SophieCedar

Huh.. 1st time I tested, the most dominant note was brandy. Second time, petitgrain. Wet: I get a mentholated swift shot up the nostrils. I think the lemon peel tangerine and petitgrain are combining forces. Not as boozy and sweet as the first time. Something is hitting me like pine. Bourbon geranium starts to appear after a while, complicating the matters for me. Drydown: ohhh.. I rubbed it and found the skin musk and patchouli. It seems that if tested and left, without agitation, the citrus forms a barrier. Much more even and sweet now. Still strange and there's a bitter tinge, but complex and intriguing.

Wet: the citrus, orange blossom and lavender are strongest. Very Mediterranean (not that I've been there but representing the culture that's generally promoted via smellies and some foods). Words that come to mind are fragrant, wafting, saturated, succulent, sun-baked. Drydown: There's a strange body to it.. the jasmine and herbs seem to create a meaty smell..? Uhm.. hmm. Well that passes a bit. The jasmine and herbs are just developing and the shift caused some confusion in my snooter. Citrus dries up and lavender seems to as well. I feel like I've moved from the kitchen to the bath! This becomes a lovely warm floral.. I feel like I'm getting a warm hug. Sticks close to the skin and makes my mouth water (dried citrus tends to cause this reaction with me). I didn't expect to love this one (thanks for the frimp, lab!) but I can see this as one of my new comfort scents. ETA: get this if you like Cocktail from LUSH. Very similar citrusy floral jello thing going on.

My nose has a hard time capturing this one because I've been overloading it lately.. The notes are soft and well-blended (of course.. it's a salon scent). Having grown up in Boston and heard the stories of Scollay Sq, I believe this is pretty accurate for the time period it depicts. (Scollay sq was where all the sailors poured in, from the docks. The hill perched behind it was a red light district.. that hill is Beacon Hill, which is now one of the most expensive/luxuriant/well-to-do places to live in Boston... funny how things work.) Anyways... Wet: orris and palm, right off, with oak wood, tobacco, and blue lilac. The lilac seems to twine with the palm, otherwise I think it would just get squashed by woods and booze. The coconut meat is elusive. Drydown: More orris, palm and lilac with pronounced spices from the bay rum. The tobacco sticks around and linen is there as well, giving this a similar feel as Herr Drosselmeyer, but with an added layer of fresh green, spice, and floral. Very nice. I can't wait until my nose is in better shape, so I can fully smell this one.

I'm also in a decant circle for this one but still got a bottle. The lab hit this one dead on. Wet: Most prominent are red musk, black pepper, and pie. I'm really not good with pepper, but this isn't oppressive, just notable, and provides a playful bite. Vanilla cream is present, giving a juvenile, harmless, playful quality. The black tea is also there, which my brain interprets as refined, traditional, and comforting. Drydown: very fun. The black pepper moved to the background more (yay!) leather is more notable. Still sweet with vanilla cream and pie crust notes too. Red musk seems to be good at keeping a scent tied together for an extended time.. this is no exception. I really like this one and don't regret getting the bottle.

Herr Drosselmeyer 2010 Wet: pipe smoke and something aromatically fruity? Strange! The oil is relatively opaque so I expected it to be deeper & darker. I can see the verbena relation. I associate the sweetness to a curbed litsea cubeba..(I amp it).. in fact the more it develops, the more I'm convinced of it. I can't really make out what woods are in here.. maybe cedar and a tiny bit of teak. The teak could be throwing my nose off. Drydown: this turns further away from sweet leather towards litsea cubeba/teaky weirdness with a sugared cocktail included, for a time. I still get a sweet smoke, keeping me from coming to the determination that it was mislabeled w/ something from the atomic lounge. The linen is in there somewhere, but the sweetness is winning. Strange, light-hearted, and child-friendly. Wrist away from nose I do get more sweet pipe smoke too. Oh wait! There it is! Blammo.. had my wrist too close to my nose. The mixture comes together if I let it waft around.

I tried to get hubby to wear this because he loves sassafras, root beer, and birch beer. He wasn't a huge fan. As comical as it was to watch him sniff & ponder for about 3 hours, he's determined he's only a fan of Tombstone, for himself. Wet: sassafras, oak leaf and the CO2 butter extract.. nice and strange. Perky bubbly rootbeer with a side of vanilla tea cakes under an oak tree. Drydown: This is the love phase for me.. butter, sassafras, warm dark vanilla, warm touch of oak and onycha resins. This is richer and deeper than root beer, on my skin. Medicinal feeling (but not smelling) to my senses for sure.

Wet: men's cologne blend.. anise, leather, lavender, patchouli. Slightly tart and strong at this phase. It's not unpleasant or too old spicey. Just aromatic and warm with a clean edge Drydown: it's like a variation of Bow & Crown without sage! Lovely smooth leather and tonka with a touch of anise and lavender left over. The patchouli is slightly more pronounced but blends incredibly well with the others. Warm, refined, clean without being annoyingly squeaky. Just the right amount of groomed muskiness.

Wet:Strong sharp floral pouf at first. The bluebonnet freesia thyme and mint are fighting each other for a sec. It's really strange how serene this becomes so quickly... almost eerie! Bluebonnet is the most dominant. I can't really pick out passionflower per se, but I can smell the jasmine tea and mint. The thyme is green and grounding but I wouldn't be able to pick it out w/o the ingredients list. Drydown: Mmm. light floaty jasmine tea and freesia with a hint of bluebell and thyme. The red currant finally appeared. Very sweet.

A tousled, sexy mix of patchouli, vanilla, and hemp. Ok this is the golden ratio of smellies. Wet: warm meaty sexy patchouli and deep slinky vanilla combined with woody, green, sweet grass-like, yet distinctive, hemp (think rope or seed). Sexy and tousled for sure! I went completely feral. Sometimes the simplest combinations are the best. Hubby loves this one.. and he's PICKY. Drydown: Very straightforward and not a morpher. This is my new go-to scent. I can catch wafts of it even hours later! Back up bottles on the way...

Hurmph. I was hoping this would be dirtier than it is. Very soapy, white, sweet floral. There's a rose variation in here and maybe a touch of sandalwood but there's something else that's making this smell cleaner than Dirty. Maybe a touch of jasmine is there in the drydown too. This is comforting and clean in the drydown. I equate it with a soft, dryer sheeted, blanket but not something that would entice a lover.

Wet: not sure what's in "deep herbs" but it's there. Nothing really sharp, astringent, or notable. Maybe chamomile is in the mix? Strong apple and a touch of fig. I think the fig is apple and black amber mixing. Nice and dark but a bit confusing. Drydown: wine-like chamomile note keeps appearing? the apple and herbs are steady. amber blossoms slightly to make this a more rounded smell. Very nice but not bottle inducing.

Hard to pull out any 1 note. This is so well balanced that each are equally present. The graveyard dirt is a great strong note and hard to obscure. I love spanish moss, I'm learning.. a great complimentary smell to the dirt & geranium while the irish yew gives a fresh green woody element. This is "pretty dirt".

Wet: the storm last night was INSANE..worst I've ever experienced.. I didn't get to sleep for more than 1 hour at a time. Howling screeching wind and heavy rain, the cat wailing, ice cold water splattering my head from the windowsill, and the sound of that wind invading my dreams. It was frightening. Anyways.. I was drawn to this one this morning, even though I dislike aquatics. After putting it on, my mind and body completely relaxed and released the anxiety that storm caused. It was PERFECT for pulling my nose away from my shattered nerves. Soft blue green aquatic notes with chypre mix and orris and a touch of leaves. Warming, cooling, and clarifying. Drydown: same but softer. This is my new mental break scent.

Wet: Uhm.. dry old spice mens deodorant. Dryodwn: same! I like the mental picture of Scarecrow more.

Wet: huckleberry for sure.. red currant: check, no neroli here. It's VERY fruity and wet. almost like a blackberry and gooseberry were combined. Drydown: The neroli had a really strange entrance.. it decided to smell like wet sneakers for a second (!).. shaking that visual, it does return to a nice huckleberry, currant mix w/ the sharpness of a dry neroli underneath. Nice but not something I'll run toward. It'll go in my bpal roulette box: old projector slides box, so all tags facing down in the slots. I have to randomly pick a few, not knowing what they are, and wear them that day.. forces me out of sticking w/ old favs every day.

Wet: civet is strong heavy and mixed with the opium, quite sharp. The red egyptian musk is more my speed but it's having trouble overpowering the twining civet and opium. Very intoxicating. It carries it's own overpowering atmosphere instead of morphing to adjust to the wearer... appropriate.. Drydown: mostly sharp opium on me. the red from the musk and the opium overshadows the whole mix. interesting but it will be rare that I'll run to grab this one.

Ok, there were a few elements that I was unfamiliar with so I looked them up: massoia bark (coconutty and warming) and ambrette seed (musk seed from a hibiscus plant). Wet: meaty strong lovely. the benzoin is sweet & awesome. Indian musk (seems to be mixed with sandalwood .perfect for me.) and massoia bark being dryly coconutty ..are nice & heavy. I love this one. It's the perfect combination that I've returned to since I was a teen. The bergamont is slight and offers a barely noticeable citrus floral brightness. I can't really smell the fir? oh well! Drydown: dreamy. the same. getting a bottle.

Wet: oooh. a scent made with people like me in mind! Deep dark fresh figs and sweet moist dirt with a touch of patchouli. Spectral mushroom caps in the background. "Pig" being in the name threw me off a bit. Didn't expect this to smell sexy. Drydown: the same but slightly muted. This will be great to wear today considering the weather: heavy rain and low 50's. The moisture from the rain and living on the oceanfront should amp this nicely!

Ok so impolight's review had me in a good way. Anyways.. Wet: sweet sticky sickly candy smell. Like fun dip or a big sucker pop. The blood orange and raspberry are too strong together for my taste. I was hoping the dryer tarter neroli would pull forth more or that this would have a greener or wine-like edge. I think I'd enjoy this a touch more if clary sage and maybe sandalwood or myrrh was added to it? This could be better for mixing than straight. Drydown: raspberry is still kicking! the neroli is slightly more prominent. I think blood orange was the culprit.. I like this phase more because the wine-like edge is showing now.

Wet: definitely pick up on the oakmoss, cypress, and something sharply citrusy.. is that the fragonia? Digression: Ok... so I looked up fragonia to see what this mystery element is about.. I guess it's the only essential oil to be trademarked, by a french Dr that found it to have anti-inflammatory balancing effects. Fragonia is apparently something newer to the market from western Australia (ooh exotic! thanks Beth!) and has a perfect chemical ratio 1:1:1 for balancing and lighter than eucalyptus but still refreshing. THAT'S what I'm smelling! ah HA!! anyways... Drydown: The tobacco is prominent for a moment then slinks back behind everyone else.. strange! This balances out to something familiar that I can't place my finger on. Definitely something atmoshpheric. The leaves, galbanum, patchouli, and black musk comes out more and the oakmoss stays around (nice! that's my favorite!)

The velvet flower. A lush, thick, luxuriant bloom, bold and red. Wet: smells like the red velvet note of any red velvet cupcakes smell! I like this better though. Cocoa, a red flower that's not rose, cherry and myrrh? Maybe there's a musk in here too. Awesome. Drydown: cocoa, cherry, and warm fuzzy something... amber and myrrh? Whatever it is, it's really nice and as the description says, luxuriant.

Definitely ladylike! Wet: slippery honey musk and gentle green tea leaf. Glad this isn't just "green tea" which is normally too strong for me. The leaf version is fresh and earthy. Blackberry leaf is the same: meaty blackberry with a green leaf note. Vanilla bean is there but hiding behind the honey musk. Drydown: soft vanilla bean and the fae spices. Mellowed warm honey. This doesn't have a strong direct throw but I smell it as I'm moving around? Odd! Very lovely.

Wet: warm citrus and amber. Feel like I'm basking in the sun on a perfect day. The jasmine provides a stirring sexy touch and the orris a light lucidity. I like this more than I thought I would! Drydown: odd.. but having read the other reviews, expected. The amber is the one sticking around! The gilded citrus continues to amp it like a well kept, slow burning fire. The jasmine mellowed into the mix. I would compare it to a nice mulled drink or stew that warms the cockles simply by the memory of it's soothing and comforting effects. Awesome.

Ooh oh oh I love this one! Wet: thick sweet dark pine. Smells like the forests outside my house. The ambergris and black musk come out quickly. Aromatic, sweet, dreamy and dark as all get out. Drydown: only gets more beautiful. The juniper adds a nice herbal sharp, almost like an earthen mimosa, top note. My head is floating away from my body. *sigh*.. I just wish the musk had a little more staying power. Otherwise it's perfect!

Wet: foggy aquatic musk, green apple, and mint. There's vodka in this for sure. Bizarre! Drydown: the iris and ambrette come out and as intended by Beth, confuse the mix instead of beautifying it. I wouldn't say it's uglified, but definitely confusing. I think if I smelled this after Schrodinger's Cat, I'd be in a strange state for most of the day. I know Maine is weird.. I didn't mean literally.