Boy by Olivier Polge for CHANEL Les Exclusifs 2016

July 24, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 20 Comments

Post by Anne-Marie

Hi all,

it’s Anne-Marie here with a question: how much does the season influence your daily fragrance choice?

My answer: quite a lot. Generally, it’s winter fragrances for me in the winter and summer in the summer.

I would not dream of stepping out of the house on those winter mornings when the temp struggles to even reach zero in a summer eau de cologne. Conversely, warm orientals and ambers stifle me in summer, like a jacket I long to fling off.

But there are exceptions. It’s winter where I live and today was probably the most miserable day we have had so far: wet, windy and cold. I wore Chanel Boy.

Boy by Olivier Polge for CHANEL Les Exclusifs 2016

Seasonal Somersaults! Do You Wear The Weather?

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Lavender, rose, lemon, grapefruit, rose geranium, orange blossom, sandalwood, heliotrope, vanilla, musk

Is Boy a summer or a winter fragrance? It’s a fougère with notes including lavender, grapefruit, and lemon, and that sounds pretty cologne-ish to me. Normally I’d keep this kind of thing for warm weather. But those cool, fresh notes can sometimes be welcome in the winter. You know those days when you tire of overheated rooms and heavy layers? You open a window, or step out into the rain, and revel in the rush of cold air against you face and in your lungs.

In Boy there is also a contrasting warmth to the base (musk, vanilla, sandalwood). I’m only just getting acquainted with it but so far I’m thinking that Boy may be one of the most versatile fragrances I own.

Flickr

The rain was belting down when I left work this evening. I had to catch two buses instead of one, and I missed my final stop because I had been too busy reading. Darn! I struggled home with an inside out umbrella, leaking shoes, and the sole nearly off one shoe. Flap flap flap.

What did I do when I got home? More Chanel Boy, of course!

Further reading: Now Smell This and Bl’eauog
CHANEL Beauty, Fashion and some large Department Stores. We go to David Jones
CHANEL Online in the USA

What about you? Do you match cool notes with warm days, and vice versa? Or do you spritz merrily at whatever takes your fancy?
Bye for now!

Aeon 001 Eau de Parfum

July 20, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Post by Erica Golding

Hello to my fragranced kindred spirits!

Today I’m dwelling on the lure of limited edition, small batch perfumes. Perfume oil companies such as Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Nocturne Alchemy/VApothecary, and Haus of Gloi have enjoyed great success with strictly limited releases of their little vials of perfume. Oil collectors like myself love the concept, jumping at blind buys when the notes sound promising, and swapping and selling “The Precious” in our communities. (Yes, you need to read that in Gollum’s voice.)

Limited offerings have also popped up in the world of alcohol-based luxury perfumery, with here-today gone-tomorrow beauties such as Bogue Cologne Reloaded, L’artisan Fleur d’Oranger 2005 (and 2006), Neela Vermeire Creations Mohur Extrait, and MPG Ambre Precieux Ultime.

Sometimes the lure of the note list (and perhaps a sexy bottle to boot) makes a scent so intriguing, so irresistible that sampling first is a risk of missing out on a full bottle. What if it sells out before you’ve even had a chance to sniff? Oh, the horror. Factor in a coupon code that falls from the heavens, and that’s how I ended up with a full bottle of the mysterious vetiver masterpiece:

Aeon 001 Eau de Parfum

LuckyScent

Aeon 001 is the first release from Aeon Perfumes. Limited to 333 bottles worldwide, the nose behind the composition will be announced only once sold out. That being said, word on the street is that the perfumer is none other than the mastermind of Bogue Profumo, Antonio Gardoni. (At the time of writing, there were only 11 bottles left at Luckyscent and then I believe they will be gone forever; First in Fragrance is sold out.)

Aeon 001 opens with a splash of fresh bright citronella, immediately underscored by the smoky sun-warmed hay impression of high quality vetiver. Simultaneously intense and delicate, the aroma is powerful yet lifted, confident yet calm. It has a feral, animalic quality but also evokes a refinement and grace of days gone by. The soft tickle of lush white blossoms teases at the edges, adding a waft of complexity and classic allure. Woody resins (I’m guessing labdanum and frankincense) gently and subtly anchor the aroma. As the fragrance settles and melds with my chemistry, the smokiness thins a bit and the blossoms mingle more prominently in the top with herbal bergamot. The vibrancy of this perfume is just so beautifully unexpected. I was bracing myself for a dark bitter vetiver, but this beauty is lifted, energized, and infused with life!

I’ve fallen hard for this legendary stunner and I have zero regrets. Phew! I’m really picky with vetiver so this was quite a plunge.

Further reading: Colognoisseur and Kafkaesque
LuckyScent has $240/65ml + Samples

How do you feel about limited edition perfumes? Have you scored one that you can’t imagine living without? What’s your favorite rare fragrance?

Scented hugs,
Erica

Nocturne by Ainslie Walker 2016

July 19, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by Ainslie Walker

Hi APJ,

A couple of weeks ago we talked Nocturne: my ambient fragrance designed for the Alexi Freeman fashion show at MONA on Tasmania. Today in want to let a few of you try it for free.

See below,

Ainslie Walker

Nocturne. Ainslie Walker for Alexi Freeman

APJ READERS OFFER: contact Ainslie Walker to order sampler in card, including postage for $20

Nocturne limited edition candle from Ainslie Walker or Alexi Freeman’s Studio in Fitzroy, Melbourne.

Limited edition Nocturne parfum via emailing ainslie@ainsliewalker.com

Nocturne GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will receive:
1 x Carded Manufacturers Sample of Nocturne
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 leave a comment on why you’d like to try Nocturne, follow the Ainslie Walker page on Instagram and/or like my Ainslie Walker page on FaceBook

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 21st July 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 Sunday 24th 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.

Hedonist by Viktoria Minya 2013

July 18, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 60 Comments

Post by Azar

Hedonist by Viktoria Minya – 2013 – The Power of the Peach III + a Give-away

Hello Perfume Pals,

Have you ever coveted a perfume for years, made short work of several carded samples but couldn’t quite bring yourself to purchase a full bottle? Did you finally give in to temptation only to abandon your pricy love, leaving her to gather dust on the dressing table? It is sad but true that for many of us, in this realm of desire, obsession fades quickly with acquisition and the full bottle of our dreams will, sooner or later, be tucked back into its original box to join an ever growing collection of ignored and forgotten fragrances. I don’t know about you, but it seems I’m always craving a new scent experience, no matter that I haven’t completely explored what I already own.

A perfect example of my problem with acquisition and abandonment is my recent purchase of the original Hedonist by Viktoria Minya.

Hedonist by Viktoria Minya 2013

The Power of the Peach III

Fragrantica

Fragrantica lists these featured accords:
Top: Rum CO2, bergamot, peach
Heart: Jasmine absolute, orange flower absolute, osmanthus absolute, tobacco
Base: Vetiver, cedar wood, vanilla

Viktoria Minya’s Hedonist made a big splash when introduced in 2013 and no wonder! The fragrance is the quintessential peach – warm, fuzzy, decadent, juicy, oozing with nectar and what I perceive to be honey. It smells, at once, edible, elegant and sexual with a hot, ripe, buttery opening, a cool, citric, floral heart and an earthy, woody dry down. The addition of lime keeps this big, boozy fruit from spoiling. The osmanthus and vetiver ground the white florals and the lavish use of absolutes creates an expensive smelling, rich and vibrant scent trail that lasts for hours on skin and clothing. This fragrance is so long-lived that, when I drained my first group of samples, I simply added perfumers alcohol to the empties and was able to eek out a recognizable ghost of Hedonist from the thin film of EdP left on the inside of the vials.

Pixabay

So why is my beautiful cut glass bottle of this perfume (complete with sparking crystals sloshing in the jus) nearly as full as it was the day it arrived on my doorstep? I find myself wondering if my craving for novel olfactory experiences eclipses the beauties I already own and if the unknown (or unattainable) is more intriguing and desirable to me than the familiar.

Further reading: Perfume Shrine and Candy Perfume Boy
LuckyScent has $200/45ml
Victoria Minya has €145/45ml with FREE Sample Kit

We have a GIVEAWAY below!

Azar xx