The Perfume Making Podcast

• Rest - The Most Underrated Note

  After 110 episodes, week in, week out, on top of 3 ongoing courses, authoring her latest book, a family trip to France, and a family wedding in Spain, Karen has decided to take a well-earned break over August. That’s why, in this week’s brief episode, Karen is talking about the importance of stepping back and taking some time to let life happen. From following up on projects that you’ve promised yourself you’d do for months, to just taking a little time to experiment for yourself, Karen is going to do it all this August, without doing anything. KEY TAKEAWAYS Karen gives an overview of her new book and what you can expect from it, but also, how it builds on the work in her previous book. Despite being a huge advocate for stepping away and doing something for yourself, Karen has realised recently that she hasn’t taken any ‘me time’. She talks about the importance of this time and what she plans to do with it this summer. During her summer break, Karen is taking part in the ‘Hampshire Open Studios’ programme. She outlines what to expect, how to find her, and when you can visit. For those of you who love to listen to the show week in, week out, don’t worry, Karen has you covered. She lays out her plan of how to keep you listening and entertained over August. BEST MOMENTS “Sometimes the best thing is to step back and let your senses recalibrate.” “Take a break and take in the world. Try and smell what is around you. It doesn’t have to be about making perfume, it can be just about experiencing scent around you.” VALUABLE RESOURCES Hampshire Open Studios Perfume Making 101 Studio Classes Online Course Getting Started Guide Artisan Perfumery Mastermind  ABOUT THE HOST Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way. Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances. With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques. Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing. CONTACT DETAILS Website Instagram Facebook YouTube Email This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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• The Tincture Trap - Why Tinctures Often Fall Flat

  This week Karen is addressing a question she gets asked all the time regarding the use of tinctures in perfumery. The short answer to this question is that tinctures don’t work. But, with so many people using this process, there has to be something to it, doesn’t there? In this episode, Karen gives you a comprehensive lesson on tinctures from early history to the way they behave in perfumes, and even how the sperm whale plays a part in the whole process, so that you too can become an expert on tinctures and their usage. KEY TAKEAWAYS What exactly are tinctures, how do you create them, what is their role, and why do people seek to use them in perfumery? Karen gives a crash course on all things tincture. Historically, tinctures were used in perfumery, and this is part of the reason most people still think they are a viable method today. However, Karen reveals the truth of the origin of tinctures. From scents breaking down to the onset of mold, there's a lot that can go wrong with your perfumes when using tinctures. Karen gives an overview of the main problems and why they occur. Ambergris is a material that does actually require tincturing. Karen explains why this material works with tincturing and how to get the best out of it. BEST MOMENTS “Originally, tinctures were used as a base and not as an absolute or essential oil.” “The idea you can tincture any flower and get a usable material is a modern idea and it’s also not true.” “Creating a structured, repeatable, well balanced fragrance will need materials that are stable and are not going to go off over time.” VALUABLE RESOURCES Getting Started Guide Artisan Perfumery Mastermind  ABOUT THE HOST Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way. Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances. With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques. Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing. CONTACT DETAILS Website Instagram Facebook YouTube Email This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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• Too Much of a Good Smell - The Myth of Longevity in Perfumery

  This week on the show, Karen is finally addressing an issue that has been annoying her for years - the obsession with extreme longevity of a fragrance. There is a theory that the longer a perfume lasts, the more desirable and worthwhile it is - but Karen is calling that a myth. In this week's episode, Karen is here to explain that just because something doesn't last, that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Instead, she argues that perfume is meant to be savoured in personal moments—it's something for yourself, not for others. The real challenge lies in how to embrace this idea during the creative process without sacrificing your work. KEY TAKEAWAYS Recently, consumers and perfumers have begun to confuse durability with quality. Karen breaks down why she thinks this is happening and why it is bad for the fragrance industry. Karen explains why the beauty of a perfume is not in its longevity but in the smaller moments that make you realise why you’re wearing it in the first place. When somebody makes a scent they love, but doesn’t last a long time, they try to add materials in a desperate attempt to create longevity. Karen explains why this never works and why it will destroy your scent. Adding materials that fade away can be an invaluable tool to creating a unique scent. Karen explains why this is and how to achieve this. BEST MOMENTS “Perfume isn’t a marathon, it's a moment, an experience. Something that you enjoy whilst it’s happening.” “The obsession with longevity is drowning out the subtle approach.” “Don’t start with longevity as the goal. Start with the perfume you want to create.” VALUABLE RESOURCES Perfume Making 101 Masterclass   Materials Mastery   Getting Started Guide Artisan Perfumery Mastermind  ABOUT THE HOST Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way. Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances. With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques. Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing. CONTACT DETAILS Website Instagram Facebook YouTube Email This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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• The Architecture of Aroma - Structuring Floral Fragrances

  Karen has a new live course coming up, on the 7th of July, and in this episode she wants to explore two things that link into that live course - Floral Fragrances and Structure. Working with florals, without experience, can be an overwhelming task that often leads to disappointing results as florals are dense materials that fight with each other if you don’t know how to mix them. But, when you get florals right, they can lead to some of the most rewarding results in all of perfume making. In this episode, Karen gives a brief overview of the challenges you will face when working with florals, the methods you can use to overcome them and how, by signing up to her live course, you can become a master of working with florals. KEY TAKEAWAYS Floral materials by their very nature are dense and heavy. This can lead to less than pleasing results the first time you work with them, which can be off putting. However, the answer, as Karen explains, is making sure you have a structure in place. Despite popular belief, working with florals doesn’t just mean working with natural products. Karen explains how to mix naturals and synthetics to give your floral fragrances a structure that works. A common mistake people make when working with florals is trying to ‘patch up’ a fragrance that doesn’t smell the way they were hoping. Karen talks about why this is a mistake and the importance of getting your heart accord correct to avoid this problem. Karen gives a brief overview of the structure she teaches, why it works and what to expect from your fragrances once you’ve learned it through her live course. BEST MOMENTS “Once you create a solid fragrance structure, you’re going to be able to use that in every other fragrance type.” “The issue isn’t the materials, it’s the space between them.” “People often think that more florals equals better floral fragrance, but it doesn’t work like that.” VALUABLE RESOURCES Perfume Making 101 Masterclass  Getting Started Guide Artisan Perfumery Mastermind  ABOUT THE HOST Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way. Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances. With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques. Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing. CONTACT DETAILS Website Instagram Facebook YouTube Email This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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• Reflections of 30 Years - Things I Would Tell My Younger Self

  Inspired by a recent chat with her social media manager, and the realisation that she is approaching thirty years in the perfume business, Karen has decided to take a look back and ponder on the thing that she would tell her younger self if the opportunity arose. When you’re new to anything, whether it be a perfume business or not, you are also naive. Only with time, failure and growth can we realise the mistakes we have made in the past. In this episode, Karen looks back at her career and imparts her wisdom upon you, from learning to say no to being your authentic self, so that you don’t make the mistakes that befall so many. KEY TAKEAWAYS One of the biggest mistakes new businesses make, and one Karen did herself, is setting your price point lower than your competitors in the hope that it will win you more customers. Karen debunks this idea and tells you how to calculate a price that works for you and your customers. When your business venture is new and exciting, work doesn’t feel like work and you find yourself working longer hours. However, as Karen learned that hard way, your energy is not unlimited. Karen explains why ‘sustainable’ isn’t just ideal, it’s the only way. A lesson that Karen learned from her first ever business is one that still holds true today - “Build your business around your life, not the other way around.” Karen’s new business adopts this philosophy and she shares how different her life is because of it. ‘Be Who You Are’ - is one of the biggest lessons Karen has learnt. In her early days in business she tried to be the person she thought her direct audience wanted her to be, but this became exhausting. BEST MOMENTS “The clients who choose you, just because you’re cheap, are not the clients you want.” “You do not need permission to call yourself a perfumer. If you’re doing that job, you’ve earned the right.” “Being who you truly are is what attracts your most authentic customers.” VALUABLE RESOURCES Perfume Making 101 Waitlist  Rose Fragrance Masterclass Wait List Journal Prompts Getting Started Guide Artisan Perfumery Mastermind  ABOUT THE HOST Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way. Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances. With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques. Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing. CONTACT DETAILS Website Instagram Facebook YouTube Email This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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