maribouquet

At first this is mostly honey on me, and surprise! a honey that does not go sickly ick sweet on my skin - woohoo! Also, yes, roses. Pretty, soft, feminine. Maybe a little too foody sweet for me...I'm not sure. It has nice staying power. I tested this from a friend's imp, and while I'm not feeling inclined to seek out another just now, I would def. try it again. 11/3/07 - trying this again, without having looked at the notes, this smells like candied flowers. Sort of sour-sweet like sour candy. The drydown is just a honey smell - it's okay, but not great on me.

Strong, smooth "island" vanilla. I can see why this is a favorite for so many, but on me it smells too much like bathroom cleaner or a taxi cab air-freshner. eta (10/30/07): Giving this another shot, and while the wet stage is still the same as above, it is over pretty quickly, and I think I like the drydown. It's soft, and I get a soft vanilla musk and some of the mossy/minty notes that others have mentioned. Neat!

Morocco has great throw, but gah it doesn't smell good on me. Not sure what it is exactly, but I'm getting a sickly strong sweet powder scent, sort of like the inside of a Bazooka Joe bubblegum wrapper after you've rubbed it on an older lady's powdered inner arm. Not that I've ever...done that. Um. Not for me.

I agree with Extispex, there is something about Rome that smells "devotional"...good for augury and freshening up before you visit the oracle, I think. On me the juniper is strong enough that I can't see myself wearing this as a personal fragrance. It's really lovely though - especially as it dries down and the cypress emerges a bit...the rose stays soft throughout.

This is so gorgeous - I absolutely love the lilac with the lily...but I'm so sad that the dragon's blood turns camphorous and ruins it on me.

Violet toothpaste. This is totally meh on me. Oh well! Swappity swap swap!

This is a mouth-wateringly sour citrus when first applied, predominantly grapefruit and kumquat, which I like. Underneath is a creamy sort of sweetness - not vanilla, but it has that same smooth texture, if that makes any sense...smells a little dusty in a way...nice. The drydown is a little too sour, and after four hours I'm left with a sort of musty, sour scent. Meh. I do love citrus, though. This is lovely - I just wish my skin liked it as much I as I wanted to.

This is lovely first on - a soft, fruity floral with a peachy tone to it. Sadly the drydown on me is icky - the fig goes a bit rotten and goes to war with the sandalwood. It's not awful, it's just like a bruised apple - off-putting.

In the imp and wet on my skin Silk Road is a floral cinnamon (that does not burn my skin, yay!) As it dries the cinnamon mellows out a bit and I think I smell patchouli and maybe some sandalwood? I agree with others who detect a sort of dried grassy, sisal scent. This is definitely a warm, dry perfume. I like the complexity, but overall it's not really me.

Bathsheba is not a standout on me - I mostly get the musk, which I like quite a bit. I think it's similar to the musk(s) in Hell's Belle, which I have a big bottle of already.

For the first five or so minutes Bloody Mary is medicinal and syrupy on me, ew ew. Truly frightening! But she mellows out into a soft, powdered sugar - I smell like a cherry marshmallow! Sexy in a smooth, girlish sort of way. Not too sweet, either. That said, I'm not sure if it's really me... but I'm pondering a bottle. Bonus: have been cured of my lingering fear of Bloody Mary! She's actually very nice, you know. Just misunderstood.

I can barely make out the apricot, and the butterscotch, hazelnut and caramel take a backseat to the strength of the gorgeous woods. I like the muted nature of the foody notes and the patchouli in Ventriloquist plays very nicely on me! However, this is VERY woody, and on me it wears too masculine for my tastes, I'm afraid. That said, I think this is unique and beautifully blended.

Wow, I am really digging this! I can't pick out any of the notes, but it (oddly) reminds me of Shub? And the tobacco is light & smells a bit like Ogun. Delish. I just put it on - I hope it dries down and wears well...

The Hanging Gardens smells so sweet to me in the imp that I immediately thought there must be lotus in it...but not so! Maybe it is the pear and plumeria that makes me think that. Wet on my skin it smells spicy somehow. The rose comes out a bit after a few minutes, and that is nice. It's quickly followed by shifting notes of what I think is palm and gardenia. Sadly, though, the drydown is spicy in a sort of waxy, palmy candle shop way -- it's not good on me.

Wow, I did not expect to like this as DB and myrrh don't smell that great on me usually. But there is something about Blood that I am really digging. I got this as a frimp in a swap (thanks jenn!) and I'm really glad as it's something I would never have tried otherwise. It's sort of a smoky cherry almond when it first goes on...the drydown is a little medicinal but I still like it. I'm def. keeping the imp for 'practice' purposes! ETA March 2008: On further testing I've realized this just doesn't work well. It's a dark, sticky almond at first - that's the cherry, I guess. But the DB ultimately makes this very sour and mothbally for me. Oh well!

Tamora lasts and lasts on me, with a slightly powdery peach drydown that I find myself unexpectedly liking. I just swapped away one imp of Tamora, but I'm going to hang on to my second one even though it's not really me.

Ditto on Ogun!

Oh pink moon, why? Why do you hit my skin and smell like someone dumped Splenda all over the floor of an anatomy lab? *sobs* D:

It's been a while since I've had a martini, so I may be wrong, but to me this doesn't smell much like I remember them to. That's okay, because I love it anyhow - very effervescent, juniper, alpine scent. I would really enjoy this as a soap or bath oil.

This *is* dark and sensual, but the red wine note makes it turn vomitous on my skin. Sad. Will be swapping this one.

Western Diamondback smells like an old leather jacket on me. Not unpleasant, but not great either - kinda one note with my chemistry, I guess. Oh well!

Hmm, not my favorite. Regular Snake Oil tends to go funky on me, and King Cobra seems to follow that pattern although the long dry down is a soft, orris-vanilla. It's nice enough, just not a winner on me.

This is gorgeously soft and subtle on me as it dries - the nutmeg and the ginger give this a sort of slow, honeycomb bite that is unexpected and lovely. I think I need a bottle!

I must agree with Desanera, the acceptance letter is great! (Especially as I am currently applying to medical school and so far this is the only one I've received, WOES.) The soap is divine; I love everything about it - the lather is lovely, the scent is creamy, coffee heaven with a sweet, rich flavor to it. I swear I didn't eat the soap, but I wanted to. This is the perfect clean for waking up in the morning, especially when you are a) exhausted, cranky, c) crying on a cellular level against waking. It's like office hours with your Irish psychiatrist, who keeps a dish of butterscotches on his desk along with the tissues. Note to self: order 1,000 more for daily ablutions!

I mostly get lilac, which is not a favorite...the drydown is a sort of plastic-y floral on me. Not great, but it does seem to brighten my mood a bit. I think I'll hang on to the imp for further testing. ADDED Nov. 9: I get a strong violet-like scent.