ShadowEtienne

This is bright and soothing at the same time. The grapefruit is light and tart and crisp, and it mingles beautifully with the floral waft of apple blossoms. The white tea note is warm and soft, with floral and mineral elements that keep everything smooth and together. The ginger is a sweeter, gentler fresh ginger. Everything in here comes together to something floral and airy and calming. Its definitely in line with some of my favorite scents, but I'm not sure if this is going to eventually be a bottle scent for me or not. It will definitely be worth future wearing and considering from the imp.

A lovely tea-floral-citrus combo is very much my jam pretty much always, so it's not really a surprise this is a hit. I'd not originally just gone for a bottle because champaca is one of my hit and miss floral notes as to whether it is beautiful or musty on my skin, but here it's playing nice. I am likely going to have to go in for a bottle before the Lupers go away. On my skin, the blood orange is definitely the most fragrant note. It is just peeled and dripping fragrant juices onto fingers and tables. There is a gentle waft of the champaca blossom under it making it more floral and keeping the sweetness of this blood orange from getting sticky, instead staying aromatically airy and tart. The tea is a lovely warm note supporting it all, distinct but calm and supportive. I'd say this is a warmer scent than either Aizen-Myoo or Night-Gaunt, but if you like either of those, you will likely enjoy this but also find it distinct enough to be worth your while.

Like all of the Lunar New Year scents, this is deeply evocative of the lacquer trays of dried and candied fruits that my foster family would put out for Chinese New Year. There are floral wafts and gentle additions of resins that help to ground the scent, but overall, it's a very citrus forward, tart fruity blend. This is definitely a more fruit forward year, quite similar to Fire Monkey for me. The sticky rice cakes aren't as present here as they are in Water Rabbit, but they do help soften some of the notes that might be too sharp otherwise, they're just a subtle background element. I really do love this one!

Mint, mint, mint, and more mint! Fresh and herbal and dewy like it's still on the plant first thing in the morning in the garden. There are so many layers to this mint, and I am here for it because I love mint. I was nervous about the cucumber. I don't like cucumber as a scent because I'm slightly allergic to it (raw) as a food. Here though, the note may be what is lending that slightly aquatic note to the overall scent, but it's not sitting there smelling like a cucumber, much to my relief. The pepper is very quietly there, just a hint of sharpness that really adds depth to scent. I'm excited about the partial decant that I got of this as a gift, and honestly, may consider trying to pick up more if I see it floating around.

Well, truth in naming for me. It smells like cucumber that has just been cut into and is getting its juice everywhere. This is unfortunate because I'm slightly allergic to raw cucumber, and the scent does not come with good associations for me. I could see it being a fresh and lovely scent for someone else. Fortunately, this was a gifted imp, not one that I picked out myself. This will get passed along to someone who will enjoy it more.

I got a bottle of 2012 Punkie Night in a forum order. I was a little tentative sniffing the bottle because most of what I was getting was just sour. Figured it would open up on the skin, and I was delighted with where it went. This is loudly cranberry on me. The lightly spiced cider note hangs out in the background supporting tart bright cranberry and blending it complexity and depth. It's a rich and very fall smell, so I might not wear it much in the coming months, but I'm excited to have it once weather starts getting crisper.

This is a lovely floral, jasmine forward on me which is what I'd hoped for. I love the green tea note in here and the gentle backing of the wood note from the cypress. The other flowers aren't super distinct on me, but they add depth to the floral note.

On my skin, this is indeed very similar to Metal Tiger, but slightly better because it is slightly more fruit and floral forward and slightly less herbaceous (I credit the hemp not for the herbaceous element in both probably). Like all of the Lunar New Year scents, this is a lacquer bowl of Lunar New Year treats with wafts of blossoms drifting in among the scents. There is the hint of resins from the dragon blood and that faint herbal element. I am thrilled to have a bottle of this now, and I'm really pleased with how strong and present the citrus is.

Of the LNY scents I've tried in comparison to Fire Pig: - Earth Rat is sweeter and has a candied melon element to the scent - Metal Tiger has a hemp note that gives it a grassier/woodier element, it's kind of drier (haven't tried Metal Rabbit yet, but has the hemp note as well, so I suspect it will be similar) - Water Dragon is one that is divisive! I love it, but it has a strong biter-herbal-citrus note that seems to remind some folks of the candles for warding off bugs - Water Snake is gentler/mellower than Fire Pig, but likely to be appealing for many of the same reasons and notes - Wood Horse (along with Fire Monkey that my sister mentioned above) is one of the closest to Fire Pig for me - Wooden Goat has a stronger peach note that makes it sweeter and more fruity - Fire Monkey is probably the closest match to Fire Pig for me - Water Rabbit has a lot of commonalities with Water Snake for me, and while mellower than Fire Pig probably also going to be something someone who likes Fire Pig would like. Haven't Tried: Metal Rabbit (hemp note is going to take this a direction), Fire Cock (suspect this one is going to line up nicely in the close to Fire Pig set), Earth Dog (has patchouli and that makes me nervous), Earth Ox (this has a tobacco note so I can't try this one), Metal Rat (another one with the melon note), Water Tiger (don't know how similar this one will be).

I was very dubious of this in the description, but it was acquired as a very very full frimp in a group order. The fullness is relevant because I got some on my fingers as I was opening it for a curiosity sniff. In the imp, it was baffling but fine? But the scent on my fingers opened up leaving a note that reminded me of the incredible apple wood note from Birnam Wood. So I decided to take it home and give it a longer test. On my skin, the foremost note is that apple wood sweetness enhanced with a backing of honey. There's something earthy or loamy in the background which I suspect comes from that fermented mushroom, but it's not prominent. There's also a hint of a sort of savory fruitiness which might be the pumpkin rind note. This is definitely all about the apple wood/rootstock on my skin, and I'm happy about it.

Like standing in a clearing in the woods, specifically a mixed deciduous and evergreen wood a little up into the mountains or hills in late autumn on a dry day (where it's been dry for at least a few days because nothing smells damp). There's a good mix of trees, but they're all layering over each other, and the green herbal smells of the underbrush are mingled in with them. There is no one tree or herb that is yelling to be heard, but the overall blend is very evocative of a place.

The jasmine in this is blooming gloriously at night, filling the garden with sweet and rich scent. The honeysuckle is a softer note in harmony, sweetening it and adding its own richness. Juicy wild plums and citrus fruits bring sweet fresh tartness too this, like they have just been cut and peeled to provide an evening's refreshment in this lush garden. Orris and benzoin give a soft earthy and resinous backdrop to the scent, grounding it in its garden and making the scent feel like it is in a real place and not some dream garden. This is rich and beautiful and one of my favorite jasmines I have tried yet!

Peach and moss can be iffy notes on me; and ambergris, incense, and pomegranate are still kind of unknowns that have not been consistent in my small sampling. Cardamom is however my favorite spice, so I came in hoping that this would work but dubious. I have lucked out! Peach and pomegranate combine to make a tart, fruity, juce-like layer on which the rest of the scent seems to drift. The incense and moss team up for a green and lightly smoky note that keep the scent from going sickly sweet. The ambergris is a quiet soft creamy element that smooths over any rough edges from the rest of the notes. The star of the show on my skin, to my delight, is a toasty, sweet and smoky cardamom. Every other note is supporting it and really making it shine. I think this is the best possible outcome I could have from these scent notes.

The verbena is fairly forward on me, and it is definitely a lemony verbena. It's well balanced and backed by a warm resinous wood (probably the olibanum and sandalwood) and a smoky wisteria (probably that would be wisteria plus incense). The ambergris isn't particularly noticeable on me, but there is a sort of creaminess to the blending of the scent that I can probably attribute to it. I'd describe the overall effect as being a citrusy herbal backed with resinous and floral notes. I like it and am glad I took a small risk on it skin chemistry wise because these aren't notes that always work well for me.

This is soft and lovely but present on my skin. This scent evokes a small pond with mint and not yet flowering violets and winter jasmine growing around it, with a frozen crunch around the edges and soft fluffy snow falling silently into the water. There are aquatic elements to the scent for sure, but they are calm and still and gentle. I'm not getting much of something I'd identify as incense, just some drier notes that add to the herbaceous elements of the mint and violet leaf. This is a wintery smell that promises spring in the future because by this sheltered pond there are small delicate green things yet, and the cold of winter has not overtaken all the water. I'm really enjoying it in the warmer months that I'm sampling it in because it is evocative of chill without being clashing or glaring against the weather.

On my skin, there is a warm but soft wood note, like well used teak furniture, and the waft of rich black tea, well balanced with a cool fresh sea breeze's salty note. Like sitting somewhere overlooking the sea with a cup of tea. The dried rose petals are a faint background note on me, adding just a touch of something floral, like a bunch of dried roses across the room but in the flow of air. The rose scent definitely seems to be carried on the salt air from some distance. It's lovely and comforting as a scent, and I really like this element of sea breeze that sort of ties the scent together.

A feshly peeled, sweet, juicy orange. The whole orange is there, the zesty oils of the skin, a hint of pith, and the sweet juicy tartness that one gets biting into the first section of an orange after peeling it. I'll likely not wear it solo much, but this is absolutely going to be what I reach for when I want to add citrus to something (which is often).

I don't think that this one is playing nice with my skin chemistry. It smells like still sodden driftwood, just washed up and not dried and sun bleached yet. The orange blossom is almost fully overwhelmed by soggy salty wood.

This is a scent that is very true between the imp and my skin for me, and that is a lovely thing. It reminds me of salt water in a protected bay or cove on a still day with only the slightest breeze ruffling its surface. There are white florals blooming across the water (some sort of lilies I think are in there, it shares some notes on me with Prague and other lily scents). Theres definitely citrus, possibly grapefruit, hanging out in there as well. Definitely a soothing, bright scent! I'm happy that I'm getting to give this a longer experiment with the imp I got. May end up being a bottle scent eventually.

Unsurprisingly for my skin, lily of the valley is the foremost note here. It's a delicate yet somehow also sweetly spicy floral on me, and is as always a scent note I love. Champaca was the note I was potentially uncertain on here, but it's supporting and rounding out the lily of the valley with some richer, deeper florals - adding something almost reminiscent of a jasmine on me (this pleases me). The sandalwood is subtle on my skin, but adds a nice slightly dry woody note to the mix that helps ground the scent. It's tied together as a slightly floral-spicy scent that smells like perhaps it is being wafted through the air after having been applied to an old softly scented sandalwood fan. Glad I got this, and will happily use my bottle of it, not likely to get a backup bottle unless I find myself reaching for it a lot while it's still up on the site.

This is sweet in a delightfully tart way, but not too sweet. There's also definitely a bright fuzziness too it. It reminds me in many ways of a gimlet, and made with a gin I like, gimlets are one of my favorite drinks. There is an undertone in there definitely reminiscent of ginger, which makes me think that it's one of the implied botanicals in the gin, and it adds a lovely bite and freshness to the scent. I'm very glad I decided to get some of this before it was gone.

This is a freshly peeled, bright juicy tangerine and manadrin orange, juices mingling together as they're peeled. The fruits are sweet and sour and perfectly ripe, and their skins are aromatic with the oils that scatter when peeling citrus right off the tree. The orange blossom note is quieter, but adds a distinct, airy floral note that keeps this from smelling sticky. It's bright and fresh and refreshing and definitely something that I see myself reaching for in warm weather or when I want to layer in some floral citrus in something else.

I suspect that this is going to be one of those jasmine notes that is divisive. It works well on my skin, bringing to mind the sweet richness of jasmine slowly drying in the sun. The gardenia brings a subtle note of sweet freshness that makes the flowers smell more alive. The mallow is a sweet earthy and herbal note that does remind me just a touch of homemade marshmallows I've occasionally encountered at farmers markets. Overall, I like this, but I might be experimenting with layering in spices or citrus (or both) for a more complex scent.

This is a very green yuzu forward scent. It's rich in notes of the rind, and it smells fresh and not quite ripe. The floral orange blossom note of the neroli is light, but present. The mandarin orange keeps the bitter elements of the green yuzu from overwhelming the citrus pleasantness. It's the sweetest note in here. Overall, I really like the balance of this, and it is reminiscent of grapefruit in its combination of notes, while still having it's own distinct elements. I could see it being a little divisive as a scent. I personally love the overall freshness of this scent on my skin.

I was sure enough on the notes of this to blind bottle it before there were any reviews, and tea and lilies have not let me down. On me it is true to the notes if perhaps not to the mood implied by the title. This is the scent of drinking tea outdoors on a spring morning with dew on the lilies blooming in the garden, and a bit of tea has spilled on a crisp silk crepe but it is mostly dried. The combination of teas may be contributing to how the lilies smell alive and growing and freshly bloomed on me. There's something very fresh and airy about the scent, but also something elegant, perhaps because it does smell distinctly like silk as part of its scent profile. I may honestly have to consider a second bottle of this before it goes away.