Atrous

2014 Version: I've never tried any older versions of Devil's Night but I bought a bottle blind based on reviews of prior years. This is a bit of a let down. I wanted booze, sugar, and musk with some smokiness. What I got was an artificial fruit candy smell + a wee bit of smoke. I'm not sayin' it smells bad. It smells fine but its really not me. Plus, it fades from my skin in about 10 minutes. I will hide this away and age it for awhile before giving up on it entirely.

This is just what I thought it would be...Pumpkin Spices sans the actual pumpkin. I'm getting ginger, cinnamon, clove, and maybe nutmeg or cardamon. Super Nice! Bought this with the intention of using it as a layering scent and its perfect for just that.

Patchouli and sickeningly sweet Honey. That's not something I've written in a review before. I normally love honey and love sweetness but there is too much of a good thing in this blend. AND No vanilla No Cinnamon I'm so sad. I will age VoA III before deciding whether to send it off to another home. Maybe age will bring out the vanilla and/or mellow the honey.

Wow! Soft and warm. Simple but lovely. Ambergris is one of my true note loves and this one doesn't disappoint. It's just so cuddly which is not a word I associate with Ambergris. It might be that its blended in with the Leaves note which I can certainly smell. Currants give this blend a bit of a sweet pop. Something about this blend makes me think of a man's cologne but it's not masculine. More like a feminized cologne. For me it's the winner of this year's weenies.

This one's a big disappointment for me. Out of the oils I got I thought this would be the one I loved. Out of all the notes Violet is the one I'm least familiar with. Everything else should work on me so I think it's the violet that's coming in and ruining this. I get an overpowering, biting floral that beats the other notes into submission. It's quite nauseating. I'll give this some time to age and retest but right now i'm crying a little.

This is indeed a pale, lovely scent. I'm getting Wisteria which I'm happy about because I love the scent. Thankfully it doesn't go bad on me. There is something aquatic and herbal swirling around the floral. The water/herbal element smells fresh. A resinous base supports the blend but I don't get any distinct resins. I can't pick up the amber or frankincense individually but rather combine to give a sense that there are resins in this blend. A beautiful, non offending scent perfect for those times when you don't want a smell cloud knocking people over.

2014 version Starts out a burnt sugar but dries down into a pleasing brown sugar with the faintest hint of fruitiness. I see myself using this as a layering scent.

Started out as strong, chicory coffee and marzipan but as it dried the marzipan fades away. It takes a few minutes for the Au Lait part to make an appearance. Ends up a sweet but strong, creamy, chicory coffee. The pastries are almost nonexistent but are adding sweetness to a coffee that would otherwise smell bitter. My new favorite coffee scent

Rose and Sandalwood are the stars with a resinous background I attribute to Frankincense. The Elemi starts out sharp and sour making it dissonant with the rest of the blend. But the time this dries Elemi mellows out to where its still got that tang but its not screeching at me anymore. Definitely fits in with the rest of the OLLA series.

It's a good thing I like coconut because coconut cake is right. I can certainly smell the ice cream which gives the blend a creamy, rich feel. Rum is pretty high pitched at first but it mellows out and takes its place with the rest of the notes. It's got plenty of throw. Love this!

What a lovely scent. From the bottle to the dry down it stays pretty much the same. a sweet melange of florals accompanied by bergamot. The tea note is buried underneath but its there.

Had to try this because Bananas! Honesty, this scared me when I sniffed it in the bottle because all I smelled was nail polish remover. Not to worry though. This dries down to a beautiful scent. Its a morpher. When first applied to the skin Bananas Foster starts to bloom and keeps on blooming for awhile and then settles down. Incense comes out next. The scent dries to a sweet incense. Bananas come off as fruitiness. It doesn't sound like it should work but it does. I catch whiffs of Dorian but its distant As if someone wearing it just walked by.

What I get at first is a bitter dark chocolate with a blast of spices. As this dries down the chocolate morphs into Turkish coffee and the Shisha is coming out. To my nose the main differences between Shisha and Tobacco are that the Shisha smells less smokey and has an earthy component to its scent. In the end, Shisha and Coffee are perfectly balanced. They really complement one another. Spices tone down to where they are not overwhelming but they continue to make themselves known, especially Cardamon. Since I love the scent of Cardamon so much this just serves to make Cafe Mille even better. I also continue to get faint whiffs of dark chocolate in the background. A warm, spicy blend. Another winner from the OLLA series

This one makes me smile. Its such a happy scent. I'm getting a muted coconut bordering on suntan lotion. Citrus notes tend to fade quickly from my skin but not in Avunculus. It's light but stays present. I'm not getting any Pear but there is a slight fruity sweetness. Something warm and golden, like sunshine, washing over the whole. This does invoke a fun day at the beach. Lovely!

Whew! Thank goodness Jasmine is behaving herself. This is one of those well blended scents where the individual notes are hard to pick out....except honey. Honey coated notes is what I smell. Honey coated flowers, woods, & hay. There is a tease of vanilla, but just a tease. And an underlying muskiness I'm guessing is caused by the Ambrette. Unisex and stays close to the skin. Love it!

Creamy, smokey Sandalwood and Wax with a healthy dab of spices. The spice mix is hard for me to describe because they are all so well blended together. I suspect that the creaminess is coming from Ice Cream note but I don't detect any Ice Cream on its own. It is also slightly sweet and nutty. Swear I get some Hazelnut maybe from the kitchen spices? A really beautiful blend.

This comes off as slightly sweet Sandalwood with the Ink darkening the blend. Not dark = scary but dark = comforting, if that makes sense. I know what Marjoram smells like from cooking with it and I'm certainly getting it in Kit; just a little bit peeking out. This has a similar vibe to some of the Steamworks scents, especially Antikythera Mechanism. Even though AM and Kit share no notes I can't help but think of AM when I sniff this. They don't smell the same but they do share that vibe. Overall a cuddly and comforting scent like being wrapped up in a warm, plush blanket. Another winner from the OLLA series.

I so love Diamond's Gong Creamy, white musk with incense swirling around. Cognac & a light floral note sit in the background supporting the blend. The scent is pretty, feminine, and light but long lasting. I put it on in the morning and could still smell it that evening. This has a vibe similar to Diamond Star. The most noticeable difference being that DS has a lighter, more powdery feel.

Beeswax is a dominate note but it's the note that permeates all the others. Worn, brown leather and parchment are also front and center. At the edges incense smoke swirls and teases my nose. At the very bottom and close to the skin is a salty, cold metallic smell. The notes stay in their respective layers except the beeswax, which runs through all the layers of this lovely blend. I'd say this is a quiet, contemplative blend. A must try for those who love beeswax

Balame's review is spot on! I would add that the description is perfect. It is an introspective, quiet scent but holds its own quite nicely. After four hours of wear I can smell it like i just put it on. Its non-offensive so it could be worn to work easily, especially on high stress days, as it has a calming effect. I can see myself wearing this for meditation or even sleep. a gentle, creamy sandalwood is front and center with the rest of the notes playing supporting roles serving to deepen the sandalwood.

This is going to be a short review... Spiced cafe mocha! That's it! and that's all that needs to be said. This is divine!

Brown Musk usually smells fuzzy to me while Green Musk smells smooth. So, the fuzzy brown layered over the smooth green is an interesting scent experience. In the wet stage I didn't care for this because the Musks seemed to be clashing, but as this dries down the Musks come together beautifully. They mingle but stand out enough that I can smell both the Green and Brown musk individually. The rest of the notes play second fiddle to the musks. I can smell copper swirling around between the Musks and there's a bit of blood that gives this scent a slightly metallic tang. Can't smell ashes and I don't know what Grey Woods are supposed to smell like. This has a medium throw and smells dark...ish. I really love this.

I must amp cotton blossom as I get nothing but dryer sheets. Bummer

I didn't care for Red, Red Rose when I tried it fresh months ago. It was basically a sharp-ish Rose with Dragon's Blood. So, I forgot about it and let it age. Today I decided to revisit after giving it some alone time. The rose has mellowed allowing the almond and tea to come through. All the notes are balanced nicely against one another. This is one of those scents that I take one whiff and smell all the individual notes then I take another whiff and the notes come together into a somewhat different scent. In this case, when the notes come together, my nose registers the scent as juicy, peach tea. Which I love since peach is a death note for me, so, I don't have any peach scents in my collection. Red, Red Rose is light, cheerful, and stays pretty close to the skin. A nice spring/summer scent. I'm glad I didn't swap or sell this when I had a mind to.

Momma Bear is a real surprise for me. Given the notes I was expecting something gritty but still on the feminine side...like something a Tomboy might wear. During my all day test I got really soft leather with an even softer swirl of herbs and spices. I swear I also get Orange Blossom from this blend. So much so that I kept reading and re-reading the notes to make sure it wasn't listed. All day long its orange blossom, first and foremost, with the leather; herbs; spices providing gentle support. Momma Bear stays close to the skin. For a scent with leather, tobacco, & gunpowder, its surprisingly light and bright. Also, after a while the leather fades to practically nothing. Another surprise as leather usually sinks its talons into my skin and doesn't let go. I am a bit disappointed as I thought this one would be instant love. At this point, I'm thinking of retesting once this ages.