Contributors

ZARA SPORT 421

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Good day all of you APJs!

ZARA – A Spanish success story. A clothing and accessories store. Louis Vuitton fashion director Daniel Piette described Zara as “Possibly the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world.” Possibly. Although I have my doubts.

ZARA SPORT 421 by – who knows?

(So far out of my comfort zone I need oxygen ……. )

ZARA SPORT 421 FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica call it an aromatic spicy fragrance for men. Featuring musk, mandarin orange, thyme and pepper.

A story in three parts.

PART 1

My son invited me to go shopping with him, about a month ago. Never one to turn down a date with him, off I went. All I had to do was buy him lunch. (A Chanel bag would have been cheaper!) Just before heading home he asked me to nip into Zara and grab him a bottle of Zara Sport 421. “You want me to do whaaaat??? Over my dead and mangled body!! I will not. If you want it you will have to get it yourself.” So he did. With much muttering as to what a snob I was ……

PART 2 (next day)

“Mmmmmm, that smells nice son.” Mucho laughter from him. “It´s Zara, Mum.”
“Aaaaaargh!!” I cried in agony. “Maybe you would like to write about it!” he chuckled.

Sweet smelling son.

PART 3 (A few weeks and several random compliments later)

Here I sit. Zara 421 is really quite nice Nice is not a word I like to use, but it is perfect for Zara 421. Soft, musky, slightly orangey and spicy. Warm. I cannot pretend to pick any notes out, because I can´t. Maybe there aren´t any that are readily identifiable. But I like it. It´s staying power is about three hours. Would I recommend it? Well, if it was a choice of Axe, Lynx or Zara? Then yes, definitely the Zara 421. There are three in the Sport Range. Zara Sport 421, Zara Sport 675, and Zara Sport 615. Am I going to try the other two? Am I hell. My son says the 421 is the only good one. That is enough for me.

ZARA SPORT 421 dorechina2009Photo Stolen dorechina2009

It is only available in certain Zara stores, and it is NOT available online. I guess that makes it pretty exclusive huh? ;))) The fragrances run at about 12 to 20 Euros. Totally affordable.

See James? You owe me lunch.
Bussis until the next time.
CQ

Aurore Nomade by Bertrand Duchaufour for The Different Company 2012

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Gabriella

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Hello fragrance friends. I hope you are all well and enjoy today’s post.

I’d like to think that it wasn’t just by chance that my sample of today’s fragrance happened to arrive the day after daylight savings ended here in Sydney. After a mercifully brief period of hot weather during our so-called summer, suddenly not only was it dark very early in the evening but cold temperatures had already decided to set in. I was miserable and I felt cheated. I wanted the precious little heat and light that we’d had thus far back again. I wanted to be sweating in a t-shirt, not staving off chills with a cashmere cardigan. I wanted to crawl into a time travel machine and go back to just some days before when the air had still been balmy at 6pm and the sky still blue.

Aurore Nomade by The Different Company 2012

Aurore Nomade was just the olfactory tonic to do it. And it did so with a bang.

Aurore Nomade FragranticaPhoto stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Banana, carambola (star fruit), cinnamon, sea notes, nutmeg, rum and artemisia
Heart: Ylang-ylang, geranium, cloves, frangipani
Base: Immortelle, sandalwood, amber, vanilla and musk.

Reading that list, it would be all too easy to dismiss Aurore Nomade as a hot mess but it’s a multi-faceted perfume where a seeming cacophony of notes weaves a complex but cohesive pattern that takes you on a strange and delightful journey.

The perfume’s central note is starfruit and it’s the main reason that it inspired my much needed ‘summer-esque’ excitement. The fruit’s tart, pulpy tang speaks of exotic locales and brought back memories of childhood trips to Asia. I’m once again wandering around hidden markets in Thailand; I’m back in the dazzle and hum of a Hong Kong Street at night; again gazing at the thatched roof of a resort in Malaysia where the ceiling fans gently cool the air with their sonorous thrum.

Aurore Nomade is all salty-sweet with a definite palatable quality as if one’s margarita has been made with lemons and passionfruit instead of lime. There’s that wonderful sensation of licking the salt rim after you’ve gulped the syrupy liquor.

Margaritas DudeFoodNYCPhoto Stolen DudeFoodNYC

Underlying this contrasting vibe is also a verdant quality. In this phase, Aurora Nomade feels like a brighter, more delicate version of the now sadly discontinued L’Artisan Fleur de Liane. There’s the same impression of dense green vines and stems tangling around trees in a rainforest all thick with humid heat. Ozonic notes join the fray, amplifying the sense of high temperature and giving it a metallic zing. It’s the crackle of lightning foreboding the onset of a summer storm; the salty smell of water on asphalt after the storm has passed.

The base is all about soft spices creating a comfort skin scent. The cinnamon, sandalwood and vanilla are gentle and cozy on the skin. It’s a rather quiet denouement after all Aurore’s drama, but satisfyingly so.

SONY DSCPhoto stolen FaeriesFinest

Further reading Grain de Musc and Fragrantica

Available online at Luckyscent, $210/50ml

Have you tried Aurore Nomade? What’s your favourite “snap me out of the doldrums” scent?

With much love until next time!
M x

Bang! by Ann Gottleib for Marc Jacobs 2010

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Post by EmmaKate
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Bang! by Marc Jacobs 2010

Bang Marc Jacobs FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Black, white and pink pepper
Heart: Woody notes
Base: Elemi resin, aromatic benzoin, vetiver, white moss and patchouli

I am a massive fan of wearing men’s cologne, this is a different smell than I would normally wear but I really enjoyed wearing this.

It opens with an almost sparkling green note which is the vetiver already going strong. There is this warming sensation where the black, white and pink pepper comes through, the spice from the pepper combined with benzoin and vetiver makes this fragrance effervescent yet warm.

Bang marc jacobs Perez hiltonPhoto stolen PerezHilton

I am a very visual person and when I smell this I see a young well dressed guy. He has a good job, very caring and sweet, pretending to be a player. This is a sexy though somewhat comforting fragrance. Very easy to wear, über masculine to boot. Bang guys are date-able, maybe even marriage material.

Further reading NowSmellThis
FragranceNet has $37/50ml before discount
MyPerfumeSamples starts at $2/ml

See you next month
EK xx

Marc Jacobs Bang! Interview

Bang! Ad.

Gothic I by Loree Rodkin 2013

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Post by Kymme CV

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Hello readers!!

NYMag: Jewelry designer Loree Rodkin has built her empire on the corner of Goth Street and Glam Boulevard: medieval crosses, bejeweled skulls, delicate tracery earrings (Michelle Obama wore a pair on inauguration night)

Have you ever fantasized of being in a bohemian Kasbah, the air thick with incense, dancing around with careless abandon to the heavy beat of a drum…the silks tied to your wrists flow through the air with ease as you shake and bump your junk at men toking on hookah pipes. The humidity in the air adheres your sheer clothing to your moist skin as the sound of the drums intensify. No? Well neither had I until I smelled Loree Rodkin’s Gothic I Eau de Parfum! But there you are…

Anyway…I digress. So how does this EDP break down?

Gothic I by Loree Rodkin 2013

Gothic I LuckyScentPhoto Stolen LuckyScent

LuckyScent gives these featured accords in one line:
Vanilla pod, Madagascar vanilla, spice accord, Tunisian patchouli, Indian patchouli

Gothic I opens with an enormous sweet vanilla slap in the face, just like a vanilla custard-pie but more! This ‘vanilla’ is an exotic, deep, rich and velvety vanilla. But it’s really not that simple a fragrance. There’s a real depth to the Madagascan vanilla that comes alive once the spice starts to come through. Now we’ve got nutmeg on our vanilla pudding! The spice accords mixed with the vanilla give the fragrance a dramatic nuance.

When I first wore Gothic I hours passed before I started sensing the patchouli notes coming through. However, each time my body temperature rose a little the patchouli blend came storming through. At first I didn’t even realise it was me that I could smell! As soon as my body cooled again, back came the vanillas. I kept doing chores that kept me HOT because patchouli is my favourite scent. I’ve been wearing Gothic I all day – I’ve even been sweating it up on the veranda doing some plant repotting, and even after all the sweating I’ve been doing, there’s the patchouli. Ah!

Gothic I Girl FanPopPhoto Stolen FanPop

This is sold as more of a night time feminine scent than unisex, but it hasn’t stopped me wearing it during the day to the office. This is a fragrance that makes me feel great, relaxed and at ease. This certainly isn’t a perfume for those that enjoy florals, because Gothic I makes a statement, a big bold statement at that. If you walked into a crowded room wearing Gothic I, heads would turn and you’d be noticed because everyone would know that ‘drama’ had just arrived at the party.

Gothic I came in LuckyScents April Sample Pack. (These sample packs are great value. The 15 samples arrived nicely packaged, and at US$35 it’s a steal.) Oddly enough, Gothic I was the first fragrance out of the bag and has turned out to be my favourite of the entire sample pack. Was this a sign of the impending fantasy? Who knows, but this fragrance struck an ‘accord’ with me. Boom-tish!

Gothic I EDP appears to have had a bit of a hard time convincing the fragrance community that this is ‘nothing more than another run-of-the-mill vanilla oil with a ridiculous price tag’ ThePerfumeCritic, ‘…Gothic fragrance line is missing the gothic,’ nymag but I disagree. There’s much more to this fragrance than one might be lead to believe. I’ve not seen many online sellers of perfume carrying the Gothic range, with the exception of LuckyScent and Loree Rodkin’s own website, so maybe Gothic I has fallen foul of the critics. I hope not, but if it has, it deserves another chance. After all, tastes are constantly changing right?
LuckyScent has $140/50ml and $4/.7ml

Happy smelling!

Kymme

Dionne’s Spring + Fall Top 5’s

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Post by Dionne

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Greetings, fellow ‘fumies,
Portia wrote a post a little while ago (Portia’s 2013 Spring Top 10) listing her top ten for spring/fall, and I was intrigued to learn that she reaches for the same fragrances for both seasons, since they have warm days and cool nights in common. My own list for the two seasons is not similar at all, so instead you’re going to get a shorter list for each season.

Dionne’s Spring + Fall Top 5’s

Spring WallpaperPinPhoto Stolen WallpaperPin

SPRING

Ahhh, my favorite season! Maybe that’s because it’s so welcome after six months of winter, and since it’s such a short, ephemeral thing that lasts only a month I always feel a combination of hope and wistfulness. Spring is when I reach for my light florals, and that in itself is a special event. Most higher-pitched florals don’t play well with my skin, so this list represents perseverance and many, MANY samples.

Après l’Ondée by Guerlain

This is the pre-2011 formulation, when heliotrope still sang alongside the iris and violet. So gorgeous that if I was forced to choose only one Spring fragrance, this would be it.

Mimosa pour Moi by L’Artisan Parfumeur

I did a major sampling of the mimosa note, and out of about 14 contenders, this was my favorite. And oh, such a tender thing. Fuzzy yellow pom-poms in a bottle.

Heure Exquise by Annick Goutal

The prettiest of my green quartet, this floral green pulls off the trick of freshness and elegance at the same time. The highest praise my Scottish father-in-law would bestow on something was the phrase, “Oh, that’s just lovely,” and that’s what this is.

Le Temps d’une Fete by Parfums de Nicolai

Supposed to be a green floral, on my skin the green doesn’t really show up because narcissus and hyacinth in all their lush glory has completely taken over the conversation. Heady stuff and just a hint of naughty.

After My Own Heart by INeke

I adore the scent of lilacs so it’s no surprise my very first bottle after falling down the rabbit hole was After My Own Heart. I must respectfully disagree with Coco Chanel – sometimes I DO want to smell like a flower. And after comparing AMOH with the lilac bush outside my window…. oh yeah, I definitely do.

Autumn WallpaperPinPhoto Stolen WallpaperPin

FALL (Autumn)

It’s harder for me to choose specific Fall fragrances because I usually wear the same ones this season that I do in Winter, with one exception. My favorite perfumes are the spicier, warmer fragrances, and after a few months of fresh, floral, green or fruity options, I’m ready to give all my snugglies a go again.

Jour Ensolleilé by Sonoma Scent Studio

This is THE fall fragrance for me. Laurie Erickson combines orange blossom with tuberose and jasmine in a way that’s golden, and it’s the perfect match for the rich sunshine filtering through the trees.

Tilda Swinton Like this by Etat Libre d’Orange

Ginger, pumpkin, maple syrup and all things orange, this is the way celebuscents should be made.

Kyoto by Comme des Garcons

It turns out that incense + green tea + vetiver = a Zen state of mind. Calming and reflective.

Traversée du Bosphore by L’Artisan Parfumeur

At first smell, it’s sweet Turkish delight, but give it a whirl and you discover there’s some intelligence under the hood as well as the leather, saffron and tobacco come to the fore. It’s the Dolly Parton of gourmand fragrances.

Ormonde Woman by Ormonde Jayne

OK, now I’m really cheating, because this isn’t a Fall fragrance by any stretch; it’s my signature , my Holy Grail. It’s just that the Lady gets worn less in the summertime and I’ve missed her. Dark green forests wrapped in amber, a one of a kind.

spring-festival WallpaperPinPhoto Stolen WallpaperPin

SurrenderToChance has samples and decants of all of these beauties if you’d like to try any of them. Samples start from as little as $3/ml and they are a great way to test a fragrance.

So, what are your top five? Do you reach for the same thing in Spring and Autumn like Portia, or do you mix it up like me?
Dionne

Stop and Smell the Roses

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Post by Suzanne R Banks

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“Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.” Gertrude Stein, 1935

Some say Gertrude Stein is referring to the rose like this to express her feeling that things are what they are. According to Wikipedia: “In Stein’s view, the sentence expresses the fact that simply using the name of a thing already invokes the imagery and emotions associated with it,..” So when you say rose do you invoke the scent, or the colour, or everything? It is the most romanticised flower in history and appears in many poems, prose and plays. It is often associated with love and intimate moments of the heart.

Stop and Smell the Roses

Do you take time to stop and smell the roses? What is life if we don’t connect to its beauty at every turn? The scent of a beautiful rose is a true gift of nature which invites us to convene with the oneness of the universe in the now!

rosa-centifloiaRosa centifolia – another rose used to make essential oil

I never buy a rose that doesn’t have a scent – to me that’s the most important part. Isn’t it a wonderful thing when you enter your house to be greeted by the natural perfume of roses? Essential oil of rose is made by either steam distillation or as an absolute (where the scent is extracted into a fat and then lifted by a solvent). I tend not to buy absolutes as there seems to be a heavy chemical intervention and I’d rather have my oils extracted in the simplest way.

Rose oil is a complex arrangement of hundreds of molecules, some of which have still not been identified. No wonder it is referred to as the “Queen of Oils”. We know Cleopatra used roses in her beauty regime, and it is claimed she used rose petals in her boudoir to seduce Marc Anthony from the Roman Empire. The Romans used roses too, and the mention of roses appear in Christian, Buddhist and Confucian literature. Roses are seen in Asian motifs dating back to 3000 BC. It seems as though commercial production of rose oils and rose by products can be traced to Persia in the 10th century. The oil was referred to as “attar of roses” or “rose otto”, which is a term still used today.

rosa_gallica_jamesmasonRosa gallica – a sub species named “James Mason”

So what can we use use rose oil for?

* use rose oil to help with any heat or infection in the body (you would put a few drops into some carrier oil and smooth it on the face and body – a great treatment for any illness)

* use this rose body oil to help take the sting out of eczema and psoriasis

* a drop on the temple to relieve stress and tension and counteract a headache

* a great oil for attending to grief (use it a single drop on the heart chakra or in a personal mist or room mist)

* a drop added to your facial oil or cream will refine your skin and give you one of the most powerful aromatherapy treatments in the world. You will feel soft, unruffled, connected to the universe and ready to be the Queen of your world

* a few drops of rose oil in an oil burner will create a scented paradise of peace and calm so it’s great for upset children, the elderly and even pets (if you are using 3% in jojoba it’s not really suitable for an oil burner – you will need to buy the pure oil)

* a drop or two in the right place, as a perfume, will do amazing things for your self esteem as rose is the oil of self-love and nurturing

rosa-damascenaRosa damascena – the most used rose for oil production

When buying rose oil you will mostly find it comes in a 3 % dilution in jojoba oil and this is simply because it is a premium oil and is very expensive. Even if you buy wholesale, pure rose oil can cost hundreds of dollars. It is precious!

Remember, treat yourself first then everyone will benefit!

Suzanne R Banks x

Ed: If you thought this was good go see the Suzanne R Banks site (LINK JUMP) or like her Facebook Page (LINK JUMP)

All Photos from Suzanne R Banks site. This post is a reprise of a piece from Suzanne R Banks blog

Perfume + Tea: Musings + Pairings #2

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Post by Brie

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Perfume and Tea Pairings

For those of you in “perfumeland” who know me well I need not reiterate that SonomaScentStudio is my absolute favorite perfume house EVER (surpassing Chanel, Guerlain, etc). In my opinion every fragrance that the perfumer Laurie Erickson has created thus far is outstanding. Given my new found love for naturals and essential oils I have been hounding Laurie for quite some time to add natural fragrances to her line. My wish came true when she released Cocoa Sandalwood this past winter. Now, following in its footsteps is the recent release of all natural Spiced Citrus Vetiver.

Sonoma Scent Studio Naturals-Spiced Citrus Vetiver

When I wear Spiced Citrus Vetiver my mind instantly envisages a ballet. Not surprising, given that I was once a professional ballet dancer. Please join me in this production as the curtain rises.

rosemuscboxPhoto9 Stolen SSS

Fragrance Notes: Blood orange, bergamot, ginger CO2, cinnamon bark CO2, clove bud absolute, jasmine sambac absolute, osmanthus absolute, Sri Lanka vetiver EO, Indonesian vetiver CO2, Virginia cedar, Indian Mysore sandalwood EO, vanilla.

In the opening adagio the graceful pas de deux of our principal ballerina (vetiver) and her leading male dancer (blood orange) is supported by a pas de trois of soloists (ginger,cinnamon and clove) who jete around the couple whilst the corps de ballet (jasmine, osmanthus, cedar, sandalwood and vanilla) pirouette stage left and stage right. The prima ballerina (vetiver) does not take center stage in this ballet but rather bourees around the all the other dancers throughout this ballet.

vetcollage4

Vetiver (Suzanne R Banks’s blog post on vetiver) is an essential oil that I have recently grown to adore (The Fragrant Man). Laurie’s usage of vetiver has been masterfully blended in an utterly unique way. The vetiver is subtle yet appears throughout this composition, constantly changing on my wrist. A gracefully executed fragrance that is perfect for both male and female fragrance wearers. Given that it is all natural, Spiced Citrus Vetiver sits close to the skin and is the perfect scent when one does not want to offend the ‘perfume adverse” crowd. For a natural eau de parfum longevity is excellent on my skin.

IMG_2816Photo by Brittany and Courtney

Organic India Tulsi Tea (Original)

I pair Spiced Citrus Vetiver with Organic India’s Original Tulsi Tea. Tulsi, or holy basil, is renowned in India as an herb with healing properties that relieve stress and protect the immune system. The earthiness of this tea lends itself beautifully to the grassy quality of the vetiver in Spiced Citrus Vetiver.

Do grab a cup of this relaxing tea whilst wearing Spiced Citrus Vetiver : sit back and enjoy the ballet!

Perfume and Tea Pairings GIVEAWAY!

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

1 x 1ml samples of Spiced Citrus Vetiver and my all natural essential oil blend “Ginza in the Rain” as well as a sampling of a variety of Tusli teas
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who leaves their favourite perfume note or essential oil in the comments section.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie @SonomaScent @brie108 Brie’s Perfume & Tea GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p2fQBU-1Ar

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 10th May 2013 9pm AusEST and winners will be announced in a separate post then.
Winners will be chosen by putting names on same sized papers, folded similarly, put on a tray and Brie’s family will pick a winner.
The winners will have till Monday 13th May 2013 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.

LUSH Ultrabalm + Coriander, Green Chili, Walnut and Yoghurt Chutney Recipe

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Greetings APJ Fragrance Fiends!

Lush. British slang term to describe something pleasing or desirable.

“I had the most lush meal last night.”
“That perfume is lush.”
“Look at him/ her …….. he/she is totally lush.”

LUSH ULTRABALM – by LUSH

LUSH Ultra Balm VegetarianLivingPhoto Stolen VegetarianLiving

Ingredients:

Organic Jojoba Oil
Candelilla Wax
Rose Wax

We´ll keep this short. This stuff is totally amazing. For a million things. Too long to list. You can look it up for homework.
Why am I writing about it? Well, for all you folks whose skin “eats fragrance”, or who just want their scent to last a little longer, Ultrabalm is the business.
If you know that already, then skip this and look at the recipe. For those who don´t, it´s simple.
Put a little of the Ultrabalm wherever you put your fragrance. Then put your fragrance on top. That´s it. Your perfume will last much longer. The very slight smell that the Ultrabalm has goes away.
I use it for any scent that I think of as an “anointing” scent. Rose, patchouli, amber, sandalwood, Tauer, Vermeire ………
But who cares?? Use it for whatever you want. I would never, ever be without it.

http://www.lush.co.uk

http://www.lushusa.com

http://www.lush.com.au

Coriander, Green Chili, Walnut and Yoghurt Chutney Recipe

CQ´s Occasional Fragrant Cooking Secrets

GreenChutney FoodVivaPhoto Stolen FoodViva

This stuff is awesome.

Good sized bunch of fresh coriander (some stems are OK)
Yoghourt of your choice (I like Turkish or Greek) – maybe about a half cup, maybe a bit more
Fresh green chiles (too taste, obviously)
10 or 15 walnut halves
Salt
(slices of thin red onion to decorate if you are feeling creative)

Plug in a food processor (!)

Chuck the whole lot (EXCEPT the salt) in a food processor. Process. Not at rocket speed. Bit by bit.
Not thick enough – add some more walnuts, not hot enough – more chiles (remembering it gets hotter over the hours and days) want it more creamy – add more yoghourt. Add the salt at the end, you´ll probably need a decent amount. Anything with chiles needs lots of salt. You don´t add it to the food processor because it makes the chutney turn runny. I like it to be thickish. But make it how you want.

This chutney dances on your tongue. Eat it with everything. Well maybe not cornflakes. Keeps in the fridge for a few days just fine. Smells lush.

Bussis
CQ

Series 3 Incense: Avignon by Bertrand Duchaufour for Comme des Garcons 2002

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Gabriella

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Avignon by Comme des Garcons 2002

Hello Everyone, Do we need to have a strong memory association or reference for a perfume to really move us? This is the question that popped into my head as soon as I tested Avignon by Comme des Garcons. Why? Because it moved me in such a way and yet, I couldn’t really fathom why. It’s an incense-based perfume and meant to be a fragranced homage to Catholicism. Many reviews, including the lovely Portia’s a few months ago, have emphasised the evocation of childhood memories of Catholic rites: days spent at mass surrounded by swinging censers and altar boys.

Avignon Mass Incense PoliticsDailyPhoto Stolen PoliticsDaily

But I’m not Catholic and I’ve always disliked incense. In fact, I avoided Avignon for many years, despite the glowing reviews for these very reasons. My scent impression of incense before trying the scent was of those cheap joss sticks they sell in two-dollar shops. And the closest I have come to being Catholic was having a serious girl crush on Josephine Byrnes in the mini-series Brides of Christ. For about a week or two, I thought how cool it would be to become a nun. (Ed: Josephine Burns and I were at the same drama school, lived in the same area and used to catch the train to and sometimes from school together. She was always the most beautiful young woman)

My fragrance loves tend to be white florals because I have spent my life surrounded by them. My grandmothers and mother wore white floral perfumes, Mum often had vases of lilies in the house and gardenias were a constant of my childhood summers. My first perfumes: Revlon’s Jontue and Cacharel’s Anais Anais built on that trajectory of association.

However, I also realise that we people who love perfumes can learn to appreciate and love new and different notes. But this, for me, is something different. As we sniff more and more, we can see beauty in the things that we once found ugly or appreciate a note that once we would have been happy to overlook. Perfume is an art form and as our noses become well trained, we can fall in love with something that we didn’t understand before. For a perfume to really well and truly move me though, to really feel like I am applying a second skin, I’d always thought it would need a strong evocation of something important or a strong memory.

And yet, that first drop of Avignon on flesh felt completely right. It was another lightbulb moment where I had the “wow” factor and I knew I’d end up buying a bottle.

Avignon FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

The perfume features notes of roman chamomile, cistus oil, elemi, incense, vanilla, patchouli, palisander, ambrette seeds.

For me, Avignon is all about the central theme of frankincense that undulates between smokiness, earthiness and brightness. It segues seamlessly on the skin between these different facets: the palisander bringing out the woody character, the patchouli amplifying the dark earthiness and the ambrette and chamomile giving the sense of brightness and joy. It’s quite a linear fragrance that moves softly and slowly on the skin. Its an introspective fragrance best suited to moments of quiet contemplation, evoking that sense of serenity you would need at times of prayer.

????????????????????????????????????????Photo Stolen ImpulseMagazin

And that’s why Avignon spoke to me so profoundly at a time in my life when everything felt discombobulated and stressful, Avignon took me to a place I needed to be. A place of tranquillity and reflection, a place where I could shut the door on the chaos that has been my life over the past month and I could just simply “be”. That is the magic of perfume.

For other more complete reviews, please see OlfactoryObsessed and Olfactoria’s review on PerfumeSmellin’Things
Luckyscent has Avignon for $US80/50ml.
SurrenderToChance has samples starting at $US4.59/ml.

Have you tried Avignon and what did you think of it? Have you ever tried a perfume that has completely floored you with it beauty and you can’t work out why?

With much love till next time!

M x

Believe by Britney Spears 2007

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Post by Katrina

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2007 was the year we saw Britney Spears suffer a very public breakdown. She spent time in rehab, shaved her head and lost custody of her children. 2007 is also the year that the Britney Spears fragrance Believe was released. Believe, one of the best perfumes from Britney Spears was released at a time when her life was in turmoil. Its times like this when you need to believe in the future. Britney managed to get through the tough times and get back in the spotlight for the right reasons appearing as a judge on America’s X-Factor in 2012.

Britney Spears Believe 2007

Believe FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrance notes from Fragrantica
Top: guava and tangerine.
Heart: honeysuckle and linden blossom.
Base: patchouli, amber and sweet praline notes.

The green Believe bottle is quite spectacular, shaped like a multi-faceted triangular prism.

Believe starts out fresh and juicy with a delicious opening of tangerine and guava. This perfume deserves more than a quick sniff because if you rely on first impressions you will miss the best of this fragrance as it develops into a warm and spicy scent. There are beautiful soft florals and the perfume opens up with earthy notes from the patchouli and amber. Believe feels comforting with an easygoing patchouli that is cozy and warm. The praline carries on a delicious quality to the fragrance.

(Ed: Believe uses a softened version of the Mugler Angel base and is surprisingly wearable)

Britney Believe HotCosmeticsPhoto Stolen HotCosmetics

I haven’t been able to track down the name of the perfumer of Believe. Basenotes have the perfume listed as unknown. If I developed this fragrance I would proudly put my name on it.

Further reading at Now Smell This
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Katrina xx