Friday, March 28, 2008

Don't think small; think selective.

Just got a big box of new oils today; now i'm positively dizzy from all the sniffing and testing. Oi.


One thing i've been thinking about lately with the shop direction is how much happier it would make me to have a small, tightly-edited group of scents and items rather than a sprawling list that tries to cover everyone's tastes. I think i've managed that now, and will keep it, rather than succumbing to the temptation to make a batch of absolutely everything that's on hand. If i can't rhapsodize on it, i don't want it in the window.


This does slow down the process. For the next soap, i want something woody and masculine; there are dozens of pre-made scents out there that would doubtless fit the bill, but instead, i've been plugging away at my own blend for about a month now. Hopefully, one of these oils will provide the Elusive Final Ingredient; i'll be damned if i sink to adding patchouli to the mix.

3 comments:

wendolen said...

It gets a bad rap from goths for some reason, but in small quantities patchouli is actually pretty nice. In my quest to find an aromatherapeutically balanced blend (not super perky, not super drowsy, not super sleepy) that doesn't depend on sandalwood, rose, and neroli, I hit upon a nice blend of ylang-ylang, geranium, patchouli, blood orange, and sweet basil. It does not smell like hippie juice. :)

Sola said...

That actually all sounds really nice together, adn not something that would let patchouli get its dirty-butt side out and rub it all over the place.


I actually love the stuff, but for once, i'd like to have a woody scent without it. I see now, though, why such scents are so rare.

wendolen said...

I suggest you try just a touch of it -- it can be pretty subtle. And if you don't like that attempt, you don't have to use it for anything. ;)