Rance Soaps

Top 10 Christmas Shopping List 2015

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

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Post by Portia

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Hi Lovelies,

We are HURTLING towards Christmas with speeds previously unknown to mankind. How did this year disappear so fast? It seems like only yesterday I was having Christmas at home with Mathew, Jin & Kath, opening up my presents, eating, laughing and having a stunningly relaxing day. Jin, Kath & I were all living in an apartment in Redfern (on the edge of the Sydney CBD) and it was great. You know, I can’t believe I’ve been sporting the BEARD for a year!

Christmas 2014 #1

Many of you are not Christian, have horrible Christmas memories or are very lonely at Christmas. Depression is made even harder when the world expects you to be joyful and smiling. I too have spent Christmas with the black dog. One of the things that helps me through is organisation, make a plan for the day and stick to it. Leaving the house can seem like an insurmountable mountain, especially in the dead of winter, but if it’s safe to do so then getting bathed, dressed and outside for a short while can really help. Even if it’s just to a porch or balcony. Inside, spend an hour tidying up your kitchen and table and making it a really nice place to have a meal, polish the damn thing if you have to and if you have a placemat put it down, set up your cutlery and condiments. Even if all you have for lunch is a Cup-A-Soup please make it a SPECIAL Cup-A-Soup moment. Do you know someone else who is lonely or in need? Nothing puts the Christmas blues behind as much as helping someone else. Just do it for yourself, helping them will help you through, selfishness harnessed for the greater good is still wonderful.

Anyway, here are my Top 10 Christmas Gifts 2015, I know you have some great ideas to help people with their gift giving, please leave your comments below. Also good ideas for beating the Christmas Blues would be great too.

Top 10 Christmas Shopping List 2015

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L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil: Seriously, L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil is FAN fricken TASTIC! It smells so beautiful, sinks into your skin in moments, leaves your skin feeling soft, supple and with a light sheen. I can’t imagine anyone male or female who would not be thrilled receiving a bottle of this beautiful baby at Christmas (or any other time). Whoever you give this to will be seriously impressed with your good taste and sense. Retailing AUD$45/100ml at L’Occitane Australia

A Quiet Morning Miller et Bertaux FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Miller et Bertaux – A Quiet Morning: On our first trip to Europe together while shopping with Birgit and Sandra Jin spritzed some Miller et Bertaux – A Quiet Morning. It was instant love. We were busy buying other things at the time but later in the evening I got a whiff of him and it still smelled killer. The top notes and heart are put together in such a way that they smell like nothing in my scent memory and are based around Saffron, Rice & Neroli but the deep Woody dry down is where it really shines. First In Fragrance has €98/100ml

Stars_Gift_Certificate SmartDrawPhoto Stolen SmartDraw

Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate: Don’t know what to get someone? Know they like fragrance and don’t want to double up or worse give them a scent nemesis note? Surrender To Chance Gift Certificate‘s are a great idea. Your friend will have the joy of receiving your card explaining their gift, you can send them a Gift Voucher via eMail, they will have enormous fun picking their order and once it arrives the fun of wearing a bunch of brand new fragrances. Excellent gift from $1 to $200. I usually give $25 or $50, depending on my financial status and our friendship.

Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet Bath Oil Parfum1Photo Stolen Parfum1

Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet Bath Oil: I love baths, and here is a fabulous way to soften and lightly scent your skin while enjoying that most relaxing and mentally detoxifying pursuit. The Blenheim Bouquet range from Penhaligon’s is chock full of fabulous stuff, from Shaving Soaps and Shower Gels to EdT and Body Lotion and it all comes beautifully packaged. Aimed at the men but blissfully unisex. Parfum1 has $85/200ml Bath Oil.

Lolita Lempicka Lolita Lempicka FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Lolita Lempicka EdP: The original Lolita Lempicka fragrance. One of the loveliest, and much more wearable, Angel spin offs. Licorice, Sugar & Violets all drizzled with Vanilla Praline and smoothed over with Musks. I often gift this one. It suits all ages and everyone loves the fun bottle, even the men. It’s sweet but won’t rot your teeth, light enough to wear to most events but fragrant enough to be interesting. Perfumery Australia has AUD$40/50ml

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up Book DepositoryPhoto Stolen Book Depository

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo: If any book could change your life then this is the one. Imagine being surrounded by ONLY the things that bring you joy. Perfect if you or someone you know needs to de-clutter. Marie Kondo is clever and a bit whacko but her book really does give an excellent guide to making your life cleaner, sparer and more able to let in the joy. I’ve not done the full clean but it will happen when I’m ready. Book Depository has the hardback for AUD$19.20 delivered.

DIA Body-Lotion Amouage LibertinePhoto Stolen Libertine

Amouage Body Lotion: You want to make someone feel like they are incredible beautiful and important to you? Want them to think lovely thoughts of you every time they get out of the shower and are moisturising themselves? Top quality and smells amazing, my favourite of the Amouage Body Lotions is DIA filled with glycerine, shea butter, aloe vera, almond oil and silicone. A softly fresh bouquet on a base of powdery woods, vanilla & incense. Sensual and elegant. Libertine has $119/300ml with FREE Australian Shipping

Magnolia Grandiflora - Michel FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Magnolia Grandiflora – Michel: You are looking for something different, beautiful, easy to wear and vibrant to gift your partner. You are expecting to pay a bit of money but cant go too far over the top. Magnolia Grandiflora – Michel is an excellent choice. Citrus and fresh green up top through a softly white floral bouquet and into a dry patchouli and vetiver skin scent to finish. Unisex, magical and Australian. Peony Melbourne has AUD$185/100ml

Rance Iris royal Soap FragranceXPhoto Stolen FragranceX

Rancé 6 x 104 ml Iris Royal Soap Box: Rancé has been producing excellent soaps in Italy since 1795 and their production methods remains basically unchanged from their founding. That’s quite an amazing thing. The soaps are presented beautifully, six in a box and they smell incredible. The soap leaves your skin clean, moist and lightly fragrant. This is the good stuff. FragranceX has AUD$73.50

Chanel Misia Chanel FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

CHANEL Misia: You want their friends to be as impressed as they are. Grab the 2015 release from CHANEL, Misia. It shows you are cool, clever and bang up to date. There’s nothing like the thrill of finding something by CHANEL under your tree or given any way a gift can be given. Make sure the sales person wraps the box and ties with CHANEL ribbon, roll it in the CHANEL bag and only then can you put your own Christmas paper on it. Give them the whole thrilling experience. It will be worth it. CHANEL Boutiques and large department stores have 75ml or 200ml bottles.

Did any of these tickle your fancy? What would you like to give or be given?
Portia xxx

 

Portia's Christmas Giving Guide 2014

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Hey there gang,

Yes, 2 weeks till Christmas! Crazy how it comes up so quickly. I have been thinking long and hard about things I would like to gift my friends and family with, some are fragrant, some not.

Portia’s Christmas Giving Guide 2014

Candles

What candles do I burn in my house? These are the ones I burn and the ones I gift. A candle is an excellent gift because it lasts for ages, they are lovely and for people who already have everything they need a candle is something they may not think to buy themselves. I like to have my bath with candlelight whenever possible, so glamorous.

MudAustralia Candle Ainslie Walker #3

MudAustralia Candle #1: Ainslie Walker: Our very own Ainslie Walker designed and produced these gorgeous candles for MudAustralia. They have a beautiful scent with a white floral/woody tone that clears out all the bad juju in my house/apartment in about 30 minutes. The porcelain container can be re-purposed as a vase or glass and you can buy candle refills too. This lush and creamy candle fragrance gives me a rich satisfying fragrance in the whole apartment and comes in a super great range of colours too. Everyone that I have gifted one of these to has fallen instantly in love with it.

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Diptyque 34 Boulevard Saint Germain Candle: Mecca Australia: When I need something calming and soothing in the air that won’t overwhelm but will allow me to really centre myself then I choose the 34 Boulevard Saint Germain Candle by Diptyque. This is what I used to scent my house while it was for sale and one of the things that ALL the prospective buyers said was that the house smelled beautiful. I have had this candle for over a year and use it often, there is still about a quarter left, that is serious lasting power.

34 Blvd St. Germain celebrates the brands 50th anniversary since their original boutique opened in Paris. Green notes, moss, blackcurrant, fig leaves, exotic spices, fresh flowers, woods

Soap

Yes, most of you know I have a ridiculous collection of soaps too. Here are two that I use regularly and a new brand I discovered in the USA recently at Twisted Lily.

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Rancé Acqua di Colonia Soap: Rancé Soaps: Billed as Made Originally for Catherine di Medici, that may even be true. What really matters though is how freaking LAVISH you will feel when you use Rancé Acqua di Colonia Soap. Super creamy and scented with mainly citruses, white flowers and spices. If ever you need to feel like the king or queen of your world then this is the soap that will send you on your way.

Tabac Original Soap by Maurer & Wirtz

Tabac Original Soap by Maurer & Wirtz: All Beauty: Yes, I bang on about this one quite a bit. I love it. Gorgeous scent, lathers beautifully, leaves my skin feeling soft and clean. Anyone who has touched my skin can tell you that soap has not ruined it over the years (nor has all the other stuff I’ve done to my poor self), it’s as soft and supple as it was in my teens, just stretched a bit tighter. Did I mention Cheap As Chips? Unbelievably good value.

Sandalo-SoapNEW!!! Sandalo Soap by Ortigia: Twisted Lily: I have not used this yet but the packaging is exquisite, so glamorous with its heavy silver card and picture of a Rajasthani elephant. The whole presentation is luxurious and the Italian form Ortigia is also very reasonably priced. 4 x 100g bars of glycerine soap that smell heavenly.

From Twisted Lily: The essential oil of this exotic tree with narcissus, cedar, teak, vetiver, rose and jasmine. Rich, complex and sophisticated. Bars of pure vegetable glycerine; wonderfully translucent, naturally coloured, and generously fragranced with the cool and spicy Sandalo perfume

Books

The Perfume Lover by Denyse Beaulieu is one of my all time favourite fragrance books. Filled with fragrance, romance, insider perfumer information and a wonderful stary of a woman finding herself, and some company along the way. Great read. I have read it twice now.

The Perfume Lover Denyse Beaulieu BookDepositoryBuy The Perfume Lover from Book Depository in paperback for around AUD$16 delivered to your door.

The Perfect Scent by Chandler Burr is the story of two fragrances from opposite ends of the spectrum. Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely and Hermès Un Jardin sur le Nil come to life as you read the book. It’s an eye opening insiders fast track and a really great read. I started rereading this on my holiday but there was no time, I will complete it this week.

The Perfect Scent Chandler Burr BookDepository
Buy The Perfect Scent from Book Depository in paperback for around AUD$20 delivered to your door.

Revelation!: Reveal Your Destiny With Essential Oils by Suzanne R Banks is a really interesting look at creating a new life for yourself with Essential Oils. Aroma-Life-Therapy that gets you to become more mindful and present in your own space through scent, personal and ambient. It’s all about the naturals and very natural specific, shunning chemicals and synthetics, to use the energy of the plants and nature to help propel you to a higher level. Our very own APJ contributor Suzanne R Banks is a published author!! COOL!

Revelation Reveal Your Destiny With Essential Oils Suzanne R Banks Amazon
Buy Revelation! Reveal Your Destiny With Essential Oils from Amazon for $3.30 on Kindle, also available as a book $11

Oh, My God, Am I Alright? by Michael El-Bacha is the ‘coming out’ story of a young confused man growing up in the Western Suburbs of Sydney to strict Lebanese Christian parents. From the outside looking in, Michael El-Bacha seemed like any other Lebanese boy from a large family with strong values and an appetite for football, fast cars and chicky babes. But after his parents notice that Michael is not like other ‘typical’ Lebanese boys, he is whisked off to Lebanon to marry his first cousin. Young Michael struggles to deny his true sexuality and leaves his young bride and infant child to find his identity. He embarks on a downward spiral until losing a lover leads him back home. Sex, drugs, homosexuality and love potions are what make this tale of self-discovery so tantalising. Michael’s story will make you laugh, cringe and cry.

Oh, My God, Am I Alright? by Michael El-Bacha Bookshop Darlinghurst

Do you know any kids/adults on the cusp? Maybe they need a story like this to ease the heartache of coming out? Extra plus? I have a whole chapter! Michael was my friend when much of this was happening for him.

Buy Oh, My God, Am I Alright? from The Bookshop Darlinghurst AUD$20

Hopefully this has helped you in your Christmas Shopping in 2014.
Portia xx

PS> Just so you know, I love these products because they are really good. Yes, I am affiliated with some of the people who have produced these lovely gifts. They are my friends and I am justifiably proud of their efforts, no one is paying me to write about them. Fingers crossed they are thrilled I wrote about them and that some of you go buy their shit.