Dior Eau Sauvage: Tribute to a Legend: Video

July 2, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there APJ,

Christian Dior’s Eau Sauvage has been a staple mens fragrance, gracing their bathrooms and bureaus since 1966. It has survived the changes in fashion and fragrance with tweaks and reformulations. Still it contains hints of what it was while also smelling very nice on the people who love to wear it. Even now when I ask someone who smells particularly good what they’re wearing the answer is sometimes Eau Sauvage.

DIOR has done a lovely video below to celebrate its eternal cash cow. Bravo. 50 years is quite an achievement. Here’s to 50 more.

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Lemon, basil, bergamot, cumin, lavender, fruit
Heart: Jasmine, rose, carnation, iris root, coriander, patchouli, sandalwood
Base: Oakmoss, vetiver, musk, amber

Dior Eau Sauvage: Tribute to a Legend

Sweet Libertine by Jocelyn Fullerton for Cult Of Scent

July 1, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 30 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Independent Perfume Lovers,

As you may know I really love the Independent Perfumers. Though I know they are not the right fit for everybody what really appeals to me about their work is the immediacy, the raw, fun, often outrageous ways they take their fragrances. Many of them use a high percentage of the commonly known as natural ingredients which can mean more distinction on how it will wear for you personally. They are also far less bound by market forces, regulation and fashion. No matter how talented a perfumer for the big boys may be they will almost always be working to a brief, that’s not the way to foster creativity and I imagine that many of their lives are far less fun and glamorous than we dream.

Today I’m wearing a fragrance made by one of my mates, Jocelyn, whose fragrances I find extremely enjoyable to wear. Come for the journey with me.

Sweet Libertine by Cult Of Scent

Sweet Libertine by Jocelyn Fullerton

Cult of Scent

I won’t put the notes up because you’ll need them to enter the GIVEAWAY below.

Sweet Libertine reads like an intensely animal floral on my skin. It’s a warm, lyrical extravaganza that pulses off my skin in warm auburn hues and creates a fiery warmth in my heart. It purrs beautifully, resinous and elegant, for a couple of hours before the woods take over and more resins that linger and fade over another couple of hours.

Wikipedia

There is something very Australian Outback within its sensual coils and it reminds me of the summer mornings spent down in Temora on my Aunty Faye and Uncle Jim’s farm. The house was clean, spotless, and the table waxed. The red earth and eucalyptus were heating up, chickens scratching around the front yard, dogs at the back door and the sheep were baa-ing. Fresh flowers on the breakfast table, sometimes it was jasmine or wisteria, others it was freesias, zinnias, geraniums of everlasting daisies. The men would eat breakfast early and then be off about their days.

Cult of Scent has Sweet Libertine starting at $35/8ml Travel Spray
There is also a Cult of Scent Sampler $35/3ml samples of the Cult of Scent range

Cult Of Scent GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will receive:
1 x 1ml decant Cult Of Scent: Sweet Libertine
1 x 1ml decant Cult Of Scent: Hedonist
1 x 1ml decant Cult Of Scent: Something Beautiful
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 go to Cult of Scent<< JUMP and find me a fragrance and an ingredient it contains. No Double Ups!!

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 3rd July 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 Wednesday 6th July 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.

Orange Flower Soliflore by Dame Perfumery 2016

June 30, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by Robert Herrmann

Hey there frag friends!

Robert H. here writing from my small island home in the Pacific Northwest. Today I am drenched in, and loving…..

Orange Flower Soliflore by Dame Perfumery 2016

Anytime I get a package from Arizona’s Dame Perfumery with new soliflores is a happy and exciting day indeed!

After Jeffrey Dame’s stunning photorealistic Gardenia soliflore from 2015, I was wondering how the hell he could ever top that, that is until now. You make it better by adding some photorealistic orange flower to the top, et voila!

This gorgeous soliflore opens with an enormous blast of pithy and bitter orange, flesh, peel, stem, leaves, blossoms and all. The scent of an orange being cut open on a warm sunlit terrace, your hands sticky and runny with the juice. Not just any orange however, this is a “Fruit Of The Month” quality citrus, you know….the ones you get at the holidays in the cardboard padded box? Six oranges for $30.00, fresh from the orchard, organic, unblemished, and just perfect. Yeah, THAT orange.

As you sit on your sun-drenched terrace and the smell of this magnificent fruit flows over you, you also notice the smell of the potted jasmine and gardenia starting to mix in, and underneath it all the sweet clean musk scent from the skin of your bronzed companion sitting right beside you. Or maybe the cabana boy? It’s your call!

Now I happen to know that Dame Perfumery knows how to do Musk really well, and if you haven’t tried his New Musk Oil or Cologne, go online RIGHT NOW and order some samples!! (Make sure you get the Gardenia as well). So mixing a touch of musk and gardenia with the glorious citrus is a stroke of genius. The result is a beautiful citrus-centric white floral that will make you roll your eyes back in your head. Sadly, the longevity is not terrific, but that’s actually just fine. The rollerballs are such a great deal that you can re-apply with abandon all day long, with no regrets at all!

Dame Perfumery has $35/10ml rollerball

Have you tried any of the Dame Perfumery range? Any other Orange flower perfumes that you absolutely adore?

Moisture Eating Virus?

June 29, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by Sandra

Hey there APJ! Hope everyone is doing well.

I am beginning to wonder if I have been infected with a new virus – the moisture eating virus that hits early September and then suddenly disappears again at the beginning of June. It had even gotten to the point before I started experimenting that my lips would bleed, the skin on my fingers would crack and bleed and my skin in general looked like an aged snake shedding its skin.

If you will allow me I will take you on my painful journey of being plagued with extremely dry and sensitive skin. It all began when I moved away from home at 18 to attend university. I moved to my first colder climate zone ever and was shocked to learn that I needed not only a warm comforter at night to keep me warm but that my skin would start experiencing dermatitis for the first time. Then I moved to Austria and everything went downhill from there. Not only did my skin worsen but I was also diagnosed with celiac which also comes with a plethora of skin issues. So, if you see me in the heat of summer – baking myself lazyly under the sun like the languid iguanas – it is for good reason – all my issues clear up in warmth and humidity and vitamin D! For the rest of the year I am stuck with spending my money on products that help me look like myself again.

Moisture Eating Virus?

What works for me? Perhaps I can help someone save time and money.

Lips:

Cicaplast Levres – Baume Barriere Reparateur
This lip cream goes on smooth and soft. It takes away any cracks or bleeds and is specifically made for those of us who have autoimmune issues like celiac. Put it on at night and wake up to baby soft lips in the morning. In the winter I carry it with me in case I need it.

Lucas Pawpaw Ointment
I always carry a tube with me because not only do I use it on my lips but everywhere where I have a problem and I put some on and it stops me from looking like a psych patient wanting to scratch non-existent bugs out of my skin.

Body:

Bioderma Atoderm Huile de douche
I buy the 1 litre bottles and the whole family uses this excellent shower and bath oil. My skin in silky smooth after I use this.

Bioderma Atoderm PO Zinc
I can clear up almost any dermatitis with this. Not only do I use it on my body but in the dead of winter when my face needs extra moisture I put this on at night.

Face:

La Mer
My face is a tricky one because most creams that I have tried have resulted in a serious dermatitis outbreak. Fifteen years ago I was introduced to the La Mer Creme de La Mer and the La Mer Concentrate, love them and use them daily, and I have to admit that I am quite nervous in trying anything new. If you have any recommendations for me I welcome them because perhaps a newer formula would have even better results.

Neck and chest:

Clarins Face Treatment Oil Santal and Blue Orchid.
Both are wonderful but I reach for the Blue Orchid in the evenings as I find it a bit more nourishing than the Santal which I use during the day.

Do you have dry skin? What do you use? I would be very grateful for more tips as summer is only three months here and then I have to get serious again.

Aroma M Oils by Maria McElroy

June 28, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Post by Val the Cookie Queen

Konnichiwa APJ!

After my last post featuring the Geisha Vanilla Hinoki EdP, it would be remiss not to mention the seductive oils from Aroma M. I now own both the Geisha Vanilla Hinoki Oil and the Geisha Noire Oil. Intimate, hypnotic and sensual, they warrant a post of their own. No misunderstanding here, Aroma M´s perfumed oils are not soft nor weak. Quite the opposite. They are breathtakingly intense and personal.

Maria McElroy spent seven years in Japan, and her recognition and gratitude for the culture inspired her line of the Geisha Oils. They are poured by hand into roll-on bottles and each bottle is wrapped in patterned Yuzen papers, handcrafted in Kyoto.

Aroma M Oils by Maria McElroy

The Geisha Noire and the Geisha Vanilla Hinoki Oils. Roll-on perfumes

Geisha Noire Oil by Aroma M

Black amber, sandalwood, tonka bean

This is a concentrated, heavy, dark smoky oil. And yet it is intimate, making it perfect for yoga or meditation. Far be it from me to tell anyone how much perfume to apply but be careful, this is poky stuff. Tenacious as heck, it lasts twenty four hours on me. See the notes? Divine but not angelic!

Geisha Vanilla Hinoki Oil by Aroma M

Bergamot, hinoki, lavender, leather, patchouli, amyris, cedarwood

A condensed, brighter, deeper version of the Vanilla Hinoki EdP. (Which I loved so much I just HAD to order the oil.) The bergamot weightier, the lavender sharper, the spices warmer, the hinoki clearer, Vanilla Hinoki is serene and restful. The rich sugarless smoky Moroccan vanilla surrounded by wisps of patchouli. Harmonious and soothing on its own, but a joyous explosion layered with the EdP.

Aroma M Perfumes offer a wonderful service and samples of everything and ships worldwide.

I don´t always want my fragrance to bounce off of others, hence my love for extraits, dabbing, and as of late oils.
I need to investigate oils further. Is perfume in the form of an oil something you like?

Tranquil Bussis
CQ

Muguet Porcelain GIVEAWAY WINNER

June 28, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 4 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there APJ!!
Bloody hell! I forgot to draw the winner.

There’s a name below.
WOO HOO!
Portia xx

Muguet Porcelain GIVEAWAY WINNER

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Muguet Porcelain by Hermès manufacturers sample (my blogging sample)
1 x sample Be Beautiful by Jessica Mauboy (from my bottle)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Saturday 25th June 2016 10pm
Winner was chosen by random.org

Ellen Covey

The winner will have till Friday July 1st 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.

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

June 27, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 47 Comments

Post by TinaG

Standing at the Van Cleef & Arpels counter at Heathrow Terminal 3, I did something that every seasoned perfumer swears off doing. I bought a full bottle based on a sniff from a sprayed card, in the shop. But I was so taken by the strong buttery iris notes that I thought I was on a sure thing.

But now after coming home, the fragrance seems to be elusive and jumping around on me a bit. I’m having trouble working out whether it’s the fragrance, or if my nose has been tortured from the aircon on a long haul flight. I’ve been testing and testing this week but it’s no clearer…. So I’m looking for a bit of help.

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

Collection Extraordinaire

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cacao, patchouli leaf, woodsy notes
Heart: Iris flower, Bulgarian rose
Base: Fruity notes, leather, suede

The fragrance is Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels, their newest in their Collection Extraordinaire. My opening impression of this is of a coca-induced buttery floral iris with a clean patchouli lightly placed underneath. Loving the iris! Loving the butteriness! The iris burns off over the first half hour and the fresh green patchouli steps up with a dry white wood. Reviews of Moonlight Patchouli so far seem to mimic the press release, hinting at light & dark aspects of the fragrance – similar to a full moon behind forest trees. For me it is warm vs cool – the iris & patchouli are cool, woods and coca/cacao being warm. At first this felt quite linear and seemed to disappear at 1/2 hour, but then there are flickers of resurgence of the iris and patch.

It’s at this point I wonder if I’m getting fatigued as the patch takes on a different tone, one which I can only describe as deep green and salty, firstly reminding me of seaweed then perhaps salt-chlorination. There’s a personal skin note in there as well, and it’s consistent – I’ve found it three times on different days. Interesting.

Pixabay

At around 4 hours the whole composition sweetens, I get musk lollies and lemon blossom & some fruitiness. The musk is both prominent and subtle – sounds contradictory, right? Not really – it’s like panning for gold. At first the sand looks homogeneous but give it a few swirls and it starts to separate, quartz sand, black sand, and teeny gold flakes saying ‘here I am’. The musk isn’t in the notes but with ‘skin-scents’ and sweet lolly I’m pretty sure there’s at least two.

At 8 hours an equally subtle leather appears, so gentle that I try to work out whether it’s the fragrance or if I’m getting scent transfer from my handbag. The sweetness has dissipated by this time so what we’re left with is a soft warm suede which is really lovely & snuggly.

Harrods has £126/75ml

Below there is a great way you can try & reply about Moonlight Patchouli
Can you help me work this fragrance out? Overall I think it’s beautiful and wearable, but I’m interested in your thoughts.

I’m giving away 5x 2ml decants of Moonlight Patchouli below, with a request for some feedback please!

Looking forward to it! Thanks!
Tina G xx

Moonlight Patchouli GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 5 winners who will receive:
1 x 2ml decant Moonlight Patchouli by VC&A
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us you’ll be involved in the fun if you win

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Friday 1 July at 9pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winner will be chosen by random.org
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

THEN IF YOU WIN

*Winners will be asked to provide a mailing address to me on the email address apjfeedback (at) gmail (dot) com.
* Within 2 weeks of receiving your decant, please write to the email address apjfeedback (as above) providing a one-paragraph review of your experience testing the frag.
* Let me know your screen-name as I will use your feedback in a future article.

Safari Woman by Dominique Ropion for Ralph Lauren 1990

June 26, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Post by Anne-Marie

I missed Safari when it first came out and one way or another, I only discovered it about 25 years later. Well, better late than after discontinuation! So this is a review of a new friend, not an old buddy.

Safari Woman by Ralph Lauren 1990

Safari Woman by Dominique Ropion

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: orange black currant, tagetes, mandarin orange, narcissus, galbanum, hyacinth, cassis
Heart: rosemary, orange blossom, orris root, jasmine, rose
Base: sandalwood, amber, patchouli, vetiver, cedar

Barbara Herman in her book Scents and Subversion adds honey as a middle note, and I agree. For me, honey is a key characteristic in Safari. Yes, the green bitter notes – galbanum and hyacinth especially – are very prominent. Much as I like green florals and chypres, sometimes they are too bitter for me and in Safari, this is held in check by a sweetness that feels like honey. Not saccharine, but rich, smooth and dark. This may be what gives Safari the warm languor which is referenced in the ads (about which more in a moment). There’s fruit in there but the overall effect is dry rather than juicy.

Safari has a reputation for strength and tenacity, a scent in high 1980s style. My bottle was bought in 2016 and while the texture of the fragrance is dense, I would not have said it matches those big ol’ 80s monsters. Perhaps reformulation has toned it down. After a strongish start, I find that Safari settles to a hum quickly. The fragrance lasts all days with just moderate sillage. By the end, I do get a little tired of Safari. The tussle between crisp greenery and smooth sweetness plays out on my skin all day. Nothing wins, and I’m glad when they finally blend and fade.

From bottle to packaging to marketing, the art direction for Safari is beautiful, as you’d expect from Ralph Lauren. The video ad takes us to Africa, of course. Mr Safari bashes on a typewriter (channelling Ernest Hemingway), while Ms Safari shoots the wildlife (with a camera). A bit of lazy canoodling goes on. No doubt there will be drinks on the veranda at sunset, served by native servants. Sorry, I’m not interested in all this colonialist shtick.

Safari for women is almost impossible to find in retail shops in my part of the world, and occasionally some reviewers have wondered if it is discontinued. It’s easy to find online though. The men’s version, a fougère released in 1992, is everywhere. I have not smelled it. Do comment if you know it.

iha

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and Non Blonde
FragranceNet has $64/75ml Before Coupon

What about you? Was Safari part of your perfumed past? Is this what you would wear out there on the savannah, cuddling a baby lion?
Until next time, keep spritzing everyone!

Mon Paris – Yves Saint Laurent: Video

June 25, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 7 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there APJ,

Something new from YSL! Once upon a time that would be the cue for great rejoicing and whispers of intrigue. Now the only way I know about it is because they have released their ad and it came up on my YouTube.

They are selling it as a modern chypre and while I applaud their audacity still I think I will reserve judgement till I can get my nose on some.

Mon Paris by Yves Saint Laurent 2016

Mon Paris by Olivier Cresp, Harry Fremont and Dora Baghriche-Arnaud

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Calabria bergamot, strawberry, raspberry, pear
Heart: Datura flower, peony, Chinese and Sambac jasmine, orange blossom.
Base: White musk (three types of it), ambroxan, patchouli (Indonesia and Guatemala)

Please enjoy the video. I think it’s gorgeous. What do you think?
Portia xx

Mon Paris – Yves Saint Laurent

Bas de Soie by Christopher Sheldrake for Serge Lutens 2010

June 24, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Post by Portia

Hiya Fumies,

For some reason I have always overlooked todays fragrance. Not sure why. Nothing about it has ever jumped out at me but I’d also never read the notes list. Having fallen truly, madly and deeply in love with Apollo Hyacinth by Eric Buterbaugh Florals it suddenly seemed necessary to try another hyacinth fragrance and Serge Lutens often creates the benchmark, so it was to his that I gravitated.

Bas de Soie by Serge Lutens 2010

Bas de Soie by Christopher Sheldrake

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Iris, galbanum, hyacinth, spices, musk

One year when we were kids my Mum splurged on a packet of Hyacinth bulbs. We were great gardeners, Mum & I, and spent whole weekends together creating and recreating the garden. Sydney is a funny climate and most bulbs get one year of fabulous and then rot in the ground. Anyway, this year the Hyacinths came up and were a beautiful blue, Mum was thrilled. Bas de Soie reminds me of the feeling that Mum & I had really achieved something to have these beautiful flowers to show for our efforts.

Bas de Soie reminds me of that spring. It’s alive, fresh, hopefull springlike green opening is so like the sap of freshly cut hyacinths. It has that glorious galbanum which smells both incredibly cool and aloof while also giving me a smooth, resinous, shiny and reflective smell. I am explaining it very badly but hopefully you understand.

Pixabay

Iris is green and only lightly powdery. Actually it’s like the cool spring morning air blowing through the lovely green and grey leaves of the iris, that makes the flowers shiver of their impossibly long stems. Then the startling cascade of colour, a positive riot of purples, yellows, oranges and pinks.

About 30 minutes in and then Bas de Soie changes. It warms through slightly, while still being green and light as air, maybe the spices and musk but it feels woody and earthy.

Now you will be fragrant, people will smell you, but there is little chance of your fragrance ever skunking anyone if you’re wearing Bas de Soie. It’s a very pretty floral. Maybe if CHANEL No 19 is a bit too severe then the friendliness of Bas de Soie could quite well be a better fit for you.

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Megan In St. Maxime
LuckyScent has $135/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/0.5ml

Do you have a hyacinth fragrance you love? Maybe something that smells so fresh and new?
Portia xx