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Peace Incense

Incense for Peace












 

It is a long standing tradition to create at least one form of incense during the Oriental Perfumery courses. This fall (November 10-14, 2019), we created incense cones using a very unusual material fire tree resin AKA grass tree (Xanthorrhoaethat one of my students harvested herself and brought all the way from Australia. 

The incense blend was born out of the concept of marrying plants and resins from both Australia and the Middle East: bay leaves, eucalyptus leaves, fire tree resin, Australian sandalwood, and an array of Middle Eastern resins. On the leaves we've written prayers before causing them into pieces and grinding them. Prayers that will go up in smoke and come true. 

As we were writing on the leaves it, I recalled a dream I had about teaching perfume and incense to youth with the vision of harnessing the alchemy of it to sawing seeds of peace - first within and then outwardly to our environs.

I am now praying to have the courage, strength, wisdom, and the right help and partnership to be sawing these seeds for real in my everyday life.

Without any messed up politics, but through meeting people's true essence, and mine... This requires serious self reflection and internal alchemical transformations that transcends trauma, hurt and long history of pain and destructive defense mechanisms.


Of course, it is so much easier said than done... So I am hesitantly putting it here and trusting you to guard this and save this as a reminder to make this come true on all levels. The process begins from within. I hope that soon enough I will be ready to share it and bring it outwardly and lead others through this process.
Thank you


Incense for Peace




Palimpsest



Palimpsest is the literary equivalent of a double exposure: the layers of an old scripture overlapping with newer texts (though probably still rather ancient). Old scrolls or parchamanet paper were either rinsed or scraped to remove the old content, likely for economic reasons. Or perhaps the old text had to be concealed? The reason might always remain a mystery. The result is rich, textured and ultimately fascinating - like playing hide and seek with history. The top layer is interrupted by the older layers, which can never be completely erased (and in some cases, over time the ink's pigments intensify after they have been supposedly erased). And the bottom layers obscured both by the purposeful wiping off, and because of the dominance of the newer layers.

The perfume of that name, the newest from Aftelier, opens with a burst of fresh, juicy citrus notes of yuzu and wild orange. They are simply bursting with life. But underneath it you can already feel there is much more going on. A mysterious, woody-floral note makes itself known from the start, the haunting and strange fire tree, reminiscent of lilac, dried ink on a charred-edged paper. Animals notes of indole, leather and woods steadily proceed to the forefront, with a finale that is identical (to my nose) to the surprisingly fecal odour of mammoth bone, almost sickly-sweet and strangely floral.

I love how layered and rich and multi-dimensional this perfume is. And also how Mandy Aftel's creations have become both more conceptual and highly personal over the recent couple of years. You can see it in the names, which no longer refer mostly to the ingredients; but also to the perfumer's own fascination, and her personal experiences.

Top notes: Gamma dodecalactone, phenyl acetic acid, yuzu
Heart notes: Jasmine Grandiflorum, Peach, Ylang Ylang
Base notes: Firetree, Vanilla, Ambergris 



Narcissus, Third Round



While the starting point for this was clearly and simply winter, rain and narcissus, it strayed a bit and became more floral. A turn of events that was most welcome.

I began with a core statement of narcissus absolute, on a backdrop of wet-woody, mushroomy and unusual tree notes: pinewood, fire tree, green spikenard, pinemoss and a tinge of bourbon vetiver. To add more body to the narcissus heart, and make it more floral and less spicy-green, I've decorated it with a hint of rose and ylang ylang. Palmarosa and Szechuan pepper add a lift, and also a unique floralcy to the top notes. In addition, I've utilized liatrix absolute in the base, to give a diffusive sweetness. The latter made it feel too "perfumey" in an old-fashioned, powdery way*. So I had to start another bottle, again.

But I have to admit: coming back to it now, many months after its creation (it was made in early March 2014), the liatrix mellowed a bit, which is nice of her. It has a more distinctive, green-floral yet a little juicy-sweet and almost refreshing at the same time. Together with the Szechuan pepper, it gives off more of the crushed-leaves feel in the beginning, despite the lack of glabanum - which is a nice surprise in my book.

* Kinda like Rive Gauche or Je Reviens - great perfumes, but with loads of coumarin that makes them feel quite dated and heavy for today's tastes.

Narkiss, Second Round



In 2014, I decided it was time to get back to my narcissus experiements. I wanted to try a new direction with this flower, after I've received a generous amount of Narcisse de Montagnes (wild, mountain narcissus) from my friend and colleague Jessica September.

With this being a mountain narcissus, I wanted the perfume to link more into my childhood memories of the flower, and the special smells of the Mediterranean winter.

Brief:
Narcissi and puddles. Picking mushrooms the day after the rain.

Notes:
Bois des Lands (Pinewood)
Spikenard
Angelica Root
Fire Tree
Narcissus Absolute

To these I later added:
Pinemoss
Vetiver, Bourbon
Africa Stone Tincture
Ylang Ylang Absolute
Palmarosa

The result was disturbingly earthy, with the feeling of rain getting lost to awkward woods and musky greenness. That's what happens when you're creating an unbalanced composition, even if the idea is great... So I had to toss this flower behind me, and start another fresh bottle...
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