Scent Diary 9.2-15.2.2026

Portia

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Hello Australian Perfume Junkies and friends, week 2 of the modern Scent Diary.

Hoping you enjoy it and will let me know what’s happening in your lives too. What I really loved about Scent Diary was the interaction with perfumistas around the world, and their interactions with each other. Scent Diary became a conversation hub and it was epic.

Jin and I have made so many friends, near and far, through perfume. So let’s reunite the old and welcome some new friends too.

Scent Diary

Scent Diary: 9.2-15.2.2026

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New Sniffs: 11.10.2018

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Portia

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Hey Hey Perfume Junkies,

The idea is that anything worthy of comment, either good or bad, that’s passed under my nose through the week will get a short write up. Up till now I have kept APJ positive comments only, those days are gone. If I think something is terrible, shamefully lazy, greedy or stupid and you should know about it, it will be said. Not everything works for everyone and it would be pretty boring if it did >>> YMMV. I’d love it if you all agree, respectfully disagree, have any thought-out opinion and want to share, do so in the comments below. The point is starting a conversation.

New Sniffs Aug 2018 Continue reading

Scent Diary: 24.9 – 30.9.2018

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Portia

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Hey there APJ Crew,

It’s official. I am now HAWAII. Yes, I’ve reached the 50th state of birthdays. What a week. Saw so many people, did wonderful things, wore ALL the perfumes and had Aunty Tracey down to stay. This week has been one of the very good ones. Almost every day looking around at the people in my life it is the happiest of surprises how wonderful they all are. Every one of them with some divine spark. It is the people around us that bless us.

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Scent Diary: 6.8 – 12.8.2018

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Portia

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Hey there APJ Crew,

Jin and I are back living together. We had the kids by themselves, they left yesterday, and I know it’s hard to believe but I have NO COMPLAINTS! They were not perfect, who is?, but they were respectful, tidy and very low maintenance. I also like the people they are turning into. Now that their English is conversational life is much easier. My Korean is still about 20 words, so obviously I’m not helping matters.

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Rose Alcane by Amélie Bourgeois and Anne-Sophie Behaghel for Aether 2016

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Portia

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Hiya Frag Heads,

The Aether brand is created scent for the 21st century that manages to remain beautiful, interesting and wearable. Modern is their catch cry, these guys use nothing but captured and created molecules in their scents. Every time I wear one of their perfumes I’m more swayed towards their concept.

I grabbed this decant from Surrender to Chance recently.

Rose Alcane by Aether 2016

Rose Alcane by Amélie Bourgeois and Anne-Sophie Behaghel

Rose Alcane Aether fragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Rose, green notes, metallic notes

Lick a cold spoon, put your hand into the fibrous up to 80% recycled glass insulation batts and smell a vintage fur coat in a florist. Now you understand how the opening of Rose Alcane is. A freaky fabulous melange of weird, and it doesn’t stop here. As all that burns off the rose becomes more prominent, but not a garden rose, not the glamorous rose of La Fille de Berlin or Mohur, not even the sweet rose of LUSH Rose Jam, patchouli intense Agent Provocateur or heady, oud filled Montale offerings. Here the rose is made of crystal, with metal thorns on torn stems and leaves.

The guys at Aether have discovered the Space Rose and brought it back from a galaxy far, far away. No, they have in fact been to the Rose Center for Earth and Space by Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest, New York and used the modern stylings to centre their fragrance on.

This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID highsm.04003. This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.WikiCommons

After about 30 minutes the whole of Rose Alcane warms through. I’m picking up a salty woodiness and hints of jammy rose, hot sand and super clean stainless steel kitchen bench tops.

If you really love to smell roses in the garden and expect your fragrance to mimic that then you need to go elsewhere. Rose Alcane is a future fragrance now. I would love to smell this on people that wear suits to work, it would be sensationally ironic, and I also think it would fly under the fragrance radar because it smells so decidedly other.

Rose Alcane by Aether NGC 2244 Rosette Nebula WikiCommonsWikiCommons

Further reading: Scented Salamander and BL’eauG
Aether, First In Fragrance, Harvey Nichols and Twisted Lily all stock Aether
Surrender to Chance has samples starting from $3.60/0.5ml

What do you think? Love your rose a bit freaky?
Portia xx