Hello APJ, Welcome to our small scale collaboration project. Old Herbaceous (OH) of Serenity Now Scents and Sensibilities and I will be doing a monthly post on different perfume notes. We are not perfumers but aficionados of fragrance. So lots of our information will come with links for further reading or text references. We are learning as you are learning, or refreshing.
Hello APJ, It has been years. Sorry for the radio silence but after the double hackings and the rigmarole to get APJ back up the steam had left my will to continue. We had lost all our followers TWICE! The first time saw a reasonable rejoin but the second time took us months to fix the problem and people stayed away in droves. Considering the work that went into seven days a week content it was easier to continue Guest Posting elsewhere and leaving APJ as historic content. With A Bottled Rose on hiatus APJ will be the home of a new, small scale collaboration project. Old Herbaceous of Serenity Now Scents and Sensibilities and I will be doing a monthly post on different perfume notes.
Hi APJ,
I’m wearing Shalimar EdP and vintage extrait by Guerlain.
Shalimar Madagascan Vanilla (Sha-Lemur) EdP and vintage extrait by Guerlain
Shalimar EdC by Guerlain
For Mardi Gras Parade I’m wearing Shalimar EdC and spritzed on vintage extrait from my favourite cigarette lighter case.
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Portia
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Hey there APJ Crew,
Woo Hoo! A week away in Singapore Changi Airport and Koh Samui Thailand with Jin. Every day an adventure. Full of the fun and romance of international travel with this funster. It’s been so low tech that it’s Friday before I pull out the computer to get some work and blogging done. NAUGHTY!
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Narth
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Hello friends, Narth here with a quote from my most recently read book.
“Scent, for me, is a medium. I rarely use if for ornamental purpose.”
This I How You Lose the Time War, Amal El Mohtar and Max Gladstone
This is so true for many of us who have spent a long time with fragrance. We wear our scents as talismans for who we are that day. Continue reading
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Portia
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Hey there APJ Crew,
Even though it’s been rush, rush, rush to get things organised all week I’ve felt calm about it. Going at it at my own pace and getting things done one at a time has allowed me to focus on each thing. At times it’s felt quiet zen.
Fragrance has, as always, played a major part. There are some cool spritzes from the vault.
Saw some friends but all in all it was work, organise, sleep, repeat.
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Portia
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Hey there APJ Crew,
This week was kind of chill. Loads of fragrance and some good food.
We have had the most gorgeous amounts of real, driving rain. I don’t remember it being so plentiful in the five years we’ve lived in Parramatta. It’s dog walking with a golf umbrella and wellies kind of rain.
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Narth
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Hello friends,
Narth here with a Queen.
Top: Pear, Chocolate.
Middle: Rose Damascena, Moroccan Jasmine, Vanilla, Tuber, Cashmere Musk.
Base: Osmanthus, West Australian Sandalwood, Amber, Madagascan Vanilla, Tonka Bean.
Jezebel. It’s fascinating how the name of a pagan queen of Israel from 3000 years ago has reflected our society’s changing views of women. For years Jezebel meant a bad girl, a wicked sexual female. This was despite the biblical stories being about religious hegemony and political machinations rather than sexual immorality. Feminism has reclaimed the name Jezebel as that of a strong woman not beholden to societal mores. Jezebel has been the name of rather a few perfumes and this Jezebel is particularly glorious! It’s a rich and beautiful scent befitting of all the imagery the name has conjured up down the ages.
Anka Kus Parfum’s Jezebel is a luxurious cherry chocolate rose. A perfect black forest cake without being sweet. The chocolate is very impressive in the top notes, if you’ve felt a bit meh about chocolate in perfume because it failed to deliver I think you’ll be very happy with this one. Anka Kus Parfum’s Jezebel has a liqueur quality, befitting her indulgent reputation. The rose in Jezebel reminds me of Lyric Woman though with none of the solemn qualities of the Amouage. This is more sensual than stately. I’m also rather fascinated by the way Anka Kus Parfum’s Jezebel manages to be both juicy and dry. Each time I wear it I find myself enjoying this interplay. I suspect Jezebel will be a compliment magnet as well as it’s so attractively delicious.
Anka Kus Parfum is an Australian niche brand started by Ali Erkekli (previously known as Al Manlé) that has some interesting offerings. I think Jezebel has been let down by the font used (yes I’m that person) which is a messy mix of gothic and graffiti that belies it’s quality as a perfume. Is it meant to be ironically hipster or more along BPAL lines witchy or..? I’m not really sure just as I’m not really sure what the black blotchy bird symbol is meant to be either. The other bottles also have kitschy fonts but it’s Jezebel’s messy one that bothers me the most. She deserves better!
Try it at the Anka Kus Parfum Etsy Store
What associations do you have with the name Jezebel?
Bye for now, Narth xx
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Portia
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Hey there APJ,
It’s Mood Scent 4 week. WOO HOO! With the first Monday of the month the crew are looking at floral fragrance. It’s a broad and deep selection and winnowing it down to best in show has been big deal for me. These choices are subject to change, daily. Can’t wait to read about your favourite florals in the comments too.
So excited to be blogging with these three superstars again: Esperanza L’Esperessence, Megan Megan In Sainte Maxime and Samantha I Scent You A Day. Check theirs out too.
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Portia
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Hey there APJ Crew,
Where the hell did January go? It’s just flown by. Finally back in drag this week. Wore a bunch of favourite fragrances, opened a new weekly event, hung a bit with Jin and our mates and generally had a pretty chill week. Biggest drama being out China & North Korea legs of the February trip cancelled because of coronavirus.
Australian Perfume Junkies 