ÇaFleureBon Behind The Bottle-Outlaw Perfume JoAnne Bassett’s Amazing + Draw

 

 

The idea of having a perfumer take us “Behind The Bottle” and the concept of The Natural Perfumer’s Guild Outlaw Perfume project are almost a match made in Heaven. The idea of these projects as a challenge to the individual Natural Perfumers invited to participate and how each of them adapts to that challenge to create a fragrance is fascinating to me. While it isn’t quite Iron Chef, creating under pressure is never easy.

 

That is why I chose to ask JoAnne Bassett to describe her creative process in the composition of Amazing. In the material she sent out with her samples of Amazing she stated that she started off with a foundation of oakmoss and over the course of ONE afternoon of blending ended up with Amazing. I had to find out the story and here in JoAnne’s words is how Amazing was born:

 

When I first heard about this project from Anya, my mind immediately went to oakmoss absolute.  I knew this was one of the sensitizers and I really love using it. It is a wonderful natural and I would miss it dearly if it were gone from my "palette".  The naturals that I felt would be prohibited for sure would be the "outlaws" that I would use for my Outlaw Perfume.  Green smelling scents, untested, and unusual were the themes running in the back of my mind as I was choosing the botanicals for this perfume.

So my first ingredient was oakmoss absolute..the really thick stuff.  I love the smell and the dark, rich color…so fascinating.  Cassie absolute was the second one and then celery seed, and violet leaf absolute…I jumped around in the formulation, not working on base, middle, and top notes but on whatever oil caught my eye.  As I was adding these unusual botanicals to the formula I was amazed at the diversity.  Very unusual oils wanted to "play together" and I said why not.  It didn't make sense at the time.  I was stretching and accommodating a wide range of naturals.  Aside from vetiver and lavender essential oils, this formula is one of the most strange and inviting I have created to this date.  Many untested naturals went in and it seems to work.  If you would read the list of ingredients you would think what an unlikely pairing of notes. It contains 32 different oils.

At the end of the session I smelled the perfume and said Truly Amazing.  It really is! 

 

 

I have to agree with JoAnne, amazing is aptly named and I am still shaking my head over it being composed in one afternoon. Perhaps the lesson of Amazing is when an experienced perfumer is urged to work with a set list of ingredients their intuition can be their best guide.

For those who would like to try Amazing for themselves JoAnne has graciously agreed to give away Five Samples to those who comment on this article. The draw ends November 21st.

-Mark Behnke, Senior Editor

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


21 comments

  • It is true, I so much agree with intuition in the creation of anything that is artistic. Perfumes are intuitive as well, because they melt  on the skin depending on chemistry but how we know it is just chemistry? To me perfumes are so mysterious that I feel sad when a nez is given a series of ingredients or that he cannot spend more money than it is stated. Imagination has no boundaries and the true artist will always need to create a perfume  based on intuition when possible. 

  • I would love to be entered in the contest.  This sounds fantastic!  The art of perfumery is still a complete mystery to me, even though I have tried mixing my own essential oils upon occasion.  Nothing ever worked!  Maybe someday I will have to fly to France and take a class.  

  • Wow! One afternoon? But then again, when the idea is right, there really is no point in not using it to the full and while it's as vivid in mind as possible.
    I would love to try this.

  • JoAnn created this perfume in just one afternoon? Wow.
    I think that I have never had the chance to try a perfume which contains real oakmoss absolute and, being one of the banned notes, I guess that it will be more and more difficult to find.
    I would love to try this fragrance just to know what can be done with oakmoss absolute.

  • oh dear, this sounds wonderful.
    i had just written the other day on a perfume site that i am no loner interested (much) in perfumesbecause of all the restrictions and reformulations — and now this.
    may i have a sample, please??
    :-)harper
     
     

  • Anna in Edinburgh says:

    This "Outlaw Perfume" project is the kind of creative riposte that the "Ban it all!" anti-perfume and anti-choice regulators need to note. Why hamstring perfumers, rip the guts out of existing perfumes, and tell adults that they can't be trusted to choose for themselves? It's ludicrous what is being done in the name of Health and Safety. I'm a grown-up which means I can make informed choices for myself.
    It would be an absolute honour to wear any of the natural perfumes gathered under the "Outlaw" umbrella, and I'm certainly up for some unabashed Amazing oakmoss.
     
    yours, fuming at the unwarranted interference, 
    Anna in Edinburgh

  • taffynfontana says:

    The creative process is so wonderful when their are no limits to what we can imagine.  I love that it all flowed so naturally.

  • Well, you can create something very quickly, yet the ideas behind it may have been percolating for months. Love the perfume's name, and I'd love to try it!

  • I love a good rebellion! Why it's permissible for mega-corporations to fill the air with pollutants that most certainly affect everyone adversely, but I cannot fill the air with lovely scents that might, maybe, possibly, annoy a few, is beyond me. 
    And Truly Amazing sounds intriguing.

  • Sounds like this perfume was wanting to be created!
    Please enter me – I'd love to experience Amazing

  • Thank you Mark for giving my "Creative Process" a voice and thank you all who have commented.  The oakmoss absolute really sings in my Amazing eau de perfume.  I hope you all get to try it.

  • Yes to oakmoss!  It would be wonderful to compare it to a very diluted sample of oakmoss that I have.

  • this is truly an amazing project. well done to all of the outlaws. i would love to try Amazing!