Powder Enfleurage! An Ancient Fragrant Art And a Giveaway
Powder Enfleurage! An Ancient Fragrant Art And a Giveaway
How to Make Enfleurage des Poudres – Powder Enfleurage
Fragrant Body Powders – An Ancient Art Rediscovered
Update April 19, 2015: I do recommend using a bit of powdered orris root or powdered oakmoss as a fixative. The ylang-ylang enfleurage was overpoweringly strong at first, but the scent faded over time. I’m going to mix orris root in with the powder and re-enfleurage the flowers.
(make sure you read to the end to discover how to win the fabulous giveaway prize!)
On June 15, I was working on the first re-edit of my upcoming book Perfume From Your Garden, checking references, when I stumbled across a few sentences in a vintage perfumer book that stopped me, and truly surprised me with some wonderful information.
The process of enfleurage des poudres aka powder enfleurage, the manufacture of powders perfumed by flowers, is very ancient. The process takes place by simple contact, in a closed receptacle, and the flowers are removed and replaced with carefully chosen and sorted ones. The authors state that this ancient process was the inspiration to the French for oil and pomade enfleurage that they began in the 17th century.
I immediately knew I had found some incredible, long-lost art form. So many artisans are now enfleuraging with oil and pomades, the use of powder is an easy adaptation. So, I decided to post an excerpt from the book, ahead of publication, so that readers could enjoy this new process with the lovely summer flowers in their gardens. I hope you enjoy this!
From the rough draft I’m inserting into the Perfume From Your Garden manuscript (update: book was published as Homemade Perfume in 2018):
“Powders treated in this manner included the plant powders, orris, ambrette, oakmoss; amylaceous matter, starch, and faecula;* and minerals, crayon, and talc; the flowers used included jasmine, hyacinth, jonquil, orange flower, nutmeg. rose, mignonette, tuberose, and even wallflower and lily-of-the-valley. By an analogous process, hides and gloves have been perfumed with the same flowers, and also with violet and crimson carnation.
It is to these long-abandoned methods that we trace the modern experiments with enfleurage with pulverized solid adsorbents.”
From Natural Perfume Materials, Naves and Mazuyer, 1947
*amylaceous and starch are synonyms and faecula means a starch made from plants or seeds.
I felt like an archaeologist who had stumbled upon a long-forgotten (in authors Naves and Mazuyer’s words, “long-abandoned”) method that was the reason that other methods came into being, like the cold and hot enfleurage processes detailed in this book. What a revelation that garden perfumers can capture the scent of gardenias, magnolias, roses, lily-of-the-valley, heliotrope, linden, and dozens of other fragrant plants in a luxurious, true-to-scent, body powder.
For historical purposes, I was also thrilled by the mention of the glove and leather scented processes mentioned, as they gave birth to the first perfumer’s guilds, as I am the head of the Natural Perfumers Guild. Further research showed that these powder enfleurages were the methods used, in the early perfume industry in France, to produce dusting or body powders, not mixing essential oils and absolutes with powder, which is a new method. “What’s old is new again”.
True, nowadays, many artisans, copying the methods of the larger cosmetics industry, make these aromatic powders by adding essential oils, dried powdered flowers, and absolutes to a base powder such as arrowroot, tapioca root, non-GMO corn, and some clays. But how many have true gardenia absolute? Or use pricey rose essential oils or absolute? Since many artisan perfumers around the world are reviving enfleurage,
I am happy to present to everyone this most ancient enfleurage method. For the two decades I have been on perfumery forums and discussion groups, read ancient perfumery books, and followed blogs, and spoken with perfumers, and I never found anybody writing about this method. I’m going to focus on a few rare flowers in my garden, like ylang-ylang, golden champaca, various jasmines, and Vietnamese and Tahitian gardenias. Well, at least that’s my start! Imagine capturing the scent of your summer roses, lavender, or other delicious plants in powder, and using the results as gifts.
I immediately got some arrowroot powder and harvested some of my ylang-ylang flowers and tested the process. Great success! With only one enfleurage, using eighteen ylang-ylang flowers and about 2.5 pounds (approx. 1100g) of arrowroot, within one day I had a highly-scented powder. The next day I only had six ylangs to add, but the strong scent of the one day/eighteen flowers almost took my breath away!
The next day, when my apprentice Paula came by, she harvested more, and we were almost overcome by the strong scent! She actually asked, “is it possible to infuse too much scent?” I replied that if that’s the case, we can just “dilute” it with more powder. We both commented on how the ylang powder scent was so much richer and intoxicating than the living flowers or the oils – it was overwhelmingly sensual!
Eighteen organic ylang flowers from my garden in arrowroot powder, about to be covered in more powder
Gently tapping the cover powder over the ylangs to ensure contact between the flower petals and powder. The tray cover was then put in place to cover and keep the scent in.
Powder enfleurage is the easiest and quickest way to draw the fragrance of botanicals into a usable product. Small children can easily make this with adult supervision. Powders are made by simply placing the flowers or leaves (I’m using scented geraniums and mints) in a layer, in a powder. I recommend arrowroot, tapioca root, rice, or non-GMO cornstarch. I would add powdered orris root or powdered ambrette seed in small amounts to the finished powder as fixatives. You may have to purchase them because they’re rarely grown in home gardens, but it’s well worth it to have a fixative to make your powder enfleurage last longer.
The enfleurage is made in a closed container, and the flowers are sifted out and replaced by recharges. I love to use mint leaves, scented geranium leaves, any flower, and citrus peels with the white pith removed. You may wish to mix a lot of different botanicals together and make a millefleurs Poudre, or you may wish to stick to one scent. My first powder enfleurage was just ylang ylang flowers and arrowroot powder. Heavenly! You can always decide at a later date to mix your one-scent poudres to make a unique dusting powder. If you study perfumery, either by taking classes, or a course, or study on your own, you’ll love this addition to your scented products.
Equipment Needed
o Choice #1: Scentless powder, such as arrowroot, tapioca non-GMO cornstarch, rice flour, or one that you may prefer. I recommend at least one pound, 454 grams, to start.
o A closed container, that is shallow, a rectangular or square shape is best, such as a restaurant steamer tray, with a lid that fits snugly. They come in various sizes, so choose one that suits your current project.
o Drying rack or flat surface if very moist botanicals need to wilt slightly. Towels, cheesecloth or other porous material spread over an object like an oven rack or screen can work for this purpose.
o Freshly-picked botanicals that are allowed to wilt slightly, if necessary, in a cool, dark place, placed on the drying rack described above.
o A spatula, offset spatula, big spoon, or piece of stiff cardboard to move the top layer of powder for recharges.
o Chopstick, fork, or another implement to check on the stage of dryness.
o A pan sieve or stainless-steel strainer, or just your hands to remove the botanicals.
o A chopstick or other instrument to gently tap powder off the botanical when you remove it for recharges.
o Stainless steel sieve.
o A decorative container, either with an attached lid with holes to shake the powder out, or a removable lid and a powder puff. Vintage ones are available on Etsy or other Internet sites.
How to Prepare and Process the Powder Enfleurage
- This extraction process should be conducted indoors, with no fans on.
- Harvest the botanical, and let it dry slightly if it’s extremely moist, (eg lush flowers, mint leaves). Generally, they should be harvested when they are dry, not after a rain, or when morning dew is on them. Take care not to bruise the botanicals.
- Empty the powder of choice in the container, using half the powder for the base.
- Use an offset spatula to smooth the powder (optional).
- Place the botanical on the powder base, not overlapping, just having the edges touch.
- Put the remainder of the powder on the botanical.
- Press the powder down gently to ensure surface contact between the botanical and powder. I use a piece of cardboard, or a broad spatula.
- Cover the container.
- Place the container indoors in a warm, dry place, out of the sun.
- Check the botanical for dryness once a day. You want it to be very dry, with no moisture remaining. It typically will be dry in one day.
- When dry, take care not to greatly disturb the powder as you either carefully remove the botanical by hand.
- Gently tap the botanical with a chopstick to release clinging powder. There will always be some powder remaining on it, that’s unavoidable, but you want to get the excess off, back into the extraction container.
- Move about half the powder with a spatula to one end of the container, making a small mound.
- Leave a layer of powder on the bottom of the container, allowing this layer to be about 80-90% of the surface area of the bottom.
- Recharge the botanical as described in Step 3, and put the top layer of powder back in the container, repeat Steps 5 – 8.
- When the powder is scented to your liking, stop recharging with the botanical.
- Use a sieve or strainer to remove any last bits of the botanical from the powder, if necessary.
- Place the powder in the container of your choice, label with powder used, botanical used, number of recharges, and the date.
It’s summer in the northern hemisphere, and many of you have gardens bursting with beautiful flowers. My friend Andrine just harvested linden flowers and buds in Seattle and is using powder enfleurage to extract their scent.
How to Use Powder Enfleurages
The powder enfleurages can be packaged into nonporous containers to help them retain scent. You can choose screw-top plastic shaker bottles, like those sold in the store for baby powder, cardboard tube powder dispensers (may allow the scent to evaporate over time), metal shaker top canisters, or powder boxes that look pretty on a vanity or bureau. These can be modern or vintage, and a fluffy powder puff is delightful to use, as it brings a very feminine touch to getting dressed.
If you decide to make powder enfleurages to use as deodorants, you may want to choose a shaker top container, so you just have to shake a little into your fingers for application.
Vapor Essence Powder Enfleurage
Two days ago, as I was falling asleep, which is always a great time for ideas to slip into your consciousness, I realized that it would be possible to infuse scented vapors from resins, powdered woods, and incenses into the powder! A few years ago I blogged about the incense warmers sold by Katlyn Breene of Mermade Magickal Arts and how they made it possible for me to use incense again. I had become allergic to smoke, but the warmers didn’t produce smoke, they warmed the botanical so that the aromatic vapors filled the room.
See below to photos of how I rigged the Golden Lotus Incense Warmer in a restaurant steamer tray and infused the powder with myrrh. The result is gorgeous, and I’ll be infusing frankincense, powdered aloeswood, sandalwood, and other botanicals into the powder soon. This way, you get soft, perfumed powder without any ground resins in it, which can get gummy on the skin.
The Golden Lotus Incense Warmer from Mermade Magickal Arts with Myrrh nestled in powder enfleurage tray.
Thanks for reading this far, and now the big giveaway: a copy of the Naves and Mazuyer book Natural Perfume Materials, 1947. This book is incredible! It typically costs about $200 if you can find it on reseller sites. The gods were smiling on my discovery because two days after I found the tiny passage in the book about the powder enfleurage, I noticed somebody had it on eBay and I won the bid, so I can share my second copy with a reader who does the following:
1. Leave a comment here.
2. Visit my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/AnyasGardenPerfumes and “like” the page. That will give you two entries!
3. Please share the post about this that’s on the Facebook page, and anywhere else on social media you like. I really want to get this out to artisans, who can begin working on this new art immediately.
Contest ends 11:59 PM Tuesday, July 1, 2014. The winner will be drawn randomly and announced on Thursday, July 3, 2014. Book will be mailed Priority, insured, with the winner receiving a tracking number. If the book is lost or destroyed in transit, the offer will be rescinded, and alternative prize awarded, but every effort will be made to replace the book for thirty days. It’s a rare and pricey book, so let’s hope the mail system delivers it safely. 🙂
I can’t wait to try this! I always use powder and would much prefer this method to what I’ve been doing w/essential oils and powdered herbs.
I cannot wait to try this! Anya, reading your blog is like a big, fun slumber party!!! Thank you.
Don’t you love a happy accident and discovering something from history that impacts so much on what you are doing in the present. Bravo for sharing this. I can’t wait to find some fragrant blossoms and try this! Thank you Anya.
I never thought of powder, but I don’t know why! Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge. I really want to never use a synthetic perfume ever again!
I never thought of powder, but I don’t know why! Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge. I really want to never use a synthetic perfume ever again!
There’s always an abundance of roses here and now I have the perfect method to smell like them
This is beautiful and simple! I’m so excited to share this with my sister and others! Thank you.
Lovely! Thank you for sharing.
Wow I never knew this was possible. I can’t wait to try this. Thank you for sharing this post. I can’t wait for your book to come out.
What an intriguing idea! And it comes at just the right time for me as I’ve recently acquired a number of powder shakers. Can’t wait to try this and wish it wasn’t just past the lilac season hehe..
Love this…never heard of this process before and Can not wait to try it out…Thanks So Much
This is awesome! I can imagine all the products I could use this Enfleurage Powders in…. See some fun going to happen.
This is so simple.
Thank you for sharing. I loved reading this because I am just a newbie when it comes to enfleurage. The powder effort seems to be easy to do; cant wait to try it.
What a great old method to stumble upon and bring back into use. I will share this with my followers on Facebook. Can’t wait for the book!
Wow…this is so interesting! Thank you so much for sharing. ..I can’t wait to experiment!
awesome technique and post! May try it some time later on.
Wow so lucky to find that book so cheap. It is one that is on my normal watchlist too as I have always wanted a copy of it. I love your idea of the melted resin scent as I love making my own incense so it would be great to be able to use that as perfume powder!
Love this! Thanks so much for sharing with us.
Ooh, I love this, Anya! Arrowroot powder has so many uses, helping cats with CNR, the best flavorless substitute for corn starch for thickening sauces and gravies, makes an excellent light flaky coating for stove top and oven frying, unscented body powder and now, a medium for scented body powder.
Enfleurage sounds great and I will try this at home. Thank you
Dear Anya,
thank you very much for sharing such nice method. I have real frames for traditional enfleurage and do this nice job every summer in aromatic-botanical expeditions with my students in different countries – home in Lithuania or in Armenia or other mountainous countries. Mainly we use flowers of Viola odorata, wild local roses, Philadelphus coronarius, flowers of Sambucus, Linden, endemic Dianthus, Helichrysum, Kahris, Galbanum and other interesting endemic aromatic plants. But enfleurage always we did with solid vegetable fats. This summer I’ll again be in aromatic-botanical expeditions and necessary will try by myself and introduce this new dry efleurage method to my students and would share our experience and results with wider audience. Thank you for reference and description :).
I found it particularly interesting that “the powder scent was so much richer, and intoxicating than the living flowers or the oils.” I call it the wildcard effect, like when mixing various notes seems to create one that isn’t in there and you’re secretly thrilled about it. Unexpected benefits are such a rush!
I am always so impressed by your passion and generosity Anya with the beautiful art of perfumery. I enjoy how you are so excited to share your love and learning. I can’t wait to try the powder enfleurage!!
I love this! Thank you Anya! I am going to try this one for sure!
Thank you for your Divinely guided research! I’m excited to try this with my flowering Kwai Fah (Osmanthus.)
Oh my ! Thank you Anya! I can’t wait to try this whit my insence warmer! What an incredible idea!! Bravo!!!
Wow so easy to do this!
I can’t wait to try this!
Thanks for posting this info on your blog. It is exiting to learn new things.
Love so much. I will be trying soon. Thanks so much Anya.
This is so generous of you Anya. Fantastic information! What a sleuth you are.
Very interesting discovery. I would love to have this old perfume book.
I only have a few gardenias to try this with, but I am going to go get some arrowroot tomorrow to try this with them. 🙂
Anya this is fascinating. Do you remember Janice Sheplar, soap maker and perfumer? During the last years of her life she experimented with making body powders and baby powders. I think she also did the powdered infusions that you describe, I know she did not use essential oils or absolutes in them. I have a tiny bit of a baby powder that she made easily a decade ago… a lovely soft body powder, and still softly fragrant. (Obviously for a baby powder she didn’t want a STRONG fragrance.) Lovely stuff. Thank you for sharing this!
(and of course I would love the book, as well 😉
I can’t wait to try this! I infuse oils with herbs but I am thrilled to find a way to use the delicate floral scents!
So exciting! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for another fascinating lesson! So looking forward to reading your upcoming book. Fun and inspiring♡
Anya
I can feel your excitement and delight at this discovery – I felt it too as I opened my email this morning. Thank you for sharing this with us – I have some jasmine flowers coming up soon in summer (I am in Australia so it’s winter now) and I am SO EXCITED about trying this. My grandmother always used the finest, most exquisitely scented powder in a beautiful round box, kind of like a mini hatbox. She had a big puff to apply it, and it smelt so divine – it was her ritual, and on her it smelled so soft and floral.
Thanks Anya for this discovery and sharing.
Lea
Anya… you have opened a great door for all to enter … a portal to the past for perfumers!!! Thank you for this article which actually took my breath away reading about your process. Will be trying this um, right away!! Best fragrant wishes,
Sincerely,
Jacquie Montes
Totally fun DIY idea!
Love the use of the electric heater to vapor infuse the powder!!
Perfect timing. Thank you for sharing! I’ve been looking for just the perfect baby powder recipe and can use this GREAT idea!
I love this!! I have been following your facebook page and your blog posts for some time now, always so informative 🙂
Thanks for sharing
Oh, thank you! This is lovely! I can’t wait to share with my Aunt Cindy. We can try this together. 🙂
Wow. This I can do with no special equipment or materials for my husband to question. I look forward to capturing my glorious roses before I have to move away and leave them. Thank you for sharing.
This is incredible …i am going to try!!!
This is so generous of you to share, thank you very much! Can’t wait to try it! 🙂
OH MY!!! I had to wait all day and all night to read this post after I was tagged on FB and it was worth the wait! Very exciting information! Thanks so much for sharing it. I think I will have to quit my day job just to be able to play with all my oils and now powders! OY! I am so looking forward to your book too! OK enough with the exclamation points 🙂 xo
have tried playing with orris root before – what a lovely blog post! Anya is the book available for purchase if one does not win ?
wow this is the works, I suppose enfleurage has been made easier now and thanks to Anya for this giveaway. I want to give this a try,amazing!
thanks again, can this be done ith dried fruits aswell i as myself, there are some fruits i am looking for that don’t seem to come in natural oils or hydrosols so may be we can try with this method
Sounds lovely – I can’t wait to try this. Have a huge LIndenblossom tree
in my garden and always wanted to capture it’s scent. The linden blossom that you
buy just doesn’t come close to the live scent – but now maybe I can capture
the scent and take it with me…..Thank you Anya for sharing….
Best regards
Lisbeth
Sounds lovely – I can’t wait to try this. Have a huge LIndenblossom tree
in my garden and always wanted to capture it’s scent. The linden blossom that you
buy just doesn’t come close to the live scent – but now maybe I can capture
the scent and take it with me…..Thank you Anya for sharing….
Best regards
Lisbeth
I have recently come upon your blog, and it is going to be such a valuable resource for my son who is enchanted with the art of perfumery.
What an excellent discovery! And such an easy diy. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to your book. 🙂
Oh.my.God. So exciting!
What a wonderful technique! I’m going to give it a try right away – one could make hair powder (dry shampoo) with it I suppose?
Thank you for sharing, and what a generous giveaway – I would love to win the book!
Thank you for sharing such an amazing technique. I can’t wait to get some flowers and give this a try!
I’m really looking forward to trying this Anya. I swoon at the thought of a summer garden collection of powders!
Oh my..what a wonderful find on this beautiful summer morning! Thank you for sharing your wise wisdom!!! I am off to go gather lavender flowers and mints..oh yes! Arrowroot is waiting to mingle and infuse this delightful recipe 🙂
What a great…and FUN…discovery! I remember scented powders from my childhood, which we used for the hot humid summers we experienced. Lavender will forever recall my grandmother Celeste to mind. As a 12-year-old in the early ’60s, I used to enjoy watching her sitting in front of the vanity applying powder before donning her dress for the day. Lavender wasn’t my favorite scent then, but now I appreciate its virtues.
What about fruit? Summer peaches are at their peak right now in California. Would one slice, let the cut surfaces dry and infuse?
OH, MY, I cannot wait to try this!
What a fabulous article! I absolutely adore the scent of my evening-blooming angel’s trumpets and now I have a way to try and capture that fragrance to enjoy wherever I go. Thanks!!!
What an exciting concept! I’ve infused citrus blossoms into coconut oil and it was heavenly to use. I’ll be on the watch or your book 🙂
Outstanding….!
Another way to maybe capture the elusive Lilac….! And Peonies…!
Thank Ya, Ma’m….!
Also….The Ylang stuff sounds amazing….
oh wow!
the fragrant gods certainly ARE happy! not only did the link WORK for me this time, but i have learned something amazing! (we are SO waiting for that book. no pressure.)
the stormy weather has made the world lush here, and this is an experiment SO EASY to try!
cheers!
This is a fantastic idea and I can’t wait to try it!
You are precious for sharing this,my mind is reeling over the possibilities. Oh, the mock orange flowers are fading.Thank you so much.
Very nice expose Anya! I have used tapioca pearls to hold scent. So thrilling to have more options to capture the delicacy of scents in natural raw materials. So looking forward to your publication as well
I’ve done this before with lavender flowers and cinnamon sticks just to see what happened and I loved the result! I first used it as a carpet freshner but then I thought what a waste, and started adding other flowers from the garden and using it as a body powder too. I have never done it in such a methodical way though, so thanks for sharing this Anya.
Marina~
Wow – this opens up a whole field of possibilities. Thanks for sharing!
Anya, this is such a great idea and thanks so much for sharing it with all of us.
I can definitely use this idea to create some new scent gifts. What great discovery!
Dee~
Fascinating process, and definitely an A HA moment. Makes a lot of sense to allow the oils to penetrate into the powder. I appreciate the sharing, I think I may try to do this myself, since my lemon verbena is growing like crazy this year.
Can’t wait to try this
Custom Scented Powders, a great idea!
This is great! I love scented powders, as I use them for my feet, and now I can make one of my own! Thank You, Anya! Each post of Yours is a great lesson 🙂
Well I am definitely going to try this! Thank you for sharing. Aloha
This is so cool!!!
I’d love to try the powder.
This is brilliant! Thank you for sharing.
Do you think you could “wash” the powder with alcohol to extract the scent? Hmmm………gonna try!
I’m fascinated by methods of fixing the scent of botanicals. Just created a series of panels where I wet felted botanicals into marino roving.
Thanks!
Rice flour is too fine, t’was know as “Poudre de Riz” which was coarser.
Hello Anya,
How glad I am that you’ve published this method. I have been doing this for a long time using ordinary and castor sugar. Infusing lavender and any other edible flowers or suitable leafy plants like mint and lemon balm. Then you can cook with it too.
What a great idea! I will certainly try this.
Thanks a lot for sharing.
This is really interesting Anya! Can’t wait to try it….I wonder if Sandalwood powder mixed with other powders would work. The Japanese make an incense type Body Power with Sandal. Thank you!
Katlyn
Thank you for the step by step instructions on powder enfleurage! I can’t wait to try it! I have tried enfleurage using deodorized coconut oil but now I will try your powder recipe! Thank you, would love the book!! 🙂
Anya-
Thanks for sharing this! What a delightful way to enjoy fragrance. Especially in hot summer months. Thanks for the draw, the books sounds amazing.
Awesome info – I love body power and can’t wait to try this!
What a great idea!
Thank you for sharing.
Great discovery Anya! I love the idea of Mint especially, well, anything really…can’t wait to get started? Thank you for this generous draw. Looking forward to the book.
This is so cool !
My Grandma did this sort of thing often and so do I – never knew it was a “thing” and of course we id/do the sugar for cooking too – LOL
I would love a copy of this old book as the internet is nice, but I so treasure having a real book in my hands 🙂
Organically Yours,
Diana
Very nice of you to show us step by step. I have learned a lot and will have to save this page for future reference. In case i ever get ambitiouse. Thank You!
Amazing! I’ve been grinding resins, woods and spices to infuse powders, but this is next level. Thanks for sharing!
Could you try this with dried lavender, or do the blossoms have to be fresh? Sounds wonderful either way, as I would love to have some body powder that isn’t filled with hard-to-pronounce chemicals!
Thanks very much for sharing this intriguing old/new process — and for giving us such good, full directions. Not much abloom in my Tucson desert garden these days, but I’m thinking of trying it with lantana leaves, which have a strong lemony spicy scent and do grow well here, even in 100+ heat.
Love your writings! Looking forward to your book.
Aromatic Blessings, Doreen
Such esquisitness that can be used every day…… love it….Much gratitude for all that you share to educate about this art form Anya… 🙂
Lol….spelt my own name wrong…Surname is Waimana ….touchy phone buttons….haha
What great information! Thank you. I’ve never done facebook but am tempted to sing up just for this draw. Your up-coming book looks like it will be real hit!
Wow, this is just the info i was looking for, and what a super giveaway!
Such a Wonderful Find!! Congratulations, Dear Ms. Anya! I sure hope the gods smile on me as well!!! <3
I found this method fascinating! I really enjoyed reading about the process and will hopefully be able to do some of this enfleurage before long. Thank you Anya for sharing this beautiful information with us. I will be sharing the FaceBook blurb also.
How wonderful! Thank you, Anya, for describing so thoroughly the steps involved in this process. I will definitely use this post as a valuable addition to my perfumery library… along with that precious copy of Naves’ and Mazuyer book, perhaps! 🙂
I am inspired to start planting fragrant flowers in my new backyard as soon as possible!
How utterly cool!
I don’t really care whether I win the book or not, but your request to share this with others so they can do it too has moved me to action.
I love this idea of using powder! it seems so much easier than using oil. I’m also looking forward to your book.
I also have the Golden Lotus Incense warmer and I love it! I can’t wait to use it in the manner you outlined. What a great posting. I’m off to go buy a huge powder puff. 🙂
I’m excited to try powder enfleurage! I wish that I’d known about it when my very fragrant violets and lilacs were in bloom but I have honeysuckle and lavender I can use now. Thank you, Anya, for this beautiful article and book giveaway.
This is a fabulous technique. Thank you so much for sharing!
What a great post!! I can’t wait to get working on one of my own. Thanks
This is soooo exciting! I have a bunch of gardenia blooms and I was just about to put them into the freezer before I figured if I would grind them up for soap or enfleurage in sheabutter. Would love to try this. Would be pretty sweet to have this book!
This is fascinating. Such a simple, easy, yet effective way to enjoy the aroma of flowers on one’s skin. I look forward to trying it soon.
Love the idea of enfleurage in powder, never tried that, only mixed powder with crushed & powdered botanicals. Have a passion for experimenting so this will be next! Thanks Anya for sharing.
Wow I never knew such an art existed. Thanks for informing us Anya!
Nice share !
Will try to get some roses from my garden to try this.
Thanks for sharing this great method! I can’t wait to try it!
This is pure loveliness! I have just begun to use powders made with EO’s but now . . . well my wheels are just spinning! Thank you so much for sharing.
Many thanks Anya for sharing this–I'm looking forward to trying this method out as an alternative to steam distilling fragrances from my garden! cheers
I love the method. It’s simple, gentle to the plants and can feel the real beauty of their fragrance. My friend told me to use flour instead of dish detergent to clean dishes. It really works and I realized flour absorbs not only oils but strong scents/smell too, like fish or dairy, so the powder must be a great friend of fragrance. This is a great coin of idea for modern chemistry. Thank you very much, Anya!
This is such a great idea – and makes me want to try it. Thank you for posting, and for the lovely book offer.
What a gem of an article! How wonderful to have access to fresh ylang ylang flowers. Thank you for sharing this.
I’ve been thinking of offering perfumed powders for my shop for a bit. This would be a wonderful addition to the plans I’ve already written up!
How cool is that! Thanks for sharing Anya! You mentioned Heliotrope, one of my favorite flowers, but its toxic to tincture. I’m guessing its not toxic in scenting a powder so what a great way to have access to that scent. Its on my list of homework to create a perfume version of Heliotrope but i’m still an amateur so it will take a lot of trial and error 🙂
What a wonderful discovery, Anya. Thank you so much for sharing it with us. I would love to win the book and learn more about this lost art.
Amazing. Thank you for sharing!
This is so awesome! You’ve inspired me to try it with rose petals and jasmine flowers. I’ll report back!!! — perfume heaven ‘
Thank you for this!! I am going to try this with gardenias – unfortunately, I only have one bud left after having almost 2 dozen. Next year, for sure.
As always Anya, you share so much lovely information with us all! I am really looking forward to giving this a try!
Thanks for sharing such a wonderful technique! Desperately awaiting Perfume From Your Garden 🙂 Cheers!
I love powder, especially non-talc. The aroma is fascinating and the powder is a great cooling sensation especially in very warm weather. I have always admired this art. A great attribute to any perfume.
What a cool article!
A lovely and gentle process. Very much looking forward to the experience! Thank you:)
I am Always looking for new ways to use my garden bounty!! Thank you and I hope I win!!! 🙂
Powder enfleurage – of course! It makes perfectly beautiful sense (and scents!) when you think about it. I’m saving up to buy my own copper alembic still to capture the aromas of the lush flowers that bloom in my garden, but until I can begin distilling, I will try this lovely method. Thank you so much for sharing this knowledge with us, Anya.
This makes me want to grow flowers in my garden. I have gardenia. & roses and would like to plant some lavender to try this method. I was wondering how to make perfumed powder. Thanks for the instruction .
I’m totally intriqued by this article. Thank you for publishing it, Anya! P.S. I’m crossing my fingers that I win 🙂
I’ve been experimenting with different types of enfleurage & this post
is a fabulous find. Thank You for sharing!
Blessings 🙂
I’m so excited to try this! Thanks for sharing this wonderful new (old) technique .
Always interested in learning something new. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for sharing Anya. We’re in the middle of winter at the moment but as soon as spring comes I’ll definitely be using the flowers in my garden for this divine body powder.
I have just been joined up (about 2 minutes ago) with your wonderful group. I immediately clicked in to check it out and this is the first post I read. I am a beekeeper and have found my way to exploring natural perfumery. This post is brilliant because it is something I can try right away!! Hapbee day!
Fascinating post, thank you! There is something very luxurious about dusting oneself with powder. I’m inspired to try this with the gardenia when it blooms again; it’s a wet winter’s day right now…
What a fabulous find in this book, Anya! It must be a tiny passage in the book because I’ve had the book since 2007 & never came across it. So, I am so thankful to you for taking the time to share all the details & great pics to help us all to revive this process! Can’t wait for your book as well!!!
OMG! This was such a joy to read. I would love a sample of the powder if available. I could almost smell the product as you went through the steps. Thanks for sharing this.
I wish you great success with your book! I was wondering if you may be interested in making or writing about body powders that are edible? I thought of the idea when I was invited to a party where I purchased a can for my husband and I. It is a plesant way to dust oneself fragrantly under arms, etc, with a feather applicator.
: )
Thanks for sharing something that I would like to learn, someday. Right now making the most of my essential oils. Thanks!
Perfumery has just begun to become part of my life and this powder concept just blew me away. I can’t wait to try it! Thanks so much for sharing.
I would LOVE a sample of the ylang ylang powder! 🙂
I am ging to race out to buy my arrowroot – my roses in my garden in Bath smell Devine and I can’t wait to enjoy that smell later in the year – thanks for sharing this fabulous information!
Love this rediscovery. It will be a wonderful project for my Dry Shampoo. My Hair will smell like the flowers I have enfleurage it with. It will be interesting to try it out with Rose, Jasmine and Telesco Cordata.
This would be a great introduction to natural perfumery excercise!
What a lovely treasure to find and share with us Anya! I remember my Mother’s dusting powders when I was a little girl being magical and they brought me such joy. Thank you Anya
How great that you are reviving something wonderful 🙂
What a wonderful prize! Thank you for the chance, and for sharing the process above!
At first I wasn’t that interested, but after reading this I’m fascinated! I want to try plumerias(of course!), but also dragons blood vapor!
Powder enfleurage,it is a fascinating topic and i thank you for sharing this with your facebook followers such as myself who would never have known about it.
I can’t wait to try doing this fascinating powder enfleurage with gardenias and plumerias. Thank you for posting!
Love the idea of a powder enfleurage! What an interesting idea, and apparently quite old. Will have to decide what flower to begin with!
Anxious to try this with the pelargoniums; they’re so easy to grow and I love the scent.
It’s amazing how many different way there are to extract scent. Hopefully methods will be developed so that everything with scent can be used in perfumery.
Wonderful introduction to Enlleurage
I love what you are doing. As a Clinical Aromatherapist, I have wanted to expand my knowledge from medical based to the realm of natural perfume.
I love powder enfleurage. As a Clinical Aromatherapist, I have wanted to expand my knowledge from medical based to the realm of natural perfume.
What a lovely art! Thank you for sharing this information!
This is fantastic! Thank you so much for sharing your find and detailing the process. This would be a fantastic fit in the Perfume from your Garden book if there is still time to add it!
Thank you!
Michael
This book looks absolutely fascinating and I am quite intrigued by ‘enfleurage’. I confess I am only a hobby distiller at best with most of my work being in alchemy. I am quite curious to explore similarities 🙂
One can never have enough books, nor new projects to explore. I’d love to have another great book to add to my vintage collection. I’m ready to learn and explore! Diane
I have recently gone back to using scented powders, but the idea of making my own did not seem practical before I read this fascinating blog post. Thank you to Eileen who led me to explore your site!!!
Anya, what a treasure you found! After reading how you came across this vintage book, I felt like I was reading an adventure short story. If you like to write, perhaps you could write a book on the found perfumy treasure from the lost city, etc,…. Would make a great book.
My garden has peppermint and rose geranium, which is perfect to explore the powder-making process. Thank you so much for sharing such a treasure.
Julie Baker
Looks wonderful! Thank you for this information and the pictures.
Do you have to use orris or ambrette as fixatives? If so, how long can the arrowroot scented base “go” without having either of these as fixatives, before it is too late to add them?
Oh no! I missed it! I just discovered your site today. Perfume, fragrance, essential oils I’ve always been passionate about. I was lucky to have been a retail cosmetic sales person, where the cosmetic company would send us to a type of school or workshop if you will, for a day or two. We were trained/educated on their line of products, which would include fragrance. This was my favorite part! As a kid (this’ll seem weird) I used to mix perfume, powder, and lotions to try and make my own “perfume.” LOL Well, it WAS fun! I’m always wearing essential oils directly on my skin, which I don’t think is recommended, but as my skin is dry, it wears longer. Anyway, I’m happy to have found this site. I wish you great success with your book! Thank you for your awesome site!
Very interesting! The possibilities are endless! Thank you for sharing.
hi
thank you for the info on the powder enfleurage. i have been trying it with Gardenia and the smell is amazing… i only leave the flowers in the flour/cornstarch mixture for 24 hours, but the smell is NOT sweet anymore. do you think the powder has absorbed all the moisture and it might be going bad? the flour mixture is still white and fluffy, but not as fragrant as when i first started.
what do you think i might try to do to get it as good as the YLANG YLANG hat you mention here??
Try adding some orris root powder to act as a fixative, that may help. Make sure you keep the flour in an airtight container, the volatile oils will escape a plastic bag or jar.
yes i have been covering it tightly…
where to get orris root powder?
thank your your feedback , i wish i had ylany ylang tree. hahahah
do you think jasmine would work?
i love this method of Enfleurage, so many wonderful things to do with it.
jeff
i have a blend of arrow root with a bit of cornstarch do you think i should have only one type or is that ok.?
also
does your powder ever get clumpy like it has too much moisture? what do you do about that?
do you sift it so that it doesn’t get lumpy?
jeff
Really enjoyed this blog post, and now I’m very curious to try this, perhaps with some lilacs, as they are still on the branches here in New England. Many thanks!
I spent the summer making a rose enfleurage. I am anxious to try this!