Fougere Workshop

Create the scent of the forrest floor.

There has been some interest amongst a small group of students in doing another Fougere Workshop.  I'm so happy to teach this class again on Sunday, April 12th, 1-4pm.

Fougere is a fragrance family that came into fashion towards the end of the 19th C.  The word means fern, which makes it a fantasy category seeing how ferns don't really have a fragrance.  Fougere's are meant to smell like the forrest floor and, to my understanding, must have three ingredients:  lavender, oakmoss and a coumarin note (found in tonka bean, hay, sweet clover, etc.).  Often herbs like geranium, linalool rich rosewood and more assertive notes like patchouli are added but it's the careful consideration of the other ingredients that makes the fougere your own.

In class we'll explore the genre and sample many perfumes including the original Fougere Royale and Jicky - the vanguards of the classification -  along with samples from some of the best natural perfumers working today. You'll be choosing from materials like tonka bean, sweet clover, concretes of lavender, geranium and clary sage, several lavender absolutes and essential oils, cedarmoss, cassia and ho wood.  You'll have the opportunity to create two perfumes.  $25 extra to make a third, time considering.

Sunday, April 12th, 1-4pm.  You can register here.

You can see the coumarin crystals forming on these tonka beans.

Once oakmoss is harvested it rests for seven years to develop it's wet forrest scent.

Clover also contain coumarins.

Lavender, one of the key ingredients in a fougere, also contains coumarins.

Lovely Review of Sol de la Foret in Cafleurebon

So pleased to offer up this stunning review by John Reasinger of Cafleurebon.  John is a Senior Editor and the Natural Perfume Editor for the venerable blog.  I don't think I or anything I've ever created has ever been written about quite so rhapsodically.

"Without being dated or trying to be "fresh" this fougere radiates gentle green, but also timeless strength, in a unique almost brooding manner.  Its power is evident from the first sniff.  It is, however, in its restraint and poise that Sol de la Foret truly impresses me.  Old world charm and sophistication in a modern all natural perfume that still keeps its classic grandeur is indeed wonderful."

Sol de la Foret

available on Etsy

or herbalalchemy.net

Sol de la Foret

Sol de la Foret, my newest fragrance, is a true labor of love.  After falling head over heals with the fragrance family, fougere, I set out to make my own.  To be a true fougere a perfume must contain a coumarin note, oakmoss and lavender.  Coumarin was the first synthetic chemical created in a laboratory in 1886 and was the principal ingredient in Houbigant's Fougere Royale, since considered the industry standard.  Coumarins are found in abundance in materials like tonka bean, sweet clover, flouve and deertongue.  It is also found, rather surprisingly, in lavender.

For this creation I've used a generous amount of rich caramelic tonka bean.  To give it a greener, mossier and more coumaranic note I also added sweet clover, a new favorite of mine.  I used a bit of fossilized amber, a tree resin that is millions of years old from  high in the Himalayan Mountains, in the bottom to add a dry smokey quality to the earth element of the blend.  It dries down very soft and sweetens adding a slight powdery note at the bottom - along with great fixation.  Tobacco and Vanilla CO2 add some warmth to the whole bottom.  Following the rules of the true genre there is also the addition of oakmoss, adding a wet roots and leaves note to the forrest floor.  Those sensitive to oakmoss be warned.

At the heart of the perfume is a lovely synergy of carnation and lavender absoutes with a touch of clary sage and orange blossom concretes.  Tunisian neroli was a perfect match for high linalool ho wood at the top, with just a drop of blood orange.

Top:  ho wood, neroli, blood orange

Heart:  carnation and lavender absolutes, clary sage and orange blossom concretes

Base:  tonka bean, sweet clover, oak moss, fossilized amber and tobacco absolutes with vanilla CO2

This perfume comes beautifully packaged in a brown velvet envelope in a gold box with a vintage velvet millinery leaf nestled inside.  No markings of any kind have been made to the box or velvet envelope so that they bay be reused (or regifted as the case may be).  The leaf is your keepsake, that and the lingering fragrance.

Introducing Sol de la Foret, the forest floor.

See the listing on my website or Etsy store.

To learn more about fougere's, and a chance to make some yourself, sign up for my Fougere Workshop, Saturday, November 16th.

Fougere

I've fallen in love with a fragrance family, the fougere.  French for fern, fougere is a fantasy concept meant to capture the scent of the natural habitat of ferns - the forest floor.  The principal notes in a fougere are oakmoss, tonka bean and lavender.

The first fougere was Fougere Royale by Houbigant, created in 1882, and spurred a whole new perfume category.  While it's probable that these fragrant chords were popular before the release of Fougere Royale, the fragrance captured a moment in time and has forever become linked with it's origination.  Houbigant was the first house to develop a scent chemical meant to replicate the scent of fresh mown hay, otherwise known as coumarin.  Coumarin is present in tonka beans, hay, sweet clover, sweet woodruff, sweetgrass, flouve and deertounge and in lesser degrees lavender, cassia, cherries, strawberries and apricots.  It is an overall pleasant odor reminiscent of sweet grass with vanilla overtones.

Jicky by Guerlain was created soon after in 1889 and it has notes of lavender, rosemary, bergamot,  opoponax, precious woods, vanilla, and tonka bean.


Fougere captured the imagination of perfumers who used tonka, oakmoss and lavender as a base to create new versions of the concept.  Often the base is supplemented by patchouli, vetiver, sandalwood and myrrh.  Often there is a rosy heart supported by geranium and clary sage, jasmine and orange blossom with top notes of lavender, rosewood, citrus, rosemary and bergamot.  There are sub-categories of floral, fresh, oriental, amber, leather and precious wood fougeres.

I'm hosting a fougere workshop in my home atelier on Saturday, July 27th.  We'll be sampling Fougere Royale, Jicky and a careful selection of fragrances by some of the botanical perfume world's best perfumers including Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, Charna Ethier, Ayala Moriel and others.  Each participant will get to create two perfumes using an assortment of oils I've collected just for the occasion.  Tonka bean, sweet clover and hay absolute will be on hand along with several lavender absolutes and essential oils.  This will be an opportunity to experiment with a few rare and precious oils like orris, ambrette, choya nak, ho wood, buddahwood and wild sweet orange.

Fougere Workshop

Saturday, July 27th

1:30 to 4:30

$130 includes all materials

Park Slope, Brooklyn

Call (718)788-6480 or send an email to info@herbalalchemy.net for more information or to register.

Midnight Garden

My newest perfume, Midnight Garden, is the joint creation of the lovely women of The Robert Allen Group and myself.  The Group has designed a new line of fabrics inspired by hanging orchids, twisting vines and hidden temples.  What they described to me was a rainforest, with orchids hanging in the trees, thick with fragrance in the night air.  Wild sweet orange, petitgrain and coriander CO2 greet the nose, sitting on top of a jasmine, neroli and honey heart.  At the bottom of this sultry midnight perfume is the vanilla orchid with peru balsam and oakmoss to finish.

Midnight Garden

20ml bottle

$55.00

 1ml sample

$7.00

Natural Perfume Blending with Mandy Aftel

I don't know if I can say more about how wonderful it is to arrive at Mandy Aftel's beautiful studio in Berkeley, California.  For a woman who loves the raw materials of perfumery it's the closest thing to heaven.  I'm proud of my collection of oils and absolutes that I've assembled, but it pales in comparison to the quantity, quality and desirability of Mandy's scent organ.  What a joy to use the finest (and sometimes rarest) materials in their ground glass stoppered bottles and jars. 

Mandy collects antique oils as well and displays their original bottles in the window with the gorgeous California light streaming through.  It was a visual feast as well as olfactory.

Questions answered, curiosity piqued, inspiration fired up I return to my studio to get to work on new creations.  I'm so grateful for the opportunity and for another chance to get to know Mandy a little better.  I'm a fan!



Mandy also sells a collection of oils.  Let her do the work for you tracking down the best possible materials.   Visit her website at aftelier.com.

Park Perfumes Review

The online gardening magazine Soiled and Seeded, dedicated to cultivating a garden culture, has been so kind as to review my trio of Park Perfumes.  This is some of my earliest work and includes some synthetic oils that I couldn't get in nature.  I'm in the process of revising those perfumes using only natural oils and utilizing some of the skills and experience I've accumulated over the past ten years.  The first to be finished is The Ambergill which formerly used a synthetic amber note.

After extensively researching amber I discovered that there is no real amber oil extracted from a plant. There is a pine tree in India that exudes a sap that a lot of it starts from, but then many processes occur and a proprietary blend of oils and macerations are added to create amber in many forms. Some are crystalized in beezwax so a mere touch melts on the fingertips.  These blends are closely guarded secret formulas.

I've had a bottle of amber oil for many years that I bought from the Persian perfume vendors on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. I knew that it was probably adulterated with synthetic materials but I liked that warm velvety chord and couldn't be deprived. This year I made my own proprietary blend with absolutes and essential oils. I'm happy to have come up with a blend I can use in my perfumes without resorting to it's synthetic counterpart.  From that I've created a scented Amber Oil.

Now that I had an amber chord to work with I went ahead and recreated The Ambergill, a perfume inspired by the beautiful Ambergill ravine and falls in the Prospect Park in Brooklyn, NY. A gill is a narrow stream-filled glen, which feeds a grotto known as the Amergill Pool, whose banks are populated by green herons, columbine, wild roses & blackberries. Amber, oakmoss & neroli are the peak notes of this warm perfume.

Moonrise

I gazed upon the cloudless moon,
And loved her all the night,
Till morning came and radiant noon,
And I forgot her light-


No, not forget-eternally
Remains its memory dear;
But could the day seem dark to me
Because the night was fair?


Emily Bronte





I'm so pleased to announce the latest perfume offering from Alchemologie, Moonrise.

When Pam Grossman of Observatory Room approached me to create a perfume for a group show based on the moon I agreed on the condition that she collaborate with me on it.  I walked away wondering, "Ok, now, what does the moon smell like".  When Pam and I sat down to begin she brought with her a list of plants that were historically said to be connected to the moon.  The most obvious place to start on that list was with an artemesia, inspired by the Greek goddess, Artemis, who represents the new moon.  Artemis is portrayed in the fragrance by a few spare drops of wormood in the top note, supported by bergamot and petitgrain.  The heart of the perfume is made of luminous jasmine, honey absolute and balanced with rose.  Sandalwood, frankincense and oak moss form the base chord.  The finished perfume, Moonrise, made it's debut at the opening of Lunation:  Art on the Moon on January 7th.  Two lunar inspired cocktails I created were served at the event, The Honeymoon (oat and honey soaked vodka with milk and sandalwood oil) and Dark Side of the Moon (tangerine spiked vodka with homemade creme de cacao and jasmine).

Two New Cocktails Inspired by the Moon

For the group art show, Lunation:  Art on the Moon, I've come up with two new lunar inspired cocktails.  The Honeymoon, a milk and honey concoction spiked with sandalwood oil, and Dark Side of the Moon, a chocolatey tangerine libation accented with jasmine oil.

The Dark Side of the Moon is made with homemade tangerine vodka which is incredibly easy to make.  The most difficult part is shaving the fragile fragrant peel of the fruit while not taking the bitter pith with it.   I used the skin of one Satsuma tangerine per cup of vodka.  Simply place the peel and vodka in a jar and give it a good shake every few hours and it should be ready in under 24 hours.  Strain out the peel and you're ready to tend bar.


The recipe also calls for homemade creme de cacao.  The store bought variety with it's synthetic chocolate flavor might work but once you've had the real thing you can't conceive of drinking the adulterated version.  

Creme de Cacao

one cup sugar

two cups water

one ounce unsweetened chocolate

one half teaspoon vanilla

one cup vodka

In a medium pan combine sugar and water.  Boil on medium high heat until the mixture is reduced to half its original volume, about 20 minutes.  About five minutes before the syrup is done melt chocolate in a two cup or larger container.  Immediately and very slowly pour hot syrup into the melted chocolate, stirring vigorously while pouring.  If mixture is not completely smooth and blended beat with a  mixer or in a blender.  Cool mixture for 30 minutes.  Add vanilla and vodka.  Blend well.  Immediately pour into a clean sterile bottle or jar with a tight fitting lid or cap.

The secret ingredient of Dark Side of the Moon is the drop of jasmine absolute, diluted to 5% strength.  Jasmine has long been associated with the moon and adds a narcotic floral body to the cocktail.

Dark Side of the Moon

one jigger tangerine infused vodka

one jigger creme de cacao

two drop jasmine absolute, 5%

Give the combined ingredients a good shake and strain into a chilled martini glass, or serve over ice. 

The Honeymoon is made with homemade oat and honey vodka made by soaking rolled oats and honey in vodka for three weeks.  To make one cup of vodka use a half cup of rolled oats and a scant quarter cup of honey.  There are many varieties of honey so pick one you like, preferably a milder one.  Shake it all up in a clean sterile jar and macerate in a cool dark place and make sure to give it a good shake daily.  Filter through a paper coffee filter into a clean bottle.  Straining can be a little challenging so be patient.

The Honeymoon also calls for sandalwood oil in a dilution of 10%, and a teaspoon of Chamomile Water.

                                       

The Honeymoon

one jigger honey oat infused vodka

one jigger milk

one drop sandalwood oil, 10%

1/8 teaspoon chamomile water

Give the combined ingredients a good shake and pour over ice.

A New Perfume for Lunation: Art on the Moon

Observatory Room is hosting it's first ever group-curated show, Lunation:Art on the Moon. 

Artists and scientists have always been attracted to the moon…

Our closest celestial neighbor, the earth’s little sister, the moon creates the tides and illuminates the woods at night. For centuries, humanity believed the moon provided a key into the invisible realm: it called out the beast within us, freeing us to act as wolves, to run, to dance, to chant—and sometimes (as in Duncan Jones’ Moon) to split in two, to find our double, our changeling moon-self.

Is the moon home to life? Today we know it isn’t, but even as of 1830, speculation was rampant that the moon was inhabited by Christianized bat-people who worshiped in great ziggurats. (See The Sun and the Moon by Observatory alumnus Matthew Goodman for details.) Still, life comes to the moon. We know the moon contains frozen water, and we dream of using it as our jumping-off point for visiting even more alien vistas.

Down here, despite all the prowess and nuance of our latest telescopes, earthlings still look up naked-eyed with excitement at the full moon. Lovers and children gaze up at its slowly blinking façade in mute wonder. Artists portray the moon as a source of danger and power, and latter-day sorceresses and men of magic call up to that heavenly lamp, seeking to transcend the ordinary night. For them, the old myths have not changed so much: the moon is still a secret mirror, showing in pale light how the familiar contains always an element of the unexpected…

Herbal Alchemy will be participating in the show by offering up a new perfume for the occasion, Moonrise.  The Greek goddess, Artemis, who represents the new moon, is portrayed in this fragrance by the addition of wormwood (an artemesia) in the top note, supported by bergamot and petitgrain.  Luminous jasmine forms the basis of the heart along with honey and rose, and sandalwood and frankincense form the base chord.

Opening Party: Saturday, January 7th, 7–10 PM, FREE
Closing Party/Observatory’s 3rd Anniversary Fundraiser: Saturday, February 18th, 8 PM/$20
Show Viewing Hours: Thursday & Friday 3–6 PM, Saturday & Sunday 12–6 PM

I'll be serving two special cocktails at the opening party:  The Honeymoon, a sumptuous concoction of oat and honey vodka spiked with sandalwood, and Dark Side of the Moon, a chocolatey jasmine spiked libation.  Hope to see you there!