Notes of Happiness

The weirdest thing happened. Late last night, when we were out in the garden spraying an essential oil blend on aphids, we noticed a tiny blossom on the Asian pear tree. It has NEVER blossomed, not once since it was planted 3 years ago. Its sense of timing is not great. We're moving into chilly nights and moderate warm-ish days, so that wee blossom will shrivel and die once the pear tree figures out it's autumn and sheds its leaves. My hope is that it reblooms in spring and we finally get a pear or two. 

Yesterday, after posting the info about oud oils, I went on the hunt for the goods purchased from EOApothecare, more vetyver, and some oddnicks (not to be confused with goodnicks, aka, rabbit poop) of note. I had both of the more recent receipts and had no problem locating the last order, but I couldn't find the items I ordered just prior to that. And I panicked, yelling and swearing and damning the jerk and/or jerks who threw out my order when, while standing over the sink with my hands immersed in warm soapy water, the old brain went, "Ding!" and I remembered where that order was. 

First off, EOApothecare is one of the best places to get fantastic quality floral and plant waxes. The green tea is gorgeous and paired with the jasmine sambac it's a knock-out. I've made more than a few solid perfumes with just the two of these waxes and a drop or so of essential oil. The rosa damascene and tuberose are some of the best examples of those floral waxes I've found. More recently, I received a bit of the orange blossom wax, and it, too, is stunning. As I said, some of the best fragrant waxes you can find. If you're looking for someone to replace to the goods provided by the now-defunct White Lotus Aromatics, this is where you start.

Oils of Note:

Heather Essential Oil - Australian Heather - Kimberly Heather - Myrtle

Wow. The opening scent is an odd mixture of eucalyptus's high vibrational medicinal notes and lemon oil. Interspersed throughout is a delicate, sweet floral note that very slightly resembles a sweet pea. It kind of rocks back and forth between muted eucalyptus notes and bright lemony notes. As it dries down, the scent becomes more sweet and floral and carries forest notes, like pine and spruce and pacific coast sages. It actually blooms the longer it sits on the skin. If you're looking for something unique to build a custom perfume, this would work beautifully in a fougere, chypre, or sweet floral where opening notes require something different from the usual. 

Rose de Mai Absolute

This is my absolute favorite rose. In my book, it is the diamond of roses. It is so sweet, just dripping with delicate honey notes and shadowy, low-key green notes, all wrapped up in tender cabbage rose. Rose de Mai reminds me of my very early days in natural perfumery, my first experience with a rose absolute, and how completely bowled over I was by its boldness and tenacity. It's an odd thing, this rose. It is both loud and quiet in the same breath. A rose person's rose. 

Violet Leaf Concrete

There is a little animal buried in this concrete, a bit of furriness and body heat. It opens GREEN! Like ripe cucumbers and watermelon rind, and that overlay of animalics slips away, leaving this sylvan quality, like cold trickling creeks through dark, dank forests. How can a scent be both cool and warm? I have no idea, but this one does. Just under the green is a soft, pale floralness, the violets. This is the only violet leaf extraction that doesn't take me straight to Choward's Violet Mints. I like this one better. It feels real.

I have all of these on my skin, and the scent of these three combined in the air around me is exquisite. Notes of happiness.