sunlitgarden

Luna

 

I can smell the mint in the bottle, but on me it's mostly pear with lime sugar. It's nice and light. "Color" to me is shimmery light green. After several hours the green musk comes out more.

'Tis the Voice of the Lobster

 

There's really too much going on in the imp to distinguish particular notes.... there's fruitiness, and a sharp woody-type smell. On my skin, there are various fruits with watermelon and berry dominant, and something that smells almost chocolatey. It's like some sort of artificial fruit candy. I'm not really noticing the gardenia. Reminds me of some cheap fake body spray. Off to the swap pile.

Gypsy

 

In the bottle this smells like a spicy vanilla. I'm lucky with my chemistry because on me this is a gorgeous sweet (but not foody) and musky vanilla. It's very dry and dusty to my nose, with a "color" of light brown. The cardamom and vanilla make this a cousin of The Harp of Cnoc I'Chosgair to me, but musky and not floral. I actually might like it a bit better overall than The Harp because of the sharp green note that one has at first. This one has nothing sharp about it - just smooth and creamy. It will probably be great aged!

I really like this! The sweetness of the honey/rose/orange blossom are tempered by the sandalwood and the overall result is really lovely. My imp does look aged, so I'm not sure what it smells like fresh, but this is delicious. I just wish it lasted a bit longer! It lasts maybe an hour or two.

 

Edit: Even though most of it faded, I am still getting honey-rose whiffs the next morning! This is one of my favorite combinations (I love it in Alice too).

 

Review Update (6/17/12): I received an aged partial bottle of this in a swap (not sure of the exact age, but it has the old style label.) And it smells REALLY good. Rose, sweet orange... it almost smells almondy as well. I had totally forgotten about this blend, and I think my imp even ended up in the swap box, but I am glad I was reminded of it, because this aged one is awesome.

TKO is under Panacea: http://www.bpal.org/index.php?showtopic=26118

Rosy Maple

 

Rather than smelling like a particular type of candy, Rosy Maple reminds me of walking into a candy shop. Sugared vanilla, with wafts of fruity sweetness coming from all directions. It's juicy! I could smell the sweet pea in the bottle but it's retreated now.

 

As it dries the fruits fade somewhat, leaving sugary vanilla. This is a really cheerful blend!

Eat Me

 

Wet, I mostly get creamy-sweet vanilla cake, not a whole lot of the currant. A few minutes in, if I put my nose to my wrist, I get a toasted almond type smell that's not entirely pleasant, a bit stale. But I am getting whiffs of a cakey scent that reminds me of waffle cones baking in an ice cream shop. I am starting to get the currant as well. That waffle-cone stage is divine. Not sure yet if this is bottle worthy, but it's definitely delicious!

Titania

 

Peachy and sweet with a hint of tartness. It's juicy and delicious! A fruity-floral that succeeds on my skin! It smells like a delicious peach wine I enjoy - a very girly drink but so delicious! Titania makes me want to run outside and frolic in the grass. I love her! So glad I have a bottle!

Windward Passage

 

This is the second marine aquatic I've tried (after Sea Foams Blood). I sniffed this in the bottle at Sakuracon and thought it smelled really good, very true to the name -- like being on a ship with breezes and crashing waves. I ordered an imp, but unfortunately was somewhat disappointed compared to that first sniff. (I think my nose was overwhelmed!)

 

Wet: Light citrus, with bits of what seem like unidentified florals. My SO thought it smelled like dryer sheets. It's salty, but lighter than The Sea Foams Blood which was very salt-heavy on me.

 

Dry: Strong lemony-citrus... and there's a very slight undertone of a weird musty smell (ozone maybe?) Unfortunately, the whole cleaner/dryer sheets/laundry soap vibe is still there. It's really too bad that such smells have been so heavily utilized by the cleaning products industry that that's the association I have, since it could be very pleasant.

 

Off to swaps...

Carnal

 

Wet, this is pretty much pure mandarin orange on me. Reminds me of orange candy or orange soda, but it is more true to the actual fruit than either of those. No fig right away. As it dries, I still don't distinctly smell the fig but it seems to lend a warmth and sweetness to the scent. I like it a lot, though I'm not sure if I'd wear it enough to get a bottle.

I really liked Nyx when I smelled it in the bottle at Sakuracon. So much so that I intended to order a bottle, but there was a mix-up and I got two bottles of the other scent I ordered instead. This actually worked out well though, since after I had placed that order I discovered that my skin usually equals Jasmine Fail. Peach Moon is the only scent I've tried so far where it behaves. I recently acquired an imp of Nyx to re-test it, and unfortunately the jasmine is again totally dominating. It isn't entirely sickly sweet like jasmine sometimes becomes (like in Pannychis), but it is very strong and smells like cheap drugstore perfume with traces of the "cat pee" ammonia smell. I don't smell the rose at all, and the myrrh is very faint. It's mostly just Revenge of the Jasmine, again.

 

(much later edit: just fixed emoticon code, didn't change any text)

Dorian

 

Lemony tea with a sweet musky base... This smells like lemony cake... Going on the bottle list for sure, it's SO yummy and yet sexy at the same time. O_O

Unveiled

 

This scent is so well blended that I'm really having trouble picking out individual notes! The synesthetic effect is a dark orangey red, probably due to the rooibos. It's a warm spicy scent that is a little fruity without being foody. It's a little "dry" due to the amber. Overall I really enjoy it!

Kali

Yum! This was a lot lighter than I was expecting. The first impression I get is chocolate and a sweet floral wine. A little later I get rose. I love the wet stage, but it seems to disappear fast on me as it dries. I do get whiffs of honey after it's dry, which is nice, but this seems more like a candidate for a room scent than a perfume for me.

Thanks so much Hackess!

I haven't actually tried most of these, this was just from doing a search in the spreadsheet I have. I'm sure there are more that smell like apple/rose even if it's not in the listed notes.

 

GC:

Delirium: "apple, rose and lemon"

 

Eve: "Apple blossom, rose, ylang ylang and golden honey."

 

Les Bijoux:"Skin musk and honey, blood-red rose, orange blossom, white peach, red apple, frankincense and myrrh." This one I have tried but it didn't work on me.

 

LE:

La Vita Nuova: "Apple blossom, white rose, lemon balm, and champagne grape."

In the bottle this smells very woody with a tinge of green sharpness. Wet it's almost all sandalwood, and still has a green/sharp edge to it. These early stages didn't smell like I imagined it would, but the late drydown is a lot sweeter and warmer, somewhat like Lyonesse but without the salt. I just wish it would go straight there! On my SO, it seems to go to the warm stage right away, although she likes it both wet and dry.

Great, thanks! Kumiho is definitely on my to try list

Peach Moon

 

This is a lovely, bright springy floral on me. For once the jasmine actually behaves and doesn't turn sickly sweet (yay!!!) It's not very fruity/peachy on me, mostly floral. But it's a nice floral. Reminds me of a champagne cocktail. Unfortunately it seems to be fading quickly.

Autumn Moon of the Mirror Stand

 

Creamy, fruity, sweet and yet spicy. In the bottle and immediately after applying, it has a marzipan-like "texture" even though I don't smell almond. I was worried about the tobacco, as it tends to smell like dirty cigarettes on me, but I guess "golden tobacco" and I get along. It stays in the background and is pleasant. The tobacco and a slight booziness (cognac) make this smell a little like men's cologne, but not overwhelmingly so. This blend feels gender neutral which is nice. I think this could be worn in nearly any season/weather. I am glad I decided to get a bottle!

Aizen-Myoo

I mainly got fresh citrus from this, with an herbal base that helps keep the citrus from getting too overwhelming. It's very light and fresh but didn't last long on me. I will plan on reapplying if I wear it again.

My Okayaki bottle that arrived yesterday does smell different than the decant I have (which I'm guessing is a month or two old by now). The decant version does feel "cooler" and more refreshing. The new one is sweeter and more floral. I too am hoping it will change with age because I like the decant version better and it's almost empty!

Yemaya

 

Frimp from the lab. In the imp and wet, this is almost pure melon (a mixture of cantaloupe and honeydew?) I like fruit scents but this is a little bit too sweet and strong for my taste. As it dries, a tinge of sharper greenery comes out. This one's okay but not my favorite.

Hellcat

In the imp, this smells just like some kind of cookie! Wet on my skin, it smells boozier. Really reminds me of a hot spiced drink. Yum. This isn't a wear to work type scent, but in the right mood, it's delicious!

So glad this thread is here! When I visited the BPAL booth at Sakura-con, this is exactly what I asked for! They recommended Misk U and Buggre but, at least in the bottle, they weren't what I was looking for. Magus, though, smelled a lot closer to what I had in mind. I haven't been able to test it more extensively (I was very overwhelmed at the con!) but it definitely seems promising.

 

The description: "An ancient blend, swollen with arcane power: galangal, high john essence, frankincense, cedar, and sandalwood."