Iceblink

I get mostly balsam and a really screechingly sharp floral from this--angel's trumpet? The oakmoss and sandalwood are warm and earthy underneath it all but the floral is just way too loud.

Myrrh, tobacco, and clove--this is really dark and I like it a lot...I was worried about the seaweed but it and the moss just give this an earthy quality. This feels so sinister! Could be a real hit with some aging.

I got the cleaning fluid smell from this when it was wet too--and it was STRONG. It softens and sweetens as it dries; now it's mostly blackberry and a bit (just a bit) of sweet gardenia with musks underneath. Better than I thought it would be based on the wet phase, but this probably isn't going to be my dream blackberry scent either.

Wet, this is ALL VETIVER...whoa. The vetiver is still noticeable in the drydown but I'm mostly getting red musk/sandalwood/oakmoss now. Oddly, I can barely pick up any rose or jasmine at all! This is a really dark scent on me, and it's not BAD, but it's not great either.

Starts out on the green side but this dries into straight-up honey on my skin--a new, fresh honey. Delicious!

Frankincense and carnation are tricky for me but the whole of Veritas is greater than the sum of its parts. Incensey carnation and I can smell the chamomile and other florals faintly...this is soft and light. Carnation lovers should definitely try this!

A very sharp lily of the valley with something astringently herbal...this is giving me a headache.

This begins as strong ylang-ylang, almost a single note. Salty ambergris then starts to come out and then I get coconut and orange blossom--NICE! The skin musk here strengthens the other note and that ambergris keeps the sweetness of the coconut in check. I didn't think this was going to work with all that ylang-ylang but the drydown is much more complex and pretty.

I love cranberry and there aren't many blends with it, so...and this one is lovely! The cranberry and currant are strong and tart, with thyme and mint providing a nice balance to keep this from being overly fruity. There's a nice base of woods too. I don't think the staying power is going to be stellar here but oh, this is wonderfully refreshing and perky while it lasts.

The holly is really evident at first--very green--but this dries down into delicious spiced plum and raisin. I have a hard time with plum going all Yankee Candle on me but the spice keeps this from getting to that cloyingly sweet stage. Nice! I'll need to give this the full-day test to see if I need more.

Yep, this is very green and woody and smells like working in the yard--in a good way! But this much green overwhelms me.

Mmm...bright fruits with a hint of flowers; again, there's really too much here to pick out individual notes but this is a cheerful blend indeed. I pick up the dragon's blood giving it a sweet, smooth background. This is fading fast on me but it's perky and fruity while it lasts.

A bit of incense, a lot of blue musk, and FLOWERS. There are really way too many floral notes here to pick out but the overall effect is pretty and light. Some of the flowers here are the ones that turn to Powder of Doom on me after a few hours, though, so I'm not too hopeful that this will stay so nice...but it's a nice, safe floral blend in the meantime.

Whew--this smells like fermented honey (MEAD!) to me...sour and tart and boozy. I am not getting vanilla and I think it's needed badly here to calm down all this honey and fruit. Not happening, though.

This is so much like The Antikythera Mechanism (one of my favorites) with added lilac! Lovely--the wood does smell a bit medicinal at first but I've found that ages out fast in blends like this. The tonka and lilac are sweet and gorgeous. This is smooth and has great throw, too. But will I buy a bottle that says PENIS on it? Heheh.

Ginger-herbal-floral mishmash; oddly light on my skin. Not working for me at all.

SMOKE. This is as strong as Brimstone at first...smoke with something winey far underneath. The drydown is mostly wine with sweet dragon's blood and woods, and the smoke has calmed down. Way too winey for me though and that smoke note is just not good on me.

I was a little worried about the butter here since that tends to be awful on me but really this smells much more like fresh bread and sugar, with a tea note coming out more as it dries. The overall effect isn't particularly foody--it's soft and quiet and very pleasant. Surprisingly pretty!

I almost went right for a bottle of this unsniffed because it just sounded so perfect...and I think it may indeed be...there's tangy, musky rose and beautifully coconutty orris here, wonderfully balanced. The orris/coconut give this a summery feel; it's light and somehow warm. Simple but gorgeous!

Luperci 2008 is one of my biggest Lupercalia hits ever, so I mostly wanted to try the 2010 version to see if they were the same and to my nose, they are. That beeswax gets me every time! Wonderful.

I loved this wet--the chocolate and coconut were delicious-smelling--but as it dries it becomes a very dry, strong cardamom/ginger mix that's a bit overpowering. I like cardamom as a background note but it's front and center here and it's just too much for me. I think this would make a great room scent, though.

Tart, fruity rose--this is a simple blend but lovely, fresh, and light. The lychee is surprisingly strong for a note that doesn't always last very long on me. If it can manage to stick around for a few hours, this may be a bottle purchase!

Wow--this is really sweet for the god of war. Mostly nutmeg and tonka with dry, musky sandalwood underneath. I agree that it has a tendency to smell like baby powder...maybe with some aging the musk and sandalwood will come out a bit more.

I've been trying to get to grips with jasmine, which used to be one of my Notes of Doom, and I think I'm making progress because I really like this even though it is some serious jasmine overload. It's very sweet, almost candied--there's a fruity tang to this when it's wet but that fades fast. There is a more grounded base here from the myrrh and sandalwood that keeps this from being way too pretty-sweet, but it's still veryveryvery jasminey. I do like it but probably won't need a bottle.

The tangerine is strong at first here but the drydown is soft, faintly fruity white musk. I am not picking up cypress from this except that there's something here keeping this from being overly feminine white musk and I suspect it's the cypress balancing things out. This is rather light withouth much throw, but it's very pleasant.