This post's purpose is to collect my common tags in one place, so readers (and I!) can easily access entries on several subjects.

Two for one! I never remembered to post these, though I wrote them up when I got them. I have already given the imps away. Also need to write up some imps daedala gave me at WisCon.

Love Potions:
Jezebel

A gloriously decadent blend of honey, roses, orange blossom and sandalwood.

Vial: Honey, sweetly overwhelming a hint of flowers. It's almost sickening.

Wet: Mostly honey and orange with a hint of a dustier scent; maybe that's the sandalwood? No longer smells sickly sweet.

Drydown: Orange and roses. Don't really smell the sandalwood except as a sort of aftertaste. The rose emerges more as it dries.

Love Potions:
Vicomte De Valmont

Based on an 18th century gentlemen's cologne: ambergris, white musk, white sandalwood, Spanish Moss, orange blossom, three mints, jasmine, rose geranium and a spike of rosemary.

Vial: Yum. Ambergris, musk, sandalwood. A very clean, men's cologne kind of smell.

Wet: Clean and fresh--maybe that's the mint coming out?

Drydown: Pretty much the same. I never got a real sense of the flowers, but it was a very complex scent.

I wore this one several times before giving it away. Would be a good scent for a shower gel or soap.

Bewitching Brews:
Veil

White sandalwood, lilac, gardenia, violet, orris, lavender and ylang ylang.

Vial: Lavender and violet, I think; possibly gardenia.

Wet: Flowersflowersflowers. No hint of sandalwood as far as I can tell. Violet and lilac are dominating.

Dry: I like it, but it's so violet-y that I might not be in the mood for this very often. It's a little too sweet.

Wanderlust:
New Orleans

Sweet honeysuckle and jasmine with a hint of lemon and spice.

Vial: Honeysuckle! Jasmine.

Wet: Honeysuckle! Jasmine.

Dry: Honeysuckle! Jasmine. I never did catch the lemon and spice, maybe a hint of lemon but am not sure. I like this very much, though, it’s so sweet and flowery.

Yeah, yeah, not much of a review. But if I go all analytical, I'll forget the smell.

Wanderlust:
Bagdhad

Amber, saffron, and bergamot with mandarin, nutmeg, Bulgar rose, musk and sandalwood.

Vial: Wow. Sandalwood and amber and maybe musk. Very incense-y. Very nice.

Wet: Still mostly sandalwood/amber/musk, to my nose.

Dry: I mostly smell sandalwood/amber/musk, but that's good, because that's what I wanted. I smell like the store on Chestnut Street that sells beads and Indian clothing and incense.

Love Potions:
Muse:

Tuberose, lotus and jasmine with a hint of lime.

Vial: Jasmine with a hint of lime.

Wet: Jasmine. I have no idea what lotus smells like. I don't catch any rose.

Dry: Did I mention jasmine? But I love jasmine, so that's excellent.

Thanks to rilina for this one!

ewitching Brews:
Belle Époque

Sweet opium, Lily of the Valley, vanilla, mandarin and red sandalwood.

Vial: Mandarin, vanilla, Lily of the Valley--sweet with a citrus tang.

Wet: The sandalwood came out almost immediately. If the mandarin is still there, it's blended in.

Dry: More sandalwood and possibly the opium, whatever that smells like; it's a darker scent. The vanilla seems to be gone, unless it's a mellowing agent, because the sandalwood is not at all harsh or overpowering. Very nice, complex.

Mad Tea Party:
Alice

Milk and honey with rose, carnation and bergamot.

Vial: Sweet honey and tangy bergamot.

Wet: Rose and carnation emerged quickly; I could only faintly detect the bergamot. I don't think I caught the milk at all.

Dry: Rose and carnation. Very nice. I can smell a hint of honey if I sniff close to my skin.

Mad Tea Party
Two, Five & Seven

A huge bouquet of squished rose petals: Bulgarian rose, Somalian rose, Turkish rose, Damascus rose, red and white rose, tea rose, wine rose, shrub roses, rose, rose, rose...and just an itty bitty bit of green grass.

Vial: A strange sweetness I couldn't identify that then faded until I could smell the roses.

Wet: Roses, sweeter than in Rose Red, and less fresh-smelling, and by that I mean not like roses growing with wet dew on them; they still smelled nice and very rosy. I didn't pick up the green grass at all.

Dry: Same. Doesn't seem very strong on me, but that might have been the nose-numbing effect. I prefer Rose Red, but this is still nice.

Love Potions
Maiden:

A gentle vision of purity, goodness and virtue: white tea, carnation and Damask Rose.

Vial: Made me swoon, though I didn't think I liked carnation. I do love the scent of tea, however.

Wet: I wanted to glue my nostrils to my wrist. I think it's the tea that makes me like it so much, but I can't separate out its scent from the carnation and rose.

Dry: It faded a lot, so far as I can tell; my nose gets numbed to the scents after a while. If I've put scent in my hair, I can often smell it when I get my hair wet in the shower that night, but I didn't catch this very much. So, lovely, but I don't think it has a lot of staying power. I guess one could just keep adding more; I don't think that could be overwhelming.

Love Potions:
Vicomte De Valmont

Based on an 18th century gentlemen's cologne: ambergris, white musk, white sandalwood, Spanish Moss, orange blossom, three mints, jasmine, rose geranium and a spike of rosemary.

Vial: Yum. Ambergris, musk, sandalwood. A very clean, men's cologne kind of smell.

Wet: Clean and fresh--maybe that's the mint coming out? I couldn't distinguish the scents in the background, I guess they were too closely blended.

Drydown: Pretty much the same. I never got a real sense of the flowers, but it was a very complex scent.

Bewitching Brews:
Sudha Segara

Sweet milk and warm, healing ginger with a touch of golden honey and our blend of Ambrosia.

Vial: Ginger, ambrosia.

Wet: Lemony, though there is no lemon. Then milky ginger, like a nice spicy dusting powder.

Dry: I think it faded quickly, or my nose got used to it. Like many others, it lasted longer on my hair than my skin. Another keeper!

Bewitching Brews:
Eclipse

A delicious blend of bitter almond, vanilla, frankincense and heliotrope, with a drop of cinnamon.

Vial: Mostly bitter almond, maybe heliotrope, but am not sure about that.

Wet: Almond and frankincense, and the vanilla comes out. It's muskier, spicier.

Dry: Pretty much the same--it lasted well, especially when I streaked a little in my hair.

I like this one a lot, but bitter almond makes my skin burn a little, for a few minutes after I put it on (Seraglio did this, too). I think I will stick to putting it in my hair. A keeper!

The Gratiæ
Euphrosyne

Gardenia, tea rose, vanilla and jasmine.

Vial: Gardenia and jasmine are strongest, covered a bit by vanilla.

Wet: Pretty much the same, though I can smell the rose a bit more.

Drydown: Mellows, and the vanilla emerges pretty strongly, so it smells more like old-fashioned dusting powder.

Diabolus
Nosferatu

Desiccated herbs and gritty earth brought to life with a swell of robust and sanguineous red wines.

This one was a freebie. Nasty, dry, old scent. I guess a vampire would smell like that. So icky, I decided I wasn't putting that on me.

Voodoo Blends
Follow Me Boy

A houdoun recipe dating back almost 150 years. This blend is favored by prostitutes, exotic dancers and others in the sex industry for its power to attract, seduce, and enthrall. Ensures financial gain and increased profits.

Another freebie.

Vial: Flowery, but not too sweet--for some reason I thought it smelled slightly oily, as in plain safflower oil.

Wet: Very nice, though I can't identify the individual elements; maybe some jasmine? Lilac? I kept sniffing my arm, which has to be a good thing.

Dry: It lasted very well, smelling more flowery after it dried. I thought it smelled like lilac, but am not sure. If I don't have a hint of what's there, I think it's all kinds of scents.

Wanderlust
Machu Picchu

Sweet tropical fruits burst through deep, wet rainforest boughs, enormous steamy blossoms, over thin mountaintop breezes, mingled with the soft, rich golden scent of Peruvian amber.

Vial: Sweet and tangy.

Wet: A faint ozone scent emerges over the fruit and flowers.

Drydown: The amber emerges and the sweetness dies down; I also smell something citrusy.

Dry: To me, it smells like oranges, with a hint of amber. Very nice, but not me; I gave this one away.

Sin & Salvation
De Sade

The raw scent of leather.

Smells like leather the whole way through. I didn't think it was an overwhelming scent, just there and mildly pleasant. I put some in my hair and it lasted well there.

Limited Edition, Rose Red

The perfected winter rose, dew covered and freshly cut.

In the vial: Fresh roses, and a sweetness almost like fruit.

Wet: Same. The fruity sweetness dies off, leaving only crushed fresh rose petals.

Dry: Same. Someone just came into the office and asked if someone had gotten flowers. I said, "Roses?" and, looking surprised, she said, "Yes!"

When in books, people are wearing "attar of roses"? This is what I imagine that smells like.

One of the freebies that came with my recent order.

Mad Tea Party
Jabberwocky
Pine, eucalyptus and orange.

Vial: Strong, penetrating eucalyptus with pine needling [heh] through.

Wet: A tart orange comes out and the blend smooths out some. It's nicer than I expected it to be. Not something I would necessarily scent myself with all the time; it doesn't smell like perfume to me, just some nice smells that are hanging around.

Dry: Either my nose is numbed to it or it wore off pretty fast.