Private emails

Just got another lovely private email from a reader of this blog, telling me she likes the blog and hope I will continue with it. It surprises me that I get a lot of private emails, it seems like some people rather like to send me private emails than adding a comment on the blog. When I just look at the comments on this blog it looks like I'm a bit alone, but this emails always tell me that you out there and like to read this blog. I'm so lucky that I found Statcounter it tells me how many people visited this blog and how long they stay. This gives me encouragement and I have to admit it's good for my ego too.

This smell reminds me of........

I can't think of one day that I don't do anything with the making of fragrances. I don't work every day on a perfume but I'm always busy with smell and fragrances. I read about it, do research for some compounds and every day I put on a diluted fragrance material. I like to get to know all the materials I have.

I just received new materials and when I open the box with all these new materials I get all exited! I start to dilute all these materials and put it on my wrist and on smelling strips. When I smell these materials it all happens in my head, I start to imagine how some materials would combine with it. I write it all down in my "fragrance materials bible" I write down what kind of smell it has, what it reminds me of, what kind of emotion it gives me, what are nice combinations etc. I ask my self questions like is it a green smell or is it flowery, woody, musky or spicy.

Sometimes I recognize a fragrance but I can't recall it and it takes a couple of days before I get that Aha moment and found out what the smell does remind me of. Last time I had it with the material Butyl Quinoline Secondary, the smell of it remind me of something I couldn't put my finger on. It smells like soil but it smelled like something more specific and one day I've got it.....it smells like red beets. You know how fresh red beets can smell like soil? I envy Luca Turin that he can smell a material and recognize it in a split second.....

Smell like an alcoholic???

Remember that I was bit nervous because I sent 4 of my perfumes to Michael Storer? Well yesterday he finally received them and he told me he liked them very much he told me they were very nice balanced and said that I'm a real perfumer....well I don't know I'm still not satisfied about the fragrances but okay it sounds real nice, it made me feel real good and gave me power to go on.

Last night we were talking together on Skype and had a great time. We discussed the 4 fragrances, while he was smelling them. I sent him a fruity/chypre, a leathery/oriental and two versions of my perfume with white flowers and magnolia.
I'm working on the Magnolia fragrance(I always call it magnolia fragrance from the start but it isn't a soliflor though) for 4 years now and still can't figure it out how to make it like I had in mind. Michael gave me advice to use some ingredients in it and the funny thing is that I used all the ingredients he advised me in the first trials 4 years ago, but now I've changed them and use other notes. I think I will go back to the original and start all over again. Michael also give me advice of using another note of Lilly of the Valley exactly as I had in mind, I don't have that compound yet but ordered it already, I think that's the note I was looking for all the time.

Michael really liked the leathery/oriental. I put it on at work and asked my colleagues if they liked it, and they did but telling me that it maybe is a bit to heavy to wear at daytime. I will try to make it less heavy, but Michael said it was an original fragrance really full and with surprisingly notes that he really liked. I think it's a nice fragrance as well, it touch me... it's an emotional fragrance like me sister in law once said about it.

Michael liked the fruity/chypre really much, he called it a winner. It's funny...he said that the first impression was a bit rum or brandy like, something I never noticed. So I put it on as well and yes...it is true, it smells a bit like rum or brandy, and I like that. We both tried to find out which notes made that smell and I think we found them. So the first impression is a bit brandy like and after that it's fruity with flowery notes like the absolute from the tuberose and jasmine. Michael said that he liked the "scratchy" base notes, what I think comes from the oak moss. He said it smelled like it's a finished perfume but I want to try some more things with it, find out if some ingredients will make it more beautiful or don't. For me it's so difficult to say that a perfume is finished, I think I have to work on that. I guess I'm a perfectionist when it comes to perfume making.

The brandy and rum smell in my fragrance did remind me of some other fragrances with whine or other alcoholic smells. Here are some examples:

Chateau Roxane

The French perfumer Cava Parfums, launching its own line of viniferous fragrances called Chateau Roxane packed in a wine bottle.

Le Boise

Taking inspiration from the oak barrels used to age Bordeaux wine, this resolutely masculine scent is built on a rich blend of woods. Deep and resonant, with a dash of spice. The packaging takes its cue from Bordeaux tradition, as well, right down to the red capsule.

Le Boise notes
woods, spices, vanilla

Sauvignonne

The irrefutable elegance of a classic dry white Bordeaux—light and brilliant in the glass, tart and crisp on the palate. A bold burst of grapefruit is blended with aromatic box tree and the gentlest hint of white peach to a create this sophisticated fragrance. Gloriously fresh.

Packaged in a beautiful hand-sewn velvet satchel.

Sauvignonne notes
grapefruit, box tree, white peach.

Botrytis

A lush autumnal fragrance inspired by the rich, honeyed sweetness of extraordinary Sauternes wines like the magnificent vintages of Chateau d’Yquem. Opulent, golden, voluptuous. A warm and velvety blend of honey, candied fruits, quince and pain d’epice that caresses the senses. Truly intoxicating.

Packaged in a beautiful hand-sewn velvet satchel.

Botrytis notes
honey, candied fruits, quince, pain d’epice, white flowers.

1270

Named for the year the Frapin family established itself in the Cognac region of France (and continues to make cognac to this day), 1270 was created by Beatrice Cointreau, great granddaughter of Pierre Frapin. Together with Frapin's Cellar Master, she sought to create a noble fragrance full of the scents surrounding the creation of cognac. 1270 is dry, rich, velvety and smooth. The flowers of the once-proud Folle Blanche (a grape nearly extinct from the region), the vineyard grass, the wine warehouse, the rich smell of damp earth in the cellars, the wood of new casks, the loamy smell of humus where the ancestral cognacs are stored– all these notes can be detected in 1270. Gorgeous is putting it mildly... this scent defies flowery prose. A true masterpiece.

1270 notes
exotic woods, spice, raisin, vine flowers, pepper, candied orange, nut, hazelnut, prune, cocoa, coffee, leather, woods, white honey, vanilla

Picture of Chateau Roxane is from: http://mujer.terra.es/muj/articulo/html/mu24097.htm
Information and pictures from the other perfumes are from: http://www.luckyscent.com/

Pizza anyone?

I posted a post about gourmand fragrances and this makes me think....What makes it that we want to smell like eatable notes? Some of us like to smell like vanilla, chocolate, almond, coffee, tea, tomato leaf, cognac etc. Why is it that some notes are suitable for perfumes and some are definitely not? Here are some notes I've never seen in perfumes, please tell me if you know a perfume with that note.

Would you like a perfume with a note of:

Cheese???

spinach???

Hotdog???

Chips???

Pizza???

Tea Biscuits???

Beer???

Bacon???

Onion???

Corn???

Bread???

Yoghurt???

Interview with the perfumer Andy Tauer

I'm very proud that the perfumer Andy Tauer did like to do an interview on this blog. We did this interview by mail and it was fun for both of us. Enjoy!

How did you become a perfumer, and did you always knew you would become one?

Let me first thank you for giving me the chance to talk about myself outside of my blog. It is a pleasure to discuss with you and to jointly think about perfumery; let's hope your readers will appreciate it, too!

In order to be honest: It took me a while to get acquainted with the idea of being a perfumer. As a matter of fact, the first time I used the title perfumer was at immigration to Egypt last year where I -for the very first time- put in perfumer as profession. Before, I always used chemist or manager or something similar.

Why is this? One reason is my respect from the title. I think a perfumer is some what of an artist. And I still am somewhat reluctant to call my self perfumer because of this. Am I an artist? I do not really know. Do I knowhow to make perfumes? Sometimes I find yes, sometimes I look into the mirror and know: Andy, you gonna have to go a long way, still.

Thus, how did I become someone who wants to create perfumes? I have studied chemistry, which helps. I have a sense for beauty, I guess, I love beautiful things and I like to be creative. When I discovered scents a few years ago, completely by chance, just out of the blue, it was like a revelation. I realized: This is exactly what I want to do. Create scents and sniff. Sniff and sniff. I started sniffing natural essences, ordered like crazy from all over the world and started to make simple, disgusting perfumes.

I learned to sniff and to memorize scents. At the beginning I had an excel table where I was writing down all my impressions and this technique helped me a lot. I learnt that I have to describe and think about scents in a very crude way: Smells like fish or smells like a wood close to the highway and I learnt to be patient, because in perfumery: Things need time! And I later met Vero, a friend by now , a dear friend indeed, and a perfumer. She learnt me how to use synthetics. And I started to make more complex fragrances.

Finally, after centuries of sniffing, of mixing and learning how scents develop and interact, I made the first perfume, that really was a something I could be proud on. I gave it my brother as a gift. And then, soon afterwards, I started thinking about le Maroc pour elle, which -after almost a year-finally ended up in a little shop in Zurich. The rest is history..

By the way, on wikipedia the perfume creator is described as follows:

"The job of composing perfumes that will sell is left up to an expert on perfume composition, more commonly known in the fragrance industry as the Nose. The nose is effectively an artist who is trained in depth on the concepts of fragrance aesthetics and who is capable of conveying abstract concepts and moods with their fragrance compositions. At the most rudimentary level, a nose must not only have a keen knowledge of a large variety of fragrance ingredients and their smells, and be able to distinguish each of the fragrance ingredients whether alone or in combination with other fragrances. As well, they must know how each ingredient reveals itself through time with other ingredients. "


Please tell us more about Le Maroc pour elle. We have learnt it was an idea on the side with friends. What's the story behind it and how did this fragrance develop?

The existence of Le Maroc pour elle resides in my wish to create a scent that is centered around three natural absolutes from Morocco: The rose absolute, the jasmine absolute and the essence of cedarwood. The idea was born quite fast, within a few minutes I had a deal settled with Pascal -the shop owner of Medieval art & vie in Zurich and a dear friend- and we agreed on me creating this perfume for his shop. We had an excellent wine that evening, did not think about the implications, and thus, I started composing a fragrance which should be centered around these three natural treasures.

It took me quite long (something like 9 months, I guess) to have it ready. I had absolute freedom because Pascal trusted me that what comes out will be fine. It was a somewhat painful experience because it was the first time that I agreed to create a scent based on a theme that was intended to be sold to clients in a shop. We had no client focus group, but Pascal would present the final perfume version to clients, asking for their opinion. And he got quite enthusiastic remarks, with a few exceptions and thus we started to sell it. One exception was (I posted once about this on my blog) a critique like:" Ohhh, no? that smells like fish?.no wrong! It s sheep, wet sheep!? "
Now, before this truly devastating statement (that was not hindering us to launch) were months of agony. I faced incredible difficulties to use the rose absolute without making a cheap, soapy smelling perfume. And the atlas cedarwood, with its intrinsic sweetness was a nightmare to blend. I have gone through dozens of trials, and I got troubled, because I could not bring it to the point I wanted it to be. I knew how it should be but it was not getting there.

It was one morning, Saturday or Sunday, in bed, when I was thinking about it and I imagined a formula of what I thought might work. Involving more patchouli, lots of sandalwood (the expensive Mysore quality) and so on. I got out of bed, because I was really convinced that this might be the solution to my troubles. You know, there is a point, where I get really uneasy and feel like I have fever. It is kind of passion manifesting itself.Thus, I got up and soon started to write down the formula in my excel file and later mix it. The formula that I wrote down back than is still the formula for Le Maroc pour elle, with one single change: I reduced the frankincense, because it turned out to be a little bit too dominant in the head note. And trust me; although built on the experiences gained before hand, it was quite different to what I have tried before. For me, this was like a culmination point reached, everything was ready and bang! It was there.

Now, what followed was equally interesting. I have finished the perfume and made a little batch and we started selling. Honestly: With little success. Something like a perfume a week. I started in July 2005 my blogging, because I thought it is cool too talk about perfumery I started blogging without having a clue what I was doing. But still?..?. This was probably the best idea I ever had.


Every year there are so many new fragrance coming out, isn't it difficult to let your fragrance to be noticed at all between all these new fragrances, and how do you promote your fragrances.

You are so right! And sometimes I wonder where perfumery is heading. I think there are two issues: First what is happening right now in terms of new fragrances release and second on how to stand out. What we see happening the last 10, 20 years is a development that is somewhat unhealthy. Let us call it a leveling effect, and I leave it up to you and your readers whether things level down or up. I look at it rather pragmatic. More wonderful starting materials are available for creating perfumes and more perfumes are launched daily then ever before. Yet, the numbers of truly remarkable perfumes that are launched these days is limited. Thus, my hopes reside in the quality of my perfumery work. I am confident that there is a market for my fragrances that will accept them; of course it is a niche market.

Now to the second issue: How to get noticed and how to promote my fragrances? This is much trickier. I do not have an enormous marketing budget. As a matter of fact, my marketing budget is close to zero. Thus, what I do not have in terms of money, I have to compensate in terms of creativity. I am constantly thinking of ways to enter markets, niche markets to be precise, by being present. Right now, my blog has the biggest impact there, and became a cornerstone of my businessmodel. Not that it ever was planned to fulfill this role, though. I realized that perfume lovers, potential customers, like to read it, to learn more about my perfumery work and also about myself. They get curious and order samples. And, because some of them are also active in boards, the message gets spread that there is a guy making perfumes. To some extend this is a rather passive mode of acquiring customers but so far we are very pleased, indeed.

The other routes we are following are events that we make in Switzerland, looking for synergies, like in September when we make a joint event with a fashion designer. So far I must admit, we haven't been very active in the press, and I am still reluctant to pay for an ad in beauty journals. It would-based on my experience with appearing in the beauty news of journals- not pay off. What helped a lot to get known, and here I really own Mr Turin a lot, are critics and columns, be it the press, be it on the internet. I once posted about it: I am convinced that we are witnessing a shift from the printmedia to the e-media. A shift of power, with the customers, people like you and me, becoming the true opinion makers.

It looks like you have to be creative not only in the craft of perfume making but the things around it as well, like the promoting of your perfumes. Did you create the labels of the fragrances by yourself as well? And how about the filling of the bottles and samples is that all being done by your own hands?

Everything is done and created by myself, starting with the scent formula to the bottled and packed perfume. I do the web programming (on a very simple level) and the design of labels etc. As a matter of fact I love to fiddle around with pictures and to make computer drawings. I consider it being a creative act, too. In light of increasing sales volume over the last 12 months, I am considering to outsource the actual production, soon; meaning that I will be able to focus more on the creative part again. Because, honestly spoken, the mixing and dilution and filtering is not a creative act per se. I also like to think about how to do the next steps towards marketing my perfumes, how to address clients, how to get into the media: This is all fun, exciting and in a sense rewarding, too.

All these aspects of perfumery, the creative endeavour, logistics, sales issues, and finally marketing issues, are part of an ensemble that fits neatly with my interest. Eventually, the logistics and sales part fit somewhat less, I am not such a well organized person if it comes to stockhandling and keeping an eye on my sales figures; but then... again an opportunity to learn and grow.


Andy can you tell us a bit more how you work on your perfumes? Where do you find your sources of inspiration and how do you start creating the perfume?

Let me start with the actual process of creation. When I start working on a theme I usually have a crystal clear idea of what the final product should look like. Not that the end result always turns out to be identical to my vision, but it for sure is nourished by it.There might be twists arising on the way towards the final perfume; discoveries that I make that ultimately influence the final picture, and that I gladly incorporate.

But back to the question: How is it done? I sit at my desk and think about how to combine what in which amounts to reach the scent that I want. I usually start with some sort of a scent sketch, a minimal structure, the bones if you want.This sketch covers all notes (head notes, heart notes, body notes), but looks frightening like a skeleton. It is not a fragrance, yet but already then I can see whether a particular idea works.There is a lot of abstraction needed. Maybe I realize that a particular note is good in the sense that it brings about the effect that I want but that it is too present and hence needs adjustments in the next run. Or I realize that a particular note does not work yet, because an other note is missing. Like taking a rose in the middle and then realizing that it needs to be moderated by some orris aspects. Thus, I sit at the bench and think about it (or in the train or while shopping my groceries) and later I find myself in front of the bottles and mix things together. Mostly, I write things down in Excel beforehand and then modify on the go. With the skeleton mentioned above I then move on, adding a little bit of flesh here and a little bit of hair there and then, after months and months, eventually, I am getting close to where I want to be.

Am I happy with my creations? Sometimes, yes... but a doubt always remains. A perfume like the Lonestar Memories took me uncounted trials (18 documented basic versions, many angrily thrown away versions that I deleted again in Excel) and many fine tuning versions based on scent skeleton 18.

The inspiration is an interesting issue and hard to say. It is just there and it is not always clear where it came from. Nature's scents (the good and the ugly ones) are for sure an inspiration. Nature is full of scents that are truly remarkable and very inspiring. But then, the scents that we all encounter are inspiring, too. The scent of a man passing by wearing an unknown perfume, the disturbing scent of a bedroom in the morning, the kitchen of a friend,.....Interesting to me is the way the brain works there.You encounter a scent and later, in the lab, you have this idea that nourishes from the scent that you have encountered yesterday, and then you suddenly know what you have to do. By the way: An almost unlimited source of inspiration are also the classic perfumes where we all can learn so much.

What perfume do you still wish to create?

Oh. there are so many themes to play with. I once worked on an orange flower perfume, but never really got to the point. I did not manage to get it there where I wanted it. I wanted it to be vibrant and sexy, sensual and dark, luscious and erotic, but still elegant and not too overwhelming, with the orange flower scent circling forth and back. I failed so far and for the time being I stopped working on it..but I will sooner or later continue thinking about it again. Then there is the vetiver perfume that I never dared to think of but it would be an interesting challenge. Then I sometimes dream of a Linden blossom perfume, of a watery perfume with lots of metallic aspects, a robot perfume so to say, and and and.

You know; this is one of the most fascinating aspects of perfumery. It is never ending. I can think of hundreds of perfumes that need to be made and there is so much to learn on the way there. You get to know new accords that you try to memorize and recall hopefully when the time has come to integrate them into a new theme. With every new theme for a scent you start with an empty piece of paper and the combinations, even with a limited set of compounds, are unlimited. There is not enough time in this universe to live all these perfumer dreams..

What kind of perfume are you working on right now?

Right now, a perfume with lavender as one initial dominant note is keeping me busy. It runs under the working title Provencal Summer, given by Prince Barry, a perfume lover and frequent commenter on my blog. He was, by the way, also the one who came up with the ideal name for my leather perfume, Lonestar Memories; I wanted to name it Texas memories. Back to the lavender. It is rather a tricky thing to use lavender as dominant head note, bring it out (at least for a while) without the whole composition breaking apart, becoming soapy or trivial. I comment from time to time about the developments there on my blog, too. This, by the way, has become a most interesting aspect of my blog: I post about developments or ideas and get feedback and recommendations by customers and perfume lovers, not for the actual composition, but for other aspects. In light of the inputI got for the Lonestar Memoires, like the naming and the packaging, I will open up even more there. But this idea is not really thought all the way through...

Besides the lavender theme I have other ideas that I sporadically play around, like the omnipresent idea to create an orange flower soliflor perfume. Another theme I address from time to time is a wood perfume that is only built around woody notes, without any flowers, eventually on an ambergris base. And then I want to create a true classical chypre, with lots of roses and bergamot and cistus, but there, I haven't started yet.

Your new fragrance is Lonestar Memories a leather based fragrance, can you tell us about the story behind it and was it difficult to create?

It was very difficult for me and there were a few moments where I was close to giving up. I fulfilled a dream of mine to create a fragrance that is built around a scent that I love: Birchtar!

When I started I had no idea how long it would take me. From time to time I posted about the development on the blog and I made funny stories out of my failures. Behind these funny stories was quite an agony. Vero, my dear perfumer friend was so helpful in these days. She gave me comfort by telling me first that leathers are difficult and she also gave me some advice. Finally, I came across a birchtar, geranium, iso-amylsalicylate chord that fitted nicely with my ideas and complemented the base with its woods. Together with a rose-bergamot note in the head this chord helped me to come around the troubles of birchtar being so aggressive. Looking back I do not really remember how many trials I made, they were dozens.

When I had the impression that the composition was finished I looked back at the way I had gone and was amazed how long it took me. Looking at the formula I was also amazed because it turned out very, very complicated and some trials to shorten it were not successful. Thus, I gave up and figured out that I leave it like it is. And now... now the baby is out in the world and we see how it will do. For me this is always a thrilling, exciting moment: When finally, after months of work I can present it to perfumelovers all over the world and see their reaction. The goal: Shock them and prove that good perfumes can be made... without getting multimillion dollar companies involved.

Here is the smokey donkey post, that I published in September, out lining my desperation:

"Ok, it's time for some honesty now. My original idea fora leather scent, posted earlier, is not working. I met Vero yesterday, dear Vero, my mentor, friend and perfumer. We were smelling the core structure of this supposed to be leather scent and ...ah.... it is not there, not at all.At least, I have already started a new core structure, which is far from being finished and luckily enough, this one seems to come better.But the previously described fragrance might best be described following this recipe:Take a horse (if you do not have a real horse, a donkey might work too, but needs longer smoking). Let it run for two hourse until it is thoroughly dampand sweaty. Give it an oxygen mask and let it stand for 5 hours in the smoking lounge of Zurich airport (which I think is sponsored by the Camel brand, isn't this ironical?...). Before this smoking process, rub in lots ofthe perfume stuff from the duty free store which is on sales. Do not forget to thoroughly cover the back. Dip (oxygen mask still on) the outmost tip of its tail in fresh Kerosene (carefully making sure not the get any stuff on its skin) and let the animal stand for two hours in the First Class lounge.Give it lots of carrots and tender loving care, as this environment might come as a surprise for little horse/donkey. After the two hours, take a deep breath within the lounge and you will come close to my little experiments on leathers. (Finally, bring the nice, patient animal out in the open field, wash it thoroughly, dry it and let it stroll around in the open air for a while."

Now I will give you some short questions and ask you to answer the questions shortly. Okay here we go....

Favorite fragrance family.

Chypre

Favorite fragrance ingredients to work with.

Cistus. Although it is difficult. And Bergamot/Jasmine. because it is so easy!

Fragrance notes that intrigue you.

There are many single notes that fascinate me, like birch tar or cistus essential oil. What I like about them: They are complex, like a multi-facetted mirror reflecting a variety of pictures and with sensuality, an erotic touch that can turn skin into a garden full of delicious fruits. In perfumes, I look for the same thing (not the individual notes). I look for sensual notes or lines, that are complex, that reflect the body light of its wearers , that cover the skin with an invisible blanket of ambrosia. And I look for a hidden message, for twists and breaks in the composition that make it more interesting.

What fragrance are you wearing right now?

Right now: None. I usually do not perfume myself if I want to work/sniff later the day. So far, I was wearing this week: Lonestar Memories, L'air du désert marocain, Caron pour un home.

What scent triggers your childhood memories?

Vanillin for instance brings back (not always) pictures of yellow pudding with lots of rosines in it, made by mom. Oakmoss brings me back to playing as boy in the woods, doing things that mom and dad shouldn't know about like smoking cigarets
And more..

What book are you reading right now?

Still trying to finish Luca Turin's latest book.

Favourite fragrances (male/female) that you didn't create yourself.

Many: Guerlains like Jicky, L'heure bleu, Caron pour un home, love Cuiron by Helmut Lang, too
You know: I have to admit. I do not own too many fragrances and I am less knowledgeable than many of your perfume loving readers.

Favourite place to visit in terms of its olfactory image.

The woods around Zurich, smelling differently with the seasons changing, the sea like the Atlantic, animals in the zoo (I love the way lions smell. ouhhh that's erotic, powerful, frightening, bringing back a set of reflexes from our ancestors, souks with this unbelievable richness of scents: People, spices, food, trash, dead things, old walls and the cool scent from inside the houses, of fresh prepared food, drying laundry, ...

Most frustrating of the craft of perfume making.

When you finished a composition, that smells wonderful right after the mixing of the trial version, and turns into something dull, boring, disgusting after a few days of maturation.

Most satisfing of the craft of perfume making.

When you get a mail from someone you do not know, telling you that the scent you created, did something with the wearer, brought back memories, made her smile, made him feel beautiful. These lines that I get from time to time from clients, are my key motivation to move on.


I want to thank you Andy for taking the time to do this interview. I hope you enjoyed it the way I did. I have a final question for you:
Where do you see your self in the mid-term future and of course we would like to know where we can buy you lovely fragrances.

Thank you too, Jenny, it was a real pleasure. Mid-term I have a clear vision: Continue creating perfumes, learning to do it better, building my business in a way that allows me to live from it, and all this without loosing the passion and joy of doing it. Where one can get my scents:

World wide: http://www.tauerperfumes.com/US: http://www.luckyscent.com/Germany: http://www.ausliebezumduft.de/Switzerland: http://www.lemaroc.ch/UK: http://www.eieflud.co.uk/

Sexy fragrances

What kind of fragrances are sexy, and why are they sexy? When thinking about sexy scents we think easily about the musk, civet and amber, the animal scents. They have a warm scent that reminds you of the warmth and smell of your own skin.

Animal scents have some similarity to human body odor. But we don't want to smell like body odor do we? We want to be clean and fresh but on the other hand we apply a scent that has some similarity to body odor, but in a different way. It's a subtle odor mixed with the most beautiful scents of flowers, fruits and woods.

A perfume that's made without some animal scents misses the warmth, it could easily smell like an air freshener it's as it don't fit or mix with your skin chemistry. A perfume made with some animal scents is like it's melting with your skin chemistry like the fragrance becomes one of your own.

The smell of flowers on the other hand could be very erotic as well. Some flowers have animal or body odor scents as well even if it is in small proportions. Like Jasmine has the aroma compound called Indole. But what someone finds sexy is also personal, some could like the soothing smell of vanilla for example, or just find the smell of fresh fragrances sexy because it smell like you just showered. Or what to think about sandal? Sandal has an aroma compound that is similar to the smell of the body odor of men Androstenol.

There are also perfumes with pheromones. Just as animals use scents to attract the opposite sex, we humans release pheromones and respond to the pheromones released by other people. Pheromones are naturally occurring chemicals in animals and humans which attract the opposite sex elicit sexual behavior. You can't actually smell pheromones but your body reacts on them. It's proven that people who have a smell disorder can have sexual problems. So smell is important for our sexual behavior.

I think that what someone finds a sexy smell isn't sexy for everyone. It's all about the personal memories, emotion, thoughts and gender. The most sexy perfume to me is Must de Cartier, what is your most sexy fragrance?

Next Sunday

Next Sunday here on Perfume making an interview with the perfumer Andy Tauer.

http://www.tauerperfumes.com/blog/

Eau du Soir by Sisley

Eau du Soir by Sisley belongs to my favorite perfume list. This is one of the most beautiful perfumes I've ever smelled. The first time I smelled Eau du Soir I was captivated by this amazingly feminine scent. It's a complex fragrance that's balanced in a very fine way.

Sisley is a French family business which creates and distributes luxury cosmetics, perfumes and makeup. Created in 1976 by Count Hubert d'Ornano, Sisley has rapidly become one of the most successful companies in the cosmetics industry thanks to a new and unique concept ahead of its time: Phytocosmetology. Sisley provides a complete line of high-quality beauty products whose active ingredients are natural plant extracts and essential oils. Phytocosmetology consists in applying natural plant extracts to beauty products. Eau du Soir was made for Isabelle d'Ornano she received the fragrance as a gift from her husband, Count Hubert d'Ornano. He created a unique floral scent that included seringa, a Spanish flower which releases its scent at night. The fragrance reflected Isabelle's childhood in Spain and gave the fragrance its name. Eau du Soir remained the Countess's signature scent for many years, until the persistent requests of friends saw its release in 1990.

Eau du Soir has a lingering aura it starts with fresh notes of citrus fruits like mandarin, bergamot and grapefruit together with juniper balanced with floral heart notes of seringa, rose, Egyptian jasmine and softened with Iris. Build on a base of oakmoss, amber and musk. The fragrance develops subtly on your skin. The start is fresh but I can smell a warm fatty like scent through the citrus notes on a refined way. The fresh topnotes lead you to the sensual flowernotes, they are subtle I can smell the seringa but on a soft way, it's so balanced that you can't detect a single note. It's definitely a feminine fragrance glamorous and elegant. Yesterday I worn this fragrance and got a lot of compliments, the compliments were something like: "Mmm you smell wonderful what kind of fragrance is that, I don't know this one" or "You smell nice, it's an unusual scent but real gorgeous". It made me smile because now I knew I wasn't the only one that is captivated by this fragrance. It's just a wonderful alluring feminine fragrance perfect for a special evening.

Exotic bath

The weather is real hot so I have a lovely blend for bath or shower. It's full of exotic oils, wonderful for the summer:

Exotic bath or shower blend

Ylang Ylang 8 drops
Litsea 1 drop
Jasmin 2 drops
Tonka bean 3 drops
Tuberose 2 drops
Orange 7 drops
Blend these essential oils in 4 table spoons honey and put it in the bath water, or blend them in a neutral showergel.

A bit nervous

I'm a bit nervous.....Michael Storer meanwhile a good friend of mine asked me to send him some of my fragrances. He's curious about my creations. He sent me already some of his and they are stunning beautiful, I'm not sure he would like mine.

The problem I have is that I don't know when to stop with creating a fragrance I always want to find out what makes it more beautiful, maybe I forgot something, something that will make it perfect. I think I have to make myself stop when the fragrance is real nice and not go on and on with it.

Now I'm thinking about the fragrances I would send him. I'm thinking about the fragrance with the magnolia but I know this one is not finished, that has nothing to do with that I can't stop with it, it's just not finished. But I will send it any way so maybe he can give some advice to me. Another I will send is the fruity chypre fragrance, it's not a real chypre but based on some of the notes of chypre. It has fruity notes of pineapple, lychee, mango and bergamot with a little bit of basil. The heart has notes of jasmin, orris, rose, tuberose and lily. The base is made of oakmoss, cedar and amber. I will send a leather fragrance as well, this one has notes of bergamot, mandarin, orange blossom, rose, amber, castoreum, civet and musk. It's a "dirty" kind of fragrance real animal and leathery.

I'm always afraid that I have something like "wishful smelling" that I think it smells like I had in mind but that another will smell something totally different. I'm always a bit nervous to show my fragrances to someone else, but I will send it to him and just wait to see what he thinks about them.
Whish me luck!

Gourmand fragrances

While working on the fragrance for my colleague with notes of kiwi, chocolate, vanilla etc I was thinking of gourmand notes used in fragrances.

An example of a typical gourmand fragrance is Angel by Thierry Mugler. This fragrance was released in 1994 and created by the perfumers Olivier Cresp and Yves de Chirin both perfumers from Quest. Thierry Mugler asked the perfumers to create a perfume that possesses the smell of a tender childhood memory at the fair, with notes of cotton candy, caramel, vanilla and chocolate.
The main notes of the fragrance are:
Bergamot, Jasmin, red currant, dewberry, honey, patchouli, vanilla, coumarine, chocolate and caramel.
For the sugary note of the cotton candy they used Maltol what makes an interesting combination with Helional an ozonic note resembling the electric ozonic smell around the bumping cars on the fair. For the jasmin note they used Hedione what has an aroma of jasmin and magnolia.
I like Angel really much but only on others, when I wear this fragrance it turn out to smell like burned sugar.


Another note used in some gourmand fragrances is almond milk. I'm not sure which note to use for that but a milky note could be obtained by Milk lactone and an almond note could be from Benzaldehyde.



Of course the vanilla is also real important for gourmand fragrances. There are all sorts of fruity notes like I used the Kiwi in the fragrance for my collegeua. The Aldehyde C14 gives a peach note and the Aldehyde C16 gives a strawberry note.


Other notes used in gourmands are Coffee, Tea or Green tea, Cumcumber, Coconut but also notes of wiskey or cognac. And of course the spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander etc.

Again

I received a lot of comments (private and on the blog) about the post Natural versus synthetics. It makes me think again about this subject. It looks like you have to make a choice, be a natural or a synthetic perfumer. I don't like to make a choice between them, I think synthetics don't bite naturals in fact they combine perfectly. Naturals and synthetics are not two worlds it's one world; the perfumery world. Sometimes I feel like some people think that synthetic aromas have a "synthetic" smell, whatever that is.....maybe they think it has to smell like plastic or something. Synthetic aroma compounds can have really really nice scents. And it's also not so that synthetics always are cheaper than natural oils. For example Damascenone which has a beautiful floral fruity rose scent cost about $1633 a kilo I don't find that cheap. I don't use synthetics because they are cheap, I use it because I like them, together with the naturals.

What I find really strange is that some natural perfumers name famous perfumes as their favorites that are famous for their use of synthetics. Like Chanel no 5 which is famous for the high use of aldehydes. Or Shalimar that is known for the use of coumarine and ethyl vanillin. Both perfumes contain real animal absolutes and tinctures from civet, musk, castoreum and ambergrey. So what about the animal cruelty used for obtaining these products. How can you be against synthetics and animal cruelty and love the perfumes made of them? Maybe because they are classics? I really don't understand.

I like to give you an example of how Shalimar was made......


The notes and structure of Shalimar:

Shalimar contain a high percent of natural oils, real animal notes and balsamic notes.
It contain 2% ethyl vanillin(ethyl vanillin is 10 times stronger than vanillin), 9% coumarine.
The topnotes are made of bergamot 30%, other citrus oils, neroli and rosewood inclusive linalool. The bergamot, vanilla, coumarine together with the absolute of civet makes an "ambrein accord" this is enhanced by the use of Patchouli, sandal, vetiver, castoreum, leathernotes and cinnamon bark oil what gives a nice combination with the leather notes. It has rose notes like citronellol, geraniol and rose absolute. The coumarine is enhanced with the notes of tonka bean and benzoin.

This information I found in the book: Perfumery practice and principals by Robert.R.Calkin and J.Stephan.Jellinek.

Sweet Pea

Oh don't you love the smell of Sweet pea? I found a formula of it in an old book:

Sweet Pea

Benzylidenaceton 60 gram
Phenyletyl acetate 15 gram
Heliotropine 60 gram
Vanilline 15 gram
Terpineol 200 gram
Hydroxycitronellal 75 gram
Phenylacetaldehyde 75 gram
Jasmin base 35 gram
Rose bulgarian 10 gram
Neroli base 50 gram
Benzyl acetate 20 gram
Tolu balsam 65 gram
Cananga oil Java 25 gram
Iso Eugenol 5 gram
Eugenol 2 gram

From the book: Handbuch der gesamten parfumerie und kosmetik.
Dr. Fred Winter 1942
The picture is from www.welchstudio.com

Blooming roses

The roses in my garden are blooming, there are a lot of different roses in my garden. I love the tender smell of it. Strangely enough I sometimes don't like the scent of rose in a perfume. The roses in my garden have a tender smell light soft and sweet like it reflects the soft velvety feeling of their petals, some of them have a honey note but it's still tender. I prefer the tender smells of rose above the heavy smell of some of them. I do love heavy smelling flowers though like the jasmin in my garden, it's not blooming anymore but I made a picture of it when it was full of jasmin flowers:
The fragrance of the jasmin is relieved in the evening, it's an overwhelming sensual scent the opposite of the tender scent of the roses.

Below a lovely poem by Monica Engeler with pictures of the roses from my garden:

The Rose

A beautiful red rose stands alone
Each petal is flawless on its stem
And perfuming a scent all its own

Something so perfect can not die
It is an elegant gift from nature
But a rose survives only for a time

Sad that such a blossom will wilt away
One can count the blades as they drop
One, two, three perish on the overlay

For each leaf that falls, a heart is broken
The rose bears a powerful magic
A demeanor that is not easily forgiven

Love and beauty are its arrogance
Never doubt the potencies of a rose
It is the favor of everlasting romance

At last the final flake dies on the tray
The flowers beauty ended sorrowfully
As a teardropp washed it slowly away.

Comparing different magnolia fragrances

While working on my magnolia based perfume I was testing some fragrances with a magnolia scent. Some of them are build around the magnolia and others just have a magnolia scent in it. I compared these fragrances with my own magnolia perfume:



On the picture is a solid perfume shown while I have the Magnaolia perfume extrait oil but I couldn't find a picture of it. I think I have a real old perfume of L'Occitane, I once bought it on internet. The smell of this perfume oil doesn't look the same as my fragrance at all, it has a heavy smell, it doesn't smell like a perfume but it could be nice for a candle scent. It's not a soft velvety magnolia scent but more a neroli, jasmin, honeysuckle scent.


Very Valentino is lighter than my fragrance it has a more green light topnote with a lactonic(milky, creamy) heart. My magnolia based fragrance is more velvety. But I like the scent of Very Valentino, it does have a magnolia fragrance but it's more centered around a lilly of the Valley scent with soft green notes. It's a discrete perfume


Magnolia by Yves Rocher is no longer be sold. It's a girlie fragrance it's nice but it fades away real quickly. It's a light fragrance, soft and gentle. It doesn't have much nuances it's a bit like a cologne with a soft flowery note without a solid base.


L'Instant de Guerlain is a wonderful nice fragrance. It has some resembles with my magnolia, when I have to choose which one will look the most like mine it will be L' Instant. It has a wonderful smoothness that I really like, the base has a warm ambernote like my magnolia fragrance. But L'Instant is much sweeter and honeylike. It starts with a honey sweet smell and mine starts with fresh notes and than starts to be sweeter, but not as sweet as L' Instant, my fragrance has more fresh white flowers.

Kiwi and chocolate

I always like to experiment and that's why I ask people what kind of fragrance they would like. I asked my colleague what kind of perfume she would like and she told me that it would have notes of peach, gardenia, kiwi, ylang ylang, dark chocolate, honey, vanilla and coconut.
For the fun I made a photo composition of the notes:

For the chocolate note I used a cacao absolute and an aroma chemical with a chocolate note and for the kiwi note I used Styralyl acetate that has a kiwi/rhubarb note and is sometimes used in gardenia as well. For the peach note I used Aldehyde C14. The honey note is from a honey absolute and Ethyl phenyl acetate. I used a patchouli and benzoin note as well and a real warm sweet amber note to warm it up. To sweeten the fragrance I used benzyl salicylate and vanilla.

I thought the chocolate note would be too much but smelling it I can't detect the chocolate so I will make another formula with more chocolate notes. I don't want to make it a chocolate fragrance but I think it could have more of it. The combination of gardenia and chocolate is real nice. The fragrance turned out to be a dark warm fragrance with a bit of flowery fruity notes. I will keep on experimenting with it because it could turn out real nice.

I would love to hear from you what your favorite fragrance would smell like and what kind of notes it would have.

A different approach

Today I used a different way to create the fragrance that is based on magnolia and white flowers. See other posts about this fragrance here and here. I started with the basic notes I had in mind and added alcohol and put this base(phase 1) on a smelling strip. After that I put another oil in the same bottle and dipped the smelling strip in it and named it phase 2, after that another oil phase 3 until I had 8 smelling strips. This way I can see how the different oils fit in the fragrance, if there is to much of it in it or that it don't fit in it. I know that the formula isn't accurate this way but it gives me an idea how the different components work together. After bottle one, I go on with bottle two with all the information in mind I learned from the first bottle. And start to experiment again with 8 different smelling strips. I think this method learned me the impact of the oils and is a nice way to control the formula.