clover

Additionally, I'm looking to find a non-LE sibling to Living Flame.  Any suggestions?

(already saw the Venom rec.- not into lime)

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You might try the tarot oil The Lovers. I think they're very similar.

Several of the scents I'm looking at for Fall are reviewed as having an apple-cinnamon or cider quality to them: Block Buster, Verdandi, Hesperides, Jack.  Can someone who's tried them tell me the distinctions between them?  Which one's most Autumn-y? I don't want to order too many things that smell the same.

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Well, I'm not sure I think that Block Buster is cidery or appley at all. On me it's a soft honey/tea-like floral. It's lovely, though.

Jack is probably the most typically "potpourri" (although I hate to use that word!) like - when you think of spicy fall scents, Jack is that.

The Hesperides is like a crisp golden apple, fresh from the tree. In fact, it has a light woody background, so to me it actually smells like an apple on a tree. It's really beautiful. My favorite of the bunch.

On me the apple in Verdandi isn't really strong, it just comes through as a sort of sweetness. It's kind of an herbally scent.

So I think The Hesperides and Jack are probably the most autumny!

Oh, yes, Embalming Fluid! It actually lasts FOREVER on me...I have to scrub my skin to get it off.

It's wonderful!

Is this something I should worry about?

Nope. I've never gotten a second confirmation email, and I've placed approximately a gazillion orders with the Lab via paypal.

Actually, the only reason I can think of that you would get a second one would be if you paid with a Paypal e-check.

ETA: Just saw bigeyedgirl's post - yeah sometimes I don't even get the one confirmation. I think my spam blocker eats it.

The lovely jj_j gifted me with an imp of this! Her only request was that I post a review, which I am oh-so-intimidated to do, considering I'm posting right after her amazing review. But here goes...

I've worn this twice in my scent locket. To give you an idea of the scent - at first it's strongly clovey. Strongly. But after a while, I get the light scent of violets, and something bloody. Not dragon's bloody - but bloody. Like iron. I know that sounds kind of gross, but it's really not. Just trying to be descriptive.

So, I wore this to work on Friday, when I just KNEW it was going to be a rough, rough day. All of the signs were pointing to it. And lo and behold, my day was delightful. The abrasive personalities that I was expecting to encounter were actually very pleasant. My day went very swimmingly. I even had an unexpected visit from the Object of My Desire.

It seemed to work so well, that I wore it again to a party on Saturday night. This time I applied it to the palms of my hands. I have to admit, it didn't have quite the same effect - but I worry that's because I'm a compulsive handwasher. I'll know better next time.

I'll definitely save my imp for occasions when I think I need some extra help to make it through the day. The scent is so earthy and calming. Thanks, Jenny!

Yep, honey. Even though Lughnasadh has a spicier dry down, they both smell like honeyed cherries to me.

I didn't realize until last night how much O and Lughnasadh smelled alike. I held the bottled side by side and could barely smell the difference.

I'm wearing O today and now all I can think of is my beloved Lughnasadh, and it's making me very, very happy.

Naked Singularity

Upon first appliation: Nutty musk! With some sort of sweet wood, too.

After a few minutes: There's something ever so slightly funky that's throwing me off a bit. I think it's the same ingredient that Silk Road has that made it smell like a dill pickle on me - maybe ginger or bay or something like that. Or something slightly olivey. It's a hard note to describe.

A few minutes after that: Thankfully the dill pickleness goes away pretty quickly. And it goes back to a nutty musk! Whee!

It doesn't seem to last very long on me, but maybe it's because I applied it very sparingly...

I hope we'll see this around sometime soon!

I've never had that happen...

Have you checked your paypal account? Does it look like the transaction has posted twice, or is there any unusual activity?

You might want to take a close look at the "Dark Elements" category.

Mi-Go Brain Canister

First impression: Pretty! So pretty. All sweetness and light.

Upon application: THis is possibly the softest, presttiest jasmine I've ever smelled. Jasmine has a tendency to be very harsh on me, but in this blend, it's sweet and soft - like white velvet. I definitely smell the tropical fruits, too. What a gorgeous blend! And if I inhale really deeply, a hint of white musk makes my nose tingle just a little. I adore white musk, I love the way it wraps the individual scents up in a hug and makes them a whole.

After about half an hour the peony starts to rear it's head, but luckily it's beat back into submission by the fruits and musk.

Conclusion: Did I mention this was pretty? Lucky brains.

Miskatonic University

Sniffing from the bottle: I promise you, you'll want to drink it.

Upon appliation: Honestly, there's not a lot I can add to the decriptions of Miskatonic U. It smells exactly like a gorgeous, deep, dark, flavorful cup of coffee, with a hint of Irish cream. After a few minutes, a slight dustiness starts to appear, but it stays very soft indeed.

Conclusion: While I thik this is slightly foody for my tastes, it's exactly what the description says. I think a lot of people are going to love this scent.

Arkham Revisited

First impression: Ah, that's right, it's springtime in Arkham!

Upon application: Green, green, green - an almost Apothecary-like greeness, and lots of colorful flowers. I almost feel like I should take a Claritin. The impression I get is a field of brightly colored tulips.

After a few minutes: The florals are really soft and sweet though, not flashy at all. I can definitely sense the violet (my favorite floral), but I don't get any of the woods at all. Just soft florals with a hint of citrus.

Conclusion: Lovely.

Whipporwill

First impression: Abit more perfumy than I expected.

Upon application: There's a hint of perfuminess at the very begining, but it dissipates rapidly. After just a minute or so, this settles down and starts to smooth out. I get a hint of spice, a hint of citrus, and some gorgeous smooth woods. It reminds me of the smell of a freshly polished table.

A few minutes later: bang - all of a sudden this smell is invoking an incredibly strong scent memory for me. It smells exactly like my college apartment (which I didn't actually remember as having a certain scent until just now). On inspecting the ingredients, I have a feeling it's the combination of hardwood floors and the cedar chest we used to use as a coffee table, along with spiced candles and open windows that Whipporwill is reminding me so much of. I could love this scent for that memory alone...

Conclusion: So soft and warm and spicy and fresh - I love you, Whipporwill.

A couple of thoughts:

I can't always smell the scents in the imp either. I would never in a million years say that they smelled like cheap new age incense...but sometimes the subtlies of the scents don't shine through until they are actually on the skin. It's just the nature of the product. I guess a perfume has to be relatively subtle, or else it would just be overwhelming when applied.

It's especially hard to distinguish when you're trying a lot of scents at once, so you may want to try the old trick of sniffing coffee beans between imps, so that your nose doesn't get confused. Your nose can get tired, just like the rest of your body!

Azathoth

Upon application: The two most dominant notes are the vetiver and the saffron (which I recognize from the Scherezade I was wearing all day). I get a slight whiff of something citrus-y and astringent - presumably the tangerine, although I would have guessed lemon verbena - it has that vague greeness to it.

After a while, Azathoth seems to blend together a bit more - all of the notes combine into a slightly masculine, but really wonderful scent. The vetiver is definitely the strongest note - which is a-ok with me, because I LOVE VETIVER.

"High pitched and screeching, inpenetrably dark and searingly bright" is the perfect description. Love it.

Ingenue

I had been dying to try Ingenue for the longest time...and several months ago I was able to after getting a bottle from jj_j. I was so excited to try it, because the notes sounded delightful, and it had clover in it! Eep! Unfortunately, the Ingenue in the bottle was very bitter on me...very sandalwoody. So disappointing!

Flash forward to yesterday, and an imp of Ingenue showed up in my order! (Thanks, Lab!) I'm not sure if it's been reformulated, or if the other Ingenue I tried had aged a lot...but this imp smells nothing like the one I had tried before.

This is everything I had hoped Ingenue would be - a very sweet violet with just a hint of green. Perhaps just the slightest touch of rose, but the violet is much stronger on me. The melon isn't necessarily discernable, but something is sweetening up the florals in a very nice way.

It's truly lovely: sweet, innocent, fresh, sparkly and spring-like. I do hope that this little imp means it may be coming back ~

Midway

Let me start by saying that I am not generally a fan of foody scents...they are just not me. So the first couple of times I sniffed Midway, I was wary.

First impression: Melted butter! Almost carmel.

A few seconds after that: Almost immediately the scent of cotton candy joins the butter. A lot of times people say cotton candy when I think they mean really sweet, but this is really, truly the scent of cotton candy - spun sugar. It's wonderful.

After a few minutes: Something interesting happens...it starts to get a little dusty, and, dare I say it, stale. And I know that doesn't sound appealing, so let me hasten to add: this is my favorite stage. Because this is when this scent is the most evocative. It's like a perfect snapshot of a midway on a hot summer night - fair-goers up to their ankles in dust, concessions past their prime, flashing lights and carnival music. Magical.

I like it very much.

Could someone help me regarding Severin and Shanghai? I love the good lemon smell of Severin. Several people have enthused about Shanghai, especially for summer. I love Severin, I wish it would last longer (I just bought a scent locket), can you compare Severin with Shanghai for me?

 

Is there anything else out there which has tea and lemon notes and lasts longer than dear old Severin? I would love you if you would tell me about it. Thanks.

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Embalming Fluid seems to last forever on me, and it's pretty lemony.

I don't really think Severin and Shanghai are very much alike. Shanghai & Embalming Fluid are very similar, I think, though Shanghai is slightly more floral and doesn't last as long.

The Hanging Gardens

This perfume is just an explosion of wonderful scents...sweet and floral, lush and tropical, dry and juicy at the same time.

The pears are what jump out at me first. Pears and a bouquet of florals. After a few minutes, it sweetens up a bit....a few more fruits...and then the woods come out. Which is really nice, because they give the perfume a nice solid base, keeping it from being too sweet and too floral.

Very evocative, I think this would be a wonderful scent on a hot summer night. Lovely and colorful.

I was going to say Katharina, because it's Shakespeare's birthday...but it's not really a come hither kind of scent.

So how about Queen?

Description:

For use only by women. An extremely potent passion blend, used to great effect when you're converting feminine sexual energy into power.

Sounds perfect! And there are plenty of Queens in Shakespeare's work. And it smells wonderful.

Have fun!

Hod

Sniffing from the bottle: A bouquet of carnations! And a little bit of cherry.

Upon applications: This is all carnation on me. Not a very spicy carnation, though.

After a few minutes: Well dang, it's mellowing out. Seems like a pretty even balance between carnation and amber.

A few minutes after that: Amber. Which is kind of unfortunate, because while I love the smell of amber, it doesn't last on me, at all.

Conclusion: Such a pretty scent, but it's gone after an hour. I bought a bottle unsniffed, so I might hand on to it for a while to see if it gains strength.

Kether

Snifffing from imp: Yum. Almond and some sort of light floral.

Upon application: Seems like a very complex blend...the only scents that jump out at me are almond and oakmoss, since I love both of them. It's really sweet though...like an almond and oakmoss custard. Which I guess sounds kind of gross, but smells really really wonderful.

After a few minutes: The almonds backs down and Kether turns earthier, but still sweet.

Conclusion: Kether is radiant, indeed. I'm sort of sad that I have to sacrifice my little imp to the Sephiroth circle...but I'll just have to get on the ball and order a bottle!

House of Night

Holy Gorgeousness! This is not what I was expecting at all. This is all boughs and greens & hardly any blooms on me. Mostly lovely woods with just a hint of lime and some very sweet flowers. Beautiful.

And, interestingly, when I was reading the reviews for House of Night after I had applied it, I read sarada's review and thought "Samhain? No way!" But whaddya know, about ten minutes later I was sitting at my computer and found myself thinking "Why does it smell like Samhain around here?"...sniffed my wrists and sure enough, it was House of Night. It had morphed into Samhain's softer, gentler sister.

Silk Road

Sniffing from the bottle: Green and herby

Upon first application: Oh, it's mostly amber! Amber and ginger maybe....and yikes! Something really, really dodgy. It's familiar, but I can't quite place it. Dill? Pickle juice? Bay? It's really throwing me off.

After a few minutes: Sadly, this is not for me. While it does remind me of The Lion, there's something in Silk Road that is completely clashing with my chemistry. Has to be washed off.