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Focusing In On Our Art of Natural Perfumery

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Sometimes the busy bee that is me has a bit of a blurry see. Ok, bad poetry. Sharper image now, though. In May of 2005 I discovered that there were folks out there blogging on perfume. I also found perfume forums. As a respite from some rather nasty folks who had plans to take over my natural perfumery group and used some rather Machiavellian means, I drifted around the internet looking for some related, non-stressful talk on perfume. (BTW, that "group" founded on my stolen list is well, listless and feeble, and mine has more than doubled in size to 1300 members -- the good guys do win in the end.) I found about a dozen blogs, and made friends, or at the very least, acquaintance, with the bloggers. I chatted about mainstream perfumes, aka those made with synths, the stuff you find in all the department stores, boutiques and drugstores, always referring to my beloved natural perfumes also. Many of the ladies (and two men) bloggers weren't very familiar with natural perfume

Cropwatch Newsletter - call to arms, call for volunteers and STOP THE FDA GLOBALIZATION ACT OF 2008

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STOP THE FDA GLOBALIZATION ACT OF 2008 The latest Cropwatch newsletter isn't on their site yet. You can view it on the Natural Perfumers Guild site by clicking on the link. It's long, 50+pages, packed with information. Before you read the latest message from Cropwatch below, I cannot stress enough the importance of what Tony Burfield and his Cropwatch organization are doing FOR US ALL - those of us who love natural aromatics, natural and botanical perfumery, and want to retain our rights. If you enjoy aromatherapy, naturally scented toiletries, natural body care and natural perfumes, you'll want to pay attention to this issue very closely as your access to natural aromatics is in danger. This message went out to the 1200+ members of the Yahoo group I host, and it's relevant here: Let's put the power and beauty of our numbers to work. Please volunteer to help him if you have any expertise in the areas he's asking for assistance with, or perhaps you're just a

Perfume Classes Blog Launched - Online and Worldwide

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Please visit the Perfume Classes blog for the latest update on the Basic Natural Perfumery Class I will be teaching this Fall. The class will be online and offer for the first time, online interaction with a teacher, learning modules, and a study forum.

Pandanus, wild and crazy, "screwy" fun scent

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The male flower of the Pandanus odoritissimus can weigh two pounds or more. The Pandanus is also known as the Screw Pine due to the swirl of the leaves. It is one of the most useful plants in the tropics. Practically every part of the Screw Pine is used for all type of different purposes: clothing, bowls, housebuilding, food, medicine and fragrance. But it's the wild and crazy flower I'm interested in as a natural perfumer. High, pierceing, radish-y, rosy, green, dirt, glorious, sun-drenched, yet cool as can be - that's the hydrodistilled oil of the Pandanus odoritissimus. Also can be described as hyachinth-honey, fresh floral, addictive. Dilute it down to 1% to have some of the hyacinth notes really release - wow. Male flower only, please - like the male peacock with his technicolor plumage, only the male flower of this tree has the scent. Yes, the lady trees may have the bombastic, grenade-looking fruit, but it's the essence of the male flower that is craved. And co

Cropwatch gets conference with European Union Cosmetics Commission

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STOP THE FDA GLOBALIZATION ACT OF 2008 For those of you who have been following this blog since January, when we first reported on Tony Burfield's watchdog organization Cropwatch challenging the IFRA 40th Amendment, and the European Union regulation of natural aromatics, I am happy to report there is progress. On July 3rd, Tony, along with representatives of the Perfume Foundation, sat down with the representatives of the EU Cosmetics Commission in the first-ever of its type of confab. We take this as a sign of a crack in the ongoing bulldozing effect of IFRA-fueled nonsensical and nonscientific regulation of natural aromatics in natural perfumery. You can read or download a PDF of Tony's report on the meeting here: Cropwatch sits down with the European Union (EU) Cosmetics Commission. Back to lounging on the beach for me - yeah!

Just a Taste of Anya's Choice

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Just a taste of what I've been up to: I started selling exotic, and some not-so-exotic, but absolutely knock-out beautiful,exceptional raw materials on my website here. The hyacinth absolute is already sold out, but more is expected soon. Lush narcissus poeticus absolute is also sold out, both due in the end of July. Rose de Mai absolute is on the way, a non-CITES agarwood is for sale - it smells like a very posh leather good boutique, all freshly-sawn wood and buttery, fragrant leather. Vanilla absolute to die for! Heck, I'm even parting with some of my double-infused St. John's Wort oil, an incredible ruby red jewel of an oil for what ails ya. My perfumes have had a slight price reduction after the big June sale, and it's permanent. All of the pure essential oils are suitable for aromatherapy use. I also term these rare essential oils because of the exceptional aroma quality of them. Absolutely knockout in strength and clarity of scent. My most obvious reason for m

Taking Time Off to Do a Lot

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This summer is busier than the past two summers, which were some of the busiest of my life. Lots of obligations in the perfume world, personal goals, and just too much on my plate! So, I've decided to really have down time every chance I can grab it, and the picture above sums up where you should look for me. I'll be there, lolling around, or nearby, having fun, instead of working on this blog. Happy Summer, everyone!

Happy Birthday to the Natural Perfumers Guild!

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June 1, 2007: The Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild is now the Natural Perfumers Guild. We're celebrating the one year anniversary of the reopening of the Guild with a new name and a new logo, seen above. In the past year 88 wonderful people joined the Guild, supportive and enthusiastic about the art of natural perfumery, helping spread the word, networking amongst themselves and just being supportive. We're also adopting the phrase "Slow Scent" as our slogan. Mandy Aftel, the Founder of the Guild, coined the term for her new book, and is graciously sharing it with us. Here's a great example of how we're all connecting and helping each other and spreading the news about what we do, and who we are: with hours of reading the June Guild newsletter, Blunda Los Angeles store owner Persephenie called Andrea Budje of Aromahead because she wanted her to come to LA from Florida to give a class at her store - all because of a small feature I put in the newsletter withou

Full Moon Jasmine

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The very-talented Helen of ZenSoaps created this image from a photo of the Grasse variety of Jasmine grandiflorum I have growing in my garden. I find it alluring and mysterious, sensual and spiritual, much like the flower itself. Today is the Full Moon in Sagittarius. White fragrant flowers bloom wildly and profusely during a full moon, and here in Florida, our major flushes of blooms are from April - June, with intermittant blooms throughout the year. I have been harvesting Jasmines - grandi (sparse, it may bloom more in July, for some reason), sambacs - Belle of India, Maid of Orleans, Grand Duke of Tuscany and several lesser-known varieties, like long-petaled Belle of India. Also into the alcohol goes the auriculatum and azoricum, and night-blooming Jasmine, Cestrum nocturnum, and Orange Jasmine, Murraya paniculata. Quite heavenly tinctures they are, too. More like the fresh flower on the vine than the concretes and absolutes we buy from suppliers. I use them to supplement and enhan

Anya's Garden Sale - Thank You + Anniversary

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It is my pleasure to announce the first-ever sale on the perfumes of Anya's Garden. The sale is in celebration of three happy events: the six-month anniversary of the launch of Anya's Garden, and the wonderful success of the perfumes, which are lovingly reviewed on forums such as Perfume of Life, MakeUpAlley and others, and the appreciative notes from customers, who write to say how the perfumes create a mood, bring back a memory of a warm summery place, or as in the case of Fairchild, take them to an intoxicating salty, flowery shore in the tropics. This is what a perfumer aims for, at least I do. Not just to create a pretty or exotic fragrance, but to create one that evokes a soulful response, or in the case of Pan, as it has been reported, a real pheromonal response from men. Pan is a hit with the ladies who do not mind a slightly masculine scent, and among gay men, where it is a cult favorite. The ladies say the men flock around them, or give them appreciative stares in p