The alchemical trinity of Chaparral

The perfume Chaparral is not a reference to the creosote bush, Larrea tridentata, which sometimes goes by many name chaparral, as well as greasewood and la gobernadora. I named the fragrance after the California biome distinguished by wet winters, hot summers and drought-tolerant shrub land. This biome is also found in the Mediterranean, South America, Australia and South Africa. The word chaparral comes from the Portuguese and Spanish word “chaparro" meaning evergreen oak shrub land.

Back in 2006, when Chaparral was conceived and launched, my intention was to bring awareness to this community of plants which are very undervalued in Los Angeles where residents opt for pesticide and water hungry lawns and non native palm trees, rather than the local sages, artemisias, oaks, etc. 

In creating the perfume Chaparral®, I weaved together my love and commitment to the indigenous plants of California with skills in aromatic plant preparation and the artistry of perfume formulation.

“Art arises when the secret vision of the artist

and the manifestation of nature

agree to find new shapes.”

~ Kahlil Gibran

My husband, Greg Spalenka states that there are three main components of great art which applies to the full spectrum of the sensory realm including visual, auditory, culinary and olfactory orchestrations.

He adheres to these three components as a trinity of "Mind, Body and Spirit":

Mind; the idea and/or concept

Body; representing the materials

Spirit; the love, passion, integrity and/or soul nature

In alchemy the trinity is Sulfur, Mercury, and Salt, code words for what is also referred to as "Soul, Spirit, and Body"

Sulfur = Soul = Consciousness 

Mercury = Spirit  = Mind

Salt = Body  = Mineral

So if we go back to Greg's trinity, I have overlayed Greg's trinity with that of alchemy in this way, substituting Greg's word Spirit for Soul/Love.

Mind; the idea and/or concept / Mercury = Spirit

Body; representing the materials / Salt = Body

Soul/Love, passion, integrity and/or soul nature / Sulfur = Soul, Consciousness

All these components, working together at a high level of sophistication and awareness, create a synergy, where each component becomes more than the sum of its parts.

In perfume the mind aspect (Mercury) is the concept that the fragrance is built on, encompassing much more than a scent based on a fragrance family or type. The body aspect (Salt) is made of the materials contained within the perfume, the artist’s palette. Soul (Sulphur) is the burning passion of your creation, this is where the true artist weaves their own authenticity into the constructed artwork using their consciousness. Each is important and is required for the finished art to transcend the ordinary, to reach the heights of the sublime.

Over the last twenty years I have come to keen realizations regarding California natives and their value. The journey beginning with guided instructional walks led by herbalist David Crow back in the 90's when he would lead nature walks in the Santa Monica Mountains. Davids introduction than deepened with lessons from communicating with the mighty Oaks on my property and its surroundings, when we lived in the Santa Monica Mountains.

The California native Coastal live oak was the one who spoke to me and revealed the value of native plants just as I began organizing my community to protect four large trees on an lot next to us. In an attempt to secure the safety of the trees I created a perfume devoted to them. The perfume is called “Q” for Quercus agrifolia and was the first in a series titled Californica.

The second perfume in the series, Chaparral® was birthed in October 2006 when I was researching incense. Incense was used by a variety of cultures depending on the plant material in their particular region. The indigenous people of California use the sacred white sage, Salvia apiana, to clear a space or fumigate an individual. I chose to create an incense themed perfume devoted to the California indigenous people based on the plants of the area.

The trinity mentioned above works in Chaparral like this:

Mind/Concept | Mercury/Spirit: The native plants of California, the chaparral.

Soul/Love: The soul nature of this perfume is expressed through the mindful harvesting and preparation of the plant material. The fragrance is created by hand with an intention to expand awareness of native plants.

Body/Material: actual, vital plant material used in tinctures and essential oils to represent an “authentic” fragrance of the regions native plants.

California native plants add tremendous value to a California garden including: authenticity to a landscape design, low water needs, benefits to wildlife habitat, increased biodiversity, and the ability of these plants, particularly the Coastal Live oak, to sequester carbon. Learn more about the chaparral at the website for the California Chaparral Institute.

Related links here at the journal:

Restoring the Woodland

California Dreaming

The Shadow

Medicine Wheel

Oak Tree Circle

Yesterday, just as I was about to head off to the perfumery a gardener with a chain saw almost starting going at the oaks on the neighboring lot. We were able to fend off the fellow by taking photos and calling the police. Since I'm not sure if this method of protection will be sustainable I am asking each of you to encircle the seven trees in love and protection. If you have some Q Perfume than please anoint yourselves with this elixir devoted to the California oak.

Q
Fragrance family: WOOD, CHYPRE
Main notes: Resin, wood chord/accord, Italian bergamot, tinctured Coastal Live Oak leaves

Return of the Light
A New Green Cloak
Q Queurcus agrifolia - Reviews
+Q Perfume - Review
Celtic Lunar Month Oak - Reviews & Links
Ode to Trees
Celtic Lunar Month: Oak
Q Review - Review
The Green Man
A Secret in the Forest
The Duir Way
Save the Oaks
Scent of the Day: Oak
Spirit of Nature
Medicine Wheel

Celtic Tree Month of Oak

I've been diligently finalizing my paper for the proceedings of my presentation titled "The Tree of Life: A mystical approach to the art of botanical perfumery" for the Beyond Aromatics conference up in Seattle this Autumn.

The paper is due today which happens to be the first day of the Celtic Tree Month of Oak. Thus, the scent of this auspicious Tuesday is Q for Quercus agrifolia, the California native oak.

Read more about the Celtic Tree Ogham, the oak and Q at these posts here at the journal:
Celtic Lunar Month: Oak
Tree Ogham
Q Review
Q, Queurcus agrifolia
The Duir Way

Find Q liquid and solid at the site here.

The Birds and the Bees

The heavy rains from last week gave our very dry earth a much needed soaking producing a few blooms in the garden.

The girls have been hard at work collecting nectar and pollen. A hive check is over due, which will likely result in a frame of honey or two.

The Cistus is flowering. I went out to photograph the blooms in the afternoon and saw the petals on the ground, seems I've got to get out there super early in the morning if I am going to capture a photo of the flower without sunshine hitting it. The evergreen shrub, also known as Purple Rock Rose, is not a California native but tolerates drought, poor soil and little maintenance like its neighboring plants.

The front slope is finally filling out a bit. The wild roses and Matilja Poppies (pictured above) have been spreading on there own, while animals have been seeding here and there.

Meanwhile, the succulents that were planted on the lot by a previous owner are doing quite well. I'm not particularly found of them since it perpetuates the myth that cactus are California native plants. Greg really likes them though, so we are putting them all along the fence side of the driveway where the slope doesn't need strong roots.

Rosa 2014

Monday morning I filtered the 2014 edition of Rosa liquid perfume and began listing all the variations. The wafting of the aromatic molecules from the filtering process wafted throughout the entire house for a few days and is still very present within the studio.

The photo above of the Rosa flacon was taken amongst fresh roses from a friend in Topanga, although beautiful and lush with a heavenly order they are not the California rose. Thus, once the real CA roses beginning blooming in the garden perhaps I'll capture a more authentic portrait of the fragrance. Since we just had a massive rain storm, this may transpire in a couple months.

Rosa flacon

Rosa 1 gram vial

Rosa sample set of liquid and solid

Rosa solid perfume sample

The Wood Land

I woke up Thursday morning to the sound of chainsaws echoing through the woodland. When I hear this sound I become a bit distressed because every so often it is a neighbor taking down an Oak, or some other native tree like the grand Sycamores.

After breakfast I became so agitated by the sound I decided to go off and investigate. I put on my hat and headed off toward the sound. Sure enough I found the source but couldn't get a good enough view to see if they were cutting down or trimming the large, ancient oak on the property. This particular neighbor has taken down oaks before, usually on the weekend when it is difficult to get someone out here to stop them, thus I was very worried.

 As I attempted to get a better look from the street a neighbor from another home came out and asked if I needed help. I explained to him that I was concerned that the person with the chain saws might be cutting down an oak tree. He immediately launched into a story explaining how last week he tried to stop some unlicensed tree trimmers who were digging up oak stumps from a lot just up the way. Then he invited me in to look at the pictures he had taken, which I have included in the post.

The lot that these oak stumps were being removed is one of many that greedy developers have decided to take oaks out before getting their plans approved. A despicable act that occurs quite often, despite that the developers don't end up getting what they want. Usually a ten year moritorium is put on the lot before they are allowed to build. This causes them to sell the lot which then brings in a new developer. It's a vicious, re-occurring circle.

In the case of this particular lot, one of my oak protector buddies came out to video tape what was taking place and told the tree trimmers that since the stumps had new growth they were not allowed to take the stumps out. Another neighbor called the police and the stumps were saved, for now.

Although the economy doesn't seem to be getting better, I'm thinking it must be if the developers are swooping into the woodland once more. This will require all of us in the Oak tribe to organize and work together to protect the few grandfather oaks that still exist in this little patch of woods.

I created the fragrance Q (for Quercus) as my way of making art to deal with these hideous folk who take out the native oaks. Besides making art and organizing the neighbors I'm not sure what else I could possibly do, thus here I am writing to get the frustration out of my system.

California Native Plant Tour 2013

The 10th Annual Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour took place Saturday & Sunday. More than 40 gardens in the Los Angeles region, each planted with at least 50% California natives were showcased.

During a visit to a patio garden in Santa Monica I heard the host talking about a honey bee with "blue knees." I bent down to take a look and sure enough the little feral bee had blue violet pollen sacks! I'd never seen anything like it before. I'm intending that the blue is due to the color of the pollen from the flower and not a toxic pesticide or fertilizer. The wildflower the bee was gathering nectar from is Gilia capitata  a species of flowering plant in the phlox family, native to western North America.

Garden 4 in Burbank
The photos below is from a garden that was surprisingly planted during the high summer heat of July, one of the worst times to plant natives, yet they survived due to a very diligent gardener. Here's the text from the tour website:  "They killed their lawn! This two-year-old, owner-designed, 1250 sq. ft. front yard is now a thriving wildlife habitat and gathering place for family and entertaining—and a showcase for colorful, fragrant native flora, water conservation, and energy and waste reduction."

Anacapa Pink Island Morning Glory hedge in Burbank, the honey bees love this plant. 

I'm considering planting this one where our non-native morning glories are failing.

The house in Burbank had quite a lot of wildflowers, this fuzzy, 

golden section beauty above and below is called Caterpillar Phacelia, Phacelia cicutaria.

 

On Sunday we traveled over the hill to the Santa Monica area. Garden 26 in Brentwood  This garden is "a two-year-old 2,000 sq. ft. front yard of sage, buckwheat, penstemon and other drought-tolerant natives that provide color, support wildlife and tolerate heavy soil. Enhancing the scene is a very old coast live oak that elegantly overhangs the driveway. Drip irrigation and a weather-smart controller complement green elements of the home." This cute 1950's cottage, which has a similar feel to our little house, featured blooming Ceanothus and a small field of native poppies. Due to the owners mindful planting her garden is filled with the song of birds. This garden was designed by Nancy Cipes and Margaret Oakley Otto of Oakley Gardens.

Native strawberry as a ground cover, we planted this one during the autumn 

on our front slope under the oaks, doesn't quite look like this...yet!

 The view of the front garden from the living room window.

 

The welcome mat had a honey bee!

Unfortunately I had too much going on this weekend and wasn't able to visit some of the spectacular gardens located in other parts of the city like Pasadena and downtown areas.

More posts here at the journal about California native plants can be found here.

Woodsii

While prowling social media this morning I came across an interview on the Mountain Rose blog with herbalist Kiva Rose. The last question in the interview is "Is there one herb that you feel especially connected to, and if so, in what way?" Kiva choose the Wild Rose, Rosa woodsii, which is a sister to the woodland rose Rosa californica. I've seen Rosa woodsii at the Theodore Payne Foundation, it looks almost identical to Rosa californica.

Thus my SOTD, scent of the day, will be Rosa. 

Here is how Kiva answered the question, which is true for Rosa californica....

"While there are a number plants I feel closely allied to as medicine, the closest is our native Wild Rose,  Rosa woodsii. It’s a native plant common to much of the American West, and I love its rambling, brambly ways just as much as I adore its sweet scent, sour hips, and incredible medicine. Perhaps because of its beauty, the Rose’s healing properties are popular yet often underrated in modern herbalism, but I find it to be a profound nervine, anti-inflammatory, anti-infective, and tissue healer, in addition to its other traits. I certainly wouldn’t want to be without it! I also value the Rose for its thorns, the lessons of boundaries and self-protection inherent in such wickedly curved weapons. The Wild Rose is generous but with clear boundaries, abundant but wild, sweet but multi-faceted. I am forever finding new lessons to be learned from this plant and feel connected to it through both shared traits as well as the ways in which we’ve worked together to provide healing in so many people."

Vote for ROSA!

The perfume devoted to the California native wild Rose, Rosa, has been nominated in an Etsy poll for "Which flowers make your garden grow?" Vote for Rosa botanical perfume as your favorite May flower.

Here's how to vote:
1. Go to the Etsy main page here: http://www.etsy.com/
2. If you have an account, sign in by clicking the "sign in" button in the upper right corner.
3. If you don't have an account it's super simple to create one by clicking on the register button in the upper right corner.
4. Once you are signed in, go to this link and click on the little circle just under the photo on the left side. Then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the "cast your vote" button.
The photo may change places throughout the week. Intending she moves up to the top! Please help out.

Thank you so much!
Cheers to Roses, in particular the California wild rose which is blooming right now.

Q, Quercus agrifolia

Here on this page you will find of links to my writings relating to the perfume known as Q, which includes a few reviews, in no particular order. Enjoy.

"I love fragrances and everything that my favorite ones evoke but I was truly captivated by Roxana's Q perfume the first time I experienced it. It evokes something ancient and at the same time very intimate and personal. To me it's a "remembered" fragrance that taps into the green world of Faerie in the same way that a painting or sculpted image can. When I wear it, which is often, I feel closer to that elusive and magical world."

~Wendy Froud

Heather Ettlinger of Perfume Tourist

Perfume Smellin' Things, Beth
Sprig: BEST Natural & Organic Perfumes
Perfume Shrine
Perfume Smellin' Things, Tom

The Non-Blonde

Posts here at this journal:
The Duirway
The Origins of Quercus, now Q
Beltane Perfume
The Heart Note

Q perfume at the the Illuminated Perfume website

Illuminated Image for our perfume has been created by Greg Spalenka, ©Splaenka

Pregnant Vegetation

We love various writers for different reasons, for example I adore Phillip Pullman and Virginia Woolf as well as Patrick Suskind. Diversely different writers, each brilliant. Same can be said for film...although here I can go from the Matrix to Orlando to Monty Python.

Writers and critiques of perfume are quite varied as well, the luminaries have distinct voices and sometimes tastes. One of my all time favorite fragrance writers is Tom Pease over at Perfume Smellin' Things. I think it's his strong sense of wit blended with a heavy dose of real authenticity that attracts so many readers to him, me included.

With extreme pride I invite you to journey on over to the Perfume Smellin' Things blog where you can savor some of Tom's wit directed toward a Valentine I sent him. Yes indeed, he is one of the few that received one of the handmade Valentines I mentioned in a previous post.

Again, it was one of those "zone" things that hit one me one day and had me scrambling to create Valentines within a few days. The idea came to me while talking with Greg is the studio. I had asked him a question and then saw in the corner of my gaze the answer. This then morphed into a quick and dirty heart felt and hand made Valentine bonanza.

As an editorial illustrator I would create special images for specific holidays, go to Greenwich Village where I had my letterpress studio and print up special promos for my favorite art directors. I've been holding the intention of doing something similar with perfume. This mailing was a little step in that direction, although on a smaller scale to a very select group of individuals.


I decorated twelve little cardboard heart shaped boxes with paper and paint. There are currently five solid perfumes in my line: Lyra, Sierra, Aurora, Cimbalom and Chaparral®. Sometimes randomly, sometimes mindfully I placed three solid minis into each little box along with some festive shredded red paper. All were sent out with extra doses of love and appreciation to each recipient. Tom, ever so heartfelt, decided to use his as a giveaway over at Perfume Smellin' Things. Thus...head on over and leave a comment to be entered in the draw.

If you don't win, get your own set at the Illuminated Perfumery at Etsy.

Goodnight and Goodluck!