back in june, i started work on sb’s new fall collection – working title idiomatic. it was a collection of scents inspired by linguistic idioms. i’ve been a grammar and word nerd since sophomore year in high school and sb has had a tradition of wordplay since day one. i had the collection roughly sketched out and had completed 2 of the 5 scents. i met with matthew, our genius illustrator, to come up with some fabulous art. by the time august rolled around, i was confident i could get everything done before my summer vacation up to alaska. i work best under pressure anyway.
the alaska trip was kind of a coup. i had really wanted to go a couple years back after watching too many episodes of northern exposure. but when my mom suggested i join her and her boyfriend on their summer vacation, i said yes immediately. i had only been in alaska about 2 hours when i decided to scrap idiomatic and start over.
we were standing in a little hut and a man was carving a totem pole. it was a very touristy moment, but the tradition and artistry were clear. what struck me more than the photo op was the smell of western red cedar. i had bought some western red essential oil a couple years ago and had always found the aroma a little overwhelming. it’s sweet and musty and very particular. having no reference apart from my little bottle, i found it challenging to work into a composition. standing there, i knew immediately what kind of tree this man was carving. the smell was intoxicating and i decided then and there what needed to be done.
totem eclipse is the aromatic translation of that experience. it’s a blend of the forest smells that surrounded that hut. it’s the shaving of the totem pole and the fresh western red cedar. it’s the skunk cabbage that lines the Alaskan forest floor and the earth we tracked back with us. it’s the moment i found inspiration for north by northwest.
the first thing i did when i got home, i pulled out that western red and got to work. it was finished that first morning back. you never know when the muse will strike or the wind will change. totem is all about surrendering to the moment and recognizing it when it shows up. happy smelling kiddies,
the chairman
If you're still in NW mode at all, you should find a way to stick your nose into some freshly cut Yellow Cedar. I used to work around a sawmill in Vancouver, BC and got to know this aroma well. It is TOTALLY different than the western red cedar (which is pretty different from the cedar that they make cedar chests out of... Don't know what kind THAT is.)
The closest thing i've found to YC in the perfume world is CDG's Monocle Hinoki. Hinoki wood is sort of the Japanese equivalent to yellow cedar. Anyway, the yellow is a very creamy and intoxicatingly good-smelling wood and somebody should figure out a way to use it for real. Funk it up a bit with some animalia and it might be glorious.
Posted by: matterjam | 26 October 2011 at 04:53 PM
i've never even heard of yellow cedar ... sounds amazing! i do have some hinoki and it's the star the sb scent "tok'yo mama" and "tm fizzzz". but if i ever come across some yellow cedar, i'll definitely get some for the collection!
Posted by: the chairman | 26 October 2011 at 05:20 PM
Yeah, im not even sure anyone has ever actually used it as a perfumery material... If im ever passing by a sawmill and catch a whiff, i'll pop in to see if they'll let me bag up some sawdust and i'll send it to you for reference purposes. :^D
Posted by: matterjam | 26 October 2011 at 08:41 PM