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Bourbon French Parfums - a taste of Louisiana

post #1 of 39
10/6/09 at 9:13pm
Thread Starter 
I was doing my usual browsing though the internet and I came across this perfume store that looked interesting. Their claim to fame is also producing a perfume for Anne Rice of 'Interview Of The Vampire' called Dark Gift and also Lestat. It looks so enticing ,plus their prices are reasonable and they do custom blending, they do body products to match . Apparently Dark Gift can be ordered as a custom perfume .

http://www.laoaks.com/fragrances.htm

Anyone had any experience with them at all ? I won't be able to order anything right now due to work commitments abroad,coming up real soon ,darn it but if I could, I think I would jump in there to test.
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post #2 of 39
10/6/09 at 9:19pm
I have a sample of their Kus Kus (part of the Bourbon French Collection) but I haven't smelled it yet. I think someone mentioned wearing it on Saturday, for Sniff-n-Speak, if I'm not mistaken...
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post #3 of 39
10/6/09 at 9:25pm
Thread Starter 
Perfume of Life has had a discussion about this store. I will definitely check them out when I get back to my normal routine ......
POL seems to love this store.

** I did a search and I think tdem has Mon Idee and another basenoter Gewisse has kus kus.
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post #4 of 39
10/6/09 at 9:43pm
I know Quarry is a fan. She visited their shop (and took pictures!) during a trip to New Orleans.
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post #5 of 39
10/6/09 at 10:01pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by tang View Post

I know Quarry is a fan. She visited their shop (and took pictures!) during a trip to New Orleans.

Tang - many many thanks I obviously did not search too well ! What fantastic pictures !
Quarry -it's fabulous ! I will have something to look forward to trying out when I get home ! : )
I have always wanted to go to Louisiana - nearly made it before Hurricane Katrina. It's on my 'to do / see' list of places to see.......

2 books I adore are The Witching Hour by Anne Rice and also Midnight In The Garden Of Good and Evil by John Berendt.
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post #6 of 39
10/6/09 at 10:15pm
Oh, I don't know if Quarry's post would have jumped out at you in a search. It's a couple of years old, and it just happened to stick in my head. It was fun for me to pull up that thread again and reread it.
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post #7 of 39
10/7/09 at 5:29am
Some day, children, Lilybelle and I are gonna haul all your butts to the French Quarter.
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post #8 of 39
10/7/09 at 5:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Some day, children, Lilybelle and I are gonna haul all your butts to the French Quarter.

You know it, Q. We are so there.

Yes, I am familiar with Bourbon French Parfums. They make very nice *old-fashioned* scents. I've tried a few, not all. Of the ones I've tried I like Kus Kus (which was my SnS amber choice), Marguerite (a green, slightly spicy scent), La Pluie (muguet/rain scent), Sans Nom (another spicy one). Visiting their shop is a must, imo, when you visit New Orleans. They merged with Lagniappe Oaks, which was another perfumery in Louisiana. Hové is another local perfumery in New Orleans that people love.
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post #9 of 39
10/7/09 at 5:59am
I have Bourbon French Marguerite, a gorgeous spicy soapy scent that I adore. I keep forgetting to order the parfum sampler

This:

http://www.laoaks.com/bfcollection.htm

I love their whole aesthetic and how darling is the website!

Thanks for reminding me!! The parfum sampler is super affordable and the Make Up Alley reviews are quite good regarding a lot of the scents.
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post #10 of 39
10/7/09 at 7:02am
Thread Starter 
How wonderful - yep - we all gotta get down to the French Quarter ! The whole website is so enticing . Quarry's pictures really made me smile. Of course when I saw they do gardenia perfume- I was won over too !
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post #11 of 39
10/7/09 at 7:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticknot View Post

How wonderful - yep - we all gotta get down to the French Quarter ! The whole website is so enticing . Quarry's pictures really made me smile. Of course when I saw they do gardenia perfume- I was won over too !

Mysticknot, I bought their White Gardenia fragrance in parfum some years ago when I was there, but it didn't rock my world. Nice, but no cigar, gardenia-wise. I gave it away. I think they have another (more more than one other?) gardenia fragrance. Haven't smelled them/it.
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post #12 of 39
10/7/09 at 7:12am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by lilybelle View Post

Mysticknot, I bought their White Gardenia fragrance in parfum some years ago when I was there, but it didn't rock my world. Nice, but no cigar, gardenia-wise. I gave it away. I think they have another (more more than one other?) gardenia fragrance. Haven't smelled them/it.

Oh you know me- any gardenia - I am willing to try it ! The whole French Bourbon package appeals to me plus their prices are so reasonable.
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post #13 of 39
10/7/09 at 7:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticknot View Post

Oh you know me- any gardenia - I am willing to try it ! The whole French Bourbon package appeals to me plus their prices are so reasonable.

Their prices are reasonable and the quality is good, imo.
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post #14 of 39
10/7/09 at 7:22am
Thread Starter 
It's good to know the quality is good too . I will definitely order some samples later when I have the time. Online perfume shopping and I are best buddies !
I love that they do custom blending too ...now there's food for thought !
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post #15 of 39
10/8/09 at 3:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Some day, children, Lilybelle and I are gonna haul all your butts to the French Quarter.

Me too, please!!!!!!
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post #16 of 39
10/8/09 at 4:00am
Their stuff is lovely; I gave their Kus Kus as a gift to a perfumer girlfriend, and Mimosa to RHM one year.
Their Vetiver is terrific, as is their Violet.
Dark Gift is delightful as well.

Count me in, in the trip !
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post #17 of 39
12/9/09 at 5:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Some day, children, Lilybelle and I are gonna haul all your butts to the French Quarter.

Me too, me too!!!

I just got an email from Bourbon French saying they have 10% off any order- so I think I may cave and get one of their parfum samplers

Is the packaging of the little parfums pretty? Do they come in a nice box? I only have a big bottle of Marguerite and haven't seen the little parfum bottles- but I wondered as I thought they might make a lovely gift
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post #18 of 39
12/9/09 at 6:27am
Yes, 3, your butt, too!!! Just took a snap of some great things in small packages. I don't have Bourbon French samples, but you can see one of their adorable 1/4-oz. perfume bottles below (Eleftorea). The two to the right are small samples from Hové. BF pretty much does everything in a beautiful way.

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post #19 of 39
12/9/09 at 11:22am
Quarry,
You've definitely pushed my travel button. Kitty and I've been talking about going back to New Orleans, maybe next fall, more likely in 2011. It's where we took our honeymoon trip! And you've added a couple of fragrance shops to our reasons for going.

My mother grew up in the Mississippi Delta and even she found NO too hot & humid in the summer. We were there between Christmas & New Years and were lucky with the weather. Any suggestions for the best month to visit?

Thanks.
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post #20 of 39
12/9/09 at 11:44am
I just sent an email to someone who lives there to ask her how best to avoid the hottest/stormiest weather. I'm sure others here can jump in with their thoughts, too.

Frankly, I wouldn't need much of a push to start a campaign for a New Orleans 2011 Basenotes national meet-up event.
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post #21 of 39
12/9/09 at 12:20pm
HERES HER WEATHER ADVISORY

Hi, Ms. Joy,

We have had up and down weather for the past two weeks. Even last weekend it snowed a tiny bit on the Northshore and at my parent's house. Then we have a day like today, where it is 75.

I would say the best times of year to visit the city, weather wise, would be away from Hurricane season and the hot weather, November and December are usually nice. January can be a bit colder. February through early May is probably the best season to come down here. It is usually in the 60s and 70s. But we have our weird cold spells, but they end by mid-February.

Hope that helps!

GEAUX SAINTS!!

Nicole
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post #22 of 39
12/9/09 at 1:04pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Yes, 3, your butt, too!!! Just took a snap of some great things in small packages. I don't have Bourbon French samples, but you can see one of their adorable 1/4-oz. perfume bottles below (Eleftorea). The two to the right are small samples from Hové. BF pretty much does everything in a beautiful way.


Oh yummy bottles Quarry - look at that !
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post #23 of 39
12/9/09 at 6:11pm
Ooh, sounds like maybe late March through early May would be best. Wouldn't this be fun? I just might commit to a meet-up, with some planning.
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post #24 of 39
12/10/09 at 4:27am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Yes, 3, your butt, too!!! Just took a snap of some great things in small packages. I don't have Bourbon French samples, but you can see one of their adorable 1/4-oz. perfume bottles below (Eleftorea). The two to the right are small samples from Hové. BF pretty much does everything in a beautiful way.


Oooh soo lovely! Hm, they have the little sets of 1/8 oz parfums for a sinfully tiny amount of money. I love the retro labels and bottles- they do have what I perceive as Southern ladylike charm.

Is my timing off or can I pretend Scarlett O'Hara might have worn one of their little beauties? I love reading about how "old fashioned" the perfumes are, in an age of pink pepper and modern chypres (not that there is anything wrong with that ) it's nice to know powdery, spicy and ladylike is still out there.
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post #25 of 39
12/10/09 at 6:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by 3xasif View Post

Is my timing off or can I pretend Scarlett O'Hara might have worn one of their little beauties? I love reading about how "old fashioned" the perfumes are, in an age of pink pepper and modern chypres (not that there is anything wrong with that ) it's nice to know powdery, spicy and ladylike is still out there.

I think this is one of those “spirit, if not the letter, of the law” things. The spirit feels right.

I'm feeling a groundswell. Dare we start rumors of a March 2011 meet-up in NOLA?

[UPDATE: SEE DECEMBER 2010 NOTE FARTHER DOWN]
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post #26 of 39
12/10/09 at 7:48pm
OK, someone suggest hotels. Do people pamper themselves somewhere appropriate to Louis XXIV? Or sleep in tents and spend all their money on 'fumes? We need wheel chair access, so most B&Bs don't work. I remember the Royal Sonesta in the French Quarter as modern, elegant and bright. But that was almost 20 years ago.
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post #27 of 39
12/10/09 at 8:38pm
I want to go down there also. I also want to order the sampler pack of six petits parfums. Very enticing.
Do they still sell Dark Gift? That sounds like something i would enjoy also; i love deep exotic incense like scents, plus i always wished to be eternal (and young).
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post #28 of 39
12/11/09 at 12:48am
Yes, I've heard of that store before.

I would highly recommend Slap Ya Mama cajun spice, my friend sent it to me from Louisiana with Osmanthe Yunnan. Been using both ever since, love. =)

http://www.slapyamama.com/
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post #29 of 39
12/8/10 at 5:25am
Hmmm...replied to this yesterday, my post ended up in the ether somewhere. I have been to NOLA many times, just got back from a trip last weekend. Hotels: I've stayed at the Provincial (Upper Quarter, off Chartres) and the Chateau Le Moyne (2 blocks south of Rampart, off Bourbon), which is a Holiday Inn. The rate for a double room there (3 days ago) was around $170. Both are smaller, more intimate places; the big hotels are around Canal St. I'd guess that the Chateau Le Moyne has better handicapped access. Cabs are cheap and they are everywhere, so there's no need to have a car unless venturing out to other parts of the city. Magazine St. for example -- lots of thrift shops, etc, less tourists. The Royal Sonesta is ON Bourbon St., btw, noisy, crowded -- roars all night, especially on weekends.

There is a Saks at the mall near the casino. Bourbon French is a small shop with their own fragrances, in the Quarter. The Quarter is touristy, but, let's face it, if you don't live there you're a tourist. It's pretty, funky, walkable and there are a million places to eat and drink. Also some nice shopping, although overpriced.

Weather: between November 1 (safe from hurricanes) and maybe mid-April, excluding Mardi Gras time and the JazzFest. Generally temperate, sometimes cold or warm spells. Never in summer!
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post #30 of 39
12/8/10 at 7:35am
Quarry, I suppose we'd better set a date if we're going to do it. March seems a bit soon. Fall would be better for me, but we can see who all is interested and what dates work best for everybody. Gosh, reading through all these posts and looking at the pics in the linked thread really has me salivating (thinking about the food, too, of course!). Can I bring DH? He loves New Orleans, especially the three-fer beers on Bourbon Street, lol! He made me drink beer (literally poured it down my throat - jk) because he couldn't get over the fact that he could buy three for the price of one. I bought that Tea Olive cologne (edt?) from Hové some years ago. I loved it so much when I was there in that humid environment, that place and time, but not as well when I got back home to the cold north. It just wasn't the same. The soap was lovely!
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post #31 of 39
12/8/10 at 7:45am
December 2010 update thoughts:
WE GOTTA DO THIS!

I suppose I'd better start a new thread with a lucrative title and get a feeling from peeps as to which weekend we should target.
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post #32 of 39
12/26/11 at 8:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mimi Gardenia View Post

I was doing my usual browsing though the internet and I came across this perfume store that looked interesting. Their claim to fame is also producing a perfume for Anne Rice of 'Interview Of The Vampire' called Dark Gift and also Lestat. It looks so enticing ,plus their prices are reasonable and they do custom blending, they do body products to match . Apparently Dark Gift can be ordered as a custom perfume .

http://www.laoaks.com/fragrances.htm

Anyone had any experience with them at all ? I won't be able to order anything right now due to work commitments abroad,coming up real soon ,darn it but if I could, I think I would jump in there to test.


I have Kus Kus as well. My husband was in the area on business and I asked him to stop in an pick up the smallest bottle of what he thought I would like. I liked it. It was a powdery, warm fragrance. He enjoyed sampling and said the staff were friendly and enjoyed helping him out on his quest. It did smell old world and unrefined. It was a curiosity purchase, that's all.
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post #33 of 39
12/26/11 at 8:20am
Kus Kus is great. Quite a few Basenoters are enjoying that one now.

I just had fun reading through this thread again and remembering when our meet-up was still just a nascent glimmer in the eye.
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post #34 of 39
12/26/11 at 5:50pm
Wow, blast from the past, indeed.

BFP rocks!
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post #35 of 39
12/26/11 at 5:53pm
I also enjoyed seeing this thread revived, since I was at the meetup. Kus Kus is my favorite from the sample pack, and I will probably buy a bottle of both the parfum and the EDT when I run out. I've been enjoying the La Pluie soap, too - a very light, clean floral.
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post #36 of 39
12/26/11 at 6:06pm
Matildaben, I love La Pluie. I'm sorta regretting not getting that one. I can always order one when my sample runs out.
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post #37 of 39
12/26/11 at 6:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quarry View Post

Some day, children, Lilybelle and I are gonna haul all your butts to the French Quarter.

And so they did!
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post #38 of 39
12/29/11 at 7:29am
Quote:
Originally Posted by rtamara41 View Post

and so they did!

lol
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post #39 of 39
1/5/12 at 10:12am
Anyone ever tried BF's Voodoo Love? It's sex in a bottle. Lots of cloves, civet. I had a small sample sent to me in a swap. Men complimented me when I wore it.
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