Post by stardustgirl on Feb 5, 2012 20:48:18 GMT -5
How late IS this!?! I'm so behind, but here's my two cents:
This is my November order, which I got halfway reviewed then had to stop because with so many similar scents I began to be unable to smell them at all. I broke it down into baby steps and between that and the holidays it took for-ev-er to review them, but here they are.
They are mostly some recent newbies and the holiday scents since I've tried a few here and there but didn't take notes on which ones were my faves. Since a lot of them share similar notes, it can be confusing to figure out which one is your love match so this is my two cents on what they seem like to me.
First off, I'll compare Caramel Apple (previous order) vs. Spellbound vs Fair Day.
Caramel Apple is one of my faves (I got a big candle of it for Fall and it's gone now). It's a great mix of both tart and juicy apple, and gooey caramel. Big throw. Totally addicting.
Spellbound comes across as a more sugary scent - I get sugar, then apples then a smidgen of a vanilla caramel scent
Fair Day - a sugary version of Caramel Apple, with the caramel and apple being about the same (whereas in Spellbound I picked up more apple than caramel).
They all share similar notes but they are all different when sniffed side-by-side. I still love Caramel Apple the most for a true caramel apple scent for Fall, but my nose has a sweet tooth so the more sugary versions will be welcome as well.
Then there are the mint scents that are similar but not exactly...
Peppermint Bark - Such a wonderful scent! It's very popular among the CBV crowd with good reason - sooo creamy smooth with a strong but not insane peppermint note. It smells like a peppermint milkshake. My candle has a fabulous throw. This will be a holiday staple.
Peppermint Patty - the Altoids peppermint - brisk. Imagine holding your nose over a bottle of Peppermint essential oil or extract and you've got an idea of what that's like if you aren't familiar with Altoids. It says there is a hint of vanilla but I think it's just enough to take the edge off and keep this from being a full on menthol-y minty peppermint. No chocolate in this one.
Chocolate Peppermint Splash - This reminds me of a Peppermint Patty, with the brisk filling being like the Peppermint Patty scent covered in a coating of chocolate. I notice the mint more in this one, as opposed to Chocolate Mint.
Chocolate Mint - Like an Andes Mint - the mint in this like the mint in Peppermint Bark (creamy) covered in chocolate. I get about a 50/50 choco/mint blend with this one.
Sweet Snow - another non-chocolate minty scent but fits in the minty group - it's a brisk mint ala Peppermint Patty but instead of a splash of vanilla it's got a bunch of vanilla so it's not nearly as strong of a mint. It's still a minty mint (not creamy) but not as intense as PP.
Sleigh Bells - the description is spot-on. This is almost all cherry almond with just the tiniest bit of mint. If you fear mint, this may be your pick.
Winter Snowflake (I now find I want Summer, Spring, and Fall Snowflake scents just because I'm weird like that) - This is the Peppermint Patty mint with a fair dose of pine mixed it. It seems like more than a "hint" but pine is like that, I guess. Pine doesn't hint - it takes out a fullsize billboard along a busy highway.
Blueberry Candy Cane - these fruity minty combos sound SO strange to me but I'm going to give them a shot. This one gets lots of love from Bewitchedgirl (I think... sorry if I'm confused) and I like mints and blueberry so think this will be good. Cold sniff gets me mostly blueberry but definitely a minty blueberry - not brisk but not creamy either... more like the mint of a Lifesavers.
Cherry Candy Cane - way more cherry than mint but that's pretty normal for cherry stuff on cold sniff. When I warmed this one it reminded me of a cherry car air freshener - not that it's *bad*, that's just what it made me think of.
Strawberry Candy Cane - This smells like a sweet strawberry syrup with mint lurking around the edges
Cranberry Peppermint - this seems the most evenly blended of them all, with about half of each scent
I already did the big compare-all-the-apples review and now along comes Apple Cobbler. Ha! I've got a Baked Apple Strudel here which it would seem to be the closest to, and side-by-side I feel that BAS has more clove in it so it's a warmer, spicier baked apple goods scent than the cobbler version.
Apple Cobbler - I want to eat this.Lots of apple and sweet gooey apple filling, not spice-heavy, and I'm sure there's crust lurking in there but I'm not getting it cold.
Leafy stuff:
Leaves (Type) - I've not smelled the mall chain version of this so don't know how well it dupes, but just judging it alone, it's not a scent would make me think "ooh Fall! Leaves!" It's almost sweet with a number of warm spices - not earthy at all (it doesn't claim to be, but when I think of leaves I think earthy.) It's almost cidery or wassail-ish. Autumn Leaves is more what I think of for Fall, with a hint of a woodsy note to it.
Drink Me stuff:
Holiday Wassail - Leaves with Apples, lol! I also get the oranges and pineapples in this one too. Fruity-licious with a touch of spice.
Holiday Homebrew - Hellooo cinnamon! Craft shop cinnamon is what I notice the most on cold sniff. It reminds me of a scent called Hillbilly Homebrew that's floating around lots of places, or maybe CBV's Country Bumpkin (also a cinnamon powerhouse). This will be best for big spaces otherwise it may singe my nose.
Caramel Cream Eggnog - I'm not a big nog fan, but in the interest of testing these out I went for it. I do get a good whiff of caramel so this is promising.
Snow + Berry =
Snowberry - I notice mostly the berry part, strawberry since I'm not familiar with loganberries. It's not a syrupy strawberry note like the Strawberry Candy Canes so maybe the loganberry is more tart or mellows out the strawberry... dunno. The SCC is way more minty than this so that hint of mint is definitely a hint.
not to be confused with
Snow Drift Berries - Brisker than Snowberry, this doesn't list a mint note but I do get briskness with the berries... that must be the pine although my nose just reads it as "brisk", not pinesol.
Let It Snow - Soft, pretty mint with some eucalyptus. If I think about it, I can detect the cinnamon but it doesn't overwhelm the mint.
Snow Storm - I notice mostly the powdery violet in this one, just a hint of the mint, but that's fine because I love violet It sounds like a holiday scent but doesn't really smell like one, but when you want a soft pretty floral, this is your scent. I don't know if it dupes what it's going for since I can't compare but it does have that underlying whatever that seems to run throughout that line.
Cranberries -
Cranberry Brulee (rhymes with Raspberry Beret and now you have that Prince song stuck in your head, don't you? You're welcome.) - Cranberry with a bit of a creamy note, not a juicy scent.
Cranberry Relish - Mostly cranberry with some warm apples (the apple reminds me of the warm not-terribly-spicy, but just a hint o'spice apple in Leesha). I *so* need to compare this to Cranapple, which I don't have.
Green stuff -
Mistletoe - smells cinnamony! I get the oranges too. This is going to be a strong throw.
Hollyberry - mmmm... cloves! The orange in this is smoother than the orange in Mistletoe (which is almost a juicy note).
Bayberry - I thought bayberry was bayberry was bayberry no matter where you went, and I *almost* got this in a candle without trying a scent shot based on that theory, but when I re-read the description and it said "eucalyptus" I decided I really needed that scent shot first. I'm glad I did. I *do* smell the eucalyptus note in here quite a bit, and while it's not bad, I guess I'm a traditionalist with my bayberry and just want generic ol' bayberry, which to me is a bit spicier.
Allll those scents with Christmas in the name:
Christmas Eve - Nutmeg and ginger and creamy... a bit like smelling the filling for a pumpkin pie only without the pumpkin. I want to say there's a hint of orange lurking in there.
Christmas Cabin - I get the cranberry and orange notes right away with a wee tiny bit of spice. I'm guessing the other notes I smell are the bayberry blending in. When melted it's more berries than spice, which is a nice break if your nose is suffering cinnamon overload during the holidays.
Christmas Memories - The orange and sugared spruce stand out, with the cranberry hanging back.
Christmas Pineberry Bough - having smelled Christmas Tree, I can say that while the pine dominates in this one it is mellowed out a *lot* by the mulberry, even though I cannot pick out the mulberry by itself. When melted, the pine note stays strong and can overwhelm a small space. I liked this in a big area but it was kind of headache-y in a small area.
Christmas Buttered Rum - very buttery (duh) and reminds me of those butter rum Lifesavers.
Christmas Lane - I'm liking this one a LOT. I recognize the Apples N Oaks scent in here (I love that one), and the pine and spice notes do not overwhelm it.
Charlie Brown Christmas - Bergamot and Cinnamon spice goodness with some orange in there too.
Yuletide (hey... it's just Christmas by another name, right?) - Orangey! Love it! The cedarwood keeps this from being a tropical fruity scent and it's a nice break from the spice and pine combos.
Christmas Kitchen was in the Pumpkins N Apples review because it had pumpkin,
Christmas Apple Cider Snap was in with the apples, and Christmas Cabernet I tried long ago and like many wine scents, it's just not for me. I like wine. I don't like having the house smell like it, possibly because after working as a bartender it makes me think something needs to be cleaned up. Christmas Tree has also been tried earlier and it's a potent pine (much more intense than Sugared Spruce but lacking the additional wood note of Piney Forest)
Holiday stuff that didn't fit neatly into another category:
Cookies For Santa - A spicy cookie... I notice a red hot cinnamon note on the top
Star Of Bethlehem - my nose goes for the orange/clove first, probably because I know those notes. There's something different around the edges, which I'm guessing is the frankincense. I'm not as familiar with the incense-y notes.
Three Wise Men - earthy patchouli incense-y... my mother is going to love this one, lol! I like these types of scents in small doses.
Sugar Plums - sweet but not sugary berry-ish scent, very nice
Halloween / Fall stuff
Pumpkin Chocolate - Must. Not. Eat. Scent. Shot. This is going to be awesome if it's like the cold sniff. I love the combination; it makes me think of pumpkin muffins with chocolate chips. I think I need to bake some now.
Witch's Brew - Tart n fruity! I can pick out all the fruity notes. I notice peach the most, followed by pineapple, then orange. I love the sickly green color of this - it's perfect!
Monster Mash - Blueberry! Yum! The apple/bakery notes blend in nicely. This is definitely a not-just-for-Halloween scent. If you like berry bakery scents, don't miss this one.
Bite Me - ohhh love this one! I smell Fizzy Pop (which I should've guessed from the description but didn't). I notice the lime of that, mixed with the cherry / berry notes. It smells very summery to me.
And all the rest:
Sweet Angel Dust - I picked this one because it had "angel" in the name and that seemed kind of holiday-ish even though the description isn't. It's a super sweet floral that smells like that ginormous bath goods line that dare not speak its name. I do like sweet florals but that line seems to have an underlying common note in many of its scents that just makes it seem fake to me. That said, it makes for an accurate dupe, lol! I feel the same way about the actual products too. It's not a dislike, it's just an observation.
Tomahawk Memories - Woodsy greens and fall weather
Country Berry Hotcakes - I notice mostly the berry notes, and am guessing the hotcake part comes out when warmed.
Cottage Garden - if you love florals, this is amazing. It's a pretty blend with the hyacinth standing out the most for me. I don't notice the fruit notes so either they will come out more when warmed or they're serving as a way to blend it all together.
Blue Sugar Cotton Candy - Yummy sweet! It's blended so that I can't pick out individual notes but the overall scent is complex sugariness.
Light Blue For Men (freebie) - I've not smelled the cologne it dupes, but this does have the "men's fragrance" air to it.
This is my November order, which I got halfway reviewed then had to stop because with so many similar scents I began to be unable to smell them at all. I broke it down into baby steps and between that and the holidays it took for-ev-er to review them, but here they are.
They are mostly some recent newbies and the holiday scents since I've tried a few here and there but didn't take notes on which ones were my faves. Since a lot of them share similar notes, it can be confusing to figure out which one is your love match so this is my two cents on what they seem like to me.
First off, I'll compare Caramel Apple (previous order) vs. Spellbound vs Fair Day.
Caramel Apple is one of my faves (I got a big candle of it for Fall and it's gone now). It's a great mix of both tart and juicy apple, and gooey caramel. Big throw. Totally addicting.
Spellbound comes across as a more sugary scent - I get sugar, then apples then a smidgen of a vanilla caramel scent
Fair Day - a sugary version of Caramel Apple, with the caramel and apple being about the same (whereas in Spellbound I picked up more apple than caramel).
They all share similar notes but they are all different when sniffed side-by-side. I still love Caramel Apple the most for a true caramel apple scent for Fall, but my nose has a sweet tooth so the more sugary versions will be welcome as well.
Then there are the mint scents that are similar but not exactly...
Peppermint Bark - Such a wonderful scent! It's very popular among the CBV crowd with good reason - sooo creamy smooth with a strong but not insane peppermint note. It smells like a peppermint milkshake. My candle has a fabulous throw. This will be a holiday staple.
Peppermint Patty - the Altoids peppermint - brisk. Imagine holding your nose over a bottle of Peppermint essential oil or extract and you've got an idea of what that's like if you aren't familiar with Altoids. It says there is a hint of vanilla but I think it's just enough to take the edge off and keep this from being a full on menthol-y minty peppermint. No chocolate in this one.
Chocolate Peppermint Splash - This reminds me of a Peppermint Patty, with the brisk filling being like the Peppermint Patty scent covered in a coating of chocolate. I notice the mint more in this one, as opposed to Chocolate Mint.
Chocolate Mint - Like an Andes Mint - the mint in this like the mint in Peppermint Bark (creamy) covered in chocolate. I get about a 50/50 choco/mint blend with this one.
Sweet Snow - another non-chocolate minty scent but fits in the minty group - it's a brisk mint ala Peppermint Patty but instead of a splash of vanilla it's got a bunch of vanilla so it's not nearly as strong of a mint. It's still a minty mint (not creamy) but not as intense as PP.
Sleigh Bells - the description is spot-on. This is almost all cherry almond with just the tiniest bit of mint. If you fear mint, this may be your pick.
Winter Snowflake (I now find I want Summer, Spring, and Fall Snowflake scents just because I'm weird like that) - This is the Peppermint Patty mint with a fair dose of pine mixed it. It seems like more than a "hint" but pine is like that, I guess. Pine doesn't hint - it takes out a fullsize billboard along a busy highway.
Blueberry Candy Cane - these fruity minty combos sound SO strange to me but I'm going to give them a shot. This one gets lots of love from Bewitchedgirl (I think... sorry if I'm confused) and I like mints and blueberry so think this will be good. Cold sniff gets me mostly blueberry but definitely a minty blueberry - not brisk but not creamy either... more like the mint of a Lifesavers.
Cherry Candy Cane - way more cherry than mint but that's pretty normal for cherry stuff on cold sniff. When I warmed this one it reminded me of a cherry car air freshener - not that it's *bad*, that's just what it made me think of.
Strawberry Candy Cane - This smells like a sweet strawberry syrup with mint lurking around the edges
Cranberry Peppermint - this seems the most evenly blended of them all, with about half of each scent
I already did the big compare-all-the-apples review and now along comes Apple Cobbler. Ha! I've got a Baked Apple Strudel here which it would seem to be the closest to, and side-by-side I feel that BAS has more clove in it so it's a warmer, spicier baked apple goods scent than the cobbler version.
Apple Cobbler - I want to eat this.Lots of apple and sweet gooey apple filling, not spice-heavy, and I'm sure there's crust lurking in there but I'm not getting it cold.
Leafy stuff:
Leaves (Type) - I've not smelled the mall chain version of this so don't know how well it dupes, but just judging it alone, it's not a scent would make me think "ooh Fall! Leaves!" It's almost sweet with a number of warm spices - not earthy at all (it doesn't claim to be, but when I think of leaves I think earthy.) It's almost cidery or wassail-ish. Autumn Leaves is more what I think of for Fall, with a hint of a woodsy note to it.
Drink Me stuff:
Holiday Wassail - Leaves with Apples, lol! I also get the oranges and pineapples in this one too. Fruity-licious with a touch of spice.
Holiday Homebrew - Hellooo cinnamon! Craft shop cinnamon is what I notice the most on cold sniff. It reminds me of a scent called Hillbilly Homebrew that's floating around lots of places, or maybe CBV's Country Bumpkin (also a cinnamon powerhouse). This will be best for big spaces otherwise it may singe my nose.
Caramel Cream Eggnog - I'm not a big nog fan, but in the interest of testing these out I went for it. I do get a good whiff of caramel so this is promising.
Snow + Berry =
Snowberry - I notice mostly the berry part, strawberry since I'm not familiar with loganberries. It's not a syrupy strawberry note like the Strawberry Candy Canes so maybe the loganberry is more tart or mellows out the strawberry... dunno. The SCC is way more minty than this so that hint of mint is definitely a hint.
not to be confused with
Snow Drift Berries - Brisker than Snowberry, this doesn't list a mint note but I do get briskness with the berries... that must be the pine although my nose just reads it as "brisk", not pinesol.
Let It Snow - Soft, pretty mint with some eucalyptus. If I think about it, I can detect the cinnamon but it doesn't overwhelm the mint.
Snow Storm - I notice mostly the powdery violet in this one, just a hint of the mint, but that's fine because I love violet It sounds like a holiday scent but doesn't really smell like one, but when you want a soft pretty floral, this is your scent. I don't know if it dupes what it's going for since I can't compare but it does have that underlying whatever that seems to run throughout that line.
Cranberries -
Cranberry Brulee (rhymes with Raspberry Beret and now you have that Prince song stuck in your head, don't you? You're welcome.) - Cranberry with a bit of a creamy note, not a juicy scent.
Cranberry Relish - Mostly cranberry with some warm apples (the apple reminds me of the warm not-terribly-spicy, but just a hint o'spice apple in Leesha). I *so* need to compare this to Cranapple, which I don't have.
Green stuff -
Mistletoe - smells cinnamony! I get the oranges too. This is going to be a strong throw.
Hollyberry - mmmm... cloves! The orange in this is smoother than the orange in Mistletoe (which is almost a juicy note).
Bayberry - I thought bayberry was bayberry was bayberry no matter where you went, and I *almost* got this in a candle without trying a scent shot based on that theory, but when I re-read the description and it said "eucalyptus" I decided I really needed that scent shot first. I'm glad I did. I *do* smell the eucalyptus note in here quite a bit, and while it's not bad, I guess I'm a traditionalist with my bayberry and just want generic ol' bayberry, which to me is a bit spicier.
Allll those scents with Christmas in the name:
Christmas Eve - Nutmeg and ginger and creamy... a bit like smelling the filling for a pumpkin pie only without the pumpkin. I want to say there's a hint of orange lurking in there.
Christmas Cabin - I get the cranberry and orange notes right away with a wee tiny bit of spice. I'm guessing the other notes I smell are the bayberry blending in. When melted it's more berries than spice, which is a nice break if your nose is suffering cinnamon overload during the holidays.
Christmas Memories - The orange and sugared spruce stand out, with the cranberry hanging back.
Christmas Pineberry Bough - having smelled Christmas Tree, I can say that while the pine dominates in this one it is mellowed out a *lot* by the mulberry, even though I cannot pick out the mulberry by itself. When melted, the pine note stays strong and can overwhelm a small space. I liked this in a big area but it was kind of headache-y in a small area.
Christmas Buttered Rum - very buttery (duh) and reminds me of those butter rum Lifesavers.
Christmas Lane - I'm liking this one a LOT. I recognize the Apples N Oaks scent in here (I love that one), and the pine and spice notes do not overwhelm it.
Charlie Brown Christmas - Bergamot and Cinnamon spice goodness with some orange in there too.
Yuletide (hey... it's just Christmas by another name, right?) - Orangey! Love it! The cedarwood keeps this from being a tropical fruity scent and it's a nice break from the spice and pine combos.
Christmas Kitchen was in the Pumpkins N Apples review because it had pumpkin,
Christmas Apple Cider Snap was in with the apples, and Christmas Cabernet I tried long ago and like many wine scents, it's just not for me. I like wine. I don't like having the house smell like it, possibly because after working as a bartender it makes me think something needs to be cleaned up. Christmas Tree has also been tried earlier and it's a potent pine (much more intense than Sugared Spruce but lacking the additional wood note of Piney Forest)
Holiday stuff that didn't fit neatly into another category:
Cookies For Santa - A spicy cookie... I notice a red hot cinnamon note on the top
Star Of Bethlehem - my nose goes for the orange/clove first, probably because I know those notes. There's something different around the edges, which I'm guessing is the frankincense. I'm not as familiar with the incense-y notes.
Three Wise Men - earthy patchouli incense-y... my mother is going to love this one, lol! I like these types of scents in small doses.
Sugar Plums - sweet but not sugary berry-ish scent, very nice
Halloween / Fall stuff
Pumpkin Chocolate - Must. Not. Eat. Scent. Shot. This is going to be awesome if it's like the cold sniff. I love the combination; it makes me think of pumpkin muffins with chocolate chips. I think I need to bake some now.
Witch's Brew - Tart n fruity! I can pick out all the fruity notes. I notice peach the most, followed by pineapple, then orange. I love the sickly green color of this - it's perfect!
Monster Mash - Blueberry! Yum! The apple/bakery notes blend in nicely. This is definitely a not-just-for-Halloween scent. If you like berry bakery scents, don't miss this one.
Bite Me - ohhh love this one! I smell Fizzy Pop (which I should've guessed from the description but didn't). I notice the lime of that, mixed with the cherry / berry notes. It smells very summery to me.
And all the rest:
Sweet Angel Dust - I picked this one because it had "angel" in the name and that seemed kind of holiday-ish even though the description isn't. It's a super sweet floral that smells like that ginormous bath goods line that dare not speak its name. I do like sweet florals but that line seems to have an underlying common note in many of its scents that just makes it seem fake to me. That said, it makes for an accurate dupe, lol! I feel the same way about the actual products too. It's not a dislike, it's just an observation.
Tomahawk Memories - Woodsy greens and fall weather
Country Berry Hotcakes - I notice mostly the berry notes, and am guessing the hotcake part comes out when warmed.
Cottage Garden - if you love florals, this is amazing. It's a pretty blend with the hyacinth standing out the most for me. I don't notice the fruit notes so either they will come out more when warmed or they're serving as a way to blend it all together.
Blue Sugar Cotton Candy - Yummy sweet! It's blended so that I can't pick out individual notes but the overall scent is complex sugariness.
Light Blue For Men (freebie) - I've not smelled the cologne it dupes, but this does have the "men's fragrance" air to it.