Sycomore EdT by Jacques Polge + Christopher Sheldrake for CHANEL 2008

October 2, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by Robert Herrmann

Hi there fragrant friends,

Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere.

God how I LOVE Autumn.

The gorgeous sunny days in the high 50’s to 60’s, the cool nights that require the extra blanket, all of it just speaks directly to my heart. But especially the light, whose tone and quality manifests as sheer, dreamy, and soft as velvet; the sun lower in the sky beaming through the trees in the woods behind our house. The geese are on a flyway now, heading somewhere, but they stop and gather to feed and sleep in the pasture to the south, providing hours of wonderful albeit noisy viewing. The last of the apples are almost ready to be picked from our tree, just waiting to be stewed for sauce with a buttload of spices and fresh ginger before I ladle them into the steaming hot glass ball-jars for the winter months. Yup, love it.

One of my most perfect scents for the Fall, and always in my top 10 of all time would have to be Sycomore EdT. It is to me simply autumn in a bottle.

Sycomore EdT by CHANEL 2008

Sycomore EdT by Jacques Polge + Christopher Sheldrake

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Vetiver, sandalwood, aldehydes, tobacco, violet, spicy notes, pink pepper, juniper, cypress

One of my all-time favorite vetivers, this is a jus that always takes me on a journey to the heart of a forest, late afternoon or early evening just as it’s starting to get cold. The leaves and soil underneath my feet releasing the heat of the day in a perfect, loamy scent. The last glimpses of sunlight throwing brass and copper colored beams through the branches, like light in nature’s own cathedral, providing solace and beauty and an almost holy silence.

WikiCommons

I can smell the smoke from the wood-stove in our house combined with the rich forest smells. I inhale deeply, the cold air providing a slightly bitter and piney aroma that mixes with the scent of the last flowering bushes of the season. It always makes me smile like a crazy man, creating that white, hazy and unmistakeable fog that turns me back towards home, promising warmth and security unlike anything else.

All of this and more is what Sycomore gives me, and I always re-apply with abandon trying to hang on to that perfect introspective vision in the changing of the seasons.

Yup. Autumn. Damn near perfect.

PDI

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and What Men Should Smell Like
CHANEL now has sycamore EdP! Go spritz it at a CHANEL store.

What are some of the scents that remind you of a changing season?

Robert XoX

Bois de Paradise by Michel Roudnitska for Parfums DelRae 2002

October 2, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Claire Vukcevic

Hi there APJ folk!

Have you ever built a fragrance up in your head for ages before even smelling it? I do that a lot. The town where I live sells nothing fancier that Beyonce Heat, so I am completely dependent on the Internet. So, I read. 95% of the pleasure I get from perfume is reading other people writing about it. Words set off a moving train of vivid images in my head, and if a person is a talented writer, they can bring a perfume to life for me in a way that just smelling the damn thing simply will not do.

These images and dreams of a perfume can slosh around my head for years until I actually smell it. Can you imagine the utter joy when the images I’ve filed away in my mental library actually lines up with how the perfume smells? Unfortunately, Parfums DelRae Bois de Paradis doesn’t quite live up to the movie reel in my head.

Bois de Paradise by Parfums DelRae 2002

Bois de Paradise by Michel Roudnitska

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Citruses
Heart: French rose, blackberry, spices, fig
Base: Amber, woodsy notes, resins, incense

There is just something a little too insistent, too overwrought about Bois de Paradis. It bowls me over….then sticks in my craw. Each time I put it on, I think of the immortal lines of Hotel California – this could be heaven, or this could be hell.

The problem: In the middle of a pool of rich, luscious florals, fruits, and woods, a strident tone eventually juts out and catches my skin on its jagged edges. It’s like running your hand down a gleaming wooden banister and finding one tiny splinter. It gets in the way of what I signed up for.

Wikipedia

What I signed up for: A luscious rose-berry syrup, heavily spiced but suspended in a golden elixir, so delicious I want to drink it. Fresh blackberries and dried currants swimming in some kind of quaint alcohol, like mead or mulled wine and draped in the same golden, autumnal haze that I associate with other rich, honeyed harvest scents such as Botrytis and 1270 by Frapin. This, right here, is my bailiwick. Mah wheelhouse.

The splinter: The syrup boils over and becomes pure resin. The woods funnel into pine sap, with a helping of mint, blackcurrant leaf, and camphor, introducing an “aftershave”-like aftertaste. These notes interfere with a creamy-dry, rosy sandalwood in the base. I want to shove aside the throat-catching resin, pine needles, and mint, and enjoy my sandalwood unfettered. It won’t allow me. (If I wanted pine needles and mint, I would wear Nuit Etoilee).

Despite the odds stacked in its favor at the start, it is not a buy for me. But I am grateful to have been given the chance to try it. DelRae stuff is almost impossible to find in Europe.

Flickr

Further reading: Non Blonde and EauMG
LuckyScent has $150/50ml
Surrender to Chance has samples from $4/0.5ml

What about you guys? Have you ever built a fragrance up in your mind while reading reviews, only to have your hopes (and expectations) dashed to the ground when you actually get your nose on it?

Slán from sunny but cold Ireland,
Claire

Claire also writes for Take One Thing Off

Taklamakan GIVEAWAY WINNER

October 1, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

Post by Portia

Heya APJers,

Woo Hoo! Thanks to Sandra and Maison de Parfum in Vienna for their generosity.

Let’s see who won!
Portia xx

Taklamakan GIVEAWAY WINNER

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Bergamot, rose, Chinese cedar, sandalwood, iris, patchouli, guaiac wood, benzoin, vanilla, labdanum, musk

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winners who will receive:
1 x decanted sample of Taklamakan
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

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

Angela Pritchard

The winners will have till Monday 3rd October 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

Queen Of Hearts by Steve DeMercado for Queen Latifah 2010

September 30, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 7 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Fragrance Family,

Strong women have always attracted me. My family was full of strong women, Mum’s nursing buddies are all strong women and I gravitate to that type of woman in my daily life too. Strong women have been strengthened by some of lifes shit but I think they have the steel inside even before the world forges them. Being strong doesn’t mean they are hard either, though they do have to be sometimes for self protection. Queen Latifah has always struck me as a strong woman, whenever I see her on TV, singing, acting, interviewing or just being her cool self I always want more. There is something completely captivating about her.

Queen Of Hearts by Queen Latifah 2010

Queen Of Hearts by Steve DeMercado

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Green notes, Plum, Cinnamon, Citruses
Heart: Jasmine, Red fruits, White blossoms
Base: Amber, Musk, Patchouli, Vanilla bean, Frankincense

The first thing you notice is the fun bottle. Like a heart being pushed out of a nail tray. It fits well in my hand, has good heft and looks very swish with its turquoise-topped gold lid.

Citrus, jasmine and resins open up Queen of Hearts and the fruits are there in a waxy/radiant whoosh that feels warm, sensual and lavish. It’s hard to believe you can buy this baby for under $20 because it smells really good.

After the initial fireworks die down Queen of Hearts becomes a modern resinous patchouli sweetened by lingering fruits and breathy white flowers drizzled with caramel. Not a gourmand. Not edible. Smooth patchouli with the rest in harmonious background accord. This is no loud, in your face event, people don’t really notice your fragrance after an hour until you hug them, then it’s compliment time.

Wikipedia

The nearest fragrance I have in character to Queen of Hearts is Mona di Orio’s Eau Absolue. They are not dupes but the wonderful uplifting resinous patchouli vibe is similar.

Further reading: Perfume Posse (Yes, I wrote about it before in 2014)
FragranceNet has AU$20/100ml Before Coupon

Are you a fan of Queen Latifah? Have you tried her fragrances?
Portia xx

MFK Sample GIVEAWAY WINNERS

September 30, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey there APJ,

Thanks to Val for her generosity.
Let’s see who won,
Portia xx

MFK Sample GIVEAWAY WINNERS

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Carded Manufacturers Sample Grand Soir
1 x Carded Manufacturers Sample Petit Matin
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Thursday 29th September 2016 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Hikmat Sher Afridi

The winners will have till Sunday 2nd October 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.

Memento Mori by Mandy Aftel for Aftelier Perfumes 2016

September 29, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Post by Portia

Dear APJ Reader,

Do you ever put fragrance on your skin with no knowledge or expectation of what it will be? With some of my independent perfumer friends that’s exactly what I do. For the sheer joy of experiencing the scent without prejudice. That can make for some pretty far fetched guesses as to what has gone into a fragrance, and the ideas behind it. It’s also one of the reasons I love doing Live Video Sniffs, you get to come on the ride……. Scott and I spend a few minutes smelling the opening and… well, you’ll see….

Memento Mori by Aftelier Perfumes 2016

Memento Mori by Mandy Aftel

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Butter, orris, floral notes (Phyenylacetic acid)
Heart: Turkish rose, beta ionone (woody violet)
Base: Ambreine (amber), ambergris, antique civet, patchoulyl acetate (patchouli isolate)

From Aftelier: A memento mori is designed to “remind the viewer [or wearer] of their mortality and the shortness and fragility of human life” (Tate Museum). Memento mori jewelry was known for its intimate workmanship, beautiful delicacy and close associations with eternal love and remembrance. Mourning jewelry was a way for the bereaved to hold on to the memory of a loved one who had passed away: a way of saying “gone but not lost” or “sacred to memory.” It brought comfort and consolation and was not morbid or ghoulish, but touching and loving.

Further reading: Now Smell This and A Bottled Rose
Aftelier has samples from $6/0.25ml

Just so you know, while Momento Mori opens outrageously it does soften off considerable within the first hour. It’s indolic/fecal/barley butter gives way to the softest and plushest comfort scent. Like cuddling your partner first thing in the morning before tooth brushing and shower, still lived in and slightly rank but the smell of shared sleep and awakenings.

You’ve done it again Mandy, bravo.
Portia xxx

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016: Revisited

September 26, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 3 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hello and welcome to another fabulously fragrant week!

Back in June APJ & I gave away five decants of Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels, to help me gather some feedback on the fragrance and whether I was going nuts in smelling some of the more unusual notes that I found.

Reviews have been received back from Koyel and Patsi, thank you! Neva, I’m sorry the post missed you while you were on holidays, I’ll resend, I promise! Bridget I hope you enjoyed the fragrance/s! Greg, offer is still open if you wish to get in touch. 🙂

Moonlight Patchouli by Van Cleef & Arpels 2016

Collection Extraordinaire

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cacao, patchouli leaf, woodsy notes
Heart: Iris flower, Bulgarian rose
Base: Fruity notes, leather, suede

Koyel wrote:
Moonlight Patchouli starts out in-your-face boozy for a moment, then burns off to a gorgeous, sweet, very green patchouli. There is a warmth to it that might be the cacao. After half an hour, a buttery iris starts poking its head out. Unfortunately, another half hour later, the sweet, buttery side of the iris has left behind a more cardboard-y iris note that I don’t like very much.

Maybe an hour later, the green-ness of the patchouli becomes more pronounced, and the sweet butter scent comes back. It mixes with a skin scent/warm leather (suede?) to make the absolute softest leather note. The soft, buttery leather/suede sticks quite close to the skin. I’m not quite sure when the smell faded away completely, but it lasted for far less time than a workday on multiple occasions.

I don’t get salty/seaweed/chlorine at all, luckily! Dewy, perhaps, at times, particularly in the beginning. I like this scent a lot, and find it quite wearable, though not FB-worthy. The cardboard note in the middle is a bit off-putting, but mild enough to be tolerable.

Patsi wrote:
Moonlight Patchouli is reminiscent of something familiar from way back. It reminds me of a sweet wine at the beginning becoming richer and syrupy like but with the patchouli and suede/leather notes keeping the sweetness from running over and ruining everything. The Iris and patchouli are soft and beautifully blended together with a light suede note.

The patchouli is not too strong and I love its presence with a bright fresh lemonade-like citrus, accompanied by white flowers and rose. I find it very comforting, not overpowering and it dries down to a wonderful sensual, rich base.

I kept getting wafts where the perfume had gone on my hair and I thought – who is that – what is that beautiful smell – ohhh its me!!! 🙂 I find it to be long lasting – a good 7 hours. The ladies at work loved it and declared that I smelled really good! 9/10 for me – Beautiful fragrance and definitely full bottle worthy!

Flickr

Harrods has £126/75ml
Surrender To Chance has samples from $4/0.5ml

Thank you both so much for your lovely reviews! I’m glad you enjoyed the decants.

What it has shown me is that the salt/chlorinated water note is just me, that it’s something to do with my skin or the way I interpret the smell. It is a consistent note, for a while I thought it might be the chlorinated water is stronger where I live, but I think not. I’ve been wearing Moonlight Patchouli this week and that middle note is consistent.

Thanks again guys!! It’s been fun.

Has anyone else had a chance to smell Moonlight Patchouli as yet?

Have a great week everyone.

Tina G xx

Teazzurra GIVEAWAY WINNERS

September 25, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

Post by Portia

Heya APJ,

Thanks Guerlain, and thank you all for getting involved.

Portia xx

Teazzurra GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, lemon, yuzu, grapefruit
Heart: Green tea, chamomile, jasmine
Base: Musk, calone, vanilla

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Carded Manufacturers Sample Teazzurra by Guerlain
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies via eMail, WordPress, Bloglovin or RSS. Please leave how you follow in the comments to be eligible. I must be able to check that you follow so if you have an email address on your gravatar that’s different to your follow address then please email me so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell us your favourite Guerlain Aqua Allegoria fragrance or which one you’d like to try

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Saturday 24th September 2016 10pm Australian EST
Winner was chosen by random.org

Sue Mills

The winner will have till Wednesday 28th September 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.

Ormonde Jayne in Florence: An Aperol spritz with Linda Pilington

September 20, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 4 Comments

Post by Ainslie Walker

Hi Fragrant Friends!

I’m in Italy for Pitti Fragranze 2016 and today you can share with me:

An Aperol spritz in Florence with Linda Pilkington
*And a prosecco ‘roadie’ if I’m honest…

A Florence virgin, I arrived from Australia just 30 minutes before the first of many exciting interviews I had prearranged before departing. By the time the curtains opened for Pitti Fragrance I already had met with three fascinating folk from the world of fragrance. Nothing like hitting the ground running…and run I did!!

Linda Pilkington of British brand, Ormonde Jayne and I met in the garden in her quaint hotel, Lungarno Vespucci 50 on the bank of the Arno River nearest to Ponte Amerigo Vespucci, Firenze.

Ormond Jayne at Pitti in Florence

An Aperol spritz with Linda Pilington

With a fascination for scent and an entrepreneurial mindset from a young age, it is not surprising Ormonde Jayne has evolved into a successful, luxury cult brand.

How the brand evolved….
Initially named by her husband after the street she was living on in London, Ormonde Terrace, combined with her middle name, the brand began a rapid evolution. Winning Top Draw for best designs for handmade candles, room sprays and bath oils meant Ormonde Jayne was noticed and picked up by department stores Harrods and Liberty soon after launching.

Soon after, Linda began work on a stand-alone boutique on London’s Old Bond Street with the help of Chanel’s merchandising team. Linda had previously created for Chanel’s fine jewelry an in-house scented candle, that she still supplies.

Before doors opened on day 1, the editor for the Evening Standard had already knocked on the door and by day 2 there was a buzz – a queue forming before second day of trade. This was November 2001.

Linda bashfully describes her successes as ‘happenstance,’ however it’s clear she has put in plenty of hard work and loads of travel too!

Linda’s favorite fragrances…
Linda and her sister were “the best smelling teenagers of their small village near Manchester, England.” Her sister owned a bottle of Dior’s Eau Sauvage and Linda had Dior’s Diorella. The pair used to layer the duo and the town folk used to all say “those girls smell amazing!”

Her all time favorite, for its uniqueness is Feminite du Bois Shiseido / Serge Lutens. She has also worn Givenchy’s Pour Femme (Eau de Givenchy??), Van Cleef & Arpel’s First and Chanel’s Cristalle – In fact Linda told me Ormonde Jayne’s “Tiare is a little nod to Chanel’s Cristalle”

Linda’s creative process…
Linda’s innovation has been on finding unusual ingredients, not widely used at the time, such as hemlock, oud and champacca – and daring to use them first. “Champacca (2002) came out almost 10 years before Tom Fords in 2009” she explains

Recent news…
Currently the company is repackaging to linen covered boxes. Each country can choose a pantone color, which will then be unique to them. For example purple is already exclusive to Russia. A nice touch.

My personal favorite is Ormonde woman – full of mesmerizing hemlock. What’s yours?

I will be meeting Linda in her London boutique and Studio in a few weeks, so please let me know if you’ve any questions you’d like me to ask on your behalf!

Cheers!
Ainslie X

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils

September 18, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by Robert Herrmann

Hi frag Friends! Robert H. here….

I am beyond thrilled to have discovered Abdul Karim Al Faransi (Abbdul Karim the Frenchman) Perfume Oils from Birmingham in the UK! I have always loved the idea of Middle Eastern perfume oils, but often the execution fails to deliver. I have tried a multitude of lines, offered on Amazon, Ebay and Esy, and available at stores like Whole Foods. None have come thru for me and I am more often than not disappointed.

Until now.

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils

Finding Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils is like coming upon a beautiful cool oasis, in a wasteland desert. See, the other brands I’ve tried in the past have all had something in them that skews petrochemical on my skin, usually manifesting as a back note that’s bitter, metallic, headache-inducing, and well…just fake.

Right from the onset you can detect French influence in these AF oils, also their logo is comprised of traditional Arabian swords that form an “A” and an “F”, while also forming the shape of the Eiffel Tower.

Self-described autodidact, owner Anthony Abdul Karim Marmin a young perfumer in his 30’s, is the sole owner and nose. In business since 2013 (1434 on the Islamic calendar), Anthony is mostly self-taught who has “Learned and continues to learn from various books, experiences and meeting with other people involved with perfumery.”

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils: Imperial Desire

The first oil I’m trying is called “Imperial Desire” and it’s a terrific floral described as:

“….a thick white musk with an innovative style. This creamy and powdery fragrance is an empire of sweetness full of beautiful notes . This soft perfume is suitable for men and women..”

Top: Taif rose, Comoros Ylang, Light fruity notes.
Heart: Violet, Orris, Lily of the valley, Powdery notes.
Base: Musk, Vanilla, Cedar, Amber.

Imperial Desire is creamy in color and swabs on like a viscous thick syrup, leaving a slick on my arm that is gorgeous with a deep scent similar to a vintage french extrait. I don’t get the fruit notes as much as the beautiful rose and ylang. As the oil heats up, the powdery and rooty orris sneaks in, supported by the violet, all resting on a soft musk base shot thru with vanilla and amber.

This scent feels very personal to me, not something to wear if you’re looking for sillage, but profoundly intimate to be enjoyed by you alone and maybe with someone special. It is a lush, sexy bouquet, deep and chewy, not unlike being anointed in a joyous ritual, the evocative scent slowly working deep into your emotions and psyche.

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils: Musk Tahara Monoi

The second oil I tried is the lovely beach-y scent “Musk Tahara Monoi”, a true “Floramand” (floral gourmand.)

The notes are: Tahitian Monoi, Polynesian Flowers, Tahitian Vanilla, White Lotus, White Musk.

Opening like Hawaiian Tropic suntan oil mixed with a deep caramel sauce, Monoï (Tahitian gardenia or Tiaré steeped in coconut oil) is a beautiful, buttery, and lush smelling oil, and mixed here with vanilla and musk, smells like a floral infused coconut cake. With the same color and viscosity as “Imperial Desire” this oil slathers on like liquid butter and takes you right to a tropical beach, moist and fecund and scented with Polynesian flora. Beautiful stuff!

Abdul Karim Al Faransi Oils are available on their website
The prices are amazingly reasonable (€10.00 for a 6ml. dab bottle and a flat international shipping rate of €2.50!) and that 6ml. bottle will last quite some time!

Have you tried Faransi oils? What are some Middle Eastern oils you’d recommend?