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The Carnival Diabolique decants arrived! WHOOOHOOOO!!!!! Granted, these reviews are from the 27th and I'm behind by a lot, but hope you enjoy the reviews anyway! ;D
The Phantom Calliope: Ghostly, glowing, sweet and dark: black cherry, patchouli, cassis, cardamom and verbena. This is sheer bliss. Beautiful cherry and lots of swirling spices. Mmmm. This is just beautiful! (Edit: This is another one should avoid putting on right after the shower. Owie!) Still a gorgeous scent, though!
GENNIVRE, L'ARTISTE du DIABLE: The scarlet woman turns her gleaming sightless eyes towards you and, in a husky, compelling voice, she speaks: "Why let the years tear at your youthful splendor? Why let the mark of your sins stain your fine features? Will you let the cold, creeping grasp of time and the toil of temptation mar your visage? Why should the pleasures of our flesh wreak such havoc?"
She leans in close to you and whispers, "Let me capture your soul on this canvas in oil and blood, and you will be beautiful forever."
Hyson tea leaf, pale mint, sugar cane, orange blossom, lemongrass, and honey. Fascinating. Tea and minty lemon start out the strongest, and then it 'mellows' into something else. Light yet intriguing and a bit sharp.
MME. MORIARTY, MISFORTUNE TELLER: <> "Mme. Moriarty, Misfortune Teller.
No fate too grim, no future too bleak."
A tiny woman with floor-length black dreadlocks walks out of the tent, stepping over the prone body. She is clothed in deep red wrappings, and is bedecked in golden ornaments bearing alchemical symbols and charms representing eternity, chance, and wisdom. She pauses, looks you over slowly, and then flicks a tarot card at your feet.
Red musk, vanilla bean, pomegranate, patchouli leaf and wild plum. OMG. This is utterly gorgeous. I can't stop inhaling it, even though I really can't pick out any one note. It's just beautiful. An absolutely wonderful blend, and I dearly hope it will last on me. 20 min later: fading, but still pretty.
The Candy Butcher: An exquisite, enigmatic woman sidles up to you, bearing a tray of strange, dusty curios, chocolate creatures, serpentine taffy, and candied skulls. Her skin is dusky, her eyes are heavy-lidded and sensual, her hair is the fine, soft white of spun sugar, and her skin is softly scented with cocoa. She holds a shrunken head aloft, and beckons.
Dark chocolate with a heavy cream undertone. Wow, sweet chocolate! This is a beautiful and rich scent. Something in it makes me think of toasted nuts...maybe I've had a chocolate bar that smelled like this that had nuts in it or something. Mmm, lovely. A very warm and inviting scent.
Midnight on the Midway: Lightning splits the sky, illuminating the skeletal skyline of the carnival rides: sugared incense and night-blooming flowers. Well. This is better for me than the original Midway, as I can actually smell this one in the bottle and on me! But it is still a faint scent. I get light-but-sorta-bright florals from this, with an aftershock of stronger incense. Not enough to keep though. :(
THEODOSIUS, THE LEGERDEMAIN: A flash of light and the smell of sulfur seize your attention. A vast black tent stands before you, subtly glowing with an unnatural, almost phosphorescent light. This tent has no pennants, no ornamentation, save for a carved ebony sign, lettered in silver:
Earl Grey tea leaves, a white fougere, jasmine leaf, pearlescent white musk, and vanilla bean. Very pretty, but very subtle on me. Didn't last long at all. Not a keeper but it is a nice scent.
The Organ Grinder: A handsome, dark-skinned man weaves and dances his way through the crowd. Veves have been burned into the face of his old acoustic guitar, which he strums casually as he strolls though the crowd. A winged Capuchin monkey is balanced on his shoulder, holding out a rusty metal cup. The guitar player's melancholy chords begin to mingle strangely with a cacophonous jangling sound. The discordant symphony grows and swells as he moves toward a cloaked and hooded figure; this spectre's skeletal hands operate a dilapidated barrel organ that stands at a crossroads in the midway. As they come together, the music hits a nightmarish crescendo; your heart heaves with longings unfulfilled, your vision swims, and your head is filled with whispered incantations and gallows secrets. In that instant, you suddenly understand the profundity of deals made in Heaven and Hell, and the price of desire.
Almond milk, sarsaparilla, tobacco smoke, black patchouli and white pine bark. This one is surprisingly light considering the tobacco smoke and patchouli. Guess the other elements are stronger in it, but it's really light on me. Too bad that it's so "eh" on me as I did want to like this one. Edit: After ten minutes this is far more interesting. Still not super, but much nicer.
XANTHE, THE WEEPING CLOWN: From the corner of your eye, you see what seems to be a swirl of pale, translucent spirits. Ghostly in form, their faces are masks of pain and fury. Their insubstantial bodies churn and roil around a hissing, wailing clown. Her greasepaint is smeared with tears, and her fanged crimson mouth is turned down in a vicious scowl while blood drips from her lips. Her costume is torn and threadbare, and a steel-bright glint around her waist draws your eyes to an arsenal of razors, knives, and cleavers hanging from her belt. She swats futilely at the spirits as she shoves and scratches her way through the crowd.
Guava, orange peel, white pepper, spun sugar and apple blossom.
Mmm, beautiful! This is light yet really bright at the same time. Sweet and interesting. This is a really lovely scent.
ANTONINO, THE CARNY TALKER: His ivory smile frozen in a gleeful rictus grin, he steps up onto the platform, taps the cane three times, and the jester costume vanishes. Suddenly dark eyes appear in the empty sockets, bones are wrapped in muscle, sinew grows over the bones, blood fills rapidly appearing veins. Before your eyes, the skeletal jester has become a dapper, handsome man, dressed in black and orange, with a skull-ornamented straw hat tilted jauntily upon his shining black hair.
White musk, wild plum, vetiver, black coconut, verbena, fig & lavender.
Are verbena and lavender rather strident? Because this has some sweet notes and some very bold notes in it, but combine very pleasantly. Will have to see how this one wears--it almost feels like it won't have staying power, but we'll see. It's invigorating and nice.
PULCINELLA & TERESINA: Your eyes are drawn to a gilded miniature stage whose sign reads: "All Praises to the Lord of Misrule!" Upon the platform, a sneering wooden jester waltzes with a hollow-eyed and bleeding wooden maiden, while a wooden devil floats above them.
Labdanum, cedar, teak and red rose.
Mmm, this is actually quite nice! Like someone having a vase of roses in a fine furniture gallery (you know the kind, with fresh wood pieces). Very cool. Not sure how often I'd wear this one, but it is certainly different and likely would make a great room scent as well.
CARNAVAL DIABOLIQUE: Straight from the twisted alleys of Dis, by way of the City of Angels: opium smoke, lemon flower, heliotrope, tuberose, black musk, vanilla, coconut, apricot flower.
Wow, lovely florals with a deep background. This starts out with super strong florals but then mellows out into something very nice. Mmm.
The Phantom Calliope: Ghostly, glowing, sweet and dark: black cherry, patchouli, cassis, cardamom and verbena. This is sheer bliss. Beautiful cherry and lots of swirling spices. Mmmm. This is just beautiful! (Edit: This is another one should avoid putting on right after the shower. Owie!) Still a gorgeous scent, though!
GENNIVRE, L'ARTISTE du DIABLE: The scarlet woman turns her gleaming sightless eyes towards you and, in a husky, compelling voice, she speaks: "Why let the years tear at your youthful splendor? Why let the mark of your sins stain your fine features? Will you let the cold, creeping grasp of time and the toil of temptation mar your visage? Why should the pleasures of our flesh wreak such havoc?"
She leans in close to you and whispers, "Let me capture your soul on this canvas in oil and blood, and you will be beautiful forever."
Hyson tea leaf, pale mint, sugar cane, orange blossom, lemongrass, and honey. Fascinating. Tea and minty lemon start out the strongest, and then it 'mellows' into something else. Light yet intriguing and a bit sharp.
MME. MORIARTY, MISFORTUNE TELLER: <
No fate too grim, no future too bleak."
A tiny woman with floor-length black dreadlocks walks out of the tent, stepping over the prone body. She is clothed in deep red wrappings, and is bedecked in golden ornaments bearing alchemical symbols and charms representing eternity, chance, and wisdom. She pauses, looks you over slowly, and then flicks a tarot card at your feet.
Red musk, vanilla bean, pomegranate, patchouli leaf and wild plum.
The Candy Butcher: An exquisite, enigmatic woman sidles up to you, bearing a tray of strange, dusty curios, chocolate creatures, serpentine taffy, and candied skulls. Her skin is dusky, her eyes are heavy-lidded and sensual, her hair is the fine, soft white of spun sugar, and her skin is softly scented with cocoa. She holds a shrunken head aloft, and beckons.
Dark chocolate with a heavy cream undertone. Wow, sweet chocolate! This is a beautiful and rich scent. Something in it makes me think of toasted nuts...maybe I've had a chocolate bar that smelled like this that had nuts in it or something. Mmm, lovely. A very warm and inviting scent.
Midnight on the Midway: Lightning splits the sky, illuminating the skeletal skyline of the carnival rides: sugared incense and night-blooming flowers. Well. This is better for me than the original Midway, as I can actually smell this one in the bottle and on me! But it is still a faint scent. I get light-but-sorta-bright florals from this, with an aftershock of stronger incense. Not enough to keep though. :(
THEODOSIUS, THE LEGERDEMAIN: A flash of light and the smell of sulfur seize your attention. A vast black tent stands before you, subtly glowing with an unnatural, almost phosphorescent light. This tent has no pennants, no ornamentation, save for a carved ebony sign, lettered in silver:
Earl Grey tea leaves, a white fougere, jasmine leaf, pearlescent white musk, and vanilla bean. Very pretty, but very subtle on me. Didn't last long at all. Not a keeper but it is a nice scent.
The Organ Grinder: A handsome, dark-skinned man weaves and dances his way through the crowd. Veves have been burned into the face of his old acoustic guitar, which he strums casually as he strolls though the crowd. A winged Capuchin monkey is balanced on his shoulder, holding out a rusty metal cup. The guitar player's melancholy chords begin to mingle strangely with a cacophonous jangling sound. The discordant symphony grows and swells as he moves toward a cloaked and hooded figure; this spectre's skeletal hands operate a dilapidated barrel organ that stands at a crossroads in the midway. As they come together, the music hits a nightmarish crescendo; your heart heaves with longings unfulfilled, your vision swims, and your head is filled with whispered incantations and gallows secrets. In that instant, you suddenly understand the profundity of deals made in Heaven and Hell, and the price of desire.
Almond milk, sarsaparilla, tobacco smoke, black patchouli and white pine bark. This one is surprisingly light considering the tobacco smoke and patchouli. Guess the other elements are stronger in it, but it's really light on me. Too bad that it's so "eh" on me as I did want to like this one. Edit: After ten minutes this is far more interesting. Still not super, but much nicer.
XANTHE, THE WEEPING CLOWN: From the corner of your eye, you see what seems to be a swirl of pale, translucent spirits. Ghostly in form, their faces are masks of pain and fury. Their insubstantial bodies churn and roil around a hissing, wailing clown. Her greasepaint is smeared with tears, and her fanged crimson mouth is turned down in a vicious scowl while blood drips from her lips. Her costume is torn and threadbare, and a steel-bright glint around her waist draws your eyes to an arsenal of razors, knives, and cleavers hanging from her belt. She swats futilely at the spirits as she shoves and scratches her way through the crowd.
Guava, orange peel, white pepper, spun sugar and apple blossom.
Mmm, beautiful! This is light yet really bright at the same time. Sweet and interesting. This is a really lovely scent.
ANTONINO, THE CARNY TALKER: His ivory smile frozen in a gleeful rictus grin, he steps up onto the platform, taps the cane three times, and the jester costume vanishes. Suddenly dark eyes appear in the empty sockets, bones are wrapped in muscle, sinew grows over the bones, blood fills rapidly appearing veins. Before your eyes, the skeletal jester has become a dapper, handsome man, dressed in black and orange, with a skull-ornamented straw hat tilted jauntily upon his shining black hair.
White musk, wild plum, vetiver, black coconut, verbena, fig & lavender.
Are verbena and lavender rather strident? Because this has some sweet notes and some very bold notes in it, but combine very pleasantly. Will have to see how this one wears--it almost feels like it won't have staying power, but we'll see. It's invigorating and nice.
PULCINELLA & TERESINA: Your eyes are drawn to a gilded miniature stage whose sign reads: "All Praises to the Lord of Misrule!" Upon the platform, a sneering wooden jester waltzes with a hollow-eyed and bleeding wooden maiden, while a wooden devil floats above them.
Labdanum, cedar, teak and red rose.
Mmm, this is actually quite nice! Like someone having a vase of roses in a fine furniture gallery (you know the kind, with fresh wood pieces). Very cool. Not sure how often I'd wear this one, but it is certainly different and likely would make a great room scent as well.
CARNAVAL DIABOLIQUE: Straight from the twisted alleys of Dis, by way of the City of Angels: opium smoke, lemon flower, heliotrope, tuberose, black musk, vanilla, coconut, apricot flower.
Wow, lovely florals with a deep background. This starts out with super strong florals but then mellows out into something very nice. Mmm.
