Jheya

In the vial: Sweet pumpkin cheesecakey goodness. On skin: A gentle bakery sweetness. I'm not usually fond of pumpkin scents, but so far this is nice. Warm and comforting. ~1.5 hours: Initially the pumpkin amped up and took the forefront of the blend, adding a dusty, slightly sickly feel to it. An hour and a half later, it's calmed down a lot, probably at least in part due to the fact that it's significantly fainter than it was before. There's still a dusty feel to the blend, which rather detracts from the warm foody scent underneath. The second time I tested it, I got very little in the way of dust, and it was just warm foody goodness. Overall, it's a lovely scent, but not one I'd see myself wearing often. And so, considering it's rarity, I think it's better off finding a new home.

In the imp: Fruity, candy sweetness. On skin: Candy sweetness, a little powdery, but not cloying. After a minute or so the soft sweetness fades, and a brasher note makes an appearance. It's a tart, dark fruit, and acts as an interesting counterpoint to the innocent, candy sweetness. ~40 mins: Rich, purple fruits. Plum and blackcurrant, with a dusting of icing sugar to give it a candy-like touch.

In the imp: Sweet powder. On skin: A sweet, slightly cool and powdery scent. After having settled for a minute, a clean but distinctly soapy smell begins to emerge. This puts me in mind of just having gotten out of a refreshing bath in summer. It's weird having that feeling in scent form. ~1 hour: Though the scent still retains a clean feel to it, it is no longer soapy. There's a warm earthiness to the blend, I'm guessing from the patchouli, whilst the musks add a soft, powdery feel to the blend. There's a slightly floral tone to this, but it acts as an accent rather than as part of the main body of the scent. Pleasant, and very curious when wet, but the drydown is fairly non-descript on me, and not something I can see myself wearing.

In the vial: A springtime scent, delicate and reminiscent of being outdoors in the countryside. On skin: A mingling of delicate floral notes. It's quite a faint scent and I can't really pick apart the individual components. Now that's it's on skin and I can smell it more clearly it no longer seems as true as it did in the vial. Instead of smelling like spring in the countryside it now seems more artificial, like a laundry detergent trying to smell like the outdoors but not quite managing it. A pity. ~30 mins: The blend has morphed and no longer smells as fake. There's a sweetness to this, and a touch of fruit even though I don't see any listed in the notes. The floral notes are rather subdued, and there's a dustiness which is almost but not quite like hay. ~1 hour: The dusty note has faded, and I'm left with a mix of gentle floral notes with a smooth, sweet, fruity undertone. Pretty and feminine, but not really my cup of tea.

In the vial: A deep scent, giving way to fruits and incense with a bright, heady after tone. On skin: Cool fruits and floral tones mingles with a soft musk. Soft and pretty, but there's also a heady note hiding in amongst it all, adding a sharp, biting element whenever it comes to the surface. Altogether it puts me in mind of incense mingled with a soothing bath product. It's not a dark scent, but seems somewhat murky to my nose, lingering in the half-light of twilight. ~1 hour: The sharp incense note has now faded, leaving behind a much smoother, more unified scent. It's soft and powdery with a gentle warmth. No single note jumps out and comes forward, but instead all the components combine to create a delicate, slightly sweet, feminine blend. However, though it's a pretty scent I'm not sure that it's really 'me'. On the one hand it seems a little too old for me, but at the same time there's something about it that keeps pulling me back for another sniff. I'm going to have to think about this one.

In the imp: Resinous, dark and brooding. On skin: Dark and resinous. The incense I caught whiffs of in the imp comes through more clearly on skin, but thankfully doesn't become heady and headache inducing the way incense often does on me. After a couple of minutes it loses the dark tone and becomes oddly clean and soap-like. Neither warm nor cool, it's a distant kind of scent that likes to keep itself at arms length from you. ~1 hour: The soapy tone has vanished, and now the dominant scent is that of earthy vetivert. There's a twirl of smoke winding its way through the scent, but slightly strange and sinister rather than the gentle warmth of woodsmoke. Inhaling deeply reveals a tobacco-y undertone that makes my head swim a little. An interesting blend, but not to my tastes.

In the imp: Bright citrus which kind of puts me in mind of Sprite. On skin: The citrus notes aren't so sharp once applied to skin. It's still distinctively citrus, but smoother fruity notes have bloomed beneath, helping to round out the scent. ~1 hour: Alas...soap. It's a very pretty smelling soap smell, delicately fruity, but not just fruit... My nose is not good enough to identify the other notes beyond a soft, musky kind of scent. It's lovely, and would be a keeper if not for the soapy association. I guess the cat grew tired of being shut in a box and went to have a bath instead... After 2 hours only a hint of scent remained, and after 4 I can barely tell that I applied a scent at all. A short-ish wear-length, and probably not a keeper due to the soapy tone.

In the vial: Sweet with a hint of sharpness and a creamy undertone. On skin: This is an edible, creamy vanilla scent. After it's had a couple of minutes to settle, the sandalwood comes forward, changing the feel of the blend from gourmand to something else. The sweetness is also tempered by the sandalwood. ~30 mins: The sandalwood is a lot more apparent upon drydwon than it was when wet in the vial. It adds a warm, slightly dusty, woody undertone to the blend. I'm not so sure how much I like it's presence as it means that the blend is now only slightly sweet around the edges rather than the edible concoction it was before. ~4 hours: The sandalwood mellowed a little after ~2 hours, and then blend has diminished in strength since then. However, the basic composition remains the same: warm, slightly sandalwood as the base, overlaid with a slightly sweet, creamy touch of vanilla. Pleasant, but not amazing. I think I prefer it in the vial, and because of that I'm not sure that this is a keeper, though it might be lovely if worn in a scent locket.

In the vial: I get vague whiffs of both fruity and floral notes, but the scent is so well blended that I'm having difficulty picking out any of the individual components. On skin: The fruit identifies itself more clearly as apple once on skin. There's warmth to the blend, yet curiously it's a cool kind of warmth. It does put me in mind of autumn, where there's still warmth in the air, but cooler now than the summer heat before with the leaves becoming shades of red and gold. ~1 hour: Apple, and a slightly powdery note that tickles my nose. Beneath the apple there's warmth that grounds the blend. It's gentle and comforting and the individual notes mingle so well that I can't pick them apart. ~1.5 hours: It's pretty, soft and delicate, and puts me in mind of an autumn morning with the first hint of winter in the air and just a touch of mist. The tickly powder has gone, and the soft apples and warmth are lovely. Thankfully, I haven't fallen head over heels for this though, considering it's rarity. If it were more common I'd consider tracking down a bottle, but as I doubt I'll reach for this often, I think I can let this one go. There are other fall scents that I can enjoy when the mood takes me, after all.

In the imp:Almond. On skin: Initially it remains a blast of almond, but after a few seconds it begins to settle and let something else peek through. Within a minute the almond has sunk completely into the background and vanished. I can't smell it at all any more, and I'm left with a cool scent that's predominantly citrus and rose. The rose soon takes over, meaning that all I can smell is powdery rose and not much else. ~1 hour: Though it has now diminished in strength, this is still rose and nothing else. As it is no longer overpowering it's a lot more pleasant, and a fresh rose scent rather than the soap that rosy blends usually become on me. However, I'm still not keen on rose even when it does work, so this imp is off to find a new home.

In the imp: Citrus. On skin: The citrus softens once applied to skin, and it is no longer as sharp as it was in the imp. It becomes rounder and warmer, but also takes on a rather soap-like tone. ~1 hour: A soft, warm citrus with a gently musky undertone and a touch of floral. Which sounds nice, and would be, if not for the fact that it's soft, warm, musky citrus SOAP on me. It's still a pleasant scent, and quite elegant in feel, but the rather soapy tone means that it seems more like a scent to enjoy whilst bathing than one enjoy on a romantic evening out. ~2.5 hours: The citrus has died away completely, leaving behind soft floral tones. The rose is the only one I can easily identify, and is likely the culprit that turned this to soap on me. The blend morphs interestingly, but isn't my kind of scent, so off to the swaps pile it goes.

In the vial: Sweet and creamy, but with a sharp note lurking on the edges. On skin: The sharpness I could smell in the vial reveals itself to be a sourness in the milk once applied to skin. The warm creamy milk forms a lovely backdrop to the scent, but unfortunately the sourness spoils it. ~2 hours: Soft, creamy milk overlaid with a sour tone. Although the sour note isn't altogether unpleasant, it does add a sharpness to the blend that doesn't fit with the creaminess of the milk. Which is a shame, because I had high hopes for this blend and it would have been lovely had it not soured on me. Sadly not to be, so off to swaps it goes.

In the vial: Strong incense mingled with woods. This should be interesting considering that none of the listed notes work well on me! On skin: Heady incense with the woods creating an undertone that grounds the blend. Whilst it's all right as far as incense dominant blends go, it hurts my head a little and really isn't to my taste. ~40 mins: The incense is still the dominant note, but thankfully it's now calmed somewhat, and it's mellower and less headache inducing than it was before. The incense and the woody notes mingle a lot more smoothly now, combining into a unified scent rather than remaining the separate entities they started out as. ~1.5 hours: Soft, slightly powdery incense. The woody notes appear to have faded away completely. Considering that all the notes in this often misbehave on me, this is actually surprisingly pleasant. However, it isn't my kind of scent, and so it's off to find a new home.

In the imp: Red musk, deep woody notes and perhaps a hint of something spicy. On skin: Red musk and woods. A warm, masculine scent with a dark tone. Not sinister, but more a scent for lurking in the shadows than prowling in the light. ~30 mins: Still musk and woods. Somehow I doubt that this one is going to morph much on me. As musky woody scents go, this is actually rather nice, and I could see it being wonderful on a guy. I actually find it quite a comforting scent, but I think that's due to the rosewood and my personal associations with it. Whatever the case, it's really not chaotic to my nose! However, as it's not something I would wear (nor something I can convince my SO to wear), I think this one my be destined to find a new home.

In the vial: Phew, booze! Fruity, but sting the back of your throat, sharp alcoholic punch! On skin: Warm fruit, and not so strongly alcoholic as it was in the vial. However, it's still a little sharp and stinging, and has taken on a slightly soapy tone. ~30 mins: Surprisingly, despite the initial shock of alcohol when opening the vial, there's now very little trace of the booze remaining. There's a touch of it if sniffed closely, but now it's predominantly a mixed fruit with a rather soapy feel to it. ~1 hour: Soft, fruity soap. I prefer Spiked Punch at this stage more than the initial blast of alcohol, but with the rather soapy feel it has it's still not something I'd choose to wear as a perfume. Ah well, clearly this one was not meant to be, so off to the swaps pile it goes.

In the bottle: Autumnal in feel. Apple, and a slightly stinging harsh note from the cider. On skin: It's warmer and more full-bodied than it was in the bottle. Appley, and it would be quite pleasant if not for the fact that the alcoholic note catches in the back of my throat and stings. ~1.5 hours: The blend has softened and is noticeably fainter than before. It's less apply now, and more autumnal in feel. There's a warm dustiness to it, putting me in mind of dry leaves. However, when I breathe in deeply there's still that sharp, unpleasant note from the cider, and though the rest of the blend is pretty I'm not too fond of that component. This is probably lovely on someone with the right skin chemistry, but sadly I don't think that it's one for me.

In the vial: Melon and other fruity notes. Smooth and juicy. On skin: Smooth, sweet, melony goodness, mmm. A slightly sharp citrus note gradually begins to make its presence known, and after a few minutes makes its way to the forefront. The sharper tone over the smooth melon is a nix mix. Light and refreshing. ~30 mins: The sharpness has vanished, and the fruity notes form a gently sweet, smooth base. A light floral lingers on the surface, adding its delicate touch to the blend but not overwhelming it. Now that I've looked up the notes I'm not entirely sure where I get the melon from, but I still smell it in the vial regardless. A pretty, delicate blend. I like this one, but will have to see how often I actually wear it before committing myself to finding more.

In the imp: Spice and chinese preserved plums. On skin: For the first few seconds it's the same strange smell that I get in the imp, but then it begins to change and turns rather TCP-like. Antiseptic mingled with warmth and sourness. Um... So far I think it's quite safe to say that so far I'm really not liking this one. ~10 minutes: Sour medicinal with a hint of spice. Unfortunately the spice doesn't do anything to counteract the medicinal smell. If anything it actually makes it worse as it just smells so wrong. ~30 minutes: I'm sure on someone with the right skin chemistry this might morph in different ways and end up smelling lovely. However on me it really doesn't. It's taken on the form of a murky, sour, pickled medicinal smell, which isn't terribly pleasant. I think I'm going to go attempt to wash this one off, and the imp is definitely destined for the swaps pile.

In the imp: Spicy warmth on top with cool, minty aquatic underneath. On skin: The warmth I could smell in the imp went missing as soon as the oil hit my skin. This is cool and almost minty. Perhaps it's pennyroyal I'm smelling as in another blend it took on an evil!mint persona, so it's a possibility. There's also a damp herbal note lurking in the background, providing a base to the cool, bright minty top note. Not so much smoke and fire, but I definitely get a sense of a fierce, raging wind. ~10 minutes: The storm has calmed a little, and though the chilly notes still dance up high underneath lies the smooth aquatic of a gentle ocean. ~30 minutes: The air is clear and cool, the wind blowing swiftly but without anger. Beneath it lies the ocean, stretching on into the distance, but the subtle hint of greenery in the air suggests that land might not be far off, and the tiniest tang of fruit indicates that the vegetation is lush, and growing well. An interesting blend which went through unexpected changes to become something rather pleasant, with a softness and gentle sweetness that I would't have been able to predict from the initial minty blast. I like this one a lot more than I thought I would. Though I know I won't reach for it often, I'm tempted to keep this one for the imagery it calls up.

In the imp: Sea spray with a warm woody undertone. On skin: I'm not usually a big fan of aquatics and I'm not expecting this one to be an exception to that. Fresh on, this definitely falls within the aquatics scent family. The initial strong burst of sea spray fades within a minute or so, and becomes softer, with woody notes coming through. ~10 minutes: A smooth aquatic with warm woody tones. ~30 minutes: Warm woods, perhaps a hint of the bay rum adding it's presense, with breezy aquatic notes blowing gently over the top. It's a nice blend, but not one that's to my tastes. It's too masculine for me, and just not a scent I feel a connection to. It might smell nice on my SO, but if he doesn't take a liking to it, then it'll be off to the swaps pile.

In the imp: Sherbet incense. On skin: This smelt quite sweet whilst in the imp, but there's a sour tang to that sweetness now that it's applied on skin. The sparkling note isn't so much like sherbet now, but more of a spiciness, like the ginger I get from other BPAL blends. ~10 minutes: The ginger smell is still the dominant note, but it's smoothed out a little, and is no longer quite as sharp. ~30 minutes: Sweet ginger with a touch of incense in the background. Not upleasant, but not my kind of scent either.

In the vial: Light, fresh floral with warm undertones. On skin: At first I smell light floral notes, but then a fruitiness swells and adds to the mix. This is still predominantly a floral, but the orange pulp adds a citrus tang to the blend. After a couple of minutes it takes a back seat to the attar of rose, which is beginning to amp up and dominate the blend. ~10 minutes: The rose is the main note I can pick out, and it's taken on a slightly soapy tone. There's a lovely well-rounded fruitiness in the background, but unfortunately it's very faint and not the easiest to pick out. ~40 minutes: The rose has mellowed out a bit, and as a whole this is a fairly non-descript warm, slightly soapy floral with a fruity undertone. It's an okay blend, but not one that really wows me.

In the imp: Dragon's blood with an undertone of dusty wood. On skin: Predominantly dragon's blood, and the woods take a minute or so before they begin to emerge. It's warm, dry, and a little dusty. ~10 minutes: The woods are coming though more strongly now, adding harsher feel to the dryness of this blend, with a sense of heat smouldering in the background. ~30 minutes: The woody notes have really taken over this blend with dryness and heat. Not really my kind of scent at all.

In the imp: Juicy fruit with a citrus zing. On skin: Gorgeously juicy fruit. This smells very orangey, with a hint of tartness to the otherwise sweet smell. On the surface this has a warm feel, but there's a coolness lurking underneath. A couple of minutes into weartime and there's a hint of something else beginning to sneak into the blend. I'm not sure what it is, but it smells slightly bitter and herbal. It's quite a contrast to sweet orange and makes the blend smell rather strange. ~10 minutes: Though still mainly fruity, this doesn't smell as full-bodied as it did when first applied. The strange herbal note lurks in the background, not intruding too much, but still occassionally making its presense known. ~30 minutes: This smells kind of off on me now. It's still vaguely fruity, but with more of an artifical soapy edge than the scent of real fruit. The herbal note lingers in the background, adding to the strange feel of this blend. It started off quite promising, but ultimately it seems that Tweedledee doesn't work too well with my skin chem after all.

In the vial: Slightly sweet and creamy with a floral backdrop (rice pudding blossom). On skin: It starts off rich and creamy, almost but not quite foody, with the floral notes making an appearance in the background. It's a bit of a strange combination to my nose, and as it dries I can pick out a sense of warmth and dryness. I think this becomes more of a creamy floral than a foody cream as it dries, though it's proving hard to judge as it's wavering on an indistinct line between the two. Once dry it's still an almost foody creamy floral. There's also warmth and something with a bit of a fiery edge to it underneath, which I suspect is the red musk. It's an interesting blend, and I'm glad I got the chance to try it, but ultimately it's not really a scent for me. It works okay, and is pleasant enough on my skin, but nothing that jumps out and wows me. It's probably just as well, really. Not only would it be a mission to track down more of this, but I also suspect I'm sensitive to a component in this, as it tickled my nose which partially blocked itself in response. I'll probably keep my sniffie as it was a gift, but I won't be searching for any more.