Ramblin' Rose Hat Co.

This past August, after years of waiting for the right moment, I was able to fulfill a wish of having a hat made just for me. The idea of doing something like this was planted by my local friend Geninne, who when I shared how my current hat doesn't stay on my head if there is wind, said that if I were to have a hat custom made that would not happen. She then told me about the local hat maker Sam of Ramblin' Rose. I had heard of Sam via the small maker community we have here in Santa Fe, but hadn't explored her work. Once I did, it was clear that this would be the way to go, however the timing wasn't quite right.

Then, in August two things happened collided:

1. It was my birthday month and Greg asked me what I wanted.
2. I received Sam's "first to know, custom hat spots" email, stating that she was now open for new bookings.

The synergy between 1 & 2 was quite auspicious, thus I moved forward with my wish.

First step to kick off the process was making an appointment at her super cute workshop on upper canyon, to nail down measurements and design.

The process can take anywhere between 6-8 months, depending on supply chains, etc., thus, I've been practicing patience, knowing that it likely wont be ready until mid January if I'm lucky.

SHIFTING, thinking circular

Supporting Sam is a step in empowering and investing in a small, local business. Former investment banker Catherine Austin Fitts shares how the most important investment we can make is in our community. This requires a paradigm shift, instead of making purchases in anything having to do with the conglomerates, that invest our money in global companies who do not have the best interest in human beings, the animal kingdom nor Mother Earth.

Since "sen sir ship" has become a thing now, where we are not allowed to speak our minds and our freedom of speech is being threatened, I will begin to use code, like the ancient alchemists who had to hide their work and develop symbols to communicate under the guise of the dark lords.

Supporting and placing our money into specific investment companies (V), is undermining all of us. It' super important to step outside of that box and think in a circular format.

INDIE!

I am also supporting an indie, female maker and the slow fashion movement. Instead of purchasing a less expensive hat, investing in a handmade item that is made for me, by the hands of a local maker is part of the new economy which we all can be part of manifesting.

There's a phrase going around that states fashion is the second most polluting industry after oil, guess what, that's not completely true, another example of why its so important to do thorough research on things before just taking someones (a conglomerate or an organizations point of view, especially when an organization is funded by a creepy computer company.) Getting back to fashion, the most important aspects to keep in mind when making purchases is the follow,  inspired by a list on EcoCult:

• Consume less new, conventional fashion.
• Buy secondhand instead of new whenever possible
• When you have to buy new, buy it from an indie maker, or if its a bigger company choose a more sustainable label that has measured its emissions for the company or per product and is striving to reduce and offset its footprint.
• Support political action to limit global carbon emissions from every source. However, be mindful, once again everything is not what it seems Part of the dynamic here on planet Earth is that duality is everything.

If we each make the effort of spending our time, energy and money in a mindful way, we will be part of the big shift into a circular, holistic based system that holds the micro along with the macro in our collective heart.

The Mark of Hands

My hands with Santa Fe lilacs ©RoxanaVilla

As our world continues to rotate more and more toward automation and tech, it is crucial to acknowledge and uphold the heritage of the mark of hand and fragrance making. By respecting traditions, along with the linguistics that accompany those rich customs woven with wisdom, we then acknowledge the cultures who birthed these ways of being in the world. From this perspective, there exists an inherent balance, bringing us into living at peace and in harmony with the Earth.

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.”

― Henry David Thoreau

Perfume, the story of a murderer film screen shot 

Enfleurage, a method of capturing scent from delicate flowers, likely invented by the Ancient Egyptians and then resurrected by the French was highlighted at the recent Pitti Fragrance conference in Italy.

After some investigation, I see that although the highlighted process is being termed enfleurage, it is actually an oil infusion of flowers performed in India that the flavor and fragrance manufacturer have decided to refer to as enfleurage.

Once more, we have the re-invention of a traditional word attributed to a process, or term, of something other than what it is. I've seen this occur with the word Cologne, a city in Germany that has deep historical roots in creating a light and refreshing citrus and herb spritz. The term cologne is now being used to define a fragrance for men of a solid fragrance, instead of using the generic word perfume, that appears to have taken on a feminine connotation.

The challenge with ascribing new and/or different meanings to words, is that the true origin and historical context of the actual definition diminished and under valued. 

This occurs within the corporate fragrance industry, as illustrated with the attribution of the term enfleurage at the Pitti conference, but also in the indie maker community. At the root of this conjuring trick, like the shell game on the streets of New York City, this sleight of hand ripples out and undermines cultural legacies.

The cause of dismissing humanities lineage is most often rooted in greed and ignorance. Becoming more and more obvious, with each day, is the domination of corporate institutions who favor special interests and profits over the benefit of the planet and or human beings. 

Joel Bakan's book, which was made into a film, The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power is an excellent example. If we observe the actions within a range of industries such as: pharmaceutical, oil, manufacturing and advertising, greed is the primary behavior at the core. When this occurs, the value of cultural legacy is significantly undervalued. One example that illustrates this concept quite vividly is the hunger for domination by the killing, removing or polluting indigenous people and their lands. Here in New Mexico, the mining and milling of Uranium being used for nuclear energy is a prime example. "This practice has caused problems, including on Navajo lands where more than half of small, abandoned uranium mines from the middle of the 20th century and their wastes remain."1

On the other end of the spectrum are the artisan makers who are not primarily motivated by greed, but sometimes possess a bit of ignorance and/or lack of education where they then ascribe a historical word to fit their needs. Like with the word cologne, as mentioned above, you can read more of my rant regarding the misuse of perfume words here.

Whether with a conglomerate, a perfume organization or an indie maker we observe a deficit of respect. Perhaps its due to our modern times, with so much greed running the world. Certainly our political leaders are not good role models. Gee, have you seen the documentary Planet of the Humans, produced by Michael Moore? That was eye opening, and although enlightening, very depressing. 

The best role model I have found that embodies integrity is Vandana Shiva, if you don't know about her check out The Seeds of Vandana Shiva. When we honor our roots and esteem those who came before us in tandem with deeply bowing to Mother Earth, then appropriating and redefining words for corporate and self interest will no longer surface as a prominent behavior amongst humans.

Related to the long tail of honoring words and their original definitions is supporting small, indie and handmade as a form of respect, preservation and spiritual path—a small act that does great good. As the world continues to shift, we gain more perspective on the critical need for each of us to become more fluid and aware.

If you’ve been following my work as an artist, whether visual or aromatic, than this may be repetitive. I bring it up again as a crucial reminder to our evolution. By focusing our attention on the arts, beauty, indie makers, those who work with nature and their hands, we contribute to the entire fabric of life. It is one of those very small acts that has great value, and undulates out, diminishing the power of the corporations and their ferocious need for greed.

It's crucial that we each take individual responsibility for what has happened to the world and begin to focus on small acts that contribute to the entire ecosystem and our personal role in the survival of humanity, nature and kindness

The mark of the hand, whether in a teacup, a journal, a bracelet, a small plant or food grown from traditional seed—each contains the subtle energy of a maker, each contains a vitality of incalculable worth.

1. EPA.gov website

Botanical Perfume Classes in March & April

Art of Botanical Perfume

March 2nd & 3rd in Encino, CA

April 6th & 7th in Santa Fe, NM

The Art of Botanical Perfume is a level one class, an introduction to making perfume with plants. In the past this was a one day course that always felt rushed and overwhelming, thus now I set it up over two days that will include these seven categories:

• 1. What is Perfume?
• 2. History of Perfume
• 3. Tools & Raw Materials
• 4. Fragrance Families & Types
• 5. Olfactory Awareness
• 6. Artistry
• 7. Orchestration

For an more in depth description of the workshop look at the online course, although keep in mind that we are squeezing 70 hours into two days. The Art of Botanical Perfume live or online course is a perquisite for the advanced classes. Seating is limited, grab your spot today.

___________________________________________________________________

Chord Construction & Perfume Types

March 9th & 10th in Encino, CA

April 13th & 14th Santa Fe, NM

This two day workshop is for those who have taken the 

ART OF BOTANICAL PERFUME 

class live or online course

DAY ONE : Chord Building A chord or accord in perfume is a term borrowed from music referring to constructing a synergy of notes that will be added to your perfume to create more complexity. In this day long workshop you will learn the notes and essences associated with eight fragrance families, how they relate to each other and how to make them more complex. These are the eight fragrance families we will focus on:

• Green
• Floral
• Earth
• Wood
• Spice
• Gourmand
• Citrus
• Fruit

By the end of the day you will have created a few chords that will be used on Day Two when we construct a perfume within a specific class.

DAY TWO : Perfume Types Perfumes are categorized into categories or types, which are also referred to as classes. This organizational system is based on the overall, universal scent impression. We will learn about these types, the notes that go into their formulation and construct one or more, depending on our time.

• Chypre
• Oriental
• Fougère (meaning fern in French)
• Floral
• Green
• Leather

All supplies & tools are included with the purchase of this class. Please bring a notebook for jotting down your formulas. By the end of the each day you will have gained new insights to add complexity to your botanical perfume formulas and knowledge to continue working with new skill sets.

Seating is limited, thus I recommend enrolling ASAP to grab your seat

Marilyn Neuhart 1930 - 2017

As I entered the Girard wing at the Museum of International Folk Art here in Santa Fe, I stopped abruptly and had to catch my breath, stunned at how much it "felt" and resembled the interior of the Neuhart house in Hermosa Beach, CA. It comes of no surprise of course, given that Alexander Girard and Marilyn Neuhart formed a creative partnership in 1961 when she created embroidered dolls for his Textiles & Objects shop in NYC.

Although I had visited the museum and Girard wing in the 80's with Ben, Marilyn's son, the shock of the shared kindred spirit of these two designers was much more palatable, perhaps because of her recent departure from this earthy realm.

Marilyn was born on March 3, 1930, in Long Beach, California. Her birth date 03-30-30 seems extremely auspicious with all those three's and zeros. Three is the number of Venus and the Empress, it is associated with imagination, creativity and the artist.

I always felt Marilyn knew she was an Empress, especially when I remember her sitting at the head of the Thanksgiving table with her feast spread out for everyone to not only savor but also take in the beauty of her orchestration.

She attended Long Beach public schools, Long Beach City College and UCLA. Marilyn began her long career as a freelance designer in the Los Angeles area since her graduation. She taught design, painting and color theory at UCLA, UCLA Extension and at East Los Angeles Junior College.

Marilyn and her husband John Neuhart, worked together professionally since their marriage, and collaborated on numerous design projects, including graphics, films and exhibitions. From 1980 to 1998 they were partners in the design firm Neuhart Donges Neuhart, whose clients included the IBM Corporation, Herman Miller, Inc., The Huntington Library and Art Gallery, the Doheny Library, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Government of Taiwan and local businesses and institutions.

John and Marilyn authored and designed of three books on the history of the Eames Office. The first was Eames Design (1989) followed by Eames House (1994) and the two book set The Story of Eames Furniture, a comprehensive history of furniture development in the Eames Office.

Together John and Marilyn were an inspirational team, working together to create beautiful invites to dinner parties at their home, labels and cards for the holidays or the magnificent doll house that took over six years to create for Eve. Below are a few details of the doll house, including a tiny basket with three of Marilyn's dolls as miniatures. The bright, colorful palette and since of whimsy that was part of their signature weaves throughout every part of their life.

The day Ben and I graduated from Otis College of Art and Design, back in the eighties, Marilyn made us glorious crowns for us to wear that were given to us in a special box made by John. Talk about feeling special! 

There is also a photo of her with Ray Eames and John sitting on the lawn of MacArther Park waiting the graduation ceremony to begin. I believe the photo was taken by her son Andrew Neuhart.

I'd love to share more pictures of their truly wonderful and very authentic style, but the CD's are in a box some where within the scary storage closet here in our temporary rental. I'm not sure if I can readily find it.  I'll take a look in a few weeks when my time should be a but more expansive. What's become quite obvious, as I sift through all the photos of John and Marilyn over the last thirty plus years, is that I'll be sharing more about them and their legacy as designers.

Here's a little quote from Marilyn...

"I started to quilt when I was a small child sitting with my mother and my aunts 

over a quilting frame. I continued to sew, albeit intermittently, as I went through 

high school and college. After I left teaching for a period and with two small children, 

I became a fulltime freelance graphic designer and once again took up my needle in earnest. 

After making small cloth dolls for my children and friends, I made a doll for designer 

Alexander Girard, who asked me to make a large number of them the new Textiles & Objects 

shop he was designing in New York City for the Herman Miller Furniture Company. 

Over the next few years  (in the early 1960's), I made nearly 2,000 dolls 

for the shop and for  Girard's exhibition projects." 

Read more about Marilyn by jumping to this little blog I created for her back in 2007 as Christmas gift, naively thinking she might want to contribute to it by sharing her wit, sense of design, inspiration, recipes and abundant stories. In hind site, it was most likely a projection on my part, I was so inspired, in awe actually, by her sense of style and her very Aires take charge and get things done attitude.

Once I asked her how she had managed to do so much as a mother of two children, wife, designer, cook and creator extraordinaire, etc., her response was..."Just keep going, without thinking about it." Hence her chosen name for the blog "Don't Be A Bump on a Blog." She had absolutely no patience for laziness. As I edit this post, adding more memories and photos, it occurs to me that perhaps I will add more on her blog, building it as a resource for those of you her are inspired by her as well as John.

Besides having a great sense of color, pattern, texture, design and flavor, she was also a bit of a sensualist. Marilyn liked to take baths and enjoyed beautiful scents. Her favorite fragrances were 4711 and roses, the photo below is a vintage bottle of the illustrious perfume that she had in the guest bathroom. I would gift her bottles of my Blossom cologne and bath salts for the holidays and her birthday.

Lucky for us, House Industries worked with Marilyn and John to recreate some of their wonderful designs such as a poster of the hand print, which I've always been a huge fan of.

Marilyn passed on September 1st, 2017 just as Greg and I were driving through the desert on our way to Santa Fe. In a way, one of the many reasons I am living in Santa Fe today is because of Marilyn. She and her fabulous style which will live on for years to come, especially if books about her creative life and dolls are published. Marilyn was an integral thread in the Mid Century modern design revolution whose craft-womanship is an inspiration, particularly to all the makers who are part of the current DIY culture.

See more of the Neuhart house and Marilyn's fantastic style in a few of these posts here at the journal.

Photos: Museum of International Folk Art,  John and Marilyn's home in Hermosa Beach, a variety of shots at the Neuhart house of Marilyn's embroidery, quilt, handprint, 4711 perfume bottle and Mexican statues display.

Edited April 13, 2018

One foot in front of the other

This journey of moving both the perfumery and our household has been epic! During the entire process I've been listening to a a book series proposed by my daughter Eve. Today, as I was driving from our little woodland house to my moms home in Encino, I realized that most of our personal experiences mimic iconic stories of heros/heroines. We all have characters in our lives that hurtle fire balls at us and a wizard/wizardess or two who come to help us as we attempt to refine ourselves into the wizard/wizardess. Personally I like the image of Galadirel as the powerful force that battles the dark forces with me, but Serafina Pekkala is pretty cool too. I'm sure there are others I could conjure given some extra time. Who do you envision coming to help you or yourself becoming? I really need to go check out the new Wonder Woman movie.

Ah, speaking of fantasy, Greg is currently at Comic Con in San Diego, find him in Artist Alley at table EE-24. He took the Divine Alchemy banner with him along with lots of original art that he has been threatening to burn in a bonfire in New Mexico. If you have always wanted to own one of his vintage original pieces, get it now before the burn!

Speaking of characters, the garage sale was good but a really odd experience due to some of the very eccentric personality traits that descended at the event on Saturday. Ben mentioned that "garage sale people are a different breed", yea, no kidding! Thing is, I go to garage and estate sales hunting for vintage treasures, and I am definitely not part of that breed. However in the end we were able to get rid of things make some bucks to help this journey we are on and also meet lots of my moms neighbors.

Next on the task list is donating items for a tax deduction and/or  listing others on venues such as Craigslist. I began the process of listing items with my four original, vintage Emeco chairs. After taking the photos, writing the listing and putting it up I'm feeling sorta done with selling furniture and other stuff online. I prefer to donate the stuff and move onto teaching about the plants and pure fume. If your interested in the Emeco chairs, keep reading, if not I'll catch ya later with another update soon, probably with dates on live, local classes.

The Emeco chairs are light and extremely cool, Greg and I decided to sell them since we are planning on going for a more classical type style in Santa Fe. While typing out the description I learned quite a bit more about the chairs and the company that have made me fall in love with them again!

The legend of these simple, sturdy, humble chairs begins with its founder Wilton Carlyle Dinges and the creation of the Electrical Machine and Equipment Company (EMECO), still located in Hanover, Pennsylvania.

Originally created in 1944 for US Navy submarines and warships to withstand harsh conditions such as salt water & air as well as an occasional torpedo blast. The story goes that Dinges tested the strength of the chair by tossing them out of a sixth-story window! By using salvaged aluminum, which was plentiful in 1944, Emeco perfected a 77-step proprietary process which yields aluminum three times stronger than steel resulting in a chair so durable that it has an estimated life span of 150 years.

The chair has survived seven decades of the military’s need and now is a fixture in restaurants, hotels, offices and film. Emeco’s all-aluminum chairs and stools come with a lifetime guarantee and tested to withstand 1,700 pounds of weight. Besides the aluminum is completely recyclable.

Images:
Divine Alchemy and Spalenka paintings ©GregSpalenka
Serrafina Pikala screen shot

Artistry Video for the Art of Botanical Perfume

I've had an amazing team helping out with elements of the Art of Botanical Perfume online course. Greg being the principal, who acts as a art director for my brand but also my all around support person. Jeff: who helps out with graphics from time to time. I contracted him to create the pdf's, many of which ended up being pretty elaborate like the Essence slide show, the fragrance wheel and the timeline. He and Greg worked together on  the essence kit for the course. The videos for the course were shot by Brian Oh and were then edited by Brian, Greg and a little help by my daughter Eve.
As you can see many artists helping hands facilitated the artistry of this course.

Here's the video that accompanied the opening lesson of the Artistry Module from the course, filmed by Brian and then edited by Greg.

Sign up for the course here.

Page 47, one of my most popular and best selling natural botanical perfumes, is back in the solid format!

Authentic natural, botanical perfumes that are handmade require patience because since they are produced with hands and real plant materials more time is required to make them. The slow food movement that came out of Italy in relation to food and the current artisan culture, or even bee keeping and re-doing a garden with California natives requires a gradual and deliberate slowing that is somewhat contradictory to the frenzy demanded by the outside world.

There are several fragrances that are currently sold out and I am working on like Rosa and Gracing the Dawn in their liquid form and Hedera helix and Figure 1: Noir as solids. The good news is that Page 47, a perennial favorite, is back in her solid state. Since my business has hit a new momentum that is making it a challenge to do so many of the tasks required for my business, I have started bringing in some friends and people to help out. This will allow me to focus more on things like keeping making perfumes and the launch for the online classes.

In the meantime, inhale, breathe deep and enjoy the pleasure of the moment.

Secrets of the Sea

Chiara Vigo is an elder in the south of Italy who is thought to be the only woman alive with the knowledge of skill to make sea silk shine like gold. The ancient knowledge of weaving the precious material was passed down to Chiara by her grandmother who had learned it from her mother. A matriarchal skill that was passed from one generation to another.

"Weaving the sea silk is what my family has been doing for centuries," Vigo says. "The most important thread, for my family, was the thread of their history, their tradition."1

Read the complete story with photos by following this link to the BBC Magazine article. Scent for today: GreenWitch.

1. BBC story by Max Paradiso

Image: Noble pen shell with byssus, harvesting fork. De Réaumur 1717 on parchment.

Plant Dye Workshop This Sunday!

The Plant Dye Workshop with Mona Lewis has been rescheduled for this Sunday, March 8th.  Mona has been putting a kit together for each attendee. If you would like to be included in the circle of students please contact one of us soon so that we can prepare for you.

The photos included in this post were taken here in the woodland of a dress and vest made by Mona as a fundraiser for Highland Hall Waldorf School. The fabrics were dyed using the technique we will learn on Sunday.

The models in these photos are Highland Hall alumnae Isabelle Howell and Kellee Bryant.

Pretty in Pinks

Today I poured Lyra solid into an oval compact for a customer in South Africa which transported me into a "pink" mood. It also occurred to me that Lyra is a perfect in between season perfume, due to the balance of warm amber with sweet floral and licorice.

Here is a little assemblage of handmade and vintage beauties inspired by the pink hue of Lyra. Clockwise from top: Lyra Botanical Perfume, Vintage Lace Party Dress, Pink Freshwater Pearls by JarosDesigns, Embroidered Initial Necklace by merriweathercouncil, Roses Tea Cup by lofficina and Black flower on Rose Pink Coin Purse by oktak.

American Maker 2013

The team over at Martha Stewart have a competition at the moment titled American Made Audience Choice Awards. Artisans entered the competition by selecting the category (food, craft, design, style, gardening, or technology) their work best fit into then filling out information and adding photos, some even entered videos.

I submitted myself into the Style category and am currently recruiting votes daily, find me here. People who sign in have the opportunity to cast six votes within a 24 hour period. Meaning if you vote at 10am on Tuesday, you can't vote again until 10am the next day. The six votes can go all to one person, hint-hint. Plus, every time you vote, you’re entered into a sweepstakes drawing for prizes from Martha Stewart and their sponsors.

Voting ends on September 13th, 2013. The six nominees with the most votes in each category will receive an American Made Gift Basket and be featured on the Martha Stewart website and on Sirius radio. From this group of finalists, the audience will choose our Grand Prize Winner. I'm not sure how many votes I'll need to win, at this point I am doing everything I can think of to get the word out. If you have any suggestions for me please e-mail me. (roxana illuminatedperfume com) There are some nominees that as of August 27th have over 6000 votes. Not quite sure how they managed that (cyber robots?) luckily votes don't seem to be the only determining factor.

If I am selected it would be a huge PR boast for my business, as you can imagine. The Martha Stewart audience is an ideal niche for Roxana Illuminated Perfume, specifically since I weave together elements of the artisanel movement (gardening, beekeeping, flavor) with an authentic handmade item that is very much about beauty and high craft.

To cast votes, here is what you do:
1. Register, create an account with an e-mail addy and password.
2. You have six votes to cast every twenty four hours.

I'm working on a daily newsletter that would prompt you to vote daily. If this is something you would like to subscribe to until September 13th send me an e-mail (roxanailluminatedperfumecom) and I will add you to the list.

At the site you can see some really nicely done videos of the winners from previous years and others they have chosen to highlight. Some of them really choke me up, like the one of Erika Allen of Growing Power, Inc.

LOVED this one for Shane Confectioners.

While on her site I came across a video of Aerin Lauder sharing How To Make Perfume. Aerin showcases natural raw materials and talks about them as if they are contained in the fragrance, even mentioning Indian jasmine. My guess, since this is big brand perfume company, the fragrance is composed by a perfume house that are using something they term Indian jasmine recreated with synthetics. There is also a video on Capturing Peony Scent where chemists analyze the aromatic components of a peony from Martha's garden using via head space technology, they then recreate the scent in a lab using synthetics.

The Fragility of Tactile Mediums

It was in the 80's while attending Otis that I discovered the art of the handmade book and letterpress. There were no clues in my conscious past that I would fall in love with these mediums. Well, perhaps my attention to detail and meticulous, patient nature was a clue.


Back then, when Otis was still in downtown LA, students would head over to LA Type Founders for whatever was needed. Harley Bell would be there to assist us with all our needs whether it was purchase a font, ornaments or getting some linotype (a line of type) set. Although I was aware that I was working in a very old medium I didn't quite realize that thirty years down the road it would be close to extinction.

Much of the metal and wood type, ornaments, printing paraphernalia I own was hunted down in the 80s in LA, NYC and Argentina. Ben has brought over much of John Neuharts vast collection, which is quite amazing. I am still missing a some basic fonts and would also really like to have a Vandercook flat bed press to work with. Still kicking myself for having sold the TWO I once owned, ugh!


I've been going through organizing little pieces of type and sifting through some of Johns boxes filled with odds and ends that conjure up stories I wish I could hear him tell.


As the raw materials to make natural perfume continue to escalate in price or become almost impossible to obtain, like true Mysore sandalwood, I'm realizing the parallels in the two art forms. These old crafts that require hands and nature have their own specific niche market that appreciates them. The patrons along with the artisans working in these tactile mediums are an interconnected team with the ability to keep them alive and in our consciousness.


I'll leave you with this new trailer titled "Linotype, The Film"