Artisan Perfumery or Being Led by the Nose by Alec Lawless: book review & preview

Perfume books are diverse these days; it all depends on the axis taken when approaching the material: they can aim to be encyclopedic and easing you into being fascinated by perfumery itself (Mandy Aftel’s Essence and Alchemy), they can be fun guides jam-packed with minutiae you might or might not want to check (Susan Irvine’s, Turin’s & Sanchez’s) , they can be glossies with rare flacon collectibles and souvenirs of meetings with the masters (Roja Dove’s The Essence of Perfume), they can be exposés that reveal a heavily-veiled world (Chandler Burr’s The Perfect Scent) or they can take the witty neo-marketing route of presenting the scientific facts in an easily-digestible way (Avery Gilbert’s What the Nose Knows). The new book by Alec Lawless Artisan Perfumery or Being Led by the Nose surprisingly combines all worlds in one slim and elegant volume of no more than 100 pages, which you can slip in your Longchamp attaché for the morning commute or take to bed for an late evening read before spreading fragrant Crème Splendide on your weary skin and hitting the snooze button.

The author, a colourful personality himself ~judging by the bio included~ is a Psychology BA and trained psychotherapist who seems to have travelled the lengths and widths of the globe as well as a professional wine trained individual; points eminently apparent in his interesting writing. Co-owner of Aqua Oleum (a reputable brand I was familiar with as purveyors of quality essential oils, absolutes and aromatherapy supplies) along with his ex-wife, renowned aromatherapy author Julia Lawless, Alec Lawless has recently founded Essentialy-Me.co.uk, a company with natural fragrances spiked with a minimal quantity of synthetics based in Cotswolds, UK . He has been creating fine fragrance for the latter as an artisanal perfumer and a bespoke creator and we will return to his art at a future date.
For now, I am focusing on his book which is introduced with these words: “For more than 20 years Alec Lawless has been hand-making fine perfume following traditions handed down from antiquity. He explains the origins and use of fabled ingredients such as frankincense, ambergris and attar of roses, essential elements in the beautiful, strange and beguiling smells that haunted the court of Cleopatra and the salons of 19th-century Paris.”

The book is segmented into 8 chapters:

• Historical Overview: A brief delineation of the emergence of perfumery and fragrance with mentions ranging from the surprising (it's the moth, not the dog, that has the keenest smell of all; the notion of Attila the Hun as a heartthrob) to the predictable (the almost necessary -for a perfume book- inclusion of the Spice Route; the scent love shared by Josephine and Napoleon)

• Sourcing Natural Raw Materials: This chapter talks at length about the quality standards that need to be met when sourcing natural materials, referencing both the B.P (British Pharmacopoeia) criteria and the intricacies of handling and storage that often result –in the worst case scenario- in “wearing a topee”; the phrase is Delhi street slang for being ripped off! As a buyer of aromatherapy and perfumery supplies, Lawless has been painfully familiar with such cases and recounts them with self-depreciation and wit.

• Sandalwood: Beyond the title, this chapter aims to offer a glimpse into the richness of any single material, taking the prized scented wood oil as a starting point of our own itinerary. Listing the main geographical sources of sandalwood oil (And Alec includes the Caledonia varieties into this as well, as he explains the tampering of Santalum Album oil supplies with the rather differently scented Eucaria Spicata from down under is more frequent and prevalent than we’d guess). The chapter is highly interesting to the perfume lover who has been hearing about the depletion of sandalwood forests in Mysore, India, the subsequent restrictions to its use, the poaching and frauds ensuing.

• Natural and Synthetic: The fourth chapter deals with the naturals vs. synthetics debate in a surprisingly level-headed approach which explains the potential pitfalls, as well as a brief explanation of the 4 most popular animal notes of classic perfumery (musk, ambergris, civet and castoreum).

• Cultivation, Taste and Consultations: This highly illuminating chapter is incorporating the Jean Carles methodology of creating accords into an easily understandable “building” process that follows Alec's own consultations with clients. It is also the chapter most immersed in his wine appraisal expertise which highlights beautifully some frequent thorny issues: Taking the impact on the market of famous wine critic Robert Parker who favours a specific style of drink (intense in taste and high in alcoholic count, a trait that produces a naturally sweeter and brisker bouquet), Lawless asks how much fragrance criticism in print and online will influence the fragrance industry in the end (Now there’s a question for you!) The issue of mental de-coupling from established mental pathways ~especially for the seasoned perfumophiliac~ is also aptly treated in comparison to wine: “Thomas refers to another experiment (Osterbauer et al.2005), which involved adding odourless, red dye to white wine. This fooled even Masters of wine into describing “the nose”[of said wine] in terms usually reserved for describing red wines”! Imagine!

• A word about blending: Alec goes on into describing the process of blending his fragrant materials with some useful footnotes into maturing and rounding perfumer’s alcohol, giving specific examples of his creations.

• Using Natural Raw Materials: The 7th champter is the briefest containing some practical info on the natural state of raw materials (liquid, solid etc) and the percentages of essence in relation to finished product (eau de toilette, eau de parfum etc). Nothing you haven’t read elsewhere, but really a minimal part of the book.

• The A List: Finishing it off in grand style, Lawless goes into listing several natural raw materials grouped in olfactive family profiles (citrus, woody, balsamic, herbaceous etc) giving to the point, concise info on their production method, geographical origin (he stresses this is not conclusive), use in perfumery, as well as safety concerns and intriguing comments -when applicable- to each one of them. Perhaps the most encyclopedic chapter and one that might serve as a counterpoint to Mandy Aftel’s guidelines for fledging artisanal perfumers.

Last but not least, Artisan Perfumery must be the first book that contains a spread sheet of an actual gas chromatography and the way to “read” it: an explanation of trace, report and certificate of Rose Maroc Gas Liquid Chromatography (GLC) Trace, showcasing the emerging odouriferous materials in the rose absolute of Rosa Damascena from the Bulgarian state authorities.

The slim tome is easily paced, a fun read with a few select pictures mainly from India and Southern France (the cover reprises the detail of Perfume Mandala artwork by Fiona Owen which was commissioned by Lawless) and should provide an interesting read for both the amateur perfume enthusiast as well as the artisanal perfumer in need of a few ideas.

Printed by Remus Limited, retail price is £9.99. For our readers, Alec is offering a discount of £10.00 on “Artisan Perfumery or Being Led by the Nose" if you buy a copy of the book and ten perfume samples for a total of £19.99. Purchased online together or seperately on Essentially Me only.

Related reading on Perfume Shrine: perfume book reviews

Raw materials pic via konwill.com

Escada isn't giving up just yet?

Escada, the German prêt-à-porter brand founded by Wolfgang Ley 32 years ago, which was also one of the big players in the fragrance industry a few short years ago, filed for bust the other day after a free-falling plummet in the second trimester of 2009. According to Reuters however this was no news as they had published shares taking a hit as far back as February 2008: "Escada, rumoured to be a takeover candidate, said sales dropped 9.1 percent to 142.1 million euros ($214.6 million) in the quarter ended January. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) sank 68.5 percent to 6.8 million.UniCredit analyst Volker Bosse said he expected sales of 158 million euros and EBITDA of 19.9 million."We see the company as having a higher risk profile than its peers," said Bosse, who rates Escada a "sell". Escada trades at about 12 times 2009 earnings and the sector average is 14.5." Some attempt at salvaging the crumbling brand had been made in June 2007 when Chief Executive Jean-Marc Loubier took over and there was "a five-year plan to win market share and raise profits by expanding into higher-margin accessories, shutting some stores and renovating others". But Escada's shares leapt 15 percent on Nov. 26 on rumours of a bid by French group Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy. 2009 was even bleaker... Hiring Michael Boernicke, the former chief executive of German pay-TV broadcaster Premiere as finance chief last February, replacing chief financial officer, Markus Schuerholz, the results weren't up on a par with expectations.
The company is currently in talks about a takeover. Judicial administrator Christian Gerlof is set to announce the news in a few days. Fashion designer Wolfgang Joop, as well as Nickolaus Becker, a Munich lawyer, expressed interest in taking over the reins at the fashion house. Offers are rumoured to be running into the 9 figures (that's in euros).




However Escada is keeping up images by engaging newly popular Olivia Wilde, a TV star from series Dr.House, to front the newest Escada fragrance for women, Desire Me.
Desire Me by Escada follows Incredible Me from 2008 and is a fruity floral gourmand with notes of citrus, mandarin, green notes, peony, dark chocolate and coffee notes.

In a quote ms.Wilde said:
"For me, Esacada stands as a synonym to style, refinement and sensuality. I love being considered an Escada woman and I think the majority of women would aspire to possess the admirable qualities that the perfume incarnates so perfectly".

Yeah, yeah...The show must go on!



Related reading on Perfume Shrine: Market news, luxury and tendencies July '09, Luxury market amidst the Recession and Other Bedtime stories

Bertrand Duchaufour shares "rockstar" status

Michelyn Camen took a very interesting interview from Bertrand Duchaufour, Symrise perfumer, currently in-house nose for L'Artisan Parfumeur and the creator behind the Eau d'Italie and Comme des Garcons fragrances among others, for Fragrantica.

"How do I describe Bertrand? He is down to earth, hip, self-confident but without pretense; he is also a multi faceted artist whose photography and painting are his other great passions. Ah yes; although his fragrances have been predominately unisex… it was a young woman - his first girlfriend who introduced him to fragrance when he was 17. Cherchez la femme..."

And concerning the upcoming Havana Vanille (read our review here), Duchaufour discloses:

"I combined more than 15 materials producing more than 80% of the whole formula; the original one and I worked with was the narcissce absolute {sic}, an very rich facetted raw material, which was at the heart of the composition and fave {sic} way to the subtle alliance of narcissus, everlasting flower and tonka bean. This accord is reminiscent of tobacco leaf- which is both honey-sweet and narcotic. " And for later on: "I am working on several projects for L’Artisan Parfumeur, including a Vetiver, a Tuberose, and an Amber Oriental. And I just finished for the next launch an incredibly strong OUD. I am very happy with this one."

You can read the interview here.

Pic of Bertrand Duchaufour via blog.girvin.com

Idole d'Armani commercial: I have been searching all my life for a woman like you

~I have been searching all my life for a woman like you!
~Are there any other women like me?
~You fascinate me.
~Like all others...
~You're my idol.
~That's my idol! (ie.Idole d'Armani)

[translation from the French by Perfume Shrine]

Featuring Kasia Smutniak and the classic hit "I put a spell on you" (best known by Screamin' Jay Hawkins).
I can't say I am overbowled with enthusiasm (I had voiced some concern before), are you?Although it looks rather good on the whole, it seems very unimaginative! Kasia looks a lot like Keira Knightley here (the bone structure, the mannerisms to highlight it and perhaps the hair shade): I call it the "mold effect" ;-)

Originally uploaded by modelstvcm2 on Youtube

Scents and the City

Jason Logan, illustrator and author of “If We Ever Break Up, This Is My Book” takes us on a scented utinerary through the heated summer neightbourhoods of New York City in The New York Times (this has nothing to do with a niche brand marketing their products via this exact concept, by the way).

Much like our Scented Travel Memoirs here on Perfume Shrine, it seems like specific places hold captive certain distinctive smells which unlock the floodgates of memory and forever paint the picture of that place upon meeting that scent again. From the "territorial soapy cologne" of Harlem (along with its "crazy perfume" which has me intrigued as to what it might be or -to further the thought- what is considered "crazy" in relation to perfume), to the "musky-and-sweet" aroma that might or might not be deodorant at Fort George, The Cloisters, and on to the exhaust, the foods and the garbage that fringe any urban landscape, this is a must read to get a better appreciation of the big Apple. Read it here and be sure to move your cursor on the map (a little nose follows your moves).

Pic from Alexander Mackendrick’s drama Sweet Smell of Success, with Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis, set in New York City and based on the same-titled novel via altfg.com