Torrain

In imp: Makes me think of allspice and cinnamon, although that's not quite right. On skin, something dry and spicy starts coming out—cloves. Right, of course. 10 min: cloves and bay leaves. Not picking up anything else yet. 15 min: faint hints of something mellower: not sure if it's the almond people keep talking about. Left to myself, I'd've almost pegged it as amber, but I'm sure that's not an ingredient. 25 min: getting drier and dustier. Smells like clove oranges. 45 min: much the same. Not reacting with me much, but a nice smell. 1 hr: still around, pleasant enough. I'll file it in the “Definitely worth hanging onto for an interesting swap, and dipping into occasionally in the meantime” category. Love and coffee, Frances (collating and posting reviews)

On skin: roses and tea, with sweet carnation coming out. 5 min: Tea and honey, with a touch of carnation. 10 min: still tea and honey. I'm starting to get a vaguely apple-y impression; no idea why, as I can't see what could produce that. Perhaps some weird hybrid of the honey and carnation? 20 min: The honey's really coming out; call it two-thirds honey and one-third tea. Not really picking up any of the florals, though I think the milk's mellowing the bergamot. It's a sweet creamy scent, very much for social daywear; I may actually wear this to tea out at the Chateau in the next couple of weeks. 30, 45 min: same. 1 hr: a cosier scent, somehow: rather than going out and being social, it's like sitting at home with a cup of tea, possibly near the fireplace. 1.5 hr: the carnation's coming out, and the tea has faded. Honey's still there, so I've got sweet carnation with a touch of bergamot in the background. Interesting; will see where this goes. 3 hrs: sweet carnation, slightly milky. Never less than a pleasant scent, if it doesn't always fire my attention. Love and coffee, Frances

In the imp, rich, soft, and sharp—Snake Oil with black musk and the juiciness of bamboo. On my skin, the sweetness of the Snake Oil and the wood and teak notes start coming out. 3 min: the wood's faded somewhat, and I'm getting that pale packed sweet smell of Snake Oil and a hint of bamboo. 5 min: Oils and vanilla, and not really picking out anything else. 10 min: rallying if faint appearance of something woody and the faintest hint of black musk. 20 min: the faintest trace of wood, still, and the oils. I think I've lost the vanilla, weirdly. Nice enough, but bland. 30 min: the musk can't decide if it's barely there or not there at all. Still the oils and the very faint wood. An hour in, I've got the oils from Snake Oil. No vanilla, and the wood could be my imagination. After about half an hour of that, I get the *very faintest* hint of musk drifting in, but it's barely noticeable and doesn't stick around. On me, this just seems to be half of Snake Oil. It's a shame, as it's got lovely potential for someone with the right skin chemistry, and I was really hoping that the bamboo would come out. Love and coffee, Frances

In imp: moss and mint. On my skin, moss and what I think is the ambergris (a hint of something softer) start coming out. Two minutes in, it's very much oakmoss. Four minutes in, it's sharp and clear and green—I think the mint is starting to come out along with what's probably Spanish moss; it's got a clear lift to it. Not really getting much of the ambergris. 10 min: Spanish moss, with an undertone of something faintly woody. Not picking up much mint (hardly surprising, on my skin). Overall, it's kind of like... electrified juicy green wood. 15 min: Sharp, clean, understated scent. It's like electricity without the ozone, but still with a woody element to it. 30 min: continuing. I like it, although the woody scent keeps it from having the electric snap I was hoping for. Still: crisp, wet, and woody without being at all cold. 1 hr: Slightly less crisp, but otherwise unchanged. 1.5 hr: somewhat drier; still damp, woody, and sort of crisp. It's actually starting to smell a little like Ulalume without the bright leafiness. 2 hrs: drier and fainter; mossy and woody, with a faint hint of the smoothness of ambergris. The woodiness really keeps out what I was hoping for, but it is a very nice green scent--call it a slightly more energetic sister to Ulalume. Love and coffee, Frances

Dusty and tart in the imp. (Why do I describe what it smells like in the imp? Although I suppose it's a good baseline for comparison; if you smell a ton of coconut in the imp, and I don't mention it at all, then you know either I got a strange batch or else I can't smell coconut to save my life.) The coconut starts coming out on my skin. Turning into a coconut musk in minute two, and the dry tartness starts coming back—orris root, I think. Rich and sweet in a dry and dusty way. 5 min: coconutty musk, with a prickle of dryness (orris? I wish I could be sure what that smelt like alone, but it's very like what I've gotten in other orris blends). 15 min: smoky (that's the incense residue) musk and coconut. The smoke part of it all is a little gritty, will see how this develops... In the next five minutes, the coconut's smoothing out everything else; the grittiness is now prickles of something rich and sharp in there—it really is a very Brown Jenkins scent. 30 min: mellow rich and sneaking musk, creeping under dry smoke and a veil of orris root. Beautifully layered, but not very friendly; not entirely sure where I'd wear this. (Not that I require scents to be friendly. It's just that when they evoke a mood this way, I usually have an idea of where I'd take them.) 1 hr: still warm and dark. Odd: it's a lovely scent, but it's not at all inviting, if you catch the difference. Very much an announcement of being attractive and capable without it being at all about caring if anyone else does something about it. I think I should keep this one. Calms down a bit around the two-hour mark, where it's less an announcement and more of a statement of fact. Still very lovely. Love and coffee, Frances

In the imp, I'm getting violet and frankincense. On my skin, frankincense starts coming out (I have deduced this through the process of elimination). Huh. Frankincense is apparently a nice sort of men's aftershave smell; clean and masculine without being musky. 2 min: cinnamon starting to come out, along with a thin, high, slightly soapy floral note which I assume is the violet. 8 min: *holy hell* did the violets come out. Uhm... this is a rich and spicy lather with violet bubbles. It really blossomed over the last six minutes when I wasn't looking; it's the sort of thing you'd imagine Faustus picking 'cause he can wear it out on the town with Helen or in the office when he's renegotiating the contract. At 12 min, much the same, although I'm beginning to worry about the possibility of it turning to floral soap. 25-30 min: a rich and spicy floral; it's lost the soapiness. Just frankincense sitting under thick violet, the whole run through with streaks of cinnamon. 45 min: cinnamon and violet are fading; getting more of the dry rich lather of frankincense. At one hour, it's a lighter scent--still frankincense, but somewhat lifted by the violet. I'd quibble with the description, and say it's not so much darkened as cooled. Stays as cool violet and rich frankincense for hours, a nice light rich scent. Love and coffee, Frances

Rage is being discontinued? Oh, hell. May need to pick up a bottle when I place my order next week. That said: In bottle: tangy and dry. On skin: more of an alcohol note—and I mean rubbing alcohol, here. I was *not* optimistic. 2 min: okay, saved. The spiciness of dragon's blood and the black amber are coming out and mixing. It's fading in and out—never very strong, sometimes amber, sometimes DB and blackcurrant... 15 min: DB, with a background of slightly floral amber. Except that in the space of an elevator ride, it suddenly turns to solid amber floral. And now the sharper fruity notes are coming out, mandarin and a *trace* of DB... It's good. And it really *does* evoke the idea of rage, that shrieking angry sweet sensation that's signalled by the vicious humourless grin that's really just showing your teeth. But it's all over the map, I need to give it a few minutes to calm down. 30 min: Amber, faint undercurrent of DB, light garland of fruit and flowers. Really gotten quite faint. 1 hr: Amber with a rich floral/DB undertone. It's actually really nice; smells like the sort of incense that would be burning in a richly draped and candlelit room somewhere in a 60s fantasy novel. Opulent, decadent, and slightly Machiavellian. Sticks around for at least another four hours, occasionally giving off flashes of spice or fruit. Love and coffee, Frances

In bottle: dragon's blood and apple. On skin: something floral starts coming out. Hyacinth, I think; pretty sure that's not apple blossom. 3 min: apple starting to come out a little. *Maybe* the musk. Tiny bit of musk. *Tiny.* 7 min: Seven minutes in and I'm not getting *any* dragon's blood. How weird. It's a hyacinthine floral musk, with a trace of apple. 20 min: more of same. Apple's maybe a tiny touch stronger. 30 min: there *is* dragon's blood in this, right? *goes to check ingredient list on BPAL site and label on imp* ...yeah. Okay. Weird. 40 min: *finally.* Small hint of dragon's blood under the the floral musk. 50 min: ...aaaand a small hint is all it is. White musk and floral hyacinth, somewhat warm. And it just sits and stays that way until fade. It's a nice smell, but it's striking me as undistinguished, and I've had much better luck with other BPAL scents. However, the utter lack of dragon's blood did seem odd; it usually comes out much better on me. I'll try it again in a couple of weeks, and edit this if my results change. Love and coffee, Frances

In the imp, it smells soft and grapefruity. On me, something sweet starts coming out; smells like soft citrus and sugar, or soft citrus and honey. 5 min: smells the same, but there's a kind of dusty undertone coming out—it might be the lavender, or it might be the chocolate (it's the same kind of dusty effect I got from Velvet). 20/25 min: the dusty element is getting stronger, and it's rather sweet. It's heading into the dangerous wilds of baby powder. 1 hour: Sweetish baby powder, fading fast. 2 hours: a very faint sweet and citrus and baby powder smell. 3 hours: poof. Gone. Lovely little kitty, I wish you'd stuck around... Love and coffee, Frances

Fall under the spell of our Green Fairy! An intoxicating blend containing wormwood essence, light mints, cardamom, anise, hyssop, and the barest hint of lemon. In imp: sharp and minty. On skin: something dusty/lemony starts coming out. Lemon drops as opposed to spearmint leaves. Clear, refreshing... I guess the mint isn't as faint as it first seemed. 20 minutes in: It's developed a sort of "pinched" herby smell--the same thing I got out of Vampire Tears, though they don't seem to have any ingredients in common. Pleasant enough, but quite faint. 1 hour: very faint lemon-fresh herby smell. 2 hours: even fainter. Overall, this reminds me very much of Embalming Fluid. It's got a kind of warmth to it that EF lacks, though, especially as time goes on (noticed it around three hours, I guess). John likes it. I like it. Worth keeping. Love and coffee, Frances

A lot of very quick note-taking right at the beginning, as this one shifted around a lot before settling down... 0 min: lemon and lilac. 2 min: lilac getting stronger. Think the lime's coming out a little, too. 5 min: pale citrus and lilac. 10 min: can't tell if that's the faintest hint of white musk or if I'm imagining it. 15 min: lilacs, with maybe a very faint hint of sharp musk in the background. 30 min: lilacs. *sigh* 1 hr: Liiiiiilacssss... 1.5 hrs: faint lilacs. I think there's a faint strangled hint of white musk somewhere in the background, but it's just not making it out. I'll really never be able to wear this around John, I can't even look at tossing it in the warmer for the same reasons, and while I don't mind the smell, it's nothing special enough to be worth keeping. I'll be swapping this one, I think. L&c, F

In bottle: honey. Honey right in the honeycomb. 5 min: the vetiver starts coming out. 20 min: cloves coming out too, vetiver stepping back a little. Still very definitely honey. 35 min: Honey with a touch of vanilla, and an undertone of clove and wine. 1:30: Vanilla with honey and *very* faint cherries and cloves. 2.5 hours: Honey's getting stronger, vanilla's still there. Faint hints of clove. Overall, a lovely warm sweet smell, worth keeping. I wish the midpoint of honey clove and wine had stuck around for me, though--that had some lovely dark notes to it that really built on the constant honey sweetness. L&c, F

Right out of the imp: *Oh* that's lovely. I'm getting honeyed vanilla tea, thin and sweet and dark. 5 min: ...and that would be the musk coming out. Oh good lord. That's sex on wheels in a teacup. Alright, at five minutes: faint hint of lemon, a somewhat tea-table smell (sugar? Milk? Tea? There's almost a hint of pastry), pale musk forming a solid backdrop. 20 min: sweet tea and pale musk. (Weirdly, with that faint sharp lemony/fougere hint, it occasionally smells like playdough for a split second.) Seriously, it's sex in a tearoom, which I realize sounds kind of odd, but is incredibly compelling. If this keeps up, I want a bottle. 1 hr: sweet musk. 2 hrs: sweet musk; think I've lost the tea. Still very nice, though. It's definitely worth picking up a bottle. But I have my lovely lovely Theodosius. They're both smashing, in subtly different ways-- --oh, hell with it. I'll put it on my list to get a bottle. Meantime, the imps can keep each other company. Gorgeous dark polished sexy company. Love and coffee, Frances

Received this one as a frimp. I tried twice, once with a rather large quantity of oil; I'm just not smelling anything. I definitely didn't get a bad imp--it works very well on my friend, and I can smell something pale and floral in the imp. It's just not coming out on me at all. Love and coffee, Frances

This starts off smelling like apricot with a bit bite—sort of like the "fuzzy peach slices" candy, if you know them. Unfortunately, over the next half hour, it ends up smelling like fuzzy candy and spoilt apricots. I guess it's the cloves; with the apricot, they're just turning into something raw and jagged as well as being sweet. It's awful on me. About three-quarters of an hour in, it ends up just smelling like apricot. That's okay, and a rather nice smell--but on me, it just takes too long to get there and goes there by too nasty a route. Swapped to a friend who likes food-y scents and collects the Alice in Wonderland group. L&c, F

This one starts out with a whole lotta cinnamon coming out. Cinnamon, sadly, always fades fast on me (I keep hoping). This one lasts about twenty minutes. Weirdly, though, when it's gone, it takes the roses with it. Upside: does not small like floral soap, as perhaps half the rose blends I try do. Downside: after 20 minutes, does not smell like anything. Swapped to a friend who has better-suited body chemistry. Oh, how I envy her. L&c, F

This started out smelling sweet and lemony--not like candy, more like the filling in a lemon danish or a lemon custard. In ten minutes, it was sweet lemon-y Pledge. And in twenty minutes, it had faded to nothing and never came back, which is a shame. (It had a bit of the same oddly "pinched" smell as Absinthe, which seemed odd, since they don't share ingredients.) Oh well. I gave the imp (acquired in a grab bag at the recent Abney Park show in Toronto) to a friend, and called it good. Hopefully it'll work out better on her. Love and coffee, Frances

The personification of insanity, Mother of Manes, Goddess of Night Spirits, Mistress of Undeath, She Who Gives Life to the Dead. With Mantus, she rules the Etruscan underworld, and her scent is roiling chaos and churning madness, but because she is the mother of the Lares, benevolent household spirits, her perfume also bears an underlying gentleness, and, like madness, a strange sweetness. Screeching white musk collides with a howl of red musk, with sharp white grapefruit and pale strawberry leaf. I swear this starts out smelling like those green-apple/caramel lollipops, sweet and juicy. 20 min: white musk with something a little more vigorous (the red?) and something brighter and faintly floral/soft (probably mostly grapefruit; wish I knew what strawberry leaf smelled like). Still, mostly white musk. 45 min: white musk with a slightly richer, sweeter note. I can smell the grapefruit pith in there, faint but present. 1 hr: same. 2 hrs: same. I think it's now a matter of just waiting to see how long it lasts. 4 hours (!): good *god*, this one is really sticking around. It's definitely gotten sweeter; I guess it must be the strawberry leaf, because it's definitely not anything else. (Does strawberry leaf smell sweet? I imagined it as a sort of greener scent.) Love and coffee, Frances

Starts out smelling like chocolate mint without the chocolate, which is a really neat trick. 5 min: slightly tangier and drier. 20 min: rich and sweet, not floral but an overall sense of something green and growing. So good. I'm guessing this is the Snake Oil (oils and sweet vanilla) coming out; I hope I don't loose the green. 45 min: the green is very faint; there's still a hint of freshness in the scent, but not much. 1 hr: faint hints of something green and dry over the oils and vanilla—it's probably just the bergamot and green tea, as the mint seems to have packed its bags and fled for parts unknown. *Dammit*. Oh well, I suppose I will be stuck with a generically lovely scent, rather than a mintily lovely scent. Love and coffee, Frances

Right out of the imp, it's woody and raw; that's sandalwood and vetiver, I think. On my skin, they combine in an odd way and I'm getting hints of mint. 5 minutes; a kind of rich lather scent coming in; I'm guessing that's the patchouli and bits of the black musk. To clarify; it's not soapy, despite what the word "lather" may suggest. Just very soft. Reminds me of how good it feels to have someone shampoo my hair. 30 minutes: ugh. The vetiver and either the patchouli or the musk are teaming up, and the tang of the former with the richness of the latter means it's smelling like sweat. Yuck. 2 hours: mellowed out of the body odour thing, but nothing special--woody-musky, mostly. Just not doing it for me. Love and coffee, Frances

(I believe this was the third or fourth rose oil I tried, and the one which prompted several days of chat complaints about how roses *always* smelled like floral soap on me. I've since learned this is not true, but I was very annoyed. This may explain why my notes and review aren't very good.) It starts out as a sweet and quiet floral in the imp, but on me it promptly drops its hat on the ground, puts its boots up on the coffee table, and starts going on very loudly about the benefits of floral soap. My body chemistry just completely wipes out any nuances. I'm not *that* heartbroken, as it contains lilac, and my husband is allergic. Still. Love and coffee, Frances

In the imp, it's musky, sweet-sad, and remote. The myrrh starts coming out when it's applied to my skin. At twenty minutes or so, it's going faintly powdery, but it's still got too much murky bite to be baby powder. Stays in that kind of limbo for a while; I think the orris and musk are keeping that in there. Two hours: ...oh, hell. Baby powder. *sigh* For all the softer Ars Moriendi that I try, only Shroud seems to be working with me. (Haven't really tried the sharp ones except for Embalming Fluid, which is its own clean cool wonder and delight.) Love and coffee, Frances

...well, apparently black opium smells like shaving lather on me. Not the kind you get out of a can. Proper shaving lather that you get by applying a shaving brush and water to whip up a lather off the shaving cream that comes in a solid cake in a round wooden box. Something comes out a bit--I think it's the myrrh? pretty sure it's not the narcissus--and anchors the shaving lather smell down into something a little drier, and the whole thing it turns into something dimly flowered and warm. It's not a bad scent, and I'd probably wear it if the shaving lather did not remind me so much of my dad{1}; as is, it's not for me. Love and coffee, Frances --- {1} Whom I loved very much, but who has died and so constantly smelling something that reminds me of hugging him is unsettling.

On me, this starts very floral, but sweet not soapy (I have a problem with roses sometimes turning to floral soap on me). I'm picking up some vanilla, and a little coffee. This one's always floral on me; within an hour, it smells like nothing so much as Crabtree & Evelyn Rosewater soap. I realize this is a nice smell, but it doesn't move me. Love and coffee, Frances

Only for Whippoorwill or Theodosius, I think. I got this 5ml in an auction, pretty much for the whole feminist steampunk horror thing (also, because I love lightning). This review is... going to use a slightly odd visual analogy. Starts as a very crisp floral--it smells almost like Tempest, but without any identifiable grapefruit. On my skin, there's a definite electric (ozone) undertone showing up, but it's still mostly floral. ~25 minutes in: alright, this description is about to get weird. The flowers have faded to taking up perhaps half the scent, and something I can't quite smell has taken their place. It does smell like hot metal, except my brain inssits I'm not smelling it, since that is not the sort of thing you smell. I am sure my brain is wrong, and it's just very faint, a very hard smell to pick up, but it's an odd impression. It's like looking at a painting where you can't see half the colours--makes me think of Ambrose Bierce's short short story, "The Damned Thing". It's nice, and very subtle--it's basically a floral with a very slight warm metallic undertone--but it is a hella odd way of getting to that end result. 1 hr, 1.5 hrs: Flowers getting stronger, but still that faint hot metal space. Husband likes it. Nice. Worth keeping around. Love and coffee, Frances