ZOMG Smells: Jaeger #1

Website description:

Jaunty and fierce! Clean as freshly-washed dirt, sharp as a brick. Lemon oil, oak moss, patchouli, white aniseed, and a pink rose in the lapel, because...well, yu never knows...

Official Sniff Testing:

Immediately after applying I was slapped by the moss and patchouli.  I had a hard time detecting the other notes, which worried me.  Very dirty-earthy.

After the oil dried down the patchouli/moss combo settled quite a bit.  The lemon oil and floral notes were very pleasant together, if still a little faint, and I'm guessing that the aniseed was the slightly sweet, slightly spicy scent barely hanging in there.  It was a tiny bit like black jelly beans, but only the TINIEST bit---more like the idea of jelly beans than the actual scent, you know?

Throughout the day the patchouli continued to fade a little bit and the floral and aniseed notes became a little more prominent.

The scent is easily detected for about six hours.  It's been over twelve hours and I can still smell it on my wrists.  I think this is the longest I've noticed any of these perfumes lasting!

Overall Impression

I would call this a masculine floral.  It's definitely lady-friendly, though.  I think this would be a good floral scent for people who don't normally dig anything flowery.  It's like a floral with training wheels.  Patchouli training wheels.  But not hippie patchouli.  It's good patchouli.  No offense intended to any persons out there subscribing to the hippie lifestyle.

Aaaaand I guess patchouli smells like dirt.  The more you know!

ZOMG Smells: Jaeger #3

Website description:

A little dark, a little dirty, but with undeniable sweetness under the rough edges-- this is a Jäger to watch out for. No Jäger is subtle, but this one approaches suaveness wearing elephant boots. Dangerously sexy. Olibanum, ginger, toasted cardamom, vetiver, and molasses.

Official Sniff Testing

Immediately upon application I got the impression of a dirty, sweet flower; I can smell the leather and smokiness and some dirt, a bit of warm spice and a hint of rose at the end, like a cowboy coming home after a long drive bearing a bouquet for his beloved.  It's not a powdery or old-fashioned rose, which is good news.  I don't know where that rose is coming from, though, because there are exactly zero floral notes in this one.

After 1 hour the dirt has softened significantly, but the leather/smoke is still there.  The over all effect is a little sweeter and has a hint more floral and spice, like the cowboy done washed up for his lady friend.  I love the cardamom and ginger in this.

I think the total wear time was a solid 6 hours.  I could still smell it faintly after 7, though.

Overall Impression

This smells good.  I would love to put this on Mr. Mango.  I'm not quite so fond of it on myself because I don't think that the scent of leather suits me very well.

I think that this would appeal more to the "typical" (ha!) male, but the right female would easily pull this off.

EDIT: I never realized this, but there is no leather in this scent. I don't know where that scent came from, but that's what I smelled.

ZOMG Smells: Pirate Queen (off duty)

Website description:

After a hard day's work, there's nothing quite like kicking back with a nice warm cannon fusillade and a selection of small, defenseless villages. Ah, the good life!

Three toasted woods, torched incense, clove bud and rich patchouli.

Official Sniff Testing

Immediately after application this stuff was smoky.  Smoky smoky SMOKY.  It was more like woodsmoke than tobacco, with a hint of spicy sweetness (the clove, perhaps?) and incense.

After the oil dried I noticed that the intense smoke had faded to a much more pleasant level (less BAM I was in a burning house and more MMMM sexy at a bonfire) and the incensey and spicy smells became more prominent.  A little bit of earthiness was uncovered, too, which I liked.  Never thought I'd be into anything with patchouli.

The scent faded consistently and lasted about five hours in the amount I applied.

Overall Impression

If you like warm, smoky things and relatively gender neutral scents, this is for you.  While I liked the smell, I don't feel that it suits me very well.  I'll probably reserve it for evenings with Mr. Mango because he seems to like this sort of thing on me.

Somethingdy something and a Concrete Minerals look

I'm still seeking my makeup mojo right now, which is a little tough while living at home.  I miss having my space, and I'm kind of tired of being a third parent to my younger sister, but it could be worse I guess.  At least my parents are pretty cool about everything, and they don't charge any rent.

ANYWAY.  I received a Concrete Minerals order last week and have been piddling around with the colors I got.  Swatches are scheduled for tomorrow, but today---A LOOK.

BAMPOW







 

Lid: CM Blitzkrieg (hnnnngngng this color is gorgeous)

Outer vee/upper lashline:  CM Temptress

Crease:  a 50/50 blend of Blitzkrieg and Temptress

Lower lashline:  SM Dreamy, a lovely pale sage green with lots of light teal and blue sparkle



Lips:  L'Oreal Colour Riche lipstick in Fairest Nude

Maybe I'll do a review on that someday, idk.  In a nutshell I'd call it my-lips-but-paler rather than a true nude.



BONUS PICTURE!  I've wanted a copy of River City Ransom for years now, mostly because all of the character sprites are exactly the same, and I do mean EXACTLY, as those used in one of my favorite NES games ever: World Cup Soccer.  I was a freaking stud at that thang.  UGH, I was so good.  Also, what's not to like about some random dude beating up gangsters to save his girlfriend?  It's a little sexist, but far less so (in my opinion) than most music/commercials/TV programs that I see anymore.

SO.

Summary:  swatches to come.  Life is okay.  I love you.

Spring break makeups hurr hurr

Went to Chicago for a couple of days and actually wore makeup, which is AWESOME because that whole 'less sucky skin' thing makes it go far more quickly in the mornings.





Lid/crease:  ES Cerberus over Pixie Epoxy

Inner corner/highlight:  mmm.... possibly SM Silk Sheets, maybe AL Alyssum

Liner:  Covergirl marker thing, which I still love

The thing that drove me NUTS about these pictures is that they only show the coppery shimmer of Cerberus, making it look like a boring brown.  In reality it looked more like a deep red-maroon with strong (but not overwhelming) shimmer and just the tiniest hint of fuchsia at the edges.  The first photo is a little closer to what I mean, but still.  STILL.



Lid:  lightest matte from the WnW Vanity palette

Crease:  medium matte from WNW Vanity palette

Liner:  SM Gasoline Rainbow over Pixie Epoxy

Lower lashline:  shitty smudged eyeliner

Mascara:  Maybelline The Falsies Waterproof

Probably shouldn't have let the PE dry as much as it did, but whatevs.  I liked the way this looked.





Lid:  lightest matte from WnW Vanity palette

Crease:  darker shimmer from same palette

Highlight:  very tiny amount of the light gold in same palette

Liner:  Archetype Unseelie Court

Mascara:  Maybelline The Falsies waterproof

Crappy pictures of a pretty/simple look.  I really liked this, and I'm pretty bummed that the pictures don't show how nice it actually looked.  Such is life, yes?

ZOMG Smells: Jaeger #2

Website description:

Two leafy mints, gnarly patchouli root, balsam, and a speck of black licorice. Robust! This Jager likes long walks in the woods, getting caught in the rain, and hitting things with other things.

Official Sniff Testing

Immediately after application this was VERY minty, like crushing a handful of mint leaves---not sweet mint, but rather leafy and green.  There was also some dirt and smoke and leather going on, which might be the patchouli and balsam.

After about an hour  the mint had softened but is still the most prominent note; the leathery note has faded a bit and the woodsy-herbal scent has come forward.  There's a bit of sweetness, which I'm guessing is the licorice.  It's still on the earthy side.

3 hours ish:  again, the mint is a touch softer but still present, and the leathery scent is pretty much gone.  Right now the overall effect is rather woodsy-green with some smokey warm musk.  It's really quite delicious---like, I could see myself burying my face in a stranger's neck and just breathing if they were wearing this around me.

5 hours:  The perfume has faded but it still has the same effect as the 3-hour point.

Overall Impression

Love.  Lovelovelove.  I like this for myself, and I would find it equally attractive on a man.  It has masculine leanings, but it's not overtly "manly" like most colognes are.  *I have to admit, I don't really know what patchouli smells like.  I've always thought that it was similar to the incense sticks the potheads on campus liked to burn, but idk.

If you like long walks in the woods, going camping and minty things, this is definitely for you.  I don't know how to describe how good it is, so I'll just recommend that you try it.

Jaded Wyverns love Mocha

So rebellious!

Just an eotd from Wednesday because my skin is very, very dry right now, which is odd because I'm usually greasier than cheap pizza (ewwwwww)





Lid wash:  NYX Iced Mocha

Lower lashline:  ES Wyvern over Pixie Epoxy, a smidge of NYX Jade on the outer 1/4

Liner/waterline:  Bourjois Clubbing

Mascara:  Maybelline The Falsies Waterproof, which I actually really like.  SUCCESS

I guess the trick to getting waterliner to stay on my watery eyes is just to run the liner along the very rim, butting up against the roots of the lashes and not actually touching the eyeball.  This is the kind of stuff they should put in makeup 101 or something!

Handwriting memetagthing

I've seen this baby making its way through the blogroll lately, and I can't resist anything that asks me what my favorite music is, so BAM!

Would you, too, like to share in the fun?  Just answer the following in your own handwriting:

1. What is your name? And your blog?
2. What's your blog URL?
3. Write: The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.
4. Favorite quote.
5. Favorite song?
6. Favorite band/singers?
7. Say anything you want.
8. Pass this along to a few bloggers.



*just a note, under favorite songs---it's The Kooks, not The Kocks.

**KEVIN DURAND Y U SO FINE

Jolted Nerves in the River

I had an appointment with my sister's dermatologist last week and have started on some prescriptions.  I'm hoping that they will magic the acne away, allowing me to partake in makeup-related endeavors on a more regular basis rather than when my skin doesn't burn.  In the meantime, two poorly executed looks!  SHAKA SHAAAAA





Lid:  taupe half of L'Oreal HiP Electrified duo

Lashline:  SM Jolt

Eyeliner:  Bourjois Clubbing

Highlight:  SM Silk Sheets

Mascara:  Rimmel Sexy Curves waterproof, which IMO sucks donkey poop

.





Inner half of lid:  SM Of All The Nerve!

Outer half/crease:  ES Gift River over Pixie Epoxy

Inner corner:  SM Silk Sheets (not that it's visible in this photo, but at least it made me happy)

Liner:  Kat von D matte black shadow applied with an angled brush

Mascara:  Rimmel The Max Volume Flash Waterproof, also sucktacular

ZOMG Smells: Madboy

Madboy is one of the limited edition Girl Genius scents.

Website description:

This scent is the scent of mad genius hard at work. There's leather toolbelts and handy restraints, of course. And over here, the shelf of glutinous unguents and resins imported in plain brown wrappers...a scrim of dust on the old projects that no-one is allowed to discuss...

...and a bit of that unknowable SPLAZANG that gives a creation LIFE! NEW LIFE! HA HA HA HAAAAAAaaaaa....

Official Sniff Testing

Initial note:  when I saw the word "resin" in the description I expected more of a tree-sap type of resin scent.  That is not what came out of the bottle.  It was a little chemically, in the sense that it reminded me a tiny bit of the scent of preserving fluids and thick reagents.

The leather, smoky stuff and resin were present in nearly equal amounts.  It reminds me of being in a chemistry lab---a sexy chemistry lab with fun toys, not a boring one where you spend hours cleaning glassware with acetone.

After about two hours the smoky scent had faded a bit

Overall Impression

At first I was worried that the resiny smells would be overpowering and would make me feel like a preserved body, but everything worked so well together that the resin wasn't out of place.  I enjoyed the perfume because it made me feel like a proper eeeevil scientist instead of an angry engineering student.  Mr. Mango liked it, too, probably because his vision of an evil scientist is a sexy scientist.

ZOMG Smells: Coronal Mass Ejection

Website description:

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas and sometimes, just sometimes, it- sends a big ol' glob of those fun times hurtling out into space propelled by solar wind.

When these coronal mass ejections are pointed Earthward, they do neat junk like freaking out radios, the entire power grid of Quebec, and the Earth's magnetic field in general. The Carrington Event, a super-major CME in 1859, was especially exciting, causing aurorae borealis as far south as Rome. Certain telegraph operators at the time--possibly crazed on patent medicines--also claimed that they could operate their telegraphs without an external power source due to the current running through the lines. A coronal mass ejection of this majesty happens, on average, every 500 years or so. Ready?

Notes: Pink grapefruit, Tunguska pine, two ambers and the distilled fear of everyone working in telecommunications...by which we mean tolu balsam.

Official Sniff Test

Immediately upon application the ambers, pine and balsam are most prominent.  I can't really smell the grapefruit at all.  I was worried that it would smell like an air freshener, but it's more like a camping trip.  I wouldn't call it a masculine scent, it's pretty much gender neutral.

1.5 hours:  Softer, can catch a little of the grapefruit.  Still pretty woodsy and warm from balsam and amber.  I think the amber is most prominent here.

3 hours and beyond:  The amber has faded so that the woodsy scents are most prominent.  After this point the scent remained the same for about four more hours.

Overall Impression

I think I would like this more on another person.  It was pleasant, but it just doesn't suit me.

Massive Photo Dump

HOLY CRAP.

It has been 2.5 months since I last posted anything about makeup.

It has been almost a month since I posted anything (excluding today's rush of perfume reviews)

I've been totally absent, and in doing this I have wronged you.

Honestly, it's been a great deal of laziness on my part.  I have hardly worn any makeup lately, maybe lipstick and eyeliner a couple of days but nothing post-worthy.  I also haven't purchased anything aside from mascaras to test out.

On top of that I bought myself a new toy and have spent my days doing this:  http://omelette-kid.deviantart.com/ YES I AM A DEVTARD I am so sorry

So anyway.  Summary of crap you don't need to hear.  What matters is that there are a zillion photos after this.  If you want any color info I can try to add it later, but I honestly don't remember very many of these.

ZOMG Smells: Marmalade Tabby

Website description:

This smell is dedicated to my own indolent and mouthy marmalade tabby, Fisher.

Everything warm and soft and marmalade-y I could think of went into this blend. Soft fuzzy stomachs in the sun, the scent of kitty-head as it gets bumped up against your nose, pink toe-pads poking out of peachy fuzz, my god I could go on and on and eventually just abandon all pretense of coherent speech and start making OOO SMOOCHY-WOO noises. Plus marmalade. :)

Non-cat owners and allergic persons, have no fear. There are no actual cat products in this, unless you consider the distilled essence of helpless doofy affection to be a cat product.

(by 'the distilled essence of helpless doofy affection' we actually mean sweet orange and peach, fuzzy musk, sweetroll accord, and a dab of caramel sauce right on the nose AWWW NOSE, WHO'S GOT A LITTLE NOSE ON A LITTLE KITTYFACE? YOU DO!)

Official Sniff Test

Immediately on:  smells like a candle, some sort of peachy bready thing.

It quickly settles into something more palatable---it still has a spicy, baked good smell but with a stronger fruity scent with a tiny hint of musky earthy business.  It's a bit like fresh peach crisp with manly marmalade, but it was still a bit artificial.

After 2-3 hours the smell was very much that of homemade fruit cobbler with a little bit of musk.  Sweet and charming.

The perfume lasted just over 6 hours.

Overall Impression

Delicious.  It was like I'd spent a few hours in the kitchen whipping up pastries and pies and crisps and the wafts of baked happiness just followed me around.

I was worried that I'd smell like an overly sweet candle all day, but it settled into tasty happiness very well.

ZOMG Smells: Sparkle Receptor

Website description:

This scent is specifically designed to tickle the sparkle receptors in your brain in a way that we hope will improve your mood if you need it and sustain your good spirits if you started out sparkly. Strawberry gum, bright citruses, warm happy amber, the light floral tease of red currant, sparkle, and fizz.

Official Sniff Test

Powerfully sweet candy and orange slices soaked in carbonated deliciousness (think Squirt, not Orange Crush);  fruity and sweet with a hint of tartness and something warm at the very end.

After an hour there was more carbonation and less candy, but the overall effect was still very sweet-tart and fruity.

There was very little change after this point.  The amount that I applied lasted about 6 hours.

Overall Impression

It's cheesy, but I felt really young again---not in terms of years, but I felt very happy and hopeful and "SKY'S THE LIMIT Y'ALL".  I miss waking up like that.

Because of that feeling I really love this perfume.  It might be bottled youth.

ZOMG Smells: Spacebat

Website description:

Never forget March 15, 2009. On that day, a small free-tailed bat clung resolutely to the space shuttle Discovery and rose through the Earth's atmosphere to the vastness beyond on a billowing plume of flame. No creature has ever died a more glorious death, or lived so purely the dream that pulled our distant ancestors up from the oceans and into the skies. While Spacebat's body did not survive his flight to the stars, his dream lives on in all of us.

The scent of a soul slipping the surly bonds of earth for the stars above. Mission accomplished.

Cave stone and memorial myrrh lifted by nutmeg and delicate leather wings.

Official Sniff Test

After application the last three scents are present, leather and myrrh most apparent with nutmeg as an accent.  Together they smell a little like church incense (seriously, what's with me and incense?)  I don't know what stone smells like, but I'm guessing that it's the slightly earthy, barely-there foundation.

After around 1.5 hours the leather has faded and the myrrh is more intense.  There is still only a small amount of nutmeg.

At this point the scent remained nearly the same for about 5 more hours; toward the end the nutmeg became a leetle more apparent.

Overall Impression

This was a very sober smell.  I personally wouldn't wear it for a date or to work, but I would rock it in winter or at a funeral.  Does that make any sense?

ZOMG Smells: Kuiper Belt Objects

Website description:

In 2006, Pluto was demoted from its status as a planet to a dwarf planet, or “plutoid”. No longer the sentinel king of the outer solar system, Pluto is now just one among 70,000 known bodies orbiting in the Kuiper Belt beyond the orbit of Neptune. A BIT OF A LETDOWN, YES?

True kings can't be taken down that easily. Slowly, carefully, Pluto marshals its chief lieutenants: plutoids Eris, Makemake, and Haumea. Slowly, orbits shift. The king knows how to deal with coddled inner planets that trifle with matters beyond their ken.

A dark, heady scent that spells doom a-comin': black pepper, black amber, bitter black grapeskin, and vetiver. Just a fleck of star anise.

Official Sniff Testing

On initial application I smell a lot of pepper--not sharp, but definitely the scent of fresh pepper---and I think I'm smelling the amber and vetiver beneath that, something very earthy and a touch sweet.  There's a tiny hit of licorice in the background as well.  Don't know what grapeskin smells like.

After ~3 hours the pepper had faded and a grapey-wine scent had come forward a bit, mixing with the now subtle pepper and the smoky/green incense.  Still has the licorice scent.  The effect is a bit like a sweet red wine.

At 5 hours of wear the overall scent has faded more, and has gained a little extra sweetness.  The licorice scent is gone, leaving a mellow fruity, smoky, peppery scent behind.

After 6 hours the scent has almost completely disappeared.  If I press my nose against my wrist and sniff deeply I can catch some incense and sweetness.

Overall Impression

I liked this one quite a bit more than I expected.  I can see a sexy assassin wearing this.