Rose Cut by Bertrand Duchaufour for Ann Gerard 2014

August 16, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Heya Cool Cats,

So here is the latest buzz frag. It seems to be a complete hit.

Rose Cut by Bertrand Duchaufour for Ann Gerard 2014

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Aldehydes, rum, pink pepper
Heart: Rose, peony, patchouli
Base: Vanilla, oakmoss, benzoin

I was a little let down by how Rose Cut performed on my skin. It was a lot like quite a few other fragrances from Voleur de Roses by L`Artisan Parfumeur, Gucci Rush, Narcisso Rodriguez for Her, Etc Etc. Yes, I know they are different scents and wear quite differently but that luminous aquatic floral has been done much more comfortably for my skin than this. It’s pretty, bright and fun and I think it will get a huge following. In fact if the other reviews are anything to go by this is definitely a winner. The bottles look so elegant and I really like the whole Ann Gerard aesthetic. Can I also say that I may be a bit snarky because I was expecting so much and my chemistry has let us both down tonight.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

So it’s now about half an hour later. I was reading and put my chin on my hand and was like, What Is That Fabulous Smell? It is Rose Cut. After a very nice, simple opening Rose Cut becomes a lovely soft clean patchouli, floral bouquet with a touch of sweet resin that is a little human, worn and healthy. I’m surprised there is no mention of musk or leather in the notes because both seem very apparent and for such a soft fragrance it is remarkably noticeable. I wish it was slightly heftier though.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Rose Cut is lovely through the middle. Soft focus, beautiful and quite distinctly memorable. A bit like Marilyn Monroe above and definitely flesh and pink coloured. MMMMMM.

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and Chemist In A Bottle.
First In Fragrance has €125/60ml
Surrender To Chance has samples from $4/.5ml

How do like Rose Cut? Have you yet put it on your skin? Did it live for you? Would you like to try it?
Portia xx

Ramon Monegal GIVEAWAY WINNERS

August 16, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Hi there APJ Family,

Another super giveaway. Thanks for gettinmg on board and enjoying the fun.

Let’s see what there was and who won.

Portia xx

Ramon Monegal GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Ramon Monegal

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will get (NO you don’t get to choose):

1 x 15ml manufacturers spray sample of Ambra di Luna (I did spritz to test)

1 x 15ml manufacturers spray sample of Kiss My Name (I did spritz to test)

P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DID 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 Peony Melbourne<<JUMP and find me a Fragrance and one of its Notes…………….. NO DOUBLE UPS!!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Ramon Monegal + Peony Melbourne #Perfume #Giveaway http://wp.me/p3PURw-34j @ramonmonegal

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Thursday 14th August 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen berryreview

Robert H

FeralJasmine

The winners will have till Monday 18th August 2014 to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their email address or the prize will go to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Special THANKS to Ramon Monegal for these amazing giveaways. Please visit their site Ramon Monegal

Get To Know Your Collection! Scent Task #1

August 15, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 85 Comments

Hi there Freaky Frag Collectors,

Here is the problem. I spend a LOT of time testing new fragrances, buy a 3-5ml decant, empty it, fall in love, buy the fragrance and have it sit there, a lot of the time still in its cellophane. This problem is compounded by the fact that when I am wearing fragrance for sheer pleasure I often grab the same tried and true spritz-and-forget fragrances that I know I love.

Melita, the head of a Facebook Frag Group called For Love Not Money: Fragrance Appreciation Group<<JUMP (that has a rule about NEVER mentioning prices, sales, bargains or other super lemming inducing propaganda that could make you spend), had a brilliant idea…….

Get To Know Your Collection! Scent Task #1

Here is what Melita’s FaceBook challenge asked:

~~~GROUP TASK: Get to know your collection!~~~

It occurs to me every now and then that I favour certain perfumes and put them on rather too easily, while ignoring others in my collection and not really getting to know them. Next week, starting Monday the 11th August, I want to rectify that and learn more about the perfumes I already have. You are encouraged to join me in the following task:

1. Choose 5 fragrances from your collection (bottles, samples) that you don’t wear much or that you don’t really know well.
2. From Monday to Friday next week, choose one fragrance to wear each day and write a short review/comment/summary of the fragrance and share it on the group timeline. This can take any form that you like: a love letter, a poem, a brief review, a list of notes, a keyword summary, a pictographic essay. Be creative!
3. Keep things brief – limit your comments to 150 words if you can!

So I chose to use bottles that I had bought, there are quite a few that don’t get worn much. Personally, I chose to do my wearing in the morning while around the house so I could really take notice and enjoy my fragrance, sometimes enjoying it so much I chose to wear the same scent for work that night.

Here is my week in fragrance.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Scent Task #1 Monday: Fire from Heaven by C B I Hate Perfume.
Sweet resinous woods with a faint acrid after burn incense char smell. I don’t know why I rarely wear this lovely, maybe it opens too cool for winter and doesn’t cross my mind at other times. Great story and an enjoyable ride

Photo Stolen Evocative Perfumes

Scent Task #1 Tuesday: Vanille Tonique by Evocative Perfumes
I grabbed out my bottle of Evocative Perfumes Vanille Tonique: It is a beautiful marriage between Vanille Absolument by L’Artisan and one of the Guerlains. Dryer and more ambery than the L’Artisan and more retro breathy than the current crop of Guerlain. Mark Evans (the perfumer) this is REALLY good stuff.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Scent Task #1 Wednesday: 28 Excess by Tokyo Milk
Chocolate Orange Cake dried out by Woods. A sweet but not sticky fragrance. Though I am fully fragrant after about 15 minutes Excess sinks into and melds with my skin changing to a patchouli bomb with sparkles of the other notes. The whole dries down to a sweet amber/patchouli cloud.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Scent Task #1 Thursday: Amouage Gold Extrait de Parfum
Sadly my Gold gets neglected for my Dia Extrait. This is only the second time I have used the Gold. WHOA!! One little spritz is BIG! Initial rush is awesome. I can see why the Dia gets more skin time, Gold is a powerful girl. I get cool incense, resins and cat right off early, so lovely, totally retro. The flowers are creating soft counterpoint harmonies to flesh out the rest. Very nice. Gold softens down considerably in the first hour and becomes a resinous, woodsy fragrance backed by cat. Noticeable but comfortable.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Scent Task #1 Friday: Vintage Caleche by Hermes
This is one of the bottles that I was given by Michael Edwards. I keep looking at it but haven’t given it a wear yet. Oh Em Gee! This has been kept perfectly and the fizzy citrus and white flower open is devastatingly beautiful. Sheerer and a touch more green than I remember but so fragrant and rich. This is opulence, the feeling of running your hand over very expensive leather and silk brocades. When the flowers fully arrive they are a bouquet, it takes a much better nose than mine to pick them and I think the oakmoss lays a smoothing veil over all. Later, the shiny patina of the resins and smooth undercurrent of woods comes in but they are soft and furry to fade.

Photo Stolen AllSteele

Scent Task #1 GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 Winner who will get:

1 x decanted spray sample of all 5 Scent Task Fragrances
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell me a fragrance that gets little or no love in your collection.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie APJ Facebook Scent Task GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-33H #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 17th August 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 21st August 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.

DIOR: J’Adore 2014 Ad Campaign

August 15, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Hi there Frag Fiends,

I love Charlize Theron. frankly she can do no wrong in my eyes and I think everything she touches is amazing. Monster, Snow White & the Huntsman, and of course J’Adore. What a freaking goddess.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Magnolia, melon, peach, pear, mandarin, bergamot
Heart: Freesia, orchid, rose, violet, lily of the valley, plum, jasmine, tuberose
Base: Musk, vanilla, cedar, blackberry

Portia xx

Dior J’adore – “The future is gold” – The new film

Check out the new campaign for J’Adore Dior fragrance with Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron.

Lovely Day by Ramon Monegal

August 13, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Hey Hey Frag Fans,

There is much excitement because the Ramon Monegal line will soon be selling in Peony Melbourne! Jill at Peony is hoping to have them in stock early October. They can’t wait to come to Australia and in honour of this momentous occasion have sent me some giveaways. Please go enter our Ramon Monegal coming to Australia GIVEAWAY<<JUMP

Lovely Day by Ramon Monegal

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Jasmine, tea rose, black licorice, iris, cedar, black currant, cassis (ivy)

The first time I tried Lovely Day was when it was introduced outside of Spain and I wore and liked it but dismissed it as unwearable on a regular basis, on retry I was wrong. The wet black currant and ivy opening is so fabulously freaky on me. I think there is an aromachemical that I am very sensitive to involved, a cold metal/iceblock-ish feeling that is both compelling and unwelcoming, perhaps the black currant and licorice together. Lovely Day’s opening reminds me of one of the Le Cherche Midi fragrances, same chemical that both entrances yet holds me at arms length. Refreshing, sparkling and frosty it enhances winter and cuts through summer. Much like the first sip of a well iced mineral water or mountain water from a stone trough at a high up Himalayan monastery, super chilled that makes your whole mouth instantly tingle with surprise. I think this is what it must feel like to make Snow Angels. Excellent opening.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

For me Lovely Day is not a fragrance that I can pick out the notes in succession but rather a whole, a complete picture blended into something interesting and arresting. Imagine if Lolita Lempicka’s original apple was frosty cool instead of high energy fun, the sweetness in Lovely Day is arctic, the difference of chewing a pez and drinking a slushy, yes, a SLUSHY is exactly the analogy I needed. Lovely Day is a slushy for your nose. Sweet, chilly, refreshing and so incredibly more-ish. YUM!

For all Lovely Day’s sweetness though it is remarkably dry through the heart and the cedar is log pile-ish and does little to warm the composition, I get a very nice lily through the heart too. I could imagine men being made more interesting upon first sniff if they were to choose Lovely Day as their signature scent, though few will dare sadly.

Longevity is average 4-5 hours I can really smell it and sillage can be quite big if your spritzing is, though after an hour it calms to manageable, tasteful wear. I would think it a superb choice for work if applied sparingly. This is quite expensive juice but it smells luxe and the bottle is so freaking gorgeous, in fact the whole Ramon Monegal experience is good for me.

Photo Stolen Ramon Monegal

The Romon Monegal site says: Radiant and luminous. A vibrant presence of white rose petals and silky texture rooted in iris and licorice. An unforgettable and captivating romantic spirit
Notes: Sambac Jasmine Absolute, Tea Rose Absolute, Licorice Absolute, Cedar-filtered Iris, Ultrazur* and Black Currant

*Ultrazur brings a substantive, fresh, sea aspect to fragrances, helps to add volume and diffusitivity and at the same time rounds out a composition and sheers out florals. (Source)

Further reading: EauMG and Olfactoria’s Travels
LuckyScent has $185/50ml & samples
Ramon Monegal has €108/50ml

Which of the Ramon Monegal fragrances have you tried? Don’t you love their inkwell bottle?
Portia xx

Ramon Monegal coming to Australia

August 11, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 42 Comments

Hiya Fragrance frenzied peeps,

This is a super exciting day here at APJ. The crew at Ramon Monegal are so thrilled that they are coming to Australia and will be for sale at Peony Melbourne in our Southern Hemisphere Spring that they have been in touch to do a special announcement giveaway. Cool huh?

Here’s a snippet from the Ramon Monegal site: Ramón Monegal comes from a long and distinguished line of the most important perfumers in Barcelona and Spain. He represents the fourth generation of the founders of the house of Myrurgia, which was the official purveyor of the Spanish Royal Family, and the most important international perfumer in Spain.

Ramon Monegal coming to Australia

I really love the brand, its style and who can go past one of their inkwell bottles. TO DIE FOR.

Photo Stolen Ramon Monegal

Ramon Monegal: Ambra di Luna

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Amber, labdanum, Egyptian jasmine, castoreum, vanilla, sandalwood

WOW! When you spray Ambre di Luna it is an old world fragrance harking back to the bygone days of perfumery where the sensual animal base could be clearly noticed from the very first spritz. Rich, sweet, animal and utterly gorgeous Ambra di Luna is my next full bottle purchase, FOR SURE! Amber, and a hint of breathy jasmine play background to animal growl. I am undone. What a wonderful scent, so beautiful it could break your heart. A surprisingly cool amber, done in a way that is unusual and raunchy. MMMMMMM

Photo Stolen Ramon Monegal

Ramon Monegal: Kiss My Name

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Tuberose, iris, Egyptian jasmine, Tunisian neroli, tolu balsam

Spritz and BIG SMILE! Lovely white flowers all in a bouquet, green, white, sappy and sweet. Here is a very wearable white flower bomb that is cooled by the iris and fleshed out with resins. Ohhhh, I could so imagine wearing this regularly. Not bubble gum tuberose, the cooler, greener aspect. A full blown white flower bouquet that you can tell can’t wait to unleash its inner vixen. Kiss My Name feels like a fragrance FULL of flowers, at least some of them being the real deal. The heart of Kiss My Name has a very narcissus-ness about it, nearly ferocious in its intensity. GOSH Almighty.

Can’t wait for Ramon Monegal to come to Australia?
Parfum1 has the line for $185/50ml
First In Fragrance and LuckyScent have bottles and samples

Photo Stolen Kesha&Co

Ramon Monegal coming to Australia GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will get (NO you don’t get to choose):

1 x 15ml manufacturers spray sample of Ambra di Luna (I did spritz to test)

1 x 15ml manufacturers spray sample of Kiss My Name (I did spritz to test)

P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Go to Peony Melbourne<<JUMP and find me a Fragrance and one of its Notes…………….. NO DOUBLE UPS!!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Ramon Monegal + Peony Melbourne #Perfume #Giveaway http://wp.me/p3PURw-34j @ramonmonegal

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 14th August 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 Monday 18th August 2014 to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their email address or the prize will go to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Special THANKS to Ramon Monegal for these amazing giveaways. Please visit their site Ramon Monegal

Surrender To Chance GIVEAWAY WINNERS

August 11, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Hey Hey APJ,

GREAT response this week. Of course it’s an exceptional giveaway. Surrender To Chance is a fabulous site and I love to go and trawl their wares. For us to give you the Gift Certificate you’ll need to send me an email address that is attached to your Surrender To Chance account. We can then get your gift certificate added to your account.

Thanks
Portia xx

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen SmartDraw

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will get:
1 x $30 Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate

HOW DID YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Go to Surrender To Chance<<JUMP and find me a Fragrance and Manufacturer…………….. NO DOUBLE UPS!!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie GIFT CERTIFICATE GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-330 #Perfume #Giveaway @Surrendertochan

Surrender To Chance Header

HOUSEKEEPING

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

Photo Stolen brooklodge

Amanda Gorton (via Twitter)

JulesInRose

The winners will have till Thursday 14th August 2014 to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their Surrender To Chance Account Email Address or the prize will go to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Special THANKS to Surrender To Chance for these amazing giveaways. Please visit their site because they are so generous, friendly and helpful.

"Something old, something new" Part 1.1 BBC Perfume Documentary

August 10, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Hello lovely APJ Crew,

Over the next few Sundays we we”ll be able to watch these 3 wonderful documentaries. You’ll need to grab a cuppa/juice/wine and maybe some breakfast/lunch/dinner and settle in for an hour, there are no ad breaks but you can pause and come back through your Sunday. Two of the fragrances talked about in the doco are Guerlain’s Shalimar Parfum Initial and Loud by Hilfiger. We watch as Loud is released for the first time and go through the creation of it. Also we get a rare glimpse into Thierry Wasser’s rise to the head perfumer at Guerlain, and the fall of Jacques Guerlain. Very interesting.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Enjoy,
Portia xx

“Something old, something new” Part 1 BBC Perfume Documentary

L`Orpheline by Christopher Sheldrake + Serge Lutens 2014

August 9, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Hey All,

Am I too late to the party? Just received a decant from the lovely Ruth (thanks buddy) and can’t wait to wear it a few times. Why don’t you join my on a first experience journey? It will be fun.

L`Orpheline by Christopher Sheldrake + Serge Lutens 2014

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Musk, incense

I have read quite a bit about Serge Lutens L’Orpheline already. It may interfere with my first impressions because I think they may already be coloured.

So I find a jagged, pristine, metallic opening from Serge Lutens L’Orpheline. It’s weird and uncomfortable and though I don’t have it on hand reminds me a little of Lainne de Verre, like the idea of crawling along fibreglass insulation. Underneath though is a very pretty something. Some lovely alluring floral that keeps me glued to my hand trying to find it. Then I get this hilarious gust of coconut, no one else has been writing about it so I’m thinking my nose probably invented it, but to me it’s there clear as day.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Then everything tilts and I am in cool incense laden air, slightly fetid and dank and earthy and metallic. Then I am reminded of Balmain’s Amber Gris, which smells little like ambergris to me but has a feeling of perhaps what a 100 year old nugget of exploded whale internal secretions might smell like if they were flowers. Then woods, both cold on the woodpile and smoking from the fire, suddenly there is a warmth to L’Orpheline that is not hot but merely lack of cold. Then I get a balmy woods and flesh fragrance that fades slowly to gone, but I can’t tel;l when exactly it left. (Ha Ha Ha!! This fragrant monologue reads NOTHING like anyone else’s experience, I am a perfume DUFFER! Ha Ha Ha! I don’t care, this is how my nose smelled this fragrance on first wearing on my skin)

Timid. L’Orpheline is timid. Interesting, arresting, challenging and fun but all on a very small scale. Like a wallflower awaiting a moment to shine that never really comes.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Of all the freaky Serge Lutens masterpieces I think L’Orpheline the most wearable. It’s not big enough to torment you with its constantly changing story. A bit like riding a horse through trees in high summer and the dappled effects of the light searing one second and the cool of shade the next, the uncomfortable way your eyes need to adjust again and again. Yet L’Orpheline does it so quietly, and in such a muted fashion that it becomes beautiful background noise and you can still concentrate on your life but should you wish to come back and really smell what’s happening you will find it changed markedly from your last sniff.

Please don’t take my word for it, try L’Orpheline by Serge Lutens yourself.

Further reading: Perfume Shrine and Perfume Posse
Serge Lutens has €99/50ml
Everywhere else will get Serge Lutens L’Orpheline in September
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/ml

Have you yet tried this hot/cold frightened child of a fragrance? What did you think?
Portia xx

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate

August 8, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 64 Comments

Hiya Happy Huffers,

One of the things I love MOST about this mad fragrance addiction I have is Sample and Decant Stores. The crew I use the most is Surrender To Chance. They have a great selection, reasonable postage rates and are friendly and helpful whenever I have a question. I know the gang that runs the business through the Perfume Posse Scentsation Bus Tour in May 2013. They are a fabulous and fun crew and they made me feel like family from, the first minute. As you may have noticed I look for family everywhere, surprising how often I find it too.

Photo Stolen TheTruthAboutMummy

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate GIVEAWAY

Photo Stolen SmartDraw

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will get:
1 x $30 Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Go to Surrender To Chance<<JUMP and find me a Fragrance and Manufacturer…………….. NO DOUBLE UPS!!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie GIFT CERTIFICATE GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-330 #Perfume #Giveaway @Surrendertochan

Surrender To Chance Header

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 10th August 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 August 2014 to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their email address or the prize will go to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Special THANKS to Surrender To Chance for these amazing giveaways. Please visit their site because they are so generous, friendly and helpful.

Rose Cut by Bertrand Duchaufour for Ann Gerard 2014

Ramon Monegal GIVEAWAY WINNERS

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

HOW DID YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Robert H

FeralJasmine

Get To Know Your Collection! Scent Task #1

~*~*~*GROUP TASK: Get to know your collection!*~*~*~

Scent Task #1 GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Dior J’adore – “The future is gold” – The new film

Lovely Day by Ramon Monegal

Ramon Monegal coming to Australia

Ramon Monegal: Ambra di Luna

Ramon Monegal: Kiss My Name

Ramon Monegal coming to Australia GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate GIVEAWAY WINNERS

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

HOW DID YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Amanda Gorton (via Twitter)

JulesInRose

“Something old, something new” Part 1 BBC Perfume Documentary

L`Orpheline by Christopher Sheldrake + Serge Lutens 2014

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

~~~GROUP TASK: Get to know your collection!~~~