Hypnotic Poison EdT by Annick Menardo for DIOR: 1998 version

July 28, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 66 Comments

Post by Azar

Today’s review and give-away were supposed to have been about the contents of a very large bottle of an historic Italian EdT. I have decided to reserve judgment on this fragrance until I get to know it better. There is plenty of juice to play with. I have been spraying it liberally on myself, on B-Azar, Fender, on the towels and linens and have even considered using it as a room freshener. Needing a substitute victim for this post I began digging around in the chaos of my perfume storage and came upon something red, black and squat, about 50% remained in the 100 ml bottle. Just one spray filled the room with romantic memories. – the original version of Dior Hypnotic Poison, EdT.

Hypnotic Poison EdT by DIOR

Hypnotic Poison by Annick Menardo: 1998 version

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Apricot, plum, coconut
Heart: Tuberose, jasmine, lily-of-the-valley, rose, brazilian rosewood, caraway
Base: Sandalwood, almond, vanilla, musk

The first version of Hypnotic Poison was created for Dior in 1998 by Annick Menardo (responsible for Lolita Lempicka and Bulgari Black among others).

My immediate experience of HP was rich vanilla and a lot of fruit, a not quite edible compote of plum, coconut and vanilla drying down to jasmine and a bouquet of flowers that were too mixed up to sort out. At the heart bitter almond (the scent of cyanide), caraway, various woods and an impression of spices were reminiscent of the original version of Dior Poison. The startling opening and scary sweet vibe of the first Poison were barely noticeable but still obvious enough to make this semi-gourmand sister scent a truly hypnotic contradiction between the delicious and the dangerous. Hypnotic Poison may have been one of the earlier fruity florals but has very little in common with the syrupy concoctions available today.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

If you happen to have a bottle of this early version gathering dust, resurrect it immediately! I’m sure you will remember, as I did, why you enjoyed it so much. I have no experience with the newer 2008 version – L’Elixir Hypnotic Poison by Francois Demachy. Do you know this one? Does it work for you?

YUM! I am now going to have another spray-bite of this almost poisonous and not really forbidden fruit!

Azar xx

Photo Stolen lavanyasrecipes

Hypnotic Poison EdT GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will each get:
1 x 2 ml spray decant of the 1998 version of Hypnotic Poison EdT
1 x 2ml spray decant of the historic Italian referred to at the beginning of this post
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies via eMail, WordPress, Bloglovin or RSS. Please leave how you follow in the comments to be eligible. I must be able to check that you follow so if you have an email address on your gravatar that’s different to your follow address then please email me so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please leave a comment about your favorite re-discovered oldie and/or your take on any version of Poison or Hypnotic Poison.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Hypnotic Poison EdT: DIOR 1998 #GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-313 @Dior #Perfume

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 31st 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 Sunday 1st 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.

AQABA: New Film Celebration Special.

July 28, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Hi there APJ Crew.

I just received an amazing deal in the mail today and I thought you would all love to get involved. I have enjoyed all the AQABA fragrances that I’ve been lucky enough to sample.

Portia xx

AQABA: New Film Celebration Special

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

We have been invited to share the AQABA journey through the new AQABA Perfume Film

In celebration of the completion of this film, for 3 days, through July 30th, with a minimum purchase of $125.00, receive a complimentary 1oz/30ml of your choice, with AQABA samples included.
Please specify which 1oz/30ml you would like in the Comments section of the Order Form.
Orders can be received at AQABA Site or via email at info@mirani.com

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel GIVEAWAY WINNERS

July 28, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Hi there Perfume Junkies,

I hope you that got on board with this giveaway had some fun with it. I loved reading your stories and can’t wait to see who’s won.
Portia xx

Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Chamomile, aldehydes, orange blossom, bergamot, coriander, palisander, green notes
Heart: Lily-of-the-valley, jasmine, rose, ylang-ylang, tuberose, orris root, carnation
Base: Sandalwood, oakmoss, vetiver, musk, coconut, patchouli

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 4 winners who will each get:
1 x 1.5ml decanted vial Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DID YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell me your own Aromatics Elixir story, or why you would like to try this one.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet #GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-2ZB #Perfume @Clinique_Oz @Clinique_US

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 27th July 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winners will be chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen markmontanoblogs

Jaybee

Patty Pong

SaffyIsHere (Via Twitter)

Jillie

The winners will have till Thursday 31st 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.

Fille en Aiguilles by Christopher Sheldrake and Serge Lutens 2009

July 27, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 20 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey Hos, Frag Hos that is.

Today I am chatting about a fragrance that has been on my radar for a while. I remember testing it when it first came out and LOVING it but I think at the tiome I was financially recovering from some holiday and it was an inconvenient purchase moment so it went on the list. Special thanks to Michael Edwards for gifting me his bottle.

Fille en Aiguilles by Christopher Sheldrake and Serge Lutens 2009

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Pine needles, vetiver, bay leaf, spices, fruit, incense

WHOO HOO! Spices, stewed fruit, pudding. When Fille en Aiguilles opens it is all about food for me and this amazing moment lasts about 5 minutes until the incense comes on in and dries the whole shebang out. The incense is dry and smoky, unisex and rose-ish.

So I never get the pine. I get the FEELING of walking through pine needles. That dry, dessicated, rustle and shimmery crackle of the pine needles under my feet. It’s a soft but freaky feeling underfoot that is both comforting because it was a commonplace experience in my childhood and freaky because I’ve felt nothing on earth yet that I could compare it to. Many of the beaches in Sydney have conifers of one kind or another on their foreshores and we would run through them and kick them and make whole games and stories with our trucks, cars, barbies, whatever was at hand. Instead of the scent of pine needles I get a balsamic vinegar, a sweet and sour edge that is quite alluring, inviting me to stick my head in my T-Shirt and really enjoy the scent.

Photo Stolen TripAdvisor

My skin throws a boozy undercurrent too, maybe it’s the fruit, warmed, sweetened and spiced that reminds me of mulled wine. Actually Fille en Aiguilles goes dry and moist in waves, such an interesting fragrance. Sweet/Sour, Light/Shade, Dry/Moist a multiple contradiction re-proving Sheldrake and Lutens genius partnership. A circular scent that grabs the notes and rearranges them in different groupings and asks you again and again, how about like this, or like this, or like this? You sniff deeply to find out how it smells and by the time you’re ready to sniff it again it has changed itself like a chameleon and you must run to keep up. In the end I let myself float on a sea of Fille en Aiguilles, just a beautiful fragrance that I really love.

I usually get excellent scent longevity from Fille en Aiguilles, though not always and I don’t know why. First hour is pretty big but then it calms beautifully. You will be decidedly fragrant and could easily skunk your office if you aren’t careful. Depending on your work of course, I find it perfect for hosting a trivia night.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Further reading: Smelly Thoughts and EauMG
Beauty Encounter has $89/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/.5ml

I am overwhelmed every time I wear Fille en Aiguilles by its loveliness but it could easily be a comfortable wear for someone who merely wears fragrance, rather than a perfumista. A lovely rich and warm scent and I would have bought my Mum a bottle of Fille en Aiguilles had she still been around and I am pretty certain she would have drained it dry and asked for more.

Have you tried it? Did Fille en Aiguilles sing for you? Was it overwhelming or did you think it too like some of his other releases?
Go on, leave a comment. I love to read your thoughts.

Portia xx

Angel, Thierry Mugler – Making of Film 2014

July 27, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom

Heya APJers,

Recently I showed you the still for the new Angel 2014 campaign but below you will find the Making Of Film. It’s really good and Georgia May Jagger is spectacular as the new face of Angel. It seems a gap in your teeth is the new black. Well I have mine already. YAY! Beware of Angels! Film by Julien Zénier.

Angel, Thierry Mugler – Making-of 2014

Alameda by Aurélien Guichard for Robert Piguet 2013

July 26, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Hi Hi APJ Crew,

There is no reason why but today’s fragrance slipped through the cracks and I never smelled it before. Luckily I was in David Jones (Australia’s loveliest Department Store chain) and my mate Gary at the Libertine counter was wondering what I hadn’t smelled from the Robert Piguet range. Normally I grab and sniff them immediately since Joe Garces, the Piguet CEO (I think he’s still there), came down to Australia and talked us through the range. He was so intensely in love with his product and fiercely proud of it that it made me really appreciate Robert Piguet in a new light. Now I try to give every one of their frags at least a sniff.

Alameda by Aurélien Guichard for Robert Piguet 2013

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot
Heart: Lily, rose, orris
Base: Patchouli, amber, castoreum

WHOOSH! So Alameda opens with a bright, fizzy, sugared orange. It reminds me a bit of the Liberte by Cacharel opening but a little less in your face. There is a warmth to Alameda that is quite vanilla/animal and it’s there right after the burn off of the fireworks. I love this fragrance. My nose gets a lovely refined orris and the whole scent becomes creamy and earthy for a while. Imagine if the softest, finest cashmere scarf feeling was a fragrance: This smell is what I imagine it would be. Both ultra luxe and elegant, warm, inviting yet not bold, not a statement fragrance. Alameda is the smell of coming home to love, now a honeyed sweetness that is mildly naughty, lived in, and perhaps some breathy lily has joined the fun.

From here we get a very clean patchouli and the base notes swirl around together for a while. Alameda stays like this for a while, it’s sexy and wearable. I could imagine it being worn by guys and girls and being a hit for both sexes. There’s a beadhead-ish-ness about Alameda that I find particularly inviting, a whisper of sweat and sleep in the little curls of hair at the back of a head in the morning.

Photo Stolen DeviantArt

No mention of musks in the notes but I think there are. My nose may be playing tricks but there is a very nice clean musk vibe that sits well beside what I imagine is the castoreum. The amber is absolutely non confrontational, smooth, warm and creamy. To be perfectly honest I think the short note list has a load of glaring omissions but as you know my nose tends to get a bit wonky. My head is telling me that some of this creaminess could be coming from a sandalwood and something else a little lactonic, also a lovely almond meal smell. Then all that’s left is a beautiful amber that fades to skin.

So here’s a weird moment. Alameda is not on the Robert Piguet site. I have also trawled the web looking in most of the usual places, retail and discounters, and could only come up with two points of sale. OK I have information from Nick at Libertine. “I think Alamedia is exclusive to the UK but after smelling it I begged for our market to have it. I love it. It’s been such a big seller so far.”

Photo Stolen Flickr

Further reading: Parfumistan and Katie Chutzpah
Libertine Parfumerie has $239/100ml including Australian P&H
Selfridges & Co has £135/100ml

I used the last of my generous sample tonight to write this piece. I can definitely see a bottle of Alameda in my very near future. Thanks to Gary at the Libertine counter in David Jones Market St Sydney for my sample.

Have you tried Alameda? If so what did you think? If not, which of the Robert Piguet line do you like?

Portia xx

Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel by Trudi Loren for Clinique 2006

July 25, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 28 Comments

Hello Gang,

You may or may not know but Michael Edwards, the man who writes the annual frag bible: Fragrances Of The World, recently opened the doors of his home and gave an enormous amount of fragrances away. A lifetimes collecting that he has been trying to give to a museum or collection but sadly no one could take it without it costing him a fortune. I was one of the lucky ones invited in so over the next few months I will be able to write about some fairly obscure or discontinued things. Today I get to write about a flanker to one of my favourite fragrances. There is quite a lot of it strewn around this house in different guises and thanks to Michael I can chat about another…

Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel

by Trudi Loren for Clinique 2006

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Sweet, green, herbal and metallic all at once is how Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel opens on my skin. The gel form is very cool, as in cool and aloof, less boisterous but no less nuanced and lovely. Philtre Sensuelt feels less enormous than the 1971 release Aromatics Elixir fragrance but you will be fragrant. Grandly, deliriously and exceedingly fragrant. I have been dabbing a drop on each hand back and I can smell it for hours, going through its story.There is a little bit of the crazy, hot glamour of Leilani Dowding in Aromatics Elixer usually and this version is no different, a prowling siren both elegant and vampish. A coltish beauty that smells untamed, unfettered, free and liberated.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

We are offered an enormous top, heart and base story in the notes and though Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel does change, the change is not as profound as you would expect reading the list. Even in the farthest reaches of dry down at 9 hours, where it is just the merest hint of itself upon my skin, I can still recognise the fragrances opening fireworks though seriously depleted in heft. Also, the blending and sheer weight of ingredients tends to confuse my clunky nose so I don’t get a note list but a complete fragrance. What I smell most of the wear is Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel as a complete unit, a smell all its own but at times I do get a whiff that I can recognise and pinpoint. Sparkling, metallic, cold spoon in mouth aldehydes, spicy carnation, herbs as a group more than singularly, woods etc do come and go in intensity.

Longevity is good, I can still smell fragrance quite close but noticeable; even after 6-7 hours of sleep. The sillage is less powerful and projection less formidable than the Aromatics Elixir perfume but don’t let that fool you into thinking it’s a retiring wallpaper scent. No, this is a fragrance with personality that hints of world travel and exotic adventure.

I would like to thank Michael Edwards for generously giving me his Clinique: Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel. Don’t forget Michael Edwards Masterclass: Sydney & Melbourne<<JUMP. If you are in Sydney or Melbourne in late July or August 2014 DO NOT MISS THIS. These opportunities do not come along very often….

Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 4 winners who will each get:
1 x 1.5ml decanted vial Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet Philtre Sensuel
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell me your own Aromatics Elixir story, or why you would like to try this one.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Aromatics Elixir Sheer Velvet #GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-2ZB #Perfume @Clinique_Oz @Clinique_US

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 27th 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 31st 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.

Dior Couture Autumn-Winter 2014-15 Fashion Show

July 25, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Hi All,

Raf Simons is doing some wonderful stuff at DIOR. I love his finishes and treatments. He has reinvented the crinoline, interesting sleeves like seed pods for balsam, mini skirts with cool shape-seams and scalloped edges. Coats, gowns, palazzo pants and wide belts. I love the looks and the colours. Here is a 4 minute video of the shows highlights.
Enjoy,

Portia xx

Photo Stolen TelegraphUK (problem using this image, please tell us)

Dior Couture Autumn-Winter 2014-15 Fashion Show

Cologne Sologne by Patricia de Nicolai for Parfums de Nicolaï 1989

July 24, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 5 Comments

Hiya All,

Perfect summer fragrance time for you all in the Northern Hemisphere, and boy do I have a pretty one for you today. So as you may know I was at Michael Edwards fragrance clear out and while looking around I noticed a few very pretty softly rounded bottles with gold ridged caps. Not knowing what the bottle signified I passed them by. Then, one of the bottles label jumped out at me. Odalisque, er, odalisque….. OMG! Patricia de Nicoloai! So immediately I went scurrying back, looking for more but another perfumista must have noted who they were by before me so Olalisque and today’s fragrance were the only two original vintage PdN that I grabbed.

Cologne Sologne by Patricia de Nicolai for Parfums de Nicolaï 1989

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Tunisian neroli, rosemary, orange blossom, benzoin

My worry initially was that Patricia de Nicolai fragrances are famous for short in bottle lifespans so I was affeared that the Cologne Sologne top notes, at least, would be gone. How good lucky I am, the rush of very pretty cologne-esque citrus and blooms that bursts out of the first spritz is lovely. A bright, simple cologne that is smile inducing and has summer all wrapped up in its fragrant folds. I think it would be an excellent summer spritz but here on a Sydney sunny winter day, temperature around 16C, Cologne Sologne is a vivid reminder that spring is coming quickly. Only 5 weeks till the first days of spring. How does time go so quickly?

Photo Stolen Flickr

The orange goes all pithy and has a very soft indolic breathiness after the initial fireworks calm down. I just went out to the rosemary bush at the side of the house and the heart of Cologne Sologne isn’t really like it at all, but I can understand there is a nod to it. By the time I feel like there is any real herbal-ness the benzoin has moved in and created a lovely resinous overlay squashing everything else into bit parts. The warmth is very alluring and with the last gasp of citrus and blossom they play merrily together for a short while smelling like a cashmere shawl feels on a cool summer evening, just enough to warm you through and soft, soft, soft. So the resin is rejoined by the citrus later, or maybe my nose had become used to it. I went away from the computer and pottered around the house doing stuff for about an hour and what’s left is the merest memory of fragrance both citrus and resin that has a decided vanilla-ness to it, pretty much gone really but hovering just above my skin.

Photo Stolen Fotopedia

LuckyScent has 100ml/$40 and samples

It has been lovely wearing a cologne in the cool of a Sydney winter and I can just imagine how lovely Cologne Sologne would be in searing or steaming heat. Though it’s a simple, pretty composition I like its uncomplicated and fresh fragrance. It has a scent story that is both appealing and wearable for both sexes. Nice.

Portia xx

Linden: An Ode to Linden in Fragrance

July 23, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by ElizaD

An Ode to Linden

Not rose, not lilac, not peony, not gardenia, not jasmine, not lavender, not lily, not carnation, not geranium, not mimosa, not freesia, sets my heart a leaping like linden. And many thanks to that wise city planner who years ago planted them along streets and in parks in the town where I live.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

As the days start to grow long and the earth warms, the lindens blossom. The air is magical. As the wind moves, and the sun filters through the leaves, the trees seem to sparkle in their greenness. I could sit under a linden tree for hours watching bees work each tiny burst of cream-colored flower.

Perhaps it is because I love the real fragrance so much that I have been disappointed by the two linden-based scents I have tried. Fragrantica indicates there are many more to sample, but I am afraid each will let me down.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Linden Blond Tabac by Voluspa

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Blond tabac absolute, lime (linden) blossom, tuberose, red grapefruit, woodsy notes, tonka bean

In my collection is a full bottle of Voluspa Linden Blond Tabac. It’s a lovely perfume on its own, sweetness mellowed by tobacco, but it doesn’t smell like linden to me.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Tilleul (Lime or Linden) by D’Orsay

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Lemon blossom, watermelon
Heart: Cyclamen, linden blossom
Base: Acacia tree, bee wax, hay

Tilleul by D’Orsay comes closer, and though it is purported to have a top, heart and base it’s very linear, warming to my skin as I wear it. It has decent sillage and good longevity, and if someone were to gift me with more, I would happily accept. Because now my brain recognizes the smell as the perfume Tilleul, and Tilleul is supposed to be linden, and linden makes me happy.

But I want to open a vial without knowing what I will smell inside, a blind test if you will, and find myself transported onto the grass under a linden. To be wrenched off my forward path to go in search of the tree that emanates such a lovely smell, as I do often when I am riding around town—I think I know each tree within a 2 mile radius of my home.

Is that too much to ask? Does such a thing exist? If you know, pray tell. It’s summer here now, and while the shade of a linden offers a cool respite, and the gorgeous heart shaped leaves still sparkle, the fragrance is just a memory.

Fragrantica has a wonderful article on The history of the Linden

And here is another way one might Experience the “intoxication” of linden flowers

So now it’s up to you. Do you have a favourite Linden Fragrance that I need to try, one that you love particularly or do you have memories of Linden trees too?
ElizaD x

(Ed: Dear ElizaD, you just taught me that Linden Blossoms are not from the citrus fruit bearing plant but a totally different species. I am the complete dumb ass. Ha Ha Ha Laughing. Thank You.)