Eau Moheli by Olivier Pescheux for Diptyque 2013

February 4, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Post by Portia

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

Photo 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.

Photo 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.

Photo 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

Guerlain: Rue de Saint Honoré 2016: Photo Essay

January 31, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 38 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey there Guerlainophiles,

The Place Vendome store is closed. Sad but the good news is that they are re-opening there at a smaller venue, work to commence soon.

In the interim Guerlain have opened a lovely new store on the Rue de Saint Honoré. It opened last Thursday! So new there is no name on the front. Jin & I had to follow our noses. Inside the crew were extremely friendly and helpful. Our particular hostess was Coraline and she wanted us to have the ultimate Guerlain experience.

Guerlain: Rue de Saint Honoré 2016

Ostensibly I was going in to gran a Nahema parfum and a bottle of L’Heure de Nuit. It didn’t quite pan out that way because there was NEW STUFF! But I did manage to grab the Nahema parfum, There is a new exclusive and I fell heavily so I swapped out my L’Heure de Nuit for a Promenade des Anglais! Fig, Iris and Citrus over a seemingly marzipan base. Freaking gorgeous!

The real surprise was the new multi coloured glas bottles in the exclusives bee bottles. They are 125ml and you can choose any of the 7 or so colours and put in one of the 18 scents. Once you have made your selection your choice of fragrance s then decanted into your bottle from a large industrial urn, like a 21st century Caron adventure, and packed safely away for traveling. It’s quite the experience. As always, Guerlain delivers a magical and exciting ride.

The choice was interesting and it took me nearly half an hour to finally decide on Cuir Beluga. Here is how our afternoon panned out in pictures. You can only get these bottles at the Rue de Saint Honoré store and they are not sending any. It’s a limited offer so get to paris QUICK!

Enjoy,
Portia xx

Guerlain: Rue de Saint Honoré 2016

Photo Essay

Versace Man Eau Fraiche by Olivier Cresp for Versace 2006

January 30, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey Designer Fragrance Fiends,

Once upon a time, long, long ago there was a fashion house named Versace that made excellent fragrances. Run by its flamboyant and fabulous namesake Gianni Versace who was gunned down outside his Miami, Florida home July 1997. Since his demise the Versace fragrances have become cheaper and nastier, rarely a gem will lift its head above the dross. This is not really one of them but a mate of mine was smelling particularly good a while back and I asked what he was wearing, “Versace Eau Fraiche in the blue bottle” was his proud as punch answer. How could I disagree with my nose so I went and ordered a decant.

Versace Man Eau Fraiche by Versace 2006

Versace Man Eau Fraiche by Olivier Cresp

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Lemon, bergamot, rosewood, rose
Heart: Cedar, tarragon, sage, pepper
Base: Amber, musk, saffron, woody notes

Olivier Cresp is a nose that has created some awesome blockbusters. In my collection I have or had full bottles of Juniper Sling, Kokorico, Angel, Armani Attitude and Kenzo Amour Indian Holi: all so different yet created by the same perfumer.

Opening freshly aquatic with a tingling zing of citrus Versace Man Eau Fraiche has all the hallmarks of a summer sports flanker. Bright, artificial, uber clean and lightly toxic smelling. Under this blast of radioactive citrus floats a pretty herbal greenery made piquant by cracked black pepper and a whiff of dry woods. The citrus has now softened considerably and has become quite likable with a creamy hint of pith.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

As we warm into the heart Versace Man Eau Fraiche becomes quite like many of the eau de cologne style of fragrances. Nothing smells natural but it doesn’t smell bad I’m enjoying wearing it and my mate smelled delicious. More of a household functional scent than fine fragrance, it could very well be related to the scent they use in hospital disinfectant to make the corridors smell a little brighter and more friendly. It smells clean and invigorating and I can see why so many men wear it. Also over the scent of a lightly sweaty, healthy man it’s very nice. I’m surprised that juniper berries aren’t included in the notes but I suppose they covered it with cedar. I also feel that it’s full of a couple of notes that are so ubiquitous that they should jump out at me as what they are, sadly they dont.

Versace Man Eau Fraiche remains pretty linear with little warming through the base on me, projection and longevity are good but it’s the sillage that will have people looking after you with interest. I would love to smell this on one of my girlfriends to see how it lives on the ladies, probably even more lovely.

FragranceNet has $37/50ml before Coupon
My Perfume Samples has $7/5ml

Do your friends ever smell freaking amazing in stuff you wouldn’t use to clean your driveway?
Portia xx

N.B. If you hit the My Perfume Samples link and shop I get a kickback.

Remarkable People by Quentin Bisch + Cecile Matton for Etat Libre d’Orange 2015

January 29, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey there Australian Perfume Junkies,

It’s excellent having an Etat Libre d’Orange online here in Australia with the whole range. You can buy some in Sephora if you’re in a big city, or Peony Melbourne, but Etat Libre d’Orange Au will ship Australia wide. How freaking exciting is that?

Remarkable People by Etat Libre d’Orange 2015

Remarkable People by Quentin Bisch + Cecile Matton

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Grapefruit, champagne, cardamom
Heart: Jasmine, curry tree, black pepper
Base: Labdanum, sandalwood, lorenox

Sweet champagne with a grapefruit twist and a herbal thread woven through? Remarkable People opens a bit like your first sip of champagne punch at a garden party. Simultaneously tart and warming, you can even smell the anticipation in the air. The fizz is maintained into the heart and the smell of sun warmed skin mingles with the woody smell of a BarBQ being organised and the first sizzle of spices as marinades hit the grill.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

Remarkable People smells like a lavish reinterpretation of the cologne style of fragrances. A bit warmer and more engaging, unisex and the citrus seems to follow the resins into the base as a pithy, white musky cleanliness. The most close resemblance in a fragrance is Royal Bain de Caron but I wonder if I am being led by the idea of the champagne note. Lorenox is a Mace accord (according to fragrantica) and it has some leather/amber/woodsy facets.

The dry down is pretty, wearable and though no big new reveal it is interesting for a few hours before fading out. I think Remarkable People will be a hit for ELdO because it’s totally wearable and smells very nice. Remarkable? I think yes, if you smelled someone walking by with it on.

Photo Stolen ArtEllsta

Further reading: MeganInSaintMaxime and Colognoisseur
Etat Libre d’Orange in Australia has $100/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting from $4.50/m

Do you have an Etat Libre d’Orage yet? Which one and why?
Portia xx

Datura Noir by Serge Lutens: LIVE Video Sniff

January 29, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Post by Portia

Hello My Lovelies,

This was a Blind Buy! Yes, I know, that’s the way to penury but I was pretty sure I would adore it. So you guys get to come along for my initial Opening Ceremony and sniff!

Datura Noir by Serge Lutens 2001

Datura Noir by Christopher Sheldrake

Fragrantica

Fragrantica Gives these featured accords:
Coconut, tuberose, tonka bean, almond, lemon blossom, mandarin orange, musk, chinese osmanthus, heliotrope, myrrh, vanilla, apricot

It’s always fun with Scotty on the lanai and as usual we blunder through a fragrant masterpiece missing all nuance and generally behaving like a bull in a china shop.

Amaranthine by Bertrand Duchaufour for Penhaligon’s 2009

January 28, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Crew,

Way back in 2009/10 when Amaranthine was first released it caused uproar. Nobody could quite believe that very British house Penhaligon’s would bring out such a naughty little firecracker of a frag. I have a bottle from Birgit at OT but while going through my decants I refound Amaranthine and decided to give myself a big fat spritz.

Amaranthine by Penhaligon’s 2009

Amaranthine by Bertrand Duchaufour

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Banana leaf, Green tea, Cardamom absolute, Coriander seed, White freesia
Heart: Rose, Carnation, Clove bud oil, Orange blossom, Ylang-ylang-oil, Egyptian jasmine absolute
Base: Musk, Vanilla, Sandalwood, Evaporated milk, Tonka bean absolute

Yes, it opens green and fresh yet curiously tropical and already you can tell there will be white flowers in abundance. Amaranthine is large and forthright, filled chock full of creamy flowers, their stems and a little of their vase water that has perhaps been left a day too long before changing.

As we leave the opening extravaganza behind Amaranthine becomes totally tropical. A warm rich and radiant white/yellow floral with a healthy green punch and fruity byplay. Creamy seems to fall short of how smooth and glutinous Amaranthine becomes, not sticky or lumpy but perfectly, silkily, gloriously thick and luscious. With my nose up close I feel that it’s so thick and viscous that perhaps I will drown in its vegetal embrace. Once I put my arm back by my side it softens to a gently and warm vanilla and floral bouquet, Amaranthine become charming and harmless again. Beautiful, alluring and enchanting but in a safe way, then I bring my arm back to my nose and I’m lost. It’s a heavy scent, a brocade bouquet.

Photo Stolen Flickr

March on Perfume Posse uses the word refulgent and when I looked it up it means shining brightly. It’s as accurate a word as I can find to explain how dazzling Amaranthine is. Strange that we read or hear so little about it nowadays because it was a game changing fragrance at the time and now I can only think of Amoureuse by Parfums DelRae being anywhere near as outrageous.

For some reason today my skin skips the sexy boudoir completely and goes directly to plush, sweet vanilla/sandalwood and a hefty dollop of clean skin musks. This lovely comfortable dry down can last for a full day & night and is basically indelible on fabric.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Perfume Shrine
Libertine Parfumerie has $239/100ml with FREE Australian delivery
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/ml

How was Amaranthine for you? Is it something you’ve loved, hated, never tried?
Portia xx

Turtle Vetiver Front by Isabelle Doyen for Les Nez 2012

January 23, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Post by Portia

Hiya Fume Family,

Do you have a few scents that got away. You tried it when it was released, loved it but couldn’t afford it at the time? Or you were going to buy it but something else caught your eye? Or the craving didn’t start till well after your first sniff?

Turtle Vetiver Front by Les Nez 2012

Turtle Vetiver Front by Isabelle Doyen

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Vetiver, coconut milk, moss, ambergris

I don’t remember when or how I got this decant. Turtle Vetiver Front was never on my radar and though I’ve loved vetiver as a note and also for its innumerable uses in modern society it’s not a note I pursue. My skin throws much different fragrance to me than what I read about in others reviews too so maybe I was let down in my expectations on first sniffing. Anyway, I dismissed Turtle Vetiver Front on my first round with it.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

Fast forward a ways to quite recently and I was writing about Vetiver Dance 07 by Tauer Perfumes and trying to see if anything in my history would correlate. Anyway, I came across this decant again and had a little sniff and though it wasn’t what I was looking for at the time the soft focus sweet swamp and light, lilting greenness of Turtle Vetiver Front made me want to come back and wear it again. I wanted to get my thoughts down because this is the last dregs of my decant and there are no bottles to be found. Maybe I’ll buy a decant from Surrender To Chance and get to live it some more.

Imagine vetiver. All the ink, swamp, smoke, dry rasp, oily, grassy, twiggy, metallic and salty aspects. Now take all of these amazing facets and remove the spikes and rough edges, shake to blend and give the wearer little or no hint of notes, create a new scent of them all like looking at the world through a lightly frosty green tinted pair of glasses. The edges are blurred and vegetally sweetened, one spritz and the whole world seems a little cooler and a lot smoother and there is air between the notes, sheer yet fragrant.

As the heart burns away my skin chemistry leaves me with a dry vetiver and a lightly salted breeze over sun warmed skin which dwindles and dwindles without collapsing to fade.

DAMN, I wish I had more of this….

Photo Stolen Flickr

Further reading: Grain de Musc and Non Blonde
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $7/ml

What is one of your lost scents? Which one got away for you?
Portia xxx

Eau de Cédrat by L’Occitane 2015

January 22, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Post by Portia

When Eau de Cedrat (I call it Cedrat in my head, so we’ll use that for this post). When Cedrat was first released by L’Occitane I was given some of the range to try. I kept the Shower Gel and Soap for myself and gave the rest to friends or in giveaways so other people could try the products and give me feedback. One person said they are so impressed that they already went to a L’Occitane store and purchased more of the range, another friend loves the fragrance and has used quite a bit of his bottle and I went and repurchased at full retail a new shower gel.

Eau de Cedrat by L’Occitane 2015

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cedrat bark, bergamot
Heart: Blue ginger, nutmeg
Base: Cedar, cashmere wood

Currently I have drenched myself in Cedrat to combat the humid night heat we are having in Sydney at the moment. Don’t misunderstand me, I love the heat and relish the Sydney summer. Night time though I find it hard to sleep in muggy heat, it’s 1am and still 21C (70F) with 86% humidity so I’ve slipped into my office and spritzed liberally. A cool, sharp, sweet citrus opening that is bold and energising, clear bergamot with almost no breath or pith that runs headlong into zinging, singing ginger. They are quite the pair, fizzing merrily away like a lemon squash and yet managing to be refreshing.

Cedrat is not nearly as nuanced or storied as a cologne, it’s a bright and forthright citrus fortified by a few bit players that help it maintain buoyancy. I’m fragrantly wafting off to bed now, Jin has installed new ceiling fans and it would be rude not to go lie under one with him. I know that there will be a very slight waft of amorphous woods and a hint of citrus left tomorrow morning.

This is a perfect gift for anyone who is aware of their appearance but not deeply into the whole vanity trip. A casual, easy care set that means you or your partner can have a single scent right through the bathing and living process. Easy peasy, looks and smells great and it won’t break the bank.

Further reading: Mr Neo Luxe and Red Lips Blue Eyes
L’Occitane Australia has the range from $8.50 up

Do you love a fully integrated regime?
Portia xx

Vanille Tonka by Parfums de Nicolai: LIVE Video Sniff

January 22, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey Hey Crew,

I’m about to jump on a plane with Jin for our 2016 European Adventure. 10 cities in 5 weeks! It’s come around so freaking quickly and now it’s really happening!
WOO HOO!

Vanille Tonka by Parfums de Nicolai

Vanille Tonka: LIVE Video Sniff

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Basil, lemon, mandarin oils
Heart: Carnation, orange blossom absolute, pepper oil, cinnamon oil
Base: Incense, vanilla absolutes, Tonka bean

Scotty and I on the back verandah being fools with a super great fragrance. So good, one of the yummy ones.

Mata Hari by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes 2010

January 21, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Independent Fragrance Lovers,

It’s no secret that I’m a Dawn Spencer Hurwitz fan boy. I love her aesthetic, the fragrances are mostly a perfect fit for me and I also love that being an independent perfumer the fragrances are more alive and interesting than a lot of the modern, ultra smooth, panel tested to mediocrity fragrances available in both the mainstream and niche lines. Dawn is free to use ratios that would be unheard of in the mainstream and is allowed to let her own charisma show through in the fragrances. Add to that how lovely she is to deal with and the obvious delight she gets from creating fabulous scents and I am lost. I bought a dram of Mata Hari after a sample I had positively sent me gaga.

Mata Hari by DSH Perfumes 2010

Mata Hari by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Photo Stolen DSH Perfumes

DSH Perfumes gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, coriander, fruity notes No.1 (botanical accord), green mandarin, neroli, orange blossom, sweet orange, blood orange, tarragon
Heart: Blackcurrant, champaca, cinnamon, cloves, lilac cocktail (botanical accord), Moroccan rose, orris root, marigold, davana, may rose, otto rose, osmanthus, nutmeg, angelica root, honey, Sambac jasmine, tuberose, vintage orchid ( botanical accord)
Base: Sandalwood, ambrette seed, peru balm, cumin, cedar, myrrh, tobacco, benzoin, Buddah wood, cassis bud, labdanum, patchouli, green oak moss, vetiver, leather (botanical accord), musk, tonka, cade, vanilla

If you have read anything about Mata Hari by DSH Perfumes you’ll know that the scent is Dawn’s recreation of Greta Garbo as Mata Hari in the 1931 film. Mata Hari (1876 – 1917), an artistic name taken in 1897 is Malay for “sun” (literally, “eye of the day”, was a Dutch born erotic dancer who was accused of being a German spy in France in WWI and was executed by French firing squad.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

Mata Hari has a really old school, vintage fragrance feel and is a second cousin to things like Rochas Femme and Guerlain Mitsouko. It’s a parfum concentration so you get a thick, rich and syrupy opening full of fruit and herbs but already backed by balms, resins, woods and leather. It’s hard to believe that there is no animal product because Mata Hari is as feral as you can imagine, maybe the honey.

As the initial blast calms to a dull roar the bittersweet heart comes through and the spicy notes, rose, honey and white flowers are only noticable when I put my mind to finding them, really Mata Hari is a spicy, floral bouquet with dark green broken leaves and some snapped twig. Then Mata Hari becomes softest moss, leather and amber, it hovers lightly on my skin for a couple of hours before I lose all traces of it.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Perfume Posse
DSH Perfumes has $75/1 dram and samples

Who is your favourite independent perfumer? Have you tried Dawn’s work?
Portia xx