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MariaLux/MariaL Mogadess Parfum

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All I want for Christmas is you

MariaLux Mogadess is a warm, rich luxurious spicy gourmand fragrance inspired by the riches of the earth with notes reminding me of soft almond nougat (Spanish turron) and oranges infused in chocolate. The notes make it a perfect Christmas fragrance and suited to wear on colder winter days. Mogadess means sacred. Although not groundbreaking, it is an interesting abundant fragrance which changes significantly during the day.

The fragrance was madeimage by Italian perfumer Alessandro Gualtieri and introduced in 2014. The beautiful bottle was designed by his wife Dutch designer Lilian Driessen and inspired by classic perfume bottles. Underneath the bottle the frase is written Everything I own smells of you. Each fragrance from the MariaLux line has a different text on the top of the box. The brand name MariaLux has been changed into MariaL due to legal (probably intellectual property law) reasons.

What does it do ?  It gives me the feeling of wanting to go out and have a luxurious party in a red evening dress.

The text on the bottle Everything I own smells of you reminds me of the song All I want for Christmas is you from the movie Love  Actually. Both Mogadess and Love Actually are very appropriate for Christmas.

Composition according to First in Fragrance: Top note: Orange Blossom, Red Pepper, Bitter Orange, Strawberry Heart Note: Marigold, Rosewood, Benzoin, Cacao, Cinnamon Bark Base Note: Cardamon, Cedarwood, Coriander, Tarragon, Sandalwood, Frankincense, Ambergris, Vanilla

Origin of sample: my own

Photograph: my own

 

 

Ormonde Jayne Tolu Scented Candle

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Ormonde Jayne perfumery is a London based fragrance company. It was founded by Linda Pilkington. She says about its foundation: ” my goal was to combine elements which define true elegance, the quality of English craftsmanship, the art of French perfumery and the sensuality and natural harmony of the Orient.” Ormonde Jayne has a collection of 16 fragrances at this moment including her Four Corners of the Earth Collection with the exquisite Nawab of Oudh.

Tolu is sold as an eau de parfum, body lotion, shower gel, bath oil and a scented candle. From time to time Tolu is offered as an extrait, as a gift with purchase. I have the eau de parfum, extrait (pure perfume) and scented candle.

Tolu is a precious Peruvian tree resin used as a raw perfumery material. The eau de parfum Tolu was created in 2002. At the beginning it smells quite rich, deep and powerful but light and fresh at the same time. Later it becomes more ambery, golden, smooth and sweet. The fragrance has the structure of caramel. It is suited for colder weather. I found the extrait – scented candle to have more similarities than the eau de parfum and the scented candle. The pure perfume and candle are both more amber and golden than the fresher eau de parfum. My personal impression is that the extrait and scented candle are more concentrated on the original balsamic base notes and fresher lighter herbal (top) notes have been added to the eau de parfum.

The painting The Golden Temple captures the essence of the scented candle beautifully; golden from the frankincense, orange from the orange blossom, the caramel smoothness from the tolu and amber.

THE Golden Temple

The large scented candle holds 260 grams of wax according to the Ormonde Jayne website and has 2 wicks to burn very evenly in my experience. If you burn it one hour it scents a large room. I bought my candle during an online sale last year, used it during the winter time and just started using it again. It is one of the best scented candles I own but comes with quite a price tag (48 British Pound Sterling / 60 euro). I would recommend to wait for an online sale and I understand one is coming up very soon. So check the Ormonde Jayne website if you plan to buy one. To me burning this candle is the ultimate indulgence. It would make an excellent Christmas or Sinterklaas gift as well.

Tolu candles can be bought in London or in Ormonde Jayne’s online store. More info at www.ormondejayne.com

Notes: (according to the official Ormonde Jayne website)

Top notes: Juniper Berry, Orange Blossom, and clary sage

Heart notes: Orchid, Moroccan Rose and Muguet

Base notes: Tolu, Tonka Bean, Golden Frankincense and Amber

Fragrance Family: Deep Oriental (Michael Edwards) Oriental Woody (Fragantica)

Perfumer: Geza Schoen

Painting: The Golden Temple by Henriette Hackenberg www.henriette-hackenberg.nl

Disclosure: all products mentioned in this article were bought by me