Extispex

When I first saw this up on the site, I knew it had the potential to be a new favorite. I scraped the bottom of my paypal to buy it. And I was so not disappointed. Cesar, where have you been all my life? In the bottle I get mostly cloves, with a hint of creamy balsam. I could sniff it from the bottle all day. First on, its all clove and cypress. Very strong, spicy and masculine. I love this stage but its almost overpowering. As it begins to dry down, I get more of the red grapes, which I love, and just a hint of blood against a vanilla-y background. It goes through so many stages as it dries, each one lovely. Then once dry, it settles into a gorgeous creamy aroma with hints of spice and dark resin. The final stage is my favorite, and it has a lot of staying power one me. My only regret is that I didn't buy more bottles. I'm looking forward to seeing how this ages, IF I can keep myself from slathering it on and using the entire bottle before it has a chance to age.

Tomorrow is the Blogathon. I'll be blogging 24 hours for charity, raising money for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. From 9am EST until 9am the following morning, I'll be posting every 30 minutes. Last year, we had a blast, but around 4am I was really fighting the sleep. Cold showers, coffee, slaps in the face. Nothing helped for long. This time, sure I'll still have the coffee and the showers, but I'm depending on TAL: Energy to be my secret weapon. I've chosen a couple of bright, refreshing scents to get me through most of the day (I'm thinking Ides of March for early in the day, perhaps Sol Invictus later on), but when it comes to that grueling last leg, its gotta be a TAL.

This is my first 13. I have avoided previous ones, because - foolish me - I thought I wouldn't like chocolatey scents. But since then I have learned, and grown, and many evil enablers have shown me the error of my ways. I really really wanted a 13, this go 'round. And I'm so not disappointed. This is another of those heavenly scents that leave me stunned and wondering how anything could smell so good on me. In the bottle it smells positively delicious. I get a strong dose of the chocolates, some vanilla and a coconut smell I assume to be the massoia bark. If it stayed this way it might be just a little too foody for me to wear, but I do enjoy sniffing it from the bottle. On, wet, it becomes a spicier, less foody cocoa. I begin to get hints here and there of the fruits as they struggle their way into dominance. This one morphs like crazy on me, goes through every delicious stage you could think of - chocolatey, spicy, fruity, honeyed. Honey can sometimes amp like crazy on me, but in this 13, it really behaves itself and plays nicely with the other notes. The notes finally settle into something so unique. Though most of the notes sound edible, the end result of their combination - on me at least - smells nothing like food. Its very rich and warm with just a hint of honeyed creaminess. Its a rather playful scent, but with a 'come-hither' edge to it, and a slightly spicy warmth. I think this has to go on the top ten list.

This one was frimped to me by an evil enabler (thanks!), and I'm shocked - shocked I say - at how much I love it. I was a bit wary of the more fiery smells. A little smoke lingering in the background of a scent is one thing, but I wasn't sure I'd like something called 'brimstone'. In the imp, very smoky and a bit herby. Its gritty, and maybe there's a hint of vetiver in there somewhere. Wet, on my skin, its much the same. I get a lot of smoke initially. A big bonfire kind of smoke, acrid and breathless. Then it calms down. As it dries, it becomes much sweeter. The raging fire has calmed to smoldering coals. There's a hint of sweetness here, something resinous or maybe even floral that dances among the flames, rises on the smoke. "Beautiful" isn't the word for this blend. But its so unique and evocative. Too me, it's the aroma of a saint who has just passed through fire. I want a bottle. I so want a bottle.

It looks like this one is turning into another favorite. Wow... incredible. This is nothing like I expected it to be. First sniff, its a bit frightening. Not because of the scent, but because I got a bit on my nose and it burned like hell. But of course, that doesn't stop me from dousing my wrists with it. In the bottle it is a bit medicinal smelling, as some have mentioned. Like cherry cough syrup. Its also slightly boozy, which is, I suppose, the cassis, and I can catch a hint of the verbena lurking. First on, wet, its a dirty, dark spicy patchouli cherry. Which I absolutely love. Its gorgeous, but it quickly morphs as the verbena asserts itself, lending an herbal lemony glow to the darkness of the aroma. As it dries, it gets spicier and spicier. I just love cardamom, and the cardamom quickly grows to dominance. This is a very very spicy blend on me. But its such a dark, complex spice. An earthy, grounded, almost menacing cinnamony scent. This isn't the candle-shop at christmas. This is something much headier, richer and deeper than that. Of course, I keep sticking my nose to my wrist, and this oil does burn the skin of my nose, but its worth the pain. And the oil doesn't burn my wrist at all.

I bought this months ago, for no other reason than my muse told me to. I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out why I might need such a thing, and for me spending $25 on something I would never use is just outrageous. I'm kinda poor. But I tend to trust my muse (just to clarify, some people use the term spirit guide, but I use the word muse, for various reasons). After I got it, it sat on the shelf for a couple of months. I sniffed it once and didn't much care for the smell. I finally decided, "hey, I'm never gonna use this thing", so I put it up for swap. After putting it up for swaps, I thought, well I should at least try this before it goes, and I dabbed a little on my third eye before my daily meditation. The experience was personal so I won't recount it here, but I immediately took it off the swap forum. (I'm glad no one snapped it up before I did) I'm hanging on to this. Its good stuff. In some ways, both the scent and the effects are comparable to White Light, but as a Temple blend I would conjecture this oil is perhaps a little more versatile, and can be used in a variety of ways. Thats one reason I like the Temple oils - they seem to add a potent ambience, and a sense of the sacred, to a variety of workings. The scent is predominantly floral and light resins, maybe a hint of sandalwood? The fragrance has certainly grown on me since that first sniff. Its very ethereal and evocative. A pale glow of an aroma that nonetheless carries a sense of strength. Like the power of the wind to change the surface of the water and the face of the earth. I now use it nightly for dreamwork and it also lends a sends of comfort and safety in sleep. I'm prone to the occasional nighttime morbid thoughts and Temple:Angelic helps to calm those. I also use it for meditation frequently and intend to work with it in other ways as well.

For some unknown reason, this one starts off as eucalyptus on me. I mean really intense, sinus-clearing eucalyptus. It quickly mellows to a nice, spicy lavender.then it dries down to a powdery bubblegummy lotus.

A frimp from the lab, this is my favorite of the 4 Horsemen scents. Its quite pungent in the imp, I get carnation and leather mostly, and a hint of lavender. I'm always telling myself I'm not getting anymore lavender scents, then I always find yet another that I like. Wet, on me, an herbal, sagey lavender with leather. What a unique combination! As it dries, the leather fades and softens, and the vanilla asserts itself. The dry stage is soft on me, but still complex and unusual. With wear, the cedar starts to come out, sweeten by the vanilla and deepened by the leather. This is gorgeous, and a bottle may be in my future.

In the imp, very woodsy. The florals take a back seat. On, wet, a gorgeous woodsy scent, very very sharp, almost brutal. Everything I've ever wanted in a wood fragrance. As it dries, it goes more floral and the woods fade to the background. Becomes a very nice, rich floral. I like it, but it just pales in comparison to the wet stage. The dry-down, while lovely, just isn't very me.

I get mostly dragon's blood and spice - maybe a hint of floral - in this. Dragon's blood amps on me, and it usually takes very hefty notes to balance it on my skin. The Bloody Sword is one of the few DB scents where I can smell the other notes. On, wet, it goes strongly floral on me for a second, then true to past experience, the dragon's blood swallows all the other notes. As for the magical properties, I have no idea how this effects people, but its driving my cat insane.

In the imp, and wet on my skin, it starts out as a 'scented candle' kind of smell. I'm not too impressed. Then as it dries down, it really turns around. Apricot, with a spicy edge. Its very unusual, the apricot is both grounded and intensified by the clove. I love the smell of clove and this one is lovely on me - its possibly the first of the Mad Tea Party scents to work on me. Unfortunately, my niece fell in love with it and has claimed the imp for herself. I'll have to find another one for myself.

This is one that I've been coveting for a while. All the notes are just... me. They call me. Then one day a frimpie of it arrives with a forum purchase (thank you, oh evil enabler who bestowed this upon me). This is definitely covet-worthy. Why oh why was it discontinued? In the imp, its not very strong on the vetiver at all. Its more of a spiced violet with a hint of citrus. Wet, the vetiver makes an appearance, but not overwhelmingly so. I often describe vetiver as a 'twisted' scent, and in this, it does sort of twist the aroma slightly. I tend to amp citrus, so I get a good foundation of grapefruit, gently layered with herbs and spices. It really isn't a very dark scent on me at this stage, but it is unusual and quite beautiful. As it dries, the violet wants to go soapy, but then it fades into the background without causing any problems. I also get more myrrh as it dries, and it becomes a bit sweeter and darker. Every stage of Lex Talionis is just lovely on me. I guess I'm going to have to seek out a bottle, but until then, I'll definitely be enjoying this imp.

This was recommended to me on my search for the not-too-foodies. After pondering the notes, I sprang for a bottle unsniffed. I have no regrets. In the bottle, its chocolate and incense. Kind of sweet. A little too sweet. Wet, on my skin. Mmmmm.... love love love love love. Its not chocolate anymore, but dry, bittersweet cocoa, scattered across rough, warm leather. Oh man this is good. Cocoa and leather - who knew the two smelled so good together? As it dries, the incense gets a lift, but the leather is very assertive on me (I do tend to amp leather to a certain degree). The cocoa is still evident, but blends so beautifully with the leather and incense. I never get a huge amount of patchouli from this - its little more than a grounding, earthy element. I occasionally catch a whiff of what might be the ghost of a floral, very elusive and playful among the darkness of the other notes. Did I mention I love this blend? After long wear, it does go very sweet on me. A dry, incensy sweetness. I really want to age this to see how it develops, but I'm not sure I can keep my paws off of it. I might need a second bottle to hide away for aging. In the meantime, this needs to go on my top ten. (edited out the dumb)

Oh Tiresias, how I love thee. In the bottle, s/he is a rich sultry caramel. Sweetness that masques a lurid edge. A gentle-faced villain. Wet, on my skin, it only gets more evil (in a good way). Sticky caramel is grounded by patchouli, and thickened by tobacco and sandalwood. I don't get much of the currant, other than a vague tartness that lingers on the skin like a stolen kiss. It dries down to a strange, sweet spice that I found hard to place. I thought it might be cardamom, then I read this: It really IS a lot like celery salt. Fortunately, on me, its not a bad thing at all. Its as if the celery put on lots of eye-shadow, slicked back his/her hair, donned a tuxedo and went out for an evening of debauchery. I can detect the celery that AmyAngel speaks of, but for me, its the sexiest celery on the face of the planet. Very unusual, a wickedly voluptuous fragrance. I do believe I'm going to try aging this one - I think aged, it will be a deadly beauty. ETA: For those who fear the celery, after a mere month of aging the celery effect has fled and Tiresias has - if possible - become even sultrier. This is quick becoming one of my most-worn fragrances. Its rich, sexy, dark and beautiful.

In the imp, a slightly powdery floral. Whomever said 'old lady perfume' hit the nail on the head. On my skin, whoa, what a change! This is truly dark, a very brooding floral that isn't quite a floral. Its mostly opium and myrrh on me - the narcissus is just a breath. But its very very nice - I do like this much. As it dries, I'm getting more narcissus, and its not playing particularly well on my skin. It has a soapy edge that I'm hoping will shoo because I really love this otherwise. Warrants more testing, but I've not lost hope.

Ah, the lab does like to send me frimps of the Voodoo love oils. "Get laid!" they're tellin' me. This one I quite like the smell of. Its very earthy on me, and I'm definitely getting some patchouli, maybe with a hint of high john hiding in there. Something herbal, a medicinal edge, but not in an unpleasant way. And a bit smoky too. I cannot report on its effects, because I do not intend to use it for said effects. But it does smell nice.

Wow, now this is a nice scent. The lab has been spot on with their frimpies this time. In the imp, and on wet, Bordello is all fruit. But it dries down to this sweet fruited wine aroma. Playful, but with a sultry edge. I really like this. After a while, the amaretto makes a rather bold appearance, and I like it even more. I see now why this is such a popular fragrance with the fans. Its yummy!

Dirt! And just a touch of something else. But mostly DIRT! And this is not a bad thing, no not at all. I've become rather fond of the rich soil note found in Nosferatu and Zombi. Its funny how many of us are all too happy to get out of the shower, all nice and clean, then slather ourselves with something that smells like dirt. I'm just loving Destroying Angel. After the initial DIRT of the wet phase, the drydown is much more complex than I expected. The earth note is still there, but things are definitely sprouting from it. This is a very deep, rich life scent. And this is another of those frimpies from the lab that I probably never would have bought for myself. To 5ml or not to 5ml, that is the question. I probably will.

In the imp this is just gorgeous. Herby, a bit fruity, maybe a minty sort of edge. On, wet, mmmmm... heavenly. Reminds me a little of Cancer 07, with its unique and somewhat quirky sweetness. I'm not picking up a heck of a lot of amber. Mostly herbs with a hint of floral, but its not the strong medicinal apothecary's cabinet kind of herbs. These herbs are sweet, aromatic garden herbs. Lovely. Delicious. As it dries, I might be picking up a hint of soapiness, which would really really suck, because this one has such 5ml promise. I'm going to give this impie a few more tests.

In the imp, a rich, spicy, yummy-smelling rose. On, wet, holy crap, its almond! I love the smell of almond but this one shocked me a little with its intensity. It lightens up very quickly as it dries. Rose blend are often too rosy on me, but this one isn't. This is a sultry, seductive rose, one that stays true on me. Very lovely, but not something I think I'd wear very often.

In the imp, its kind of a barely-there herbal smell. On my skin - yep, I concur with all the people who said, 'mens cologne'. I'm getting nothing that smells like the notes listed, except maybe a hint of lavender. As it dries, something tangy and citrussy arises, and I begin to like it. Then it fades to almost nothing. Ah Saint-Germain, you're an elusive one.

After BLWB broke me of my initial foody-phobia, I've been trying to initiate myself into the foodier (but not too foody) scents and Velvet was one of the blends I really wanted to try. I was going to order an imp of it from the lab with my next order, then saw a bottle on sale on the forums and thought 'serendipity', so I grabbed it. I do believe this is aged - its in a blue bottle. In the bottle, I can see where someone got peanut butter from this. Its weird, and it is kind of nutty. Now, I might be ready to try some foody scents, but I don't think I want to smell like peanut butter. On, wet. This is everything I hoped it would be and more. Its mostly cocoa and myrrh on me, but its blended in such a way that the cocoa doesn't smell like food and the myrrh doesn't smell like resin, its just a soft, sultry, drown-in-me kind of aroma. As it dries, the vanilla begins to whisper sweet nothings but doesn't really assert itself, just sweetens the mix a little. The notes blend so well - who'd a thought it? Its just a smooth, rich, bittersweet aroma. I can see where others find it comforting, but to me its more langorous, like the sleepy, intimate afterglow of sex. I'll admit that since receiving it, I've pretty much been pouring it all over myself. My niece, however, doesn't like it. She told me it smells like old people. Well if this is how old people smell, then book me a room at the nursing home, please. I'm definitely happy to have a bottle, and will likely buy another from the lab to age until I finish off this one (which will probably be next week at the rate I'm going). I also think I may be ready to try one of the all-singing, all-dancing, all-food all-the-time scents. Maybe.

Stately, bold, aristocratic and cruel. Opulent galbanum and amber, glistening peach, and a bouquet of French florals, with a merciless undertone of jonquil and heartless vetiver. Now last night, when I first tried this one, I couldn't smell it. At all. Not in the imp, not on my skin. I got nothing. Thankfully my olfactory senses seem to have returned to me today. In the imp, I get mostly peaches. Which I like a lot - so far so good. Wet... good gods this is good! Peach still dominates, but its a twisted evil peach, slighty spicy with a hint of smoky vetiver grunge. Oh yeah, now this is the stuff. It gets a bit lighter and prettier as it dries. I never get a sense of 'floral' to this, thankfully. The vetiver menaces peach from a darkened corner, and peach faints into the arms of amber and resin. A bottle, please. (edited for pre-coffee stupidity)

I do love the scent of pennyroyal. I always have. In the imp, I get mostly pennyroyal with just a hint of lavender swirling in the background. On my skin, this is almost ALL pennyroyal. The lavender is but a fading sigh. Pain is a scent as brutal as its name, and I like it... but as a perfume? More testing required.

In the imp, kind of musky and rich. I like it. On me, hey, this is kind of nice. Mostly carnation at first, but it grows a bit deeper and richer as it dries. The plum adds a hint of fruitiness, and the musk is a whisper of sensuality over the bright spicy floral of the carnation. Its lovely, but I'm not sure how often I'd wear something this sexy.