Scent Diary 24.7 – 30.7.2017

July 30, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 25 Comments

Portia

Hey there Perfume Junkies,

Here’s a shot of my outfit for the Sydney Stingers on Saturday last week, taken by Daniel Kirkwood at the event. Yes, I am a fur & sequin galion under full sail.

Scent Diary 24.7 – 30.7.2017

Monday 24:

This morning, in the middle of winter, saw the return of spring in Parramatta. The sun is shining, bulbs are pushing through the soil, there’s a hint of greenery on the breeze and it was lovely to be out and about on a mornings ramble with the dogs.

I decided to let the faux spring choose my fragrance and what better reminder of spring than Penhaligon’s Ostara. Sadly this gorgeously green narcissus and bouquet of other fresh flowers scent was not a big hit for them but it is so lovely and has made me smile this morning.

After last weeks creative extravaganza I’m way behind on all things blog and trivia so this morning is dedicated to answering comments, this afternoon and evening will be new posts and my Q&A. Woo Hoo! I think I’m ready for it.

So instead of working all day I went and spent a big happy chunk of it hanging out with TinaG who is back at her parents house recuperating after her hospital stint. We went and lunched at a wonderful Thai restaurant in Windsor. Pressies from Tara at A Bottled rose, beanie crocheted by Vanessa of Bonkers About Perfume. She LOVED them

Then we went on an adventure ride to The Fruit Bowl, a cafe that specialises in home made pies of the sweet and savoury styles. I had Scones, Jam & Cream with a cuppa and Tina had Chamomile tea. We saw them making their pies, bought Apple pies and Honey. MMMMMMM

Home by 5pm. Started working at the computer on Trivia. Having a coffee break now and a spritz of Grandiflora Madagascan Jasmine. BEAUTIFUL!!

Jin came home and wanted to watch Despicable Me 2. What could I do but succumb to his sweetness.

MORE TRIVIA!

Tuesday 25:

Catch up. Catching up. Blog, Trivia, Postage, eMail and FaceBook. Not caught up but definitely making inroads.

Today has been so glorious but I’ve been house bound, BUMMER.

Wore Etat Libre d’Orange Fat Electrician and it’s zingy metallic vetiver was an excellent choice.

Jin had the Telstra man come in. We are changing to Optus and he needed to do some fixing. We are now without internet in the house so I’m tethering the phone to my computer. It’s surprisingly effective.

Bath time today was in B&BW bubbles, Kiehl’s Original Musk lotion and atwork I wore Diptyque 34 Boulevard Saint Germain EdT. Very nice. A smooth, spicy, fresh fruit & greens, balmy scent that ends a resinous dry wood. It smells like old rooms, recently aired but the wooden furniture and polish and a very slight hint of cold damp linger and blend with fresh sheets.

For bed? I wanted something odd so chose Sarah Jessica Parker Covet. A perfect Frankenstein’s monster of a smell that leads me deeper and deeper till I sleep. Never enough one thing or the other it seems to find harmonious balance in it’s utter lack. Plastic geranium, waxy white flowers, cool amber with thoroughly unnatural musks. Excellent night scent, I could imagine it being the choice for ghouls and vampires.

Wednesday 26:

WOW! An amazing day with my mate David who currently lives in UAE working as a butler/EA. He’s in Sydney visiting the family and friends and we had had today in the book forever. I had COMPLETELY forgotten but he reminded me last night so I sent through three ideas for the day. He chose one and we added a second and it was a terrific catch up.

I got a bus & train to town and we met at the NSW Art Gallery at 10.45am. I knew we could do an 11am free tour of the main gallery BUT when I arrived it was with fabulously happy surprise I noticed their current exhibition had the name O’Keeffe. Could it be? I asked myself. Fortuitously the answer was yes. Georgia O’Keeffe in an exhibition with two Australian women artists of the same era; O’Keeffe, Preston, Cossington Smith – making modernism.

So we had a cuppa, did the 11am Gallery Tour, had another cuppa, did the 12pm O’Keeffe, Preston, Cossington Smith Tour and finished our gallery time with lunch in the Members Lounge.

We wandered across the Domain to Sydney City and had dessert at the David Jones Food Court Cafe. I wanted David to come through David Jones and try some fragrance. He’d been so nice to us in UAE when we were there and I figured EVERYONE needs a new scent. Sadly he wanted none of it. I did get him to spritz DIOR Leather Oud and CHANEL Bois des Iles. Maybe he’ll fall in love with them and ask me to grab them for him one day. As all good things must come to and end then it was time to go

Thursday 27:

Walked the dogs, Bank, Post Office and had an early lunch with Jin at our favourite local cafe. It’s been a beautiful morning, lazy & slow.

Afternoon much the same.

Serge Lutens Daim Blond for work. Got quite a few compliments. Surprising because I think of it as such a subtle beauty, well apparently it was wafting itself into peoples hearts.

Friday 28:

My right knee is playing silly buggers. Not so long ago the patella decided it wanted to drift around, it seems to have decided it needs another vacation from its prescribed spot. A throbbing, uncomfortable feeling that lodges itself in my stomach. Did ALL the exercises my guy prescribed last time it happened.

We took the dogs to the Off-Leash Dog Park nearby today and I was freaking out but the dogs seemed to love it, Jin loved it too. I was a bundle of nerves.

Actually I’m a bit glum. No reason, just a little bit bleach.

We’d organised a Korean BarBQ get together for a bunch of our mates but completely forgot that I have a Christmas In July Fundraiser tonight. Sometimes I surprise myself at how vague I can be. OOOPSIE!

I wore loads of Reem Acra because I wrote about it on Perfume Posse this week and felt it needed an outing. Perfect hefty sheer radiant white floral extravaganza that nods to history but is completely in the now.

Christmas In July Fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital was a grand success. We raised a bunch of money and the participants had a ball. Already talk of doing it again.

Saturday 29:

Jin decided he wanted to try Archery a few months ago. He wanted it to be a big fun day out for the crew but no one was interested. So, because we love him dearly, his BFF Matt and I said we’d go. Anyway the day was perfect and it was really easy to understand the basics, we had fun BUT my fingers are fricken killing now. STILL, nearly 12 hours later they are red and feel like they have pins & needles.

The guys were much better shots than me but I did manage one bullseye.

Home for a Saturday afternoon nap. I grabbed Paris my dog and we cuddled for the nap, Jin slept in front of the TV and his dog on the dog bed in front of the TV. LOADS of snoring from all four of us.

Kath’s dads birthday party tonight. The whole family there. Jin and I grabbed Take Away Chinese. The Lee family did the cake. Kath made sure there were gifts and drinks etc. We had a ball. I think Dad has a photo on his phone that Jin took of us all (Second shot). There was so much fun and laughter, we all had great stories to tell and it was a terrific night. As the birthday cake was being lit Dad (the birthday boy) started saying women didn’t know how to light matches and all hell broke loose. It was apocalyptic, and hilarious, everyone having a go at him for sexism and we were all laughing so much that my tummy hurts.

When I got home my buddy Michael sends me this pic of us in the dressing room of the Fridge in Brixton, London. We were Go-Go dancers there on Saturday nights and as you can see, high as kitten. Great memories.

Sunday 30:

Lazy Sunday with Jin at work, me home with the dogs. Only left the house today to walk them till work time. Heavenly Sunday.

Finished this lovely little shower gel in the bath today. B&BW Pretty As A Peach. Bubbles over my head. It was glorious.

Slathered myself in Guerlain La Cologne du Perfumer today. It’s a beautiful cologne, wears very fragrantly for about an hour and then softens off to almost a functional white musk but stays just interesting enough to jump that hurdle. Funnily, I can’t smell it after 2 hours but I got a compliment tonight at the end of work as I kissed Anna-Maria goodbye. That was five hours later.

OK, so you’ve read my life. How was your week? Share a story that’s fun, family, food, friends or fragrance oriented. Anything you’d like to share, we’d love to read it.

Portia xx

Perfume Discontinuations: Grab them before they are gone

April 26, 2017 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 22 Comments

Anne-Marie

Hi all,

It’s a common thing in perfumista land that you only really start paying attention to a perfume when you hear rumours of discontinuation. You ignore it happily until suddenly you realise it could be too late. Then FOMO sets in – Fear of Missing Out. Oh no!

I got thinking about this recently when, after YEARS of dithering, I finally bought a bottle of Sarah Jessica Parker Covet. This one may have been discontinued some time ago and I’d decided not to bother until a chain of discount chemists in Australia suddenly started stocking it. Cheap – $20. I bought one, and no regrets. Lavender and chocolate; it should not work but it does.

Perfume Discontinuations

Grab them before they are gone

What else have I made a wild grab for, and what have I let go?

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mint, geranium leaves, Sicilian lemon, lavender, chocolate notes
Heart: Honeysuckle, magnolia, lily of the valley
Base: Cashmere wood, musk, vetiver, teak wood, amber

Perfume Discontinuations: The Ones I Grabbed

Sarah Jessica Parker Covet, as mentioned.

Bvlgari Black. Vanilla and fresh tyre rubber! I bought a back-up for my son to own and me to borrow.

Lancome Cuir de Lancome. . A cult leather. I bought mine while it still going for about $50.

Rochas Tocade. A laughing vanilla fragrance, this one is not discontinued as far as I know, just re-packaged. Re-packaging always makes the perfume enthusiast nervous, and I grabbed a bottle.

Yves Saint Laurent Y. Same as for Tocade. It’s always worth grabbing a chypre if you think it’s under threat. It probably is.

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Casablanca lily, Black locust, White carnation
Heart: Golden pollen, Gold dust, Violet leaf
Base: Amber, Indian patchouli, Resins

Perfume Discontinuations: The Ones I Let Go

If there’s a bottle out there with my name on it, someone else can have it.

Donna Karan Gold. This has been cheap at the discounters for years and you can still get it. I have tested it thoroughly and decided it’s not for me, but it is wonderful stuff. I’d rather leave a bottle available for someone who loves monster lily perfumes. I don’t, it seems.

Parfums de Nicolai Le Temps d’une Fete. I should love this green wonder but somehow it has never moved me. Anyway, I have YSL Y, as noted, so I’m happy.

Fendi Theorema. I have a decant but I just can’t get on board with Theorema. It’s too much of a gourmand for me. It can still be had I think, not sure of the prices.

Yves Saint Laurent Yvresse. Again, a re-packaging. I could have bought a 75 ml bottle this classic fruity chypre for $60 in the old packaging but I just don’t love it. My only regret is that prices on Yvresse are now so high I could easily have got my money back three times over if I had bought that bottle.

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Gardenia, Neroli, Tuberose
Heart: Benzoin, Jasmine, Lily
Base: Amber, Musk, Vanilla

Perfume Discontinuations: The One I Missed

Oh darn!

Madonna Truth or Dare. I tried TD Naked but didn’t like it much. The original was apparently not widely distributed in Australia and I decided not to bother. It was a wonderful white floral, I gather. I should have bought it when it was going cheap on Fragrancex.com but I didn’t. Now it’s gone. I’m stupid.

What about you? What are the ones that got away from you? Any regrets?
Keep spritzing everyone!

Stash SJP by Laurent Le Gurney + Clement Gavarry for Sarah Jessica Parker 2016

December 30, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Post by Portia

Hey there Fragrance Family,

There is usually a buzz around any Sarah Jessica Parker release. Her story told by Chandler Burr in his Frag-Umentary caused me to fall even more in love with the actress and now 4 of her fragrances are in my collection. Now if you’ve read the story you’ll know that SJP had a 3 fragrance layering daily routine that she really wanted to emulate in her first fragrance but Coty wouldn’t let her so they made Lovely.

Book Depository $13

To be perfectly honest I was not expecting much from this new release because over the last few scents I have noticed a definite diminution in the SJP brands artistic merit and presentation. This though is her first departure from the Coty brand and moving across to Ulta in the USA (info from Colgnoisseur). So it was with mildly nervous steps, even though it had been getting raves all round, I made my way to Chemist Warehouse in Parramatta to check it out.

Stash SJP by Sarah Jessica Parker 2016

Stash SJP by Laurent Le Gurney + Clement Gavarry

Fragrantica

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Grapefruit zest, Black pepper, Sage
Heart: Atlas cedar, Patchouli, Ginger lily, Pistachio
Base: Frankincense, Massoia wood, Vetiver, Musk

Straight into black pepper that has it’s dryness cut through with some sweetness that I place as mildly citrus and does not feel as outrageous as grapefruit, maybe the green sage and spicy ginger are giving it a broader appeal. Woods, yes plenty. Pistachio? Um nope, not yet. I have respritzed after 5 minutes and interestingly the sage is the most prominent top not before the pepper comes through and then we go smooth. The whole fragrance smooths out beautifully. Still very noticeable but calmer and a sweet, non hippy patchouli tangos with the ginger and the herbs.

WikiCommons

Then I become anosmic to Stash, it disappears for me. I know I’m still fragrant because Jin says I still have a heavy perfume but I can smell almost nothing. A ghost of Stash, a faint woody nothing that lingers softly. BUM. OK, so that’s not 100% accurate, if I go do something like make a coffee or take the dogs for a walk I do get flashes of fragrance. Little huffs of something very nice, dry, a little bit like a dry sauna but not.

Stash smells like the woodsy, scratchy, peppered “niche” that annoys Val but softer and more lighthearted. It’s easier, quite masculine but will be gorgeous on the girls who are unafraid of scentorially standing out.

Interestingly, when I put my top back on to walk the dogs first thing in the morning all I can smell is an oily vetiver and incense. Really good.

Further reading: Now Smell This and Colgnoisseur
Chemist Warehouse has $29/30ml

PERFECT fragrant gift for either sex, wearable, comfortable and really, really good.
Will you be wearing STASH?
Portia xxx

Office Friendly Fragrances Snapshot 22.10.16

November 7, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by TinaG

Hi APJ!

I realised something this week – that my occasional slumps in fragrance enthusiasm could be linked to changes in season. I had been wearing Borneo 1834 and Cuir Ottoman (thanks, Val!), but then haven’t felt like anything & gone fragrance free for a week. Today, something clicked back in to place and I felt like something floral & airy. I’d never really put 2:2 together, but it makes sense.

Wikipedia

So I grabbed something ultimately office-friendly, then I thought – I wonder what my colleagues are wearing today? I cheekily snuck around the office, asking the question, and found I was greeted with a big smile & loads of enthusiasm! Yay! Here’s today’s snapshot:

Office Friendly Fragrances Snapshot 22.10.16

Fragrantica

C0 (me) – Mandarine by L’Artisan Parfumeur

I’m wearing this like lolly-water today, re-spritzing with abandon.

C1 – Pink Grapefruit – The Body Shop

This is the fragrance which triggered the conversation as I could smell it walking into the work area. It was not sprayed in the office, had been wearing from home. Beautiful.

Fragrantica

C2 – CK One – Calvin Klein

I used to wear CK One, and can smell it in public at 60 paces, but this didn’t strike me so hard. It had settled a bit & had a predominant peppery note. Great stuff.

C3 – NIL

But yesterday was: Bel Respiro (EdT) – Chanel. I gave C3 this sample and this was its first wearing. Jury is out, it’s a bit intense compared to other fragrances she wears but she’ll give it a few more try’s to see if it might work.

C4 – Rose The One – D&G

This fragrance is now discontinued and it’s a fav of C4. She keeps it close by, bottle & box in her desk draw.

C5 – Oscar – Oscar de la Renta

This is C5’s signature office scent, wears it all the time. Cool!

Fragrantica

C6 – Lovely – Sara Jessica Parker

Yay! SJP getting some air time. This made me happy.

C7 – NIL

Nil today, but I know Trèsor by Lancôme is a fav of hers, a mini is close at hand. I had sent her an article on Isabella Rossellini & the fragrance’s history back in June.

C8 – NIL

C8 said he used to have time to wear cologne to work, but since his son came along priorities have changed in the morning routine. Colognes come out now for special occasions only.

Fragrantica

C9 – Orchid Soleil – Tom Ford

I didn’t actually have the conversation today with C9, but I’m adding her in because we discuss perfume often. Before this she wore Black Orchid, both are fab on her but I do know when she walks into a room without me looking! Hehe.

I’m so glad I asked! Made for some fun conversations and I got to know my workmates just that little bit better. We’ve got a great crew.

What is the fragrance you reach for the most in a professional environment?

Have a fantastic start to the week.
Tina G xx

Perfume I’m Wearing: October 2016

October 21, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 22 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi All,

Fairly mixed week and these aren’t everything but they did get skin time and I love them. This week has been wholly and solely about our new puppies. They are so wonderful and we are already deeply in thrall to them. Here’s the moment when my beautiful boy Paris discovers the joys of chewing toys.

Perfume I’m Wearing: October 2016

Fragrantica

Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Nectarine, bergamot, rosewood, lavender
Heart: Apple martini, white daffodil, orchid
Base: White amber, cedar, woody notes, white musk

Lovely smells to me like a spicy-fruit jammy rose and cool jasmine bouquet-fragrance over the most enormous hit of fluffy, powdery, clean woody musks. There are no roses or jasmine in the notes list but even now that I’ve read the note list my nose is not getting the memo. Recently I smelled this on Anna-Maria’s husband Johnny and he smelled fabulous in it.

Fragrantica

CHANEL No 22

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Aldehydes, Lily-of-the-valley, Neroli
Heart: Jasmine, Rose, Ylang-ylang
Base: Vanilla, Vetiver

The big soapy, syrupy, fizz of CHANEL No 22 EdT that tramples the lily of the valley into plush and velvet submission. The sparkly, soft/sharp aldehydic scintillation which makes way for the hearts bouquet, still glittering but with a creamy and slightly fruity warmth. There is even a cool whisper of oily vetiver and incense through the heart that remains alongside the still extant aldehydes.

Fragrantica

Mitsouko by Guerlain

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, Lemon, Mandarin, Neroli, Jasmine, Rose
Heart: Peach, Rose, Clove, Ylang-Ylang, Lilac, Jasmine
Base: Oakmoss, Labdanum, Patchouli, Benzoin, Vetiver, Cinnamon

Normally this space would be reserved for Shalimar but lately I have bought a lovely old EdT of Mitsouko and it has been getting quite a bit of skin time alongside some of my vintage parfum. Its fruity floral goodness undercut by a thick and resinous oakmoss base, creating a brilliant depth for the rest to sparkle above.

Fragrantica

Mohur by Neela Vermeire Creations

Fragrantica, LuckyScent and Neela Vermeire Creations give these featured accords:
Top: Cardamom, coriander, ambrette (musk mallow), carrot seeds, black pepper, elemi oil
Heart: Turkish rose oil, Moroccan Rose Absolute (rose accords around 11%), jasmine, iris/orris, aubepin (midland hawthorn), almond milk accord, leather, violet
Base: Sandalwood, amber, patchouli, oudh Palao from Laos, benzoin, vanilla, tonka bean

Mohair is my rose. Done in a batter of herbs, spices, resins and woods it creates a fabulous cloak of scent around me and fits like a glove. It’s hard to feel anything but regal when floating on such luxury.

Fragrantica

Antaeus by CHANEL

Fragrantica lists the following accords:
Top: Lemon, lime, coriander, myrtle, clary sage, and bergamot
Heart: Thyme, basil, rose and jasmine
Base: Patchouli, castoreum, labdanum and oak moss

Citrus and herbs that open in what we’ve come to think of as men’s Woody Chypre style that dries down to a lovely leathery amber with a hefty dose of animal growling around. Mine is an older bottle but I think the modern is still very wearable.

What are you wearing this week?
Portia xx

Lovely by Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry for Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

September 17, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Post by Portia

Hello Fragrance Friends,

Last week in Australia on our AFN FaceBook page we had a Wear Your Celebrity Scents week. We often have special Wear Your weeks because by highlighting a particular section of our collections to wear we remember to bring out things that have sat neglected. It’s been over a year since I last spritzed todays fragrant offering, and it used to be one of my go-to, wear everywhere frags. So it was really nice to spend a full day re-engaging with it. Fully respritzed it for morning, noon and night.

Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

Lovely by Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry

Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives the following accords:
Top: Nectarine, bergamot, rosewood, lavender
Heart: Apple martini, white daffodil, orchid
Base: White amber, cedar, woody notes, white musk

The shimmery, hefty/sheer fruity opening of Lovely is skimming the edge of screechy as you apply it. I hold my breath for that first few seconds of zing because it’s completely overwhelming to me. It only lasts a few seconds and then Lovely becomes well named. My mind has always told me that lovely is a fruity rose and jasmine bouquet fragrance over the most enormous hit of fluffy, powdery, clean woody musks. So there are no roses or jasmine in the notes list but even now that I’ve read the note list my nose is not getting the memo.

What I love about Lovely is how softly insistent it is. While you may not be strong smelling the fragrance does tend to have legs and will fill a room if you spritz in one room, leave for whatever reason and come back 20 minutes later you’ll still smell juicy/musky remnants. So when I wear Lovely I can sit down with someone and it may take 10 minutes for the fragrance to make itself known and then I’ll get a compliment.

Longevity is excellent and because it’s now so cheap I can spritz with abandon. Lovely also leaves excellent sillage, people will look up about 30 seconds after you’ve walked past and will be looking for where that fabulous smell is coming form. Dressed up or lounging around the house Lovely feels like a perfect fit.

Further reading at Bois de Jasmin and Australian Perfume Junkies
FragranceNet has $20/30ml Before Coupon
My Perfume Samples starts from $2/ml to $7/5ml

What has been left loveless around your place that needs to see some spritzing?
Portia xx

Celebuscents I Don’t Hate

February 26, 2016 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 38 Comments

Post by Portia

Hi there Fragrance Lovers,

Celebuscents have been a bone of contention among perfumistas for years. While most of them are dross put out by the big fragrance conglomerates with little or no reference and involvement from the celebrities themselves surprisingly some of them have turned out to be quite good, wearable, viable options. Even some celebrities that I loathe have put out one frag that I like, even though I refuse to purchase on ethical grounds. Startlingly, some of the celebrities that I have long adored have put out shit that I wouldn’t clean a toilet with. So I thought a list of some of my favourite celebuscents may help you wade through the incredible amounts out there. Yes, there are a few that make everybodies list but others seem to have flown beneath the radar.

Celebuscents I Don’t Hate

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Dita Von Teese: The original Dita Von Teese is a fun rose/white floral in the radiant style. Sheer and very wearable. I went through one of the 20ml flacons in no time. You can get the shower gel and body lotions for next to nothing at the discounters.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Elizabeth Taylor Black Pearls: Still in the top ten sellers of celebuscents each year Elizabeth Taylor’s range is big. My favourite is the very 1980s peach, amber and woodsy flamboyance of Black Pearls. This one will announce your arrival a few feet ahead of you.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Gwen Stefani L: I wore this fragrance in a big way for a while but it started giving me headaches. It’s a pear & peach powerhouse done in radiant style and has very tenacious longevity. Nowadays if I want to wear it I spritz my lower back and knees.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Halle Berry Halle: A very glamorous floriental with a hint of fig that becomes the warmest, silkiest amber. This could easily dupe some of the expensive niche ambers and lasting power is excellent. It’s not groundbreaking or challenging but Halle smells really good.

Photo Stolen Parfumo

Jennifer Aniston: A fresh, aquatic jasmine Jennifer Anniston is pretty, vegetally sweet and a little tropically lush. A bit heftier than most of the radiant fragrances and the flowers are better in waft than nose pressed to skin but as it goes by it’s a definite head turner.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Jessica Simpson Fancy Nights: Imagine Shalimar with a triple dose of gooey caramel and more patchouli. It’s rich, intense and has powerful sillage for the first hour. Once Fancy Nights settles it is a rich amber/patch bomb that sits just above your skin for hours.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Madonna Truth or Dare: BIG WHITE FLORAL along the lines of Fracas but longer lasting and not so far into the bubble gum arena. If you like white flowers with a warm amber base then Truth or Dare, which is basically free, should be on your list.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Niki de Saint Phalle: This is my personal go-to green. The minty and fruity opening is a masterpiece of bittersweet, the iris led floral bouquet through the heart and the softly warmed base of woodsy moss. Perfect.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Paloma Picasso: Imagine an animalic, extra cloves, hefty on the oakmoss CHANEL No 5 and you are pretty much on track for this 1980s supernova of a fragrance. Paloma Picasso will announce your arrival.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely: I know, it’s on EVERY list. That’s becausae it’s good. Smells fantastic on everyone. Radiant floral with a super musk and spice motto. Lovely is well named.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Queen Latifah Queen: Boozy citrus with a soft white flower and a hefty, elegant vanilla base. Lasts forever and smells fantastic. I gift Queen often and it’s become one of my BFF Kath’s faves too.

Special mentions go to Siren and Fairy Dust by Paris Hilton, Queen of Hearts by Queen Latifah, Truth or Dare Naked by Madonna, Cher Uninhibited, Pure Honey by Kim Kardashian, With Love by Hilary Duff, Still by Jennifer Lopez, Covet by SJP, Boyfriend by Kate Walsh, Adam Levine Woman, Our Moment by One Direction and Deneuve by Catherine Deneuve.

Most are still available to try from My Perfume Samples and Surrender To Chance

Go on, which are your favourite celebuscents?
Portia xx

If you hit the link and shop with My Perfume Samples I get a kickback!

White Musks: Friend or Foe?

November 11, 2015 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 16 Comments

Post by Trésor

I like white musk, I cannot lie and I like it a lot. Many of you will be familiar with my profound affection for accords steeped in subversion, depravity and potions rife with filthy delight but when it’s just me, myself and I there is only one solution: a proper cumulonimbus of glimmering white musk. Instead of just one review this week I’ve opted instead for three, a collection of my most cherished and well loved fragrances graced with this accord of pellucid splendour.

White Musks: Friend or Foe?

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Pure eVe by Céline Ellena for The Different Company 2011

First up on the docket is Pure eVe (formerly known as Pure Virgin) from French niche house The Different Company. Pure eVe opens in an exquisite breath of sheer vanilla, flirting with the idea of confection but never quite registering as a treat that’s entirely edible. Soon vanilla gracefully fades into cascades of creamy almond and transparent caramel, each tendril encapsulated within zephyrs of gentle powder. The base is comprised of a glorious and breathtakingly kaleidoscopic blend of white musks, each one scintillating and setting another aglow until they are all but one orb of fluid light.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Royal Muska by Jean-Claude Astier for M. Micallef 2008

I happened upon Jean-Claude Astier’s Royal Muska for M. Micallef entirely by accident. I’d been snooping through a friend’s perfume shelf as one does and the most gloriously glittering bottle caught my eye. There was no question, I had to spray myself and the from the moment I did I could tell that it was going to be love. From first sniff there is a familiarity, I can catch whiffs of delicate summertime beauty. Ephemeral flourishes silky cream and raspberry permeate the background, cheekily peeking through a veil of aroma that’s reminiscent of fine French soap. At the heart is a translucent interpretation of ripe and velvety peach that carries through until the composition has become glowing billows of plush white musk.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Lovely by Laurent Le Gurnec + Clement Gavarry for Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

Out of my entire collection there are but a small a handful of fragrances which I use on a regular basis and even fewer which I use entirely and repurchase time and time again. Alongside my greatest love, Aromatics Elixir from Clinique there is only one other where I have repurchased bottles more times than I can count: Lovely from Sarah Jessica Parker. The opening of lovely, to my humble nose, is sheer perfection. Silken plumes of luxurious white musk are scintillating with fractals of golden light radiating threads of glowing bergamot and transparent grains of sea salt, their form cut as precious stone. At the heart of Lovely dwells the velvet petals of a white rose, her petals bathed in the roseate hue of celestial evening sunlight. The warmth of the rich rosewood that comprises the base is utterly magnetic and the soft shades of amber on which it rests are equally as exquisite. If I were to choose only one white musk for the rest of my life, there is no question of which it would be. Lovely.

You might find this interesting: Surrender To Chance Musks Sampler

What are your favourite fragrances focused around an accord of white musk?

Until next time, kittens.

Trésor, xo.

Lovely by Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry for Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

February 18, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 8 Comments

Post by Ainslie Walker

Last year I read Chandler Burr’s book “A Year In The Perfume Industry, which I highly recommend. The book follows, every second chapter, Jean-Claude Ellena, in Paris, creating a new fragrance for Hermes…every other chapter takes us to New York, in 2005, where Sarah Jessica Parker is ‘art directing’ the development of her first fragrance, with the help of Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry from Coty. The book does far more than, but helps the reader to understand how perfumes go from someone’s idea, right through to sitting on the shelves in the mass market. It is jam packed with history, ingredients, methods etc etc. A must read!

Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Nectarine, bergamot, rosewood, lavender, apple martini
Heart: White daffodil, orchid, orchid, patchouli
Base: Amber, cedar, woody notes, salt, white musk.

That brought me to actually smelling Sarah Jessica Parker’s “Lovely” – something I would NEVER have tried, as my preconceived ideas of it being massmarket/cheap/celeb etc etc kept me well away. My curiosity got the best of me, and I was intrigued however as the starting idea was Sarah’s favourite mix of scents which included Egyptian musk oil, a cheap drugstore scent and and expensive fragrance.

Photo Stolen Wikipedia

On first whiff I can really smell the Egyptian and white musks…this develops on skin over time and is a sexy, sultry intriguing part of the fragrance. There’s a touch of patchouli and spice adding to this which makes it sexy-cooling. I am also hit with some major ‘fresh and clean’ notes. Like a breezy layer on top of the sultry base. Reminiscent of the scent of shampoos I used as a kid…apple, orange, lavender, possibly a little peachy. Pretty, feminine, but somehow managing a womanly feel.

I feel like it has given me flashbacks of the bodyshop scents we wore in the 80s/90’s, first body lotions, special soaps, hairspray and the perfumes which came as part of make up sets. (Maybe a few cheaper ingredients in this one.) Descriptions and reviews mention woody, in particular cedar – I don’t get much…maybe some sandalwood…maybe a little cedar after 30mins or so.

Descriptions also mention addition of a ‘martini’ note…I’m not sure if that’s just marketing, but I agree, there is some subtle, salt/savoury edge (maybe a dirty martini) that keeps the sweet, clean musky frag from spreading too far and taking over a room, or in fact from being too ‘lovely’, and gives it more classy-sparkle. I’d call it a fresh floral musk, but putting my finger on which flower exactly deems almost impossible!! Rosewood? It is like a lighter version of Agent Provocateur’s first fragrance, less naughty, and without the depth.

Photo Stolen ShoppingHeavenDotNet

This fragrance is comfy, distinct and still classic in some way…wear it like your favourite jeans and heels combo, for any occasion, when you want to feel feminine AND comfortable.

Further reading: Scents Memory and Now Smell This
Fragrance Shop has $21/50ml
My Perfume Samples start at $2/ml

A 30ml bottle cost me $21. I almost DIED. At that price it is not only LOVELY but super affordable too. The packaging is so cute and great to throw in your handbag for use throughout the day as a top up. I am sure it would be great layered under or over some richer scents, especially with scents that don’t have much staying power…this one lingers and could in theory help hold those – have a play and let me know what works for you.

Ainslie Walker XXX

Lovely by Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry for Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

January 27, 2014 / australianperfumejunkiescom / 13 Comments

Post by Katrina

Lovely from Sarah Jessica Parker is the perfume I reach for when I have a stressful day ahead. When I’m feeling a little worried about something I need to face in my day like a meeting or doctors appointment I will normally choose to wear Lovely. I spray on Lovely, inhale deeply and feel myself relax a little. I feel a bit more confident to face the day. Lovely is elegant and understated and I wouldn’t hesitate to wear this perfume for these types of meetings.

Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker 2005

Laurent Le Guernec and Clement Gavarry

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives the following notes.
Top: Nectarine, bergamot, rosewood and lavender.
Heart: Apple martini, white daffodil and orchid.
Base: White amber, cedar, woody notes and white musk

I mostly smell lavender and rosewood when I first spray on Lovely with a hint of zest and sweetness from the light citrus and fruit notes.

I find lavender so relaxing and use a few drops of essential oil if I’m having trouble sleeping. I also have lavender growing in my garden and can’t help but pick some to smell as I walk past. It’s not that I love the smell of lavender; it can be strong and sharp. It’s the feeling of well-being I get from lavender’s scent that draws me in. It has a soothing effect.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

The heart of the perfume leads to beautiful, feminine florals and the calming lavender lingers. The rosewood leads to a solid base with wood and musk. The lasting power of Lovely is excellent and at the end of the day I’m left with a gentle amber scent on my skin.

SJP Lovely is often compared to the more expensive Narciso Rodriguez for Her and has received favourable reviews from many perfume bloggers.

Photo Stolen WikiMedia

Further reading at Bois de Jasmin and Katie Puckrik Smells
FragranceNet has $19/50ml
My Perfume Samples starts from $2/ml

If you are interested in more Celebrity Perfumes, check out my website at Celebrity Perfume Store

Katrina x