New York City with Jin, Kath & Portia 2014 + Photo Essay

December 7, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 33 Comments

Hiya APJ Crew,

We are home!! Three weeks whirlwind tour of the United States of America went by like a fabulous, crazy, fun filled, roller coaster ride. One of the most action packed and intense holidays of my life. So much so that when I look at my pics there are hardly any!! Basically these are all the shots I took. Though trying to keep these in chronological order I think they have moved around and it was all such a blur that I honestly can’t remember what happened when.

Starting with NYC because it was the easiest to grab photos from. I hope you enjoy the ride.

Portia xx

New York City with Jin, Kath & Portia 2014 + Photo Essay

At night we met up with Brian who helped us find our way to dinner on the tube. We went to Lombardis (?) Pizza and dined with the lovely Lucy R. It was an excellent way to meet NYC.

We thought it was important to see the Statue of Liberty so caught the Statten Island ferry early on Thanksgiving Day. It’s FREE! Got some great shots and had some fun and silly time together on the trip. I was a bit tired and grumpy at this point.

For Thanksgiving Dinner we had the buffet at The Roosevelt Hotel where we were staying. The Roosevelt is a great choice for a hotel in NYC if you want some where central and reasonably priced. DO NOT go there if you like to take baths, they are DISGUSTING and they flake & peel while you’re in them. We did get 2 upgrades because of the baths and ended up in a suite with a view ( the bath was still freaking shit though). Thanksgiving Dinner with the two most important people to me in the world, pretty special. We all gave thanks for each other and our incredibly blessed lives. BTW I had the best Apple Pie of my life here, nothing before it even prepared me for how incredible it was going to be.

The staff at the Roosevelt were excellent, at every point we were treated with courtesy and friendliness, I recommend you stay there if you like to shower.

Jin had a secret New York City agenda that we were unaware of until we arrived. He had to see Carrie Bradshaw’s stoop from later series of Sex and the City. While there he also wanted desperately to lean on the pole and have a Marlboro Light (even though he doesn’t smoke. This resulted in head spins and delirium). There was a very lovely young girl doing exactly that and Jin asked if he could have one of her ciggies. One happy boy…. Around the corner is the Magnolia Bakery where Carrie would sit and have cupcakes so off we went to indulge. We did get to Friends building but I forgot to take a picture.

All this stuff is right near Christopher Street, the home of the Gay Rights Movement. It was here that the famous Stonewall hotel was where the Lesbians and Black Drag Queens took on the NYC Police and rioted. Interestingly it was the day of Judy Garland’s funeral.

That evening we wandered through Central Park and got 40 minutes in the Guggenheim. I took them to the first floor where we saw some very interesting Impressionist works from the Thannhauser Collection, Wang Jianwei: Time Temple sculptural pieces and ZERO: Countdown to Tomorrow 1950s–60s. Clearly we didn’t spend a lot of time with them but it was nice to see a couple of impressionist works that were new to me, particularly a Picasso, Woman Ironing (La repasseuse): Paris, 1904.

Photo Stolen Guggenheim (Problem using image, get in touch)

OSSWALD welcomed us with open arms. Josie and Clement were incredibly kind, helpful and funny. It was a fantastic get together. Birgit and Michael of Olfactoria’s Travels, Poodle who is one of our APJ North American correspondents, Brian, Gaia and Ori of The Non Blonde, Abdulla and Miryam (working for the Qatar consul in Dubai on their honeymoon), Francesca, Daisy of CoolCookStyle, Arielle from Scents of Self, Kevin Guyer (ex CHANEL), Patty (FleurDeLys) and others. I am so embarrassed to have forgotten a couple of names, please PM me with them because I would love to put you in.

What did I buy? Long have I had Cozé by Perfumerie Generale on my radar so I bought a 30ml (bravo for the smaller sizes Pierre G) and Liquer Charnelle by Huitieme Art in 50ml, also Pierre G.

Then we hit Bergdorf Goodman. I had a mission. The CHANEL counter. When I told the girl in CHANEL in Sydney the Pure Perfume is not a real term but a marketing invention she refused to serve me so I thought FUCK HER! Hideous creature! So it was a New York City must do. The Parfum &Eau are now happily in my collection. BLISS!

On our last day in NYC Carlos J Powell of the Goodsmellas and Peace, Love & Perfume and I organised to meet up in Brooklyn at Twisted Lily. We wanted to do a couple of LIVE Video Sniffs, check them out if you get a chance. we are complete freaking idiots. What a great time.

Eric who owns the store was friendly and welcoming and the range is excellent.

I met my next boyfriend too, Rich from Goodsmellas, hubba hubba!

Straight from Twisted Lily we returned to the Roosevelt Hotel, checked out and then I bought this signed Lithograph and we left the USA till next time. What a wonderful city NYC is, chock filled with Ah May Zing people and places. This is just a mini snapshot, we did SO MUCH MORE!

Be well crew,
Portia xx

All photos my own unless specified.

Voile d'Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

November 28, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Hey there frag crew,

A couple of years ago Jin and I traveled to Europe together, we had never traveled together before, not even for a weekend, yet we decided to put together a wonderful 6 week extravaganza of a holiday. We saw about 10 countries, saw family, met new and old friends, saw sights, laughed, ate, shopped, discovered and generally had the most wonderful time. There were only a couple of minor melt downs on the whole trip and those due to exhaustion rather than lack of common interest. Anyway, the first fragrance I bought while in Europe on that wonderful holiday in a little Yves Rocher shop in Prague was Voile d’Ambre….

Voile d’Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mandarin leaf, cardamom, mandarin orange, myrtle
Heart: Opoponax, incense, myrrh
Base: Patchouli, Australian sandalwood, Madagascar vanilla

Memories!!! Every time I spritz Voile d’Ambre I get a warm hot rush of happiness that is less to do with the sweet herbal amber that jumps off my skin than it does the wonderful memories of our first trip together. I can see us rugged up in our winter woolies in cities filled with mainly the residents because who is silly enough to travel midwinter through the heart of Europe? We got to see everything we wanted with zero wait time and the staff of everywhere were happy to see some foreigners and have a chat. I have done Europe in all the seasons now and I’ll always try to go in winter, it’s 100% more fun.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Voile d’Ambre gives me a boozy, incense laden amber that is smooth and clean, a warm amber that is in no way challenging. This is comfort fragrance, warming, easy and cuddly. Though I wore it all through that winter in Europe I can also easily apply it in 30C Sydney heat and be comfortable, Voile d’Ambre is spare enough and has enough air through it that I’m not overwhelmed or constricted. I think it may be to do with the Australian sandalwood, which I find a little more astringent and green than the others, slightly eucalyptus feeling and that added to a clean but earthy patchouli rounds the whole fragrance out.

I make it read like the notes are discernible, they are not unless I have a notes list ion front of me, what I smell is a beautiful amber that changes slightly from greener in the beginning to non foody vanilla at dry down. It’s not a big and varied story but a soft and floaty ride through comfort to comfort, and filled with joyful memories. I am smiling right now as I write to you all.

If you’ll excuse me I think I need to give Jin and big hug. While I’m gone, what is your favourite amber fragrance, as a main note or a side one?
Portia xx

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

November 19, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Hi there Frag Heads,

It’s the age old question. What do you pack fragrance wise for a holiday? Do you take a set of 5ml decants of your faves, one bottle or a mix of both? Is it go large or go shopping?

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

Well, as always it has been a hell of a decision making process. I ummed and ahhed about it through the unpacking of the move and have been madly spritzing myself to see what would fit for me on this trip. Knowing that I’ll be stopped in 4 MeetUps in the best that the USA has to offer in Niche Perfumery, as well as the Guerlain store in the Bellagio Las Vegas where we are staying, I am pretty sure I will be heavily scented and shopping up a storm. So I decided that three was the magic number for this trip. I need a cold weather, a cool weather and a temperate weather fragrance that are all not so temp specific that I’ll feel ridiculous wearing them interchangeably. Another criteria is that they not be in regular decant atomiser bottles, I would like them to be a little more sturdy than that.

So here are my USA 2014 three:

Picture Stolen Fragrantica

Epice Marine by Hermès 15ml EdT: After first trying Epice Marine in Selfridge & Co with Tara I became quite obsessed with it. There’s something completely captivating in it’s cool, clear, cut crystal and salty herbal-ness. It starts out fizzy like a cold lemon squash with ice, it has a salt rim and some greenery floating in it that feels minty but is less sweet. Unlike so many of the Hermessance range I get excellent longevity and a very soft but noticeable sillage.

Photo Stolen Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Ma Folie de Noël by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz 10ml EdP: Ma Folie de Noël was a gift from Natalie who used to run Another Perfume Blog. There is no 10ml option on the DSH site now and I think I will finish this bottle while on holidays, it’s a conundrum. The fragrance? Well it’s everything a cold weather fragrance that you want to make you warm should be. Anise, booze and cream all spiced and gorgeous. Even writing about Ma Folie de Noël makes me smile: happy scent and memories. I think it will be the one I reach for most while away.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Vanille Galante by Hermès 15ml EdT: Vanille Galante, that cool, dark chocolate and booze infested vanilla that wafts lightly and smoothly from my skin. An oxymoron, sleek and fat, cool and hot, heavy and transparent. Vanilla so completely UN-vanilla-ish that it hardly bears its name. The flowers are awkward and frigid, the spice is so cool it reads like incense and the vanilla like nothing you would ever bake with. Wrap the whole fabulously spare concoction in sugar free chocolate and inhale. This was not love at first sniff for me, in fact it’s taken a while for me to warm to it, now I couldn’t live without Vanille Galante.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Here are our MeetUp USA 2014 Dates:

Please come hang with us somewhere

SCENT BAR LA Wednesday NOVEMBER 19 2014 with Killian Hennessy MeetUp 5-7pm

BARNEYS + NEIMAN MARCUS CHICAGO Monday NOVEMBER 24 2014 MeetUp Barneys (Beauty Downstairs) 1.30pm

OSSWALD N.Y.C Saturday NOVEMBER 29 2014 MeetUp 2-4pm

TWISTED LILY BROOKLYN NYC Sunday November 30 2014 MeetUp 11am-1pm

How do you like my choices? What do you wear to travel? Many or few?
Portia xx

Mona di Orio Discovery Set + Tasmania Photo Essay

November 3, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Tina G

Perfume choices are, by their nature, exceedingly personal. I enjoy sharing my enthusiasm for fragrance with family and friends, but how to do this in a way that lets them make their own choices is tricky. What I may recommend could be abhorrent to someone else, and I don’t want to risk putting anyone off the joys of exploring new fragrances! So, while on holiday in Australia’s largest island Tasmania with some friends, I decided to set up a perfume testing session as a bit of fun and see where it led us.

Mona di Orio Discovery Set

Photo Stolen Peony Melbourne

I chose to take along Mona di Orio’s Discovery Pack, which is the set of eight Les Nombres d’Or line presented in 5ml roller ball applicators. Each of the eight fragrances – Cuir, Eau Absolue, Musc, Vanille, Ambre, Rose, Vétyver and Tubéreuse – were decanted into spray containers for travel.

Tasmania is a beautiful part of the world. The island State lies to the South-East of Australia, across the wilds of Bass Strait from Melbourne. The four of us went for a long weekend, staying on the rugged East Coast in a little stone cottage by the ocean. Yes, it was as gorgeous as it sounds! We had a great time exploring, eating, drinking, and just generally resting up. I’ve included a few photos of the trip as a taster of what we experienced, it was wonderful.

For the testing, the Discovery Set was set up with fragrance strips and I explained the way fragrance works, top, mid and base notes and how perfume evolves over time, particularly on skin. We all sat down and tried each of the line. The Cuir was the least popular, with an “Oh, God, no!!” reaction being the strongest of the day! Two friends decided on what they’d like to wear the next day and give a proper run though. One friend decided to decline, as family members are particularly sensitive to chemicals and wearing perfume on a regular basis wouldn’t work for her. The fragrances chosen were Musc, and Rose. I chose Vétyver.

We noted that all three fragrances got us through the day – at least 8 hours. The Rose was BIG on opening, a really full and rich ‘real’ rose scent. My friend was a bit worried that it would be too big, but it did settle nicely into something softer and more wearable. The Musc I had trouble smelling, but my other friend enjoyed it very much. I encouraged them both to keep sniffing through the day and see if there were any changes.

Peony Melbourne has Mona di Orio Discovery Set $145
Parfum1 has the Mona di Orio Discovery Set $145

At the end of the trip I then let them choose a small 1ml decant to take home and play with. Musc, Eau Absolue, and Vanille went to one home, Rose went to another with my encouragement of Amber, and I took back Cuir, Vétyver, and Tubéreuse – which happen to be my favourites anyway. Funny the way things work out!

Tina G

Tasmania Photo Essay

All photos donated by TinaG unless specified

Jaunty Capers, Cemeteries and The Rose That Got Away: London July 2014

August 3, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 30 Comments

Post by Val the Cookie Queen

Hi APJ,

I couldn´t have been more excited as I got up on Wednesday. Finally the dreamed of, talked about, preplanned days were here.

Unlike Vanessa from the fabulous Bonkers About Perfume, I have no clothing crises. For I have none. Not to speak of anyway. Long jeans in winter. Cut-off jeans in summer. I prefer to spend my money on red lipstick, and the odd bag of groceries for the family. When my shoes hurt I go barefoot.

Jaunty Capers, Cemeteries and The Rose That Got Away

Random ramblings from a week in London

I left for Les Senteurs from Muswell Hill, the infamous address, early enough to not be late for my date with the gorgeous Tara from Olfactoria`s Travels. We both arrived early and waited for Callum the Dashing to arrive and let us in. Perfumistas waiting on the doorstep.

We hit the sofa talking. After a while Flamingo Nick, Penhaligon´s Fragrant Ambassador arrived, bringing a burst of sunshine into the room with him.I already knew I was going to buy Malle`s Eau de Magnolia and asked Callum to put a large bottle on the side. The small ones were sold out and there was no tester to triple reconfirm that I wanted it. I would pick it up the next day when Vanessa was with us too. So onto the much praised Papillons. I was so excited to try these and planned to purchase one. I sprayed with gay abandon and waited …….

Nick, Tara and I headed to the Gorilla Perfume Gallery for the presentation of the new 12 fragrances. Entitled: Death, Decay and Renewal. A pop-up in the basement of Phonica Records on Poland Street. (See Nick Gilbert<< JuMP) This was quite the display. Mushrooms, sandalwood smuggling, stroboscopic dream machines designed by William Burroughs ……… Clearly NOT Guerlain.

Starting to fall in love with Papillon’s Tobacco Rose, we headed on for tea and sandwiches and a quick Liberty´s heist. Nick scored himself a bottle of Superoud from Comme de Garçons and headed off into the sunset. Fear not, we would meet again.

Selfridge´s and iced matcha, including a wicked brain freeze, saw Tara and I heading home.

That evening after spraying again I decided I would buy the Tobacco Rose. Because it is beguiling.

Tara and Vanessa pretty much covered this second day of fragrant flitterings. (Bonkers About Perfume and Olfactoria´s Travels) What can I add? The Guerlain Royal Extract at 280 quid for 125 mls – 900 bottles limited edition, exclusive to Harrod`s? A pretty pale, kind of watered down Fairy Liquid colour? I think not. Based on the exquisite Attrape Coeur, but missed the mark. (All opinions totally my own!)

Now I was not exactly kicking and screaming when I went up to Roja Dove´s Barbie Palace, but it was close. Bright and shiny and no room to swing a cat. The visit was saved by Benjamin, the on hand sales assistant. He was so nice, totally knowledgable, and actually seemed to think he could turn around my preconceived ideas of RD and the other fragrances for the “Bros”. He could not. It would be remiss of me not to say that I did allow him to give me a pretty decent spray of the “semi-bespoke” (can you hear me laughing????) RD Private Collection No 9. Limited to 50 bottles. It was actually pretty nice for the first 20 minutes. Unlike Benjamin who was nice for the whole time.

Tara and I went to the Amouage stand alone store, hoping to try the Amouage Attars. Sadly because of people buying them, diluting them with alcohol and then selling them on EBay by the millilitre they have been removed. How annoying is that? Very.

“I`d ski naked down Mount Everest” to meet Vanessa, but luckily we only had to go to Covent Garden Tube station. Long lunch, including a number of jaunty capers, and a good chinwag and off to Penhaligon´s to meet up, once again with our very favourite Fragrant Ambassador. I was wonderfully surprised by the sensual beauty of Tralala and can see myself having a bottle one day. The Chucky Child´s Play bottle decoration was a little haunting, but I think I could get over it. Nick sent me off with a good stash of Penhaligon´s samples and I look forward to getting to know them.

Off we went to Les Senteurs. My heart beating a little faster as I prepared to make my purchases. We flopped once again on the sofa, kicked off shoes, fixed blisters and I bought Eau de Magnolia. Straight out of the fridge. I then asked for my Tobacco Rose. SOLD OUT.

WHAT??? You have got to be bloody kidding me Callum. But it´s intoxicating, boozy, and kind of jammy. There are two different roses, Bulgarian and Rose Centifolia. Oakmoss lurks, a great favourite of mine. It is smoky and beeswaxy. Thick without being sweet. It lasts for hours and never stays the same. I don´t have a rose. And I want this. For the moment though it´s the rose that got away. I should have ordered it the day before but I was trying to be sensible. Sigh. I compensate by spraying a ton of Magnolia and pass out with the beauty. I´ll live.

We spent the next three hours, or was it more, having tea and eating Indian food. Talking and sharing more about ourselves. Building friendships.

And so it ended. All leaving from the same station, Tara to the left and Vanessa and me to the right. The trains came in so fast we had no time to say goodbye. But it´s only Adieu.

The following day I went to Highgate Cemetery. This trip was on my Bucket List. The place absolutely blew my mind. The guide was straight out of an Agatha Christie and the lady that was constantly by me in the group was wearing Mitsouko. It was an extremely heavy and lovely version, so I am guessing it might have been an earlier incarnation, because it sure doesn´t smell like that now. What a perfect ending to my aromatic and perfumed adventures.

But it wasn´t quite the end was it? Antonio Gardoni from Bogue Perfumes met up and shared a coconut water with me, including copious sprays of MAAI. Comrades! – MAAI is not for the faint-hearted. More later ……..

I am now back to making cookie dough.

Bussis

CQ xxx

All photos donated by Val the Cookie Queen

South Korean Fragrance Shopping II: Photo Essay

July 10, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi AJP,

On our recent trip to South Korea in May 2014, I had a chance to pick up some local fragrances as a reminder of some of the great places we had the opportunity to visit. Here’s a quick run down of two brands.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

South Korean Fragrance Shopping II

Location: JeJu Island, Brand: Tammora

Photo Donated by TinaG

South Korea’s JeJu Island lies south of the mainland in the East China Sea, and is a popular romance and honeymoon destination. The island is volcanic in origin, and dotted with the peaks of multiple volcanic vents with the spectacular Mount Hallasan dominating the skyline. The island is well known for its stunningly beautiful sun rises. There is a type of volcanic rock which has little bubbles all the way through it like an aero chocolate bar, and this material is used abundantly in building walls around the island. It is also used to carve “Old Grandfather” statues, Dol Hareubang, which are the main symbol of Jeju Island. These statues are stout, hands on bellies, and have a mushroom shaped hat. Another romantic feature of JeJu is the fields of yellow rape seed flowers – please don’t get caught up over the plants name, it just is what it is. You may have heard of canola, which is the genetically modified version of the rape plant and is commonly utilised to make canola oil. We were lucky enough to visit in late May when the beautiful fields of rape were in full bloom.

Photos Donated by TinaG

At one of the tourist shops I was pleased to find some local perfumes, marketed under the JeJu Tammora brand, “Tammora” being one of the previous names given to the island. I grabbed myself two bottles, one of rape flowers, and one of orchid which was in the shape of the island’s Old Grandfather statues. The orchid was a pretty cool, soft and powdery floral, but I had no frame of reference for the rape flower fragrance. Luckily, on the way home the next day we stopped and had a chance to wander through a field of the metre-high plants in full bloom. Their scent is difficult to describe, as subtle as a breath of wind, green and sweet – and it was quite accurately reflected in the perfume albeit in a more concentrated form.

Photo Stolen EtudeHouse

Location: Busan, Brand: Etude House

Etude House is a playful chain of stores filled to the brim with cosmetics including the famous BB cream foundation. The first one we visited in Busan was a treat, pink and sweet and oh so cute! They have an adorable range of mini fragrances based on “romance” slogans “Why Not Me”, “Love Me Forever”, “Before You Go” etc… that kind of thing.

Photo Donated by TinaG

I chose to pick up “Bite Me”. Ha! Love the ambiguity in that statement. One spray releases a sherbet-fizzy grapefruit, fresh and sparkling, as dizzying as an unexpected kiss. Simple fun, and you can imagine scores of young girls picking up a few bottles from this range.

Photo Donated by TinaG

I’m glad I picked up a few cheap and cheerful fragrances during the holiday, it was a special way of bringing home a few extra memories of the trip!

Tina G

THAI Airways: Royal First Class

June 27, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Hey APJ,

Here’s something fun that I hope you Aussies will all get into. Sorry it’s taken so long to do this giveaway but there has been too much going on. FINALLY, here it is…..

THAI Airways: Royal First Class

Gawd! It seems like a million years since Michael & I took our European vacation in Jan/Feb 2014. It was an incredible experience, made even more so by the fact that we flew First Class to and from Europe. Though Thai was not 100% amazing in everything (we had our share of issues but as my mate Alice says, “Eeeew, my diamond shoes are too tight” moment) it was nice to have that much extra space, excellent food and service (in the air and the lounges) and to be collected at the gate by a buggy to whisk you to the First Class Lounge in each port. Really, incredible.

Would I travel First Class again? Probably not. There were things I liked but for the money I think it should be PERFECT!! There should be no complaint, trouble, drama or fiasco of any kind. Sadly Thai did not deliver this. To be completely honest I can sleep through an economy flight and still arrive in pretty good shape. That frees up thousands of dollars for enjoyment on my holiday.

I am sorry to our world readers but I can only send these within Australia. Postage has become too expensive to send these to the world. SORRY!!

Michael waking up in Thai Royal First Class

On every flight we were given a Thai Royal First Cabin Set. In each Thai Royal First Cabin Set there is:
1. L’Occitanne Eau de Cologne
2. L’Occitanne Body Lotion
3. L’Occitanne Lip Balm
4. Comb & Brush
5. Comfort Socks
6. Earplugs
7. Eyeshade
8. Toothbrush
9. Tooth Paste
10. Mouthwash

It all comes in a terrific wet pack that I will keep and use as my on-board cabin wet pack for years to come. Simple, stylish and really well designed. The one I opened and used is purple but the other three perfectly new in their plastic are white.

I know this is only very slightly in an olfactory vein but while we were flying I was so excited to be able to bring these back for some of you to try.
Portia xx

Thai Royal First Cabin Set with some stuff missing

Photo Stolen manoneileen

Royal First Class Cabin Set GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will each get:
1 x Thai Royal First Class Cabin Set
P&H Anywhere in AUSTRALIA

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone in AUSTRALIA who follows Australian Perfume Junkies 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 tell me your favourite holiday destination. It could be one you have been to or one you dream of. There are no time or financial constraints, just a dream, where would you go, for how long and who with?

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Thai Royal First Class Cabin Set GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-2Vg #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 29th June 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 3rd 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.

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY WINNERS

June 8, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom

Hey Hey Scent Jockeys,

Thanks for all getting so involved in this crazy giveaway. I know its not fragrance but it will still be super fun for our two lucky winners to get their Korea packs. So, let’s go….

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Ebay

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will each get:
1 x Etude House Fresh Cherry Lip Tint
1 x mixed bag of 6 Etude House, Skinfood & Shu Uemura samples
1 x pair faux LV socks
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DID 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 tell me a memory that involves a travel fragrance experience or a beauty product someone brought back from overseas for you.

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 8th June 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen brooklodge

LizK

LubkaK (via twitter)

The winners will have till Thursday 12th June 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.

Korea 2014: Photo Essay

June 6, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 35 Comments

Hey Crew,

I hope you are all happy and well. So we are back from our Korean adventure and it was hectic! I have had to spend the return week recovering from the amount of stuff we packed into 17 days. There is no way I could show you the whole trip and all that happened because it was just too full on.

So here is a mini view of some of our highlights, obviously I couldn’t include every meal but some of my favourite stand outs were Korean Bar B Q beef (bought for us in a very chi-chi restaurant in Yangsan) and pork (in a tiny street food restaurant in Gangnam near the Zaha Hadid designed arts centre). We also fell in love with the Lotte Burgers and Paris Baguette. The rest of the crew had loads of extra fresh seafood and pronounced it wonderful and I even ate some of the fish we caught on our fishing trip.

As we were with a local, Jin my partner was born and raised in Korea, we had the inside skinny on what was good and crap so we went to a couple of important temples, Jeju Island which is the honeymoon destination of Koreans where newlyweds wear couples outfits (super cute). We were also lucky enough to go to the JSA (Join Security Area) in the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) between North & South Korea which was both incredible and frightening because we went into the border house where talks happen and crossed over into North Korea, we were supposed to be there for 15-20 minutes for photos etc but the armed guards who were escorting us got new information and we were ushered out after only about 2 minutes, the guards and our guide becoming very nervous and agitated. Jin could only catch some of the conversations but there was a drama and we needed to be out PRONTO. It was all quite disturbing but so amazing to have been there. If you are in Seoul; there is a small tourist market for trips there, ask your Concierge.

We also did a bunch of shopping. South Korea has an amazing array of excellent makeup and fragrance chains of their own (Etude House, Skinfood and Japan’s Shu Uemura) and every time I shopped they gave me some testers of their other products, which brings us to

Photo Stolen manoneileen

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY

Photo Stolen Ebay

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell me a memory that involves a travel fragrance experience or a beauty product someone brought back from overseas for you.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Korea 2014 Beauty Product GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-2PW #Beauty #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 8th June 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 12th June 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.

Korea 2014: Photo Essay

All photos donated by Kath, Matt and Portia.

I hope you enjoyed this little look into our trip. Sadly I was so busy seeing and doing that I didn’t capture enough vistas or places of interest. Also you’ll notice that there is often someone at the table using their iPhone, this is ONLY allowed after mains are finished and the time I would remember to take a snap.
Portia xx

Louis Vuitton Presents Travel Books Vietnam by Lorenzo Mattotti

June 1, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom

Hey All,

I’m traveling through South Korea but back in 2008 a whole group of us went to Vietnam to celebrate my birthday. Friends, Aunties and an Uncle. It was a super terrific few weeks and we saw Vietnam from Ho Chi Minh to Hanoi and it was incredible.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Enjoy Louis Vuitton’s take on a marvelous country that we all hope to revisit someday.
Portia xx

Louis Vuitton Presents Travel Books Vietnam by Lorenzo Mattotti

Australian Perfume Junkies

Olfactory Opinions from Oz

Holiday

New York City with Jin, Kath & Portia 2014 + Photo Essay

New York City with Jin, Kath & Portia 2014 + Photo Essay

Voile d'Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

Voile d’Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

Here are our MeetUp USA 2014 Dates:

Please come hang with us somewhere

Mona di Orio Discovery Set + Tasmania Photo Essay

Mona di Orio Discovery Set

South Korean Fragrance Shopping II: Photo Essay

South Korean Fragrance Shopping II

Location: JeJu Island, Brand: Tammora

Location: Busan, Brand: Etude House

THAI Airways: Royal First Class

THAI Airways: Royal First Class

Royal First Class Cabin Set GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY WINNERS

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

HOW DID YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

LizK

LubkaK (via twitter)

Korea 2014: Photo Essay

Korea 2014 GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

HOW DO YOU WIN?

HOUSEKEEPING

Korea 2014: Photo Essay

Louis Vuitton Presents Travel Books Vietnam by Lorenzo Mattotti

Louis Vuitton Presents Travel Books Vietnam by Lorenzo Mattotti