Scent Diary: 19.3 – 25.3.2018

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Portia

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Hey there APJ Crew,

This week has been about friends, food and fragrance. I seem to have been spritzing and then eating. Perfect combination of my two favourite things really.

 

Scent Diary: 19.3 – 25.3.2018

Monday 19:

Aunty Tracey Update: Boarded plane, carrier forgot to put food in, missed their take off window, waited 2 hours on tarmac, get take-off approval and the captain says there is a mechanical fault, go back to terminal, wait 2 hours, flight cancelled, put in very nice Darling Harbour Ibis hotel with food voucher and taxi fare back, 8.15am flight. Poor girl.

Woke up and fed & walked the dogs. It was cool when we started but by the time we got home it was sweltering. Wearing Guerlain Shalimar Cologne EdT again. I only mildly liked this when it first came out but it seems to have captured my attention over the summer period. Refreshing.

Monday is now official cleaning day. Anyone who tells you cleaning is easy isn’t doing it right. I’m sweating like a farm hand. Vacuuming, dusting, tiles and my bathroom done. Two loads of washing done and three more to go. It’s 11.30am. Having a cuppa and updating you all…

I have an admission to make. 90% of the time I use Nescafe coffee, heaped teaspoon of sugar and milk. Even though I LOVE tea. I get so excited and buy truckloads and it sits ignored. So to curtail my wildly spiralling Tea Buying Addiction. HA! That might be a bit over dramatic. Anyway. I’m trying to drink as much tea as possible, and empty a few packets in my Tea Cupboard before I buy more because there’s NO MORE ROOM! So these are the four teas I’m currently bingeing on.

This afternoon I went for Byredo Black Saffron. Great name, love the slow dive from fruity frivolous to road tar. Surprisingly good in this heat.

We have a new Dog Washer. Theresa has been a mate for years and has just bought her own Mobile Dog Wash. The dogs feel and smell infinitely more gorgeous and will do so every month now.

Do you scent your bed when you change it? I like to. We use a 2/3 White Vinegar and 1/3 Disinfectant mix instead of fabric softener around here because I don’t want my clothes scent to war with my fragrance. That means I can use a Linen scent with no worries and currently I’m using the L’Occitane Aromachologie Relaxing Pillow Mist which contains the essential oils of lavender, bergamot, mandarin, sweet orange and geranium.

Started watching Big Dreams Small Spaces with Monty Don. BBC2 series now on Netflix. Bloody terrific. Can’t stop watching it, even though Monty seems a bit like the gardening equivalent of Gilderoy Lockhart.

TRIVIA Q&A

Tuesday 20:

1.30am and all my TRIVIA Q&A is finished, sent, printed. If you played this week you’ll know they were MIGHTY HARD. Sorry.

Went to watch some more Big Dreams Small Spaces with Monty Don and suddenly it’s 4.30am and I’ve watched the whole fricken series. Bloody Hell!

SOTBed: Hermès Monsieur Li. Perfect for this sweltering heat. I use a lot of this and the bottle seems to stay at the same spot.

Scott and I ran around like whirlwinds today. Banks, David Jones, Shoe stores, Post Office and Groceries. All done and dusted by 2pm.

Having and Elizabeth Arden Sunflowers bubble bath, Amouage Dia lotion and Amouage Ubar fragrance. Can you smell me from there? This is HUUUUGE!

This afternoon we’ve had a  change come through and I can breathe again.

Wearing Ubar tonight at work I am reminded why I love fragrance so much. What a scent. It felt spectacular wafting it around behind me. Though no one commented I was lifted and coddled by Ubar. Magic.

Wednesday 21:

Autumn Equinox: Southern Hemisphere: 3:15am Wed 21 March 2018. I was awake, it was raining in desultory fits and starts. The air cool and clean and welcoming. I can’t say there was a profound change inside or out but I did spritz Strange Invisible Perfume Epic Gardenia and it fitted the moment perfectly. Well named. this shit is EPIC!

Left the house this morning in vintage Miss Dior

Popped in to David Jones and found my mate Esther at the CHANEL counter! Added the EdPs of CHANEL Bois des Iles and Misia while out.

Lunched at David Jones Food Court with my decades long buddy Patrick, I haven’t seen him for ages. He bought me lunch which was a beautiful surprise. Catching up with Patrick is so easy, he does so much and there’s always a load of great anecdotes. We chat about life goals and plans, partners, friends. So good.

Tonight I’ve added Yves Rocher Rose Oud and will admit to you I smell freaking amazing. Woo Hoo!

More trouble with the blog hacking. Apologies to anyone unable to read this week. Most distressing all round really.

I thought Jin was on day shift this week so bought food for shared dinners. Bugger! Tonight I’m eating Beef Scotch Fillet alone in front of the TV. It was absolutely freaking delicious. Medium rare Steak served with Smashed Potatoes and Pesto Carrots. A big dollop of Hot English Mustard at the side. Simple but YUMMY!

Thursday 22:

Jin came home around 7am and I woke. It’s nice when he comes and snuggles.

Up a bit late and wore the sample of Neela Vermeire Creations Niral that arrived yesterday. Roses! It’s quite beautiful, can’t wait to get a bottle and spritz lavishly. The very initial blast is quite reminiscent of the Mohur roses.

Walked the dogs through the beautiful cold misty rain. It blew the cobwebs out of my brains and I came home to the computer. Got some stuff done.

Lazed around most of today. It has been quite blissful. This cooler weather makes me so happy.

Cleaned the house just a little bit because Hyun, Anna-Maria and Johnny are coming to dinner. Johnny’s BIRTHDAY!

It was a fantastic night. Dinner was Chicken & Corn Vol au Vents with buttered Cob Corn and Carrot Straws. We had two desserts Strawberry Jelly & Yoghurt and Cream Filled Apple Turnovers. Chatter ranged from family to holidays to work and life. Excellent company for a few hours.

Friday 23:

Cool and grey morning here in Sydney. Rain spotted dog walk this morning and I’m drenched in The Different Company Oriental Lounge. Imagine an almond meal based Shalimar without the citrus opening and you kinda get the idea. Dry, calm and contemplative.

Lazed around the house with Jin and the dogs today. Jin is on work break now till Tuesday and made today a dedicated pyjama wearing day.

Had a lovely bath and then noticed Carlos J Powell met Ann Gottlieb today. So in honour of that meeting I’m in CKOne Shock for Her.

Dinner with Kath and Alice in honour of Ben’s return from Melbourne for the weekend. We had the most fabulous steaks and schnitzels fro the Crown St Balkan. SO YUMMY! Than across the road for Ice Cream to finish. We were so carried away with stories, food and wine that I forgot to take photos.

On our way back to the car we bumped into a long time friend and celebrity superstar Mark Trevorrow who you will know as Bob Down. He is jetting off to the USA to do some gigs in New York City if any of our readers are from there. He is absolutely brilliantly Aussie hilarious. If you go see the show tell the box office that you are friends of Portia and I bet he will come out afterwards and say hi.

SOTBed: A swipe or two of vintage Guerlain Shalimar Parfum and EdP. Diana inspired me with her SOTD on the Monday APJ SOTD Thread. It’s where everyone puts their latest spritz all week, we discuss choices and daily happenings. I love it, we all feel so connected.

Saturday 24:

This morning Jin and I went to get his car. Not fixed, may never be fixed. All very depressing.

It is raining. I love the rain. Perfect lazy day to drink coffee and cuddle up under a blanket watching TV and dozing.

APJ is in bad hacking trouble, we can’t work out how to fix it without major investment. Seriously thinking about shutting it down.

Didn’t spritz fragrance till 6pm tonight and decided on my decant of Guerlain 2017 Quand Vient La Pluie. Violet, makeup, herbaceous prettiness. I can understand why people are enraptured, it’s excellent in the rainy day blues.

Jin has gone out to watch the football with his BFF Matt. How cute are they in their supporters jerseys? Their team lost again. Third loss in a row.

Hyun was going to come for dinner but I’m so depressed about the blog dramas that it’s given me a big headache and I’m going to go grab some Chinese Take Away. All this for only $42. Clockwise: Veg Egg Fried Rice, Mushroom & Veg Omelette, Chicken & Veg Spring Rolls, Beef & Blackbean with Cashews. When Jin came home he had a bowlful too.

Sunday 25:

2 hours gone just sitting at the computer blogging and FBing. Not doing anything concrete like creating content but answering the few readers who can get through to comment and seeing what my mates around the world are up to. BIG spritzes of Teo Cabanel Alahine and off to bed. NIGHT!

Up, walked the dogs quickly and out the door today to meet Kath & Alice for Pedicures and Yum Cha.

Wearing Mona di Orio Oiro and smelling sensational.

On the way home Jin and I stopped to look at the new Hyundai Kona. How do I know that there may be one of these gracing our driveway soon? Tomorrow we test drive.

Elizabeth Arden Sunflowers bubble bath and here is my latest colour! It should be called Dog Dick Pink.

This evening for work I decided to wear the one that Jin hates and thinks smells like 1970s Urinal Cakes, Sigilli Bayan Mulak. I don’t care what he thinks, I love it.

Belinda has bought 12 months of the expensive fix for APJ. Let’s see if this rectifies the problem. Bloody frustrating.

 

 

It’s YOUR turn. What’s happening in your world?

Did you do anything Fragrant, Fun, Friends, Family or even had some less than Fabulous news you want to share? Now’s the time, in the comments below.
We love to read what’s happening to YOU.
Portia xx

45 thoughts on “Scent Diary: 19.3 – 25.3.2018”

  1. Holy crappa! I don’t know how I am in but I managed to get in!!! Yes, you are indeed experiencing hacking issues and I am so sorry about that Portia!!! If you shut it down and started a new blog I would be right there with you and getting the word out!!! this is turning into a real PITA for you (pain in the arse, in case you did not know that expression…I just learned it myself 🙂 ) I hope everything gets resolved one way or another…..

    To make things short and sweet my week was another week of snowstorms but LOTS of sampling and discovering new likes and loves….two new loves…Vetyvr (because it garnered me four compliments at work) and Jardin Clos (because it is just so darn pretty and a no brainer to grab for work or just a casual weekend)….also, testing my first Olympic Orchards…Olympic Amber…perfect for the tops of my feet for yoga this morning…

    good luck with the internet issues, P!!!!! And PLEASE DON’T STOP BLOGGING!!!!!

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    • Hey CM,
      You started with one of my personal favourite ambers and Olympic Orchids. WOO HOO! Your feet smell incredible.
      Fingers crossed for blog saving.
      Portia xx

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      • and can I just say that Olympic Orchids (NOT “Orchards”!!!) was blooming beautifully in the warm room and wafting up from my feet…yowza! I think I might just make it my yoga fragrance. How did I not know about this one????

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  2. Ditto with Chez Marzipan, don’t shut down please!!
    Bad week here, one of my students passed on the lurgy to me (she will fail) and I have not even looked at perfume for days. Missed our perfume group catch up today and am not happy Jan!
    Anyway, looking forward to Easter break. Love to you guys.

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  3. Portia, thanks for mentioning 🙂 Please-please-please keep APJ running! Sending you tons of warm wishes.

    Ah, this week… A bit of personal drama (got tired of this, really), it was snowing and freezing again even though tulips have started showing their leaves and stems everywhere. Can’t wait for the REAL, not the calendar one, spring to start.

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  4. Hey, you prompted me to dig in the decant storage box for Oriental Lounge. Winter is hanging in here so it’s very cozy.

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    • YAY! Glad to help you find a new one to swoon over. I love Oriental Lounge KateSpritz, sheer but cozy.
      Portia xx

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  5. I’m so sorry about your hacking headaches! Somehow I can read your posts. I loved your fragrance choices (as always inspired), and have just blind-purchased a bottle of Amouage Ubar, sounds right up my alley! Chanel Bois des Isles and Misia are favorites of mine, I hope you enjoyed them. PJ day at home with Shalimar sounds likes bliss, isn’t a day at home so grounding? Your nail polish name made me laugh out loud! I had a mani/pedi this week as well. I’ve worn a few old fragrances this week from my department store purchases from the past before I learned about the niche world: Gucci Guilty, D&G The One, and Carolina Herrera. I am loving my Scentbird decant of Carven Le Perfume! I need to sample Sigilli Bayan, urine cakes?
    Oh, and I love hot mustard on everything !!!!

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    • Hey Kathleen,
      Fingers crossed we can get the problems fixed. It’s bumming me out.
      UBAR! It’s fairly sensational, I hope you love it to bits.
      Staying at home IS grounding, we had a lovely day. Shalimar makes every day special.
      What colour is your Mani-Pedi?
      Guilty is heaven, I also have a couple of the early bottles of Carolina Herrera, thanks for the reminder.
      Portia xx

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      • Mani/pedi Flamingo pink!!!!!! Somehow I just feel so much more pulled together with cleaned up nails and the colors such fun!
        Super excited about Ubar !
        Oh, I also love Oriental Lounge

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    • Carven is so pretty!!! I have a sample of it somewhere here in this house! i will also agree with cassieflower that The One is phenomenal as well as Carolina Herrera…sometimes it is so nice to re-acquaint ourselves with old department store and drugstore loves from our past.

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  6. WHAT a week. Ok, first half was dull because work, but the last four days we have been in Florence and I am just giddy with amazement. We have *gorged* on art (and gelato) and I am in art historian bliss mode. Poor Snarl has had a bunch of my potted lectures about how frescoes are made, the development of perspective, and the politics of consumption.

    A couple of things have left me in bits: seeing works in situ when i have loved them for years in reproduction. Yes, I am the embarrassing middle aged woman who weeps in museums. No shame! (Posting lots of photos into the stories part of my Instagram link…)

    Wearing cuir d’ange for the leather connection to Florence, and dryad just because. I may have fallen for SMN patchouli while here too…

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    • Oh, I forgot a nice perfumey thing at the start of the week… The lovely Dior SA in Glasgow invited me over to meet with his boss, as he thought we’d have a good chat. Turns out that Mr Head of Dior fragrance in the UK is an utter charmer and full of good stories.

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    • Hey Crikey,
      Stendahl Syndrome is easily caught in Florence. One day I’m going to go there for a month with someone who is Art Literate. Up till now it has been two night scenes of running between pieces.
      Did you go to the SMN HQ, it is fabulous and prices are half of everywhere else in the world.
      Little teensy but jealous but so happy for you. Drink it in.
      Portia xx

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      • A month sounds just about right. Sign me up! (Music seldom makes me swoony, but put my grouchy atheist feminist self in front of an early renaissance annunciation and i dissolve. Go figure.)

        I did indeed go to SMN, but failed to back and get a bottle. Next time!

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  7. Hello Portia and gang of enablers😃 First things first: pleeeze don’t go and leave us, my week just wouldn’t be the same. I haven’t had any trouble getting through on my phone but I just tried a google search on computer and the first line is all Asian characters. What the hell does a hacker hope to glean from your site, I wonder? I wouldn’t have thought that people waffling on about perfume and general blather would hold much interest for those keyboard nerds. But then some just do it for pure mischief. I am sending them the virtual two fingers.
    Got back into work mode on Tuesday after our weekend of drowning the shamrock and general gallivanting. On the perfume front my new discovery was the Mohur you sent me. Very delish. I put it in a sprayer and emptied it in one go. I want more. I always seem to want something or other, greedy wretch that I am. I got two other samples from Neela as well, haven’t tested those yet. At work last night I was layered in Nuit de Tubereuse and my niece loved it and wants some for herself. I say ‘work’ but after an initial burst of activity lasting an hour or so, I spent a couple of hours trying to find some Fornasetti tiles and wallpaper that are affordable. Nothing doing, unfortunately. Champagne taste with lemonade budget, that’s me. I want to be rich! I did buy a pair of red sandals with fun-fur on them, though😏.

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    • Oh PS, I have a lady dog so couldn’t possibly know about that particular shade🤣 Looks good on the toes, though. I can’t even begin to think about getting my tootsies out yet.

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    • Snarl was admiring some Fornasetti stuff in a perfumery I dragged him into. He decided he liked them a lot less when he saw the prices. And that was before he got the uncontrollable giggles at the Avery animals with gold painted appendages and we left before being cast out in disgrace.

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      • That’s me to a T, I want this fabulous stuff but I don’t want to pay ransom prices. You sound like you’re having fun with hubby. Getting the giggle fits at the wrong moment makes it even funnier I think.

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      • Just going back to your weeping in museums at the sight of great artworks – Let me tell you my small little story of my workplace last night. I work in a theatre with a small gallery, and we’ve currently got an exhibition of work that’s held in public ownership. It’s a very prestigious exhibition that’s travelling to selected galleries and we are one of the lucky ones. These pieces come from both public buildings and great country houses and the like. Well, a pic popped up on our work Whatsapp yesterday evening, some gobshite had hung a t-shirt on a hanger on one of the pieces. we could not believe our eyes, and we thought we’d seen everything! So when I got in to work one of my colleagues was almost in tears too, but not because he was all overcome, oh nooo, these would have been tears of pure rage. We tried to track down the culprit, but of course nobody would own up. He calmed down eventually when we were looking at the Fornasetti.

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    • Your post made me laugh hysterically! THANK YOU for that !!!

      I had the same experience…lots of characters which I assumed was Japanese not only when I googled but when I went to leave a comment after actually getting in the entire post was Japanese ( or Chinese? I am not sure)…..well, come hell or high water I am finding a way in!!!!! Right now it seems to work if I link in through the post that appears in my email…prior to that I was linking in through the link on Olfactoria’s Travels from one of her meet up with Portia posts….oh the things we do to get into APJ 🙂

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    • Hey Cassieflower,
      Hackers send out billions of testers looking for chinks in the armour of sites. It wasn’t targeted, just unlucky.
      Nuit de Tubéreuse is divine. Great choice. Of course everyone around you wants it.
      Portia xx

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    • Wallpaper!!!!!! Which area of your house are you planning on using wallpaper? I have it on my loo walls….it is a tiny space, but I love it. I can send you some of my leftovers, if you’d like.

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  8. So sorry to hear the hacking episode is costing you big $$$. Hope you can at least write it off your taxes and it will keep the evil bastards at bay. I really appreciate all your efforts on our behalf!! It would be so, so sad to close the blog down. 😦

    It’s been a good week here, a bit of rain and wind but otherwise tip-top. Heading back to Montreal in 2 weeks to freeze my ass off (it’s still snowing). Busy packing as my husband is leaving in the car April 2nd, I will be flying on April 6th. Crossing fingers he gets through without another winter storm and so do we!

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  9. Cheez, Portia, that hacking scam is terrible. I keep my fingers crossed that you don’t have to shut down this site. What would I do without it, I love your blog!
    Apropos cleaning, I have to dust 6 Venetian blinds and have an assortment of gadgets to do it with, none of them work properly.
    I have some movie vouchers which will get used today, Pacific Rim 2. I wouldn’t buy tickets for it, but the vouchers have to be used by the end of the month and nothing else attracts me at the moment.
    Have a great week despite the hassle with the hackers! XXX

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  10. Thanks Portia for sharing – good luck with your tea challenge. Monty Don’s Italian (and French) Gardens series are awesome too. Not much happening for me as i have been sick – stupid congestion cold thing i cant seem to shake. Only scents i’ve known for last week is Vicks, Lanolin and throat lozenges. For a few days i was rocking my best Rudolph the Red nose reindeer impersonation! Kleenex tissues have had huge uptake in sales – ha ha Was so tired i only had the energy to read everyones SOTD’s. I must be feeling a bit better as I’ve worn perfume again the last few days so we are heading in the right direction – yippee!! Take care all xo

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  11. I kept trying for 2 days – and just got here now. I hate people who destroy instead of building! I hope the solution you found would work.
    I was pleased to see so many of my favorite perfumes on your rotation this week (and especially my love Ubar!). But also it was interesting to see that you’re drinking the same tea as my vSO (the green bag).
    Did you have to sacrifice “Likes” for good?

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    • Hey Undina
      It has been ghastly. Glad to be back in action.
      YAY! Bar = heaven
      There are a lot of things still missing from the blog because it was completely restarted and has none of our add ons. Hopefully they will reappear as we get our shit back together.
      Portia xx

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  12. So glad you are back on now.I tried for two days thinking it was my phone. Hope it stays on and hackers be gone. Been wearing the oudy scents in preparation for the arrival of my sinking grade wild grown Vietnamese oud bracelet:D

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