Tuesday, April 28, 2009

DELICIOUS DECADENCE ON A RAINY DAY IN LALA LAND


Nothing could be more delicious or more decadent than lounging around on the Velvet Fainting Couches in our Jitterbug Perfume Parlour, sipping a glass of fine champagne laced with Tuberose Absolute, listening to Edithe Piaf sing "Adieu Mon Coeur", & watching the rain fall down on Hollywood Blvd... Perhaps, if we were in Paris, and chocolate and/or feathers were involved...



SOTD: TRAMP
KEY NOTES: Vanilla, Blond Tobacco, Sweet Lemon

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT TRAMP:

Rebella says, "Among the burlesque-line, Tramp is my favourite. It is rich, vibrant and sexy, but in a soft spoken and almost shy way. Tramp is a gorgeous kind of golden blend with hints of something lemony and the tobacco is laid back and creamy. The patchouli and sandalwood add a richness to the base, but very soft and lingering. Overall this perfume is very soft and lingering, seductive, kind of old school... Really nice, long lasting... A must try for creamy vanilla lovers."
Fragrantica.com

Livia Says, "Today, I decided to wear ‘Tramp’ – when I read that the notes included Sweet Lemon Blossom, I thought it’d have a bit of a floral-citrus hit to it, but on my skin,the Warm Vanilla, Sugar and Blonde Tobacco are the stand-out notes. Beautiful!! I never thought I’d enjoy the smell of tobacco in a perfume! But the blend with the vanilla sugar note has really surprised me!! I think I know what I’m going to ask my parents to get me for Christmas!"
PerfumeCritic.com


Interesting TID-BIT #1: Young Sally Rand literally ran away to join a carnival as a teenager. Over the years she worked as a nightclub cigarette girl, life model, cafe dancer and stage actress (working under the name Billie Beck). Notorious Sally was considered the greatest fan dancer ever, she caused a national scandal by performing her first "obscene" dance at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair... When she was initially
unsuccessful in gaining a role at the Fair, she industriously staged a Lady Godiva inspired stunt at the gates, arriving entirely nude, atop a white horse! The scandal boosted the World Fair’s popularity and Sally was invited to be a featured performer in the ‘Streets of Paris’ exhibition, where she performed her feather fan dance in a mock Parisian street scene.


INTERESTING TID-BIT#2: The Victorian Coupe glass is rumored to be styled from Marie Antoinette's breast...

Friday, April 17, 2009

Tea Time at The Jitterbug


Crazy Tea Cup Dreams & Mad Hatter Moments...


I was in a sweat when I awoke this morning. There was
a decadent Tea Party happening in my dream,and I was in
a mad flurry of activity that seemed to yield no results,
no matter how quickly I spun around in circles trying
to accomplish the impossible . The problem was that
there were no clean cups for tea and every time I
cleaned a cup and brought it back to someone it was
magically dirtied up again before I could pour their
tea. Despite the lack of clean cups,everyone seemed to be
having a delightful time...

Obviously, I have Tea on the brain! Which is no surprise,
considering the vast quantity of tea that I have been
consuming for the past several months while we've been
in development on our line of Jitterbug Perfume Parlour Teas...

We created a tea for each of our Signature Fragrance lines.
I'm happy to say that these are not just your ordinary teas -
they are highly fragrant flavorful creations! Not only are
the teas aromatic ,they also fall into the category of
"Perfumed Teas" (In tea culture, the term "Perfumed tea"
refers to a tea that gets its fragrance and taste from direct
infusion with aromatic plant matter),which we take a step
further by infusing our Flower Petals with Precious Organic
Flower Absolutes. The teas are quite lovely, visually as well -
exquisite leaves blended with bright beautifully colored
flower petals. It's a real treat for the senses!



TASTY TID-BIT: Plants love tea too! Just mix
your used tea leaves in with the dirt... You can
also water your plants with tea, this is a great
option if you happen to over steep a pot (it happens
to the best of us), and it is to bitter to drink...

COMPLICATED FLOWERS


"Simple as a flower, and that's a complicated thing..."~ Love & Rockets


The SOLIFLORE ~ is a scent that focuses on highlighting the specific beauty of one particular flower or dominant note.

For several years, I have had a special project brewing that I love to escape to whenever I need to activate my imagination and get my creative juices flowing. This is a collection of Soliflores ("Solifleurs" in French)...

Soliflores, are unique interpretations of generally familiar scents. All though Soliflores are often referred to as "single note" perfumes, they are actually constructed of many notes that are carefully blended together to create the illusion of solidarity. In other words, these ladies & gents are some Complicated Flowers!



Soliflores like all perfumes, need to tell a complete story. They must have a beginning, a middle, and an end. As the theme of this story, there is a specific single flower or dominant note (Tuberose, Orange Blossom, Narcissus, Patchouli, Amber, Etc.). Each stage of the fragrance (opening,soul,dry down), should remind us in some way, of that specific theme.



My end goal with this project, is to have a Soliflore Collection completed that can be worn in layered combinations with each other. One of the biggest challenges I am finding as I progress on this project, is in keeping the story of each fragrance simple enough to be able to contribute to the layering side of this project... The way I have been able to deal with this, is to pick a certain aspect of my chosen theme to correspond with each stage of each Perfume. For instance, my Tuberose Soliflore AKA LIL' NICO (Les Bohemes Collection,) begins with the slightly green aspect of a Tuberose bud, next comes the sticky-sweet honeyed soul note of a Tuberose flower in full bloom, with a dry-down note that captures the lush creaminess of a Tuberose flower in full blossom wafting her intoxicating narcotic ambrosia.



Most recently, I've been working on a Narcissus Soliflore. This one begins with a bit of spice that is quickly enveloped in a heady Blond Tobacco bitter sweetness that swirls like a dervish,ending in a smokey narcotic,indolic haze that's so addicting I can't stop sniffing myself (Perfume Narcissism!)

As I daydream during the creation process, each of these perfumes is beginning to take on the personality of a special iconic personage that in some mysterious, almost alchemical way, seems to embody particular aspects of each flower, (guess who my NARCISSUS is?) They are like lucid dreams, whispering to me of enchantments & mysteries that are too extravagant and surreal for normal waking life. These special Perfumes have come to represent living, breathing works of art that exist behind the shadows of reality... I feel indulgent, even extravagant, each time that I daub one on my wrist... For they are in effect, the precious essence of a unique being that longs to be treasured and savored on special occasions that warrant celebration & remembrance!... After all, is not each of us in their own way, a Complicated Flower?



SOTD: ~Narcissus Soliflore AKA GOLD DIGGER (LES BOHEMES COLLECTION)
KEY NOTES: Narcissus Absolute,Orange Blossom Absolute,Blond Tobacco,Hedione




TASTY TID-BIT #1: Marlene Dietrich was an infamous Narcissist. When shooting a film she always insisted on having a full length mirror placed next to the camera so that she could make sure that she was lit perfectly. She knew she had the right angle when the tip of her nose cast the shadow of a reverse butterfly...





TASTY TID-BIT#2: Fittingly to my Theme of Marlena D., Narcissus is the most popular flower in Germany. A spring-flowering bulb, Narcissus is the name of a genus which includes flower bulbs like Daffodils, Jonquils, Paperwhites and so forth. Narcissi (plural form of Narcissus) are easily grown from bulbs.... The word Narcissus is derived from the Greek word narke,meaning numbness or stupor. Some attribute the naming of the flower to its narcotic fragrance while others debate that it is associated with the poisonous nature of the Narcissus bulbs. According to classical mythology, a young lad Narcissus was so enamored with himself that he stared at his reflection in a pool of water until he eventually turned into his namesake flower. And this is how Narcissus flowers came into being!


Thursday, April 16, 2009

Scent Awakening


It was a feeling that came over me like a dream...
Lucid thoughts, tickled my mind and awoke my senses.
I imagine myself in another time and place...
Where glamour and beauty were the most important things
in the world. I am the center of attention; a young movie
actress being coached and publicized for starring roles,
About to become Legend... Today, I am Lana Turner,
Marilyn Monroe, and Rita Hayworth - all rolled in to one...


SOTD: STARLET Natural Perfume
KEY NOTES: Rose,Neroli,Nutmeg Absolute,Cocoa Absolute


WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT STARLET:

Dixie Evans Burlesque Legend says, "I feel like Marilyn when
I'm wearing my Starlet Perfume!"

Justine Crane said, "Starlet by Opus Oils ~
oh,mama! Kedra Hart of Opus Oils is a master when it comes
to this blending gig. When I first sniffed this gorgeous
parfum, I was immediately taken back to my childhood as
memories of my grandmother’s perfume box crowded in on me.
This stuff is heavy, it’s thick, it’s floral and spicy and
rich and clean ~ oh, mama! Just a drop will do and you’re
good for the whole day . . . the whole night, even."
(http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art31249.asp)

Mirabell Jee said , "It reminds me light geranium
smell with a bit lemon and roses. Voluminal and hot
at the beginning,a little sweet and fresh then. A smell of the
south young girl on the Seaside in summer."
(www.fragrantica.com/perfume/Opus-Oils/Burlesque-Starlet-5699.html)

TASTY TID-BIT #1:(Some) Butterflies have a scent!
It has been described as "Musk-like, Vanilla,
& Pleasantly Piquant"...

TASTY TID-BIT #2:The Large blue Alcon Butterfly uses
chemical mimicry to disguise the smell of their larvae
so that ants will neglect their own brood and feed them...