Culling Pages and Editing 'The Book'

After much consideration, I've decided to cut yet another chapter. This decision was based on the fact that it entailed production, something with which I have very little experience. The desire to step into large scale production of anything fled as if its ass were on fire years and years and years ago. This happened about the time I fell in with a distributor shortly after turning my garage into a soap studio. I hear some people dream about finding distributors to disperse their goods all over the globe, I did too, until one found me. I quickly discovered the experience to be stressful, disheartening, financially unsound in both the short- and long-term, and depressing as all hell. Talk about sucking all the life from a creative endeavor. I was gutted. Gutted, I tell you! This culled chapter consisted of buying loads of bottles, having them designed, getting them embossed, buying enormous quantities of raw materials, making contracts with suppliers and points of sale, distribution of goods, submitting goods to big fragrance awards' committees, and so on and so forth. None of these are in my area of expertise. I shun the spotlight, so nix on the awards, and I don't have a pirate's chest full of investor's money, so nix on everything else. I know about them, I know who to contact, where to go, what to do, I just haven't done them. Nor do I ever intend to. My focus on my own perfumery and in this book has been on the slow building of scent. Small scale, artisan (much overused word), low distribution, intent driven, with emphasis on the experience rather than the dollars to be generated. As long as my work pays my bills and leaves enough leftover for investments and a nice dinner once in a while, I'm a happy camper. Travel would be nice too, but I'm not holding my breath (or a grudge) if it never happens.

Culling and editing out this chapter has made the work on the book flow again. This final chapter is related to edibles -- not the pot variety, but the 'fume variety. Cookery is another passion of mine, and I've done a fair bit of work utilizing raw natural materials (essential oils and absolutes specifically) in the creation of edible goodies, with a lot of success. I just purchased a new set of stainless bake ware and sheets of silicon upon which to bake. So baking is happening. A few items on the list to be included in this edibles' chapter are saffron shortbread cookies with ginger lemon curd, lavender infused cupcakes, potato soup with nutmeg essential oil flavoring, a vegan version of Moroccan bastilla, among many other perfumed food creations, including teas, cocktails, flavored wines, and perfumed finishing salts. Since this chapter discusses something I truly, passionately love, my hope is that the writing will just flow. And the experimenting will be divine.