dementia_divine

I tried an aged imp of the original, which was just okay on me, but I decided to throw an imp of the resurrected version into my last Lab order so I could try it before they go away. In the imp: This is much more citrus-y than the imp I had (but I know citrus notes don’t age well). I mainly get the Bulgarian rose, mandarin, and bergamot from the imp. Wet: Bulgarian rose, amber, mandarin, bergamot, and a hint of spice. As it sits on my skin, the citrus notes remain main players, but the rose and the musk are gaining strength. Dry: This is now a citrus-y, musky rose on me. I got a lot of musk and rose from the original as well, so maybe I just amp those notes. The resins and a tinge of spice reside in the background. After a few hours, the citrus calms down, the amber and sandalwood come out more, and I also get a bit more of the spices. It is now a musky rose and resin scent with a bit of citrus and spice. Verdict: It was nice to be able to try this one. I like it more than the aged imp of the original I tried, but it is not something I need more of before it goes away.

I am destashing this bottle, so I suppose I should share my thoughts on the scent before I forget what it was like. TKO is one of my favorite scents, and it is the scent of which I have gone through the most bottles (I think I’ve used 5 or 6 by now. It’s hard to keep track as the number keeps going up and I keep giving away empties to those curious about the scent). I like to think of it as cloud of sugared lavender marshmallow goodness (although I suspect there may be mallow root at play and not straight up marshmallow). TKO v3 is a sugared lavender scent as well. It has the same sugared note found in TKO, but there’s less of it. It’s a different lavender, a stronger one, and there’s this sweetness present that I believe is due to another floral note (violet or something violet-like). The mallow or marshmallow or whatever gives TKO it’s fluffy, marshmallow-like cloud quality is not present in the prototype. It’s been a while since I’ve smelled Erebos, but I think this is more like that scent than the released version of TKO. I vastly prefer the released version of the scent.

In the decant: Slushy snow and incense with some patchouli and what may be the wood of the manor. Wet: I am getting slushy snow, patchouli, and wood with some sugared incense winding through the scent. I think this is Crimson Peak’s snow mixed with Frosty Silkybat’s patchouli, but I don’t have either of those scents anymore, so I cannot be sure. Dry: It is a slushy snow, patchouli, and wood scent at first, but the patchouli (or is it patchouli-like oudh?), wood, and incense come out more over time and end up being the main players after a few hours of wear, with what remains of the snow in the background. Verdict: I was looking forward to this because of the sugared incense note, because sometimes that descriptor can be absolutely magical (looking at you, Midnight on the Midway (original) and Fairy Market). Alas, there was not enough sugar in this for me, and the patchouli incense and wood were too strong on me in the end. I am glad that I did not leap for a bottle of this when it was live, but it was nice to get to try it.

[No additional description provided. Scent description for Snake Oil is here.] In the bottle: Lightly chilled Snake Oil. Wet: The fresh Snake Oil is far stronger than the frostbite component at first, which I believe is the chilled sweet snow note from Snow White. After a few minutes, the sweet snow note ends up becoming stronger. It really feels as if it is draped over the top of the Snake Oil, like Snake Oil curled up in a Snow White blanket. Dry: Like Snake Oil and Snow White had a baby. It's a snowdrift of the chilly sweetness of Go to Sleep, Darlings and Snow White over fresh Snake Oil. Verdict: My bottle leaked in a little transit, but was still full, and as soon as I smelled the scent on the bubble wrap, I was like, SNAKE OIL SNOW WHITE. HYPE! I tried to calm myself down before applying it in case I was mistaken. But that's what I ended up getting on my skin. This is really lovely. I'm really surprised how much the sweet snow note comes through, and I can't wait to see how this ages!

Oh, Detestable Putrescence. How I used to adore thee! When I first tried you at Denver Comic Con back in 2015, you were an instant love. Now, things have changed. I don’t know if it is you or me. You used to be this wonderful vanilla ice cream on me. Now, when I put you on, I get a lot of almond (which I can’t help but associating with cherry), and you turn to vanilla plastic on me. I am not sure if it is a skin chemistry change or if you are the odd vanilla that does not become more amazing with age (even though you’ve been stored in a wooden box and kept away from heat and light). But you are not the delicious smelling melty vanilla ice cream that you once were on me. So I have to let you go. Hopefully you can find a new home with someone who will get that wonderful vanilla ice cream from you without a plastic vibe.

I was lucky to have a wonderful fairy pick this up for me while I was studying in Germany, but it appears I never reviewed it once I returned. In the bottle, the astringent, lemon-y white tea is the strongest note, followed by the freesia, and then the vanilla musk. On my skin, I am still getting the notes in that order: white tea, freesia, and vanilla musk. But the vanilla musk is stronger on me than it was in the bottle, and it reminds me of the vanilla musk found in Edith Cushing as well (it’s a tad buttery and gourmand). As it sits on my skin, the vanilla musk ends up becoming more prominent. Once dry, this ends up being a freesia and tea-infused vanilla musk. The scent itself has decent, throw, too, and when I was walking in the hot desert wind earlier, I kept getting tons of the ethereal vanilla musk. Lovely! It just keeps getting better after several hours of wear. I had two bottles of this, but I ended up giving one of them to my mom last year, because she had used up all of her bottles of Ava (her holy grail scent), and this belongs to that scent family. I will not be letting go of the bottle that I still have and am kicking myself for not reaching for this one more often.

I thought I had reviewed this, and after some searching, I found I had shared my thoughts in the Retail Exclusives thread, but I neglected to post my review here. This was my original review: I wore Loved to Death for the first time yesterday, and it was mainly an amazing combo of blackened vanilla and clove on me (just like I wanted), with a bit of cinnamon that didn't burn my skin, and the beeswax coming out more during the dry phase. I'm so glad I bought a bottle. Now I’m retesting it after it has aged for a few years. There’s either anise or an anise-like aspect to the blackened vanilla, which I also got from this when it was fresh. It’s the same blackened vanilla note found in Black Vanilla and Cardamom Hair Gloss, which I swapped away because I never reached for it due to the prominence of the anise in my hair. Fortunately, this isn’t super strong on the anise, and it calms down over time. I also get a prominent honey note from this, although there isn’t one listed, that reminds me of Sweets to the Sweet. Maybe that’s from the beeswax. The spices are present, but they aren’t strong. I get more clove than cinnamon, and I still get more of the beeswax during the dry phase. I like this, but I haven’t really reached for this once since I got it except to decant from it and to remind myself what it smells like. I actually wish the clove were stronger. I am going to continue holding on to this, because it is nice, but if I don’t reach for it at all once the weather cools down, I will force myself to let it go, because my perfume collection is getting out of control, and I prefer (Not so) Penitent (Mini) Magdalene to this one.

This was the Midsummer Scream exclusive that appealed to me most. I did not seek out a fairy for it because it was so close to SDCC and those exclusives were more important to me, but I was thrilled when this popped up on Etsy and immediately ordered a bottle! In the bottle, this is syrupy, spiced, foodie pumpkin. In my hair, the spiced pumpkin reigns, backed by a deep amber, not a golden one (like the kind in Galloping Dreams atmo). The spiced pumpkin makes me think of the pumpkin in the GCs in the pumpkin patch scents. It only stuck around for a few hours in my wet hair. Applied to dry hair, the strong spiced pumpkin calms down somewhat after a few hours, but it’s still a spiced pumpkin and amber scent… just not as strong as it had been. This is not as strong as Pumpkin Spice Everything HG, but I think I like this more because it is spiced pumpkin and not just pumpkin spices. I am really happy to have a bottle of this, and I look forward to grabbing it in perfume oil form when the Weenies arrive (since Beth mentioned that this would have a sister scent)!

In the imp: There’s a sharp, somewhat sour (like vinegar) note, and something sweet, accompanied by what I think could be hay. Wet: There’s something sweet, but then I am hit with a blast of that sharp note that I, too, can’t help associating with nail polish remover. It’s like nail polish remover and banana!?!?!?!?!?! I just had to do a search of this thread to see if anyone else happened to get banana. Glad I am not the only one. I hope this changes. Dry: It takes a long time for that sharp, nail polish remover-like note to calm down. When it does calm down, I do get smoky, scorched fields. It’s sharp, somewhat smoky, with dry grasses and dry dirt, but oddly, there’s still that sweet banana-like note in the background. Verdict: Well, Scarecrow was a scent experience… but not one that I particularly enjoyed. The wet phase was unpleasant (and unexpected), and it isn’t until it has been dry for a while that I think it resembles its inspiration. So if you are wanting to smell like a dry, scorched field and dirt, you may have to brave the wet phase first, unless that was just an epic skin chemistry fail. But wet or dry, Scarecrow is not for me.

In the decant: I can smell all of the notes that were listed, and I was expecting a blast of eucalyptus upon opening the decant, but that actually wasn’t the case. The ti leaf stands out to me the most, followed by the black currant, eucalyptus, some oudh, and mate. Wet: The tea, eucalyptus, and black currant are the first notes that jump out at me. Then, I smell some herbal, slightly smoky mate and oudh behind those notes. The eucalyptus ends up gaining strength but has a light feel to it… it’s definitely not an in-your-face medicinal eucalyptus. The black currant adds a sweetness to the scent, but it is kept in check by the other notes. Dry: The black currant is now one of the stronger notes on me, but I am still getting the eucalpytus and tea. The green oudh and mate reside in the background, darkening the scent, although the oudh does end up getting a little stronger after a while. Verdict: I wonder if I amp black currant? I think Blacklight-Reactive Zombie Hand is nice, but I wish it were less currant-forward on me.

I let this rest for a day before testing it because it is so hot here. In the bottle: Resins, cognac, vanilla cream, a bit of saffron, and like a few others, I feel like there may be a blonde tobacco note in this, too, but maybe that’s my nose playing tricks on me because I’m used to that being in a Lace scent. Wet: The amber and the cognac notes jump out at me first, followed by the vanilla cream. Then, I get the oudh, which reads to me as a sweeter variety, and then the saffron emerges. After a few minutes, I get lots of saffron, vanilla, and resins. The cognac is still there, but it is not as strong as it was initially. Dry: On me, this is saffron-infused vanilla cream, cognac, cozy resins, and musk. It’s Love’s Philosophy’s saffron + Lace vanilla and cognac + resins on a bed of golden musk! Really lovely! Verdict: I am really glad that I leapt for a bottle! I love how vanilla-forward this one is on me. This smells wonderful already, but I think it will only get better with age!

In the imp: I’m getting tons of white musk with some lime and hibiscus. Wet: The white musk is still very strong on me, but I’m also getting more lime and hibiscus on my skin. It’s veering into soap territory on me, sadly, thanks to the white musk being so strong, but behind the soapiness, I get the tart hibiscus and lime. Dry: Okay, the white musk has calmed down somewhat, the hibiscus is a little softer than before, and I am still getting the lime note. I can also smell the matcha now. After a while, it ends up being a clean hibiscus and matcha scent with a touch of lime. I prefer this phase of the scent. Verdict: The white musk in this was just way too strong for me, sadly. This isn’t for me, but it was nice to be able to try it.

In the imp: I get the tropical fruits, steamy blossoms, and the breeze note with some amber in the background. Wet: The tropical fruits leap out at me first, but then there’s a blast of greenery, so it’s the rainforest boughs accompanied by a bit of sweetness from the fruit. Then, I get the steamy blossoms and the clean breeze note. Dry: The steamy blossoms end up stealing the show, but I still get some of the sweet, tropical fruit, greenery, and now, there’s some amber in the background. After a while, the breeze note ends up being the most prominent note on me, followed by the steamy blossoms. The amber continues to reside in the background. Verdict: Aww, I was hoping for more amber! I am glad I got to try it, but I do not think it’s one that I would wear (although it would make a nice room scent).

In the bottle: This really does smell like fresh air, green parks dotted with dandelions, and blooming gardens. The only note I’m worried about is the metal, as metal notes are often really sharp and cologne-like on me, but I’m not able to pick it out of the bottle, which gives me hope that this will behave on my skin. Wet: The fresh air note, with the scent of flowers carried on a gentle breeze, is the first thing I get from this, followed by green grass riddled with dandelions. I get a little citrus, like orange peel, which makes me wonder if there’s orange blossom in this or something representing an orange tree, but it doesn’t stay long. Then I get a light, sweet apple note, making me think there must be an apple tree in this park. Dry: This is the scent of apple trees and blooming flowers floating on a breeze. The scent seems to be getting cleaner over time, but it doesn’t smell like soap, fortunately. Verdict: I wanted this because of the dandelion, but it did not end up playing a big role on me after the initial blast of it. Still, the scent is nice. It manages to smell clean without veering into soap territory. I think it would make a nice spring/early summer scent, but I think it would make an even better room scent. So I will hang on to my bottle and probably use it for both purposes (and probably try it in a scent locket to see if I can get more dandelion from it that way).

A few weeks ago, I spilled half of my decant of this on my leg, hated how it smelled, and had to go shower to wash it off. Yet, I still made myself do a proper test of this scent... which I immediately regretted soon after applying it. In the decant, it's all honeyed, dark oudh, no vanilla to be found. On my skin, I think I finally got the poo-dh experience that everyone talks about. I totally got the diaper thing. It was not only me that was repulsed by the scent: my boyfriend said I smelled like baby wipes. I tried to scrub it off. It would not budge and ended up just smelling like a dark, dirty (that kind of oudh that gives me a dirty patchouli vibe like in Half-Elf), oudh. This one is not for me.

In the decant, I get ozonic incense. In my hair, it’s lemon-y ozonic incense. I was worried that there would be plum in this after the plum wine sky description, but fortunately, if there is plum in this, it is not a main player. The ozone note seems to fare better in my hair than it does on my skin. It’s clean but does not go into soap or dryer sheet territory. I agree that this is like a nice-scented hair product. After several hours, I wonder if there is a bit of plum in the incense smoke. There’s definitely a purple feel to it. It’s not a hair gloss that I need a bottle of, but I think I will hold on to my decant until I can track down a decant of Stormclouds on the Midway and try those scents together.

I am afraid of this one. Leaf notes can either smell like bell peppers on me or give me a headache, I am not a fan of anise or civet, and vetiver and I are usually not friends. In the imp: Anise, moss, and vetiver. I am afraid. Wet: The anise note takes the center stage. I can also smell the vetiver and moss. Then, I get the musky civet. Dry: The moss has decided to come out more, which I think tends to happen with moss notes on me. It’s muskier now, thanks to the civet, a little smoky from the vetiver, and I’m still getting lots of anise, but it’s smoother during this stage of the scent. After a while, it ends up being mostly musky moss, leaf, and grassy vetiver on me. Verdict: Black Annis was not nearly as menacing as I thought it would be. It’s not something I’d wear, but I feel like the description was more intimidating than the perfume oil itself.

In the bottle: Orange blossom or neroli (definitely a bitter citrus-y note) and jasmine are what I get from the bottle. Wet: Whoa, the oil is bright! It looks like I have orange juice on my arm! I am getting jasmine and an orange-y note that isn’t straight-up orange. The more it sits on my skin, the more I keep thinking orange blossom. Dry: The oil has left a huge yellow area on my skin! It ends up being a citrus-y (like freshly peeled orange) white floral scent with a dash of (I'm thinking white) pepper. The citrus aspect ends up becoming less prominent over time. Verdict: It was really nice to get to try this prototype, but ultimately, it’s just not something I would reach for, so I will have to see if I can find it a new home.

In the bottle: In the bottle, I only get the snow note, and it’s an ozonic, slushy snow. Wet: The slushy snow note is also the most prominent feature on my skin, but now, I am also getting some orange. Then, I get the sandalwood, and a little clove. I hope the clove ends up coming out more, as I’m hoping for orange + clove-y snow. There’s something weird smelling in this on me -- I am not sure if is the combo of the snow, orange, and sandalwood or if there’s actually a metallic note in this for the iron descriptor? I am thinking there has to be. This… smells like slushy snow Spaghettio sauce on me. o.0 Dry: Yeah, for some reason, the slush-y snow, orange, and metal (and perhaps the chalkiness?) combine and smell like slush-y snow tomato sauce. This… was very unexpected. Verdict: Since my skin is doing weird things with this one, I think I will try this in an oil burner and see if I can enjoy it that way.

Blood rising through an ocean wave. In the imp: I do get the blood (I get a sharp metallic note and a little spice), but the soapy aquatic note is by far the most prominent aspect of the scent in the imp. Aquatics are often soapy on me, so I do not have high hopes for this one. Wet: This is SUPER SOAP on me. And now that I’ve written that, I can’t help but envisioning a bar of soap in a red cape, thinking it has come to save the day, when really, it is ruining it. Behind the mountain of soap suds, I detect the blood, which is not making me think of dragon’s blood at the moment (dragon’s blood can be wonky on me and often stomps on other notes), but maybe that’s because I have wandered into the SOAP KINGDOM. Dry: The blood note, which reads as incense-y to me (and may be the one found in Mithras) has come out more and seems to be getting stronger over time, but there’s still some aquatic soapiness in the background. There is a floral aspect to the scent, but if there’s dragon’s blood in here, it’s not being problematic like it usually is on me. Verdict: As far as blood notes go, this one is okay -- but the aquatic note is far too soapy on me.

In the imp: The lemon peel in this is actually a lot softer than expected, but it’s one of the main notes I’m getting from the imp, along with the white sage. Behind those notes, I can smell some frankincense and fougere. Wet: This is kind of medicinal, in a cough drop way. The lemon peel and white sage still stand out to me the most, but I’m also getting more of the lavender fougere on my skin than I did in the imp. Then, a light frankincense emerges, along with a pale sandalwood. Dry: The lavender fougere and resins are the main players. I am still getting the sage, but the lemon peel is very light now. The resins are a little heavier(the labdanum has probably joined in, and the frankincense has gotten stronger). There’s no smoky vetiver here -- it’s the herbal bourbon vetiver variety that I can handle. Verdict: This is light and airy and more pleasant than I thought it would be. I think it would be great on a guy, but I don’t think I’d reach for this one myself, even though it is nice.

In the decant: I can pick out the coconut, vanilla, smoky cacao, whiskey, coffee bean, and some spice. Wet: There is a lot going on in this one, so there’s no way I am going to be able to pick everything out, but I am getting the smoky cacao (it’s stronger on me than it was in the vial), coconut, vanilla, and spices. Then, I get a little coffee bean and some whiskey, but I wouldn’t say this is a boozy scent. As it sits on my skin, the vanilla and spices become more prominent. The orris butter comes out as the scent begins to dry, and I hope it doesn’t take over everything, as orris typically loves stomping on everything else and making a scent a powdery mess with my skin chemistry. Dry: While I do get the orris butter, it hasn’t succeeded in declaring dominion over the other notes and ruining the scent thus far. And I can smell the truffle note now! It’s a spiced, slightly smoky cacao on me now with some truffle and vanilla, as well as some carnation. After a few hours, the carnation ends up becoming one of the main players -- I’m not surprised, as I tend to amp carnation -- along with the spices and cacao. Verdict: This is a really interesting, complex 13. It’s not one I need to hunt down more of, but I think I will hold on to my imp and maybe reach for it when the next 13 rolls around (since I don’t really wear 13s except on that day).

In the decant: Sweet Snow White snow piled on top of chocolate-y Bliss. Wet: The sweet snow note from Snow White is the most prominent part of the scent, but Bliss’ brownie-like chocolate-y self is getting stronger as the oil sits on my skin (although it hasn’t managed to overtake the snow note). Dry: The snow note ended up reasserting itself, so this is sweet snow-covered Bliss. But after several hours of wear, what remains is mostly the Snow White snow… the chocolate note is very faint. Verdict: I am glad that I got to try this one, because I love the sweet snow note, and I enjoy gourmands, but I am also glad that I did not leap for a bottle of this when it was live since it mostly ended up being the Snow White snow on me, and I already have multiple bottles of Snow White.

In the decant: Hot cocoa with tiny marshmallows! Wet: It smells just like a cup of hot cocoa made from a packet with little marshmallows included! The marshmallow is more prominent on me than it was in the decant. There’s a fuzzy warmth to it that must be the felt. Dry: Okay, now I do get the glue note, and it is very realistic. It’s marshmallows and glue on a fuzzy cocoa blanket. The glue ends up being somewhat sharp on me and stronger than I would like it to be in the end, but this was great when it had less of a presence. Eventually, the cocoa reasserts itself so that it’s mostly cocoa, felt, and a little bit of glue after several hours of wear. Verdict: I really liked this at first, but then the glue got to be too much for me, but after a while, it became more cocoa-y again? I have a lot of chocolate scents, so I will probably let go of this decant because I can’t see myself reaching for this over those, but I will say that I love that this isn’t just a straight-up gourmand and that, while the glue note wasn’t for me, I appreciate how realistic it smelled! This was definitely a scent experience.

2009 release. In the bottle: Lightly spiced boozy goat’s milk egg nog with some soft coffee in the background. Wet: This smells like creamy egg nog. It was boozier in the bottle than it is on me, although I do get some booze after a few minutes as well as the soft coffee liqueur. Dry: It’s boozier now than it was before, and the spices have now come out to play, but they are soft and aren’t overpowering. I really enjoy how creamy this one is, but I wish I got a little less booze during this phase of the scent. The coffee liqueur is fainter than before, but I can still smell it in the background if I inhale deeply. Sadly, this one is pretty soft and doesn’t have any throw. I wonder if slathering would help? Verdict: This is a nice, creamy egg nog scent. I think I will hold on to the bottle and see how much I reach for it once the holiday season rolls around.