*NOTE: This is the first installment of a new “Letters to a Fellow Perfumer” series that will follow a conversation and collaboration between West Coast all-natural luxury perfumer and specialty culinary consultant Mandy Aftel (Aftelier) and independent Cincinnati-based musician, painter and olfactory artist Liz Zorn (Liz Zorn Perfumes).
February 18, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I’m pleased that I’ll be doing this next round of letters with you.
I’ve found that knowing what I’m going to write about brings a certain focus to the creative process, and I’m looking forward to an exchange about how you and I work with materials, learning more about what we both do and how we think about it.
Would you like to start with an essence that we’re both interested in creating with? And are there other topics that you find appealing for discussion – we could start with creating a perfume or a tea or . . . ?
Please let me know your thoughts.
Warmly,
Mandy
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February 19, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
I, too, am looking forward to the exchange, though I only just received the request from Nathan a few days ago and have yet to sit down and really think about it.
In my own work, I’ve put everything except the perfumes on the back burner. I found that I was getting too far from my original vision and needed to refocus. Having said that, I have no problem at all with the idea of doing a tea or body product together. Another thing I do which is not part of my business (yet) is to create loose incense blends using all natural materials and oils.
I think we have a number of things in common – you’re doing the chef’s essences whereas my husband is a small organic grower and supplies local chefs with seasonal items. It’s great fun to eat at a restaurant where the berry pie was made from fruit harvested from your own vines just the day before.
The fun of fresh food — photo by Nathan Branch
Personally, I’m very much into food, particularly the Sally Fallon approach, which was how my own grandmother cooked. Not quite a Barbara Kingsolver living off the land, but still that kind of hands-on approach.
I have a wide array of interests, so am up for just about any collaborative challenge, especially going off the grid and bringing something unexpected to the table.
I’m feeling a bit like that these days. Restless and wanting to jump . . . if that makes any sense.
Liz
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February 19, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I especially love thinking about what goes into creating with scent. Maybe we could choose two essences from which to build a perfume? They would be the center of the creation, and it could be any two essences that we both agree are interesting.
I find that creating an aroma requires its own language and its own thought process. I would love to hear about your language and thought process while also sharing mine. Maybe we would spark each other’s processes, go in the same direction or even different directions.
These are just some thoughts – does any of this appeal to you?
Mandy
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February 21, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
That would be fine – the well traveled path. Or maybe we could each choose an essence that we either don’t like or usually avoid working with, and perhaps find something to love about it through the exchange.
We might not be in agreement on the materials, but each be required to use both in the creation of a perfume.
For me, to create a scent from the starting point of distaste, and maybe even a little discomfort, would be a more interesting challenge in the long run.
Just tossing it out there.
Liz
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February 22, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I like the way you’re thinking about this, and the idea of us working with materials we ordinarily avoid using.
What immediately popped into my mind was galbanum – the sharp and thorny greenness is impressive yet causes me to steer clear of it.
Wild harvested galbanum and galbanum resin – photo by Aftelier
Have you worked with galbanum essential oil, and is there a particular essence that challenges you?
Mandy
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February 23, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
Galbanum . . . an intriguing choice. I’ve worked with it, but not very often.
I do like green notes a lot, but for some reason I don’t gravitate to the Galbanum, or at least not in the last few years.
Interestingly, the one essence I tend to avoid is Ylang Ylang — I used to like it, but haven’t wanted to use it for a long time.
Liz
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Feb 24, 2011 / New York, NY
Dear Liz,
I’m very open to Ylang – do you mean the extract or the absolute? The creamy sweetness can be problematic, so I understand the avoidance on your part.
I think that building a fragrance around the poles of galbanum and ylang could be quite interesting and I’m up for that.
Mandy
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March 2, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
I, too, think it would make for an interesting twist, the ylang and galbanum.
And to answer your question, it’s just Ylang in general. Everything, from the absolute and essential oil to the synthetic accord. And funny that galbanum is one of the essences. Of all my perfumes, a review was recently posted online of the only scent in my current collection that contains galbanum – which was originally created at least fifteen years ago! So I guess I’m overdue for some work with this essence.
I know that you and Andy Tauer had been doing this “back and forth” thing with scent creation, so I’m going to ask how you structured the progress. Did you send accords, unfinished trials, etc., or wait until you had the scent completed before sharing?
Best,
Liz
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March 3, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I took a look at my perfumes and realized that I have NEVER used galbanum in a fragrance that has made it all the way to being sold in my line. I think that’s why it came up so strongly in my mind when you suggested working with a material that I might find uncomfortable.
I’m very turned on by the idea of working with a core of galbanum and ylang – that already makes sense to me.
Andy and I didn’t send things back and forth until they were finished (or very nearly finished). I am, however, open to the idea of sending things back and forth along the way if that fits with the creative process for one (or both) of us as we’re working.
How do you feel about it?
Mandy
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March 3, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
I think it would be ok to send things as we go along, if we have something that we feel is worth sharing. I imagine that, like me, you’ll be working around a maze of other projects on your plate, so I can be flexible on the timeline and starting point.
I’ve been rolling this note combination around in my head lately and have gone in for a sniff here and there to keep it fresh in my mind. A go at one’s own pace would be the best fit for me right now – perhaps an open-ended stop date?
Liz
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March 4, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I’ve been turning over this pair of essences in my mind, too. I find galbanum essential oil (a top note) much more difficult to blend with than the resin, which (for me) is a base note.
Since I find the top notes the most difficult aspect of a perfume, I’ll work with the top note galbanum in the spirit of “discomfort”.
Sending variations back and forth could be fun and very stimulating. I’ve never done that before, and I would welcome the chance to be able to share in honest and constructive feedback as we go along.
Best,
Mandy
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March 5, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Mandy,
I agree with you on the Galbanum. The EO (essential oil) is definitely an opening note, but also has carry-over.
I may have some of the resin already tinctured – I need to check. If not, I do have a chunk of it somewhere and will get going on that today (if I can find it). I’ve been doing a lot of moving and things are out of sorts at the moment.
Creating a more complex galbanum accord using both the resin and EO would probably be most appealing to me. Also (again, I need to check) I believe my standard dilution of the EO is at 5%. Depending on how delicate the composition, it could even be taken down to trace.
The fact that it can be volatile and invasive at the same time does create challenges, but I like that . . .
I’m thinking along the lines of a cologne profile for my scent. I’ve heard the term “Cologne Absolute”, which seems like an oxymoron but does make sense to me.
Liz
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March 7, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
I’ve only gotten so far as to put my galbanum and ylang extract on a blotter, and I like the way the ylang softens the harshness of the galbanum.
I think of it like a green razor blade.
I won’t be using the galbanum resin in this.
I always work the base first and thread my way to the top, but since I find the galbanum so intense, I’m going to work from the top down this time.
You mentioned your “standard dilution” – do you usually work with your essential oils and absolutes in dilution? My usual way of working is with drops of undiluted essence in 10ml of alcohol. It’s how I began creating perfumes, and I still like to work that way.
Drop by drop — photo by Aftelier
I’ve never heard of a Cologne Absolute – what does that mean to you?
I’m enjoying getting to know you this way, and sharing this process with you very much.
Mandy
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March 9, 2011 / Cincinnati, OH
Hi Mandy,
I haven’t even gotten as far as you have yet. I work up the compositions in my head before I write anything down or start the bench work.
For this scent, I’m leaning in the direction of an eau de cologne/tea profile. Recently, I had requests to do something with a bamboo note, so that scent profile is in my head and I’ve been letting it mingle with the ylang and galbanum.
I love that description: “green razor blade”. It’s something that I might have said myself. We think alike in that way – vivid and to the point.
I don’t keep everything (eo’s) in dilution, but most things, yes, and in several strengths. Since I’m creating mini-profiles, full strength oils are not practical, particularly when adding elements of nuance.
I almost always work up accords for each scent. From my mental notes, I write out a long list of individual notes and break them down into like components. Once I have my accords worked up, I’ll then begin to problem-solve the percentages, top to heart to base, etc. This is where the alcohol comes in and I begin to think in terms of overall dilution.
When I first started making scent blends, it was for incense and altar oils. I was taught to add drops to the oil, much as you do with the alcohol. I still sometimes work this way with oil.
The new line called Atelier Cologne dubbed their scents “cologne absolues”. I think they took their inspiration from the old world eau de cologne formula and created similar scent profiles but in stronger concentration.
If this is the case, they’re clearly part of a large group of companies creating scents with a fresh/clean profile. Perhaps they wanted to distance themselves from the pack by calling them “cologne absolues” instead of eau de parfums.
It’s a genderless term, which I like, but confusing if the scents themselves play outside the box of what a cologne really is.
Since colognes are generally of such low concentration, I can see the benefits of a stronger version if one is creating natural cologne profiles. But if they’re synthetic, the idea falls short, as one can create a very low concentration cologne style scent with a killer waft and longevity.
Companies have been doing it that way for years. Nothing new under the sun there.
Liz
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March 10, 2011 / Berkeley, CA
Dear Liz,
Thank you for letting me into your process. It makes me smile to hear how you work, and I find it very satisfying to read the ways in which you go about creating with these mysterious essences.
It reminds me of how much I’ve loved reading writers’ journals, getting a peek behind how other people write.
I’m very attached to my own process – it feels right to (and for) me. It’s led me through the sometimes overwhelming and dizzying combinations of essences that I seem to be besotted with simultaneously.
I work the way that you do – first composing things in my head, but I only do that in broad brush strokes, choosing the main actors of the perfume. After that, I’ll start with the base, then the middle and then the top – always in that order.
I don’t ever make accords. I love using a dropper and seeing each essence fall and merge into the alcohol drop by drop.
Tomorrow, I’m hoping to start with the broad brush strokes. The idea of an absolute cologne makes sense to me, and I do like the term. It has a heft and strength to it. Hopefully, I’ll have more to report tomorrow as I get my hands into the materials.
I’m so enjoying getting to know you this way. I think that both making perfume and talking about the creative process reveals so much about the perfumer.
Best,
Mandy
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