donnatron

Bottle: Strong, chemically leather and a bit of greenery. Reminds me of walking into a Bentley's or other bag/luggage manufacturer at the mall. Wet: Hoo boy! Super strong crazy leather! Reminds me a bit of the shiny black leather from C. Auguste Dupin but now it's scuffed up a little and worn in. But this is leather. Lots of leather. I smell like Tobias Funke. Dry: Yeah... straight up leather and nothing else. Throw: Good. Overall: Not for me, but I know someone who will be all over this. Will tuck it away for next time I see her.

Bottle: Sweet fancy Moses, this is terrifying. Dark, thick pine (due to the similarity to Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse) and a hint of a berry like scent--maybe black currant? Very viscous, thick and dark. I would hazard a guess that there is another wood in here--cypress or balsam, maybe? And a resin of some sort, probably myrrh? Wet: This goes on thick, dark and damn weird. It's a very twisted dark pine scent with a heavy medicinal wood scent in the background. It reminds me of the general stores/apothercary shops in those living musuem ghost towns that pepper western Canada and USA. Dry: One of the darker and scarier scents I've smelled that doesn't have the obvious addition of vetiver. It feels, tonally, like a green, crushed herb, medicinal compliment to Lycaon (blackened myrrh, crushed olive leaf, black musk, spikenard, frankincense, cypress wood, opoponax, white ginger, and patchouli) but where Lycaon is dry and rocky, this is a little more puply and herbal. I am taking a stab in the dark at some of the notes here: white pine, myrrh, balsam, black currant and orange peel/pulp. Maybe a touch of tonka providing a papery sweetness? The longer it dries down, the more it seems suited to my chemistry but it is definitely a strong, bold scent that is not going to be a crowd pleaser. It smells medicinal and additionally a little poisonous. I can see a lot of people who aren't familiar with perfume oils or complex scents wrinkling their noses and asking what that smell is. Throw: Strong. Overall: I'm going as a plague doctor for Hallowe'en and thought it would be super neat to have a scent to match. This evokes my costume perfectly and I'll certainly dig it then. Otherwise, I can't think of a lot of social situations where this would be appropriate. I think I may try layering it with something a little sweeter to cut the scary/crazy it evokes or otherwise it will become a paperrose power scent for when I have a million things requiring me to kick ass and take names.

Garden Path With Chickens, from the salon is probably your best bet. Notes are: Damp grass, ivy leaves, morning glory, daisy, rose geranium, heliotrope, white gardenia, climbing roses, peppery nasturtium, phlox, begonia, verbena and sun-warmed herbs. The only scent that ever gone dill pickle on me is Pulcinella and Terasina.

Bottle: It smells like... Florida Water and patchouli. I would assume that I'm mainly smelling the West Indian Bay, which I'm pretty sure is a component in Florida Water. Very... savoury to my nose. Wet: This is downright weird on first application. The bay is the dominant note and I recall having had weird interactions with massoia in the past. It's a little spicy but also like an herb cupboard or the herb section of a pagan shop. Very faint vanilla and patchouli in there. Dry: It's rather nice, considering the wet phase. But it's also one of those things that is very unique to my own chemistry, as clove usually smells like blood on my chemistry. It dries down to a soft patchouli/vanilla with the rest of the ingredients sort of floating around but there is a distinct, metallic, bloody type scent that lingers over it making the soft cuddly quality a little less soft. Throw: Good. Overall: I'm not sure how I feel about this scent. It definitely smells a bit like cooking herbs and also like blood. It reminds me strongly of Raven Moon but instead of the dark, sultry mature qualities of Raven Moon, it's more like... Raven Moon's totally nutso little sister. Very strange.

I recall the drydown being very similar to Bow and Crown of Conquest, particularly after B&C gets a bit of age under its belt. It's also similar to one of my bottles of Perversion but completely different from the other one so if you're willing to take chances on batch differences, Perversion might also be a good choice.

Bottle: The cardamom in this one is strong. Mainly I smell cardamom with traces of leather and a hint of booze. Wet: Strong, strong cardamom to the point where it kind of smells like cassis. The cardamom has considerably calmed down since I first got Spanked Revisited so that lends me hope that the other elements still have time to smooth out before the fall. Dry: Spicy leather and booze. Surprisingly, I smell little of the patchouli in this. Cardamom is the dominant note followed by the leather and then there's an overall sense of booziness. Throw: Moderate. Actually not nearly as strong as I anticipated. Overall: I think it's sexy and definitely a little kinky. However, I really hope that I can further age the cardamom into submission because while I like it, I already know that the strong cardamom note will be a total turn off for my boyfriend who has an irrational hatred of cassis, which this strongly smells like to me. In the meantime I'll just wear this for my own edification.

Tonka, black licorice, amber, golden sandalwood, ginger cream, bitter clove, stinging nettle, cinnamon bark, and coconut shell. Bottle: I totally forgot there was supposed to be black licorice in this. It is all thick, golden honey and beeswax with a touch of warm coconut husk. It smells like summer in a bottle. Wet: Definitely getting the husk/bark aspect of this. The cinnamon is a bit stronger but it smells like the dried bark rather than straight up cinnamon oil. Very warm and sweet and a little like skin but better. It's a very dry sort of scent. Dry: A beautiful, sun-warmed blend of vanilla, coconut, spices and creamy ginger (the note I can cross reference from Prosperity of a Country). This scent blends together beautifully and I don't really smell the distinct notes separately from each other. It's very warm and sweet but has a dry/dusty quality that makes it feel like a distinctly summery scent. Throw: Strong. Overall: When I smell Paduan Killer Swarm, it smells like the hottest days of summer to me. The days when it is blindingly hot, there's no breeze and the humidity index is at zero. It is a beautifully blended scent and it is highly evocative. I love wearing it in the summer because it compliments the heat wonderfully and I wear it in winter to assure myself that summer will, one day, come again.

Imp: Mainly it smells fruity, like the bergamot and plum are the top notes. I have no idea what oud smells like and let it dry down while I googled the hell out of oud. Wet: It goes on with a stronger rose scent and something almost a little peachy. Very velvety. Dry: I quite like this. The rose/plum combo is lovely and it blends well with the bergamot. It reminds me a lot of Venice but without the cloying lemon note Venice had. It also reminds me a little of Versailles. The sandalwood is very gentle and quiet and I'm still not one hundred percent sure I'm smelling the oud. This winds up being primarily plum/bergamot and then rose on my skin. Throw: Minimal. Overall: I'm not sure. I really liked the wet phase of this but the longer I wore it, the less it really seemed like something suitable to my tastes and personality. Ultimately, the citrus/sweet fruit aspect was just too front and centre of the scent and that's not something I prefer. It is definitely a good rose-without-being-too-rose-y scent.

Imp: Strong floral, prominent lavender and a bit of currant tartness. Wet: This goes on very similar to Lurid, which is one of my favourites. The labdanum is a little smoky sour and resinous and the main notes I'm getting are the current and the lavender. Definitely a bit of rose sweetness and the magnolia is held pretty firmly in check. Dry: Ah, there's the castoreum accord coming out giving this a slightly animalistic/rotten vibe. I think it's combined with the magnolia to evoke the feeling of decay I get from this scent. It's at the very bottom of the scent and not really noticeable until I get up close to my skin but... it's there. It's kind of gross. Luckily the top notes and the throw are that lovely lavender/rose/currant smell gently spiced and grounded by the resins. It's a bit powdery but very soft and it does smell a bit melancholy. Throw: Moderate. Overall: I'm not loving the castoreum/magnolia combo. This seems like a heavier, muskier and almost rotting version of Lurid, one of my favourite summer scents. It doesn't jibe overly with my chemistry and I think I prefer Lurid.

Prurience and Tombeur share a lot in common. Both are sweet sort of vanilla/musk scents with smoky vetiver lurking around the edges. Prurience is a little softer than Tombeur but a pretty good dupe for when the Vampire series disappears.

Bottle: I can't believe I've never reviewed this one. My bottle is a 10ml so this is definitely a review on the aged scent. I recall it being very heavy on the orange when fresh. Now it is heavier on the copal and quite resinous. The citrus is detectable but less so. Fresh, I remember this reminding me a lot of Angel. It now smells more distinct and a lot more resinous. Wet: Copal and I usually get along but it veers briefly into playdough territory before righting itself. The wet stage is kind of a jumble. The plumeria is still strong and reminds me of some of the floral sweetness from the Hanging Gardens. The orange smells like the sweet peel with a bit of the bitter rind. Very true to scent but also not really blending together well. I smell copal distinctly underneath the florals and citrus. Dry: Heavenly. It takes its time but it dries down to a beautiful copal with orange peel and a slight floral edge. It reminds me again of Angel and definitely smells more like Angel in the throw than in the up close scent. It's absolutely divine. Very fresh and tropical and perfect for summer. While all the scents were distinct in the drydown, it becomes more of a dreamy copal the longer I wear it. Throw: Strong. Overall: I always forget that I have Xiuhtecuhtli on hand, but it truly is a magnificent perfume and is one of the friendlier complex scents because it reminds me strongly of an existing commercial perfume and is great at helping to develop a nose for different blends.

Imp: Stemmy gardenia and lily of the valley. Wet: Ugh, I just don't like gardenia. It smells off to my nose and on my skin--there is something distinctly banana-like about it. It's purely a nose chemistry thing to me because I couldn't stand it back when I worked at Crabtree and Evelyn and they had the icky Gardenia line (yes, I'm old school ). Dry: Dries down to evil bananas. It smells almost identical to Sacred Whore which is also angry gardenia on me. Just not a flattering scent. The gardenia and muguet are amp to the exclusion of all the other notes. Simply not flattering. Throw: Strong. Strong and gardenia-y. Overall: Not a fan at all. The gardenia is suppressing all of the interesting notes and ultimately this is rather unflattering on me.

If you don't mind layering you could try Plunder layered with Dirty. Port Royal is a more intense, longer lasting/higher throw version of Silk Road on my skin.

For my Canada Day party I am wearing Snake Oil layered with Red Rose aka the "Pierre Trdueau.'

This was so foul on me that I wound up gifting it away to a local civet enthusiast because I couldn't bear with keeping it in my bpal box any longer. To the best of my recollection, I would hazard the ingredients include dark musk, civet, magnolia and amber. It is an interesting blend on the right person. It is what I assume the cologne Aleister Crowley wore smelled like. It was a blend of ambergris, musk and civet that he claimed attracted woman and horses to him. I have no desire to attract women and horses and so this was an unfortunate pass.

Once the lavender in Dove's Heart burns off, it smells a lot like Flying Fox shower gel. Very strong, honeyed jasmine.

#32 (bought direct from lab) Bottle: Achingly sweet berry/currant scent. I would hazard a red currant and raspberry? Little swirl of vanilla. Afraid I am about to be taken away by Calgon. Wet: Definitely currant in this and the sweet, sticky vanilla from Tombstone. A bit of resemblance to Snake Charmer although definitely less complex. Also a similarity to Penis Admiration. It might be a little swirl of ho wood. There is a strong, tart, juicy berry in there. Not blackberry but it could possibly be raspberry or cranberry. Actually, the more I sniff this on the drydown it smells like a weird combination of Snake Charmer and Baneberry. Strange. Also: a little melon. This is a weirdass scent. Dry: Berry watermelon vanilla. It's... weird. Not childish but definitely young. A little candylike. A little downright strange. It's not objectionable. Just an odd, candy sweet scent with a really... uh, adult vanilla behind it? The vanilla is not the candy sweet type. It's adult, it's sexy, it's a little smoky. And the fruit clashes with it in a kind of unimaginably dirty sort of way. I feel a little jailbait-y and I'm not sure how I feel about that. It is a lovely scent, probably I am ascribing way more to it than anyone else would. Throw: Strong. Overall: It is a sweet, warm vanilla with berry and melon that is somehow unspeakably dirty. On the plus side, I recall this smelling like cough syrup when I first got it so unspeakably dirty is definitely a step up.

Bottle: This one is damn weird. Familiar and buttery and a little spicy and just WEIRD! Wet: Oh... That's why. I am from Calgary, home of the Stampede. When you go to the Stampede there is a certain delicacy you simply must sample: the mini doughnuts. This smells exactly like a fresh mini doughnut just out of the fryer doused with cinnamon sugar. I can taste it. It is strange. It is also strange because I would swear there is red sandalwood in this. It's like getting mini doughnuts and wearing sandalwood oil. Dry: Spicy red sandalwood. Once the whole "fried carnival food" aspect dries down this is really pretty and a little incense-y. On my skin it is definitely sandalwood. Strong, strong sandalwood. Cardamom and pepper stand out. Faint hint of, uh, carnival food. I don't know how I feel about that. Throw: Excellent. Very strong. Overall: I like this several miles down the road from its original scent. Spicy sandalwood is amazing. Carnival food is really not something I've ever aspired to someone associating with me.

Imp: Coconut rum. Deathly sweet coconut rum. Wet: Even more coconut rum! I was especially confused because in my head this was the orange/ginger ale scent. It is sickly sweet and the banana is coming out. Just a little. There is no grenadine unless it's just adding to the overall sweetness. I need some pomegranate or something to cut this epic sweetness. Dry: Ick. Ick, ick, ick. MY skin runs with the sweetness and it winds up smelling madly familiar and yet just a little untraceable. The pomegranate comes out from the grenadine a bit and adds a gross sharpness to the overall scent. It is manly coconut rum. The pomegranate is a little...vomity? Not good, overall. My skin chemistry made this pretty horrifying and it smells a little like waking up after getting . Throw: Good. Horrifying, but good. Overall: I don't know if this smells like it should or if my skin is distorting it. It smells like rum and bananas and pomegranate sweetness. It might be someone else's bag, but it certainly isn't mine.

Twilight is beautiful. The lavender is a bit strong at the beginning, but it tones down nicely and it's a really lovely scent. Sort of glowing, very warm and sensual. Chimera is a spicy, warm honeysuckle backed by a light resin from the copal. Shanghai is very clean and light. If you've tried Embalming Fluid, it has a similar feel but is more floral from the honeysuckle. My favourite by far is Twilight. It is a seriously beautiful scent.

Sniffed Saint Germain and Xiuhtecuhtli side by side this morning and Xiuhtecuhtli is a sweeter, brasher sister to Saint Germain's dry elegance.

Bottle: Poppies and water. Poppies are a least favourite floral of mine (they smell like cough syrup to me... which... says a lot about me?) but they usually have a mercifully short wearlength. The water scent is like the scent of fresh, running water. It has potential, but I'm cautiously optimistic. Wet: O hai poppy. This also smells like it has some form of orchid in it. Maybe that comes from the passion flower or the buttonweed? Definitely smelling the sweetness of the rose. Smells sort of like a tea rose? Sandalwood is starting to go pleasantly dusty. Dry: This dries down to a pleasantly complex rose/sandalwood combo. The lotus is adding a nice sweetness but I wouldn't ever call this a lotus blend. It's really a supporting note. The sandalwood is the star and it is absolutely gorgeous--incense-y but not headshop-y. Rose is sweet and subtle and lovely. The other notes, I only have the most tenuous grip on what they smell like (except for you, poppy. I have my eye on you) and they add a really nice complexity that I can't quite describe but can smell. This is lovely. Throw: Actually pretty strong for a scent of this nature. Overall: I like it. I happened into a bottle through a lot purchase but so long as I can forgive the funky drydown, this is definitely a great perfume. Very complex, adult and floral without screaming "HI! I'M A FLORAL!" I am fond.

Bottle: My nose/skin chemistry love pink musk. Love it. So this smells like... pink musk and a hint of incense. Sadly, aging has not tamed the dread pirate pink musk. Wet: Pink musk, little bit of incense, tiny amount of coconut. I'm amazed at how strong the pink musk is. Normally myrtle and cypress amp to ungodly proportions on my skin but they're nowhere to be found here. Dry: The pink musk doesn't calm down considerably but it calms down some. I can smell the coconut and the incense and a little bit of creamy orange blossom behind the pink musk. Overwhelmingly, though, this is a pink musk blend. Throw: Miles. Overall: It's a bit of a shame, because it's a beautiful list of ingredients. On the plus side, I do like pink musk a lot and sometimes just want to wear something unabashedly girly and sweet. This definitely fulfills that desire and then some.

Bottle: Salty aquatic with a bit of sweet. I perk up. Is this... is it similar to my holy grail, Dream of the Fisherman's Wife? Wet: Aquatics are typically loud and aquatic on my skin for a while after application. It's a drydown sort of scent but the drydown is not unpleasant. It's very clean and sweet and I get a bit of almond and jasmine buried under the seaweed/salt air smell. Dry: Is it a perfect match for Dream of the Fisherman's Wife? No. Is it mind-bendingly dirty? Hells to the yes. Jasmine has a really beautiful skin close quality on my skin and the almond is similar to the almond in Uruk. In fact, this is a strange mate of Uruk (like the underwater journey of Gilgamesh before the snake stole the fruit from him?). It's really quite lovely and one of the nicer aquatics I've tried (I love them. They are mercurial in their feelings towards me). It's sexy, in a strange floral/salty way that makes it really inappropriate in a way that no one can quite articulate. Throw: Moderate. Overall: I like being inappropriate. Especially in ways that are difficult to articulate.

Imp: Whoa. The honey from O cut with a sharp, pine-y scent. This is pretty rad. Wet: Sweet, gooey, thick honey and a lovely sort of greenery from the hemlock. It really, really reminds me of O. Dry: I might have to death match this with O. It is a perfect, sultry, warm honey perfectly cut by the greenery of the hemlock. It reminds me of a combination of O and Hexennacht 08. It's really damn sexy. A little outdoorsy, very natural and very skin close and inviting. Kind of a witch queen vibe--this is a good thing. The honey scent is just the teensiest bit... carnal? I'm a little stunned by how damn sexy I find this scent. It's like O but better. Throw: Mild to moderate. Quite frankly, this would be utterly disgusting if it had a huge throw. This is not the type of scent you want to be broadcasting out to the entire room. Overall: I really, quite like this. I'm getting down to the bottom of my current bottle of O and I might replace it with Hemlock Honey. A surprise standout from the Apiary. Thanks to the lab for the excellent frimp!