Earthworm. Dirt. Fig Leaf. Wait, did I make a wrong turn somewhere? Is this gardening 101? Nope! These are just a few of the unique scents in the Demeter Fragrance Library, a fragrance company that creates unusual scents from everyday life.
“The whole idea behind Demeter was to bottle those great scents of nature that people don’t really think about,” says Mark D. Crames, chief executive officer. “We appreciate them when we are outside, but we don’t necessarily think about them as being wearable fragrances. And we set forth to show that those things are beautiful in their own right.”
There are hundreds of scents in the library, ranging from easily wearable (Baby Powder, Angel Food, Jasmine) to not-so-easily wearable but still fun (Funeral Home, Lobster, Play-Doh.)
The amazing thing about the fragrances is that they always hit the scent on the nose (pardon the pun), and each scent is an accurate replica of the original smell. When I got a first whiff of one of the newer scents, Crayon, it reminded me of being a kid, opening up a fresh box of crayons, and spending hours with my coloring books.
Another new scent, Pure Soap, is also delicious. It smells just like a freshly showered husband (or boyfriend!)…ahhhh, yummy.
The time to create a scent from start to finish varies, says Crames. Some scents take a matter of weeks, while others take months or years. Sometimes it’s a matter of fine tuning the scent to appeal to an adult nose, like in the case of creating Banana Flambe, one of the more challenging scents. “Banana by it’s definition tends to be a more child-like scent,” says Crames. “To get a banana that was adult-oriented was hard.”
Other times it’s a matter of chemistry. Two scents that the company has been working on for years, Puppy’s Breath and Baby’s Head, are still in production because of this issue. Natural scents often involve large, organic molecules, which are difficult to replicate, says Crames.
Stuff those stockings: Demeter saves your butt just in time for the holidays
Demeter’s got some delish fragrances for the holidays, including a new scent called Egg Nog. And if you’ve got stockings to stuff, head on over to their Web site, because they’ve got an exclusive offer where you can purchase HUMUNGOUS MINIS (a full ½ oz of fragrance) of any of the scents for a mere five duckets. Can’t decide? Pick up one of my three faves: Thunderstorm, Gingerale or Kahala Hawaiian Surf.
It was so beautiful here in the Bay Area today; I hope you were able to catch some sun. I’m off to the gym right now to lift weights and hopefully burn off the gelato I ate for lunch!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Christine says
Ohh, fun smells. Thunderstorm! I think I might have to check that one out!
Karen says
It smells really neat.
Rain is nice, too. You can get them at Sephora. Plus, the HUMUNGOUS MINIS are a good way to try em out. Five bucks! Can’t beat that.
Vanessa says
They have play-doh too right? I think I saw that one somewhere, I gotta pick that up, I want something to bring me back to Kindergarten when I am at work….lol. If not, I am definitely going to try the crayons one and see what people in the office say…
Karen says
They do! You can get it on the Web site.
Play-Doh makes me think of Kindergarten, too. I wish they’d give us recess breaks at work…I think everyone would be less cranky if we were forced to leave our cubes and hang at a designated jungle gym!
Atiyah says
I saw these at Marshall’s last week. I really wish they were not in their own cute little locked boxes so I could actually smell them.
Karen says
Aww, Atiyah, I bet they had some nice scents there, too. I hate it when they don’t have testers out!
Ladie says
I love this website!!!!!!!
Karen says
Thanks Ladie! 🙂 I’m glad you stopped by to say hello. Hope to see you back soon.
Mara07 says
Can anyone tell me when the puppy breath and the baby head will actually be out? I want to buy them for someone
Karen says
Hey Mara07,
From what I understand those are still under production and will take a few years. If I hear anything I’ll let you know. 🙂