Oils & Unguents, Original Collection, Elements, Anima, For the Men
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The autumn is a time of changes, of transitions, and of fading. It is also about remembrance, given how many cultures have embraced traditions related to looking back to our ancestors, as well acknowledging our tenuous link to the world of the dead.
Spiritus is a trinity of scents meant to represent the seasonal altar, whether it be in observance of el Día de los Muertos, Samhain, Hallowe'en, or other ancestor traditions that touch on death and the changing seasons. The air grows crisp in the northern hemisphere, we feel the papery flutter of dried leaves on the wind, and the botanical world is transformed into a sea of russet, gold, red, orange. Even the leaves take on a faintly tannic, tea-like aroma as they dry on the trees.
But this season is also about the hearth as we remember our ancestors. It is about fortifying self and soul, about sharing warmth and comfort, with the living and the dead. I have worked to embody this, physical and spiritual sustenance, keeping an eye to the past and origins.
The corner of the world I kept the closest to was Central America, and I worked to emphasize aromatics native to this region, accordingly. Coumarin, in the form of tonka bean, is the common thread throughout the three perfumes, as it augments the sweetness of vanilla, and adds tenacity and volume to traditional aromatics such as marigold and copal incense. For the sweetness and warmth of life we look to indigenous botanicals such as cacao, and transplanted botanicals such as coffee, and wheat.
Pan Dulce - This is our interpretation of sweet cake, of pan de muerto, and of the soul cakes in Ireland that were purportedly baked for the first folks who went from household to household in a fashion which became the template for trick-or-treating as we know it today. On the altar this is sustenance for the dead, in secular life it is a treat for children during this season.
A rich base of tonka bean, vanilla, and honeyed beeswax, with a kick of cognac, rounds off a heart of wheat absolute, buttery lavender absolute, and marigold (the flowers that adorn the Día de los Muertos altar). Sweet, fortifying, and tenacious.
Purchase 5 ml for $30.00, or 1 sample for $6.00
Café y Cacao - This is hot chocolate with a kick of coffee and cinnamon, a thick and rich atole. Warm sweet comfort, with the dark velvet bitterness of Theobroma cacao balancing deep oily coffee, with a touch of liatris and tonka to impart a softness and tenacity.
Purchase 5 ml for $30.00, or 1 sample for $6.00
Ofrenda - Incense is the sweet savor of the Gods, compounded in so many ways. Ofrenda invokes All Saints' (also known as All Hallows) Day, when many around the world visit or remember their dead.
Deep balsams, in the form of Mexican copal, three species of frankincense, Somali myrrh, and oppoponax form the base of a meditational blend, which invokes the wildness of the forest with fir needle as well as the sweetness of life with rose petals. And the theme of tonka bean unifies the elements.
Purchase 5 ml for $30.00, or 1 sample for $6.00
Can't decide? Purchase all three Spiritus perfumes for $85.00, or all three Spiritus samples for $16.00 |
