THE SWEET SMELL OF THE FREE STATE

I am not the most adventurous person when it comes to perfume. (OK, thats an understatement - I have been wearing the same fragrance for almost 12 years!!). But the reason is that I found a smell so intriguing to me, that I really had no desire to change it. The first time I smelt ANGEL, I was hooked. I can actually remember the place and time! Through the years I did try other fragrances, but none came close to my favourite smell. That is until my perfume obsessed friend took me into METROPOLITAN - the nicest shop to find all the beauty products that are hard to find in South Africa..

That was when I was introduced to ETAT LIBRE D'ORANGE. Everything about this perfume was so different, that I had to try it. The names are a welcome change from the boring old names that every perfume seems to have, and the visuals (though some people might find it a bit distasteful, or graphic!) got my attention. I smelt the Putain de Palaces (translation - Hotel Slut), and once again, I was hooked!

I bought it, and wear it everyday, but then I started doing some research, and to my surprise, I found out that the perfume house were founded by a guy who were born in South Africa - Etienne de Swardt! And that the literal translation of Etat libre d'Orange was; the orange free state!! WOW, who would have thought that the good old Free State would be the inspiration behind a cool perfume house like this?? With names like Jasmine and Cigarettes andThe fat Electrician, you can probably be a lot of things, but boring will not be one of them! Go and have a look at the illustrations on their site. And as far as I know it is only available at Metropolitan Cosmetics in South Africa. (sorry, I couldn't find their website, but they are in Sandton and Hyde Park)