Inconvenient Little Truths

So, after consulting with a perfumery chemist I learned that, no, Schiff bases cannot be made with naturals in the way that I define them. However, they can be made with naturals AND natural isolates. I was reminded by the said chemist that "Despite how you feel about them, natural isolates are natural." Right. I still feel that they aren't quite natural. But it won't stop me from creating at least one natural/natural isolate Schiff base just to say I have. Beyond that, what naturals can do falls more or less into the arena of material dynamics. Primary material dynamics are those combinations that are expected, such as butter CO2 and vanilla creating a caramel note. Secondary material dynamics are those combinations of natural essential oils, absolutes, tinctures, et al (natural, natural, natural) whose results are unexpected. Like frankincense and white sage sometimes creating a gardenia-like scent. Over the past 15 years or so, I've had very little time to experiment on long-term projects, those that require hundreds of hours of sonication and warming and just time in general to reach their peak. I've also slowed way down on the tincture gig. I want to explore more CO2 alcohol extractions (using the whip-it thing). I've just run across a couple of years-old extraction and tincture of Chamaebatia foliolosa. The CO2 alc. extraction is still clear and smells exactly like the plant material, and the tincture is a bit darker than it was at the beginning, and it, too, smells exactly like the plant material. This darkened discolorization is oxidation, so now I'm not sure if it's even useful. The CO2 alcohol results, though, are impressive. 

Anyway, I kind of got off track there -- the point I'm making is that experimentation will be ramping up, and I'm hitting the books. 

It's funny -- well, not "haha" funny, but odd-funny, that I'm not the only person within my sphere of friends and acquaintances doing this. Dropping just about everything to dig deeper, experiment, learn more and solidify theories into facts. I love this, but it's a poor woman's work. While I toil away in the lab, my bank account shrinks, so I have to come up with creative ways to generate more income. I'm working on that.