Project Boxgasm Announcement: If you are an artisan who makes perfume, bath & body products, aromatherapy products, candles - you can now make your own custom boxes! The Natural Perfumers Guild wishes to share this discovery with everyone, so please share the link to this blog with other groups, forums and chat places you may frequent. The more the merrier - let's upgrade our products to the next level, with lovely, custom boxes! I am the President of the Guild, and I like to roam social media sites and check out, and "like" the various projects and announcements of the Guild members. Little did I dream when I visited a Facebook page of one of our members, a page that only had 21 followers, since it's new, that I'd discover something that can help all artisan small business owners. But there it was, an iconic image out of South Africa - custom perfume boxes! When I called some members of the Natural Perfumers Guild and told them about the discovery th...
Hi Anya,
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if you were entertaining thoughts of selling natural isolates at Anya's Garden after the book is complete. After the discussions on Ask the Perfumer, I know the importance of buying from a trusted source. Given all the effort and energy you are putting in to your studies and book, you would be my pick for my trusted source!
Thanks! Michael
Hi Michael:
ReplyDeleteThanks for being cautious. Remember the story last week about the perfume starting to smell like suntan lotion after a few weeks?! I got my first portion of the book back to one of the co-editors a few days ago, she'll work on it and then send it on to the others. We're going to be very careful and also have peer review.
Now that you're a member of the Guild, look for a group buy on isolates. We have one on rare aromatics that is in the works right now, going slowly due to the materials coming from France. That's one of the perks of Guild membership: group buys.
Don't know if I'll add isolates to Anya's Garden. If I do, and this goes for a Guild buy also, it'll be ones covered in the book, so the customer will have all the important information on how to deal with these delightful tricksters ;-)
Hi Anya:
ReplyDeleteI have a question about aging your final perfumes. Where do you usually put your completed bottles of perfume to mature? Are you most concerned about heat and light, or does it really matter as much as the time it really takes to get it to meld completely? How long do you generally age yours for? Also, once it’s done maturing, do you ever feel the need to tweak them, just a bit? Thanks Anya.
Hi Ruh:
ReplyDeleteI always store my perfumes, no matter what stage they're in, in a cool, dark cabinet. Aging typically takes from two weeks to several months, depending upon the complexity of the materials. Then they are frozen before final filtering. I bring them slowly up to room temperature and use professional filtering equipment, then into the final storage bottles and into the cabinet.
I know a trick to help aging that I teach my students. That helps when you're on a deadline.
Occasionally I will tweak a perfume, typically with a bit of top note enhancement, rarely middle note, never base note.
HTH
Anya
Hi Anya,
ReplyDeleteHow do you freeze your blend after aging? I read on the internet when I first started perfuming that you add distilled water. Since then I have found that there is much misinformation on the internet. The old perfume books I've skimmed through didn't seem to mention it or I missed it.
Thank you so much for your help and expertise!
Jane
Hi Jane:
ReplyDeleteI put it in the freezer for two days. Then I put it in the refrigerator to slowly defrost, and then in my studio for another day or so. I do not use clay or other materials some use to sink any remaining particles. I use a very fine filter and vacuum to clarify the perfume.
HTH
PS distilled water may be added before freezing if you wish for an EdP, EdT or EdC