A Natural Perfumers Journal

My Grandmother, Ellen Gillespie, was petite in stature and came from an Irish Protestant family. She married my Grandfather who was nearly 2 meters tall. Here they are kitted out in their finery. She is wearing a beautiful and fashionable "Afternoon Dress". I wish I could see her shoes. My Grandfather Peter Ruane is also dressed very fashionably in a gentleman's afternoon suit, a shirt with a high detachable tubular collar and silk tie. I bet he is wearing spats. They are both wearing pocket watches and what look like matching chrysanthemum corsages. I'm not certain of the year this photograph was taken but I believe it was around 1908. My Father Malachy Ruane was born in 1911 and grew up on a country estate in Athenry, Co Galway. He met my mother later in life, apparently, a confirmed bachelor up until that time. My Mother always remembered the day when my father brought her home to meet his parents. They arrived up to the tall pillared gates of the big country

Of all flowers roses possess a wider variety of perfume than any other species. The wild roses and the old shrub roses, possess a more distinctive perfume. Rose oil, or attar of roses is a costly commodity, taking 1 ton of petals to produce 11oz of oil and for this reason much is synthetically produced. Some 96 per cent of women's perfumes contain rose oil. Rosa alba is the white rose that was adapted by the House of York and has a very sweet smell. The double form is the symbol [the British] Royal Family. Rosa alba maxima is the Jacobite Rose . The Red Rose of Lancaster Rosa gallica officinalis has recently been planted along with Rosa alba for perhaps the first time since the Wars of the Roses in 1460, during London Garden Squares Day in London's Temple Gardens in an attempt to recreate a piece of history. The red and white varieties were famously plucked in the gardens by York and Lancastrian adversaries at the start of the wars but the bushes had died out. But

Ylang-Ylang  The name is of Filipino origin and means Flower of Flowers. The perfume from Ylang-Ylang has euphoric qualities, and is known for it's powerful effect on the emotions. It is said to be an anti-depressant and aphrodisiac because of its ability to relieve anxiety and tension.  Ylang-Ylang is one of the first natural essences I ever encountered. A friend added a few drops to a bath for me and I was immediately enchanted. I remember the amazing, calming, relaxing effect it had. Today I have in my possession two types of natural extract of the flower, Ylang-Ylang Complete and Ylang-Ylang Concrete.  The Ylang-Ylang Complete is a result of water and steam distillation. It has a powerful sweet floral odor with somewhat spicy woody undertones. A single drop of the undiluted oil on a tissue quickly fills the room with perfume. It is relatively inexpensive and is very versatile in perfumery as it blends well with almost any other floral essence. The one I have h