A plant infused oil, called an infusion, is a process used to extract properties from a plant matter which is sometimes referred to as our Prima materia. In plant fragrance making and aromatherapy we use infusions for salves, solid perfume and oil bases. First thing to consider is your end purpose, what is the intention of… Continue reading How to Make a Plant Infusion
Tag: sage
A Perfumed Bestiary, Letter B for Bison/Buffalo, Part 2
The second fragrance in A Perfumed Bestiary series was sent at the end of June to the subscribers. It is the intention to send out the perfume in the first half of the month, rather than the second, as occurred with the “B” fragrance. I began B for Bison/Buffalo by researching the terrain where this wooly, prairie… Continue reading A Perfumed Bestiary, Letter B for Bison/Buffalo, Part 2
On the move, again!
Tomorrow, Sunday, we are moving from Tesuque to the old ranch area here in Santa Fe that is turning into the new arts district. No one in the area has told me what the district is called, so I’m referring to it as “the new arts district” until someone corrects me. Tesuque is just north… Continue reading On the move, again!
Vera Solid Natural Perfume is Back!
Three different lavenders and white sage grown and distilled in Ojai are combined with orange blossom and thirty one other plant essences with two of my own complex chords go into Vera. The labyrinthine orchestration results in a sparkling, sunny, uplifting yet calming pure fume, evocative of the location in Southern California where the inspiration… Continue reading Vera Solid Natural Perfume is Back!
In the Garden: Early Spring
Here in the Southern California woodland Spring arrives early, even when we’ve had little to no rain. The first flowers to appear our on the back slope covered with rosemary, these begin to blossom as early as November. Right now the purple sage, botanically known as Salvia leucphylla, is blooming and the girls are all… Continue reading In the Garden: Early Spring
It’s happening now!
For the last two months there have been little signs of Spring here in my little wild wood garden. First is the ever persistent non-native grasses, which pop their vital green sprouts up after the first rains in the late Autumn. While in the Santa Monica Mountains, close to the coast the white ceonothus blooms… Continue reading It’s happening now!
Amethyst and sage
The amethyst cases came and went and will come again, here she is looking mighty fine with Vera.
Strange Flowers of Reason
“There are strange flowers of reason to match each error of the senses.”~ Louis Aragon The garden is starting to awaken. As mentioned previously the rosemary on the back slope is in full bloom. Out on the front slope where I have all the natives, the salvias have begun blooming. Salvia spathacea, known as Hummingbird… Continue reading Strange Flowers of Reason
Lavender Fields
The weather has shifted here in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains and with that trees are in bloom as well as the sage and lavender in the garden. This abundance of nature also heralds in the return of Vera Solid Perfume. When artist Sands Murray was reviewing perfume at the Perfume Critic he… Continue reading Lavender Fields
Perfume Illuminated: Sage
The hills are alive with the aroma of the chaparral here where I dwell and make art. Ceanothus, the Oaks, some of the Sages and the Poppies are all in bloom. This post will illuminate some of the notes and attributes of the species Salvia, which grows abundantly in the Santa Monica Mountains. In the… Continue reading Perfume Illuminated: Sage