Review

Ambergreen by Oliver Valverde for Oliver & Co 2016

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Post by Portia

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Hi there Niche Nerds,

Recently I wrote about Oliver & Co bringing out 16ml Travel Sizes, I also bought a pair of them in the new scents Ambergreen & Vaninger. Oli Valverde the perfumer got in touch almost immediately after my purchase to thank me (I know right, super sweet) and offered to send me some samples through for all of you to try. YAY!

I love this house, that’s how Oli knows me, because I shop there at full price regularly. They are way under-rated and don’t get nearly enough love on the blogs or chat rooms. Fiercely independent fragrance house with scents that are unashamedly boundary pushing while still being totally wearable on a day to day basis. They are often so far off the beaten track though that I find description troublesome and sit dazed and amused in front of my computer enjoying the ride without typing a word.

Ambergreen by Oliver & Co 2016

Ambergreen by Oli Valverde

ambergreen-oliver-co-fragranticaFragrantica

Oliver & Co gives these featured accords:
Ambrosian, amyl salycilate, basil, coriander, dry amber, fig leaves, galbanum, grass, green pepper, green tangerine, guaiac wood, hedione, orris concrete, pharaoh, shiso

The opening moments are like pulling the lettuce out of cold water where it’s been soaking, then fresh cut grass. It’s clearly spring in this scent. BASIL! OMG! A photo realistic basil from when you water your basil plant in the garden or window box, then it deepens to become the first whirr of making pesto at home. After about 15 minutes the whole fragrance stops being about notes and turns into a green bouquet lightly overlaid with cozy/sharp galbanum and bitter citrus. It’s bloody excellent stuff.

Green like walking under the trees near a creek in summer, hot, sweaty green like nothing I’ve smelled in fragrance before. It’s the brushing past shrubs and trees, the breaking of grass under your feet, the smell of healthy, damp earth disturbed and all of this in a warm dampness, cool after being in the blazing sun but not refreshing really. Ambergreen feels like respite, a quiet moment to yourself reading in the park trees shade, or your yard if you are lucky enough to have one. When the darkness of ambergris stirs the sweetness of amber counters its marine hue, the work against each other to create harmony over the green, quite a journey.

SLIDESHOWSOliver & Co

Oliver & Co has €35/the new 16ml Travel Size
FREE WORLD SHIPPING over €100

Here are some other posts on APJ about Oliver & Co fragrance: Vetivers and Resina,

giveaway TheTruthAboutMummy

Oliver & Co Samples GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will receive:
3 x 2ml Oliver & Co carded manufacturers spray samples
(You will each get a different set)
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 go to Oliver & Co<<JUMP and tell us a fragrance and ONE of its notes in the comments below (NO DOUBLE UPS!)

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Tuesday 6th December 2016 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 14th December 2016 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

Coast Sydney: NEW True Collection Perfume Oil

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Post by Portia

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Hey there APJ,

You may already be aware of the Coast Sydney Candle Range. They are a cool crew with a natural leaning candle range using sustainable soy with no Paraffin and Palm Free. They use high quality fragrance oil or essential oils and a natural untreated woodwick that creates a soothing crackling sound. Cool stuff.

Go see COAST at their site.

tahiti-by-coast lost-city-of-petra-by-coastCOAST

Coast SUPPORTS: Women for Women International supports female survivors of war with tools and resources to move from crisis and poverty to stability and self sufficiency. Two dollars from the sale of each candle will benefit Women for Women International.

Coast Sydney: NEW True Collection Perfume Oil

Got it? Great. So they have decided to create a new fragrance range, well priced stocking stuffers in rollerballs. Simple, wearable fragrances for day to day living. Perfect for handbags, beach totes, gymbags and for travelling. They are perfumed oils so instead of throwing the scent ahead of you it wraps itself around you in a soft focus, fragrant scarf or sarong, depending on your season. Now of you are a hardcore perfumista these may be a little simple and wearable for you, I get it. For anyone who wants to smell good for an excellent price then these are worth a sniff.

coast-perfume-true-collectionnice-jgCoast

Nice by Coast: True Collection Perfume Oil
Tuberose Touch

Top: Petitgrain, Clematis
Heart: Tuberose, Rhubarb, Ylang Ylang
Base: Peru Balsam, Patchouli, Vanilla

A green interpretation of tuberose that has a very crisp pettigrain keeping it interesting and refreshing while the ylang adds creamy tropical depths. Nice is about 250% better than I expected it be. I could easily imagine many of friends falling madly in love with this fragrance, mainly the women but there are a few men I think could rock it. Scott liked Nice the best and was very interested in knowing who the fragrance came from etc. when he smelled it. There is an underlying dissonance between the cream and the green that gives Nice frission. Base is a sweetened soft patchouli with creamy overtones.

coast-true-collection-bali-champaka-charm

Bali by Coast: True Collection Perfume Oil
Chempaka Charm

Top: Bergamot, Lime, Mandarin Red
Heart: Champaka  (White Magnolia), Nag Champa (Orange Champaka), Jasmine
Base: Violet Leaf, Clove Bud, Amyris Wood, Vanilla

Bali is my favourite of the True Collection. It smells to me like cuddling with someone wearing a tropical fragrance on a beach with a fire burning. For something that I expected to be a floral with vanilla undercurrent it’s a huge surprise. Smoky, sweet, spicy and aromatic Bali is totally unusual. Slightly challenging in its potency when your nose is buried into it but as a waft while you’re going about your day Bali is exquisite. It could very well make the perfect incense scent and wears like a sweet and floral incense. An overtly feminine incense that smells a bit raspberry-ish and the incense is spicy hot and still burning in the next room. As you can tell I really like it.

Want to try them? I have a bunch of samples to giveaway.
Portia xx

YouTube

Coast Sydney: True Collection GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 3 winners who will receive:
1 x Bali carded manufacturers sample
1 x Nice carded manufacturers 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 tell us what perfume oils you like or which of this pair you’d rather try

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Sunday 4th December 2016 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Sunday 11th December 2016 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

What Ruined That Perfume For You?

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Post by Portia

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Chatting to a buddy the other day and she said, “No, I can’t wear that. A hideous person at (a job they hated) wore it and I can only think of her when I smell it.” Then in a comment on the What Perfumes Remind You Of Mum? post a couple of weeks ago Nelle said she wouldn’t wear the exact fragrance her mum would wear so that cuts them out for her too. So because of these two unrelated events I started asking other people if they’d had a fragrance ruined or made unwearable. It’s surprising how many people do have a story along similar lines. So I’d like to know your story if you have one too.

What Ruined That Perfume For You?

My story? Well mine are not quite the same as most of the stories I’m hearing. Only in the last couple of years, about 2 decades since the event, am I able to smell A’Men without retching. here’s why…..

amen-thierry-mugler-fragranticaFragrantica

A*Men by Thierry Mugler

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Coriander, Lavender, Peppermint
Heart: Heart Notes Honey, Jasmine, Caramel, Lily-of-the-valley, Patchouli, Cedarwood
Base: Amber, Benzoin, Coffee, Musk, Sandalwood, Storax, Tonka bean, Vanilla

A*Men by Thierry Mugler was totally ruined for me one night while I was hosting a club. It was the launch of the fragrance in Australia and we had to give out samples and spritz people with A*Men. A gust of it got caught down the back of my throat and in my nostrils and stayed there for three days. It’s ALL I could smell for three days. It has taken me nearly two decades to be able to smell A*Men without dry retching.

The final fix was after I had a shower at Thailand airport in 2014 on our way to Europe and I forgot to take my glasses into the shower room where I clumsily dropped and smashed my 10ml Oriental Lounge by The Different Company. That got me really flustered so I just grabbed any old decant from my Wetpack and guess what it was? Yep, A*Men. I don’t even know how or why it was in there. I didn’t hate it. Anyway, thank goodness we were up the front so I wasn’t sitting next to some poor bugger in cattle, fumigating them. Even at the end of the flight into Vienna Michael could still smell me, softly but persistently.

loulou-cacharel-fragranticaFragrantica

LouLou by Cacharel

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Aniseed, Iris, Jasmine, Cassia, Lily, Mimosa, Plum, Violet, Cinnamon
Heart: Heliotrope, Orris root, Orange blossom, Pot marigold, Tuberose, Ylang-ylang
Base: Benzoin, Musk, Sandalwood, Vanilla, Frankincense

LouLou by Cacharel was a HUGE hit amongst my age group as I became a young adult. Almost every girl in our circle was gifted it for birthdays & Christmas in the first three or four years it appeared. What started out a fabulously different divergence from everything else that was going on quickly became overwork and in doses that could dry clean your brain.

In another exciting turn around though nowadays LouLou brings back happy memories of fun and laughter in times where the most pressing obligations were getting Fashion School assignments done and most important decisions which club we were going to get plotless in that night. Heady, happy days. We knew we were blessed and made all efforts to squeeze every last drop of enjoyment out of our youths.

Now it’s over to you. What or who ruined which fragrances for you?
Portia xx

 

NEW! Chinchilla by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz for DSH Perfumes 2016

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Post by Portia

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Hey there APJ Fumies,

Recently I got the DSH Perfumes Chroma Collection Sample Set and with it Dawn sent a sneaky extra of her newest baby Chinchilla. Are you ready to have your presumptions about fragrance challenged? Dawn has used honey in the most flagrantly animal composition I’ve smelled in ages.

Chinchilla by DSH Perfumes 2016

Chinchilla by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

chinchilla-dsh-perfumesDSH Perfumes

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Hyrax, ambrette (musk mallow), bergamot, vetiver, oakmoss, carnation, castoreum, rose de mai, cinnamon, civet, beeswax, gardenia, honey, musk, nard himalayan (jatamansi), tonka bean, white pepper

WHOOSH! Sweetest, amberish, animal, urinous, caramelised sugar, thick, glutinous, honeyed. The first few minutes of Chinchilla areas outrageously powerful. If the upper echelons were wearing something this over the top then they are animals making their territory, social X-Rays who need to smell like greed, power and hunger, people who want to put the frenemy off guard by smelling like a carnivorous beast. The first 15-20 minutes are so disconcerting and then suddenly everything blends and softens.

The change is remarkable because what was vaguely disturbing has now become plush and luscious. Still honey/animal sweet but now a little breathy and I can imagine this being the cuddly goodbye of a society mum going out for the night in her dress, fur, make-up, sparkling diamonds and hair French rolled. When she is perfected and ready to leave the house a triple spritz of perfume for her and a squishy hug and lipstick flavoured kiss for the kids. My Mum & Dad were never a super socialite couple but they had their fair share of grand evenings and events, especially around Dad’s Paralympics and Mum’s golf and I remember that last fragrant blonde mink tickle as she hugged and kissed me goodbye and my pyjamas smelling of Mum’s fragrance as I went to sleep.

chinchilla-by-dsh-perfumes-chinchilla-wikimediaWikiMedia

From DSH Perfumes: At the Grand Hotel, where the elite and gorgeously tailored meet for soirees, dancing parties, and other hedonistic (and luxurious) meetings, the elegant always wear their chinchilla.   Dreamily soft, sensuously cozy, and yet so chic; only the finest would do.
Our vintage-inspired Chinchilla is as sexy as the name implies, and imbues the wearer with the scent of warm skin, fur, and a cozy honey-musk animalic.    Go ahead…wrap yourself up in Chinchilla.

Recently I told Scented Hound that I keep imagining some top-flight male exec wearing it to work and leaving a steaming trail of broken hearts in his wake every day. It would definitely shake things up around the office.

Further reading: EauMG and Scented Hound
DSH Perfumes has Chinchilla starting at $6

INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING: Via Dawn: The new site is up AND that it is open to international shipping. 
We now offer voile formulations (same concentrations at the alcohol versions, just in IPM which isn’t flammable so we can ship it). The shipping is a flat rate of $55 **HOWEVER** if you are just getting small things or samples we will refund the rate to what it actually costs. It was the only way we could accommodate the international shipping.

Via rosarita313:  Dawn is having a sale through January 9, the code thanks2016 gets you 20% off the entire website.

Do you like the sound of Chinchilla?
Portia xx

Diorella EdT Vintage by Edmond Roudnitska for DIOR 1972

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Post by Portia

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Hey Hey Vintage Frag Hags,

Last week heralded the arrival of a VERY vintage bottle of Diorella by DIOR. Having never smelled the vintage it was tantamount to a blind buy and I was really nervous. In the listing the bottle looked pristine and the box dirty but perfectly formed still, a tester no less. It wasn’t very expensive but not a bargain either. So I waited for it to arrive and it has…..

Diorella EdT Vintage by DIOR 1972

Diorella EdT Vintage by Edmond Roudnitska

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Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Basil, Bergamot, Green notes, Melon, Lemon
Heart: Cyclamen, Carnation, Honeysuckle, Jasmine, Peach, Rose
Base: Oakmoss, Musk, Patchouli, Vetiver

The top notes are fleeting and I get the oily slick tingle of aldehydes, I think the top notes have disappeared really because my nose gets almost immediate floral bouquet and already the furry cocoon of oakmoss wraps my nostrils tight and snug. Scott and I have a theory that I’m hypernosmic to oakmoss because it softly jumps out at me from the very first sniff till the last whispered gasp of fragrance.

Diorella has a sweetness to it, not like the modern gourmands or Guerlains, but the sweetness of fruit just about to go over the edge of usability. I think it’s the honeysuckle and peach working together to produce a very mildly urinous underlay. Not especially noticeable unless my nose is right at the scent source, from arms length the whole of Diorella is refined young woman in twin set & pearls from yesteryear. Nowadays is the modern equivalent the white mens style T-Shirt and straight or boot leg jeans wearing women?

Diorella Christian Dior pexelsPDI

Dry down comes hours and hours later, the vetiver is dried and lightly salted and surprisingly the patchouli is a backing player that merely enhances the oakmoss and vetiver swirled through with musk that smells like the real deal.

Want to try some?

giveaway kbaird

Diorella GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Sample from my vintage Diorella EdT
P&H Anywhere in the world

HOW DO YOU WIN?

Open to everyone worldwide who follows AustralianPerfumeJunkies via eMail, WordPress, Bloglovin or RSS. Please leave how you follow in the comments to be eligible. I must be able to check that you follow so if you have an email address on your gravatar that’s different to your follow address then please email me so I know. Yes, you can start following to enter, in fact it’s encouraged.

You must tell me how you follow APJ

and

Please tell us why you’d like to try Diorella

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Saturday 26th November 2016 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Thursday 1st December 2016 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

Perfumed Streets

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Post by Anne-Marie

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Hi all,
What are the perfumes you notice on other people when you are out and about? Do you recognise specific perfumes, or just a generic ‘perfumey’ aura around your workplace and on the bus?

Perfumed Streets

TerreD'Hermes FragranticaFragrantica

My most memorable moment was in a hotel lift in Paris. I stepped into the empty lift and I could smell Terre d’Hermes so distinctly I could almost touch it. The wearer must have stepped out mere seconds before.

Queuing for coffee at a railway station in Paris I again seemed to catch Terre d’Hermes, but I couldn’t be sure. Railway stations are a cacophony of smells.

Chanel No 5 Parfum Chanel FragranticaFragrantica

I smell Chanel No 5 EDT a fair bit. Once I noticed another mother at a school concert sending clouds of it several rows forward and back. I was surprised that anyone could conjure that much sillage out of No 5. I never thought of it as a sillage monster. Later though  I worked with someone who had No 5 as her signature and it could be smelled EVERYWHERE she had been, or was yet to arrive. Outside her office, up and down the corridors, in the bathroom, in the carpark. Yeeesh!

youth-dew-estee-lauder-fragranticaFragrantica

Once I caught a whiff of something delicious on a woman as I walked past her in a department store. I wheeled back and followed her up the escalator, trying to figure out what the perfume was. This is the only time I have stalked anyone because of their perfume. By the time I got to the top I’d figured it out. It was Estée Lauder’s Youth Dew.

Fragrantica

Smelled Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche on an elderly lady I’m slightly acquainted with. She is a smart, beautifully dressed and fascinating woman and what she was talking about was so interesting I forgot to ask about her perfume. But it was certainly Rive Gauche and it suited her perfectly. I wish now that I had mentioned it because she would probably have had an interesting story to tell about it.

These experiences are relatively unusual for me. Terre d’Hermes, yes. That is so distinct and full of character that you cannot mistake it for anything else. But mostly when I smell perfume on someone I don’t recognise it. I just smell ‘perfume’: a pleasant (or not) floral, sweet, woody or sporty something-or-other.

perfumed-streets-busy_street_in_india-wikipediaWikiMedia

The market is jam packed with smell-alikes, after all, and most people don’t want to make much of a statement with fragrance. I know someone who has a wonderfully quirky style in clothes, but her perfume is Lancome’s La Vie Est Belle. Or at least I think it is; it’s a bit hard to tell when there are so many copies and derivatives in that style.

So – over to you? Are there stand-out perfumes in your world? Or does everyone smell of hotel shampoo these days?
Bye for now everyone, and keep spritzing!
Anne-Marie

Arbolé Arbolé by Hiram Green 2016

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Foggy November Greetings APJ!

Perfume Excitement

As I mentioned in my last blog post, I prefer not l to write about anything that I don´t own. There are however exceptions to every rule. I had an email from Hiram Green of Hiram Green perfumes informing me that there was a sample of his new perfume on its way to me. His work is consistently excellent and I have enjoyed each fragrance. Yesterday I had a call from a perfumista friend I trust one hundred percent, raving on about Arbolé Arbolé. And then I read Claire Vukcevic´s post, of Take One Thing Off and APJ. Shifting into perfume excitement mode, I waited anxiously for the postman.

arbole-arbole-hiram-green-val-cq

Arbolé Arbolé by Hiram Green 2016

arbole-arbole-hiram-green-fragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Patchouli, cedar, sandalwood, vanilla, tonka bean

“…… with the grey arm of the wind wrapped around her waist”

Arbolé, Arbolé takes its name from Frederico Garcia Lorca´s exquisite poem of the same name. It is new to me though written in 1955, and acutely expressive.
I wish I could read Spanish.

arbole-arbole-hiram-green-r-nial-bradshaw-girls-umbrella-wind-flight-flickrFlickr

Arbolé Arbolé is so impressive I am speechless, sat here with my head in my hands wondering what to write. My husband just yelled from the living room “nicht zerreden”. Which means don´t talk it to death. He also said to order a bottle. I have never smelled anything that is remotely similar. I have been wearing it for six hours now, longevity is great.

Hiram Green writes: “Arbolé Arbolé opens with a burst of earthy patchouli that slowly merges with dry cedar wood and velvety sandalwood. Vanilla and tonka bean anchor the fragrance and provide a sweet powdery base.” I guess he should know. Jump over to Hiram´s website and have a look.
Hiram Green are offering Arbolé Arbolé in a 10ml travel spray along with a full bottle AND what is particularly brilliant is that you can buy all of the HG perfumes in 10 ml travel sprays. Superb.

Our world has changed greatly since my last post. Political disaster encourages great music, so bring it on.
“Music is the emotional life of most people.” Leonard Cohen

Green Perfumed Bussis
CQ

PS. Hmmmmmm. A full bottle or 10mls, that is the question. I never order at night when the flesh is weak, tomorrow will tell. Watch this space!!

Arbolé Arbolé by Federico García Lorca, 1898 – 1936

Tree, tree
dry and green.

The girl with the pretty face
is out picking olives.
The wind, playboy of towers,
grabs her around the waist.
Four riders passed by
on Andalusian ponies,
with blue and green jackets
and big, dark capes.
“Come to Cordoba, muchacha.”
The girl won’t listen to them.
Three young bullfighters passed,
slender in the waist,
with jackets the color of oranges
and swords of ancient silver.
“Come to Sevilla, muchacha.”
The girl won’t listen to them.
When the afternoon had turned
dark brown, with scattered light,
a young man passed by, wearing
roses and myrtle of the moon.
“Come to Granada, muchacha.”
And the girl won’t listen to him.
The girl with the pretty face
keeps on picking olives
with the grey arm of the wind
wrapped around her waist.
Tree, tree
dry and green.

Fire Amber Baby by Jocelyn Fullerton for Cult Of Scent

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

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Post by Portia

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Heya Perfume Peeps,

One of the most gorgeous things about living in Sydney is the frag culture. We are not a huge section but we are all quite friendly and try to get together sometimes to sniff and laugh. Have you noticed that most perfume people are fun & gregarious and also it feels like most of us have known hard times but prefer to rise above them with humour & scent? I also love that we can do our connecting over the internet with the whole world at different times, perfect for anyone with sleep problems, new pets or young children. No one can judge your track suit or lack of clothing when you’re online at midnight in your time zone catching a breather from whatever has you up.

One of the women I really love to spend time with is Jocelyn Fullerton

Fire Amber Baby by Cult Of Scent

Fire Amber Baby by Jocelyn Fullerton

fire-amber-baby-by-cult-of-scent-picCult of Scent

Cult of Scent give these featured accords:
Amber, Labdanum, Incense resins

Thick, toffee, animal, vanilla, warmth like smoky fireside, fatty, deep, smooth, scratchy dry heat, beeswax, tree sap sweet like maple syrup.

Wearing Fire Amber Baby on a warm spring evening and it is blossoming like something from another era, another mindset, another culture. If thick, rich and luscious amber fragrances get your heart pounding then this will send you into fibrillation. A raw and sensual fragrance that is so different from the multitude of ambers I know & love. Crunchy and crackling like honeycomb doped into patchouli toffee and rolled in the vegetal animal grown of labdanum.

If you’ve ever looked through an amber brooch, one of the larger ones with bubbles and imperfections through it, at the sun then you may just know what the smell of Fire Amber Baby smells like.

fire-amber-baby-by-cult-of-scent-jacekabramowiczPDI

At once commanding and comforting the sheer range of nuance that I am noticing tonight in the warmth that I’ve never noticed wearing it in the cool. Yes, it’s still big and intricate in the cool but heat seems to make it jump and sparkle brilliantly.

A statement fragrance if ever there was one. Confidence and comfort radiate, maybe you would need to spritz the air and walk through the mist if wearing to work. Perfect for galleries, outdoors, club life and romance, though I would definitely wait an hour before going to dinner or a movie. It has real red dress, red carpet chutzpah.

fire-amber-baby-by-cult-of-scent-jennifer_lawrence_at_the_83rd_academy_awards-wikimediaWikiMedia

Further reading: Perfumes I Love
Cult of Scent has Fire Amber Baby from $37/8ml
Cult of Scent also have a 6 x Sample Set for only $40

What is your amber fragrance?
Portia xx

Granville by Francois Demachy for Dior Collection Privée 2010

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Post by Portia

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Howdy Fragrant Family,

Years ago now I bought 10ml of Granville in a split from AndreaW. It was forgotten for a while and then rediscovered and drained to the dregs. As soon as I was finishing my decant the damn thing got DCd so I was lamenting its loss and resigned to never having a bottle to spritz.

On a whim in South Korea last week I asked the DIOR SA if she remembered Granville and she produced a tester saying that she had one bottle left in stock, 250ml at about AUD$100 more expensive than Sydney prices (because S Korea!). We thanked her for her time, spritzed Granville lavishly and went on our merry way. Then, because I was floating in swathes of its green beauty and a bit sad that I would never own it Jin said we should go back and get it next day, he even offered to buy me the bottle (I know right, but I wouldn’t let him). So we went back and grabbed it and I’m so thrilled, it’s a perfect mid-season beauty.

Granville by Dior Collection Privée 2010

Granville by Francois Demachy

La Collection Couturier Parfumeur Granville Dior FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Basenotes gives these featured accords:
Top: Lemon, mandarin, thyme
Heart: Gorse, pine, rosemary
Base: Pepper, sandalwood, woodsy notes

A smooth and rich cologne in EdT built by Francois Demachy to be both an interesting twist on an old trope and a new, fun, pretty masculine for perfumistas of both sex. It’s perfect mid season wear while the sun is shining and in the chill of the evening. Grenville is cool green, bright and slightly fizzy like a Limoncello with a hint of salt. The sweet and tart at the same time opening wafts gently into more green and herbaceousness that warms and dries towards dry down with the pepper crackling and creamy woods.

granville-dior-morgan-davis-limoncello flickrFlickr

Never a poisonous green, always a gentle, plush, refined greenness; austere yet approachable. Said to be done in homage to the wind at Christian Dior’s childhood home, the greenness of the area, the herb garden and the exuberance of his youth, I get it. Granville is all of this and more. A mellow green with fizz and cream.

Lasting well into 3 hours as fragrant I was surprised to find Granville still smellable on the morning as I wake up, a whispered wash of citrus and wood.

Further reading: Olfactoria’s Travels and BOTO
Still available at some DIOR stand alone stores
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $3/ml

Do you have a favourite DIOR Privee? Which one? Why? Did you try DIOR Granville?
Portia xx

Penhaligon’s Portraits Collection Review

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Post by Portia 

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Hey there Niche Nerds,

Yesterday I was lucky enough to attend the lavish Australian launch of Penhaligon’s Portraits Collection here in Sydney at the Centennial hotel, very Ra Cha Cha! A small group of us were led through the outlandish fictitious stories of this new collection by Michael from Libertine Parfumerie and got to smell the fragrances together and discuss their notes, design and remarkable lids. High tea in a very English from the movies style room, it was a great scene setter organised by Alice and crew at ÉLYSÉE COLLECTIVE.

img_7665Ainslie Walker, Portia, Catherine de Peloux Menage (Yay! The APJ Squad)

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThis one donated by Ainslie Walker. Thanks doll, love it!

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img_7669Michael from Libertine Parfumerie

This is an expensive Penhaligon’s offering AUD$369 for 75ml. Puig, who recently bought Penhaligon’s and L’Artisan, seems to be making a statement about their new direction with the brand. Luxury is the new order and these lids made of brass are heavy and interesting, though I would very much like it if they offered a choice of with or without. There are only a few sets being released in Australia and apparently worldwide it is very limited production. Love a bit of exclusivity in my scent. So, about the perfumes….

Penhaligon’s Portraits Collection Review

tragedy-of-lord-george-penhaligons-fragranticaFragrantica

The Tragedy of Lord George by Penhaligon`s

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Brandy, woodsy notes, tonka bean, amber

Very popular among the people yesterday, a softly sweet masculine that reminded me of a Guerlain. I think it’s the boozy tonks mix that was so reminiscent. Smelled great, ultimately unisex.

revenge-of-lady-blanche-penhaligons-fragranticaFragrantica

The Revenge Of Lady Blanche by Penhaligon`s

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Narcissus, iris flower, hyacinth

This is my favourite. Opens with a distinctive 1970s or earlier green floral chypre vibe. Sadly it was all top and heart and had basically disappeared an hour later so that even my BFF Kath couldn’t smell it at lunch an hour later. Totally bummed because I thought it was going to make a wonderful replacement for when I run dry of Niki de Saint Phalle. I really want to wear it again a few times to get to know it.

coveted-duchess-rose-penhaligons-fragranticaFragrantica

The Coveted Duchess Rose by Penhaligon`s

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Mandarin orange, rose, musk, woody notes

Personally I think this will be the best seller of the line. It feels expensive and wearable. Not ground breaking or outrageous but it does feel like a quality fragrance, not following the super sweet crowd and being a cut above most of the department store mass-tige offerings.

much-ado-about-the-duke-penhaligons-fragranticaFragrantica

Much Ado About The Duke by Penhaligon`s

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Rose, leather, gin, pepper, woody notes

Love it when the rose fragrances are made for the men. I think this will find a lot of love from the men who wear Amouage Lyric Man. It’s different enough to be in the same collection. Here rose is made drier and cracklier with the leather and pepper. I like it a lot and if it was $200 I would be buying it for Jin for Christmas.

 

giveaway kbaird

Penhaligon’s Portraits Collection GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Penhaligon’s Portraits Collection Manufacturers Sample Set
(including all 4 fragrances in atomisers)
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 tell us which of the four you’d like to try

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Saturday 19th November 2016 10pm Australian EdsT and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org
The winners will have till Thursday 24th November 2016 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