No 4 Natalie by Milton Lloyd 2014

August 10, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 11 Comments

Post by Poodle

Hello my Fume Friends!

Milton-Lloyd is a UK based fragrance company offering fine fragrances at affordable prices. They do not spend money on fancy packaging or advertising and claim to put the money in the juice. I received a few of their perfumes to sample and review and found them to be as good as higher priced mainstream scents. Today let’s chat about No.4.

No 4 Natalie by Milton Lloyd 2014

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Red berries, iris
Heart: Floral notes, cedar
Base: Amber, woodsy notes, vanilla

Natalie seemed okay on paper so I spritzed it on before heading out the door to work. It reminded me of La Vie est Belle and a bunch of other similar perfumes. It’s classified as an oriental floral but I think it’s too sweet for that.

The opening is bright and bursting with sugared berries and cherries. Yes, it’s sweet. I will admit my tolerance for sweetness increased this past winter. Perhaps I was seeking comfort foods in my perfume closet rather than in the kitchen. Anyway, it’s a big cloud of pink and purple artificially flavored cotton candy but as long as you don’t overspray its not as bad as it sounds. In a short while, floral notes appear and neutralize some of the sugars. Thankfully the iris is not that nasty, rooty iris of my nightmares but rather a powdery, floral iris. It’s difficult to pick out individual floral notes but they’re there creating a suggestion of flowers in the candy floss. The top notes linger and soften over time and the woody notes appear. The base is an ambery vanilla which is not nearly as sweet and dessert-like as the whole thing began.

ColourBox

The fact that I could still smell it after arriving at the office was a good sign. Many scents barely make the ride. Within minutes of getting in I received my first compliment on my scent. I had to agree I did smell pretty good. I’m also saying that that was my first compliment because I received a total of 4 compliments on my fragrance that day. That’s 4 in only 5 hours. That was on Friday. On Monday I wore it again and got 3 compliments.

Natalie probably won’t be a hit with the hardcore fumies since niche lovers want things a bit more challenging but I could see this being a popular alternative to higher priced department store scents. Regardless of how you feel about perfumes with sugared berries, sweet florals, and vanilla cream people seem to love this type of perfume and react positively to it. There’s nothing exotic or complicated here and I find it incredibly easy to wear. It would be great for a teen if you didn’t want to break the bank on a fragrance. Lasted for hours on my skin so on the average person I imagine it would be an all day scent.

Pixabay

Further reading: I Scent You A Day
Milton Lloyd has £14/83ml

What’s your most complimented scent lately?

Hugs
Poodle

Shalimar EdC by Jaques Guerlain for Guerlain 1925

August 9, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 32 Comments

Val the Cookie Queen

Shalom APJ Shalimar Lovers!

I never had the slightest intention of writing about Shalimar. Suddenly I fell in love with the extrait last year and bought myself a bottle. Of course everyone said “ But the vintage is so much better, blah, blah, blah ….” Fingers in my ears, it might well be, I don´t care. Indeed I have a few drops of a vintage version which Portia kindly sent to me. Of course I LOVE it. Actually I was talking to Vero the other day about rare and vintage perfumes and the business they have become. I AM interested. Duh. But have no intentions of hunting old stuff down. Not prepared to pay the prices nor take the risk. I do own a couple of exquisite vintage fragrances but they came to me as gifts.

Amazon, eBay, Walgreens, Low Price Shoppers. No Shalimar Shame!

As I placed an order on Amazon a few weeks ago, an advertisement came up for Shalimar Eau de Cologne. Of course the NSA know all the perfumistas and stalk us by offering us Amazon perfume deals. This one was interesting though. I frantically Googled the EdC and came up with next to nothing. Except that it is only available through low price, super deal, bog standard drug stores and the big two, Amazon and eBay.

Thirty five euros including postage? Ordered. Nice bottle if nothing else. Shalimar was created as a tribute to the love story between Emperor Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal. After thirteen kids and dying in childbirth with the fourteenth, she left her husband devastated (but with enough offspring to take care of him I guess). He built the Taj Mahal in her memory but seriously, I guess we all know the story? Did you know Shalimar is named after the Gardens of Shalimar, Mumtaz´s favourite garden?

Shalimar EdC by Guerlain 1925

Shalimar EdC by Jaques Guerlain

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, lemon, mandarin orange, cedar
Heart: Iris, patchouli, jasmine, vetiver, rose
Base: Leather, sandalwood, opoponax, civet, musk, vanilla, incense, Peru balsam, benzoin

It’s absolutely fantastic, Shalimar EdC. Gobsmacked to be honest. It knocks spots of the current EdP and EdT. It opens with a divinely cooling bergamot lemon zing, and I just want to drown in it. Delicious but not sweet. Iris and rose are there. Slightly smoky, leathery and a veil of such exquisite vanilla. Unlike the current EdP there is no patchouli in the base and it is all the better for it. Spraying it in abundance leaves you shimmering with Shalimar for hours. It has a lot in common with the current Shalimar Extrait, albeit a cologne with a the raunchy drydown. Absolutely fabulous.

This is where Val lives, the view from her balcony

Further reading: Australian Perfume Junkies
FragranceNet has $50/75ml Before Coupon

Dislike Shalimar? Don´t bother. Nearly like it but not quite? Try the Shalimar EdC. Own the vintage version already? Tell me about it. This is hands down my favourite Shalimar and my take to the pool staple this year. Who would have thought of it?
Love Shalimar? Buy it.

Fourteen kids?
Sheesh.

Aromatic Bussis
CQ

(Ed: Photos donated by Val. Thanks. XXOX)

Schöne Linden 05 by Krigler 1905

August 8, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

On my recent European travels I visited Krigler at the Hotel Adlon Kempinski, Berlin, located on the glorious boulevard of Unter de Linden. Unter mean ‘under’ and it is a reference to the majestic linden trees which line both sides of the road. The scent of linden flowers is reportedly deeply honeyed, and the dried flower is used as a tea. Apparently the young leaves of the linden tree and the seeds are also edible (according to the internet, so it must be true). My Berlin trip was in May, late spring, so I missed the flourish of little yellow blooms.

The sales assistant at Krigler was amazingly helpful & patient while this little desperately jet-lagged Aussie stumbled through the range. I picked up a few samples, one of which I thought was appropriate souvenir for my time in Berlin called Schöne Linden 05. (Schöne = beautiful). The suffixed digits in Krigler’s fragrance names refer to the year they were released. Schöne Linden was launched in celebration of the opening of their first store in Berlin in 1905, hence the “05”.

Schöne Linden 05 by Krigler 1905

Parfumo

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Violet Leaf, Mimosa, Lilac
Heart: Tuberose, Gardenia, Linden
Base: Vanilla, Sandalwood, Carnation

The opening of this fragrance is a beautifully balanced bouquet of spring flowers. I’m impressed by the softness of a powdery lilac which is underpinned by a green violet accord. This is struck through with a “yellow” floral note and surrounded by a fleshy gardenia and watery tuberose, the last two flowers ensuring that the fragrance has a full and lush sillage. I was lucky enough to come across loads of lilac in flower when in Germany and it is fabulous. I lingered passing every bush I encountered filling my nostrils with the sweet scent and thoroughly enjoying the blooms. So gorgeous.

Over the first 1.5 hours both the gardenia and tuberose become creamy but stay out of heavy indole territory, and I’m picking up an almond accord. ‘Lush’ is still the word which comes to mind. I feel like I’ve put on a diaphanous floral wrap that extends around me for at least a metre. Walking away from, and back into a room, the fragrance has lingered. It is warm and welcoming.

The part of this fragrance that I enjoy the most is the dry down – after 4 hours I get a thick, sticky honey note with a touch of sandalwood and a prism of green sparkling through. My skin amplifies sweetness, and I love honey as a basenote, so there are a couple of big wins for me here. The honey effect lasts for ages, I could still pick it up on my skin overnight.

Krigler has $245/50ml
Krigler sell samples US$18/2ml and do ship to Australia.

I was frustrated with the sample spray. Perhaps I got a faulty one but it leaked when spraying and I ended up with wet fingers. My tests were all mixes of sprays and dabs because of this. Lucky I liked it!

What is your favourite spring floral fragrance?

Till next time,
Tina G xx

(Ed: All photos donated by TinaG. Thanks, they’re lovely. XXXX)

Better Sleep?

August 3, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Post by Suzanne R Banks

Hi APJ,

We all want better sleep and we all want a quick fix. Just a drop of lavender on your pillow at night will help you sleep well – right? No, sorry, it’s not as simple as that. Essential oils can definitely help you relax and adjust your weird sleep patterns, but you’ll have to do a bit more work than opening an oil bottle. Read on to find the best essential oils for sleep, and what you need to change…….

Wikipedia

Better Sleep?

If we don’t sleep well all sort of problems can start happening. When this becomes more frequent, the daytime can be very challenging. Lack of sleep can be the cause of so many other health problems, but at the very least we simply can’t function well during the day. If bad sleep patterns prevail they can become habit, and then it’s all downhill.

Here’s some simple sleep hacks:

Drink less coffee and/or don’t have caffeine in the afternoon
Exercise more frequently, even if that means a walk around the block
Stop watching TV at least an hour before bed
Stop all screen time ie phones and computers at least an hour before bed
Set up healthy patterns – eat, go to bed and wake about the same times each day

Other hints:

Have a cup of relaxing herbal tea about an hour before bed
Have a warm bath or shower before bed
Start stretching and force yourself to yawn in the evening (I read that somewhere and I’ve tried it and it works!)
Have a book at your bedside – this always sends me to sleep

Daily habits are important if you are having difficulties sleeping. Of course the clock can be the devil when you’re staring at it every night – 1am, 2am, 3am, 4am ……… It may only take you a few days to reset your body clock, but it could take weeks. In the evening (perhaps after dinner), start your essential oil difuser to help you unwind.

Pixabay

Better Sleep Oils

Lavender: The classic sleep and relaxation oil, lavender is a healing herb but too much lavender can be stimulating so mix your oils for a soothing combination.

Vetiver: Vetiver is a very strong oil and you’ll only need a couple of drops in each blend. It is a cooling oil and very grounding and centering.

Marjoram: Marjoram will help induce relaxation and works wonderfully with its sister, lavender.

Frankincense: Frankincense will help you take deeper, slower breaths, then you will automatically slow your heart rate, calm your mind and allow yourself to “be”.

Citrus: All the citrus oils (lemon, lime, mandarin, orange, grapefruit) will add happiness and lightness to your blends.

Roman Chamomile: Roman chamomile has a honey sweetness to it. Why not double up and have a relaxing chamomile tea in the hour before bed too?

Flickr

Better Sleep Blends

In a traditional oil burner with a candle or a diffuser add 25 drops of oil, which could be too much for some diffusers, so check the recommendation of each unit and adjust thee recipes accordingly.

“Better Sleep Universal Flow”

Lavender 10
Frankincense 8
Bergamot 7

“Better Sleep Depth”

Marjoram 6
Roman Chamomile 7
Orange 8
Vetiver 2

“Better Sleep Intuition”

Sandalwood 6
Lavender 6
Marjoram 4
Orange 11

“The Better Sleep Way”

Frankincense 10
Roman Chamomile 2
Vetiver 2
Sandalwood 5
Lime 6

By now you have the idea so go for it! Mix those oils baby!

Let me know how you go and –

remember to treat yourself first, then everyone will benefit.
Suzanne XXXX

Suzanne R Banks Blog
Suzanne R Banks Aromatherapy
Suzanne R Banks FaceBook

Aventus For Her by Creed 2016

August 2, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 4 Comments

Post by Ainslie Walker

Hey fellow fragrant fanatics!

Have you ever tried NOT to fall in love? Perhaps we all have at some point in our lives; when we meet a kitten or puppy that we can’t keep for ourselves…or the obvious no-no: someone else’s partner. We fragrant fiends do this with perfume. Times you have zero spare money and you read about a fragrance that sounds PERFECT for you…when you enter a boutique, see a new brand and start sniffing, knowing full well you already own enough fragrant juices to fill a medium sized kids pool!

As I opened recently released Aventus For Her, THIS is what came to mind:

Aventus ‘disciples’ forever discuss the “panty dropping” aka sexually captivating nature of Creed’s Aventus. Mimicking wine-vintage buffs they discuss various batch codes being superior to others. To be honest I’ve never ‘got it.’ Released in 2010, Aventus is reported to be the best selling fragrance in Creed’s 250-year history. I find it a bit to macho for my liking, so my knickers remain up in its presence.

Is Aventus For Her cashing in on the aura surrounding its male counterpart and if so is that really so bad?…could it become as legendary?

Aventus For Her by Creed 2016

Wicked Games – Aventus For Her

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Patchouli, green apple, bergamot, lemon, pink pepper, violet
Heart: Mysore sandalwood, rose, musk, styrax
Base: Peach, black currant, lilac, ylang-ylang, amber

On first whiff in Sydney’s Harold’s I recognised a watery green apple note I’ve enjoyed in Creed’s Aqua Originale Geranium Vetiver. I then waited for the infamous pineapple note Aventus is famous for. It didn’t come, yet the hairs in my olfactory system were standing to attention. Sweet yet fresh, I wanted to sniff again, a guilty pleasure…I was hoping not to fall in love. Light, fruity and playful were my first thoughts as I rushed out of the shopping centre.

Today I poured a small manufactures decant on my wrists, chest and a blotter and found myself engulfed in a nice feminine, fruit cloud for the initial hour or so which then turned sweeter to peach and rose, yet remained fresh and quite unisex. Somewhere amongst the first hour or so there was a flutter of powdery goodness. Finally all the ingredients settle into a lovely balanced composition, which then stays pleasantly linear for the rest of the wear.

WikiCommons

Where would I wear it? Daytime picnic. The Office. A boardroom meeting. A job interview. Seasons? Summer and spring. A nice scent for someone who’s just had a baby or has small children. Would I wear it on a date? I don’t think so – it’s pretty but not sexy or distinctive enough. Outfit? Jeans and blouse, maybe a little tom-boyish/masculine clothes or a cutesy cotton floral dress (girlie) with Dr Martin ankle boots (rock n roll). There’s innocence to this scent alongside a sense of strength.

To celebrate women and the launch of Aventus For Her, Creed has donated $25,000 to “Because I Am Girl”. A charity that empowers supports and educates young girls with programs addressing mental, emotional and physical wellbeing, raising standards in how girls treat themselves, each other and the world.

Flickr

Further reading: Colognoisseur
Libertine Parfumerie has $465/75ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $3/0.5ml

Overall I give it a thumbs up and will definitely wear it some more as the weather warms up. Have you tried it yet? How did you go?

Until next time, Ainslie XX

Goddess? My Perfume Pantheon

August 1, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 65 Comments

Post by Azar

Hello Perfume Pals!

The quote of the day:
“There are only two kinds of women – goddesses and doormats.” – Pablo Picasso

When I first came across this remark I felt as if I’d been slapped in the face. Good grief! I don’t consider myself a goddess or a doormat, so why does Picasso’s dated and sensationally ridiculous comment (not unlike a lot of his artwork) continue to bother me? Is the only alternative to divinity abuse? That old, dead artist has me wondering if I need to shed my matronly aspect and do a better job of projecting the goddess within – lest someone I don’t even know steps all over me! Fortunately, the legion of nymphs, sprites and other spirits languishing in my perfume storage has been waiting to transform this dowdy duckling into an ethereal, confident swan. Here are a few of my divinities!

Wikipedia

Goddess? My Perfume Pantheon

Goddesses of Love and Seduction:
Tabu by Dana – the old stuff
Guerlain Shalimar (sometimes)
Lucien Lelong vintage Sirocco
Viktoria Minya Hedonist
Guerlain Samsara – the older the better
Dior Hypnotic Poison – any version will work
Rosarium Blends Dom
Mardi Gras by Olympic Orchids
Amouage Interlude Man
DSH Mata Hari

More love goddesses are just lying around, but I only have room to list a few. For me, seduction tends toward dense, heavy and voluptuous fragrances, often with killer sillage and days of longevity.

WikiCommons

Moving right along –

Water Sprites – a sampling:
Germaine Monteil L’Eau De Monteil
Sun by Jill Sander

Djinns of Smiles and Confidence:
Anat Fritz Tzora (the kibbutz in a sock!)
Micallef Jewel for Her
Curve Kicks
Coty Les Muses (1986)

Wood Nymphs include:
Olympic Orchids Woodcut
The Red by The Sum
Wild Spruce and Tobacco by Pirouette
Various Oud oils

Floral, Greenhouse and Garden Fairies – a selection:
Lanvin Spanish Geranium
Matt, Heliotrope and Patchouli by Dame Perfumery
Olympic Orchids Golden Cattleya and Ballets Rouge
Annick Goutal Songes
Lolita and Joan by the old Sweet Anthem
Micallef Gardenia
Dior’s Diorissimo

Goddesses of Bombast:
Vintage Jungle Gardenia
Versace Blonde
Boucheron Trouble

Spirits of Galbanum:
Fidji by Guy Laroche
Vero Profumo Mito EdP

Fireside Devas:
Estee Lauder Youth Dew Amber Nude
Serge Lutens Ambre Sultan
Basil by Basil

The Goddess of the Conventional:
Chanel no. 5

Goddess GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will receive:
6 x 2ml decants of Azar’s Goddess Scents (NO you don’t get to choose)
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 about a divine perfume that you simply adore or a fragrance that makes you feel like a goddess!
(Yes, you can enter if you are a man but you must answer the question)

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Wednesday 3rd August 2016 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Saturday 6th August 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.

Rose Delight Body Oil by Andy Tauer for Tauer Perfumes 2016

July 31, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 14 Comments

Post by Robert Herrmann

Hi Frag Friends!

Robert H. here writing from my (very warm) tiny island home in the Pacific Northwest.

The Tauer line of fragrances are kind of a “tough love” for many people. There are ones that don’t work on me at all (Zeta, Pentachords White, Sotto La Luna Gardenia), and others that absolutely sing with beauty and joy (Phi Un Rose De Kandahar, LADM, Noontide Petals etc…) The ones that work are not necessarily scents I would reach for on a daily basis, more like very special performance art perfumes. Often I will spray with abandon when I’m alone in the house and can wander around for hours encapsulated in my very own cloud of scented gloriousness!

What I really love about Tauer Perfumes, is Andy Tauer’s willingness to step outside his own box to create fragrances for a secondary range (Tauerville) that are like little masterpieces, and priced affordably so anyone can enjoy his work. To me, this speaks volumes, this attitude and desire to make perfume accessible to everyone! Rose Flash, Fruitchouli Flash, Amber Flash, and one of my favorites, Vanilla Flash are as great as anything you’ll find at five times the price!

Rose Delight Body Oil by Tauer Perfumes 2016

Rose Delight Body Oil by Andy Tauer

So when I first heard of the new and reasonable Rose Delight Body Oil, I jumped online to order, because A.) body oil, and B.) Another Tauer rose! Hell yes!

Tauer Rose Delight Body Oil, is a luxurious sheer body moisturizing oil described by Mr. Tauer thusly: ” …based on pure cold pressed jojoba oil, totally free of added other oils, free of added phthalates, antioxidants, parabens and stabilizers. The scent is rose petals on a gourmand base. A rose veil for a grey or sunny day.”

It is indeed a rose veil, at first simplistic and seemingly linear, but like a new bud opening up…. layers upon layers of rose and something spicy (Pepper? Clove?) all on a deep and absolutely captivating and hypnotic base. Absolutely gorgeous, as in eyes-rolling-back-in-your-head gorgeous!

Yup. Love it.

Available exclusively through the Tauer Perfumes website (CLOSED July 21-August 5), Tauer’s new Rose Delight Body Oil is a delight in every sense of the word!

Do you use body oils? What’s your favorite or go-to?

Fakhama and Majalis – The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

July 27, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Post by Sandra

Hey there APJ! Today, I would like to introduce you to a new perfume brand which is celebrating the city of Dubai – The Spirit of Dubai. I have been longing to visit Dubai as I can only imagine it to be beautiful, filled with luxury and culture and wonderful architecture. Modern architecture captivates me and to imagine a city with such stunning architecture against a backdrop of desert, sea and sand together with a whole new plethora of sights and smells has me dreaming of making a trip soon.

The niche perfumery in Vienna, Maison de Parfum, showed me The Spirit of Dubai’s initial five perfumes and gave me samples of their two new releases, Fakhama and Majalis. A complete and utter shock awaited my nose when I tested the perfumes because I could not fathom that I would enjoy them so much.

Fakhama and Majalis – The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fragrantica

Fakhama: The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Turkish rose, Bulgarian rose, fruity notes, agarwood (oud), sweet orange, spicy notes, damask rose, elemi, cardamom, coffee, dried fruits
Heart: Sandalwood, benzoin, vanilla, patchouli, vetiver, coriander, ginger, rose, saffron
Base: Amber, castoreum, civet, moss, spun sugar, animal notes, incense, leather, oakmoss

Fakhama opens up strong and masculine to my nose. It is oudy from the outset but interlaced with fruits and spices. This stage lasts for a good two hours and then the perfume warms up. The sandalwood and vanilla curl around the oud and fruits and keep me sniffing my wrist wondering what is so bewitching. Underneath all of this lies an animalic tone which I attribute to the deep drydown. Summer weather should make this stand out and bring out the animalic undertones – at least I am hoping. This is seriously beautiful and I believe will appeal to both men and women.

Fragrantica

Majalis: The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Incense, peach, apple, rose, osmanthus, green notes, cardamom, pink pepper, grapefruit, artemisia, strawberry, raspberry, cacao, coffee, olibanum
Heart: Saffron, flowers, powdery notes, cloves, vetiver, patchouli, guaiac wood, dates, carnation, iris, heliotrope, mate
Base: Incense, agarwood (oud), leather, vanilla, woodsy notes, sandalwood, benzoin, myrhh, musk, honey, olibanum, tobacco, hay, labdanum

Majalis starts off with a blast of fruity floral notes deftly laced with cardamom and saffron, two of my favourite spices. The coffee and cacao notes peak through but very quickly and then they go into the background. There is also a lot of yummy goodness coming from the dates which I love. Dates conjure up my trip to Abu Dhabi and eating luxurious dates filled with nuts for the first time in my life. The florals are mixed beautifully with the fruits and woods and the oud is not prominent at all. Majalis takes me on a trip to a far off land filled with sun, sand and a warm breeze. Eventhough this leans on the feminine side I think it could smell amazing on a man. Wonderful perfume – I love it.

I would like to test the original 5 Spirit of Dubai perfumes one by one. I hope to be able to share my thoughts on them soon. Maison de Parfum in Vienna, Austria carries the line and will be adding Fakhama and Majalis as soon as they are available. Maison de Parfum Online ships worldwide.

What is your exotic scent?
Sandra xx

Scent of the Cookie Run. A Five Year Anniversary.

July 26, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 51 Comments

Post by Val the Cookie Queen

Hey There Fabulously Fragrant Foodies and Funsters

Scent of the Cookie Run. A Five Year Anniversary.

A Perfume Geek Post.

History

Five years ago I began supplying cookies to a Salzburg based firm, Indigo. As a number of you know I have a business together with my husband. Bikes and Cookies. He is a downhill bike specialist and runs the bike shop, and I make cookies by hand. From the milling of the grains, to the specialist vanilla, along with chopping all the chocolate by hand, I bake up small batches to fill the orders of the stores. I started with seven and as of September this year, with the opening of a new one in Linz, I will have eleven. My kitchen is located in the back of the shop, closed in of course, with a wall to wall window looking out into my husband´s workshop. There is a good chance that we are the only bike shop with a cookie kitchen in it.

Milling the spelt (Cookies are half each spelt & wheat)

Husband Chris & BFF Kirk shopping

Daughter Hannah (Blondes Wunder) chopping

Method

Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings are spent preparing and making the dough and turning it into weighed balls. It can be anything from three to five hundred cookies and I weigh each one separately. It all gets packed in-between sheets of waxed paper and kept in a very cold refrigerator. Top up dough is made on Monday as I can never quite guess all the orders correctly. Tuesdays I get up at the butt crack of dawn and bake. Once the oven is turned on it´s a race against the beeper! The cookies are baked and cooled, boxes are packed with the orders. (I can be flexible with the prepping times, but orders need
to be delivered Tuesday noon time.) I load the car and head to Salzburg, but not before changing my clothes and applying my perfume.

Dayle Ann Clavin

Resting

Buckets ready for packing

SOTCR* (The Geeky Part)

Monday evening I decide which perfume I will wear on Tuesday. I very seldom, nearly never, wear anything that I don´t have a full bottle of. I choose a couple of photos or pictures that give the vibe of the perfume and subsequently post the information onto a couple of the private perfume groups on Facebook. SOTCR*. Hahahahahaha. I am laughing my arse off here as I type this. Only a perfume junkie would understand. Trying something new in the car is an absolute no, I have no desire to sit in a confined space with something nasty.

The Cookie Run favourites

Indigo

Cookie Queen

The day I met Portia in Vienna, more than three and a half years ago was the day I became Cookie Queen. It has stuck now and I have my own logo which as well as being on my blogging and cookie cards, is also on our mountain biking downhill jerseys. I sponsor our small racing team with cookies, indeed I seem to sponsor half the bloody world!

The day we met in Vienna Feb 2013

Chris wearing the logo

Dayle Ann Clavin

So come on and crack out your geeky perfume habits and spill the beans. Or perhaps you have a cookie addiction?

Armadillo bussis
CQ

*{Ed: SOTCR = Scent Of The Cookie Run (I know you didn’t need to look)}

Most photos were donated by Val the Cookie Queen
Some were from Dayle Ann Clavin (<<<Go check the site, GORGEOUS!)

Iris Palladium by Amélie Bourgeois + Arnaud Poulain for Les Eaux Primordiales 2015

July 25, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to catch up with Tara from A Bottled Rose on a whirlwind perfume extravaganza in London. We had an amazing day! One store we visited was Les Senteurs which has a fabulous range of fragrances, quite a few which were unknown to me. (Sorry they don’t ship to Aus).

One of my unknowns was Les Eaux Primordiales, a French fragrance company launched in 2015. We had a quick sniff of each of the perfumes on paper, and Murray (who is one of Les Senteurs’ superbly knowledgeable sales assistants) provided me with a sample of Iris Palladium to try later.

So later is now!

Iris Palladium by Les Eaux Primordiales 2015

Iris Palladium by Amélie Bourgeois + Arnaud Poulain

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Italian Bergamot, Carrot Seeds, Sage, Solar Jasmine, Cedar, Patchouli, Labdanum, Sandalwood, Iris, Tonka Bean, White Musk

The iris in the opening of Iris Palladium starts off doughy and thick, before morphing and bring in some metallic / chlorine / carrot notes along with a prominent dusty sweetness that softens the composition, taking off some of the metallic edge. The mix of dust/powder is not so much in the “makeup” category, but is a musk. I tend to shy away from fragrances which list ‘white musk’ as a note, for some I can’t bear at all – sorry to say that the Body Shop fragrance of the same name is one of these. However this doesn’t hit my no-go nasal zone, the musk is pleasant, soft and warm.

WikiCommons

At 4 hours I’m taken by surprise as a beautiful clean jasmine shines through. It’s really lovely and I realise that it had been humming around in the background all this time with some nutty notes adding to the blend but not overpowering.

The fragrance recedes back to skin at 6-10 hours in a yellow woody powdery waft with the lightest impression of citrus and I smell a hint of bitter ash in the dry down. It’s a pleasant combo and I enjoy the longevity that it keeps well into the evening.

Overall the two predominant notes (varying iris / dusty musk) are complimentary, and round each other out. For people (like myself) who revel in a bold metallic iris it may feel like a pillow has been put over it and muffled the composition. It’s very yin/yang, notes curling around each other & balancing out. But there’s a few surprises in there which keeps it interesting. Worth a trial if you have the chance.

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Further reading: Black Narcissus
Les Eaux Primordials has an outlet page

Have you had any new fragrance lines cross your radar lately?

xx Tina G

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