thekittenkat

In the imp: There's something sweet, and then there's the white roses.

 

Wet: Now we have a grounding of the skin musk, but the lovely roses are still making a large presence known, and there's also some spice from the oriental note(s).

 

The dry-down: I like white roses, and skin musk, but I might like this better w/o the oriental notes, but they do give a certain poignancy and indeed a certain languidness. Because I love the Lab's white rose scent, I've ordered a bottle, and will age it for the springtime, or for use in winter when I want a hint of spring.

 

 

In the imp: Like a light caramel scent.

Wet: Very, very sweet!

The dry-down: This isn't like candy corn to me at all. It is foodie, though. More like Karo syrup, which is basically just a sweet (glucose) corn syrup. Since corn syrup is used in most processed foods nowadays instead of cane sugar, this is familiar to me. It smells like those cookies in a bag that are supposed to have a toasted or just-baked smell about them--all due to using corn syrup as a sweetener. Those who like sweet foodie scents may like this.

In the imp: Sweet water lily and some peat and moss.

 

Wet: The sharpness of the gardenia is overtaking this scent.

 

The dry-down: That sharp stage passed away and it would seem that all the notes have combined into a faint sweet and slightly herbal scent. However, I'm not sure what poppy flowers smell like, so they weren't taken into consideration.

 

I like this perfume oil--it's a pale sweetish floral/herbal scent that will be lovely for next spring.

In the imp: Ozone! I love it!

 

Wet: Sweet, but not foody, so it's difficult to explain. There's a fresh water note and some cypress.

 

The dry-down: Just a hint of frankincense from the olibanum. Mostly this is light, airy, wet, faint, fleeting like a storm, a little sweet from the olibanum. Just wonderful. More a wintry than an autumn blend, to my mind. Do note that I adore all the notes in this, and I usually have no trouble with aquatics or snow notes. Really, I have loved all these notes that I have encountered so far in the various winter blends from the Lab. To my mind, this is bottle-worthy, and I'll probably need a back-up.

 

This story that inspired this is probably my fave of all the vampire stories that Beth used in this set. There's something just so spine-tingling and chilling and creepy about the whole setting. It could be very cinematographic.

In the imp: This is a sweet men's cologne.

 

Wet: Just a slight hint of something fruity in the blend. I sort of like this--it reminds me of a sweeter version of Lines/Hills, a Yule 08 that I adore.

 

The dry-down: A hint of leather and blood is slowly rising to the top. It's really morphed from what it was when it was wet, and that's very disappointing. I'm seeing it as unisex and will try on the bf.

In the imp: Florals and foodie scents all mixed together. A bit like my BPAL box, but not exactly.

 

Wet: Tobacco and smoke and leaves--here's another morpher. And there's chocolate, now, as well.

 

The dry-down: Every time I sniff my arm, another note comes out to play, and then mixes back into the blend. All the floral notes and the foodie notes have turned into an amazing sweet-but-not-too-sweet mix. I have some of the 07, I think, stashed away, so will have to do a comparison test later.

In the imp: Lots of wood and patchouli.

 

Wet: Just the slightest hint of a fresh-water note, for the dampness on the leaves. And the spices are wafting off my arm now.

 

The Dry-down: The longer this is on, the better it gets. The pumpkin and the apple have risen to the top and blended so lovely together. The way that this year's Samhain morphs on me is just crazy wonderful. All my favorite scents of autumn in a bottle.

In the imp: Spicy autumn fires, like leaves burning that someone has thrown on a dark, rich, deep incense.

 

Wet: The musk just hit me over the head, so yes, one could call it "thuggish". A touch of sugar and some sort of booze. And a ton of burning autumn leaves.

 

The dry-down: I was really looking forward to the return of Devil's Night. But it doesn't seem to be working on me. All the notes should have been made of win on me. Wish I knew exactly which musk this is, because I think it's the culprit, the note that is causing this to utterly fail on me. Plastic or rubber sheets is not my idea of a good smell. I'll use the decant in my scent locket.

This review is for the 2009 version.

 

In the imp: Apples and those two related scents, caramel and butterscotch.

 

Wet: Now the rum appears. And a hint of coconut, like in Snow White, only much moreso. Lots of butterscotch and caramel (fave foods of mine *grins*) and apples down in the blend.

 

The dry-down: Sweet foodie heaven! Yeah, those apples are just smothered by the sweets. They are still there, just a bit faint. But at the same time, I can't stop sniffing my wrist.

In the imp: Cake, cherries, almond.

 

Wet: Lots of almond, and some sweetness from the cherries.

 

The dry-down: There's an odd note that might be the caramel, but just not sure. Have no idea where the cake went. This might be good in a scent locket, but there's something nasty, sad to say, starting to come from my wrist -- it's almost a plastic note. I'm beginning to realize that perhaps a cherry note doesn't work on me. I did have high hopes of this when I saw chocolate in the description of croquembouche at the Wiki, but alas, this is probably not for me, unless it goes in a scent locket.

 

A little later on: That nasty note is gone, thank goodness. Just almond and some cherries.

In the bottle: The clove and the black musk are the most obvious notes.

 

Wet: Woot! Now that's what I call intense. Like a fire that someone has thrown cloves and musk and resiny amber on to, and the coals have burnt down to brimstone, but no ashes.

 

The dry-down: Still not sure about those copper feathers, unless they are the metallic note that I'm now picking up. It was sweeter when wet, but now is reminding me of a milder version of St. John's Eve. This looks to be yet another unisex scent that might be even better on the bf. I like it, but not sure that I need more. If only the clove had stuck around longer.

 

ETA: The longer it's on, the more I like it. So one bottle on order, to be split with my partial bottle (1 imp's worth from a decant circle) and then divided up between us. The idea to remember here is that if a unisex scent smells good on me, it's abfab on him. He's lucky to have fab skin chemistry!

In the bottle: Just heavenly. There's sugar and cream, and just a hint of cotton. Marshmallows!

 

Wet: It's marshmallows in a cotton bag.

 

The dry-down: If you like Marshmallow Poof or Plastic Pink Flamingo or Velvet Unicorn, this is right up your alley!

 

 

In the imp: Very herbal, but also the black sage and the anise are strong.

 

Wet: Peppery and sweet. Sort of a darker ascent of Glasgow.

 

The dry-down: More sweet in a fresh green sense than peppery. In other words, the rowan, thistle, snapdragon, heather and gorse are trumping the black sage and anise. I like it, but it makes me think of cold rain in the late summer/early fall during the night-time dripping off the dark leaves. No, no aquatic notes present, that's just my visual take on it. I think I'll try this on the bf, as it seems a bit unisex.

In the imp: Ozone with a hint of incense.

 

Wet: A bit soapy. There's some sweetness, probably from the incense or more likely the wolf's fur, unless it's a skin musk. The ozone disappeared the moment this golden oil hit my skin.

 

The dry-down: I really wanted to like the Countess, but so far she's not playing nice with me. Ah, well, typical for a vampire, eh what? Glad I got to try this, with its poetic description. Just too perfumey, or something. It gets a little sweeter in the drying, but there's a floral note that I don't like, possibly lily?

In the imp: Getting all the notes listed, but mostly the musk.

 

Wet: Everything but the pumpkin! The black musk and the tobacco are really strong.

 

The dry-down: This was one of those scents that again I was hesitant to try because of the black musk. Musk and I usually get along, but black must is often too strong for me. (I had a problem with Black Lace because of this issue; the Indian musk seemed more like black musk on my skin.) Slowly, the buttery-sweet note of the pumpkin is reasserting itself, thank goodness, along with the clove. There's just a faint touch of myrrh, and the tobacco has a papery note to my nose. I was in a tobacco drying barn once as a child, and it's a lovely smell, as I remember, and I have hoped that I would find that note again in any of Beth's oils with the tobacco note, but it just doesn't seem to be.

 

Ultimately, this scent is dominated by the black musk. If you like Black Lace, but would have liked it to be a bit sweeter, then Pumpkin IV may be something that you would like.

In the imp: A sweet aquatic.

 

Wet: Now I'm getting a linen note, and something that is sort of like dirt, but not exactly, so that must be the mold note. Something sharp is also present as a bottom note. No water notes.

 

The dry-down: I didn't know what to expect with this. In RL, I have a problems with anything moldy, so was hesitant to try this. I did a little testing of it at the last moment at the DSWC, and it didn't seem anything like the notes listed. It's a morpher on me, to be sure. It still feels wet and now it feels cool from the water note. I like this okay, but not sure that I like it enough to spring for a bottle. There's the linen, the "dirt", and the aquatic notes, and whatever that sharp note is. This would probably be better as a summertime scent on me. Somewhat cool and somewhat faintly sweet. Not at all as expected.

The English were rather fond of this punch in the fall and winter seasons, too. It was not only drunk in the Georgian era (i.e. the 1700s), but also well in to the Regency period (the early 1800s). I've seen this referred to in many a Regency novel, and was always curious about it. If the real punch is as good as Beth's perfume that was inspired by it, then I really would love to try lambs-wool punch.

In the bottle: Apples and spices.

Wet: Oh, this is lovely. My nose doesn't want to leave my arm. There's the cooked apples, and the spices, and the sugar keeping things sweet, and just a hint of beer and milk. The milk reminds me a little of the milk note in Nonae Caprotina, which some people also compared to the milk note in Milk Moon. So if you like either of those scents, and any of the other apple scents, I think that you will love Lambs-Wool.

The Dry-Down: By this point, all the notes have blended together, but with the apple most prominent.

I might try layering this with SGA to amp up the apple, or with Gingerbread Poppet to amp up the ginger. And I need back-up bottles of LW, at least a couple.

In the bottle: Yum, lots of cake, and a hint of incense, and a whiff of beer.

 

Wet: Even more cake. Very yummy. There's really not really a whole lot of beer or incense here, just enough to keep the cake from being rather sweet.

 

The Dry-Down: Not sure that I want to eat this spicy cake, but I sure like sniffing it. Bottle-worthy, and may need a back-up. This stays pretty much the same throughout.

 

In the imp: Each time I sniff, I pick up another one of the scents in this oil.

 

 

Wet: I'm getting a hint of the frankincense but mostly the orris root is overpowering, which I was afraid of. Now there's some of the rose and the sandalwood. The rose is lovely and sweet (I love white rose), and I hope that it can overcome the dreaded orris root.

 

 

The Dry-Down: This is fine, except for the orris root, but not as lovely as I was hoping. Instead, I'll go back to the White Rose from the Unity set. And, it's a very dry scent. I never got the neroli or the patchouli.

In the imp: The moss and the cypress are dominant.

 

 

Wet: The dry leaves spring out first, but the roses aren't far behind. And now the sandalwood comes swirling through, then proceeded by the cypress. This is indeed a very dry scent, but the moss and what lingers of the roses gives it that faint touch of sweetness.

 

 

The dry-down: This scent invokes the poem which inspired it in a faint and sad and sorrowful fashion. In the end, it seems to be a bit powdery on me, and how appropriate considering the roses. And that's really okay.

In the imp: Some citrus, some dry flowers, some amber.

 

 

Wet: There's a nice spiciness, the myrrh perhaps, when I first apply this, but it's quickly subsumed by those dry flowers. And the sweetness of the citrus and blood orange lingers like the last of the summer. There's a coolness on my wrist which must be that winter wind.

 

 

The dry-down: Once again, everything starts to blend together. But it seems to be fading faster than I would like, not unlike how I wish that summer would linger longer. The last notes are the amber and myrrh, and they seem a bit sharp. I wanted more blood orange from this.

In the bottle: Autumn leaves, sweet resins, rain water.

 

Wet: I'm getting some vetiver, as in a smokey note, as if someone had been burning autumn leaves in the distance, but the rain has now put the fire out. According to the wiki entry on agarwood, lightly infected wood, sometimes cultivated, produces an (allegedly) inferior oil with a vetiver, sandalwood, and patchouli character, so I think that's where the faint smoke note may be coming from. Otherwise, very resinous from the opoponax and also very sweet from among the opoponax, the labdanum, and the oakmoss. There's woods and leaves and water throughout the blend.

 

The dry-down: The resinous smell of the opoponax and the sweetness of the oakmoss are the dominant top notes, but the water note and the leaves are still present down in the blend. Overall, I would say that so far, this is a lovely oil that stays mostly the same throughout, only changing a little. At least on me it's "what you smell is what you get". At no point, do I get a rush of patchouli, which is just fine with me. Of the leaves' notes, I'm picking up a sweet gum note, very nice. This will be a wonderful autumnal scent: a little sweet, a little spicy, a little resinous, with autumn leaves and rain and wood.

In the imp: The sweetness of the rosemary, distinct pine and pitch, faint pumpkin, all present and accounted for. But where's the tomato?

 

Wet: Oh, here it is! The sharpness of the tomato, or like tomato leaf, is the first obvious note, but the pumpkin is already starting to soften that. But here comes the pine and the pitch blasting out of nowhere, and bringing the rosemary's sweetness along with them.

 

The Dry-down: This is quite yummy! Everything is starting to finally blend together. I must admit that I was sort of hoping for a pine and pumpkin version of Planting Moon, but this is lovely without evoking that scent at all. Going to be a grand autumnal scent.

I'll have to agree with the other reviewers that this is indeed a pinkish-white-nude polish. It's very subtle, and would be good for a workspace where my fav blue/black/green/glitter combo would be too much. It dries fast, but looks like it will need at least two, maybe even three coats, to impart any colour at all. Just a touch of shine and gloss.

In the bottle: Yummy honey, orange, and apricot.

 

Wet: Lots and lots of the blood orange! A bit sharp, but the honey is starting to smooth it out.

 

The dry-down: This is pretty much blood orange on me all the time. The honey and apricot and tonka are keeping it mellow, though. There might be a faint hint of the gardenia. I love to eat blood oranges in the winter-time and it's wonderful to find a good scent of blood oranges. And that I really like Thalia as the muse of comedy (though not so much the pastoral poetry, which is fine, just in small does) makes me happy that I love this oil.