Question:
Hi Y'all!

The time for another fun, funky, frustrating and yet fascinating week of immersion in an amazing perfume house / range has arrived!!! Yeee-hah!

We are hoping to run this initially for one week, with the post remaining a sticky until the following month (please, Tigrushka?!).

We thought we could make it a kind of hybrid week where people can either stay the course for the entire week and / or we could develop the thread as the Ultimate Ava Luxe Info thread and people can drop in throughout the month with reviews of all the Ava Luxe perfumes they own or have tried (just like Purplebird7's Montale thread).

Using most of the headings that Serena herself has used on her main fragrance page - the one you are taken to when you click on the fragrance subheading at the top of the front page:

http://www.ava-luxe.com/2005/fragrance.html

Schedule for Ava Luxe Week:
Saturday: Oriental / Amber
Sunday:Fruit / Citrus or Gourmand
Monday: Chypre or Vintage
Tuesday: Fresh / Clean or (Light) Musk
Wednesday: Green / Herbal or (Intense) Musk
Thursday: Spice or Woods / Resins / Incense
Friday: Floral or Tropical

I have doubled up some of the headings so that we can all experience, and share, at least one from each of the scent families / groups that Serena has listed, during the initial seven day intensive period. I have omitted the Luxe category as many of the Luxe beauties are represented in the other categories.

I have chosen a list of 60 - 70 ‘Best’ of Ava Luxe samples that people can chose those that appeal to them the most and then join in during the main seven days.

For those interested, listed below is the list of Ava Luxe recommended samples.
Ava Luxe Scent List
Moksha - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe,
Palisander - Woods / Resins / Incense
Fumari - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe
Firewood - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe
Red Tara - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe
Royal Parvati - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe
Sweet Amber Wood - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Tao - Woods / Resins / Incense
Ambre Antique - Vintage, Oriental / Amber
Green Grass of Summer - Vintage, Green / Herbal,
Ingenue - Chypre, Vintage
Chaos - Vintage
Biba - Chypre
Dark Chypre - Chypre
Film Noir - Chypre
Moss - Chypre
Midnight Violet - Chypre, Floral
Silk - Chypre, Woods / Resins / Incense
Angel Face - Light Musk, Floral
Gardenia Musk - Light Musk, Floral, Tropical
Roses - Floral
Orange Flowers - Floral
Lily - Floral
White Lilac - Floral
Queen Bess - Floral, Spice
Nude Musk - Fresh / Clean, Light Musk
Egyptian Musk - Fresh / Clean, Light Musk
China Rain - Fresh / Clean, Light Musk, Oriental / Amber
China Pearl - Fresh / Clean, Light Musk
Lotus - Fresh / Clean, Floral
Clementine - Fruit / Citrus
Citrine - Fruit / Citrus, Gourmand
Wild Blackberry Musk - Fruit / Citrus, Intense Musk
Wild Black Fig - Fruit / Citrus, Gourmand, Green / Herbal, Wood / Resin / Incense
Forbidden Fruits - Fruit / Citrus, Wood / Resin / Incense
Bergamot - Fruit / Citrus, Fresh / Clean
Café Noir - Gourmand, Wood / Resin / Incense
Luxe Chocolate - Gourmand
Loukhoum - Gourmand
Milk - Gourmand
Royal Vanilla - Gourmand
Turkish Vanilla - Gourmand
White (formerly Noel Blanc) - Gourmand, Oriental / Amber
Absinthe - Green / Herbal
Sweet Absinthe - Green / Herbal
Fig Leaf - Fruit / Citrus, Green / Herbal
Johri - Green / Herbal, Wood / Resin / Incense
Fig Wood - Woods / Resins / Incense, Fruit / Citrus
Kama / Kama Xtreme - Intense Musk, Luxe
Rasa / Rasa Xtreme - Intense Musk, Luxe
Incense Musk - Woods / Resins / Incense, Intense Musk
Incense - Woods / Resins / Incense, Luxe
Love’s Truish Blue Light - Light Musk, Oriental / Amber
Ambra Tibet - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Amber Essence - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Dark Amber - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Madame X - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber, Luxe
Opoponax / Opoponax Intense - Oriental Amber, Wood / Resins / Incense
Shisha - Oriental / Amber, Wood / Resin / Incense, Spice, Luxe
Sweet Patchouli - Oriental / Amber
Tokion - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Kretek - Spice, Woods / Resins / Incense
Indian Summer - Spice, Woods / Resins / Incense
Kashmir Spice - Spice, Woods / Resins / Incense
Red Carnation - Spice, Floral
Venus Sands - Tropical, Floral
Tubereuse Diabolique - Floral, Tropical
Vanille Coconut - Fruit / Citrus, Tropical, Gourmand
Tiare - Floral, Tropical
Pikake Lei - Floral, Tropical
Teakwood - Woods / Resins / Incense, Oriental / Amber
Cashmere Musk - Light Musk, Fresh / Clean
Camisole - Fresh / Clean, Floral

*********************


NB: Of course, participants are free to choose which ever scent they prefer. The above list is to help simplify things for those completely new to the Ava Luxe range of perfumes.

So now is the perfect time to discover and explore this amazing niche range...


--------------------------------------

A Huge thank you to moonlight_flower who submitted our first review:

Quote: Originally Posted by moonlight_flower It's Party Time!!!!!
Started the day wearing Madame X but the Civet, Ambergris & Castoreum combo decided to have their own party on my skin - result - a horrid stench. My DH told me to run to the bathroom & wash it off quick smart! Not a great start to trying different scents that take me way from my usual fragrance comfort zone!

I'm now wearing Vamp (for the first time) on my other wrist & will post my review on this one later on today.

Have fun everyone!!! --------------------------------------
Oh My Gosh! Great News my fellow fragrance fiends!

I just received this communication from the stupendous lady herself - Serena @ Ava luxe:

Quote: Originally Posted by Ava Luxe
[...] I’ve added the BASENOTES code as a permanent addition to the shopping cart.

Now Basenotes users will always be able to get 10% off of their orders.

I think it’s a wonderful idea, and I’m going to write about Ava Luxe week on my livejournal.

Thanks so much for creating this! J I’m excited!

Warm regards,
Serena Wooohoo!!! Thank you so much Serena!

I am hoping that this will encourage all you lurkers and procrastinators to get ordering and adding your reviews to this thread (and the Basenotes directory) even after this week ends...

I am also thinking that one week is just nowhere near long enough to really even scratch the surface of her extensive range of scents. So I am tentatively proposing that we revisit this fragrance house for another week later sometime this year - possibly around October. I think it would be a great opportunity to observe just how weather, season, temperature etc can have a measurable effect upon our experience and appreciation of a scent. Something to at least consider may be...

Answer:
Wow! Great news about the permanent 10% discount for Basenoters at Ava Luxe.
Well, I ended up layering a dab of Dark Amber on top of Vamp after wearing for an hour this morning. Vamp started out nice with the spicey amber note but then a strong sandalwood & vanilla smell drowned out the spices & amber. I didn't get any labdanum or cashmere musk & the sandalwood / vanilla combo was getting overwhelming & a little sickly. That's when I layered the Dark amber on top. Dark Amber on it's own is a rich straight amber - no florals or vanilla just amber. The combination of Dark Amber + Vamp worked very nicely on my skin, mainly amber with hints of subtle sandalwood, vanilla & the amber helped bring the cashmere musk out in the scent too. Adding the dark amber really toned down the strong sandalwood / vanilla note. The scent lasts a long time, it's been well over 6 hours + & I can still smell it on my wrist, plus the scent's strength hasn't faded either.
Am I the only Australian joining in on Ava Luxe week - I thought there would of been a couple more reviews by now???

Answer:
As I started a day early (naughty me!) I'll add my review of Friday's choice first.
Gardenia Musk
I was lucky enough to receive Gardenia Musk as a free sample, because I certainly wouldn't have chosen it myself. I'm neither a particularly floral person, and my ability to tolerate certain musks would have made me think twice about choosing a musk-based scent. However, this turned out to be delightful!
Being a Londoner, I am not that familiar with this lovely, tropical flower, but now that I've smelled this, I want to be! The musk is very understated, allowing the gardenia to take centre stage. It is a scent that smells both clean and opulent - my colleague complemented me on it saying this is what laundry would smell like if you had it done at Harrods!
Having used up the entire tester in one day, I am now left sadly sniffing an empty vial, and thinking seriously about investing in a bottle.
Well done, Serena - this is a winner!

Answer:
It is Ava Luxe Shisha for me this morning. In the last couple of days I have already tried Opoponax and Loukhoum and found their overwhelming vanilla both too similar to one another and too slow to dry off, but Shisha feels much better. I may have over-applied due to an accident with the tiny vial and its tight stopper (all Shisha is now gone), but I don't feel it is too much just yet. The effect of Shisha is subtle and graceful. The honey note is beautifully balanced with the amber and sandalwood so far.

Answer:
Thank you Serena, the permanent 10% off for BNers is a great idea!

I strayed off my schedule at once! I intended to start with Viva or Ambre Antique today, but am wearing Roses Perfume Oil instead:
Bergamot
Grass
Lemon
Honeyed Rose
Russian Rose Absolute
Turkish Rose Absolute
Bulgarian Rose Damascena Absolute
Bulgarian Rose Otto
Rose de Mai Absolute
Tea Rose
Rose Maroc Absolute
Chinese Rice Flower
Pepper
Cinnamon
Honey
Orris Root
Amber
Musk
Sandalwood
Moss
Incense
Peruvian Balsam

Despite the impressive list of notes, on my skin Roses turns out to be a great rose-amber scent. Vivid red roses crystallised in a layer of honeyed amber. The drydown brought forward a nice sandalwood alongside the amber.

I changed into Ambre Antique for the eve. It opens with a clear bergamot or lemon note paired with some fruit and rendered almost gourmand by a distinctly sweet amber. The amber becomes slightly more smoky and naughty in the heart, a floral canopy in the background. I haven’t been lucky enough so far to smell Coty’s Ambre Antique and I maybe never will, but Serena’s interpretation is good enough to be full bottle worthy for me.
Notes: citrus, berries, rose, ylang-ylang, orange flower, iris, sandalwood, vétiver, amber, vanilla.


Answer:
Will be sampling Shisha a bit later and will report back!
Forgot it started today and sprayed something else!

Answer:
A thank you to Serena and MoonDeva.
Just got a shipping notice that my 5 extra samples are about to go out, so I'll have to limp along on the two I have in hand even though it takes me out of prescribed thematic rotation.
Now for the really useless news: Orientals, as a class, leave me lifeless. No explanation. I'm wearing Madame X, I can appreciate it as professionally composed and beautifully executed. I don't have a problem wearing it. In fact, as Orientals go, it's not hard for me to wear. But since I don't have an appetite for this class, I'm going to trust my cohorts here to break it down in a qualified manner.

Answer:
Hi to fellow Aussie Moonlight Flower. Well day 1 off to a shaky start - accidentally set my alarm for 4.55am instead of 5.55. Got ready, and grabbed the next untried sample which was Turkish Vanilla. Trying to stick with the category of the day, I got home from tennis and grabbed Silk. Quickly realised - wrong again - and finally ended up with my only sample that fell into the Oriental/Amber category – White. It’s very nice for a chilly Melbourne afternoon. I get lots of chocolate and spice and some hint of a floral. A few hours later and I’m just getting chocolate. I can’t stand Angel but I could wear White. If you like gourmands you should give it a try.

Answer:
Wow!! Great job Moondeva - thanks for all the love and effort you have put into creating this experience. And many thanks to Serena - not only for her artistry but her generosity in extending the discount to us ardent admirers! I think her site - like her fragrances - is one of the most beautiful and well composed on the web!
I couldn't wait to get started in the glorious Madame X:
Notes:
Coriander
Acacia Farnesiana
Freshly cut hay
Jasmine
Rose
Labdanum
Leather
Incense
Patchouli
Oakmoss
Civet
Ambergris
Castoreum
Sandalwood Mysore
Precious Musks
Vanilla
Just look at all those exotics! This is one of my favoritest Orientals because it is so complex and subtle. The fresh hay note is apparent on me at the opening - the leather and roses quietly enter almost at the same time as the base notes - a throbbing mix of amber and musks. The sandalwood and vanilla are in the minor key and - thank heavens - the vanilla and sexy (to me) castoreum just enough present to add to the symphony. Not a lot of sillage but like a sexy secret clinging close.
This is how I feel:


Answer:
Shisha for me today - first reactions:
Powder
Then is it chocolate...anyone else getting a mocha chocolate note from this..?
Then something else sweet - very nice
Why isn't this classified as a gourmand, I smell like sugared icing
I'm headed out into the Miami heat - let's see how Shisha performs in the 80 degree heat...
OK update:
It disappeared in the heat, that's what happened. WTF? Where'd it go...?
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
Final thoughts: The sweetness resembled Elixir des Merveilles really closely - a scent I love. But I don't need 2 similar gourmands, so I probably wouldn't buy this. Also, I must say, the very LAST thing I thought this scent conjured up was a 'shisha'. The name is puzzling.