Estratto di Colonia by Pineider 2012

October 23, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Hey Hey APJ,

Jin & I discovered Pineider fragrances while in Italy in 2013. I instantly fell in love with Cuir Nobile and grabbed a bottle on the spot. Then while in LA for the Perfume Posse ScentSation Bus Tour while we were at Beauty Habit I WON a bottle of today’s offering, Estratto di Colonia. Yes, there is an enormous backlog of fragrances that I have not yet reviewed here…

Estratto di Colonia by Pineider 2012

Estratto di Colonia by Atelier Design & Fragrances

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, green mandarin, lemon, sage
Heart: Jasmine, white rose
Base: Sandalwood, vanilla, musk, amber

It must be mentioned that the wooden box and locking system are beautifully presented and thought out. The tall and skinny bottle with the leather wrapped lid is cool and classy but FREAKING ANNOYING! A gust of wind and the damn thing falls. I leave mine in its protective wooden box. This is good because it keeps the juice safe but bad because the box gets shuffled to the back of the wardrobe and ignored in favour of more easily accessible frags. Yes, I know, totally first world problem. Just telling you.

There are a few frags on my dresser at the moment. One of them is Estratto di Colonia because I freaking love the fresh, fun citrus opening that is so energising, it’s like spritzing a 40 minute nana nap. The jasmine, musk and amber basically take over from there and while Estratto di Colonia feels simple, and is quite a simple cologne reinterpretation, still it wears so perfectly balanced and smooth for me that it seems elevated. It isn’t till we hit the base that I finally get a little whiff of a lightly citrus rose, sweet and fruity, that gives the amber and vanilla a boozy taint. I’m no expert but if you told me they’d used some Australian sandalwood oil in the mix I would totally believe you, it has a eucalyptic earthy twang right down the base.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

This spring sees it getting quite a bit of wear though so I will be through my 30ml well before summer. That’s another great thing, I love the 30ml bottles. Which of us perfumistas really need 100ml of anything else?

Beauty Habit has the range $115/30ml

I think Pineider may have distribution troubles. Only Beauty Habit seem to have it on the net so far, though it is available in Italy. I grabbed Cuir Nobile in Venice in 2013 and haven’t see the brand again except in Beauty Habit. It is worth finding though, the fragrances are amazing.

Portia xx

Photo Stolen sassisamblog

Estratto di Colonia GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will receive:
1 x sample of Estratto di Colonia from my stash
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 (portia underscore turbo @ yahoo dot com dot au) so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us what your cologne is

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Estratto di Colonia by Pineider GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-351 #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 25th October 2015 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 29th October 2015 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.

Rose Anonyme GIVEAWAY WINNERS

October 23, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom

Post by Portia

Rose Anonyme GIVEAWAY WINNERS

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Calabrian bergamot, Chinese ginger root, Turkish rose essence
Heart: Turkish rose absolute, Somalian frankincense, Oud accord
Base: Indonesian patchouli, Indian papyrus, Laotian benzoin

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will receive:
1 x 5ml decant of Rose Anonyme from my stash
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Closed Sunday 18th October 2015 10pm Australian EST
Winner was chosen by random.org

Photo Stolen markmontanoblogs

Anabel C.

Boris

Gina Tabasso

The winner will have till Tuesday 27th October 2015 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.

Rozy Eau de Parfum by Vero Kern for Vero Profumo 2014

October 22, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Post by Erica Golding

Hello to all my kindred scented souls!

Let’s talk about intensity. When you find a scent you love, do you instinctively assume that the more concentrated version is the most beautiful and preferable? Honestly, I’m not ashamed to admit that I have that exact reaction when given the option – I have a very passionate, excessive personality. And let’s be real, parfum bottles are sexy little crystalline gemstones! However, I have learned that more concentrated versions are not unanimously my preference when given skin time.

My most recent lesson was thanks to my darling friend Tena, who generously graced my life with the soul-shattering masterpiece:

Rozy Eau de Parfum by Vero Profumo 2014

Rozy Eau de Parfum by Vero Kern

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Oriental rose, tuberose, currant buds and leaves, honey, spices, sandalwood, labdanum, peach, passion fruit, lilac flowers

I have been cautiously testing Vero’s creations over the past year or so. Her art is vivid and limitless, and make me feel like I’m on another planet (a kickass landscape of wild colors and glamorous confidence). I remember trying the Voile de Extrait composition of Rozy, and though I enjoyed it thoroughly, I didn’t bond with it emotionally. However, when I first inhaled the Rozy Eau de Parfum concentration, it was like glitter firebombs of glory through my entire body!

Photo Stolen Pixabay

I spritz on Rozy EdP and my brain just sparkles. I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s like I can see the electric sparks firing between neurons. The note list explains absolutely nothing about the aroma as it reaches into me. The notes dryly suggest that I should expect a fruity floral, honeyed and powdery. Ha! That’s hilarious, because all I smell is glitter for my mind. It’s completely new to me, but with comfortingly familiar threads as well. The balance is unprecedented. I can’t pick out notes without feeling like it’s a rude gesture.

I really liked Rozy VdE, but the Eau de Parfum version has completely blasted pure shimmering light into every dark corner of my being. I can’t believe that a less concentrated version has won my heart with such uncontested dominance!

Photo Stolen Vero Profumo

Further reading: Australian Perfume Junkies and Candy Perfume Boy
First In Fragrance has €165/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $6/.5ml

What is your take on fragrances that offer different concentrations (usually featuring composition tweaks with different accent notes and balances)? Do you assume that the more concentrated, expensive version in the fanciest bottle is the best? Has your skin ever proven you wrong?

Please discuss below as I swirl in my little galaxy of Rozy Eau de Parfum. Smooches!

-Erica

Rose Anonyme by Jérôme Epinette for Atelier Cologne 2012

October 19, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey there Frag Family,

I bought a big decant of this beautiful baby when it was released in a split. For some reason then I ordered another, maybe I forgot I’d ordered the first. Anyway, most of the second one is sitting here and I think you should all get a chance to smell it.

Rose Anonyme by Atelier Cologne 2012

Rose Anonyme by Jérôme Epinette

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Ginger, oud, patchouli and rose are the stars of Rose Anonyme’s opening. I’m surprised how dry and desiccated the fragrance feels. Interesting how sheer yet curiously dense the combination feels, like a particularly opaque silk chiffon. I know it’s not mentioned in the notes but I get a lovely carroty iris note through the heart and it feels very leathery.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Rose Anonyme is tenacious, it lingers at pretty much rose, leather and base notes for the rest of the ride. The rose is curiously overwhelmed on my skin. Like it’s a back up singer creating a lovely baseline to add the stars above, ironically the stars are in the base. A lovely model in the rose/oud/leather line up. I like JHaG’s Midnight Oud and DIOR’s Oud Ispahan better for me, they seem to be more engaging and create much more excitement within me. Not knocking Rose Anonyme, it is beautiful in its way and if I hadn’t already lost my heart to the others it may have been FBW.

Photo Stolen DeviantArt

Further reading: Chemist In A Bottle and Non Blonde
Neroli Budapest has 45000ft (AUD$225)/200ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $3/ml

Want to try Rose Anonyme? Read on….
Portia xx

Photo Stolen sassisamblog

Rose Anonyme GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 winners who will receive:
1 x 5ml decant of Rose Anonyme from my stash
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us what you would like to buy a 10ml split of

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie Rose Anonyme by Aftelier Cologne GIVEAWAY http://wp.me/p3PURw-4jo #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 4th October 2015 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 8th October 2015 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.

L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil

October 18, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Post by Portia

In one of the packs my mate Lesley of L’Occitane gave me recently was a bottle of L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil. Currently I am working my way towards the end of a couple of my bottles of moisturiser and I wanted to finish one before starting something new, well I did finish the Amouage Epic Body Lotion and am on my last couple of pumps of Sanctuary Kyphi Shea Almond Body Lotion so I thought, “What The Hell”. Let’s give this guy a squirt.

L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil

This stuff glides on so smoothly and the smell is unbelievably good. I get a great gush of lovely carrot/iris, some deeply warming resins, some vanilla and maybe tonka and a hushed wash of some flower that could be ylang and some other bits & pieces I recognise but can’t name. What I can tell you is that I smell AH MAY ZING! My skin is heavenly to touch and it feels like I have either talc or silicone sprayed on me, so soft and supple my hands just glide over me even a couple of hours later.

L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil has this nutty, tropical vibe but it’s also creamy sandalwood and cacao sweet. It’s so complex and utterly enthralling. Basically I have been sat here between typing with my hands on opposite shoulders and elbows lifted to the ceiling so I am engulfed by fragrant flesh. It’s not comnfortable for long but the smell is too good to miss a second of it. You won’t need fragrance, L’Occitane Shea Fabulous Oil is enough.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Edited from L’OCCITANE and Press Release: Shea Fabulous Oil is a hair and body oil that helps to add moisture to the skin and leave hair softer and shinier. The Fabulous Oil combines Shea oil with 2 rare plant oils from Africa (baobab and desert date palm), sunflower, carrot seed and 5 per cent shea oil to help give a subtle satin finish to the skin. The oil has a lightweight formula that is absorbed easily and does not leave any oily residue.
Shea Butter is an ideal beauty ingredient, used by women in Sub-saharan Africa to help nourish and protect their skin and hair. L’OCCITANE uses shea butter from Burkina Faso, harvested in a sustainable and fair trade partnership with the women who produce it.

L’OCCITANE Australia has $45/100ml

It’s rare for me to say you need a product in your life but this is $45 so well spent, when I’m done with this bottle I will happily pay Full Retail to replace it.

Portia xx

Honey by Laurie Stern for Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery 2007

October 15, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Post by Poodle

There was a time when perfumers didn’t need to say their products were all natural. Perfumes back in the day used natural ingredients because we didn’t have all the aroma chemicals we do today. If a perfume smelled of roses it was because it contained rose. Today’s natural perfumers carry on that tradition and some, I must say, do it better than others. I usually don’t gravitate towards naturals for a variety of reasons but once in a while one catches my attention.

Honey by Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery 2007

Honey by Laurie Stern

Photo Stolen Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery

Notes: orange blossom, Moroccan rose, Bulgarian rose, vetiver, Madagascar vanilla, honey, beeswax, sandalwood, clove, pomegranate, pink grapefruit

I recently received a sample of Honey and was pleasantly surprised it. It has decent longevity and is sweet and a little skanky. Perfumer Laurie Stern of Velvet and Sweet Pea Purrfumery has created one of those really good natural perfumes and a classic, sexy scent with Honey.

Honey is a perfume that conjures up vintage perfumes in my mind. When I first tried it it reminded me of something I imagine one of the ladies on Downton Abbey would wear. It smells full and rich. While I wouldn’t say it smells old fashioned I think you’d have to appreciate perfumes along the lines of Bal a Versailles to appreciate Honey. In one of the episodes of the Downton Abbey Lady Mary spills perfume on her bedroom rug. She describes the end result as smelling like a tart’s boudoir. That’s Honey to me. It smells pretty but there’s that underlying impression that this pretty girl may have a naughty side.

Photo Stolen Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery

A lot of natural fragrances have a rough, unfinished feel to them with little development. Honey doesn’t smell like that to me. While I can detect orange blossom and spices the rest of the notes meld together to create a full, plush bouquet. The roses here are not sour or metallic but more like those big fluffy, old fashioned roses. Opulent comes to mind. The honey note along with pink grapefruit gives it a sexy little twist.

I only had a few drops to test but I could imagine this one packs a punch if sprayed lavishly. You don’t need much and I think a little would go a long way with Honey. As the sweetness of the orange blossom, honey, and vanilla fades the warm, cuddly sandalwood and cloves wrap their arms around you.

Photo Stolen Flickr

I think this leans rather feminine. It may be a bit much for the office. I had the husband give it a sniff and he said at first it reminded him of a woman in church (whatever that means) but then he said on second sniff it reminds him of Rubj which he calls my dirty girl perfume. So that basically falls in line with my impression too of the pretty girl with a naughty side.

Velvet & Sweet Pea’s Purrfumery has a range of Honey options starting at $50

What perfumes do you think have a naughty side to them?

Until next time,
Hugs
Poodle

Eyebrows

October 11, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Post by AF Beauty

I kinda wish the focus on eyebrows had been as strong back when I were a teenager and in my early 20’s as it is now. I spent my 20’s plucking my brows inefficiently and without much consideration of what I was doing. Fast forward a decade and my sparse eyebrows caused my new beautician to almost cry in anguish at the state of them.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Eyebrows

I’ve learned a few lessons since then and have a few tricks up my sleeve, but truth be told – I am still looking for reliability in my brows and am considering temporary tattooing – have any of you tried it? It seems incredibly pricy and if I’m honest I’m scared, but the results do look tempting.

In the meantime, I have a couple of great products and I practice some techniques I’ve found – I’ll share them with you.

In my previous post about budget beauty I mentioned the Brow Lash compact – still my morning go-to brow definer.

But I’ve also found these two brow pencils, easier for travel or taking to the gym.

The first I found on in an Asian beauty store – Brow Lash Ex. This is a handy tool that turned out better than I initially expected – a double ended tool with a pencil on one end and a powder on the other. The powder applicator is contained in a spring loaded attachment which avoids that issue of too much or too little powder. The texture is good and the colour suitable for light to mid brunettes, perhaps also blondes with darker brows. Good for less dramatic effect.

The second pencil is from Napoleon Perdis, just a regular pencil, retractable, but incredibly reliable. The pencil is thin to avoid overly dark application but strong enough not to break too easily or smudge too much. This is one of the easiest I’ve found that I can use with some of the techniques I’ve found online to improve eyebrow shape.

My eyebrows are still a bit patchy, despite the past 10 years of much more considerate eyebrow management – hence my need for the pencils and powders I’ve mentioned, but these are no good without techniques. Pinterest, if you’ve not used it before is a great source of random info and brows are a popular pin.

Here are a couple of pins that I think are easiest to translate from internet to self:
– the idea on this one is to create the overall shape of the brow and then fill in – easy!
– this one contains info on plucking and keeping shape – although you do need a decent enough brow to start with for this one.
– this one recommends eyebrow shape for different face shapes. Although I’d not be overly led by this sort of recommendation, it’s worth considering your face shape now and in future if you decide to take more permanent action on your brows – basically consider whether you want a permanent raised brow look or if you lost or gained weight how your brows might change.

What are your eyebrow secrets?
AF Beauty x

Narcisse Noir by Ernest Daltroff for Caron 1911

October 10, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Vintage Vamps,

A while back I stumbled across someone’s Sale Document in Facebook Fragrance Friends and on the list were some lovely fragrances that I really wanted to try in their vintage form. One in particular was the last couple of ml of a Caron scent that was, and still is, based around one of my favourite notes Narcissus, it is Narcisse Noir…

Narcisse Noir by Caron 1911

Narcisse Noir by Ernest Daltroff

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: African orange flower, narcissus
Heart: Jasmine, orange, tincture of rose
Base: Vetyver, musk, sandalwood

Narcisse Noir opens with a lovely soapy orange blossom curled around narcissus. Not the potent feral narcissus of the absolue, here it is softened and sweetened, draped elegantly over lashings of musks and sweet smooth and creamy sandalwood. This is OLD! because I can smell real animal musk. Yes there are some sweet flowers in the heart but they seem to be only ornaments to the narcissus, sandalwood and musk.

Normally I wear Narcisse Noir and just let myself float freely on a cloud of its loveliness. It’s weird trying to parse notes of something that I have had so much enjoyment out of as a whole and finished creation.

Photo Stolen Flickr

The heart gives me a hint of indolic skank but nothing that would upset the vicar (sadly) and orange does make an appearance, it’s a juicy and pithy orange quite rounded and I had never noticed it before today’s wear. Narcisse Noir is much more multifaceted that I ever thought, light, shade and nuance that wearing as a fragrance just doesn’t show. Even a fruity rose rears its head, not a loud one but when I look for it after reading a note list it’s there.

Basically the fragrance then takes hours to dry down. Instead of making great changes it smooths and creams its way to a hum that just shimmers above my skin making me smell divinely better than I really do.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Further reading: Now Smell This and Yesterday’s Perfume
Galaxy Perfumes has EdT $85/50ml (the only bottle I could find online not on eBay or Amazon)
Surrender To Chance has samples from $3/ml

Did you ever spend time with Narcisse Noir? Will you miss it when it’s gone?
Portia xx

Ellenisia by Steve de Mercado for Penhaligons 2005

October 8, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 14 Comments

Post by Gabriella

Hello perfume lovers!

It’s often said that happiness comes when reality beats expectations. This can happen as much in the perfume world as anywhere else, especially now when we’re faced with rave blog reviews or when there’s a new release by one of our favourite brands or perfumers.

Today I want to talk about a beautiful perfume that has fallen short for me, not because it is not good – quite the opposite – but because I have built up my expectations about it over several years, actually having it and wearing it doesn’t match those expectations. That scent is Ellensia by Penhaligon’s.

Ellenisia by Penhaligons 2005

Ellenisia by Steve de Mercado

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica lists these following accords:
Top: Mandarin orange, violet leaf
Middle: Jasmine, gardenia, rose, tuberose
Base: Plum, vanilla

The weight of expectations for poor old Ellenisia was built up a long time ago. At the earliest stages of my perfume wanderings, when I was skulking round the perfume boards on Makeupalley, board members were raving about it as the most gorgeous white floral. As the perfume was unobtainable in Australia back then, it became even more coveted and desirable to me. My desire only grew when people said it was a better version of Chanel Gardenia.

Time went on and then Penhaligon’s made an appearance at our local department store but a bottle was way beyond my budget. I’d go in often and spritz some Ellenisia on a blotter to get my fix of the fume and delight in the sensual, heady but very playful gardenia and tuberose mix.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

This happened for a while, until of course, other perfumed delights came my way and Ellenisia was temporarily forgotten.

Fast forward to last year. I had just moved to Melbourne and I am out of work. Again, a bottle of Penhaligon’s is too expensive and out of my reach. Again, I covet it more than anything.

A couple of months ago, I finally pull the trigger. After more than a decade, the object of my rapture is finally in my hot little hands and I can’t wait to wear it. I am carefully unwrapping the cellophane from the pink cardboard box and lifting the little glass cap that sits so prettily atop a pink ribbon, I press the atomiser and….nothing. For sure, Ellenisia was pretty, it was the same gorgeous mix of gardenia and tuberose, given depth by the mandarin and plum but not too sweet, thanks to the greenness of the violet leaf. It was nice, but it didn’t rock my world like it had in my head time and time again. Mr M says I smell pretty and I do, but I can’t help feeling something’s missing. I’ve ruined my own perfect scent, I have built it up too much in my mind, building it up and up and up that it can’t help but fall short. Hopefully, as I continue to wear it, my expectations will fade to the background and the beauty that is this gorgeous white floral will come to the fore, unencumbered by the prospects in my mind.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Further reading: EauMG and Mimi Froufrou
Libertine Parfumerie has $239/100ml
Luckyscent has $4/0.7ml

Have you ruined a perfectly gorgeous scent through the weight of your expectations? Conversely, what perfumes have you set the bar really low for that have subsequently rocked your world?

With much love till next time.

M x

Magnum Iris by Ramón Béjar 2014

October 4, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Post by Portia

In December 2014 Jin, Kath and I were in NYC for Thanksgiving, it was so fabulous and fun. We even got to do some Black Friday shopping which was scary and exciting. Kath decided that she wanted to buy shoes on Black Friday from Macy’s, sheesh! Can we talk about D R A M A? That is NOT the way I want my shopping experience to go.

OSSWALD 2014

Josie @ OSSWALD 2014

Anyway, there was a perfume groupies meet up organised at OSSWALD NYC with a bunch of the New Yorkers and Birgit of Olfactoria’s Travels. There I was introduced to the beautiful eponymous line Ramón Béjar. The bottles are even more desirable in real life, heavy and cool to touch. They feel weighted in ceremony when you spritz, these mothers have gravitas in spades.

Magnum Iris by Ramón Béjar 2014

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Iris, bergamot
Heart: Violet, jasmine, ylang-ylang
Base: Haitian vetiver, sweet notes, musk

Magnum Iris opens cool and wet like the softest and most luxurious facets of iris have been blended with the cool sweet wetness of peony, and a hint of chill mountain air. It doesn’t take long for the iris to warm into rooty earthiness and I think the violet helps the fragrance to hint at leather. Through the heart I am reminded strongly of Prada Infusion d’Iris but not so austere. My nose and skin miss all except a hint of the flowers in the heart and mainly get a lovely byplay between a dry smoky vetiver and classy iris with a hint of yeastiness. Later I get soft, fluffy musks with still a whisper of iris, the blending is seamless and I feel like I’ve been wearing the fragrance that the rich of NYC would wear if they knew about it. So cool, urbane and under the radar luxe.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

OK, just chatted with Josie at OSSWALD NYC and she tells me that Magnum Iris is the second most popular in the line and that it’s her favourite. That’s high praise from a woman who deals with fragrance every day. I’m not sure Magnum Iris is a very good fit for me, maybe because it’s so elegant and refined, but I have enjoyed wearing it.

Photo Stolen PDI

Magnum Iris could easily be the perfect signature scent for work. You are fragrant and it’s really good, just flying under the “PERFUME” radar and becoming part of your own smell but infinitely better. I bet if the high powered gym at lunch crew got a whiff of Magnum Iris the change rooms would smell of it for about 5 years.

Further reading: EauMG
OSSWALD NYC has $295/75ml

Have you tried the line yet? HURRY!
Portia xx