World of Alchemy

Autumn

2011-10-01T17:29:00.003+02:00

The arrival of autumn is beautiful.

It is like taking a break...sleeping it off!

Everything seems different and calm.

Autumn has this beautiful scene of falling leaves, the smell of trees with the breezing cold.

I recall scent of musgo/cypress/lemon/grapefruit

Spring is approaching

2011-03-11T17:55:00.002+01:00

The arrival of spring has always been an exciting event.

The flowers and smell is so light and at the same time so strong because with the breeze, all the mixture of these lovely flowers is transported everywhere.

First flower that gets into my mind is Jasmine!

Just placing some flowers ona bowl of water will fill the room with their lovely scent!

Smell from the oriente

2010-10-23T09:34:00.002+02:00

The world is so perfect in nature!

The plants and flowers make the country so beautiful and the wind embraces all of them and transportes to our nostils.

Frangipani is one of my favourite flowers. The flower is so beautiful and gentle.

Orient blend:
frangipani/tea tree/bitter orange/kaffir lime

Scent of Summer

2010-08-13T11:36:00.002+02:00

Summer is beautiful and hot!

Hot Summer

2010-06-30T18:26:00.002+02:00

Finally, the hot weather has arrived. Everywhere, you see people having cold drinks and walking around and enjoying the beautiful, long waited summer days.

This summer, I have this desire for mint smell. Therefore, I take some dried mint leaves and infuse with jojoba oil. Leaving the bottle in the hot sun helps to heat the bottle and the fragrance will be minty and nice.

After one month:

Remove the leaves from the bottle and add some lemon essential oil and a drop of cinnamon esstential oil.

There you have a nice summer fresh scent!

Roses

2010-05-03T16:51:00.002+02:00

Flowers can make us happy. It has that feeling of soft, gentle and lovely gesture. I see my pink big roses blossom and I take them and put them in a vase in my house. It is amazing how it can brighten the room and transport a lovely scent in the environment.

Today is all about roses.

Rose treats:

Take some petals and put them in a small basin filled with water. Put it besides your bed when you go to sleep!

Nothing is better than waking up to the smell of roses!

Spring

2010-03-13T15:25:00.002+01:00

Spring is finally here!
The smell of Jasmine feels the air.
The birds start to sing and everyone seems to be in such a good mood!

Snowing and raining

2010-01-11T12:43:00.002+01:00

The beautiful snow covers everything and makes everything look so white and pure.

When the snow falls, you just feel like, looking through the window and holding a hot cocoa drink in your hand to keep yourself warm and have some peace of mind.

Then the raining days makes the day darker and you just hope it goes away soon and again you await for the snow to come again but it doesnt return.

So you long for the sun...where is it! It is asleep! But it will come....

Blend: linchen/cinnamon/blood orange/cocoa

Winter

2009-12-22T15:46:00.002+01:00

It may seem too freezing and make you feel lazy. Just want to sit by the fire with a warm blanket and your hot cocoa drink.

Actually, you can make a lot with this feeling. Get up and smell the nature.

This time, I will get some lichen from oak trees. They are more humid and the smell is very earthy.

The infusion of lichen in coconut oil was not so successful last time. Therefore, I will infuse in jojoba oil since I already have some infusion in alcohol.

My winter blend:

lichen infusion/bergamot/vanilla/rose

Smell of christmas

2009-11-26T13:02:00.002+01:00

One month to Christmas day!

You already feel the environment preparing for the christmas fun, party, etc.

There are already lighting and decoration to remind you that it is approaching.

I just remembered that I distilled my christmas tree last year with my alembic.

So, I closed my eyes and opened the tiny bottle and gave a deep sniff...yeah..christmas feeling hmmmm...lovely, warm and very spiritual!

Christmas blend: pine/bergamot/cinnamon/bitter orange

Winter fragrance

2009-11-09T13:52:00.002+01:00

Each of us posses a human base note..that is what I consider. That is why perfume smells different on each person.
So having a strong base note would need some light but soft middle note.
Then add some citrus top note to bring out the mystery of the balance of the three notes.
Some accessory notes could do some tricks!

Civet tincture/rose/jasmine/bitter orange/tangerine

Voila! hmmmm

Quotes of a famous Perfumer

2009-11-04T13:05:00.002+01:00

"Anyone can make a nice smell", he says of modern perfumers. "The trick is to create a fragrance that has soul. It isn't a matter of mixing up potions like some kind of alchemist. Most of my time is taken up with reflection and writing - trying to imagine the perfume. Often I go months without smelling a formula."

Edmond Roudnitska
National Geographic, September 1995

Falling leaves of Autumn

2009-09-23T13:12:00.002+02:00

The beginning of cold breeze...with chilly windy morning, followed by hot afternoon is like saying goodbye to summer and getting ready to autumn.

The leaves are already changing colors..like the liquidamber leaves change from beautiful greenish color to red. While some other plants start to fall asleep. The beauty of nature is so strong that there is no way you could not feel it. You cant help to notice the leaves falling, the flowers are not there anymore and the air is so dry that the leaves start to dry up.

The perfume blend that I start to think of have fir (distilled from my last year christmas tree), blood orange, bergamot and some lichen tincture!

Enjoy the last days of summer and warm up for the beautiful autumn days!

Summer ending

2009-08-26T12:12:00.002+02:00

Today, there is a breeze of chilly wind...
Seems like the hot weather is almost vanishing....had its time and now retiring to let chilly morning and night to come.
Today, I imagine the scent of pine trees, grass and earth with colors of greens, blue and grey!
Every season has its beauty and meaning...enjoy till it last!

Mood and Fragrant

2009-07-22T13:23:00.004+02:00

Everyday is a new day...

Fragrant is like colour for me.

When I feel happy, I wear colourful clothes like yellow, orange, green, etc.....

On those days when I want to have a clear mind so that I can focus; White!

When I have moody days, of course the colours are grey, brown, blue, etc...

What about fragrant?

Does season also matter?

For me, today, being a hot summer day...I think of bright colour like yellow!

Fragrant with bergamot which is fresh, happy feeling, alert!

So whatever comes tomorrow, will be something new and yes, another fragrant with different blends....

Blend:
Bergamot/grapefruit/vanilla/sandalwood

Summer fragrant

2009-07-10T13:19:00.002+02:00

The end of spring comes summer when a variety of flowers are everywhere, matured and fragrantly beautiful. Roses blossom, linden blossom spreads their scent everywhere in the wind and the atmosphere of the sun shinning strongly on every natural creation, may they be resins, pollen, leaves, flowers is amazing!

Summer is alert and everyone is happy as if the fragrant of nature puts a smile on every living thing. Soon we will be approaching autumn!

Each season has its uniqueness and beauty.

The Olfactory Notebook

2009-05-22T13:14:00.002+02:00

The exploration of olfactory from a notebook...what an experience for those who have no ideas what's in a perfume construction process!

Sniff each bottle and enter the world of scents

(Les Coulisses du parfum)

http://www.osmoz.com/Smell
osmoz

Perfume Opera

2009-05-22T12:43:00.000+02:00

Imagine if you could attend a Perfume Opera. What would you be expecting...

Here is an interesting site to read:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124277733367437141.html
Wall Street Journal for Christoph Laudamiel

Aromatherapy - Noelle Katai

2009-04-16T13:24:00.003+02:00

Noelle Katai is a Certified Aromatherapist

Ref:
TV show videos:
http://www.vimessentials.com/video.php

Recipes from Noelle Katai:
http://www.veria.com/recipes/media/pdf/everybody-nose-recipes-season-1.pdf

Making of Perfume

2009-03-30T00:46:00.005+02:00

From - www.google.com/

Fragrance questionaire - http://blogthings.com/whatsyourfragranceprofilequiz

What is your personal fragrance?

How about answering questions and figure out what are your favourite scents.

Tulips

2009-03-19T23:31:00.006+01:00

Tulip flowers reflects Beauty.

Searching for flowers information, I discovered the existence of this interesting book:

The Botany of Desire:

A Plant's-Eye View of the World by Michael Pollan

Jasmine flower

2009-03-18T01:16:00.012+01:00

The intoxicating scent of Jasmine can fill a room within seconds.

This white delicate flower opens only at night during the full moon because the odour is more powerful after dark!

Jasmine flowers Enfleurage:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enfleurage

White Lotus Aromatics:

http://whitelotus.smugmug.com/gallery/1724761_5nmcd#85141785_GBa5g

The Power of our Mind

2009-03-18T01:13:00.003+01:00

What do we actually know about scent and memory?
Ever wondered what goes on in our mind while we sleep.
What about our nose that delivers scent to our memory data.....

Here are some articles from the New York Times:

Study Uncovers Memory Aid: A Scent During Sleep
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/09/science/09sleep.html

The Nose, an Emotional Time Machine

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/science/05angier.html?_r=1&scp=3&sq=scent+memory&st=nyt

The Scent of the Nile

2009-02-24T21:24:00.003+01:00

I discovered this article on Jean-Claude Ellena who is a famous french perfumer.

The Scent of the Nile
Jean-Claude Ellena creates a new perfume by
Chandler Burr

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/03/14/050314fa_fact

Spring

2009-02-08T20:10:00.005+01:00

Is approaching......

Nature is full of life and powerful. After so much rain, comes the sun shinning stronger and stronger each day. If only we could try and stop for one minute and think of what the rain, sun, earth and air have been doing before the arrival of spring, summer, autumn and winter!

Yearly, the seasonal cycle is spectacular.

There are already prunes and mimosa flowers and soon there will be wisteria, roses, Jasmine.......

Mimosa flowers (Acacia) have delicate foliage and ball-shaped fragrant yellow flowers. The scent is floral, rich, woody and warm. It is used in perfumery. The scent reminds people of unfiltered bees wax, with a hint of a green note.

Interesting site: http://www.acacia-world.net/html/mimosa_-_perfumes_soaps.html

Guides to Scents

2009-01-13T12:47:00.000+01:00

Smell! What if we could just enjoy the scent of exotic flowers, travel to beautiful natural places. Be able to learn and relax at the same time.

Here is a very interesting site that is a must to read:

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/the-complete-guide-to-fragrant-places-745167.html

Lichen

2009-01-06T00:40:00.003+01:00

Lichen grows on tree trunks and is greenish algae type. They have a scent that resembles seashore, fresh earth. First, I thought they were oakmoss but then I realized that they are called Lichens.

http://www.nybg.org/bsci/lichens/

Plants communication

2008-10-16T20:44:00.000+02:00

A very interesting topic about plants:

There are people who talk to their plants and hope that they will grow more beautiful.

But what about the plants themselves? Do they communicate with other plants?

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/15/HOOS13D3QD.DTL

Lavender

2008-09-13T21:27:00.000+02:00

The smell of Lavender has always been with me. I carry a small bottle of Lavender Eo, so that I can sniff it when I feel the need of a nice soft herbal scent!

The flowers are purple and the plant grows huge and the smell is so intense. Everywhere I see them, I would pick some of them and tie them together and just keep it around the house so that the smell fills the whole place and keeps the environment fresh.

Lavender really keeps one calm and at ease:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7611862.stm

Labdanum - Cistus Ladanifer

2008-08-31T23:41:00.000+02:00

Big white flower blossoms and is surrounded by leaves that are sticky with gum sort of resins...

These lovely and beautiful resins have scent of amber, balsamic and woody.

The resins of the Labdanum leaves are collected manually:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKh46zl55qA

A very descriptive blog with good information:

http://www.labdanum-creta.blogspot.com/

Alembic

2008-08-18T13:29:00.000+02:00

What is an Alembic and what is it used for?

It is a special equipment used for distillation purposes.

Alembic was developed around 800 AD by the Persian alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan.

It was invented for the production of alcohol , perfume, medicine....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alembic

Alembic is also manufactured in Portugal.

Below is a very interesting and informative site:

http://www.copper-alembic.com/

Absinthe

2008-08-17T17:24:00.001+02:00

When you think of Absinthe, do you think of the alcohol which was banned due to causing deaths and hallucinations when highly consumed. Artist and writers drinking to cause creative writing.....

The Virtual Absinthe Museu:

http://www.oxygenee.com/

Well, actually Absinthe also called wormwood is a herb - Artemisia absinthium

Stated in The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential oils, it is used in rubefacient pharmaceutical preparations and as a fragrance component in toiletries, cosmetics and perfumes.

Sunflower

2008-08-06T20:09:00.000+02:00

What a flower!

Always turning to face the Sun (behavior known as heliotropis), as big as the size of a face and full of happiness and energy when you look at them.

An interesting article here:

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9406E0D61338E233A25755C0A9649D94679ED7CF

*****************************************************

Sunflower - a flower bright and beautiful and so much to be written about....

A beautiful poem by famous Portuguese Poet, FERNANDO PESSOA

*****************************************************

O GUARDADOR DE REBANHOS II

O meu olhar é nítido como um girassol.

Tenho o costume de andar pelas estradas

Olhando para a direita e para a esquerda,

E de vez em quando olhando para trás…

E o que vejo a cada momento

É aquilo que nunca antes eu tinha visto,

E eu sei dar por isso muito bem…

Sei ter o pasmo comigo

Que tem uma criança se, ao nascer,

Reparasse que nascera deveras…

Sinto-me nascido a cada momento

Para a eterna novidade do mundo…

Creio no mundo como num malmequer,

Porque o vejo.

Mas não penso nele

Porque pensar é não compreender…

O mundo não se fez para pensarmos nele

(Pensar é estar doente dos olhos)

Mas para olharmos para ele e estarmos de acordo.

Eu não tenho filosofia:

tenho sentidos…

Se falo na Natureza não é porque saiba o que ela é,

Mas porque a amo, e amo-a por isso,

Porque quem ama nunca sabe o que ama

Nem sabe porque ama, nem o que é amar…

Amar é a eterna inocência,

E a única inocência é não pensar…

From: PoesiaPublisher: Assírio & Alvim, Lisbon, 2001ISBN: 972-37-0654-7

_________________

THE KEEPER OF SHEEP II

My gaze is clear like a sunflower.

It is my custom to walk the roads

Looking right and left

And sometimes looking behind me,

And what I see at each moment

Is what I never saw before,

And I’m very good at noticing things.

I’m capable of feeling the same wonder

A newborn child would feel

If he noticed that he’d really and truly been born.

I feel at each moment that I’ve just been born

Into a completely new world…

I believe in the world as in a daisy,

Because I see it.

But I don’t think about it,

Because to think is to not understand.

The world wasn’t made for us to think about it

(To think is to have eyes that aren’t well)

But to look at it and to be in agreement.

I have no philosophy,

I have senses…

If I speak of Nature it’s not because I know what it is

But because I love it, and for that very reason,

Because those who love never know what they love

Or why they love, or what love is.

To love is eternal innocence,

And the only innocence is not to think…

From: A Little Larger Than the Entire Universe: Selected Poems

Publisher: Penguin, New York, 2006ISBN: 0-14-303955-5

My Fragrance Guidance Library

2008-07-14T18:40:00.002+02:00

. Essence & Alchemy by Mandy Aftel

. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils by Julia Lawless

. The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood

. Advanced Aromatherapy by Kurt Schnaubelt

. The Fragrant Mind by Valerie Ann Worwood

. A Consumer's Dictionary of Cosmetic Ingredients by Ruth Winter

. 100 Parfums de légende by Sylvie Girard-Lagorce

. The Essence of Provence by Pierre Magnan

.

Rose

2008-07-09T13:50:00.000+02:00

Rose ....oh how can we not feel the scent, be locked in the beauty thus reminding of spring, sensuality, love, passion, desire ....

Just how were rose named?

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9B02EED91431E033A2575BC1A9609C94629ED7CF

Jasmine Award

2008-07-07T17:59:00.003+02:00

There is really so much to read about and learn.

Picking up the Scent - do we all have it or do we take it for granted!!!

Check this site:

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/beauty/article1514490.ece?token=null&offset=0

The Perfume movie

2008-07-07T13:01:00.000+02:00

After having read the book (Perfume by Patrick Suskind) couple of years ago, I waited patiently for the release of the movie. Which was finally out!

I have always enjoyed reading the book first because one can use ones imagination, go deep into each words and the thrill of getting to the plot of the book before reaching the final outcome is a huge excitement ......

Take a look at the Trailer:

http://www.perfumemovie.com/

Youtube:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqk9MTP9tMU

The World of Smell

2008-07-05T17:30:00.000+02:00

Ever thought about what it would be like inside a Smell Factory.

Lots of glass bottles, raw materials, smell everywhere.....

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/perfume

Music and Perfume - what connections do they have?

2008-07-05T15:56:00.000+02:00

Maybe Good Vibrations!!!

Well, reading the New York Times, I came across this interesting article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/magazine/16wwln-medium-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Ancient Perfume Factory

2008-07-05T01:37:00.000+02:00

Cyprus was the earliest source of some of the most popular perfumes in the ancient world.

Bronze Age Perfume 'discovered':

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4364469.stm

Mystery of Ancient Scents

2008-07-04T17:37:00.000+02:00

Ancient perfumes are filled wtih mystery and long history of amazing information on the lifestyle of people in our past.

The three ancient perfumes recreated:

PYXIS - The lost perfume of Pompeii
Nenúfar - Cleopatra's Sacred Scent
ANKH - Tutankhamen's aroma of intrigue

To be able to experience these perfumes would be an incredible opportunity to stop and go back to the past and feel .....

The Scent of Time (David Pybus) was in the News - MSNBC Monday 26th May interview entitled "Bottling the aroma of antiquity"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/24827943#24827943

Site of Scents of Time:

http://www.scentsoftime.co.uk/

Objective of World of Alchemy Blog!

2008-07-04T17:33:00.001+02:00

My aim of creating this blog is to gather information and knowledge on perfumes and scents for my own interest.

Should you be interested in these topics, you are free to browse.

Alchemy