Invidiana

Alas this is way too cologney for me. That said, however, it is something I imagine to be total sex on a guy. It's not really a "red" scent though the fact that it is dominated by a red chypre gives it a little more warmth than your typical greenish type of chypre. I also like the boyfriend's-tshirt-feel of the linen element, and then the musk to add a nice hit of masculine sensuality. I'm going to keep my decant around and see if I have any success with a male specimen.

Oh, my friend lemongrass, why must you always RUIN perfectly good blends for me? Because the other ingredients are some of my favorites I had high hopes that blasted herb would just sit quietly in the background like I told it to but no such luck. As always, I amped it to the point that I could really only smell lemongrass death with tiny hints of lavender and some sweetness from the balsam and honey. Curse you lemongrass.

By all accounts this should have been beautiful on me but something in here just doesn't do it. I barely get any black currant, white musk or honey, just what translates on my skin as a sharp and dry combination of tangerine peel and tagetes. Oh boo.

Oh, I wanted to love this. I really did. The honey and grain notes are so warm and comforting but...enter the lemongrass and it turns into a disaster. I can still tell the other four notes, namely the honey (because I amp honey too) and grain are delicious underneath the barrage of lemongrass but given my chemistry which power-amps lemongrass, it just bulldozes them to no avail.

Alas, this was gaaaaaah lemongrass on me. I never fail to amp the stuff, never. Unfortuantely to add to that, the honeysuckle was amping pretty hard too, and I have a really awful memory association of honeysuckle because of this gigantic honeysuckle vine we used to have that was a real magnet for bees and wasps of all stripes and sizes that never failed to scare the crap out of me. I can barely smell the frankincense, plum or teak at all because of how my skin amps these two damned things. It's basically just lemongrass to the 11th power and honeysuckle to the 10th on me.

Rather than being a painfully dry heartbreak blend like Agony of Loss, this is really soothing. The leather is not manly man leather at all but a really soft worn-in leather that settles comfortably into the background and allows the other elements to come forth. There is definitely a dominant violet element here, plus a good dose of lavender behind it, and those two combined give it a really dreamy and wistful feel. There is something vanillic in the drydown; I'm not sure if it's the beeswax or the resins; my skin does amp the honey aspect of beeswax and copal tends to have a vanilla-like tinge on me as well. The Egyptian musk come out at the end of the drydown and envelops the whole cent in a veil of warmth. This is beautiful and definitely one of those florals for the "nonfloral" people. If you think you're one like I did in a previous life, give this one a chance.

I knew I had to risk this one because I love red musk, and I was right; it isn't that nauseating smell of humid rain on asphalt at all. It's actually a sensual red musk and amber on me, with highlights of galangal and saffron adding mor eintrigue. I actually don't get much ozone but then again I don't amp it; I tend to amp musks and resins, especially red musk--not like I mind because it worked out to my advantage.

Am I crazy or is this translating to Victorian Virgin With Cherubs on me? I love that bath oil and it's like Phoenix in Winter granted my wish that it turned into a perfume oil. It's that same softly minty snow with a bit more of a berrylike feel than VVC but still highly similar on my skin even though the notes look nothing alike on paper. I can't believe my luck!

Delicious smoldering wood and leaves. This really does remind me of standing outside on a brisk autumn day with curls of woodsmoke in the air, just enough to add that characteristic autumnal smokiness to it but not enough to take it out of perfume territory. I think the addition of the coffee bean really adds something unique to the leaves and woods and patchouli, and the tonka balances it out with a hint of vanillic sweetness on the finish. It really is autumn in a bottle and I love it!

It's a nasty, raw, RAINY day outside but this flashes me directly to spring. The lovely cherry blossom really stands out, backed by soft wildflowers, including but not dominated by the dandelion. It's like standing beneath a blooming cherry tree admidst a sea of wildflowers. The myrrh binds it all together too, adding a bit of depth and sweetness. Beautiful and an instant mood-lifter.

This is one of those florals that will make a believer out of anyone dubious about them. It is the perfect balance of shadowy darker floral elements with lighter, more springlike blooms, a marriage between springtime in the northern hemisphere (hyacinth, violet, black narcissus) with the headier exotic blooms reminiscent of springtime on an island below the Equator (tuberose takes that one but holds its own in the blend). I am actually elated to see another blend, besides the much-derided Narkissos which I actually adore, featuring black narcissus. It’s a difficult scent to describe but suffice to say it’s like twilight shadows at springtime. The florals are grounded by a veil of green musk—not a “smutty” musk but more fresh and wild—and the seductive caress of black sandalwood and styrax (labdanum). It is highly evocative of the character of Kataskopia as I imagine her to be, a woman peering through a wall of flowers at the man she wishes to make her lover while plotting how to use her feminine wiles to ensnare him.

This is a lot less masculine than I expected and really more unisex. Lots of red musk, which I love, with a woodsy and earthy background. While I do consider red musk a more feminine note overall I imagine this one could work on a guy pretty well.

Whooooooa lemon verbena. That's basically all I get from this because I amp the stuff like crazy. There is a hint of something fruity/floral somewhere but it's just so overpowered by the damn verbena there's no hope. Ah well, there's always Jailbait.

This is a soft rose which very much reminds of me of rosewater (no wateriness, just the softness of the scent). There is a bit of a sweet element in here; I can't really pick out too much spice, just the barest whisper, which I suppose is appropriate considering the inspiration.

This is so much like washing yourself with a bar of gingerbread I'm tempted to eat it. It is a bit on the spicy side, spicier than Sagardoa though note quite as spicy as Pumpkin Pie bath oil, but if you have sensitive skin I do recommend a patch test first.

Fate be damned that I got into BPAL literally right after this was discontinued. I was skeptical it would work but wanted to try it for the sake of trying it, and now I've fallen prey to the succubus. The clove is more like the clove in March Hare that doesn't amp to infinity on me, and apparently I don't get the same cloying soapiness out of orange blossom that I do from apple blossom. On me this is a musky floral with hints of citrus (but not overpowering citrus-rind citrus) and a certain deceptive innocence about it that hides a malevolent core. It starts out a bit more citrusy and floral and turns more musky--a skin musk type of musky--as it dries down, which just lures you in. A completely unexpected winner. I really hope I can slowly but surely find enough imps to piece together my own bottle from.

This is amazing, the perfect balance of innocent and naughty. The whtie honey and golden amber contribute to the innocent part, but are soon deliciously corrupted by the ubersenual kush and musk which add unabashedly sexual undertones. The redcurrant doesn't exactly make it fruity as much as giving it a tinge of "red", ust adding to the overall feel that evokes the poem so well. When this is resurrected I'm definitely grabbing another bottle.

For anyone afraid of sharp dry rose (and I know I am), this is nowhere near that. It's dominated by the gloriously musky and slightly sweet beeswax with those trademark honeyed undertones, and that entwines swith tendrils of incensey frankincense and the softet brush of tea rose. I actually don't detect any red wine here anywhere; maybe it's a white wine note? In any case, this is gorgeous, sensual and oddly relaxing.

I find these to be ubermasculine manly-man Y-chromosome testosterone-charged scents: Brown Jenkin Dee De Sade (so strong I could smell it from my ankle) Djinn Ebeneezer Scrooge Herr Drosselmeyer Iago The Rat King Sacrifice These are somewhat more gender-neutral: An Altar to Cold Rigid Dreadful Death The Arabian Dance The Byronic Antihero Crowley Cthulhu Deep in Earth Dorian Eanach Dhuin Event Horizon Galvanic Goggles The High Priest Not to Be Described Tin Phoenix Hellboy Hod Kroenen Loviatar Menacing Ionospheric Research Instrument Mr. Qubit Olisbos Pais de la Canela Phoenix Steamworks Rivet Goth Spanked The Stormhold The Traveler Tombstone Volt Wensleydale

No manly De Sade leather here, thankfully (can't you tell how much I love De Sade? ). This type makes me think of a well-worn brown leather with added smokiness from the tobaco and warmth from the coffee and hazelnut, just a touch of sweetness to round it out. On the final drydown just a tiny bit of spice emerges. I think I'm going to let this one age a little more before wearing it again because I have a feeling that's going to bring out the coffee and hazelnut more and add to the overall depth, but it does have a lot of potential.

Oh ye, this is fabulously sexy. On me it's mostly blackcurrant and patchouli steeped in gooey caramel with a hint of spice from the cinnamon (which thankfully doesn't amp to infinity here) and a smokey, senual background of tobacco and red sandalwood. It's definitely something you'd wear prowling through a hazy nightclub looking for your next object of desire--or at least when you wanted to evoke that feeling.

This is the most awesome purple incense blend ever. I had this aging nicely in the shadows for almost a year and it only seems to have gotten better. It isn't foody from the sugar, but slightly sweetened just enough; I don't think the nature of this one calls for something foody anyway. It's not necessarily "flowery", but more of a sinister dark incensey floral that actually puts me right in the middle of the scene depicted on the label. Really enigmatic and sexy.

I love this. It's like old-school floral sunblock and I adore anything in that category. Fortunately, it has none of the chemically smell that accompanies actual sunblock. Also, the ginger isn't in your face, just a very light complement to the blooms. It's light enough for a hot summer day but still dead sexy.

This is thick, decadent and luscious. I was initially a bit worried the red wine would go either cloying or sour as some wine notes do on my skin, but it behaved. This is really all about the plum and amaretto, and I think that the blackcurrant adds more depth and body to the plum. I had been skeptical that an almond-based liquor note and purple fruit would not mesh well together, but they do and how.

I sing my praises to The Soldier, and not because he's a hot man in uniform. A couple dabs of this easily last the entire day, and I'm not joking. It might be because I amp red musk and the stuff sticks to me for a good 8 hours easily, I was a little worried about the black peppr, and while it's there it stays subdued and doesn't come out screaming like in Ebeneezer Scrooge. It actually strikes me more as black patchouli than black pepper, which is a relief, though that might just be my chemistry. The leather is that same kind of soft sexy leather in Rivet Goth, not the hollering manly De Sade-type leather. I believe the pie here is mince pie, though I can't be entirely sure but that's what it seems to be. Everything blends together really harmoniously for a sexy, musky, sweet and slightly leathery scent. I love it, and with the way it lasts on me one bottle is a lifetime supply.