Incendiare

In the vial, this smells nothing like shortbread to me. It's definitely vanilla but it's a bit on the artificial side. It's better on me though. Wet, the mint comes out and this basically smells like a minty sugar cookie. As time goes by, this gets mintier and mintier, but it's not at all medicinal or strong. It's smooth and sweet. Actually, now this reminds me more of those pastel mints made of white chocolate.

In the vial, there is a non-descript earthiness and none of the notes are really popping out at me. On me, however, after a few minutes, I can smell a shadier, darker vanilla combined with tobacco. Together it smells very unisex and almost a bit cologne-y. It's unique but not my style.

As much as I despise patchouli, this really isn't that bad. Red patchouli doesn't seem as dirty as the other varieties. It get a fresher vibe from it. In the vial, I can also smell the sandalwood in the background. Most of the lab's sandalwood notes are very dry to my nose. Red sandalwood is usually the only tolerable one but here, it is sadly a bit too dry for my taste. On me, the sandalwood dries up even more and I can smell a smidgeon of frankincense in the background but I probably wouldn't recognize it if I didn't know it was there. After about five minutes, it's basically nothing but dry sandalwood.

Neutral is so pretty in the vial. It's a simple, gently, wispy musk. It's even muskier on me and has moderate throw. I find though that after half-an-hour or so, Neutral goes a bit too musky on me, like on the bitter side of musk. It's alright but not bottle-worthy for me.

This is strong cinnamon cassia tea in the vial. Almost astringent. Wet, the woods come out, as usual. The spicy notes are still dominating but the woods are adding a bit of dryness and depth to this. The cinnamon is starting to burn my skin about four minutes in. I love spice but to me this is just average. If you like cinnamon and/or cassia, give it a shot.

This is without a doubt classic bubblegum in the vial. Wet, the cherries come out, so this now reminds me of a cherry bubble gum lollipop. After around ten minutes or so, this goes a little weird on me. Very chemical. like something I'd smell in or around a vehicle, but I can't put my finger on it.

Plum is usually kind of iffy on me, but in the vial, it seems to work here. The carnations add a bit of spiciness to them too. The longer this sits on me, the more the spiciness turns into a cinnamon rather than carnation. The combination of the spice and plums at this stage reminds me of a holiday candle. There are unfortunately no mums which would have added another dimension to this. It's alright but I would never actually buy this.

Extreme ginger in the vial with an added touch of candied fruits. Wet, this is loads of fresh ginger. After a few minutes, I can detect a bit of plum musk. About ten minutes in, the ginger has calmed down but is still the dominant note, while the plum musk has gained a bit of confidence and stepped up a bit more. I really like ginger but not really this much, but I would still wear this occasionally. Glad I found a decant so I wouldn't have to bother with a bottle.

To me, this smells strongly earthly with a dash of salt in the vial. It's like there is patchouli in here or something. As soon as I apply this, I catch a waft of chocolate but then it runs away on me. Five minutes in, this has softened quite a bit, however, it's still a hybrid of earth and ocean. The chocolate comes and goes, but overall, it's extremely faint and offers a touch of sweetness to this.

It's been over ten minutes now and it's actually developed into something quite likeable on me. The chocolate has come out more, the dirty notes took a major chill pill (which is a plus for me), and the oceanic notes are gentle enough to give this a bit of a salty vibe. It's kind of intimidating in the vial, but the end result is far more pleasing than I had imagined.

Whoa, this is so boozy in the vial. It smells like in addition to cognac, there is also kirsch. There is a sliver of dark chocolate in there but it mixes right in with the kirsch. It's only been five minutes or so and already, this has died down a lot. At this point, it's back to booze and no chocolate. Interesting blend but not what I expected.

Cinnamon hearts to the max. On me, it starts to turn into black jellybeans. But that jolt of cinnamon hearts still remains. It's definitely a fun one!

I knew this one wouldn't have a chance. Most of the lab's wood notes are über dry on me, and khus is terrible on me. On me, it's just as dry, but the coffee sort of shows up but it's on the dry nutty side. Not for me.

Mmm creamy root beer in the vial. Sadly, the oak comes out on my skin. Most of the lab's wood notes turn really dry on me. And the butter is just sort of there making things awkward. Too bad, I was hoping for a creamy root beer all the way through.

Ok, I thought this one was going to be a winner. Bittersweet cocoa and wine? Those notes are always winners for me. And rum is usually a good team player too. But you know what it smells like to me? Like someone threw up onto a platter of fail. I even took one for the team and tried it on and it was the same. My mom, on the other hand, could smell the cocoa in the vial, and it turned to dry wood on her, so go figure.

So very cherry in the vial and nothing else. Wet, the cherry tones down and the orange blossom gradually grows and grows until it dominated the cherry and becomes practically one-note. Where's the chocolate? It's been fifteen minutes and there has been no change. It's alright but nothing to write home about.

Ok yeah, this is totally spicy almonds. It turns a bit weird on me, however. Like an overly strong alcoholic beverage and sharp spices. It's actually alright, but it's not balanced on me at all. The alcohol goes wacky and the spices are kind of vague.

Warm, honeyed chamomile in the imp. Wet, it turns into a soap monster. I mean, it still smells good. Like good soap. But soap nonetheless. But wait, there's more! After minutes, this has blossomed into a sweet, gentle floral. Not like chamomile. It's beautiful. It seems to have stabilized as this pleasantly gentle, sweetened airy floral because it's been twenty minutes and nothing has changed since then. This gets a gold star in my books.

For cheering up: Lick It (any version), Lemon Scented Sticky Bat, Cake Smash

For comfort: the Lights of Men's Lives, Snow White, Sachs

In the vial, I can tell that this will have a very light throw. It's very straightforward with the notes: watery coconut but creamed with shea butter. It's light and fresh. On me, the shea butter amps a bit but still remains delicate and breezy. Not at all like sun tan lotion. Also, milk normally doesn't work for me but here, it's not sour at all. It's truly coconut milk and not cow's milk. I'd love to wear this on hotter days. I can see myself purchasing a bottle of this in the very near future.

Now, I'm a chocolate fiend but wearing it can be a different story. Despite being a foodie blend fan, a blend usually has to include pure unsweetened cocoa in order to work for me. Bliss smells like pure chocolate, well, bliss in the vial. It's like the base of Velvet and Gelt. Wet, it smells the same as it does in the vial. Milk chocolate kind of smells on the waxy side on me. It's pleasant and delectable, but I'd prefer layering this one with something resiny or spicy to give it more depth.

Finally, the infamous Shub and I have crossed paths. In the vial, this is totally not what I was expecting. It's spicy, yet in a more black peppery way, and following that is a something slightly herbal and woody. This will sound a little crazy, but it actually reminds me of a heavily spiced cucumber. Wet, it's the exact same. I detect a bit of gingerbread in this but it's overshadowed by the peppery spices and questionable cucumber note. I was expecting a darker gingerbread from this but what can you do

Spellbound is all spiced red rose in the vial. As soon as I apply this to my skin, the red musk joins the party, yet the rose simultaneously decides to do what it always does on me and amp, so the red musk doesn't really have a chance to catch up with it. I don't think the amber had a chance.

Wow, Bordello is so playful yet slightly mysterious in the vial. In one single sniff, it changes like three times. It goes from a solid plum wine, to an amaretto-laced wine to a sweet fruity wine in mere seconds. There are times when I don't even know what I'm smelling exactly but I all I know is that I like it. Actually, the sweetness in the vial reminds me of bubble gum, but it's very subtle. Wet, the plum goes a bit tart and sour and blends in with the amaretto, but this has really lost its initial boozy quality. Now, it's more like sugared purple fruits with a drop of amaretto. The wine ran away on me. Pretty but my favourite wine blend is still Fairy Wine.

This is so fresh and summery in the vial. Like a warm summer breeze with apple blossom. There's a touch of mytle in there too. Beautiful. Wet, the ambers really come forth and dominate. After a few minutes, I can even start to smell the carnation. Brisingamen has lost a bit of its initial airiness but it's turned into a classic ambery perfume that makes me think of strength and confidence. The myrtle is a perfect pairing for the amber here and provides an elegant depth to this. I think amber fans would appreciate this one.

Although the eucalyptus is obvious at first whiff, the slightly sweeter mint is noticeable. The more I smell it, the more the mint stands out in contrast to the eucalyptus. On me, the eucalyptus dominates and a sharp ozone, almost citrusy, shows up. The name is very fitting for this blend because this truly makes me think of a violent burst of light. Like an electrical storm. It's actually a lot cleaner than I'd imagined as I thought the eucalyptus would be the star and turn this into a medicinal mess.