Contests: 47 posts

So, the first of our perfume boxes is continuing its travels, and Kate is now ready to pass it along to another person. Below, Kate is including her sampling notes and the list of perfume samples in the box. So, if you are in the US and would like to participate, here is how you can do it.

How does it work: To enter, please answer these questions: 1) are you in the US? ; 2) do you agree to pass the box onto someone else (and share your sampling notes with the rest of us)? and 3) what perfume are you wearing today and why did you pick it? Bois de Jasmin is on its fall break next week, so the thread is going to be open till we return on Monday, November 24th. I will pick the next box recipient via a random number generator.

When a winner is ready to pass the box onto someone else, they should get in touch with me. Please include the list of samples and your sampling notes (what you’ve discovered, what you’ve liked/disliked, any observations you care to include).

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I’ve randomly selected the first two destinations for our perfume boxes: Kate in the US (Bernadette’s box) and Hamamelis in the EU (Victoria’s box). Please contact me with your addresses, and Bernadette and I will ship your boxes.

Once you receive them, please sample everything to your heart’s content, keep a couple of samples and replace the ones you’ve taken with your own samples. If you’re new to making samples and decants and packaging them for shipping, please see this article.

Please take notes on what you’ve smelled, what you liked, didn’t like, etc. It would be great for all of us to learn from each other and just to have fun smelling together.

When you’re ready to let the box go (ideally, within a week or two), please contact me with the list of samples in the box and your perfume notes. This way, everyone, regardless of whether they’ve participated, can follow the adventures of the box. I will post a draw and select the next destination out of the responses via a random number generator.

Of course, if anyone wants to start their own traveling perfume box within your region or worldwide, please let me know.

Bois de Jasmin is not responsible for the boxes lost, stolen, held by customs or damaged. 

Thanks to many of you, we have been holding regular draws for perfume samples, and today we have another generous offer from Bernadette. When Bernadette moved to a new city two years ago, she felt lost and disoriented, and it was thanks to small pleasures like perfume that she was able to weather the initial transition period. She would like to offer her collection of samples to one of you. She also thought that it might be fun if a winner tried the samples, maybe kept 1 or 2 (and possibly added a couple of samples of their own), and then passed the box onto someone else. I thought that it was a terrific idea.

How does it work: Bernadette and I will prepare two packages of samples. Hers will be for a reader in the US, mine–for a reader anywhere else in the world. So, to enter, please answer these questions: 1) where are you located? (US, Europe, Asia, etc., you don’t need to include your city or any personal details); 2) do you agree to pass the box onto someone else in your country/region? and 3) how you do go about sampling fragrances–in stores, mail orders, exchanges with friends, etc? The contest is now closed. I will pick two winners via a random number generator, and announce them this week.

When a winner is ready to pass the box onto someone else, they should get in touch with me. Since this is our first attempt to do something like this, please feel free to offer suggestions and your ideas! I think that it will be a lot of fun.

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Thank you to everyone who participated in the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders fundraiser. Together we have raised $6,420! This money will be of much use to the organization, especially in light of its battle against the Ebola virus in Africa. These brave doctors are working in incredibly challenging conditions, and every dollar can make a difference.

It is my pleasure to announce two winners of the draw. The first person selected randomly will receive a bottle of vintage Guerlain Mitsouko extrait de parfum. The second person selected randomly will receive a brand new bottle of Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire (thank you, Ann, for donating it to this great cause). And the winners are…

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Final Update (September 25th): The draw is now closed. I’m going through all of the submissions, and I will announce the winner next week.

Update: Today is the last day to donate to Doctors Without Borders, an exceptional charity organization, and get a chance to win a bottle of rare, vintage Guerlain Mitsouko and La Petite Robe Noire (not vintage, of course, but brand new and still sealed). Thank you!

Update: This is a reminder that the draw for Mitsouko is still running. Thank you very much to everyone who participated. I tallied up the preliminary results, and we have raised $4,000 for Doctors Without Borders!

Meanwhile, we have had an extra contribution to the contest–a brand new, sealed 50ml bottle of Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire Eau de Parfum. It means that after drawing a winner for Mitsouko, I will select a second name for La Petite Robe Noire. Thank you for your generous offer, Ann!

It has been a violent year in different parts of the world, and for many months, I’ve been reading the news and feeling utterly helpless. What can one do to help in the face of such terrible suffering and strife? One of my most immediate responses was to donate money to a reputable charity organization. I thought that perhaps others may feel the same way.

I propose donating to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders, any amount you wish, and in return, you will be entered into a contest for a 30ml (1 oz) of Guerlain Mitsouko Extrait de Parfum.

It’s vintage, from the 1970s-early 1980s, in my estimation. Unopened. Has all of its tassels. It is a complete presentation, including the outer box. An old price tag shows $85, but 1 oz of modern Mitsouko costs around $350, while the vintage in this condition has collectible value. The best part is that the perfume has all of its oakmoss and other, now forbidden, bits intact. Since it has not been opened, I can’t tell exactly how it will smell, but it smells wonderful around the stopper, and it has been stored in a cool, dark place. It was purchased from a gentleman whose family owned a perfume boutique in Mexico and imported fragrances from France. All other perfumes I bought from his old stocks, including Guerlains, turned out to be exceptionally well-preserved and were pronounced as authentic by my perfumer colleagues.

It is one of the most precious perfumes in my collection, and I have been waiting to open it for a special occasion. But if the money it raises will go towards a good cause, then I have no regrets in parting with it.

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