angelamaria

In tester: whoa. Watermelon, sweet and fruity, very true to scent. Yum. I'm getting a bit of the sweet pea and the woods as well.

Wet on skin: watermelon, and...uhhh. Powder. This looks like lilac's fault. Otherwise, aside from the fabulous watermelon and the powder, I'm getting the bright, white floral, which should be the elemi. I'm not feeling very hopeful of this lilac powder...

Dry: lilac powder and watermelon, and nothing else. Which is sad--the watermelon and the elemi and the soft woods were really pretty--take out the powder tramping all over the place and this would be absolutely fabulous for me. I'd love to see the watermelon accord here used in other blends, because it is simply AMAZING and really unique.

Verdict: well, there we go, I can pretty much say now that lilac is another death note. Sigh.

In tester: oh, wow. Luminous soft mint, soft florals, and sweet creamy white chocolate that isn't entirely too foody. Oh my gosh. Love.

Wet on skin: LOVE. Light mint, chocolate, and florals. They are not specifically distinct from each other--it is very, very well blended--but if you look at the note and sniff, you can get a hint of that note. Very, very pretty. I am in LOVE. ABSOLUTE LOVE. HEAVEN. This is like...like...floral Snowblind. I LOVE this.

Dry: softly powdery, but stays true to the scent and doesn't really morph. Cool, almost crisp, but very soft. Definitely a scent perfect for Lady Amalthea. Luminous, ladylike, a touch of sadness, but light and ethereal. I was worried that the powder would soon overwhelm everything, but the quality hasn't changed after a good while on my skin, aside from a feeling of even more softness, almost waning, like nightfall. Pleasantly powdery with floral and chocolate undertones.

Verdict: I am in love. Definitely worthy of a bottle.

I keep a giant notebook full of each blend I own, what line its from, its availability status, its description, my review of it (wet, dry, 1 hr, 2 hrs, 4 hrs), my scale of 1-10 for wet and dry, my stock of it and any personal notes about it.

Took damn forever to accumulate! I got blisters on me fingers!

Am I the only ocd masochist of this type? lol

I used to do this, but now I track of stuff I have in a spreadsheet, and unposted reviews in a text file. No use writing and then typing out what I wrote, for me--I just typed my impressions and prettied it up for posting in my blog/forum topics when I felt like it

I still have maybe a dozen or two "reviews" in my small notebook though.

In tester: wow, yes, dark chocolate! Creamy dark chocolate. So much yum.

Wet on skin: creamier, and lighter than the tester smell. It's very chocolatey still, and very creamy. Oh oh--no hint of the plastickiness yet...maybe this will work on my skin?!!! OMFG. So. Good.

Dry: no plastickiness! OMG. And I even slathered my little tester to be sure. IT IS FABULOUS. Not so "dark", but oh so good. Chocolate AND cream. Sweet, but not super sweet and super foody. Low throw on me though--it's light and almost faint. As it "ages" on my skin, the plastickiness does not appear, but it's all gone after an hour. After three hours, I catch a whiff of it, but then the plastickiness has come up.

Verdict: I don't know whether I was happy or sad that this didn't work on me. I'm glad to have dodged a super rare bullet, but also sad because it was just so nommy and fabulous (as I don't like super sweet foodies).

This is for the 2011 version.

In bottle: wood and olive oil, with creamy leather in the end.

Wet on skin: this is actually surprisingly light, even with the wood and leather--and I'm getting both. A really nice wood scent, although I can't really tell what kind of wood it is. Look at me say wood a couple more times.

Dry: wood and leather. This is a really nice wood scent. Slightly green, supple wood. COUGH. After a while it softens considerably into a nice, clean, woody scent. Obviously quite masculine.

Verdict: eheheheheheh. Nice, but not for my wearing.

In decant: oh wow. creamy, creamy white floral. It reminds me a little of Antique Lace, although it's not an Antique Lace vanilla and it's a lot more floral and also somewhat chilly. Seriously, no vanilla in the notes? How can that be?

Wet on skin: white, creamy vanilla floral. I guess the amber is giving this vanilla feel? The florals are vague, although I do get to identify the ylang ylang sometimes when it manages to kind of stand out a bit. Very well blended. Creamy, slightly chilly, white and very vanilla in feel. I am in love.

Dry: dry, the chilliness comes back up even more noticeably--this chilly, almost crystalline aspect that somehow does not detract from the creaminess is fabulous. Super well blended, the notes don't crowd over each other. And this is a good amber on me, too! Good throw, not too strong or light, and amazing staying power--I put it on one day, in the morning, and was out most of the day, and after dinner while doing dishes I could still catch whiffs of it (and smell it clearly if I put my wrist to my nose, obviously).

Verdict: at first it was merely love. Well, lovelove, but after wearing it the whole day twice, this has shot up in my list of favorite scents. It is absolutely beautiful, and amazing longevity, and just the right kind of scent and throw.

In bottle: much more lemony than Dorian, somewhat spicy, more complex--slightly darker in feel. Somewhat herbal as well, a bit of lavender.

Wet on skin: yup: lemon, lavender, herbs, and spices. This is much more complex than released Dorian, there's a lot going on. Even the vanilla is spicier--if it's not actually Madagascar vanilla, then the rest of the notes give it that kind of effect. I am liking this a lot more as it dries.

Dry: ohhh~ lovely vanilla musk, with herbs, lemon, and lavender. Well-blended, but allows notes to shine through at some whiffs; and this is not so much tea as vanilla. This version makes Dorian seem so, so innocent.

Verdict: keeper! Oh, absolute yum. Super lucky to have been able to grab a bottle of this. I'll have to deathmatch this and Dorian, but methinks they will both live in my collection together.

In imp: coconut, with vague florals, almost fruity. There's a nutty note somewhere.

Wet on skin: huhhh--I'm getting almost overwhelming nutty note from here. I'm not really too sure where that is coming from, sadly. The amber, sadly, is turning powdery already. Aside from the nuttiness, there is that high floral that's almost overwhelmed by the deep, earthy, and musky vetiver.

Dry: alas, my skin's turned amber into a veritable villain, and I smell nothing but vetiver powder. Everything else has faded.

Verdict: sadly not friends with my skin. This was one of my first run-ins with vetiver, and I've since realized it just don't work on me.

In imp: marine, seaside, very salty. And I mean, very salty--when I sniff, I get the saltiness even right at the back of my throat, like I'm inhaling in sea spray. Obviously, very evocative.

Wet on skin: very nice reminder of the beach, at sea--a clean and salty aquatic with a bit of floral-type sweetness to it. There's a bit more green-ness coming out as it dries, but I still think it's more floral than green. Soapy, and maybe slightly citrusy. I can't see myself wearing this for sure, but it's really amazing how evocative some of Beth's blends are...

Dry: soapy marine/aquatic blend. Dry, and as the minutes drag on, it goes a bit flat on my skin, and throw is faint--but what there is, is beautifully evocative.

Verdict: not for me, but a very interesting scent that's worth a sniff for the experience.

In imp: lily and dragon's blood resin, spicily cherry-like.

Wet on skin: sweet lily, and lilac that is quickly getting quite powdery--but not too bad, it's a pleasing sort of powder so far. There is a somewhat disconcerting crispness here, as well. "Piercing" and "radiant" does seem to be spot on for this.

Dry: powdery, powdery lily, and that very powdery lilac. The dragon's blood is in the background, and at this point I'd have to say it's kind of trying to fight against the lilac, in the sense that I'm not always too sure which it is I'm smelling.

Verdict: this was actually a bottle scent for me. It was within the first few hundred or so scents I skin-tested, and after a retest, I decided I'd keep it. Alas, a couple months down the road, I've discovered that no matter how un-baby-powder-ish the powder is, as long as it's this much, I don't like it so much. So, there you are. A really pretty blend but ruined by lilac on my skin.

In bottle: spicy! Spicy, creamy, and sweet. Disclaimer: actually, I have no idea what the released O smells like. I still haven't tried any. Anyway, back to this prototype: thickly sweet honey, and a bit of floral. Is that carnations?

Wet on skin: mmm, vanilla, honey, and a carnation-y floral. Beautiful. Slightly powdery, but the amber note is light and golden and pretty. Less thickly sweet than the bottle scent. Promising! I am really loving this light, sweet honey.

Dry: mmmm, powdery amber, honey, and vanilla, and that floral carnation note, though I think there has to be another floral or two here. There might be a hint of the carnation-clove, but the sweetness is so OUT THERE that it's not noticeable! So basically the clove-ness and the syrupy sweetness are cancelling each other out and leaving behind a not-too-spicy and not-too-sweet blend of beautiful amber, vanilla, florals and honey.

Verdict: this definitely feels like a keeper. I'm not too on-board with the carnations, but it IS pretty...but I'll reserve judgement about whether to hold on to this or not until I test out the released O, or O v5 (I bought a decant of it a while ago, but it got lost in the package apparently--and I can't seem to grab hold of the seller now...).

In tester: lime, and is that a hint of clove? That makes me worried. There are definitely spicy woods here. Also relatively creamy, with the tonka and vanilla relatively seamless and only a hint.

Wet on skin: lime, woods and leather. There is a pleasant sort of powderiness that has come up, and where it's possibly coming from, I have no idea. I'm getting a bit of that tea as well. Not so bad! I was expecting the clove to amp and chase everything away, but right now I can't get any clove.

Dry: maybe clove bud is not so bad for me--this isn't too bad with the clove, although there is a hint of it, of course, which gives this blend a soft kind of spiciness. Lime, leather, and oak, and pleasantly powdery, giving it a--dare I say it?--deceptively soft feel.

Verdict: pretty nice! This blend is closer to what I'd wear than La Mano del Destino, but still not something that I'd go out of my way for-- so, pass.

In tester: patchouli, chocolate, and tobacco. Patchouli is definitely the most prominent note, but the chocolate makes it quite interesting for me.

Wet on skin: a little bit of a mix-up in the note prominence, on my skin: chocolate, cinnamon, and tobacco, with patchouli not as prominent but still encompassing everything. This isn't too bad--better than the decant for me--I wouldn't have been surprised if this was an instant no. There is also a significant woody/resin note--if my quick research is correct, that would be the copaiba. As it dries, the tobacco is getting more and more pervasive, moving towards a chocolate and tobacco note, cinnamon moving to the back with the patchouli and resins.

Dry: well! Dry, this is patchouli and chocolate, with a persistent and prominent tobacco note and some warm resins. Very smooth and rich, almost-creamy blend.

Verdict: interesting, and quite nice, but this isn't my kind of scent.

In tester: yes, just as it is's described. Night blooming cool flowers, and sugared incense. Beautiful!

Wet on skin: whoa, for a second it went crazily soapy! It's still a little soapy, it must be something in the flower mix. The incense note is actually rather pleasing--I might have to find more of this "sugared incense" because this feels like an incense I could wear! Under the soap (argh, I wonder what flower is doing this, I will avoid it), I get the incense--deep, musky, rich incense that is, well, sugared! It's rich, but sweet and light. Let's see if the soap dies down and what comes out of it.

Dry: sadly, the soap does kind of...not die down. Doesn't morph on my skin; I hoped that maybe in an hour or more the incense would come out more, and the soap note would burn off, but alas, no. The soap is here to stay, tramping all over the other flowers and that beautiful sugared incense.

Verdict: well, I saved myself a bit of heartache! This is definitely very pretty, and if my skin had not done that soapy thing, I would have added this to my bottle list.

In decant: crystalline and crisp, somewhat cold, almost haughty. The lavender is the most distinctive note, and this lavender is a very herbal lavender, although not exactly sharp. This does sound spot-on.

Wet on skin: oh!! So pretty! On my skin, it loses some of the sharpness, goes a little creamy, but still cool, and faintly crystalline. A bit more approachable; this is Yvaine on earth, for sure, becoming warmer. The herbal-ness of the lavender also smoothes out somewhat, and allows the magnolia to peek out. Very pretty, evocative, ethereal, and feminine. Oh maaaaaan...

Dry: dry, this is a perfect clean, almost-crisp, soft scent. The lavender is herbal, but soft and inviting and soothing, and the magnolia sweetens it up and makes it more floral and feminine. The journey of this perfume oil is much like Yvaine's journey throughout Stardust, which is amazing, to have captured that here! Much later, it's a soft, comforting scent, cool and ethereal.

Verdict: awww man. Why must this also be discontinued? And I'm sad that I never bid on the bottles I've seen of this recently, as I haven't been able to test this yet. This is perfect, beautiful, ethereal, soft. An absolute love. I have to find some of this...somehow.

In imp: heady, almost boozy sweetness. Honey and herbs, definitely. Am I getting lavender? It's slightly minty, slightly fruity.

Wet on skin: sweet, slightly powdery, faint spices and herbs. Also bright, minty, but not too astringent--just enough to give it a coolness. Clean, feminine, and fruity in an almost citrusy way. My skin seems to warm it up somewhat, I'm liking this better than in the imp.

Dry: very gentle, elegant, and pretty. Sweet, and newly dry, it's not overwhelming, and not foody: mostly herbs and a touch of rich fruits. It was quite promising, but over time the sweetness develops more, making this a bit too sweet for my tastes, along with that powderiness that I was getting from the wet stage.

Verdict: not for me--far too sweet and my skin seems to disagree with an herb or such.

In imp: spicy amber, faintly sweet. Almost foody, in a sweet-spicy kind of way.

Wet on skin: spicy, sweet, fruity. The sweetness of this blend is an almost candy sweetness, but the vague spices keep it from going there, and vice versa. Quite pleasing and complex!

Dry: hmm, I'm getting a somewhat fair bit of musk, mixing in and enhancing that sweet/spicy feel. There is a "round" note here, the same round note that, after a while, goes oily on me. This blend is neither here nor there; I'm not sure if I do "complex" blends, because my nose is confused with the sweetness/spiciness of this one.

Verdict: dry, it is definitely faintly pleasing, but this isn't a blend I would wear. Pass!

In tester: oh gosh. Creamy, golden/orange smell, warm teak, slight floral. The initial thought I had was, no way this is close to Half Elf v5 (which I obtained much earlier)!

Wet on skin: ohhh maaaaan. Absolutely beautiful. Creamy, non-plasticky, almost-foody-but-not-quite. Non-powdery amber so far, too! This is gorgeous. Soft and creamy golden orange glowing scent. Very creamy, very smooth, very sexy. Honeyed, but not exactly sweet.

Dry: DAAAAAAAMN. Cream that does not go plastic, and amber that does not turn powdery. Gorgeous, smooth teak, a touch of lotus blossom. Fabulous glowing golden blend. All throughout this test I've been swearing to myself, because I will have to hunt for a bottle of this, which will not make my wallet happy. I tested some other blends after, but I keep going back to this one--and as it stays on my skin (fabulous throw, just right), it's smoother, woodier, deeper, but still very beautiful. Definitely creamier and more full-bodied than Half Elf v5.

Verdict: alas, my wallet is weeping. I need to hunt down more of this.

P.S. I have to agree with Vega on this one, now that I've just seen her review--this, to my memory, is a feminine Antikythera Mechanism. I fell in love with Antikythera Mechanism, and wanted to get a bottle, even though it's definitely too masculine for my wearing. So I guess it's no surprise why I've fallen in love with this.

P.P.S. The throw is nothing short of amazing. One single dot from a wand cap, and it's almost too much. This is definitely one blend where I don't think I'll ever need a backup for, since one drop is enough to last for the whole day and then some.

In bottle: sweet, creamy and lightly musky. Almost foody but not quite? I can't decide if it's floral or fruity--not having notes to compare against can be quite tricky!

Wet on skin: a light, creamy, fruity floral scent. This is slightly vanilla-like, but not quite, either. Creamy, with a slightly honeyed sweetness, and pale florals and sweet fruits, but neutral enough that it never really goes into either side. Slightly woody, and seems to have fairly light throw. Quite beautiful! Drying, the creaminess comes out more, along with the more full-bodied wood note. Definitely sexy.

Dry: dry, this is a vaguely incense-y vanilla-like blend, with hints of musk and wood and honey and floral. it's a simple blend, a kind of low-key sexy skin scent. Later, it continues to develop, with the wood coming out more with the beautiful almost-honey sweetness, with a somewhat peppery musk thrown in. Comparing this with Glowing Vulva at Ryogoku Bridge, this is spicier, lighter (versus "heavy", not versus "dark"), and more "peppery" GV, although by no means would I call it peppery.

Verdict: a definite keeper!

Oh! I ordered WILF all those months back (when I was new!) but didn't include my forum name... are they psychic? Or was there a chance they might have noticed this newb posting all over the place?

Eeep forum hiccup, sorry!

I love foody blends too! Sadly I cannot wear a lot of them because a lot of foody scents turn to plastic on me. I do have a few that I love and work for me:

Bliss

A shot of pure, self-indulgent euphoria! A scent that is very, very wicked in its own way: the serotonin-slathered scent of pure milk chocolate.

- no-cream chocolate! yum. also GC

Dorian

This blend is an artful deception: a sweet gilded blossom lying over a twisted and corrupted core. A Victorian fougere with three pale musks and dark, sugared vanilla tea.

- also GC! plenty people love dorian too

Wulric the Wolfman

Friendly, charming, and cuddly, but possessing one hell of a mean streak: cocoa absolute, French vanilla, birch tar, lavender, bourbon vetiver, wild musk, clary sage, and cistus.

- the Carnaval Diabolique is temporarily down, though! But definitely try one, a decant might be around somewhere

There are two other LEs that are fairly difficult to find (although not all LEs are are sought-after as they are) which I do love: The Anti-Saloon League (Our version of a Black Cow, a 1920’s virgin thirst-quencher: sarsaparilla and cream.) and MB Underpants (Who doesn't want a monster in their pants? Sexy sugar-smeared saffron sandalwood over lickable vanilla cream with a splash of butter rum. This bit of cheekiness inspired by the mods on bpal.org!) -- both of which have cream but, amazingly, work on me and does not turn into plastic.

Other blends that did not work with my skin chem, but you might want to take a look into: Dragon's Milk (GC), Bread and Butter Fly (GC), Velvet (GC), Stimulating Sassafras Strengthener (GC), Tokyo Stomp (LE), Love's Philosophy (LE). The cake blends are good too, if you like highly sweet foody blends (I don't, hehe), like Cake Smash (LE), Anne Beany (LE), Lemon-Scented Sticky Bat (GC but unimpable), Knockout Drops (LE), Bones Trombone (LE), Playing with Dangerous Toys (not entirely sure of released version, but the v2 prototype is certainly bubblegummy-cakey), etc...there's really a lot :x

Incense and resins. Very rich, deep brown in feel. On my skin the aforementioned tobacco does come out, and while tobacco usually lends a smoky quality to blends for me, there is something decidedly powdery in this blend for me too, but difficult to tell what it might be. Slightly gritty in feel, dark and somewhat sexy, with a faint, fleeting bit of sweetness.

In the tester, very sharp and lush and rich floral. Deep and luxurious, almost resinous in quality. It kind of screams FLORALS OMG. On my skin, pretty much the same, deep and heady and colorful vibrant florals, and slightly dusty on my skin as it dries, along with a slight mellowing and softening--more of a merging of all the notes than a lessening.

I am confused with the blend. My first whiff, I immediately thought, milk?? but obviously no one else had the same thoughts Not so much aquatic, but definitely white, slightly floral, and a hint of bitterness. On me, it quickly turned into a dusty, herbal and slightly bitter white floral, which smooths out over time on my skin but never really goes away. It feels a little menacing, to be honest. Sort of brittle but menacing.