Let's see if I was right. In the Vial: Rich, deep, and floral, with the zing of jasmine and the underlying hint of water. Wet: The lemon erupts and immediately after comes the currant. What was a rich floral is now thinner and frutier. Drydown: The sandalwood comes out to tame the tartness of the lemon, and then keeps coming as sandalwood often does on my skin. At the moment it's a lovely faceted sandalwood scent, but I can't get a clear impression of my favorite florals, jasmine and wisteria. Verdict: My instinct was right. The sandalwood amped. I'll toss this in with one of my current eBay lots.

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: It's a floral single note that isn't rose or violet. It must be tried. In the Bottle: A very viny-green light floral with a pronounced sweetness. Comparing it to some of the other florals that strike me as related, it's much lighter and more pink than Evening Stock and greener or slightly more citrus-y than Sweet Alyssum. Wet: Ooh! I get a lovely burst that is almost like sugared fruit! My first thought was strawberry, but that could be due to the pink impression. Right now it's light and sweet and a very cheerful scent. Drydown: The greeny side has come back to temper the sugary feel of the flower. Still a light, spring-like scent but not quite so happy as before. Verdict: A pity the wet stage doesn't stick, because then it's gorgeous on me. It's still pretty and I expect I'll be playing with combinations on this one.

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: I love carnation, like coconut, and learned that Maid of Orleans is jasmine, which sometimes works for me. If only the fruits will behave... In the Bottle: Cinnamon, coconut and mango are at the forefront, but they're clashing rather than blending. It's a bit sour and musty. Wet: I'm getting mostly mango and maybe a little coconut, but that off-putting sourness is still there. Drydown: That's better. The sourness has faded and in its wake is a very lovely, mildly fruity blend of coconut and florals. It skates toward suntan-lotion territory but doesn't get close enough to the edge. It's a summery, slightly musky-sexy scent. Verdict: Glad I took a chance!

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: I do like the smell of fresh dandelions, faint as it is. In the Bottle: Holy...I have never gotten such a wonderfully strong dandelion scent, not even with a dozen bunched into my hand. The greeny sweetness of dandelion is just perfect in the bottle. Wet: VERY green, but not the usual florist-shop green stem or the green stem that would quickly go hideous on me if this were a rose note. The green is a bit warmer and carries just a hint of the dandelion. Drydown: The greeniness fades, which ought to leave room for the dandelion. And the dandelion is back, though something about my skin seems to be making it a little musty. It's nowhere near the ickiness that I've had happen with rose and violet, but it's definitely no longer the true gloriousness of the dandelion in the bottle. Verdict: I think I'm going to try this again and see if there's something I can do to get that dandelion on my skin. No matter what there will be some scent locket action with this.

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: The Single Notes are back to an extent. I'm gonna be trying any floral that isn't rose or violet. In the Bottle: A floral, but a floral with a very, very decided lemon-citrus tone to it. Wet: Extremely lemony, but for once it's the scent of a true fresh lemon and not the chemical-ish Lemon Pledge. It's pleasant, but definitely not what I was expecting. Drydown: The lemon fades quite a bit, but unfortunately what's left in its wake strikes me as a very faint, wilted and muddled version of what violet does on my skin. It's not the acrid stank of violet, but it's not a pretty flower or a pretty fresh lemon. Verdict: Pity I can't capture the wet stage and keep it forever, because it is truly lovely at that point. But my chemistry will not play nicely with it.

Origin: frimp from the Lab Initial Thoughts: I never ordered this one because of musks and wasabi and not knowing what mastic was. When looking at the review thread again to remind me what the notes were, I noticed that the first couple of reviews said "floral" because of the heliotrope. So I opened the imp and sniffed. In the Vial: Rich, sexy flowers with a shot of green spice. Must try! Wet: A blast of very heavy, sweet flowery heliotrope. Drydown: Well, there's definitely musk in here because it's amping, darn it. I can often handle white/pale/blue musk, but whatever this is seems to be teetering on the spectrum toward red/dark. It's not completely taking over the scent - I can still smell the heliotrope and probably the wasabi if I try hard, but they're not the star. Verdict: The imp might get some scent-locket action, but I won't need a bottle.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: Blue musk is a musk I can usually wear without the amp of doom. I love night-blooming jasmine and morning glory. White sandalwood ought to behave. A lot of these notes make me think of Kindly Moon for some reason, a scent that I enjoy wearing with its blue overtones. In the Vial: Hm. Something floral, either the tuberose or the morning glory or maybe the herbs, is smelling sour or at least leaf-stem green. Wet: More floral notes, all with that high greeny tang to them. The musk and sandalwood are behaving inasmuch as they aren't amping and mowing down all the other notes in their path. Drydown: The greeniness goes away, leaving a scent that seems to be all about gentleness: gentle florals, gentle musk, gentle sandalwood. But the musk and sandalwood are finally edging out the other scents. Verdict: I'll play with the decant a bit more, but probably not something I'd get a bottle of.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: I love vanilla. I like some woodsy scents. This was something of a shot in the dark. In the Vial: Very woodsy and a bit of vanilla. It's a cool scent, like the chill of a dark forest when you work your way in far enough. Wet: Wood and more wood. The vanilla, if any, is deep inside the scent. Drydown: The vanilla emerges, but remains a quiet presence behind the wood notes. It's working more to soften and sweeten the other notes rather than take over. Verdict: Pleasant, but I honestly don't see myself reaching for it much. We'll see if the decant gets used up.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: There are so few magnolia scents out there that work on me, I'll try almost any of them. While there are no death notes in this for me, there are scents that I tend to avoid, like the bergamot and lemon. In the Vial: Very heavy on the sandalwood and cardamon, almost to the point of smelling like an old-fashioned men's cologne. Wet: On my skin the magnolia comes surging out briefly, which makes me happy. Then very quickly the sandalwood does its amping thing on me; I was hoping yellow would be a pale enough sandalwood not to misbehave so. Drydown: The bergamot develops, though the lemon peel never really comes out like I was expecting. I do understand the classic-perfume feel others have described, though it stays on the masculine side to my nose. Verdict: I would have no objection to a classic-perfume scent if it had a lot of magnolia. Unfortunately this one doesn't on my skin.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: This sounded like it might be an interesting scent on my husband. But I'll try it on as well. In the Vial: Tea and very lilac. Masculine, but delicate. My initial thought is a version of Dorian for the hottest summer days. Wet: Huh. I have no idea where it's coming from, but I'm getting an almost lemony tang from this. No licorice, tea or lilac on first contact. Drydown: The tea comes out, but it's very lemony tea. Unfortunately something is also making my skin sting a bit. I remember occasionally reacting as such to a really strong cinnamon blend. Maybe it's the licorice? Verdict: I'll try it on the husband, but definitely not for me.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: Shot in the dark. Peppermint is good and I can probably do white myrrh in the way I can do white musk. This is a chance to see whether ambergris is too much on the "dark" side of the scale for me. In the Vial: A strongly masculine scent, overlaid with peppermint. Interesting. May have to try it on the husband. Wet: Minty and musky and a bit aquatic. It definitely smells like a guy's scent to my nose. Drydown: The mint calms down a little and now I'm getting a rather strong scent memory of my grandpa's collection of colognes when I was growing up. Not quite so aquatic. Verdict: Definitely not something I will wear, but I will try the decant on the other half and see whether he likes it enough to order. Given that he still has 7/8 of a bottle of Dorian since I first bought it years ago, I'll bet not.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: I have a couple of strawberry scents I love and the occasional sweet/candy scent. The rose worries me, but perhaps rose sugar won't go icky-collard-greens on me. In the Vial: Extremely sweet vanilla marshmallow with a hint of strawberry. This is definitely going into a scent locket. Wet: The rose surges, but at least at first it's not going icky. It's surrounded by clouds of sweetness. Drydown: Dammit! The icky green is there - not as strongly stinky as I've experienced in blends that include the flower note, but it's enough to taint the whole thing. If it would only behave, I'd probably have a delicious marshmallow strawberry scent right now. Verdict: Well, the decant will get used up in my scent locket. We'll see if I use it often enough to justify a bottle or simply keep an eye out for more decants.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: With the carnation, honeysuckle, and jasmine, this one is hitting a lot of my favorites. In the Vial: A burst of floral, but there's a thread of something that makes me pause. I don't think it's the grape, but it's a sweet note that is at the same time cloying. Wet: That thread is there for just a second, then melts into the lush bunch of florals. It is indeed effervescent, it's sweet, and bubbly as if flowers could make champagne. Drydown: This has settled down into a lovely lightly greeny spring floral. The "purple" for me is light and airy, rather than deep and commanding. Verdict: As I hoped, this one will be a bottle purchase.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: This was another "what the heck" try. I love lavender but I don't love lemon. In the Vial: Very bright lemon with an undertone of the lavender. Wet: Oh, darn. The first waves are going chemical on my skin and at the moment it's lemon furniture polish. Here's hoping that calms down. Drydown: Well, thank goodness, the chemical-ness calms down. In its wake there is lemon and lavender. The one thing I'm not getting is the sugar. It's a very herbal, green scent on me. Verdict: Not sure I'd use a bottle of this one, but I might keep the decant.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: Why the heck not? All that fruit and foody is not normally my thing, but I was getting a bunch of decants anyway. What was one more? In the Vial: Lime. Lots of it. I can tell that the other notes are in there somewhere, but the lime is strong. It's almost like a strawberry margarita or daiquiri sniffed above the lime wedge. And now I want a drink. Wet: The sweet of cotton candy emerges to play with the citrus. It's a sugary jumble of candy and fruit. Drydown: Soft sweet candy with yummy fruit undertones. The only thing that is keeping this from being an instant bottle purchase is because it has so little throw. I am having to mash my wrist to my nose to get a whiff. Verdict: Must ponder whether the fast fade is worth the lovely scent.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: Love gardenia. Have had success with rice in some of the oriental scents. Honey musk is iffy. I have no preconception of orris. In the Vial: Whoever said "baby" above nailed it. A sweet baby in the bath, all clean and soapy. A very comforting scent. I'm highly likely to keep this for scent-locket purposes alone if it doesn't like my skin. Wet: For a brief moment it's all soap, and then the gardenia comes out. The honey musk starts chasing it, but I'm not getting the usual amp-to-extremes reaction that musk often causes on me. While it's not quite as pure innocence as it was in the bottle, it's still a very fresh and pure scent image. Drydown: I'm not sure how to describe how it settles down on my skin. I can detect the honey musk. I can detect the gardenia. I'm sensing a comforting creamy undertone that is probably the rice milk. Overall there's not a lot of throw, making this a potential good work scent. Verdict: This one goes on the potential bottle list.

Origin: decant circle by Absinthetics Initial Thoughts: I have several apple scents that I enjoy, like Glittering Apple of the Stars, Snow Glass Apples, and Punkie Night. This sounded like it could be a similar scent to Glittering Apple, which I only have one bottle of right now. In the Vial: Heh, this is pretty much a Golden Delicious apple in the vial, with the sweet and the tart playing tag. Wet: Ah, the musk is apparently on the darker side of the scale, because here comes the amp. However, there is still an apple-y undertone as the musk washes over all. Drydown: Darn. Something is going a little nasty somewhere in here, causing a bit of rankness. On me it's mostly musk and some apple and that unpleasant trace of whatever. Verdict: I might keep the decant for scent locket purposes, but I have other apple scents that like my skin better.

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: As long as it's not rose or lily, I will try almost any predominantly floral blend that Beth makes. In the Bottle: This is divinely pretty. Sweet and rich and floral and I keep opening the bottle for another sniff. It suggests a carpet of lovely flowers on a day that is warm but not quite tipping the balance into hot. If it doesn't work well on me I'll probably keep the bottle just to put this in a scent locket. Wet: There is a faint trace of artificiality or plastic and some of the green in the floral comes to the surface. If this were a rose scent, this would be the point where the scent not only went green, but stinky-cooked-collards green on me. It's not at all that bad here, but it is harshing my squee over the bottle scent a bit. Darn my skin chemistry. Drydown: The green note backs off and lets the flowers come back in. The sweetness isn't coming quite back to the level it was in the bottle, but it doesn't have to in order to be swoon-worthy. A lush carpet of flowers that fades enough to cling to my skin but not much more, making it an excellent candidate for wearing to work. Verdict: There's just enough of that honeyed undertone that it feels like it might be close enough to sub for my beloved wisteria single note. I'll have to pull out my precious half-imp and try them side by side. Very glad to have this bottle.

Origin: Straight from the Lab Initial Thoughts: Flowers that aren't rose or violet, check. Mint, check. Thyme, inoffensive. I'm iffy about the redcurrant but have some scents where it works very well. In the Bottle: Cool and minty white florals. A bit of an impression of the chilly air in the spring or fall as the seasons are beginning to turn to or away from winter and that sun is rising in the east without bringing any heat with the light. Wet: The tea or something is lending itself to the family of notes that amps on me. The first burst is lightly musky, but not in the dark side of the spectrum that usually turns way too strong. Drydown: The redcurrant that I was worried about seems to be a mellow and very subtle undertone, making the flowers seem all the prettier. Where in the bottle it was a cool spring wind it is now a warmer spring wind and promising fascination to anyone who crosses the wall next to Wall and into Faerie. Verdict: The only thing holding me back from saying this one's a certainty is that my skin is itching a bit where I applied it. I'll try again just in case it's me and not the perfume.

Origin: Frimp from the Lab Initial Thoughts: I have managed not to sniff this GC scent even after years of BPALing because I saw the name and assumed it was one of the graveyard/earth/dirt scents I don't care for, without once reading the description. Silly me. In the Imp: Clean linen-y white florals. Very fresh. Wet: A sweetness joins the fray, making me think a little of my beloved wisteria. Drydown: Hm. There would seem to be the faintest trace of rose in this, as a skanky green undertone has developed. Pity, because it's just enough to bother me. Verdict: This one is off to the swap/sell pile.

Origin: Straight from the Lab. Initial Thoughts: I am an all-florals-all-the-time type of perfume consumer. I love gardenia to bits. The only thing that worries me is the foody notes taking over. It's a rather hot day here - when I first pulled the bottle out of its wrapper and held it to my nose, all I could smell was a heavy sweet baked note. In the Bottle: Tea and biscuits, indeed. I'm not getting even an iota of floral from the bottle. Rich, incredibly strong and sweet tea with a pastry beside it. Wet: At first it's yet more tea, tea, tea, sweet enough for the spoon to stand in. And then the glorious gardenia starts to fight its way to the top. Drydown: And the gardenia promptly fades again. All I'm getting after half an hour is tea and biscuits. This makes me sad. Verdict: I'll give it a couple of days and try once more, but if all I'm left with is foody then this bottle will need to find a new home.