White Rabbit - Strong black tea and milk with white pepper, ginger, honey and vanilla, spilled over the crisp scent of clean linen.
In the vial, odd. It smells like nothing so much as a pizzelle to me. Question is, what will it smell like *on*? Color, pastel yellow.
Wet on my skin, I'm getting honey, slightly sour milk, ginger, and white pepper. Not exactly what I want to smell like.
10-15 minute drydown - Now it's white pepper and ginger and nothing else. Eh, you win some, you lose some.
*****
Rhinotoros - Skin-Piercing
Vetiver, patchouli, white pepper, and grapefruit.
In the vial, *waaay* too much vetiver and I actually *like* vetiver. Color, bronze.
Wet on my skin, the amount of vetiver in this actually makes my throat itch and my nose burn a little. Oof. Too much for me.
10-15 minute drydown - I dunno about Skin-Piercing, but Nostril-Piercing is definitely accurate. The vetiver starts to take on a resinous, almost pine-y smell that I like, but it's just overpowering. No thanks.
*****
Undertow - The Dark Side of Water: clean and purifying, yet menacing — lotus and juniper with a hint of mint. A scent dragged up from the depths to the Stygian shore.
In the vial, the bubblegum lotus is the first thing that pops out at me, with just a hint of mint behind. Nothing of the juniper yet, but that may come when I put it on. Color, sea foam green.
Wet on my skin, there's much more mint. It's a pretty even balance of the lotus and mint. Still no juniper, but that could be in the drydown.
10-15 minute drydown - THERE's the juniper... I'm starting to get a slightly herbal/resinous note under the sweetness - juniper berry! At least, what I associate as juniper berry - the distinct 'piney' note in gin. Not something I'd wear on a regular basis, but not unpleasant.
*****
Niflheim - The House of Mists, a land of icy fog, shadowy darkness and soul-chilling cold. Dark, damp blossoms winding through an impenetrable, murky gloom.
In the vial, I'm getting bitter herbs and crushed blooms. Unhappy is definitely a good descriptor for it. Color, pastel green.
Wet on my skin, I'm smelling strong, bitter flowers and maybe moss or greenery. Someone else had mentioned an ammonia smell in a review and, unfortunately, I have to agree.
10-15 minute drydown - Fortunately, that ammonia smell is starting to taper off, but it's still not me.
*****
Bengal - A sultry and unruly blend that emulates the ambient scent of the markets in ancient Bengal: skin musk with honey, peppers, clove, cinnamon bark and ginger.
In the vial, it smells like wildfire honey I used to buy from a merchant at Pennsic. Spicy and sweet. Dunno what kind of flower it was from, but damn it tasted good. Color, crimson.
Wet on my skin, I'm getting honey, clove, cinnamon, and ginger. I smell thoroughly edible, but in a good way. It's spicy foody, not sugary foody.
10-15 minute drydown - Ohhh.... There's the musk..... Ok. I need like 5 bottles of this one, STAT.
*****
No. 93 Engine - Beeswax candles reflect flickering light onto a brass-coated boiler engraved with the words "Solve Et Coagula". The gargantuan boiler sends torrents of steam into rigid pipes that exert force onto innumerable pistons and turbine blades. The motion is harnessed to propel energy into gargantuan cogs and gears that move liquid metals, herbs, and resins into a series of alembics.
Balm of Gilead, benzoin, frankincense, balsam of peru, beeswax, saffron, galbanum, calamus, hyssop, mastic, lemon balm, and white sage.
In the vial, it's very resinous. I'm going to give it a chance, but I don't have high hopes. Color, copper.
Wet on my skin, I smell beeswax, saffron, hyssop, lemon balm, and sage. Problem is, 99% of the time saffron will turn to melted plastic with my body chemistry. Here's hoping it doesn't.
10-15 minute drydown - And there's the melted plastic. Damn. It smelled quite nice, too. I'll try it out on Josh - the Steamworks stuff seems to work on him quite nicely.
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