Ghost of a Rose

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and nearly colorless, with just a tint of ivory. The first thing I smell is the very realistic black soil, and it is by far the strongest note. In the background I can smell the pomegranate and then the flowers. On me, wet: For a few seconds, the black soil is still the dominatrix, then the pomegranate very quickly takes over. But the soil remains a strong presence. It's a really interesting and unusual juxtaposition. I can smell the flowers, too, but they stay in the background. On me, just dried: The flowers come out more strongly, so that now all three notes are equally balanced. It's a bit green and herbal, too - apparently from one of the flowers. I'm not familiar with either of them, so I can't say which. This isn't a particularly sweet scent - the soil damps down the sweetness from the fruit and florals. After 15 minutes: An oddly unsweet - almost salty - pomegranate, and black soil. I'm not getting much of the floral note at this point. After 30 minutes: The saltiness has dissolved, and now it's a more typical pomegranate. But the soil note emphatically keeps this from being foody. It's kinda like old pomegranate juice that has been sitting around in the fridge for months and has developed a surface of gray-green mold. Only nicer. If that makes sense. After 1 hour: Pretty much the same, except that maybe the pomegranate has become a little stronger than the soil. But not by much. After 1 1/2 hours: Mostly pomegranate, and greatly faded. After 3 hours: What little scent remains is all pomegranate. Verdict: Pleasing and very unusual. It's floral only in the first 15 minutes on the skin, and the flowers are never a strong presence, so I think I can safely call this a unisex fragrance. After that the scent stays fairly consistent, pomegranate and soil. This blend has the strongest soil note I've experienced so far in BPAL. It's pleasant - not nasty dirt, but rich, dark, garden soil. I will wear this in a perfume locket (as well as on my skin) to retain the florals and to make the whole fragrance last longer. My rating: 4 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and a richly saturated salmon color. It smells beautiful, too - apple with flowers and a touch of spice. On me, wet: At first, the flowers are the note that stands out, but within seconds the apple comes out even stronger. The spiciness is more that of the incense rather than the ginger or the tea; and thus it (along with the florals) keeps the scent from being foody in spite of all the apple. The flowers are very beautiful, and different from the typical floral note. After 10 minutes: Apples and flowers, in almost equal strength. There's an undertone of incense, and now I can get just a whiff of ginger as well. After 30 minutes: The flowers are the main note, with some incense and ginger in the background. The apple is pretty much gone. After 1 hour: Mostly spice and incense, with the floral notes now in the background. And there's just a faint breath of apple still floating above it all. After 2 hours: The scent has nearly faded away. There's just a vague remnant of incense. Verdict: Gorgeous - I must have a bottle! It edged out The Glittering Apple of the Stars for my favorite apple. But it isn't long-lasting, so use a perfume locket as well as applying to the skin. Or reapply often, but the locket would also retain the apple note longer as well as the overall fragrance. My rating: 5 stars My favorites of the apples, in order of preference: #1 is The Golden Apple of the Sun #2 is The Glittering Apple of the Stars #3 is The Silver Apple of the Moon #4 is The Green Apple of Venus (I didn't try the Black Apple.) (Edited to eliminate redundancy)

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and almost the color of amber, but a little more orangey and with a greenish tinge. Patchouli and sandalwood are the first notes I smell, but I can pick up all of them that I am familiar with. I'm not sure what the Peru balsam, ambrette, or ambergris smell like. On me, wet: Sandalwood, patchouli, an animalistic musk, and a bit of vetiver smokiness. It is a unisex-to-masculine scent and very dark - as suits its name. This is interesting but I'm not sure if I like it. It verges on the stink of dirty socks, but a sharp spiciness as well as a touch of sweetness rescues it from quite being that. After 15 minutes: It's a little sweeter, spicier, and less animalistic; but otherwise pretty much the same. The spiciness is cool enough and sharp enough to make it lean towards a men's cologne type of scent. After 30 minutes: The animalistic note is gone; otherwise it's the same as above. I do like it now, but I would like it better on a man than on me. At about 35 minutes, it underwent a sudden drastic change. It is now mostly wood and smoke, having lost the men's-cologne sharpness, making it more unisex than masculine. I'm liking it even better. After 1 hour: Still pretty much all wood and smoke. After 2 hours: Faint, now mostly incense. Verdict: Too animalistic and strongly masculine for me to wear. But I like it well enough, especially in the late drydown. My rating: 3 stars (Edited punctuation)

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and a beautiful peach color. Even in the imp, this is a well-balanced scent. I notice cedarwood, florals, and dragon's blood especially, but can also detect the bergamot and lime. From the description, I had expected a rather masculine scent, but it isn't, due to the prominent florals. On me, wet: It's wood and florals at first, but after a few seconds, the lime suddenly pops out and really makes the scent zing (or should I say "zoom"?) On me, just dried: The lime is now strongest. It's the rind of key limes. The bergamot is running a close second and is really an intriguing and unusual pairing with the lime. Interesting how the notes that were the most subdued in the imp are dominating the scent on my skin. It's also less floral on my skin, at least at this point - a unisex fragrance. After 10 minutes: The scent has changed quite a bit. Now it's mostly wood up close, with a touch of lime to sweeten it a little. And sniffed from a few inches away, I get the florals again. But this time they're not dominant enough to change my "unisex" label. The bergamot is still hanging in there, too. And there's just an occasional faint whiff of mint which must be from the helichrysum (I've seen it described as floral-mint, among other things.) After 20 minutes: I'm surprised yet again at how much this has morphed. It's now a warm, somewhat sweet, scent of wood and florals, very lovely. After 30 minutes: The florals have continued to strengthen and have overtaken the wood note. They have an appealing undertone of honey (another thing I've seen in descriptions of helichrysum.) It's now a more feminine scent. The wood is still around, now as an undertone. After 45 minutes: Now mostly wood, with a hint of spicy incense - not sure where that comes from, maybe the resin? After 1 hour: All wood and incense, with barely a trace of the florals. After 2 hours: All incense, still going fairly strong. After 3 hours: Same as above. After 6 hours: Only a whisper of incense remains. Verdict: An unusual and appealing fragrance in all its stages. A real morpher: in 30 minutes going from a slightly masculine lime-and-wood scent to a rather feminine florals-and-honey one, and then in the next 15 minutes returning to a unisex wood scent. More discreet and dignified than either the usual astringent men's cologne or the usual floral (or vanilla) women's perfume, this would be a good choice for both men and women to wear to work. This was an alternate/backup choice for me, and I am glad I got the chance to try it. I liked it much more than I had expected to. My rating: 4 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and copper-colored. It smells like a classic perfume, with notes of rose, sandalwood, and something else I can't identify. It could be the gurjum balsam or the ambergris - I don't know what those smell like. On me, wet: On me it is much woodier, sharper, and not perfumey. I don't specifically smell the rose. On me, just dried: As it dries, it gets more perfumey and more like the scent in the imp. After 10 minutes: It is fairly subtle, the scent of a classic, expensive, perfume. Formal and elegant. A bit soapy, as such perfumes do tend to be. Like most designer perfumes, it doesn't smell like any particular note, but I can detect a hint of rose if I try hard enough. After 20 minutes: Oh, my. I was thinking that this was enough of a generic perfume scent that I wouldn't need a bottle. But now a gorgeous velvety rose fragrance has blossomed. If it lasts, I'll have to get a bottle after all. After 30 minutes: Yep, it's lasting. The beautiful rose note combined with an elegant perfume: what could be more perfect for a formal occasion? I definitely see a bottle in my future. After 1 hour: Still the same gorgeous scent, but now rather faint. After 2 hours: It has gotten a little powdery, but that seems characteristic of both rose and sandalwood oils in late drydown. I don't consider it a problem. In fact, I often wonder if it isn't just us interpreting it that way - so many powders are scented with these notes (and also musk) that we associate the dry fragrance of them with powder. Our noses have been trained to think "powder" when we smell them. After 3 hours: Only a trace of sandalwood is left. Verdict: Beautiful, elegant, feminine, understated. I might want to wear it it a scent locket to add sillage and longevity. But I'd still wear it on my skin at the same time, in order to get the notes that only develop more there, especially the rose. My rating: 5 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and a dark orangey amber color. It's definitely a dark smell - wood, pepper, cognac, and vetiver are prominent. On me, wet: It smells exactly like cigarette tobacco, which isn't even in it. With a hot clove-and-pepper spiciness in the background. I can only detect the patchouli if I think about it. On me, just dried: It still smells like tobacco, but now there's also a very sharp menthol-like note. This is certainly an interesting blend - the things it smells like most aren't even in it! Very masculine and powerful (in mood, that is - I don't mean that the strength of the fragrance is unusually powerful.) I totally get the connection with the artwork. After 10 minutes: The mentholic sharpness was very short-lived and is completely gone now. I smell smoky tobacco and spicy clove. If I sniff hard enough, I can also get a bit of champaca in the background. I'm thinking that the tobacco smell comes from the combination of the wood with vetiver. There's some earthiness to it, too, which surely comes from the vetiver. After 30 minutes: Now the tobacco has morphed into more of a smoky wood note. I don't smell the clove as strongly as before, but there is still the bite of pepper. The overall scent has faded and isn't quite so aggressive. At about 1 1/2 hours, the incense starts to come into its own, almost equaling the smoky wood note. After 3 1/2 hours: The scent is faint, and mostly champaca, with some of the smoky wood still lingering. After 6 1/3 hours: I can still smell it a little, now almost all champaca. VERDICT: Although I like this, it is way too masculine for me to ever wear. But the strong woodiness of it might make for a great room scent in a oil warmer. I'm curious to try it out on my sons to see what they think. As a fragrance for men, I think it would make a nice change from the usual sharp astringency of most men's colognes. Instead of their coldness, this is warm - even somewhat hot - so it would be a lovely cold-weather scent for a man. My rating: 4 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quotes from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp; Oil is clear and virtually colorless, with just the faintest tinge of ivory. The first thing I notice about the scent is fruitiness, although not specifically apple. Then incense, and last, a bit of florals. On me, wet: Now there is a definite note of apple. After a few seconds, the florals peek in. On me, just dried: The apple is still dominating, but only by a very slight margin. The florals and sandalwood are almost equal to it. After 10 minutes: The scent is very mild and delicate, so much so that it's hard to detect any particular note. But if I sniff hard enough, I get mostly incense with a bit of apple. After 30 minutes: Now it isn't a fruity, an incensey, or a floral perfume. All three notes are so perfectly balanced that it is all of those in equal strength. Which makes it unclassifiable. I don't even notice apple anymore. It's just itself, and very nice. After 45 minutes: This blend seems to need some warmth and time on the skin to fully develop. It's actually stronger now that it was when just dried. Yesterday I wore it to work. I wasn't concentrating on the scent like I do when I write reviews, and my initial impression was that it didn't smell anything in particular. But around 45 minutes after applying it, I was paying attention to my work when I suddenly noticed a gentle but noticeable and lovely cloud of fragrance surrounding me. It is still the same balanced scent as above. After 2 1/2 hours: The scent is now barely discernible. It's leaning slightly towards the incense, with just a hint of florals, and the fruitiness is pretty much gone. Verdict: A nice all-purpose blend for women. Others have used that phrase and I didn't really understand what they meant, but after trying this, now I do. It's subtle enough, and balanced enough, that it would be appropriate for any situation, would seem pleasant to almost everyone, and would offend no one. Some people don't like fruity scents, some don't like florals, some don't like incense. In this fragrance, all of those are so well-balanced by the others that I can't imagine anyone disliking this. And it is indeed pale and ethereal, a perfect realization of its name. My rating: 4 stars This is my second favorite of the Apples I've tried so far: #1 is The Glittering Apple of the Stars #2 is The Silver Apple of the Moon #3 is The Green Apple of Venus

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle!) In the imp: Oil is clear and pale straw-yellow in color. The fragrance is very fruity, with the strawberry and pomegranate equal in strength to the apple. There's also a notable floral presence, mostly the apple blossom. On me, wet: I smell the red fruits mostly, against a backdrop of apple. I don't really notice any florals at this point. It reminds me of red Kool-Aid. On me, just dried: The flowers do come out a bit more as it dries, but I'm still thinking of Kool-Aid. Or red Lifesavers candies with a bit of apple blossom. After 10 minutes: The florals and apples have pretty much gone into hiding, and now it's mostly red Lifesavers. But there is a hint of something I can't identify in the background - maybe the violet leaf? After 30 minutes: Same as above. After 1 hour: Pretty much the same, but fading. And with just a hint of the sandalwood starting to show up. After 1 1/2 hours: Now kinda like stale red Lifesavers. After 2 1/2 hours: Old Lifesavers and sandalwood. It's gone a bit plastic-y. Verdict: This one is a little too fruit-candyish for me. And unfortunately, I never did notice the rose, which is one of my favorite scents. I prefer The Glittering Apple of the Stars. But The Green Apple is nice enough, and I will keep and enjoy my imp. My rating: 3 stars

Malus, the apples, are a genus of about 30–35 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including crabapples and wild apples. (paraphrased from Wikipedia) My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and almost colorless, with just the palest tinge of peach. The fragrance is a beautiful, realistic, fresh apple scent with a hint of florals. On me, wet: In the first seconds, it is all apple. Then the florals come out more strongly and are a gorgeous blend with the apple. Among the florals, nothing stands out strongly, not even the ylang ylang. The frangipani might be dominating, but only by a small margin. I'm not familiar with tiare, so I can't tell about that one. The apple smells like the sweeter red apple to me, rather than the crisper and tangy-er notes of green apple. Which makes sense - a red apple is pictured on the artwork. (BTW, I have a top with that exact same appliqué, so that delighted me!) After 10 minutes: The apple note is fading somewhat, and the musks are taking its place, with a bit of bergamot. The floral notes are about the same. After 30 minutes: The apple is almost completely gone. Now it's mostly musks and florals, which makes it smell more like a traditional perfume, a light, fresh, elegant, one with just a hint of fruitiness. After 45 minutes: The vanilla note has kicked in, first as just a trace, but gathering strength rapidly. But the musk and floral notes are still strong enough to keep the overall scent from being foody. After 1 1/2 hours: Quite faint, mostly vanilla and musk, with a touch of florals. After 6 hours: I can still smell a lingering hint of vanilla and musk. Verdict: Lovely, I want a full bottle of this! My rating: 5 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is bright yellow, clear, and very thick and viscous. It does indeed smell exactly (and strongly) like cake - to me, it's yellow pound cake. On me, wet: On my skin, it is the same. Lots of vanilla and butter. There is a kind of sharp, sour, tang - like artificial flavoring - hovering in the background, but I have to sniff hard and up close to get it, so I don't think it would be a problem. I think that's the same note that others have called rum or boozey - I could see that. It is a lot like artificially-flavored rum extract. On me, just dried: Still the same. After 15 minutes: Pretty much the same, except with the addition of an artificial-strawberry note. After 30 minutes: The rum extract note has gone. Now it's buttery vanilla cake with a touch of artificial strawberry flavoring. After 1 hour: Same as above. After 2 hours: Pretty much the same, except that it's gone plastic-y. After 3 hours: Same as above, just slightly faded. Verdict: Some of the nuances come and go, but basically this fragrance remains consistent. I don't like foody scents - particularly not vanilla-based ones - as perfumes, so this is totally not my thing. It is perfect for a little girl, though. I'll give it to my granddaughter. The artwork is adorable! My rating: 3 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) I've been to Mexico many times, and just reading the ingredients list evokes images of that country for me - especially the chrysanthemums and marigolds. In my mind I see baskets of the big colorful blossoms - both real ones and handcrafted paper ones - for sale at outdoor markets. In the imp: Oil is clear, with just the palest tint of greenish yellow. The scent is of spicy, non-sweet flowers - the chrysanthemums and marigolds; together with the chamomile and possibly the leaves. Highly unusual - not at all what you expect when you think "floral fragrance." So far, I don't notice the rose or vanilla at all. On me, wet: It's pretty much the same on my skin, except that the green herbal note of the chamomile has a stronger presence and there's more sweetness. I love this! It's casual, playful, and floral without being overly sweet or girly. After 15 minutes: It's now a somewhat sweet scent, but the pepperiness of the mums and marigolds remains the dominating note, with the chamomile running a close second. The chamomile (and leaves?) make this very fresh and grassy. I can detect the rose now, but it's extremely discreet. I don't think I would notice it if I wasn't looking for it. After 30 minutes: It's gotten rather faint, and the peppery flowers are gone. It's now mostly a herbal, green, scent with a touch of florals. At this point it reminds of the original Clairol Herbal Essence shampoo, which I loved. After 1 hour: Although now quite faint, the fragrance has changed and doesn't smell like Herbal Essence anymore. It's still herbal and beautiful, but has lost that bright grassy freshness. Also, I can now pick up the vanilla, as a very understated nuance. As with the rose, I wouldn't notice the vanilla, either, if I didn't already know it was there. After 2 hours: It's virtually gone. There's just the faintest hint of herbal greenery lingering. Verdict: This is lovely at all stages, but especially interesting at first. For that reason, and to give it more throw and longevity, I recommend wearing it in a scent locket as well as on the skin. My rating: 5 stars

I first noticed the pleasant scent of rich earth. Then moss, ozone, and an acidic tang that's almost citrusy, but isn't any citrus fruit that I recognize. It's probably the same note that someone else called unripe green tomato - I can relate to that. I didn't get the sweetness or florals that some reviewers have mentioned. I could see that carnations might be in this, with their atypical spicy scent. Or something like gerbera daisies. But to my nose (or perhaps in my batch), no traditional, sweet, feminine-type florals. It's interesting, unusual, clean, green, and is a non-foody air freshener that would appeal to men (as well as women.) In my bathroom, where most surfaces are hard (such as tiles), it didn't last long in the air as a distinct scent, but it did leave behind an ionized-air kind of freshness. In my car, with mostly fabric surfaces and a warmer temperature, I could still smell it two days later. I would buy a bottle of this if it was available. It might last longer if I sprayed it more lavishly - I had to be more frugal with just a sample amount. My rating: 4 stars ETA: Thank you for the sample, BPTP!

I smelled the camellia first, strongest, and last, but the grapefruit had a definite presence as well. It's kind of a strange combination, with the sweet floral scent of the camellia battling it out with the sour tang of the grapefruit. It's very pleasant, though, especially since I love both of those notes. I didn't particularly notice the verbena, perhaps because its scent is similar enough to the grapefruit to blend in with it. The fragrance didn't last as long in the air as the other BPTP sprays I've tried. But it did last at least as long, or longer, than supermarket air-freshener sprays do, and it smells so much more natural and beautiful. My rating: 4.5 stars

I mostly smell apples, cinnamon, and smoke. After about 7 minutes, I also get the scent of caramel. I really like this. It does totally capture the scents of Halloween, and the smoke note is so unusual - solemn and dignified - in an air freshener. The scent lingered in the air for a long time, with the caramel as the lasting note. My rating: 4.5 stars Later ETA: It did leave a lingering smell of smoke in my car. And I do mean lingering - 2 months since I've used this, my car still smells like a smoker was in it. It's not as bad as it sounds - not the really nasty stale-smoke odor of a heavy smoker's car or home. It's more like someone whose clothes were permeated with smoke rode in my car for a short time. Also, I keep my car windows closed all the time, so that would definitely tend to make it last longer - this might not happen to everyone. It hasn't stopped me from using this scent, but now I use it in places that have better ventilation.

I smell pomegranate and flowers. Of the flowers, the only note I could pick out was rose, which makes sense since (LOL, say that out loud) I don't know what the others smell like. But the rose is very subtle - I don't think I would notice it if I didn't know there was rose oil in this. It's really a mixed-florals scent, not a rose scent. I didn't notice any wood (poplar or willow bark) or herbs (mint or aconite.) I do like this very much. The scent in the air lasts for a medium length of time and remains fairly consistent, without any obvious changes over time. My rating: 4 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear, with just the palest tinge of yellow. The scent is strongly floral, with gardenia and lily-of-the-valley (muguet) predominating, and with a deeper musky undertone. I can already tell that I'm going to want a full bottle of this. On me, wet: It is softer on me, with a surprising, delicate, lemony note that is quite lovely and sparkling combined with the flowers. The florals are more subdued and no particular type of flower stands out. The deeper notes are in hiding. It is a light, bright, scent. On me, just dried: Pretty much the same except that the florals have gotten stronger, especially the gardenia. After 30 minutes: Now very soft, mostly gardenia. The lemony note is gone. After 1 hour: Mostly gardenia, with hints of musk and (white?) sandalwood. I've loved this all along, and now it is even more beautiful. After 3 hours: The sandalwood and musk are now also equal to the gardenia in strength, but the scent is quite faint. After 4 hours: The scent on my wrist is virtually gone, leaving just a ghostly lingering memory of gardenia. Verdict: A gorgeous, elegant, floral fragrance. The flower notes are so natural, and all of the notes blend together very beautifully. Yep, I'm definitely getting a full bottle of this. My rating: 5 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and a beautiful salmon color. I smell sandalwood first, then flowers, especially lily of the valley, magnolia, and rose. On me, wet: It is more perfumey, like a classic, elegant, and highly refined floral perfume. It's a designer scent, in which no particular element can be identified. On me, just dried: I'm startled by how quickly and to what degree most of the scent has vanished. The fragrance on my wrist might be more apparent to others, whose noses didn't just smell it wet and full strength four minutes ago. But to me, there's hardly any scent left there at all. After 10 minutes: Although very soft and delicate, the scent that remains is beautiful, still a classic floral perfume. But more natural, without the chemicals and alcohol. I can now identify some specific flowers, especially magnolia, lily of the valley, and rose; in that order of strength. After 30 minutes: Still the same basic perfume scent, but now there is an underlying hint of the white sandalwood and the spiciness of the carnations beginning to come out, and the overall scent is less sweet. After 45 minutes: Rose has taken over as the primary floral note (but there are too many other notes of nearly equal strength to consider this a rose-based fragrance.) Everything else is the same as above. After 1 hour: What little scent still lingers is mostly soft sandalwood and carnation. It's gone rather plastic-y, but that doesn't matter since it's barely there now. Verdict: Beautiful, feminine, and very formal. This is going on my wishlist for a bottle. But wear it in a perfume locket if you want it to last for more than four minutes with any significant presence, throw, or longevity. My rating: 5 stars Added later: I wrote the above review while testing the scent on my left wrist. Later, I wore it on both wrists. I was astonished to find that it was different on my other wrist, although I used equal amounts on both. On my left wrist, it was again the same as above. On my right wrist, the scent was stronger, had more throw, and lasted longer. It also went through a stage of about 45 minutes during which a gorgeous natural rose was the main note, obvious even from about 2 feet away. It made me love this blend even more. (On my left wrist, the rose note was barely detectable, and even then, only for a very short time.) I've noticed before that fragrances can smell slightly different on the inside of my elbow than they do on my wrist, but I've never realized that even which wrist you wear it on can make a difference. (Because essential oil blends are so much stronger than perfumes containing alcohol, I normally wear only one drop on one wrist. I only wore this on both wrists tonight because it had been so weak on my left wrist alone.) This goes to show the wisdom of the advice I've seen from several reviewers on these forums: to try a scent at least twice before you make up your mind about it!

I love the artwork! My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decants (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle.) In the imp: Oil is clear and a pale peach color. The first scent I notice is wood, then the fir needles, then hazelnut. On me, wet: Fir needles and wood, with the wood a little stronger. It is a somewhat sharp pine scent, but not nearly as astringent and sinus-clearing as pine scents usually are. The wood calms it down considerably. A very nice tree scent - more like pine lumber rather than Christmas trees. There are also delicate touches of hazelnut and patchouli to keep things interesting. I don't know what plum leaves smell like - like regular leaves, I would think? Or leaves blended with plum? I don't notice any fruitiness in this. I don't know what green cognac smells like, either. I didn't even know there was such a thing. This doesn't seem boozey to me, at least not at this phase. After 10 minutes: No change. This is a unisex-to-masculine blend. It's very nice - warm, woody, spicy (from the sharpness of fir), comforting rather than aggressive. I would love to smell this on a man. But I like it a lot on myself, too. After 20 minutes: I'm starting to pick up a little honey and some very subtle florals beneath the main notes. They are causing the scent to sweeten up just a bit. After 30 minutes: From a few inches away, I notice the honey, and then closer up - aha, there's the cognac, together with the fir which seems to be getting stronger, and the wood note which is now very realistic. The florals seem to be gone, after a very brief cameo appearance. After 45 minutes: A beautiful and totally realistic scent of fresh-cut pine lumber up close. With a layer of delicate honey floating a couple of inches above it. This may not be the most exciting blend in the world, but it certainly is gorgeous. After 6 1/2 hours: Not only is it still going strong, but it is even more beautiful and interesting, because the honey and floral notes now have equal presence with the wood. At this point, it is unisex rather than decidedly masculine. Verdict: My favorite wood scent. The leaves, patchouli, hazelnut, and cognac are all understated and short-lived. The florals don't have a significant presence until extreme drydown. This is basically a unisex wood, balsamic, and honey fragrance. It is beautiful at all stages. I might end up getting a full bottle of this. My rating: 4.5 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle!) In the imp: Oil is clear and a medium yellow color with a peachy tint. The fragrance is very sweet, and is hard to describe, although tantalizingly familiar. It's definitely a dessert, together with a touch of florals. Wait, I know what this dessert is - butterscotch pudding! On me, wet: On my skin, it is far more complex and fruity. Sort of like pineapple, but not exactly - very unique, and with a caramel note. And maybe some brown sugar. I am loving this so far, although I don't usually like foody perfumes. This is just so complicated and unusual that I can't help but be fascinated by it. On me, just dried: Still rather fruity, but becoming more floral. Underneath all the dessert-y sweetness, there's some kind of dry, musty, non-sweet note that I can't begin to identify. Or maybe I can - could it be the daisies? They don't smell sweet, and people sometimes even describe their odor as unpleasant. That must be what Edens Sixth Day was smelling. But on me, it's just a faint undertone, not strong enough to be unpleasant - just enough to add nuance and bring some balance to all the sweetness. After 15 minutes: It now smells completely different! It's now a bright, sharp, metallic, perfumey fragrance. I've been basing my descriptions on what I smell up close on my wrist, but I just noticed that when I lifted my head away to do something else, there was a cloud of the most heavenly, gorgeous, floral scent hovering around me. Wow! I am more and more impressed all the time by this! I'm ordering a bottle right now. After 30 minutes: Same as above, but with a bit more emphasis on the florals. After 1 hour: No further change. After 1 1/2 hours: The scent on my wrist has lost most of the sharp metallic note and now smells more like the gorgeous floral scent that is wafting all around me. After 2 hours: Now all of the metallic note is gone, and it is 100% the heavenly floral fragrance, although now rather faded. Verdict: I never noticed the ylang ylang (which usually overpowers everything) in this at all. This blend is the most unusual perfume I've ever smelled (um, of the pleasant ones, that is, LOL.) It's delicious, and it's gorgeously elegant, at different times. And always complex and utterly fascinating. I didn't even wait to finish this review before I ordered a full bottle. My rating: 5 stars

I chose this blend to try just because the combination is so bizarre that I was intrigued. My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle!) In the imp: Clear, colorless oil. In the vial, I smell the flowers first, then the cotton candy, and then the pine. On the wand, the pine needles take over so that I can smell little else - just a timid thread of cotton candy wafting behind the pine. This is sinus-clearingly sharp, reminding me of eucalyptus or used motor oil. On me, wet: On my skin it is the same as on the wand, but thankfully softer. And - again, thankfully - here it is eucalyptus rather than motor oil. On me, just dried: For all its initial aggressiveness, the eucalyptus-like note of the pine evaporates quickly and is nearly gone in the few moments it takes for the oil to dry. Now the fragrance is pine-tinged cotton candy, which is rather strange, but not unpleasant. After 10 minutes: It is all cotton candy, just sugar with a touch of vanilla. Not really my thing. I'm waiting for the wildflowers . . . After 20 minutes: Some florals have indeed appeared, but I'm not sure it's an improvement. It smells like the artificially-scented plastic of a child's toy. Like those small scented dolls that used to be sold for little girls - anybody else remember those? Strawberry Shortcake dolls. That's what this reminds me of. After 1 hour: Still Strawberry Shortcake dolls, and even more plastic-y. After 2 hours: No change. After 3 hours: The scent is the same, but is now very faint. Verdict: Wow, this goes from Head-Clearing-Nasal-Decongestant to Little-Girl's-Artifically-Scented-Plastic-Doll in 10 minutes flat! The scent doesn't do much for me in either phase, but you've gotta admire the sheer exuberance and ballsy-ness of such a bizarre combination. And neither phase is actually unpleasant. I'll keep it around as a novelty. I can't wait to see what other reviewers say about this! My rating: 3 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle!) In the imp: Oil is clear and a bright golden yellow. The scent is sweet and reminds me of Juicy Fruit chewing gum with some flowers. On the wand it is cloyingly sweet, mostly jasmine with honey, the Juicy Fruit gum, and some vanilla. On me, wet: On my skin it is much the same, but gentler. At first it is a mixed floral scent, but within moments the jasmine takes over like it did on the wand. On me, just dried: I can't smell anything but jasmine. Still, I can tell that other things are lurking in the background since the jasmine smells a little different than usual - less sharp and soapy. After 10 minutes: Jasmine is still the primary note, but this has already gone through a lot of changes in the supporting notes. First the honey came in strongly, nicely toning down the jasmine although adding even more sweetness. But it was very short-lived. Then I got a faint whiff of lavender, which was a beautiful blend with the jasmine. Then that floated away too, and now the undertone is fruity - no longer the chewing gum, but now more like berries. After 30 minutes: Jasmine, vanilla, and berries; in that order of strength. Considerably less sweet than it was at first, and the whole fragrance is already much faded. After 1 hour: Now the jasmine has backed down and it is a blended scent, without any particular notes that stand out. But if I try hard enough, I can pick out vanilla, jasmine (now secondary to the vanilla), and perhaps a bit of the amber starting to appear. It has gone a little powdery - another clue to the presence of amber. After 1 1/2 hours: Now mostly powdery amber, with a very muted smokiness - could that be the "black" from the blackened fruit gums? After 3 hours: The smokiness is gone and the sweet, powdery amber lingers on alone for one more hour. My rating: 4 stars ETA: I don't know what opium poppy smells like, so I could be smelling it without realizing it.

In the imp (decant): Oil is clear with a very pale yellowish-green tint. The scent in the imp is an unusually soft, sweet, sandalwood with what smells like flowers rather than greenery. On me, wet: Ah, now the greenery shows up. There is still a bit of a floral note, but the sandalwood went into hiding. This is a delicate, understated, and quite lovely scent. After 10 minutes: The floral note has also mostly gone now, and most of the sweetness along with it. Now it's pretty much all ivy. The ivy is a green note that is unmistakably something different than either grass or herbs. I don't like it quite as much as those - there's just a touch of sourness to it , or is it decay? - but I do like it, and also it is interesting and unusual. After 30 minutes: The scent is still much the same, except that the white sandalwood and floral-like note that I smelled in the imp is now starting to peek out a little, bringing some of the sweetness back. I especially like it at this stage - the sweetness from the sandalwood balances that slight sourness of the ivy. After 1 hour: Now the ivy and the sandalwood/floral notes are about equal. After 1 1/2 hours: The sandalwood/floral is beginning to overtake the ivy. I like all sandalwood, but I think I particularly like the white. It is softer and sweeter than the others, and may have a floral-like note (unless there are flower oils in this blend that are unlisted.) After 2 hours: All sandalwood/floral, slightly powdery. After 7 1/2 hours: I can still smell the sandalwood on my wrist very faintly. Verdict: An unusual and lovely, subtle, feminine, scent. I especially like it when both the ivy and the sandalwood/floral notes are present at the same time (30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours.) They balance one another beautifully. And I also love the white sandalwood drydown. My rating: 4 stars

In the imp (decant): Oil is clear and a dark, brownish orange. The scent is patchouli, mandarin, and clove. Surprisingly unsweet, and (thus also surprisingly) rather cloying. On me, wet: Much better. A smoky, woody, clove. Unisex to masculine. On me, just dried: The smokiness disappears and the clove becomes stronger. There's an understated whiff of mandarin in the background. It reminds me of those clove-studded oranges we used to make for scenting closets. After 10 minutes: . . . but then some musk appears to remove that image. It's short-lived, however, and then the fragrance is pretty much all clove, but fairly mild - not too hot or in-your-face. There's a little patchouli and musk in the background that tones it down. After 30 minutes: Clove, with a hint of wood and an even fainter hint of musk. After 1 hour: Clove is foremost, with patchouli. I don't think this has really changed much since the first 10 minutes. It's more that I notice different notes at different times. Exactly 12 hours later, I can still clearly smell this on my wrist. It is weak but identifiable. Clove is still the primary note, and in the background there is the same cloying scent that I noticed in the imp. I think it might be the combination of patchouli and orange. Each of those can be syrupy and cloying when they are too concentrated, so blending them together may perhaps not be the most amicable of matches. I never did notice any vanilla in this. The flower might smell quite different from the vanilla bean. If it has a typical strong tropical orchid scent, that could be adding to the cloying characteristic of the patchouli-orange combo. However, I didn't notice any floral note in this, either. Verdict: Fortunately the cloying note appears only in the bottle and upon extreme drydown (when it is very faint, and also likely to be showered away.) Otherwise this is a pleasant enough unisex-to-masculine spice fragrance. But I'm not sure I like this so much that I want to be smelling it for 12 hours straight. And since writing that first sentence of the verdict, I've noticed that this oil leaves a strong scent on my clothes as well, that lasts even longer and does retain the cloying aspect. After reading the other reviews, I wonder if it could be partly the dark musk that I find cloying. But the mandarin orange is definitely part of it - it's like cough syrup. To give a male POV: my 17 year old son liked it very much, but suggested that it would be best used as a room scent in an oil warmer rather than a body scent. I tend to agree. This is an okay fragrance, but I probably wouldn't mind giving it up if someone wanted to swap a no-longer-available or LE scent that I really want for it. My rating: 3 stars

My imp is a decant from schackjj, The Goddess of Decanters (to borrow a quote from another participant in our decant circle!) In the imp: Oil is clear and a light golden yellow. It smells just like fresh grapefruit. On me, wet: The grapefruit is not quite as strong, and I can smell the honey and something that's almost floral - maybe the orris root? I really like this! I love grapefruit, and in this blend it is balanced by enough other notes that it isn't foody. On me, just dried: The grapefruit is disappearing rapidly, allowing some musk to come out. The floral note is stronger. After 10 minutes: The honey has taken over the musk and the grapefruit is gone, so now it's honey and floral. Sweet and pretty! After 30 minutes: Now mostly honey, with a hint of florals, a little musk again, and maybe some moss. After 1 hour: A soft, lean-in-close scent (with little throw.) Basically the same, except that now it's slightly powdery and there's just a tease of cypress. After 2 hours: Slightly powdery honey and musk. Verdict: Soft, girly, and very pretty. Wear some in a scent locket as well as on the skin, if you would like to retain the grapefruit note. My rating: 4 stars

OMG, I am in love with Death! In the imp: Clear, amber-colored oil. I don't smell anything in particular in the vial. There's mostly just an impression of sweetness. The scent develops when it is exposed to air, such as on the skin or if you hold the wand in the air for a minute and then sniff it again. On me, wet: An absolutely gorgeous, sweet, half fruity and half floral, scent. It's neither too fruity or too floral, but a perfectly balanced blend of both. I don't detect any of the specific flowers - they just all meld together seamlessly into a beautiful (and yes, funereal) floral note. I don't know what either benzoin or opopponax smells like on it's own, so I'm not able to recognize those notes if I am smelling them. On me, after 10 minutes: Pretty much the same, except that now I'm picking up a subtle undertone of the anise. After 30 minutes: Most of the pomegranate fruitiness has evaporated and the anise has gained strength, so that now it's florals and licorice, together with something I don't recognize which is probably the resins. After 1 hour: Now the primary scent is incense (the resins? or the champaca flowers?) and florals; with the spicy anise following close behind. After 2 hours: Mostly incense, with florals. After 3 hours: The scent has gone a little plastic-y, but it doesn't matter because it's barely there anymore. Verdict: This goes beyond death - straight to heaven. I MUST get myself a bottle of it while it is still available! I especially love it early on, when the pomegranate and florals are at their strongest - so (reminder to myself) do wear some of this in a scent locket as well as on your skin. My rating: 5 stars