The journal
Notes on wearing.
How a fragrance behaves on skin, how to make it last and keep it, and what two of its materials really are. For the words themselves, start with how to read a fragrance; for what the notes are made of, the materials.
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Primer · 3 min
Why a fragrance smells different on you
Skin is part of the composition, and no two people supply the same one. Why paper tells you almost nothing. -
Primer · 3 min
How to make a fragrance last
Longevity is mostly a property of skin, not of the perfume. What works, and what is folklore. -
Primer · 3 min
How to keep a perfume alive
Light, heat and air are what age a fragrance, and a bathroom shelf supplies all three. -
The workshop · 2 min
Why a fragrance rests before it is bottled
A blend is not finished when it is mixed. What the weeks of rest do, and why a house should not skip them. -
Material · 2 min
Aquilaria: resin from an injury
The tree makes its resin only where it has been wounded. What oud is, and why most of it is not. -
Material · 3 min
Mysore sandalwood, and why it is controlled
Decades to make heartwood, and a century in which the state owned every tree. How to read a sandalwood claim.