Author: australianperfumejunkiescom

Une Nuit a Bali: Fragrance + Dry Oil

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Post by TinaG

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Hello APJ! If you haven’t heard about the French beauty company Une Nuit á Bali, I’d like to give you a quick overview teaser of two of their products.

Une Nuit a Bali

I was intrigued by Une Nuit á Bali when I read a ÇaFleureBon review from the Esxence exhibition, March 2015. The products sounded lush and lovely, so I checked out their website and ordered sample packs of their 100% natural body products and testers of three of their fragrances – Fleur de Fleurs, Mr. Vetiver, and Suma Oriental.

Une Nuit a Bali: Fleur de Fleurs

Une Nuit a Bali Fleur de Fleurs FragranticaFragrantica

Une Nuit á Bali gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, saffron, grapefruit
Heart: Floral Jasmine, ylang-ylang, tuberose, glycine
Base: Benzoin Tears, sandalwood, vanilla, amber, oud wood

Fleur de Fleurs opens with a warm fresh jasmine and ylang-ylang, with a touch of milky tuberose and wispy citrus. Silage is a metre or more at this stage and it has garnered compliments from co-workers. As it settles the ylang-ylang becomes increasingly indolic and thicker. It reminds me of a summer day, when the humidity is high and wind absent, when thick blooming floral fragrances pool into invisible scented clouds.

At 2 hours the florals very gently and seductively meld together, the citrus notes retreat to reveal subtle dry woods with hints of amber and vanilla. Over the next few hours the fragrance softly fades leaving a sensual woody skin scent.

Une Nuit a Bali the-dry-body-oil Une Nuit a BaliUne Nuit á Bali

Une Nuit a Bali: The Dry Oil (L’Huile Sèche)

This dry oil is stunning. The jasmine note in this is so realistic. It is not simply ‘jasmine”, but very specifically, I clearly get the image in my head of the green moist jasmine stamen in the centre of the flower, and it is beautiful and exciting. The oil itself is easy to apply, soaks straight in, and does not leave any residue. The scent softens after about ½ hour and I find more of a ‘frangipani’ scent on my skin.

I’ve since discovered selected products of this range are available in Australia through Mecca Cosmetica online but there isn’t much opportunity for testing in store. If you were interested in testing, try the Une Nuit á Bali website. I found ordering samples through the web site very easy, reasonably priced, quick and they were thoughtfully presented.

Fleur des Fleurs Une Nuit a BaliUne Nuit á Bali

Have you ever brought a fragrance product after reading a review? What did you pick up?

Tina G xx

AF Beauty Travels to Singapore

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Post by AF Beauty

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I have been lucky enough to travel to the U.K. this December and as part of that trip I stopped over in Singapore. Although I would tell anyone this was to try and avoid the jet lag and to break up the ridiculous flight (and that is true,) the other part of the reason is because Singapore has such diverse and numerous shops, especially in the beauty department!

AF Beauty Travels to Singapore

Laneige cushion foundation

For a while, I have had my eye on the Korean brand Laneige, they are well known for their cushion foundation, but I had had such an average experience with the Lancôme version of the same, that I wasn’t sure that I wanted to risk spending money on the Laneige version – but I was enticed into the store when I saw their beauty app on their iPad in store.

It is called Beauty Mirror. It’s probably the best version of this sort of app I’ve ever seen, it does actually work like you’re applying makeup realistically, so much so that I probably thought I looked relatively decent by the time I finished, but really that was just what I’d “applied” In the app!! I was very impressed how accurate the colours were and how realistically they applied to my photo. I’d feel a lot more comfortable to take the risk to order colour specific items online with this app. The downside of the app (depending on your location or willingness to create another iTunes account) is that I’ve only found the app in the Korean iTunes Store. Still, I will probably make the effort to get it if I want to order more Laneige products.

Anyway, back to the actual goodies, after having a okay with the app I estimated the best colour foundation for me and asked the SA for some help. She offered me a slightly different colour, based on the fact that my skin is Caucasian as opposed to Asian, but reverted back to the original app recommendation which was a perfect match. They offer the same shades in three different formulations and she led me down the path of getting the anti ageing version, which I read as, “Lady you look old!”

Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream_EX

Anyway, insults aside, I have being using the product now for about a week, have used it as regular morning makeup and after the gym and both have been very successful. The coverage is considerably better than the Lancôme version I previously tried and I feel I could wear it comfortably without powder for a more natural look, or add powder for something more long lasting and set. That SA did advise me that the anti ageing version had more coverage than the original version, so perhaps that is part of the better outcome here.

Overall I’m super pleased I took the gamble on the product and now better understand the hype around these products. I’m planning to do some research on other Laneige products so I’m better prepared for my next travels and will know what to stock up on!

What are your key travel purchases?? Being perfumistas, do you even have time to browse the other items in duty free or are you caught only by what’s on offer in the perfume aisle?!!

Mark the Date Sydney: Perfume Expo October 2016

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Post by Suzanne R Banks

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Hi APJ,

Be part of the revolution of natural fragrance, beauty and sensuality!
Join us for the very first Artisan Botanical Perfume Expo being held in Sydney 2016.

Australasian Artisan Botanical Perfume Expo October 2016

Our aim is to demonstrate that these divine gifts from Mother Nature are more than beautiful aromatic plants. They hold a life force of their own that when inhaled transport you to another place and time. This alone gives them amazing healing properties, in addition to the beautiful and captivating scents they hold.

1914391_806902272786925_2941352110056640950_n

We are botanical perfumers from the southern hemisphere passionate about educating the world on the beauty of natural Botanical perfumes. Be part of the revolution of natural fragrance, beauty, sensuality, health and wellbeing.Our focus is Artisan Botanical Perfumery. We create truly beautiful and deeply evocative scents made with Mother Natures gifts and love. Every perfume has a story and is as unique as you.Using natural ingredients, essential oils and botanical extracts, we strive to give you the best botanical perfumes in the world.
Many of the essential oils and botanical extracts we use are from the most remote places in the world, grown and harvested under rigorous quality guidelines consistently preserving their finest essences. Let us not forget our distinctive and peerless Australian natives in some of the collections.
It’s going to be really fun and we’d love to see you there.
Suzanne R Banks

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Like our Facebook page to stay tuned for more info on the inaugural

Australasian Artisan Botanical Perfume Expo in Sydney, October 2016

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Check out my YouTube Channel too, thanks
Suzanne R Banks Blog
Suzanne R Banks Aromatherapy
Suzanne R Banks FaceBook

copyright suzanne

 

Revelation! My new book out now

Please check out my new book REVELATION! – Reveal Your Destiny with Essential Oils

Amazon USA      Amazon AU      Amazon UK

(Ed: Since this post was written the date has changed to October 2016. I have changed title and content to reflect this)

Dark by Julien Rasquinet for Andrea Maack 2011

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Post by Portia

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Hiya Frag Heads!

I am surprised constantly that there isn’t more noise online about Andrea Maack and her fragrances. Early on there was some chatter about them being derivative but I’m yet to discover a scent that smells markedly like an Andrea Maack. Of course there are notes that correspond, even accords, but the whole fragrances I find distinctive enough to set them well apart even from their most obvious comparisons. Maacks are sometimes challenging and yet ever so wearable. comfortably weird. Yes, I know I’m in the minority here.

Dark by Andrea Maack 2011

Dark by Julien Rasquinet

Dark Andrea Maack FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Petitgrain, mandarin orange, pink pepper, lemon tree, aldehydes, rose, metallic notes, Granny Smith apple, amber, African orange flower, Virginia cedar

This is a sample that I’ve had for a while and keep getting out, spritzing and putting away.

Dark. Sparkling sweet citrus and cold water in opening. Reminding me of a zinging, sharp, dew spotted early morning at sunrise in very early spring. There is a feeling of briskness and action which quickly morphs into fruity (apple and melon?) rose and a cold metal spoon in your mouth. Or the first sip from an icy cold can of fizzy drink. The fruits become more prominent towards the heart, they are just out of the fridge, and the rose becomes air conditioned. This is a modern metallic radiant rose. The most close resemblance from my memory (not perfect) is modern Eternity Woman by Calvin Klein, yet nothing like it.

Dark Andrea Maack cold drink can gepharts3d pixabayPhoto Stolen Pixabay

After some time Dark gets a Pez/sherbet feeling that makes me smile, especially floating over the metal rose from Mars.Cruising into dry down the rose becomes colder like it’s frozen solid but curiously warmth surrounds it, the amber brings in a hint of warm resins that take us to the end.

I can see how anyone who wants their fragrant ride to be smooth and cohesive with the department store finish would find Dark disjointed and surreal but that’s one of the things that I really enjoy. If wearing fragrance for my own pleasure then Dark is an excellent choice and it’s not so powerful that people around you will be questioning or freaked out, though longevity is nuclear.

Quietly and subversively weird, perfect.

Dark Andrea Maack Frozen Rose Adrian Byrne FlickrPhoto Stolen Flickr

Further reading: Bonkers About Perfume
LuckyScent has $135/50ml + Samples
Libertine has $185/50ml

Do you have a favourite under rated house? Which one and why?
Portia xx

Rose Musc by Laurie Erickson for Sonoma Scent Studio 2007

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Post by Portia

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Hi there APJ,

Reading about Rose Musc on the Perfume Posse made me laugh, Tom is hilarious. There are a LOT of rose fragrances in my collection, from my all time favourite rose Mohur by Neela Vermeire Creations through a bunch of Parfum des Rosines, a few oudh/rose frags, and some from independents, designer and niche. There’s something about roses that call to my soul. The ultra smooth, modern sheer heft of Voleur de Roses by L’Artisan Parfumeur to the dark, bitter, unfettered and pulsating Ballets Rouges by Olympic Orchids, I love them all. So if Tom rates it, though not for him, then I thought I better gran some and get it on me.

Rose Musc by Sonoma Scent Studio 2007

Rose Musc by Laurie Erickson

 

Rose Musc Sonoma Scent Studio FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Sonoma Scent Studio gives these featured accords:
Rose petals, amber, labdanum absolute, skin musks

Roses, Roses, Roses! big a full and fabulous. Blooming dark pink roses with their sweet and spicy, tart apple and plum skin overtones. You know the ones? Maybe 7 to a stem, fabulously opulent looking, as big as your hand and when you touch their open flowers the petals float off the bush leaving a carpet of cerise, as if the bush has been bleeding. Rose Musc is all of that and more.

The labdanum/amber warms the rose and bolsters it, keeping it vegetally sweet and engaging. Where Ballets Rouges is darkened by twig, branch and humus Rose Musc is lighter, smoother and more regal. You still know you are wearing an independent perfumers fragrance, there is none of the pasty and pastel hum drum of the department store designer, nor the delicately overproduced loveliness of the designer prive lines. Rose Musc is adamant, strident and over the top gorgeousness, an oldie-worldie rose that has a Mucha picture as its focus. I chose another Mucha picture that I think captures the soul of Rose Musc even better.

Rose Musc Sonoma Scent Studio Alfons_Mucha_-_1898_-_Dance WikiMediaPhoto Stolen WikiMedia

Laurie Erickson at Sonoma Scent Studio writes: …I wanted Rose Musc to be a true rose softened by a powdery musk base. I like the innocence of the rose paired with the dusky labdanum and musk. The blend has a very light touch of animalic notes.

Further reading: Perfume Posse and Scent of Abricots
Sonoma Scent Studio has $75/34ml and very reasonable samples

Which is your rose? Have you tried any of the Sonoma Scent Studio work?
Portia xx

Vintage joy Parfum by Jean Patou: Live Video Sniff

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Post by Portia

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Hey Happy Huffers,

Vintage joy Parfum by Jean Patou

Live Video Sniff

Joy vintage parfum Jean Patou home 2015

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Tuberose, rose, ylang-ylang, aldehydes, peach, green notes
Heart: Jasmine, iris root, Bulgarian rose, lily of the valley, orchid
Base: Musk, sandalwood, civet

Joy is one of my favourites and I scour the web for bottles of it. We always do opening ceremony videos because some of them are fakes and we need to get refunds. We have had a couple of fakes this summer already. These counterfeiters do an excellent job too, it’s not till you spray the juice that you know.

Scotty and I on the lanai enjoying summer and smelling FABULOUS!

 

Eau Moheli by Olivier Pescheux for Diptyque 2013

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Post by Portia

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Hey Fumie Family,

Do you ever look through your samples and find something you have absolutely no recollection of acquiring? Today’s fragrance was in a lovely little box with a 2ml manufacturers spritz sample inside, about 70% full. So I did what any self respecting perfumista would do, I spritzed……

Yes, I know the northern hemisphere is gripped by winter but todays offering will have you dreaming that you’re seated at the bar in the pool ordering dacquiris from the half naked barman at your favourite equatorial resort.

Eau Moheli by Diptyque 2013

Eau Moheli by Olivier Pescheux

Eau Moheli Diptyque FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Floral notes, ylang-ylang, patchouli, pink pepper, ginger, vetiver, benzoin, incense

Green ginger, pink pepper and I would have picked coriander to open, a lovely sweet green fragrance with a hint of ylang’s creamy/banana/white flower underneath (Yes I know ylang is yellow but it gives definite white floral attitude). A lush and tropical opening. Here in Sydney we have some rain today and the world is muggy, Eau Moheli seems perfectly placed for the temperature and perfectly fits my mood of languid relaxation.

Once the opening fireworks burn down a bit Eau Moheli becomes more about the ylang but now it’s riding a crisp green vetiver and cleanest patchouli. This is my favourite part of the fragrance life. Not groundbreaking but extremely pleasant to wear, Eau Moheli becomes a fresh green with white flowers, still tropical and maintaining it’s island paradise holiday feel. I’m surprised coconut isn’t mentioned as a note.

Eau Moheli by Diptyque Pool_Bar WikipediaPhoto Stolen Wikipedia

I feel that Diptyque, once at the vanguard of niche perfumery, has become a much more mainstream offering. If you were not a perfumista and you asked an SA for something tropical but more grown up and elegant than the Escada or Bronze Goddess lines then it would be a complete revelation to be shown Eau Moheli. It’s a beautifully smooth, easy wearing tropical fragrance that never skews to over ripe fruit of suntan lotion and would be excellent sniffed as someone walked past you.

As the fragrance progresses it gets a sweet resinous patchouli glow and I would say a healthy dose of musks for smooth vetiver dry down, very pretty but completely unchallenging for the hardcore perfume enthusiast. Ultimately an extremely wearable beauty with good projection and longevity.

Eau Moheli by Diptyque Frederic_Edwin_Church_-_Morning_in_the_Tropics WikiMediaPhoto Stolen WikiMedia

Further reading: Now Smell This and Bois de Jasmin
LuckyScent has $98/100ml and Samples

Do you have an easy wear tropical fragrance?
Portia xx

Stella by Jacques Cavallier for Stella McCartney 2003

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Post by Willa Zheng

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There is something about Stella that makes grown men swoon and hearts aflutter. If I have a fragrance that elicits compliments from the opposite-sex more than any other, this is it. Interestingly, when I studied in Glasgow during the winter of 07, there was barely a day when I wouldn’t catch a whiff of Stella in the streets. For Stella is nostalgic, welcoming and yet modern.

Stella by Stella McCartney 2003

Stella by Jacques Cavallier

Released in 2003, at first exclusively amongst Stella McCartney’s fashion friends, it was a tribute to her recently-deceased mother, Linda McCartney. Stella McCartney’s inspiration was the big, fragrant, olde-worlde roses that her mother used to buy and fill the rooms with their scent. At the time, big bold rose fragrances had fallen out of fashion so Stella McCartney’s Stella was a standout in department stores and became an instant top-seller for Yves Saint Laurent Beauté, which owns Stella McCartney brand fragrances.

Stella Stella McCartney FragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Rose oil, peony, tangerine
Heart: Rose
Base: Amber

To the casual nose, Stella is dripping in rose oils and velvety rose petals. Stella is a big, heavy, wet rose. Rose fragrances can sometimes smell sharp and old fashioned. However, Jacques Cavallier (L’eau d’Issey, JPG Classique) circumvented that by softening it, making it more romantic and modern by adding notes of peony (which smells rosey but not really), galaxolide (an airy, clean, soapy kind of musk. Think shampoo and laundry powder. We are in the age of Sophia Grojsman and the monolithic fragrances she popularised, afterall), mandarin (so the fragrance opens citrusy and it adds a dash of the sweetness you’d find in real roses) and amber (to lock it all in).
Given that simple structure, Stella is a fairly linear fragrance. There is more zest and sweetness at the start, moving to a sheer, rosey, amber-musk drydown. At its core, Stella creates the olfactory effect of a plush, musky, live rose viewed through misty amber glass. You smell clean, classy, romantic and all woman.

Stella Stella McCartney Audrey Rose With Dew Drops FlickrFlickr

Given the romantic soft impressions left by Stella, you wouldn’t think it would have massive silage. But its scent molecules are heavy and are robust enough to be picked up and carried by wind to enthral your amore. Stella can be detected for 8-10 hours on my skin, but a re-spray is recommended after 4 hours to keep those compliments coming.

Of course, to trip people up, a man could totally wear Stella by Stella McCartney. A man who wears Stella knows how romance is done. He is sensual and frankly, irresistible. Just saying.

Unfortunately, like most great perfumes of the past, this fragrance has been reformulated. This review is based on the original version from my own personal collection.

Stella Maegan Tintari Stella McCartney spring 2010 FlickrFlickr

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and Katie Puckrik
FragranceNet has $69/50ml before Coupon
My Perfume Samples have $3/ml

What do you think about Stella? Do you have another favourite amber-rose fragrance?
Willa

NB: If you shop at My Perfume Samples from an APJ link I get a kickback.

Bijou Romantique by Mathilde Bijaoui for Etat Libre d`Orange 2012

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Post by Ainslie Walker

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Hello lovely Australian Perfume Junkies and Junkettes!

Etat Libre d’Orange’s Bijou Romantique -The Romantic Jewel. Another fabulous name and image from cult favorite brand. I decide to blind wear, reading nothing about the fragrance.

Bijou Romantique by Etat Libre d`Orange 2012

Bijou Romantique by Mathilde Bijaoui

Bijou Romantique Etat Libre d`Orange FragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, lemon, pink pepper, ylang-ylang
Heart: Clary sage, iris, coconut, Evee ® molecule
Base: vetiver, benzoin, vanilla

After a few wears, the sensual woody oriental has me reaching for my Shalimar to compare. Yes. There is something fizzy, smouldery and voluptuously vanilla about this unlikely pairing. It’s not often one can describe a fragrance from the Etat Libre d’Orange house as “classic” If I do dare to compare to Shalimar, I would have to say this is Shalimar’s new-romantic slightly rock n roll buddy. Whilst Shalimar wafts down gorgeous corridors and enters wonderful opera house box seats to peer down on some live opera, Bijou Romantique charges straight to the VIP area back/side stage of a gig, more than likely in a venue such as the State Theatre of Sydney or Albert Hall of London. Not to say at the end of the night both don’t end up in some glorious boudoir with their head turning sexy, sultry and sweet swirls. Très Romantique!

Bijou Romantique Etat Libre d`Orange Duran Duran FlickrFlickr

Of course Bijou Romantique provides a curious difference that we can expect from olfactive director Etienne de Swardt and perfumer Mathilde Bijaoui (who also brought us the incredible Like This)

Etat Libre d’Orange shakes up the classic formula a little by adding only one sweet, heady white floral; ylang ylang. Fizzy top notes of lemon, pink pepper and bergamot lift and combine with vanilla and benzoin in the base. Creating that sherbet tingle in ones olfactory bulbs. Orris, ylang, patchouli and create a smooth, velvet and cool but pretty heart. Nodding to past classics. Virtually “old fashioned” for this brand, but in the best possible sense. Vetiver and I believe incense (not in the marketing) give the smoldering edge and clary sage gives a dry growl in the background. Dry down is a sweet and powdery combination of all of the above, even getting slightly ambered however the longer it is on the harder it is to pick the individual notes. It’s just yummy and sensual with a kick of unusual and elegant.

There’s something so hard and yet completely soft in this combination. A womanly, tough exterior with a soft soft center -maybe that’s the sweet coconut listed in the notes I don’t really pick up after all? I also get more dry incense or something similar. Especially in hot weather. In fact that’s one big thing I notice: the dual nature of this fragrance depending on if I wear it during the hot of the day or cool of the evening. On the right man I think this would work perfectly. In fact I pick up some of the powdered notes in Tom of Finland without the leather.

Bijou Romantique Etat Libre d`Orange Blonde_woman_in_black_leather WikipediaWikipedia

Further reading: Perfume Shrine and Scents of Self
LuckyScent has $85/50ml
Posh Peasant has samples starting at $4/ml

Have you tried Bijou Romantique? What are the most romantic jewels in your perfume collections?

Wild Spruce and Tobacco by Karyn Gold-Rheineke for Pirouette Essentials

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Post by Azar

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Hello APJ,

Seattle perfumer Karyn Gold-Rheineke brings a wealth of knowledge to her line of botanical fragrances, soaps and lotions. Before launching Pirouette Essentials in 2009 Karyn worked for many years in herbal apothecaries and as a massage therapist. Her knowledge of aromatherapy has been central to the creation of her fragrances.

Pirouette Essentials logoPirouette

All of the Pirouette Essentials are handcrafted products designed “to help balance the body, mind and spirit” and created with the finest pure, botanical essential oils and plant extracts. When I am not feeling 100% my first go-to fragrance is Pirouette Essentials Wild Spruce and Tobacco.

 Wild Spruce and Tobacco by Pirouette Essentials

 Wild Spruce and Tobacco by Karyn Gold-Rheineke

Wild Spruce and Tobacco Pirouette FragranticaFragrantica

Pirouette Essentials gives these featured accords:
Top: Spruce, bergamot, fern
Heart: Spice, smoke, leather
Base: Vetiver, tobacco, roots

In 2014 The Men’s Journal listed Wild Spruce and Tobacco as one of the best scents for men to wear during the winter. On the Pirouette Essentials site Wild Spruce and Tobacco is listed under Men’s Favorites and is even offered as part of a gift set that includes a scent matched shaving soap.

SpruceSet Pirouette EssentialsPirouette $42

As far as I’m concerned this versatile fragrance is a unisex scent for all seasons! In springtime the woody aromatics, green fern and vetiver resonate with new life and growing things. During the summer months Wild Spruce and Tobacco keeps me comfortable with the cooling effects of evergreen trees and the refreshing, astringent qualities of bergamot. The smoky mists of autumn are reflected in the fragrant heart of smoke and leather. The brisk, invigorating winter air and the cozy warmth of the holidays are echoed in the spruce, spice and tobacco. I am amazed how the ambient temperature and humidity change my perception of Wild Spruce and Tobacco from one season to the next.

From Pirouette Essentials: Aromatherapy Blend: Balancing & Spirited: Forest fresh wild spruce with bewitching, deep roots of smoky tobacco, leather and a wink of spice. A wonderfully rich, unisex scent for earth lovers alike

Pirouette Essentials Mini Soap SetsPirouette $12

Pirouette Essentials also offers beautifully packaged lotions and fragrant soaps. My favorites are Karyn’s gift sets of four soap miniatures available in three collections – Botanicals, Earths and Blossoms

Pirouette has Wild Spruce & Tobacco from $7/2ml

When Portia gets home from her holidays we’ll do a draw.

Azar xx