likie

I have no idea how this is possible, but I found Defututa to be hugely similar to Snow White (both wet and dry), albeit with a little sugar on top. I honestly like it even better.

In bottle: Wonderful, creamy, sweet cherry. Nothing sour, nothing plasticy, nothing cough syrupy, nothing soapy. <33 Wet: Something goes sharp as soon as it touches my skin. No idea which note it is - it's not anything I could detect while in the bottle. But it's still fruity and has a creamy undertone, just with something sharp over the top. Dry: After only a few minutes the beloved sweetness went away and I'm left with something that smells like woods gone sour. I'll definitely have to buy my first scent locket for this one; it was so good in the bottle. In comparison to MB: Bloody Mary, it's a less creamy sweet and more of a sugary sweet cherry. It also feels more like a "foody" scent and less like the "fruity" scent I consider Bloody Mary to be.

I got a decant of Kunstkammer a long time ago in a swap of some kind that I don't remember at all... but well, it's in my box. I hadn't read the description until recently, and I always thought the sweetness was strawberries. I now know it doesn't smell like the Lab's strawberry oil, but it definitely smells like fresh, tart strawberries with a dusting of sugar. <3 When I wear it, the fruit overpowers the sweetness for a little while. After 30-60 minutes, it becomes a fresh sweet scent - not candy-sweet, but fruit-sweet (I imagine it as the difference between refined sugar and natural sugar).

In bottle: A very sharp incense smell, with butter smacked over the top. I was expecting something much sweeter, but this to my nose is just not. Wet: The 'incense' has become more planty; it's a scent I know, but can't place. Maybe Wings of Azrael. It's slightly more sugary now, but only because I'm looking for it. Dry: Vast, vast improvement. It's a glorious soft scent, with a touch of something plant-like (but not 'planty' - just the smell of green, living things). It's far sweeter than before, too. The throw is faint, but it's lasting at least six hours, which is far longer than most oils do on me. Fantastic!

In bottle: First of all, doesn't this just sound delicious? But from BPAL, what doesn't, right? Anyway. Bit fruity, apples, pears and all that. A bit of plant-y scent is over it ('dust' is a good word for the relationship between the two). Wet: Mulling spices yes! Oh, nice. Kind of musky now, not unlike my oh-so-lovely Perversion (which I believe is characterized by tonka). The base is warm and sweet and comforting. Dry: Essentially what it was wet, but somewhat muted. Still very lovely, and great with that swath of spice covering the top.

In bottle: Mint and rosemary, mostly. Pretty subtle, though this smells like something skin could change a lot. Let's find out! Wet: Within seconds, it sank way into my skin until it was a little warmed up, but barely detectable. Every time I smell it, though, it seems a tiny bit sweeter. There's still a rosemary/jasminey undertone. Dry: Sandalwood/musk is now dominant, with a bit of that jasmine and rosemary underneath. It isn't unlike a cologne you might buy in a department store. I don't like the dry version as much; the wet bit, though, would indeed be the perfect scent for a rather old-fashioned kind of guy (or just a prim fellow from the 1700s!). My boy is a little too rugged for this, I think.

In bottle: Wow. This is so... how do I describe this? Plant-y? Not so much green, since there's a lot of lemon... definitely no sweetness here. Rakish might be a good word. Wet: Still the plant thing, and lots of lemon. I think that's the anise I'm smelling? Starting to go waxy... gah. Dry: One (hyphenated) word: Pine-Sol. Such disappointment.

In bottle: A lot of rum and what I assume is tonka - it's a caramelly scent. A hint of the chardonnay (or at least the scent I associate with chardonnay, unsure whether that's really it), but no detectable tobacco or leather. Wet: Very delightful. Less rum, but it's still present. I might smell a little tobacco. Still quite warm. Dry: Almost cinnamony, caramelly goodness. It's sweet and warm, quite nice. Not a whole lot of throw, but it is strong. Still no tobacco or leather, but it smells like something that might go well with them, if that makes sense. I don't know anything about pleasure domes, but I like this!

In bottle: Powerful musk (isn't it always?), but sweet. A hint of spice creeping in around the edges. Wet: Suddenly... it's very green! And floral! Very! A lot! Slowly fading back to something more mellow... Dry: Wow, this is powerful. Didn't get as mellow as I had hoped. The musk never came back, and spice is all gone; it's just an incredibly strong scent of... well, chrysanthemums. Sad to say, I've smelled better.

In bottle: A really great blend. I don't know whether it's the kind of thing I'd want to wear all day, but these scents just mix so well. I'm guessing that's the oleander I'm smelling, a floral surrounded by the musk. Wet: A 'touch' of spice? Wow! That's intense. It's more warm musk (which will probably end up being blah on my skin), and less and less of the greenery and floral scent as it dries. Dry: Eek, it's nothing but spices and musk. What happened to that light citrus and crisp oleander? Curse you, skin chemistry. It would have been pretty nice for an evening out, otherwise.

In bottle: Really strong floral scent, very much like a traditional perfume. Sadly, traditional perfumes are not my thing. Wet: Still that purple-smelling (can colors have scent? I say yes) flower, and I'm beginning to miss those lovely blends BPAL is so wonderful with. This is solitary and almost dull. Dry: Less perfumey and sweeter, but nothing to write home about. Smells like something my mother (or grandmother...) would wear.

In the bottle: Strong gardenia; smells exactly like purple cleaning solution. Wet: Slightly more floral, but still the twang of cleaner. I don't really detect vanilla, just a hint of violet. Dry: After ten minutes or so, twang rescinds; a little violet, mostly gardenia, and only a hint of vanilla.

Sensual, sibilant, sexual and hypnotic: Arabian musk and exotic spices slinking through Egyptian amber, enticing vanilla, and a serpentine blend of black plum, labdanum, ambrette, benzoin and black coconut. In the bottle: Eek, musk. Spices, too, but only in the background. Wet: Musk seems to fade slightly behind vanilla and amber, which actually smells a lot like caramel. Very little of the rest (no coconut). Dry: Actually very similar to wet. Still no coconut, lots of vanilla, and very much like caramel... with something else. Kind of figgy, actually. Very rich. This gets my vote.

In the bottle: Wow. It smells... black - like smoke, maybe even tar. Very rich with this scent, and I don't even know what else to say about it. 'Black'! Wet: Now I can detect a bit of fruit. Black is still an accurate description (hence "black fruit," I guess); smokiness is gone. Dry: No vanilla, a hint of the wooden, and a ton of the "black fruit" smell. Not unlike an old pipe, but something sucked out all its sweetness. A couple of hours later: Less of the black fruity thing, still rather smoky. More tolerable than I initially thought, but not great.

In bottle: Very sweet. Nice. No black pyramids here; maybe something an Egyptian princess might wear. It's a tad fruity, even - a dark red fruit. No sandalwood do I smell. Wet: Wow, there's that myrrh. Overpowering. Still no sandalwood, though, and a hint of floral (presumably the 'black lotus'). Dry: The myrrh settled down a little, and I can detect the flower behind it. There's a bit of amber smeared over the top. Not bad, but I preferred the in-bottle smell.

In bottle: Wow, is this strong. I don't know what saffron smells like, but if that's what I'm smelling, 'fierce' is a great description. Also have the myrrh, a swath of amber, and a hint of almond. This would probably make great incense; I think it cleared out my sinuses! Wet: Less sharpness, more musk. There's also a slight increase in the myrrh and the almond. Nothing floral about this. Dry: Ack. Even more musk. It went incredibly powdery on my skin, to the point I started sneezing (allergy I don't know about? Unsure...). I smell the almond too, still, and little else. Blah!

In bottle: Ooh... lots of honey and clove! Great for a steamy summer day. Ginger is a nice touch, too. Wet: Tons of cinnamon. In fact, everything's gone but the cinnamon and musk. I hope it comes back! Dry: Wow, where did it go? I put on enough to wet a square inch of skin, and now I have to try to inhale my arm to smell it. I actually smell the pepper (not terribly pleasant). Still has clove, ginger, and musk, but the smoothness created by the honey is gone.

In bottle: Why are my frimps always musky? This one is, though not overly so; no amber yet, though it does smell a bit like grass. Wet: Yep, lots of musk. Now it doesn't so much smell like grass, it's just reminiscent of a grassy field. Dry: Ah, and now back to just musk. The amber warms it up a bit, but it's otherwise not a particularly notable scent on me.

I ordered this for my mother, a landscaper and something of a floral enthusiast. She was thrilled, and so was I! A fresh, chilly rose in the bottle; warms up slightly on the skin. If you're looking for a more powdery rose like most rosy scents or a warm, floral touch for burning, this isn't the one. Excellent for wearing, though.