Video

Australian Perfumers Pack GIVEAWAY WINNER

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

Hey Everyone,

We had a lovely, if small, group of responses to this weeks challenge. All the people that did enter into the spirit of the competition did it with enthusiasm and a great sense of fun. I Thank You All. Some made me laugh hot soup into my nose. So what did you have to do and what could you win?

Your mission, had you chosen to accept it, was to give the OK GO guys in the Here It Goes Again video fragrances that you think would suit them.

Painted Desert Photo Stolen AustralianTraveller

THE PRIZE: A 15ml mixed set of Australian Artisan Perfumers, uber niche stuff from down under. Do yourselves a favour and go check their sites by clicking on their names below.

Bud Parfums– 2ml Jezabel and 2ml Gamekeeper (Read APJ Gamekeeper Review and APJ Jezebel Review)
Emerald Vintners Parfums (EVP)– 2ml Baume (Read APJ Baume Review)
One Seed– 4ml Sweet Water (Read PerfumePosse Sweet Water Review)
Perfume & Skincare Company– 5ml Fig & Olive (Read APJ Fig & Olive Review)
P&H Anywhere In The World

Alice Springs Photo Stolen NothingLikeAustralia

THE RULES: Open to anyone from anywhere in the world but you must be a follower of AustralianPerfumeJunkies and yes you could start following to be included. Tweeting earned you an extra point (@OaPerfumeJunkie https://australianperfumejunkies.com/ are having a SUPER SIZED GIVEAWAY!!) Entries closed Saturday night 17 November 2012 at 10pm EADST. All names that fulfilled requirements were put on papers, folded and TSO Jin chose one. The winner has till Wednesday 21 November 9pm AEDST to get in touch with details or I will give the prize to someone else. All measurements are approximate.

And the

Photo Stolen sistersavealot

Lanier

YAY! Congratulations! Email, DM Tweet or Message on Facebook your address details please buddy and I’ll send it off this week.

See you later today for our regular post.
Loads of love,
Portia xx

Here is an ad for Australia’s most famous rum. It’s fun.

Pohadka by Vincent Micotti for Ys-Uzac 2011 LIVE Video Sniff

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

Hello all you gorgeous Frag Hags,

Today Robert “Radium” Maxwell and I are bringing you the magic of an AustralianPerfumeJunkies LIVE Video Sniff. You need to be aware that while we are complete fragrance enthusiasts, we are in no way creditable live reviewers. Take this video for example:
We tell you that Ys-Uzac is a Japanese brand when in fact it is a Swiss brand, we talk about ambergris when in fact there is none but I’m bang on with the salty, herbal, floral opening. YAY! It doesn’t matter, we are here to entertain you with our sparkling wit and repartee, failing that we fall back on sex and bum jokes. What is important though is that we have a great time, some of the stiuff we say is completely correct and we are hoping you will come watch for the fun and silliness of an APJ Live Video Sniff.

Pohadka by Ys-Uzac 2011

Photo Stolen fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Shiso (awkward pepperish mint)
Heart: Jasmine, French labdanum, artemesia, grass
Base: Immortelle, tobacco, sage, liatris, vanilla

Photo Stolen Ys-Uzac

You too can sample from Ys-Uzac Sample Page
As always bi fat juicy Thank Yous go out to my BFF Kath who videos and edits, TSO Jin who makes it blog ready and Robert “Radium” Maxwell, who just quietly is a fricken SPUNK!!

Here it is, hope you love it!
See you tomorrow.
Portia xx

Perfuming A Video and GIVEAWAY

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 22 Comments

Hey Hey Stink Junkies,

I have this great blog girlfriend in the USA who writes a blog called Sweet Mother about her amusing and often amazing life as a lesbian comedienne in love. She offers a raw and funny, sometimes inspirational and usually thought provoking blog almost every day. The other day she added this video that you may have seen; OK Go- Here It Goes Again. A rocking little tune that will definitely make your feet tap, head nod etc but the guys in the video and the video itself are hilarious and I thought we could fragrance them for fun.

Photo Stolen visualise

Pink Pants Guy: To my mind this guy is fearless and unrestrained (come on, Pink Skinny Jeans) and I think he’s probably pretty boundary pushing so I am giving him a choice between Annick Goutal Sables and Opium by YSL, both loud and fearless, and LOUD.
Purple Vest Guy: Looks a little more restrained and maybe even a bit old fashioned so I am giving him Christian Dior’s Eau Sauvage but he’s a musician so the Fraicher Cuir flanker that I think is endearing because it is a soft, leathery and sexy masculine frag but so old fashioned.
Black Blazer Guy: This guy is the most regularly dressed, like he put his foot down saying, “No stupid, weirdo, freaky crap clothes for me thanks.” I’m thinking conservative but a rare memory find like Caron’s Royal Bain de Caron.
Pink Shirt, Check Vest Guy: This guy is a sex mad lothario, I don’t know why I think it but there you have it. He is probably sporting Kouros by YSL or Givenchy Gentlemen or maybe Rocobar by Hermes. Maybe this is the perfumista of the crew and he is wearing an Olympic Orchid or Aftelier?

Photo stolen LucyDavey

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to give these guys fragrances that you think would suit them. Do so in the comments below. If one of you tickles me enough I may just have to send you a present. What about a 15ml mixed set of Australian artisan perfumers, uber niche stuff from down under. Do yourselves a favour and go check their sites by clicking on their names below.

Bud Parfums– 2ml Jezabel and 2ml Gamekeeper (Read APJ Gamekeeper Review and APJ Jezebel Review)
Emerald Vintners Parfums (EVP)– 2ml Baume (Read APJ Baume Review)
One Seed– 4ml Sweet Water (Read PerfumePosse Sweet Water Review)
Perfume & Skincare Company– 5ml Fig & Olive (Read APJ Fig & Olive Review)
P&H Anywhere In The World

THE RULES: Open to anyone from anywhere in the world but you must be a follower of AustralianPerfumeJunkies and yes you can start following to be included, please tell me how you follow so I can check eMail, RSS, WordPress etc. Tweeting will earn you an extra point (@OaPerfumeJunkie https://australianperfumejunkies.com/ are having a SUPER SIZED GIVEAWAY!!) Entries close Saturday night 17 November 2012 at 10pm EADST. All names that fulfill requirements will be put on papers, folded and TSO Jin will choose one. The winner will be announced Sunday in a special post and will have till Wednesday 21 November 9pm AEDST to get in touch with details or I will give the prize to someone else. All measurements are approximate.

BTW Margeaux and I are LIVE Video Sniffing at the Perfume Posse today so go see the MADNESS!

So GO TO IT. Enjoy the video too.
Till tomorrow we wish you Health, Wealth and Happiness. If things are crazy or crap remember that we’ll all be dead in 100 years and most of this won’t matter,
Portia xxx

Lavender Palm by Yann Vasnier for Tom Ford 2011

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 9 Comments

.

Guest Post by EmmaKate

Hello hello Fumies,

It is Emma Kate here again with my monthly review. This month, with thanks to Portia Turbo, I will be reviewing Tom Ford’s Lavender Palm.

Lavender Palm by Tom Ford 2011

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

The notes as listed on Fragrantica
Top notes: lavender, lemon, bergamot and clary sage
Middle notes: lemon blossom, pink nerium oleander
Base notes: vetiver, oak moss and olibanum, also known as frankincense

Barack Obama Photo Stolen Squidoo

This fragrance opens with a soft lavender, and builds quickly to this romantic full bodied floral. There is a citrus burst that pops through and slowly melds with the lavender to make this Lavender Palm sing.
A warm silky, slightly smokey sense makes me think of a cashmere scarf, the perfect weight for that in-between weather.
This fragrance is listed as unisex and I would have to agree, if anything this is more of a masculine scent to me. It reminds me of a freshly shaven man, in his Hugo Boss suit, freshly pressed white cotton shirt and a purple tie about to walk out the door for, or into, a big meeting. He is on top of his game.

Photo Stolen from gardenofeaden

In terms of wearability this fragrance lasted very well on my skin, which says something as I am a scent drinker! Around the eight hour mark, though I have read reviews of others saying it has lasted in excess of 12 hours.

Portia got my sample at David Jones, Market St, Sydney from Joel the world’s most helpful and desirable Tom Ford SA, most of the Tom Ford SA’s will happily make you a 2ml sample vial
SurrenderToChance also has Lavender Palm $6/1ml

Overall this is a stunning fragrance, one that I would give to a man in my life who needed a power boost 🙂 Below is a very interesting look into Tom Ford the creative.
Happy Smelling!
EKxx

Baiser Vole EdP by Mathilde Laurent for Cartier 2011 Perfume Review

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 30 Comments

Hiya Happy Huffers,

I have often liked or loved the Cartier fragrances. Declaration, Must De Cartier and a couple of the Hours Series have previously captured my attention. Recently I reviewed a lily fragrance and a commenter (maybe Undina or Dionne?) asked if I had tried the Cartier lily. In truth I had not so I went and ordered in my next sample haul from MyPerfumeSamples and it came in last week.

Baiser Vole EdP by Cartier 2011

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Pistils of the lily, citrus
Heart: Lily petals
Base: Green leaves of lily (musk not noted)

Fresh, green, bright, airy floral opening with a citric tang Baiser Vole EdP opens surprisingly powerfully but feminine, there is a waxy cellophane wrapping that is so like a lily that it’s uncanny. Not the huge funereal Casablance lily but maybe the Christmas Trumpet or a smaller Asiatic lily. Even though this is clearly aimed at a feminine market a man could wear Baiser Vole a enjoy the freshness and sparkle, a mans chemistry takes some of the milkiness away and adds something that I can’t put my finger on.

Though light, I am getting good sillage and scent bubble in the first couple of hours. Not a clean scent as such but it does evoke the cleanliness of fresh air and as Mathilde Laurent says in the video below, like smelling a huge vase of lilies; from buying, cutting stems, scorching, arranging and enjoying. It’s all here and lovely without being intrusive, after the initial hour or two wearable in all situations. If you were to spritz at home in the morning by the time you were at work, even in the most fragrance phobic of offices and close quarters, you would be at acceptable levels of fragrant. It’s like having a very good, rich and expensive lotion on that maintains its scent for about 4-5 hours before it becomes a whisper quiet, musky green shadow on top of your own bodies natural fragrance that stays way longer than you’d expect, up to 12 hours if you have originally spritzed with abandon.

This 5ml decant has almost disappeared in the last few days as I’ve written this review so I bought a bottle. What a super great summer, spring and autumn scent and on those cold days in winter it will bring back the soft, warm evenings of other months. Though its advertising has it as a languid evening love story I think Baiser Vole is much less dressed up than that, perfect with weekend casuals, work suit or gown.

Photo stolen Jai’s

For further reading NowSmellThis and GrainDeMusc

FragranceX had the best price I could find $60/100ml Tester
MyPerfumeSamples starts at $2/ml or $7/5ml

Do you have a favourite lily fragrance. I really love them but am only new to the genre, please leave me some that you like in the comments, and why you like them.

Till tomorrow we wish only your good dreams come true.
Loads of love,
Portia xx

Mathilde Laurent explains her vision when creating Baiser Vole

The Baiser Vole Mini Movie

Les Deserts D’Orient by Thierry Wasser for Guerlain 2012 LIVE Video Sniff

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 20 Comments

YIPEE! Welcome back,

EmmaKate and I are back in front of the camera proving to one and all that we love perfume but know only the outer edges of anything important relating to it. This time we put the Guerlain Les Deserts D’Orient under our microscope.

Photo Stolen aromamore

Yes, we know that bois means wood, now! Ha Ha Ha what a pair of dunderheads. Doesn’t matter. Enjoy this for what it is. Two mates having a sniff after work and a couple of bevvies, you are supposed to feel like you’re sitting at the table with us having a crisp, dry white/scotch/coffee/sparkling mineral water and we are all having a first go together. If it was perfect it wouldn’t be so much fun.

As always special thanks need to go out to Kath for filming and editing, EmmaKate for being a good sport and Jin for making it blog ready. Thanks gang!!

Gerome, The Harem Bath Stolen melbourneblogger

Here is a short featured accords list for each from 1000Flowers:
Rose Nacrée du Désert: Ispahan rose, saffron, patchouli, oudh, benzoin.
Songe d’un Bois d’été: cedar, jasmine, saffron, cardamom, leather, laurel leaf, oudh, myrrh, patchouli, leather.
Encens Mythique d’Orient: frankincense, musk, neroli, moss, saffron, Ispahan rose, amber

For further reading see 1000Flowers and OlfactoriasTravels

SurrenderToChance has a pack of all 3 at $13/.5ml of each

Whatever you do between now and tomorrow when you come back, make sure you take the time to do something YOU love. Even though you may be shit at it, like we are at doing perfume videos sometimes.
Portia xx

Ambre 114 by Gerald Ghislain and Magali Senequier for Histoires de Parfums 2001

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 18 Comments

Hey Hey Fume Addicted Family,

As it cools down up in the Northern Hemisphere and warms up in the Southern there is some crossover time where the temperatures are similar throughout the days and evenings, still brisk enough to take a cardigan with you but warm enough to often not need it. Now is one of my favourite fragrance wearing times because it seems the range that is comfortably wearable is limitless. Just recently I went in on a split from the lovely MH at FFF and I’m glad I did…

Ambre 114 by Histoires de Parfums 2001

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Nutmeg, caraway
Heart: Sandalwood, patchouli, vetiver, cedar, rose, geranium
Base: Tonka bean, amber, benzoin, vanilla, musk

I have been wearing Ambre 114 to work for the last 3 days and yesterday it even got Disco Nap and Bedtime wears, I will wear it to bed tonight too. If you are frightened of the harsh, powerful or scary reputation that amber has then this is a wonderful gateway amber. It goes on sweet and yummy, slightly burnt like the sugar on brulee, is pretty and leaves a fabulous sillage, at times there is a Shalimar-esque ice cream sweetness to Ambre 114 that never goes so far down the vanilla road but is looking at the signpost on the fork. Creamy, delicious but still cool and light. A contradiction in theory but beautifully brought to life by Gerald Ghislain and Magali Senequier. So smooth and subtle even in the opening and all the way through to dry down. There is never a harsh moment and tonight at work one of the lovely workmen said I smelled “like a rich and fancy lady.” WOW! That is the kind of compliment that could seriously have me buying a bottle if I weren’t already saving.

There are so many featured accords that pass me by when wearing Ambre 114, the 114 is the amount of separate ingredients, that I feel it would be churlish of me to try and parse this perfectly balanced, all weather, fresh and light amber fragrance. I feel comfortable and relaxed in it, as if I’ve been wearing Ambre 114 for years and have always smelled this good.

Maybe a little too fragrant for work but all other occasions will be well served, even dinner or a movie. Jeans or ballgown, Ambre 114 will fit right in. You will smell beautiful.

From LuckyScent: This mythical raw material improves a 114-element composition. A caravanserai of scents for this hot oriental intensifying the natural sensuality of grey amber, sweet perfume and tinted with exoticism. In the Orient, women used to burn incenses, myrrh and amber. It is an oriental vision of voluptuousness.

Photo Stolen balkanholidaysblog

OlfactoriasTravels and TheNonBlonde for further reading
HistoiresDeParfums has 60ml/87euro
LuckyScent has 60ml/$125
SurrenderToChance starts at $5/ml

Whatever you do today make sure you take a moment for yourself,
Love and hugs,
Portia xxx

It’s nearly the 10 year anniversary of the Sydney Gay Games and here is the Opening number of the Opening Ceremony starring Bob Downe. You’ll see me at the end. Unfortunately I couldn’t find us doing our spiel, it was pretty cool, I got the whole stadium to do a Mexican Wave and when they were at the stand up position they had to scream PORTIA!! One of the high points of my career.

Knowing by Jean Kerleo for Estee Lauder 1988

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 19 Comments

Hello Lovelies!

I have had a soft spot for the Estee Lauder (EL) fragrances since someone at a Lauder counter gave me a mini bottle of Beyond Paradise Blue and I wore it for a week while on holiday, came back home and purchased my first bottle, while not a signature scent it has had pretty high rotation through the years and I have a back up bottle because of its discontinuation. I also have a vintage Youth Dew and a couple of Brasil Dream due to its discontinuation too. The rest of the range has completely passed me by so far but because our Guest Blog writer Tim extols the virtues of EL I felt I’d missed something and so when I saw a little Knowing on eBay while buying something else from a seller, I grabbed it.

Knowing by Estee Lauder

Estee Lauder site says: When on a holiday trip in the south of France, Evelyn Lauder, was intrigued with a floral scent that wafted through the garden below her balcony. She searched for the source and found that it was the pittosporum flower, which she immediately knew could be the floral center of a wonderful fragrance.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Mimosa, pittosporum, rose, tuberose, plum, melon, coriander, green notes, aldehydes
Heart: Patchouli, iris, clove, laurel, jasmine, orris, cardamom, cedar, lily of the valley, bay leaf, orange blossom
Base: Sandalwood, vetiver, patchouli, oakmoss, civet, musk, orris, amber, spices

This is the last of its kind, a big brassy 1980s stand out floriental chypre. Everything but the kitchen sink perfumery, but maybe just the kitchen sink taps we wouldn’t want to go overboard.It opens bright, green, herbal and quickly the flowers come in too. The opening is surprisingly long lasting and instead of changing to the heart in a noticeable way Knowing moves gradually towards the sweet, cool, floral heart, cool as in both not warm and hip. Even the orange blossom here is cool. Have you ever been involved in a hot sweaty sex session with someone but your skin has stayed cool to the touch except where the two of you are joined? That’s how I feel Knowing by Estee Lauder is, so much action and almost complete forgetting of yourself but with a cool, unwarmed edge. You have to have a certain presence before you would wear Knowing or it would wear you, that’s how flamboyantly shoulder padded it is (Thank goodness the shoulder pad is coming back, I’ve missed them). There is an animalic undercurrent that serves only as building blocks at this point.

Much later in the day you will start to notice a warming of the flowers but not in a sweet way, its more a herbal and animal warmth and then the amber comes in and pumps a richness in until tomorrow morning when you shower it all off and start again.

In eastern Australia and on many international islands the Sweet Pittosporum has reached weed status, even though it is native here, causing shade, fire and outstripping local flora problems. It is so easy to grow and quickly reaches a height of 14 meters, so it is often used for screening hedges around the world

Photo Stolen ThePerfumeGirl

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ThePerfumeChronicles and TheMuseInWoodenShoes reviews for further reading
TheFragranceShop has 75ml EdP Tester under $60 after discount!
SurrenderToChance starts at $3/ml

I hope you have enjoyed your wander through my fragrant musings about Knowing.. My day has finished and I am still immersed in a fragrant cloud of Knowing. I can only hope that you smell this good to yourself,
Till tomorrow.
Love,
Portia xx

Gilded Lily by INeKE Ruhland 2010

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 25 Comments

Hello APJ Family,

I was blissfully unaware of this line of fragrance till Lanier posted about Field Notes From Paris (FNFP). Righto said I, better try this, sounds rather good. I did and was blown away by the quality, story and beauty of FNFP and have tried it a few times since because it did not then or now capture my heart. Not the fragrances problem, it has everything I wish for in a personal scent except I don’t love it. Since then I have also been trying…..

Gilded Lily by INeKE

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Pineapple, rhubarb, grapefruit, elemi
Heart: Goldband lily
Base: Patchouli, oakmoss, labdanum

Ha ha Ha I love the opening of sweet tinned pineapple and slightly tart grapefruit with beautiful, resinous elemi keeping it from slipping into modern fruity sugar nightmare. I wouldn’t know what fresh rhubarb smelled like if you hit me with some and I can’t smell the rhubarb from apple & rhubarb pie that Mum used to make. No matter the opening is FAN TAS TIC! Makes me want to respritz again and again. This glorious opening is just for the wearer though because within ten minutes the outrageousness has settled into a very pretty fruity floral and a cool, calm and collected lily steps up and ever so gradually takes centre stage and the whole fragrance takes about 6 notches down. This is a good thing because that initial fireworks section would have many people gasping for air.

Once the opening craziness ends Gilded Lily (which is a FABULOUS Drag name BTW) becomes almost skin scentish. It is the way I dream my skin smells, the lily is so soft and the base notes so airy that though I am still fragrant and will give a lovely sillage, up close it is soft enough to believe it could just be me with a very slight residue of my floral/fruit fragrance. Lasting power is good in this stage at somewhere between 4-7 hours depending on the day and my original spritzes. It’s leather more than anything else at the end, soft well loved leather that has been a seasons firm favourite and started to take on the wearers scent and fragrance a little.

Photo Stolen from wetcanvas

Only the most fragrance phobic or closest of work environs would have a problem with this lovely scent. A great all round beauty that has enough story to keep a perfumista interested but is pretty enough for a non perfume hound to enjoy it too. Have I mentioned that incredibly desirable bottle? It’s not often I like the soft ones but Gilded Lily has a quiet dignity, an aloof warmth that I think is extremely alluring and provocative without trying. Bravo INeKE! You have captured my heart and all it took was a Gilded Lily.

For further reading try TheNonBlonde or CaFleurBon

INeKE has 75ml $95 and a wonderful World Stockists page
Anthropologie has the range including the Sample Set and ships worldwide
SurrenderToChance starts at $3/ml

Which ones from the INeKE range have you tried? Is there a quiet fragrance that surprised you with its beauty? Tell us in the comments below please, we love to chat!

Till tomorrow we wish you well,
Portia xx