artisjok

I slathered Maenad blind, as it is one of the few imps I’ve grabbed that I had no idea what the notes would be. I thought, kind of like bubblegum, yet not, and definitely carnation. Sweet musk, I thought, yet no. The strawberry is definitely the sweet treat I thought I was smelling, and I’m glad I know carnation when I’m smelling it! The other florals, I don’t think I would have guessed. The hibiscus I think is giving a slightly tart edge, keeping the blend from going powdery. It’s youthful and joyful. The scent settles as a tart sweet candy floral. If the carnation has reigned, and maybe if I could have detected the poppy, it would have been more my jam. Pleasant for warm Spring days like today, though! Glad for the adventure.

Sed Non Satiata is a quiet scent on me, despite the concept. I get a delicate floral honey entwined with a light musk, seems like skin musk, and perhaps a touch wood from the patchouli. It’s a scent that amps some with the warmth of wear (that’s appropriate for the concept!) and if I wanted something subtle and lightly sexy, I might consider wearing it. I like heavier scent overall, though.

Smelling Veil reminds me of scents I used to shy away from, when I thought perfume in general was stuffy... or I honestly didn’t know anything about the variations and wasn’t about to smell like an old lady. Haha oh how times have changed. Wet, I get the lavender and violet primarily, reminding me a lot of the TAL Peace. Then there’s a green freshness that joins in, maybe the lilac is making this effect? This is my favorite phase, there’s a bit of sandalwood anchoring, and it’s like a glistening forest flower cove. The gardenia starts to overtake the other florals and the ylang ylang joins in to bully them away. The dried scent is a lush floral and smooth sandalwood. I appreciate this more than I ever would have in my past, though it’s still not a favorite combination of flowers. I’d be up to make my house smell like this some warm sunny day, though.

Here We Come A-Wassailing is a morpher, a mutable spirit spreading holiday cheer, even in March amidst a viral crisis. I first get a figgy leather (yes! I scream through my satisfied nostrils). Here comes the clove, packing a punch. Then, imperceptibly, the apple is becomes present, “When did you get here?” I can now smell the rum, and the rum outlasts the whole lot of them, except for a bleary-eyed apple and fig, who woke up from a nap in the other room and decided to come back and hang out. It’s a great holiday scent, if you like apple cider-type scents, and some mighty morphing power (at least from my experience). If it had stayed leather-heavy supported by primarily fig, even just those, with some complexity from the others, I would be clamoring for a bottle. As it is, I’ll likely keep the decant and wear it in the Autumn. Now, I’m going to dream about a Brown Leather, Fig, & Spiced Rum ménage à trois.... *coughplease* Leather Fig Sandalwood Leather Fig Honey Leather Fig Ambergris Leather Fig Carnation Leather Fig Olive Leaf

Hollywood Babylon was a scent I previously shied away from, both the concept and the fruit notes repelled me. As I was reading the Luper cherry reviews, I wanted to scratch the itch to have a similar experience. I’m glad I decided to revisit. Wet, I get thick vanilla amber, strawberry, and a bit of red musk. I think I detect the heliotrope, yet I’m not totally confident that I do. This stage does remind me of Snake Oil, same vanilla. As the oil dries, the cherry and strawberry entwine, making a new type of fruit in their love. I like the scent up to this stage, then it takes a turn. The fruit amps and becomes candy-like. The musk is there, but only as a blanket for the strawberry cherry affair to roll around on. It ends up being too girlie, less sexy on my skin. Bummer! If the wet stage had continued, I’d probably be wearing it for a few days. haha Thankfully, it does somewhat fulfill my desire for those cherry scents, so I won’t be hunting down a bottle that I probably won’t wear too much Update: in the late late drydown, the remaining hint of cherry and a smidge if amber are reminding me of dragons blood

Odin is sweet musk, slightly woodsy, slightly foody in a cookie kind of way. The wet phase had more of the elm bark, and it didn’t get foody until the drydown. I can envision hay and hazelnut, that others have mentioned, and now I’m curious about the herbs of power. They make a delicious smell together, and that’s something powerful. I’m really liking this. I usually prefer my gourmands to be a little earthy or musky, something a bit more complex than just sweets. It doesn’t seem to be the essence of Odin I expected, more like his wife Frigg. Maybe she chose his scent for the day, or this is the smell lingering on Odin’s beard after breakfast in her kitchen.

Thick cherry almond cola, layered over a decadent powdery base, I’m thinking myrrh and maybe some labdanum with a musk. Skin musk makes sense, yet with the darker resins it’s not as sweet clean on me as usual. The almond holds on for the entire wear length, impressive. Black Phoenix isn’t a scent I’d really want to wear, mostly because the powder is so strong on me, and I don’t often want to smell like almonds. Huge throw & wear length.

Bloodlust began heavy, dragons blood incense and red musk broiling over a woodsy patchouli and spiked with vetiver and cinnamon. The fierce red blend slowly lessens in strength, melding into a warm sexy musk embrace of patchouli vetiver, sprinkled with cinnamon, until the last note standing is a grassy vetiver, haunted by musk. Not too bad...

2014 version of Luperci is smooth musky patchouli and honey, with some smooth wood and plush moss. This is a masculine scent that feels really embracing and capable. Wearing this makes me want to bake wheat bread in an oven fueled by wood chopped down on my early morning walk. Classical music plays while I pet my cat and ponder how contact with nature effects my emotional responses to everyday stresses (or some other such connected contemplation), waiting for the timer to ding. I stir some honey into my tea. The sun moves leisurely advances across the the table. Tail curls in the space below chair. A sigh of contentment.

One arm is delicious cozy patchouli, snuggled by musk and smoothed by amber. The other arm is a sharper patchouli, cut through with bergamot and shivered by cypress (a touch of amber lurks in the distance). Such a funny experience, and it happens every time I try it, at least for the past few days. Even more interesting, the drydown made me so confident that it was benzoin dominant over patchouli base, before I knew the notes. Of course, it must be the amber because there’s no benzoin. By this stage it gives me a similar peace of mind that I Am Tired of Tears and Laughter (favorite bedtime scent), though not as beloved as that one. I’m glad I have this bottle though, and can save my darling sleep scent a bit. I do love patchouli, and sharper herbal scents often hit the mark for me, especially with musk & amber present. Winter Stars is a win for me. The difference between my arms intrigues me and makes me think of the diverse energies beaming down from the multitude of stars. Edit: oops! Forgot to mention the herbal lavender is present in most of the experience until the “benzoin” phase. Yummy.

I wish my experience of White Rabbit was similar to torischroeder9! In the initial wet phase I can detect the tea and the linen, then it’s all up linen hill from there. Fresh, a bit soapy, maybe some cream, yet not as enjoyable as The Sea Foams Milk. If I want to smell like laundry, I know where to go. In the last stage of wear the linen does back off and the tea is there with maybe a shred of ginger, not spicy at all though. Takes a while to get there and isn’t much throw by then anyway.... Maybe if I can try an aged imp, it’ll be different ratio of notes. For now, I’m letting this white rabbit hop away.

I’m not a big fan of skin musk, yet this was alright for about the first half hour, a musky honey with tart apple, hint of peach, and maybe a dab of resin underneath. Unfortunately, if turned to powdery fruit candy after the first phase. Didn’t notice the rose, and don’t know if I was smelling the orange blossom & just lumped it in with peach in my mind.... (I only remembered a few notes while testing.) Not my thing, but it’s a lighter sexy summer scent for those how like fruity or (skin) musky honey scents!

Al Azif is a sweet cedar-y incense on me. Very rounded and smooth. I definitely get some sandalwood, too, and maybe some amber. I agree the sweetness could be maple or almond, though it’s subtle enough to make it hard to decipher. I also think my imp is pretty aged. Comforting to smell, yet no throw on me so I have to huff my wrist to get any.

Strong sandalwood, befitting the name Little Wooden Doll. The sandalwood is lightly perfumed by rose, a gentle rose, maybe because it’s really the amber that is perfumed. I don’t get a very obvious amber note until late in the wear, as the powdery smooth wood dominates so much. The rose slowly merges more and more into the wood through the wear, until I can’t pick it out too well. It’s a very pretty, girlie sandalwood scent, true to the theme, I even get a soft sense of melancholy.

Iago, man, Iago is a masculine man. This leather is the type that I don’t really enjoy. Not sure if it’s because of the other notes, but it’s too... aquatic in a sense. Not actually aquatic, but in a way it’s a strong leather that is like the dark depths of the ocean. Very much a cologne vibe, and way too far on the masculine side for me. Nothing to warm it up, nothing to whisper in my ear, just an imposing force breathing down on my neck. This would pair well with the Strong in His Entreaty hair gloss. Now that I’m looking at that, it might be the combo of this leather & vetiver that makes such a masculine cologne scent. *shrugs*