Grab Bag LIVE Video Sniff

Hey Happy Huffers,

Today EmmaKate and I take a little look at 3 entirely different perfumes, not only in scent but in price and availability. As usual we only give you the top notes and development is left for full posts which may happen in the future.

If we have made mistakes, left anything out or generally have misfired in any way, please leave us a message in the comments so everyone else can have a good laugh at us too. We don’t mind but we do like be put straight when we’re wrong.

Photo Stolen Fragrantica

Jennifer Aniston (NOT- Lolavie) – Jennifer Aniston 2010
Fragrantica gives these featured accords
Top: Citruses, rose
Heat: Jasmine, violet, lily
Base: Musk, sandalwood, amber

Photo Stolen fragrantica

Amber Oud – by Killian 2011
Fragrantica gives these featiured accords in one line:
Amber, oud, Madagascar vanilla, benzoin from Laos

Photo Stolen news.bbc.co.uk

Jackeroo – Bud Parfumes by Howard Jarvis
Fragrantica gives only the note leather
Buy Jackeroo $20/10ml at Bud Parfums

This week we have some really exciting stuff happening on the blog. I hope you come back and have a squiz,
Loads of love,
Portia xx

Advertisement

In The Mail: New Arrivals

Hey Gang,

It’s all been mad CER AY ZEE around here lately. I’ve been getting some great new gigs, TSO Jin has been studying for his final electrical exams and our lovely homestay boy has been off working on movie sets as well as attending to his studies. Spring has sprung and as the weather warms and the liquidamber in the front yard puts forth lovely green leaves we should be in the pool in a couple of weeks. YAY!!! We have seen a couple of 28^oC/82^oF days and life looks good.

One of the amazing things about being in the perfumista world is the swapping that goes on. Say I have a bottle of something and a few samples that I think will suit one of my buddies; decant, wrap & into a post pack and away. It’s so great getting a little fragrant package from someone who knows your scent preferences, wants to help educate you or simply wants to share the love. I’ve had a few of these super packs lately and would like to share a few of my new discoveries. To understand the ratings please jump across to the APJ Ratings System Page.

At The Beach 1966 by CB I Hate Perfume (Thanks Sonya) Has a lovely fresh citrus-like opening that quickly gives a salty blast and something vaguely white floral. I don’t get the Coppertone analogy, or, um, maybe, OK I get it! Ha Ha Ha The whole white sauce sun protection we used to be covered in by our Mum’s, the sand everywhere, seashells, surf, sun, the big fluffy striped towels with fringing. It’s all here. MEMORIES! And after 5 hours wear it smells like the bug spray we wore too. Still pumping soft white flowers and seawater 9 hours later. CB I Hate Perfume 100ml/$80. S=**** L=***** D=****

Interlude Man by Amouage (Thanks Ruth) OH BOY!! The opening of Interlude Man featuring Oudh from the outset melded beautifully with the oregano and spicy pepper. Get your money and buy this fragrance now, man, woman or child. My tummy has got butterflies and I am having a Stendahl Syndrome moment (Thank you Denyse Beaulieu for the SS reference). Full report soon. Amouage 100ml/215 Euro.  S=***** L=**** D=*****

LouLou by Cacharel 1987 (Thanks Amanda) What a fragrance. Pow when it opens with what seems like everything ever put into a perfume, in bags. Such an outrageously OTT spicy floral that is a super statement fragrance. I can’t believe the girls we grew up with used to think this was a soft girly fragrance, it’s a powerhouse based on the tiare flower, though not including it. Still available to buy in the shops but mine is a vintage 90’s bottle. Sweetness lingers for hours and hours. FragranceNet has 50ml/under $50 S=**** L=**** D=****

Jezebel by Bud Parfums (Thanks Howard) I normally shy away from a burst of fruit as an opening gambit by a fragrance but Jezebel opens so lushly that it already feels lascivious, but wait, there is something dirty hiding behind the fruit. A very naughty girl who has sprayed herself with fruit to do THE WALK OF SHAME. When people talked about Ho Panties in fragrance I kind of understood but now I know. It hits you sneakily and remains behind the glow and glamour of nearly spoiled fruit. Everything about Jezebel is a little overblown, pardon the pun. Probably wear this at home or on the prowl ONLY!! After the initial rush and gush I end up with an enjoyable sweet musky dry down that sticks around for a few hours and then disappears. BudParfums 100ml/$100 S=**** L=*** D=****

What has been on your fragrant agenda, anything new? Have you received a scented care package? What was in it? What do you wish had been in it? Leave us a message because the conversation is often more interesting than the post,
Take care till tomorrow,
Portia xx

PS All Photos Stolen Fragrantica

Bud Parfums “Gamekeeper” Review; Thursday GIVEAWAY COMPETITION

Hello everyone,

Evie C’s super interview with Howard Jarvis on Monday reminded me I haven’t reviewed any of the samples I ordered from Bud Parfums. What a ning-nong I am sometimes, so I thought as a part down-payment on my full Bud Parfums story I’d give you a sneaky peek at one of my favourite scents from the range.

GAMEKEEPER

“Then, one day, a lovely sunny day with tufts of primroses under the hazels, and many violets dotting the paths, she came in the afternoon to the coops and there was one tiny, tiny perky chicken tinily prancing round in front of a coop.
The keeper, squatting beside her, was also watching with an amused face the bold little bird in her hands. Suddenly he saw a tear fall on to her wrist.
And he stood up, and stood away, moving to the other coop. For suddenly he was aware of the old flame shooting and leaping up in his loins, that he had hoped was quiescent for ever. He laid his hand on her shoulder, and softly, gently, it began to travel down the curve of her back, blindly, with a blind stroking motion, to the curve of her crouching loins. “Shall you come to the hut?” he said, in a quiet, neutral voice.”
‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ by D.H.Lawrence

Richard Ansdell’s English Gamekeeper  via goldenagepaintings

This is how Gamekeeper is introduced on the Bud Parfums website and strangely it fits. There is the creak and crack of citrus branch, also the fruit, juice and leaf, humus rich oakmoss, warming resinous labdanum, the musk and clean bright patchouli round the whole lovely, sexy concert out. In truth I don’t know what palmarosa oils smell like so I can’t attest to their inclusion (apparently it smells like Geranium Leaf and is used instead of endangered Rosewood). The fragrances don’t really form a pyramid within Gamekeeper, they are more like tendrils of scent interwoven that spike up occasionally through the life of the scent story, you think they’ve gone but back they come changed, lightened or darkened, in different combinations. This is like a book where firstly you are introduced to all the characters, then throughout they are placed together in different groupings or sometimes nearly alone.

Although this is marketed as a masculine, and there are moments of truly manly cologne-ish glory, this seems to me like a fragrance that would work deliciously and decorously on women, there is a flapper feel to Gamekeeper. It’s very sexy, almost sexual, and has a light skank alert that I find riveting. As if the fragrance has gone inside the cottage with them to partake in the fun but not stayed till the end.

The website and Fragrantica give the same information.

If you go to the Bud Parfums website choose any size refill and it will take you to the fragrance lists. Also, bottle purchase is separate, such a wonderful idea, so you get to choose. AWESOME!

I’ll finish up this review with the first gamekeeper to steal my heart, Rupert Graves played D H Lawrence’s sublimely delicious gay gamekeeper in the movie Maurice. I spent years searching for just such a specimen, and while the search was rewarding in and of itself, the closest I have ever come is now a blogger himself, the one who inspired me to start writing this blog. I hope he’s reading.

Rupert Graves, Maurice 1987 Stolen from IMDb

Another excellent and enjoyable week here for me, I hope for you too, and we’ve looked at a lovely bunch of fragrances. Here’s you chance to win a small selection of them. In fact, this week there are 6 great reasons to enter our….

THURSDAY GIVEAWAY COMPETITION!

In honour of our Annick Goutal Review we are putting a 1.5ml spray decant of Annick Goutal’s Passion in
From Sunday Quicksniff Reviews 3ml spray decant of Fracas for Men by Robert Piguet
and 1.5ml spray decant of Eau Mega by Viktor & Rolf
Evie C did a lovely interview with Howard Jarvis from Bud Pafums so a 1.5ml spray decant of Bud Parfums Gamekeeper
and lastly, the remains of my by Kilian Water Calligraphy manufacturers sample
and Aedes de Venustas EdP sample from the Extraordinaries That Arrived By Post

Plus P&H anywhere in the world.

How do you win? Simply leave a short comment on your favourite gamekeeper, in life, film, novel or story, or if that’s too hard just leave a Hello in the comments. I do love to read your contributions though so do try.

If you win you must get in touch by Wednesday 23.5.12 or I’ll give your prize to someone else. As TARA didn’t get in touch last week her prize will go to Penny Cascio.

See you all tomorrow,

Portia xx

Australian Perfumers: Howard Jarvis of Bud Parfums

By Evie C.

Portia recently discovered the wonderful Bud Parfums, based in the Australian state of Victoria.  Howard Jarvis, Bud Parfums’ founder, was kind enough to let us add him to our series on Australian perfumers.  Enjoy!

Howard Jarvis developed his love of fragrance early – at the age of three he was found eating jasmine flowers in his grandmother’s garden.  Despite his early interest, however, he lived several different lives before finally deciding to seriously pursue his love of perfume.  He was variously a bricklayer, builder, photographer, naturopath, homeopath and herbalist.   He even consulted to the Sultan Brunei on medicinal uses for Brunei’s rainforest plants.  By the time he decided to focus on fragrance, he had 15 years experience as a naturopath and a long-held fascination with the oils of Australian native plants on which to base his company, Bud Parfums.

Jarvis says he is self-taught as a perfumer but names Jonathan Midgley of Brisbane-based fragrance laboratory Damask Perfumes as an important mentor.  “My mentors and inspiration come from the genius of Jonathon Midgley and avant-garde perfumers who buck the trends like Jean-Claude Ellena and Christopher Brosius. These three are changing perfumery as we know it into something finer.”  Jarvis also cites independent perfumers Andy Tauer and Neil Morris as favourites.  “I do admire the boldness and the perfumes of Tauer and Morris. They’re both introducing people to new experiences.”

Jarvis is not a huge fan of mainstream perfumes. “Mass market perfumes seem to be a little boring at present. I see the same things rehashed with a new ad campaign. I was impressed by the difference of Angel when it first arrived.”  His personal signature scents are constantly changing, he says, “I have a brief ‘fling’ with each new perfume I create. I’ve had a long ‘affair’ with Shalimar ever since I was knee-high. Our perfume Sophia is a tribute to the beauty of Shalimar.”

As to the business of making it as a perfumer in Australia, Jarvis says, “Australian perfumers can make a living, however it takes years to build a reputation or become known by the rest of the world. Blog sites are fast changing this situation – the world is now as small as the click of a mouse.”  Bud Parfums is presently primarily an online business.  Jarvis says he will continue to run online for another two years until his customer base is large enough to support opening a shop.  “My plan is to have a 19^thcentury apothecary where tourists can come to Warburton and watch me making perfumes.”

Bud Parfums’ devotees include all types and range in age from 8 to 90 years old.  “We sell slightly more perfumes internationally than in Australia,” says Jarvis. “The Europeans love rich, deep, dark perfumes, while Brazilians love fruits. Our Asian customers enjoy light, airy, soft scents. I think climate and cultures influence perfume buyers.”

Jarvis has a line of perfumes for men and women with names ranging from the strident – ‘Ugly Bastard’ – to the delicate – ‘Elysium’.  His latest scents, ‘Scarlet’ and ‘El Diablo’ were the result of a long Warburton winter.  “Each day here it either rained or snowed. I was craving spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, clove etc. Scarlet is a gypsy dancer and El Diablo is her torrid partner. It took a long time to fine-tune both and I only just managed to have them ready for the cold European Christmas. Our German friends at www.parfumo.net loved them both.”

Jarvis says he can still be found nibbling on jasmine flowers from time to time and no doubt they’ll continue to aid his inspiration as he brings more Australian scents to life.

Howard Jarvis of Bud Parfums