It is no secret that I have always loved perfume, which is not to say that I necessarily have good taste! As with wine, how does one know when one has good taste? Does it matter whether you like expensive bottles, or does it only matter what tastes (or smells) nice? One thing is for sure. There are scents that accentuate who we are, and those who detract from who we are!
It is quite funny to go back and think about my history, with regard to fragrance. During my youth, I splashed on Love's Baby Soft, purchased at the local pharmacy. What could be better than smelling like a clean, powdery baby? Or so I thought... In high school and college, it was Anais Anais by Cacharel- a very floral and popular scent. Heading into my 20's, I made an unabashed leap into fragrances that were much bolder and more spicy- such as Amarige by Givenchy, Aromatics Elixir by Clinique, and Paloma by Paloma Picasso- all scents that would literally enter a room, before I did. 
In fact, I recall bringing Paloma into the rugged Minnesota wilderness one summer, when I was about twenty-five. Oddly, I was working at a lodge in the Superior National Forest, as a bar maid. My colleagues seemed to like the fragrance, but I suspect that I was keeping the bears away (much to my chagrin.) There I was- up in the forest- for nearly five months, aspiring to see a bear in the WILD. I wound up having to leave my leftovers from dinner on my porch the last night at the lodge, which is completely taboo. Had I smelled like bear spray all summer?I experimented with Chanel No. 5 for a time, before mellowing a bit. I bought "W" at Banana Republic- a fresh citrus scent, became enamored with Beach by Bobbi Brown (it smells just like Coppertone), and found a true favorite in Beauty by Kate Spade- a pure Honeysuckle scent, that has sadly been discontinued. I still love Green Tea and White Tea by Elizabeth Arden, and spritz on Petals by Lili Bermuda, when I want to channel my inner island girl.
This summer, while visiting the Jo Malone collection at A.S. Coopers in Bermuda, I took my customary whiff of Wild Blue Bell- the next fragrance I aspire to own- a floral derived from a British flower. Historically, I have purchased one fragrance per trip to Bermuda- simply because I cannot resist. This summer, I purchased a new scent by Kate Spade, entitled Walk on Air. I was instantly struck by the name of the fragrance, knowing that the genius designer behind it must have created it before she left our midst. What a tremendous talent, Kate Spade was and is; her legacy lives on.
Since I have started wearing Walk on Air, I have received many compliments! In fact, this past New Year's Eve, my sister and I went out to a party at a restaurant with a valet. No sooner did we exit the car, than we heard,"Wow! Who smells so good?" Nina and I looked at each other, and laughed. Was it my Kate Spade, her Antonia's Flowers (a fragrance born of our home town of East Hampton, N.Y.) or the bouquet of both?
I have wanted to take part in the Making Scents Workshop at Lili Bermuda, since I first learned about it. Nothing could be more me! The small gatherings are held during the slower months, when The Perfumery is less busy with visitors and tours. The class is four hours in length, held by Isabelle Ramsay-Brackstone, herself. What a treat, to work with a veritable perfumer, and the proprietress of the Bermuda Perfumery, no less!
For those who have not yet been, the Lili Bermuda Perfumery is located in the Town of St. George- at the far East End of Bermuda. Waking up at Salt Kettle (a central location on the island), I had planned to take the ferry to town, and a bus to St. George, but buses were not running on schedule. A taxi was in order.
I was impressed that my taxi driver was kind enough to advise bus patrons who were waiting at Eastbound stops in the rain. "Hey! Ace Boy! No buses!", he would shout- continually along our route. With little time in St. George to dither, I had a quick bite and meandered toward my class. As I stood at the foot of the narrow street where the perfumery is located, a saying of my mom's popped into my head- perhaps an ode to the quaint narrowness of the street. This experience was going to be right "up my alley."
My class was perfectly small- myself and two ladies whose native tongue was French. One was from Switzerland, the other Canadian. Fortunately for them, our hostess was originally from Montreal. It was decided that we would have our course in a mixture of French and English; it was delightful. I understood much of what she said, and it added to the mystique of our project.
We sat in a small room in the Perfumery- the one in which I had previously come for High Tea (*one of my best experiences in Bermuda to date!) My fellow classmates shared a table in the center of the room. I had my own desk with all of my materials- a scale, calculator, mini bottles for mixing, and plenty of paper blotter strips.
Isabelle began the course by asking which perfumes attracted us. Our task of the day would be to create five different fragrances, each- at which point we would select one to bottle, and take home. We were cautioned against trying to recreate a scent that already exists (something akin to our current favorites), but instead to experiment fully. We could either make several similar fragrances, tweaking as we went- or make five entirely different ones.
Needless to say, the prospect of making perfume from scratch was a bit daunting at first. I felt as though I was walking into a full pantry of ingredients, without any recipes, with the expectation of producing five balanced meals. However, the beauty of this course is that your hostess walks you patiently through every step. Perfecting a fragrance is not a simple task.
Isabelle discussed the composition of a perfume- the base note, middle notes and top note. The base note is the predominant anchor of the scent, upon which you build. We were introduced to the two charts of scent families (labeled as genealogies) displayed prominently at the perfumery- one each for male and female fragrances. "You will never smell a fragrance the same way, again!," we were told.
Historically, perfumes were made strictly from essential oils (the essence of a plant) and alcohol, Isabel told us. Essential oils were akin to using the "best artistic materials". Later, they would be fragmented into molecules that could be extracted by chemicals. Such molecules are found an array of plants, which explains the breadth of variety in the samples we smelled- everything from peach to lavender to grass to musk. Nowadays, molecules can be produced by engineers.
I found it particularly interesting that Lilac and Honeysuckle (two of my favorite scents) cannot be directly extracted from the flower. They must be manufactured by mixing ingredients to mimic the scent, as closely as possible.
Our instructor introduced us to one scent at a time, choosing from mini blue bottles on the wall. We dipped our blotters in, and laid them out.
As we went along, Isabelle shared anecdotes about each scent family. For example, within the Citrus family (which is "always sparkling"), she favors Grapefruit as a top note. Lime is a "green, masculine" note. Due to its prevalent use in household products, she advised us to steer away from lemon, lest we smell like furniture polish! She also cautioned that Citrus fragrances are "unfaithful"; "after two hours, they are gone!", she said. The weight of the molecules plays a role. I loved her use of words.
Prior to getting our hands into 'the mixing phase', Isabelle encouraged us to go outside for fresh air, to clear our noses. While it is often said that coffee re-sets the nose, Isabelle told us that this is a misnomer. Going outdoors is just as good!
As we strolled up and down the alley, hot coffee and tea were brewed. We returned to service on a lovely platter with a tin of Quality Street Christmas chocolates from England, with colorful, shiny enticing wrappers.
Caffeine down, we would each select the base note for our fragrances. Isabelle asked, "Which will be the star of the show"? A lover of Earl Grey tea, I decided on Bergamot. While my nose leaned toward a floral base, Isabelle let me know that Citrus would accentuate Bergamot. She liked both ideas, so we made one of each.
I was impressed that my taxi driver was kind enough to advise bus patrons who were waiting at Eastbound stops in the rain. "Hey! Ace Boy! No buses!", he would shout- continually along our route. With little time in St. George to dither, I had a quick bite and meandered toward my class. As I stood at the foot of the narrow street where the perfumery is located, a saying of my mom's popped into my head- perhaps an ode to the quaint narrowness of the street. This experience was going to be right "up my alley."
My class was perfectly small- myself and two ladies whose native tongue was French. One was from Switzerland, the other Canadian. Fortunately for them, our hostess was originally from Montreal. It was decided that we would have our course in a mixture of French and English; it was delightful. I understood much of what she said, and it added to the mystique of our project.
We sat in a small room in the Perfumery- the one in which I had previously come for High Tea (*one of my best experiences in Bermuda to date!) My fellow classmates shared a table in the center of the room. I had my own desk with all of my materials- a scale, calculator, mini bottles for mixing, and plenty of paper blotter strips.
Isabelle began the course by asking which perfumes attracted us. Our task of the day would be to create five different fragrances, each- at which point we would select one to bottle, and take home. We were cautioned against trying to recreate a scent that already exists (something akin to our current favorites), but instead to experiment fully. We could either make several similar fragrances, tweaking as we went- or make five entirely different ones.
Needless to say, the prospect of making perfume from scratch was a bit daunting at first. I felt as though I was walking into a full pantry of ingredients, without any recipes, with the expectation of producing five balanced meals. However, the beauty of this course is that your hostess walks you patiently through every step. Perfecting a fragrance is not a simple task. Isabelle discussed the composition of a perfume- the base note, middle notes and top note. The base note is the predominant anchor of the scent, upon which you build. We were introduced to the two charts of scent families (labeled as genealogies) displayed prominently at the perfumery- one each for male and female fragrances. "You will never smell a fragrance the same way, again!," we were told.
Historically, perfumes were made strictly from essential oils (the essence of a plant) and alcohol, Isabel told us. Essential oils were akin to using the "best artistic materials". Later, they would be fragmented into molecules that could be extracted by chemicals. Such molecules are found an array of plants, which explains the breadth of variety in the samples we smelled- everything from peach to lavender to grass to musk. Nowadays, molecules can be produced by engineers.
I found it particularly interesting that Lilac and Honeysuckle (two of my favorite scents) cannot be directly extracted from the flower. They must be manufactured by mixing ingredients to mimic the scent, as closely as possible.
Our instructor introduced us to one scent at a time, choosing from mini blue bottles on the wall. We dipped our blotters in, and laid them out.
As we went along, Isabelle shared anecdotes about each scent family. For example, within the Citrus family (which is "always sparkling"), she favors Grapefruit as a top note. Lime is a "green, masculine" note. Due to its prevalent use in household products, she advised us to steer away from lemon, lest we smell like furniture polish! She also cautioned that Citrus fragrances are "unfaithful"; "after two hours, they are gone!", she said. The weight of the molecules plays a role. I loved her use of words.
Prior to getting our hands into 'the mixing phase', Isabelle encouraged us to go outside for fresh air, to clear our noses. While it is often said that coffee re-sets the nose, Isabelle told us that this is a misnomer. Going outdoors is just as good! As we strolled up and down the alley, hot coffee and tea were brewed. We returned to service on a lovely platter with a tin of Quality Street Christmas chocolates from England, with colorful, shiny enticing wrappers.
Caffeine down, we would each select the base note for our fragrances. Isabelle asked, "Which will be the star of the show"? A lover of Earl Grey tea, I decided on Bergamot. While my nose leaned toward a floral base, Isabelle let me know that Citrus would accentuate Bergamot. She liked both ideas, so we made one of each.
Each vial of perfume would have a precise number of millimeters. We were instructed how to proportion drops of each ingredient, using our miniature digital scales to mix our scents, one drop at a time. We sat in near silence, as Isabelle made her rounds around the room, helping us to perfect "recipes" for each of our multiple fragrances.As we neared completion of our course, we were offered us a glass of Rose wine to celebrate our new found passion. It was time to select a scent for bottling, and to bottle it ourselves. Utilizing our recipes, we would need to manufacture a larger quantity and decant into a lovely Lili Bermuda bottle.
Isabelle suggested that we "pick one that we would like to wear over the holiday season." I chose the first scent that I had created- as did my two classmates. My scent, which I named "Smitten" was a Bergamot and floral fragrance- with a few other notes sprinkled in. It is very subtle, but lovely.
There are times in life when you have the opportunity to do something for the first time, not knowing if it might be the last time. Such was this rainy afternoon in December. The Making Scents Workshop was one of the best experiences that I have had in Bermuda to date. It literally sparked an interest in Perfumery that will last a life time.For those of us who wear fragrance regularly, it may seem easy for us to discern what we like, and what we don't like- with one quick sniff. Yet, how many of us stop to wonder which exact molecules are striking our fancy?
At Lili Bermuda, my classmates and I made very different bottles of fragrance. Our perceptions of what was attractive could not have been farther from one another; this is what is so intriguing.
"People observe scents differently," Isabelle explained- "Just as we all see things with our eyes in a different way." To demystify the sense of smell is "a Nobel Prize waiting to happen," she said.
Until then, let the experimentation continue!
*With special thanks to Lili Bermuda Perfumery for the extraordinary attention to detail in this workshop, and to Isabelle Ramsay-Brackstone- an effervescent and hospitable educator, with exceptional talent!
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