Solstice Scents - a little rave

Today I want to give a shout out to an indie company I am loving more and more with each order, Solstice Scents. Although I'm a pretty seasoned indie perfume purchaser, I came late to this brand, and I don't know why. I bought a sample pack way back in September 2011, probably after reading someone rave about them on a perfume forum. I tried them, liked them, but then put them away and pretty much forgot about them. It wasn't until December 2012 when I read a post on Michelle's blog about some that she had tried out that I decided to wade back in. And honestly, I don't know what took me so long to get with the program!

I have 4 full size perfume oils, a full size premium perfume oil, 3 Burnishing Glace Mists, a Creamy Whipped Soap and multiple samples (not pictured).

Perfume Oils
Lace Draped Spectre -  incredible creamy, peppery carnation scent that reminds me of my mum's flower garden when I was growing up. I reviewed it here.
Old Cedar Magus - masculine smokey, woody vanilla. Om nom nom. I reviewed it here.
Violet Mallow - I bought this one unsniffed because it's a limited edition and I'm still not 100% I like it. It's heavy on the violet at first but the dry down is a chocolate vanilla gourmand. I talked about it briefly here.
Cenobite - One of my favourite vanillas ever. Not sure if it's number one but it's definitely in the top 3. A super rich, grown up, boozy vanilla. I can't get enough of it. I imagine Ina Garten's kitchen smells like this. And probably Ina herself.
Rose Mallow Cream - This is a smaller premium perfume (5ml, the others are 10ml), and another limited edition I bought unsniffed (I believe both this and Violet Mallow have since been made permanent). Reminds me a lot of MOR Marshmallow but less sickly sweet. I reviewed it here.

Creamy Whipped Soap
I'm not a fan of jars of soap because I don't have a shelf in my shower and it's just annoyingly awkward trying to unscrew lids off things and get product out without it all getting wet and ruined. The only reason I bought this was because Jessica gave me a gift voucher for my birthday and I wanted to try something different along with my regular perfume purchase. I'm glad I did because it's totally worth the palaver. You just scoop out a bit - maybe a tad smaller than an egg, smear it on your shower pouf, and it lathers up like a DREAM. I can't speak for any of the others but the scent I have is Cenobite and it fills the entire bathroom while I'm using it. Rich, creamy vanilla goodness. It does linger ever so slightly on the skin after, but not really enough to make an impact on its own. This soap is also beautifully moisturising. I definitely want more of these.

Burnishing Glace Mists
This is a sort of oil, sort of body mist that dries pretty much immediately on skin and lasts FOREVER. It can also be used as a bath oil but I don't have a bath, so I can't speak for its efficacy there. I have three of these - Lace Draped Spectre, Cenobite, and also Nightgown, which is probably my favourite Solstice Scents fragrance. It's a gorgeous creamy white floral, ultra-feminine and silky. I reviewed the perfume oil version here.

As I was typing this I remembered a couple of things I'd forgotten to include in the photograph (I threw some of the samples in too just because).

Body Ganache
I have this body butter - and it is definitely a butter rather than a lotion - in Ghost, which is not currently listed as in stock. It's their fragrance free version, though not technically completely fragrance free as the cocoa butter in it makes it smell a bit chocolatey. That fades fairly quickly, though. I bought this because I wanted an unscented body moisturiser that wouldn't clash with perfumes. It's very rich and thick and moisturises well, though it can take some time to absorb.

Gardenia Enfleurage
These are teeny samples (.25ml) of a perfume made by this awesome and laborious process. I bought one, and then a week later before I'd even sniffed it ordered two more. I love white floral, I love gardenia, and the thought of having a true gardenia perfume just excited me beyond reason. Needless to say it was very much limited edition (and expensive), but they are currently in the process of making another batch for the next year so it will be back eventually. This stuff is so precious to me I have not even tested it on skin yet! I am waiting for just the right moment. I've sniffed it in the vial though, and it's heavenly. 

So, the facts:

• International shipping is very reasonable, and Angela refunds excess shipping charges. I think the most I've paid is $14.90 and that was the order that included the whipped soap. 
• Delivery is really fast - every one of my orders has been shipped the day after I ordered (sometimes several hours after), and I get them within two weeks. They're always well packed with lots of padding to protect them. 
• You can get a free sample of your choice with every order. I love that you can pick your own instead of getting something random. I know that's fun at times, and there have been perfumes I've discovered through freebies that I would never have thought to buy myself, but it's nice just to be able to grab a little something something that you think you might like without paying. 
• These scents tend to be quite strong, so probably not for the people who want something delicate and barely there. The Glace Mists are, in my experience, even stronger than the perfumes. I bought them with the idea of layering, but they don't even really need to be layered - they more than stand up on their own. 
• Prices are very reasonable - they vary by a few dollars depending on which ingredients are used, but the 10ml perfumes for example are between $9 and about $16US, which is really good for the quality.

If you like indie perfumes and bath products this is definitely a shop worth checking out. My reviews of other perfumes from Solstice Scents can all be found here.

L'Oreal Skin Perfection cleansers

A couple of weeks ago I was reading UK Glamour and saw ads for some new L'Oreal products that got me a bit excited. Drugstore versions of an oil cleanser and a micellar water? Yes, please! Of course they won't be available here for eleventy million years - if ever - so I was straight on to eBay to get them into my hot little mitts as soon as possible. It was great timing too because I had about a week's worth of makeup remover left.

Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution
I have to admit that I was not impressed with Bioderma - I didn't find it particularly good at removing my makeup and I felt I had to pull and drag at it and then use a cream cleanser to make sure I got everything - and since that's the only other micellar water I've tried I didn't have terribly high hopes for this one. However, it's great. Both Lil and I have used it and it removes all makeup easily - even my long wearing foundations. We also both used it for removing mascara (not waterproof so I don't know how it would go with that), and it did an excellent job and didn't sting our eyes. Lily has decided this is the best makeup remover she has used and wants me to buy it all the time from now on.

Skin Perfection 15 Second Miracle Cleansing Oil 
Emulsifying oils are my favourite type of makeup removers, but this is the first drugstore one I've ever seen and usually they're around $50+ a bottle so I have been trying to wean myself off them and make do with other kinds of cleansers. This one works as well as any of the high end ones I've tried like Dermalogica Precleanse, Shu Uemura Cleansing Beauty Oil and so on. However, although it says on the label to use on eyelids, I found it stung my eyes a bit so I would use a separate product for those. I have been using this every night and then following with a cream cleanser to double cleanse, and my skin feels super clean without being tight or stripped.

In short, I give both of these a big thumbs up. I'm sure when they hit our shores and the freebies start getting dished out by PR you'll hear more about them but in the meantime if you're not averse to stumping up your own dollars, you can find them on eBay. I bought mine from this seller.

Sarawen Perfume Haul

Late last year I finally got around to reviewing some Sarawen perfumes I'd bought and then pretty much forgotten about months earlier, and since then I've been wanting more. I recently got around to doing another order - annoyingly I'd left it so long that several of the ones on my wishlist are no longer available - and decided to make the shipping worthwhile and pick up quite a few at the same time. I'm not going to talk about all of them here as I haven't tested them yet, but I'll give you the basic rundown of what I bought (I'm assuming these prices are in Canadian dollars as this store is Canadian).

First of all, packaging and presentation is gorgeous - the samples are 1.5ml and come in little screw top bottles (much easier to deal with than vials with wand caps). The labels have been designed to fit in with the rest of the shop's theme and look just as lovely as the regular sized bottles.

Shipping for me for a total of 14 sample bottles was $10.40CAD, which is very reasonable considering the recent US price hike has all of us internationals shelling out $12US and up on the bare minimum of purchases these days (boourns!). My only concern is that although they were packed in a bubble mailer, the bottles themselves were not wrapped in bubble wrap, just (albeit very pretty) tissue paper. Given the general carelessness of Australia Post workers, it's just blind luck nothing was broken. Sara did put a sticker on it saying that the contents were glass and therefore fragile, however I've had several PO employees cheerfully tell me that they have no 'fragile' service here and those stickers mean nothing to them. I think I'd rather pay a bit more in shipping and know that my little glass bottles are safe - or at least more safe.

So on to what I bought! The descriptions are the seller's own.

Sherlock Holmes sampler - $15

Logical Deduction - Sophisticated notes of bay rum, Earl Grey tea, and tobacco, with a hint of leather and dark chocolate. This is a unisex fragrance inspired by Sherlock Holmes, and is reminiscent of a gentleman's Victorian parlour.

Logical Delusion - A dangerous and cunning blend of poisoned tea, tobacco, and gunpowder, with a hint of nag champa and absinthe. Beware, Holmes! This is a unisex fragrance that borders towards masculine and is inspired by the character of Moriarty from the world of Sherlock Holmes - it is the perfect foil to my Holmes' fragrance, 'Logical Deduction'!

Scandal in London - She's seductive, secretive, and little dangerous! Feminine lilac and ylang ylang flowers blends with feisty dragonsblood with a light hint of eastern sandalwood. A touch of Holmes' favourite tobacco tops off this sultry floriental perfume.This perfume is inspired by the character of Irene Aldler from the world of Sherlock Holmes. 

Tea With Watson - Take a break from adventuring and stop at 221 Baker Street for awhile. White tea, delicious yellow cake, and a dash of cream caramel layered over light tobacco and bay rum. It smells just like a tea party at Holmes and Watson's flat! This is a balanced unisex fragrance inspired by the world of Sherlock Holmes.

The Hunger Games sampler - $11.50

Girl on Fire - Wild strawberries gathered from the forest blend with the comforting scent of leather hunting boots, and in her hair a very faint hint of sweet forest herbals. A pretty scent, but not to be taken lightly - rebellion lurks beneath the feminine fruit notes!

Run Away With Me - The masculine scent of leather melded with gunpowder and soot from District 12's coal mines. A whisper of wild strawberries and amber completes this unisex fragrance inspired by the character of Gale from the Hunger Games.

The Baker's Boy - Spend a day frosting and decorating cakes with Peeta. A luscious, gourmand fragrance bursting with ripe strawberries (from Katniss of course!) and delicious yellow cake. Underneath the delicious-ness drifts soft vetiver, leather, and golden amber. This perfume is a unisex blend that borders towards feminine.

I also bought a set of 3 custom samples for $11.50:

Lion's Roar (Game of Thrones) - Let them Hear You Roar. Sexy leather blends with luscious neroli blossoms and earthy patchouli to create this unisex fragrance that embodies the Lannister family's conquering and ferocious nature. Top notes of frankincense, vanilla, and precious woods completes this rich fragrance! Primary notes: neroli, leather, frankincense, rosewood, vanilla.


Beer'n'Butter (Harry Potter) - A delicious and foamy elixir! Creamy butterscotch, dreamy vanilla, and a dash of pumpkin layered with a drop of coffee as you sit relaxing by the pub's roaring fire.


Lady Nightingale (Dragon Age) -Fragrant white flowers of ginger blossom, jasmine, and gardenia over a sensuous base of light musk. Topped off with a single note of sweet vanilla. Delicate and innocent, yet charmingly sexy.This scent is an ultra-feminine floral musk inspired by the character of Lelianna from the Dragon Age game.

Note: I've reviewed this perfume for my other blog here.

Ambrosia Chocolat (free sample) - "If you are not feeling well, if you have not slept, chocolate will revive you. But you have no chocolate! I think of that again and again! My dear, how will you ever manage?" - Marquise de Sévigné... Chocolate: delicious, sensuous, and an absolute necessity! This scent will satisfy your chocolate craving as it drizzles with honey, dark chocolate, and hints of vanilla cream. A scrumptious blend of tasty treats with a light touch of patchouli to round out the sweetness. A gourmand perfume that will have you constantly sniffing your own wrists! Main notes: chocolate, amber, honey, vanilla.


And of course, because this is going to be the big theme among indie cosmetic artists this year, I had to get the sampler of The Great Gatsby ($11.50). I haven't seen the movie and I'm not entirely sure I'm all that interested. I'm iffy on Baz Lurhmann - sometimes his movies are a glorious mess (Moulin Rouge), and sometimes they're just a mess (Australia). The Great Gatsby looks... ehhhhhh. I do love the book though, after reading it for school and then many times since, so I'm all for buying into the current craze. And of course, I'm all for anything inspired by the 1920s - when are they going to bring back The House of Eliott, I ask!

Jaded Ambition - He lights his expensive cigar, watching the party descend until dawn. The enigmatic Mr. Gatsby seems to have many secrets. Sidling up beside him, he gives you a friendly grin and you catch the aroma of his sweet cigar, exotic woods, citrus, and little hint of Daisy's orchid perfume. For only one woman can truly hold his heart. Main notes: tobacco, citrus accord, oud, coffee, orchid, benzoin. This scent is inspired by the character of Jay Gatsy from F. Scott Fitzgerald's American masterpiece, and is unisex bordering to masculine fragrance.

Manly men doing manly things. The tobacco and oud amp on me and it's almost headachy. The coffee is in the background but it's so subtle I couldn't place what it was. Not for me, but I think those who like very masculine scents would enjoy this.

Jaded Decadence - She's the ultimate party girl. She is youth, beauty, and decadence personified. Her athletic figure dances to the latest rage - jazz music. And soon you note the scent of violets, rose, and a hint of cream vanilla and sweet red wine. She flashes a smile and the young men sigh. Main notes: violets, vanilla, rose, chypre, citrus accord, merlot wine. This scent is inspired by the character of Jordan Baker from F. Scott Fitzgerald's American masterpiece, and is a floriental -style scent for modern flappers!

The wine adds an interesting seedy element to this- it's quite clever. This is a fairly strong floral, dominated by the violet. Definitely more of a night time perfume than an office one.

Jaded Innocence - Distant yet so close. Cold, but still yearning for a past love. Her soft eyes twinkle, and the scent of orchids, cream, honey, and violets fill the sense. She speaks, and the warm timbre of her voice can still make Gatsby weaken at the knees. Main notes: orchid, champagne, honey, citrus accord, chypre. This scent is inspired by the character of Daisy Buchanan from F. Scott Fitzgerald's American masterpiece, and is a soft floriental scent for modern flappers!

Again, the boozy note brings this perfume out of the realm of your bog standard sweet florals. And again, it's quite strong, though the honey softens it up after 30 minutes or so. I liked this one the best of the three.

************

Sarawen has two shops - Big Cartel and Etsy. I bought this order from Etsy, really only because I prefer it for ease when I can use it. My last order was through the Big Cartel site, and there's really no difference except that one may sometimes have stock the other doesn't.

In summary, Sarawen is a gorgeous little perfume shop, and I highly recommend trying it out.

Twyla Perfumes Spring Collection - Literary Ingenues

I have been meaning to get around to this review of Twyla Perfumes Spring Collection for ages because these perfumes actually come down on May 1, but fear not, perfumicans! If you are international (outside the US) and buy samples from Twyla for a limited edition, you can order a full bottle up to a month after it has come down (I think that is what it is - ask her directly if you're interested, she's very approachable). Anyway, this and Solstice Scents are the only Spring collections I bothered checking out this year (I only just got my Solstice Scents ones and there are 8 of them so I'll do a run down in a few days - they are usually around for a fair while). I'm not going to say much of anything about them because I've reviewed them all on my other blog, so I'll just link and you can clickety-click if you care to.

The theme is Literary Ingenues, and they are all named for famous girls in literature. Prices range from $16.50US to $17.50US for a 6ml dropper bottle, and all are available in samples. 

Clara- loved it, though it was weirdly liquoricy on me and it doesn't seem as though it was meant to be. My review is here.
Lyra - loved it, woody floral musk with a dash of spice from pink pepper. My review is here.
Alice Liddell - went very soapy on me (sad face) and there is a honey note that dominated - not a big fan of honey. My review is here.
Lucy - a sweet mossy scent but again there is honey in it that thinks it's party time on my skin. I think a lot of people would like this, but it's not my thing. My review is here.

Enchanticals Perfume

Enchanticals is yet another perfumery that I happened across while scouring Etsy looking for things to spend money on (justifying it with, “Well, I have to have 365 perfumes to review for my project blog now”, of course). This shop sells ‘Victorian Gothic Perfume and Bath & Body Luxuries’.

Samples of perfume oil are available in various sets and collections. I chose a custom set of 6 and ordered Alize, White Rabbit, The Fat Lady, Embracer la Mort, The Snake Charmer and Levesque Burlesque. The shop owner, Monica, emailed me not long after my order and asked me to choose two free samples in addition, so I requested Mermaid Cove and Butterfly Wings. As I said in some blog post recently, I have been deliberately buying at least a couple of scents each time that are outside my normal range, because I want to mix up my reviews a bit. Besides, you never know when you might happen across something you love but would never have looked at otherwise, am I right? 

The sample set I bought was $13US plus $7US for shipping – international shipping from the US has just gone up dramatically, as I complained about in my last post, so Monica has currently suspended it while she finds out what the new charge will be. Generally speaking though, she does ship internationally (obviously, since she shipped to me). And speaking of shipping – it was really fast. The last few months things have been taking 3-4 weeks to get to me from the US, often even longer. I think a lot of stuff is being held up in customs these days while they faff about deciding whether they are going to open them and look at them or not. I ordered on 15 January and received it on 25 January.

Although my order was packed in a little box with packing peanuts, one of the vials was smashed and the perfume had leaked all over the others. I washed them off as best as I could (hence the tattered labels in the picture above), and contacted Monica to let her know. She got back to me within a few hours and was most apologetic; we sorted it all out very quickly, so two thumbs up for stellar customer service from this store. The one that broke was Alize – of course it had to be the chocolate one!

Now to the perfumes – I’m just going to be brief because I’ll eventually review all of these on 365 Days of Smells. There were a couple that I disliked, but these were the ‘outside my comfort zone’ ones, so it’s not that they were crappy perfumes, it’s just that they were the kind of fragrances I don’t happen to enjoy. The quality overall is really good.

Levesque Burlesque

Right off the bat this was one of the ones I really didn’t like. It’s fruity (peach), but on me it smelled like apple-scented disinfectant. On Noodles it smelled like The Body Shop Fuzzy Peach – I still didn’t like it, but it was nowhere near as bad on her, so take my experience with a grain of salt.

The Fat Lady

This was my favourite (reviewed here) – a sweet, biscuity scent that reminded me a bit of BPAL’s Eat Me (without the dusty part). It had a delicious smelling note of slightly lemony confectioner’s custard that really made me crave a vanilla slice.

Embracer la Mort

Violets. As in the shop description, there’s a note of green there (though in my experience, that often comes out with violet scents), but I didn’t get the berries. I liked it, but violet isn’t a floral I find very wearable all that often, so it’s not one I’d buy in a full size.

White Rabbit

This was the most ‘perfumey’ of the ones I tried. I couldn’t pick out any distinct notes, it was all just blended together. This one was the strongest and had the highest sillage.

The Snake Charmer

In the vial it’s marzipan (the amaretto note), which thankfully recedes a bit when applied and the berries come out. Despite my dislike of fruit, sometimes berries can work okay on me, and this was one of those. I quite liked it.

Mermaid Cove

This smells like a slightly watery white floral – there’s maybe gardenia in it (nope, it's frangipani)? Now you know I love my white florals, and you may or may not know I generally dislike watery florals, but I rather liked this one. It wasn’t TOO watery – it just added a hint of a background aquatic note, so it smelled like a garden after a really heavy rain rather than smelling like watered-down perfume, which I find with a lot of those kinds of scents. I’m not sure I’d buy a full bottle as I have quite a lot of white florals, but I’m definitely considering it.

Butterfly Wings

Another fruity concoction. I am 30 years too old for this. Noodles liked it though.

One thing I really like about Enchanticals is that not only can you get samples of all the perfume, you can also get a sort of in between size so if, like me, you want a full size bottle but you already have eleventy million perfumes and you’re never going to get through any of them, you can get these in a one dram size (slightly under 4ml) for around $10US - $14US each. There are also larger size 1/3 fluid ounce (about 10 ml) bottles that vary in price, depending on the perfume.

For the quality, the large range, speed of shipping and the really great customer service, I’d highly recommend checking out this store. You can do so on Etsy or there is also a website.

Update: International shipping is back!

More Twyla Perfumes

A couple of weeks ago I had a bit of a rave about some Christmas LE perfumes I had bought unsniffed from Twyla Perfumes & Apothecary, and now I'm back to talk about some more that I got in the same order, this time the samples. I have to say, this is pretty  much my new favourite store - I want a full bottle of almost every one of these. They're so beautifully blended and they smell divine. I'm already working out my next order, and pushing it ahead of a bunch of others I'd had planned.

Twyla sells samples in a set of 3 1ml vials for $6US, called Little Drops of Poison. I bought 2 sets because as much as I tried, I could not narrow down to 3. I was pushing it to narrow down to 6. Postage was $7.25US (that was also including 3 other full size bottles that I don't know if I will review as they were seasonal scents that are no longer available). I ordered on 1 December and received them on 17 December. 

I believe these are all from the regular catalogue, not Limited Edition, though admittedly I hadn't thought to ask. I will check up on that and correct this if necessary. I have 7 in all (the 6 I bought and one freebie) and quite a bit to say about them, so you might want to make yourself a drink.

Love and Squalor

The innocence of spring flowers, a whiff of tobacco. Scented letters, church pews, rain and lots of squalor. 

A heady floral blend with grounding tobacco, amber and woods.

Jasmine, spring floral blend, Blonde Tobacco, Amber, Bitter Orange, Ylang Ylang, Sandalwood and Cedarwood. 

In the vial and when first applied, the ylang ylang dominates at first. This scent makes me think of proper old school grown up perfumes like Van Cleef & Arpels First, or a more palatable Chanel No. 5 (which rivals Thierry Mugler Angel for my most hated perfume of all time). It's not that Love and Squalor smells like either of these - it doesn't - it's just from that class of perfume that I think of as 'screams old money'. The kind of thing you expect to smell when one of those rich old ladies who does their grocery shopping in David Jones wanders past you. Ironic considering the name, I guess. 

Love and Squalor doesn't have a lot of throw, and my skin ate it pretty quickly. I reapplied it after about an hour as it had faded to become indiscernible. After the second application it stuck around longer, lasting a good few hours, though still close to the skin. I never did pick up any other distinct notes aside from the ylang ylang, but it's a gorgeous blend and I kept sniffing my wrist constantly while I was wearing it. It is a very 'perfumy' perfume.

Magnolia Street

Leather boots and our mothers' tossed-off hippie dresses; magnolia trees and incense, perfume oils from the pagan shop; red wine, diner coffee and exotic tea, Indian cooking and the sound of Tom Waits wafting through the apartment building's thin walls.  
Opening up with a beautiful magnolia, floral blend and exotic spices, this scent opens up slowly to reveal the lovely but subtle musky pink lotus and incenses, swirling in the background of this complex perfume.  Just when you think you've pinned it down, it shifts ever so slightly to reveal another side. Exotic and sexy yet somehow innocent, this scent captures the essence of a time, a feeling, and a place on Magnolia street.
Magnolia, pink lotus absolute, zdravetz, nagramotha, cannabis flower, coffee flower, peach blossom, sandalwood absolute, aged patchouli and a generous swirl of spice.

Any mention of magnolia in a perfume and I am all over it - I adore it. I used to live in a property that had a big magnolia tree out the front and one of the best smells ever is when it's flowering and it has just rained. Heavenly. In the vial and when first applied I can smell a gorgeous big dose of magnolia and something veeeery faintly sweet and lollyish. That might be the pink musk - does pink musk smell like pink musk lifesavers? I don't know. Whatever it is, it makes the scent really lovely. The patchouli comes out more as it dries down. Let me just take a minute here to talk about patchouli. I hate it. Haaaaaate it. So much so that I actually wavered over whether to even bother trying this scent. However, this is not that yukky hippie shop patchouli oil smell. This is something altogether different. And I.... like it. I never thought I'd say that in a million years about patchouli. Huh.

I forgot I was wearing this one for a while when I was testing it, and didn't sniff again for another hour or so. By then the leather had come out, blended with the patchouli and a faint floral. Again, this one doesn't have a lot of sillage (most of Twyla's scents sit close to the skin, which on the one hand is nice for those who don't like their perfume to enter the room before they do, but on the other hand is sad for me because I want these scents to walk down the street with me screaming 'DOESN'T SHE SMELL GORGEOUS!'), but it lasted a fair while, at least 5 hours. That patchouli gives it an edge I don't have in any of my other magnolia or leather scents, and I definitely want a full bottle of this.

Milk Flower

A creamy floral, fresh and sweet yet complex.
As a kid, i was so in love with the scent of lilacs - i wanted to pick them, put them in a bowl and eat them with fresh, cold whipped cream and sugar. This scent is about as close to that as I can get.
Lilac, carnation absolute, tuberose absolute and white rose drenched in vanilla, amber and cream with the faintest breath of fresh mint absolute.

In the vial, this is a creamy mint. When first applied it reminded me a lot of Latherati's Tara, another floral with a mint note that I used to love.  The mint subsides fairly quickly to the background, and this mellows to a sweet (but not sugary) delicate creamy floral. It's so, so pretty, but my skin just ate it - within half an hour I could barely smell anything, and even when I reapplied it disappeared entirely within a couple of hours. I decanted the rest into a tiny roller bottle and found that slathering it on that way made it last much longer, so that's my plan for when I get a full bottle of this one. It's beautiful.

Bone Flower

Bone Flower, another name for the lovely tuberose.

Tropical flowers on a grave - mysterious, cool, ethereal and beautiful. The complex tuberose blended with the musky scent of loamy, tropical soil and unearthed bones.

Tuberose Absolute, Balsam of Peru, Maile leaf (used in Hawai'ian funereal services), Styrax, Sandalwood Absolute.

In the vial and when first applied, it's all tuberose - big and lush and lovely. It made me think immediately of Frédéric Malle's Carnal Flower, but when I compared the two they're not really the same at all. Like Milk Flower, this is another beautiful scent that sits very close and gets eaten by my ravenous skin. An hour later I couldn't smell it at all; I reapplied but it disappeared quickly again. I wonder if it's because my skin has been dry lately? I might have to experiment, but regardless, this is going to be another full bottle purchase (let's be real, they pretty much all are). 

Only Alice

"It's dreamy weather we're on / You waved your crooked wand Along an icy pond with a frozen moon / A murder of silhouette crows I saw  / And the tears on my face / And the skates on the pond / They spell Alice..." ~ Tom Waits
Every time i hear this song, it evokes such strong images, feelings and smells. This is my idea of what the air smells like in this little world - the cold pines, a keepsake box that smells faintly of a woman's perfume. Sandalwood, soft musk, cedarwood atlas, orange, pine scotch, vanilla and myrrh.

I would have assumed from the name that this was yet another olfactory spin on Alice In Wonderland, but apparently not. In the vial I get orange and something faintly sweet... maybe the musk? It's so pretty. The orange is floral, not citrus, and this is another quite 'perfumy' scent; it's very feminine. Unlike many of the others, this one has quite a bit of throw and lasted longer. Do I need to spell out that I love it?

Soma

This is the second in a series that was intentionally created to fall into the category of both aromatherapy AND perfume. Created to ease anxiety and stress, this oil smells like lovely lemon-flower cotton-candy (due to the sweetness of the vanilla and lemony scent of melissa, not because i used synthetics), white lotus-flowers and sunshine. 

With several calming essentials including melissa (a powerful relaxant, some studies have shown it to help ease clinical anxiety and help calm children with ADD - although current research will show more solid results one way or another in time), lotus, which has a calming and some say euphoric effect; sandalwood, which is commonly used in anti-depressant and anti-anxiety blends for it's soothing aroma; rosewood, ylang ylang and vanilla - all three of which are soothing and comforting to the senses.
This is another one that might help some of you sleep... I find it extremely calming. Most effective as an inhalant or in a room-diffuser/oil burner for several minutes if used for anxiety - but absolutely LOVELY as a perfume!

Lemon! But not floor cleaner lemon, a sweet, herby lemon that smells lovely. This scent doesn't really change all that much, though the lemon mellows a bit after a while. Like Only Alice, this one has more throw than the others and stays around a fair while. It didn't help me sleep, though nothing really does so that's not a deal breaker. I also tried this one in an oil burner and it made my little lounge room smell so pretty. 

Dryad

A beautiful, truly unisex, androgynous woodsy blend with the unique and very complex poplar bud absolute, pine scotch, sweet amber, honey absolute, bourbon vanilla, immortelle, tarragon absolute and resins and a few drops of my very special vintage, 20 year-old patchouli. Redolent of a lush, green and ancient forest.

This was the freebie included with my order, and this vial was about twice the size of the others (it's not in the photo because I've sent it off to Su today with some BPAL imps). In the vial and when first applied, it is dominated by a sweet, sharp pine smell. There used to be an area surrounding the park where we did PE at school that was full of pine trees, and it reminded me of that. It's quite masculine and strong, with more sillage than most of the others, and pretty sharp close up. I could smell vanilla in the background but mostly got the wood and resin, with that pine sticking around throughout. I can see why a lot of people would like this, but I'm not a fan of pine and it was too masculine and sharp for my taste. This is the only one I wouldn't personally buy in full size. If you like woodsy scents, I'd highly recommend trying it out though - it's another beautifully blended perfume. 

As I said above, I'm already working out my next order - at least a couple of full bottles of the above (once I decide which ones I want first), and I also want to try Slammerkin, Tequila Rose, and grab a sample of the one of the more expensive aromatherapy ones - Migraineur - to see if it can help Noodles with her recently developed insomnia.

The Garden Bath Buttered Rum Perfume Oil

Picture from the The Garden Bath Etsy store.

The last time I did an order with The Garden Bath, Donna also sent me a sample of one of the perfumes from her Winter Limited Edition Collection. There are 6 fragrances in this collection, and they are now up on her shop site until the end of February next year. The sample I received was Buttered Rum.

Buttered Rum is ultra-foody. It makes me want to scoff sticky date pudding with proper vanilla ice cream. When first applied it's a rich, warm butterscotch, and after a half hour or so it mellows to a not-too-sweet caramel vanilla. The staying power is quite good - I put this on about 4 hours ago and I can still smell it on myself.

I haven't tried any of the other perfumes from this collection as yet, but I'll be getting a sample set when I order a full size of Buttered Rum in the next couple of weeks. Because I MUST have a full bottle of this - it's so delicious.

You can get the set of 6 winter samples in a cute little tin for $9US and full bottles are $9US each. You can also get a custom set of 6 samples so if there are only a couple of the winter ones you want to try, you can choose others from the regular line to check out as well.

Su received a sample of Winter Woods with her order a while back and she has given her impressions of it towards the end of this post.

Twyla Christmas Spirits Trio

Twyla Perfumes & Apothecary is a new-ish indie perfume store, having been open for only a couple of months. I hadn't heard of the store until someone mentioned it in a comment on a YouTube video. Of course, I immediately had to go and check it out, and to be honest I wasn't expecting much more than one of those junky little online stores with bad spelling and generic scents. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the site is lovely, the writing thoughtful and well-constructed, and the scents complex-sounding and intriguing.

I spent a few days trying to whittle down to a reasonable sized order, because frankly, I wanted pretty much everything. I was going to just leave it until after the new year, but in the end I decided I really had to have 3 full size limited editions that were about to come down and 2 sets of Little Drops of Poison - 3 samples in each. (Customer service note - the site stated that international shipping was $7.25 but when I went to Paypal it came up as $725! Obviously an incorrect decimal point somewhere! I emailed Twlya, who was in transit at the time, but she contacted me immediately and said she'd fix it ASAP, and within an hour she had contacted me again to tell me it was all done and I could go ahead and complete my order.)

A couple of days later she announced on Twitter that she had just released a limited edition trio of Christmas scents, and once they were gone they were gone. I went to have a look, and discovered they were all themed around chocolate. You know me and chocolate scents! These are $10US for each bottle or $25US for all three, so I figured what the heck - in for a penny and all that.

My first order (the limited editions no longer listed on the site and the sample vials) was on 1 December, and my second order (the Christmas trio) was on 3 December. I received them together on 17 December. My mail has been reaaaaaaally slow lately, getting backed up no doubt at either Customs or good old Australia Post (bastards), so I had not expected to get these orders before Christmas, or possibly even New Year. Score!

I thought I would review the Christmas scents first as the site states that these are very much limited, and I know some of you are also chocolate scent fans! I'll talk about the others in a week or so when I've had time to check them all out properly.

The Spirit of Christmas Past

White Chocolate Cognac Creme: a creamy, sweet yet wistfully delicate blend of massoia bark, pressed flowers, and french white cognac.

In the bottle, this smells like chocolatey cognac - like one of those 'special' chocolate boxes your grandma would never let you have. At first when I applied it, all I got was the (quite pleasant) boozy note, and it didn't have a lot of throw. I had to bring my wrist up quite close to smell it. Once it dried, a creamy floral note came out - something very light and delicate like lilac or wisteria. Then came the white chocolate and the cream. After an hour or so it mellowed to a sweet-ish creamy scent with that floral note coming and going faintly. What do I like in a perfume? White chocolate, gentle florals, creamy notes... I feel like this one was made for me. It's gooooooorgeous. I wish I could have it in a shower gel, body butter, scrub, bath soak (even though I don't own a bath), and so on. ONE OF EVERYTHING, PLEASE.

The Spirit of Christmas Present

Chocolate Mint Cognac: a delicious blend of cacao absolute, French green cognac, bourbon vanilla, juniper berry and mint.

In the bottle and when first applied, this is dark chocolate with a hint of mint. After a few minutes I could smell the cognac. This one was quite strong - I got a good whiff of chocolate and cognac whenever I moved my arm. It's a bit more masculine than Christmas Past, which I'd say is distinctly feminine. This perfume eventually mellows to a dark chocolate liqueur and lasts quite a long time on me. I really liked this a lot, though I'd be more inclined to wear it in cold weather. I think it could be interesting layered with some kind of smoky perfume too, as the cognac note is that 'rich men hanging out in private clubs' kind of thing.

The Spirit of Christmas Future

Dark Chocolate Cherry Cognac: rich, dark, deep and deadly blend of cacao absolute, bitter almond, and  French green cognac.

This one is the only one I didn't outright love. It's interesting and doesn't smell like anything else I have, but it's not quite my thing. The bitter almond comes out first on me, and in the bottle that's mostly what I get too, with a note of something green in the background. I guess that's the green cognac, but I don't really know as I've never heard of or smelled green cognac before. Who knew that was a thing? This one is also the least 'chocolatey' of the three, probably because it's a dark, bitter cocoa. It's quite masculine and imposing, and smells slightly tobacco-ish. It did last a few hours, but not as long as the other two. I would like to smell this one on a man.

Summary

These perfumes come in 6ml blue apothecary bottles with droppers, sealed caps and hand-written labels. The quality and care that has obviously gone into them is excellent. I'm really glad I took a chance and bought all three of these unsniffed. I probably won't get a huge amount of use out of Christmas Future, but it's another one I'd like to try again when the weather cools down. And although I'm unashamedly a lover of the girly smells, every now and then I like to break out with something a bit more blokey.

You can buy Twyla's perfumes on her website, and she also has a limited range (though not these particular ones listed individually, only as a set) in her Etsy shop.

Eccentric Cosmetics

I happened across Eccentric Cosmetics on one of my Etsy trawls and as soon as I realised it was Australian I had to order something. Yet again, this is an Aussie indie company I've never heard of, but when I was searching for swatches and reviews it seemed that it had been around for quite a few years.

Indoors in natural light

Outdoors in natural overcast light

Top row: 

Higgs Bosun - acid yellow with a blue/green shimmer. This one was a freebie, and although I'd never wear yellow eyeshadow, I do really like the effect of it.

Acid Drops - a bright shimmery green, super pretty. This was another freebie, and it's not currently listed in the store, so I don't know whether it's new or sold out or what. I'd buy this in a full size though, I love it.

Munchies - a duller green than Acid Drops, with blue shimmer. It's actually brighter than it shows in the photo, and I like it a lot too.

Bottom row: 

Mischievous Punk - purple with a reddish-purple sparkle. Again, the pictures are not doing it justice. This one is gorgeous.

False Astronomy - a coppery purple red with orange shimmers that changes dramatically in various lights. This one is probably my favourite - it's like nothing I've ever had before.

Victorian Steampunk - a golden brown colour, nothing particularly unique, but still very pretty. I like this one a lot, and I'd probably get a lot of wear out of it.

Indoors in natural light

Outdoors in natural overcast light

Top row:

Wicked Mischief - shimmery gold with a pink tinge to it. More pink in real life than  it looks in the picture.

Progressive Adaptation - brown with blueish purple sparkles, another duochrome that changes in the light.  Lerve it!

Petal Poison - rose pink with gold sparkles. Very pretty, but this is a shade I'm particularly fond of and I have a few other similar ones already.

Bottom row: 

Vesuvius - a super shimmery taupe. I'd probably wear this a lot too, even though there's a lot of sparkle, it's not too glittery or chunky. 

Dragon Claw - green with silvery-blue shimmer. In real life this is way more green than it shows in the picture. This is another favourite of mine - I do loves me some green eyeshadows!

Pure Intoxication - a purplish taupe with blue shimmer. This one is also not currently listed.


OVERALL THOUGHTS

I like these a lot - they're all highly shimmery/sparkly, but they don't have giant chunks of glitter in them or anything, so they're still suitable for your everyday Jill or Joe Blow. There are a few in the ones I bought that were different from anything else I own, and that's a pretty rare thing these days.

I paid $12AUD for 10 samples, plus $2AUD shipping. I received 2 free samples in my order as well. All were generously sized - 1/4 teaspoon. I ordered on 10 December, received a shipping notice on 12 December, and received it on 14 December. Love buying things from my own country - no massive hold ups in customs!

There is also an option for bloggers and YouTubers to buy 5 samples at a reduced price. I did not use this because... well, you all know I'm not comfortable with that sort of thing. Besides, I thought $14 for 10 samples plus shipping was already pretty damn reasonable!

I will definitely be going back to this store in the early new year. 

Alkemia Perfumes

After a lull of a year or so where I moved away from perfume oils and general buying of perfumes, I'm back with a vengeance, scouring Etsy and other corners of the wide wide world of web for interesting, complex, delicious smells. You can expect upcoming thoughts about a number of samples I have in transit (come onnnnn, Aus Post!), such as:

Twyla Perfumes & Apothecary
Solstice Scents
Delightful Rot
Midnight Gypsy
Alchemic Muse

Hmm. I feel like I might have forgotten one... Anyway, in the early new year I'm also planning another Sarawen order, and a few other Etsy stores, so there will be plenty to keep me busy.

So, on to Alkemia. I found this store when I was tooling around on Etsy, and there were quite a few perfumes that sounded up my alley. I bought one full size, 5 samples, and received 2 free samples (woo!).

Full size - $12US
Samples x 5 - $10US
Shipping total - $4.95US

Super reasonable prices, so a big tick right there. I ordered on 20 November and it was shipped on 21 November. Super quick shipping, another big tick. Of course, everything is getting backed up in either customs or Australia Post at the moment so I didn't receive it until 11 December, but that's not their fault.

County Fair

The nostalgic scent of an old-fashioned American carnival midway - pink cotton candy, hot kettle corn, freshly fried dough, candied apples, and saltwater taffy.

 This is a limited edition seasonal coming down on December 31st, which is why I took a chance and bought a full size. I am such a sucker for these carnival scents, even though I'm eleventy million years too old to wear them, and in fact, I don't generally wear them. I just love to smell them. And it's just occurred to me now that I should try it out in an oil burner. Why have I never thought of that before?

In the bottle it smells like something sweet and toasty, and when first applied that note really dominates. It settles down fairly quickly and although I still primarily get the kettle corn, it becomes sweeter (cotton candy?) and I can definitely pick up the candy apple (or toffee apple as we Oztrayans would say). It's very warm, sweet and foody and really does a great job of evoking those carnival/show atmospheres. I love it, and now I just need to find a use for it.

Vamp

In the 1920s, a new woman was created. Unlike her Victorian sisters, she smoked, drank, danced, drove, and voted. She cut her hair, wore make-up, and (horrors!) went to petting parties. She was giddy, independent, and in charge of her sexuality. She was a flapper.
This perfume is an homage to the steamier side of the Roaring Twenties - a darkly erotic blend of opium, labdanum, Tonka, balsam, sueded leather, and black musk.

I loved the sound of this one, but it wasn't at all what I expected. Both in the bottle and on me it's a laundry smell - soapy, lemony, not at all unpleasant, but definitely like some kind of cleaning product. Half an hour later it hadn't changed much, though I could pick up a vague sweet note, which may have been the Tonka.

Midnight Garden

 A lunar intoxication of night-flowering white flowers – tuberose (flower of dangerous pleasures), lily (flower of majestic beauty), honeysuckle (flower of binding love), gardenia (flower of secret passions) and moonflower (flower that inspires dreams of love). Hauntingly beautiful.

This is a very girly white floral. In the bottle all I smell is lily, and applied that lily just explodes. It probably had the least staying power of all of them, disappearing almost entirely within a couple of hours. It is really beautiful, but being a white floral fan from way back, I already have a bunch of similar perfumes, so I probably wouldn't buy this in a full size.

Trick or Treat

A grownup confection of black licorice, mandarin orange peel, caramelized brown sugar, bourbon vanilla, candied ginger, tonka bean, blonde patchouli, cedar tips, oakmoss, and sandalwood. Utterly sexy on both men and women... While this perfume smells like a sumptuous treat, it's got a secret trick...

Dr. Alan Hirsch (Director of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation) did several studies on the effect of black licorice on the responses of men and women. He found that black licorice increased blood flow to *ahem* certain parts of both the male and female anatomy simulating sexual arousal.

My tweet the day I was testing this:

This is like nothing I've ever smelled before and it is AH-MAAHZING. In the bottle all I really get is the anise/liquorice (a note I do love), but on my skin it smells like liquorice and orange bourbon. Ugh, I can't even describe how much I love this perfume. Straight to the top of the full bottle list. If you like liquorice scents, you MUST try this out.

L'Encens a'la Vanille

Madagascar Vanilla, golden amber, and resinous incense swirled together with a selection of beautifully aged incense woods and a dusting of aphrodisiac Silk Road spices. Intensely sexy in a mysterious kind of way... PS - We particularly love layering this one with Smoke and Mirrors... *swoon*

This was one of the free samples, and I'd actually thought about buying it so I'm glad I had a chance to try it out. In the bottle I just get spices, and I can't put my finger on what it is - cinnamon? cloves? could actually be resin. When I apply it the vanilla is definitely there, but the spice (what is that?) still dominates. This is quite masculine and strong. When it mellows it reminds me very strongly of something else - I want to say Serge Lutens Un Bois Vanille, but I don't currently have any so I can't compare. It's definitely something I've used frequently in the past, though. I like this, but not enough to buy a full size. I think it would smell amazing on a man.

Calaveras de Azucar (Sugar Skulls)

Hauntingly sweet sugar skulls nestled against a backdrop of sugared white ambers.

Again, I'm pleased to have a chance to try this as it was one I lingered over when I was making a decision about what to buy, but I decided that being sugary it would probably be too young for me. And it is. It's very sweet and pretty, with an almost fruit or melon note in the background. It goes a bit dusty for a while but then it comes back and starts to smell like something a bit spicy and very familiar - pepper or cinnamon, maybe? It mellows to a sweet amber-vanilla after a couple of hours. I wouldn't wear this personally, but it's really lovely and I'll probably buy Noodles a full bottle and just sniff her like the creep that I am.

Belle Époque

A complex floriental homage to the opulent elegance of Gilded Age femininity. A glorious blend of precious florals including Jasmine Sambac, Tuberose, Iris, Rose, and Lily of the Valley blended with Plum, Apricot, Tahitian Vanilla, Blonde Amber, Bitter Almond, and Oakmoss on a soft bed of delightfully powdery musks. Outrageously Romantic.

In the shop this is called Belle Époque, but on the lablel, it's La Belle Époque. I don't know whether that means anything. Anyway, it's a pretty common phrase, but I never knew what it meant so I thought I'd look it up just out of interest (I did know what 'belle' meant - I'm not an animal).

Google Translate, being super helpful. 

I did find it eventually. If you don't know, it means 'The Beautiful Era'. This is a heady floriental, and I can't distinguish any particular floral notes. There's a powdery back note that went a bit dusty on me too. This was probably the least interesting and most 'perfumy' of all the samples. It's nice, but it's 'walking through Myer perfume department' nice. 

Smoke & Mirrors

An elusive, smokey blend of burning wood, Madagascar Vanilla, and Tonka. We find this one to be elementally simple, but unusually mercurial and highly responsive to different skin chemistries… the vanilla and the smoke dance with each other almost continuously… sometimes the foreground is smoky, then sweet, then returns with sweetly smoky, then smoky.

WOW. In the bottle this is straight up smoke - you know that smell when there are brush fires (or bushfires) nearby and it's in the air? That. It's the same when I first apply it, but as it dries down I get more of a bonfire smell with a tiny hint of some sweet resin. I don't really get the vanilla at all. This reminds me so much of my inner bogan, when I was young and we would have big family parties (Catholics, there are millions of us) and have bonfires or barbeques going for hours. It's one of those 'memory' smells that just brings up loads of flashbacks. This one was one of the longest lasting also - I was still getting wafts of smoke hours later. Love it, buying a full size ASAP. It's definitely more of a winter scent, though. 

Overall thoughts

The full size bottle is one of those brown apothecary types with a dropper. I prefer roller balls personally, because I'm a slatherer, but I have empty ones around and I can easily decant so it's not a big issue. And the apothecary ones do look nicer. 

Longevity and sillage varies - I'd say Smoke & Mirrors and Trick or Treat were both the longest lasting and had the most throw. Midnight Garden had a decent amount of throw but didn't last very long. The blends are complex and most of them morph over time, and at least one of them (Trick or Treat) was like nothing I'd ever smelled before. 

The prices - including shipping - are very reasonable, and I thought the inclusion of 2 free samples was very generous. I also received a shipping notice to let me know it was on its way, which I appreciated. I hate it when I don't know if something's been sent or not and I have to sit there wondering whether I should chase it down.

In conclusion, if you're a fan of perfume oils, this is a store definitely worth trying. I was really happy with my choices and I'm definitely going back for at least 2 full sizes and a bunch more samples in the very early new year.  

Femme Fatale Cosmetics - Swatches

 
I really want to get back into swatching, but I'm going to have to buy a camera, I think. Now that Ben has loaned his to his mum (!), I have nothing but my iPhone, which is not great when you're already a half-arsed photographer like myself. Hmmm, maybe a Christmas present selfie.

Anyway, moving on. I had never heard of Femme Fatale Cosmetics before a few weeks ago when Jacquie gave me some samples she didn't want (being a pale ginger she can't wear purples without looking like she's been beaten up). I did some googling around to find out a bit more, and discovered that they are an Australian company. Now, I haven't paid a lot of attention to Australian companies selling mineral and loose makeup products in the past, because the ones I have seen have just been stupidly expensive, and they tend not to sell samples (looking right at you with the stinkeye, Inika - $25 for one eyeshadow, I don't think so). However, Femme Fatale has a full size eyeshadow for $5.75, a smaller size for $3ish, and they sell samples for $1.10. In addition to that, if you're just buying samples and you're in Oz, it's free shipping. First hurdle passed, Femme Fatale!

So, in addition to the 3 that Jac gave me, I decided to try some more. I also wanted to check out their illuminators and blushes (because I totes need new blushes, as you know). As it happens, only one of the blushes really interested me, but I did get 5 illuminator samples to check out. 

Eyeshadows

These were all taken swatched over Detrivore primer, in natural, slightly overcast light.  Descriptions are directly from the company website.

Top row: Starcaller, Wisp, Levitate, Shooting Stars

Bottom row: Shadow Dance, Jinx, Frostfire, The Dark One

Starcaller: A light periwinkle blue highlighted by a pinkish red shimmer, and violet and red sparkles.
Wisp: A soft slate grey eye shadow highlighted by a heavy blue duochrome.
Levitate: A soft amaranth pink with lavender tones, Levitate has a frosty violet shimmer with a scattering of blue, red and pink sparkles.
Shooting Stars: A soft wisteria violet eye shadow tinged with pink, Shooting Stars is highlighted by a heavy duochrome finish.
Shadow Dance: A cool grey with bluish undertones and a scattering of subtle blue and pink sparkles.
Jinx: A pigmented mid purple with blue undertones and a warm tone (copper/red) duochrome finish
Frostfire: A strong azure blue with teal undertones, Frostfire has a soft reddish shine and a scattering of pink and golden sparkles.
The Dark One: A smooth black based shade with a sultry violet shine, and lavender and purple sparkles.

Top row: Planeshift, Eternal Trance, Dispersion, Illusions

Bottom row: Desecration, The Nightmare, Temporal Shift, Smokebomb

Planeshift: A blend of pale jungle green and teal with slight grey tones, and striking golden shimmer.
Eternal Trance: Eternal Trance is a dark pine green with strong teal green shimmer.
Dispersion: A deep mulberry with bold teal blue shimmer.
Illusions: A brown based shade with a hint of auburn undertones, and teal duochrome finish.
Desecration: A striking bright green shimmer over a base mixed of cool grey, subtle brown and pearly purple tones.
The Nightmare: An eggplant purple base with intense golden green glimmers and sparkles.
Temporal Shift: A black based shade with striking golden duochrome that almost looks green in some lights.
Smokebomb: A black based eye shadow with colour shifting shimmer and copper sparkles.

Illuminators and Blush
These are also swatched over the Detrivore primer, which of course you wouldn't do in real life, but there was no way I could get them to show up on my camera phone if they were just swatched bare (even though they do look lovely on the skin). I decided to do them with the primer just so you could see the difference in the tones of these. In the bottom right is a blush that you can barely, barely see. It is quite sheer and pale, but it's beautiful. I wish I could get a picture that does it justice. Definitely buying this in full size. 

Top row: Snow Lily, Heart Blossom, Golden Lotus

Bottom row: Desert Rose, Nether Bloom, Fortune Cookie (blush)

Snow Lily: A translucent ivory-taupe illuminator, with the teeniest hint of small shimmer particles to create a glow on your skin, while the satin finish brightens up the face by reflecting light.
Heart Blossom: A translucent rose pink with very subtle undertones of purple grey, and medium to low shimmer.
Golden Lotus: A soft vanilla-gold illuminator, and the teeniest hint of small shimmer particles to create a glow on your skin, while the satin finish brightens up the face by reflecting light.
Desert Rose: A salmon coral illuminator with tones of soft pink, and medium to low shimmer.
Nether Bloom: A translucent illuminator in a soft chamoisee brown with warm undertones, and the teeniest hint of small shimmer particles to create a glow on your skin, while the satin finish brightens up the face by reflecting light.
Fortune Cookie: A pale tea rose pink mostly-matte blush with soft undertones of coral.

 I am surprised - and frankly a little disappointed - that I have never heard of this company before now. When I was looking for reviews and swatches I found that most of them were from US bloggers, and the Australian ones were generally along the lines of "These were sent to me for free and they're super awesome fantastic and I love them so much" and then they were never mentioned again on those blogs - not all, but definitely most. Which leads me to an oft-repeated rant:

A lot of Australian beauty blogging has largely become a tedious circle jerk. So many freebies being thrown out there, so many rave reviews of products received gratis, but even if the blogger does genuinely love the product(s), how can we readers believe it when said products never get another mention? Not a follow up purchase mentioned in a haul (god forbid they spend money when there's more free stuff round the corner), not in a favourites post, not in an empties post, not in a face of the day post. Just... nothing. And they wonder why people like me roll their eyes at those disclaimers about how 100% honest they are.

Okay, that was unpleasant. Back to Femme Fatale. These eyeshadows are really beautiful, and I loved the blush. The illuminators are pretty, though to be truthful illuminating isn't a big thing with me. Having said that, I'd consider getting one or two of them in full sizes - they give a nice, subtle glow without being over the top disco ballish.

There are at least 6 eyeshadows that I will be getting in bigger sizes, and possibly more. The greens especially are just gorgeous. And I love that there's a reasonably priced Australian indie makeup company out there. Now I'm going to go and look for some more.

Oh, one last thing. Of course, I wouldn't be me if I didn't manage to drop one of the eyeshadows while swatching. At this point it's starting to become a mystery game - which one will it be this time? 

Goodbye Frostfire! You were pretty while you lasted.