Dorothee Piot

Figment Woman by Dorothée Piot, Karine Vinchon-Spehner for Amouage 2017

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

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Erica Golding

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Hi everyone! I hope you are having the most gorgeous day.

As for myself, I’m enjoying yet another knock-me-over-with-a-feather moment thanks to an aromatic marvel. However, the magic of this perfume is not from drama and fireworks and bombastic notes; rather, its spell is cast by subtly enhancing a popular floral absolute just enough to launch it into the night sky.

Tuberose.

Now, I know you may be thinking that this beloved blossom has graced an infinite range of fragrances, and who needs yet another Tuberose when you’ve got Fracas and Carnal Flower and La Chasse Aux Papillons?

Trust me, you’re going to want to get your nose on the just-released:

Figment Woman by Amouage 2017

Figment Woman by Dorothée Piot and Karine Vinchon-Spehner

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Sichuan pepper, saffron, gardenia
Heart: Tuberose, jasmine, orange blossom, lily, ylang-ylang, cassia bourbon
Base: Orris, papyrus, incense, patchouli

I was skeptical when I lifted the cap from my decant and inhaled a first impression. Instantaneously, all that registered with me was a pleasant tuberose note that, although pretty, was not piquing my interest. I placed the little glass vial on my nightstand and almost forgot about it, except for the fact that the warm spring breeze drifting through my window began to carry wafts of an enchanting scent, beckoning for my attention. It didn’t take long for me to realize that this beauty deserved skin time, immediately!

Figment Woman Amouage old-window-distressed PublicDomainPicturesPDI

How does it smell?
Wet on the skin, jasmine slinks seductively, sexy and sultry. Orange blossom kisses the top of the fragrance with an effortless freshness, softly cheerful. The tuberose in the heart is of exceptional quality. This is genuine high grade absolute, delicate yet intense, a sweetness that flirts with the edge of imbalance but never tips the scales.
At the base of the fragrance, I sense a whisper of oakmoss amongst the rich yet very quiet and subtle resins. The bottom of this composition is understated. I don’t explicitly pick up on patchouli or incense as components of Figment Woman, they accent the aroma with exquisite grace and moderation.

Amouage Figment Woman is a lovely, attractive perfume that is perfectly pleasant for office/daytime wear, while also exhibiting magnetic properties making it a lovely choice for a hot summer night. I would wear it whenever, wherever, truly! It probably sings a little better in warmer weather but honestly it’s just so damn pretty that I can’t imagine it matters very much.

Figment Woman Amouage doll Ventus17 PixabayPDI

Further reading: Perfume Posse

Does it read like something you’d wear?

With love and light,
Erica

J'ai Fait un Reve – Elle by Dorothée Piot for Majda Bekkali 2010

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

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Post by FeralJasmine

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The main thing that I remember about childhood vacations in Florida was the extraordinary scent of orange blossoms. The cottage that we rented was rural at that time, and when I left the house early in the morning I could nearly always smell orange trees blossoming nearby. That extraordinary mix of hypnotic sweetness and underlying spice and indoles is not something that I will ever forget. I love a lot of orange blossom perfumes, but to interest me they have to be fairly complex and have enough sweetness to at least somewhat resemble the real thing. Orange Blossom is a traditional bridal flower both because of its sweet and innocent aspects and its underlying narcotic properties. Drifting along like an angel, it wafts hints of the demonic and the damned. That’s for me.

J’ai Fait un Reve by Dorothée Piot for Majda Bekkali 2010

J’ai Fait Un Reve - Clair (Elle) Majda Bekkali LuckyScentPhoto Stolen LuckyScent

LuckyScent gives these featured accords in one line:
Petitgrain, elemi, cumin, currant leaves, orange blossom, jasmine, lisylang, castoreum, white musk, white cedar, guaiac, leather, labdanum, incense, papyrus

I always become fervently interested in Orange Blossom perfumes in late winter, and this year I am loving J’ai Fait un Reve Elle by Madja Bekkali. The notes are simple enough. There are drifts of orange blossoms, a few fruits hanging in the background, the sweet white musk (on the clean side) underlying the flowers, a bit of petitgrain, with the whole given a sensual undertone by a hint of cumin.I am no fan of cumin in perfumes, but this is very subtle and really well done. It has a quality of movement on the skin that reminds me of the blossoms blowing gently in an early morning breeze. Right now, I can’t get enough of it. My orange blossom addiction usually crashes by late February, so this is a time-limited pleasure, and I use it to the hilt while it lasts.

J’ai Fait Un Reve - Clair (Elle) Majda Bekkali Orange_Blossom WikipediaPhoto Stolen Wikipedia

I suspect that J’ai Fait un Reve will have a difficult time finding its audience, or maybe the audience is rather limited. It isn’t elegant and structured like 24, Faubourg. It isn’t a cuminy skank bomb like Rubj. It isn’t indolic, cumin-laden, and narcotically sweet like the SL Fleurs d’Oranger, and it isn’t a sweet delight like the Houbigant Orangers et Fleurs with its absurdly pretty nutmeg note. I love all of these except Rubj and will be wearing them constantly for the next month. But I reach for J’ai Fait un Reve more often than any of the others, simply because, right now, it smells like my orange grove, the one where I long to be lying, within hearing distance of the sea.

J’ai Fait Un Reve - Clair (Elle) Majda Bekkali Jacek Yerka PlayingWithSpacesPhoto Stolen PlayingWithSpaces

Further reading: Now Smell This (the whole line overview)
LuckyScent has $125/50ml (Currently the 120ml is on special for $125)

Dream with me, gang! What orange grove scent do you long to lounge in right now?
FeralJasmine x

Chambre Noire by Dorothee Piot for Olfactive Studio 2011

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

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Post by TinaG

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Hi APJ,

The concept behind Olfactive Studio is the interplay between imagery and perfume – a picture can tell a thousand words, so can a perfume capture the essence of time and place. It is this junction where the two meet that is Olfactive Studio’s creative space. Each of Olfactive Studio’s five fragrances are the result of teamwork between a photographer and a perfumer, working together to capture not only a moment, but the interplay of thought and emotion around that moment.

Chambre Noire Olfactive Studio photoPhoto Stolen Olfactive Studio

Chambre Noire by Dorothee Piot for Olfactive Studio 2011

Chambre Noire Olfactive Studio FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Schinus (pink peppercorn)
Heart: Jasmine, papyrus, violet, incense, prune
Base: Sandalwood, patchouli, musk, vanilla, leather

Chambre Noire is another name for “Camera Obscura”, the first type of box camera using pinhole light exposure so there is a bit of mystery, play of light and dark and what is revealed in shadowy corners. The photograph that this fragrance was designed in conjunction with is a barely lit hotel room, the reflections revealing more about the room itself than the direct view.

On first opening I get a big waft of violet and sandalwood and what I think is amber, although it is not listed in the notes. Within 10 minutes the violet had dropped away, with incense, shinus and a woody scent that I can’t really place. Schinus is the genus of pink peppercorns, and are not related to ‘true’ pepper, in that pink pepper does not contain the fiery piperine of true pepper. Shinus has warm, fragrant, bright and uplifting qualities. I managed to get hold of some the other day, and could quite happily chew a few pink berries without my mouth slowly catching on fire.

Chambre Noire Olfactive Studio Pink_Peppercorns WikiMediaPhoto Stolen WikiMedia

After 2 hours the violet & light florals make a return, along with some very gentle leather and the sandalwood humming in the background. A warm sensual mix, in a kick off your high heels & chat over a glass of wine kind of way. The feeling I get from it is more one of companionship rather than a mysterious liaison, like winding down for the day, but with enough of a zing in the air to keep conversation flowing.

The dry down at 4 hours has musk and vanilla joining sandalwood, which gently linger until it fades to a faint memory. I would wear Chambre Noir when going out with a small group of friends on weekends, or give myself a pick-me-up spritz in anticipation of Friday night after-work drinks.

Chambre Noire Olfactive Studio fragrancePhoto Stolen Olfactive Studio

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Smelly Thoughts
First In Fragrance has €125/100ml and €4/3ml samples
Olfactive Studio has $195/100ml Delivered to Australia

Have you tried Olfactive Studio’s fragrances? Did any of them stand out for you?

Tina G xx