quantquill

Purchased an Ajevie chonk (1 oz decant) from a pre-order, which I received in April. I gave it a test run today, and what I mostly get from it is effervescence with a bit of gingery lime. Not exactly the smell of ginger ale, there's a subtle supporting layer of incense, but a recognizable scent of "sparkling ginger lemon" that wafts out of a glass after you pour your ginger ale. I realize there's no ginger listed, maybe that's a combo of the tea, cardamom and amber tricking my nose. Pleasant, for sure! A very "work safe" scent. It won't raise any eyebrows (though it may make people crave a sparkling beverage). However, I prefer spicier blends (Mischief, Who Is Nibbling at My House, Morocco, and Dorian, I'm looking at you!) and have a lot of bottles. I think I'll destash this chonk to a loving home. 8-)

This is a somber scent. Beautiful in the bottle. My skin chemistry amps leather, and it's that "new car smell" type of leather, not a sweet leather. On me, I can smell two layers of scent. The top layer is the leather, and then, when I put my nose to my skin, a beautiful, comforting cashmere musk with the rest of the notes blending into a seamless whole. Glad I got to try this, but I think it will smell better on someone who can handle leather.

As with all the "Dead Leaves" scents, this one goes on with a blast of "scorched leaves in a fire" but it very quickly (within 2 minutes) morphs into a sweet praline with a breath of floral vanilla. I'm glad I got to try it, I love praline and vanilla, but I just don't love the initial dead leaves, it makes me not reach for it. So I'll destash it. 8-)

Wet: a harsh blast of something astringent, likely the carrot seed, but I'm guessing. Dry: Heart-achingly beautiful, elegant, and complex. Sandalwood smoke -- that's a note I'm going to look for in other perfume oils. Combined with the wisteria and iris, wow. I'm getting a mental image of an elegant, self-assured woman in a little black dress, white pearls, clutch purse, hair in a chignon. I'm more of a yoga pants and gourmand girlie, lol. Super glad I got to try this! Will be passing it along to someone more befitting. Also: As another reviewer said, I can't pick out any individual notes and I don't smell lavender -- maybe it's the piercingly "pretty" note underlying the whole thing? If you're looking for a perfume with great longevity, my skin eats all perfume oils very fast (less than an hour) and this is still going strong 3 hours after dabbing it on my wrists.

Thank you to BPAL for a frimp! I didn't look at the notes before slathered today, wanted to see what I could pick out on my own. First off, I lucked out on the skin chemistry! It smells fantastic. Sunny, fruity, and honeyed. I thought before looking at the notes that I detected a bit of juicy peachy plum with a hint of the skin. Those aren't in the notes but I'm guessing it's maybe the tonka and chamomile? I love gourmands. This isn't gourmand but it's not floral, either. More like a bunch of bees had been out pollinating and landed on a ripe plum on the way home, leaving behind an impression of herby floral, then the plum got picked and carried inside, split open, and just coz, dipped in some honey before taking a bite. It's also low throw but has lasted a couple of hours with the same scent strength (my preferred combo, since I'm around a lot of people with allergies). I keep smelling my arms (yes, I did say I slathered...) and smiling. I'll be adding this to my wishlist! If anyone has a bottle they want to find a new home for, hmu.

As others have said, I, too, am a Libra, and when this came up in a destash, I had to try it. Wet: It reminds me of a solid perfume scent locket I had as a child. My grandparents gave it to me for my birthday around age 8 or 9. This is giving me alllll the feelz. It's a sweet powdery rose with a hint of carnationy spice. Let's give it a little time to develop. I don't love rose on me, but all the other notes are things I love. Dry (5 minutes after application): Still mostly rose, but the spice from the carnation has kicked it up a notch, joined by a slightly tart, sweet note (the plum?). So much nostalgia. Haven't thought of that perfume locket in 40 years. Dry + 30 mins: The rose is still prevalent (80% of the scent) but the other 20% is even more sweetness alongside the carnation's spice. I can't pick out a specific note of cherry, plum, fig, honey or black currant, they meld into a "flowery fruity sweet". Since others have been able to pick out notes, I'm chalking that up to skin chemistry. It's a lovely scent, I'm glad I got to try it, and experience the rush of nostalgia. However, I don't love rose on me (which, now I've smelled this and had the childhood flashback, may be because it makes me feel like a kid playing dress-up). This sweet, spicy rose deserves a good home, off to the destash pile!

In the bottle, I got a whiff of cat pee (you know those bushes with prickly leaves that smell like cat pee?). However, I know better than to let *that* scare me away! Let's get some oil flowing, people. Wet: Phew! No cat pee scent at all. Instead, it's a big bracing blast of... menthol? Dry: Bracing citrus adds to the mix! The menthol fades toward mint. Dry + 5: Menthol is gone. Citrus has mellowed. It's not sugared grapefruit, but maybe sugared rind? A teeny hint of mint. No florals. Dry + 15 through 30: Mellow grapefruit (no sourness at all) with a hint of sweetened rind. Quite pleasant. What a ride! I accidentally bought 2 bottles (hello, binge buying from multiple places!), so I'm going to keep one bottle to enjoy, and destash the other. Seems like it would be a good option to clear the sinuses! Maybe I'll slather some on my chest next time I've got allergies. Then I'd get to enjoy the mellow dry-down with my newly cleared nose!

Bought this through Ajevie, they had full bottles in a "Black Phoenix charity sale" category. Scent is so magically subjective. I can agree with coffee cake, but it's not the cake part, it's the crumble topping. Gingerbread, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and some wood or plant I can't name that has a sharp edge when wet, and then mellows as it dries down. I get a faint base of cake dough, but it never fully commits because the crumble topping keeps it in line. It's not full-on foody. It's definitely not sweet. It's spicy. Like putting all the spices you need for the crumble topping for the coffee cake in a bowl (I'm talking the powdered version of spices) and then sticking your nose in the bowl.

Got a 1 oz decant from a forumite and tried it today. The scent is sweet and relatively slight, peach and vanilla floral. It left my hair a little oily, which may be because it wasn't all the way dry (I usually wait until it's dry). On the very plus side, my normally frizzy and wackadoodle "straight for this chunk of hair, wavy for that one" turned uniformly wavy and has stayed that way, even though I've combed it several times. The scent stuck around for 3 to 4 hours, delicate and fruit/pretty.

Ohhhh, wow, this is the good stuff. I had looked at the notes yesterday, thinking about buying a bottle, and then today I got a package which included a frimp (guess it was meant to be). As one does, I cracked it open and sniffed. Then I started pouring it on. I had forgotten what the notes were and so my "blind" guess was apple and honey with some coconutty creaminess. As it dried down, a teeny hint of a orangey floral peeks out, a delicate fruity blossom, with some vanilla underpinning. Yeah, I guess it's gourmand but I don't want to lick my arm, I just want to bury my nose in a sweater doused in this stuff and smell and smell. Weird that the only thing from the listed notes I'm getting is "honey". Delicate floral, creamy, appley vanillic honey. Full-sizing this one.

Got a sample of Recollection from a lovely forumite and 1000% concur this is a beautifully soft, creamy vanilla. It's not highly fragranced, and I further dilute it by mixing it into unscented lotion then slathering it all over (definitely not wasting this in a bath lol). That way it stays skin close and my skin doesn't eat the scent in 10 minutes like it does everything else.

I can't believe no one has reviewed this yet... I bought it from a forumite, here goes... You know the feeling you get when the dentist puts the mask on and laughing gas starts flowing and everyone leaves the room and you breathe deeply? That little bit of tingling at the tips of your fingers and toes, the floaty sensation of calm descending at the back of your mind, the loosening of your jaw because tension drains away? That's Balm of Hermanubis. I'm not claiming this is laughing gas. We're speaking metaphorically here. It's actually completely beside the point to me what it smells like, although I don't dislike it absolutely love it (edited after using it a second time). It's bracing, well-blended, frosty pine myrrhy-ness with a tiny bit of sweetness. It doesn't make me want to sleep, even as it induces calm. I'd use this any time I wanted to evoke mental relief from a storm of anxiety. It's perfect for slathering on my chest and forearms and back of neck, and sitting or lying down to meditate, and playing something from YouTube channels Jason Stephenson, The Honest Guys, or Meditative Mind and realizing this, too, shall pass. Given the amount of toxic-to-cats EOs in this blend, I will definitely avoid touching our kittehz until I wash it off thoroughly, and I'll be careful not to get any of it on my clothes for the same reason. So, I guess it's also good to use before taking a shower. Meditate to clear the mind, then shower to clear the body. 8-)

Holy g-string, I love this scent. It might seem "Sweet Tarty" in the bottle, but on, it's so intensely beautifully mandarin with a dab of heady incense and maybe a teeeensy bit of sugar that I want to keep my nose on my arm to smell and smell. It's not toothache sweet, though it has a sweetness like the scent that rises when you pull apart a juicy orange and get a little spray out of it. It's not bitter from the rind, instead it goes straight to rich and heady. I say "keep my nose on my arm" because unfortunately, my skin eats all scents except cinnamon, so I installed a rollerball and slathered this alllll over, including the ends of my hair, collarbones, chest, stomach, behind my ears, back of my neck, and it's not too strong for me. Skin chemistry thing. I don't mind reapplying frequently to keep getting that heady deliciousness.

Strawberry and peach jam with a touch of incense that I get when I breathe in really deep (as one does when intoxicated by a scent) that comes in on the exhale. I love this scent so much. I'm trying on a few scents right now and decided to layer Solstice Scent's Iced Persimmon over the top of everything I'd tried on, and Lilith's Tea Party was having none of it and waved it away.

Got this from a lovely, lovely forumite who spotted it on my wishlist and asked if I'd like her bottle. I'd had a sniffie sample and fell. in. love. but was afraid it wouldn't smell as good in a big bottle / on my skin, so kept putting off the purchase, but when the universe sends you that kind of sign, one must obey. I gave it some time to settle and tried the bottle, and ohhhh yes. Organic real Canadian maple syrup with a tiny bit of Aunt Jemima's brown sugary-ness added. I don't have a very discerning nose, and it's the simple things I love, so this hits the spot. I didn't get any bread, toast, dough, etc. A little touch of cloves, maybe? That's probably what I'm calling brown sugar. I'm going to enjoy smelling like I spilled syrup on myself. Yes, indeed.

Not sure what year this is, I bought it through the forum and it's had lots of time to rest. I hoped for the church incense monocainsheresy described. Unfortunately something in the mix veers toward sour on my skin. On top, I get a sort of apple pie (you know the ones from McDonald's that come in the sleeves?), which gives so much nostalgia! Must be the cassia giving that hint of cinnamon spice? But what would give the apple? Ahhhh, the mysteries of scent. But then underlying, it's dusty wood (sandalwood?) and a screechy sourness. Possibly the "wine" note of the kyphi? I don't think I've tried it in anything before. Usually frank and myrrh scents are yum-alicious on me and they drown out everything else. I'm glad I got to try this because it sounded like a delicious mix. I keep huffing my arms to see if it has changed. The apple has veered a bit toward cherry after 20 minutes, but I'm still getting that bit of unpleasantness underneath. Betrayed by skin chemistry. ETA: Well, hm. It's now been about 40 minutes and the unpleasantness is gone, leaving a rich, incensy McDonald's apple / cherry pie. Can I stand that initial unpleasantness to get to the wonderfulness? Maybe I'll try layering. ETA: Whelp, asked my partner to smell it and he leaned in, then jerked back. "Smells like a cheap candle. Perfumey. Like from a dollar store." Sigh.

First impressions: I'm not sure the Lab's Dead Leaves note is a good fit with my skin chemistry. In the bottle, this smells sharp and sour. Wet: strong smell of fallen dry leaves tossed in a campfire. 2 minutes later: leaves have faded as a juicy but not-sweet scent comes forward -- which I guess is the pumpkin? 5 minutes later: a slight caramel sweetness is hanging out with the pumpkin puree. 5 minutes later: Maple leaves + marshmallow swirled in pumpkin puree. It reminds me of pumpkin pie filling with NO pumpkin pie spices before we dump in all the sugar, so the only sweetness comes from the vanilla/maple scent in the marshmallows. Low throw, have to hold my hand to my nose, but my skin eats scents -- ymmv. Verdict: Wow, what a morpher! After 10 minutes, it's delightful. I may not have the patience to wait this one out in future, but I'm glad I got to go on this journey and see that the Dead Leaves note can actually work for me.

Got this in a forum purchase 6 weeks ago and finally pulled it out to give it a try. In the bottle, it's pleasantly nutty with an undertone of sweetness. On my skin, I get half and half peanuts and hazelnuts. That blast dies down after a few minutes and there's a hint of natural sweetness underneath that comes forward. Unfortunately, my skin ate it allll up in the next few minutes. I've added a roller ball to the bottle; we'll see which of us gives up first. I think it will complement Castitas bath oil, so I'll layer it over one of these days. I don't love the blast of nutty, but once that dies down it's a lovely, slightly sweet, clean, slightly hazelnut scent.

Received this as a frimp from a forum order and it. smells. SO. delicious. I'm torn between hoarding it and just dabbing a little on my wrist at a time so I can keep smelling it, or taking the yolo approach and slathering it. I get fizzy cherries with a bare hint of vanilla underneath, or maybe a little spice. It's on my wishlist. If anyone is looking to destash, I'm your gal.

Yikes, why am I the first one to review this? ? My nose is illiterate, but I'm going for it, because I want everyone to know how wonderful this scent is. Purchased through a Luper 2024 decant circle and all I have is an imp, which is now down to 1/3 full after 2 days. That's a lot of slathering, I've never come close to using up an imp before. Will be FS immediately. On my skin: drunk, rich cherries, perfect golden amber and sweet, spicy musk all partied a little too hard and had a menage baby. No mint, tangerine, or honey, unless it's the reason the musk and cherry smell is coming through with such richness. DELICIOUS. Absolutely gorgeous. Pour it all over and curl under my blanket, pull it over my head so I can breathe in warm, sweet-scented air. Sorry if that sounds weird.

In the imp, it smells almost astringent. Completely different on my skin. ? The taste of crystallized ginger when the chunks are coated with ginger-flavored sugar? That's what this smells like to me. So very good. I get a bare hint of something pleasantly herbal underneath after it's been on a few minutes, but it's nearly a sugared ginger one-note for me. Love it.

Yum. I'm terrible at picking out specific notes usually, but the pomegranate is juicy and a great mix of sweet and tart. It's almost like blending a slightly unripe peach with a maraschino cherry. I'm not able to pick out peppercorn but maybe it's mellowing the sweetness a bit? It's definitely a smell-yourself-repeatedly-coz-damn-that's-good scent. Makes me want to slather it all over.

My latest package included a lovely small spray decant. It separated in the bottle, which I found fascinating and kept shaking it up to watch it separate out again. It made me want to use it right away. It only arrived today. <smack hand> Wait. Give it a day. <can't can't> Finally gave in and unscrewed the spray top to sniff it. An uncontrollable, "Oh, wow, this smells good!" came out of my mouth. It ticks alllllll the boxes for me. Spicy cinnamon and allspice blended perfectly. Something sweet added, not vanilla, and not what I recognize as cotton candy or anything else, but my nose is crap so ymmv. Next time I wash my hair, it is game on! If it smells as good on me as in the bottle, I've already added the bottle to my cart and that baby is all mine. ETA 6/27/24: It did smell fantastic! I got a full-size bottle and already put quite a dent in it, lol.

I bought a bottle from the forum and let it sit for a few weeks and tried it tonight and... I'm gutted. It smells terrible on me. These notes, I love these notes! Yet all I'm getting is a mix of slightly smoky/ashy Vaseline, a muted hint of Tiger Balm and helium-inflated birthday balloons left out in the sun too long, with the tang of antiseptic bandages underlying the whole thing. This is one of the most evil tricks skin chemistry has played on me. ?

I bought Castitas from BPAL and ... Unlike the previous reviewer, I don't get toasty grain. On me, it's a veeery gentle, slightly floral vanilla. It takes a while for the scent to develop; I put it on in the mornings whether my skin is damp or dry, mixing in a few drops with my unscented lotion and slathering it on. (I've tried with and without adding lotion, works great either way.) After settling in, within half an hour I'm getting delicate hints of floral vanilla when I move around. Can't stop sniffing my arm. Low throw, no one else is commenting on the scent, including my partner. That's how I want it -- too many people around me have allergies or scent opinions and I only want to please myself with scents. I've layered BPAL's Voodoo Lily, Nui Cobalt's Feu Follet, and Arcana's Strawberry Craves Incense, and to all of them, Castitas adds a dollop of delicious.