sarada

I received this as a gift -- I hadn't bought it myself because I thought it would be too similar to Skadi and decided to just get one of them. Well I am very, VERY glad that I wound up with a bottle, because I wouldn't want to be without this! It is also completely unlike any other blend I have tried, though it is definitely in the icy category, without being minty. There should be an entire subcategory for these kinda of cold/icy scents. I don't know how, but this does put forth the impression of ice. Not the snow-covered pine trees of Skadi, but the dry, smooth sheen of a frozen pond. Usually, in order to feel icy something has to have a minty or piney core but this accomplishes it mainly with this wonderful light musk and the faint whisper of spruce, that feels both dry and icy, and WARM at the same time. Not the warmth of heat or light, but the warmth you get when you're bundled up, maybe with some furry animal friends, and the air around you is all crisp and clean but you're toasty and warm inside. I normally don't like florals except rose, but I like the flowers in this blend. I imagine they are white, and covered with frost, peeking out of a bank of snow. I agree with reviews that have suggested that there might be melon in this -- that could be that crisp, aquatic fruity note underneath -- and bergamot, which would account for the very slight citrusy warmth. Don't pass this one by if you think it will be too much like the other Yule blends...this stands on its own. ETA: How did I not smell mint in this before? Perhaps it's had a couple of months to develop, but I definitely now get frosted mint and musk with a hint of aquatic fruit (melon, maybe a touch of grapefruit or bergamot?). I'm so glad the mint is coming out now! As a summer scent: the mint and spruce are very strong, but still crisp and refreshing. This reminds me of winter when I smell it and is helping to cool me off in the summer heat. I'm really getting a strong evergreen forest scent from this now, the warm weather really brings that out but the mint is super strong as well...how strange that it didn't come out when I wore it in the winter!

I got Fae specifically with spring in mind and now I am thinking that Mantis would be a good one, too. Anything with Green Tea in it seems very springy to me as well! It reminds me of tender greenery on a crisp but not too warm day in the rain.

The notes in this sounded so deliciously appetizing I started craving peaches before ever smelling it. Imp is like the dark twin of Fae -- the same wonderful peach note (REAL peach, not that awful fake scratch and sniff kind of peach!), but instead of being carried up on gossamer wings, Imp is playing in the dirt. The sweetness of the peach and amber are brought down to earth by the musk and patchouli, and it has that absolutely edible -- but NOT overly foody -- quality that I love in Depraved. I would have to flip a coin to decide whether I want a full bottle of this, or Depraved. This one is a bit more complex and subtle, with amber weaving golden strands through the darkened peach. It is a bit on the sweet side for me -- I like how the patchouli comes more to the forefront in its cousin, Depraved. Imp may be playing in the dirt but his radiance burns through the darkness and glows with a soft light. Very tasty -- it hangs around on my skin for a good few hours, and I wonder if maybe I might be attracting bees if I were to wear this outside in warm weather.

I've been wanting to try this, as the rose/sandalwood/patchouli thing is always a favorite for me and I'd like to try everything with that combo in there somewhere. Palmarosa is a wonderful thing -- I first discovered it in an Airs incense about 10 years ago and have sought out good versions of it ever since. That's the main note that I get from this, sniffing it in an imp. I don't know why, but I can NEVER smell patchouli in any blend where it does not figure as the main note. Patchouli always gets eaten up, and serves as a sort of deepening, darkening agent in most blends. I wind up loving them, but the patchouli itself never hits me with that waft of "Here There Be Hippies" that I am expecting. So, as this develops on me the main things that stick out are what I take to be attar of rose, combining nicely with palmarosa to create a slightly powdery rose blend with a woody base. The different scents seem to compartmentalize, so in one breath it's all powdery rose and in the next it's all sticky sweet sandalwood-tinged rose. It stays sweetly rose with a hint of sandal for quite some time, and it stuck around for awhile. I wouldn't mind having more of this, but there are so many rosy scents I don't know if I could really choose which one to concentrate my attention on, since I seem to be happy with Zombi as my (dead, withered) rose of choice!

What a fascinating scent! I would have never tried this on my own because I have a horror of coffee and usually run past that aisle in the store to get to the tea without having to smell any coffee (I know, I'm weird)...but I got an imp from a friend as part of a freebie bonanza (thank you!!!) and I dripped a drop on my hand while I was sniffing it. So I figured, let's see how it turns out on me! In the vial it smelled like...not coffee....but toasted, puffed rice!! Or like a package of puffed rice cakes. Maybe that's how my mind interprets coffee, I dunno, but I thought that was worth mentioning! Then as it hit my skin it became sweet -- like sweetened cereal of some sort, blossoming into a crisp honeyed scent in milk. It stays sweet for quite some time though I'm not getting any of the florals, here...it's a very grainy scent for me. The florals mainly manifest themselves as a hint of a powdery scent. If there is jasmine, it's not very prominent on me...then again I just tested Venom on my other hand, which is super-powerful jasmine...so my head might just not be on right about florals today. Some time later -- several hours -- it's mainly a vanilla scent with a wisp of powdery floral and a vague memory of that toasted rice smell. I'm not a fan of vanilla but you know, the lab's vanilla are so much better than anyone else's, that I always wind up liking them just a bit more than I expected. Wish I could get some roses out of it, but I am really surprised by how this turned out on me. I don't think I'd buy a bottle but I think I'll use this when I'm in a weird mood! The moral of the story for me is: don't be afraid of the lab's coffee scents if you don't like coffee...they might surprise you!

Oh.....dear. My, this is powerful stuff. I have been intrigued by the description of this for some time, as it conjures a glowing green image for me and I love the idea of jasmine and lime working together in a blend. And I love berries, and resins (opononax and galbanum). So, in my mind this was going to be a very formidable blend....and it is! I definitely can see where this could be compared to Poison. Poison is the only commercial perfume I ever tried, and I got it when I was 14 just because I liked the name, and the bottle. I liked the perfume too as it turned out. From what I remember of it, this does resemble it. But whereas Poison is a very purple scent in my memory (perhaps the berries were more in the forefront) this comes across very green indeed. The jasmine dominates, on me. This is very, very strong. This could definitely give you a headache if strong smells make you feel funny in the head. I adore it and I think I inhaled it for too long because now I'm spinning. Once applied, this stayed on for HOURS. I can't keep a scent alive on my skin for very long at all so I choose many of my purchases for staying power. This goes on and on. And it doesn't change much -- the jasmine is still very powerful, and it is tempered by those unusual resins -- I have no idea what they smell like on their own, but I love Queen of Spades and she has opoponax (sweet myrrh) and galbanum as well. I do catch a glimpse of the Queen swimming around in this potion...though the jasmine is all-consuming here, and I can't catch quite as much of the berry scent. I definitely want a bottle of this, but it is so powerful I probably won't be able to handle too much of it on a regular basis. Very overwhelming...truly one of the lab's master strokes, but it might be too powerful if you're into lighter or subtler scents. Updated: I swapped this away because it gave me a headache but I got another imp and I like it more this time. It's still a little too strong in the jasmine/perfumey department but it's such a regal, commanding scent that I find it compelling. Now that it's discontinued I am glad I have a little bit of it for those rare moods when I might want it. The resemblance to Poison is still uncanny but this time I am getting more a sense of the berries this time.

The phrase 'limited edition' definitely gets my attention, like I have to act fast or I'll miss out. I find it easier to make a decision when I know something's only available for two weeks -- I'll just buy as many as I can so I won't be kicking myself later! I love all the ones I've tried though -- I am glad that they're able to put some of those more unusual or expensive ingredients to use without having to raise the price!

I received this as a gift -- it was a surprise, and I wasn't sure what to expect! From the description I thought it would be very foody, but this came out to be entirely different than any of my expectations. In the bottle there are swirls of citrus, a dark syrupy smell and something that I can actually taste on the back of my tongue when I smell it...something sharp and bitter but pleasant. Perhaps that is one of the musks? None of the notes mentioned in the description are present to my nose, as the overwhelming scent both in the bottle and on my skin, are lemony citrus notes combined with a bit of smoky darkness. That is a good thing, because while I do not like foody scents, I do like citrus. Cubeb and juniper must be responsible for the bitter spikes that come through in this...like the fangs on a sweet, gentle dog! I don't even smell rum, and since rum is not something that works for me, I am very glad that it incorporates so well into this fragrance and entirely loses any boozy quality. Over an hour or two the lemons die down and it becomes more of a rich, hearty, brown smell -- musk and fig probably dominate for me, and I have a sense of very dark berries in the mix. This is long lasting, and strong, and quite wonderful. If you have an aversion to lemony smells this will definitely surprise you, because I was not expecting that either, but I LOVE it. If you are expecting a very foody smell, you might get those notes out of this, but I didn't actually smell chocolate at all. I like chocolate but I would not want to smell like chocolate, so I am DELIGHTED that the notes in this work the way that they do, with the different dark elements deepening the sharp, spiky scents. And since I received this as a gift, I will make a donation to the charity on my own!

I love Hemlock but I mainly get a strong herbal and lemony smell from it -- some evergreen, but not the kind of clear pine that you get from Mistletoe. But still, I love it! Now that I'm smelling Ice Queen for the first time right now I'm trying to think if I've ever encountered something like this before....Frost Moon is like this but mintier. Looks like Blue Moon, Frost Moon and Ice Queen are one big happy family, living in an ice castle! Of course, they're all LEs, so...I hope there are more like this coming, or hidden in the catalog that I haven't tried yet!

I've been wanting to try this one for a long time...my instincts were definitely right, this is a winner! Actually, in the bottle this smells exactly like Black Forest, but the difference between the two to me, is that when this dries down it doesn't turn to amber, like Black Forest does on me (which is great, I love amber). It stays strong and piney for some time -- a couple of hours, which for me is quite awhile. Juniper usually has a distinctive sharp smell to me but combined with the other ingredients I mainly get the impression of pine. The eucalyptus is a fresh, cold smell and does not seem particularly medicinal to me, especially once it hits the skin. It develops into a very rich pine/fir scent. There are so many layers in the "woods" scents like this one...first you are hit with a crisp, fresh breeze through snowy evergreens. Then as you go deeper into the forest, the different layers emerge...the leaves and wood, damp and dark underfoot...the crunch of golden needles on the ground...every time I go back in for another sniff an entire world of solemn greenery opens up before me. This does, indeed, pose a difficult choice. Both Loup Garou and Black Forest bring me to the same forest, but Black Forest warms me with sunlight in spring or summer and Loup Garou lures me into the promise of shelter in autumn and winter. I think I might wind up going with a bottle of Loup Garou though because it lasts longer, and I prefer the cold seasons to the warm!

I'm sure this has been answered before but I cannot find it right now if it has -- Are the Tarot oils available as imps? I ask because on the Tarot oils page it says they are available as 10 ml only. Yet I've seen imps of them before and know others have discussed them... Basically, I don't want to order six and then find out I made a boo-boo! I think Death, Ace of Pentacles, High Priestess, Strength, The World and maybe the Empress are on my list.

OK I just tried Loup Garou courtesy of VorpalBunny and I LOVE it. This is just what the doctor ordered! It's just like Black Forest, without the amber -- and I love amber, and plan to get a bottle of that too, but after a little while Black Forest turns ALL amber on me and I'd like to keep the pine going for awhile... I have a bottle of Dracul on order, I am fascinated by that scent. It's so multilayered. I think the smokiness is what sold me on that one! So, I just have to try Dublin now. I have some Jabberwocky on the way in imp form so I'll get to try that, too. Anyone got any Dublin to trade or sell?? In the meantime, I'm putting Loup Garou on my 5 ml order list...I have to try to get an order in before the next update, or I'll wind up replacing all my old wants with NEW wants before I ever order the old ones. Such great recommendations from everyone -- thanks!! I hope my pine mania lasts into the spring!

OK, so Medea and Dublin just went to the top of my want list -- and Blood Countess. Queen of Spades, Skadi and Mistletoe are my favorite LEs, and I am especially hoping to find more things that smell like QoS since I can't put my finger on exactly what it is in there that I love so much. Loup Garou turns out to be the same kind of piney that I like in Mistletoe, so I think I found my substitute! It's like Black Forest without the amber. And I like the amber too so...decisions, decisions...

I'm waiting on some Jabberwocky to find out if that's got the pine that I'm looking for too...I know that's another one with strong eucalyptus but I like that too so that's ok! My bf hates eucalyptus but I'll just have to wear it when I go somewhere by myself, then! I think it would add to the deep dark woods feel that I like. Voodoo's pine, vanilla and lime sounds really weird. But I also love lime, sooo...who knows!

I was very interested in Severin because of the Earl Grey tea mention, as that is my favorite type of tea, and a fresh canister of Earl Grey tea leaves is my favorite thing on earth. The leather note had me worried though as I always feel sick when I'm in a store with leather jackets or vests in it and I really dislike that scent. In the bottle, I definitely smell my favorite tea. It has that bergamot (citrusy) hint over a nice rich tea...and there's a tang of something else, but it's not the leather jacket smell. When I put it on I swear there's white wine in it. That might be the leather though -- it just comes across as wine on my skin, and to my nose. Odd. I can get the tea, but it's being drowned out in that winey smell. But after about 15 minutes that dies down and I get a waft of that perfect, freshly opened tin of Earl Grey scent that I love. I savor it for awhile but it's gone in an hour. I wouldn't mind putting more on though. I would consider putting this in a lotion actually, that might extend the life. I really like Severin, and if drinking Earl Grey all day doesn't make me smell like it, maybe this will! I will get a bottle of this eventually, but I'll probably have to slather it or make a lotion, to get more than an hour's wear out of it.

I do have Hemlock and Skadi, and they're wonderful! Whenever I wear Hemlock people ask me "Is that candy?" which really confuses me. I wonder what the sweetness is, in it. I'd like to add more Skadi to my collection, if anyone has more than that know what to do with! It's probably my favorite oil of all in the bottle -- it fades pretty quickly on me, as does Mistletoe, but I could just inhale the bottle all day.

Um, wow....this is interesting. I need to look at the description again to wrap my head around this one: This is what I would characterize as one of the lab's Complex scents, in my mind. There is a LOT going on here, to the point where no single notes pop out at me but it forms something entirely different unto itself. Sometimes the scents that I find complex, wind up losing me because I can't focus on anything. But this one...I can't stop sniffing it. I need to get deeper into it. If it was a kiss it would be a long, tongue-probing, sensual, four-hour-long kiss. You want to feel every texture of this scent and then go back for more. I guess that black patchouli and neroli must be pretty exciting to me, as they are components of Tisiphone which tops my Can't Stop Sniffing list. They just draw you in and, for me, are an endlessly intriguing puzzle. But what does it smell like, exactly?? This is a perfect BPAL blend because I feel as though I can sense fruit, flowers and incense all at once but I don't know where they are coming from. Someone is throwing apples, flowers, and sticks of incense at me and I don't know what to do! There is a very strong powdery note in this though when I put it on, but it's not off-putting. I guess it might be from the rose, because while I don't smell ROSES I get the impression of...dusty rose petals. While I can't stand vanilla, it doesn't not smell vanilly in this. Just a vague impression of smoothness. How do they do it?? The way that the apple and bergamot mixed in with patchouli and neroli create this perfect fruity incense smell... It's just beyond description. It's not even one of my very favorites that I've tried -- it comes across as too pink-orange in my mind and I like darker scents, but I think that I've invented a new classification in my mind, which is Fruit Incense. And this fits the bill. Doesn't last as long as the thicker incense smells but I won't mind slathering more on. OK, so yeah, I want a 5 ml. Or at least some more imps. I can see me getting along with this great in the summer, too. Gimme!! ETA: Trying this again a year later, I bought a bottle. It goes through a very powdery, apple blossom phase in the beginning that is almost off-putting and a bit of a fruity phase afterwards but the drydown is an incredible dusty wooden incense that I keep getting wafts of. It has a lot of staying power and dries down to a lasting scent that is unlike any other I've tried. A nice, light soft wood incense with a bit of a rosy/fruity scent.

Got this in a swap with LunaSea! I am a big fan of grapefruit, though not so much of the light florals (can't smell 'em), but I really like the icy imagery so I have wanted to visit with the Queen. The grapefruit is mainly evident in the bottle -- on skin it becomes indistinguishable from the other pale yellow and white blooms. It smells something like sunlight on snow might smell...sparkling, refined (sounds like I'm describing a wine now!), ahh but the first buds of spring are peeking through. I would probably be more likely to wear this in the spring or summer, when the sun would help to bring out the brilliance of the scent, for in the winter these scents tend to close their petals on me and vanish like frosty breath dissipating in the air. As it develops on my skin I catch a glimpse of the fruity elements of the scent again...something in here reminds me of the Queen of Spades, I'm not sure what. I get no rose whatsoever. The white floral smell must be orchid...that's the main fragrance that I get. This does develop a bit when I put a lot on...the grapefruit is clinging on for dear life, which is great, because I like it! But I think I will be content with an imp, as I probably won't wear it much except on early spring days.

Really?? Old Dublin might be like Mistletoe? If that's the case then I definitely need to check out Dublin... I can't find anything remotely like Skadi, so I definitely can't think of anything for her. She might be unique. Queen of Spades was a more powerful, incensey Megaera to me but I would have to sniff both again to figure that out. Queen of Spades is actually the archetypical BPAL scent to me, it smells like it does when I have a whole bunch of them together. And I usually do!...

Oh yay! My search for the perfect vetiver blend continues. Thanks to LunaSea for throwing this in with a swap we did! My recent vetiver experiments have been Malediction and Sloth, both of which I like but both have an uncomfortable period early on where there's another heavy note lingering that I have to get through before it settles into warm, smooth, earthy vetiver. Umbra is a very gritty scent, like rich soil in an ancient forest. The touch of cinnamon assimilates perfectly into the blend and takes some of that bitter tang out of it that vetiver has when it's very strong. In the bottle it's very heady and sweet, it brings up mental images of chocolate and coffee even though it doesn't smell quite like that. Unless it was very thick and tarry without any foody associations. Once on, the cinnamon continues to propel this blend and it crackles with dark energy. I do not like cinnamon on its own, but in the right blend it adds just the right dry sweet sparkle that can liven up something that would otherwise be stagnant. An hour or so later it mellows into a creamy earthy vetiver -- all vetiver blends end up in this stage on me eventually but this one is the most pleasant. I think I may have found my vetiver blend. The patchouli and cedarwood are present as well but they are dominated somewhat by the other notes, for me. But they keep the blend woody, rooted in earth, dry and dusky. This is the best of the fragrances like this that I've tried, I think.

I am sure after reading the previous reviews you don't need me to tell you that this is a perfect pine scent, a fresh, crisp Christmas tree in the snow kind of scent. What more can I add to that? I've been getting my pine fix previously by unwrapped a Balsam Fir Yankee candle and rubbing the green-stained cellophone on my hands -- AHhhhhhh -- before lighting the candle. But this is much more pure than that. This is the scent of shopping for a fresh Christmas tree on a snowy December morning (not that I'd ever be up that early). This has the fresh snowy feeling of Skadi, but it's just nothing but pure evergreen. It does fade very quickly on me and I don't have enough to keep putting it on...so until I can secure more (gimme gimme!!!) I will probably mostly be enjoying this one in the imp and dreaming of a day when it is re-released and I can stockpile it.

All of the notes in this are things that I like in many other blends -- myrrh, often comes out nice and dark and incensy -- musk, i was afraid of at first but have enjoyed in many blends where it lends a richness and depth -- attar of rose, well, i love rose in all forms! -- and ylang ylang is present in a great many of my favorites even though it's overpowering on its own. But for some reason, when I apply this, I smell -- exactly nothing! It's the strangest thing. In the bottle I can sense myrrh, musk, something powdery and a shimmer of golden warmth, but on my skin...even applied lavishly...I can't smell a thing! There's a slight afterthought of incense, but very little else. I will have to try it again some other time. I applied this after the scent I had put on in the morning had long since faded away, so perhaps there was still some residue on my skin doing battle with it. I DO overdo it with scents, but I can still usually still pick them out. But in the bottle it doesn't strike me as what I had imagined based on the notes -- attar of rose and ylang ylang would normally come across as much louder notes, much more fragrant and darkly floral, yet I can't detect them at all. The myrrh and dark musk are nice but on their own they don't suit me. I will try it some more but I don't think that it will work out for me. A phantom, indeed -- an elusive scent that I cannot quite grab a hold of! Definitely best for those who like more subtle incensy tones...but I seem to need ones with a stronger kick.

i got this one from Penance! sloth is the sin that i am most guilty of probably, as i need to set three alarms in order to get up before noon... Vetiver is a favorite of mine -- in, i am finding, small doses, so i was eager to try this and see what it does with myrrh. iIwas not sure what kind of myrrh this would be, as every variety i sniff comes across as smelling very different. Right after i applied this, my boyfriend said "what smells good? is that you?" and i gave him my wrist to sniff. He said "ahh, that's it. it smells like Christmas!" To me, it initially reminded me of something like Old Spice...the myrrh must be giving me some spicy associations. After awhile, even more like a spicy men's cologne or aftershave, a bit too masculine for me...and combined with something syrupy, which is how vetiver gets on me when it's too thick and pure. After about an hour, though, the myrrh mellowed out, the Old Spice departed and i was left with a nicely blended vetiver. I have a feeling this one will last forever, too, it has that sticky, dark, insistent quality that i need in an oil if it's going to last more than 15 minutes. I don't know if i would order a full bottle but i will probably keep any more imps that come my way. I haven't found the perfect vetiver scent yet for me, though Malediction is close and this is close AFTER the initial manly man smell dies down.

Zombi went to the top of my want list at my first visit to the site in April, and I finally got around to getting some in November (as a gift, in 10ml form)! The description, and name, are the kind of thing that I love and would never think that someone else would want! Overpowering in the bottle, the epitome of earthiness. Damp, wet mosses and rich, black soil with moldering leaves. I feel in applying it that I am spreading a thick cake of black mud on my arm, grave dirt with a bouquet of roses mashed into the earth. Did I mention that I love roses? Almost the only flower that I do like to wear... Wearing this, I imagine that I'm an undead bride come back to life, clawing her way out of the tomb with her tattered bouquet and lumbering around in the fog. Yes, these are things that I like! Green, loamy, wet, mossy, black, earthy, how many more adjectives can I pile on?....it's all good, but I know this is not to all tastes. Proceed with caution. Earth, moss, and rose lovers rejoice!

I got a bottle of this one, sight unsmelled, because of my interest in the tea notes. I thought it would be pretty light and it is, but it's SO nice that I am willing to slather to get the effect that I want... I am not sure I can detect much in the way of herbs or peony in it -- in the bottle, it smells something like Old Shanghai or maybe the Apothecary (going from memory here) with green tea dominating. Once I apply it, it quickly turns into a perfect, freshly opened canister of Earl Grey tea. I hope that I'm not insane and that there is actually bergamot in this blend! Green tea and shades of other teas dance around with a slight hint of sweetness....and they fade very quickly. I think that perhaps when it is dry, that I am smelling peony, but having had peonies growing in my backyard for most of my life I still don't know what they really smell like! They never had a strong fragrance, to me. In the end, this is absolutely delightful, just the tea blend I have always dreamed of -- when I apply it I smell like a cup of Earl Grey tea (moreso than I usually do...I drink about four cups of it a day) and it probably lingers even longer, but my weak nose can't detect it! This is a huge success story for my ordering unsmelled!