Author: australianperfumejunkiescom

Un Jardin Après la Mousson by Jean-Claude Ellena for Hermès 2008

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TinaG

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Hi APJ!

In an effort to combat Sydney’s summer heat and humidity, I’ve been seeking out fragrances that I find refreshing. These have ranged through modern and retro aquatics, juicy citrus, and magnolia.

Un Jardin Après la Mousson by Hermès 2008

Un Jardin Après la Mousson by Jean-Claude Ellena

A new fragrance in my wardrobe is Un Jardin après la Mousson by Hermès. I can’t say what exactly made me race off to buy a full bottle of this, but one sniff in David Jones was enough to make me swoon – and so it’s now mine. The official blurb on this fragrance locates it somewhere unspecific in India, taking us to a garden which was in drought but has now been refreshed by monsoon rains. I’ve never been to India but I’ve experienced heavy tropical rains in Papua New Guinea, and the solid downpours can be quite punishing – here’s hoping that the imaginary garden of this fragrance survived the onslaught.

Un Jardin après la Mousson opens with a burst of warm spices and watery notes. Ginger, cardamom and black pepper waft up into the air. There’s a distinctive green melon note which develops at 5 minutes giving the watery effect but in a fruity and very mildly fetid way rather than anything specifically river/ocean/storm related. I really enjoy this combination, I have been finding that it cuts through the summer heat and provides a refreshing aura that even manages to get me through morning public transport in train carriages with no airconditioning. Urg. Speaking of punishing….

Wikipedia

And, as far as fragrance development goes, it is fundamentally linear. At 3 hours, the pepper and melon have softened appreciably, and there is a light white floral accord that I find very subtle and pretty. Reapplying at 4 hours for me brings out the sweet aspects of cardamom and a touch of coriander seed in the background. I’m not sure I find much ‘vetiver’ in there. Longevity is good – there’s still tangible scent on my skin at +8 hours even without a respritz.

The joy in this fragrance for me is very much in the wearing. In the summer heat, it becomes more beautiful and “lived-in” with an added touch of salty skin and dry summer dust. I think this fragrance is wonderful on its own but it is enhanced though use, it’s meant to be worn and be part of a day rather than placed up on a pedestal and admired.

Further reading: Now Smell This and Olfactoria’s Travels
Hermès stores and department stores carry the Jardin range

What fragrances do wear to cut through, or compliment, the summer heat?

Till next time,
Tina G

Scent Diary 16 – 22.1.17

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Portia

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Hi Hi Fragrant Fumies,

I thought it might be fun to add a scent diary. Over at Muse In Wooden Shoes Mals86 has been doing one for years and I always love reading her updates and SOTDs. Now I’m not promising to write every single fragrant thing I wore because most weeks it’s testing 20 and wearing 10 for pleasure, so you’ll get a snapshot. This is a trial though so maybe it will continue or maybe it will bore me to shit.

Scent Diary 16 – 22.1.17

Monday 16:

Morning Jin & I went and fixed some lights at the Redfern flat that Kath lives in, 37C at 10.30am SHEESH. I wore Eau Parfumee au The Noir by Bulgari, a cool leather/tobacco/tea and has a deliciously dark quality.
All afternoon, and at Indian for dinner in Harris Park with one of Jin’s ex flames Paul, I wore Kai EdP. A surprisingly good choice even though I got a massive headache halfway through dinner. In the evening writing Trivia Q&A I still had Kai remnants so I drowned that in Atelier Cologne Tobacco Nuit which opened  very nicely but I totally ignored it in my Trivia immersion.
Finished writing Q&A about 3am and gave myself a lavish triple spritz of Armani Privé Cuir Amethyst, which resulted in blissful, languid sleep.

Tuesday 17:

So today is 41C (106F) and humid. Not my ideal weather but luckily Jin discovered that our A/C has a dry mode. It uses about 1/3 the energy of regular cooling A/C and makes the room feel 15 degrees cooler. A mate gave me 10ml of original Sables by Annick Goutal. Immortelle, pepper and tea? As I was wearing it I thought it must be tobacco and honey with some vetiver, goes to show how much I know.
In the early afternoon I spritzed a little Niki de Saint Phalle on my hand and enjoyed it beauty while having a cup of tea and writing blog posts, including one on the ease of its very own loveliness.
For work I chose the lavish, radiant white floral of Reem Acra. It’s easy to wear in the heat, smells fab. It smelled so good I wore it to bed too.

Wednesday 18:

We got to 42C (108F) today and it says humidity is under 30% but it feels way higher so I continued the Reem Acra. My Fundraising gig cancelled this morning. They told everyone else except me. Thank everything I eMailed to check details last night. So I’m spending the day blogging and doing the clothes washing. You can imagine the scene: I’m sitting at the desk in boxers spritzing and sniffing, breaking off regularly to go grab clean clothes to hang and fill the next cycle. TBH it’s very relaxing except for the sweat running down me in rivulets. Above is a pic of the fabulous laundry that Jin built in our apartment, small but really well planned and easy to use. The baskets are Top for whites, Middle for yellow, orange, red, purple, brown, Bottom for green, blue, grey, black. Reds are currently washing and about to hit the lines on the balcony.

Once Jin got home we took the dogs to my BFFs Mum & Dad’s house around the corner for a cooling swim, blessed relief. OMG! In this photo I look like Demis Roussos. After the swim I spritzed some Niki de Saint Phalle and Jin cooked dinner.
Before bed I lavishly applied Bombay Bling by Neela Vermeire Creations. So much fruity fun on open. I was asleep before the heart set in…..

Thursday 19:

Quiet day at home. For Christmas BFF Kath had Vegemite named for us. There are 4 large jars Jin, Seo, Portia & Turbo. This week I opened the first of the set TURBO! We have a sourdough loaf that I’ve been toasting for my Vegemite in the mornings. When people say it’s the little things, sometimes they’re right.
Morning I lavishly spritzed Monsieur Li by Hermès. Floating on a cloud of citrus and greenery. Perfect for our cooler weather today.
We had a drama today, Jin’s dog Jinx ate a poo bag full of poo. BLOODY HELL! Freaking out? You bloody bet I was/am.
My bath time bubbles were provided by Robert Piguet’s  Bandit Shower Gel and followed by Bandit fragrance for work. We had a full house, excellent night

Friday 20:

Walked the dogs in the AM and it is hot and sticky here already.
Going to lunch with Natalie from the now defunct AnotherPerfumeBlog so to brave the heat I’m wearing Geranium Pour Monsieur by Malle. It’s cool minty greenness will hopefully help me remain fresh in this fiery furnace. Sadly lunch got the can because Sydney decided to rain so I did some stuff around the house, paid bills, post office run, groceries etc

Geranium Pour Monsieur Frederic Malle Need refill
Jin came home and we had KFC in the lounge watching TV. I had a Korres Guava bubble bath and tonight I’m wearing Mandragore Pourpe by Annick Goutal. Its sweet minty fresh opening is deliciously green, spicy and tingly pepper/geranium heart and ambers warm base.

Saturday 21:

I was watching a British program on Netflix last night and into this morning. Lovesick. Compulsive viewing, I feel like they’re my mates and I’m watching them go through life & love drama. Anyway, 3.30am I go clean my teeth and can smell no fragrance upon my person so I grabbed Coup de Foudre by Parfums DelRae and spritzed like crazy. Fizzy roses and a greeny/yellow that I thought was narcissus but who knows…

Pedicure by myself today and I really enjoyed the tranquility. I think it’s only the second time in nearly a decade. I wore Eau Parfumée au Thé Noir by Bulgari, its smoky tea and woods were a perfect fit for the acrid bustle of the nail joint. Don’t you love my hairy Hobbit feet?
Update on Jinx the dog. Passed the poo bag in his poo today. Was NOT allowed a second go at it. ARGHHH.

For the afternoon I have had a boxed sample of Celestial Rose by Ramon Bejar on my desk for ages, since December 2014 when I was in NYC and Josie at OSSWALD gave it to me as a GWP. I finally tried it today and it’s a torn green branch and rose. A little bit Tea Rose by Perfumers Workshop.
For bed I spritzed vintage Madame Rochas EdC. A perfectly fresh yet cosy floral aldehyde bomb that was zinging along happily till I started the ZZZZZZZs

Sunday 22:

Original Agent Provocateur in the morning. Yep, I was a rose BOMB! with herbal sidelines. I would have SWORN that this had patchouli in it but nope.
Jin came home and slept through the day so I occupied myself with watching The Crown on Netflix. I know you’ve all seen it and that you’ve all told me but OMG what a fabulous series, I’m completely and utterly enthralled and madly in love with every character. HEAVEN!

Fragrantica

Work tonight and I wore Madonna Truth or Dare. White flower extravaganza.

What a week, how was yours?
Portia xx

CHANEL: Le Baudruchage

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

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Portia

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OK Folks,

Great to see you, as always.

Have you ever wondered about the piece of skin that they put around the neck of perfume to keep the air out? Me too. So it’s called a Baudruchage and it used to be animal, then became vegetal and I think it’s a petroleum product now.

YouTube

Anyway, here is a fascinating mini movie about how it’s done.
Enjoy.
Portia xxx

CHANEL: Le Baudruchage

Seeker by Liz Cook for One Seed

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Portia

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Hello Indie Perfumery Lovers,

A while ago Liz sent me this sample to try, which I promptly lost and it has only now resurfaced in my New Year Cleanup. PHEW! So finally I get to tell you about it.

Seeker by Liz Cook for One Seed

One Seed

One Seed gives these featured accords:
Coriander, coconut, vanilla, roasted basmati rice, oakmoss, ambrette seed
Oganic sugar cane ethanol, 100% natural fragrance (natural and organic plant extracts), purified water

Food. My instant correlation in the opening was food. Ice cream in fact. One minute later you can smell the rice and coconut, it’s like a Penang Curry. Deliciously fragrant and my mouth is watering like I’m really going to get my favourite Thai dish. HA! I have a huge happy smile on my face and wonderful memories of going to our fave Thai restaurant in Gordon that looks like nothing, very simple. The food though is abundant, consistently excellent and cheap as chips. The staff are all so friendly and we drive nearly an hour to eat there nowadays. We always get a second order when we are there now to bring home as dinner in two nights time. Yes, we are quite in thrall and have had years of dinners there with so many friends, often just Jin and I will go alone.

Wikipedia

From One Seed: Seeker is a youthful scent created for the young and the young at heart. It is for endless adventures, for seeking truth in all things. Featuring fresh greens and delicate mossy notes entwined with milky coconut, vanilla and the scent of salt on damp skin.

So Seeker is an incredibly happy fragrance for me, the memories flowed for hours. Even as it softened to dry down Seeker still smells like happy memories but they turn more Indian and religious as the fragrance seems to become smokier and darker, more filled with humanity and all the way to the end rice steam. The musk mallow does excellent work as a fleshy backdrop, this frag rocks. You’ll never pick that it’s a natural.

One Seed has $85/30ml EdP
One Seed has a fabulous Sample Set. All 7 fragrances x 2.5ml atomisers

Is there a foody smell you love or wish was part of a fragrance?
Portia xx

Vintage Opium GIVEAWAY WINNER

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

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Portia

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Hey crew,

This has been a super fun one for me, let’s see who our winners are.
Portia xx

Vintage Opium GIVEAWAY WINNER

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Coriander, plum, citruses, mandarin orange, pepper, jasmine, cloves, West Indian bay, bergamot
Heart: Carnation, sandalwood, patchouli, cinnamon, orris root, peach, lily-of-the-valley, rose
Base: Labdanum, tolu balsam, sandalwood, opoponax, musk, coconut, vanilla, benzoin, vetiver, incense, cedar, myrrh, castoreum, amber

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 2 winners who will receive:
1 x Vintage Opium by YSL Sample
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Thursday 19th January 2017 10pm Australian EdsT
Winners were chosen by random.org

Gina Tabasso

Jc Loh

The winners will have till Sunday 22nd January 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.

Niki de Saint Phalle

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

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Post by Portia

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Hey there vintage fumie friends,

Travelling around winter South Korea recently I was astonished at how perfectly Niki de Saint Phalle’s eponymous fragrance worked in almost every situation. I took a 30ml spray bottle and went through more than half of it on a ten day journey. There is a soft furriness to its green chypre that makes it more cosy than CHANEL No 19 and less fancy lady than Robert Piguet’s Futur, in the cold weather. You may notice on APJ I often write about fragrances being wearable and unchallenging, on many blogs that would be a derisive pointer to bland uninteresting fragrance but from my point of view a fragrance must be wearable in my life. Sure I have a few that I spritz at home for my own freak flag enjoyment but when I venture forth I want to wear my scents as a comfortable cloak not ammunition.

Niki de Saint Phalle

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Artemisia, mint, green notes, peach, bergamot
Middle: Carnation, patchouli, orris root, jasmine, ylang-ylang, cedar, rose
Base: Leather, sandalwood, amber, musk, oakmoss

Sadly I am finding it harder and harder to track down any of the spritz bottles of Niki de Saint Phalle and am kicking myself for not buying a dozen of them when I noticed they were getting harder to find. GRRRRR. It will be decanting into atomisers for the rest of my life. Oh well, not really a hardship.

So Niki de Saint Phalle is a chypre. Full of softly furry green-ness. To be honest I can’t pick most of the notes. Artemisia, galbanum, carnation, leather and oakmoss are the things I notice but everything else seems to sit in a background chorus. Once upon a time though the note list used to include tagetes (marigolds) now THEM I can smell and a light salt coating. Dry and austere it’s amazing how many moments it’s perfect for. Currently I’m sitting in my office and it’s a 41C day, Niki de saint Phalle cuts through the humidity and takes me to a cool dry thicket near a stream. Cool and fecund, I can smell the earth, greenery, woodland creatures or birds must have a nest nearby because the soft furry, powdery musk of creature babies is here and the smell of tree made shade.

WikiCommons

For real luxury grab the Shower Gel too, it makes the most unbelievably gorgeous bubble baths. Then when you spritz there’s already a soft layer of Niki de saint Phalle to layer over.

Further reading: Non Blonde and Yesterday’s Perfume
FragranceNet has AUD$31/30ml before coupon
The Perfumed Court has samples starting at $3/ml

Five years ago I wrote about Niki de Saint Phalle here at APJ, and have written of it elsewhere. It’s a staple around here.

Do you have a go-to, fits anywhere scent? Maybe one that’s getting harder to find?
Portia xxx

 

Hair Fragrance

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

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Erica Golding

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Hello, fragrance lovers!

Something is in the air tonight, and it’s floating around my head like a crown. Do you ever fragrance your hair?

Hair Fragrance

Over the last couple of years, I have acquired a small variety of incredible hair glosses from Black Phoenix Trading Post. They are lightweight and subtle in terms of the hair product effects, and their scents are works of art. They vary in throw and intensity depending on the perfume.

My favorite by a landslide is called Implacable Beautiful Tyrant. I can’t help but feel bubbling happiness when I inhale this scent! The notes listed include amber, frankincense, white ginger, and oudh. I swear I pick up fig as well. It is a completely unique, absolutely enchanting fragrance – impossible to describe. When I use it, I wear it on its own as my scent of the day. If they ever released IBT in a perfume oil, I would jump all over it!

Black Phoenix Trading Post

Another gorgeous BPTP hair gloss offering is a beloved, bestselling scent from the BPAL General Catalogue called Dorian. This is the hair gloss that I use most frequently, because it accents any complimentary perfume choice like a chameleon. The notes include sugared vanilla tea, pale musks, and a Victorian fougère. It doesn’t matter what the genre, any perfume I apply to my skin is magically enhanced when I wear Dorian hair gloss.

Kevin Murphy

Lastly, I am addicted to the scent in Kevin.Murphy Shimmer.Shine mist. There is no listed description, but to me it is a rich aura of sandalwood, Hawaiian ginger, and a velvety sexy dark Musk. It makes me feel really beautiful when I use it! The aroma is just so luxe to me.

Do you enjoy scenting your hair with anything in particular? I hear that the Frederic Malle Carnal Flower hair mist is divine. I’ve also tested Mugler’s Angel hair mist and it was lovey!

Until next time, be well and enjoy your scents in good health!
Erica the Smoochy Poochy XXXX

Habit Rouge Dress Code by Thierry Wasser for Guerlain 2015

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

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Robert Herrmann

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Wait.

You HAVEN’T tried Dress Code yet???!!! Go order a sample/decant/bottle RIGHT NOW!!
You’re welcome.

I had been waiting for this since first hearing about the pre-release in the summer of ’15. It was at that time strictly a limited edition, and would only be available at 2 select retailers in the USA and at the Guerlain flagship store in Paris. So faster than you can say “Thierry Wasser” three times, I popped online and found ONE bottle available at Bergdorf’s in NYC. Three minutes later that bottle was on it’s way to my house…..

Now fragheads who know me, know that I am absolutely a Guerlain Ho’ of the ‘nth degree, hell I have one whole shelf in my Perfume cabinet stuffed full, and dedicated exclusively to Guerlain. New Guerlain offering? Come to Papa! Every. Single. Time.

Habit Rouge Dress Code by Guerlain 2015

Habit Rouge Dress Code by Thierry Wasser

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, neroli, rose
Heart: Spices
Base: Woodsy notes, leather, tonka bean, praline, vanilla

Aaaahhh Dress Code. Guerlain certainly hit it out of the ballpark with this wonderful flanker!

The regular HR has long been in my top 5, and a few years back I was lucky enough to purchase a vintage mid-90’s new-in-mint-condition bottle thanks to the largess of a Facebook fragrance friend. (Looking at YOU, Jake!❤❤❤)

But about Dress Code…..

Let’s just say that Mr. Sulu would give Dress Code his “oh myyyyyyyy” stamp of approval.

Do you love a fabulous Gourmand? HRDC opens with a huge blast of caramel/chocolate/vanilla which within minutes adds a wispy back note of orange blossom.

Right away however the spices and rose peek through, followed by a resin/leather and woody vibe.

All perfectly blended and seamlessly drifting in and out with no single note taking up the spotlight. Just a gorgeous amalgam which like the energizer bunny, just keeps going and going and going….there’s a smoky aspect as well, as if the spices have been roasting over an open fire with some tonka thrown in for good measure.

WikiCommons

By this time HRDC is firmly established in the drydown phase and swear-to-god if asked for a comparison, I would say that to me it’s solidly rooted in Shalimar territory. But purposely skewed masculine, although I suspect a woman would feel TOTALLY comfortable wearing this, especially to buttress up a “take-no-prisoners” attitude.

And HRDC has attitude.
In spades.
That first edition sold out in a heartbeat, but have no fear because Guerlain re-released it last year with their updated bottle. EXACTLY same perfume, just different packaging despite what you may read online. It’s the same, trust me.

And so for creating HRDC, and then bringing it back….Thank you Guerlain. Love it..

Flickr

Further reading: Scent Gent and Persolaise
Sadly Australia isn’t getting Dress Code but it’s available in Guerlain in major department stores of Europe & USA

Have you tried Dress Code yet? What other Guerlain’s do you adore? (I know right? There are so many!)
My Name Is Robert Herrmann (but I forget sometimes)

Vintage Opium by YSL

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 30 Comments

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Portia

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Hi Crew,

My BFFs Mum only wears vintage Opium. It’s her fragrance and when they totally changed the juice she was devastated. So for the last few years my job has been to seek out vintage Opium and give her a bottle at any gift giving event that she has used up her previous bottle. She’s spritzing her way through about 150ml per annum currently. Obviously it’s no hardship for me to trawl the internet and various FaceBook page Sale Docs in search of her precious, actually it gives me focus some nights when I’m up late but too zonked out to do anything productive.

Yes, I have had a couple of fakes come through and one that had obviously been stored poorly because most of that fabulous top had been scorched away leaving only the base minus. I thought it was a fake but rarely do fakes have bases so fabulously perfect and long lasting.

Not long ago one of the Aussies on Aussie Fragrance Network and I did a frag swap. Can’t remember what I sent but in return I got the most pristine vintage Opium and I’m chuffed.

Vintage Opium by YSL 1977

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Coriander, plum, citruses, mandarin orange, pepper, jasmine, cloves, West Indian bay, bergamot
Heart: Carnation, sandalwood, patchouli, cinnamon, orris root, peach, lily-of-the-valley, rose
Base: Labdanum, tolu balsam, sandalwood, opoponax, musk, coconut, vanilla, benzoin, vetiver, incense, cedar, myrrh, castoreum, amber

There is quite a bit written about Opium and how freaking lavish it is. What it smells like to me now is Kath’s Mum. Here we are at Christmas after lunch. She is a rare and wonderful woman who took in a 30+ year old orphan and gave me a place and a family to call home on big events. When Jin came along she didn’t even bat a eyelid but welcomed him wholeheartedly too. Since then she has grown less able to provide the kind of enormous family event she is used to producing and we (Jin & I) have taken the Christmas reins and now they all come to us. Birthdays etc are now done at one of the local clubs or restaurants because it’s WAY easier.

So this is what Opium smells like to me. It smells like welcome and unconditional love.

Further reading: Yesterday’s Perfume and Kafkaesque
eBay sometimes has bargains, FB Sale docs are best

 

giveaway hemodernhome

Vintage Opium GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 2 winners who will receive:
1 x Vintage Opium by YSL Sample
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

Tell us a vintage perfume on your sample wish list

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 19th January 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 Sunday 22nd January 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.