Invidiana

Alas, the jasmine which my skin turned to cat pee in Nyx, Bayou and New Orleans is back to haunt me again. It's not so strong as in the other three because the myrrh grabs it by the throat, and myrrh comes out gorgeous and sweet and smoky on me, but it's still a hint in the background that bothers me. If I want myrrh, at least I have Midnight Mass on the way

I think I have painfully come to realize that jasmine in large doses is not my friend. After trying to root out what made Bayou and New Orleans turn to cat pee on me, this is the only logical conclusion. This one, too, unfortunately takes on the cat pee tinge. Even in blends that don't work on me, I can understand the artistry of Beth's interpretation, but the fact that my skin won't cooperate is nobody's fault.

The first word that came to my mind when I tried this on was "lethal". It's sharp not in a overbearing way but in the sense of striking you like a dagger. It also has a hazy quality that I'm attributing to the mixture of lavender and lilac, both of which easily make me drowsy, and musk. I get a hint of lime/citrus that adds to the "dagger-ness". A great interpretation, but I could never, ever drive a car wearing this stuff.

This stuff is delicious; it's all rich buttered rum with a hint of almond; thankfully no bay leaf came out on me, because I remember when my mother used to put those i n soup sometimes and gaaaaah. It's not just warm but also "warming" in the sense of giving you the illusion you're toastier than you actually are on a bitter winter day, kind of like real rum can do. So cheers to that!

This really is an accurate reflection of the painting--a very hazy, smoky dark floral, not overpowering or too perfumey at all. The "night air" note is what I think is adding that hazy quality, and is beauitfully sinister. I don't do your typical "uber-feminine" florals, so this definitely falls in line with the type of floral fragrances I will wear.

I love this one. It's like frosty winter grapes with a certain resinous sweetness in the background, very winter-berry-ish and very Christmasy. I also detect some evergreen in there. I knew just from reading the notes this would be a winner.

This immeidately makes me think of a greenish mist; it's very hazy and ethereal but at the same time sinister; pretty hard to describe. I think whatever the "bone dust" is has that effect, and coupled with the night-blooming florals and murky mosses it really does evoke a phantom.

I was really, really surprised by this one. I must have about a squillion imps of it, more or less, but always put off trying it because I was afraid it was going to be like headshop incense; it's anything but. It's really deep, dark and surprisingly sweet (though I do have skin that amps sweet notes) with nothing headshop about it. I got a lot of dark vanilla, woods and smoke with a smooth blend of spices. Too bad Lovecraft isn't around to to get a sniff.

This is really appropriate for Queen Mab--it comes out on me as sugared florals and musk, and I swear there could be some vanilla in there but maybe it's just the way the notes combine on my skin. Sweet and ethereal.

I love this because I love berry scents, so obviously it was going to be a winner for me. It's all juicy red berries; I'm not getting much neroli but I don't amp it anyway, and since I always prefer berries over florals I really don't care. Very yummy

This is really beautiful tart sweet and creamy apricot with added depth from the clove. Peach and apricot can sometimes be cloying if made too sweet but this isn' t cloying at all--it's fruity without being in-your-face and has just the right amount of tartness.

Very light and citrusy-fruity with hints of roses and musk. Not really "me", but I can see it being a good spring/summer scent.

I love this one; it reminds me of anise biscotti and candied violets!

YUM. This is the ideal caramel apple scent, hands down. Plenty of rich, creamy, buttery caramel , lots of sugar crystals on top and an apple that thankfully is more Granny Smith than Red Delicious. Omnomnomnom

This is sharp at first, but it dries down until there's plenty of sweet murky clove that mixes beautifully with the pine, which eventually takes a backseat and really lets the clove shine through. The final result is nothing like the pine cleaner I was afraid of at first, but a sweet, spicy and slightly foresty.

This seems like it's going to develop nicely in the beginning, especially with the smoky vetiver, but something--I have no idea what--goes wonky on my skin. I'm guessing one or more of the other notes combining with the vetiver just doesn't work on my body chemistry, though all the listed notes work fine on my skin in other blends. A shame, because I really wanted this one to work.

Cold, slightly sweet, slightly tart and all-out beautiful. I love how the crystalline white musk wraps everything else in an icy scent, and the evergreens, mint and berries are just beautiful. I do get sweetness out of this blend because my skin amps anything sweet, so the berries really show up on me, and do I ever love winter-berry scents. Totally worth it:wub2:

I actually got this by accident instead of Adoration of the Mi-Go, probably because of the "Go" at the end haha. I would have ordered it anyway in my next order, so things will just switch around. I'm so glad it comes out mostly as sweet mint on me, warmed up a bit by what I'm guessing to be white amber with just a hint of flowers in teh background. It's snowy, sweet and charming

This is gorgeous. It comes out so much richer than the note list looks--like juicy red Christmas berries swriling in blasts of snow and ice, which must be the musks speaking, with evergreen boughs in the background. As it dries down the warmth of the sandalwood and amber come through. I'm so glad I took a chance on it, it's a beautiful holiday blend!

This comes out on me as a honeyed lemon, kind of like honey-lemon cough drops (but I really like those so that's not an insult!) I think the frankincense and gum Arabic are to thank for that--they add a golden resinous quality and keep the verbena from getting too sharp.

This is a warm, spicy cocktail of dragon's blood. It starts off a little odd but dries down to this wonderful mix of dragon's blood with evident clove and ginger, and a sweet resinous background. The pepper must be adding that jolt of extra warmth, perfect for winter. Sexy and mysterious. A pleasant surprise!

This one is actually a very sexy Phoenix! Not an overpowering rose blend at all, so for anyone afraid of rose, you should definitely give this a go. It's a harmonious blend of all the notes, one of those in which you can't pick out anything particular but you know it's there. I definitely get the deep dark amber, honey and sweet orange, which isn't very citrusy, as well as the warmth from the cardamom, pink pepper and red sandalwood and just a hint of dark earthiness from the patchouli. The deep resinous sweetness intensifies on me as it dries down. Beautifully done!

I get no wild lettuce at all, which is a relief. That kind of stuff doesn't amp on me anyhow. What I do get is a lovely cozy blend of Christmas tree and sugarplums, warmed up and deepened by the gorgeous resins. There might be just a slight haze of tobacco too, like smoke from a nearby fireplace. Lovely

This is a bit sharp in the beginning, but it dries down into a lovely and relaxing scent. Come to think about it, if you ever look at quicksilver it actually is kind of relaxing to watch it swirl around. The lavender provides a soft base for the slightly spicy cinnabar, and the mastic--that stuff is actually edible by the way, I'm Greek and it's a common thing in Greece to put a spoon with a glob of it in a glass of water and let it half-dissolve and half lick the spoon--provides a smooth sweetness that isn't exactly foody but adds to the comfort factor. This is actually a very good tranquility blend.

Yum, yum YUM, a couple months ago I almost paid top dollar for this on ebay but then let someone else claim it. Me and my bank account are so glad I did, because I get it now anyway! It's fabulous, exactly like Mounds bars laced with peppermint and an additional buttery warmth from the rum (but don't worry, no booze overdose). I want to eat my hand now.