Fashion

What’s Your SOTD?

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Post by Portia

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Heya Crew,

Anne-Marie is snowed under at work and feeling less than 100% so I’m filling for her today. Fingers crossed for her triumphal return in a fortnight.  We love you Anne-Marie. XX

Anne-Marie, Scott, Portia 18.5.2016 DIORAnne-Marie, Scott & Portia at DIOR, Sydney

Anne-Marie, Scott, Portia 18.5.2016 David JonesAnne-Marie, Scott & Portia at David Jones, Sydney

What’s Your SOTD?

SOTD, SOTE, SOTM, SOTBed???? This acronym had me completely baffled when I first hit the online scent world. It is used everywhere from blogs to Facebook pages and has now become so much part of the fragrance communities conversation that I forget at one point it was meaningless to me.

S.O.T.D. = Scent Of The Day

S.O.T.E. = Scent Of The Evening

S.O.T.M. = Scent Of The Morning

S.O.T.Bed. = Scent Of The Bed

So though Anne-Marie is not with us today I know she will be reading all our replies avidly so let’s include her by telling her exactly what fragrance we are wearing and which acronym applies.

Agent Provocateur Agent Provocateur FragranticaFragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Coriander, Saffron
Heart: Gardenia, Jasmine, Magnolia, Rose, Ylang-ylang
Base: Amber, Musk, Vetiver

So as this post goes live it is S.O.T.E. for me, I have finished work, taken my drag and makeup off and have spritzed over my work scent for tonight which was Mohur by Neela Vermeire Creations with the original Agent Provocateur rose/saffron/woods in the pink egg (I really need to review this baby, it’s becoming a firm favourite. So I thought it was a patchouli frag HA HA HA!) If I was leaving a comment this is how it would look. SOT? acronym, Fragrance, Brief description.

SOTE: Agent Provocateur: Rose/saffron/woods bomb in the pink egg that smells like it has modern patchouli in it to me. Love how this seems to shimmer around me. I imagine people’s noses catching my sillage as I walk past and them looking up from whatever they’re doing to see who smells so good.

So please get on board and drop your Scent Of The Whatever into the comments.

Get work sorted and well Anne-Marie
Portia XXX

Mandarine by Olivia Giacometti for L`Artisan Perfumer 2006

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Post by Portia

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Hello Fragrant Friends,

I’ve had this 5ml decant of Mandarine for years. It has about 1ml left in the bottom so I thought I would use it up this week. When the decant first arrived I used it a lot but when it got down to nearly nothing I thought it should be kept for reference purposes. So when I went to grab it and realising this is my last wear from the decant I began looking for a bottle but BUMMER, D/C. Thank goodness for FragranceNet!

I think I’ve told parts of this story before but it bears repeating, mandarines are special to me for a few reasons. They used to be a perfect play lunch in primary school and became a lunchbox fave through high school too. Then when in India and the whole culture shock drama plays out if I’m lucky enough to be there at mandarine time they are a welcome respite from Indian food and Varun used to go to extraordinary lengths to get them for me. Lastly and most recently Jin loves mandarines, he has a favourite type that comes with a sticker and he looks all winter and ONLY buys these. They are sweet and nearly seedless and come easily away from the rind. Mandarines and their scent have such joyful connotations for me so a fragrance based on them was bound to hit my sweet spot.

Mandarine by L`Artisan Perfumer 2006

Mandarine by Olivia Giacometti

Mandarine L`Artisan Parfumeur FragranticaFragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Green mandarin, Ginger
Heart: Frangipani, Yellow mandarin
Base: Orange, Red mandarin, White cedar

Mandarine is simple, fresh, bright and sparkling. It has a soft pithy fleshiness that works beautifully against the juicy mandarine ripeness. Though I miss most of the ginger it does feel like there are some aldehydes lifting and gently expanding the fragrance. The frangipani reads like of coconut undercurrent my skin too but I am pretty sure it is meant to be the frangipani.

What I am surprised about is that this isn’t a bigger hit. L’Artisan is pretty much a general public fragrance house nowadays and Mandarine seems like it would be very popular as a spritz and go refresher fragrance, it has a lovely holiday vibe without feeling like the now ubiquitous salty jasmine. Not mentioned in the notes but I think there are a fair number of laundry musks in the base too, which seem to be highly sought after in the non perfumista arena.

Mandarine L`Artisan Parfumeur Mandarines WikipediaWikiPedia

Who would wear this? Well, me for one. Other than that I could see it being a really easy wear spring/summer go to or holiday fragrance. After an hour it does calm considerably so it would be very safe for work. Maybe Mandarine is just a bit too much like laundry softener or shampoo for the perfumistas but perfect for a gateway fragrance, or even a first step from the celebuscents. Mandarine is a little like a Guerlain Aqua Allegoria fragrance, maybe too close?

Further reading: Perfume Shrine and Bois de Jasmin
FragranceNet has $71/100ml before Coupon SOLD OUT
Sephora Australia has AUD$145/100ml FREE Delivery

Do you know or love Mandarine? I’d really like to hear from you if you do, how do you wear it?
Portia xx

Aventus For Her by Creed 2016

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Post by Ainslie Walker

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Hey fellow fragrant fanatics!

Have you ever tried NOT to fall in love? Perhaps we all have at some point in our lives; when we meet a kitten or puppy that we can’t keep for ourselves…or the obvious no-no: someone else’s partner. We fragrant fiends do this with perfume. Times you have zero spare money and you read about a fragrance that sounds PERFECT for you…when you enter a boutique, see a new brand and start sniffing, knowing full well you already own enough fragrant juices to fill a medium sized kids pool!

As I opened recently released Aventus For Her, THIS is what came to mind:

Aventus ‘disciples’ forever discuss the “panty dropping” aka sexually captivating nature of Creed’s Aventus. Mimicking wine-vintage buffs they discuss various batch codes being superior to others. To be honest I’ve never ‘got it.’ Released in 2010, Aventus is reported to be the best selling fragrance in Creed’s 250-year history. I find it a bit to macho for my liking, so my knickers remain up in its presence.

Is Aventus For Her cashing in on the aura surrounding its male counterpart and if so is that really so bad?…could it become as legendary?

Aventus For Her by Creed 2016

Wicked Games – Aventus For Her

Aventus for Her Creed FragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Patchouli, green apple, bergamot, lemon, pink pepper, violet
Heart: Mysore sandalwood, rose, musk, styrax
Base: Peach, black currant, lilac, ylang-ylang, amber

On first whiff in Sydney’s Harold’s I recognised a watery green apple note I’ve enjoyed in Creed’s Aqua Originale Geranium Vetiver. I then waited for the infamous pineapple note Aventus is famous for. It didn’t come, yet the hairs in my olfactory system were standing to attention. Sweet yet fresh, I wanted to sniff again, a guilty pleasure…I was hoping not to fall in love. Light, fruity and playful were my first thoughts as I rushed out of the shopping centre.

Today I poured a small manufactures decant on my wrists, chest and a blotter and found myself engulfed in a nice feminine, fruit cloud for the initial hour or so which then turned sweeter to peach and rose, yet remained fresh and quite unisex. Somewhere amongst the first hour or so there was a flutter of powdery goodness. Finally all the ingredients settle into a lovely balanced composition, which then stays pleasantly linear for the rest of the wear.

Aventus for Her CREED Reid_Robert_Lewis_Girl_with_Flowers WikiCommonsWikiCommons

Where would I wear it? Daytime picnic. The Office. A boardroom meeting. A job interview. Seasons? Summer and spring. A nice scent for someone who’s just had a baby or has small children. Would I wear it on a date? I don’t think so – it’s pretty but not sexy or distinctive enough. Outfit? Jeans and blouse, maybe a little tom-boyish/masculine clothes or a cutesy cotton floral dress (girlie) with Dr Martin ankle boots (rock n roll). There’s innocence to this scent alongside a sense of strength.

To celebrate women and the launch of Aventus For Her, Creed has donated $25,000 to “Because I Am Girl”. A charity that empowers supports and educates young girls with programs addressing mental, emotional and physical wellbeing, raising standards in how girls treat themselves, each other and the world.

Aventus for Her CREED Floral Fabric Megan FlickrFlickr

Further reading: Colognoisseur
Libertine Parfumerie has $465/75ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $3/0.5ml

Overall I give it a thumbs up and will definitely wear it some more as the weather warms up. Have you tried it yet? How did you go?

Until next time, Ainslie XX

Gardelia GIVEAWAY WINNERS

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Post by Portia

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Hey Crew,

Thanks to Antonio for his generosity in letting me have some Gardelia to share with you. You are only getting the smallest amount because I don’t have very much and I’m greedily keeping some for myself.

Let’s see who the winners are.
Portia xx

Gardelia GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Gardelia Bogue FragranticaFragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Gardenia, Jasmine, Rose, Tuberose, Frangipani, Magnolia, Civet, Cognac, Geranium

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will receive:
1 x Sample Gardelia by Bogue (a smidge from my sample)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Saturday 30th July 2016 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

winners-are prospectsplus

Tracy

Anna Maria

The winners will have till Wednesday 3rd August 2016 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.

Child Perfume by Susan D. Owens 1990

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Post by Portia

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Hey there APJ,

Over the years I am often told about a fragrance that is used by a bunch of the Hollywood stars as their signature scent, it’s even the first thing that Fragrantica mentions in its blurb. When I was told it though I always seemed to forget which fragrance it was, like my brain was totally disinterested in holding the information. I’d come home & wrack my brains to no avail. Anyway, I came across it on Surrender To Chance and it has the SAME Hollywood Stars bit, Ta DAAAA. We have a winner. Let’s see what al the fuss is about…..

Child Perfume by Susan D. Owens 1990

Child Perfume Susan D. Owens FragranticaFragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Vanilla, Lilac, Magnolia
Heart: Jasmine, Tuberose, Violet
Base: Creamy musk, Rose, Mimosa

OOOOOH! Child Perfume opens with cool, sharp, waxy lilac and the most gorgeous jasmine. Jasmine with all the fat and breath and hefty, heavenly swathes of tuberose. So sharp it could be a cleaning product but also gorgeously alluring and intoxicatingly OTT. It’s reminiscent of the jasmine from my vintage Joy parfums, strident, strong and unstoppable. I’m surprised that Hollywood is wearing something so large and outrageous.

Child Perfume dwarf-crape-jasmine sarangib PixabayPixabay

Jasmine is the Child Perfume star and everything else is merely a supporting player. Jasmine, jasmine, jasmine. Cool, slightly astringent, a little breathy and mildly narcotic. If you close your eyes, put your wrist to your nose and breath slowly in & out it becomes engulfing. Letting my mind drift in that state and I go on fabulous fragrant journeys that are pure fantasy, colours: green, purple, blue, ideas: swimming in a waterhole, in the breeze at the top of a hill, winter in Korea, caught in a summer sun shower, laughing around a table with my mates, visiting Val the Cookie queen in her home town in Austria and walking into the cool of a department store in summer. All of these things, and a few that I couldn’t hold onto, pass through my mind in 20 minutes of huffing this way.

Surprising longevity too. I can still smell a pretty, slightly sharp jasmine and some musks next morning.

Child Perfume is surprising and beautiful. I can see why the Hollywood stars love it.
From Beauty Habit: One of the most sought-after perfumes worn by devoted fans world-wide! Celebrity fans include: Khloe Kardashian, Maggie Smith, Jennie Garth, (she made the famous statement that child drives men wild!) Sigourney Weaver, LeeAnn Rimes, Madonna, Mandy Moore, Jennifer Aniston, Rebecca Gayheart, Christina Applegate, Ashlee Simpson, Britney Spears, Denise Richards, Lindsey Lohan, Tiffany Amber Thiesen, Tori Spelling and John Mayer. This is the original and authentic Child Perfume – not a copycat.

Child Perfume Maggie smith YouTubeYouTube

Further reading: EauMG
Beauty Habit has the range from $68/10ml Rollerball
My Perfume Samples has EdP from $8/ml

Have you tried Child Perfume? What is your jasmine?
Portia xx

Fakhama and Majalis – The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

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Post by Sandra

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Hey there APJ! Today, I would like to introduce you to a new perfume brand which is celebrating the city of Dubai – The Spirit of Dubai. I have been longing to visit Dubai as I can only imagine it to be beautiful, filled with luxury and culture and wonderful architecture. Modern architecture captivates me and to imagine a city with such stunning architecture against a backdrop of desert, sea and sand together with a whole new plethora of sights and smells has me dreaming of making a trip soon.

The niche perfumery in Vienna, Maison de Parfum, showed me The Spirit of Dubai’s initial five perfumes and gave me samples of their two new releases, Fakhama and Majalis. A complete and utter shock awaited my nose when I tested the perfumes because I could not fathom that I would enjoy them so much.

Fakhama and Majalis – The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fakhama The Spirit of Dubai FragranticaFragrantica

Fakhama: The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Turkish rose, Bulgarian rose, fruity notes, agarwood (oud), sweet orange, spicy notes, damask rose, elemi, cardamom, coffee, dried fruits
Heart: Sandalwood, benzoin, vanilla, patchouli, vetiver, coriander, ginger, rose, saffron
Base: Amber, castoreum, civet, moss, spun sugar, animal notes, incense, leather, oakmoss

Fakhama opens up strong and masculine to my nose. It is oudy from the outset but interlaced with fruits and spices. This stage lasts for a good two hours and then the perfume warms up. The sandalwood and vanilla curl around the oud and fruits and keep me sniffing my wrist wondering what is so bewitching. Underneath all of this lies an animalic tone which I attribute to the deep drydown. Summer weather should make this stand out and bring out the animalic undertones – at least I am hoping. This is seriously beautiful and I believe will appeal to both men and women.

Majalis The Spirit of Dubai FragranticaFragrantica

Majalis: The Spirit of Dubai by Nabeel Perfumes

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Incense, peach, apple, rose, osmanthus, green notes, cardamom, pink pepper, grapefruit, artemisia, strawberry, raspberry, cacao, coffee, olibanum
Heart: Saffron, flowers, powdery notes, cloves, vetiver, patchouli, guaiac wood, dates, carnation, iris, heliotrope, mate
Base: Incense, agarwood (oud), leather, vanilla, woodsy notes, sandalwood, benzoin, myrhh, musk, honey, olibanum, tobacco, hay, labdanum

Majalis starts off with a blast of fruity floral notes deftly laced with cardamom and saffron, two of my favourite spices. The coffee and cacao notes peak through but very quickly and then they go into the background. There is also a lot of yummy goodness coming from the dates which I love. Dates conjure up my trip to Abu Dhabi and eating luxurious dates filled with nuts for the first time in my life. The florals are mixed beautifully with the fruits and woods and the oud is not prominent at all. Majalis takes me on a trip to a far off land filled with sun, sand and a warm breeze. Eventhough this leans on the feminine side I think it could smell amazing on a man. Wonderful perfume – I love it.

I would like to test the original 5 Spirit of Dubai perfumes one by one. I hope to be able to share my thoughts on them soon. Maison de Parfum in Vienna, Austria carries the line and will be adding Fakhama and Majalis as soon as they are available. Maison de Parfum Online ships worldwide.

What is your exotic scent?
Sandra xx

Scent of the Cookie Run. A Five Year Anniversary.

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Hey There Fabulously Fragrant Foodies and Funsters

Scent of the Cookie Run. A Five Year Anniversary.

A Perfume Geek Post.

Cookie Run 2016 #6

 

History

Five years ago I began supplying cookies to a Salzburg based firm, Indigo. As a number of you know I have a business together with my husband. Bikes and Cookies. He is a downhill bike specialist and runs the bike shop, and I make cookies by hand. From the milling of the grains, to the specialist vanilla, along with chopping all the chocolate by hand, I bake up small batches to fill the orders of the stores. I started with seven and as of September this year, with the opening of a new one in Linz, I will have eleven. My kitchen is located in the back of the shop, closed in of course, with a wall to wall window looking out into my husband´s workshop. There is a good chance that we are the only bike shop with a cookie kitchen in it.

Cookie Run 2016 #12Milling the spelt (Cookies are half each spelt & wheat)

Cookie Run 2016 #4

Cookie Run 2016 #5Husband Chris & BFF Kirk shopping

Cookie Run 2016 #14

Cookie Run 2016 #13

v5Daughter Hannah (Blondes Wunder) chopping

 

Method

Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings are spent preparing and making the dough and turning it into weighed balls. It can be anything from three to five hundred cookies and I weigh each one separately. It all gets packed in-between sheets of waxed paper and kept in a very cold refrigerator. Top up dough is made on Monday as I can never quite guess all the orders correctly. Tuesdays I get up at the butt crack of dawn and bake. Once the oven is turned on it´s a race against the beeper! The cookies are baked and cooled, boxes are packed with the orders. (I can be flexible with the prepping times, but orders need
to be delivered Tuesday noon time.) I load the car and head to Salzburg, but not before changing my clothes and applying my perfume.

Cookie Run 2016 #9Dayle Ann Clavin

Cookie Run 2016 #8

Cookie Run 2016 #3

Cookie Run 2016 #11

Cookie Run 2016 #22Resting

Cookie Run 2016 #19Buckets ready for packing

SOTCR* (The Geeky Part)

Monday evening I decide which perfume I will wear on Tuesday. I very seldom, nearly never, wear anything that I don´t have a full bottle of. I choose a couple of photos or pictures that give the vibe of the perfume and subsequently post the information onto a couple of the private perfume groups on Facebook. SOTCR*. Hahahahahaha. I am laughing my arse off here as I type this. Only a perfume junkie would understand. Trying something new in the car is an absolute no, I have no desire to sit in a confined space with something nasty.

Cookie Run 2016 #1

Cookie Run 2016 #2

Cookie Run 2016 #17The Cookie Run favourites

Cookie Run 2016 #18

Cookie Run 2016 #20Indigo

Cookie Queen

The day I met Portia in Vienna, more than three and a half years ago was the day I became Cookie Queen. It has stuck now and I have my own logo which as well as being on my blogging and cookie cards, is also on our mountain biking downhill jerseys. I sponsor our small racing team with cookies, indeed I seem to sponsor half the bloody world!

Coromandel CHANEL Val and portia vienna 2013The day we met in Vienna Feb 2013

Cookie Run 2016 #7

Cookie Run 2016 #23Chris wearing the logo

Cookie Run 2016 #10

Cookie Run 2016 #21Dayle Ann Clavin

So come on and crack out your geeky perfume habits and spill the beans. Or perhaps you have a cookie addiction?

Armadillo bussis
CQ

*{Ed: SOTCR = Scent Of The Cookie Run (I know you didn’t need to look)}

Most photos were donated by Val the Cookie Queen
Some were from Dayle Ann Clavin (<<<Go check the site, GORGEOUS!)

Boy by Olivier Polge for CHANEL Les Exclusifs 2016

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Post by Anne-Marie

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Hi all,

it’s Anne-Marie here with a question: how much does the season influence your daily fragrance choice?

My answer: quite a lot. Generally, it’s winter fragrances for me in the winter and summer in the summer.

I would not dream of stepping out of the house on those winter mornings when the temp struggles to even reach zero in a summer eau de cologne. Conversely, warm orientals and ambers stifle me in summer, like a jacket I long to fling off.

But there are exceptions. It’s winter where I live and today was probably the most miserable day we have had so far: wet, windy and cold. I wore Chanel Boy.

Boy by Olivier Polge for CHANEL Les Exclusifs 2016

Seasonal Somersaults! Do You Wear The Weather?

Boy Chanel Chanel FragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Lavender, rose, lemon, grapefruit, rose geranium, orange blossom, sandalwood, heliotrope, vanilla, musk

Is Boy a summer or a winter fragrance? It’s a fougère with notes including lavender, grapefruit, and lemon, and that sounds pretty cologne-ish to me. Normally I’d keep this kind of thing for warm weather. But those cool, fresh notes can sometimes be welcome in the winter. You know those days when you tire of overheated rooms and heavy layers? You open a window, or step out into the rain, and revel in the rush of cold air against you face and in your lungs.

In Boy there is also a contrasting warmth to the base (musk, vanilla, sandalwood). I’m only just getting acquainted with it but so far I’m thinking that Boy may be one of the most versatile fragrances I own.

Boy CHANEL Alexey Ivanov Rain FlickrFlickr

The rain was belting down when I left work this evening. I had to catch two buses instead of one, and I missed my final stop because I had been too busy reading. Darn! I struggled home with an inside out umbrella, leaking shoes, and the sole nearly off one shoe. Flap flap flap.

What did I do when I got home? More Chanel Boy, of course!

Further reading: Now Smell This and Bl’eauog
CHANEL Beauty, Fashion and some large Department Stores. We go to David Jones
CHANEL Online in the USA

What about you? Do you match cool notes with warm days, and vice versa? Or do you spritz merrily at whatever takes your fancy?
Bye for now!

CHANEL N°5: The One That I Want – The Film

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Post by Portia

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Hi there APJ,

Gisele Bündchen has been the highest paid model in the world every year since 2004, and in 1999 was credited with bringing sexy back to the runway and killing the heroin chic look. She was born in 1980 making her 36 years old which is basically a model dinosaur. There is still something so fresh and endearing about her, still sexy, that killer body and a smile that men and women fall instantly in love with. Did you know she is 5’11”? So tall yet she always manages to look petite, and enormously strong. Wikipedia notes that: In 2014, she was listed as the 89th Most Powerful Woman in the World by Forbes PLUS Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell have stated that Bündchen is the only remaining true supermodel.

Below we get to see Gisele in the 2014 CHANEL No 5 ad, this is the long play version. A seriously controversial piece of film. The song’s lyric change had feminists up in arms, the billion $ lifestyle and the 2 minute hug with her daughter before relegating the child to nanny care had mothers upset and running off before a job was finished had working women outraged, there were other complaints that have slipped my mind. Yet if you can overlook all that there has appeared a gorgeous and lush piece of escapism that you can get lost in for three minutes to unclog your brain.

I hope you enjoy,
Portia xxx

CHANEL No.5 CHANELCHANEL

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Aldehydes, bergamot, lemon, neroli, ylang-ylang
Heart: Jasmine, rose, lily of the valley, iris
Base: Vetiver, sandalwood, vanilla, amber, patchouli

CHANEL counters everywhere have testers, go give yourself a spritz.

CHANEL N°5: The One That I Want – The Film

Nocturne GIVEAWAY WINNERS

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Post by Portia

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Hiya APJ,

Woo Hoo! A piece of Ainslie’s very own magical fragrant history. Lucky winners, I am yet to smell it too.
Portia xxx

Nocturne GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Nocturne Vial 2

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will receive:
1 x Carded Manufacturers Sample of Nocturne
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Thursday 21st July 2016 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

WINNERS markmontanoblogs

Steve

Azar

Koyel

The winners will have till Sunday 24th July 2016 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.