Travel

APJ Crew: What We Loved In 2016

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Post by APJ Crew

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Hi APJ,

The end of the year hurtles towards us faster than I was ready for. A year filled with fun and adventure, a year fraught with political upheaval, a year of fragrance, travel, friends and families. For many 2016 has been the year of war, displacement, challenge, heartache and despair. Most of us have had a year of good and bad, a year of work, home and regular life with its ups and downs, drama and spots of magic that make it all worthwhile.

Here’s what the crew at APJ loved the most in 2016. Not all of it fragrant. I hope you enjoy a little look into what we rated high. The order is the order the pieces came into my inbox.

APJ Crew: What We Loved In 2016

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Claire Vukčević

Honestly? Apart from perfume, the biggest discovery in 2016 was how brilliant Tretinoin is. Northing I’ve ever used before has had such an effect on my skin – small wrinkles minimized, pores reduced, overall skin texture improved. I love the stuff. I can’t find a doctor to prescribe it to me here, so I will have to source it out on the Internet – always a crapshoot, no? But still, it’s great and I will take the chance. For 2017, I am also excited about exploring a more extensive, Korean-style skincare regime. Next year will be all about getting that chok chok, or Korean glow. We’ll see. I just turned 40 and I think that Irish skin might have a finite stock of chok chok and that perhaps I used mine all up in 1997. Call me in 2018 to see how that works out for me.

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Sandra
Hey APJ! Wishing ya’ll a very happy and safe holiday season and hoping that 2016 was a good year. 2016 has been tumultuous for me but we survived and we are currently setting up our house in Rotterdam. My favorites for 2016 are not necessarily new but new experiences for me.
Perfumes: Rahele by NVC, Galop and Muguet Porcelaine both by Hermes, discovering the pure decadence of Shalimar in all its variations and last but not least finally getting my hands on the gorgeous Dior Privee Bois d’Argent.
Movies: watching A Christmas Story with my son and hearing his squeals of laughter.
TV shows: I enjoyed Narcos and The Crown (I know – two wildly different shows!). Flowers: finally smelling a vanilla orchid.
Books: all the Robert Galbraith crime novels and rereading Roald Dahl books with my son.
Bring on 2017! Sandra xoxo
Week July 2016 #25 CHANEL Boy

Robert Herrmann

Phew. 2016. What a tumultuous year it was and all I can say is “Buh-bye 2016! Don’t let the door hit you on the way out! A year of highs and lows, and what got me through much of it was perfume. Always there at my beck and call…

In 2016 there were in excess of 1100 new releases averaging out to almost 100 a month. Did I try even 10% of them? Possibly, but not likely. There were some standouts that I ended up loving. So in no particular order, here’s what was new to me in 2016….

Boy by Chanel, a VERY unisex Fougere Cologne. Addictive.
Amouage Lilac Love, a truly gorgeous non-lilac lilac.
Amouage Opus X, “The Red Violin” in a bottle. A weird and wonderful rose.
Aroma M Voluptuous Nostalgia and Camillia Extrait, two of the finest contemporary but vintage-style perfumes. Gorgeous!
En Voyage Rainmaker, like walking through the Pacific Northwest rain forest. Amazing.
Dusita Infini, One of the finest oudh’s. Really. Even if you’re not an Oudh fan, try this, it’s stunning!
MFK’s Grand Soir, my new cold weather go-to. Gourmand heaven.
Zoologist Civet (releasing Dec.31st) exquisite. I can’t even.

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Anne Marie

I had fun in 2016 exploring Cuban culture. I can’t remember what brought this on, but somehow I got interested in Cuban food, music, literature and of course, Cuban-inspired perfume. It’s easy to get carried away by a romantic idea of old Havana so the quite gritty novels of Cuban writer Leonardo Padura Fuentes brought me down to earth with a thump. Still, I taught myself to make mojitos, discovered the Lecuona Cuban Boys, and bought a Cuban cookbook (more read than cooked from, I have to admit). Of course bottles of Guerlain Pour Homme and Aramis Havana were obligatory!

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Val the Cookie Queen

Seeing MUSE on the Drones Tour. After having attended hundreds of gigs in my lifetime, including so many in the mid seventies punk era, to see MUSE at aged 56 and be absolutely blown away was the definitive highlight of 2016.
Celebrating my grandmother-in-law`s 100th birthday gathering was a great privilege. She can still tell a joke to turn your hair white. We have had a close relationship for nearly 25 years. I love her.
Fragrance wise would be receiving a bottle of Hermès Doblis as a gift. The humorous side to this was having to Google it to see exactly what I had. It is the prize possession in my small ( but not as small as it used to be!) fragrance collection.

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Erica Golding

2016 was the 10th anniversary of my favorite perfume house, NAVA (Nocturne Alchemy). They are poised to revamp their website and packaging over an extended winter hiatus, and like most fans I went on an ordering spree in December! My favorite 2016 NAVA release was the now Sold Out limited edition Icons II: Inferno, a luxuriously smooth and resonant amber oudh that is in a league all its own.
This year, the novel City of Mirrors by Justin Cronin was finally released, completing a long-anticipated trilogy. His writing is infused with vivid poetry and complex character development, elevating a storyline that could otherwise be classified as Sci-Fi. Deeply moving literary fiction, highly recommended!

TinaG

My travels this year took me to the Islay Festival, or Feis Ile, a whisky festival on the Scottish island of the same name. I fell in love with Islay, not only because of the wonderful people and magnificent whisky, but for the wild island itself. My cottage was 9 kms from Port Ellen along a windy single track road which took my past Lagavulin, Laphroaig and Ardbeg distilleries (for those who know their whisky) and then along little beaches & craggy coves. One of my favourite things to do on my way home was to pull in at one secluded beach, and sit for a while watching the local seals. It was ridiculously cool to hear them slapping the water, blowing bubbles, and chasing each other around. Just me & them, chilling out enjoying the last few rays of the golden evenings. Magical.
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Tina’s Ireland cottage
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Seal Bay
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Portia

What did I love this year? I particularly loved everyone who took time to read and comment here on APJ. Thank you. Loved all our contributors, I know how hard you all work to continually pull interesting posts out of the hat. BRAVO!
Perfume: The things I purchased most of this year in mls are Granville and vintage Miss Dior by DIOR, vintage Mitsouko by Guerlain and BOY + Misia by CHANEL. New niche faves for me have been Morn To Dusk by Eau d’Italie and Rahele by Neela Vermeire.
Travel: Jin & I had a great time in Japan, we also loved seeing Venice with Tara of A Bottled Rose and our friend Anna-Maria. Unforgettable times.
Books: The Herland Trilogy by Charlotte Perkins Gilman blew my mind, can’t stop thinking about it. Erin Watt’s Royal Trilogy is non-stop pot-boiling reading, could not put this terrible trash down and did nothing except read them for a week. When It Rains and How To Get There are two books by Australian writer Maggie MacKeller on her dealing with grief and moving on, all set against the backdrop of the Australia that I know & love.

Venice'16 #6

What did you love about 2016?
Portia xx

Val & Vero: Flying Visit: Photo Essay

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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VISITING VERO KERN.
ANOTHER FLYING TRIP TO ZÜRICH.
A FEW PHOTOS AND KIKI EDP GIVEAWAY

Seasonal Greeting APJ Readers, Lurkers and Investigators!

My ever willing husband booked a hotel, shut the shop and whisked me off to Zürich to visit Vero. We did The Salzburg Cookie Run together and kept on driving. Made it in well under six hours.

Val & Vero: Flying Visit: Photo Essay

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Vero and Isi met us in the hotel for late afternoon tea. Chris and I had a dear friend who had a main role in the stage production of Dogville, modeled on the film from Lars von Trier. I had never the wish to see the movie, and was a bit apprehensive attending the theatre but it was absolutely brilliant. It was performed at the Schauspielhaus in Zürich. No piccies of that I´m afraid.
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We met up with Vero in her home and visit her atelier the following morning. After half an hour Chris split and jumped on the old bike he brought in the boot of the car. (Obviously, duh!) Leaving me to spend two hours having a crash course in and a sniff of, a number of old vintage Guerlains. My appreciation of Vero´s inspiration and her own creations continues to increase. I am oftened asked if I have a favourite Vero Profumo perfume but I don´t. However I do have my first, second bottle of a Vero. It is the Kiki EdP and the one I have spent much of this year wearing. It is perhaps the least talked about of the Kiki Triptych but it´s fabulous, and we all need an erotic lavender don´t we?
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The enameled perfume bottle is Vero’s vintage VdN. She wears it a lot, it flows in her blood!
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( Ed: Vero glamour bookmarks! HEAVEN!)
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val-vero-dec-2016-22The orange Moroccan ceiling light is in the hallway of her apartment.
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The stencilled rose is in Vero’s aromatherapy massage room, her own artwork.

I just might have come back from Zürich with a few drops of the new Vero Profumo, one that has been delayed for a number of technical reasons. I know what I will be wearing on Christmas Day. Have you got your seasonal fragrance planned?

Peace, Love and Yuletide Bussis
May next year bring far less woody accords.
CQ

giveaway TheTruthAboutMummy

Kiki EdP GIVEAWAY

WHAT CAN YOU WIN?

This week we will have 1 winner who will receive:
1 x Kiki EdP decant from CQs bottle
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 where you would wear your Kiki by Vero Profumo

HOUSEKEEPING

Entries Close Thursday 15th 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 21st 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…..

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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.

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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

 

Adelaide, South Australia with TinaG + Photo Essay

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Post by TinaG

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Hi APJ,

I’ve been travelling a lot this year, and last week was for work in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. I thought I’d share my journey and fragrance choices for the trip, along with my travellers notes.

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Adelaide, South Australia with TinaG + Photo Essay

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Day 0 – For the flight down I wore Junky by Jardins d’Ecrivains. A friend gave me this sample a while ago but I hadn’t tried it before now. It’s supposed to have a cannabis note, maybe its fresh picked cannabis? It’s nothing I recognised. The fragrance felt a bit ordinary to me, a green based floral with iris & violet. Pretty, but I was expecting more. How we interpret the meaning in the name is probably the selling point, we’ve all got some level of addiction, don’t we?

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Dinner on the first night was at a trendy top floor bar and restaurant, 2KW. Scent for dinner was Daim Blond by Serge Lutens. I wanted to wear something with a backbone but not so much of a monster it affected other people or my enjoyment of the meal. This suede/peach frag was perfect for a casual but upmarket restaurant meal with colleagues (well, they are all friends, really).

muschio-musc-santa-maria-novella-fragranticaFragrantica

Day 1 – I was a bit nervous going in to the work event so I chose Muschio, Santa Maria Novella, for its warmth and comfort. It was a great choice, gave me a bit of oomph to get through the day.

There was an dinner at Adelaide Town Hall that was semi-formal. I wore black on black with a brass coloured double chain long necklace and rock-star high heels from Nine West. It’s been ages since I dressed up and I felt totally uncomfortable. Haha! Swapped the heels for flats to walk there which was much better, and a respritz of Muschio helped. Fun night.

precision-and-grace-the-beautiful-mind-series-fragranticaFragrantica

Day 2 – Adelaide was getting warmer as the week wore on, so Precision and Grace: The Beautiful Mind Series was my choice for today. It’s got a great fresh pear/jasmine/osmanthus thing going on, but I swear I get a blast of lemon in the opening as well. Perfect refresher. It has been the highest complement-receiver of any fragrance I own, and it did receive a comment on the day. Yay.

That afternoon a friend & I walked across town to the Haigh’s chocolate factory. The walk was 40mins each way (slightly longer with a few Pokémon critters to catch on the way back). I respritzed Precision and Grace as it was still 32 degrees centigrade out there…

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Adelaide is know as ‘the city of churches’ and there is one in almost every corner in town. The city is very flat, and surrounded on each side by parkland, which made for a pleasant walk. Haigh’s was great, I got a bunch of their experimental chocs and factory seconds which they package up – only available at the factory, they don’t ship these out.

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Because of the Pokémon factor we only had 15 minutes to get changed before dinner, so in lieu of a shower I wore Borneo 1834 by Serge Lutens. It smelt bloody brilliant on dusty sun-kissed skin over the top of the base Precision and Grace musks. Damn sexy if I do say so myself.

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Drinks and dinner were down Peel Street in the city, a must-visit if you’re in town. My friend & I shared an alcoholic lychee iced tea at Casablabla, a mixed cultural tapas bar. Dinner with the crew was at a restaurant called Peel Street (same as the street name). Fabulous meals, like my fave the banana flower blossom salad, and it had amazing options for those on special diets because everything was made fresh.

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Day 3 – The last day I went for another osmanthus-based fragrance, Inlé by Memo. I really like this as a travel scent, I wore it almost exclusively when travelling in South Korea with Portia & the crew two years ago. It’s light enough to fit most circumstances, but has an inherent beauty. The work day finished about 3:30 for us as we caught a cab for a flight back to Sydney.

So grateful for the opportunity to have experienced our sector work event in a great city with amazing people. I learnt so much.

Do you have a favourite travel fragrance?

Till next time.

Tina G xx

(Ed: Photos donated by TinaG unless specified. Thanks TinaG, they’re fab)

HOLIDAYS!! South Korea 2016: Photo Essay

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Post by Portia

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Hi there APJ,

It feels utterly sinful to be frolicking on holidays while the world implodes politically and in so many other ways. Still, here we are in South Korea with Jin’s family and friends.

Here are a few of the billions of photographs I’ve taken. Come see a slice of South Korea, its people and some fun things to do on a seven night getaway. Can I also tell you that South Korea is still incredibly affordable.

HOLIDAYS!! South Korea 2016: Photo Essay

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Pick up from Ulsan station. You can’t tell but Mummy & Pappa are thrilled to see us. It’s very late at night.

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Breakfast in Yangsan. You’ll notice the family has Pork Soup and I have a Croissant. I know, I’m a Philistine.

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Visiting Grandma who has Alzheimers. 4 generations of family, from two branches, sharing love and special moments. Grandma remembered Jin so he was over the moon. We had bought her a bunch of Japanese sweets and treats because she studied in Japan when she was a teenager (unheard of for a woman in that time).

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On our way to the mountains with Mummy & Pappa to see the autumn leaves. Sadly the leaves were not 100% co-operative because it’s been a really weird season. We did see some lovely colour and every new vista was so picturesque.

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We stayed in the faded grandeur of the Jirisan Spa Land. Though the decor was tired and the maintenance on the gardens and building had lapsed we could still see what it was designed to be. Beds and rooms were comfortable and spacious. The spa baths were clean and neat and the family loved their time in the waters which left our skin soft and lightly fragranced with minerals and salts.

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On our way home from BarBQ dinner in the village that night we saw some strange arguments and a boozy customer screaming. As we left the next morning the site was crawling with Police & CSI. Jin’s Dad got out and explained what we’d seen last night. We were all called into the Cop Shop for questioning and to give statements, also to identify the miscreant. It was super fun.

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While Mummy & Pappa were in with the cops Jin & I went exploring and found this wonderful shrine. The plaque below explains everything. Nice find in rural South Korea.

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The tip top of the highest mountain in South Korea you can drive to the top of. We wandered around, had some noodles and coffee. It was a great cheap family adventure. How handsome is Jin’s Dad?

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Back in Busan they are having a Chrysanthemum show. While all the usual types were there I had never seen them trained into the tortured Bonsai experience. They look freaking amazing and I am now inspired to try it at home.

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Jin thinks it looks like an ice-cream but I think it looks like a Butt Plug, making this photo extra creepy.

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Dinner with one of Jin’s childhood BFFs Kinam in the Westin Chosun, Busan. We have stayed in this hotel and I really love the way they keep the 5* dream alive. Dinner in the Camellia Restaurant is always gorgeous.

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Mummy & Pappa’s apartment block.

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While shopping we found these crazy ETRO paisley slippers. VERY Roja Dove!

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Hanging out playing Transformers with another of Jin’s BFFs, Jungyon, and her daughter. Loud screaming laughter ensued.

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So next day we are off to the famous Kijang Crab Market in Busan. Below is a Korean Crab that came as a GWP for the huge monster King Crab we bought for lunch.

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Yes, here it is. You can’t really see but the top of the shell was easily 3 of Jin’s hands. ENORMOUS! Mummy & Pappa had never had a King Crab before but their friends had talked of it for years after having the experience. I was completely unaware of this when I asked Jin to find out what the most delicious and meatiest crab they had. Not being a seafood eater my knowledge is pretty sparse.

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Here they both are cooked and cut, ready for eating. You have no idea how much meat there was. The three of them ate till they were absolutely disgustingly full, then they ate some more. There was still a third of the meat left which will make delicious seafood salad over the next two days. Mummy & Pappa now have bragging rights for the next decade.

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Then we went to the seaside Haedong Yonggungsa Buddhist temple. It’s about 100 steps down and on the way I managed to get a coin into the wishing pot, after many tries. We bought some candles to light and prayed for all of you, our friends, family and the world in general. I think in light of this weeks events that the world will need every ray of light.

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Tonight I put my foot down. Dinner at HOME with the family. So we trooped out to Mummy & Pappas little farm with Jin’s BFF Jungyon & daughter and we gorged on Korean BarBQ, drank Whiskey & Soju and generally had a fabulous time celebrating Mummy & Pappas 4oth Anniversary and our 5th Anniversary, which are spookily only 5 days apart. Jin & I had procured a bunch of Roman Candle fireworks and we had a fabulous display after dinner. The whole night was magical and fun.

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Back to Seoul tomorrow and then home.

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Been wearing Niki de Saint Phalle almost exclusively. It really seems to fit South Korea.

It’s been great. What’s your favourite family meal?
Portia xx

Holiday Perfume Packing Oct 2016

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Post by Portia

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Hello Fumies,

The eternal holiday question; What Perfumes Should I Take? Every year I try and get myself to pick the perfect scents. You know, weather appropriate, walking, shopping, dinner, drinks, casual, dressy, cool, hot. It’s a very fine line we perfumistas walk and to try and have the right frag for the right time is a really fun experiment in scent.

Obviously if you choose wrong it’s not going to negatively impact your holiday but the sweet feeling of scenting success can definitely add a pleasurable lustre to already fantastic adventures.

Holiday Perfume Packing

Japan & South Korea Oct 2016

So our destinations for this very special Jin & Portia 5 year anniversary jaunt are Tokyo 3 nights and South Korea for 5 nights (I think). We got an insanely good deal to fly with Korean Airlines that takes us to Japan via South Korea for less than it costs to go to South Korea directly. We decided to use the money we save on the fare to stay for a few nights in Tokyo where Jin has never been. AWESOME!

skyscrapers_of_shinjuku-mount-fuji-wikipediaWikipedia

Then we are off to South Korea to see Jin’s parents. His Dad has had some heart problems over the years so Jin likes to make sure everything is OK every year. Something that really impresses me about Jin is that he sends some money home to his parents every month, so does his brother from Slovakia where he works in the car manufacturing industry. It has completely changed their parents life from poor working class to comfortable land and home owners.

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We are also going to steal Mum & Dad away for a night in a fancy hotel somewhere. Last year we took them to a 5 star spa hotel for the first time in their lives and there was a wildflower garden and bonsai place that Mum had long wanted to visit nearby. They would only let us take them for one night but it was really fun to spend that time with them. It got to the point though that we had to take menus and stuff away from them because they were getting upset by how much everything cost. Even though they have almost no English and I zero Korean we manage to communicate and Jin does double time as interpreter as well.

Anyway, on to fragrant choices. Here are my list:

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Ambre Narguilé by Hermès 15ml Travel: Warm & crunchy amber.

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Eau des Merveilles by Hermès Rollerball Decant: An easy wear, softly salted, resinous wood.

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Niki de Saint Phalle 10ml Travel: Comfortable floral green chypre.

oe-bogue-parfumoParfumo

O/E by Bogue Profumo Decant: Freaky citrus and skank drilled over woods, resins and tobacco.

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Salome by Papillon Artisan Perfumes Decant: Naughty animalic leather chypre.

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Trayee by Neela Vermeire Creations 8ml Travel: I feel that this spicy floral incense will fit the bill this holiday

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Vintage CHANEL No 22 EdT Decant: ALL the aldehydes and a bunch of creamy white flowers with a tropical lilt.

By the time you read this we are already in South Korea, probably getting ready to come home.

Are you going on holidays this year or next? Where to? What fragrances would you take?
Portia xxx

 

HOLIDAYS!! Japan 2016: Photo Essay

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Post by Portia

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Hey Hey APJ,

Jin and I are in transit from Japan to South Korea. I was hoping to have the post written and organised long before this but, bloody hell, it has been non stop. We are having a ball and wish you all were here with us. 3 nights and 2 full days was a great taster for Jin and a lovely reminiscence for me. Sadly we didn’t get to see everyone on the list but next time we are going to make it a fortnight and travel around a bit.

HOLIDAYS!! Japan 2016: Photo Essay

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Korean Air = Roomy & cheap. Staff are amazing and food yummy. NOW I want them to sponsor my ass.

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Our first full day in Japan is a public holiday so we get to share the perfect autumn weather with millions of families. Tokyo remains surprisingly roomy. We love the day in temples, parks and galleries.

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We particularly loved seeing a few Korean National Treasures stolen during Japanese occupation of Korea. Jin couldn’t help but be excited when one of the most famous historic buddhas was on display.

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That night we were taken to Torikizoku, a famously modern young Japanese hang where booze and snacks are the order of the night. Loved it. Thanks Luke. We worked out that we’ve been friends around 27 years. Amazing.

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Jin is basically on a gastro-tour. EVERYTHING from street food to hand created sushi, fast food and VERY slow food was on the menu. I think he tried about 20 new dishes, or ate authentic Japanese versions of old favourites. watching him discover new delights was like living with a perfect sunrise.

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Of course we had to do the obligatory fragrance shopping. Isetan in Shinjuku is a fabulous department store with the most unbelievable Food Hall in the basement. We spent a small fortune buying Japanese delicacies for Jin’s family in South Korea.

Because we spent so much time & money down there I wasadamant that we check the fragrance section. It was well stocked with a large range of masstige and designer fragrances. From CREED and Le Labo to Annick Goutal and MFK we were thrilled at the choice. I ended up buying the Hermès Jardin of Monsieur Li gift set and extra body wash and a 30ml Samsara parfum which I have put off buying until now they have DCd the fabulous bottle. Having bought the EdT for my Mum many years ago it’s the Parfum I have long coveted and my little vintage 2ml is just a gasp away from empty.

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From back in the mid 1990s a lovely girlfriend that used to come watch the shows and hang out in the clubs with us, Miharu, came into Shinjuku for dinner. It was a magical catch up and Jin was on his absolute most hilarious behaviour. We spent the night laughing, eating, wandering and catching up. So many wonderful memories and now a new set of Japan 2016 with Miharu.

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OK, so we are now on the plane for South Korea to see Jin’s family. Loaded down with booze, sweets, money and love to pass on to his parents. This is the first time I get to meet his Grandma too. She was a very clever young woman and studied in Japan in her youth. Now she is suffering Alzheimers and Dementia we are hoping the Japanese sweets and savouries will give her a jolt into the past and present.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this very thin slice of Japan.
Where are you going for holidays next? Where would you go if money was no object?
Portia xx

Cookie Queen’s Adventure Photo Essay

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Post by Val the Cookie Queen

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Hello all you APJ Perfumistas and Bikers!

Each year my husband attends the Eurobike International Trade Show in Friedrichshafen, Germany. It´s freaking enormous, supposedly
the biggest bike show in the world. He needs two days to get around it. Journalists, superstars from the downhilling world to The Tour de France,
plus the industry visitors make up the some 45,000 in attendance on the trade days, along with an extra 20,000 bike fans on the public day.

 

Friedrichshafen is on Lake Constance, also known as the Bodensee. The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. I decided
to grab a ride to Friedrichshafen with Chris then hop on a bus to Zürich, meet Vero for lunch, and hop on a bus back again. Why not? Life is too short
to sit still.

Cookie Queen’s Adventure

Bikes, Ferries and Caron Perfume
A lunch date at the Hammam in Zürich with Vero Kern
A Photo Essay

I got up at 03:15 and opened the fridge door for a drink. A large glass of what had been Oma`s frozen cream of pumpkin soup fell out of the door and
smashed on the kitchen floor. By 03.30 I was vacuuming up the last bits of glass and the cat thought I had lost my mind. We were out the door by
04.30 and on our 350 km way. I got out in Friedrichshafen and an hour later was on the bus. By 13:30 I was in Zürich with Vero and by 16:00 I was heading back to Friedrichshafen. Anyway – here´s some piccies.

Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #2On the ferry crossing from Friedrichshafen to Konstanz. 15 minutes. Absolutely gorgeous.

Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #1Frierichshafen. Home to the Zeppelin.

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Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #3Isi, Vero’s superstar dog meeting me at the central station in Zürich.

 

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Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #9Lunch at the Hammam Basar. Fantastic salad followed by thick Turkish coffee fragrant with cardomom.

Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #11Ferry back from Konstanz to Friedrichshafen. Stunning.

Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #13Evening with Chris. (Ice cream makes nice pictures but I don’t like ice cream, I really don’t.)

Cookie Queen's Adventure Sept 2016 #14Next day. Heading to the bike show. Cookies for our dealers. SOTD was vintage Caron En Avion Extrait by Ernest Daltroff: featuring carnation, jasmine, neroli and opoponax. A gift from Vero. Thick dark deep orange, spicy, lush and leathery, What a joy.

 

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Bike Desires. Me looking at the new Rotwild Electric bike. €7000. Do not let anyone tell you electric bikes are for old people. And the below shot is a 12 speed SRAM Eagle cassette. ( for the biking perfumistas amongst us 😀)

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Fragrant Biking Bussis
CQ

Neela Vermeire Creations Take Two

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 15 Comments

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Post by Portia

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Hi there Fragrant Travellers,

As you know Neela is one of my mates, we chat on Skype pretty regularly and whenever Jin & I are in Paris we always get some Neela time. Talking about travelling, one of the bummers about having full bottles of fragrance is that when you are abroad it becomes a bit of a pain carrying them in your checked baggage. Isn’t it always great to have a few decants or travel sizes that you can keep conveniently in your carry on? Up till now I thought the Hermès ones were my favourite, all that has changed though because Neela has unveiled her own travel sizes.

Neela Vermeire Creations Take Two

Neela Vermeire Creations Take 2

The Neela Vermeire Creations Take Two sets come in a very sensible two pack of 15ml each. The glass is hefty and sturdy and they are perfectly created for life in your bag. As always Neela’s packaging is super swish  and the whole shebang looks very Ra Cha Cha.

Another clever idea is to buy the set with a friend and you’ll each have 15ml, meaning you can collect the whole Neela Vermeire Creations set at just over half the price of buying the big bottles. It’s a really good deal. Other fragrance houses make their smaller sizes nearly 80% of the big ones (looking at you sexy Pierre Guillaume, Amouage and a bunch of the others).

 

Neela Vermeire Creations Take 2 a

LuckyScent sells Ashoka in the 60ml for $230, the 2 x 15ml Take Two set is only $125

Neela Vermeire Creations has the 2 x 15ml Take Two set €112

You may know that Mohur is my favourite of the NVC range followed closely by Ashoka and then Pichola. I’m going to start sussing out my mates about who would like to go halves in each of these sets. Those three combined with a few Hermès travels will mean I never have to think about my holiday frags, they’ll be packed and ready to go.

So, which Neela Vermeire Creations fragrance would you like to have a Take Two Travel Set of?
Portia xx

Amsterdam Fragrance Adventures: TinaG’s 2016 Europe Tour

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Post by TinaG

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The Netherlands is home base to a number of fragrance houses – Mona Di Orio, Puredistance, Hiram Green and Nasomatto to name a few. When visiting in May this year I mentioned this to my cousin Kylie, who was very interested in finding out more – so we decided to spend a day in Amsterdam hunting for Dutch perfume. What a great way for me to introduce her to the rabbit hole that is the perfume world!

Amsterdam Fragrance Adventures

TinaG’s 2016 Europe Tour

europe-map-countriesWorld Atlas Book

Annindryia Perfume Lounge

Our first stop also became our longest as I was totally enthralled and excited. We had dropped in to Annindryia Perfume Lounge and I had walked in to a small slice of absolute heaven. They stock a fabulous selection of Dutch and international fragrances. We were warmly greeted and shown around the display room. Kylie took to the whole experience and I’m happy to say she was instantly hooked. We sniffed and chatted for a few hours. Have a look at Annindryia Perfume Lounge site for an idea of their range. Yes they ship to Australia and yes the do samples.

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Le Bienaimé by Erik Zwaga

This brand utilises the concept of up-cycling to create new fragrances from existing brands. The bottles would be familiar to most perfumistas – I spotted repurposed Chanel and Etro bottles, tied up with multi-house-branded ribbons. The names of the fragrances hint at their primary constituents: CHA-CHA-CHA-CHANEL, R-I-O-D (Dior spelt backwards), HERMEJESY. I picked up a sample of S.T.I.N.K (how could I not?) that contains Classic Opoponax, Èdition Rare – Petrolium, Floriental, Musk Tonkin, Obsessive Oudh and Song for a Queen.

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Eau d’Amsterdam

Eau d’Amsterdam is a fragrant ode to the thousands of elm trees which line the city’s streets and canals. I had noted the springtime ‘snow’ without realising they were elm seeds, which behave like petals caught in the wind as they scatter themselves across the city. It is described as: Sunny green woody
It’s definitely all that, it has the dry astringency of a freshly snapped twig – really light and perfect for a warm spring day.

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People of the Labyrinths

After leaving Annindryia Perfume Lounge I visited the store of fashion house People of the Labyrinths. Fabulous clothing, exquisite materials… I thoroughly enjoyed looking around & chatting to the sales assistants. They have two fragrances – A.Maze and Luctor Et Emergo. I tried both on skin and they generously gave me a sample of A.Maze.

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Skins Cosmetics

Our last stop of the day was a shop & beautician Skins Cosmetics, located in the Het Conservatorium Hotel. They had a wonderful range of fragrances however most of the brands stocked I do have access to in Australia – Hermès, Frederic Malle, Byredo, By Killian, Le Labo. There were a few fragrances that I tried – the Clean range, and some of the Hermès range such as Eau de rhubarb écarlate, and Eau d’orange vert which I hadn’t tried before.

I had a fantastic day introducing Kylie to the fragrance world and checking out some special places & perfumes in Amsterdam.

Do you have a favourite Dutch fragrance house?

Tina G