Most days I dub myself a "therapeutic blender". What does this mean? Each day that I am blending I am making products that are specifically for treating ailments and emotional struggles designed for a designated individual. I am working from a background of that individual and am keeping all elements; mind, body spirit, in mind for them.
I know a bit of their history, any pertinent medical struggles and have a specific goal, therapeutically, which will be supported by the blend itself.
It is no secret, to those that know me, that I am affected deeply by aromas/ scents. I am emotionally moved and taken to an amazing place by alluring smells around me. That place can be intoxicating for me when it comes to a pleasing scent or on the other end a paralyzing migraine by a scent that isn't so pleasant or chemical based. If you have ever been moved by a song or by a photograph, a piece of artwork. You know what I am referring to when discussing how scent can affect the human psyche and physical body.
This ability to be moved by an aroma can work both ways as I mentioned above. The scent of dirty dishes can throw me right over the edge of my patience threshold thus causing a negative reaction. I can blow up into a tornado of a temper tantrum over it's foul stench. So, in this case the aroma would be dubbed an "odor" of unpleasant exposure.
As I blend:
Lately, as I find myself making blends for my beloved clients and my blending area is filled with rich and glorious aromas. I become emotionally connected to each and every scent. I find myself feeling different emotions depending on the Essential oil I am being drawn to that day. Many case studies have been done on the emotional connections between certain Essential oils and our emotional response. Thus allowing Essential oils to be supportive in situations of high stress, anxiety , ADHD, PTSD and so many more emotional and brain trauma disorders. I had the honor to listen to Dr. Florian a noted Aromatherapist/ Psychiatrist discuss his experiences with this phenomenon as he works with his mental health patients using the Essential oil of Paolo Santo, in his Psychiatry practice a few months ago at Beyond Aromatics.
Recently, as I blend for a client, I find myself automatically setting up what a perfumer would call an "organ". It is a line of bottles, resins plant materials stacked in such a way which allows the creator to pull from different elements and to blend as a note is needed in their creation. They are arranged by their scent description. Some being thought of as "fresh, aldehyde, amber, fruity, spicy, woody, and animalic" and so on. Here in this moment I will blend a scent for the pure joy of it, as a "perfume" and bring it around for my friends to enjoy. This is a recent development for me in this fascination with perfuming. My intrigue stems from the deep emotional connection I have to the aromas and their impact on our body systems. How, for me, perfumes of the modern type can be very overwhelming and chemicalized. The type made form Essential Oils are both moving emotionally and also can be therapeutic. This is the beauty of the multi-faceted layers of action when nature is involved.
I know a bit of their history, any pertinent medical struggles and have a specific goal, therapeutically, which will be supported by the blend itself.
It is no secret, to those that know me, that I am affected deeply by aromas/ scents. I am emotionally moved and taken to an amazing place by alluring smells around me. That place can be intoxicating for me when it comes to a pleasing scent or on the other end a paralyzing migraine by a scent that isn't so pleasant or chemical based. If you have ever been moved by a song or by a photograph, a piece of artwork. You know what I am referring to when discussing how scent can affect the human psyche and physical body.
This ability to be moved by an aroma can work both ways as I mentioned above. The scent of dirty dishes can throw me right over the edge of my patience threshold thus causing a negative reaction. I can blow up into a tornado of a temper tantrum over it's foul stench. So, in this case the aroma would be dubbed an "odor" of unpleasant exposure.
As I blend:
Lately, as I find myself making blends for my beloved clients and my blending area is filled with rich and glorious aromas. I become emotionally connected to each and every scent. I find myself feeling different emotions depending on the Essential oil I am being drawn to that day. Many case studies have been done on the emotional connections between certain Essential oils and our emotional response. Thus allowing Essential oils to be supportive in situations of high stress, anxiety , ADHD, PTSD and so many more emotional and brain trauma disorders. I had the honor to listen to Dr. Florian a noted Aromatherapist/ Psychiatrist discuss his experiences with this phenomenon as he works with his mental health patients using the Essential oil of Paolo Santo, in his Psychiatry practice a few months ago at Beyond Aromatics.
Recently, as I blend for a client, I find myself automatically setting up what a perfumer would call an "organ". It is a line of bottles, resins plant materials stacked in such a way which allows the creator to pull from different elements and to blend as a note is needed in their creation. They are arranged by their scent description. Some being thought of as "fresh, aldehyde, amber, fruity, spicy, woody, and animalic" and so on. Here in this moment I will blend a scent for the pure joy of it, as a "perfume" and bring it around for my friends to enjoy. This is a recent development for me in this fascination with perfuming. My intrigue stems from the deep emotional connection I have to the aromas and their impact on our body systems. How, for me, perfumes of the modern type can be very overwhelming and chemicalized. The type made form Essential Oils are both moving emotionally and also can be therapeutic. This is the beauty of the multi-faceted layers of action when nature is involved.
The making of Perfumes has a rich history:
"The word perfume comes from the Latin “per fumum,” meaning through smoke. It originated about 4000 years ago among the Mesopotamians in the form of incense. The original aromatic essences used in perfumery were herbs and spices like coriander and myrtle; flowers were not used until much later. Perfumery, the art of making perfume, then traveled to Egypt where it was initially only used in rituals for the gods or pharaohs. Indeed the ancient Egyptians had a God of Perfume, Nefertem. Nerfertem didn't begin his mythical life as a God, but through legend and by his association with the highly aromatic, and possibly narcotic, blue water-lily flower, he rose to become the divine representation of perfume and luck. The personal wearing of scent was first recorded by the Egyptians who put flowers, herbs, and spices into wax cones that they wore on their heads; as the wax melted the aromatic mixture flowed out and perfumed them. "
"The word perfume comes from the Latin “per fumum,” meaning through smoke. It originated about 4000 years ago among the Mesopotamians in the form of incense. The original aromatic essences used in perfumery were herbs and spices like coriander and myrtle; flowers were not used until much later. Perfumery, the art of making perfume, then traveled to Egypt where it was initially only used in rituals for the gods or pharaohs. Indeed the ancient Egyptians had a God of Perfume, Nefertem. Nerfertem didn't begin his mythical life as a God, but through legend and by his association with the highly aromatic, and possibly narcotic, blue water-lily flower, he rose to become the divine representation of perfume and luck. The personal wearing of scent was first recorded by the Egyptians who put flowers, herbs, and spices into wax cones that they wore on their heads; as the wax melted the aromatic mixture flowed out and perfumed them. "
There are so many reasons to wear perfume today. Some wear it as a status symbol and others to cover bodily odor. However, most wear perfume to enjoy it for themselves or to attract those of the opposite sex or as an aphrodisiac. This mode I most related to is for personal enjoyment. In the past when I purchase a scent for myself it is because it MAKES ME SMILE. The scent lifts me up. This is what I am most interested in when I am creating scents. A change in mood. Whether it is a lift in mood or a calming sensation or, as mentioned before, as a love potion. What a wonderful conceptual study.
I, by no means, am a "perfumer" by trade. I don't have the knowledge or training. However, I enjoy the idea of learning more and have been dabbling with the notion of creating beautiful, deep, complex concoctions for myself to experience. As I continue to reapply them and observe the amazing way that the Essential Oils evaporate, absorb and mix with my chemistry. I am a musician because my mother was a musician both classically and formally as I grew up. She taught at our house and she performed professionally and I watched her on stage. She played beautifully. The speech of music applies perfectly to scent. I can see why it was chosen to describe art of perfumery.
The language of perfume:
The combination of ingredients are called a "composition". Three notes reveal themselves to us over different lengths of time. First the top or "head" note. It is the initial impression of the blend which we will smell right away. First impression so to speak. These are the Essential Oils in the blend which are highly volatile, have tiny molecules and evaporate quickest. Next we will sense the middle notes or "heart notes" . These will come to us just as the top notes are leaving. These are evident anywhere in 2min to an hour after applying the scent. Base notes or "bottom or dry down" will then be evident when the middle note are fading away. These are normally fixatives and used to help to weight the scent and help it keep and have staying power. These are heavier molecules and many times are not perceived even up to 20min after the initial scent is applied. Some of these heavy, base notes can even last up to 24 hrs. Perfume qualities are described in musical wording "not just because of the aesthetic relationship between perfume and music but because there are so few specific words dedicated to olfactory experiences. The combination of all these three notes is a "chord". As I think more about the nature of smelling the aromas and the process by which I go through as it is happening there are more musical terms I could think of that would pertain to a perfumers process. A wonderful symphonic process indeed.
I, by no means, am a "perfumer" by trade. I don't have the knowledge or training. However, I enjoy the idea of learning more and have been dabbling with the notion of creating beautiful, deep, complex concoctions for myself to experience. As I continue to reapply them and observe the amazing way that the Essential Oils evaporate, absorb and mix with my chemistry. I am a musician because my mother was a musician both classically and formally as I grew up. She taught at our house and she performed professionally and I watched her on stage. She played beautifully. The speech of music applies perfectly to scent. I can see why it was chosen to describe art of perfumery.
The language of perfume:
The combination of ingredients are called a "composition". Three notes reveal themselves to us over different lengths of time. First the top or "head" note. It is the initial impression of the blend which we will smell right away. First impression so to speak. These are the Essential Oils in the blend which are highly volatile, have tiny molecules and evaporate quickest. Next we will sense the middle notes or "heart notes" . These will come to us just as the top notes are leaving. These are evident anywhere in 2min to an hour after applying the scent. Base notes or "bottom or dry down" will then be evident when the middle note are fading away. These are normally fixatives and used to help to weight the scent and help it keep and have staying power. These are heavier molecules and many times are not perceived even up to 20min after the initial scent is applied. Some of these heavy, base notes can even last up to 24 hrs. Perfume qualities are described in musical wording "not just because of the aesthetic relationship between perfume and music but because there are so few specific words dedicated to olfactory experiences. The combination of all these three notes is a "chord". As I think more about the nature of smelling the aromas and the process by which I go through as it is happening there are more musical terms I could think of that would pertain to a perfumers process. A wonderful symphonic process indeed.
Perfume Scent Families: Floral, Chypre, Fougere, Marine/ Ozonic, Oriental, Citrus, Green, and most recently, Gourmand. "MOXIE" - Add bold, life to your day! This most current creation has top notes of a citrus and Rose, heart notes of Geranium with a hint of Cypress and a loving and grounding base of father woods. One of which is the well loved Sandalwood. "Moxie" is energizing at the first moment and then as though walking through a garden for an experience not fast forgotten. Lastly to stay a while, a the deep rich note remains. A smile dawns the faces of those who have dawned this scent and then remains even as the last bit of this lively song dances in their midst. | As I realize more each day how emotionally taken I am by scent, I realize that for me it is a personal journey. This journey is something I will want to share with you, the client. The idea of bringing scents together to create a song which can sing differently to each one of us is delightful. It might move you in the same way it takes me to a different place for a moment. Or in your own unique experience. Perfumes, to me, can be spiritual. A "spiritual blend" in Aromatherapy, is subtle in it's concentrations. A perfume on the other hand is not. The movement I feel from a perfume is one that is undeniable and one that moves me physically forward. To differentiate , a spiritual blend might be a subtle nudge or a shift in our mood or "spirit". However, I find that both can be spiritually evoking on two very different levels. Because we are taking about Essential Oils, plant extracts, we are talking about the power of a plant. There is more there than just a beautiful aroma or synthetic chemical formula. I truly feel after having sat with a perfume scent that I have made for a few days now and learning it's notes that it has more to offer me, as a natural perfume, than just a pretty smell. I know this from my training, however, I feel this through it's actions... none too subtle. I look forward to sharing more with you SOON as I embark into the personal journey of natural perfumery. |
Sources:
http://aegypten-shop.blogspot.com/2014/03/die-sieben-heiligen-ole-der-pharaonen.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92802/
http://aegypten-shop.blogspot.com/2014/03/die-sieben-heiligen-ole-der-pharaonen.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92802/