A*Men Kryptomint by Jacques Huclier for Mugler 2017

July 3, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Portia

Heya Perfume Peeps!

If you’ve read APJ over time you may remember that I was one of the Squirt Bitches for the launch of the original A*Men at a nightclub. We spritzed so much of it through the night and it stuck in my nose & throat for the next week to the point of nausea. It took many years for me to even be able to be in the same room as it. I would get headaches and feel physical disquiet. For me to finally find an A*Men that i’m comfortable enough with to purchase is a huge breakthrough.

We were in Luxembourg earlier in the year and there was a FABULOUS perfumery across from the central station, nothing posh but extremely well stocked in the designer ranges. They were also having a 20% off sale!

A*Men Kryptomint by Mugler 2017

A*Men Kryptomint by Jacques Huclier

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Peppermint, sage
Heart: Egyptian geranium
Base: Patchouli, vanilla, coffee, chocolate, tonka

There’s no denying that Kryptomint is an A*Men flanker. From the first whiff that famous choc-chouli madness is well apparent. The feature note of peppermint given a lightly green gloss by sage and a crackle of clove-ish geranium gives this flanker and completely different personality. Suddenly what was loud, abrasive and sickening to me becomes fresh and fun. All this zingy peppermint is just silly enough to make A*Men a joy. Even as I write this admittedly crap review I am smiling like a fool.

The peppermint stays all the way through and I feel like I’m wearing Mint Slice perfume. Combining two of my absolute favourite things: chocolate and mint. MMMMMM

Longevity is stellar but projection is only moderate if applied in normal amounts. I admit to wearing it quite heavily when I’m alone, you have no idea how huge it becomes. Basically I’m dry cleaning the apartment with my nuclear sillage.

Want to try it?
See below.
Portia xx

A*Men Kryptomint GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 3 winners who will receive:
1 x 5ml A*Men Kryptomint (decant from my bottle)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

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 so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us which Mugler scents make you smile or cringe?

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 6th July 2017 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Wednesday 12th July 2017 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

Scent Diary: 26.6 – 2.7.2017

July 2, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 26 Comments

Portia

Hey All,

You know I told you I hosted a Trivia Fundraiser last Saturday night? Well, they managed to raise $14,000 for their school. It was a really wonderful night and Belinda the co-ordinator was amazing. Here’s a shot of us all. Every table dressed up in a theme, some even decorating their tables. The Auction prizes were unbelievable: Concert tickets to Lorde and America, A tour of the Bachelorette house, Bikes, Business learning and so much more. The night was a joy to host.

Scent Diary: 26.6 – 2.7.2017

Monday 26:

TinaG is still not OK so we went to visit her and take some delicious delicacies. She was feeling a shade less that glorious so we could only photograph ourselves. This is us being sad that she is unwell.

Jin was home all day so we got to hang out. He’s really good company.

Feeling very homey I decided to do Spaghetti Bolognese for dinner. Being sure I had all the ingredients on hand because I’d shopped for the basics recently I went ahead and started cooking the garlic, onions and meat. Then I found that somebody, pointing no fingers of course, had used the tomato paste and not let anyone know that we were out. An extra can of diced tomatoes and a couple of squirts of Tomato Sauce and we were fine. Went to get the spaghetti but that too had been stolen by a hungry man so it was a mixture of the last of the spiral and bow tie pastas. Though it was bloody annoying to have to quickly rethink the meal the food was delicious and Jin even commented on how delicious it was.

Tuesday 27:

Scott was over and we were doing office work, errands and some sewing for my new outfit. I haven’t made anything new since creating the Perfume Lovers London outfit in January 2016. That’s a pretty shabby record considering I can whip up an outfit from headdress to gown in a few days. I have become safe, comfortable and lazy in my middle age.

ELdO Yes I Do wafted with me this morning. It’s fun and sweet, the undercurrent of naughty is negligible on my skin and I smell jasmine and sweets the whole way.

Here is Scotty at the Post Office bearing some of the packages that went out this morning. Yes, the photo is terrible of him but it does give a kind of insight into how lovely he is.

Went to get my hair cut today and had my face shaved at the same time. Sadly, though my barber was gorgeous, he probably would be better as a shearer or butcher. I was nicked and chopped quite heavily, blood everywhere.

Once Scott left I went and had cuddle time with Paris. He is the best squishy hugger. When we lie down together he takes a deep sniff of my chest to sniff my perfume and then sighs in blissful contentment as he rolls himself back towards me so I’m the big spoon. Heaven.

Work tonight I wore Fendi. I have a bottle of the old original one. It’s outrageous. There are also a few of the newer copies here too, they have excellent openings but fade fairly quickly. After todays hatchet face job I couldn’t reshave today without creating a bloodbath so went to work in man drag. Everyone was sad. I was bloody comfortable and enjoyed the night immensely.

Got home and Jin had just returned from walking the dogs. Aren’t they cute together?

Later I watched some more Gilmore Girls. Now I’m spritzing some DIOR Mitzah before bed. Night.

Wednesday 28:

Was up at 7am to take the car down to the Smash Repair store. Seriously, this is NOT my time of the day. Feeling woozy like I’ve eaten too many lollies and then drunk too much water to make up for my sugar high.

Keiko Mecheri Un Jour d’Ete is my creamy, coconut rich, white floral with a lovely summer beachy feel. Perfect to beat the rainy winter blues.

OK, so confession time. I got home, did about 20 minutes on the computer then grabbed Paris and we hit the spare bed. I slept for another 4 hours! Blissful sleep of the dead. Only down side is now I’m groggy again. Time for coffee and to do some clothes washing. Then it’s serious house cleaning time….. Well actually almost zero house cleaning got done, the laundry has ALL been done though. Last load is still on the line.

Work tonight. I’ve been worried about my Wednesday job. It hasn’t been performing as well as I hoped with me working as a guy so I got one of our beautiful Turbo Trivia Drag Queens in, April Fools. She was great and the crowd loved her. The room even felt like it had infinitely more energy, I think it will make the whole event lift.

For Bath, Lotion and Fragrance today I did Annick Goutal Musc Nomade bubble bath, Kiehl’s Original Musk body lotion and J P Gaultier Classic women perfume. It was a very enjoyable combination. For bed I spritzed more Gaultier Classic.

Thursday 29:

Woke up this morning feeling blue and out of sorts. Not depressed as such but definitely a sparkle short of average.

Fed the dogs and as I was locking the apartment Paris started weeing in the carpeted apartment stairwell. O M G!! I raced them outside then had to come back and clean up before we got our walk. GRRR! Loads of towels, boiling water with vinegar and exertion later I took them out for a proper walk.

Cleaning the apartment. Vacuumed, quickly dusted, broomed and steamed the tiled areas and my bathroom. It is pretty clean around here. I feel much better after some exertion. Cleaning is a bloody good workout when you’re a bit down and going 100 miles per hour to outrun your demons. Even in this cool weather I’m sweating like a farm hand.

Next week I have to go down to Tasmania to fix up one of the houses there so I’m trying to get ahead on the Trivia and Blog. Wearing a couple of scents for review that you’ll meet next week. Got all the Jackpot and Runs done and preparing the Q&A.

SOTD: Hermès Caleche vintage parfum. This is the best kept vintage Caleche, unbelievable! While putting it on I suddenly remembered that my Mum wore Caleche for a while. She called it Call E Shay and it wasn’t till many, many years later (2000s) that I was told by a French friend that it’s pronounced Kal-Esh. Hello mortified.

Tonight for work I’m scented in a weird but wonderful hodge-podge. Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet bath oil, Madonna Truth or Dare Naked lotion and La Via del Profumo Mecca Balsam perfume.

Got into bed tonight and was kicked out because I have too much perfume on. OOOPSIE! I put La Via del Profumo Mecca Balsam on about 7 hours ago, that is serious longevity for a natural. Amazing, and I smell freaking awesome. Got SEVEN unsolicited compliments tonight at work. It’s a definite winning combination here. (Except with Jin, oh well)

Friday 30:

Beautiful cool sunny morning. Jack Frost has sprinkled his shining crystals on the grass and the air is clear and fresh. Walking the dogs was lovely and I’m now ready to start my day.

So I jumped on a train and went to Sydney City to meet Rose, Alice and Mark at Madame Shanghai.

The venue is beautiful, I should have taken more pics. Even the carpet has been made with raised Chinese designs, it’s really schmick. We are EVERYTHING! I tried King Fish Sashimi even though I loath the taste of fish and found it spectacularly meaty and with zero fishy taste. It was a fabulous win and an extra thing to add to my list of edibles. Sorry, I didn’t take the pic till we were just about done with it.

There were also dumplings galore, duck, squid, ham hocks and cauliflower. The food just kept coming and we packed it away like we’d not eaten for a month.

Conversation flowed, and we had a lovely Gewürztraminer to go with all the food.

As we were leaving we decided to walk Mark back to his offices in Martin place and then go do a spot of shopping. We REALLY needed to walk to help us digest the most ridiculous amount of food we’d all consumed.

I may have accidentally bought the new Guerlain Black Perfecto. That bottle is freaking PERFECT!

Sitting down for a cuppa later we were extremely amused by how drunk the Balenziaga model in Harold’s looks. Hilarious.

Then I jumped another train and met up with Jin as he finished work. We caught the train back to Parramatta together. He had a little nap and I had to keep elbowing him to stop him snoring. He He he. Once we got back home and walked the dogs Jin exclaimed at how starving he was so I drove him up the road and he had Vietnamese with a later frozen yoghurt. He was a VERY happy man.

Now I’m up and he is fast asleep. Trying to motivate myself to do some work but frankly I’m really just surfing the web and Facebooking. Oh well. I’m going to watch some Gilmore Girls instead.

Saturday 1:

2.30am SOTBed Estee Lauder Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss. I really like it. Radiant, sheer, sand blasted fruit-chouli with slightly sweaty vinyl and a honey/vanilla base.

Sunny and beautiful for dog walking this morning. Doused myself in Carner Barcelona Rima XI and it fits the day very well. We are having a BarBQ tonight so I have some shopping and cleaning to do.

Lunch in the sunshine. Fresh bread rolls with butter & vegemite and a cuppa. So yummy. Jinx couldn’t stop sniffing me after I’d eaten. He was very sad I didn’t share.

Spent the day organising tonights dinner. We had a wonderful time with Evie and Lola, Sue and Rose. Jin cooked Spicy BarBQ Pork and did a bunch of delicious side dishes. Sue brought a Pavlova Roulade and a Pear Cake with Dollop cream & hot Butterscotch Sauce. O M G! Phil dropped by for dessert but was already too full to eat so we all sat & chatted happily. It was such a fun night I forgot to take even one photo of the event. Here’s what it looked like just after everyone left. Just the dessert plates and tea stuff left, I am so chuffed at our night, it was perfect.

I wore Van Cleef & Arpels Ambre Imperial. Very pretty, dry, low key amber. Hummed along quietly without making an issue of itself. Good fit for a dinner party.

Sunday 2:

Scent free morning. Gave the dogs a 2km walk with Jin. Air was crystal clear and smelled so clean.

Spent the rest of my morning at the computer organising as much of next week as I can because I’ll be in Tasmania.

Lunch with BFF Kath and her parents. Loads of fun. I grabbed a bucket of KFC and we sat around laughing at my idiocy, and burping! Yep, even Mum got in on the act.

My fragrant choices for work go like this. B&BW Warm Vanilla bubble bath (so cheap but smells yummy), Madonna Truth or Dare Naked body lotion and Guerlain Tonka Imperial fragrance.

Home and more computer catching up.

So your week? Fun, friends, fabulous, family or fragrant things happen for you? Great! We’d love to read about them. Doesn’t need to be earth shattering, just something that brightened, added drama or scented your week.
Leave me a message in the comments, I love to read about you.
Portia xx

Saturday Question: What Perfumes Remind You Of Mum?

July 1, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 83 Comments

Portia

Hello Fellow Fumies,

I have had an idea. Well, actually I’m copying an idea from Olfactoria’s Travels. Once a week there used to be a Question. Everyone would chime in with an answer, chat with other responders and it would be a generally fun events each week. Taking sides never meant taking offence and everyone kept it respectful and light.

I’d like to carry on that tradition, maybe you’ll see it on the weekend or chime in through the week. Hopefully you will come back and see if anyone has responded to your comment and you can reply to them.

If we get over 200 responses I will draw a $20 Surrender To Chance Gift Card. Every comment will get a place in the draw, so if you comment purposefully on your own or another comment you’ll have a chance, random.org will draw the winner on Friday and the winner will be announced in next Saturdays question.

Last Weeks Winner:

Send me an eMail to portia _ turbo at yahoo dawt com dawt au

Saturday Question

What Perfumes Remind You Of Mum?

If scent is the ultimate direct line of memory then let’s talk about someone who is burned in our consciousness from the earliest days of our life. I was adopted as a baby, my sister was two years later, and being chosen was always something talked about from day one. We knew we were wanted and incredible special to Mum, even though we were terrible kids and drove the poor woman to distraction. Some of my favourite Mum memories are cuddling on the couch watching TV, her picking me up in the car after a long day of sport, school, extra curricular activity and being kissed goodnight when Mum & Dad would go out. These are the three moments I’m going to focus on in my Mum scent reminders.

My answer:

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you might as well skip ahead because you’ve read this before, or something like it. Obviously you’re welcome to read it again.

My Mum and some of her mates wore Guerlain Shalimar for daily. She also wore for long periods 0f time CHANEL No 5 as her dressed up going out scent, Giorgio Beverly Hills and Tweed as her handbag or car bottles for respritzes after golf or whatever adventures she’d been on in the day. Some things I remember her only having one bottle of were Anais Anais (because we would all call it Anus Anus), YSL Paris, Samsara, Arpege, Joy. Mum would also share with my sister a few things like Byzance, LouLou and that’s about it for what I remember. I know there are some missing from the list, my memory is shockingly bad.

When I spritz Shalimar, No 5 or Giorgio I am transported back to my Mum. It’s like a teleport. She’s been gone since 2001 but every day I miss her still and scent takes me back to her instantly. Funnily the voice of my conscience is hers most of the time. When I ask for advice or am giving myself a dressing down it’s Mum I hear almost every time.

Here’s a pic of Mum & Dad before I came along. Aren’t they beautiful?

So my question to you is

What Perfumes Remind You Of Mum?

Horizon by Oriza L. Legrand 1925

June 30, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 20 Comments

Portia

Hey Independent Perfume Lovers,

Back in 2014 while travelling with my mate Michael we went and met the guys who recreated the Oriza L Legrand fragrance line. The men were really sweet and seemed to be genuinely involved in trying to create an incredible fragrance house. Their shop in Paris is absolutely gorgeous and they took a couple of hours out of their busy schedule to give us a history lesson and to let us smell the collection. It was a lovely afternoon and we had a ball.

Oriza L Legrand

Horizon by Oriza L. Legrand 1925

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Petitgrain, tangerine, marmalade, rose
Heart: Cognac, amber, tobacco leaf, cacao, almond, oak, patchouli
Base: Benzoin, ambergris, white tobacco, vanilla, honey, leather, peat

OK some clarification, Hugo Lambert is Creative Director at Oriza L Legrand. He oversees the magic. I have erroneously put him down as perfume before. Sorry for the misinformation.

Citrus backed by a boozy amber and honey float straight off my skin. Chocolate and tobacco fold through like marbling on paper. It seems everything, every note, wants me to smell it at once. The opening fireworks are like the overture for a big show, all the major themes are played to give you a taste of what’s to come. Horizon lets all its secrets out in a fabulously symphonic rush and then calms to a sense of fragrance rather than a rush. It’s really fun, like a ride.

PDI

Warmth, dry tobacco and vanilla, dark and dense yet not a huge projection bomb. Horizon is a masculine leaning gourmand that would smell so Katherine Hepburn on a woman. A dark chocolate and patchouli heart with woodsy undertones and boozy tenors. Dry down is a patchouli rich amber with some leathered honey buoying it up. I can imagine wearing it as a go-to scent for someone who wants to smell really good, luxurious and interesting, but who sticks with a couple of scents for ease and through general lack of addiction like us.

Longevity is excellent, Horizon has lasted through a 3 hour vacuuming, floor steaming and bathroom clean.

PDI

Oriza L Legrand has €120/100ml FREE World Shipping
Surrender To Chance has a Sampler Set of Seven Oriza L. Legrand Fragrances from $17

Have you tried any of the Oriza L Legrand fragrances?
Portia xx

Un Jour d’Eté by Keiko Mecheri 2012

June 29, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Portia

Hey there Fumies,

It’s winter here in Australia and while it’s no snow filled wonderland where I am it is grey & cool. My morning and night walks with the dogs have become rugged up affairs and my corduroy jeans are getting loads of wear. Personally I’ve never really followed seasons with my fragrance, though the ambers do get quite a bit more action in the cool. Today I was after a ray of sunshine, a happy, warmth infused scent that would give the day a lift from the wintery blues and hit me with fond memories of summer.

Un Jour d’Eté by Keiko Mecheri 2012

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Bergamot, jasmine, coconut, ambergris, woodsy notes, lemon, petitgrain, tangerine, white musk, green notes, floral notes

Take a selection of citrus and give it the shimmering snap of pettigrain (and maybe some aldehydes). Fold in a thick, creamy, fluffed with musks coconut. Lightly salt it with the marine overtones of ambergris and driftwood. Whip it up into an uncooked meringue mixture, light, airy and sweet. Spritz yourself liberally and waft summer scented waves of fragrant air for hours and hours.

Un Jour d’Eté is French for A Summer Day and the name is not hype. Perfect to wear on a summer day or to reminisce about them in the depths of winter. Not nearly as in your face as Estee Lauder’s Bronze Goddess, here everything is less about the suntan lotion (though it does not to it) and more about wandering tropical beach side gardens. This is a swanky holiday floating around in gossamer thin silk caftans on the grass by the pool with a view of the ocean rather than rollicking around in the surf in a sand encrusted bikini. Here we drink some fabulous creation that the clever barman has made especially for you of white & dark rum, curaçao, cream, coconut and lime zest.

Un Jour d’Eté goesa on smooth and continues that way to dry down. No screaming huge event but a soft focus beauty I think it perfect for both sexes who want something casual but unusual. I could also imagine Un Jour d’Eté be an excellent choice for weddings.

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin
Libertine Parfumerie has AUD$279/75ml with FREE Australian Delivery

What are you currently wearing that goes against the seasonal regulations, and why?
Portia xx

Cuir Caraïbes GIVEAWAY WINNER

June 29, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

Portia

Hey Hey all,

Thanks to Mia at Perfume Profiling for her generosity and thank you guys for getting involved.
Let’s see who won,
Portia xxx

Cuir Caraïbes GIVEAWAY WINNER

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, citruses, green mango
Heart: White flowers, Jamaican pepper, ginger
Base: Vvetiver, guaiac wood, patchouli, leather, amber

Perfume Profiling has AUD$215/100ml EdP

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 1 winner who will receive:
1 x 5ml Cuir Caraibes manufacturers sample (minus my testing)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Wednesday 28th June 2017 10pm Australian EdsT
Winner was chosen by random.org

Morrigan

The winners will have till Wednesday 5th July 2017 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

Antimony by Christi Meshell for House of Matriarch 2016

June 28, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Erica Golding

Hello, scented greetings to you! I hope this little note finds you all well.

Today, I have saturated my wrists with a breathtaking new natural perfume that has completely stolen my heart! It made a crazy day seem much more manageable, a bubble shield of serenity. As a bonus, the magnetic pull of my perfume became evident at the office today. I was alone in a conference room when a friend ran in and sniffed the air, immediately guessing that my fragrance must be the amazing scent that drew him in. Flattered, I shared a link with him – I hope his wife will be getting a phenomenal gift soon:

Antimony by House of Matriarch 2016

Antimony by Christi Meshell

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Olibanum, pandanus, henna, palo santo, galanga, sandalwood, ash, nard himalayan (jatamansi), butter, copal, agarwood (oud), mitti attar, madam, rose

This pure pleasure of a perfume opens with depth and sincerity. I sense golden resins, buttery soft leather, smoky India ink, and a kiss of the syrupy sweetness of immortelle flower. The heart and soul of the aroma on my skin from start to finish is a luxuriously balanced high end frankincense, woody but not dry. Hours later, the other notes have dissipated, but the resonant olibanum just sings and sings, an absolute joy.

The inspiration for Antimony is the ritual of applying jet black kohl around the eyes, a talisman of protection and glamour. The darkness of the intensity is spot on, but the aroma is not heavy. In fact, it lifts from the skin, buoyant and graceful, infused with the delight of confident victory.
I applied this perfume 12 hours ago and it is STILL wafting healthily from my skin. The vibrant longevity of this 99.99% natural fragrance is just unreal! Antimony is unique enough to get you noticed no matter the occasion, while pleasantly attractive enough to be wearable without challenging your companions.

Further reading: The Scented Apprentice
House of Matriach has samples from $20

I love the points system on House of Matriarch’s website. My purchases over the last year have earned me a 50% off coupon code, how rad is that? These perfumes are highly concentrated treasures rich with top-of-the-line absolutes and worth every cent.

Have you sampled House of Matriarch yet? What is your favorite?

Until next time, be well and take time to smell the roses!

Love and light,
Erica

Bitching, Blind Buying A Bottle, Three Books

June 27, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 48 Comments

Val the Cookie Queen

Midsummer Greeting APJ

Coming to you from the lake.

Bitching, Blind Buying A Bottle, Three Books

The Bitching

I have come across three similar posts over the last fortnight on various Facebook perfume groups going something like this: “I ordered a sample pack of 20 new frags – and none of them smelled good. What is wrong with my nose?” And yesterday on Twitter: “Something weird is going on. I´ve tested several perfumes in a row that smell like “dryer sheet” scent variations on my skin. I´m worried ….” Dearhearts it is not your nose, nor your skin, nor the weather, there is a lot of really crappy perfumes around. Lazy top notes over ISO – have- no- idea middle notes, on a bed of base note chemicals, cheap vetiver and worst of all straight up frankincense. Eau de Niché and I hate it. And it´s not just niché …… Is it possible that folks try and convince their noses that what they are sniffing is good and that they just don´t understand it? Or are they rubbish? Hmmmmm? Now don´t get huffy, it´s only my opinion – I say it´s them, not you.

A Blind Buy

I can´t say I broke my rule of no blind buys because I never made one. When I saw the Guerlain Black Perfecto by La Petite Robe Noire bottle, I had to have it. I ordered the small one. Simple as that. I have not tried any of the other nine LPRNs, no interest whatsoever. Monsieur Guerlain wrote very favourably about the Black Perfecto perfume so I hoped I might like the contents of the bottle too. Black tea, black cherry, black liquorice, a touch of almond, slightly smoky, and not the sweet bomb I expected. Dead chuffed, it´s really nice. Reckon it´ll be great in cold weather. And yes, it is worth having for the bottle alone.

Three Books

We are having a heatwave here which means I spend time at the lake and read more.

Book Depository

You might wanna be careful with Donald Ray Pollock´s Knockemstiff though, if you have trouble with dry dark humour, kids raised on abuse, alcohol, drugs and cigarettes. Eat your heart out Deliverance. This is Knockemstiff, Ohio. Dr Fox, my ever-loving therapist told me to read it.

Book Depository

I had Donna Tartt´s The Secret History around for about three years and not picked it up. How was I to know it would turn out to be one of the best books I have ever read?

Book Depository

Just started Burnet´s His Bloody Project, set in the Scottish Highlands, 1869. Murder and violence. Recommended by Lady Jane Grey. I´m just off to the pool to read some more.

SOTD is Malle´s Eau de Magnolia.

If you have any bitching to do, blind buys to share, or indeed a book I should read, drop me a comment.

Sweltering Bussis
CQ

Cuir Caraibes by David Jourquin 2015

June 26, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 27 Comments

Portia

Hey there APJ,

My mate Mia imports David Jourquin fragrances to Australia through the Perfume Profiling group and she has sent me a 5ml sample to try and give away. Recently Sandra wrote us and introduction to these David Jourquin scents, they all look like they’re going to be really lovely and I adore the bottles. Don’t they look fun with their leather coats?

Cuir Caraibes by David Jourquin 2015

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, citruses, green mango
Heart: White flowers, Jamaican pepper, ginger
Base: Vvetiver, guaiac wood, patchouli, leather, amber

Cuir Caraibes opens aquatic, spicy, foody, and full of fresh cut fruit. It’s an unexpected delight jolting me from the hum drum into a fresh, juicy daiquiri of a fragrance. The fruit is buoyed by the sizzle of pepper and the zing of ginger. The whole has a lovely soft creaminess keeping it from going supersonic and I think that might be a very clean jasmine mixed with the patchouli.

The heart maintains the crisp fruit from the opening as a whisper as we find a more relaxed, lightly smoky elegance. There’s something very unusual about the way these flavours all blend, piquant.

As we head towards dry down Cuir Caribs becomes very smooth and balmy with only quiet hints of the named ingredients. Very wearable and lasts for ages.

Perfume Profiling has AUD$215/100ml EdP

Cuir Caraibes GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 1 winner who will receive:
1 x 5ml Cuir Caraibes manufacturers sample (minus my testing)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us which leather scents you love?

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Wednesday 28th June 2017 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Wednesday 5th July 2017 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

Scent Diary: 19.6 – 25.6.2017

June 25, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 34 Comments

Portia

Hey APJ,

Aunty Tracey has gone so we are living in a bit of a vacuum, suffering withdrawals. The whole house seems less sparkly.

Before we get onto this week I forgot to put Jin’s modelling shot from trying on the new jumper I got him last week. He is the funniest fucker ever and had us in stitches as he paraded in David Jones Sydney City Mens Store.

Jin and I have been barneying too, a few seriously heated exchanges but it’s calming down now. As you can probably imagine it gets pretty dramatic around here when the shouting starts, VERY theatrical. At least we shout it out and then it’s over. It’s the stewing that gets me riled up, then I have top pop the pimple and bark like a deranged poodle. Well, at least the air is clear.

Scent Diary: 19.6 – 25.6.2017

Monday 19:

SOTBed as I wander off to my snoring bed warmer, Jin, is Maria Candida Gentile Exultat. Incense done with such gentle restraint. So woodsy, it’s like being in a confessional or 1970s Swedish style sauna. Cool and aloof wafts of scented smoke will lull me to ZZZZZZZZZ.

Today is beautiful in North Parramatta. Sun is shining and the air crisp. We are looking at a high of 18C. I chose Etat Libre d’Orange Afternoon of A Faun as my SOTD and it’s bringing me only joy. I was so inspired I dusted & vacuumed the house and cleaned the bathroom. Also did every bit of laundry. This place is spotless.

Monday night is Trivia Q&A night. I wanted something fresh and sweet so enormous amounts of Guerlain Lys Soleia. Seriously, maybe 15 spritzes! It’s heavenly.

Tuesday 20:

My Aunty Tracey calls me FuckFace when I’m annoying, which is more often than you’d think. SO my BFF Kath has started sending me pics.

Woke up. Jumped out of bed to feed the dogs and walked them wearing one of my all time faves Niki de Saint Phalle. It’s still the cheaper chypre, though it’s getting harder to find.

Scott and I did the Office Work today, as much as we could get done. We did get to Service NSW and finally change my Toll Pass over.

We also went to the Priceline Sale and bought some heavily discounted Estee Lauder Modern Muse and Modern Muse Rouge Gloss. He He he! Couldn’t help ourselves, they were basically FREE! All three for less than you’d usually pay for one!

Tonight I wore Neela Vermeire Creations Trayee and was awarded two lovely compliments. It does smell ridiculously gorgeous and I totally rocked the wafting.

Aunty Tracey’s eldest son David was in the house tonight. We sat him with the team that Aunty Tracey plays with, Lyndall is pictured. They all had a hoot. He looks so much like his Dad, unbelievable.

SOTBed? Dama Koupa by Baruti. It’s a decant and so unusual. Woods, but with a dry sugar dusted unsweetuess. I’ve never smelled anything quite like it. REALLY, sensationally good.

Fragrantica

Wednesday 21:

Wow! Big day here. Well, not really that big but Evan dropped around in the morning and we sniffed some fragrances. It was a really fun hour. I can’t remember what I sprayed myself with but all day I had people saying how good I smell.

Also went to town to buy new Drag Shoes & Jewellery.

After that Alice & I went to Mrs Macquarie’s Chair and sat in the cool evening of the years shortest day here in Australia. It was dark by the time we got there and we had a spectacular view of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. it was so peaceful. Weird thing is, a perfect night yet we were nearly the only ones there. There were a couple of joggers and one small tour group in the hour we spent drinking in the breathtaking view.

Then we met my mate Rose for dinner at Blue Fish in Darling Harbour. It was a lovely night, full of cheeky stories and reminiscences. The food was wonderful and the guys serving us were really cheerful. My favourite, Joel, is back working there after a stint in Europe and Queensland. It was good to catch up with him.

This is a Mango Eton Mess. Mangoes, broken meringue, and whipped heavy cream. Seriously delicious.

Poor TinaG is less than 100% so I grabbed some Italian pasta for her on the way home and dropped it in. Get Well Princess.

For SOTBed Guerlain Tonka Imperial. PERFECT!

While we were out doing all that Jin was at a Sleep Apnea Study

Thursday 22:

Today was spent largely running around with Jin. I did cook the most splendid hamburgers for lunch but we ate them so no pics.

This morning I spritzed Guerlain Shalimar EdP as I was running about.

For work I had a LUSH Rose Jam bubble bath (we are getting to the last one very soon), Kiehl’s Original Musk lotion and Lancome Midnight Rose EdP. Yes, I love Midnight Rose, kick me out of the perfumista club if you want. I’ll be here smelling fabulous with or without you all. When sprayed over the musk you have no idea how fabulous it smells.

Friday 23:

Jin is working nights currently and when he got into bed this morning he woke me a bit so I got out of bed and had a cuppa. Wearing Dama Koupa by Baruti again, can’t get enough of its freaky dry woodsy unsweetness. I’m going to grab my beautiful puppy Paris and we are going to catch a couple of extra sleep hours in the spare room. Doggy cuddles are the best.

For work tonight this is my Bath, Body & Fragrance. Robert Piguet Bandit bubble bath (such leathery goodness, you have no idea), Amouage Dia woman body lotion and Guerlain Mitsouko EdT and vintage parfum.

It was really exciting tonight to hang out with some of my favourite peeps before, between & after the gig tonight. Though the gig itself was fun these guys are the freaking bomb. I haven’t caught up with them for ages and it was so good. Some people leave indelible marks.

The gig included dinner! I was so spoiled by chef Trish (Patricia Woods) who knows exactly how to tickle my tastebuds. Chock full of joy from seeing her too. PLUS Trish has a new love who I got to meet.

Lastly, to top a wonderful night off my mate Kane sent through a pic of us taken last century at the DIVA Awards. I think it’s 1996 but it might be later. Kane is on the right of the photo and I was madly in love with him while we were in London together. Sadly it was not to be but for a moment. By this time back in Sydney the man on the left, Eddie with the glasses, had become his beau.

Saturday 24:

Lazy morning. I put so much Guerlain Mitsouko on before bed last night I still smell of it. A LOT!

News just in. My mates Hunter & Faycal packed up their daughter and life and moved from Sydney to the South of France. They bought a beautiful property, did it up with their impeccable taste and now it’s on AirBnB. So if you’re thinking holiday, what could be more lovely than staying with a couple of my mates in the town of Ales near Nimes.

Want to go there? Me too. Here’s their AirBnB page.

My Bath, Lotion and SOTWork look like this today. Bubble bath provided by Hermès Eau de Mandarine Ambrée, Madonna Truth or Dare Naked body lotion because it has a luscious sweet amber undertone and fragrance from Hermès Le Jardin de Monsieur Li. Being a lovely sunny winter day here in Sydney I am loving the zingy crisp freshness of Monsieur Li, not sure how much extra depth the lotion is providing but the work nicely in combination.

Sunday 25:

I woke up at 3am, no reason. So I jumped out of bed and answered blog comments, scanned FaceBook, did a little emailing. I drank a couple of glasses of water and now I’m spritzing DIOR Mitzah and going back to bed. Bliss!

Jumped out of bed, spritzed Neela Vermeire Creations Pichola, fed and walked dogs and we went straight to pedicures. Kath, Evie and her daughter Lola were there to get some yummy new colours.

From pedicures Yum-Cha and Jin and his BFF Matt joined us there but Kath had to skedaddle. Conversation was lively, loads of laughs and we ate mountains of Chinese. Perfect start to the day.

After Yum-Cha we walked past this shop and thought it was hilarious because Tara from A Bottled Rose is our mate. So we snapped this and sent her a “Yeah Tara, Fuck You” message.

After that it was home to the bath. Bubbles provided by the last drops of my L’Occitane Melting Honey bubble bath. I do have an incredibly embarrassing confession, my sight is so bad that I’ve been using the L’Occitane Verbena Conditioner as BODY LOTION! So embarrassed when I enlarged the photo to get the correct name. Ha Ha ha ha! For fragrance I wanted something green and sweet to go with my two bases so Annick Goutal Mandragora Pourpe got brought out and is a perfect fit. It’s cool minty blast softens to a warmer amber/incense/patchouli watercolour wash. Love the bottle too.

Alright you lot! It’s your turn. Tell us anything fun, frightening, friendly or fragrant that happened to you this week. Share your joys and sorrows, we will cheer you on or commiserate as needs.
Please share something, we love to get to know you all a little bit better.
Portia xx