REWIND: Mandy Aftel and Me + Tango, Cepes et Tuberose, Pink Lotus and Shiso Draw

 

 

 

The staff of CaFleureBon has been fans of Mandy’s for years and her popularity and legacy as the ‘Queen of Green’, continues to grow.

 

 

 

 

So to celebrate her beautifully designed new website www.aftelier.com, (here's a preview of the home page) we chose our favorites and one lucky winner will receive them all.

 

 

 

 

Leave a comment as to  how Mandy Aftel  ART has impacted you , about her beautifully re-designed website, nearly a year in the works and you are eligible  to win  the draw of all four !!  This is important: you must leave a comment on her site as well as ours.  if you  have  trouble   getting your comment on Mandy's Site…try her facebook page and mention CaFleureBon

 

 

 

 

I had the honor to be one of the first perfumistos to interview Ms. Mandy Aftel in April of 2007, when natural perfumery was considered aromatherapy by traditionalists unwilling to accept this ancient art. Technology has changed our lives over the past three years faster than in the past thousand. There were no RSS feeds, nor Twitter and really, how many of you were on Facebook?

 

Mandy has told me that she considers this one of her favorite interviews; it’s mutual.  Mandy, you are part of my fragrant past, present and future.

 

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An Interview with Mady Aftel: The Queen of Green

 

 

 

 

 

Long before we knew we were leaving carbon footprints, and when drinking bottled water was tres chic, Mandy Aftel, an independent perfumer, author of six books, including the “Bible of Botanicals”, Essence and Alchemy  and the founder of the Artisan Natural Perfumers Guild was creating fragrances that used only 100% natural ingredients. 

 

 

Most perfumers and corporations eschewed this methodology; natural and organic materials were expensive and volatile.  The difficulties of obtaining only the finest ingredients, distilling essences and creating natural fragrances were not deterrents to Aftel’s mission – to disprove the popular belief that natural fragrances could never achieve the status of fine fragrances. Aftel founded Aftelier, her own company and pioneered the way for the dozens of new fragrances popping up, hyping that their scents are greener and cleaner. Many of these companies are touting their organic fragrances, claiming that they are certified by this organization or that, but few can stand up to the quality of Aftelier fragrances.

 

Formerly a psychotherapist and author, Aftel began her interest in perfumery just over ten years ago. She was researching the area for her next novel, where the main character was a perfumer. She recognized she had found her calling and started a revolution that we now take for granted as part of our environmentally conscious culture. In fact, one of the most interesting facts about Mandy that I discovered that she is working in conjunction with large corporations such as Glaxco-Smith and with Clean Well to develop ‘green’ scents for consumer products.

 


Mandy, you are an accomplished writer, a teacher and of course an award winning perfumer… when you  hear people speak of MANDY AFTEL, what do you think?


MA: I don’t really think of ‘Mandy Aftel.’ I am very focused on my work and don’t really see myself from the outside.  From the inside, I just feel so fortunate to be able to do the work I love – working with gorgeous essences and creating new fragrances.
 

You have been called the ‘Alice Waters’ of natural perfumes. You were there at the beginning when natural and botanical fragrances and oils were for ‘hippies’ and ‘treehuggers’. How do you feel years later, when everyone is plugging ‘green’?


MA: I couldn’t believe my good fortune at literally ‘following my nose’ and stumbling into natural perfume.  At first I fell in love with the old perfume books – ones from the turn of the last century – and immediately after that I fell in love with the voluptuous, complicated, fecal-floral extraordinary natural essences.  I wanted to write a novel about a perfumer and became one instead.

 

 I am very pleased that people are interested in natural essences.  There is pleasure in knowing that the scents are derived from particular plants and places – that they came from the earth.  Much of what is described as natural is of course synthetic, but, as I learned in my research, that dishonesty has been going on for almost a hundred years, so it is nothing new.  I genuinely believe that perfume buyers are interested in the beauty, authenticity, quality and complexity of natural essences and are becoming more educated about what they put on their body.  
 
Can you define Natural Perfumery?
  



MA: A natural perfume is made only from pure and natural aromatics including essential oils, absolutes, concretes, CO2 extracts and resins.  Natural Perfume can be considered art when constructed correctly, but it always made by hand.  



For you Natural perfumery is a way of life. It has been your path for 15 YEARS. What do you think about the major fragrance houses and manufacturers new marketing tactics claiming to be all natural, organic, etc.?

I understand that most of the time their motivation has to do purely with maximizing profit without concern for the integrity of their ingredients and I think this is beginning to catch up with the perfume industry at large. I like that more attention is being brought to naturals and that their inherent virtues are being extolled, but not all manufacturers are actually using them.  I would wish for more honesty in the perfume industry. The better educated consumers are, the more they will ask for their perfumes to be created with imagination from better quality ingredients.
 


Are there global or government standards in place that qualify a fragrance to be considered natural or organic. Is their a difference between natural and organic? I think many of us are really confused by some of the new terms we are hearing.

 
MA: This is a very confused and confusing issue.  Everyone is jumping on the organic and natural bandwagon.  I use fair trade ingredients — along with organic and wild-harvested whenever possible.
 
I have tried other natural perfumes and find they often turn sour or bitter as they drydown. Why is this?  


MA: Natural perfumes that turn sour and bitter as they drydown are poorly constructed.  Just because someone works with natural essences doesn’t mean that they can create a good perfume.  One of the first things I say to my students is that “you cannot throw a bunch of beautiful natural essences into a beaker and call that a perfume.” First and foremost in working with natural essences is a thorough understanding of structure.  The cornerstone of fragrance construction is around top, middle, and base notes. This cannot be modified and has to do with the amount of time an essence is perceptible on a scent strip. Top notes last ½ hour, middle notes 2 hours, and base notes up to a few days.  A perfume is an art form that evolves in time.




I want to tell you and our readers, your scent Tango by Atelier actually brings tears to my eyes, as I immediately associate it with my maternal grandmother and her tale of two cites…Buenos Aries under the Junta. We, like many well respected 'noses' and 'perfumistas' consider it a masterpiece.  What inspired you to create this complex and haunting fragrance?


MA: Thank you so much for your kind words and for sharing your memories. Tango was very very hard to create.  I had to work on it for a long time and go through many versions until everything was right about it.  It was built around choya, blond tobacco and coffee along with champaca absolute and wild sweet orange.  I wanted the perfume to be like a night of naughty pleasures: dancing, drinking, smoking, coffee and sex.  Choya is the smell of burst seashells – very intense, smoky and sultry, blond tobacco is warm, slightly sweet and smells like a cigarette or cigar before it is lit.  Together they formed the base of the perfume – sweet, musky, and heavy.  Champaca is rich and complicated fecal floral but also sweet and the coffee added a dirty edge to that voluptuousness.  My wild sweet orange from the Dominican Republic is a very sophisticated high-register orange that just lifted the heaviness and added a fresh and wild aspect to the citrus at the top.


 


Parfum Prive is your latest scent and quite a departure from the collection. What is the story behind its creation?  
MA:
Someone had some old ambergris that they were willing to sell to me.  Ambergris is possibly the most beautiful smell in the world and the rarest. I was so thrilled to be able to work with it that I created an accord of osmanthus flower, ambrette seed and orange flower absolute to build the perfume around. The rest of the formulation was in service of these four “break-the-bank” essences.  I wanted something that was simply beautiful with a spiraling quality to it.

Are you working on a new fragrance now?


MA: I am working on a new perfume which will be called Cassis.  I am challenged by the fact that all fruit essences are synthetic and it is extremely difficult to create a fruity perfume with all naturals.  I want it to be light, buoyant and sophisticated


There is another side to your business that is directed towards the natural food industry and natural food enthusiasts. Briefly can you tell us about your Chef’s Essences and who purchases them?

MA: My Chef’s Essences are for use in cooking and they are sourced from all over the world.  I take a great pleasure in sourcing my essences and will tend to sample at least five to ten versions of an oil before I am satisfied that I have found the one with the best odor profile and quality. Much like a good cook, I believe the final creation – be it food or perfume – can only be as good as the quality of the materials that it was created from.  For example, my fresh ginger is a revelation – all ginger essential oils come from the dried root but this ginger is distilled from the wet rhizomes and has a light, citrus spicy aroma and tastes like the freshly grated ginger.  Many restaurants, cookbook authors and chefs buy my oils: Nobu and Blue Hill in New York, The French Laundry, Coi, and Bouchon in California, Bill Yosses, the pastry chef in The White House, Harold McGee, author of “On Food and Cooking,” and Rose Levy Beranbaum of “The Cake Bible.”

 

Does music, art, literature play a role in your creative process? If so, who are your muses?


MA: I always create perfumes with music on.  Many people do not know this but my very first book was a biography about Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones.  My muses are Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and Lucinda Williams.  All three of them focus on affairs of the heart – love’s ecstasies and difficulties.  For me, they often capture in a lyric some ephemera of a sensual and feeling-full life. They create beauty from these fleeting moments.  This is my inspiration.
 

Aftelier Fragrances, Chef’s Essences, and so much more are available at www.aftelier.com .  Mandy Aftel’s books can be purchased on www.amazon.com

Michelyn Camen, Editor-in- Chief

Editor's Note: WOW The interview looks so vintage, and its only 3 years old. Its totally intact; how I was tempted to add  the CaFleureBon touch of fabulous images….

 

please visit scenthive.com  http://tinyurl.com/37lqb8w for more opportunites to win and  giving props to mandy and her body of work.

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40 comments


  • I loved the comment where you said, in 2007 "when natural perfumery was considered aromatherapy by traditionalists unwilling to accept this ancient art. Technology has changed our lives over the past three years faster than in the past thousand. There were no RSS feeds, nor Twitter and really, how many of you were on Facebook?" 
    That is so true!  Technology is changing our lives at exponential rates.  I've always been interested in perfumery… as a young woman, I even contemplated what it would take to go to school in France and learn the trade.  As you know, perfumery has always been some exclusive, secretive club for only a privileged few…. until the Internet exploded on the scene and the information age got into full swing.  Suddenly, average people have access to information and vast stores of knowledge literally at their fingertips.  That's how I, in the short course of 6 months went from just a perfume appreciator to a budding perfumist!  By accident, when browsing for some essential oils, I stumbled on a book by Mandy Aftel.  It was like a sudden epiphany!  I could make my own perfume using essential oils just like they'd been doing for hundreds of years!  I didn't have to move to Grasse, France and knock on locked doors. The Internet is an amazing thing.  Mandy Aftel is an amazing woman with a wonderful gift she skillfully uses to create gorgeous scents (My favorite is Fig.)  Her new website is a beautiful example of what technology is allowing us to do in this age.   More than ever before, we are all in charge of our own destinies. 

  • The new website looks great, still very Mandy, yet easy to navigate and might I add the bottles bottles look beautiful~ One simply cannot talk about natural perfumery without mentioning Mandy and I really admire her spirit in sharing her passion with the rest of us.  It isn't just about creating beautiful perfumes, but sharing the love for natural materials, the people behind them, perfumery, and life in general! 

  • I am a fan of perfume. I look forward to learn more of Mandy's work . This is just awesome. I am a fan of Cafleurebon on facebook. I shared with over 400 friends on fb. I am following fifthsensenyc on twitter.  I'm @kammikoza.

  • I missed the interview the first time around, and really enjoyed reading it now! The new site looks great, and I was inspired by Essence and Alchemy years ago. I look forward to discovering more of Mandy's scents!

  • I don't know how to leave comment on Mandy's website, but I will leave one here saying that new website is much more easier to navigate on. Although the old one had some special touch – it looked more vintage and I could easily link her (specially solid) perfumes with the website, but this one is something that makes navigations easier, that is somehow more open (user friendly). 
    I only tried one of her perfumes and I read one book. I cannot say much about her work, but I know I read a lot comments what an inspiration she is to others (natural perfumers).  Since I am also trying to make something natural – I am very intrigued to see how professionals make art of natural ingredients. 

  • I've been inspired by Mandy's books for years and finally had the pleasure of taking a class with her at Esalen this spring–what fun. Thanks to Mandy for her great contributions in the world of natural perfume!

  • i love mandy's work and her new website, absolutely.  i was actually not interested in perfume for a number of years until i stumbled upon aftelier, which shed a whole new light on perfume…such beautiful and natural creations.  now i'm embarking on study of natural perfumery myself, which is a stark contrast to my job, and an almost therapeutic activity for me.  much needed, for sure.  so one thing leads to another…

  • The new website is outstanding!

    I have one of the heart flacons full of (well half full) Shisho. I love it so much, I made a special necklace for it using black tourmiline and gold fill wire! It is stunning and it smells amazing!

    Thank you for sharing your amazing talents with the world!

  • The new website is elegant and inviting. I love the colors that Mandy Aftel uses in her packaging, and I think the site's latest iteration showcases those colors beautifully. The new site feels more tactile somehow–if that's possible for a web site! 
    As far as how Mandy Aftel has impacted me–her fragrances and writing have inspired me to want to learn much more about natural perfumery. And the cacao scent made a happy honeymoon even happier.

  • Well….Mandy is brilliant!  Walk int her studio and you will see how interesting she is and how much her world is about perfume.  Her collection of books, antique compacts, lab ware, raw materials and essences are all so unique and beautiful.  Her perfumes are like a paintings from Picasso or sculptures from Camille Claudelle. She is simply a master of natural perfumery.  I am very fortunate to study with her!

  • Scent has always played a roll in my memories….  As a young girl from Arizona, visiting an Auntie in California each summer was a particular treat.  Strong memories from that time include the night air, bursting with the fragrance from the side yard gardenia bushes…. simply intoxicating.  A trip to the beach, would often render a fog bank, moist with the scent of the sea and dew.  Sunday mornings to church, where they still lit the frankinscence and myhr (sp).  When I first visited Hawaii, it was the balmy plumeria that almost knocked you out as you deboarded the plane.  To the exquisite fragrance of the lei… plumeria, tuberose, pikake, mailie….  the list goes on.  From these powerful, single note memories, comes my appreciation for your pure, intoxicating, fragrance line.  Thank you for what you do to enrich the lives of others….

  • Hi Michelyn, I've just recently started following your blog, an absolute pleasure to read and to look at!  I'm glad I came in on this new Aftelier Wave, although I've been following her for years, since 2005 at least.  Essence & Alchemy is such a fascinating book, I love Mandy's connection to books and history in relation to her work, which, as a designer and teacher, I find completely lacking in many Maker's influences these days!  I also started using essences in cooking thanks to her book Aroma, and I'll never go back!  Her new website is lovely, I'm checking it out as I write this — I'd love to win something this lean summer ; )  Thanks so much for the post! 

  • I'm glad that things are working out for Mandy in this adventure of natural perfumery.
    I love Tango and Tuberose&Cepes  and have been meaning to try your Chocolate&Saffron body oil.
    Whoohoo to the new website 😉

  • Mandy's new website, Aftelier.com portrays all the rustic and elegant beauty of the French renaissance, while maintaining a minimalist modernity. Such it is also with the art of her natural perfumery, where Mandy displays her talent as one of the perfumers of our time, with roots of experience and knowledge that engender from the golden age of perfume – a revivification of classic aroma – an ambroasia of scent!
    (Dear Mandy, please feel free to use the above. If you like my writing let me know – I write reviews for books and music.  Your face elixir sounds wonderful – I am a huge violet leaf fan. xxoo)

  • Mandy Aftel is awesome.  I read her book Essence and Alchemy and gained a wealth of knowledge about all things scented and blended.  It gave me a greater appreciation for the art of perfume.  I would love to attend a workshop with her someday!  Congrads to her new website.  I love the layout.

  • I greatly enjoyed Essence and Alchemy and I've wanted to try Tango since it's release.

  • Chris , technology has brought us closer yet further apart. we value our personal relationships more, as we never seem to have the time to shakle hands or call each other…In a world of mass produced items, we value artisnal products more… yet, we share our thoughts throughout the world with people and cultures we would have never learned of. Ironically first contact with Mandy was through email

  • thanks thea, we are new, but I have been writing for years on fragrance for beautynewsnyc, basenotes, sniffapalooza, fragrantica… adn it was tiem to start up my own site…. please visit often and thank you for coming by.

  • Oh MY!!   This is incredible.  I am sitting here and reading all this and am so very moved.  Thank you all of you for support of my work and my books and my vision.  This means so much to me.
     I have an incredible collection of artifacts that show that every step of the process of perfumery is filled with beauty and I am so glad to have some of them up on my website for all of you to see.  it is these layers of history that I find so personal and universal.  
    Thank each of you.
    Mandy

  • As a contributing editor to Ca Fleure Bon, I'm delighted to be celebrating the newly designed website of this trailblazer and master perfumer. The site is just exquisite in choice of colors, paintings, layout, composition, and of course, that very lush product line of Mandy's. It is a feast for the eye. Congratulations, Mandy and many thanks, Michelyn, for this fine article and rewind.

  • Mandy's art has impacted me through the beauty of her book, the amazing delight of taking a workshop with her at Esalen and getting to blend a liquid and a solid and especially through the beauty of the perfumes – Orchid is my dream perfume! I love, love, love the new website because it matches the beauty she creates in perfume!
    Deb

  • How fortunatte you are to take her workshop. I am fascinated by solid fragrances, and use them often in the summer . ger rose and fir combo is really special as is bornonia. good luck with the draw

  • Cheryl G. says:

    Mandy Aftel is my Hero in alchemy! I just missed meeting her by 5 minutes last year in Berkley. Arghhhh! I am on her site frequently because I want to purchase a fragrance to layer with my Aftel Jasmine solid. It really is the perfect Jasmine Soliflore, however, I want to give it a deeper base.
    Her new site is certainly an improvement. The store front is easy to navigate and the vintage postcards are charming-great Job. I also just joined her facebook page.

  • Karen Maniapoto says:

    As a student of Mandys' I feel really privileged to be  apart of her class.I followed her site and others for 3 years before choosing my tutor. I love the intuitive style Mandy offers and enjoy the inspiration from the articles and interviews I can read from the website. The new look had certainly expanded on the previous one and is full of wonderful deliciously inspired information. 

  • I searched along time to find and connect to a course and vision that rang to my ears.I found that on Mandys old website and it was a treasure to travel from New Zealand and complete two workshops with her enthusiasm, humour and visions. I love the new website set up,it is dynamic and fun to explore with all the knowledge and I ABSOLUTELY know with confidence that when I purchase her oils they are excellent quality.The new website oozes excellent explanations of products