capncait

So thick and juicy. I loved how this transformed- it went from berries and incense I'm the bottle, to a strong wine while wet, and then during the dry down, the smokey ash came to the fore, only to have the juicy wine and creamy resins return. Incredibly lovely, decent throw, I'm so glad I pulled the trigger on this!

WOWZA. This is elegant, indeed. I'm not picking up on the Snake Oil, but Closet Raid certainly reminds me of Chanel No. 5 with a hint of white floral and lavender. It's perfect. Low throw and short wear, on my skin. Very clean. I did try this straight out of a cold mailbox, so I will be interested to see how this develops as it settles from the shipping process. I'm certain it will only get better with time.

The Instructional Manual is probably the most "innocent" red musk has ever smelled on me. Don't get me wrong, it is plenty sexy, but sweet and wholesome at the same time. I have to give it to Beth, once again, for capturing the essence of the art. Overall, the red musk is simply a vehicle for the other notes. While I can get the bourbon vanilla, it feel that it simply is adding more creaminess. The true stars of this show are the floral cherry blossoms and the strawberry cream. For me, those notes are the most prominent in the bottle, and they remain prominent both wet and during the drydown. As the blend settles on my skin, the strawberry mellows, but the creaminess remains. The throw on this perfume is great for about 4 hours, and then it becomes a very subtle skin scent after that. Despite that, still beautiful and one of my favorites.

Jacob's Ladder 2010 This is a lovely amber blend. The amber does develop into that powdery, dusty note, but there is a hint of creaminess and spice that help to balance the amber. I get the sweet leather the previous poster noted. Like I said, lovely.

i need to retest this. i popped all of my decants out the moment i got them in the mail, and have found that my first impressions were way off from what they ultimately smell like. to me, the Nutcracker comes off like a masculine incense blend. there is a certain astringency to it. the fig isn't the plump, sweet fig note of other blends. to my nose, this is a dryer note that helps to ground the incense a bit. this is quite the comforting blend though. i might have to tie the boyfriend down and do some skin tests on him. it could be quite sexy.

this is too much for me. this is the first run-in i've ever had with a foodie scent that almost made me gag. it might just be my chemistry right now, but it almost makes my teeth hurt it so sweet. i definitely got the candied fruits in it, but something in the creaminess turned this into artificial maple syrup and cream. i can imagine that this really appeals to many people, but my body is definitely repelling this, and i ended up smelling like pancakes all day.

The Soldier is all torrid fantasies and lust. I know a lot of reviewers have said they feel this is the red musk note of snake oil, but there is something just slightly different to me. This does remind me of Smut 2010, but the leather adds a different dimension that I am REALLY enjoying. but now I have to decide... do I upgrade my decant to a full bottle? Do I own too many red musk scents that seem so similar to the soldier already?

so i finally learned my lesson about trying out my oils the moment i pop them out of the mailbox... i got my order the evening i was driving home for Thanksgiving, so I purposely didn't pack them because i have a serious lack of willpower. so today i pulled out A Game Called Yes & No. I would be working from home today, so i didn't have to worry if i reaked of booze or if it was an absolute fail. when i open the imp: juicy, jammy, dark purple fruits! it isn't overtly boozy to my nose. wet: now its wine. a rich red wine that isn't bitter. no almond icing to speak of. dry, first 30 minutes or so: wow this has transitioned from a juicy, sweet and sour berry to a much more subtle mulled wine. the spices have finally come to the forefront, and rather than that sickly almond scent that i can't stand, the marzipan is smooth and mellow, happily staying in the background. despite the wine note, something about the combination reminds me of the way my strawberry shortcake dolls smelled. it gives me an impression of sweet innocence rather than swarthy booziness. but i like it!

i am an avid fan of food and travel shows, so when i was first read this as a limited edition, i wasn't clamoring to get it because all i could think of was, "i recognize that note... you mean that custard-like spiked fruit that smells like rot? no thanks." well i got this as a tester in a swap, and i am glad i tried it. it has this beautiful sweet custard smell with just a faint touch of apple to fruit it up a bit. initially, there is this really intense booze note, cause brandy wants all the attention and doesn't care where she is getting it from, but fear not, this bawdy lady calms down in a couple of minutes and realizes there is enough attention to go around. after the booze fades, this is all sweet custard and honey (custard without being a dairy product. charmingly mellow and lovely). if it lasted for hours, i would buy 4 bottles of this. sadly, it does not last on me. i always seem to be looking for a scent that puts me in an all-day alcohol-induced stupor, a la SMUT, but alas, this is not the cocktail for me.

when i first put this on, it smelled green and lush (no honey), really reminiscent of the smell that comes off tomato leaves on my hands when i'm messing around in the garden. i am surprised by how much i like this stage! as it mellows, goes from reminding me of a tomato soap (i think it was burt's bees?) to an herbal shampoo. all three stages of this dry down is really interesting... but then, POOF ITS GONE! and all i am left with is a sweet wisp of herbs, so faint and undetectable, i am sorry to see it go so quickly! too bad, i was quite enjoying this garden romp.

this is a curious blend! i am getting the evergreen scent, with a bit of cinnamon and sweetness, but there is something that comes off dusty in this right after the dry down... interesting.

when i first put this on, i was thinking... what's the citrus in this? i tested Great Grey Witch on one arm and Rosy Maple on the other, and to compare the two, while GGW has a citrus tang, Rosy Maple is like... a blast of berry lemonade. This mellows into a powdery, sweet scent with the slightest hint of something herbal (chamomile for sure). This is really really pretty... but I think its just a tad to powdery in the end for me to really fall in love.

this starts off with a blast of sugary lemon for me. i am getting the huckleberry too, because i kept thinking about some type of berry lemonade when i was sniffing it. an hour or so later, this has mellowed into a sweet, dusty vanilla with just a whisper of citrus. nice... but doesn't knock my socks off. Nice to try, though!

oh glorious fig! how is it that i tend to LOVE scents with fig in them? A GENEROUS forumite sent me both the perfume oil and the bath oil to try... and i love both, but for very different reasons! while the bath oil is overtly fig and sultry vanilla, the perfume oil balances the fig and vanilla flower with leather and slight hint of oak. its six hours later and the fig/vanilla/amber is still going strong on my arm. just gorgeous.

I definitely get an apple/fig hybrid on my skin, but no pomegranate here. something smells like chapstick to me? oddly waxy yet creamy. I can detect the almond too, but no cinnamon. i won't really need a bottle of this.