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The daily lemming

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I don't know what I'd do with it, but I want some. From NYC's Enfleurage, Lilac Pomade: "Our lilac (Syringa vulgaris,) is grown, harvested and enfleuraged in upstate New York, and expertly blended into a delightful pommade, using organic candelilla wax and vitamin E. This is a mouth-watering, textural delight. So many of us grew up with lilac season, and their unmistakable fragrance punctuated our early springs. Lilac is one of those flowers that refuses to be distilled, refuses to allow solvents to extract her, and whose wonderful complexity is so difficult to synthesize. Enfleurage is the only reasonable way to extract her scent, and here it is in a gorgeous pomade that lives up to the most discerning expections." $38 at Enfleurage.

Summer roses x 4 ~ fragrance & body product reviews

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How has your summer been going? Mine has been feeling very transitional, very limbo-like. Covid numbers have been going down in my city; or, wait, have they? I’ve been notified that I’ll be returning to the office on a “hydrid” schedule after Labor Day. I’m enthusiastic about socializing more now that I’m vaccinated, but I’m also out of practice at dealing with people face-to-face. And I want to go perfume-shopping, but many stores are still encouraging mask-wearing and/or keeping testers and blotters out of reach, so it’s not actually a fun activity yet.

Long story short: I’m in the mood to fall back on the familiar, which for me means rose fragrances; and I’m still relying on fragrance samples that I receive from friends or in the mail. Here are a few that are new to me and made me feel like I was in my comfort zone.

Les Parfums de Rosine Rose Griotte is a rose perfume for a certain type of summer day…

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Nobody was distilling it

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[Trygve] Harris first came to Oman in 2006 to source frankincense for her aromatic essential oil store in New York. “But even in Oman, I could only get Somalia oil, not higher-quality Omani oil. Nobody was distilling it for sale back then. Not even Amouage!” she recalled, speaking of Oman’s top perfume company, which specialises in producing luxury frankincense fragrances (a 100ml bottle of Amouage perfume with frankincense base notes costs £283).

In 2011, she relocated to Salalah, Dhofar’s capital, and set up Enfleurage.

— From Oman's Ancient Biblical Scent, a profile of Omani frankincense at BBC Travel. (And see also, part 1 and 2 of our profile of Harris.)

Curious labels like Rose Otto and Osmanthus Absolute

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The vials on the display rack bear curious labels like Rose Otto and Osmanthus Absolute. If you ask about them, you are likely to get some fascinating back story. The lavender, for instance, which boasts 1,200 natural compounds, is harvested in the Alps by delinquent French teenagers from Nice who are sent to the floral farm for emotional healing.

— The New York Times checks out Manhattan boutique Enfleurage, which specializes in aromatic materials. Read more at The Sweet Smell of Osmanthus Absolute (and see Alyssa's interview with the owner, part 1 and part 2, or Jessica's review of a few of their finished fragrance blends).

Enfleurage Sanctuary, Roses & Amber ~ fragrance reviews

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Enfleurage house blends

Was it really six years ago that I wrote a shopping report about Enfleurage, New York’s most specialized purveyor of natural aromatics? Yes, apparently. The boutique has since moved to a new address (237 West 13 Street, in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood) but its staggering selection of essential oils and natural incenses remains unchanged. I still sniff individual oils during each of my visits, but I’m also very fond of Enfleurage’s “house blends.” They’re available as concentrated oils and as “roll-ons to go,” diluted in a base of organic jojoba oil for ready-to-wear use.

My favorite house blend is Sanctuary, a blend of ylang ylang, chamomile, patchouli, clary sage and black pepper…

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