The FRESH FACE of Aromatic Traditions

FRESH FACE for Aromatic Traditions™ 2017



After a brief hiatus working in the corporate world for a local manufacturing company, Aromatic Traditions is back with a new look and mission.  Take a look at our "About" page to get a feel.

Aromatic Traditions™ is a botanical skin care formulating and consulting company for natural and organic skin care product companies.  Our clients include luxury retail artisans, high-end spas and massage therapists.  Aromatic Traditions’s top-quality, result-driven products are free of hash chemicals and manufactured to exacting standards.  Allow our award winning expertise to develop your brand and take it to production.

WE TAKE YOUR BRAND BY THE HAND FROM CONCEPTION TO PRODUCTION

Launched in 1998 with our fabulous “Blue Pearl” moisturizer, Aromatic Traditions transitioned from a retail formulator/manufacturer to a private label/custom consulting and manufacturing business.

Combined with over 20 years of perfume and herbal experience, Aromatic Traditions™ is able to provide our clients with both expert scent consultation as well as natural/herbal formulations.

IT’S ALL IN THE DETAILS:

• We believe in your BEAUTY AND HEALTHY
• We promote and utilize ORGANIC AGRICULTURE, FAIR TRADE AND SUSTAINABILITY
• We utilize as much as possible LOCAL and MINDFUL HARVESTING OF RAW MATERIALS.
• We believe in charitable giving back to our communities and the earth.

OUR MISSION IS SIMPLE:

“To create elegant and natural products that nourish your innate beauty”

The Chicken is in the Oven and Everything is Alright

Comfort food, rituals and making it all cozy.

Tonight I came home with a farm fresh chicken.  I grew up with access to farm-raised meat, milk and eggs so I look for the same locally.  My cousins had a farm and the chicken coop was my favorite place to play. (I bet a few of you can say the same)

For me the smell of a chicken roasting in the oven gives me comfort, warmth and a sense of home.  I know it does for my family.  I come from a long line of chicken-raising, chicken-cooking women.  I clearly remember my Great Grandmother preparing chicken and waffles.

My mother always roasted a perfect bird.  I found a recipe that I truly love by Ina Garten.  Here it is if you want to cook a chicken that will woo your loved ones...

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/engagement-roast-chicken-recipe.html

Yep,  I remember telling my boys that they were having engagement chicken when they were young.  I kind of believe that they will compare all roast chicken against this recipe.

But...

this isn't the whole story.

I want to talk about what it takes to make a home.  

To step up to the plate, to go the extra step and put your day aside and make the home warm and cozy for your family.  I believe that there are many people out there that do this for their family.  I don't care if you only have a bowl of rice or a can of beans (believe me, I've been there).  There are just people who know how to make it special.

I love the old trick I heard from a wisened girlfriend.  She told me "I always slice up some onions and put them in a pan when I hear my family come in the driveway".

I don't know what it is about making a house a home.  Must be in our DNA to have something roasting by the fire.  We get a sense of security and that everything is alright.

Tonight I am doing it more for myself.  I miss my family.  I miss my Mom and her home cooking
AND I want to be a good Mom to my kids.  I want to give them sensual memories of home.  Something that they can tap in to when the going gets tough.

Maybe something that they can pass on.

We all need a touchstone.

Blessings

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.

Intention to Manifestation

The Khata Tree© Project    Aromatic Traditions 2014

A few years ago I had a vivid dream. I saw a Khata (a ceremonial scarf symbolizing goodwill and compassion) streaming from a tree void of leaves.

The dream struck and I began to find a way to manifest that vision.

I started to write and illustrate a children's book.  Here is the first layer of a painting illustrating a young Tibetan girl who has discovered a Khata.

Tibetan Girl with Khata©  S. Varga

Several illustrations for the book were completed and then the project stalled.  Life caught up with me.  Kid's soccer games, Aromatic Traditions™ began to grow, I put the paintbrush down.

A few months later I decided to reach out to a dear friend who worked for a local museum.  We had collaborated on several different children's projects for the museum.  She had an idea.

I proposed a workshop which taught children about bridging cultures and won the Rose Family Grant.

Here is the culmination of the Khata Tree Project© (as it stands now).  We worked with a local area youth center with at-risk pre-teens and teens.  The kids were amazing.  We used storytelling and art to bridge cultures.

Individual Khatas painted by local teens.


What had begun as a dream ended as a full-blown project.  Every kid in the youth center had an opportunity to participate in some way.  We shared stories, food, blessings and music as each child spoke about their piece.

Moral of story:  dreams are manifesting all around us - grab one and hold on tight.

In the Garden of Spirit

Plein Air Botanical Painting     Aromatic Traditions 2014

After graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Art in Communication Design - a fancy name for Graphic Designer - I found myself designing and drawing things commercially like trucks, abalone cutters and yes, I designed a logo for a condom company.  A gentle feather with a bit of a tilt at the tip.

I cut my chops at a Mom and Pop printing shop on upper State Street in Santa Barbara, CA.  The head designer the wife and the head of the print shop her husband.
Every day was pressure packed as I typeset, rendered drawings and cut and paste pounds of galleys and images to boards.  Yes, this was the old method before desktop computers.
 We had a lot of fun and we worked our asses off.  Some big name accounts used our services as well as walk-in customers.

Needless to say, I found Graphic Design boring.

Years later I decided to take a leap and signed up for a botanical painting class at my local arts center.  I immediately fell in love with the teacher's style.  She was quiet and each time she said something about what I was painting it had meaning and I could immediately move to the next step.  She became my painting guru.
I decided to sign up for private lessons and my love of botanical painting began.

Tiger Lily©            S. Varga  2014

It felt fulfilling to sit in a spot in the garden, take a deep breath and begin to paint what I felt.

Although botanical painting calls for a bit of perfection - you have to catch the spirit of the plant or flower.  In the moment.  They change by the minute as the sun shines and they start to bloom or fade.  You have only a small window of time to paint.

Part of the Aromatic Traditions™ logo contains a drawing of White Sage.  A plant that is dear to me as it is used often for smudging prior to ceremonies. (I always smudge my laboratory before I begin any product).

Here is a bit of blessing for you...

White Sage©  S. Varga 2014

May you always walk in beauty.

"Fake It 'Til You Make It"

Soul Sister Reunion          Morning Glory Cafe  1999

On a rainy day in Flagstaff, AZ, I looked out my window to see a bear naked little boy jumping up and down in mud puddles.  His blonde curly hair flying and his feet stomping.  It was a moment of sheer joy, a perfect photo op - I went next door to ask permission to take a picture of my neighbor's son and a restaurant was born.

We had now clue what we were doing.  We had a vision. And both, from indigenous backgrounds (both Native American in part but coasts apart), wanted to share our roots.  I loved gardening and wild-crafting.  Maria loved her incredible heritage and the ingredients dear to her from New Mexico.

We started literally from a dirt floor up and created an amazing place, not so much a restaurant but a place of incredible heart where people of all nations and beliefs could stop by for a bite.  And most certainly a chat.

Maria was bigger than life, I was shy and willing to work behind the scenes as an advocate.  We certainly needed one.  We were two young woman starting a business in a man's world.  Inspectors, landlords, permits, construction.  We handled it all.  We were harassed, adored, challenged and loved.  Best part of it all - we did it.

Every day we would tackle one problem or another and our battle cry was always "Fake it 'til we make it."

It gave us perspective and certainly an appreciation of the deep mystery of not knowing what the heck to do in any given moment.  We sure trusted that the answer would come -- eventually.

Not always in the package you would expect.  And always better.

Today the Morning Glory Cafe thrives - 30, yes, 30 years later.  The wonderful ladies who run the place, whom I've yet to meet in person, but support via social media, have still got the spirit.

The spirit that endures.  Making something with love for y'all to enjoy.

That's what I'm still doing at Aromatic Traditions™ and if you are ever in Flagstaff, AZ.  Please take a moment and stop by the Morning Glory Cafe and tell them that Sue sent you.

You can check 'em out here: http://morningglorycafeflagstaff.com/

Blessings.

In honor of Maria Delores Nelson Ruiz RIP my dear soul sister.

Gardening is an Instrument of Grace

Floating Garden    Aromatic Traditions 2015

Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help.  Gardening is an instrument of grace.

-Mary Sarton

When all else fails - I go to the garden.

Picking my first red, ripe tomato.  Boy, I had to be patient waiting for just the right moment to pull this one off the vine.  P-a-t-i-e-n-c-e.

I still grow tomatoes. So does my father.  His father, my grandfather, did too.  He would walk every night to his tomato plant down the hill step by step until his last day.  I often wondered if he planted that far away as inspiration to get up and move.  To remain a farmer.

Gardening is in my blood.

Before I moved to Portland, I fantasized about building a floating garden like the Aztec gardens you read about when you were a kid.

I salvaged an old swim platform and began to plant.

The first to thrive - Calendula Officinalis, a major ingredient in my products. (Check out this blogpost for a Calendula Infused oil: http://aromaticpassport.blogspot.com/2015/07/deep-in-their-roots.html)

The blossoms were huge.

We both found a home to be nourished and thrive.

Grace.

Deep In Their Roots...

Calendula officinalis harvest.  Oregon 2015

Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.

-Theodore Roethke

Today I cleared my drying baskets.  Two months on the Multnomah Channel of the Willamette River and the harvest is abundant.

Calendula is a well known medicinal herb also known as the Poor Man's Saffron.  At Aromatic Traditions I infuse cold pressed Organic Sweet Almond Oil with dried blooms and add it to many of my products.  It imbues a gorgeous golden (think sunlight) color and our skin takes in its healing properties.

Here is a simple recipe that you can try at home...

Calendula Salve Recipe

1/4 cup dried Calendula Flowers

1/2 cup Organic Olive Oil

1/8 cup Beeswax pastilles or Candelilla Wax (vegan)

10 drops of healing essential oil of your choice (ie. Lavender, Chamomile, Orange)

I like to use the solar infusion method...place dried flowers in mason jar, cover with oil and let sit in sun for several days until oil is a golden color.  To do on stove, gently heat oil and add dried flowers. Turn heat off and let infuse until oil is cool.  Strain flowers from oil with cheesecloth.

To make salve, warm infused oil gently to a temperature that allows the wax of your choice to melt.  Blend, cool, add your essential oils and pour into container(s).

Enjoy.

If You Do Not Change Direction...

Hot Summer Harvest                    Portland OR 2015

If you do not change direction you may end up where you are heading.

                       -Lao Tzu

How do you embrace change?  I would love to hear from you in the comments below.  We can join as community in celebration of letting go and inviting in the new, delirious, exciting, and challenging moments that cross our paths daily as we define ourselves.

Blessings.