Hello My Name Is

Demo Day at Greenstar Co-op Ithaca, NY

Taking my wares to market is a great chance to break from the solitude of working in a lab.  I get to shift gears and prepare my samples, set-up and costume (yes, I like to put on red lipstick).

It is an opportunity to meet people that I don't know, face to face and speak openly about what I can do for them, why I make what I make the way I do and generally hand out free swag.

Instantly I feel open, happy (after a bit of apprehension preparing) and thrilled to meet people who are curious and willing to put their guard down for a moment to come up to speak to me.

Different venues bring different clientele, values and interests.  I am particularly drawn to co-ops as the members are usually very well educated about what they put in their mouths and on their bodies.

I get a chance to walk my talk.

You also never know what is going to happen.

It can be hopping and happening...or

you're all dressed up and...

nobody shows.

That is the way it was for the three years I tried the Bridal Show circuit.  Boy did my feet get sore.  I made a commitment to stand the entire time, meet and speak to every single person who walked by my booth and I had an assistant gather e-mails.

In three years, I received nay an order.  I spent more time educating people about bespoke perfumery.  Most people in the rural part of upstate NY could not wrap their heads around the concept.

It was the same when I brought massage therapy to the area.  I was an ice-breaker for therapists who came years later.  Some of us are ice-breakers and pioneers.

We pave the ways so others can bring the next level of expertise.

I wouldn't change that role for a minute.  I truly believe in what I have to offer.  Just a little bit ahead of my time perhaps.

Here is to all you trendsetters out there - be forever creative.

Years in the Making

Wisdom Parfum Oils               Aromatic Traditions  2015

Years ago I met a teacher.

We were gathered together to do what is called a Moon Ceremony.

Some of us were adding extra layers as it had snowed.  I was being chided for looking like Little Red Riding Hood as I had all of my prayer bundles gathered in a basket and a shawl with a hood pulled tight over my head.

Not to be taken too seriously, I pulled up my skirt to reveal a pair of very brightly colored leggings.  One of a kind. Or so I thought.

Across the room another woman lifted her skirt and had on a similar pair.  We laughed and when she asked me where I got the leggings, I told her she wouldn't know the place, it was very far away.

But she did and she became my teacher that night.

Ten years later, my teachings culminated in what is now the Wisdom Parfum Oil set.  

My family did not see me for months as I sat at my perfumer's organ creating each oil.

(I still work with them, tweaking and noticing the changes.)

The oil set is based on 15 years of teachings about the chakras, the medicine wheel and ceremony.  Each oil is blessed and sits on its accompanying affirmation while marrying in the bottle for months prior to dispensing.

This set is an honoring of my teacher, her teachers before her and to all who use them to create a difference in their lives and others.

You can check them out here:

http://www.aromatictraditions.com/products/wisdom-parfum-oils-insight-set-1-85ml

(I like this set because it comes with a little affirmation booklet and a sweet little bag to put your oils in and draw out one or two for the day.)

Deep gratitude.