theseagrows

i received the most generous frimpage by someone on fb, and for this scent it 1-2 decants in a bottle. so amazingly sweet...anyway, this is oak, clove and cognac starting out. it's nice but i know it's got more depth to reveal. the clove gets a bit stronger after about 5 minutes but the scent is pretty subtle, which surprises me a bit with those notes! it's ultimately a spicy clove with oak, frankincense and hints of cognac on me. i don't get any vanilla or myrrh. i wish i did but i do not. a nice scent but goes a little pencil-shavy because of bpal's frankincense note, which often does that on my skin.

right off this is white champaca and a bit of wateriness. not aquatic per se, but a light, clear watery feel. maybe a little bit of cognac? it's kind of sour on me, not sure where that is coming from, since i believe all these notes usually work for me, so maybe it's a combination of notes. after about 15-20 minutes the scent sweetens up a bit and it's from a bit of gardenia. i also think i sense the woos now as well. this isn't bad but it's turning a bit sour on me so i think it'll definitely be a swap.

at the beginning, i get coconut cream and sugar cane and i swear there is a tiny tiny hint of tiare or some tropical flower, even though it isn't listed. but maybe it's a combination of notes doing that. it definitely has a tropical feel regardless. and honestly, it's not as sweet as i thought it would be, thankfully. however over time the coconut cream really amps up on me and it gets very sweet and just a bit plasticky. i think a lot of people would like this. it's a nice gourmand, but too sweet for me.

wow, this is gorgeous upon first spray! i get a beautiful neroli note, green tea and some amber. so perfect for spring. the neroli is SO pretty and the green tea sweetens it up nicely. i think i will have to get more of this!

i find this scent a bit creepy to be honest. it definitely has a dusty, old smell. it's haunting. i like beeswax, leather and gardenia, which i thought was an interesting combination but that's not really what i am getting here. the beeswax is very heavy and the other notes (besides gardenia, which i don't get) linger together in a melange behind it. this one is really interesting. part of me likes it and another part finds it unsettling, which always makes a scent intriguing to me.

first off i smell that nutty pumpkin note, along with red musk, spices and a tiny hint of honey. some poppy/opium comes about later but it's pretty subtle. this is primarily a spicy, buttery pumpkin and red musk on me. not really my thing at all, but it was a frimp so i happily tried it.

the white bees swarming HG is a favorite, so this one had been on my wishlist a long time. i tracked down a decant to try recently. i get a beeswax-y honey with a hint of something that's *almost* like anise but less strong. i think i prefer TWBS but this is still nice. a rich, well rounded honey scent.

that is a very thick, rich honey. at first it's almost maple-y. it smells like baklava to me. after awhile i think i sense some amber but this is overwhelmingly a super sweet, thick honey and not much else. if you like a foody, sweet honey, this one is for you. personally i prefer a more floral beeswax-y honey so this one will go to my swap list.

right off it seems like a rose soliflore, but it's not a dried rose at all, to me. it's a dark pink or red rose, rich and almost fully blossomed. there's a tiny bit of sandalwood in the background that really compliments this rose. for awhile this actually smells a lot like one of my favorite montale perfumes so i am kind of delighted about the idea of getting some of this to layer underneath. after being on the skin about 20-30 minutes the rose gets less...rosy and the sandalwood is equally dominant now. the vanilla is just a subtle background player here. a pretty rose, smells like a more modern version of a classic scent.

i get mostly white musk, cherry blossoms, and incense smoke. i expected the lilac to be stronger though, it's pretty subtle. after several minutes it's like a cherry blossom incense. this is so pretty, a favorite of this year's lupers so far. i'd love this as an atmo spray too. ?

i get vanilla, magnolia, tuberose and ambrette seed at first. it's an airy vanilla-floral. the tuberose melts away fairly quickly, and then it's mostly ylang ylang and ambrette seed. this is like ylang ylang dryer sheets on me for awhile. however, after being on the skin longer it turns to a lovely YY vanilla that i am i really like, once the ambrette seed calms down a bit. it's very subtle though, and i wish it was a bit stronger.

this starts with a lovely ylang ylang, which is very creamy, which seems to blend well with the vanilla. after about 5 minutes the sandalwood comes out, warming up the scent a bit. i really like this, just wishing it was stronger and had more projection. i've been craving a YY-vanilla to be honest and this one is quite pretty!

damn, i don't like foody vanillas and this one is that. it's kind of nutty and a bit sharp with some copal and patchouli. hoping it becomes a...different sort of vanilla soon ? i definitely see a revenant rhythm similarity (never tried banshee beat) but it's lighter and less...chewy? about 5-10 minutes in, i get something mildly plasticky...which makes no sense because it's usually fruits that turn plasticky on me. thankfully the nuttiness is gone now though. after about an hour i really like this, once the plasticky thing burns off. it's a pretty warm vanilla and patchouli. i'll definitely have to give it another try and see what i think.

i get something green and a little spicy (maybe the kerria japonica?) and a bit of amber. i get a bit of sourness from the greenery. later on i get carnation and some myrrh. it's like a warm golden scent with greenery. aquatic mixed with resins/vanilla, which works oddly on me. i think it's that green note that is keeping me from liking this...it's just too aquatic for my personal tastes.

ooh this is quite lovely! i get red musk, vanilla and something almost floral but doesn't seem to be orris root. it's a sweet vanilla musk. just gorgeous! i need more of this ASAP. ?

at first i smell beeswax, jasmine and the myrrh smoke. this is a rich, heady honeyed jasmine. very pretty! i get a bit of peppercorn spice after a few minutes, then a lot of neroli and amber. i am really liking this. it's springy, yet sensual and deep. thus far my favorite of the lupercalias i've tried this year ❤️

the beginning is jasmine with honey cream and a hint of cognac. just enough to add a touch of booziness-it's not overwhelming. this is very reminiscent of another scent that i've tried but can't remember right now. it was like this but with tea instead of cognac. i think i prefer the tea because it goes better with the jasmine on me. the cognac adds a sort of plasticky quality like i get with some fruits. very odd.

at first i get a lot of sandalwood and rose chypre. it smells SO classic, like scents my mother and grandmother's wore. a very woody rose. i think this smells like YSL opium or something similar if memory serves. it's very dry, like dried roses, not fresh, dewy ones. after awhile i get a bit of tonka but i never get any cassis or jasmine. it's primarily rose and sandalwood with a little bit of a powderiness.

i definitely get a lot of orris and osmanthus in this. it's a soft, sweet floral. After about 5-10 minutes the scent gets more powerful as the star jasmine and honey comes through. I think the amber is just a subtle background note as I can't really sense it in this. overall it's kind of like a jasmine tea with honey. this isn't an indolic jasmine, but a sweeter, softer one. very pretty for spring!

yep, this is carnation incense. this incense lies somewhere between subtle japanese incense and the headshop kind. at first it seems the incense is the stronger note, but after being on the skin awhile, the carnation becomes more prominent. i like this one a lot, it has a classic feel to it

in the beginning i get lemon blossom and beeswax. it smells sort of fuzzy and effervescent. i believe i get a bit of the honey musk but no maple leaves (thankfully!) that was the one note that concerned me. i love honey/beeswax scents but not foody maple-y ones. thus far this is much more on the beeswax side, though the lemon blossom brightens it a lot. i do like this but i can't say i love it. i like lemon blossom but it's a bit too bright and effervescent for me.

i definitely get a lot of orris and lotus root in the beginning. it really evokes cool water, though it's not a typical aquatic scent at all. after a few minutes i get a hint of amber and musk, and still later some of the cream but it remains mostly a watery orris scent on me.

(trying this on skin.) right off i get a burgundy musk. it does smell purple! kind of plummy? but bpal's plum note usually turns to plastic and this doesn't. with some slightly indolic jasmine. a couple minutes later the woods come through adding a bit more oomph. after about 5-10 minutes in it's reminiscent of a lush scent. i don't know which one or if there actually is one but it has that sort of vibe to it. i think i also am getting hints of the moss which seem to brighten things a bit. i wasn't sure how i'd feel about this one, it had a 50% chance of working, but i really like it. the juxtaposition between jasmine and moss is really satisfying to my nose, and this is a really nice musk. i'm glad i found some of this, and i think it'd work in any season.

Vanilla saffron, carnation absolute, bois de rose, myrrh, and sandalwood incense. right off i get sandalwood incense, and then myrrh and bois de rose after a minute or two on the skin. i get a bit of spiciness from the carnation later on, but can't really detect the vanilla strongly on my skin. this is a very pretty incense scent, it's not nag-champa like at all, more like a soft japenese incense.

it's a warm spring day here, even though i am isolating at home during the covid-19 pandemic, i can hear the birds singing outside and it's quite warmer today and the sun is coming in shadily through my north facing windows. seemed like a good day to try a spring floral. when i spray i definitely smell wisteria and tuberose the strongest-so like a pale purple floral with hints of something slightly more tropical. i love both tuberose and wisteria so i find this to be pretty gorgeous and uplifting, like walking through a garden on a spring day. beautiful, and i may have to find more as i only have a partial decant and am longing for more wisteria scents!