jencallisto

In the imp: Honey-sweet, fuzzy, a little boozy, and something else I can't quite place.

Fresh on the skin: Pungent, some honey, but mostly just no. I wish I knew what I'm disliking about this, but whatever it is, I'm _really_ disliking it.

30 minutes later: Oh, more honey, that helps. This stage is decent.

 

Verdict: Not so much, though perhaps I'll try it again sometime.

 

One phrase: Pungent honey.

In the imp: Wow, not kidding about the boozy. Fruity dark wine.
Fresh on the skin: Mmmmmm, fruity dark wine, gaining a little spice.
5 minutes later: Wow, that's some throw. The oak keeps it from going too sweet and/or dark.
10 minutes later: Delightful sillage, all dark fruity wine that's somehow also bright. Not very complex, and I'm not sure I'd want to smell like this very often, exactly, but really quite nice!
15 minutes later: The wine note is just sour enough to be both interesting and a tiny bit off-putting, at least for me. But just barely!
30 minutes later: Mmm, there's the vanilla. That helps balance it out a bit.
1 hour later: I do quite like this, in a sort of mild way.

Verdict: Rather nice, though complicated enough that I'm not sure how I feel about it as a whole. I'll have to try it again.

One word: Wine.

In the imp: Spicy-sweet, musky orange.

Fresh on the skin: Rather sharp, soapy musk, sour-bitter citrus top note, a bit of round, warm, spicy amber.

10 minutes later: Spicy amber-musk with a little citrus.

20 minutes later: More and more amber, the clean kind, corrupted by something. I suspect I'm not a big ambergris fan.

1 hour later: Still pretty much the same.

 

Verdict: I didn't really like this much, for some reason, though I'll probably try it again at some point.

 

One word: Amber.

 

In the imp: Cinnamon-sweet, perhaps a little cocoa.

Fresh on the skin: Ooooh, cinnamon, toasty and bright! Rounded by a bit of fruit. Nice!

15 minutes later: Warm, toasty brown cinnamon, sweet and just the tiniest bit fruity.

20 minutes later: Damn, this is strong, and has rather long throw. I'm starting to detect that cranky musk, I think.

30 minutes later: I mostly like this, but it might be just a tad too overpowering for me.

1 hour later: Holding steady.

 

Verdict: Incredibly strong and interesting. I like it, but I'm not sure how wearable it is.

 

One word: Cinnamon.

Fresh on the skin: Kind of... chocolatey, in that fake-chocolate way. Must be that red velvet cake. Blackberry on the sillage. Rather nice, actually.

5 minutes later: Blackberries and vanilla cream and a tiny bit of cocoa. Chocolate and cake are both notes I'm generally suspicious of, but this turns out the be pretty darn good, somehow.

30 minutes later: Blackberry-chocolate-vanilla cake, fairly delicate. Nice!

1 hour later: Fading, but nice.

2 hours later: Very very faded.

 

Verdict: I like this a surprising amount, but perhaps not enough to track down a bottle.

 

One phrase: blackberry chocolate cake.

In the imp: Creamy-sweet.

Fresh on the skin: Creamy-sweet with a round, luscious base. And is that... ozone? Maybe it's the amber.

30 minutes later: This smells mostly of sweet warm soap, probably from the amber.

1 hour later: Uck. Yeah, sort of a soap-deodorant thing. Not good on me.

2 hours alter: Wow, this gets worse and worse.

 

Verdict: Started out okay, progressed to more and more Not Okay.

 

One word: Deodorant.

 

In the imp: Mostly rose, a little sweet, a little sharp

Fresh on the skin: What a lovely, sweet, light rose. The honey, vanilla, plum, and tonka are mellowing this out beautifully.

15 minutes later: What an incredibly gorgeous rose -- light and sweet and almost floaty.

2.5 hours later; Such a pretty rose!

4 hours later: Fading and going a little sour, but overall still nice.

 

Verdict: I like this a _lot_.

 

One word: Rose.

 

In the imp: Sharp, bitter cologne.

Fresh on the skin: Exactly, the same, only a bit stronger and a bit sweeter.

5 minutes later: Wow, this is _bubbly_! Still very cologney, but not really in a bad way. Almost delicate, really.

10 minutes later: This smells very much of a magazine with several perfume samples in it that haven't yet been open. Again, not necessarily a bad thing. And the long-rage sillage seems to have a hint of vanilla.

15 minutes later: Does sort of make my eyes threaten to water, occasionally. But the vanilla aspect is definitely increasing, such that the scent at my wrist has turned both richer and sweeter, yet still quite light and delicate. Wow. This is actually really pretty!

30 minutes later: This has become a really gorgeous delicate vanilla perfume with an overlay of aquatic that threatens to turn to scotch tape on me the way ozone sometimes does, but doesn't quite. I'm surprised at how much I like this.

1 hour later: Yup, warm vanilla-ozone cologne.

3.5 hours later: Still going, still pretty.

5 hours later: Fading out a bit, but still distinctly there.

 

Verdict: Fascinating and kind of awesome. Maybe I'll try to snag a bottle. (In fact, I went to the Dark Delicacies trunk show and did snag a bottle. Yay!)

 

One word: Cologne.

In the imp: Oooh, cherry. Dark cherry.

Fresh on the skin: Soapy dark cherry.

5 minutes later: Gaaaaaaah soap. Dark cherry-almond soap, sure, but.

10 minutes later: Also, it's making the inside of my elbow itch. That skin is generally more sensitive than my wrists, but still, not everything has this effect.

3 hours later: Soap.

 

Verdict: Beh. Soap. So sad.

 

One word: soap.

 

In the imp: Mmm, caramel and butter.

Fresh on the skin: Ooh, really nice coconut. Rich and delicious.

5 minutes later: This just might be the perfect coconut.

15 minutes later: Hrm. Maybe going a little plasticky.

1 hour later: Plasticky coconut.

3.5 hours later: Basically light sunscreen. Not bad, but not great.

 

Verdict: Enh. Might try it again sometime.

 

One phrase: plasticky coconut.

 

In the imp: Fresh, sweet, a little floral, a little fruity.

Fresh on the skin: *blink* This is reminding me of a... rest stop? Clean floral in a kind of sweet way. Except almost like _cleanser_. This is so weird.

30 minutes: Searing floral cleanser. Ick!

1 hour later: Or maybe summer camp? Something. I don't know. Icky-strong floral cleanser.

1.5 hours later: Ew. Ew ew ew. This is kind of making me sick to my stomach.

3 hours later: Tried to wash it off. Have succeeded i making it smell mostly like institutional soap.

 

Verdict: Ew!

 

One word: Ew!

In the imp: Mostly like a foodie scratch and sniff sticker.

Fresh on the skin: Sweet, some cocoa, some fruit? Definitely some booze. Still kind of like a scratch and sniff sticker.

15 minutes later: A little plasticky, a little spicy? Chocolate and wine. But fake.

25 minues later: Very fake. I think chocolates and well as cakes tend to be a bit problematic on me.

1 hour later: Fuzzy, sweet, a little cocoa, a little wine.

3 hours later: Fuzzy-dark-sweet, almost faded out.

 

Verdict: Not terrible, but not great. Off it goes.

 

One word: Fuzzy.

 

In the imp: Light, a little green, a little floral

Fresh on the skin: Green, slightly perfurmey floral. Pretty! Very light.

10 minutes later: Extremely youthful. Sweet and grassy and floral and a tiny bit aquatic.

1 hour later: Pretty, light, not especially me-like.

3.5 hours later: Still pretty and light, still not very me. I think it's the aquatic that's putting me off a bit, perhaps.

 

Verdict: Nice enough, but not really me.

 

One word: Light.

 

In the imp: Fake! Cocoa!
Fresh on the skin: Fuzzy, plasticky cocoa.
10 minutes later: Fuzzy cocoa and warm, bright amber. Nice, actually.
15 minutes later: God, this is gorgeous. Warm, dry amber, with a tiny bit of cocoa.
2 hours later: I think this might be the ultimate chocolate-inclusive scent. The amber and cocoa blend beautifully, mitigating the potential flaws of each. Lovely!
3 hours later: Ah, we're powdering down a bit in a way that threatens to be almost cloying, but doesn't quite cross the line.

Verdict: Color me surprised. This just might merit a bottle. Very cool!

One phrase: amber cocoa.

In the imp: A rich aquatic, a bit sharp.

Fresh on the skin: Softer, but still very distinctly aquatic. I'm not getting much besides that -- sweet and salty, a sort of delicate melancholy.

10 minutes later: Light... and almost foody, in a kind of herbal, salty, a tiny bit sweet, delicate way. God, this is pretty.

1 hour later: Shockingly, I really like this! This makes me really happy, as I adore the concept and name. Pretty and lightly sweet, and the ozone just gives it delicacy.

2 hours later: Fading, but still pretty.

4 hours later: Delicate, barely-there sweetness. So, so pretty!

5 hours later: Gone.

 

Verdict: I'm getting a bottle of this. It's all stuff I had no idea would work for me (aquatics are not usually my thing at all), but for some reason it really, really does. Somehow, it goes all aquatic on me, but it's the aquatic that's converted me to aquatics! It doesn't last too long, but it's gorgeous while it does last, so. Mine now!

 

One phrase: Sweet, delicate rain.

(2006 version)

 

In the imp: Mmm. Sweet, round, spicy -- very amber.

Fresh on the skin: Amber, spicy, a little floral, a little soapy.

10 minutes later: Spicy-sweet amber-floral, a bit sharp.

20 minutes later: Yup, just about, with the sharpness gradually fading. I like this well enough, but it's not particularly unique.

2 hours later: Amber, amber, amber.

4 hours later: Light, spicy amber. Very nice!

8 hours later: Amber, amber, amber! A little spicy, a little soapy.

 

Verdict: Nice enough, but it doesn't quite distinguish itself from other amber-dominated scents, at least on my skin.

 

One word: Amber.

(2006 version)

 

In the imp: Mmm, spicy-sweet-bitter woods.

Fresh on the skin: Sharp, woodsy, a little sweet, a little soapy, very much not me.

5 minutes later: Possibly a nice room scent? A rather bittersweet spice, round and complex. Not bad, if not really me.

15 minutes later: Spicy woods, nice enough.

2 hours later: Sort of a soft, dark honey-sweet spicy resin.

4.5 hours later: Light honey resin.

8 hours later: Barely-detectable honey resin.

 

Verdict: Nice enough, if not really me. I do love the name of it, though. Shakespeare! <3

 

One phrase: honey resin.

 

In the imp: Bright, sweet mint, a little scotch-tape-y.

Fresh on the skin: Bright, sweet mint! Maybe a little ozone-bitter, a little artificial.

15 minutes later: Is it me that's bitter, or Yule?

20 minutes later: Ow! Hey! That burns! Very cold! It feels... kind of good? But it burns! I'm so conflicted.

30 minutes later: Still kinda burning, but a little sharp, a little artificial, sweet and minty, yet bitter.

1 hour later: Ozone-y mint. Not my thing.

3 hours later: Yup, ozone-y mint, light and sweet.

5 hours later: The ozone is overtaking the mint. Alas. Saving grace, at least it's fairly light by now.

6 hours later: The scotch-tape scent is kind of back. Neh.

7 hours later: Hello, sweet, sweet ozone. The inside of my elbow is going to smell like this forever, isn't it.

8 hours later: Oh, fading a little.

 

Verdict: I like mint, but for whatever reason this just doesn't work on me. Perhaps my skin likes to amp ozone too much.

 

One word: Ozone-mint.

In the imp: Syrupy sweet, like confectioner's sugar icing.

Fresh on the skin: Lemon sugar cookie, indeed, but with that underlying plasticky ick that cake tends to turn to on my skin. I should really just learn my lesson about cake scents and give it up.

20 minutes later: Not the worst plasticky lemon cake ever.

2 hours later: But not actually good, either.

3 hours later: Fading...

 

Verdict: Not for me.

 

One phrase: Plasticky iced sugar cookie.

In the imp: Hrm. Artificial cake, somewhat alcoholic.
Fresh on the skin: Yup, artificial, alcoholic cake, a little spicy.
10 minutes later: The spice from the rum and the freshness of orange seems to be mitigating the Icky Cake effect, though it's still a bit plasticky.
1 hour later: This is actually pretty nice! Spicy-sweet, a little cookie.
2 hours later: Fuzzy soft spice cake, nice.
4 hours later: A little nutty, a very nice light, fuzzy cookie scent.
6.5 hours later: Faint nutty vanilla cookie.
10 hours later: Basically gone, just a tiny bit of vanilla left.

Verdict: Not bad! Perhaps I'll try it again sometime, but I doubt I need a bottle.

One phrase: nutty vanilla cookie.

(for Rose Red 2007)

 

In the imp: Sharp bitter green, extremely sweet rose.

Fresh on the skin: So bitter! Almost earthy. Dark dark dark.

10 minutes later: Pretty rose, bitter center, not sure how I feel about this.

40 minutes later: Bitter bitter bitter rose.

2 hours later: The bitterness has lifted a quite a bit, leaving a fresh, gentle, vegetal-green rose. Pretty nice.

4.5 hours later: Light, sweet, fresh, green rose.

7 hours later: Faded green rose, light and pretty.

9 hours later: Basically gone, just a thin thread of sweet green rose left.

 

Verdict: I like it all right, but there are plenty of rose scents I love more.

 

One phrase: Green rose.

 

In the bottle: Sweet and fresh -- a little honey, a little mint.

Fresh on the skin: Ooh, pretty. Honeyed and lightly floral, in a vaguely oriental way.

20 minutes later: Damn, this is pretty, and extremely consistent.

2 hours later: This is so, so pretty! Delicate, minty-fresh honey-floral, with maybe a little powder at the edges.

5 hours later: Faded, but pretty much exactly the same. Wow.

9 hours later: Whoops, all gone, just the tiny tiny tiniest whiff of honey left.

 

Verdict: So much love! Do I need a second bottle? Decisions, decisions.

 

One word: Pretty!

 

 

In the imp: Mmm, spicy in a cinnamon-pepper sort of way. I can definitely smell the sarsaparilla.

Fresh on the skin: Huh. This is a little nutty, a little fresh. I'm pretty sure I can detect the tobacco. Overall, sweet and spicy and complex, a little fizzy, a tiny bit smoky.

5 minutes later: Exotic cinnamon red hots, somehow both dark and bright at once. I <i>like</i> this.

45 minutes later: Still spicy in a vaguely candylike way, a little powdery.

6 hours later: Sort of a spicy-sweet musk. I like it.

 

Verdict: I like this, but I don't love it.

 

One word: Spicy!

In the imp: A classic salty aquatic -- screams soap to me, not perfume.
Fresh on the skin: True to form, but it's rather sweet and delicate rather than pungent or aggressive. Surprisingly nice.
5 minutes later: Yeah, I would just never choose to smell like this for long periods of time. It would be an okay soap, but still a little too much on the astringent side of me to personally love. I don't yet feel the need to wash it off, though, so that's nice. Strong throw.
1 hour later: This has powdered down a bit to a delicate, floral aquatic. Nice enough, but monumentally not me.
1.5 hours later: This has faded to the point of being almost gone. On the plus side, I kind of like the delicate linger.
6 hours later: Fades to a reasonably nice, sweet laundry scent.

Verdict: I don't dislike this, but it's not really for me.

One phrase: Delicate floral aquatic.

In the imp: Sweet in a dark cherry way, a little woodsy.

Fresh on the skin: Oh, definitely cherry, a little dark wood, a little incensey. Rather perfumey and a little astringent for some reason, but nice overall.

5 minutes later: Oh, I definitely get both the cherry and the plum, thought there's something about the rest of it that just doesn't quite sit well with me.

20 minutes later: It's gained a little powder, and it's still a little perfumey/cosmetics-y for me, and yet I kind of like it.

1 hour later: It's kind of like this is a particularly nice-smelling baby powder or something, a little spicy, quite a bit sweet.

1.5 hours later: I just put I Fell In Love With A Floating Brain on the other wrist, and compared to its loud sugar this is gorgeous and subtle and really lovely.

3 hours later: Bubblegummy powder, but still a bit complex. Nice!

6 hours later: Faded almost-laundry, reasonably nice still.

14 hours later: Light laundry.

 

Verdict: I like this, but I don't love it. Though I think I may have to try again to know for sure.

 

One phrase: sweet, complex powder.