Mer & Mistral by Karine Dubreuil for L'Occitane en Provence 2014

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Hey Hey Crew,

Want to read what’s NEW NEW NEW!! L’Occitane will be releasing a brand new fragrance in the Collection de Grasse series in Australia during August 2014 and we have a special preview pack here at APJ! Woo Hoo! And today we will have FOUR winners!

Mer & Mistral by L’Occitane en Provence 2014

Karine Dubreuil

Mer & Mistral L`Occitane en Provence FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Lemon, tangerine
Heart: Cypress, pine, rosemary
Base: White amber, cedar, musk

From the USA L’Occitane site: A fresh breeze passes through the town of Grasse, which lies between the mountains and the sea. The mistral wind from the mountains, filled with the scents of the foliage in its path, blends with air from the Mediterranean, laden with sea spray. Inspired by this Provençal breeze, La Collection de Grasse introduces Mer & Mistral, an aquatic fragrance with soft ripples of aromatic notes. Zesty top notes of lemon and mandarin give way to a generous heart of cypress, pine and rosemary, so emblematic of the Mediterranean coast.

On my skin Mer & Mistral opens VERY fresh, good old fashioned, mens locker room in the 1990s: citrus and salty sea breeze. You know I am against fragrant gender boundaries but my scent memory is so strong with this style of fragrance because it takes me right back to my days in the gym, hanging their with mates or partner, hitting the showers and then in the locker room the guy getting dressed right next to me spritzing 4 or 5 times. It smells as much like a Mediterranean seaside resort town as it can without adding the bad smells, this is pure and fresh and even the herbal greenery is washed out in the sunshine of summer. I can imagine Mer & Mistral becoming a very easy wear go-to for anyone who needs to cool and refresh, or who wants to smell that way. It’s like a salty lemonade in India, I know it sounds weird but it is crazy delicious and here I am wearing it as a fragrance. What it does smell like to me is a subtle version of the current fragrance that I spritz through the bathrooms and laundry every Wednesday after I’ve finished cleaning, GANT Liquid.

The opening is big and fresh then Mer & Mistral calms to a lovely clean green woodsy fragrance and this part of its life last really well. Anyone who loves to smell like they recently bathed and are totally calm and cool will enjoy wearing L’Occitane’s latest. Where it ends is a slow overtake by the musks and a minimal warming through with the amber, otherwise Mer & Mistral stays very poised. I like the part about 2-3 hours in when everything gets a lovely powdery feeling, so cuddly soft. After about 5-6 hours depending I lose almost everything but my skin still smells as if it’s fresh from the pool/bath/shower and fit.

Mer & Mistral has a very CdG synthetic effect but on a softer, less combative level and I don’t feel courageous wearing it. Just healthy, happy and clean. I like it.

Whatever you do today, be nice to yourself. A little forgiving and very loving. You are worth it.
Portia xx

giveaway hemodernhomePhoto Stolen hemodernhome

Neroli & Orchidee + Mer & Mistral: L’Occitane GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 4 winners who will each get:
1 x 5ml decant of Mer & Mistral by L’Occitane (from my sample bottle)
1 x 5ml decant of Neroli & Orchidee by L’Occitane (from my sample 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

Please tell me your favourite fresh fragrance, or why you would like to try this one.

Extra Chance?
Tweet:  Mer & Mistral, Neroli & Orchidee     

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 20th July 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 24th July 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.

Jimmy Choo Fall Winter 2014 Ad Campaign

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Hey Fashion Fiends,

What could be better than seeing a new Jimmy Choo campaign? Well, it could be that Kit Harrington has taken the job, it seems Nicole Kidman has stepped aside, so nice to have a sexy guy in her place.

Down the bottom is a very lovely Mini Movie of Kit Harrington in his Jimmy Choos.

Enjoy,
Portia xx

Jimmy Choo Fall Winter 2014 Ad Campaign

As always I have grabbed this from my Go-To fashion forward blog: art8amby

Actor Kit Harrington (27) from Game of Thrones is replacing Nicole Kidman as the new campaign face for Jimmy Choo, shot by Peter Lindbergh on location in a Los Angeles home designed by the architect John Lautner.

“Kit has an innate confidence and projects a playfully rebellious nature,” said Sandra Choi, Jimmy Choo’s creative director. “He has an overtly masculine style that feels effortlessly cool, and a great sense of humor, and beneath that intensity he is a true gentleman.” (source)




Jimmy Choo AW14 Men’s Campaign starring Kit Harington

Waikiki Pikake by Brook Harvey Taylor for Pacifica

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

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Post by Poodle

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Pikake (pee’ kah keh) means peacock and is the Hawaiian name for jasmine sambac, a flowering bush that is prevalent on the Hawaiian islands and often used to make leis. It was so named by Ka’iulani (1875-1899), the last crown princess of Hawaii. She thought pikake were beautiful, just like the birds she named them after. As a young girl she lived on an estate near the ocean surrounded by trees, flowers, and her beloved peacocks.

Waikiki Pikake Pacifica Michael Bently FlickrPhoto Stolen Flickr

Iliahi is Hawaiian for sandalwood and since Hawaii was known for its native sandalwood, one can assume she was familiar with those fragrant trees as well. Ka’iulani also had a white pony (doesn’t every princess?) which she rode by the ocean. She referred to Pikake as the flower of love and once said that she would only marry if she were in love and no other reason would persuade her. She was known for her strength as well as her beauty and grace. It has been said that it was impossible not to love her.

Waikiki Pikake by Brook Harvey Taylor for Pacifica

Waikiki Pikake Pacifica FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Pikake (jasmine), sandalwood

The perfume Waikiki Pikake is all about jasmine and sandalwood. There’s a definite tropical feel to the fragrance but without the fruitiness commonly associated with tropical scents. The jasmine here might just be a gateway drug for people who are usually afraid of it. There’s nothing here that says “dirty girl”, it’s more a beautiful jasmine fit for a princess. Never having been to Hawaii I imagine this is what the Pikake flowers smell like on an ocean breeze. Green leaves and ocean waves mingle with the jasmine and then swirl around a heart of warm, creamy sandalwood. A perfectly clear day in an island garden is what comes to mind but overall this isn’t a smothering white floral. It’s reminiscent of new love, fresh and innocent. On my skin it wears nicely in the heat without becoming overwhelming. Oddly it seems the heat tones it down but you might have a different experience. Waikiki Pikake wears somewhat linear on me, not changing much but gradually softening and fading away. I love it as a bedtime scent but I think it could be worn anytime.

Waikiki Pikake Pacifica Jasminum_sambac WikiCommonsPhoto Stolen WikiCommons

My first sniff of this came from the body butter that I found at the discount store. That’s one thing I love about Pacifica, companion products. I love layering my scents once in a while and having a body cream that matches my perfume is so much easier than trying to coordinate which scent goes with which. That being said, you could easily get just enough fragrance from the body butter alone. I had the body butter first and loved the fragrance and the longevity of it so I bought the perfume to go with it.

Pacifica has Waikiki Pikake in $12/10ml roll on and loads of other stuff too.

So tell me, do you have a favorite Pacifica scent? Have you tried this one? Ever been to Hawaii and is it as fabulous as I think it would be?

Until next time…hugs.

poodle

Shalimar by Guerlain 1925

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 24 Comments

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Post by Erica Golding

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Hello! My name is Erica, and I’ve enjoyed a lifetime obsession with scent. In all my journeys, I never gave Shalimar a chance on my skin. Shalimar, the bottle waiting patiently at practically every perfume counter, mysterious yet familiar. Recently, I was inundated with a torrent of love for this perfume by fans of all ages, all over the world. In the face of such genuine devotion, who was I to resist? I headed straight to a perfume counter, and my first impressions of modern-day Shalimar EdP are as follows:

Shalimar by Jacques Guerlain for Guerlain 1925

Shalimar Guerlain FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Citruses, mandarin orange, cedar, lemon, bergamot
Heart: Iris, rose, vetiver, jasmine, patchouli
Base: Civet, musk, tonka bean, opoponax, leather, incense, vanilla, sandalwood

This scent opens with a citronella-like, sharp, insect-repellant bergamot. I just really don’t like the beginning. Much brighter on the card than on my skin. The aroma becomes a little more interesting after settling. Nicely spicy, but with some undertone that comes across as almost rubbery. I’m still not into it, but I admit that I am starting to be hypnotized by the unique, complex puzzle of it all. I keep sniffing, curiously. Later, the fragrance begins to warm into something more harmonious with my aesthetic. I am starting to sense precious woods, amber, and sandalwood, maybe a waft of vanilla as well.

Later still, even more attractive, almost like vanilla pipe tobacco.

And then….

Yes.

Now I understand. It takes about 30 minutes to get there for me, but – wow. Gorgeous and singularly exceptional, yet hauntingly familiar. Woods and amber with a hint of vanilla, but so much more that defies my recognition. Indescribable. A sensual poem.

Shalimar Blue Water Ad Guerlain FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Next, I sought out vintage bottles. My first scores were EdC in the “watch” bottle and Parfum in the “rosebud” bottle. I decided to review them side by side:

Shalimar EdC:

A quieter, softer opening. Morphs into soft vanilla incense tobacco magic within a few minutes. Fades fast on my skin, a quiet haze that hugs my body closely and shares its presence only with those I allow in that space.

Shalimar Parfum:

A sharp, bold opening. Spicy, and the citronella note is not as bright as with modern EDP but surprisingly still pronounced. Throw is fairly intense, yet somehow focused for me – not a diffusive cloud of fragrance, but a moonbeam piercing the humid summer night’s sky. The aroma drifts into a powdery stage before reaching the equilibrium of the true intent of Shalimar: a warm, almost indescribable perfume that slows my breathing and makes me feel powerfully magnetic. Sultry, mysterious, dark, thickly sensual.

Shalimar Guerlain Shalimar_gardens WikiCommonsPhoto Stolen WikiCommons

Shalimar lasts anywhere from 5-8 hours on my skin. It is definitely an evening, date-night fragrance by tradition ~ and I am a very non-traditional person, so I wear it whenever and wherever the hell I please! That being said, I often crave it at night and wear it as my midnight aromatherapy.

Further reading: Australian Perfume Junkies EdC and Australian Perfume Junkies Parfum
FragranceNet has $48/74ml EdC and other selections
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $3/ml

Shalimar Collection Erica GoldingErica’s Shalimar Collection Photo Donated Erica Golding

I hope you have enjoyed my account of how I lost my Shalimar virginity; and I hope that I’ve either conjured precious scent memories of your own, or piqued your interest in sampling this beauty for your own first time.

With warmly fragrant hugs,
Erica Golding

Junky by Anais Biguine for Jardins D’Ecrivains 2014

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 25 Comments

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Some perfume names give us a preconceived idea of the vibe of the fragrance in question. I was keen to get my nose on this from the minute I heard of it. I was born at the end of the fifties which threw me into the Punk Generation at exactly the right time. Had I been born earlier I like to think that I would have been part of the Beat Generation. This group consisted of a groups of American post World War II writers who came to the fore in the 1950s. The main elements of this “Beat” culture included experimentation with drugs, an interest in religion, alternative sexualities, a rejection of materialism and some unrestrained portrayals of the human condition. The best known writers and examples of the Beat Literature are probably William Burroughs (who wrote Junky), Allen Ginsberg, and Jack Kerouac.

Junky Jardins d’Ecrivains Jack_Kerouac WikipediaPhoto Stolen Wikipedia

It was Kerouac who coined the phrase “Beat Generation”. Thanks to the punk era into which I was thrown – I was turned onto the Beat Generation literature. Junky, Naked Lunch and On the Road being my top three reads.

Junky by Anais Biguine for Jardins D’Ecrivains 2014

Junky Jardins d’Ecrivains FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica Gives these featured accords:
Top: Hemp, Palisander Rosewood, Galbanum
Heart: Iris, Violet, Gardenia
Base: Cashmeran, cedar, vetiver, incense, juniper, moss and myrtle (From Jardins D’Ecrivains box: Cashmeran, Cedar, Javanese vetiver, Sweet myrrhe, Frankincense, Cade, Moss)

So Jardins D’Ecrivains taking on Junky as a literary influence for a perfume was really quite formidable and perhaps a little abstract.

Green, green, green. Thick and ferocious. Straight to the amygdala, located deep within the brain. The hemp, combined with galbanum is legally intoxicating. Sticky and skunky and did I mention green?. I wish this moment would last forever but that might be too much to bear. It slides effortlessly into the beautifully smooth middle notes. This is very pleasurable and comfortable. Heady but controlled. Three beautiful floral notes intertwined one with another. And then the comedown. In this case, it is soft and sweet and lasts some hours. Quite dry, but a narcotic sweet feel nonetheless. It harks back to the opening green notes. A clever twist. It´s funny what a name can do. I was wondering if Jardins D’Ecrivains had called this Peter Pan, would it have made my experience any different? I think not. It would have just have been a wasted Peter Pan!

Junky Jardins d’Ecrivains neon_green_butterfly_falls EpicIV DeviantArtPhoto Stolen DeviantArt

Jardins D’Ecrivains succeeded with the Junky vibe. I was impressed with the journey that Junky takes you on. From the instant hit, to the agreeable middle, and a peaceful descent. Unlike the real thing.

Absolutely worth checking out. You could read the book too.

With thanks to First in Fragrance who rushed me a generous sample upon request.

First in Fragrance has €93/100ml and samples

“Silence is only frightening to people who are compulsively verbalizing.” William S. Burroughs

Bussis
CQ

Mito by Vero Kern VdE + EdP

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 24 Comments

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Post by Sister Mary Magdelene, Patron Saint of Perfumers

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Oh faithful ones please ready yourselves to hear of divine beauty. Sometimes to fall into blissful sleep, I count on green floral chypres. In my fragrant world, nothing could offer greater pleasure than the idealised landscape that a wonderful perfume in this genre can conjure.

Mito Voile d’Extrait – Vero Profumo

and

Mito Eau de Parfum – Vero Profumo

And here are two distinct but related olfactory paintings of delightful garden scenes, both inspired by the gardens at Villa d’Este in Tivoli.

Mito Voile d’Extrait

Mito Voile d`Extrait Vero Profumo FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Citruses, magnolia, champaca, jasmine, galbanum, hyacinth, cypress, moss

This is a scented garden drawn from the perspective of someone who, eyes drawn to a cool shaded corner, has launched herself into and across a wide lawn and thrown herself down on the grass. She did not pass time in detached strolling and admiring from a paved walkway, no she ran straight in to be amongst the damp greenery, to experience dark cushions of moss and inhale the loamy smell.

Mito Vero Profumo Grassy Girls Peter Sheik FlickrPhoto Stolen Flickr

Here where she lies there’s a grassiness and I won’t say wetness, lest you imagine it aquatic, but a damp and earthy mossiness. As she lies looking up through branches to a clear autumn sky, wafts of ripe fallen fruit reach her from the ground beneath nearby trees. The fruit is rich, full and ripe, but not over-ripe or winey in the way of Roudnitska’s Femme or Parfum du Thérèse, instead this is fruit that has fallen full of juice and most certainly split upon landing to release the complex uncultivated aroma of something like a guava.

Flowering trees most certainly grow in this garden, she lies distant from them, their fragrance reaching her on the breeze. It is one of the particular achievements of this fragrance that the sometimes heavy florals of tuberose and champaca are here restrained, seeming to float down from their high places. The effect is naturalistic, as though the scent of them truly did waft through on a breeze. They unfurl on my skin, mirroring perhaps how the fragrance of blooms in sunshine becomes warmer and creamier. This mid-afternoon glow carries on for quite a few more hours.

Mito Eau de Parfum

Mito EdP Vero Profumo FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Citruses, magnolia, champaca, jasmine, galbanum, hyacinth, cypress, moss

Here she returns to the garden on a warmer drier day. On this visit she is out in the open walking the paths. In the sunshine pungent volatile oils are releasing on the breeze. There is a resinous pine. Galbanum and verbena fizz and sparkle. The verbena recalls the opening of Jean-Paul Guerlain’s Eau de Guerlain, but where that one continues on a calm and cool trajectory, this Mito whirls and dances on my skin, it’s a live thing! A light fresh jasmine sends its sweet breath her way. As she strolls, her body becomes warmer. The dusty smells of the gravel kicked up by her feet and the muskiness of her own skin mingle with the aromas of the garden.

Mit Vero Profumo Magnolia_blossoms flupf DeviantArtPhoto Stolen DeviantArt

What Vero Kern has done here is a minor miracle, she has composed two beautiful observational perfumes. They are clearly pictures of the same garden seen in different seasons. They come with my highest recommendation and a warning to wear only if it is safe to be distracted by the beauty for several hours.

Further reading: Val the Cookie Queen at Australian Perfume Junkies

LuckyScent has the range
First In Fragrance has the range
Surrender To Chance has samples and decants of a range of the Vero Products

Pray tell, have you experienced the holy sweet waters of Saint Kern?

Go in peace,
Sister Mary Magdelene, Patron Saint of Perfumers

Aqua Sextius by Cécile Zarokian for Jul et Mad Paris 2014

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OK Happy Huffers,

Today a beautifully presented silver spray sample arrived from the Jul et Mad crew. Can I tell you from the beautiful and detailed packaging that I already feel like I am having an uber luxe experience. It all feels so finished and thought out. Then I went to look up the perfumer Cecile Zarokian whose name rang only faint bells for me till seeing that she has been quite prolific and done some fragrances I know well: Amouage Epic Woman, Tango for Masque and Pink for Undergreen. Curiouser and curiouser I decided to do a first spritz piece for you today. Come with me and try ….

Aqua Sextius by Cécile Zarokian for Jul et Mad Paris 2014

Aqua Sextius Jul et Mad Paris FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Citrus zests, bergamot, mandarin, orange, grapefruit, tea notes, mimosa blossom
Heart: White flowers, sea notes, fig, pine tree resin
Base: Labdanum, amber(gris), cedar, guaiac wood, oak moss, musk

So the structure reads very much like a chypre, lets call it a modern chypre. The fragrance is in parfum concentration and I have to give a big fat bravo to Jul et Mad for doing 5ml, 20ml and 50ml bottles. It means that you can test, enjoy and have choice to suit your budget. So important now that fragrance is becoming increasingly expensive.

How does Aqua Sextius smell on my skin? Well, the opening is fun and fizzy citrus, very smile inducing and sweet. The mimosa is clean and adds some warmth to an otherwise cool sweetness and the whole opening is effortlessly wearable. I can already imagine it becoming a go-to for the opening alone. I am reminded of another fragrance but can’t put my finger on which one. If summer, or the dream of summer, could have a scent then Aqua Sextius could definitely be it. this is scent of the fun summer that you want always to remember, like a scent-track.

FigsPhoto Stolen Wikipedia

It’s not long before we get salty fig and resins, here there is a soft, elegant reminder of Womanity; sensual and not in your face at all like the Mugler. Here we are treated to similar parts but put together for an unstructured creamy linen suit and a pistachio T-Shirt rather than the spiky, shoulder padded, OTT and aggressive tone of Mugler. While Aqua Sextius is infinitely more wearable I think I prefer the Womanity at this point, for me anyway. Aqua Sextius is light and spare, clean and fresh in the modern 2014 new vision of such things. It feels bang up to date and has a lovely sillage. That’s basically how it stays on my skin for hours, just getting quieter and parts of the fragrance slowly falling by the wayside. At every point I find Aqua Sextius very wearable and non confrontational. It is interesting enough for a perfumista, but more importantly I think almost everyone would think this a fabulous gift.

laughingPhoto Stolen WikiMedia

After about 8 hours, yes EIGHT hours, I am left with a slightly salty wood waft that is barely discernible. Very sexy: if I didn’t know better I would think it was my own smell. It’s not my own smell, it is a beautiful mask.

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Colognoisseur
Jul et Mad have 3 sizes all in a Parfum concentration: 5ml/€22.50, 20ml/€95, 50ml/€230 (All with postage inclusive!! To the world)

One of the comments I really love is about the name: Empliau writes, “Aquae Sextiae was the Latin name of Aix en Provence. Aqua is feminine in Latin and requires a feminine adjective. Aqua Sextius is simply impossible and grates upon the ear.”

Have you tried the lovely little beastie?
Portia xx

 

GUCCI Oud by GUCCI 2014: Ad Campaign

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Here it is gang,

Here is the thing that almost NONE of us have been waiting for. Yes, Gucci is releasing an Oudh fragrance. It’s being sold as a Gucci by Gucci flanker. My fingers are crossed, maybe it will surprise us all. To be fair I always get people sniffing about and asking when I wear GUCCI Guilty and even GUCCI Envy Me II is nice. GUCCI by GUCCI is a real lovely floral amber spritz. Maybe it will be nice…

Portia xx

GUCCI Oud by GUCCI 2014

Gucci Oud Gucci FragranticaPhotos Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Pear, raspberry, saffron
Heart: Bulgarian rose, orange blossom
Base: Oud, patchouli, amber, musk

Lolita Lempicka: Elle L'aime 2013

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 14 Comments

Hey Hey APJ,

Today we are wandering the mainstream halls of department stores. Yes it’s designer fragrance day and I was surprised to see a lovely new bottle in the designer section last year. Earlier this year I gave myself a quick spritz. Lolita Lempicka is a favourite mainstream house because they are often edgy and boundary pushing. Their original Lolita Lempicka, Lolita Lempicka Au Masculin and L de Lolita Lempicka Coral Flower have been favourites of mine through smelling on my mates. So, how did the new one measure up?

Lolita Lempicka: Elle L’aime 2013

Christine Nagel and Serge Majoullier

Elle L'aime Lolita Lempicka FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, neroli, lime
Heart: Coconut, jasmine, ylang-ylang
Base: Sandalwood, vanilla, myrrh

Can I first say how terrible I think the name is when you aren’t French. Elle L’aime? Isn’t that like “Pretty Lame”? or “So Lame”? What a crap name.

Elle L’aime, for those that are wondering means “It’s Like”. So what is Elle L’aime like? Well, the fragrance is pretty and wearable. The citrus opens with a zing and already there is a beautiful fat coconut note pushing through, it’s very gourmand on my skin. Like a Lemon Meringue Pie with Coconut sprinkles and Vanilla and Biscuit base. All ice cream delicious. Fun.

As the very slightly breathy jasmine and the thick, glutinous, fatty ylang oozes in all slinky-like they are paired very nicely with the citrus remnants and the coconut. Though I am pretty sure there aren’t a LOT of natural parts in this recipe the whole vibe is surprisingly dense and the sillage is quite noticeable though you have to sit somewhere for nearly a minute before the fragrance pushes its way out from you. The jasmine and ylang heart is surprisingly green, maybe remnants of the neroli(?), but it feels like some kind of sappy leaf has been torn and it’s just a hint behind the rest of the fragrance.

I think Elle L’aime will be a perfect first grown up fragrance or a lovely addition to your easy wear, spritz and forget wardrobe. In fact, though they don’t smell much the same I am reminded of Annich Goutal’s Songes, a sugared version made in the 21st century perhaps.

They have done a nice job on the sandalwood, it has some lovely facets of the Australian sandalwood but there’s probably not much of the real deal, if any. It’s warm, buttery and cuddly and has a lovely softly polished age to it that sits very well with the vanilla and of myrrh I can see no sniff or scanty scent. But that could very easily be me, my nose is notoriously wonky.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

The girl in the picture is well chosen as representative. Elle L’aime is pretty, creamy, at once lovely and perfectly groomed, she is probably arriving at the party in this shot and will not change overly throughout the night. I imagine her leaving only very slightly mussed and a little less expectant, perhaps even a little sparkle from the dancing and the kissing. While hard core perfumistas will probably be bored to tears by Elle L’aime because it is in no way challenging or outrageous. If the job of perfume is to smell good then Elle L’aime is doing a good job. I smell lovely right to dry down in well over 5 hours till Elle L’aime is just a quiet hum of something close to nothing….

Further reading: Now Smell This and NYMag: The Cut
FragranceNet starts at $37/38ml after coupon
My Perfume Samples has $2/ml to $7/5ml

Do you ever go mainstream? Which designer fragrance house in department stores will get your attention when you wander through? Do you await a particular crews latest? Does a bottle ever capture your attention?
Portia xx