Mentorship wisdom LONG & missing IG friends
Q.How does one start to become a Perfumer?
(my first contemplation is always : * A. "Smell" -anything- everything- go on smell walk- even in your home-with joy-curiosity, patience and wild abandon.* Write what you are smelling, anything that comes to your mind. and if you can attach a memory to what you are smelling it's going to be even stronger adhered for the future when you are composing. Also consider colors, textures, music Of course not to overwhelm baby steps may be in order at first no one wants to get discouraged.:)....
I missing IG friends today. The support, great conversations and laughter. I encourage folks to check out Shelter In Perfume A perfume house out of Portland Oregon as well. The perfumer's name is Emily Schaber who I have the delight of mentoring the past year. We also became friends -which with Emily is not hard to do. She is one of the most vibrant & kind people you would meet. She approached me wanting brutal, honest feedback about her perfumes. It turned into a long, really wonderful mentorship/friendship. She has a shop on Etsy https://www.etsy.com/shop/ShelterinPerfume is active on Instagram where she is bringing the community together is a courageous & generous to causes activist as well. Her perfumes are colorful, vivid, emotive, joyful with personality and have the most incredible longevity you will probably find.
During my active time on social media I enjoyed assisting people that would reach out needing a little mentoring and support -mainly imparting wisdom that seems to hit home quite dramatically when artists were most distressed- or overwhelmed by the vastness of materials, trying to figure out how to proceed questioning themselves- who they where, problem solving, especially working things out creatively. There's so much out there. One only needs to take a gander at "Fragcom" on Instagram. So many forms, glittering fancy perfume bottles peacocking between themselves, -the perfumers and influencers-bottles posed in glamorized, travel magazine settings, i'm amazed that anyone's starting to make perfume with any genuineness without running for the hills.
So I have received messages for the past few years from those just starting out or even by long seasoned ones- I'm talking perfumers at it for over a decade. People in this never ending journey of learning - finding their voice- who they are - keeping true of heart-fortified in the suspect marketing and not quite truthful reviews and free promotions that shotgun bad perfumes before lovely more interesting ones.
Even "Master Perfumers" always are learning. New materials are being released, they are challenged by the same demons of their perfume pasts as any perfumer. They still have to out of hundreds of materials drop by drop conduct this orchestra to be people's ideas & intentions into a bottle- or some other medium and technology in perfume is advancing. This never ending choice to further advance -rather akin to Martial arts - the "Masters" practicing further than black belt to midnight blue, more stripes further and further ....
I strongly encourage Perfumers to study their materials. Take time with them one a day at least- smell - returned to the "scent strip" (or various other ways you can smell which I will go into another post ) through the day -making notes. * back to the first * Answer I wrote on the top post -as it decreases in odor. anything you can think of write it down as you smell it. if you're feeling extra energized compare it with something close to it- notice the differences ie yellow mandarin orange & green mandarin orange. or do something completely the opposite.
Keeping relaxed is and unpressured while smelling materials is quite helpful. particularly noteworthy not slways immediately noticed is if to different materials far removed on the perfumers organ say a dry wiod and a resin share notes with in. These kind of discoveries can be particularly fun-and very useful when composing. bridging notes a charater -intention all the way from the top to the base
Mentoring- Though I can/will, I don't often most enjoy answering a lot of technical advice. That can be found in books, over the Internet and I encourage hands on learning - especially after an apprentice perfume wrote once: "Why do I need to do any work myself when I have you to tell me how to do it?! uh oh! I cringed the thought of me fast tracking someone to get their perfume out the door quick- verses me mentoring - Egads! That was not a good feeling.
So--- moving forward proper mentoring mentoring involves commitment- mini mentoring involves people checking in as needed. it's kind a like Luke flying down to Dagobah to get guidance from Yoda. (giggle) giving guidance and mentorship through the difficulties- which can be more than victories (oh but they are sweet!). A perfumer must have "extraordinary enduring patience" often energy to cheer onesself for an extra push through reoccurring headbanging kerfuffles, when mods not turning out as planned, one drop disaster, accidents of spills that costs fortunes, glasswear breakages, resin, co2 & powdered material wrestling, figuring proper filtering methods, mastering maceration times and IFRA whhaaaats? limitations ug! mathmatical & dilution oopsies, the mistakes will be endless but that is part of the learning. (why I consider this art slightly masochistic that should be embraced ) The pain is extra because our material are incredibly spendy. Spills and mod after mod are all costly.
mentors genuinely 100,000% believe in who they are mentoring - A little wind behind the wings- with a little encouragement and I simply state as long as they did not sway from who they are, they really cannot feel they failed themselves. to try to not look left or right all the time at what other people are doing or getting distracted but keep facing forward. Don't go too fast though or look for easy way outs (i'm looking at you premixed accords)! That will cause a perfumer skip the real important learning. taking some time to come template in this looking forward.... perhaps make a list of even the little things of what makes us who we are what we like, what touches us, what propels us, what music, books, movies, places, memories,colors, people, Why we like like them-- what about these things make them special to us. why are some people closer in the circle of friends and family. it's definitely important to have those people to reach out to to have an ear. Morrowind beneath the wings. All these who you ares- and our lifetime experiences reflect into our perfume. I do believe experiences, getting out there seeing art, going places and smelling and smelling and smelling and smelling and smelling and smelling can only elevate one enrich one's life- and especially ones Perfume.
I tell these apprentice perfumers the people do not want to smell the same or have the same experiences over and over. They want to have an original experience and that can only be obtained by the perfumer being themselves expressing their intention with a pure intention- If perfume is not being created from a place of joy or enjoyment especially IF you're working with naturals it's going to infuse in them. As I used to exclaim almost like a Dr. Bonners bottle : "Natural perfume is alive! it has Spirit!" haha.
It's that connection that we have with materials that are more natural than some thing that are all synthetic. Adding a few natural materials to a perfume can do wonders. Giving it a little life. I fully realize the camp it would say the exact opposite with synthetics- The structure and so on.. but I'm speaking of naturals at the moment--
Kind of like as an odd analogy -i'm just gonna gander most would probably rather to hold a pet rock than a pet melted piece of polyurethane.
haha... are you going to feel a little bit more happy with a real flower or a plastic flower?
Ice cream with real vanilla extract or imitation vanilla? I can't tell you the bummer I feel when I come across a plastic plant.
(in photo a real plant a Melody Rose Parfumèe)
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