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Aromatic History & Lore
Incense Crafting
Ritual
February 21, 20240Comments

The Ancient Story of Incense Clocks

How would you tell time without your iPhone, watch, or digital clock? Before the invention of electricity and modern technology, ancient peoples would often use the elements of the natural
by NW School of Aromatic Medicine
Aromatherapy
Aromatic Recipes
Incense as Medicine
September 8, 20190Comments

Nourishing Your Nervous System with Aromatics

Feeling stressed or anxious? Nervous or fearful? Spread thin or overburdened? Ungrounded? In this video I'll give a simple and easy to understand breakdown of why most people's nervous systems
by NW School of Aromatic Medicine
Aromatherapy
Aromatic Recipes
Incense as Medicine
Sustainability
August 19, 20190Comments

Incense & Aromatics for Mental Focus & Clarity

Do you experience issues with mental focus and clarity, brain fog, or trouble with your memory? The aromatic incense plants I talk about in the video above have been used
by NW School of Aromatic Medicine
Incense Crafting
Ritual
April 6, 20190Comments

The Renowned Japanese Koh-do Incense Ceremony

When you hear the term, “Listening to Incense,” what comes to mind? Perhaps you imagine putting your ear up to morsels of resin incense melting and sizzling on a hot
by NW School of Aromatic Medicine

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🌸✨The Free Natural Perfumery Workshop Series is fi 🌸✨The Free Natural Perfumery Workshop Series is finally here! Scent has always been more than something we wear. Long before perfume was bottled and branded, it was crafted from plants — used for beauty, ritual, devotion, and care. Natural perfumery comes from this older way of working with aroma, where scent is created slowly, intentionally, and with presence. If you love plants, aroma, ritual, or natural creation in any form, you’ll feel very at home here. There’s nothing quite like wearing (or gifting) a fragrance that came from your own hands and imagination (especially knowing it’s made from all-natural ingredients and free of toxic synthetic fragrances!). That’s why we created this free workshop series – to give you an inspiring, practical doorway into the alluring art of natural perfumery.​​​​​​​ Inside this series, you’ll learn: 🌿 The foundations of natural perfumery 🌿 The different types of perfume and what they’re best used for 🌿 The core principles behind beautiful, balanced formulations 🌿 How professional perfumers think about scent — so you can too 🌿 A clear roadmap from idea to formula + finished perfume 🌿 A beautiful spray perfume formula and exactly how to make it Plus, you’ll learn loads of valuable tips and tricks from an award-winning, expert perfumer with over a decade of professional experience! ✨ Click the link in our bio to dive into the first workshop (and yes, it's absolutely FREE!). We’ll see you inside! #aroma #perfumeryworkshop #perfumerytraining #naturalperfumes #naturalperfumeoils #freeworkshop
Exciting news! Tomorrow’s a big day. 🌸🌿🌹✨ You've Exciting news! Tomorrow’s a big day. 🌸🌿🌹✨ You've been asking, and we've been listening... Tomorrow, we're excited to bring you our FREE series all about the captivating realm of natural perfumery. Join us as we share the magic of nature's aromas through the art of crafting natural perfume. Be sure to keep an eye out tomorrow as we launch into an in-depth free video training series – don't miss it! #perfumerytraining #perfumeryworkshop #naturalperfumery #aroma #aromatic
Attar: an Arabic word that translates to “scent.” Attar: an Arabic word that translates to “scent.” Attars are traditional natural perfume oils that originate from the Middle East and South Asia, where they’ve been used for centuries. Attars are crafted exclusively from 100% pure essential oils and aromatic materials, without any carrier oils for dilution, making them intensely concentrated perfumes known for their potency and rich aroma. Traditional attar makers often distill aromatic plants directly into a base of Sandalwood essential oil, a practice still revered today for its meticulous craftsmanship. Attars are prized for their rich and complex scents and are typically applied sparingly on the skin or clothing for a long-lasting aroma. Have you ever used or crafted an attar before? What’s your favorite attar scent profile? #attar #attars #perfume #perfumery #naturalperfume
Incense is the foundation of perfumery. The orig Incense is the foundation of perfumery. The origin of the word perfume reflects the ancient practice of using aromatic plants as incense to create pleasing scents to permeate through the air. In some ancient cultures, the words perfume and incense were interchangeable. Many cultures believe burning incense is like a rising prayer, as the fragrant smoke drifts up to the heavens, serving as a bridge that links the material and spiritual worlds. This same reverence translated to the world of perfumery. Initially reserved for rituals for the gods, religious rites, or royalty in ancient Egypt, perfume gradually became associated with purifying and spiritually cleansing the body. As time progressed, perfume found diverse applications, serving purposes ranging from aesthetic enhancement to practical functionality, spiritual enrichment, and even sometimes medicinal uses. In the beginning, original perfumes and incense were made only using pure, natural aromatic plants. Unfortunately, modern perfumery has drifted from these ancient roots, as most perfumes available today are laden with synthetic chemicals. It falls upon us to remember and honor the genuine origins of these ancient aromatic traditions, preserving their legacy for future generations to come.
We live in a world saturated with scent. Our air f We live in a world saturated with scent. Our air fresheners, laundry detergents, cosmetics, body products, and even most perfumes are infused with synthetic fragrance compounds designed to imitate nature. But these ingredients are not only far removed from the living world, but many of them are also harmful to ecosystems and toxic to our bodies. It’s no surprise that so many of us are feeling the pull back to our roots, toward scent as nature intended. There’s something about natural perfumery that reaches us beyond words. It’s not just the fragrance, but the emotional and energetic effect it carries. Natural perfumes are made up of the same essential oils traditionally used in aromatherapy for their uplifting and stress-soothing qualities – which can shape our psyche in subtle but deeply meaningful ways. Still, a persistent myth lingers in the perfumery world: that natural perfumes can’t compete. That they’re too unpredictable, too soft, too fleeting—that they won’t project or last beyond an hour. And this can be true… when a perfume is built without structure or foundation. In our new blog, you’ll discover: 🌿 Exactly how a natural perfume is structured and balanced (+ what it’s made of) 🌿 What top, heart, and base notes are, and the role each one plays in a formula 🌿 The truth about synthetics (and why they’re not the secret to longevity) 🌿 Why fixatives are often the missing link in long-lasting natural perfume formulas 🌿 How a blend becomes a living symphony of aromas in harmony ✨ Read the full blog at the link in our bio. _______________ #neroli #naturalperfume #naturalperfumery #naturalperfumes #naturalperfumer #naturalperfumeoils #cleanbeautyproducts
There’s something about natural perfumery that rea There’s something about natural perfumery that reaches us beyond words. It’s not just the fragrance, but the emotional and energetic effect it carries. Natural perfumes are made up of the same essential oils traditionally used in aromatherapy for their uplifting and stress-soothing qualities – which can shape our psyche in subtle but deeply meaningful ways. But many people who are pulled into the natural perfumery world find that their first creations feel flat, fleeting, or empty. The missing ingredient is balance. Natural perfumery is a form of aromatic architecture – the art of composing time, not just smell. It is a doorway into a deeper relationship with plants, with the body, and with beauty itself. When we understand how scent is built, layered, and anchored, we begin to understand why certain perfumes feel whole… and why others do not. When a perfume feels complete, it has foundation, body, and lift. It projects, lingers, and evolves. It speaks to the nervous system, stirs memory, and invites ritual into the moment. A natural perfume is never a single note – it is a sequence, a symphony of aromas unfolding in intentional harmony. In our new blog, you’ll discover: 🌿 Exactly how a natural perfume is structured and balanced (+ what it’s made of) 🌿 What top, heart, and base notes are, and the role each one plays in a formula 🌿 The truth about synthetics (and why they’re not the secret to longevity) 🌿 Why fixatives are often the missing link in long-lasting natural perfume formulas 🌿 How a blend becomes a living symphony of aromas in harmony ✨ Read the full blog at the link in our bio. ____________ #naturalperfume #naturalperfumery #perfume #essentialoils #howtomakeperfume #naturalperfumer #naturalperfumeoils
Some scents linger in the memory like a song that Some scents linger in the memory like a song that never quite finishes; others vanish the moment after we notice them. But why? When it comes to natural perfumery, why do some fragrances feel flat, fleeting, or empty, while others unfold like a story: dimensional, alive, and utterly satisfying? The difference isn’t synthetic additives. It’s balance. In our newest blog, we explore the architecture of natural perfume: how top, heart, and base notes work together, why some scents feel empty while others feel whole, and how plants themselves teach us about balance, memory, and beauty. If you’ve ever felt drawn to scent, ritual, perfumery, or the poetry of plants… this one is for you. ✨ Read “Creating Harmony: The Composition of Natural Perfumes” by clicking the link in our bio. --------- #naturalperfume #aromaticplants #aromatherapy #aromaticmedicine #naturalperfumery
Enfleurage: such a whimsical term for a truly beau Enfleurage: such a whimsical term for a truly beautiful tradition. Enfleurage is a time-honored and gentle method used to extract essential oils from fragile flowers, particularly those with volatile oils that can be damaged by the high heat required in traditional steam distillation. A lengthy labor of love, this extraction method utilizes odorless vegetable or animal fats to capture aroma and essential oils. Fresh aromatic flowers are placed on a thin layer of highly purified fat or oil, such as lard, tallow, or coconut oil in a glass or ceramic plate. Over time, the fat absorbs the aromatic compounds from the flowers, which can take a few hours up to several days to fully extract. Once the flowers release their fragrance into the fat, they’re removed and replaced with fresh ones to continue the extraction process. On average, flowers are replaced at least 35 times, but sometimes it can be up to 50 times! Then, the fat is either scraped off and kept as an enfleurage pomade to be used as solid perfume, or dissolved in alcohol to extract the aromatic compounds. The alcohol is then evaporated, leaving behind a highly concentrated floral essence, which may undergo further processing or dilution before being used in perfumery. While enfleurage was once a popular method for extracting essential oils, it’s not commonly used today due to its labor-intensive nature. Many enfleurage absolutes are expensive because they’re very time-consuming, however, it’s an effective form of extraction that matches closely with the floral itself. Some commonly enfleuraged flowers include Jasmine, Tuberose, Rose, Gardenia, and Orange Blossom. This gentle and ancient extraction process effectively preserves these gorgeous and delicate fragrances. #enfleurage #enfleurageperfume #jasmine #roseenfleurage #naturalperfume #perfumery
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