Back in August, I wrote this post, in which I talk briefly about chypre style perfume. Since then I have tinkered, again, with my initial formula, and added some Violet Leaf absolute(which I adore, but which is very strong, not much needed at all to add a 'green' note to the accord).
I loved the resultant aroma, but I wanted to develope it further into a full on, saleable, natural perfume, and as a result, the Hypnotica Project was born.
The simple mission of the Hypnotica Project is to create natural, chypre style accord.
A classic chypre traditionally contains bergamot, oakmoss, labdanum and often patchouli, and on this foundation various other oils are added depending upon what type of chypre you wish to create. My initial note was based upon patchouli, cypress and clary sage oils, with bergamot playing a supporting role.Now, I don't currently have any labdanum, or oakmoss(this is heavily restricted these days, although there is now an IFRA compliant oakmoss available to buy) in stock, so what I have currently sitting in this darling little pot is not strictly a chypre, more a note that will become part of a chypre accord.
I'm hoping to order my IFRA compliant Oakmoss, some Labdanum, and a few other precious or rarer oils which may or may not find their way into the final product, very soon.
For the first stage of my project, I took my original formula plus the smidgeon of Violet Leaf absolute, and added more green notes in the shape of Sweet Marjoram & Sweet Basil, with the intention of extending the life of the VLA in the perfume. With the classic chypres in the back of my mind, I increased the amount of bergamot in the formula, but also added a dash of cedarwood in order the sweeten the overall blend. VLA is fabulous, but it will overpower a blend if not used judisciously, and I needed to round off the harsher notes which were coming through.
To give you an idea of it's potency, to date, the individual parts of my formula add up to 86, and of that, only 1 part is Violet Leaf, yet it's very evident on initial testing that the note is there. Infact it's the very first thing you smell.
I also swapped geranium oil for rose geranium, as I felt the RG had a stronger floral profile which would compliment my blend, and remove some of the cooler notes eminating from the inclusion of the original geranium.
So, after all my tinkering and changing, and experimenting, what I have in that little green pot is akin to an unfinished work of art(ha! pretentious much).
It's opening is reminiscent of clambering through a secret garden on a sultry summers day, the sharpness of roughly cut leaves in the air. The journey takes you through a shaded copse of trees, the sweet smokiness of the wood permeating the air. The scent is entrancing, leading you further from the path as you pick your way through the undergrowth until you reach a secluded area in which you settle, eyes closed, with heady floral accents gently rocking you to sleep.
But the journey has really only just begun. I'm chasing the dream which follows.
I wonder what the dream will contain.
I'd been meaning to make this particular soap for a while now, and had settled on a new look for it. So, I get all my ingredients weighed out, put together my essential oil blend of lavender, cedarwood, black pepper and clary sage, and set about putting it all together. Some tussah silk went into my lye water, coconut cream went into my oils and things were looking good.
The soap batter came to trace quite quickly(probably due to the cocoa butter I had included this time) and so I set aside a small portion of the batter to colour(I used a tiny amount of cocoa powder and some alkanet infused olive oil), added some soap chunks I'd cut up from another batch to the main portion, and proceeded to mix them in.
I then placed half of the main portion into the mould( a cute little Really Useful Box I'd bought in town over the weekend), poured a smidge of the coloured portion ontop of that, than added the rest of the batter, followed by a swirled layer of the remaining coloured soap.
As well as the chunks I'd cut up previously, I'd also made up some soap curls using a potato peeler.
So they were placed at specific intervals on the top of the soap. It looked great.
BUT, what I'd forgotten to do, and swore profusely at myself for, was add the dam essential oils!!
One was most definitely NOT amused.
At all.
I didn't want to ruin my visual masterpiece(pfft), so had no other option but to leave it scent-sually nekkid.
Damn. Blast. Buggeration.
*and breath*
I wrapped my nekkid soap up and popped it into the airing cupboard to encourage it to gel. The very last thing I wanted was a partial gel as that would have had me inconsolable.
Anyway, this is what my nekkid Fools Gold soap looks like.
Time for me to go sit alone, in the corner, sporting a very big dunce cap.......
You've been there yourself, right? You suddenly become inspired;an idea takes hold and you have no idea where it's taking you, or indeed what the outcome will be, but you just HAVE to find out.
Well, that happened to me today. My clary sage essential oil that I'd ordered arrived *hoorah* and I set about trying to create a smokey, masculine blend for the men in our lives.
I picked out some other oils that I believed would be suitable(namely lavender, sweet marjoram, cedarwood atlas, and patchouli) and added a drop here, a smidge there, until I was happy with the blend. As I do with every experimental blend I create, I mixed the oils into a tablespoon of vegetable oil and put it to one side to enable the scents to marry together.
Later on I began running myself a bath, and as I hadn't used a face mask for a few weeks, decided to conjure one up using a very simple base of bentonite clay, and cornflour.
I use bentonite as my skin has a tendency to be a little temperamental, and bentonite absorbs the excess oil without being too harsh, and the addition of the cornflour means that when the mask is mixed into a paste it is ultra smooth and easier to apply.
Anyway, I digress.
I wanted to add a few drops of essential oil to the mask, but couldn't decide which to choose, until I spied the premade blend I'd made earlier in the day. All the oils I'd used were skin friendly, so why not? I added a teaspoon of the blend to the clay mix,followed by enough water to make the mask into a smooth paste. It smelt divine(not at the top of my list of priorities as the mask is meant to be of therapeutic value rather than for scent alone, but it does help!) and so I retired to the bathroom to have a soak and try it out. I applied the mask to my face, massaging the clay gently onto the skin until I had an even layer on, then sat back while the mask did it's work.
Having waited 10 minutes or so, I cleaned the mask off and examined the results. Wow, wow, wow! My skin felt SO smooth, and looked really healthy. I can't stop stroking it!
I think I may have stumbled upon a recipe worth testing and developing into a saleable product to add to the Simply Angelic range. I love these little discoveries, how they shape us and our future.
Woohoooo, I am officially an happy bunny.
For once, I have actually managed to stick to my creativity pledge *woohoooooooooo*
I've begun stitching my cross-stitch art card, I've made a soap, and a 'poo bar, plus I've been continuing playing with a recipe for a soap-based shower smoothie, and so far so good.
Here are some pics to prove to the world that I can indeed remain motivated, if I put my mind to it
I'm really happy with both soaps.
There's something to be said for covering yourself in something delicious knowing that you've made it yourself. A sense of achievement, of pride. Well, this body butter is MY something delicious, and I am so so so happy with it.
Usually shea butter behaves badly and goes all grainy and unco-operative on me, so instead of heating it and holding at that state for around 20 minutes, I heated up, using the bain marie method, my other oils and butters(walnut and chia seed oils, and avocado butter) until the avocado butter had melted, then added my shea and used the heat of the other oils to melt it.
I have to say that the resultant butter is utterly glorious. It's light and fluffy, the shea hasn't(touches wood) gone grainy, and it smells divine. I scented it with lavender and cedarwood essential oils and oh my, sensory heaven.
Here is my little pot of wondrous, whipped delight.
