Larinessa

I agree this smells like a fancy shampoo. On me there is a strong high pitched astringent note overlaying a floraly apple. Nothing resembling honey. I'll keep the imp in the hopes it smooths out, but as is, it's too sharp for me.

Inspired by the character Grendel-Prime. A heavy-metal cyborg, created by the Grendel-Khan to act as a paladin protector for his only son and heir, an unstoppable killing machine. Gleaming metal and black leather over a khus-darkened bay rum. In the bottle- Calvin Klein Eternity for men? Nearly a dead ringer. Wet on the skin, more metal aspect comes out, not much rum, unless that's the Khus I am smelling. Leather in the background. Giving me fond memories of hot make out sessions with past boyfriends http://www.bpal.org/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/icon_smile.gif Dry on skin- more leather coming out..Slightly generic in a way, but not. Masculine and sexy. Reminds me off how my skin smelled after sex with a long ago ex. I do kinda like this. Overall this might be to generic for some tastes, but memory envoking it is http://www.bpal.org/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/icon_smile.gif a keeper for me!

Yummy minty coconut cloud. I don't get any rum or chocolate, but that's ok. This smells cool and summery. Lots of rotation for this this summer.

Pine boughs and gingersnap cookies.

Wet, vetiver. Strong and sharp. I was put off by it, but was willing to wait for the dry down, and I'm glad I did. Dry, it's a sweet cognac tempered by cherry and chewy apricot, backed with a subtle leather note. I'll be buying a bottle of this, SS I think it will layer well as well as stand alone.

This was the unexpected winner of my decants. Strongly pepper wet, it's not long before the sweetness of the chocolate comes in, making this a lovely spicy sweet scent with a lot of punch. Definitely getting a bottle.

Initially this was a blast of strong Gardenia with a hint of sweet berry behind it. An hour later it's a soft, slightly incensey blend of strawberry and blackberry with a hint of Gardenia. It's pretty, and sweet, but it didn't blow my socks off like I had hoped it would. I'll keep the imp, and possibly spring for a bottle later. EDT: two weeks later and the Gardenia has really settled down, and the Champaca is blooming. I've worn this 3 times as full day runs, and gotten complimented each time. It wins the bottle buy out of my luper decants. Edit #2- I ordered a bottle, and it's all Vanilla Frankincense. No berries, no wine, nothing. I did a side by side next to Hope and Fear set Free, and they smell identical. I'm heartbroken, as the strawberries and blackberries were my favorite part. Hell, I'd take some Gardenia at this point too. I'm going to let it age in the hopes the other notes show, but I can't believe it. This appears very batch variant.

Love this. I got a half imp in a swap, and this is awesome. It's like a softer creamier version of Jack (a favorite). I wish I could track down a bottle of this.

This is red fruit... And soap. I'm thinking it's the currant that's doing it for me. I get faint wiffs of the plum, and of the vanilla, but there is definitely something soapy in there for me. *sigh* That's 0 for three on this release of the Carnaval for me Edt: the soon to be hubbys opinion: Down dryer sheets.

Yep. I'm getting florals too under a bitter chocolate throw. I love the throw, it smells like milled cocoa powder. But by my skin, definitely something like lily or maybe another 'spring' flower lurking. I'll try the imp again later, but this isn't up my alley. Edit: pulled my imp out to retest. The floral note is less prominent, the dark chocolate is reminding me of these huge rough blocks of chocolate my mom used to get around the holidays, that we would have to chip pieces off to eat. A unexpected but pleasant association.

Snake Charmer HG with Smut, Snake Oil, Countess Willie, Boomslang, Bordello, or The Soul of La Traviata. Eldrich Dark HG with Bordello, The Black Rider, Rivet Goth, Smut, or Midnight Mass. White Peach and Incense HG with Aristocratic Couple,Venus Obsequens, Sugar Skull, Gypsy Moth, and Sugared Peach Bath Oil.

In the bottle: Strong floral. Reminds me of orchids? Wet: this went straight to old fashioned soap. Very... Dove or Ivory soap? I had to resist the urge to wash it off. Dry: still very slightly soapy. But the sugar/incense is coming out, and its turning sweeter. An hour later: I think this is going to need to be applied very sparingly. The huge throw is actually leaving a soapy taste in my mouth

Boomslang is my favorite. I've found the Vetivier amps on me in Death Adder now. I've tested Green tea viper and found it pretty good, but I never purchased that one. I plan too when they go live.

Wow, that's some expensive oil. I can't think of any off the top of my head, but for anyone looking at this thread, top notes are lemon and orange, middle sugar cookies, base is woodsy.

I second this. It's very feminine, soft and sexy.

Trying this for the first time today, I got this straight from the convention, but being pregnant at the time, I couldn't test it. Dark chewy peach and black musk dominate on the initial application. No spice to be found. Dry, black musk with a subtle sweetness from the peach. Still undetectable spices. Over all not wowed by this. I was hoping for more peach and spice, but it seems like the black musk is stomping all over this for me.

In the Forest, a Bard of Ireland scent from a few years ago is a forest+leather scent if you can track it down.

Three swarthy, smutty musks sweetened with sugar and woozy with dark booze notes. Yep, this is Smut. Not as amaretto toned as 2012 (my favorite vintage), its a bit drier and less sweet. But still on the same vein. Possible bottle purchase.

Dusty dry coconut. Meh. No honey or saffron on me. Pass.

Initial impression: Apricot. Strong apricot. Dry: this is a cousin to March Hare. Is not as strong, but its a softer more feminine version of it. I can see it as a replacement for it, and I will likely buy a bottle solely for that purpose.

Initial impression wet: very piney. Weird. Dry: Apple with a smokey feel. Not a fall apple, just very..... I don't know. Woodsy. Interesting, but not won over by it. I may try a full day run tomorrow to see if I like it better by itself as I'm testing all my decants right now.

Ghoulish (2010 Halloween scent). Black Cherry, Coconut Amaretto and Saffron. Very cherry almond. It ends up being very strong on application. But softens considerably after a bit.

For me its Great Vampire Bat, ( Comic Con exclusive from several years ago). Incense touched Jungle Orchid. Lush and exotic.

My OB also cleared me for oil use, as long as I steered clear of the known no-no list, and used it moderately. So a small touch of Sugar Skull today and Peach/Incense hair gloss. Sadly, my beloved Raven Moon is a not wearable perfume due to Nutmeg. So going to have to hunt down one of my scent lockets for it.

The Soul of La Trivata is a definite one to hunt down. Black plum, black orchid, opium, grapefruit... Its a standout winner. The Black Apple of Saturn is also fabulous with its 'dry' apple note and cypress.