sixteen92 Winter 2015

Sooooo I would have had this up ages ago, but my allergies decided it would be fun if I couldn't breathe through my nose for 5 days straight.  Fun times.  It didn't help that USPS held my Circle shipment hostage for an extra week.  I can't say as I blame them, since it smelled amazing before I even opened the package.  Also, it worked out nicely in that they got here in time for me to test them out on my mom again.  This isn't her first sixteen92 experience.  After smelling it, she made me buy her a full size of Goody Proctor and I've given her at least three of my freebie samples.  I think she has Black Sugar and Grimm.  It's been awhile so don't quote me on that. 

My Circle shipment consisted of the five Winter perfumes and a preview sample from the upcoming Holiday Collection of Candy Cane Mocha.   I was really glad I got that one because I wondered how it compared to Peppermint Hot Chocolate. 

And The Days Are Not Full Enough

sweet sandalwood, texas cedar heartwood, patchouli coeur, black vanilla, grey musk

In the bottle: Patchouli and cedar and vanilla

On my skin: Sweet and woody. Almost piney, but not (if that makes sense). I think I’m smelling a light cedar and some patchouli. Maybe a little vanilla too. This is lovely. It’s unisex but not too masculine. The throw is moderate, but it feels light: it’s good enough that I can smell it while I type, even though I’m a little stuffed up and only breathing out of one side of my nose (sorry for the TMI). Dry, the vanilla and musk comes out, and it gets a little fuzzy, almost like a sweater. It’s Fuzzy Man Sweater That Smells Good So You Steal It. The longer I have this on, the more I love it. Lasted a good three and a half hours. 

Mom: It smells like wet cement. And I know what wet cement smells like because your great uncle (who raised her) was a bricklayer. 

Domination of Black

orris root, soft suede, white santal, nutmeg, oakwood, lichen, chilled soil (premium)

In the bottle: Leather.

On my skin: Soft leather and oak and there's this sharp clean note... I can't decide if it's supposed to be metal or if it's supposed to smell like cold. I loved this one too. If And The Days... is a fuzzy sweater you stole from your man, then this is his old leather jacket that is secretly the reason you gave him your number. Best of all I got just under five hours of wear out of it. This one I may just need in a full size. 

Mom: EWW! WHAT THE FUCK!  OMG! (she actually says Oh Em Gee, out loud. Unironically.)  I'm not even trying to be funny, but it smells like stuff I would use to clean my sink. *sniffs* Ick. You just gave me this cause you knew it was bad.

Me: *when I can stop laughing long enough to draw breath.* I actually really like that one.

Mom: What is wrong with your nose? It smells like Ajax and Fabuloso mixed together. 

Her Kind 

tart cherry, sweet almond, bergamot, sandalwood, ambrette, camellia blossom, tonka, sweet myrrh

In the bottle: Cherry and almond

On my skin: Cherry almond and a hint of citrus. Citrus jumps to the front as this dries. Dropped down to a skin scent after a little over half an hour. When it did, I got vanilla and a little incense, I think.  I squeaked out a bare two hours from this one. 

Mom: It smells like anise cookies with the white sugar. *sniffs* is there wood in this? 

Me: There's sandalwood 

Mom: I could tell. It smells woodsy but just a little bit. 

This Is Just To Say 

cake flour, cocoa powder, osmanthus, plum & apricot jam, tonka bean, dried fruits, tangled vines

In the bottle: cake mix and fruit.

On my skin: Cocoa powder, or maybe chocolate cake mix, and very strong, very boozey fruit. Like dried fruit and plums thats been soaked in brandy to make fruitcake. I wonder if this is what fruitcake smells like. I think I need to make one and find out. Strong throw but it only lasted two hours. Four hours later as I was going to bed, mom could still smell hers. It's so unfair. 

Mom: Well this one doesn't smell like food.

Me: You sure? 

Mom: I can't tell what it smells like. But its nice. I like this one.

Waking in Winter

fir needle, hemlock, soft snow, pale woods, delicate mint, frost-blanketed leaves, cold metal, distant hearthsmoke

In the bottle: Evergreen forest

On my skin: I get fir trees when it goes on wet. As it begins to dry, I start to get hemlock and mint in there too. After a few more minutes, it gets a bit more woody and I think I smell a little fallen leaf in the mix. When it’s fully dry and we hit the base, it’s this warm, comforting woody scent with a bare hint of smoke. I like this one. It reminds me a bit of a muted, not-as-sharp smelling Vespertine. 

Mom: It smells minty. What's in it?

Me: Um, fir, and woods, and mint, and other stuff I don't remember.

Mom: *sniff* Yeah. It smells minty and woodsy. This one's not bad.

Me: *completely shocked she liked this one.*

Candy Cane Mocha

In the bottle: Candy cane and coffee. 

On my skin: Exactly what it says on the tin: I get a strong shot of espresso, a bitt of chocolate, and minty candy cane. It smells like using a candy cane to stir your mocha and then leaving it in to melt.  If you're wondering how it compares to last year's Peppermint Hot Chocolate, like your brows should be, they're sisters not twins. PHC doesn't have the espresso, of course, and it's more chocolate forward to my nose with a bit of peppermint to keep it interesting. CCM you can definitely tell is supposed to be a mocha with a candy cane  garnish and not just one that was made with peppermint syrup. 

Mom: It smells like cocoa beans... it smells like coffee beans. And mint. You know what it smells like, that mint iced coffee I like from Wawa. Now I want one. *sniffs* Mostly I don't like to smell like things I eat but I would wear this.

So to sum up:  I love masculine/unisex all the things, I want a fruitcake, my mom continues to be hilarious, and even though she claims not to like gourmand scents but the Lie Detector determined that was a lie.  

~M. 

The Winter Collection is up on sixteen92.com now, and the Holiday collection will be released on Black Friday.