Sensual Orchid by Jerome Epinette for LM Parfums 2012

December 14, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Howdy Crew,

Fragrantica says: LM Parfums is a French niche line of scented candles and fragrances… founded by Laurent Mazzoni. Most of the blogs I have read about this crew have been about their most expensive offering Hard Leather, and I do have a sample of it around here somewhere but the one that I am really interested in has very little written about it so far….

Sensual Orchid by Jerome Epinette for LM Parfums 2012

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mandarin orange, almond, neroli
Heart: Orchid, jasmine sambac, ylang-ylang, peony, heliotrope
Base: Vanilla, musk, woody notes, cedar, labdanum, benzoin

The first thing that intrigued me about Sensual Orchid was the perfumer, Jerome Epinette has been the nose behind a bunch of blockbuster mainstream niche offerings: four of the Atelier Colognes, Bel d’Afrique and La Tulipe (coincidentally one of my BFF Kath’s fragrances) for Byredo, three of the LuckyScent Decennial quartet and a bunch of others I’m not familiar with. It’s quite a selection.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Almond and orange, like a cake, like a FRIAND!! MMMMMMM. Foody and sweet but still holding onto a very sensual bouquet. GAWD!!! I love it. What a wonderful opening that lasts for a good 15+ minutes before finally giving in to the heart. The flowers are sweet and sexy, a bit ripe and lovely banana-skin tones. I am surprised there is no coconut note because I get something very like it, a creaminess and the back of my throat has the same slight ache it gets when I eat dessicated coconut.

The dry down is soft, creamy woods. An oriental amber wash that is very nice. This lasts for hours and has me feeling very sexy and frisky. A real come-hither scent that would be knockout as a date night frag or a movies with intended partner. The elegant clean thrummmm of Sensual Orchid could definitely push someone over the edge from like to lust.

Photo Stolen DeviantART

From Osswald NYC: 20% perfume concentration “Like a feminine model on the catwalk, Sensual Orchid captivates your senses with its incredible aromas. The second essence of perfume will take you to the front of the stage. The carnal pleasures evoked by this sumptuous arrangement of natural sophisticated fragrances. A first subtle scent of citrus fruit and almond leads you into a refined heart of orchid, jasmine sambac, Lysilang, peony and heliotrope then leaves a voluptuous final touch made of vanilla, musk, blonde wood, white cedar wood, labdanum and benzoin.”

Further reading: Scented Hound and CaFleureBon
Jovoy Paris has €195/100ml
Osswald NYC has $225/100ml (Hey Hey Josie & Clement!!)

Have you tested any of the LM Parfums fragrances? Do you like their aesthetic?
Portia xxxx

Apple Brandy by Sidonie Lancesseur for by Kilian 2013

December 11, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Post by Poodle

Recently I received a sample of Apple Brandy from a perfume pal who lived in NYC. This is the perfume that is exclusive to the New York By Kilian boutique. I find the exclusivity of certain scents frustrating for obvious reasons but since it showed up on my doorstep I gave it a try.

Apple Brandy by Sidonie Lancesseur for by Kilian 2013

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Featured accords:
Apple, rum and plum accord, oak, labdanum, ambroxan, cedar, vanilla

At first sniff, Apple Brandy is full of apples and boozy amber fruit. The apples seem almost candied but the sweetness quickly moves from candied to caramel. It’s vanilla caramel wrapped around a juicy red apple. It’s not quite what I’d call brandy just yet but more like mulled wine from the plum note which also keeps the apples from smelling too fresh and crisp. There is a smokiness and a touch of amber that also prevent the sugar from taking over. The oak and cedar are noticeable even early on in the perfumes development and give it a rich, warm feeling. Imagine when you take a sip of a beautiful amber hued brandy and you can feel it warming you from the inside out. There seems to be a tiny bit of spice, maybe a touch of nutmeg. Apple Brandy has the makings of a great cold weather perfume. The scent seems to walk that fine line between a scent I want to smell like and a scent I want my home to smell like. (It would make a great scented candle.)

Photo Stolen Pixabay

As the fragrance develops the changes are slow and subtle. I wouldn’t call it completely linear but if you’re looking for a roller coaster ride of notes rising and falling you won’t find it here. The apples and fruit gradually slide away and the woods take on a tobacco like feeling at times. This is where it reminds me of brandy, when the oak-y woods blend with the fruit. The vanilla starts to become more noticeable but the caramel and candy that were present in the top notes have faded considerably.

Photo Stolen Pixabay
Photo has nothing to do with the scent I did think it too gorgeous to pass by though

I had to dab Apple Brandy on from a sample and got reasonably good projection. I was catching whiffs of caramel apples and liquored sweetness most of the morning. By early afternoon my skin was still scented softly with a wonderful woody vanilla. I’ve seen reviews say that this perfume was very boozy but my skin didn’t bring out that part of the perfume I guess. I don’t think I would have to worry that someone would think I’d been drinking.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Further reading: Now Smell This and Ca Fleure Bon
by Killian has €150/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $7/.5ml

Overall I do like this perfume but can’t say it’s interesting enough to justify the price. I’d wear it if I had it but I won’t be splurging on a bottle anytime soon.
Have you tried it? Did you like it? Do you like exclusive perfumes?

Until next time…
Poodle

Noir de Noir by Tom Ford 2007

December 10, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Post by Trésor

Those who know me well know that I’m a bit of a day dreamer, spending many an hour within my tremendously ornamented flights of fancy. Out of all these splendid dream sequences there is one which I am particularly fond of and replay time and time again. I am sitting in the Hemingway Bar at the Hôtel Ritz in Paris, it’s just past the witching hour and I am returning from an event somewhere near Place Vendôme that’s run a bit late. The room is dimly lit, the diaphanous golden aura refracting through the crystals on my Chanel Haute Couture gown as I sip my favourite cocktail, a French 75.

A man sits next me, ruggedly handsome with the kindest eyes of piercing sapphire and asks for my name. When I go to respond I am beguiled by exqusite vapours rising from his chest, a hypnotic cirrus of inky petals against warm skin. It takes me a moment to collect myself and then I realize that this is something I’ve smelled before, a familiarity so unequivocally beautiful and close to my heart. He is wearing Noir de Noir.

Noir de Noir by Tom Ford 2007

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Agarwood (oud), patchouli, tuber (truffles), saffron, vanilla, rose, oakmoss

The genesis of this potion is through an unimaginably beautiful sequence of tarry black rose petals so rich in their nocturnal hue that they capture all light that dares to touch their obsidian velvet alongside an earthy and brilliantly sumptuous note of black truffle. The petals of the rose are so rich with their precious essence that they appear to glisten in the darkness with their elixir collecting as crepescule dewdrops as the truffle adorns them with just a whisper of soil and musk. As the composition begins to gain some levity you are received by a luxuriant dark chocolate and what I can only describe as a romanticised vision of red wine, all of the tannins removed. This marriage can border on confectionery but only in oscillating bursts, never cloying or distracting from the inky and atmospheric soul of this wicked brew. The grounding element for all of these, on my skin, is the aromatic copper flash of saffron which lends warmth and a particular radiance that keeps this from being one big heap of base notes.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

As time progresses something so intoxicatingly vanillic begins to emerge. It’s not the edible vanilla of a sweet and delicate madeleine but something a shade sinister and of the Earth. Though this fragrances toys with the illusion of innocence it keeps its claws firmly planted within the realm of splendid seduction. As Noir de Noir begins its final descent you are greeted with a pulchritudinous menagerie of that same black truffle atop a captivating patchouli that’s been dusted by what, to my nose, smells of vintage cosmetic powder you would find in the handbag of a Hollywood starlet from a bygone era. It is within this magnetic embrace that Noir de Noir finally fades into the skin and you are left with but a sweet memory of the time you’d spent together.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Noir de Noir lasts about 8-10 hours on my skin but if I am feeling trigger happy I can push it up to around 12. The sillage is quite considerable, this fragrance is exceptionally dense and rather opulent so do expect other’s to be aware of its presence. You can however dab it as you would an extrait de parfum for a more controlled and subdued application.

Further reading: Perfume Posse and Fragrant Man
LuckyScent has $215/50ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/ml

If you have a thing for rose as I do I urge you to give this gem a go, I can almost guarantee you won’t regret that you did.

Have you tried Noir de Noir? Have you a favored Tom Ford?
Trésor xx

Arquiste: Carlos Huber Interview 2014

December 6, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Post by Anslie Walker

Arquiste at Peony Melbourne’s Event

Carlos Huber is director/curator of Arquiste perfumes. I got to have a lunch with him in Melbourne, moments before the Australian launch of new fragrances L’Etrog Aqua and Architects Club at Peony Haute Perfumerie.

Arquiste: Carlos Huber Interview 2014

You are studied Preservation Architecture, did you also study perfumery?

I started as a Preservation Architect and also worked for Ralph Lauren. I met a perfume evaluator who introduced me to perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux. I became friends with him, spending a year studying with him as much as possible. We share a love of history, so he understands my passion and interprets my visions well.

How did the range develop?

I came up with 6 stories, moments in history for the perfumers to translate. I choose places I have visited and connect with deeply to ensure the fragrances are authentic. The aim is to bring olfactive references to life. They are historic moments in time, yet I did not want them to be vintage, I wanted them to be modern concepts where we are dropped in that moment, not have the moment brought to us. We also use the most modern of ingredients to create hyper real experiences.

Tell me about the Arquiste signature bottles?

I love these, they are Italian made, solid and round and if you look closely on the inside you cannot see where the glass and perfume begin and end. I just had the lids remade so they are heavy in the hand. The new fragrances are in 100ml only and the originals are in 50ml, eventually they will all be available in the 100ml size.

Overview of the range with quotes from Carlos:
Woods and Citrus:
Aleksandr is an amber leather developed by Yann Vasnier that interprets a Russian love story in 1837. Violet and neroli is the fired-up lovers after shave products, as he gets ready to leave the house for a dual. He dons his fur coat and leather boots and heads outside amongst the snow-laden fir and birch trees, where in a clearing ahead, the fateful duel awaits him.

Architects Club by Yaan Vasnier “this fragrance is set in The Fumé-the jewel of Claridge’s and has 3 phases – the first fresh icy gin martini phase with juniper, angelica, lavender, clary sage and coriander, the second comfortable woods and amber where oak, guaicwood and sensual ambermax settle on skin and thirdly the dry smoky vanilla tobacco, old books and leather phase. I love wearing this fragrance!!”

L’Etrog is a citrus chypre developed with both Rodrigo and Yann. It’s inspired by Jewish harvest festival Sukkot, which occurs in October. “L’Etrog is Hebrew for Citron and is the balmy sweet night time in Calabria, Italy 1175 where farmers gather after a day in the citron fields. Dried date accord and scents from the wood cabin mix with the intense citron leaving a velvety powder dry down after the zest has died down.”

L’Etrog Aqua is an Eau De Cologne style yet contains 15% perfume concentration!! It’s the morning after L’Etrog, where dew is heavy on the citron fields, green, tart, wet, juicy and cool, it sheds light on aspects of the original and highlights them. “This fragrance contains more myrtle than any other fragrance, along with lavender, rosemary, vetiver and pistachio, which is like a dry cedar.”

Anima Dulcis was developed by both perfumers and is definitely worth a try. Carlos describes it as “a baroque gourmand” combining cocoa, Mexican vanilla, cinnamon and three types of chilli to interpret a convent in Mexico City in 1695 where a group of nuns prepare recipes of bread puddings and hot chocolate.

Florals:
Fleur De Louis is a woody floral developed by Rodrigo Flores-Roux’s. It’s the French perspective in 1660 on the French and Spanish boarder, where Louis XIV is about to capture a glimpse of his new bride, Maria Theresa. Orris, jasmine and rose represent the French as they peer from a pavilion made from freshly cut pine and cedarwood. Orange blossom wafts from the Spanish infant’s clothing.

Infanta en flor is a floral musky amber and is Yann Vasnier’s take on the same time/place as Fleur de Louis, but from a Spanish perspective. Maria Teresa, blushes, fans herself and steals a look back at the gallant King as he lays his eyes on her for the first time. Cistus, Spanish leather and immortelle dance with the innocent scent of orange flower water, rose-rouge and rice powder.
“The French perfumer did the perspective from the Spanish border and the Spanish from the French!” Carlos marvels.

Boutonniere No7 was Rodrigo Flores-Roux’s work and is a green floral fragrance made with the brief of “How does a man wear a flower?” Carlos explains “The answer is that men wore white gardenias on their lapel to the opera in Paris in 1899 to seduce women. We originally wanted it to be at the end of the night – it became quite sickly and did not work so we went for the first intermission at the opera combining gardenia with cologne ingredients such as lavender, vetiver, oakmoss, mandarin, bergamot and then added an ultra dose of jasmine”

Flor Y Canto meaning “flower and song” was developed with Rodrigo Flores-Roux and is a fresh, green opulent white floral “mixing Mexican originated flowers of tuberose, magnolia, marigold and frangipani with incense of Tenochtitlan, Mexico in August 1400 to represent a festival of flowers called Tlaxochimaco where flowers are offered on temple alters for the gods and the dead.”

Which are favorite fragrances for you?

My favorites are Cologne Bigarade by Jean-Claude Ellena for Frederic Male, D’Orsay’s Le Nomade, Tom Ford’s Champaca Absolute and Neroli Portofino.

Of the Arquiste line – what do you wear the most?

I have been wearing a lot of the Architects Club lately (I have to say it smells FANTASTIC on Carlos!) and also Fleur de Louis is my other favorite.
In winter in New York I also like to wear L’Etrog /L’Etrog Aqua on my scarf and under layers as they contrast with the winter in a nice way.

Can we have a glimpse into the next story/moment in time you will bring to us with the next fragrance?

I can say it is based between 1614 and 1622 and is based on special cargo that traveled between Mexico, Europe and Japan.

Ainslie Walker x

Eternity (Woman) by Sophia Grojsman for Calvin Klein 1988

December 5, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Hi there Perfume Junkies,

Recently we showed the return of Christy Turlington (Burns) who was the original Calvin Klein Eternity model in 1988 return with husband Ed Burns as the faces of a new steamy 2014 Eternity campaign. I was so impressed with them bringing Christy back that I went and bought a brand new 30ml bottle to show my support.

Eternity (Woman) by Sophia Grojsman for Calvin Klein 1988

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Citrus, green notes, sage, freesia, mandarin
Heart: Jasmine, narcissus, rose, violet, lily-of-the-valley, lily, carnation
Base: Heliotrope, sandalwood, musk, amber, patchouli

To be honest I was expecting it to be terrible, absolutely disgusting and completely unwearable. Having bought it (for almost no money at a chemist) I was then surprised that I unwrapped it immediately to have a sniff.

Fresh citrus blasts its way out of the bottle, a joyful reminder of a hot summers day dream of fresh citrus fruit salad lightly sugared. When the flowers come through they are a 100% faux bouquet, very synthetic, but not bad for all that. Eternity is a simple seeming, light but noticeable, clean fragrance that already has hints of the amber/sandalwood in the base. There is a lightly peppered feeling, cracked black rather than wet bell, through the heart too that is very appealing. I can remember smelling Eternity on people in the 90’s, it captured the fragrant zeitgeist (funny that that word is also used in the Perfume Shrine post) of its time perfectly and I think we are seeing a return to this style of fragrance. They are not scent similar but I think the Serge Lutens, Laine de Verre, is a modern take on Eternity and its cohorts, that 100% synthetic feeling.

Photo Stolen Calvin Klein

Luca Turin blasts Eternity thus, yet still gives it 3 stars: I have always though Eternity a copy of something not worth copying, Jardins de Bagattelle. Smelling them together now I can see why JdB, while arguably better, was a flop and Eternity a success. They art both unpleasantly screechy and soapy but at least Eternity does not pretend to be demure. LT

The rose is not rose-ish for me but I do get a spicy fruit/berry accord that could very well be a nod to rose? Yes, there is a very soapy vibe going on through late heart and dry down but it feels nice, wearable and I can see it still being extremely popular with the mainstream wearing public.

If you are only into niche and indie fragrances, want your scent to be filled with naturals or totally freaky then you will need to look elsewhere. Here we have a scent that will keep you smelling freshly showered and laundered all day, a slightly chemical wash that may not have people stopping and asking you what you’re wearing in the street but they may think that you are clean, neat and healthy and it will make a great weekend or work scent where you don’t want to stand out but would like to be fragrant. On these front Calvin Klein’s Eternity delivers in spades.

Further reading: Perfume Shrine
FragranceNet has $25/30ml (before coupon)
My Perfume Samples have $2/ml up to $7/5ml

Did you ever get on the Eternity scent bus? Was there ever a Calvin Klein fragrance that you did wear?

Portia xx

Peony Melbourne: Haute Parfumerie Adventure + Photo Essay

December 2, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 14 Comments

Post by Ainslie Walker

Hi all. Do you feel overwhelmed when perfume shopping? I often do, but not today in Peony, Melbourne.

Peony Melbourne: Haute Parfumerie Adventure

Ever-so-stylish Jill greeted me as I entered, along with an almighty hit of heady fresh jasmine flower, which were cascading, displayed in the window. The interior oozed sophistication and opulence, nothing dusty or out of place. Themed black and white, a nod to French couture and boudoir, sparkling bottles everywhere, super cool touches of quirky humour. Jill has put her heart and soul into this little luxe haven.

With complimentary sparkling fruit juice in hand complete with black and white striped straw, I began my Peony, Melbourne journey…

From the Olfactive Studio stand, the zesty Still Life called to me like a caiparinia on a blazing summers day. Yuzu, elemi and pepper -pink, black and Sichuan pepper. Star anise and galbanum. Dark rum, cedar and ambrox. I absolutely love the lemony citrus combo with slightly soured spice and pepper, almost sherbet fizz working on top of the deeper wood, amber and rum notes.

Jill explained the range is inspired by photography – Still life from a self-portrait, by Frederic Lebain, which was inspiration for perfumer, Dora Baghriche-Arnaud. A boxed “discovery kit”, containing 5 x 4ml for $55 was in my hands: KERR-CHING!!…Purchase #1.

To my left was Ormonde Jayne, I grabbed Ormonde Woman and spritzed it onto a Peony branded blotter. Cardamom, coriander and grass oil. Black hemlock, violet and jasmine absolute. Vetiver, cedar wood, amber and sandalwood YUM. Love at first sniff. Beautiful. Womanly, magical, floral and herbaceous. The bottle feels weighty in my hand as I reluctantly place it back. A boxed “discovery set” ($95) 12 x 2ml landed on the counter -Purchase #2

Jill offers gently delivered advice, then leaves me to my own devices. She is unobtrusive, yet there when I need her. She guides my experience and lets it unfold organically. I am in awe of how many Peony-exclusive brands stocked that I never have had the chance to smell anywhere else in Australia.

Passing the handpicked Hermes selection, I re-sniff Hiris, and Eau de Pamplemousse Rose, two of my favorites of the range.

At Heeley, Cocobella disappoints – the notes sounded better than I experience…too thin. I discover Hippie Rose. Fresh rose and patchouli, it is rose-velvet. Dry down reminds me of a less-dirty Agent Provocateur original fragrance. Jill hands me a sample size to try later, as I’m not sure.

I smell ALL the Cire Truedon candles from their glass cloches that house them. I pop “Ernesto” on the counter, embarrassed at the pile forming. Purchase #3

In the front corner, I’m right besides the Mona Di Orio range. Gah! “I’ve read about these too!” Les Nombres D’or Violette Fumee stops me in my tracks. So elegant, violet, soft but not sweet. Mediterranean lavender, Calabrian bergamot, oak moss from the Balkans, Egyptian violet flowers and leaves, Turkish rose, Haitian vetiver, clary sage, opoponax, cashmeran and myrrh.

Jill tells me the story of how before Mona Di Orio sadly passed away; she designed this rose/tobacco/suede and violet piece for her Co-founder Jeroenu Oude Sougoteu, whom after she died, generously decided to share it as a tribute to her. Jill is full of these stories. She really knows her stuff!

It’s been an hour and 45 minutes of serious olfactory fun. As I pay for my items, Jill shoves more mystery samples in my bag, and I scurry off happy, loaded with even more new things to discover when I get home.

Thanks Jill!

Ainslie Walker X

All Photos (Perfume Porn) Donated Ainslie Walker

Geranium Bourbon by Miller Harris 2005

December 1, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Tina G

A nice surprise decant from a friend! An intriguing scent – I’d not come across Miller Harris as yet, and I couldn’t begin to think of what Geranium Bourbon entailed. Was it a boozy scent? Did it really have geranium? And how did those two things work together? After a bit of research I discovered that geranium bourbon was actually a particular type of geranium. OK, sure, let’s give this a run through….

Geranium Bourbon by Miller Harris 2005

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Palmarosa, cassis, geranium
Heart: Violet, rose, black pepper
Base: Vanilla, amber, patchouli

Geranium Bourbon opens with a watery pink rose, like rain which has been cupped in a heart of a bloom and then poured across my skin. It is so refreshing and light, really wonderful. After about 10 minutes there is a peppery scent which comes through along with a lemon ‘juice’ accord. I’ve never smelt geranium bourbon plants themselves, but fresh geraniums definitely have that peppery/lemony background to their leaves. The scent deepens throughout the first half hour, gradually becoming more earthy and green.

I enjoy the dry down of Geranium Bourbon as it transitions from fresh & light, to earthy, and then some amber & smoky notes come through with a trace of vanilla in the basenotes. And then this becomes for me one of those scents which triggers some strong visual imagery – I hope you don’t mind if I indulge in the story it wove for me:

Photo Stolen Pixabay

Sitting on the cold, wet white wood of the outside furniture & wrapped up in a blanket stolen from near the inside fire, I sit watching the drips of water fall from the plants in the luscious English summer garden. The storm shower passed through quick and heavy though there is no sign of sunlight yet through the grey sky. The trellis behind me is thick with a blooming tea rose vine, the myriad of simple pink flowers releasing a pervasive but delicate fragrance into the now-still air. The earth in the flower bed has been turned recently and is damp and rich.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

The bedded violet and geranium plants have been beaten by the heavy rain. There is a lemony-rose scent from the geranium flowers, mixed in with a tart herbal pepperiness from the succulent leaves. For a while I sit in the coolness just watching, listening, and breathing, until the damp starts to seep in. Snuggling down into the blanket further I can smell the sweet smoke from the lounge room hearth embedded in its fibres. From somewhere inside the house, a tendril of sweet vanilla from something delicious baking is enough to rouse me from quiet contemplation and head inside to the warmth.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Further reading: What Men Should Smell Like and I Smell Therefore I Am
Perfumery Australia has $110/100ml
Posh Peasant has samples starting at $4/ml

What about you? Have you tried Geranium Bourbon? Any of the Miller Harris range? What did you think?

Wishing you all a lovely week.
Tina G

Rose Praline by François Robert for Les Parfums de Rosine 2008

November 30, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Howdy Crew,

Remember I told you that Michael Edwards (Fragrances Of The World book) had done a wonderful gifting of many of his fragrances, here is another from that generous haul. I saw three Parfums de Rosine bottles and they called to me. The first two I have been incredibly lucky with but Rose Praline skirts the unwearable for me.

Rose Praline by François Robert for Les Parfums de Rosine 2008

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Cardamom, bergamot, rose oil
Heart: Geranium, dark chocolate, rose, tea
Base: Amber, musk, sandalwood, cacao

François Robert, the perfumer, has had an interesting fragrance creation history including five of the Bex London frags, a bunch of the Rosines, Mary Greenwell Plum and Lanvin’s Vetiver.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

OOOH! Green, sweet and warm is how Rose Praline opens, a wet and sticky sweetness cut through by green. They are at an awkward standoff, both seeming to push against the other making the opening a very interesting and surprising start to a fragrance. They have used a note that vintage Dana Ambush used, I don’t know what it is but I find it mildly nauseating, not enough to scrub but up close it is queasy making for me. At elbow length from my nose it’s lovely, a gorgeous waft of dark, rich, spicy rose, up close though it smells like the water left after leaves & flowers have been left to rot in the vase. GACK! Ha Ha Ha! How hilarious, I really can’t stand it up close, it makes me so uneasy.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Later through the lifespan of Rose Praline a lovely dry tea-ish hint comes through. Like tea pre hot water, a dusty, dessicated feeling in the scent that next to this voluptuous, full to overblown rose is a tonic and calming raft. Like a drum softly beating time to the rest of the orchestra and keeping the crew stable.

It’s next morning and the one thing left on my skin is the weird/funky/sour note from Ambush. I woke up lying on that arm and Rose Praline is still quite intense. Maybe this bottle is on the turn or maybe the stresses of selling, moving and organising and the bad eating habits attendant have skewed my chemistry. Maybe because I haven’t been gluing wrist to nose in writing mode but merely enjoying the fragrance at a distance on previous wears. Maybe I’ve found a fragrance that is less than perfect for me, it happens.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Parfums des Rosine has €78/50ml
First In Fragrance has €78/50ml
Aedes de Venustas has $145/100ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $5/ml

Have you tried Rose praline? Any of the Rosines?
Portia xx

Prelude to Love by Calice Becker for by Kilian 2008

November 29, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 11 Comments

Hi hi hi Sniffas,

While in London earlier in the year my mate Tara (of Olfactoria’s Travels) gave me a set of the by Killian samples. It’s beautifully presented in a little velvet pouch of 2ml vials. On my return from traveling I searched high and low and couldn’t find the damn thing, then I forgot about it in the way you do. While cleaning up stuff in anticipation of our move I discovered the baggie in a small cardboard box that had been packed and put to the side with a bunch of other stuff from the trip. I would swear I looked in the box thousands of times……

Prelude to Love by Calice Becker for by Kilian 2008

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Seville orange, Amalfi lemon, bitter orange
Heart: Ginger, neroli, rose, cardamom, orange blossom, freesia, pink pepper, lavender
Base: Iris, Cypriol oil, musk, Russian leather

Basenotes gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, orange, lemon
Heart: Ginger, neroli, orange blossom
Base: Florence iris

The glorious, pithy citrus tinged with green is juicy and ripe. It is the warmest cool fragrance, with a very interesting oily/petrol taint that I find peculiar and inviting. Like pashing/snogging a recently showered and cologned mechanic. There is something extremely lived in about Prelude To Love that makes it more than a cologne, it’s a cologne involved in a sexual tryst, even to the lightly breathy orange blossom and neroli in the heart.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

As an aside: I was standing next to a gardenia hedge early this evening and the absolutely gorgeous/disgusting fragrance emanating from the flowers was completely engulfing, I was transported into a world of scent, shut my eyes for a moment and just breathed in the luscious, lascivious, overwhelming fragrance.

Prelude To Love is nothing like that but it does have elements of that sweetly erotic, human in close contact but cleanly washed idea. Freshly washed flesh but in a hairy nook or crevasse that always maintains the humanity.

Photo Stolen Pinterest

Then, not long after I am swept away by an extremely pretty floral, it’s a bouquet, thick, rich and heavy. That’s what’s so weird about Prelude To Love, though it feels a bit cologne-ish, the heft and nuance seem too deep and mercurial for it to be put in such a simple category. This cologne has cajones. A honeyed, animalic sweetness runs under the whole life of the fragrance that has me smiling as I get huffs, very, very nice to wear. I can see why Prelude To Love is still so popular.

Prelude To Love is fabulous, you can tell it is the best. You want similar results but for a fraction of the price? 4711, even the newest formulation, is a very good bright citrus cologne. You will have to reapply more frequently but isn’t that half the fun?

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Further reading: Bois de Jasmin and Olfactoria’s Travels
LuckyScent has $155/4 x .25oz Travel Spray Set
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $4/.5ml

Do you love the by Killian range? Is there a favourite amongst them for you? I love sweet Redemption and Back to Black, Prelude To Love is wonderful, I’m pretty sure though that there are 6 other citrus frags in my wardrobe that I’d reach for first.
Portia x

Voile d'Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

November 28, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Hey there frag crew,

A couple of years ago Jin and I traveled to Europe together, we had never traveled together before, not even for a weekend, yet we decided to put together a wonderful 6 week extravaganza of a holiday. We saw about 10 countries, saw family, met new and old friends, saw sights, laughed, ate, shopped, discovered and generally had the most wonderful time. There were only a couple of minor melt downs on the whole trip and those due to exhaustion rather than lack of common interest. Anyway, the first fragrance I bought while in Europe on that wonderful holiday in a little Yves Rocher shop in Prague was Voile d’Ambre….

Voile d’Ambre by Olivier Pescheux for Yves Rocher 2005

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mandarin leaf, cardamom, mandarin orange, myrtle
Heart: Opoponax, incense, myrrh
Base: Patchouli, Australian sandalwood, Madagascar vanilla

Memories!!! Every time I spritz Voile d’Ambre I get a warm hot rush of happiness that is less to do with the sweet herbal amber that jumps off my skin than it does the wonderful memories of our first trip together. I can see us rugged up in our winter woolies in cities filled with mainly the residents because who is silly enough to travel midwinter through the heart of Europe? We got to see everything we wanted with zero wait time and the staff of everywhere were happy to see some foreigners and have a chat. I have done Europe in all the seasons now and I’ll always try to go in winter, it’s 100% more fun.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

Voile d’Ambre gives me a boozy, incense laden amber that is smooth and clean, a warm amber that is in no way challenging. This is comfort fragrance, warming, easy and cuddly. Though I wore it all through that winter in Europe I can also easily apply it in 30C Sydney heat and be comfortable, Voile d’Ambre is spare enough and has enough air through it that I’m not overwhelmed or constricted. I think it may be to do with the Australian sandalwood, which I find a little more astringent and green than the others, slightly eucalyptus feeling and that added to a clean but earthy patchouli rounds the whole fragrance out.

I make it read like the notes are discernible, they are not unless I have a notes list ion front of me, what I smell is a beautiful amber that changes slightly from greener in the beginning to non foody vanilla at dry down. It’s not a big and varied story but a soft and floaty ride through comfort to comfort, and filled with joyful memories. I am smiling right now as I write to you all.

If you’ll excuse me I think I need to give Jin and big hug. While I’m gone, what is your favourite amber fragrance, as a main note or a side one?
Portia xx