Darling Clandestine's Morderteile Kelah Perfume {review}

It's finally review time and guess what! It's another Darling Clandestine perfume review! Really, how could I not? Evonne's masterfully beautiful creations are my new obsession and I would be content using no other perfumes for the rest of my life. They are really that good! They are also quite complex so forgive me if I have difficulty in trying to interpret all the goodness!

But anyway, let's move onto the review part!

{the perfume: Morderteile Kelah}

"This is a fragrance I've created in honor of a magnificent lady with magnificent knockers. Amber, hyacinth, milk and strawberry jam are just a few of the elements that capture Kelah. As if anyone ever could capture her completely. You need a butterfly net, I bet. It's sweet and sultry and spicy and summery, and I'm so very happy with it."

I will be honest here and say I do not like this perfume when first applied. It opens with a warm and slightly salty green fragrance and the sweet strawberry. It kind of reminds me of... weed. Ahem. 

But after dry down, it loses that salty/savory herbaceous warmth. It becomes a lightly fruity sweet that is warmed by a bit of spiciness. The strawberry is very well done in this fragrance. It's not too sickly sweet or childish. It offers just the right amount of sweetness to be feminine, but not girly. The other elements lend a more mature hand to the fragrance, with a floral bite and some spice. 

I think Evonne's description is spot-on. It very much is sweet and sultry and spicy and summery. When I wear this, I feel a warm summer evening that might be getting a little sweaty. It is such a warm and inviting scent, it makes me think of soft, sweet kisses. And while I wouldn't describe this as a cuddly scent, it does make me want to cuddle up with my special someone and have a few of those sweet kisses. It is a romantic scent. In a casual sort of way.

As for wear, it lasts a few hours on my skin. The sillage is low - it sticks nice and close, right where I want it to be for a scent that makes me want cuddles and kisses. It really does add to the feelings of sweetness.

And I am loving this perfume. It is soft and sweet and makes me feel all kinds of good. I see myself wearing this often. It already is one that I reach for a lot. It is very easy to wear. And love!

{ingredients}

Ingredients include pure sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, rice brain oil, and grapeseed oil. 

{final thoughts}

And once again, I am left swooning by an original scent from Darling Clandestine! Try any and all of Darling Clandestine perfumes and I promise that you will not be disappointed! Really, that's all I can say. Tis perfection and all must try.

Darling Clandestine Halloween Collection Perfumes {review}

I am in love with these Halloween perfume oils from Darling Clandestine. And I know, I know - Halloween was over a month ago, but I am still having much fun with these perfumes! There's also a few of these scents still available, so my post isn't way too late. I was lucky enough to win these in a giveaway at Beauty Infinitum! Super exciting times!

Also, prepare for a long review...

{the perfume}

These perfume oils are splendid. I love the cool bottles they come in and the glass dropper/wand makes application easy. They are also very fragrant, but without being overpowering. The wear is about 6-8 hours and it fades beautifully with softly lingering sweet scents.

{the scents}

Falter
“All at once, the electric panic that lights up your inadequacies like constellations. Kill it.” Startling, misty, herbal, with notes including avocado and ozone and clary sage.

I think this is the one I'm going to have the most difficulty in trying to describe. Falter smells very interesting in the bottle - there's definitely a bit of an avocado note in there with other soft greens. Once on, it starts off smelling a bit like clay mixed with a sweet herbal scent that isn't too green. There's also a bit of creaminess to it.

After dry-down, the clay smell goes away and it morphs into a lovely scent that is so well blended it's difficult for me to accurately describe it. It's sweet and creamy, but not in a candy-like way. More like the light scent of sweet fruits. There might be a bit of melon in here. It's soft and mellow, without being too light. It's almost a clean scent, but in the best kind of way, like a scent I might find in a spa. I wish I could better describe this fragrance. But really, it is beautiful and quite soothing. Very wearable scent, even perfect for bedtime! I find myself drawn to this scent quite frequently, making reviewing other scents quite difficult at times! Definitely one of my new favorites!

Squander
“Rich as cello, the furious moments you wasted, never recognizing the fire at your command. Taste them.” Deep and decadent, with rich fruitful notes including clove and nutmeg and sandalwood and ripe red apple.

Squander is definitely a fall-time scent! It starts out strong with the apple and spices. The clove is very apparent in the scent, adding that extra punch of spice. After dry-down, the clove mellows out a lot. The sweet red apple also mellows out, bringing the other spices to the front. The fall spices in this perfume definitely stand out and are sweetened by the apple, which keeps the spices from getting too out of hand. There is also a hint of earthiness in the background. There is a deliciousness to this scent without being too foodie. It adds a bit of coziness to chilly, fall days!

Spurn
“At each silence, the ache of the blade that released your indecorous wrath. Twist it.” Fierce and passionate, with bright bursts of pomegranate, tempered with aged wood and haunted by marigolds."

Honestly, I am not sure what marigolds smell like. They must be some kind of wonderful though! This perfume opens up with bright, sweet pomegranate. I don't get much of the aged wood in this, but I think that is because my skin tends to amp up floral notes in any scent. I tend not to like florals for that reason, but marigolds are another story all together. They do not have a sharp, perfumey scent that most florals have. It is a deep and rich scent that is almost a bit heavy, but in a delightfully sweet way. Quite intoxicating!

Wither
“One Draconian day, the fissures into which your voluptuous youth dissolves. Welcome it.” Unsettling, ethereal, with notes including ozone and blueberry and trampled leaves, soaked in black rum.

Wither starts off bursting with blueberries. I'm not usually a fan of blueberry fragrances because the blueberry tends to be too sweet and candy-like. But the blueberries in this perfume have a real blueberry scent that isn't headache inducing. Yay! After the initial blueberry pop, the leaves quickly follow adding a bit of crunch to the scent. After dry-down, the earthiness of the leaves comes forward with the blueberries adding some sweetness to the scent. I detect a faint note of sweet florals in the background, but I could be wrong. To bring it all together, the ozone adds some freshness to the scent, like cool fall air carrying the scents of blueberries and fallen leaves. I really love how the scents play off one another in this fragrance - it never fails to interest my nose!

A few other things about Wither... from a distance, it has an alluring scent that is sweet and creamy. When it wafts my way (and I'm not sticking my nose up against it), there's a delectable quality about it. Also, I left the bottle open for a bit and I noticed my room smelled lightly of blueberries. Enjoyable all around!

{scents + peppermint}

I made a discovery with Falter while testing these out. I couldn't wait to try it, so I put it on even though I was about to shower. During my shower I used my peppermint scrub (reviewed here) and afterwards I noticed how beautifully the scent mixed with the perfume. I messaged Evonne at Darling Clandestine to tell her about my discovery and she suggested I try all of the scents with peppermint. Brilliant! And since I have a bottle of peppermint eo, that is exactly what I did! (Well not completely - I failed to test this out with Spurn, but didn't want to wait to post this review!).

Falter + peppermint
At first, the peppermint adds a bit of minty freshness. What I found interesting though is that when blended with Falter, the peppermint goes straight to being a sweet mint. There's no icy spike of minty coolness that peppermint usually has at first. The mint enhances that clean quality of the scent, while also adding some sweetness. It also brings out the ozone more. It is like the smell someone brings in with them from outside, but not when they first open the door, but as they come in and it slowly starts fading away. And they smell of something sweet but indeterminable, just a mellow and soft sweetness. Maybe sweet herbs with lovely creaminess. I really cannot get enough of this scent!

Squander + peppermint
This starts out with an interesting blend of peppermint and spices. They seem to balance perfectly - it's not too minty and it's not too spicy. They meld together enough to make you question and consider what you're really detecting in the scent. After dry-down, the peppermint brings out the sweetness of the apple while also adding a bit of tartness to it. It mellows out the clove in the scent and brings out the other spices. It also enhances the ozone. And put all that together and what do we get? Being outside on a cold winter night, when the skies are clear and the air is crisp, and there's a thermos full of hot apple cider at hand. It is a bit magical.

Wither + peppermint
This starts out with two strong scents - the icy peppermint and the sweet blueberries. It makes me think of biting into frozen blueberries. After it mellows out, the peppermint seems to enhance the sweetness of the scent while bringing the ozone scent to the front and making the airiness of it more crisp. The leaves are faintly in the background, but they start to emerge more with a bit of an earthy crunch that is slightly bitter. I love how the peppermint brings out these scent notes while also adding a bit of a twist.

{final thoughts}

I seem to fall more and more in love with Darling Clandestine perfumes! They are so unique and and completely beautiful! Never has a shop become one of my absolute favorites so quickly! I love Darling Clandestine so much, I can't stop exclaiming everything! Evonne, I <3 you! Highest recommendation from me and expect many, many more Darling Clandestine reviews from me!

Darling Clandestine Aragon Perfume {review}

I don't remember how I stumbled upon Darling Clandestine, even though it was fairly recently. But I am so glad I found this lovely perfume shop! All of the fragrances sound so unique and amazing and I want to try them all! Today I will be reviewing the Aragon solid perfume.

{the perfume}

This is the best solid perfume I have ever tried! It has a great creamy texture and it goes on like silk. But that is not the best part. The scent lasts for HOURS! The scent stays strong for 6-8 hours and then it starts fading off. After 12 hours, there is still a hint of the beautiful perfume! I didn't think solid perfumes could be so amazing. Love it!

{the scent}

Aragon

"It opens crisp and fresh with intense lavender essential oil, mellowed and deepened by sea salt, red wine, a bit of leather, and a touch of caramel and chocolate. It's bold and bright, rich and sweet without being cloying or overbearing."

The scent starts off with the intense and fresh lavender with a bit of zing from the sea salt. The leather is faintly in the background. After dry-down, the fruity note from the red wine starts to emerge and it starts sweetening. It becomes a beautifully warm and sweet scent with a herbal background and a faint whiff of a dark/bitter note, adding a bit of moodiness to the scent. The longer it's on, the sweeter it gets. It is a beautifully complex scent that I find myself frequently drawn to. Lovely.

I would find this scent suitable for every day wear. It is also sexy enough for a night spent with someone special.

{ingredients}

Ingredients include lavender essential oil, fragrance oils, pure beeswax, sweet almond oil, rice bran oil, and grapeseed oil.

{conclusion}

If you are looking for new and unique fragrances, I would definitely recommend Darling Clandestine. I have been loving the Aragon scent and it has intrigued me enough to already place a few more orders from Darling Clandestine. I think I have found a new perfume love! Stay tuned for more reviews of the beautiful Darling Clandestine perfumes!

Sarawen Perfume Art Perfumes {review}

I don't know if I'm the best girl for doing perfume reviews. Sometimes I can be terrible at explaining things, and trying to describe the complexities of perfumes may lead to some confusion on your part. But I really love these perfumes so I'll give it a shot! And I'll do my best! :)

I was first drawn to Sarawen Perfume Art because of the vintage style presented in the shop. All of the perfumes are beautifully presented and I just wanted to take a whiff of them all! There are cool themes, such as fantasy & sci-fi inspired scents. The shop even offers masculine and unisex fragrances. Something for everyone!

Note on the photos: The bottles and vials used for the shop have changed since I've purchased perfumes. You will notice the difference if you browse the shop!

{the perfume}

These perfumes have no alcohol in them. That is what I like most about handmade perfume oils - there is no alcohol added to help throw the scent. I don't like everyone in the room to be able to smell my perfume. I prefer to only have those who get close enough to me to be able to catch a whiff. I also don't like the headache-inducing scent alcohol adds to perfumes, basically making them all smell the same (to me anyway). These perfumes are not like that. It is just oils and fragrance, and all I smell are the lovely, complex scent notes.

As with all perfumes with no alcohol added, the scent is not long lasting. The fragrance needs to be refreshed every couple of hours or so, if you're to wear it all day. Usually I just use perfume for a night out, so it's not much of an issue to me. But I don't mind reapplying a few times a day because it means I am using quality perfume that I prefer - it doesn't give me headaches and the scent stays close to me.

{the scents}

When I first ordered from Sarawen Perfume Art, I ordered a full size and four samples. Since then, I have ordered full-size bottles of three of those samples I received. (I will not go into Vanilla Vamp as I don't believe it is offered anymore and it was the one that I least cared for, so I no longer have it.)

The Baker's Boy is a scent inspired by The Hunger Games (the character Peeta in this case). It is described as: "A luscious, gourmand fragrance bursting with ripe strawberries (from Katniss of course!) and delicious yellow cake. Underneath the deliciousness drifts soft vetiver, leather, and golden amber. This perfume is a unisex blend that borders towards feminine." To my nose, this is a sweet scent mellowed out by the other components of the perfume. The blend of strawberries and yellow cake is perfectly done. It's not an in-your-face-sickly-sweet-dessert-fragrance, but rather it reminds me of sweet berries left out in the sun or some delicious berry dessert baking in the next room. In the background, I mostly detect leather (although admittedly, I don't know what vetiver smells like on its own!). It blends well with the sweetness, mellowing it out and adding an interesting and almost refreshing element to the perfume. Writing all this makes me want to wear this perfume all the time now!

Girl On Fire is another scent inspired by The Hunger Games (Katniss!). It is described as: "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! Main notes: leather, strawberry, green herbs." To my nose, this is an interesting scent combination that always intrigues me every time I wear it. At first, I smell the strawberries and the leather. When it settles down, the herbal scents come to the front with a faint sweetness in the background and warmed by the scent of leather. It almost reminds me of walking through the forest on a warm day. It is the perfect scent for an Alaska girl like me!

Georgina is a Victorian era based scent described as: "Spend a lovely summer afternoon with a pot of fresh-brewed mint tea, a bowl of ripe peaches, and a plate of delicious dainty cake! A scent that is fruity, sweet, and refreshing, with just a hint of underlying gloom beneath the sunny sky. Main notes: peach, black tea, mint, incense." To my nose, the combination is so refreshing! At first, the peppermint is a bit strong but it mellows a bit and blends well with the peaches for a sweetly invigorating scent. The black tea and incense add complexity to the blend with an almost spicy background. This has to be one of my all-time favorite fragrances. The peaches and peppermint seemed like such an odd pairing to me at first, but they work extremely well together to create such a beautiful fragrance!

Tea With Watson is a scent inspired by Sherlock Holmes. It is described as: "Take a break from adventuring and stop at 221 Baker Street for awhile. White tea, delicious yellow cake, and a dash of cream caramel with a lingering background of 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." To my nose, this is the one I have most difficulty in trying to describe. The scent is warm and smokey with a sweet background. It is more of a masculine scent, but I really dig it and feel like I can still pull it off. I like to wear it on rainy, chilly days because the fragrance reminds me of being in a warm, cozy cabin with a fire going. I believe this is one of Sarawen's more popular fragrances, so it gets a lot of love!

{ingredients}

 Ingredients include rice bran oil, fractioned coconut oil, fragrance, and vitamin e.

{conclusion}

I definitely recommend giving Sarawen Perfume Art a shot! The perfumes are high quality and the fragrance blends are interesting and beautifully done. All of the perfumes I've tried are very unique and I love having fragrances that are different than the toxic perfumes everyone else wears! The scents are so enchanting, there will for sure be some more testing of new fragrances by me! I'm just itching to try one of the Doctor Who inspired scents as I am a HUGE Doctor Who fan! And I just might do that since there is a sale going on right now! It is 20% off (through Monday 10/14) your order of $10 or more with the coupon code "THANKYOU"! Now there's no excuse to not try out some new perfumes! :)

There is also an Etsy shop if you feel more comfortable purchasing through Etsy!

Baroque Solid Perfume {review}

I'll admit it… some days I don't take a shower. I wasn't able to take a shower the night before, I wake up late, yada yada yada. (Or sometimes I am just plain lazy). Those are the kinds of days that I like to wear perfumes and the like and make myself feel like I actually put some effort into getting ready to greet the world! One of my favorite products for such days are the "clean & fresh" solid perfumes from Baroque.

{the scents}

I'll start off with the scents for this one, both from the "Clean & Fresh" line:

Clean Cotton: This is definitely a clean scent! It kind of reminds me of fabric softener sheets. It also kind of reminds me of the way towels smell when they're dried by the sun and ocean breezes. I believe it is one of Baroque's most popular scents - which doesn't surprise me! It's wonderfully clean and airy and I totally dig it.

Fresh Laundry: I am completely in love with this one! In fact, I have never loved a perfume as much as I love this one. And I've never been a huge perfume fan. But this perfume smells EXACTLY like fresh laundry! It's amazing! And fresh laundry just so happens to be one of my favorite scents in the whole world! I never thought I'd be able to wear the scent as a perfume and I am in total bliss! It's just so wonderfully fresh and clean and oh-so-amazing.

{the perfume + ingredients}

The solid perfumes come in .07oz tubes and are also available .5oz tubes, called "Stallion Sticks". I have the small tubes, but they have been lasting me forever. The perfume is filled past the brim, so I haven't even had to twist-up the Clean Cotton one yet!

One thing that helps with making them last longer is that there is no need to constantly be reapplying the perfume. I can put it on in the morning and still be able to smell the fragrance late at night. Maybe not quite as "fresh", but definitely still clean! These perfumes have the longest lasting wear of any solid perfumes I've tried… and some regular perfumes too!

And being solid perfumes, the scents aren't too overpowering. I don't like it when people bathe in perfume and leave 20ft perfume trails behind them. I wear perfume for me and I don't want the whole world to know what I smell like. I like solid perfumes because they keep the fragrances close to me, so I can smell and appreciate them. And if someone gets close enough to appreciate it too, that's all well and good. Just as long as the person on the other side of the building doesn't have that chance!

Ingredients are coconut oil, beeswax, and fragrance.

{conclusion}

I would definitely recommend to anyone that they check out Baroque. The solid perfumes are the best of the best, as far as solid perfumes go. The fragrances are long lasting without being over-the-top. And in my opinion, they have the BEST perfume scent! Of course, you may not like "Clean & Fresh" fragrances as much as I do. But with the wide variety of fragrances available at Baroque, I'm sure you'd be able to find something you love just as much!