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Post by Azar
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Hello Perfume Pals!
As you probably know, during Portia’s recent “working” vacation to the UK and European destinations, my January and February announcements and draws have been postponed until TODAY.
Azar’s Jan + Feb Giveaways and Winner Announcement
WINNER!!
So, without further ado, let me first announce the winner of the Olympic Orchids White Cattleya 5ml refillable purse spray related to
The winner of the White Cattleya is:
Elizabeth
Please contact Portia with your mailing information no later than (date) or your prize will go to someone else.
myprettypaints
Azar’s Jan + Feb GIVEAWAY
WHAT CAN YOU WIN?
Today I am offering five (yes 5!) more prizes (No, you can’t choose):
1 x 5 ml refillable purse spray of Zoologist Bat
1 x 2 ml carded sample of the same Bat fragrance
1 x complete set of small Pirouette Essentials gift soaps that also includes a 1 ml decant of Pirouette Essentials Wild Spruce and Tobacco
2 x sets of five 2ml decants from the list in my Back-Up Bottles post (The winners of Back-Up Bottle decant sets can specify five different (no double-ups please) fragrances from the list when they contact Portia with their mailing information.)
P&H Worldwide
HOW DO YOU WIN?
Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged. Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies via eMail, WordPress, Bloglovin or RSS. Please leave how you follow in the comments to be eligible. I must be able to check that you follow so if you have an email address on your gravatar that’s different to your follow address then please email me (portia underscore turbo @ yahoo dot com dot au) so I know.
You must tell me how you follow APJ
and
Please let us know which (if any) fragrance mentioned in Azar’s January and February posts most appeals to you – and why!
HOUSEKEEPING
Entries Close Thursday 10th March 2016 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winner will be chosen by random.org
The winner will have till Sunday 13th March 2016 to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their address or the prize will go to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.
Australian Perfume Junkies 
Hi Azar! I liked the sound of White Cattleya – it’s hard to do a nice lemon frag. Thanks for the giveaway! Follow by email. 🙂
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Hi Jaybee!
Lemon frags are a problem for me too. Many end up smelling like either cleaning products or lemon bars on my skin. The true scent of lemon zest is so illusive. As I mentioned in the White Cattleya post, Olympic Orchids White Cattleya smells like the zest of a Persian lemon, which has a much stronger, oilier and “citrony” quality than the smell of, say, a “Eureka” or “Meyer” lemon. The Harvey Prince Hello fragrance does a reasonably good impression of these lighter lemons and is pretty close to, but more natural smelling, than my cheapest citrus fav Curve Kicks. Do you have a favorite lemon – fragrance or fruit?
Azar xx
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Hi Azar, I like Annick Goutal’s L’Eau Hadrien, but not enough for a full bottle. As you say, it’s hard to find something that doesn’t feel like detergent!
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Thank you for the giveaway! I follow via email subscription. Ellen’s Bat sounds incredibly fun and evocative of a bat’s life. I think it would be an experience to wear.
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Hi Julie,
Ellen’s Bat is amazing and unique. The other night at dusk I was watching the bats fly around the branches of the doug firs near the house. I think that this Bat fragrance really does capture their life!
Azar xx
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via email
I am madly in love with Bal a Versailles. I have modern and vintage formulations. I love the old ones with the heavy civet. I think it is a must have and one of the most beautiful vintages ever created.
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Hi Gina,
In response to Portia’s post on the discontinuation of Bal A Versailles, I bought a back-up of the vintage perfume. I was never much of a fan of this one until recently, as the fragrance always recalled my maternal grandmother. I loved her but she totally intimidated me! Now that I am old I feel I can use some of her strength and panache.
Does Bal A Versailles remind you of anyone?
Azar xx
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I’ve always regretted not getting a bottle of Dior Hypnotic Poison when it came out. I was afraid to try it because all my friends wore the original Poison and my scent memory of them and of high school. I had no idea it smelled nothing like Poison until two years when I started reading reviews of Confetto by Profunum that compared it Hypnotic Poison.
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Hello Katherine,
Yes, Poison and Hypnotic Poison are VERY different. If you are looking for HP, I’ve found that the newer (2010) version is a pretty good replica of the original. I don’t know if it was reformulated after that. I occasionally wear another frag that smells like a teeny bopper take on Hypnotic Poison. That one is Harajuku Lovers Wicked Style Baby. I don’t wear it often, though, as it makes me feel “weird”.
Azar xx
OH! BTW How do you follow APJ? We need that info to put you in the draw.
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I’ve been dying to try Bat. Not only because I love soil notes (and red beets) and bats, but because my late cat was named Bat. I’ve also been curious about Micallef Black because I like the smoothness of their sweeter perfumes.
(I follow via Bloglovin and RSS.)
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Hi MikasMinion,
Bat is a beauty! If you don’t get a chance to try it here, track down a sample. It is definitely very different and certainly worth a sniff (or two or three or lots more). Is the photo by your name your late cat Bat? Gorgeous!
Azar xx
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I follow by e-mail. Would love to try that BAT. I love the ORIGINAL Poison. 🙂
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Hello Patty Pong,
I still have a gorgeous bottle of the original Poison in storage. Perhaps it is time to use it again! Also – Bat is so unique. I really think you would like, if not love it.
Azar xx
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I follow by email. What a wonderful giveaway. I’ve never tried Bat, so that would be of interest. I find that your backup bottles contain many things that I would love to try-Sirocco and Fidj to name just two. Thank you so much for this opportunity.
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Hi Ellen,
After all the years and thousands of fragrant experiences, I find that Sirocco still holds its own and Fidji remains my favorite perfume of all time. I love the heavy dose of galbanum that opens the vintage Fidji. Thanks for commenting and joining the draw!
Azar xx
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Hi, I follow APJ via email. Most of all I would like to try something from the Back-up Bottles post, preferably something vintage. Maybe Jacomo Silances (because I liked it back then and I absolutely have no memory of it today)or the newer Queen Latifah (because of the positive reviews and it’s not available here on our market). Thank you!
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Hi Neva,
Silences is one of those very green chypres loaded with galbanum that were so popular in the 1970s and are still loved today. Queen Latifah is a rich and dark, boozy, fruity vanilla. These two are polar opposites and both favorites of mine. Thank you for commenting today and joining the draw!
Azar xx
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i follow by email.i am most interested in white cattleya followed by bat.i am reading the book british gardens in time and the section on biddulph grange has loads about orchids so i have orchids on my mind..and i am interested in creamy lemon fragrances so i am keen to smell how the lemon gets tempered in this fragrance.thanks for the giveaway : )
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Hi flowergirlbee!
I love reading about british gardens too and am especially fond of the work of the 18th century landscape architect Capability Brown. I also find the 19th century craze for orchid and natural history collections intriguing. One of my favorite natural history books is The Malay Archipelago, by british naturalist, explorer and collector Alfred Russel Wallace. There is also an early 20th century american true life adventure story published in 1939 entitled The Orchid Hunters by Norman MacDonald. If you like orchids you will probably enjoy this book as much as I did. You might also check out Fragrant Orchids: A Guide to Selecting, Growing and Enjoying by Steven Frowine published in 2005. This book has pretty good descriptions of the fragrances of many orchid species and hybrids.
Azar xx
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thanks for all the great suggestions azar..will follow them up at the local library : )
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I follow by email, and I was especially intrigued by Wild Spruce and Tobacco!! I love vetiver and spruce and tobacco notes 🙂 Thank you!
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Hi Nemo,
Wild Spruce and Tobacco is invigorating and relaxing at the same time. It is one of those fragrances that you can totally smell in your mind simply by mentioning or reading the name! Do you experience your favorites like that too? Thank you for commenting and joining the draw!
Azar xx
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I totally know what you mean! I think that feeling happens to me sometimes, but maybe not as often as it might if I spoke French. Since most perfume names are in French, I can’t say them out loud without feeling a bit silly and self-conscious, and they also don’t evoke images or smells in my head the same way the phrase “Wild spruce and Tobacco” can 🙂
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Good point and food for thought, Nemo! My french is totally NOT and perfumes are defined and experienced by the words that are attached to them.
Azar xxx
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Zoologist Bat intrigues me because it has fruit elements but it also has earthy elements. Bats live in caves and other dusty environments and they also eat fruits. I follow APJ through email. thanks a lot for the generous draw.
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Hi Fazal,
I’m pretty sure that you would enjoy Bat. Its earthy, fruity opening is quite stunning and unique. Now I’m hoping someone figures out how to recreate the powdery, honeyed floral scent of my pionus parrot Gomez! He emits an exquisitely beautiful fragrance when he is very interested in something or someone. Spring is almost here and he is making more perfume than ever!
Azar xx
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I’m so jealous of the pionus perfume. When my parrotlet gets nervous he just smells skunky and it’s not worth bottling.
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Poodle,
You know as well as I do that Spring time is the season for hormonal over-loads in parrots (and most other birds). The Pionus perfume comes at a high price. The other day I was not paying attention to Gomez’ body language and “whammo”, he reached his razor sharp beak through the bars of the cage and nailed me. Later he pretended to apologize in his tiny little Pionus voice (the opposite of his raucous squawk) but I knew he didn’t really mean it. I had a few choice names for him that day!
Azar xx
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Hi Mom – I follow by email and twitter. The White Cattleya by Olympic Orchids sounds nice to me – I love citrus and if it boost your mood then that’s even better! Also Wild Spruce and Tobacco sounded interesting but I think I’d like Pirouette’s perfumes even more. They have some very interesting stuff on their site.
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Hi Lauren,
Karyn’s packaging is beautiful too! I love the little owls on the Wild Spruce and Tobacco. Also, the small soaps are so darling and smell so good. Thanks for stopping by, for commenting and for sending Poodle over too! 😉
Love,
Mommy Azar xx and X
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I follow with Bloglovin.
I’m really intrigued by Zoologist Bat! Ellen Covey is just a fantastic perfumer who makes the most interesting things. And I really like the bat inspiration too!
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Hello LaDomna!
Thanks for dropping by! You are so right about Ellen and her perfumes! She is always coming up with something slightly eccentric, very unique and thoroughly wonderful.
Azar xx
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I follow on WordPress!
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Hello Angela!
Thanks for dropping by! I’m wondering if any of the fragrances mentioned in the posts appealed to you? If not, that’s OK too! You are IN!
Azar xx
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I’d like to try Bat and I follow on WordPress. I’m not feeling very lucky lately but Lauren insisted I enter so here I am.
Xoxo
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Hey there Poodle!
Lauren can be pretty persuasive! I never try to argue with her. She is usually right 😉
Thanks for commenting. You must be feeling lucky!
Azar xxx
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How can you not want to try Bat perfume!! Though I am worried it might attract even more bats where I live! BTW I follow through email 🙂
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Bats are so interesting, Bridget! In the early evening, when I have time, I love sitting in the comfort of my living room, looking out across the tops of the big douglas firs and watching the aerial maneuvers of the bats as they feed on insects. I’m not sure what kind of bats we have here. Do you know the name of your local bats?
Azar xx
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I have to admit I was practically drooling over some of your back-up bottles (especially your vintage Fidgi and Silences – would be interesting to compare them to more recent versions)! With perfume, it *definitely* pays to think ahead, as you’ve done, Azar 🙂 I just wish I had a basement/similar like you do to store my hypothetical bottles in! (Note to self if ever in a position to buy a house: must have storage room of appropriate temperature to store frags, non-negotiable ;)).
Thank you for the draw; I follow by email.
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Hi lena,
Storage is a real issue! I have to admit that I do keep one bottle of each of the frags I use most often in a dark upstairs cupboard or on my dressing table. I don’t have time to go down to the basement and root through the chaos every day. I do rotate, though and what is up will definitely find its way down again. I did try to organize all of this several times, to no avail. I have pretty much given up on that project. Sigh…
Azar xx
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