Skip to main content

The Power of Sandalwood

Diversing from my story of romance for the moment...yesterday I made a batch of foot lotion bars, using natural aromatherapy essential oils of peppermint, tea tree and lavender. Aromatherapy is very different from the art of perfumery, I just put equal amounts of each essential oil, and I was generous, the oils will do what they are supposed to do and they smell fresh and clean like they are meant to.
I then started on a batch of Sensual massage bars, now these are perfumed with my first simple perfume. It has top notes of orange and mandarin, cinnamon and ginger, a heart of ylang ylang, two lavenders and clove absolute, the base is, mysore sandalwood, peru balsam and dark patchouli. I have to go back and get out my notes and follow the recipe, I count out a hundred drops of lavender absolute, 33 drops of clove, 33 drops of cinnamon 33 drops of ginger. The sandalwood I add a full 20mls, too many drops to count! The patchouli is carefully measured, 30 drops only and so on...the base for the sensual perfume is almond oil infused with red sandalwood powder. When the bars were set they were a beautiful shade of rich orangey amber. I was amazed at the power of sandalwood to dye things, the muslin I used to strain the infusion was dyed a lovely shade of pink and my measuring jug is pink too. I must admit the massage bars do smell sexy, sort of hot and yummy, ya baby!
I am working on an idea for a perfume which is suitable for pregnant women. You see I was asked if I would make a lotion bar for pregnancy and stretch marks, so that raises the issue of safety and which oils and essences to avoid and which ones might be beneficial. I could just go the aromatherapy route but I think I will make a fragrance, seen as I love making perfume. I want to go for a light balsamic base and a fruity/floral middle and a refreshing citrusy top.
Some of the essences I have selected are: a base of labdanum, frankincense, myrrh, orange flower water absolute, maybe immortelle absolute, and for the heart I have chosen orange blossom absolute, neroli, davana or boronia, lavender absolute and blue chamomile, the top will be tangerine, sweet orange and mandarin. How these will work together I don't know, if I use the perfumery skills I have learned I might be able to make a good perfume. I have a concentrated infusing of st johns wort and horsetail, these herbs are very beneficial to the skin. The horsetail in particular is high in silica and will help the skin retain it's elasticity. The infussion has a very basey smell all on it's own so I will need to work from this, and build my perfume around it...challenging!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shelly Waddington to Teach Unit at Natural Perfume Academy

We have a new addition to the Natural Perfume Academy's year long Natural Botanical Perfume course starting in May. Shelley Waddington is going to teach a unit about Isolates. "The use of natural isolates is a new cutting edge trend in natural perfumery. This course is designed to allow the perfume student to take advantage of this new trend by providing a basic understanding of what an isolate is, how it is produced, and how to incorporate isolates into their own perfume compositions. The student will also receive a comprehensive bibliography for personal reference. Upon completion of this unit, the student will have a basic understanding of natural isolates and will be ready to begin blending using these fragrance materials. A kit of natural isolates will be available at the store and is highly recommended for the course." About Shelley Waddington Shelley Waddington is the President of Beau Soleil, LLC, and the Chief Perfumer for The Carmel Perfumery, locat...
2 comments
Read more

Anti-perfume trails and Molecules 01

I received a gift yesterday that blew me away totally. A Bottle of Molecules 01 : I have never smelled anything like this. EVER! My first impression was cedarwood. A beautiful cedarwood too, it reminded me of a Lebanese cedarwood perfumery essence that I have. It's dark, deep and incredibly velvety. But then I realised that I wasn't smelling a perfume per se, because normally cedarwood is a middle to base note and doesn't come through immediately after applying a perfume and more importantly, at that moment when I expected to smell a different note, what I was smelling simply wasn't there anymore. It did a vanishing act. I became rather perplexed and very curious. Twenty minutes later I felt as though I was sitting in a cedarwood forest on a warm sunny day. Wow! The perfume seemed to be all around me rather than on me. When I smelled my skin I had to bury my nose before I got the delicious warm clean scent that reminded me of rain on skin. How incred...
Post a Comment
Read more

Academy of Natural Perfumery Course Review

"The course is excellent, it's in depth and very comprehensive, since it covers creative as well as scientific topics. This is very important for me as a botanist and scientist. It's a very good opportunity to extensively develop one's intellectual and practical creativity. You are guided by a marvellous expert, Justine. It is amazing how she is always there to explain and help. It is an incredible support she provides all the time. It warmly would recommend this curriculum to everyone who is passionate about nature and scents. Gudrun Hugelshofer, Switzerland" Now accepting applications. Available through English and Portuguese COURSE FAQ: https://npacertification.com/natural-perfumery-diploma-faq/ ABOUT DIPLOMA COURSE: https://npacertification.com/cpd-certified-natural-perfumery-diploma-course/ APPLICATION FORM DIPLOMA COURSE: https://npacertification.com/npa-natural-perfumery-diploma/ PAYMENT PAGE - DIPLOMA COURSE: https://npacertification.com/cpd-certified-dipl...
Post a Comment
Read more