Vintage Dioressence by DIOR: GIVEAWAY WINNER

September 8, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

Hey Happy Huffers,

Thanks for getting involved with our draw. This was clearly a big winner because we had loads of comments. Though I didn’t respond this week I did read them ALL, and enjoyed your stories and memories immensely. Thanks for sharing, I loved it and I bet a whole bunch of our readership did too.

Portia xx

Vintage Dioressence by DIOR: GIVEAWAY WINNER

Problem using this photo? Tell me I’ll pull it down

Fragrantica give these featured accords:
Top: Aldehydes, orange, fruity notes, patchouli, green notes, bergamot
Heart: Carnation, tuberose, cinnamon, violet, orris root, jasmine, ylang-ylang, rose, geranium
Base: Musk, patchouli, benzoin, vanilla, oakmoss, vetiver, styrax

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 Winner who receive:

1 x spray decant of my Vintage Dioressence, courtesy Michael Edwards
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

Tell us about a vintage in your closet with a story? Or even a vintage you remember smelling once upon a time.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Vintage Dioressence by DIOR GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-33y @Dior #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 7th September 2014 10pm Australian EST
Winner was chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen HighestSelf

Julie Ohara

The winner will have till Thursday 11th September 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.

La Haie Fleurie du Hameau by L`Artisan Parfumeur 1982

September 7, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Hey All you Fragrance Lovers,

GOSH! 1982, this frag came out while I was still in school. 1982 was the last year I was in the Top 10 of my year and just before I went seriously “Off The Rails” as they called it back then. I think by then my Mum had bought me an Aramis and a mini of VC&A Pour Homme, maybe by then I had even had Polo. That doesn’t count wearing all my Mum & sister’s fragrances though.

La Haie Fleurie du Hameau by L`Artisan Parfumeur 1982

La Haie Fleurie du Hameau by Jean Claude Ellena

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Jasmine, orange blossom, narcissus, ylang-ylang, honeysuckle, vanilla, oakmoss

It’s been super busy around here lately. The house has a For Sale sign out the front and we have been working like House Elves to have it super schmick for the auction. I feel as though I’ve neglected you all a little this weekend, sorry, my head is full to overflowing with stuff and I can’t find a damn thing in the house because so much is packed away in storage. So while I am wearing as much fragrance as ever I am wearing it to forget thought, as a mini mental holiday rather than to run through notes and journey while wearing it. There has been a LOT of gardening going on and every time I work in the front I am completely engulfed in the glorious scents of Erlicher jonquils and King Alfred daffodils.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia Photo Stolen AusGardener

Here is another of my lucky gifts from Michael Edwards, and when I spritzed it tonight it was exactly that gorgeous heady, narcotic and indolic magic that I smell while working in the garden. Mesmerisingly beautiful, as I was driving to work and the few first minutes before I was swept up in Trivia I was absolutely gobsmacked by how lovely. An older bottle with the round cap I think the flowers are totally gorgeous and opulent.

What an excellent rendition of narcissus, I can easily smell how this young man could have fallen so deeply in love with his own beautiful perfection and wanted to smell only that until he wasted away, engulfed or perhaps became merely a breath of indolic air.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

While it is not terrible long lasting, at about 2 hours fragrant and maybe another 2 of very quiet floral vanilla wisps, I found it a wonderful fragrant ride. Extremely pretty and I felt lovely, sometimes a fragrance can make me think I am quite gorgeous. Transportive. Suddenly I am a girlish waif, happy and carefree on a sunlit hill covered in daffodils. It’s like the scene in Death Becomes Her when Meryl Streep takes the potion, except I spritz it.

Further reading: Perfume Smellin’ Things and Perfume Shrine
Surrender To Chance has samples that start at $4/ml

Did you ever get to smell this lovely white and yellow floral?
Portia xx

Christian Siriano Silhouette Fragrance 2014 Ad Campaign

September 6, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Hi hi APJers,

Here is a new release that I was unaware of till right now. To be honest I’ve never heard of this young American designer. I love his sense of fun and quirk in the design of the bottle though. It really does feel like a layered and pleated gown, the colours are interesting too. I would not have been surprised if Kenzo had brought out this look.

Silhouette by Christian Siriano 2014

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Grapefruit, black currant, green apple, freesia, purple berries, green notes, woody tones, oak moss

I’ve not smelled the fragrance yet and it looks fairly formulaic designer 21st century froth but who knows, they may surprise us.

Portia xx

Christian Siriano Silhouette ad Fragrantica

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Christian Siriano Silhouette Fragrance 2014 Ad Campaign

As is so often the case art8amby is my source for this fabulous campaign.

Coco Rocha looks divine in the campaign! (source)

VIE Vienna by Gérald Ghislain for The Scent of Departure 2011

September 5, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 7 Comments

Hi there Perfume Junkies,

There are a few brands that I have looked at occasionally and wondered if they would suit me, or work for me. My interest is tweaked but still I never quite get around to trying their wares. No reason except I don’t come across them in my life and forget to order them when sample/decant shopping. While we were in Korea recently I stumbled across a store that sold The Scent Of Departure range, I love their idea, the fun packaging, the relation to travel and the price point. At the time I spritzed myself with Bali and enjoyed the 100% artificial feeling ride immensely, it was a fun, plastic version of what I imagine Bali to be and I was sad that I’d not purchased. Now I can’t seem to find it online from anywhere that sends to Australia for less than the asking price. Even IndieScents has none left, though they do have others.

VIE Vienna by Gérald Ghislain for The Scent of Departure 2011

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mint, cut grass, floral notes, lemon, bergamot
Heart: Lotus, tarragon, anise, cinnamon, rhubarb, clove
Base: Mexican chocolate, vanilla, coffee, licorice, patchouli, woodsy notes, Guaiac wood

Imagine lemon balm dipped in chocolate and with a side of ice cream. That’s how Vienna opens for me. A fizzy, fun, citrus extravaganza that is both cool and warm. The note list seems quite arbitrary and bears only the most nodding acquaintance with what I smell. Mint, kinda, cut grass, ummmm no, anise, yes, something flowery and slightly wet and some spices that are not particularly cinnamon or clove. Patchouli I get once the opening notes blow off and the anise could be construed as licorice. Chocolate is most pronounced at opening but makes interesting re-appearances throughout pairing with this or that note. Tarragon slides in surreptitiously and sweetens the mix with its lovely green warmth. YUMMY! Next day I am still softly but noticeably fragrant, it’s a woody sweet remnant.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

So how does this tie in with Vienna? One of my favourite cities in the world where Empress Sisi once lived, the heart of the Austrian empire. Where in 1994/5 I used to visit my childhood friend David C who was dancing in the Vienna State Opera Ballet. Where I have been visiting Birgit, Dr O & Sandra (and Sean) from Olfactoria’s Travels, staying at the central but fading majesty of the Royal Hotel. It’s reasonable priced, around the corner from St Stephen’s Cathedral and in the heart of the Vienna shopping and historical district.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

What does this fragrance have to do with the Schonnbrunn, Hoffburg, Belvedere or any of the nearby historical monuments? To be honest I think very little. Unless you take the fizzy opening as cold snow covered Vienna, which is my favourite way to view it. Then the spicy, stark heart could be the beauty and interest of the architecture, artists, cathedrals and parklands. If we can stretch the analogy then the slightly freaky gourmand base is the people. Underneath their reserve they are a warm people to strangers, friendly and welcoming and when you hit their funny bone they are quick to laugh and enjoy themselves.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Further reading: EauMG and Ca Fleure Bon
LookFantastic has £27.20/50ml (ONLY UK shoppers though)
IndieScents has some samples

Are these discontinued? Is there a shortage? Have you tried any of them and what did you think?
Portia xx

Vintage Dioressence by Guy Robert for DIOR 1979

September 4, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 35 Comments

How’s it going APJ?

Hopefully all is well in your world. If not, please don’t stress because as the Medieval Sufi poets so accurately wrote, “this too shall pass.” As, perhaps, has today’s fragrance. I can’t find the modern iteration on the DIOR site and only two of the discounters have it. I haven’t checked department stores but ,maybe some of you all have seen it around? My vintage Dioressence was given to me by Michael Edwards, what a gentleman he is.

Vintage Dioressence by Guy Robert for DIOR 1979

Problem using this photo? Tell me I’ll pull it down

So I read what I had written and then when reading for the Further Reading list below I found this from Angela at Now Smell This which made my words look like dreck. This is exactly how I experience Dioressence: …kicked off with an intriguing mix of soap and rot. The rot was not musky like body odor, but decomposed, like the vague dead squirrel smell I catch here and there in Guerlain Jicky and Shalimar. The rot smell faded to the background, and a gorgeous floral bouquet, languorous and spicy, nudged in, supremely blended and supremely French in feel. For all its richness, Dioressence wasn’t heavy, and even though the sample was only of the Eau de Toilette, it lasted for hours….

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and Now Smell This
AllBeauty in the UK has £68/100ml
Beauty Encounter has $25/7.5ml
Surrender To Chance has a range of samples starting at $4/ml

Photo Stolen manoneileen

Vintage Dioressence by DIOR: GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 Winner who receive:

1 x spray decant of my Vintage Dioressence, courtesy Michael Edwards
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Tell us about a vintage in your closet with a story? Or even a vintage you remember smelling once upon a time.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Vintage Dioressence by DIOR GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-33y @Dior #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 7th September 2014 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winner will be chosen by random.org
The winner will have till Thursday 11th September 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.

Have you seen Dioressence in the stores recently? Smelled it?
Portia xx

Argan Oil – “Liquid Gold”

September 3, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Suzanne R Banks

Argan oil has become increasingly popular in the west in the past few years. The tree is native to south-western Morocco where it happily exits in drought conditions and is perfect for semi-arid soil. The native tree Argania spinosa also helps prevent soil erosion and even provides the perfect resting spot for goats.

Photo Stolen Semangat

In 2007 UNESCO added this wonderful tree to the endangered species act, but since then Morocco has planted many more argan trees to cope with demand. A body was established in 2002 specifically to regenerate the “Arganerie”, which refers to the native populations of trees in Morocco. At this stage I can’t seem to find if the UNESCO ruling has been altered, but the positive effects of new plantations of argan trees has already been felt, especially in regards to employing women.

Argan Oil – “Liquid Gold”

The oil comes from the kernels in the fruit which are split open by hand, mainly by local women. It is labour intensive which is one of the reasons the oil is more expensive than other oils such as sunflower, grapeseed and almond.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Sometimes referred to as liquid gold, the oil is high in oleic acid, similar to olive oil. The kernels are roasted if the oil is intended for culinary use (again, in similar ways to oilve oil in the Mediterranean region), but is left natural when the oil is to be sold for cosmetic uses.

Argan oil has really made an impact in hair care, but as with any cold pressed oil, it’s great for skincare too. I recently watched a YouTube instructional video by Aromatherapist Danielle Ryman. She makes her facial serum with almost all argan oil, only a few drops of rosehip oil and of course some essential oils. I also have a locally made face serum that contains, but is not limited to, argan oil. I haven’t used this oil straight on my face like I would with rosehip oil – but now I really want to!

Photo Stolen OneSpotAllergy (Problems with this image use, please contact)

We must ensure that our demand helps build Morocco and not rape it of its natural resources. We are so desperate for new things, driven by our consumer attitudes, that we are always looking for the next best thing. Argan oil seems to fit the bill perfectly and various websites claims many properties. We must not forget that many carrier oils do the same thing, so as long as it’s sustainable, embrace this wonderful oil and try it in your new formulas. You could use this oil for –

* warm oil hair masks

* warm oil facial treatments

* face and body oil blends

* cuticle and nail treatments

and just about anything else you can think of.

Happy blending and remember to use your intention when you are creating your formulas. See my article about intention.

Suzanne R Banks XXX

Suzanne R Banks Blog
Suzanne R Banks Aromatherapy
Suzanne R Banks FaceBook

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Scent Task #2 GIVEAWAY WINNER

September 3, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 1 Comment

Hey Hey All,

It has been freaking hectic around here at APJ HQ. Life is buzzing along at a crazy rate. Today I am able to breathe for the first time in weeks, the first week of SPRING! YAY! It’s so lovely outside I’m going out to sunbake. MMMMM. When I come back in I will spritz Bronze Godess Fraiche in joyful anticipation of a glorious season.

Portia xx

Photo Stolen Fragrantica