InaraRedCloak

The Radiant Glory of Love: Devotion, Understanding, and Unity Centifolia rose absolute, tea rose, bourbon vanilla, bittersweet chocolate, champaca resinoid, myrrh, nutmeg, pomegranate, and benzoin. Date: April 2018 In the vial: I'm getting the champaca almost immediately. There's a resin-like scent, the benzoin probably, and a full, not acrid rose under it all, with a touch of myrrh. A very 'skin' scent here. During application: On my hands, I get nothing but a gentle chocolate. As I apply the champaca comes out and gives me that creamy resin scent I always get with it. After applying, I can smell a slight sweetness to the air, maybe from the pomegranate or rose. Dry 30+ mins: I'm walking in a cloud of champaca, I get hints of chocolate and a deep, dark, mature rose (like Black Rose or Peacock Queen dark) Just walking around, this is a skin, softer, gentler La Roue de Malheur. I'm not getting any spice, or vanilla, and I'm not picking up any sweet/fruitiness. Very nice. Worn 3+ hours: It is a champaca incense, with a chocolate heart and deep rose underscore. This is lovely! Still no heavy spice. Very nice. Update: as my decant has aged, the rose and pomegranate has sweetened the blend. It's sweeter than the first application. I will be saving up for a bottle of this one.

Date: April 2018 In the vial: Right away I get dark chocolate powder/incense and deep red rose. As I suspected, it's very similar to The Orchard. To my nose, there is no bitterness, it is all warm, deep rose. Very unisex but bordering on masculine. Smells amazing to me. Wet on Skin: Smells like melted chocolate with a little rose hiding underneath. Like hot chocolate coating a rose and heating up the petals. This is a little sweeter than The Orchard (no woods note) very lovely. Dry 30+ mins: The chocolate s holding steady. The roses are actually a little sweet. This is lovely. I have the cotton swab in the scent locket, and it's almost toasty. Worn 3+ hours: The rose is pure and perfect. Everything is beautifully blended. This is going to age beautifully.

Date: April 2018 In the vial: soft rose, with a little herbal spice and something that reminds me of glue. Wet on Skin: I get roses and herbs. It's a little dusty, a little tea (like before it's brewed). It is turning into a gentle incense rose. Starting to lighten up and becoming like Rose Cross. Dry 30+ mins: Gentle rose, gentle spice and nothing that really impresses me. Worn 3+ hours: It's all but faded, but a lightly herbal rose. Once again, a nice scent, but not entirely what I'm looking for.

Date: April 2018 In the vial: A beautiful floral and incense blend. It remind me of the incense shops at Ren Faire. Wet on Skin: There's a high floral that I'm not that into. There are bright, fresh florals. This is a little high on florals and feminine. Dry 30+ mins: I think I can scent lilies and jasmine. There are too many florals and not enough incense for me. Worn 3+ hours: During the dry down, the lily and jasmine come out more. There wasn't enough incense for me to really enjoy this blend. Good for floral lovers though.

Released April 20, 2018; arrived May 5, 2018 In the vial: Yep, the bottle looks like one of those posters. I get a whiff of earthy incense and then stinky, wet greens. It's almost sickly sweet, then I get that creamy resinous nag champa. This scent is almost off putting in the bottle, but oh so very accurate. Wet on Skin: Not so sickly sweet on the skin. The nag is melting into a cream like blend as it sits in my skin. Now the patchouli is coming out. It's very realistic, turning a little less stinky and more herbal on my skin. I'm loving the nag champa note, which means my husband probably won't like it. Dry 30+ mins: This is becoming a very nag/patchouli blend, more like what I associate with that smoke shop scent. The nag is still very strong. Worn 3+ hours: Everything has mellowed and faded out until I'm left with mellow, creamy herbal resin incense. I really like the dry down. I will definitely give this one a few more tries before I decide to keep it.

Date: April 2018 In the vial: Fresh, really fresh and clean/airy (reminds me of DL Hemp/MossySoil blend) There's a nice blend of high, slightly floral top notes with a deeper under current. This definitely has layers, it's lke a musical chord with scents. I get a little poppy/opium airy note with beginning of the sniff, then everything blends together. Nicely done. Wet on Skin: Patchouli and plum mix together to almost get a woodsy scent. This is a little ethereal. There's a sensuous note at the bottom of the scent. Very airy and gentle. A summer goth sort of scent. The plum i starting to come out. If the jasmine amps up anymore, it will change the entire mood of the scent. Dry 30+ mins: It's soapy (clean) top notes with a spicy plum undertone, almost a cherry plum. I could do with a little less soap. Worn 3+ hours: Soapy spicy plum. I like it, the husband likes it, but I'd like it a lot better if the poppy/jasmine combo settles down. I'll let it chill for a few day and try again.

Date: April 2018 In the vial: It's that dusty almost candy smelling pomegranate. (I prefer the juicy version in Persephone and 7WS Lust) There's sweetness from the black currant. I'm not really getting any sandalwood yet. Wet on Skin: Mostly dusty pomegranate. Starting to get a little sandalwood/resin. This is a fairly faint but fresh scent. It's almost totally feminine. It's nice, but there are other pomegranate scents I prefer. Dry 30+ mins: Pomegranate is turning more into the type I like. The sandalwood is coming out more like a resin wood, but still light and gentle. Worn 3+ hours: This scent stays true to form, it doesn't morph very much. As it fades, the sandalwood comes out more.

From the Lab, arrived April 2018 In the vial: A little spice, sweet and resinous. I'm getting a lot of florals. This is a warm and comforting scent. Wet on Skin: Almost a citrusy musk and amber. The amber is already a major player in this blend. After re-reading the notes, it must be the almond giving Bastet her sweetness. Instinct is telling me to wash this off before the amber gives me a migraine. Oh well, it started nice.

Fresh from the Lab, received May 2018 Since I'm allergic to chamomile, I won't be doing a skin test. Here's my "review from the bottle". I'm totally allergic to chamomile and the honey notes seem to go sour and over power on me. I won't be able to even use this one in a scent locket. There's a very gentle, airy yet fuzzy quality to this scent. It totally evokes the idea of the fairies as seen in the film, however, I'm so allergic to the chamomile that a few deep breathes triggered my allergies. However, this is a lovely, soft scent that's reminicscent of fuzzy white puffy hair and iridescent delicate wings with a bite.

Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the vial: beautifully sweet. Since I opened the package, there was a sweet scent mixing with camphor. This is the sweet scent. At first, I smell sweet oranges, and then red rose. I can't recognize the sandalwood here. Wet on Skin: I get a lot of honey and rose and orange blossom. No bitterness other than the heavy rose. At first this one make me sneeze. This one smells like perfume. The scent is bold at first then mellow. It almost disappears in my nose. Dry 30+ mins: Everything blends. The scent has reappeared, but if I breathe it in enough it disappears. All the scents mix together. This is sexy and smooth. If I close my eyes, I can smell sandalwood. This scent is everything I wanted Catherine to be. Worn 3+ hours: Wow! This one has a lot of throw! It's almost overpowering. (the honey notes tend to do that to me) The sandalwood is fading out and the honey and rose is coming out. This is a very syrupy effect to the scent. This is very heady and sensual. To me, this is not an everyday scent. I have to be in a sensual, seductive mood for this one.

Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the vial: The wisteria comes out first. Then lilac and the rose on deep inhale. I knew I would love this blend based off its components. I was right. Wet on Skin: Everything blends beautifully. The rose and wisteria feel like they are on either end and the lilac ties them together. This is so very floral yet gentle, not a single note overpowers the others. This is surprising because all three are strong. I'm really liking this. Dry 30+ mins: I missed my timing to record this blend. My friend said it smells like "baby powder". Worn 3+ hours: a really mellow, faded wisteria. The rose is still gentle and mellow, the lilac is slightly sweet. This is one of my favorite floral scents. It's lovely. It brings to mind ballroom dresses waltzing in a beautiful twilight garden.

Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the vial: absolutely beautiful blend. Lilac tends to overpower but here. This is a garden at night. All of the flower blend perfectly together. Wet on Skin: violet and lilac in the forefront. There is a little heavy rose grounding everything and keeping it from being too airy. It blends together in the deep breath inhales, then fades. Dry 30+ mins: The scent is very soft and gentle. The sweetness of the violet mixes well with the lilac. This is like a more innocent version of Les Fleurs du Mal. There's a very calm night impresion of this scent. Worn 3+ hours: There is a sweetness in this floral. The violets and lilacs give the sweetness a very fruity scent. This reminds me of Oya. If Oya is the Goddess of air and ozone, Nocturne would be the night sky trailing in her wake. This a clear and airy scent. I could wear this everyday. It isn't a dark scent. Very feminine.

Blend released from the Lab 2018, swap arrived April 2018 In the bottle: Plum and patchouli, but resinous patchouli, not the 'green' herbal type. No spice from the sniff off the bottle, just beautiful semi-sweet dark plum/patchouli blend. Wet on Skin: A 'chewy' tobacco (the kind I like) and dirty plum. Right wrist, which was applied 2nd, has a more resinous patchouli than the first wrist. I'm getting a little spice to the plum on the first wrist. I seem unimpressed, but my instincts want me to slather this on my skin. It's starting to melt into my natural scent. Gods I hope this one doesn't melt into my skin. Dry 30+ mins: This totally reminds me of Black Moths without the vetiver. The plum is more prevalent. The spice comes and goes. This is very nice. Worn 3+ hours: This is lovely and everything (almost) that I could want in a gothic plum. I'm just missing an incense note. The plum is dark and full, no fake, or candy scent here. The tobacco is gentle but sweet (like Dead Leaves Black Currant Tobacco Tar scent), the patchouli is a little earthy and gritty, but not oppressive. This is a beautiful black plum, gothic scent. I might have to save up for a back up bottle.

I love "The Orchard", the woods give it a depth on my skin that keeps it from going too foodie. I've noticed that there are a lot of scents in the GC that have great rose blends. It seems that we (the fans) are forgetting to recommend them along side the LE's. I'll all for bringing back the GC love!

If you like chocolate and roses, I loved Quatre from the Une Douzaine de Roses Lupers this year. It's a wonderful cocao/rose blend. (If you ever tried The Orchard ; Quatre has the same elements without the woods. It's a very "Valentine's" scent to me. I think the strongest rose/wine blend in my experience has been Blood Rose. The wine is pretty bold and not too boozy. The Dragon's Blood creates a great resin that might go well with the coffee scent. Otherwise, if you want more airy quality with more throw, you might want to try The Forest Reverie. The lilies and opium smoke in there give it a very "drugged up rose" sort of quality. The grape scent teases a wine note, but it doesn't seem to have any booze at all. And there is Obsidian Widow. The wine boozy note is pretty strong right away, but it melts into a great rose wine. Blood Rose: voluptuous red rose bursting with lascivious red wine and sultry dragon’s blood resin. The Forest Reverie: wild roses, grape vine, and queenly lilies, clothed in swirls of opium smoke. The Obsidian Widow: Pinot noir, dark myrrh, red sandalwood, black patchouli, night-blooming jasmine, and attar of rose.

Selune, the Moon Goddess, fell in love with a beautiful shepherd named Endymion. She appealed to Zeus, asking him to cast Endymion into everlasting slumber so that she could be with him for all eternity. Her wish was granted, and every night the Goddess visited her love as he slept. A sweet, wistful blend of dAnjou pear, Lily of the Valley, bois du rose and white musk. Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the vial: Almost no musk. I can barely scent the pear, the bois du rose ha blended and mixed with the Lily of the Valley. If this is aged, it ages beautifully. Definitely reminds me of clear, cloudless nights walking in moonlight. Wet on Skin: The white musk in the forefront followed by Lily of the Valley. I'm not getting any of the pear I recognized from the imp. It's a very soft gentle scent. On me, it's not androgynous, it is feminine. Dry 30+ mins: Everything has faded and mellowed. This is really soft and mellow. To me, it's a nice, but tame scent. Worn 3+ hours: I think I over compensated and applied too much. It hasn't faded at all. The pear has finally showed up, it is slightly floral. It is a clean and wholesome scent. I get impressions of comfort, femininity, and maturity. It brings to mind visions of light ivory colored, clean kitchen on a clear summer's day, and you reach into the fruit bowl and grab a ripe pear. I don't get any "wetness" from this pear. It's a nice scent but not really my personality, which is just find, I bought it with my (then) 11 year old daughter in mind. Endymion is like a calm, comfortable summer daylight shining through the leaves of pear trees. Not quite the "night time" scent I was expecting.

Named for the ambitious, vengeful poisoner Catherine deMedici, who used perfumes to perform her dark deeds. A sinful blend of orange blossom, rosemary and rose... allegedly the exact perfume she utilized in her work. Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the vial: Bitter. The flower/floral scents all disappear. I get way more rosemary than anything else. The rose is hiding under the rosemary. The orange blossom is all but bitter. (which might be bitter because of age) Wet on Skin: I finally get some rose. The deep rose hits first then the orange blossom mixed with the rosemary the bitterness is still there It gives a poisonous depth to the scent. I've scented conventional/commercial perfumes that have tried to create this scent. The rosemary lends a very herbal/alchemist shop mood. Dry 30+ mins: The rose has softened and blended with the orange blossom. The rosemary is still grounding everything in the background However, there is a powdery quality I don't like. I've had rose scents/oils before and from the scent and viscosity of this oil, I'm guessing it's over a couple years old. I'm really curious what a "fresh" bottle would smell like. Worn 3+ hours: A lot of the scent ha dried away. I still get a lot of rose. During this time, I caught a lot of rosemary. This oil smells like elegant poison, in a good way; the whole -don't eat this, it's dangerous. Not for me. The rosemary makes this scent too herbal for me and it kills the rose.

Age Unknown: Date: November 2016 In the bottle: a very mellow scent. I recognize the opium from opium incenses. The myrrh gives a deep scent that seems to expand in your head. This reminds me of some of the incenses I would use in meditation. Wet on skin: Opium and myrrh are in the forefront. This is calm, mature and heavy. This exudes the type of attitude that is comfortable and calm in the deep dark. This evokes thoughts of dark rooms, closed and airless. Still a deep meditative scent. Reminds me of a lonely church sanctuary at night. Worn 30+ mins: Oh wow, where did this floral come from? The narcissus has a very lily like quality to it. This floral adds a very open and airy note to the scent. I'm starting to get that "reefer/music" shop sort of scent - just lie the closed off back room covered in psychedelic posters, shelves covered in hooka pipes and bongs, all lit with a black light. Worn 3+ hrs: The floral narcissus and opium have faded. The myrrh has mellowed. The elements of the scent still linger behind. This might be a scent that needs to be reapplied. While this scent doesn't make me feel gloomy, I can imagine this scent as a graveyard scent. I can imagine the entrance to an old forgotten mausoleum. This would be the scent that surrounds you as the door the tomb slowly closes.

Date: November 15.2016 In the bottle: A gentle wet/moist tobacco scent, with a grounding wood smell. My brain recognizes the vanilla, but it isn't sweet like candy. It reminds me of a tobacco shop cabinet Right before the exhale, an incense like scent comes up front. More like a tobacco cabinet opened in a pagan shop/new age shop with unburned incense. Wet on Skin: A strong tobacco (raw) scent. Cedar scent and vanilla are indistinguishable from the others. It reminds me of a lumberyard. It is very woody, but not living wood. More like a wooden pipe filled with tobacco before being lit. This is almost too masculine for me to wear, I want it on my husband (he has since refused). Worn 30+ mins: The vanilla is coming out and is mixing well with the wood scent. It's creating a leather like scent. Worn 3+ hours: The wood scents are dominate here, the vanilla follows with a deep note that drags into my lungs. The tobacco scent is nearly faint. Now the smell reminds me of the wood shops at the Ren Faire. This is a wonderful scent. I love it but it's almost too masculine for me. There doesn't appear to be any musk. Maybe my husband will like it. (He likes it... on me. He refuses to wear it, but loves it when I do.)

Date: November 2016 In the bottle: An almost sticky, resin like scent (maybe this is the incense? or the rosewood?) The leather scent actually reminds me of doeskin leather. This scent is categorized as a universal scent. At first it seems too feminine for men's wear. It seems to have strong staying power. I can still smell it after opening the imp. Wet on skin: It's almost a soft musk. This reminds me of high quality men's cologne. I get a very oiled leather sort of scent. I keep thinking of men - men's briefcases, businessmen and such. There's something on the edge of the scent, a sharp note, like an old wooden book shelf. Worn 30+ mins: Lots of leather, in a very good way. I get a slight peppery scent. This to me is a surprisingly masculine scent. Worn 3+ hours: This has definitely mellowed out. There is a woodsy spicy quality to this. I really like this one, but not on me. It smells like a man's cologne. It reminds me of cuddling close to a man. On my skin, it's really similar to Old Spice, but mellower. It really reminds me of a former lover. Unfortunately, I won't be wearing this one anymore, although it smells wonderful.

Date November 2016 In the bottle: This is difficult to explain, it is almost fuzzy. I close my eyes and inhale and get a sweet, fuzzy fruit, like crushed fruit peels. There is an airy scent, surprisingly gentle. No harsh notes. It is very mature, evokes the idea of a middle aged woman. Wet on Skin: There is a tiny candied plum scent, mixed with a fresh airy scent, like violets. It's sweet without being sugary. It almost tickles the nose but is very feminine. Worn 30+ mins: The sweetness has blended into a bit of an incense scent. The plum scent is still fuzzy like plum scented velvet. (I really like this one) Worn 3+ hours: The airy scent has dried away. The violet plum and fuzzy scent have blended into a sweet plum resin-sandalwood scent. This is a nice mature and feminine scent. I've had two other plum perfumes before. The first was borrowed from a friend, it was so candy sweet the whole time and made me smell like lollipops. The second is Rare Amethyst by Avon, which was very bright-cheerful scent that dries down to a candy sweet alcohol scent. This Oya has all the gentle sweetness of plum but for a mature woman, with none of the alcohol after burn.

Date November 12.2016 The inhale on the bottle smells like cut flowers, a very flower shop scent, like the greens of a fresh bouquet. After holding the inhale, the slow exhale has a soft fresh rose and lily like scent. The next breath of fresh air pulls an echo off the scent and the green ivy and moss scent - like wet living vegetation comes through. To me, almost no musk from the bottle. On skin wet: This is a fresh greens scent. Almost reversed from the first sniff off the bottle. The greens come first, rose on the exhale and almost no musk. This is still very fresh, it is not a heavy, dark scent. Dry 30+ mins: The sharp green has faded to the background. The musk comes out finally and the moss ties everything together. This reminds me of gauzy lace - old lace - clean and wispy. The rose is a teasing scent under everything, noticed right before you exhale. The idea of flowers drying in a lace wrapped bouquet comes to mind; but there are still green scents, like life around old, quiet death. Worn 3+ hours: The musk and rose scent settle in. The green is still there but more like the earthy greens This must be the moss. It's odd. In one angle (one side of wrist) I smell rosy musk like lace, I move my nose/wrist and I smell the moss. However just sitting around I still catch scents of cut flowers, yet when I bring my wrist close, I catch the lacy, mossy scent , almost like healthy moss on stone. The impression I get is a teasing scent of a drying bouquet while a burial shrouded dead creeps beside an ivy moss covered tombstone. This is a living cemetery at day.

This is so fizzy in the bottle! It's like baking soda in Sprite soda pop. As I sniffed the bottle I felt like I was waiting for the bubbles to go up my nose. On my skin, I got a bright fizzy and sweet blend. It's somewhere between champagne and mead for me. I don't normally like the bright and cheerful scents, they're usually too feminine or too happy for me. I might have to get a full bottle of this one! This will be my first "odd bird" blend in my collection. It is the first one that doesn't seem like anything I would like. It's completely different from the type of scents I normally go for. I can't help it, I just love this one!