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.

A sniffie of Mme. Moriarty was so thoughtfully included in a package from a forumite. I know I should have waited a few days to let it settle, but straight out of the mail box I pulled her out, and gave her a big huff. and my jaw dropped and i literally said out loud, "YES". she is worth all of the hype. she is beautiful. enchanting, really. ETA: NO! NOOOOOOOOO! I got the guts to try my tiny sniffie on my arm and all i can say is NOOOOOOO! i still have been working on figuring out what notes spell D-E-A-T-H on my skin... I noticed I got the same rank-astringent-cologne scent out of Ysabel (which i was excited for too!). Could it be the pomegranate? THIS IS TRAGIC. i WAS in love.

this is a nice floral blend with a very nice base of beeswax, musk, and fruit. two things i wasn't expecting based on the notes: 1. the throw. wow can i smell my arm and no, i did not slather. 2. dainty might not be the right word... because Marcilla is no wilting flower. but she is feminine as hell. the last few floral BPAL blends i have tried have not been as overtly, "I'm a lady and you will treat me as such". I do love what the beeswax and the musk do for this. I know the lab does a lot with honey (thanks for that, cause its beautiful), but I think this beeswax note is fabulous. something in this is dusty. i don't mean that its bad, but it just is... to my nose, at least. it isn't destined for a bottle. i am still looking for the grindhouse lady to fall in love with (where are you, my holy grail?). I will use this decant however, till it is gone. perhaps a retest or two will change my mind (or a really good deal)!

curious. i don't have a lot of references for the notes in here other than opium and orchid. when i first put event horizon on(without the notes list in front of me) i was certain i was getting a very faint smoke note. i definitely am getting a very strong opium note with other incense/ resinous notes below. i get a very faint orchid in the background. i smell like our local head shop.

i recieved this decant as a generous frimp recently, and knew as soon as my hormones were back to normal, i HAD to try this. my notes from smelling the imp say, "SWEET SWEET SWEET". when i first applied this, something in the caramel and cream smelled almost like maple syrup to me. maybe not like the pure maple syrup, more like mrs. butterworth's. but it is buttery. it is rich. now that it has JUST dried i am getting a little floral tinge, ever so faint, coming off my arm. i wish i had more of that floral, almost fruity apple blossom. this is decadent dessert sweet. i haven't really tried too many blends with cream or milk in them, and i was worried about them turning "sour" on me, but thankfully none of that so far. the result: honey-flavored ice cream, drizzled with hot honey and caramel, and garnished with an apple blossom. it is sweet and foody. don't know that i'd wear it, but i would definitely order it in a restaurant!

The helpful forumites suggested that I got Morrocco, 51, Scherezade, and The Caterpillar in my first order. Now, those suggestions were along the lines of my favorite notes, but I thought they were incredibly helpful. I really like Sed Non Satiata, Silk Road, and Bordello, too.

you know, i felt a little let down by dragon's blood. it gave me a bit of a headache, and although it was interesting, it wasn't something i would wear that often. but i'm glad i didn't dislike it to the point that i would avoid anything with dragon's blood in it, because it seems the lab puts it in tons of blends. thanks to a generous frimper, i was able to give blood a try. i was excited, i like spicey scents and i thought that the lilac/cherry couch syrup smell of dragon's blood would be helped by clove and myrrh. in the imp: very cherry dragon's blood. no surprise there. the clove and myrrh really start to develop and bloom. its warm. i would say the cherry really fades into the background on this scent, and it is not gourmand at all. it seems that spicey notes have helped to dry the juicy sweet cherry note that was coming out of the imp. i wouldn't say that this blend gives me a dry impression, but it isn't a wet scent either. there is balance. the dragon's blood isn't overly floral or intense. i really think i like this one.

This isn't 100% dead-on to the description, and I haven't smelled Kate Spade... or any of my suggestions (blind leading the blind?) but I just ran a few quick searches, and this is what I got (I focused on the GC cause you can order IMPs pretty easily over trying to hunt down an imp and a bottle of an LE if its something you decide you love). New Orleans has both honeysuckle and jasmine in it. However, it also has citrus and spice to finish it off. Eos is "that of softly glowing skin, jasmine, buttercup and honeysuckle". See this review for Cobra Lily. Chuparosa- some reviews have suggested notes of honeysuckle, rose, jasmine, gardenia, etc. Good luck! edit: removed a scent that didn't fit!

Your dress is GORGEOUS! I love the idea of a tea-length dress and sleeves for a wedding dress. Props to you and a big congratulations! TrailerTrashPrincess and I must think alike! You could either go the sweet/innocent route with Agrat-Baht-Mahlaht for the sugary notes or go soft floral like Helena or Twilight. Or on the flip side, i think that dress says a bit more than sweet and pretty. I think its sultry! And with that, I'd go with Spellbound. While the roses say 'pretty', the red musk and amber make it a bit more seductive. Another thought along straddling the sweet and sultry vibe is Sed Non Satiata. If you don't amp booze like crazy, it hits the sultry notes very hard, but isn't like SEX SEX SEX I SMELL LIKE SEX (however, if you amp booze, my grandma likes to say, "nothing tackier than a drunk bride". But I'd probably wear it either way ). And both those scents seem to last on me, and I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to be repeat slathering at my wedding. Do update everyone on what you decide!

in the imp: HELLO VETIVER! when i intend to do something 'right', i try to be very thorough, so i go through any imps i get in a very organized manner, i create a spread sheet, and open each and every one, sniff, and write down notes. i don't skin test them like that, but just get initial impressions of what i want to skin test next... what did i write for santa muerte? "SMOKEY floral". wet: this is quite earthy, but not in the dirt sense, just organic. there is a note here that i can't pinpoint (what's new?). i am surprised by the amount of throw this little stripe on my arm has! dry: i can smell this wafting off my arm. nice throw. now i don't mind a bit a vetiver. i repeat: A BIT. a drop, a tad. this is HEAVY on the vetiver. while it gives off a smokey quality, it isn't dry or ashy like an actual smoke note, its like a *green* scent. there is a perfumey floral hiding behind the vetiver, but its not like the rose has taken over on this one, they are definitely well blended. i live in michigan, so cactus flower? i have no idea what that smells like. my grandma used to have cacti, but i don't remember the flowers smelling like anything... interesting scent, but i'll be passing this one along.

... this is the essence of Victorian-era spiritualism: rosewood, oak and teak notes with wispy blue lilac, tea rose, dried white rose and ethereal osmanthus. this reminds me of some type of candy, but i can't quite put my finger on exactly what. haha, now that i read the last few posts... IT IS NECCO WAFERS! however, on my skin, its a little closer to flowers and necco wafers. in the imp, this was really woody with a floral undercurrent. once it hit my skin, it was all necco wafers. as it started to warm up, and settle into my skin, the flowers came alive again. i can smell lilac and what i guess could be roses (but not the lush, beautiful rose scent that you just want to bury your face in, those roses that are less fragrant and smell somewhat green). i wish i had a reference for what osmanthus smells like. i don't. drydown: the necco wafer smell is starting to disolve to a much lovelier floral scent. this is much prettier than i expected! dry: it has only been 30 minutes or so, whatever was making this a funky licorice scent has disappeared, and this has mellowed into a beautiful floral. the rose is much more prominent, but isn't trying to kick ass and take names. the wood notes are still there, but are just helping this floral blend to have a bit more character. there is very little throw on this, i have to get CLOSE to smell it. be patient with this one, guys, let it sink into your skin!