DSH Perfumes

Deluxe Giverny In Bloom Set GIVEAWAY WINNER

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Post by Portia

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Hiya APJ,

What a sensational giveaway. Thank you to Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for her incredible generosity, and excellent fragrances. What a superstar. Please go and have a look at the DSH Perfumes site.

Portia xx

Giverny In Bloom GIVEAWAY WINNER

Giverny in Bloom DSH Perfumes FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x The deluxe Giverny In Bloom discovery set: 4 x 3ml atomisers:
Giverny In Bloom EdT (only the dregs)
La Danse des Bleus et des Violettes EdT
l’Opera des Rouges et des Roses EdP
Le Jardin Vert EdP
along with a leaflet about the Denver Art Museum exhibit
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 23rd August 2015 10pm Australian EST
Winner was chosen by random.org

Winner EverythingHealthPhoto Stolen EverythingHealth

FlowerGirlBee!

The winner will have till Thursday 27th August 2015 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.

Giverny in Bloom by DSH Perfumes 2015

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Post by Portia

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Hiya APJ,

The set created for Denver Art Museum’s “In Bloom” exhibit:
Giverny In Bloom
La Danse des Bleus et des Violettes
l’Opera des Rouges et des Roses
Le Jardin Vert

Dawn Spencer Hurwitz is one of the world’s best loved independent perfumers. Partly that’s because she makes seriously fabulous fragrances but I also think that her nature and lovely genuine responses whenever I’m in touch with her adds 100% to that appeal. She sent me a pack of pre-releases back in June and at some point I must have put it in a box which was then packed away for the big move. We found quite a lot of important stuff in this box and I think Jin had done a bit of packing while I was at work one night. Anyway, found it now and really excited because one scent in particular from the set of four has me completely under its spell.

Giverny in Bloom by DSH Perfumes 2015

Giverny in Bloom by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Giverny in Bloom DSH Perfumes FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Ambergris, Australian sandalwood, bergamot, vetiver, bulgarian rose, cabreuva, carnation, civet, damask rose, soil tincture, Indian patchouli, rose geranium, beeswax, lime (linden blossom), galbanum, jasmine, oakmoss, heliotrope, green leaves, lemon, mimosa, orris, parma violet, peony, petitgrain, pine needles, red rose, palisander rosewood, jasmine sambac, lilac, Tunisian neroli, violet, violet leaf, Virginian cedar

On first spritz galbanum is king, quickly replaced by a woodsy white floral, cool and sharp that is cut through with a really lovely cut grass and earthy turned compost. There is so much happening in Giverny In Bloom and so much a fragrance of itself, built in big sweeping light filled strokes and made poignant by almost speckled bit players that both flesh out and buoy the composition. I am lost happily in  a wash of fragrance that you really need to stand back a bit from so that the riot of colliding pieces have a chance to become an olfactoric picture. I think it’s the loveliest green I’ve ever smelled. It beats even Nikki de Saint Phalle which was my favourite. So nuanced and beautifully balanced, artfully walking the green resinous line.

Giverny In Bloom softens off to a very quiet hum after a couple of hours yet still manages to make me smell fresher than I am. Pretty.

Giverny in Bloom DSH Perfumes Flowers in a Crystal Vase, Edouard Manet WikiCommonsPhoto Stolen WikiCommons

From DSH Perfumes site: Created for Denver Art Museum’s “In Bloom” exhibit ‘scent experience’, a gorgeous green and live flower bouquet fragrance was created to evoke the artist’s beloved flower garden.
Be transported through time and space to a moment in Monet’s flower garden at Giverny. An impressionist style perfume of green budding trees, wet dewy flowers and soil, that transforms to a rich floral bouquet as it wears.

I have just ordered a 10ml EdT from Dawn, this shit is freaking amazing.

Giverny in Bloom DSH PerfumesPhoto Stolen DSH Perfumes

DSH Perfumes has 3 fragrance strengths for Giverny in Bloom, Eau de Toilette, Voile de Toilette & Extrait plus there is a room spray and body butter. It’s a totally cool way to present a set and the only thing that could make it better was if there was bubble bath. They are available from DSH Perfumes in a variety of sizes and range from $5-155

In Bloom: Painting Flowers in the Age of Impressionism
Denver Art Museum’s “In Bloom” exhibit
July 19, 2015 – October 11, 2015
Hamilton Building – Level 2 — Ticketed, free for members. Purchase tickets online or call 720-913-0130.

SUPER exciting giveaway today, see below,
Portia xxx

giveaway kbairdPhoto Stolen kbaird

Deluxe Giverny In Bloom Set GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x The deluxe Giverny In Bloom discovery set: 4 – 3ml mini-sprayers of: Giverny In Bloom EdT (only the dregs), La Danse des Bleus et des Violettes EdT, l’Opera des Rouges et des Roses EdP, Le Jardin Vert EdP along with a leaflet about the Denver Art Museum exhibit.
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 (portia underscore turbo @ yahoo dot com dot au) 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 go to DSH Perfumes site<<JUMP and pick a fragrance + one of its notes NO DOUBLE UPS!!!

Extra Chance?
Tweet: Giverny In Bloom Set GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-4bK @DSHperfumes

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 23rd August 2015 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winner will be chosen by random.org
The winner will have till Thursday 27th August 2015 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.

DSH Perfumes: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

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Post by FeralJasmine

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Quick mentions: new favorites from DSH

Sorry Junkies, I got a very late start on this post and have to make it brief, but I wanted to mention a few things that I’m enjoying during this lovely holiday season. It’s no secret that I admire Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and, although I’ve only sampled a small part of her compendious and addictive line, I have some loves there. So here are a few that seem especially suited to the holidays:

DSH Perfumes: Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Mahjoun DSH Perfumes FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

DSH Perfumes: Cimabue

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Neroli, nutmeg, cardamom, bergamot, amalfi lemon, bitter orange, clementine
Heart: Carnation, jasmine, geranium, tuberose, beeswax, saffron, clove, cinnamon, rose
Base: French labdanum, sandalwood, opoponax, benzoin and vanilla

I seem to recall hearing somewhere that Cimabue smells like Safran Troublant to some people. I’m not one of them. Certainly the rose and saffron are there, but the cardamom is pronounced in Cimabue, while its lovely companion notes prevent it from going dusty, as cardamom is prone to do. Spicy and sweet, it’s a delicious holiday treat. The sillage is particularly delicious, and I only wish that it were a bit stronger. Many of the DSH perfumes hug their wearer closely, and I could stand a bit more potency myself.

DSH Perfumes: Mahjoun

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bitter almond, cardamom, cherry blossom, lavender, lemon, orange
Heart: Bulgarian rose, fig, hazelnut, honey, nutmeg, orange blossom, sugar date
Base: Amber, cedar, cinnamon, clove, olibanum, sandalwood, Arabian myrrh

This one is pure rich luscious honey. To my surprise it doesn’t have much beeswax or hive scent, which I think of as the natural adjuncts to honey. Just all honey all the time. Listed notes include citrus, cedar, and Amber, but mostly I just smell honey. I like it by itself, and I also like to spray it over more austere ambers to give them a touch of holiday sweetness and joy. If I’m in the mood for a real hive scent, I may dab on a trace of beeswax absolute and overspray with Mahjoun.

Vanilla Cinnamon home fragrance DSH PerfumesPhoto Stolen DSH Perfumes

DSH Perfumes: Vanilla Cinnamon

DSH Perfumes gives these featured accords in one line:
Cassia, Cinnamon Bark, Cinnamon Leaf, Clove Leaf, French Vanilla, Spice, Sweet, Sweet Cream, Vanilla, Vanilla Absolute, Vanillin

DSH has just started offering room scents, and this is the only one that I’ve tried so far. It’s offered in a regular or small travel-sized reed diffuser. The notes are summed up in the name, but it is somehow much lovelier than I expected. It’s also rather light and subtle, a far cry from the “cinnamon bun” scents that make the air at the mall so gooey. I love it on the coffee table, and I’ve been known to use one of the reeds to dab a bit on my wrist before drinking my morning coffee. Yum. You need to try this one if you have any taste for vanilla scents.

DSH Perfumes site has a wonderful selection of fragrances and an excellent Sample System starting at as low as $4

A joyous winter solstice to all of you, enjoy the long dark fragrant nights, and make sure to find a little of the quiet repose that winter seems made for.
Have you tried any of the DSH Perfumes?
FeralJasmine x

Pink Gardenia by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes review

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Post by FeralJasmine

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Some of my earliest memories of growing up in Louisiana involve gardenias. My mother had a big bush in the front yard, and I can recall at about age 4 moving nearer to an open flower, then away, then closer again, testing the scent at different distances. Sheer bliss. True gardenia scents are still my favorite, and I want them realistic. Accordingly, I am a sucker for any gardenia scent that comes along. At least, for sampling. I have finally learned that over 90% of them are major disappointments, and I no longer EVER blind-buy bottles of new gardenia perfumes. I think I have gotten most of my gardenia errors to new homes, but there may still be a few in the back of the closet, silently mocking my gullibility.

Pink Gardenia by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes

My Gardenia Fetish part III: DSH Pink Gardenia

Pink Gardenia DSH Perfumes FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot
Heart: Gardenia, tuberose
Base: Ambergris and musk

No doubt I will continue to sample new gardenia scents as they emerge, but there are a few favorites that I regularly wear and count on to scratch my gardenia itch. The tragically discontinued Tom Ford Velvet Gardenia is my favorite nighttime scent, and in the daytime I love to float around in Dawn Spencer Hurwitz’s Pink Gardenia. She has a few gardenias, but the Pink is the closest to the real thing. The eau de parfum is a lovely soft sweet gardenia that soon settles down fairly close to the skin. Real gardenias in their homeland have a definite fungal undertone that smells a bit like moist Southern loam. When a gardenia scent seems “not real,” often it’s because the scent is too clean. Pink Gardenia has a bit of the fungal note, but it’s faint. This one will evoke the flower but won’t cause your coworkers to wrinkle their noses.

Pink Gardenia DSH Perfumes Gardenia Tatters FlickrPhoto Stolen Flickr

The Pink Gardenia parfum is rich, intense, and comes across as slightly less clean. It is a fully opened flower, lovingly placed on your skin by your lover’s hand. It wears close and soft and dries down to a glorious skin scent. I want this one badly, but what I want to do with it is put it all over myself, and at over $100 for 5ml I can’t afford that. Unless I were to use the whole bottle in one gorgeous binge, and oh, how I enjoy fantasizing about that. But it is lovely and hypnotic and covetable, and you can bet that it’s on my “to buy” list.

Pink Gardenia DSH Perfumes Gardenia oom_endro PixabayPhoto Stolen Pixabay

Further reading: Now Smell This and
DSH Perfumes starts at a $5 sample vial, for $80/30ml EdP

I have already written to Ms. Hurwitz expressing my hope that she will never discontinue this scent. The EdP is my own bottle (likely the first of many) and a small sample of the parfum was kindly provided by the perfumer. My opinions remain firmly my own, especially when it comes to gardenias.

FeralJasmine xx

Oude Arabique by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes

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Hello my APJ Family and Friends,

As you may have noticed I love the independent perfumers that make good fragrances. Dawn Spencer Hurwitz is one of them for me, her work is innovative, original, fun and sometimes challenging. She can take a tired note and refresh it so even the most jaded of palettes will be brought back to full attention.

Oude Arabique by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes

Oude Arabique DSH Perfumes FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Tolu balsam, resin, mastic
Heart: Agarwood, incense, sandalwood
Base: Australian sandalwood, buddahwood, Himalayan cedar, tolu balsam

So straight out of the decant I get a very heavy Pine-o-Clean disinfectant note that lasts about 5 seconds and then turns into a medicinal, bitter scent that lasts under a minute. It’s ferocious and fun. Sadly it doesn’t last and the whole fragrance softens off considerably. My advice is take a deep breath and spritz, letting your breath out very slowly if you want to miss the opening fireworks. Give Oude Arabique at least 30 seconds to burn off before your initial sniff.

Oude Arabique DSH Perfumes prophets-mosque FotoCommunityPhoto Stolen FotoCommunity

I am unsure about the oudh here, it smells pretty damn real to my nose (which we have ascertained over two years is not always on point). There is a faint hint of bandaid and barnyard but really the resins and woods are the stars in Oude Arabique for the main part. They are raw and fresh hewn, only slightly buttery through the heart of the fragrance and the resins supply some fat and animalics. I read in one review that there is some ambergris floating around which could be the something tangy and beachy, working with the oudh to create an extremely pleasant fragrance that is obviously niche and with what smells like some quality natural ingredients too. Subtle, nuanced and pretty yet still a fragrant wear, projection is not huge but you do change the air around you if you sit for some time. It’s a creeper of a fragrance, sending out woodsy tendrils to capture the unwary. About 2 hours of fragrant before going close and then another couple of hours humming on your skin softly, waiting for someone to come close enough before it can lure them in.

Oude Arabique DSH Perfumes bath_house WikipediaPhoto Stolen Wikipedia

Although this would generally be thought of as a masculine any women with the want could definitely rock this like crazy. I’d love to smell it on some of my very girly girlfriends, it would create a super interesting disconnect that would be incredibly alluring. MMM My mind is wondering who of my friends to take it to.

Further reading: EauMG and All I Am A Redhead

DSHPerfumes has EdP and Parfum strengths starting at $5
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $11/ml

SUNDAY QUICKSNIFF REVIEWS #8

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Hey Hey Scentabillys,

Click here for more graphics and gifs!

The Sunday QuickSniff Review page is opened on Monday morning and every time I spritz and am near the computer I’ll give a 3 sentence review with a rating out of 5 each for, well, see the key after the reviews. Often these are samples I’ve bought or had sent to me by friends, or a FB that I may fully review later, or have done before and want to remind you of its existence. Just sniffs done quick, it’s Sunday, I’m relaxing with my dogs and buddies. I hope you’re having a good one too.

SOUS LE VENT  by GUERLAIN 1933. AHHHH Chypre, designed for and around the incredible Josephine Baker. The citrus as it opens, fresh and due to the lavender and tarragon herbal, almost masculine in its spareness and jolting briskness. It’s not long before the flowers make their presence known but it’s a cool, fresh, green bouquet with an aloof jasmine, carnation and basil. I missed the full base because I went to bed but this morning there is still a minuscule whiff of woods, soft soft soft something, maybe vanilla? PerfumePosse starts at $6.5/ml Ebay has a vintage bottle $3000  S=***** L=**** D=****

JITTERBUG EdP by DSH New Creations 2003. Jitterbug came as a 1ml extra “Thank You” sample in an order from DSH and is designed to be a glamorous memory scent like the ones your Mum and Grandma used to wear, that smelled so delicious and was laden with extraordinary amounts of love. Well they hit this one way out of the ball park because POW! everything warm and cuddly and curled up on the couch together watching TV are here. There is Mum, her clothes, her hair spray, her busy day body odours (not bad, just life) like hair, pits and breath. DSH Perfumes starts at a $4 sample S=**** L=*** D=****

HONEY BLOSSOM by THE BEEHIVE. I can’t work out where this 1ml carded sample came from, I thought it was an AVON that my mate Penny had given me? If you like Dior’s Miss Dior Cherie then this is for you and a quarter the price, it’s like wearing a Fruit Tingle………… sorry just had to swallow a bit of puke in the back of my throat. Just went out and patted the dogs and their smell has added a reasonable depth to the fragrance, I still hate it, sorry. Parfum1 has 100ml $35  S=*** L=** D=*

FLEUR ORIENTAL by MILLER HARRIS 2000. A soft, modern floriental. Totally wearable, not too in your face so could be worn at work while still feeling scented. It gets more interesting and warms up beautifully on your body with unexpected caramel depths and cool flower descant, there is a spiciness here too, lovely. FragranceX has 100ml EdP $80  S=**** L=*** D=****


Photo Stolen from shirtsays

Scent, Obviously the number 1 priority here is how does it smell. My reviews are completely subjective and will differ widely from your own experience with the scent but it’s a good starting point. As yet I am not a trained perfumer so any and all descriptions are merely that, descriptions. There are plenty of blogs that offer technical details and chemistry, in 3 sentences I’ll pass.
Longevity, This is a biggie for me because like enfleurage where flower petals are left in fats to steal the scent, my fatty body works the same and eats it up, yum. So for a scent to last well on me, it will probably last a whole day on you and need a radioactive decontamination shower to defuse it from your skin.
Desirabilty, Wrapped up in this is scent, price, house, history, longevity, packaging, availability and a billion other things.

Photo Stolen from bittbox

* in any of these being the, “You couldn’t pay enough to spray this God awful stink on me again, it smells like public toilets in India, long time fridge malfunction while on Summer holiday and the vile stench of poverty all rolled into one.” You are putting innocent people in danger if you wear this.
** means it’s a nothing, wearable, boring, maybe the price is prohibitive for what you get or it’s ubiquitous. You should definitely get a sample of this to stop a buying boo boo.
*** is a perfectly good product that smells good and lasts a while at a decent price. You should definitely think about trying a sample or squirt but should you miss out your life will continue. Sample size worthy.
**** is the one you try, want a lot but can wait for a birthday/Christmas. It’s better than most of the stuff you’ve sniffed and may fill a void in your library. This is also an excellent decant product 5ml will get you through the season and maybe buy it next year.
***** meaning, stop reading this, grab your cash, credit card (or partners), roll the elderly or rob a petrol station and purchase this product. NOW! If you don’t have this fragrance you could die.

With a bit of luck you’ve found something to be a lemming for but if not your wallet will thank you. How has your weeks scent sniffing gone? What delicious bits and pieces did you try this week?

Portia xx