Diva Urd

Somehow, I am just terribly unlucky with the Lovecraftian scents... a shame, I love his works. So, despite knowing that it probably wouldn't work out, I got an imp of "Cthulhu" in a swap, and here are my testing notes. Vial: Incense and sharp soapiness - ozone? On: Tons upon tons of soap when on initially. Loses some of its sting as it dries, but still seems very soapy to me - nicer soap than at first, but soap. Later: Never stops being soapy, now with an undercurrent of the smoky note in "Ogun". Reaaaallly not a fan. Swap.

Vial: Fresh fruit, just a tad citrussy and surprisingly not super-sweet On: Fruit, bittersweet (the bitter bite being similar to grapefruit, but not exactly like it - this is much less astringent), with a musky background. A bit soapy when on first, very reminiscent of shower gels I've used before. The soap might be the "night air" - I expect there's a hint of ozone. Thankfully, there isn't enough ozone to be irritating to my nose - it starts dissipating as it's drying. Later: Bittersweet fruitiness. I actually enjoy this quite a bit. This is a fruity scent for people who like their fruit non-foody and not too sweet, and a scent containing ozone that confirmed ozone haters-and-ampers like me can still enjoy. Going on my "possibly reorder list".

I received a sniffie of Snow White 2005 with just enough to test... and promptly spilled a little on my fingers. I. Did. Not. Stop. Sniffing. Those. Fingers. All. Evening. This is gorgeous! Snowy, yet warm and creamy, topped with white flower petals. The husband instantly fell for it too! Furthermore, it lasts forever and ever on me. On the evening of the spillage, I had something with raw onions, got some on my hands and thought, "Well, there goes the scent." ... except, the scent to go was the onion. Snow White was still there! In short, if this is available again during Yule this year, I am getting a bottle. Not tentatively, absolutely guaranteed and signed in blood.

Vial: Boozy fruit! Seriously, I'm thinking peach schnapps. On: PEACH! With a slightly woody background keeping it from becoming too sweet. Pretty close to the skin even on first application. The throw seems to actually grow a little as it dries, in tandem with the patchouli asserting itself more. The patchouli level is much lower than in "Depraved", but still noticeable. Finally, after complete drydown, the musk comes out and gives this some oomph. It's still not super-strong, but now it smells like sweetened skin - very sexy. Later: Musky, golden peach. Really quite nice. As of now, I'd prefer to get a bottle of "Depraved" first, but who knows? It might become a bottle wish as I wear it more.

Vial: Very fresh (due to amber and tea, I assume) floral, a tad cleanerish, definitely cool. On: Much warmer and very floral, almost fruity in its sweetness, but doesn't seem cloying. Amazingly, I don't get any rose from this whatsoever, and since I usually amp rose, this is a good thing (I don't hate rose, I just prefer that my perfume didn't turn into a single note of it!). Same goes for the patchouli (although this is not the first blend where it has eluded me). I hope it still provides the necessary "anchor" that allows the scent to stick around way past drydown (scents without a solid base note go "poof" on me relatively often and vanish without a trace/turn into powder). Later: Hm, in the later phases, it turns into a relatively generic floral. It's still noticeable three hours later, which is a plus, but it lost its appeal. Maybe I'll like it more wearing it out and about, but as of now, I don't think I'll order more.

In the imp, this has a woody, mossy base with a citrussy topnote. On me, I first get a citrussy "snap" to my sinuses, followed by a waft of floral notes. Both are grounded by something deeply green (moss?) and patchouli. Upon drydown, the mixture mellows and unifies into a scent that is interesting and quite dark - the most recognizable element at this stage remains the patchouli. All dry, it reminds me a bit of Wanderlust's "Crossroads". In fact, if "Crossroads" and "Venice" had a love child, this would be it. It turns primarily incense-y about a half-hour later. After two hours, what's left smells woody and incense-y. Not bad at all. It's not an instant favorite, so I have to try some more to see if it warrants a bottle, but I'll definitely hold on to the imp. Too bad the husband's skin ate it after less than an hour, it would have smelled nice on him!

In the imp, I get lots of ylang-ylang, with a hint of plum and lilies in the background. On me, it's quite similar to what it smelled like in the vial initially. It's sort of like a reverse "Kitsune-Tsuki" for me - lots of bright floral and less fruit. Upon drydown, the plum comes out a lot more and the florals blend together in the background. Now it's like a less bubblegummy "Frumious Bandersnatch" on me. The plum goes on to dominate the scent for a while once it's completely dry, but after about an hour, the florals reach their second wind and come out a little more again. After about two hours, it's primarily plum. This is quite nice - more lady-like than "Kitsune-Tsuki" (which strikes me as the perfect scent for a young teenager with its bright fizzy feeling), less odd than "Frumious Bandersnatch". A "fancy night out" kind of scent. I like it, but my absolutely favorite in terms of plummy scents is currently "Bensiabel", so I don't know when, if ever, I'll get a bottle of this. The imp stays with me, though.

I received a testable sniffie of this in a swap - thanks so much, kind swapper! In the imp, this smells somewhat sharp (probably the amber, it always smells sharp to me when still in the container) and... I don't know how else to put it, but "purple". On me, I get some kind of fruit (I don't think it's plum, maybe pomegranate? It's tangy, dark and definitely not a berry, that's all I can tell) on a powdery amber background. Smells a bit smoothie-ish, surprisingly, I don't mind. I believe there is also a slight bit of musk in the background. The fruit note seems to turn a bit on me about 15-20 minutes into drydown. About an hour and a half later: The musk I suspect to be in this in combination with the fruit really seems to turn on me - now it smells like fruit carried home in a bag with dirty socks - mostly sweaty and musty. Too bad, the beginning wasn't bad...

In the imp, I get a sweet, smoky floral. They weren't kidding when they wrote "smoky rose" - it has an almost incense-y undercurrent! On me, I get smoky magnolia in the foreground. The other flowers don't show up much at first. Upon drydown, the magnolia does allow for some of the other floral notes to come play and eventually blends with them. An almost leafy-green quality seems to mingle with the background smoke, lending a smidge of sharpness to the blend. After complete drydown, the rose is starting to assert itself more, although it for once does not drown out the other notes or the lovely smokiness. Three hours later, this is primarily smoky rose with the other florals in the background, but impressively, it's still not powdery. This is pretty nice. I don't know yet whether I'll want a bottle in the future, but the imp will stay with me for further consideration.

In the imp this smells fresh with a woody undercurrent. On me, Fascinum seems very green and astringent. I smell something like fir (possibly the litsea, I looked that one up and it's a type of evergreen, apparently) with spice in the background. It softens while drying down and turns... into soap. Nothing but really cheap soap. And soap it stays, until it fades. Not for me, I'm afraid.

I was frimped this in a swap, and was thrilled since this was on my wishlist! Thanks so much again! In the imp, this is a very boozy-smelling floral. The whiskey is clearly apparent. On me, it's very sweet, sticky flowers with a hearty, sharp whiff of whiskey. The floral sticking out the most is the ylang-ylang, which I almost always seem to amp. As it starts to dry down, the scent fades quite quickly. Uh-oh... And yes, it happens: After 45 minutes, the scent is nearly completely gone. I applied some more because I thought I dabbed on too little the first time, but 45 minutes later, I have the same result despite slathering. This ain't good enough to douse myself in, I'm afraid. Back it goes into the swap pile.

I got a testable sniffie of this in a swap - thank you, kind swapper! In the imp, I primarily get cocoa and a LOT of black pepper. On me, the pepper amps like crazy at first. As it dries, first the allspice and then the cocoa and dragon's blood start peeking out. I never get a whole lot of vetiver from this, which is a novelty for me since I can usually detect it if it's an ingredient in a blend. Once it completely dries down, it goes a bit dusty and the musk and pepper are the primary players, although occasionally, sweet and spicy wafts make their way to the forefront again. Overall, this is pretty good, but not superb. If it was a GC, I might consider a bottle purchase, but as it is an LE and thus probably not to be had for cheap anymore, I think I'll have to refrain to protect my wallet.

In the imp, this smells of green, sweet fruit (it's not exactly pear as in the d'Anjou pears you pick up in the supermarket, but close) and herbs. On me, it's pretty similar - green fruit with herbs. The background gets slightly powdery as it starts drying, probably due to the amber. Once it's dry, the herbs are pretty much done for, and I get sweet fruitiness and a bit of powder. Three hours later, only some faint fruit is left, but it's still pretty noticeable. This wasn't bad at all, but I can't see myself reaching for it often. I'll probably use up the imp, though.

What scents turn you on probably depends on your personal preferences. I personally find the lab's leather note very sexy, particularly in Loviatar. On my husband, The Black Tower is pure sex.

I found Belle Epoque to be powdery, yet still pleasant.

I recently tried "Nostrum Remedium", and that is just bursting with green freshness for me.

This was a generous frimp from the lab! In the imp, this smells a little like those syrup packets you put into soda fountains - the lemon-lime ones, to be exact. I say it smells like the syrup because it's too strong and not fizzy enough to be like the actual soda. On me, it still retains some of this lemon-lime syrup smell, but with added melon and acrid cigar smoke. The result smells a bit like the toilet cleaner I used to use at one of my jobs. As it dries down, it sadly stays just that: Toilet cleaner. The throw of this is so strong, it even killed the waft from my other wrist. I had to wash it off, and it tried its darndest to stay on - after five washes with soap, it finally relented. So many people seem to like this... I wonder what's wrong with me that it turned out so disgusting?

This was a generous frimp from the lab! In the imp, this smelled like a generic citrussy floral. Since I'm not huge on citrus notes, I am a bit worried. On me, it's primarily lemon at first, with a whiff of flowers in the background. As it dries, the currant is starting to peek out. Later, the lemon note finally decides to give the other players in this blend a chance and retreats to the background. Now it's a rather pretty, slightly lemony floral with a bit of fruity juiciness. Not bad at all, but it took quite a while to get there... Will probably use the imp, but I don't think I'll reorder.

This was a generous frimp from the lab! In the vial, this smells like... men's shower gel. On me, this is a dead ringer for Axe body spray. Having been a tomboy in my teens, I overdosed on that stuff years ago. Please change, please! Once it dries, it's still Axe... plus soap. Freshly showered 15-year-old boy. This lasts quite a while, but I am not all that enamored with the scent, so it's going on the trade pile.

Whoohoo, this was on my wishlist, and the clairvoyant labbies sent me a frimp! In the imp, I smell lots of frankincense with a hint of floral. On me, the rose insists on coming to the forefront and tangles with the frankincense for a while. Upon drydown, the rose has retreated in favor of lily and a floral note I do not recognize, which is probably the wisteria (I have never smelled this one by itself). About four hours later, only the frankincense is left, and it is turning slightly dusty. It's not horrible, but I would have wished for a bit more elegance in the later phases. Will use the imp, but I don't think this one is going on my reorder list.

This was a generous frimp from the lab. Based on the notes, I have to admit I wouldn't have ordered it. See, citrus notes and I... we don't talk. In the imp, this smells like... hairspray? *scratches head* Well, I'm not easily dissuaded, so I put it on. And was positively surprised! It starts out as a musky lemon scent, which surprisingly doesn't repulse me. As it dries, it warms up and turns just a slight bit soapy, but a hint of creaminess is holding it in check so that it doesn't become all soap. This is surprisingly nice! I never got a whole lot of throw from it, but it seems to last halfway decently - after four hours, I can still detect it without too much effort, although I have to get close to smell it. It smells so clean, this will be nice after taking a bath. However, since I doubt I will use it a lot outside, I'll only use up the imp and leave it at that.

In the imp, I primarily get a dark, woody scent - most likely the cypress. Right after application, it smells of cypress and orchid, but the wood actually retreats into the background upon drydown. The resulting floral fragrance is so integrated I can't tell anything apart anymore. I quite enjoy it. Alas, Medea is gone after a relatively short time, and not so enjoyable that I would want to reapply multiple times a day. A miss for me, after all.

In the imp: What else? ROSE! The biggest, fattest bunch of roses imaginable. On me, it's also all soapy roseyness galore. As it dries, the soapiness gets a bit less pronounced, but it's still definitely trumpeting ROSE from my wrist. Once completely dry, it actually moves throught a bubblegum/candy phase where the scent gets very sweet... but before and after, all rose all the time. After about 2 1/2 hours, it is almost completely gone. I am not enough of a rose fan to appreciate this one. It actually intimidated me a little.

In the imp, this smelled almost exactly like a fresh Granny Smith apple. On me, the apple is still very apparent, but it is nearly overrun by a burst of bitter herbal notes. These mellow and sweeten a bit as the scent dries. After about 2 1/2 hours, I only had a slight whiff of herbs left. With this limited wear length, this scent would have to bowl me or the DH over, and since it was a "like but not love" for me and the DH thought it smelled like a rotten apple (rotten ?!), I won't get more.

In the vial, this smelled generically fruity, the florals must have masked the plum a bit. On me, it's... fruity chewing gum. Seriously, bubblegum all the way even after drydown for at least an hour and a half. When it finally went away, I ended up with a plum surrounded by lighter floral notes, and still two hours later, I pretty much had a straight plum scent on my wrist. While this wasn't bad, the gum phase lasted a bit too long for my liking, and I prefer other plum scents like Bensiabel and Kitsune-Tsuki to this one. I don't think I'll get more.