Alchimia Apothecary is quickly becoming one of my favorite indies! When I ordered from her the first time awhile back, I was apprehensive, since I had never ordered perfume over the internet before. I didn’t know what scents I liked, or what worked well with my skin chemistry. I decided to take the plunge, and ordered the Ladies of Firefly Collection. It arrived extremely quickly which is a huge plus for me, as I am crazy impatient! It came packaged very carefully in a cute little matchbox. I also received a free sample of Geisha. I had added this to my cart over and over but eventually decided not to get it. I’m stoked that I got it as a freebie because it smells ridiculously good!

I am very very new to the perfume game, so I apologize in advance for my perfume reviews.

My first order had Apple Bits, Ambassador, Warrior Slink, Layer Cake, and Geisha in the old vials. They are long and thin, with a pry-off top. The top has a little wand that makes applying the perfume easy. I liked these vials, although they could be quite difficult to open. She has recently switched to plastic rollerball bottles but more on that later.

Apple Bits: This smells like potpourri and artificial apple scent to me. I’m not a big fan right out of the bottle, but a lot of the artificial scent goes away once it dries down and makes it very wearable. This was my husband’s second favorite.

The shop description is as follows, “Red ripe juicy apples mingle with the fruity crisp scent of green pomegranates, tropical wood, candied ginger and just a touch of ginseng. Rounding out this scent are spicy hints of fresh green herbs.” Smelling it again, I can’t help but think the artificial smell is the ginger. Not my favorite, but I would definitely wear this.

Ambassador: This one reminds me of my grandmother’s seamstress shop. It smells smoky, and it brings me right back to her store. I can see all the worn clothes and fabrics, and the gossiping Japanese women smoking cigarettes with their incense filling the air. My husband is not a big fan of this one, but I quite enjoy it. It makes me think of hot or spicy, maybe a bit of mystery. I did not like this one at all when I first smelled it, but after a week or so, I found I really liked it.

The shop description: Fresh from the Companion Tea ceremony, this scent is the combination of thick oud and Arabian Sandalwood, incense and the thick bubbling black tea she serves with delicate bergamot, honey and sweet hot cream. Well that definitely explains it! My grandma always had sandalwood burning, and almost always had tea near her, although she would have been really mad if I added any cream or honey to mine!

Warrior Slink: I don’t know how I feel about this one. It reminds me of a mysterious man in his 30’s smoking a cigarette. It makes me think sour, although I wouldn’t say it smells sour? I have a hard time pinning this one down.

The shop description: Based on the warrior woman herself, this dark sexy scent is pure sophistication. Oozing with thick ribbons of benzoin and labdanum, sweet notes of chocolate wrapped in spicy worn leather bubble to the surface. Combined with black agar, there are hints of what can only be described as pure animal musk.

This fragrance is completely feral. Smelling it again, I definitely pick up the chocolate and leather. I have no clue what benzoin, labdanum, or black agar smell like on their own. This scent definitely leans more mature and masculine than the others, neither of which describe me too well! My husband and I both absolutely hated this one on our first sniff. It reminded me of wet dog. It seems to have settled and I actually like it now. I could picture myself wearing this on a fancy night out in a fancy dress and clutch.

Layer Cake: This is by far my favorite. I pick up cake, strawberries, and whipped cream. It smells like a delicious bakery. This scent makes me want to cuddle up with a dessert and be happy. I tend to wear this on days that I’m down, as I’ve found the scent brings me back to happy childhood memories of birthday parties. It’s an instant pick-me-up. My husband liked this one, but wasn’t a huge fan. He said it reminded him of his mom.

Shop Description: This is a combination of strawberries, lichee, dragon fruit, mangoes and other thick fruit drizzled over a thick slice of birthday cake and topped with a fresh dollop of whipped cream. I’ve never really smelled a dragon fruit or mango before, but other than that, I think I nailed this description. This perfume definitely makes me think young!

Geisha: This was my husband’s favorite, and my second favorite. My first whiff of this makes me think clean. It smells like bamboo and cotton. It’s a very fresh, airy scent.

Shop Description: This is a wonderful combination of crispy green bamboo, fragrant green tea and an overall feeling of clean fresh air. This is a unisex fragrance that makes a great impression while still remaining neutral and understated. Smelling it again, I do pick up hints of the green tea, but they are very subtle. I really enjoy this fragrance for sunny days.

I had placed a small order of the blogger pack and a sample of fickle, but ran into some unexpected bills, so I emailed Erin to see if I could cancel my order. She cancelled it and was super nice about it. She wrote a little note hoping that things improved for me. It was very touching for me. I was able to place the order again after payday, and so I sent an email asking the easiest way to reinstate the order, and she informed me she had already packed it all up and shipped it to me as a surprise! Needless to say, I was shocked and cried haha. When it arrived, I did a little happy dance and immediately dove right in.

I received a sample of the Tiger Lily Lipstick, which is a lovely orange. It’s a bit hard to apply out of the sample tub, but I plan on picking up a full size. The formula feels great and the color is my dream orange! The price(7.95 for a full size) is a bit hard to swallow, but I’m willing to pay a little more since the ingredients are nicer to my skin compared to more conventional lipsticks. My skin sometimes reacts to lanolin, so I try to avoid it when I can.

For my eyeshadow samples, I received Sorrel(matte), Slink(shimmer), and Spirit Form(wild and wacky).

The sample baggies were a bit less full than Shiro, but more full than Femme Fatale.

Definitely enough product to really get a feel for the color, texture, and formula. All three blended like a dream, and lasted all day. I used them over Fyrinnae’s Pixie Epoxy(top) and Elf’s Glitter Primer(bottom).

The Pixie Epoxy didn’t play nice with Sorrel, but it generally doesn’t do mattes well. It brought out Spirit Form and Slink’s shimmer, and made them both to die for.

Slink is basically an exact match of my skin tone, so it’s hard to see it in the pictures, but it is gorgeous in person. The standout here for me was definitely Spirit Form. I have never seen a shadow quite like it. The eyeshadows are $3.50 for a mini or $6.95 for a full size, which again is a bit more than some indies, but she uses a lot of plant derived ingredients, which my skin seems to really enjoy.

I also received a dry skin facial mask, which I was a bit apprehensive about.

You can get a 1/2 ounce tube for $4.00 or a 2 ounce jar for $12.00 This was my first mix mask. Usually I just use Korean sheet masks, which are very neat compared to this! I accidentally added too much water while mixing it, but it still felt great on. I had some residual blue lipstick on in these pictures.

I enjoyed feeling it dry in a weird way. It felt like I was being mummified? I don’t know.

I enjoyed trying to make hulk faces in the mirror. After washing it off, I noticed my skin definitely felt softer. It didn’t feel nearly as dry as it normally does. I definitely want to try out more of the masks now.

For my scents, I got samples of Fickle, Tsunami and Kimono. I was interested in these scents the first time I ordered, but decided against ordering too much at once. These came in the new plastic rollerball packaging. They are super easy to put on. The only thing I dislike about them is the label takes up the entire bottle, so it’s really hard to see how much product is left.

Fickle: This may have eclipsed Layer Cake for my favorite. I love this scent. It has a bit of spice and heat, but it is also very fresh and airy. I think this scent would work well for men and women. My husband said this was his least favorite of the three, but still really liked it.

Shop Description: A beautiful unisex scent that great for even the most fickle of children. Bright and clean, fruity sweet peas mingle with pomegranates and vanilla-like benzoin resin. Varieties of woods, labdanum and frankincense dry things down and mingle together with hot black pepper to spice things up. I’m bad at remembering or recognizing specific scents, but upon smelling it again, I do get hints of pomegranates. I really enjoy this one.

Tsunami: My husband’s favorite of the three. He absolutely loved this scent. He said it smelled like melons? I am not a big fan of this one. It gets a bit better once it dries down, but even then the note I’m not big on lingers. It smells like kelp that baked in the sun and now has that sour smell to it. Behind that, I can smell the sea, but the sour really overwhelms it for me. I really hope to find an ocean scent that I enjoy.

Shop Description: Seaweed and driftwood filled ocean water crash to the earth and swell with sea salt filled air and a touch of rice flowers. I don’t know what rice flowers smell like, so I wouldn’t know if they are really there for me. The driftwood makes a lot of sense. I definitely pick up on that now that I know it’s in there. I think it may be the sour smell I don’t enjoy.

My husband’s favorite of the three. He absolutely loved this scent. He said it smelled like melons? I am not a big fan of this one. It gets a bit better once it dries down, but even then the note I’m not big on lingers. It smells like kelp that baked in the sun and now has that sour smell to it. Behind that, I can smell the sea, but the sour really overwhelms it for me. I really hope to find an ocean scent that I enjoy.

Shop Description: Seaweed and driftwood filled ocean water crash to the earth and swell with sea salt filled air and a touch of rice flowers. I don’t know what rice flowers smell like, so I wouldn’t know if they are really there for me. The driftwood makes a lot of sense. I definitely pick up on that now that I know it’s in there. I think it may be the sour smell I don’t enjoy.

Kimono: This one also smells very fresh and airy. It reminds me of my grandma’s house, which always smelled like flowers and incense.

Shop Description: Just like the meaning of “Kimono,” this fragrance is another Japanese inspired “thing to wear.” Floral in nature, this blend is packed with delicate petals of jasmine, rich and bold sandalwood, and the subtlest hints of tuberose and peony. I’ll be the first to admit I am absolutely awful at knowing the different scents of flowers. I hope to get better at it as I get more into perfumes.

The website is new, and can be a bit clunky. I generally don’t like flash based websites, as I am on my phone most of the time, but this one loads nicely on my computer. I do wish there was a complete list of the perfume names and their notes to reference, as I get a bit confused bouncing from page to page. Overall, I would definitely recommend this shop to anyone looking for a good indie store. The eyeshadows and lipsticks are a bit pricey, but I believe they are worth it. I want to try more of her skincare! I have a huge list of her perfumes that I want to try, and hope to make my next purchase very soon!