Eau Sublime by Jeanne Sandra Rancé for Rancé 1795

November 8, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Hiya Crew,

I have had some of the Rancé soaps for a while now. For a creamy soft bathing experience they are pretty damn awesome but I’ve always felt the fragrances were a little generic. Not bad but not something to get mega excited about either. Recently my mate Nick at Libertine Parfumerie sent me a bottle of Eau Sublime…..

Eau Sublime by Jeanne Sandra Rancé for Rancé 1795

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mandarin, Neroli, Hyacinth, Lime
Heart: Lily-of-the-valley, Lilac, Myrtle
Base: White Musk, Vanilla, Florentine Iris

From Rancé 1795 site: Eau Sublime Eau de Toilette pour Femme dedicated to Josephine, Napoleon’s bride, by François Rancé in 1801.

Eau Sublime is pretty. It opens green, juicy citrus and sparkles. There’s a dewy note and it’s all rather cool to begin. As we get further into the heart there is a pretty bouquet with a slight metallic tinge. Then the fragrance basically leaves my ability to smell for an hour or two, yes it has happened on repeated wearings, with and without moisturiser, on different parts of my body. Then an aquatic iris comes in and stays at a very low hum for ages, hours in fact, barely discernible except when I move and get a huff from my wrist or out of my top. It’s almost not there at all but the air cools, like air conditioning in a florist shop but without very many flowers in there. Maybe the end of the day when only the memory of flowers and a bunch of cut stalks are in the bins.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

I do love these recreated houses, and I’m sure that Eau Sublime owes a debt in part to the original, more than just the name hopefully. Somewhere though, in the fragrance, the story doesn’t ring quite true. Eau Sublime in this time is very synthetic to my nose, way too unnatural for 1801. It’s a minor thing but……

I can see why Rancé’s Eau Sublime is popular currently. It’s a pretty green whisper of nothing on my skin. Lovely opening that leaves a very slight hint of fragrance for the rest of the day. A clean, fresh, cool and dewy freshness. I can totally understand that that’s what some people want from their scent experience. The bottle is lovely and fun and no one will be skunked by you. I want my fragrance to work harder than that though. More projection, more story, more everything.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

First In Fragrance has €59/50ml

Where do you stand? Have you tried Eau Sublime? Was it what you want from a fragrance? Did it live on you like it does on me or did you get a different ride?
Portia xx

Violet Disguise by Josh Meyer for Imaginary Authors 2012

November 7, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Hi Gang,

It’s taken me forever to get to this bottle. I bought it and it has sat at the front of stuff awaiting its time. Of course, as in all things, I had the best intentions. “Wear it, write about it. Josh Meyer seems so freaking lovely, give the poor bastard a break, a little push,” inside my head every time I looked at the bottle. Josh, if you’re reading this I apologise profusely that it’s taken so long. Every so often I would spritz and then leave the house on an errand, get busy on the phone or work and I wouldn’t get my thoughts on paper. Today I have spritzed already and fingers crossed we get results.

Violet Disguise by Josh Meyer for Imaginary Authors 2012

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Plum, Violet, Dried Fruits, Balsam, Amber, Evening Air, The Month of May

SPRITZZZZZZZ! Wet, sweet, fruity melon or at a pinch plum. Imagine a fresh plum, cool from the fridge, you bite through the tart skin and into the soft, sweet flesh. I am naughty and I’m sniffing while eating peanuts so I completely miss Freddie’s salty olive note and dive directly into cool wet fruit. Is it the violets that give the metallic vibe or is there a chemical in Josh’s base that I notice particularly? I call it the cold spoon note and niche lines often give me it. I think it’s one ingredient that shouts above the rest for me. Here in Violet Disguise it is brilliant, a perfect cut crystal glass under light, sparkling and gleaming in the opening. Lustrous.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Suddenly, and I mean suddenly, Violet Disguise changes to a resinous, warmer fragrance that is like putting on a favourite coat over the cool air of an autumn/spring evening. A breathy, intimate moment where everything feels burnished, giving its warm glow in much the same way that the opening was cool shards of light reflected except now those beams are soft focused and furry. MMMMMM. I love the way Violet Disguise morphs so abruptly, not it has definite nods to old school perfumery, purrrrrrrfumery. A couple of hours in and I am absolutely gobsmacked at how lovely Violet Disguise is, hairy balsam.

Photo Stolen DeviantArt

A very warm end, well a very warm fade to nothing. A soft resinous amber. Lovely. Even next morning I have a distinct Violet Disguise remnant, no I can’t tell you what I’m smelling other than green twig and cold metal……

Further reading: This Blog Really Stinks and Smelly Thoughts
IndieScents has $85/60ml and samples

We are TOTALLY affiliated with IndieScents and are 100% proud of it.

Portia xx

Photo Stolen hemodernhome

Violet Disguise GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will each get:
1 x Violet Disguise decant from my bottle
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

Go to IndieScents and tell me any fragrance they sell online and a note that it contains…….. NO DOUBLE UPS!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie http://wp.me/p3PURw-3jJ Imaginary Authors GIVEAWAY @indiescents #Perfume #Giveaway @IAParfumerie

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 9th November 2014 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Thursday 14th November 2014 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.

Catherine Tate – the offensive translator

November 7, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

OMG!! I am sitting here and have had to shut my office door because I’m making stupid noises and tears are streaming down my face. This is so freaking funny and so awful. I can’t help but put myself in the bosses place and it’s a wretched place to be.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Please enjoy.

Portia xxx

Catherine Tate – the offensive translator

Un Zeste de Rose GIVEAWAY WINNERS

November 3, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

YAY!! Winners time.

Thanks for getting involved gang, always great to read your stories. On to the WINNERS.

Portia xx

Un Zeste de Rose GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Amalfi lemon, orange, dried fruits
Heart: Jasmine, rose, tea
Base: Musk, holly, amber

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will each get:
1 x 5ml Un Zeste de Rose decant
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DID YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell us about a rose fragrance that wins you over, or a memory of someone who wore one well

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie http://wp.me/p3PURw-3je Les Parfums de Rosine GIVEAWAY #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 2nd November 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen LifestyleSolutions

Carolyn Kubea

Willa

The winners will have till Thursday 6th November 2014 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.

Making CHANEL Fall-Winter 2014/15 Haute Couture Collection

November 2, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 4 Comments

Hiya Fragrant Fashionistas,

Here is a beautiful insight into the complete and utter hour intensive, old school, haute couture creation process. Every stitch and every bead must be done by hand, it is a failing art and ultimately extraordinarily expensive. Still done at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris above the flagship store, and if you are lucky you can see the staircase leading up to the atelier, and Coco’s rooms.

Making CHANEL Fall-Winter 2014/15 Haute Couture Collection

Now under the direction of the incredible Karl Lagerfeld, the man who seems so much a part of CHANEL that it’s hard to remember the house before him for many of us. Personally I think he has carried the flag for CHANEL impeccably.

Enjoy the mini movie, I keep showing the CHANEL ones because they are often the best and most beautiful,

Portia xx

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Making-of the CHANEL Fall-Winter 2014/15 Haute Couture Collection

Un Zeste de Rose by Les Parfums de Rosine 2002

October 31, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 26 Comments

Heya gang,

Les Parfums de Rosine is sadly neglected, I’m not sure if its their dated packaging which frankly looks 1960s drug store, their bottles which go only with Tiffany lamps and antimacassars and remind me of lace curtains or the little cutesy curtain ties with fringy bobs. The fragrances are solid and delicious, interesting and sometimes boundary pushing. Michael fell madly in love with a couple of the men’s scents while we were at the flagship store in the Palais Royale in Paris and bought a couple of bottles, including their discontinued men’s extrait. Now Michael’s nose is impeccable, if he says the juice is good then you better believe it.

Un Zeste de Rose by Les Parfums de Rosine 2002

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Amalfi lemon, orange, dried fruits
Heart: Jasmine, rose, tea
Base: Musk, holly, amber

Citrus, fresh cut and cool; a slightly pithy cut that has a dried apricot overtone and already there is the bite of tea in fragrance when Un Zeste de Rose opens on my skin. A dryness that smells of loose leaf tea in the packet. This then is a softly peach-coloured tea scented rose with nuances of fruits and a green acerbic backdrop that doesn’t make me think of leaves but twig, cut twig or stem of a rose from the garden.Maybe this rose is headed for a vase in your house, it could be dewy or you could be smelling the cool water in your cut crystal rose bowl.

A rose full of fragrance, a lightly spicy tea scented rose through the heart and I am surprised that there is no honey mentioned in the notes. Maybe the honey factor comes through the amber/musk combination? I don’t know but it is smooth and lovely. Actually, there is a lovely creaminess to Un Zeste de Rose that is like a fresh green and cream, mmmmmmm.

Much younger and more youthful that their marketing suggests Un Zeste de Rose is crisp and light enough for everyday wear. Lasting power is good too but after about 2 hours Un Zeste de Rose wears very close to your skin, as soft as a body lotion.

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and Scent for Thought
First In Fragrance has €78/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/ml

Un Zeste de Rose is no huge groundbreaker but I think its creamy tea, honey and green-ness make it special. Extremely wearable and would make a great gift.

Portia xx

Photo Stolen sassisamblog

Un Zeste de Rose GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will each get:
1 x 5ml Un Zeste de Rose decant
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell us about a rose fragrance that wins you over, or a memory of someone who wore one well

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie http://wp.me/p3PURw-3je Les Parfums de Rosine GIVEAWAY #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 2nd November 2014 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Thursday 6th November 2014 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.

My Perfume Samples – New Atomisers

October 31, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Hey there APJ Crew,

When I’m looking for mainstream, and some niche, fragrances my first stop will be My Perfume Samples. I love that they get cheaper if you buy more than 1ml, often by more than half! They are reliable, packaged beautifully and the range is really good of stuff you often can’t get at the niche sample stores.

My Perfume Samples – New Atomisers

The crew at My Perfume Samples have recently changed to plastic atomisers so I wrote asking why they would do this and if there had been appropriate testing done to make sure their precious cargo was not being contaminated. Here’s their response….

From My Perfume Samples: The plastic atomizers that we use are completely sterile and safe. The plastic used in our atomizers is food grade plastic. It has been approved to package water and food products so it is completely safe to hold the perfume that you will spray on your skin.
We tested the atomizers for several months, carrying samples in our bags, purses, storing in our vanities and a number of other places before introducing them to our customers. We wanted to be sure that the fragrances retained the same exact scent as when we decanted them into the sample bottle. Once we were able to confirm that the smell of the scent in all of our samples was retained over many months in a number of storage conditions we began using them to decant customer orders.
We do not re-use the atomizers on different scents and do not recommend refilling an atomizer with a scent different from the one originally decanted into it. Some customers have expressed success doing this and reuse the plastic atomizers with their own fragrances however, we have not tested this with the plastic or glass atomizers.
We believe the plastic atomizers to be superior to the glass that we previously used because they are food grade, easier to screw open and closed, have a wider mouth for refilling, the spray is more consistent and we have far less damage occurring in transit.

Here are some of their great prices:
Light Blue Femme by Dolce & Gabbana: $2/ml up to $7/5ml
Sensuous Nude by Estee Lauder: $2.50/ml up to $7.50/5ml
Tubéreuse Criminelle by Serge Lutens: $3.50/ml up to $10.50/5ml
Velvet Rose & Oud Cologne Intense by Jo Malone: $5/ml up to $15/5ml

I think those prices are incredibly reasonable.

Portia xx

1270 Frapin GIVEAWAY WINNERS

October 27, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 3 Comments

Hey Crew,

Thanks for jumping on board this one. I hope you all are loving our spectacular giveaways lately. I think there are a good cross section of products we are getting out there for you to try. As always we do it with you in mind as a thank you for you support and love.
Portia xx

1270 Frapin GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Dried orange, pineapple, hazelnut, resins, dried plums, cocoa, tonka, coffee
Heart: Lime blossom, linden tree, pepper, spices, dried fruits
Base: Wood, Guaiac wood, white honey, vanilla

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will each get:
1 x 5ml 1270 by Frapin decant
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DID YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell us about a sweet or boozy fragrance that makes you smile, either because you wear it or because it has happy associations

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie http://wp.me/p3PURw-3hb 1270 by Frapin GIVEAWAY #Perfume #Giveaway @LibertineParfum

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 26th October 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen quiltelegance

Undina (via Twitter)

Bradley Woolslayer

The winners will have till Thursday 30th October 2014 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.

In Bed With David Gandy

October 26, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Here you go APJ,

Some unashamed EYE CANdY in the form of David Gandy sporting his own range of M&S underwear.

You’re welcome,
Portia xxx

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

David Gandy’s underwear collection for Marks & Spencer

Mademoiselle Guerlain by Thierry Wasser for Guerlain 2014

October 25, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Heya Lovers of Fine Fragrance,

Today I want to look at a decant I’ve had lying around here for a while but never seem to get to. Why has it lain forlorn and unloved? Who knows, sometimes it happens around here. What I did do yesterday after my bath though was spritz myself and WOW! So I spritzed again for work and now I am wearing it again. Masterpiece? Naah, but enjoyable? YES

Fragrantica says: Mademoiselle Guerlain is chic, elegant, cheerful Parisian scent. It is launched in 2014 in the exclusive Guerlain collection, but in fact it is the same fragrance as La Petite Robe Noire 2 from 2011 in a new bottle and a new name.

Mademoiselle Guerlain by Thierry Wasser for Guerlain 2014

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Galbanum, bergamot, lemon
Heart: Iris, orange blossom, marshmallow
Base: Vanilla, leather, white musk

There hasn’t been very much written about Mademoiselle Guerlain except to announce its coming and to tell us its history. As you may know I love Guerlain and most of their offerings work for me on some level so I was super dooper excited when told they were going to re-release the LPRN2 that I was 100% sure would be a million times more me than LPRN original, which I like very much most days but sometimes it’s like being suffocated by a macaroon.

Photo Stolen Flickr

I have spent a couple of days wearing Mademoiselle Guerlain now. Its green opening is at once sticky and cool, like the first gulp of a soft drink on a warm day. Refreshing but not thirst quenching. Interesting……. This initial frisson sadly lasts too briefly and the sugar enters like Pez or pastilles wrapped in marshmallow. Reads as if it’s TOTALLY disgusting, right? It’s not, it is sweet and fun and youthful, though not particularly sophisticated. Slowly the orange blossom, vanilla and iris bloom together underneath the sweetness and now you can feel that the whole fragrance has a lovely depth, here is where Mademoiselle Guerlain becomes a Guerlain. Something better than its contemporaries, frankly it is beautiful. Lavish but subtle, you won’t skunk people with Mademoiselle Guerlain unless you are in a fragphobic environment. Fragrant but not imposing or intimidating, Mademoiselle Guerlain will never be mistaken for a 1980s BIG WHITE FLORAL. Pretty and delicate, lovely and wearable through the heart I feel that Mademoiselle Guerlain could have been a best seller if offered in a less expensive flaccon and size.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Dry down is an intimate, musky and fluffy confectionery barely tempered by a hint of leather, after 6 hours I am still softly fragrant and putting my head into my top to smell I can definitely get wafts. Nothing stands out to me at this point but it’s a sweet and attractive wash rather than discernible notes. Nothing earth shattering but very nice, wearable in that modern sweet white musk way. I guarantee that Mademoiselle Guerlain will be a hit if you gift it, even to the least interested in fragrance, as long as they like sweet fragrances. There is nothing new or confrontational in the dry down for them, it could very well be a better quality celebuscent ending.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Further reading: Perfume Shrine
Guerlain Flagship Stores and some large Department Stores have Mademoiselle Guerlain
My Mademoiselle Guerlain came from a split, thanks RuthK
Surrender To Chance have samples starting at $3.30/.5ml

Did you ever try La Petite Robe Noire 2 when it was available? Are you a fan of the original La Petite Robe Noire? What do you think of the Bee Bottle and pink juice?
Portia xx