Niche

Plum by Francois Robert for Mary Greenwell 2010

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Hello Frag Friends,

Do you ever rummage around in your samples and find things you have no memory of getting? That is exactly what happened today. So finding something I vaguely remember reading about but not remembering a damn thing about it except the is it a Chypre or not question I was thrilled to find it to try for myself. I couldn’t find a lot of it for sale on the net and wonder if it’s been discontinued? Amazon has a few, so does Parfum1 but elsewhere there is merely white noise. Of reviews though there are many and they range from completely beserk adoration to thoughtful and questioning disdain. The premise and pedigree of this fragrance seemed to divide perfumistas and I though that was interesting too. So what we are going to do today is try

Plum by Mary Greenwell 2010

Plum greenwell FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Peach, bergamot, lemon, plum, black currant
Heart: gardenia, tuberose, orange blossom, rose, jasmine
Base: sandalwood, oak moss, patchouli, amber, white musk

Well Plum opens with a dirty great punch in the nose with a fruit basket, it’s fizzy and fun and harks back to some of the big ole perfumes of yore. Citrus, black current and plum, but not like you’ve taken a bite of a plum more like plum jam or an ideal plum plus sugar. The flowers follow behind, winding through the sweetness with a white flower trumpet call that, like the horns in a 70s disco song, call the fragrance towards the chorus, the top and heart play off each other for a while showing flashes of themselves before settling down to a slightly human, breathy bouquet with a bit of spice. Of course the modern re-inventions of oakmoss aren’t the same as the original, they are less deep, dark and humus rich but I do get a sense of them among the woods and the amber is not sweet on me but a little dry, maybe the patchouli has the upper hand here? The sandalwood is the last impression I have with Plum by Mary Greenwell, it warms the fragrance back up at the end while it gently becomes my skin again.

WhiteWeddingBouquet VictorTheFloristPhoto Stolen VictorTheFlorist

I get quite good lifespan with 4 – 6 hours of noticeable fragrance, depending on my day. Where would I wear it? If I needed to be fragrant but not overpowering, if I wanted to be reminded of some of the fabulous but now defunct chypres, enticing or trying to befuddle then this is your frag. It is a strong persons fragrance, or someone needing a bit of strong, and sassy. This is what I imagine Charlize Theron and Anne Hathaway wearing to the Academy Awards.

CharlizeTheron USMagazinePhoto Stolen USMagazine

Further reading NowSmellThis and CaFleurBon
Parfum1 has 50ml/$100
SurrendetToChance starts at $4/ml

Did you try Plum when it came out? What did you think?

See you tomorrow for more merry frag madness.

Portia xx

1740 Marquis De Sade by Gérald Ghislain for Histoires de Parfums 2008

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

.

Guest Post by Michael

.

Hello fellow Fragaholics

For a kick off I thought I’d review one of my favourite fragrances and, dare I say it, a modern masterpiece –

1740 Marquis De Sade by Histoires de Parfums 2008

1740 is part of the Library of Scents range of Histoires de Parfums and inspired by the: “Birth year of a Parisian gentleman, named Donatien-Alphonse-François, which posterity remembers as the Marquis de Sade. For this man, whose licentious morals had him imprisoned many times, luxury rhymes with literature. The libertine writer would undoubtedly have enjoyed the audacity of this spiced wooded scent, an invitation to pleasure with its bergamot and Davana Sensualis hints, rounded with patchouli and everlasting flower.”

MarquisDeSade FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords::
Top: Bergamot, Davana Sensualis
Heart: Patchouli, Coriander, Cardamom
Base: Cedar, Birch, Labdanum, Leather, Vanilla, Elemi, Immortelle

This fragrance has wonderful depth and volume. The opening combines bergamot, coriander and the high register notes of cedre – you could not call this “fresh” however as sweetness, booziness, leather and naughty spices form the opening too. Cumin and cardamom play they’re dirty little games while the birch and woody notes support the leather undertones. I can understand why some might call out incense however it seems to be more of a fleeting impression than an actual part of the composition. There is a slight persistence of the softer bergamot elements between the opening and the mid offering a soft tone to the dryer spicy woody aspects.

Orgy, Illustration from Histoire de Juliette by the Marquis de Sade, 1797 art.comPhoto of Marquis de Sade Illustration Stolen art.com

The sweetness is a little syrupy but not cloying despite being reminiscent of maple syrup or molasses. The booziness is not entirely specific but it does give off a somewhat dry sweet liquor impression; something akin to oak aged rum or port pipe aged whisky.

1740 does not change drastically during wearing but the middle phase does see some development. The little there is of fresh notes retreat and the spices are turned down allowing a greater overall balance. The sweetness loses its syrupy edge and moves into a subtle amber accord. The tobacco and leather are still there in dryer incarnations. There is a slightly peppered note but I’m not sure if it’s black pepper or an aspect of the patchouli combining with the cumin and dry woods. Certainly it helps add to the perception of tobacco’s presence. This is where the fragrance is at its best– the warm Indian spices, immortelle , tobacco, dry leather and amber swim and dance on the skin and it smells oh so wonderful and comforting. It’s the olfactory equivalent of a big warm hug from your SO or burying your nose and forehead into the nape of your lover as you cuddle up at night.

LS008465Photo Stolen developmentagezim

The drydown sees a further drying of the composition. A somewhat gritty but non head shop patchouli has been at play all the way through but it seems more prominent now with the immortelle, spices, tobacco and leather still rumbling along, albeit at a lower volume. All in all a masterful unisex masculine; hah!

1740 has moderate projection and excellent longevity.

Further reading KatiePuckrikSmells and Olfactoria’sTravels
LuckyScent has 60ml/$125
SurrenderToChance starts at $5/ml

See you soon,
Michael

Tropic Lime Vanille by Liz Zorn for Siovohle 2012

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Hey Fellow Fumies,

One of the things I love, and hate, about being a fragrance addict is short release fragrances, usually summer releases that stay for one season. Sometimes they are rebottlings, flankers or in very special cases a whole new fragrance that a niche perfumer may only make one batch of.

Tropic Lime Vanille by Liz Zorn for Siovohle 2012

TropicLimeVanille SOIVOHLEPhoto Stolen SOIVOHLE

BaseNotes gives these featured accords:
Top Notes: Lime, linden (lime) blossom, coconut
Middle Notes: Jasmine, apricot, white violet, clean linen, petigrain sur fleur
Base Notes: Bourbon vanilla, benzoin, musk

From Liz Zorn’s blog (edited): A completely new formulation. Tropic Lime Vanille is a fun summery indulgence. It is a refreshing scent that has just enough of the creaminess from the coconut and apricot notes to keep it from being too flimsy, and enough of the citrus to keep it light. My goal was to weave that lime essence as far into the dry-down as possible. I love lime, it is one of my favorite things. so it is really the centerpiece here.

For a refreshing spritz or a memory of summer and holidays abroad there is no better fragrance than Tropic Lime Vanille. The instant burst of lime and coconut is a burst of energy for the enervating long days of summer, yesterday it was 42C (108F) here in Sydney, still 35C (95F) when I came home from work at 10pm!! Seriously hot weather folks and after I’d taken my gear off and had a swim it seemed the only choice.

TLVanille CaFleurBonPhoto Stolen CaFleurBon

After the initial citrus and creamy coconut opening the fruit and flowers settle very nicely and quietly. I become nearly anosmic to the scent but if I return to my office after making a cup of coffee or a chat the smell is glorious. Jin says it leaves a wonderful soft sillage too, or when I’ve been sitting with him for a minute or so he’ll say that I smell lovely. Interesting huh?

The vanilla end starts from early in the heart and slowly takes over Tropic Lime Vanille as the other ingredients burn off leaving and very soft musky vanilla that is only a smidge of scent overlain on my own skin. This takes around 4 hours in summer but a bit longer in the cooler weather. This morning after sleeping in that terrible heat with the AC on till 3am I can still smell something good that isn’t me and it’s 10am. Just  the merest something that is nothing better.

CoconutLime fallForwardPhoto Stolen FallingForward

Recently Liz Zorn has refined the SOIVOHLE range to Absolutes and Demi-Absolutes and you can find her incredibly beautiful and interesting works on the SOIVOHLE site.
There is a limited amount of Tropic Lime Vanille in the Clearance Section of the site 15ml EdT for $15 BE QUICK!!
They have a fantastic selection and the sample program is really good too. Check out my faves: TOBACCO & TULLE, LEATHER KREM, ANUBIS

Which short term fragrances have you loved and maybe do you miss? Have you tried SOIVOHLE’s fragrances? Tell us in the comments, we love a chat.

See you tomorrow,
Till then do something thoughtful for yourself,
Portia xx

Something fun and uplifting to go with Tropic Lime Vanille. Danni Minogue does Put The Lime In The Coconut

Kashmir Spice by Serena Ava Franco for Ava Luxe

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 7 Comments

Hey Hey Niche Nerds,

I was lucky enough to stumble across the Ava Luxe brand when SurrenderToChance were having their 40% off sale instead of Daily Chance Specials a while back and as soon as I got my nostrils around a couple I wanted MORE!! In true perfumista/addict/have no self control person style. The great news is that for an uber niche brand the prices are extremely affordable and sizes are also kept small so you can try 4 or 5 Ava Luxe frags for the cost of a mainstream offering.

Kashmir Spice by Ava Luxe

KashmirSpice FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

From the Ava Luxe site:
An alluring blend of exotic spices, cashmere woods, and incense. Turkish Rose absolute weaves it way through this sensual scent.
Featured Notes: East Indian spices, frankincense, myrrh, Cashmere woods, Turkish Rose Absolute, gaiacwood, amber.

WOW!! Kashmir Spice goes on hefty and gourmand, it’s a big fat glorious wander through one of the fabulous spice stores in Northern India. Totally edible and smelling like a sweeter version of the first moment the spices hit hot oil in a pan Kashmir Spice is an assault on your senses that is both enticing and memorable. The amber, frankinsense and myrrh give a lively resinous counterpoint that is sweet, balmy and dusty (The dusty may be the spices actually) at the same time. The woods and rose play only background on my skin but on Jin the rose is quite prominent, maybe you have to be further than I can get to smell it, on him Turkish rose absolute is like honey and rosewater baklava. MMMM!

kashmirBoats ToshaliToursPhoto Stolen ToshaliTours

I get a medium life span of around 4 hours of fragrance but after that my skin still smells better than reality, just ever so slightly vanillic, for another couple of hours and then gone. Way too perfumed for close working, borderline for dinner and cinema but perfect for all other moments when smelling gorgeous is important. At these prices you can afford to wear it as your daily after hours go-to frag, Kashmir Spice would be on a current short list for my 10 Desert Island frags.

KashmiriSpiceMarket ABC.netPhoto Stolen ABC.net

I have worn Kashmir Spice to work a few times and it is a guaranteed compliment gatherer and people want to get in for a big ole snuffle of you, then they ask what it is that you smell of and where can they get it. Every time so far!

Further reading: I could only find reviews on Make Up Alley and there is love and hate in equal measure
AvaLuxe site has 15ml EdP/$30 and 5ml extrait/$27
SurrenderToChance has some of the range that you can sample EdP $3/ml Extrait or Oils $8/ml

Have you tried the Ava Luxe fragrances? Did any of them ring your bell?
Tomorrow is the last day of 2012! Soon it will be gone forever.
I want to wish all our readers a wonderful 2013 full of all the good stuff you wish for yourselves. Health, wealth and happiness! Take care of yourselves and those in your orbit.
See you tomorrow,
Portia xx

POST CHRISTMAS TRIPLE GIVEAWAY WINNERS

/ australianperfumejunkiescom

Hello APJ Family,

THANK YOU to everyone who got involved and took a moment to respond. This has been a great fun competition for us. I hope you all enjoyed it too. This weeks giveaway sponsor LibertinePerfumerie got a bunch of hits and are really happy so I think we will have some super excellent giveaways in 2013!!

Without further ado let’s get to it.

POST CHRISTMAS TRIPLE GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Interlude parfumeriePhoto Stolen parfumerie

What’s In The Packs?

The three winners will receive each
1 x AMOUAGE Interlude Man carded 3ml Manufacturers Spray Sample
1 x AMOUAGE Interlude Woman carded 3ml Manufacturers Spray Sample
with P&H anywhere in the world

Special THANKS to LibertinePerfumerie for the AMOUAGE Interlude Samples. Please visit their site because they are so generous and helpful. APJ will be doing a super AMOUAGE INTELUDE DRAW in the New Year.

prize angkoronePhoto Stolen angkorone

How Could You Win?

Open to everyone worldwide who is a follower of AustralianPerfumeJunkies via email (eM), RSS, or WordPress (WP). Yes, you could become a new follower to enter! In fact, we encouraged it.
All you needed to do this week was go to LibertinePerfumerie and get the name of any product they sell that hadn’t been used in this draw before! That’s it!! EASY PEASY!

I must be able to find your email in my email followers list so make sure you give me the right email please

Extra Chances
You could earn an extra chance each for Facebooking or Tweeting

Housekeeping

Entries Closed Saturday December 29th 10pm AEDST.
Winners were chosen by putting names on same sized papers, folded similarly, put on a tray and TSO Jin picked them. He doesn’t even stop watching TV to do it usually.

WINNERS berryreviewPhoto stolen berryreview

054837s

RuthF

Mark Evans

The winners have till Wednesday December 19th to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their address or I will give the prize to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Thank you all for being a part of our giveaway.

See you later today.

Portia xx

Aussie Niche Perfumers Christmas Gifting Guide

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 14 Comments

Hey Hey All You Fabulous Fumies,

We at APJ have always wanted to showcase new and old Aussie talent in the fragrance world. Here are a few of the wonderful crews that we have looked at this year that you can still order some excellent Christmas goodies and stocking stuffers from. As it is the time for giving, families and all that there are many of us who for a billion reasons are without family at a time of year where it seems fundamental. If you are someone in that boat, buy yourself a Christmas present from the list, even if you are not a devotee of the Christian creed. A new fragrance wrapped and carded to yourself on Christmas Day morning will give you a smile, maybe even a laugh. I have bought myself a couple this year, naughty I know.

Aussie Niche Perfumers Christmas Gifting Guide

homeshotPhoto Stolen EVP

Emerald Vintners Perfumes

These 2 boys Brendan and Samuel have stolen my heart with their new line. 3 masterfully created perfumes and I think there’ll be plenty more coming. EVP Australia sells itself as Small Batch Artisan Scents inspired by the Adelaide Hills and Wine Regions around the World. Baume, the powerhouse honeysuckle and blossom, is my favourite but I like them all and have finished my sample set and am contemplating a FB. The EVP site has an Inception Range 3 x 2ml Sample Set $20

AppleTea15mlEDT-320x320Photo Stolen EvocativePerfumes

Evocative Perfumes

Another Adelaide set up Mark has done some lovely work with unusual mixtures and breathtaking, magical fragrances. They are etherial, earthy and interesting. My picks for FB worthy are Apple tea, Imogen and Vanilla Tonique. I like the sizes too; 10ml Roll On, 15ml And 50ml Atomisers. A wonderful Sample Program means that you can try all 10 fragrances for $24

300Photo Stolen InnerEarth

Inner Earth: Luxury Handmade Soaps & Skincare

Photographed you’ll see my pick of the Inner Earth gear. Lemon Cheesecake Hand & Body Cream; Lemon combined with creamy vanilla and a hint of white musk. A smooth, creamy formula enriched with sweet almond oil and cocoa butter, to leave your skin feeling new again. 250ml only $19.50 but be quick the virtual shop closes 17-30 December, you have till MONDAY! They also do a spectacular range of oil based fragrances and handmade soaps.

OneSeed 5x5mlSampleSetPhoto Stolen OneSeed

One Seed

Liz Cook from One Seed (who have a no hurt the planet, 100% botanical, nothing synthetic credo) has created some sublime fragrances that you should try. Courage and Sweet Water are my two favourites but Frangipani, Hope and Slow Fire are excellent too. One Seed Site has this wonderful 5 x 5ml Sample Set for $70

fig & olive display 1Photo Stolen P&SCo

Perfume and Skincare Company

Sheila Massetti trained with the oldest fragrance house in France and has also worked with perfumers from Chanel, Issey Miyake and Jean Paul Gaultier. The houses signature fragrance is Fig & Olive but I find Ginger Milk, Gardenia and Pink Peony much more to my liking. One of the wonderful thiongs about the Perfume And Skincare Company’s fragrances is their higher than extrait ingredient inclusion, meaning way more strength, and their extremely reasonable pricing. The Deux Perfume sets with 10ml of Fig & Olive and another fragrance from the range for only $25 is my pick.

I know it’s hard to find something different, interesting, good value and surprising for the ones you love. It makes it especially hard when most people go and buy what they want when they want it. I hope these give you a selection of things that you may otherwise not have noticed. I love them all and have tried, tested, purchased and repurchased from each of these Aussie stores so you are safe.

Good luck with the rest of your shopping, even if it’s just for you.

Portia xx

Bombay Bling by Bertrand Duchaufour for Neela Vermeire Creations 2011

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 31 Comments

Hello You Lovely Perfumistas,

Today we are looking at the last of the Neela Vermeire Creations for me to fall madly in love with. I have been wearing Mohur for months now. That glorious hit of sweet and spicy rose is hard to beat. Loved Trayee on first sniff and quickly went through my sample and then 10ml in the Discovery Set and never really got to Bombay Bling.

Bombay Bling by Neela Vermeire Creations 2011

BombayBling FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives the featured accords:
Top: French labdanum, caraway, mango, litchi, blackcurrant, cardamom
Heart: Jasmine, rose, tuberose, yang-ylang, gardenia, frangipani
Base: Virginia cedar, sandalwood, leather, patchouli, woodsy notes, vanilla

As you may know I am so not a fruity patchouli fragrance wearer, those sweet plastic mass produced headache inducers are just not how I wish to smell. Why am I telling you this? Because that’s what I thought Bombay Bling was going to be, and in some ways it is but so much better, more interesting, wearable and exciting. This is the Empress of Fruit-chouli, the benchmark that all others must set themselves against and unfortunately most are found wanting. This is what other Fruit-choulis dream of becoming when they grow up.

MumbaiBling mumbai.olx.inPhoto Stolen mumbai.olx

Bombay Bling opens loud and sweet and fun, though it does invoke the sweltering streets and stalls of summertime Mumbai it could equally be a South American or Pacific Island marketplace. Freshly cut fruits including the majestic mango, are spliced with spice and a creamy warmth, like a masala fruit salad and cream. This rich and intoxicating fruity swirl lasts for ages, nearly an hour and makes me want to go out dancing, flirting and cha cha cha-ing. The bouquet opens up slowly, streaming through the fruit over a long period, unnoticed till near complete take over has occurred and it’s a hot, white and green sensation still with an undercurrent of sweet fruits that slowly becomes sweet woodsy patchouli till the only thing left is a whisper of vanilla and butter that stays for hours and hours and hours. TSO Jin early on claimed Bombay Bling for his own and on him it is glorious and super long lasting, I can smell it next morning and into the day.

Want some Bombay Bling? Order from the e-boutique in www.neelavermeire.com

Darling Portia
What do you think? If they mention “Portia” they get free shipping until 10 Dec. 2012. 
Is that good?
We plan not to ship between 10 Dec and 10 Jan.
Thank you again. NV Xoxoxoxo

MumbaiSari SareeTimesPhoto Stolen sareetimes

Neela Vermeire Perfume Posse Giveaway

Neela Vermeire has kindly given me some wonderful things to be given away on the Perfume Posse this week. So you have THREE chances to win!!

What’s In The Packs:

There are three 2ml vial sets of Bombay Bling, Mohur & Trayee. Each winner will get one set.

How Do You Enter?

Your answer must be entered in the comments on the Perfume Posse where the Neela Vermeire Creations LIVE Video Sniff is happening right now.

You must follow AustralianPerfumeJunkies via RSS, Email, WordPress, please tell me RSS/eM/WP in your comment. Yes, you can join and follow to be eligible. EASY!

You must also tell me any Indian (Subcontinent not Amer-Indian) State/Union Territory or State Capital City. NO DOUBLE UPS!! There are 35 States/Union Territories  and their Capitals before we need to repeat anything. Once the comment number reaches 140, that’s your comments and my replies, then we can start doubling up. Got It? EASY PEASY!! Here’s a list to help you

Housekeeping

Entries Close Saturday December 8th 10pm AEDST and winners will be announced in a separate post on Perfume Posse on Sunday. Winners will be chosen by putting names on same sized papers, folded similarly, put on a tray and TSO Jin will pick them. He doesn’t even stop watching TV to do it usually.
Winners will have till Wednesday December 12th to get in touch (portia underscore turbo at yahoo dot com dot au) with their address or I will give the prize to someone else.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Don’t want to wait? Need your Neela Vermeire Creations fix right nnow? Here you can buy her Try India sets and the Discovery sets

GO TO IT!! The Perfume Posse
See you tomorrow,
Portia xx

Jai Ho

02 L`Air du Desert Marocain by Andy Tauer for Tauer Perfumes 2005

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 34 Comments

Hello Happy Huffers,

Andy Tauer is a name most perfumistas know, many love his work and can’t get enough, some find it horrific and can’t understand why the rest of us are so smitten. Tauer-ade is the killer, long lasting fragrant base that Tauer Perfumers are famous for but on some skins it turns into a screaming nightmare with the half life of uranium. Luckily, i am one of the former, not merely smitten with the fragrances but also with Andy Tauer himself who looks remarkably like Homer Simpson’s sexy Christian neighbour Ned Flanders.


See what I mean? Really, it’s uncanny isn’t it? I can’t take all the credit for this discovery but I am thrilled that you are now in on the secret.

02 L`Air du Desert Marocain by Tauer Perfumes 2005

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Coriander, cumin, petitgrain
Heart: Rock rose, jasmine
Base: Cedar, vetiver, ambergris

I love this spicy opening, like a blast of herbal resin, sweet, sharp and delicious. The opening feels more wet than you’d expect in a fragrance named for the Moroccan Desert, as if you’ve landed at an oasis after the arid desert dryness. The ambient wetness seems to dry within a few minutes and while keeping a spicy feel the focus turns floral, but not a bouquet. If ambergris it is then I feel its salty tang, but that could be the vetiver, and it flows in before the first half hour is over tamping down the florals and keeping them as background noise. I don’t read vanilla in the notes, or amber, but maybe the rock rose has hints of labdanum because I’m getting a lovely warmth and sweetness. I don’t know really but these are the things I am picking up, the cedar is a lovely freshly hewn scent.
.

Photo Stolen saharawelcome

Though L`Air du Desert Marocain is named for the desert I feel the only thing desert-ish about it is the lovely sense of space between the notes, an airiness. I was expecting armpits, camels, dust and dog mixed with zinging spices and the sizzle of oil over a wood fire. What I get is a beautifully constructed fragrance that hints at the cloudless sky, a long expanse of desolate space, the warmth and waxiness of desert plants and the seraglio, filled with clean and bodily hairless women softly sweating in the heat and awaiting their masters pleasure.
.

Photo Stolen from bigdave44

Further reading BoisDeJasmin and TheScentedHound

Andy Tauer’s webpage has 50ml $102
PoshPeasant starts at $5/ml

Have you tried any Tauer Perfumes? How were they on you? Do you have a fave?
Thank you so much for dropping in, see you tomorrow.

Portia xx

Cuir Velours by Julien Rasquinet for Naomi Goodsir 2012

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 12 Comments

Hi Ho All,

Today I am beyond thrilled to be bringing you an Aussie, Naomi Goodsir, who till this point has been known as a milliner and handbagger who does the most extraordinary, hand worked Haute leather that is inventive, interesting, forward fashion. Left almost completely in the dark about this release because it happened at Fragranze 10, in Florence, Italy and I was here in Sydney, I saw a photo of the lovely and amusing deer art on their stand and had read a mini blurb on Basenotes and that was about it. My head said, “Another frag. company, I need to get through some of my samples before I order more.”

Then, something happened. Patty White from the Perfume Posse wrote asking if I’d heard of Naomi Goodsir. Nope! Not even a flicker of recognition in my frag addled brain. Apparently I had overlooked the Hot Ticket Launch of Fragranze, and she is an Aussie made good in the world to boot! Oh The SHAME!! Patty then charged me to find out more, get us some samples and let us experience the new crew everyone is raving about.

Cuir Velours by Julien Rasquinet for Naomi Goodsir

Fragrantica gives these featured accords all in one line:
Suede, tobacco, rum, labdanum, incense, immortelle

OH MY FECKING GODS!!! This smells and makes me feel like I have a billion dollars. As you may know I do love me a leather fragrance and Cuir Velour is so perfectly named, that is exactly what I’m experiencing. The soft luxurious smell of a favourite leather handbag, well worn and loved, and that plush soft gloriously lavish feeling of running your hands over German cotton velour. It is whisper soft, like maribou, and sits so close to the skin that it could be you, the only note that really makes its presence known on my skin as a stand out separate entity, other that the soft plush suede-ish leather, is the immortelle which makes me smell like my skin is this amazing, sexy and sensual fragrance already and I’m wearing a very soft immortelle fragrance. An unusual and interesting idea that I will definitely be telling my friends to wear for initial OMG we are going to have sex dates. This is a scent that would keep me coming back just to smell it again and again and again, to work out if they really smelled this incredible.

Cuir Velours Naomi Goodsir for women and men Photo Stolen Fragrantica

This is a skin scent, it is so soft that you could wear it in any situation even the closest and most fragrance phobic work environments. The people that you let within your most intimate radius will be the only ones to know you smell this divine, everyone else will be oblivious but will all want to get super close because even though they don’t consciously notice your scent you will smell so Ah May Zing and they will all think it’s just you. Another great thing about Cuir Velour is that it seems to work with your scent, enhancing the good stuff, and smells quite different on TSO Jin and I.

This was Naomi Goodsir’s slightly edited response to my email telling her how much I loved Cuir Velours and asking where interested parties can purchase, I am so chuffed she took the time to write back:
Dear Portia,
Great to hear that you like Cuir Velours. It’s a soft suederal oriental leather, that I find a little ‘gourmand’ …. I really enjoy the fleur d’immortelle (absolu) dry down.
The perfume should be available at PEONY MELBOURNE  hopefully by the end of next week. For now that is the only boutique we have in Australia. We are currently working on a website where you can buy on-line and the perfume will be available soon in the USA (on-line as well).
Kindest regards,
Naomi

I just love it when an Aussie takes it to the world. Hopefully Patty will be able to get Cuir Velours at SurrenderToChance too, then we’ll all be able to get a nice big decant.

Thanks for dropping by, we are so grateful that you do. Is there anything brand spanking new that we should try here at APJ? Leave us a note in the comments and we’ll hunt it down.
Till tomorrow be good to you and those in your orbit.
Portia xx

All Photos Stolen Naomi Goodsir’s Blog unless otherwise marked

Tea For Two by Olivia Giacobetti for L’Artisan Parfumeur 2000

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 24 Comments

Hiya Stink Monkeys!!

,I have been reading about Tea For Two on blogs, trying it irregularly and when it was discontinued there was wailing, tearing of hair and gnashing of teeth by perfumistas all over this lovely globe. I have tried it a few times, a spritz here or a dab there, and never been enamoured by it. Not that I didn’t like it, I did. There just seemed to be so many other fragrances that I was more charmed or captivated by. Perfumes that I NEEDED to own a bottle or large decant of and thought that life without would be unbearable, you know, general frag hag drill. So when the lovely Undina, from Undina’sLookingGlass, sent a generous sample with some other stuff recently T42 got shunted aside in preference for things more top of mind, till yesterday and now today.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives the featured accords as:
Top: Bergamot, star anise, tea
Heart: Cinnamon, ginger, spices, gingerbread
Base: Honey, vanilla, leather, tobacco

I love the fresh yet warm opening where the bergamot shimmers over the anise which is warm and breathy and surprisingly sweet, like the gingerbread is already there warm from the oven, and the honey and vanilla seem to be floating around nearby also. This fragrance is what I think of when I think of a gourmand, my mouth has been watering since I sprayed earlier in the day and I want cookies and cakes so bad. Not to mention a hot steaming cup of tea. Back in a moment….

Photo Stolen dorisday.net

Don’t get me wrong, though this is sweet the tea holds everything in check so it doesn’t become annoying or sickly. Olivia Giacobetti has walked a very fine line and I know the notes don’t say it but I have something very white flowers going on too, maybe orange blossom (just read in BoisDeJasmin that it is! Fist Punch! Woo Hoo!), that buttery warm human scent plays background for the first couple of hours when Tea For Two is strongest on my skin. The smoky tar laden tea so spicy and strong is just given the lightest touch of cream and then the leather comes rolling in, across and through softly but decisively to give heft and depth to the lovely cuddly sweet vanilla and tobacco. Then somewhere between 4-6 hours, depending on the day etc, my skin eats all remnants of having worn fragrance at all.

Photo Stolen huntington.org

Not a sillage monster but you are definitely fragrant and do leave a lovely bright trail behind you that lasts a touch more that a moment, just enough time to tantalise, though this is more a warm comfort scent than a come hither and get you summa this. Perfectly acceptable to wear anywhere except frag phobic offices, even when spritzed with abandon.

BoiseDeJasmin for further reading and PerfumeSmellingThings does a hilarious husband and wife take, must read!
eGlobalBeauty has 100ml delivered $135
SurrenderToChance starts at 1ml/$4

So thank you Undina from Undina’sLookingGlass for another MUST OWN fragrance, you are an enchantress and and enabler and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for making me go back and retry Tea For Two.

What are you wafting? Is there tea in it? Do you have a favourite Tea-centric fragrance? Share with us in the comments please.

Till tomorrow we wish you the good stuff you wish for yourselves and a moment of magic,
Love,
Portia xx