Where Do I Begin?

by Lisa Abdul-Quddus

I started my journey into natural and botanical perfumery after delving into the world of aromatherapy. It all started out with the therapeutic aspect in mind but quickly turned to blending for the scent alone. At the time I had no idea natural and botanical perfumery, as the art form I am familiar with today, even existed. However, I soon learned of the many resources available after reading The Aromatherapy Book by the very knowledgeable Jeanne Rose. I located an essential oil E-tailer and bought about 7 or 8 samples. Each month as I studied aromatherapy further I purchased more samples. Pretty soon I had a nice little stash. I bought scents that I knew I liked. Citrus, citrus and more citrus. Well, it seemed that way since I bought one of each available (and there were lots). I had rose and jasmine, patchouli and vetyver, mints and spices. I still had no idea what to really do with them, though, when it came to perfumery. Then one day a member of a soaping forum I frequent, who happens to be a niche perfumer, shared information on the Jean Carles monographs. It all started to make sense. But to really understand I needed to be hands on and not just read. The one thing I needed to do was to start building my perfumer's palette with raw materials.

Mandy Aftel, in her book Essence & Alchemy, lists what she feels is a good starting point of necessary essences. The list includes top, middle and base notes. The best advice I can offer is to purchase dropper bottles, scent strips and samples of essences along with a good amount of your menstruum of choice: oil or alcohol. For the beginner this can be a bit overwhelming. Just take it slow and start with a handful of essences at a time. The main key to blending a perfume is in knowing your raw materials and how they interact with each other. Have a notebook on hand to keep blend ratios, thoughts and other important information available. Label all your bottles whether it's the raw material or a blend. I can't think of anything more frustrating when it comes to blending than to have a bottle of some substance tucked away and later not remember what it is.Today there is a wealth of information available to the budding natural and botanical perfumer. One thing for sure is that no matter how long you've been a part of NBP you never stop learning. Something new and wonderful can unfold at any time.

*Lisa is a graduate of NNAPA Natural Botanical Perfumers Antiquarian Perfumery Course, and writes the blogs 'Blossoming Tree' and 'Scent, You Say?', and is owner of Blossoming Tree Bodycare at Etsy.

Perfumer's Palette

by Lisa Abdul-Quddus

Perfumes are composed of top (head), middle (heart) and bottom (base) notes. By definition in perfumery head notes are the opening scent. The less tenacious of the three, head notes can last anywhere from 10-30 minutes leading you into the heart of the perfume. Heart notes are the body of a composition or the theme that identifies the perfume. Base notes being the most tenacious are the foundation of the perfume and the longest lasting. Although separated into three categories you will find, however, that some essences can cross over into another area or even last throughout the life of the perfume. Head notes can be smelled in the heart or a hint of one in the base. Base notes can come forward early on blending with head and/or heart notes. Heart notes can go in either direction; giving a lift to head notes or adding to the body of base notes.

Head Notes

You will find citruses fall into this category. I have had the experience of evaluating a perfume that gave an initial burst of citrus before quickly fading, only to have that note return in the heart of the composition. There are several choices when it comes to citrus essential oils like orange (bitter, sweet, wild, blood), grapefruit (white, pink, red), mandarin (yellow, green, red), lemon, lime, tangerine and yuzu. Herbs also fall into this category. Common are basil, bay, cardamom, coriander, mints and sage (to name a few).

Heart Notes

For all the floral lovers this is where jasmines, roses, geraniums, etc., shine. There are herbs, spices and some woods that are heart notes. Examples are (spices) clove & cinnamon, (herbs) chamomile & melissa, (woods) ho wood and katrafay.

Base Notes

Base notes are the heavier and most tenacious group of essences. Most woods and absolutes fall under this heading. Cedar and Sandalwoods for example are included, as well as, 'stinkier' (highly fragrant) leaves and roots like patchouly and vetyver.

As you're building your palette you'll want to select essences from each group. Adding 2-3 of each head, heart and base notes over time will give a very good beginner's collection.

*Lisa is a graduate of NNAPA Natural Botanical Perfumers Antiquarian Perfumery Course, and writes the blogs 'Blossoming Tree' and 'Scent, You Say?', and is owner of Blossoming Tree Bodycare at Etsy.

Reprint: Horse Chestnuts

Horse Chestnuts

by Lisa Abdul-Quddus

It happens often yet I still get amazed at how simple actions can spark inspiration and discoveries. Take, for example, a conversation back in January 2009 between Natural Botanical Perfumer Justine Crane and one of her Antiquarian Perfumery students, Pauhla Whitaker. Pauhla started a discussion about a subject totally different from where that discussion ended. Basically, she casually mentioned the smell of horse chestnuts and very briefly described what they were. Justine suggested she tincture them, and voila! The Natures Nexus Academy of Perfuming Arts students had begun a journey in horse smells. Pauhla generously supplied the students with horse chestnuts and there began the experimentation.

If you do a search for horse chestnuts you will most likely find links to Aesculus hippocastanum, a tree that bears fruit containing seeds or nuts, referred to as chestnuts or horse chestnuts. So to give a brief description of what horse chestnuts are for those unfamiliar, they are the soft knobbly bits or growths found on a horse above the knee area of the front legs and below the hock of the hind legs. They grow normally over time in layers and can be easily peeled or shaved off. If horse chestnuts grow too big they can be unsightly but cause no harm to the horse. Pauhla says think of them as toe nails. When your toe nails grow too long you clip them. If left alone horse chestnuts can peel and fall off on their own. Often though they are taken care of by a farrier during regular grooming. And being that they grow from the horse's body they carry within them a mildly horsey more leathery scent. As a bonus for those that use animal essences in their natural perfumes horse chestnuts are cruelty free.

When I evaluated the horse chestnut tincture I found it to be cool and actually somewhat fresh. It is rustic for sure, but not fecal. Definitely animalic, sweaty, but not like stepping into a barn where horse scents can be concentrated. A chestnut is but one element taken from a group of other horse related smells, most notably lacking the warmth or heat that I would guess comes more from the horses own body heat than anything else. In conducting my own experiments with this tincture I found it gives my blends a 'lift' and cuts some of the sweetness of various essences while adding an agrestic note. I found this happened when added to a blend that was dominant in jasmine sambac.

I randomly selected a few essences to test with horse chestnut tincture added and these are some of my findings.

Patchouli - 10% dilution - ratio 1:1 Patchouli alone has a warm earthy, woody scent. With the addition of horse chestnut tincture it became almost boozy like congac with a light leather. Over time, and as the alcohol evaporated the leather note became stronger.

Tobacco absolute - 1% dilution - ratio 1:1 Tobacco absolute is warm, sweet and smoky. Adding horse chestnut tincture gave this a lift with a faint animalic note that blends well with the richness of the tobacco absolute. Think a campfire, burning tobacco, leather saddles and of course the horses.

Cilantro - 1% dilution - ratio 1:1 Cilantro is fresh, bright and herbal, like drawing in the aroma of a fresh cut bunch from a garden. The horse chestnut tincture overpowered the cilantro at the 1% dilution, although the cilantro was still detectable. These two together made for a very fresh, cool combination that actually pulled a tiny bit of sweetness from the cilantro. 

I've found that when added to heavier base notes the horse chestnut tincture takes a back seat but still makes its presence known. With lighter notes it can take over but will diminish over time letting the lighter notes shine through while still adding an animalic element to a blend. One must also factor in the dilution percentages of the essences being used as well as the strength of the tincture. For those interested in animal smells horse chestnuts are worth adding to your palette if you can obtain them. Experiment with various essences to see what this tincture can add to your blends.

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Lisa Abdul-Quddus, Owner of Blossoming Tree Bodycare on Etsy, Third-Year Student/Mentor NNAPA Antiquarian Perfumery Course

Justine Crane, Natural Botanical Perfumer, Owner of The Scented Djinn, Tutor for Natures Nexus Academy of Perfuming Arts

Pauhla Whitaker Consultant, AmimOils, essential oil therapy for animals, Third-Year Student/Mentor NNAPA Antiquarian Perfumery Course