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

Peace – Love – Perfume by Ellen Covey for Olympic Orchids 2014

November 24, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 47 Comments

Post by Azar

Hi APJ!

The latest fragrances from Olympic Orchids, Peace, Love and Perfume, were created as a numbered series for the Peace – Love – Perfume Facebook group and released on August 31st of this year. Each of these new scents (each flower child) is a take on one aspect of the “Hippie” counterculture/youth movement of the 1960s and early 70’s.

Peace – Love – Perfume by Ellen Covey for Olympic Orchids 2014

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Ellen Covey describes the first in the series, Peace, as “the serious oldest child”.

Listed Notes: Frankincense, cedar, New Caledonian sandalwood, vetiver, double distilled patchouli, benzoin, vanilla, tarragon, Oregon lavender.

My Perceived Notes: Peace opens with a startling dose of tarragon and lavender quickly dissolving into woody resin, frankincense and sandalwood. This incense blend, with just a breath of patchouli, suffuses the skin with an aura of contemplation, lingers for 24 hours and finally fades to a memory of frankincense and vetiver touched with vanilla. Peace is rich, warm, resinous and comforting, perfect for blustery fall and winter evenings by the fire.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Love, “the middle flower child”, is a humid floral featuring an exotic blue lotus accord.

Listed Notes: Blue lotus, sandalwood, frankincense, benzoin, humid air, vanilla, musks, tarragon.

My Perceived Notes: Once again I am momentarily surprised by the minty, camphorous, sweet tarragon top note. A wet blue lotus, with a hint of vanilla and resin, quickly takes over the composition and remains in place throughout the long life of the fragrance. Love finishes with a suggestion of damp vanilla and musk. I would be comfortable wearing Love anytime of the year but especially in spring and early summer.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

The third fragrance, Perfume, is the bright “free spirited youngest child”.

Listed Notes: Cedar, benzoin, vetiver, frankincense, pine wood fraction, myrtle, airy note, Oregon lavender, pink grapefruit.

My Perceived Notes: Perfume is really a cologne with an Olympic Orchids’ twist. Instead of the ubiquitous lemon or generic citrus and herbs, this cologne opens with a combination of pink grapefruit and sweet-sour myrtle continuing into pine, cedar and lavender. Perfume does not radically change over time and fades completely from my skin at about five hours. The refreshing grapefruit/myrtle combination and the cooling effect of the pinewood are perfect for long, hot summer days.

Even though my nose doesn’t register everything, I do NOT encounter any phantom notes or the “obvious but not present” effect in any of these fragrances. In the words of Flip Wilson’s 1970’s comic character Geraldine “What you see is what you get”! Each scent has been designed by the perfumer to be worn separately or layered together for a variety of stunning effects. Peace, Love and Perfume are available at Olympic Orchids boutique website (www.orchidscents.com) individually and in two different boxed sets, perfect for holiday giving.

Peace, Love and Perfume for All!

Azar xx

Photo Stolen sassisamblog

Peace – Love – Perfume GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 2 Winners who will each get:
1 x set of 1ml samples of Peace, Love and Perfume
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

Tell ell us about your favorite vintage/retro scent, describe your scent memories of the 60′ and 70’s (if you were around in those days) or which Olympic Orchids fragrance do you like best?

Extra Chance?
Tweet: @OzPerfumeJunkie On The Nose: Rosa Ardiente by Kenneth Cory GIVEAWAY @KPCNose #Perfume #Giveaway

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 27th November 2014 10pm Australian EST and winners will be announced in a separate post.
Winners will be chosen by random.org or some fun way
As Portia is away on Holidays we will release winners when possible, keep an eye out.
No responsibility taken for lost or damaged goods in transit.

Honey & Almond by Wavertree & London

November 23, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 2 Comments

Hi there APJ Crew,

I have found myself a brand new Australian company doing gorgeously packaged and outrageously fabulous smelling soaps. Who doesn’t love a scented soap as a pick me up at bath time? Maybe, like me, you have cakes of soap in your drawers so that when you open them they are softly scented, your clothes too have a lovely soft teint of fragrance that is not as strong as fabric softener (which I don’t use but have a 1 part disinfectant and 3 parts white vinegar mixture that softens scentlessly) and really just adds the tiniest bit of character.

Honey & Almond by Wavertree & London

Photo Stolen AustralianSoap

Size: 7oz, wrapped with embossed paper
French-milled (triple-milled) bar that is long lasting, non-drying and has a creamy lather
100% plant oils – sustainable palm oil, palm kernel oil, organic shea butter and vegetable glycerin. PH Balanced
Made in Australia
Bar is mild and PH balanced which is ideal for sensitive skin and those with skin conditions

Where did we grab ours? In Sydney’s Chinatown at SWS Spring. If you are in the area it is definitely worth a look. It’s one of the best stocked stores of niche personal and ambient fragrances. Also a great selection of make up and accessories too. Two floors of scented wandering frag-gasm. The two guys who own the shop are beautiful too, I just love them to bits. If you buy 3 things they give you a 20% discount at the moment too. WOW!

SWS Spring Site<<<JUMP

Address:
SWS SPRING
48 Dixon St,
Haymarket Chinatown
Sydney NSW 2000

Telephone:
+61 2 9212 7356

Amazon has $6.95/7oz
Australian Soap has $6.95/7o

The soap is worth a try.

Portia xx

Fragrant Gifting

November 20, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 6 Comments

Fragrant Gifting

Hello there my scented friends! The glowing joy of the holiday season is upon us, and what better gift for the one you love most than fragrance? An incredibly personal sentiment, a choice that says “you are one of the people I adore most in this world.” How do I do Fragrant Gifting that feels like it was custom made for that special person?

Well, one obvious tip is to keep the scent amicable and easy to love. Unless you are gifting perfume to a collector or connoisseur, selecting a challenging or overly complex scent is a great way to ensure it gets secretly returned or left lonely and unsprayed in a dark drawer.

Another consideration is budget, because let’s be real – why blow the bank when you can blow their mind (at a modest price)?

The three fragrances below are my picks for charming your loved ones.

Fragrant Gifting

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Green mango, tomato, grapefruit, carrot
Heart: Orange, peony, lotus, hyacinth, bulrush
Base: Labdanum, incense, iris, musk, cinnamon

Un Jardin Sur Le Nil by Hermés: This scent is bright, clean, and has a great reputation for being well-received. Primarily a ginger aroma on me, it sparkles with a green hue that stays true to form throughout the wearlength. A fresh delight for either him or her!

My Perfume Samples has samples starting at $3/ml

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
Jasmine, vanilla, pink pepper, tonka bean, cacao, ylang-ylang, ambrette (musk mallow

Sweet Jasmine Brown by Providence Perfume Company: This artisan perfume oil is an exquisite gateway to natural perfumery. The jasmine is simply darling, the perfect balance of sweet and clean, starlit enchantment. The accents include tonka bean and vanilla, warm like honey, adding smoothness and intrigue. Ultra-feminine and impossible to resist!

Providence Perfume Co perfume oil Sample Set $30/6 x .5ml

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords in one line:
White pepper, musk, jasmine, cloves, vetiver, neroli, cedar, bergamot, cardamom

Vettiveru by Comme des Garçons: Quite simply, this is my favorite scent on a man. It’s astoundingly simple, but so well done, and doesn’t challenge the senses or intimidate. Vettiveru delivers the sunshine side of vetiver, of hay scenting a late summer breeze. Paired with a soft yet citrusy bite and a touch of pale woods, the overall aroma is crisp yet inviting. Buy it for him, and tell him to wear with caution….

Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $2/ml

Have fun sniffing! I wish you and yours a warm, joyful winter solstice.

Hugs,
Erica

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

November 19, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 17 Comments

Hi there Frag Heads,

It’s the age old question. What do you pack fragrance wise for a holiday? Do you take a set of 5ml decants of your faves, one bottle or a mix of both? Is it go large or go shopping?

What Fragrances Got Packed For USA 2014

Well, as always it has been a hell of a decision making process. I ummed and ahhed about it through the unpacking of the move and have been madly spritzing myself to see what would fit for me on this trip. Knowing that I’ll be stopped in 4 MeetUps in the best that the USA has to offer in Niche Perfumery, as well as the Guerlain store in the Bellagio Las Vegas where we are staying, I am pretty sure I will be heavily scented and shopping up a storm. So I decided that three was the magic number for this trip. I need a cold weather, a cool weather and a temperate weather fragrance that are all not so temp specific that I’ll feel ridiculous wearing them interchangeably. Another criteria is that they not be in regular decant atomiser bottles, I would like them to be a little more sturdy than that.

So here are my USA 2014 three:

Picture Stolen Fragrantica

Epice Marine by Hermès 15ml EdT: After first trying Epice Marine in Selfridge & Co with Tara I became quite obsessed with it. There’s something completely captivating in it’s cool, clear, cut crystal and salty herbal-ness. It starts out fizzy like a cold lemon squash with ice, it has a salt rim and some greenery floating in it that feels minty but is less sweet. Unlike so many of the Hermessance range I get excellent longevity and a very soft but noticeable sillage.

Photo Stolen Dawn Spencer Hurwitz

Ma Folie de Noël by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz 10ml EdP: Ma Folie de Noël was a gift from Natalie who used to run Another Perfume Blog. There is no 10ml option on the DSH site now and I think I will finish this bottle while on holidays, it’s a conundrum. The fragrance? Well it’s everything a cold weather fragrance that you want to make you warm should be. Anise, booze and cream all spiced and gorgeous. Even writing about Ma Folie de Noël makes me smile: happy scent and memories. I think it will be the one I reach for most while away.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Vanille Galante by Hermès 15ml EdT: Vanille Galante, that cool, dark chocolate and booze infested vanilla that wafts lightly and smoothly from my skin. An oxymoron, sleek and fat, cool and hot, heavy and transparent. Vanilla so completely UN-vanilla-ish that it hardly bears its name. The flowers are awkward and frigid, the spice is so cool it reads like incense and the vanilla like nothing you would ever bake with. Wrap the whole fabulously spare concoction in sugar free chocolate and inhale. This was not love at first sniff for me, in fact it’s taken a while for me to warm to it, now I couldn’t live without Vanille Galante.

Photo Stolen WikiCommons

Here are our MeetUp USA 2014 Dates:

Please come hang with us somewhere

SCENT BAR LA Wednesday NOVEMBER 19 2014 with Killian Hennessy MeetUp 5-7pm

BARNEYS + NEIMAN MARCUS CHICAGO Monday NOVEMBER 24 2014 MeetUp Barneys (Beauty Downstairs) 1.30pm

OSSWALD N.Y.C Saturday NOVEMBER 29 2014 MeetUp 2-4pm

TWISTED LILY BROOKLYN NYC Sunday November 30 2014 MeetUp 11am-1pm

How do you like my choices? What do you wear to travel? Many or few?
Portia xx

Tubéreuse by Mona di Orio 2011

November 17, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 22 Comments

Post by TinaG

Whilst first wearing Mona di Orio’s Tubéreuse I must admit I was confused. It really wasn’t the “tuberose” fragrance that I had expected to find….

Tubéreuse by Mona di Orio 2011

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Pink pepper, green notes, bergamot
Heart: Tuberose, benzoin, heliotrope
Base: Musk, amber, coconut, milk, cashmeran

Tubéreuse opens with a flash of floral milkiness. This quickly changes to an enticing sweet pink pepper with a shadowy smoky bergamot lifting and supporting it. The scent shifts and changes rapidly in the first 10 minutes, slowly settling into a light fresh green accord. I can smell a warm and slightly waxy scent, like coconut water, translucent and milky. The greenness draws a linear thread through the life of the scent as a supporting anchor point. There is a gentle powder which joins the flow at about 1 hour and it stays this way during the dry down. So fresh, peppery, floral, clean, milky, waxy – I realised this fragrance is a study of the tuberose flower itself.

Photo Donated TinaG

I found my thoughts being drawn back to evenings where I’ve had bunches of tuberose in the house. Tuberose is “night-blooming”, in that the bloom’s fragrance intensifies during the early evening to night. The time of transition to twilight is a treasure. If I can resist switching a light on, instead maybe lighting a candle, with some quiet background tunes, and may or may not have a glass of chilled white wine – it’s lovely to sit for a while letting my thoughts ramble in whatever direction they take me.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

The scent of real tuberose at this time of day is quite simply stunning. Its fragrance edges into the consciousness, bringing thoughts back to the present and reminding that it is this moment, this time, which is precious. It reminds me of the novel “Island” by Aldous Huxley – in a fictitious country where the inhabitants recognise the importance of the ‘conscious self’, taking a step back from your thoughts to be able to see more clearly. The islanders had trained mynah birds to call out “Attention”, and “Here and Now” at random intervals as a reminder to bring one’s self back to the moment. The growing intensity of tuberose scent at twilight has this same effect – the headiness is all encompassing and so beautiful, why wouldn’t you just want to breathe deeply, silently watching as the day fades to calmness, and colours start to drain away into grey-blues and blacks.

Photo Donated TinaG

It was at this point whilst wearing Tubéreuse that I realised I was experiencing the work of a master artist. Mona di Orio has captured the impression of night-blooming tuberose with a deeply profound and exquisite skill. There is an expression, that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Trying to dissect and analyse Tubéreuse you could definitely identify the parts, but that’s not the story, not the whole picture, and certainly not the limit of its boundaries. The fragrance has a three-tiered connection with me now – the practical identification of notes, a reminiscence of the quiet times, and the deeper meditative space that the ‘present’ can provide. I’m grateful for that journey.

Further reading: What Men Should Smell Like and Perfume Posse
Peony Melbourne has $230/100ml with FREE shipping in Australia
Parfum1 has $230/100ml
Surrender To Chance has samples starting at $7/ml

How many of you have tried the MdO Tubéreuse? Or any of her scents? Did you love them or not?

Tina G

Gardenia Flower by Sheila Massetti for Perfume & Skincare Company

November 15, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

Hi APJ,

Sometimes when I’m in the bath or shower I have to make a difficult choice, “Do I use this product and cut out a swathe of fragrances that will not be happy marriages, do I use this product and bugger the consequences or will I use something else” (yes, I know that my life is incredibly low stress and that I have my priorities skew whiff). This is a serious conundrum. I recently put a bar of the Perfume & Skincare Company Gardenia Flower Pure Vegetable Glycerine Soap in the bathroom and the next day Jin (who rarely mentions my bathroom choices for us) said it was his favourite so far. It’s soft and silky, quick foaming and leaven my skin feeling fresh but not tight, we use it on our faces and bodies. For only $8 it’s a complete bargain too.

It does mean though that I can not test fragrances after using it because I have a distinct smell of gardenia up to 3 hours after my bath. So I have been wearing a few white flower scents, especially the soaps companion…

Gardenia Flower Extrait by Sheila Massetti for Perfume & Skincare Company

I know I’ve written about this fragrance before but sometimes you all need to be reminded of things. Here is what I wrote in the previous post about the Perfume & Skincare Co range:
GARDENIA: Gardenia is one of the scents I am repeat applying, not only is it a killer soliflor fragrance that people “get” straight off the bat, but it is a huge compliment getter. Every time I wear it at least one person asks what, who, how and how much. One night I had 4 people do this. Now if you wear scent often you will know that 4 people in one night do not ask about fragrance that you are wearing, it was uncanny. If you love white flowers and gardenia especially, then this fragrance will be for you too.

Photo Stolen Pixabay

What I know now that I did not know back then is that you cannot steal the fragrance from a gardenia, it needs to be recreated in the laboratory. Also, that many people try to do a gardenia but most of them simply do not understand how a real life gardenia smells. Sheila Massetti gets it. There’s the creamy, fatty facet: the petrol facet: the breath and shit facet, the bleu cheese facet, the sensual erogenous facet and a hundred other pieces to the puzzle. Gardenia Flower captures all of these and gives the closest photo realistic rendering of a gardenia I have yet found. Simultaneously clean and feral, divine and damned, Sheila Massetti has created the gardenia fragrance at the pinnacle of the heap.

Photo Stolen Flickr

Perfume & Skincare Company has $10/5ml Sample Atomisers, $8/Pure Vegetable Glycerine Soap – 160g and a range of other great products.

Did I mention they are an Aussie company from New South Wales hinterland?

Portia xx

Sniffapalooza 2014: Breakfast

November 13, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Post by Poodle

On a dreary day in October I boarded a train bound for NYC to attend my second Sniffapalooza. I wasn’t nearly as nervous this year. The city is far less intimidating when you have a native New Yorker to lead you around.

The official start of Sniffa was Saturday morning but I was barely off the train on Friday evening and Daisy had me on the subway heading for some sniffing and shopping. Needless to say, I wasn’t in town two hours and my purse was already lighter. But that’s another post for another day.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I mean, Bergdorf’s

Sniffa began on Saturday with breakfast at Bergdorf Goodman which is less about food and more about the newest perfumes along with some old favorites. There were about 20 perfumes presented in the two hour breakfast. They don’t call it Sniffapalooza for nothing. There is a lot to sniff. More than your thinking. I had planned on doing a photo essay but my camera had other plans and decided to stop working so I’ll recap some of the scents for you. From my notes here are some fragrant highs and lows.

The new Shalimar Souffle was disappointing.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Annick Goutal has released a perfume celebrating NYC called Vent de Folie. It’s supposed to be inspired by Central Park. The scent is very green, fruity and fresh. I can’t say it smells like New York to me but it is a perfume I could see selling well. I did get a compliment on it just the other day at the football game so even if it doesn’t smell like New York it does smell good.

I loved the new Diana Vreeland perfume bottles but haven’t tested the scents enough to form an opinion.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Kilian Hennessy of By Kilian was there in person and he introduced the scented jewelry collection along with the three perfumes in the new Addictive State of Mind collection. The jewelry is lovely as are the perfumes. I think I may have found a By Kilian to love with Intoxicated. It’s all coffee and booze with some smokiness. I came thisclose to buying a bottle. I had fears over the lasting power so I decided to wait and sample it some more when I was thinking more rationally. It’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy that is Sniffa. Light My Fire didn’t light mine although it did have some fans at our table. Smoke for the Soul was one of the stranger scents of the day.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Another scent worth sniffing is Gardenia by Robert Piguet. It’s not a screaming, in your face white floral and it’s far more interesting than the name implies. It has much more going on than just gardenia. There are notes of ylang-ylang, leather, and vanilla. I could see myself wanting more of this one. It’s not too feminine and has a great warmth to it.

There were more perfumes as well but it would be too much to list them all here. It’s amazing how much you can sniff in the course of two hours. Breakfast definitely whets the appetite for shopping right after on the fragrance floor. The rest of the day was filled with lunch, more presentations, sniffing, and shopping. The day was fabulous and I came home with lots of samples, a few bottles, and a few new friends. I’m looking forward to next year.

Hugs
Poodle

Polvere Per Bianchire le Carni by Santa Maria Novella

November 11, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 28 Comments

Post by Val the Cookie Queen

The company, we´ll call it the SMN Pharmacy, was founded in 1612. I am sure most of you know of their stunning fragrances but maybe not the skin care and other things that they offer, including shampoos and deodorants for your pets! The SMN Pharmacy in Florence is one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever been into. You enter through a most unassuming door and it opens up into a multi-roomed Aladdin´s cave.

Photo Donated Val CQ

They have candles, liqueurs, teas, supplements and even ceramics. I seriously wanted to buy everything!

The store is also a favourite of Neela Vermeire from Neela Vermiere Créations. I purchased the almond hand cream, highly praised by Birgit from Olfactoria´s Travels and the Polvere Per Bianchire le Carni recommended by the immaculate sales assistant. It is a natural facial scrub, or perhaps a delicate facial exfoliator is a better description. At 20 euros it was quite affordable.

Polvere Per Bianchire le Carni by Santa Maria Novella

Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella in Firenze

Photo Donated Val CQ

That´s ground up orris root, a little rice powder, and a touch of fragrance to you and me, not to forget a little lupin if I read the box correctly. I am sure the Medicis themselves probably used it. It certainly can´t have changed much in the last 400 years. It is 105 grammes of legal white powder in an utterly gorgeous cardboard box. Enough for a lifetime!

It smells lovely but I cannot for the life of me describe the smell. It is so unique that I could pick the product out in a blind test. Very simple to use. You take yourself out about a teaspoonful, not heaped and mix it with a little water. Massage onto a damp face and rinse off. Take out more than a teaspoonful and mix it to a paste and use it as a mask. As simple as that. Your skin will be beautifully soft and ready for moisturizing. It leaves the skin quite luminous and with regular use would probably lighten the skin a little. Which is perfect
if you are looking for an alternative to arsenic.

As I understand it you cannot order online. They do however have shops on 5 continents, and many multibrand stores where their products are sold. Do take a look at their homepage to see if there is one near you. If you are ever in Florence it is an absolute must see.

Have a good week APJ Peeps.

Bussis
CQ

Rosa Ardiente by Kenneth Cory for On The Nose

November 10, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 37 Comments

Post by Azar

“We take fragrances into our bodies and feel them as much as understand them.” Kenneth Cory

Hello APJ,

Kenneth Cory is an artist, writer and perfumer working in San Francisco, CA. The powerful and subtle beauty of Cory’s scented creations are a testament to his understanding of the primal connection of fragrance to emotion and memory. The seven fragrances listed in Kenneth Cory’s Etsy shop (https://www.etsy.com/people/kennethcory) are more than aromas. Each has an almost corporeal or physical presence. In my experience his perfumes actually feel like the smooth petals of a flower or the light translucent touch of a veil of fabric.

Today I am reviewing my husband Brad’s favorite On The Nose perfume, Rosa Ardiente.

Rosa Ardiente by Kenneth Cory for On The Nose

Photo Stolen On The Nose

Here are the perfumer’s listed notes:
Top: Bitter Orange, Saffron, Pink Peppercorn, Ginger, Himalayan Cedar
Heart: Moroccan Rose, Jasmine Sambac, Calamus, Beeswax Absolute
Base: Cistus, Black Musk, Vanilla Australian Sandalwood, Frankincense

My first impression of Rosa Ardiente is that of a deep, red rose suffused with the warm tones of saffron and beeswax complimented by the darker, herbal complexity of cistus. Brad’s first impression is quite different from mine, featuring a bright citrus, pink pepper, a light rose, the beeswax and a lot of cedar. After about 30 minutes the perfume (a 33% concentration) evolves on my skin to saffron and amber, drying into a tangy citrus spiked with frankincense and ginger. Brad’s experience of this phase of the fragrance seems to be overwhelmed by cedar and amber. Both of us find that Rosa Ardiente begins to hug the skin at about one hour, eventually fading to an ephemeral wash of cedar, frankincense, musk and sandalwood, disappearing completely after six hours of wear.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

I find it fascinating that saffron and beeswax play such a big role in my appreciation of this fragrance. I can barely detect the cedar element that is central to Brad’s experience of the scent, except, of course, when I sniff his skin instead of mine. Unisex fragrances like Rosa Ardiente are fun to share and compare (a lot of mutual arm sniffing). Sharing fragrances can also be budget friendly as one bottle serves to delight more than one person. The two of us actually share several fragrances including the Amouage Interlude Man that is technically Brad’s but has somehow managed to find its way to my dressing table.

Have you have tried Kenneth Cory’s perfumes?

On The Nose has an ETSY store that sends worldwide

Azar xx

Photo Stolen sassisamblog