CHANEL Bois des Iles by Ernest Beaux 1926

October 6, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 35 Comments

Hello Fume Heads,

Not so long ago friend and APJ reviewer Michael was over and he was wondering about Bois des Iles (Wood Islands or Islands of Wood) so I went and grabbed my decant. Though I’d spritzed it a couple of times and have a few wonderful memories of wearing it on our holiday this year, I had never taken time to understand the beauty behind this CHANEL princess of a perfume.

CHANEL Bois des Iles 1926

Photon Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Aldehydes, bergamot, neroli , coriander, mandarin, peach
Heart: Jasmine, rose, lily of the valley, orris, iris, ylang-ylang, lilac
Base: Vetiver, amber, sandalwood, benzoin, vanilla, opoponax, musk

Bois des Iles fizzy, fun and fruity opening with a slightly green bent opens up bigger than expected, I know it doesn’t last but the first few minutes could be the slightly muted grand entrance of an 80s blockbuster, so much going on in a fleeting snippet like watching the cars zoom off at the start of an all day car race. After the fireworks Bois des Iles settles into a still slightly zingy, spicy, floral bouquet but sadly on my skin I completely miss the oft talked about and loved gingerbread accord. I get jasmine and ylang ylang as my stand out performers, though the rest are there it is as harmonious background with a quietly insistent sweet woody baseline.

Photo Stolen FoxHarbor

Later we welcome the musky woods with vanilla and various resins in the base. This is the sandalwood dream I remember of early Samsara, a smooth creamy, buttery sweet sandalwood with none of the camphorous/eucalyptus squeaky dryness of modern sandalwoods or the thin artificiality of many of the reinventions through science. Interestingly, Kafkaesque writes that Jacques Polge’s modern Bois des Iles is an imagined sandalwood, an accord created without the use of sandalwood, WOW and Double WOW! A sensual, soft yet lingering masterpiece.

Bois des Iles will forever remind me of Paris, Jin and my journey there earlier in 2013, our friends Aaran & Gerard hosted us while we were there and in their home was a beautiful stained glass double door panel by a very famous glass artist, sadly he sold it recently, and the wonderful art deco/industrial piece is what I was most astonished by in his home while wearing Bois des Iles. Made around the same time, I think, as the glass doors cum art wall piece it all felt very elegant at the time and now that I’ve done some homework the resonances are striking.

From the CHANEL site: Paris, 1926. ‘Art deco’ is all the rage, exoticism fascinates, and jazz stirs passions. People dream of faraway lands and precious woods. Once again, Coco Chanel shakes up the history of perfume by launching the first woody fragrance for women. An intoxicating, enveloping, warm, sensual, spiraling scent. It’s all there: the precious woods, the opiate scents and magnificent, languid flowers. The fragrance is a mysterious, faraway continent in itself.

Further reading: Kafkaesque and Olfactoria’s Travels
Available exclusively in the CHANEL Fragrance and Beauty Boutiques
Surrender To Chance has Bois des Iles EdT from $4/ml and Parfum from $6/.25 ml

What was your Bois des Iles experience? Have you, or do you want to try it?
See you tomorrow,
Portia xx

Lanvin Spanish Geranium GIVEAWAY WINNERS!

October 6, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Hey there APJ,

Another fab contest and you all got involved. EXCELLENT!! We are so happy that you come by and check out our stuff and this is just the best Thank You we can think of. Of course this GIVEAWAY was run by the lovely Azar so big snaps to Azar for going to all this trouble too.

Photo Stolen WorthPoint

Lanvin Spanish Geranium GIVEAWAY WINNERS!

WHAT COULD YOU WIN?

There will be 2 winners this week, each will receive:

1 x 2ml decant from my stash of Spanish Geranium EDT
P&H Anywhere in the world .

HOW DID YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies but to be eligible you had to leave a comment about anything related to geraniums or pelargoniums and mention how you follow APJ
.

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday October 6th 2013 10pm Australian EST.
The winners will be chosen by B-Azar or by Gomez the pionus parrot from same sized folded papers on a tray.

Once again Gomez couldn’t be persuaded to touch his beak to the folded papers. He had a lot to say about my attempts to make him do what he didn’t want to do. This is one ANGRY BIRD! I don’t mess with him when he looks like this. Check out his razor sharp, can opener beak. Once again B-Azar chose the winners from the tray.

Photo Stolen brooklodge

Patty P, Trish W

CONRATULATIONS!! Winners have till Wednesday 9th October 2013 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.

Trance by Veronique Nyberg for J.F. Schwarzlose Berlin 2012

October 5, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Heya all you Niche Nerds,

My mate Clayton from What Men Should Smell Like and I recently caught up for lunch and a sniff, he generously bought me some of the J.F. Schwarzlose Berlin manufacturers samples to try. Having scanned the notes lists of the four Trance particularly caught my eye, there are two fruity/floral and two oudh based fragrances in the line up but when I see particularly short note lists I am often intrigued.

Trance by J.F. Schwarzlose Berlin 2012

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Oudh, labdanum, rose, artemisia (wormwood)

This opens with a beautiful full bodied and sensual Middle East meets West with fireworks and a party. A nod to the history of fragrance from a very elegant and French style, classic perfume, but also so modern and new. It smells at once like everything, and nothing, I’ve ever smelled before. Broad, dazzling brush strokes of fragrance done in an old palette but so interesting and fresh.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Is this the new Chypre? Have they reinvented the wheel? It seems so effortless, graceful and chic. Artemisia as the crackling green in place of bergamot, rose as the heart and labdanum with oudh as the new oakmoss. Even more startling is that they don’t work to pyramid but are weaving from almost the first spritz through each other and having little star turns before sliding behind another player as that one takes the lead. What an absolute stunner of a fragrance this is on my skin, I can’t tell you because you have to grab a sample of Trance and try it for yourself. So beautifully blended that the notes rarely stand apart after the first hour, They become a beautiful linear melange and stay pretty much like that till tomorrow morning when I’ll still be smelling mighty fine, softer and less sparkly but warm and sensual.

Projection and sillage better than average, a bit strong for office wear unless you work somewhere relaxed about fragrance. Longevity is excellent on my usually scent hungry skin and what does Trance remind me of? A little, but not much, like Midnight Oud from Juliette Has A Gnu (which I adore) but even more ripe, lush and lavish. I could imagine Trance being very popular with the Goth scene.

Photo Stolen Wikimedia

Further reading:Both these reviews have the wonderful history of the house so I didn’t repeat it, What Men Should Smell Like and Ca Fleur Bon
Essenza Nobile has 125€/50ml and samples

Don’t you just LOVE finding new fragrances to lemming? This has skyrocketed to the top of my wish list.
See you tomorrow.
Portia xx

CHANEL No 19: Vintage EdC by Henri Robert 1970

October 4, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Hello Vintage Lovers,

One of the things that often surprises me is that on Etsy and eBay sometimes you can still find amazing bargains. Recently I was lucky enough to find a 3/4 full 45ml CHANEL 19 EdC, the spritz in thesilver satin finish case with gold waist and CHANEL C’s on top. It’s a beautiful case in its own right before I even get to the juice, so reminiscent of times past and when owning some CHANEL mass market fragrance was to feel rich and pampered.

CHANEL No 19: Vintage EdC by Henri Robert 1970

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Neroli, bergamot, green notes
Heart: Iris, narcissus, rose, lily of the valley
Base: Sandalwood, leather, vetiver, oakmoss

BaseNotes gives these featured accords:
Top: Galbanum, Bergamot, Neroli, Hyacinth
Heart: Rose, Orris, Jasmine, Narcissus, Muguet, Ylang-Ylang
Base: Musk, Sandal, Oakmoss, Leather, Cedarwood

WHOA BABY!! I love the snappy green opening, so fresh and buoyant, all sparkly green galbanum and citrus. There is a wet feel to CHANEL 19 opening, like there is dew on the world that you’re smelling, or maybe those lovely flowers have been washed before becoming a bouquet. As the bouquet takes over, slowly it eclipses the citrus but the green freshness stays right into the heart. So many people use CHANEL 19 as their back straightener fragrance, and I understand why they feel like that. It certainly has a very stiff upper lipness about it to begin that reflect the cool and aloof that we all sometimes strive for.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Though the opening is magic and the heart softly beautiful it is the base of 19 that I love the most, sadly it doesn’t last long enough on my skin but I do get a couple of hours with the lovely warm, sexy, sensual floral woods that still maintain a very discreet nod to the green open, like the job is done and the hair has been let down. CHANEL 19 becomes less restrained, more open and engaging, like SJP as Meredith Morton in The Family Stone as she unwinds in the bar with her fiances brother. Often when I wear CHANEL 19 I catch myself smiling in remembrance of the film and its now associated fall from uptight. It was never an Oscar winner but it’s one of my favourite go-to films, here’s a peek.

Further reading:
Beauty Encounter has a terrific selection starting at $12/4ml mini
Surrender To Chance starts at $3/ml

I bought my Vintage CHANEL 19 EdC at Odona on Etsy and they always have an excellent selection.

Photo Stolen Beauty Encounter

Are you a CHANEL 19 fan? Where do you prefer to wear it? Does it give you a straight back?
See you tomorrow,
Portia x

Mandragore Pourpre GIVEAWAY WINNERS!

October 4, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 3 Comments

Hello crew!

We are having some spectacular giveaways lately, thanks for getting so involved and enjoying the fun. Today we announce the 3 lucky winners of Mandragore Pourpre by Camille Goutal and Isabella Doyen, one of their more niche leaning offerings in the range.

Mandragore Pourpre GIVEAWAY WINNERS!

Photo Stolen MimiFrouFrou

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

We will have 3 winners this week. It would be more but postage is outrageous! Each winner will receive

1 x 5ml decant of Mandragore Pourpre by Annick Goutal EdT
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.

All I need is a HELLO with how you follow for you to be eligible for the draw.

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Thursday 3rd October 2013 10pm Australian EST
Winners were chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen markmontanoblogs

Belle, Kandice, LaurenW

CONGRATULATIONS!!! The winners have till Sunday 6th October 2013 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.

Further reading: Now Smell This and Grain de Musc
FragranceNet has $90/100ml before coupon
The Posh Peasant starts at $4/ml

Thanks gang,

Have a super great day,
Portia xx

Buying Single Perfume Notes + GIVEAWAY

October 3, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 70 Comments

Hiya all.

I don’t know if you ev er think about the solo pieces of a fragrant puzzle? Recently I was buying some Scent Strip Cards for sampling fragrances wit the crew from Perfumers Apprentice which they sell for around $5/100. They also have a selection of single note oils, now there are many different accords used in perfumery for each facet of fragrance here they use just one of those accords and they seem to be mainly synthetic creations. Nevertheless they are an interesting thing to have samples of in case you can’t discern a note particularly well and want a correlation point. Perfumers Apprentice also has selections of aroma molecules that you can buy but I’ve not tried them yet.

(Ed: This post jumped up on the blog too early so if you’ve read it before, apologies. This is it’s right time)

From Perfumers Apprentice site:
What are Fragrance Oils?
Fragrance Oils are blends of Aromachemicals and Naturals that have been diluted for ease of use. They are easy to work with because they actually smell like what they are named after.
There are two reasons, however, that professional perfumers do not use Fragrance Oils.
1. Because they are pre-diluted by the manufacturer.
2. Because they are of unknown composition, with the manufacturer not bound to continue making the same product the same way.

Single Perfume Notes: Fragrance Oils

These are so reasonable priced at around $3.50/15ml

Almond: Almond oil is a bitter almond smell like marzipan but it also has the milky quality behind it that makes almond so alluring. I can see when I smell this where so many perfumes use almond as a smoothing agent and a dry down component.

Carnation: Carnation is a sweet/buttery/pepper combination, not nearly as spicy as carnation in my head but I can see where Bellodgia by Caron gets its carnation fix now.

Geranium: Geranium smells like rose to me, the spicy, fruity, dry peppery rose that reminds me of but it not really like my garden geraniums.

Honey: The sweet, animal, urinous scent of perfumers idea of honey, normally this particular blend doesn’t seem like fresh honey to me but today when I opened the bottle to sniff it made my mouth water in anticipation and left and back taste in my mouth like I’d eaten honey. MMMM

Peony: Peony smells like perfume to me, not like a peony at all. It reads to my nose as a complete and finished fragrance and I have used it on myself as such. It’s pretty, light, fizzy and fun and smells like there was a lot of it in Burberry Brit.

Photo Stolen ThinkDigitalWorld

Fragrance Oils GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

We will have 2 winners for this draw. It would be more but postage is outrageous! Each winner will receive

1 x 1ml sample vial of all 5 Fragrant Oils (Almond, Carnation, Geranium, Honey, Peony)
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

All I need is you to tell me your favourite perfume note and how you follow for you to be eligible for the draw.

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Tuesday 8th October 2013 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by putting names on same sized papers, folded similarly, put on a tray and Jin will pick a winner (unless he asleep or studying then I’ll use random.org).
The winners will have till Friday 11th October 2013 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.

Good Luck Everyone,
Portia xxx

DIOR: J’Adore the Movie

October 2, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Hello Frag Heads!!

One of the best known perfumes in the world is J’Adore by DIOR. That fabulously iconic bottle, so simple yet so evocative, elegant and luxe. I have a recentish 2011 EdP. This little beauty by Calice Becker was launched in 1999 and has become so outrageously successful that for a while it was all you smelled, you could pick people in the street wearing it. Sensational projection and sillage it gives a very definite nod to the power frags of the 1980s. A fun, rich, sizzling fruity floral that is so far beyond all the other department store offerings of the genre that it stands alone. even now that it has had some surgery, is leaner and more transparent. So many copy cats have missed the whole allure of …

J’Adore by Calice Becker for DIOR 1999

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Magnolia, melon, peach, pear, mandarin, bergamot
Heart: Freesia, orchid, rose, violet, lily of the valley, plum, jasmine, tuberose
Base: Musk, vanilla, cedar, blackberry

An opening that all the celebuscents and drug store offerings try so hard to imitate, but they never seem to get the melon just at that point of pre-dustbin overripeness, the magnolia doesn’t have that gorgeously plush waxinessand the background fruit salad never seems like it could lead you astray with a wink.Here the proportions are perfect and when I smell J’Adore I think of all those fabulous women that are secure and wonderful enough to wear such a beauty.

The bouquet in the heart is pretty and wafts for hours with its plummy, very slightly indolic, siren call. Even through the heart of J’Adore’s 7-8 hour lifespan the woods and vanilla plump up the flowers and give them a cozy breadth, the musks may be helping too at this point but I miss them completely. Towards the end J’Adore goes transparent and has a pretty woodsy/vanilla/musk wash that has become a little generic because it smells good and everyone wanted their inferior products to smell like that. The dry down reminds me of the Our Moment dry down but it lasts less long and can be washed off, unlike the One Direction offering.

If you spray J’Adore on your scarf or in your handbag it will smell like that for the whole season with one spritz.

Photo Stolen Ana_Cotta Flickr

Most of the time we aren’t trolling the department stores for our scents now the wormhole has claimed us, but if you happen to be walking by spritz a card, or skin if you have some spare, and enjoy the ride.

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin takes a look at the changes that have happened to J’Adore and Perfume Shrine
FragranceNet starts at $75/30ml before coupon
Surrender To Chance has EdP in current $3/ml and vintage $5/ml

Today we have a wonderful film about J’Adore, created by the DIOR company so it’s really a 22 minute advert. There is some very interesting stuff in here too though if you have the time.

See you tomorrow,
Portia xx

J’Adore the film

Sous Le Vent by Jean Paul Guerlain 2005

October 1, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 20 Comments

Hey Everyone,

While in Paris recently we went to the Guerlain counters in Galleries Lafayette. One of the new fragrances I was introduced to by our gorgeous SA was today’s offering. Not wanting to madly buy at Galleries Lafayette and saving myself for the Guerlain Flagship Store on the Champs Elysees I didn’t grab a bottle of it. We left the Guerlain store till our last evening, thinking it would be the Paris highlight. Sadly, that afternoon they started their renovation and we were unable to go in and purchase. No worries said I, next January I’ll come back and get one…….. DISCONTINUED!!!!! So off to my mate Ruth K, now at least I have 5ml.

Sous Le Vent by Guerlain 2005

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Lavender, tarragon and bergamot
Heart: Green notes, jasmine and carnation
Base: Iris and woodsy notes

Originally created by Jacques Guerlain in 1933, re-orchestrated by Jean Paul Guerlain in 2005 for the renovated flagship Guerlain store on the Champs-Elysees which has been fully renovated again in 2013. The style here was a chypre, named for Cypress the island and its evergreen trees, goats, crisp flowers, fresh sea air and dark mossy, earthy, fruit groves. The 2005 reformulation has taken much of the darkness and depth.

What does this famous fragrance smell like on me?

The opening is green, bright, soapy and citric and as soon as you put it on it smells like a Guerlain, heavenly, rich, beautifully blended and the citrus crescendos over the top of the herbs like a wave that peaks, breaks and then recedes. It’s like the world has disappeared and I am sitting alone on the lovely rock mount, under the tree in the picture below but there’s no salt just fresh, bracing air.

Photo Stolen DanielPaulKlein

The heart melds seamlessly and the citrus comes back at quite unexpected times to say hello, as the opening notes say farewell Sous Le Vent quiets and softens. The floral heart is pretty but unremarkable on my skin, actually I think my skin is eating some of it because it smells quite thin, maybe I am anosmic to the notes? I have a lovely floral wash that has nothing discernible. I was hoping for much more of the animal, labdanum and also mossy darkness. I understand that the world has changed and that it’s not possible to use those products anymore, still I am sad.

Please don’t think I do not love Sous Le Vent. I do love it and once I got over the initial surprise I have been able to visit and spend time really enjoying what it is. It still carries an amazingly bright and wonderful opening, though it softens considerably upon repeated wears it’s quiet dignity has impressed me and I think I am getting more of an understanding of the elegance that Sous Le Vent delivers. Perfect scent for glamour occassions but not so rigid it couldn’t be worn as a daytime signature scent. It is pricey at around the $300 mark, if you can get it, but if someone was rich, only wore a few scents and didn’t spend all their money on collecting then I think it makes sense to have a scent that is this perfectly proportioned and while harking back to the old days is still bang up to date.

I have a 10ml decant and that will probably do me till it’s re-released.

Photo Stolen FlickRiver

Further reading Olfactoria’sTravels and BoisDeJasmin
Sous Le Vent can be bought at very select Guerlain boutiques worldwide, I have not seen it in Australia though.
SurrenderToChance starts at $7/ml

I’m sure Sous Le Vent is old news to you, how did you enjoy the experience? Or if you haven’t tried it, will you?
Till tomorrow, be nice to yourself,
Portia xx

Spanish Geranium (vintage) by Andre Fryse for Lanvin

September 30, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 77 Comments

Post by Azar

Spanish Geranium by Lanvin

Hello APJ,

Spanish Geranium (Geranium d’Espagne) was created for Lanvin in 1925 by the brilliant perfumer Andre Frysse. It sold for a short time, became unavailable for many years, was revived in the 1950’s and finally discontinued around 1970. The 20th century actress Joan Crawford (“Mommy Dearest” to some) was reported to have said of Spanish Geranium that it was one of the three fragrances she “would never want to live without”. The other two were Royall Lyme by Anthony Gaade and Estee Lauder’s Youth Dew. Jungle Gardenia was also one of her favorites. Unfortunately for Joan (and for the rest of us) Spanish Geranium and the original Jungle Gardenia that she loved so much are long gone while more mainstream, crowd-pleasing fragrances, like Royall Lyme and Youth Dew, remain.

In the 1960’s my mother was given a bottle of Spanish Geranium Eau de Lanvin (an EDT). She favored Arpege so gave me free access to the SG, which I used with a heavy hand. The scent of Spanish Geranium, as well as the characteristic Lanvin accord, are burned into my memory. In those days my application of this fragrance was so liberal that one of my music comp professors actually took me aside on a hot Spring day and advised me on the appropriate use of perfumes and colognes. I remember his exact words and often ignore them.

Spanish Geranium is a bracing, in your face, almost masculine rendition of its floral namesake. The top notes are a combination of the familiar scent of the flowers and foliage of the zonal geranium (Pelargonium zonale) and the crushed leaves of the hybrid spicy rose geranium (P. ‘Graveolins’). Citrus, perhaps unripe lemon or bergamot, and what might be pepper add a sparkle to the floral mix. The opening never truly fades, giving Spanish Geranium the illusion of a soliflore, which it definitely is not. After about five minutes oakmoss, palmarosa and a touch of patchouli join the geraniums, eventually drying down to a light amber, a woody resin and something animalic, perhaps civet. The entire SG fragrance mélange floats on the same Lanvin accord that supports Arpege and My Sin. I can’t really describe this accord, but if you have used vintage Lanvin you will know what I’m talking about .The sillage can vary between quite intimate to moderate and the longevity up to 4 hours on my skin and more on clothing.

When I first tried Spanish Geranium I thought it was the strangest fragrance I had ever experienced. Admittedly I was quite young at the time but, even now, I find SG to be hauntingly beautiful and (for lack of a better word) just a little bit “odd”. I LOVE odd! Perhaps you will too! Remember that this is a very vintage EDT. It has faded somewhat but has not turned. What I perceive to be a fascinating, odd smell is the same scent I’ve encountered, bottle after bottle, from my first sniff over 50 years ago up to and including what I’m enjoying today.

Further reading: Cleopatra’s Boudoir
The Perfumed Court has .5ml in with 6 other Lanvin fragrances from $28

I just asked Lucie Joly (the Assistante Chef de Produit, what does that title mean?) if there would be a modern revival. She was very cordial but said that an SP revival was not in the works right now, thanks for asking and she would let me know if they decided to do a reissue. I suppose it doesn’t hurt to put a “bee in their bonnet”. It might be interesting to see what kind of Spanish Geranium would emerge to suit modern tastes and restrictions. When I think of a modern revival of SP I get the the image of a strange mutated butterfly with a vague memory of another life as something else. This image was probably a result of reading Ellen Covey’s most recent post referring to butterfly memory, among other things.

AzarX

Photo Stolen hemodernhome

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

There will be 2 winners this week, each will receive:

1 x 2ml decant from my stash of Spanish Geranium EDT
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

To be eligible just leave a comment about anything related to geraniums or pelargoniums and mention how you follow the APJ’s (e-mail, wordpress, whatever).

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Vintage Lanvin Spanish Geranium GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-1Vs @LANVINofficial #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday October 6th 2013 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
The winners will be chosen by B-Azar or by Gomez the pionus parrot from same sized folded papers on a tray.
The winners will have till Wednesday 9th October 2013 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.

DATES FIXED! OOOOPS! Naughty Portia with the cut & paste

Mandragore Pourpre by Camille Goutal + Isabelle Doyen for Annick Goutal 2009

September 29, 2013 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 96 Comments

Hello Fragrant Fumies,

Just recently Natalie from Another Perfume Blog landed in Sydney and to welcome her I took her and another buddy out to a couple of SALE Stores. While at a particular one we found this gorgeous purple bottle of Annick Goutal reduced to next to nothing, I begged for the Tester and got it for even less! So now I have a huge amount of it and think it’s only fair to share the largess.

Mandragore Pourpre by Annick Goutal 2009

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives rthese featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, mint, star anis
Heart: Aromatic herbs, spices, amber, rosemary, geranium, black pepper
Base: Heliotrope, incense, patchouli, myrtle

Sweet minty fresh opening and it’s a fun herbal blast. Mandragore Pourpre is supposed to be reminiscent of the deep, dark, enchanted Mandrake Root that looks like a person and can change your life for good, a poisonous, hallucinogenic, aphrodisiac all in one root. No wonder people think it’s bewitched. From my reading Isabelle Doyen has said more of the Harry Potter Mandrake than the old world witchy tales. Because of the sweetness cutting through the green it doesn’t give me much darknesss, though it becomes spicy and tingly through the heart with all the pepper and geranium the ambers warmth keeps it friendly and cozy. My skin even makes the dry down soft and powdery rather than the cool incense and earthy green I was expecting. Clearly it’s me because everyone else seems to have had a different ride. Still a green-ish powder but hardly any incense, to my nose anyway.
.

Photo Stolen GoldenArmor

Life around 4 hours max but fragrant for the first 2-3 hours with good sillage but only moderate projection. If you sit with a group for about 10 minutes they will start asking who smells good after 9 minutes. So it’s a bit of a creeper in company.
.
Edited from the Annick Goutal site: An olfactory creation born of the fascination felt by Camille Goutal and Isabelle Doyen for the mandrake. A plant which had magical and aphrodisiac virtues in ancient times. Mandragore Pourpre fuses aromatic and Cyprus scents.
Illustrating a darker and more mysterious facet of the mandrake, different from the original Mandragore whose fragrance is based on refreshing and woody scents. A contrasting interpretation for an ode to mystery. A spicy, sensual and captivating composition.
.
Further reading: Now Smell This and Grain de Musc
FragranceNet has $90/100ml before coupon
The Posh Peasant starts at $4/ml

Photo Stolen MimiFrouyFrou

Photo Stolen lavanyasrecipes

Mandragore Pourpre by Annick Goutal GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

We will have 3 winners this week. It would be more but postage is outrageous! Each winner will receive

1 x 5ml decant of Mandragore Pourpre by Annick Goutal EdT
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

All I need is a HELLO with how you follow for you to be eligible for the draw.

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie @AnnickGoutal_FR Mandragore Pourpre: Annick Goutal GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-21D #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 3rd October 2013 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by putting names on same sized papers, folded similarly, put on a tray and Jin will pick a winner (unless he asleep or studying then I’ll use random.org).
The winners will have till Sunday 6th October 2013 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.

Good Luck Everyone,
Portia xxx