Go Naked Perfume Oil by Sarah Horowitz-Thran for Urban Decay 2017

July 12, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Erica Golding

Hi all!

Hope you are doing well. It’s summer here in the States, and we’re enjoying some gorgeous weather after an unusually rainy spring. On that note, I recently tried a fresh new scent with promises of sun-kissed beachy skin. The concept boasts an aroma that melds with your chemistry and becomes a part of you. Many people read “beach” in the description, expecting notes like coconut, pineapple, or sea salt. *buzzer* Nope!

Go Naked Perfume Oil by Urban Decay 2017

Go Naked Perfume Oil by Sarah Horowitz-Thran

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, petitgrain, mandarin orange, lemon, sea salt
Heart: Neroli, orange blossom
Base: Lavender, musk, jasmine

Go Naked perfume oil is a citrusy, floral, clean musk. The nose behind this fragrance is Sarah Horowitz-Thran, who is well known for her line of affordable niche perfumes including Perfect Veil and Perfect Nectar. I wouldn’t have been interested in Go Naked otherwise, so I’m really glad that Urban Decay mentioned her in the product description.

I tried several of Sarah’s perfumes about 10 years ago when I had just discovered Luckyscent. A swipe of Go Naked is a darling little time machine that brings me back to that time. I no longer have any of my samples from the Perfect line, so I can’t give any direct comparison, but this scent definitely conjures up scent memories of those little oils.

The opening is sparkling lemonade and freshly soft orange blossom. I would classify the overall accord as borderline aquatic, but it is more of a rounded soapy floral with a splash of citrus juiciness. There’s also a noticeable waft of sharply herbal lavender. These notes all hover over a simple white musk that buffs out the edges of the crisp notes.

Go Naked Perfume Oil Urban Decay beach pixabay

Simple, fresh, clean, and bright. Does it make me think of the coastline? Not really. I think it would be a welcome breath of freshness on a summer beach, but not because it evokes anything about that experience.

Go Naked is a great easy choice to smell shower clean all day, perfect for the office or for hot days when you want to be fresh. Personally, I think it would be a nice first perfume for a youth showing interest in fragrance. It’s a little too sharp and soapy for me to bond deeply, although I do think it’s fun and lighthearted all the same.

Go Naked Perfume Oil Urban Decay California Cow Nude Beach Outtake Flickr Flickr

Urban Decay in the US have $24/5ml Perfume Oil

I hope you’re having a gorgeously scented day, wherever you are!

Peace,

Erica

Maison Mona di Orio: New Launches 2017

July 11, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 26 Comments

Val the Cookie Queen

Good Afternoon from my computer, Wimbledon playing in the background!

It astonishes me that within the realms of a heavily saturated niche perfume market, that there is still the desire to create more. These two new MdO´s are niche as it should be, edgy and enthralling, but wearable. Accessible to anyone wishing to branch off from the more mainstream perfumes, yet still graceful and alluring. Those who want to smell of dead animals and bodily fluids are surprisingly enough, in the minority. Both Suède de Suède and Dõjima will charm the perfumistas whilst opening up a world to those just discovering niche fragrances.

Frederik Dalman is the Swedish in-house perfumer for Maison Mona di Orio.

Maison Mona di Orio: New Launches 2017

First Impressions

Dõjima by Frederik Dalman for Mona di Orio 2017

Rice accord,nutmeg absolute, ambrette, jasmin, orris, clary sage absolute, labdanum CO2, sandalwood, musks

Inspired by rice, and named for the Dõjima Rice Exchange founded by Samurai in 1697 in Osaka, Japan. Dõjima opens with a vivid green, slightly astringent, warmly spiced top layer; a nutty rice note hovers. There remains a greenness throughout, wrapped in a creamy sandalwood, a possible dash of vetiver, who knows? There is some jasmin and orris but I don´t wanna sniff myself into a coma trying to locate them, it takes away the pleasure. An aromatic delight.

Suède de Suède by Frederik Dalman for Mona di Orio 2017

Cloudberry, Sichuan pepper, suède accord, cedar wood, osmanthus, strawberry leaf, castoreum, patchouli, musks

A soft buttery suede/leather wrapped in a sharp berry shell. Frederik Dalman uses cloudberry, they have a distinctive tart taste, and feature in a number of Swedish culinary delights. The zesty berry opening melts into the supple suede, ripples
itself throughout, and remains until the end, preventing the suede from dominating. Osmanthus and strawberry leaf keeping
the cloudberry alive, castoreum, patchouli and musks giving the base. This is a year round leather and one to invite your civilian friends to try. Sensual.

Please take a look at Mona di Orio for the full scoop. Thanks a million to Jeroen, Frederik and Vera for sending me the beautiful box with enough perfume to wear it properly.

Launch in September. 180€ for 75mls

I have a number of MdO miniatures, and an original bottle of her Vanille. I would love a bottle of Mona´s Musc.
Any MdO lovers out there?

Bussis my dears.
CQ xxxx

Arielle Shoshana EdP by Cécile Hua 2017

July 10, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 29 Comments

Portia

WOO HOO Fragrance Lovers,

Arielle is the star of frag blog Scents Of Self and is also the proprietor of Arielle Shoshana the fragrance store in Washington DC. We have been online buddies for years and even managed to meet in NYC in 2014. One of the loveliest people in the perfume world so I was EXTRA excited when news leaked that she was going to go balls out and create her own Arielle Shoshana in-house fragrance with perfumer Cécile Hua.

Arielle Shoshana EdP by Cécile Hua 2017

Arielle Shoshana

Arielle Shoshana gives these featured accords:
Passion Fruit, Grapefruit, Rhubarb, Mandarin, Peach, Saffron, Pink Pepper, Cardamom, Magnolia, Sandalwood, Ambroxan, Vanilla, Vetiver Bourbon, Iris, Musk

Imagine you cut open a passionfruit and mix that with the ultra tart segments of grapefruit, add a dash of pineapple juice and eat. The underlying theme that grounds all this freaky fruity frivolity is a creamy amalgam of cardamom, sandalwood and musk. The vanilla doesn’t make itself known to me until well into the LONG life of Arielle Shoshana. A couple of reviews I read didn’t get such awesome staying power but I am fully fragrant nearly two hours later. This passionfruit extract that they’ve found is freaking unbelievable.

Almost photo realistic and the fragrance doesn’t really shift a lot until much later when it becomes creamy passionfruit yoghurt underscored by a soft wood.

BRAVO Arielle. I bought a bottle and got a USA friend to ship it over for me with some other stuff she was sending, THANKS Ruth! Even in the dead of winter Arielle Shoshana shines.

Want to try it?
See below.
Portia xx

Arielle Shoshana EdP GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week there will be 3 winners who will receive:
1 x Arielle Shoshana EdP sample
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.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please jump to Arielle Shoshane<<<JUMP and find a fragrance they sell and ONE of its notes. Put both in the comments below. NO DOUBLE UPS!

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Wednesday 12th July 2017 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Wednesday 19th July 2017 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

Saturday Question: The Case Against Fragrance by Kate Grenville

July 8, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 49 Comments

Greg Young from AusScents.

(Ed: Taking an idea from Olfactoria’s Travels. Once a week there used to be a Question. Everyone would chime in with an answer, chat with other responders and it would be a generally fun events each week. Taking sides never meant taking offence and everyone kept it respectful and light.
Today we are joined by my mate Greg who has a book review attached to the Saturday Question)

Hi APJ,

As something of a perfume collector, I thought I owed it to myself to read this book and find out more about what is in those fragrances in the cupboard.

Kate Grenville has long known that she has an intolerance for fragrances that give her headaches. When it reached a point where she was almost totally incapacitated during a book tour, she decided to research the matter and wrote this book.

(E)-I-(2,6,6-Trimethyl-I-cyclohexa-I,3-dienyl)but-2-en-I-one
(The Name of the Rose)

Book Review: The Case Against Fragrance, by Kate Grenville

Book Depository

Grenville points out that, in modern society, fragrance is almost inescapable. It’s not just the perfumes that we wear. It’s also added to every imaginable household product from toilet paper to laundry liquid. Stores, restaurants and hotels spray fragrance in the air. It’s ubiquitous, and that’s a problem for people that are affected by it, like Grenville.

Any attempt to identify what is causing these problems founders on a few issues. First, trade secrets legislation means that the contents of “fragrance” ingredients don’t have to be revealed. Second, there are thousands of ingredients commonly used in fragrance, and only a subset of these have ever been tested for safety. Finally, nearly all the testing and certification is done by the fragrance industry itself, so conflict of interest issues apply. It’s not hard to see why a manufacturer might prefer to declare that a rose fragrance contains “parfum” rather than the chemical formula above.

Even what we do know is somewhat alarming. Grenville provides an extensive list of compounds known or suspected to be carcinogenic that are either used in fragrances or can form when fragrance ingredients interact with the air (as they unavoidably will). Chief among these is formaldehyde, although there are others.

Another concern is the prevalence of synthetic musk compounds that have proven to be almost indestructible. These compounds bioaccumulate so that they become more prevalent the higher up the food chain you go. That means that the very highest levels are seen in the most vulnerable: breastfeeding babies and foetuses in utero. These musk compounds can mimic the action of hormones such as oestrogen, creating over-supply which can lead to birth defects, genetic abnormalities and cancer.

Grenville is quick to point out that it is impossible to pin this on fragrance specifically, because there are so many other potential triggers for such conditions to emerge over a lifetime. Indeed “the case against fragrance” is largely a circumstantial one. Grenville shows that there are potentially harmful chemicals in fragrances, they have reached a point of ubiquity in the environment, and people are having adverse reactions. But there is no smoking gun; it is impossible to say for sure that there is causality here, and no scientific study would draw the kinds of conclusions that Grenville invites us to make here.

So what to do? The author’s solution is a bit simplistic. For one, she advocates embracing fragrance-free versions of products. That’s fine, except she does not apply anything like the same scrutiny to those alternatives. Just as decaffeinated coffee is not necessarily better for you due to the added chemicals, how does one know whether a fragrance-free detergent contains no harmful chemicals either?

More interesting is Grenville’s suggestion that fragrance-free workplaces may become the norm. ¬If a scientific institute such as the US Centres for Disease Control can adopt a policy that says “Fragrance is not appropriate for a professional work environment”, then it’s possible to imagine that this may one day become more widespread particularly if, as in the US, there are OH&S lawsuits decided in favour of people with fragrance intolerances.

Decades ago the idea of passive smoking was seen as cranky, now it is enshrined in law. We do not have the right to deprive others of a healthy and safe work environment; that is a very clear legal precedent. So maybe one day people who wear perfume will be like the smokers of today, skulking out the back giving themselves a shot of Shalimar before washing it off and heading back inside.

Food for thought? What do you think?
Greg x

Ombre de Hyacinth by Calice Becker for Tom Ford 2012

July 7, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Portia

Hiya Designer lovers,

Today we are looking at one of the Private Blend Jardin Noir series. The only one of the group still on the Tom Ford website is Cafe Rose but the others are still available at the discounters including this one.

I don’t tend to try all the Tom Ford fragrances because I think his pricing policy is taking the piss. Yes, they are lovely, some could even be classed as modern masterpieces but the consistent price jumps, bringing out a bunch at a time, the lack of consistent availability due to discontinuations and that it’s really just a jumped up Estee Lauder brand all make me a bit grumpy with them.

Anyway, all that aside, when I was in the USA in 2013 these were relatively new. Tom and I spent a moment sniffing them and I liked a couple but couldn’t remember which. So I bought a set of decants. I don’t know why but the set got put aside unopened and they have just resurfaced.

Ombre de Hyacinth by Tom Ford 2012

Ombre de Hyacinth by Calice Becker

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Galbanum, Magnolia, Violet leaf, Frankincense
Heart: Hyacinth, Jasmine, Pink pepper
Base: Benzoin, Galbanum, Musk

My Google translate says Ombre de Hyacinth means Shadow of Hyacinth.

Bitter, smooth green with a very slight taint of sweetness. Galbanum gives a dark furriness here and is offset by the lightness and crisp snap of violet leaf. Quickly coming in is the hyacinth but to me it’s like running your thumb down the stalk of the flower and smelling the wet sappiness. The frankincense is resinous rather than could stick, woods or smoke and helps the galbanum feel ultra glassy.

Ombre de Hyacinth hyacinth pezibear pixabay PDI

My skin throws only the merest soapiness until well into the heart and the vegetational greenness stays, overriding it and giving the impression of drinking clean, fresh water from a snow melt stream. Yes, Ombre de Hyacinth stays dark for me. The fluting notes of violet & hyacinth are overshadowed by the bitter shade of galbanum. This makes them both more interesting because you have to follow your nose to find them. Also, I’ve never noticed them dealt with in this way before.

Soapy? Not really what I think of as soapy but the scent in deep dry down does seem to lose focus and becomes an amorphous, slightly pea scented wash. Not bad, but not nearly as amazing as the first 3-4 hours. What though do I expect? That’s a pretty good run before boredom sets in. Maybe it’s me and not the scent that has become less excited?

Ombre de Hyacinth lasts exceedingly well. Once the fragrance has died down it stays at that level, fragrant within a 30-ish cm radius and a whisper outside that, for hours and hours.

WikiCommons

Further reading: Non Blonde and Perfume Posse
Feeling Sexy Australia has AUD$325/50ml FREE Australian delivery
Surrender to Chance has samples starting from $4/0.5ml

What do you think of the Tom Ford Private Blend range? Do you own any? Which is fave?
Portia xx

Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss by Estée Lauder 2016

July 6, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Portia

Hey Hey Scent Hounds,

So let’s start right away by understanding that this is neither made for nor expected to be a big hit with perfumistas. I love the original Modern Muse, it’s got a really lovely thing going on and I have a couple of mates that now name it their warm weather signature scent. Hugging someone in the original Modern Muse is delightful.

Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss by Estée Lauder 2016

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Mandarin, Black cherry, Rosa centifolia, Pink pepper, Carrot seed, Vinyl accord, Jasmine absolute, Styrax, Labdanum, Saffron, Patchouli, Vanilla

Firstly, let’s talk about this red & gold bottle with the plastic bow. It’s fun, I love the colour combo and also love that Estee Lauder took a chance on a shape not svelte, luxe or refined. Here we have a silly bottle. Somehow though it works, an irreverent swipe at all the conformity that the big brands and even they themselves have been doing. Bravo for design frippery.

Hefty sheer and sweet. You know how diet drinks have a weird aftertaste that people become addicted to? Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss is like a cheap diet cherry cola. The freaky thing is that for all this 100% natural feeling scent, it works. It fizzes and has a sticky, glutinous appeal. The vinyl accord is warm and worn. The base ends up a sweet resinous faux-chouli with the diet cola accord and last for AGES, following me around all day and night. It goes so long that I get a little bored.

What Guerlain does with cherries is sweet but still maintains an air of sophistication, Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss wears a similar fashion but a year later and from Target. YET, worn with such confidence, youth and joy that you hardly notice how crap it looks till you see comparison photos. I will admit to you right here and now that I am madly in love with this frivolous funster. I bought myself 30ml and one of my dear girlfriends 50ml. She loves it too.

Further reading: Lady Writes
Estes Lauder counters everywhere, chemists and discounters.

Have you tried any of the Modern Muse line?
Portia xx

Sandra’s London Trip June 2017 Photo Essay

July 5, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Sandra

Hey there dear APJ! How is everyone doing? Hopefully comfortably settling in with summer or winter.

It has been a hectic couple of months here in Rotterdam. What with school keeping us busy, family & friends visiting, it was a blessing to be able to get away for my son’s birthday over a long weekend at the beginning of June. He turned 8 this year and one of his greatest wishes was to see London (Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, London Eye, and of course toy stores were all on his wish list). Not only did we manage to see all the sights, but we also had a couple of perfume activities which I would like to share with you today.

London Trip June 2017 Photo Essay

I finally got to meet Neela Vermeire of Neela Vermeire Creations! Wow! What an amazing woman – but I knew that already. It was absolutely fabulous sitting down with her in London and chatting for a while. Thankfully dear son and husband also enjoyed their visit. Thank you Neela!!!

Saturday was reserved for meeting up with Tara from A Bottled Rose. I last saw Tara in Vienna about two years ago and I was thrilled to be able to spend some time with her again. We started out by heading to the Natural History Museum. It was a bribe for my son so that we could go sniffing later! We headed off to Harrods afterwards and had lunch before heading to the toy kingdom which I must admit was exciting for us parents as well. The choice is staggering.

Now it was my turn – yay!! Tara took us upstairs to the beautiful area where many brands have their own small boutiques. I got to sniff perfumes from Xerjoff, Dior, Frederic Malle, Kilian, Ramon Monegal. The new Superstitious by Frederic Malle is gorgeous and powerful. Xerjoff is a brand that I like wearing and I was thrilled to see that the Casamoratti line is now offered in 30 ml bottles. I liked Monegal’s Flamenco quite a bit – the red bottle is eye catching and the perfume was a lot of fun starting off with a blast of raspberry and it stayed a happy joyful perfume.

This summer Dior will be shaking things up a bit. The SA was kind enough and said that I was permitted to write about it. I think that many of us will be super happy with the big news that they will be offering the Privée line in 40 ml bottles in addition to the current bottle line up. Dior will also be launching a new sub line to the Privée consisting of 10 new perfumes which are apparently easier to wear and more appealing to the mass market. I for one cannot wait to see what Dior comes up with and am so excited about the smaller bottles. My husband may have to hold onto my wallet!

When we meandered downstairs to the perfume hall I was taken aback at how bustling it was. One of the first perfumes I spritzed that day was Ormonde Jayne’s Ambre Royal. Truly a beautiful perfume with notes of osmanthus and iris and drying down to a wonderful unsweet amber. What a shame that I did not pick it up.

We then headed towards the Kilian stand where two handsome SAs Niko and Johan greeted us and walked me through the new releases. These two gentlemen were so patient and kind and both had a great sense of humor – here is a picture of us. I just love the box for Black Phantom and decided then and there to buy the perfume. Not necessarily smart to buy a perfume for the packaging – but had to do it this one time. The one perfume that I just adored was Single Malt. I walked around the city with my arm at my nose and had to go back in the evening to buy that one too. Reviews coming up of the two Kilians.

After all of that our noses were exhausted and we decided to head to Big Ben. We took some pictures with Tara and our full on day came to a close. A big shout out to dear Tara for taking time to spend with us. We loved seeing her.

I know that I could have seen and sniffed more, but we jammed as much as possible into the 4 day weekend. It just means that we will have to go back and SOON!

What about ya’ll? Any travels lately? Any fun sniffing lately? I would love to hear about it.

Sending you lots of sunny hugs,
Sandra xoxo

Gatineau Face Basics: Peeling Expert

July 4, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 3 Comments

AF Beauty

Hey there Beautiful APJ Peepy-Peepers,

I might be using all my beauty products wrong 😦

Having recently returned from the UK on some holidays – they have started up this concept of a “beauty box” which is a great way to sample some new products at a really good price. Not all boxes are created equally and it definitely depends what you want to try versus what you’ve used before and importantly, the size of the product you are particularly interested – pay attention to the detail, some of them will show pictures of full size products but send small sizes in the package.

Gatineau Face Basics: Peeling Expert

Am I Doing It Right??

All Beauty

Caveats aside, I bought this Beauty Box which largely I’m happy with and I’m here to talk to you about the Gatineau Peeling Expert. So, cutting to the chase – this product blows my mind! The instructions are brief and they do not give any indication of the extent to which this product is used and it has really made me question whether I am using the rest of my beauty products correctly.

It says, apply a thin layer and massage gently till it breaks down to an oil. Easy you think. Not so – it takes about 30 seconds for it to start to break down into the oil. The break down to an oil is not like my other favoured (and discontinued) product from the Body Shop (I wrote about replacements here) and in fact it feels a lot thicker and difficult to wield.

The next instruction is to, and I quote, “keep massaging until a fine fluff appears.” So, I have to admit, I was a little confused when I first saw this and wondered what would happen. I wondered if it was like a super acid cleanser that would cause my face to bubble? And then I wondered if it would turn into a powder on my skin? But how from an oil? So, the result is neither. It actually goes from the oil to a peculiar peeling, which I’ve only ever seen before from Clarins, their Doux Peeling.

I’ve used the Clarins one previously, but looking back I think the guidance from the SA was perhaps not the best. She had recommended that I use my entire palm to remove the Doux Peeling and I didn’t enjoy it at all. The Gatineau version is actually a lot better and it does form a sort of fluff – mine is most often like a crumble (haha – gross!) than a fluff. The whole process from application to removal takes a few minutes – and the migration through the stages is something quite unique and successful. I actually really like the Gatineau peel, I use it about twice a week and it does leave my skin feeling lovely and soft.

The problem I have now though is wondering whether, in my haste to use my other products, whether I’m actually missing out some amazing feature of another product?

Do you have any products that have these stages? Do you now wonder if you’re missing a trick with your product?!

See you soon, sexy wexies!
AF Beauty

A*Men Kryptomint by Jacques Huclier for Mugler 2017

July 3, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Portia

Heya Perfume Peeps!

If you’ve read APJ over time you may remember that I was one of the Squirt Bitches for the launch of the original A*Men at a nightclub. We spritzed so much of it through the night and it stuck in my nose & throat for the next week to the point of nausea. It took many years for me to even be able to be in the same room as it. I would get headaches and feel physical disquiet. For me to finally find an A*Men that i’m comfortable enough with to purchase is a huge breakthrough.

We were in Luxembourg earlier in the year and there was a FABULOUS perfumery across from the central station, nothing posh but extremely well stocked in the designer ranges. They were also having a 20% off sale!

A*Men Kryptomint by Mugler 2017

A*Men Kryptomint by Jacques Huclier

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Peppermint, sage
Heart: Egyptian geranium
Base: Patchouli, vanilla, coffee, chocolate, tonka

There’s no denying that Kryptomint is an A*Men flanker. From the first whiff that famous choc-chouli madness is well apparent. The feature note of peppermint given a lightly green gloss by sage and a crackle of clove-ish geranium gives this flanker and completely different personality. Suddenly what was loud, abrasive and sickening to me becomes fresh and fun. All this zingy peppermint is just silly enough to make A*Men a joy. Even as I write this admittedly crap review I am smiling like a fool.

The peppermint stays all the way through and I feel like I’m wearing Mint Slice perfume. Combining two of my absolute favourite things: chocolate and mint. MMMMMM

Longevity is stellar but projection is only moderate if applied in normal amounts. I admit to wearing it quite heavily when I’m alone, you have no idea how huge it becomes. Basically I’m dry cleaning the apartment with my nuclear sillage.

Want to try it?
See below.
Portia xx