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juushikaPUMPKIN PATCH I (LE, Halloween 2009)
Pumpkin, almond, brown musk, and honey.
In the vial: Sweet warm pumpkin, spiced with brown musk.
On me: I've had bad luck with the creamy pumpkin in Jack, but the Patch pumpkin note is so different—it's drier, less creamy, never waxy, more like a true-to-life raw pumpkin than a pumpkin candle. On the skin the pumpkin in this blend is glowing umber, slightly spiced, dry and gourd-like but quite warm. It's not an outright foody note, so the almond and honey don't turn this into a bakery—they make the pumpkin richer, slightly sweeter, a little heady, and more golden. The brown musk is beautifully distinct, more spicy than animalic, with a slight powdery texture. All told this is pumpkin spiced by brown musk, rich and warm and comforting, yet somewhat unusual. I adore it. Scent-color is dark bronze; throw is moderate, and wearlength is moderate to high.
Verdict: This isn't my favorite of this year's pumpkins, but I am perfectly pleased with it. It's a difficult scent to describe, unfortunately—the pumpkin/brown musk combination needs to be sniffed to be understood. But the pumpkin is glorious, and the notes which accompany it make for a unique scent, warm and glowing, textured and slightly spicy in the nose, altogether remarkable and lovely. I feel lucky to have a bottle.
PUMPKIN PATCH V (LE, Halloween 2009)
Pumpkin, chocolate, coffee bean, vanilla bean, and hazelnut.
In the vial: Pumpkin and coffee. The pumpkin is warm and spiced, more savory than sweet and not at all buttery. The coffee is mellow but quite distinct. Comparisons to a pumpkin spice latte are apt.
On me: A pumpkin spice mocha. The Patch pumpkin note is divine, savory and dry, warm and golden. The hazelnut and vanilla cut down on some of the dry gourdiness, making it a bit lighter and sweeter. And the rest of the blend reminds me a lot of El Dia de Reyes: a powdery combination of coffee, milk, and cocoa. This is a foody scent, a wonderful warm pumpkin spice mocha, but it has a distinctly powdery texture (which I think is lovely) and the pumpkin and coffee keep it savory and grounded. Scent-color is flaxen (a creamy, pale, orange-yellow); throw and wear-length are moderate.
Verdict: Pumpkin Patch V is El Dia de Reyes (2008) meeting his new best friend, pumpkin. I wouldn't have expected the blend to be so powdery, but it has a lot of El Dia de Reyes's powdered milk/cocoa mix dryness. That's not a bad thing, though—it meshes well with the dry spiciness of the pumpkin, and the vanilla and hazelnut keep the powderiness under control. And Pumpkin Patch V is simply beautiful. Comforting, warm, foody but tempered, this is my favorite of this year's Halloweenies and I'm thrilled that I have a bottle.
SERPENT'S KISS (GC, Diabolus)
Seething with passion, yet utterly cold-blooded. Dragon's blood, vetivert and spice.
This was a frimp from the Lab, but I've been curious to try it.
In the vial: Spices and smoke. The combination leans towards foody but doesn't quite reach it.
On me: This isn't vetiver as I'm used to it—dragon's blood is so juicy that it washes out most of vetiver's harshness; what remains reminds me of liquid smoke: a thickened, darkened, somewhat woody scent that's so smooth it's almost wet. Surprisingly the dragon's blood isn't distinct outside of this effect—it may add a bit of roundness and redness to the scent, but it's very subtle. The spices (which remind meof traditional western baking spices, but are not foody) add warmth and dimension. This is an odd scent: warm, reddish, smoothly smoky—yet while all of those aspects sound cuddly and warm, this blend leaves me feeling cool. Scent-color is dull, dark burgundy; throw is moderate to low.
Verdict: Serpent's Kiss is at once exactly what it says on the tin and nothing like I was expecting. All the notes have the potential to be very bold, but instead they're toned down: a wet, reddish resin; a smooth smoke; a hint of warmth and depth. The combination is warm, dark, and spicy, though not quite "seething with passion"—but it is certainly cold-blooded. The scent has a sense of distance, coldness; I feel like it's pushing me away even though I'm the one wearing it. So while it's pleasant enough, nuanced and skillfully blended, I don't imagine I'd wear this much. I like a scent I can cuddle up in, and this isn't that. I expect I'll trade away my imp.
ETHER (GC, Phoenix Steamworks & Research Facility)
Translucent blooms, ethereal white resins, and davana.
A frimp from the lab.
In the vial: ...lemon? A very pale, delicate lemon—pleasant except that I usually hate the scent of lemon.
On me: During drydown this is lemon, a light sweet floral, and the smoothness of pale resins. It reminds me of a lemon square but white and fluffy and not quite so foody: a opaque white but still ethereal scent. Within half an hour, much of the lemon dies off and the blooms become more prominent, pale but distinctly floral; the sweetness combines with the florals to be a bit cloying, and the scent becomes slightly muddied and faint. It's still pleasant though, sweet and airy, lemony, fresh, floral, more-or-less ethereal. Scent-color is white; throw is moderate-high, dying down to moderate-low.
Verdict: Pale scents and florals rarely work for me; I generally hate lemon. So it's something of a surprise that I find Ether quite pleasant. I like its earlier stages more, when the lemon scent keeps it fresh and the florals are gentle; the later, more floral stage is decent too, but not quite as light or distinct. Regardless, this isn't the scent for me. I imagine it's lovely in the summer, but airy lemony sweet floral scents will never suit me regardless of the time of year. I'd love to smell it on someone else, though. I'll trade away my imp.
EPHEMERA (GC, Bewitching Brews)
The scent of loss, love and the echo of time without end: sorrowful violet and chamomile with muguet, white geranium, calla lily and tea rose with a hint of autumn leaves.
A frimp from the Lab which I would never have ordered for myself—I'm not a big fan of florals, but mostly it's that rose tends to amp to epic, horrific levels on my skin.
In the vial: Oh yeah, that's floral all right. Unfortunately I'm not very good at picking out individual floral notes.
On me: Because I'm not good at discerning most florals, this may be an entirely pointless review. My sense of this is largely fleshy white flowers, I suspect mostly the muguet and calla lily, which have a thick, almost cloying scent with a bit of sharpness. But the rose peeks its head out soon enough—a thick, pink, sharp scent, the rose never quite crowds out the lilies but it sure tries. As the lily and rose vie for supremacy, they combine into something fleshy and vivid pink, sharp and strongly floral—it lacks humidity but mimics the texture of tropical florals. I sometimes catch something a bit powdery (violet? chamomile?), and sometimes something a bit sweet, lurking in the background. Scent-color is pink; throw is moderate to low, and wear length is incredibly short—perhaps an hour?
Verdict: It's not unpleasant, but it's a little conflicted in its constant battle between lily and rose—and regardless, the florals in Ephemera just aren't to my taste. It also fades so quickly that there's little point in applying it in the first place. Neither my skin nor my nose much like this blend, so I'll send it on its way.
Pumpkin, almond, brown musk, and honey.
In the vial: Sweet warm pumpkin, spiced with brown musk.
On me: I've had bad luck with the creamy pumpkin in Jack, but the Patch pumpkin note is so different—it's drier, less creamy, never waxy, more like a true-to-life raw pumpkin than a pumpkin candle. On the skin the pumpkin in this blend is glowing umber, slightly spiced, dry and gourd-like but quite warm. It's not an outright foody note, so the almond and honey don't turn this into a bakery—they make the pumpkin richer, slightly sweeter, a little heady, and more golden. The brown musk is beautifully distinct, more spicy than animalic, with a slight powdery texture. All told this is pumpkin spiced by brown musk, rich and warm and comforting, yet somewhat unusual. I adore it. Scent-color is dark bronze; throw is moderate, and wearlength is moderate to high.
Verdict: This isn't my favorite of this year's pumpkins, but I am perfectly pleased with it. It's a difficult scent to describe, unfortunately—the pumpkin/brown musk combination needs to be sniffed to be understood. But the pumpkin is glorious, and the notes which accompany it make for a unique scent, warm and glowing, textured and slightly spicy in the nose, altogether remarkable and lovely. I feel lucky to have a bottle.
PUMPKIN PATCH V (LE, Halloween 2009)
Pumpkin, chocolate, coffee bean, vanilla bean, and hazelnut.
In the vial: Pumpkin and coffee. The pumpkin is warm and spiced, more savory than sweet and not at all buttery. The coffee is mellow but quite distinct. Comparisons to a pumpkin spice latte are apt.
On me: A pumpkin spice mocha. The Patch pumpkin note is divine, savory and dry, warm and golden. The hazelnut and vanilla cut down on some of the dry gourdiness, making it a bit lighter and sweeter. And the rest of the blend reminds me a lot of El Dia de Reyes: a powdery combination of coffee, milk, and cocoa. This is a foody scent, a wonderful warm pumpkin spice mocha, but it has a distinctly powdery texture (which I think is lovely) and the pumpkin and coffee keep it savory and grounded. Scent-color is flaxen (a creamy, pale, orange-yellow); throw and wear-length are moderate.
Verdict: Pumpkin Patch V is El Dia de Reyes (2008) meeting his new best friend, pumpkin. I wouldn't have expected the blend to be so powdery, but it has a lot of El Dia de Reyes's powdered milk/cocoa mix dryness. That's not a bad thing, though—it meshes well with the dry spiciness of the pumpkin, and the vanilla and hazelnut keep the powderiness under control. And Pumpkin Patch V is simply beautiful. Comforting, warm, foody but tempered, this is my favorite of this year's Halloweenies and I'm thrilled that I have a bottle.
SERPENT'S KISS (GC, Diabolus)
Seething with passion, yet utterly cold-blooded. Dragon's blood, vetivert and spice.
This was a frimp from the Lab, but I've been curious to try it.
In the vial: Spices and smoke. The combination leans towards foody but doesn't quite reach it.
On me: This isn't vetiver as I'm used to it—dragon's blood is so juicy that it washes out most of vetiver's harshness; what remains reminds me of liquid smoke: a thickened, darkened, somewhat woody scent that's so smooth it's almost wet. Surprisingly the dragon's blood isn't distinct outside of this effect—it may add a bit of roundness and redness to the scent, but it's very subtle. The spices (which remind meof traditional western baking spices, but are not foody) add warmth and dimension. This is an odd scent: warm, reddish, smoothly smoky—yet while all of those aspects sound cuddly and warm, this blend leaves me feeling cool. Scent-color is dull, dark burgundy; throw is moderate to low.
Verdict: Serpent's Kiss is at once exactly what it says on the tin and nothing like I was expecting. All the notes have the potential to be very bold, but instead they're toned down: a wet, reddish resin; a smooth smoke; a hint of warmth and depth. The combination is warm, dark, and spicy, though not quite "seething with passion"—but it is certainly cold-blooded. The scent has a sense of distance, coldness; I feel like it's pushing me away even though I'm the one wearing it. So while it's pleasant enough, nuanced and skillfully blended, I don't imagine I'd wear this much. I like a scent I can cuddle up in, and this isn't that. I expect I'll trade away my imp.
ETHER (GC, Phoenix Steamworks & Research Facility)
Translucent blooms, ethereal white resins, and davana.
A frimp from the lab.
In the vial: ...lemon? A very pale, delicate lemon—pleasant except that I usually hate the scent of lemon.
On me: During drydown this is lemon, a light sweet floral, and the smoothness of pale resins. It reminds me of a lemon square but white and fluffy and not quite so foody: a opaque white but still ethereal scent. Within half an hour, much of the lemon dies off and the blooms become more prominent, pale but distinctly floral; the sweetness combines with the florals to be a bit cloying, and the scent becomes slightly muddied and faint. It's still pleasant though, sweet and airy, lemony, fresh, floral, more-or-less ethereal. Scent-color is white; throw is moderate-high, dying down to moderate-low.
Verdict: Pale scents and florals rarely work for me; I generally hate lemon. So it's something of a surprise that I find Ether quite pleasant. I like its earlier stages more, when the lemon scent keeps it fresh and the florals are gentle; the later, more floral stage is decent too, but not quite as light or distinct. Regardless, this isn't the scent for me. I imagine it's lovely in the summer, but airy lemony sweet floral scents will never suit me regardless of the time of year. I'd love to smell it on someone else, though. I'll trade away my imp.
EPHEMERA (GC, Bewitching Brews)
The scent of loss, love and the echo of time without end: sorrowful violet and chamomile with muguet, white geranium, calla lily and tea rose with a hint of autumn leaves.
A frimp from the Lab which I would never have ordered for myself—I'm not a big fan of florals, but mostly it's that rose tends to amp to epic, horrific levels on my skin.
In the vial: Oh yeah, that's floral all right. Unfortunately I'm not very good at picking out individual floral notes.
On me: Because I'm not good at discerning most florals, this may be an entirely pointless review. My sense of this is largely fleshy white flowers, I suspect mostly the muguet and calla lily, which have a thick, almost cloying scent with a bit of sharpness. But the rose peeks its head out soon enough—a thick, pink, sharp scent, the rose never quite crowds out the lilies but it sure tries. As the lily and rose vie for supremacy, they combine into something fleshy and vivid pink, sharp and strongly floral—it lacks humidity but mimics the texture of tropical florals. I sometimes catch something a bit powdery (violet? chamomile?), and sometimes something a bit sweet, lurking in the background. Scent-color is pink; throw is moderate to low, and wear length is incredibly short—perhaps an hour?
Verdict: It's not unpleasant, but it's a little conflicted in its constant battle between lily and rose—and regardless, the florals in Ephemera just aren't to my taste. It also fades so quickly that there's little point in applying it in the first place. Neither my skin nor my nose much like this blend, so I'll send it on its way.
