© Copyright 2006 - 2010 ~ Le Parfumeur Rebelle All Rights Reserved
Lyn Ayre & Tonie Silver ~
A Rebelle Rendezvous
4 August 2008
Hi Lyn, & welcome to LPR~
Thanks so much, Tonie, it’s great to be here on such a sunny summer day.
You teach Natural & Botanical Perfumery; tell us about what kind of
students you're seeing.
My course is called “Natural Perfumery ~ a path to the Heart of Spirit”. Coeur d’
Esprit means ‘heart of Spirit’. This course involves working with spirit energy
and being in touch with the spirit of the plant while making perfumes. When
students inquire about the course, this aspect is often brought up as people
find the concept very attractive. For me, it is not about mimicking what has
already been done in the marketplace. It is not about making French perfumes
or becoming a commercial perfumer (French or otherwise) or even a ‘nose’. It is
about connecting to our inner spirit, connecting to the spirit of the plant, then
using perfume to connect to our higher self in a safe and pleasing way. It is a
gentle course with no pressure to win or succeed or be the best. It is fine to
just go along and learn at your own pace and become more of who you were
meant to be.
My students come from all walks of life. They are teachers, students, spa-
worker, a nun, an artist, an Aromatherapist, a retired senior, world traveller,
someone looking for a new career in perfumery, and so on, ages 22 to 78, from
Canada, US, Australia, France, and so on. Some have worked with the
essences for years and others have only always wanted to.
When they first contact me, they are each asked to write a letter of
introduction detailing why they would like to take this course on perfumery,
how they came to find me, and what they hope to get out of the course. The
essays are poignant, exciting, hopeful, and as varied as the people who write
them. They are required as a starting point so that the student can see, in
black and white, what they are about to do and evaluate whether or not they
would like to proceed. It seems to me that all kinds of people are interested in
learning more about Natural Perfumery.
Nature/Nurture: How important is the education side of the art? Are
there certain nuances that you feel simply cannot be taught?
I am a teacher by nature, as well as a life-long student of my personal
passions – writing, art, music, and all the gifts from Mother earth, which, of
course, includes perfume. Teaching this course was a natural progression, for
me, from all the learning I’d done to that point. My passion carried me forward
to become the independent perfumer I am today. I am self-taught, nurtured by
the thousands of perfumers who have gone before me, the hundreds of writers
who have written about perfume, the dozens of perfumes I have created, and
the feedback I’ve received from my clients. I did the work, and part of the work
involved writing this course so I could make sense of what I’d learned so far
about perfume. I put in my time, all the while seeking a mentor but found no
one. What I did find were a group of people who were in constant competition
for their place in the sun and who wanted to wield power and control over
others. This is not something I am into as I don’t believe in competing with
anyone. I wish I’d have had the benefit of an affordable correspondence course
like mine but there wasn’t one to be found. So I wrote it. …lol… (big grin)
For some people, formal training is key, and the structure of a course, such as
mine, is required. Others learn best when they are propelled by their own
steam with little input from teachers. Still others enjoy the one-on-one or a
classroom situation. Learning is a personal journey that each of us must
make, as we will. I offer opportunities for learning with as little or as much
input as the student needs, always willing to answer questions and make
suggestions. In the end, should they complete the twenty-six assignments,
send along sixteen samples for evaluation, and write the proctored exam of
fifty-six questions, they will have earned a Certificate of Completion for their
efforts of personal dedication and commitment to the craft. I don’t ‘create
Natural Perfumers’ rather people grow themselves into that way of being in the
world, should they choose and should this be something they want for
themselves.
We each bring to the table a variety of inherent gifts. We can all sing but we
don’t all have a voice that is pleasing to others. This does not mean we
shouldn’t sing. Some of us have a great ear for music but not all of us are
musicians, composers, or conductors. We can all take photographs but that
does not mean they will end up in the National Geographic. The thing that
sets one of us apart from another, in a particular endeavour, is the passion
that is lit in us when we are first exposed to the topic matter. If something
resonates with us on a spiritual level, then it becomes our passion. This
passion gives us energy to pursue that which feeds and nourishes us. Spaces
open up in our minds and in our hearts that allow room for an extraordinary
amount of knowledge to be gathered, sorted through, and put into practice. I
know that at some point, a student may decide they want to take this course,
and may actually go ahead and purchase it, but not pursue it because they lack
the energy of passion to carry them forward through all the hard work and
learning. Should they have a passion for perfume, they will also have instilled
within them all the finesse they need to create beautiful aromas with the all
nuances present to create life’s great tapestry, however that unfolds.
Tell LPR readers what you teach your students about suppliers; in my
experience, the dish is only as good as the ingredients. Do you believe a
good, trusting relationship with your supplier is important?
In Project twenty-five, students are asked to write out their Ethics, Mission
Statement, and Personal Credo, including their philosophies on life. They need
to do their homework, developing ethical guidelines that will take them
through the pitfalls they may encounter during this journey of finding their
own trusted suppliers in the area in which they live and abroad. They need to
learn how to trust their nose and speak their heart when they are unhappy.
In the meantime, they are given my ‘Trusted Suppliers List’ in their manual. It
is also located on my links page on the website. These suppliers ship to
Canada and the US; many ship overseas, as well. My Australian students have
their own list they have gleaned over time. My list is not complete and is
constantly being refined as I go about my daily round.
It is important that I have a trusting relationship with my suppliers and that
they follow through with what has been agreed. If they don’t, they risk losing
my trust and are not put on the up-dated list.
The companies on my list have a variety of good qualities: they are
environmentally conscious, don’t approve of animal testing, are cruelty-free,
have a generous heart and donate to worthy causes, don’t have a minimum
order amount, include free samples, and some sell organic or certified organic
ingredients. Their product is top of the line and I’ve not yet been unhappy with
the dozens of items I’ve purchased from any of them. Also included on the list
are those that supply cosmetic ingredients, containers, waterproof labels,
boxes, and bottles. These companies resonate with me and hold similar values
to my own, so I am happy to support them.
Lyn, please give readers a skeleton of your curriculum.
Yes, of course... Here is the Table of Contents
Preliminaries, Processes, & Introductions
Section One
o The psychology and physiology of how we detect aroma
o The four mediums for carrying a perfume
o The precautions for using these highly concentrated botanical ingredients
o Shelf-life and storage of oils
o Working with Spirit Energy
o Data Tags
o Dilutions
o Methods of Extraction
o Perfumery terms
o Music by any other name would be called perfume. Learning the notes.
o What are Horizontal and Vertical Accords
o Building Accords
Section Two
o Learn about seven base notes
o Fixatives
o Describing a Perfume
o Scent Profiling
o Descriptive words
o Setting up your atelier
o Your safety
Section Three
o Learn about seven Heart Notes
o Body Chemistry and Skin Types
o Rate of Evaporation and Odor Intensity
o Fragrance Families
Section Four
o Learn about seven Head Notes
o Formulation
o Formulation Sheet
Section Five
o Creating tinctures, infusions, and macerations
o Creating scent similars
o Scent Songs - the work of Piesse
o Perfumes from the inside out
o Colour of essential oils
Section Six
o Create perfumes in all four bases
o Perfume pyramid
o What’s in a name
o Questions & answers
o How to market yourself and your product
Resources & References
Review of Suppliers
Completing this course…
Perfume Projects
What's the best advice that you feel you offer your students Lyn?
Determine what your ethics are and stick to them.
Create a safe work environment so you can do perfumery for the long-term.
Create safe perfumes and remember we are dealing with very powerful
substances.
Stay curious and open to new learning and opportunities.
Best perfumery advice you ever received?
I've not yet had the blessing of a Mentor and no one around to teach me other
than the books I've read and my own diligent research and practice. But I take
all of the advice I've given to my students (as above).
Tell us how you marry the business side of perfumery with the art.
It's one and the same to me. There is an art of making good perfumes and an
art of dealing with people in a business sense. In both cases, I ground to Gaia
and connect to Source, becoming a channel of energy flowing into the situation
and watching it unfold before me.
I know this may sound goofy to a lot of people but it is how I've operated my
whole life. For 23 years, I did Credit & Collections. Most people loved to hear
from me, and put our company at the top of their payables list, as I never made
them feel bad about themselves. I knew that most people wanted to pay their
bills and if I was pleasant and present, I could help them to do that (some
didn't and they got re-poed).
I worked for a few different companies and in each case, the receivables went
to a good place. In the last position I had before I was 'downsized' (due to MS
and Lupus), I took the receivables from 170 days to 96% current. You don't get
results like that by treating people like poorly. It's the same in any business:
create a set of ethical business practices and stick to them. That’s what I do in
the perfume realm when I’m dealing with suppliers, customers, and students.
Thanx Lyn~ You’ve got a great Coeur d’Esprit!
A Rebelle Rendezvous
4 August 2008
Hi Lyn, & welcome to LPR~
Thanks so much, Tonie, it’s great to be here on such a sunny summer day.
You teach Natural & Botanical Perfumery; tell us about what kind of
students you're seeing.
My course is called “Natural Perfumery ~ a path to the Heart of Spirit”. Coeur d’
Esprit means ‘heart of Spirit’. This course involves working with spirit energy
and being in touch with the spirit of the plant while making perfumes. When
students inquire about the course, this aspect is often brought up as people
find the concept very attractive. For me, it is not about mimicking what has
already been done in the marketplace. It is not about making French perfumes
or becoming a commercial perfumer (French or otherwise) or even a ‘nose’. It is
about connecting to our inner spirit, connecting to the spirit of the plant, then
using perfume to connect to our higher self in a safe and pleasing way. It is a
gentle course with no pressure to win or succeed or be the best. It is fine to
just go along and learn at your own pace and become more of who you were
meant to be.
My students come from all walks of life. They are teachers, students, spa-
worker, a nun, an artist, an Aromatherapist, a retired senior, world traveller,
someone looking for a new career in perfumery, and so on, ages 22 to 78, from
Canada, US, Australia, France, and so on. Some have worked with the
essences for years and others have only always wanted to.
When they first contact me, they are each asked to write a letter of
introduction detailing why they would like to take this course on perfumery,
how they came to find me, and what they hope to get out of the course. The
essays are poignant, exciting, hopeful, and as varied as the people who write
them. They are required as a starting point so that the student can see, in
black and white, what they are about to do and evaluate whether or not they
would like to proceed. It seems to me that all kinds of people are interested in
learning more about Natural Perfumery.
Nature/Nurture: How important is the education side of the art? Are
there certain nuances that you feel simply cannot be taught?
I am a teacher by nature, as well as a life-long student of my personal
passions – writing, art, music, and all the gifts from Mother earth, which, of
course, includes perfume. Teaching this course was a natural progression, for
me, from all the learning I’d done to that point. My passion carried me forward
to become the independent perfumer I am today. I am self-taught, nurtured by
the thousands of perfumers who have gone before me, the hundreds of writers
who have written about perfume, the dozens of perfumes I have created, and
the feedback I’ve received from my clients. I did the work, and part of the work
involved writing this course so I could make sense of what I’d learned so far
about perfume. I put in my time, all the while seeking a mentor but found no
one. What I did find were a group of people who were in constant competition
for their place in the sun and who wanted to wield power and control over
others. This is not something I am into as I don’t believe in competing with
anyone. I wish I’d have had the benefit of an affordable correspondence course
like mine but there wasn’t one to be found. So I wrote it. …lol… (big grin)
For some people, formal training is key, and the structure of a course, such as
mine, is required. Others learn best when they are propelled by their own
steam with little input from teachers. Still others enjoy the one-on-one or a
classroom situation. Learning is a personal journey that each of us must
make, as we will. I offer opportunities for learning with as little or as much
input as the student needs, always willing to answer questions and make
suggestions. In the end, should they complete the twenty-six assignments,
send along sixteen samples for evaluation, and write the proctored exam of
fifty-six questions, they will have earned a Certificate of Completion for their
efforts of personal dedication and commitment to the craft. I don’t ‘create
Natural Perfumers’ rather people grow themselves into that way of being in the
world, should they choose and should this be something they want for
themselves.
We each bring to the table a variety of inherent gifts. We can all sing but we
don’t all have a voice that is pleasing to others. This does not mean we
shouldn’t sing. Some of us have a great ear for music but not all of us are
musicians, composers, or conductors. We can all take photographs but that
does not mean they will end up in the National Geographic. The thing that
sets one of us apart from another, in a particular endeavour, is the passion
that is lit in us when we are first exposed to the topic matter. If something
resonates with us on a spiritual level, then it becomes our passion. This
passion gives us energy to pursue that which feeds and nourishes us. Spaces
open up in our minds and in our hearts that allow room for an extraordinary
amount of knowledge to be gathered, sorted through, and put into practice. I
know that at some point, a student may decide they want to take this course,
and may actually go ahead and purchase it, but not pursue it because they lack
the energy of passion to carry them forward through all the hard work and
learning. Should they have a passion for perfume, they will also have instilled
within them all the finesse they need to create beautiful aromas with the all
nuances present to create life’s great tapestry, however that unfolds.
Tell LPR readers what you teach your students about suppliers; in my
experience, the dish is only as good as the ingredients. Do you believe a
good, trusting relationship with your supplier is important?
In Project twenty-five, students are asked to write out their Ethics, Mission
Statement, and Personal Credo, including their philosophies on life. They need
to do their homework, developing ethical guidelines that will take them
through the pitfalls they may encounter during this journey of finding their
own trusted suppliers in the area in which they live and abroad. They need to
learn how to trust their nose and speak their heart when they are unhappy.
In the meantime, they are given my ‘Trusted Suppliers List’ in their manual. It
is also located on my links page on the website. These suppliers ship to
Canada and the US; many ship overseas, as well. My Australian students have
their own list they have gleaned over time. My list is not complete and is
constantly being refined as I go about my daily round.
It is important that I have a trusting relationship with my suppliers and that
they follow through with what has been agreed. If they don’t, they risk losing
my trust and are not put on the up-dated list.
The companies on my list have a variety of good qualities: they are
environmentally conscious, don’t approve of animal testing, are cruelty-free,
have a generous heart and donate to worthy causes, don’t have a minimum
order amount, include free samples, and some sell organic or certified organic
ingredients. Their product is top of the line and I’ve not yet been unhappy with
the dozens of items I’ve purchased from any of them. Also included on the list
are those that supply cosmetic ingredients, containers, waterproof labels,
boxes, and bottles. These companies resonate with me and hold similar values
to my own, so I am happy to support them.
Lyn, please give readers a skeleton of your curriculum.
Yes, of course... Here is the Table of Contents
Preliminaries, Processes, & Introductions
Section One
o The psychology and physiology of how we detect aroma
o The four mediums for carrying a perfume
o The precautions for using these highly concentrated botanical ingredients
o Shelf-life and storage of oils
o Working with Spirit Energy
o Data Tags
o Dilutions
o Methods of Extraction
o Perfumery terms
o Music by any other name would be called perfume. Learning the notes.
o What are Horizontal and Vertical Accords
o Building Accords
Section Two
o Learn about seven base notes
o Fixatives
o Describing a Perfume
o Scent Profiling
o Descriptive words
o Setting up your atelier
o Your safety
Section Three
o Learn about seven Heart Notes
o Body Chemistry and Skin Types
o Rate of Evaporation and Odor Intensity
o Fragrance Families
Section Four
o Learn about seven Head Notes
o Formulation
o Formulation Sheet
Section Five
o Creating tinctures, infusions, and macerations
o Creating scent similars
o Scent Songs - the work of Piesse
o Perfumes from the inside out
o Colour of essential oils
Section Six
o Create perfumes in all four bases
o Perfume pyramid
o What’s in a name
o Questions & answers
o How to market yourself and your product
Resources & References
Review of Suppliers
Completing this course…
Perfume Projects
What's the best advice that you feel you offer your students Lyn?
Determine what your ethics are and stick to them.
Create a safe work environment so you can do perfumery for the long-term.
Create safe perfumes and remember we are dealing with very powerful
substances.
Stay curious and open to new learning and opportunities.
Best perfumery advice you ever received?
I've not yet had the blessing of a Mentor and no one around to teach me other
than the books I've read and my own diligent research and practice. But I take
all of the advice I've given to my students (as above).
Tell us how you marry the business side of perfumery with the art.
It's one and the same to me. There is an art of making good perfumes and an
art of dealing with people in a business sense. In both cases, I ground to Gaia
and connect to Source, becoming a channel of energy flowing into the situation
and watching it unfold before me.
I know this may sound goofy to a lot of people but it is how I've operated my
whole life. For 23 years, I did Credit & Collections. Most people loved to hear
from me, and put our company at the top of their payables list, as I never made
them feel bad about themselves. I knew that most people wanted to pay their
bills and if I was pleasant and present, I could help them to do that (some
didn't and they got re-poed).
I worked for a few different companies and in each case, the receivables went
to a good place. In the last position I had before I was 'downsized' (due to MS
and Lupus), I took the receivables from 170 days to 96% current. You don't get
results like that by treating people like poorly. It's the same in any business:
create a set of ethical business practices and stick to them. That’s what I do in
the perfume realm when I’m dealing with suppliers, customers, and students.
Thanx Lyn~ You’ve got a great Coeur d’Esprit!
| Working the Bench with Justine Crane |
| “Personality is to a man what perfume is to a flower.” Charles Schwab |