mymymai
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Posts posted by mymymai
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- ITB: Oh, the leather has aged brilliantly. Thing London on a crisp, foggy evening, shrouded in a worn, black leather trench. I get the sense of being surrounded by slightly damp cobblestone speckled with lichen and oakmoss, the air effused with the fuzzy tones of cumin and a sharp cut of pepper. The hint of tonka bean keeps this scent as Scrooge rather than Jack the Ripper.
Wet: The leather and oakmoss are more prominence on my skin, and the vetiver cuts in with a green and slightly heady charge through the remainder of the notes. It’s a rather evocative scent and I do like this quite a bit.
Dry: Leather, oakmoss, and vetiver. The scent lasts for a good chunk of time and is plesant as it fades. Very nice! -
- ITI: Mechanical oil, ozone, myrrh, and ylang ylang. How odd.
Wet: The impression is of something wet, dark, hidden in the hoods, slightly wavering, and just characteristic of ectoplasmic energy. I wouldn't have guessed that the combination of notes would yield that, but I do think the dark musk, really earthy, although patchouli-esque myrrh, and attar of rose yield a really haunting base, while the ylang ylang add s an ephemeral, ozone quality to the scent as a whole. I like it!
Dry: I just get myrrh and attar of rose. Honestly, I'm really impressed that the scent has lasted 17 hours. Wow. -
- ITI: It's rather sweet, but in a baklava kind of way. To that extent, it smells like honey, almonds, dates, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
Wet: On my skin, the scent takes on a slightly papery quality, which strikes me as odd. It still is very sweet, and a bit too heavy on the honey in my opinion, but then again, honey tens to turn on me. It still has elements of the sweet treat I sensed from the bottle state, but it does change based on skin chemistry.
Dry: The honey dies down considerably, leaving a more perfume-y and slightly older smelling spice blend with a touch of aged almonds in the background. Again, I don't think this one is for me. -
- ITI: I’m not sure whether or not I should be bothered that my first impression is that I find the scent comforting. I really like that the patchouli is a subtle, earthy version, the oakmoss isn’t too green, the heliotrope isn’t too brashly floral, and the copal just offers a lovely, balanced, slightly resinous blend reminiscent of “Our Hearts Condemn Us” from the Only Lovers Left Alive release.
Wet: It’s a touch sweeter and almost woody on my skin, but the wood is like a combination of balsam, aged cedar, and a more toned-down version of teak. The copal note in this scent is a real winner, as I believe it is what is reading as woody above the patchouli, oakmoss, and heliotrope (which now has a honeyed tone to it). Gorgeous scent so far!
Dry: It mellows down a bit once dry, but it’s still a lovely blend – golden, harmonious, woody, resinous, earthy, and inviting. I want a bottle of it! -
- ITI: I get an interesting combination of jasmine, neroli, and lemon verbena. Jasmine usually overpowers many of it's accompanying notes, at least to my nose, so this harmonious blend is fascinating as I would describe the notes as well blended, delicate, and slightly ephemeral with the faint green tea note that remains hidden, but that brings something special to this blend.
Wet: The lemon verbena is more assertive on my skin, but I actually quite like it with the jasmine and neroli. The green tea still stays in the background, but does add to the complexity of the scent.
Dry: Oddly enough, the most lasting note is green tea, followed by lemon verbena. Even though it's lost the other two notes, I'm a fan of the scent! -
- ITI: In the imp, it smells like jasmine, dragon's blood resin, baby oil, a strong musk, and something sweet, perhaps a faint honey, beeswax, or vanilla, but it's too faint to tease out.
Wet: Oh wow, that's impressive. It's not jasmine as much as jonquil. The oil itself looks and smells like dragon's blood resin, dark cherries, skin musk, baby powder, and brandy on my wrist. The color of the oil is even startling. It reminds me of Robitussin, but warmer in color, while still being deeply crimson and thick!
Dry: After a few hours, it's soft, pleasantly musky with a tinge of powderienss, possibly from ambergris. While I'm not certain of the notes, I feel like honeysuckle might be part of this, possibly beeswax, as well as a healthy dose of rich vanilla. As for its purported abilities to attract, I'd say it certainly has some merit. Despite a draped black top, hair in a low ponytail, jeans, tennis shoes, and not an ounce of makeup, I noticed far more individuals paying farr greater attention to me that I would warrant necessary or typical. It's actually a little unnerving. -
- ITI: This reminds me of walking through U.C. San Diego’s Eucalyptus grove in fall, although with the deeper wood of cedar and the heady, blue, swirling herbal yet minty tones of sage.
Wet: It’s a bit more herbal and clearly cedar, like carved cedar trunks specifically, it it still remains the lovely tones that I picked up on in the imp.
Dry: I’m surprised by how soft this turns own when dried, like clean cotton drying outside a log cabin early in the morning. -
A stirring yet gentle perfume. The scent of love and devotion mingled with an undercurrent of heart-rending sorrow. A bouquet of white roses, labdanum, and wild orchid.- ITI: I was expecting overtly floral and sweet, but Magdalene is a bit on the acrid/bitter side, like roses and thorns with a touch of labdanum.
- Wet: The rose and orchid more clearer once on the skin, and while the bitterness has died down, a soft powderiness has settled over the top of it. It really does seem to do its name-sake justice.
- Dry: Softy powder, pleasant rose, and a touch of light distant ozone for some reason rain on my skin. It’s gorgeous and I’m not upset that it has been discontinued.
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- ITI: Stiff red leather that reminds me of riding tack, balsam wood, and a touch of damp green.
Wet: The balsam and moss are a bit sweeter on my skin, but not by much. The leather still has that quality of stiffness about it that reminds me so clearly of riding tact. It just feels like the scent needs an incense or resin note to soften it up a bit.
Dry: Unfortunately, it simply dries down into a stiff red leather and balsam on me. It just needs a bit more complexity. -
- ITI: Hmm, I'm getting coconut, light rose, and the impression of mounts of marshmallow-ish fluff. Interesting.
Wet: It reminds me of what the White Queen from Alice in Wonderland would wear if she had a perfume. It's pleasantly powdery, delicately musky in the most ephemerally way, light coconut, and bedecked with gorgeous rose, even on my skin.
Dry: It dries down into a gentle, comforting coconut-tinged skin musk with a dusting of rose- very pretty. -
- ITI: Jasmine. Yep, that's jasmine alright - strong and imperious, pushing almost all the other notes out of its way. Lemon does try to make a showing, but it soft and timid against its assertive note "companion".
Wet: Okay, at least the jasmine is somewhat tempered by the honeysuckle and lemon on my skin, but it's still way too much. It smells like crazy disinfectant, lemon cleaner, and jasmine deodorizer. Well, at least I smell clean. Then again, my skin just doesn't like jasmine.
Dry: It's just jasmine and lemon, but mostly jasmine now. Alas, into the swap pile you go. -
- ITI: Spicy, warm, daunting, darling, and sexy as hell. I'll be over here, fanning myself like a Southern bell fully dressed for my debutante ball in the middle of July.
Wet: The Arabian musk here is dark, almost inky, carries a bit like cologne, and provides a very masculine and exquisitely smoldering base for the spices, which have some fuzzy brown notes, so I'd assume cinnamon, nutmeg, and perhaps allspice are present here. As it starts to settle a few seconds in, rose rose emerges, the spices shift, and I get sun-dried,f freshly laundered bed-sheets as well. It smells great, but it's no longer that menacingly delightful scent that I so enjoyed at the start. Drat!
Dry: Othello settles down into a lightly spiced musk. Nice, but that's it. -
- ITI: Sharp white florals and Glade plug in or air freshener with a touch of salt. It isn't what I was expecting out of the imp.
Wet: And that's an aquatic. I put this on as I have to run to an appointment and hesitate as I'm walking out the door, contemplating whether or not I have enough time to wash it off and make my appointment on time. I don't, so I have to deal with the damp, chilly aquatic notes, but at least the white floral keep it from being too overwhelming. The do bring a softness to the scent, but the aquatic, saltiness is dominates.
Dry: Thankfully, it fades to a combination of watery florals and brine in the distance, which isn't too bad. However, that just doesn't make the cut in my imp box. -
- ITI: Bewitched is dark, musky, and perfumy. It makes my nose twinge just a tad, but I persevere to find berries, although on the slightly soapy side, and faint, fresh sage. Interesting, but I'm not sure about whether or not I like it.
Wet: The scent stays oddly close to the skin. It's a combination of blackberries, sage, musk, and green tea, but it does evoke overall muddied, dark imagery, which seems to be fitting for its namesake.
Dry: I get musky berries and a touch of tea after 5 hours. It's okay, but not something I'd actively seek more of in the future. -
- ITI: Loup Garou is crisp and refreshing, like an evergreen forest during a thunderstorm. Juniper and eucalyptus rule all others in the imp.
Wet: IT's very similar to the impression I received when I unstoppered the imp, although I'm getting a touch of cypress and a hint of spiciness from the galangal, but these notes I have to try to tease out over the other two.
Dry: It's a much drier scent after four hours. It's mostly dried cypress and faint enough quantities of eucalyptus and juniper to give it a slightly crisp and astringent tone, but not enough to overpower the drier nature of the cypress note. -
- ITI: Tea rose is surprising clear in the bevy of other rose notes, but wine rose curls up to greet my nose slightly thereafter, like a shy but intriguing friend. In the background, there is the greenness alluded to in the shrub and green grass notes. It does smell just a touch like a covert operation involving roses.
Wet: The grass note is just a tad stronger on my skin, but the tea rose is still dominant, not followed by the Damascus rose and a slightly more candied rose note. I like that the sheer variety of notes keeps the scent as just reading "straight" rose, but instead adds a little complexity and depth to keep it interesting. That being said, it's not the best scent while having a migraine.
Dry: The scent takes on a bit of a sugared quality after it has sat for a while. Rose is certainly there, but I can no longer pick out distinct rose notes or even green notes - it's just sugar and roses. -
- ITI: Maiden is a balmy white tea and rose out of the bottle. It reminds me ever so slightly of a garden party in mid June.
Wet: The carnation on my skin is light, pleasantly spicy when paired with the gentle Damask rose along with the soothing, almost lemony white tea. It's pleasant, soft, and rather innocent.
Dry: While not giving it the whole day to settle like I normally do, the dry down is a bit more powdery and spicy, the carnation and white tea contributing to the bulk of that. The rose is present, but it's just enough to sweeten everything rather than distinctly engage as a rose note. Nice, but not bottle worthy. -
- ITI: Okay, this is really strange, but I initially picked up wood and green, but that quickly changed into shredded carrot and sawdust.
Wet: I’m not sure if it’s the privet, which is a privacy shrub common in England, with the combined shellac note, but it really smells like freshly shredded carrot to me. Sawdust is still there along with a touch of sap. It’s a rather curious scent more than anything.
Dry: Ok, I’m surprised. The scent has morphed into a lovely, soft, resinous woodsy scent. I’d swear there is myrrh here along with other fragrant woods, although there is a touch of sawdust, but it’s so faint it’s pleasant. -
- ITI: The herbs here are soft and slightly medicinal when paired with the iris and olibanum. I was expecting something a bit more regal and slightly haughty, perhaps with an orchid or even a jasmine note, but this is a bit watery and unassuming. Hopefully this develops a bit more on my skin.
Wet: The iris is a little stronger and I get a subtle hint of olibanum, but myrrh and sandalwood are sadly lacking, which would give the scent the depth I think it so desperately needs. It's a bit too herbal and green, like Garden of Death.
Dry: Once dry, the sandalwood emerges and settles on par with the iris and olibanum, just over the herbs. It's still a little medicinal, but not overwhelmingly so. It has taken on the more regal quality I had wanted from it, but it still just is a little lacking, in terms of purple florals and strong resinous tones (myrrh, I'm looking at your no-show note). -
- ITI: Dragon's blood resin and salt. The salt note is rather distinct, but it actually tempers the resin, which can be quite overpowering at times.
Wet: It's interesting. Usually, I'm not a fan of aquatics in the least. The aquatics here are similar to water lilies rather than brackish aquatic notes I've smelled in the past. The salt still soothes the raging dragon's blood to create something that is both wonderfully resinous, smoldering, but at the same time, soothing and reflective.
Dry: It ends up drying down to just soap, like the soap presented to you in generic gift baskets. Aww, I really wanted to like this one. Sadly, into the swap pile it goes. -
- ITI: Lovely teakwood and dusky rose otto and oudh create and old, pained, but hauntingly lovely scent that fits the name well.
Wet: The wood notes here are brilliant - it's clear, with what seems like lemon juice, honey, brandy and tea undertones (like a watered-down Hot Toddy), sweetened with rose otto and mellowed by oudh. This was nice in the imp, but it is fantastic on the skin!
Dry: As the scent settles, the cedar becomes dominant, reminding me distinctly of the cedar carved chest in my living room, but deeper and more natural thanks to the addition of the teakwood, yet the oudh adds a phenomenal indolent quality alongside the rose otto that is deeply meditative, earthy, warm, and seductive. -
- ITI: The cherry here is a gorgeously dark cherry, like maraschino cherry, only with the Rainier variety. There is something that reminds me of amaretto as well, and the chocolate note is more of a chocolate liquor rather than the overtly sugar chocolate note I've smelled before from the lab. So far, this is very nice.
Wet: Ah, now I know what it reminds me of: cherry cordials. It makes my mouth water! The orange blossom keeps the scent from being completely foody, adding some light and innocent floral to something that would otherwise be very hedonistic. Woo, this is awesome!
Dry: It's less foody and just wonderfully charged due to the distinct cherry and chocolate liquor notes, although the orange blossom here is essential in making this a very pleasant and alluring scent that is both indulgent and inviting, even to a non-foody like me. I think I might even consider getting more of this! -
- ITI: Calla lilies and roses - the first notes out of the imp - strike me as imperious, pure, and lovely.
Wet: The calla lily and wisteria are incredibly strong, like soap meant to mask months of odor, although with the addition of the rose that's peaking thought, the scent, although strong, isn't bad. It's just not something you'd want to douse yourself in.
Dry: Once dried, it skews all the way over to too soapy. I certainly smell clean, like a combination of Irish Spring without the harsh green and Ivory soap. I'll pass. -
- ITI: It reminds me of Trappist monk holiday cake - very sweet, almost candied orange, with a heady floral and resin, but combined to read almost bread-like.
Wet: Soft and gently wafting plumeria and jungle blossoms intoxicate while copal and burning incense lulls my senses into a lackadaisical sense of hazy bliss. Wow, this is much nicer on.
Dry: It's soft and pleasant - plumeria and incense are balanced perfectly to create a lovely daytime or evening scent.
Strawberry Moon 2009
in A Little Lunacy
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Wet: The strawberry is just a touch artificial on my skin, but not enough to turn my opinion. It's still largely fresh and inviting. The greenness is what really makes this a "true" strawberry scent for me and keeps it from being too "lolita" for a woman in her 30s. It's just the right amount of sweet, fruity, and green.
Dry: While this isn't exactly a marathon scent, I do still get faint Necco strawberry, sugar, and a touch of dandelion grass. It's not bad!