Scent & Faeries
What perfumes to bring on a jungle faerie hunt…
“A cozy one, a sexy one, one for the weather, and a wild card.” Inviting advice offered from friend and blogger Julie Johnson of The Redolent Mermaid to my quandary on a last trip.
I confess that mostly I’m a last minute packer. Sure, I have grand plans to pack two-three days before a trip and then re-pack the day before, removing half of the stuff, etc. But no, mostly, I just end up shoving everything into the suitcase last minute. Yoga mat? Check…
Hmmmm – packing bags in my bag…
Careless as I might be in packing clothes, not so with perfume. Not always. But mostly. Laying the potential fragrances out ahead of time to sniff and dream gets me in the mood. And it’s an adventure to see if the way I predict fragrance interacting in an environment will play out in just that way.
For this jungle faerie hunt I selected a small vial of rare Hawaiian Jasmine in oil for my weather (tropical) scent. A gift from a friend who procured it at a farmer’s market in Kauai it seemed an obvious choice.
Rare Hawaiian Jasmine and Butterfly
A small potent vial of verdant faerie’s Butterfly was my cozy scent. More of an aromatherapy scent than a perfume, Butterfly is bright with Geranium and Mint, and grounding with Clary Sage. It is perfect for jet-lag or the disorientation that sometimes accompanies travel. The bottle is now empty… Somehow it’s brightness was a soothing tonic. Helping me to feel stronger and ready for adventure.
My sexy scent was verdant faerie’s Eau De Parfum, Duskblossom, a rich scent with a seductive heart of Jasmine & Tuberose and a complex narcotic patchouli / tobacco base.
Duskblossom
On the trip I ended up slathering Butterfly on my wrist to wake up and then layered my sexy pick DuskBlossom on top, day and night. During the day I would occasionally layer on the straight up jasmine. I found the Hawaiian Jasmine and Jasmine-heavy Duskblossom perfect for the jungle. It’s heady seductiveness lured me into lush jungle spirit. Blooming, thick, both ethereal and and of the earth.
The wild card was J. Hannah’s award-winning Skive. I especially love to take this one traveling because of it’s nifty eco-lux and travel ready packaging. The scent itself is always a surprise to me, although I’ve known it for several years. And its smokey, woodsy, musky, tea scent always brings out unique nuances in the environment I am exploring. I reached for Skive just once. At the Lamanai Lodge deep in the jungle. On a night when I got the itch to enjoy a scotch at the lodge bar. Stay up late listening to the songs of night critters as the Howler monkeys finished their last throaty bellows. The smooth smokiness matched the scotch and the sounds. I felt far away.
J. Hannah’s Skive with its leather ‘glamping’ wrap
That’s my scotch over there at the Lamanai Lodge.
Once, as an experiment I put some drops of Butterfly into a pair of smelly sneakers. My brilliant idea did nothing to mask this funk. Then they just smelled like funk and Butterfly. C’est la vie. They are now sitting with good ol’ baking soda.
Interestingly, the lush intensity of the jungle softened all the fragrances, and I was really digging DuskBlossom with Butterfly as I wandered around under massive vine covered trees investigating endless variations of miniscule mosses.
Copal
In the off-the-beaten-track shop of Miss Garcia I hit gold in the form of Copal Resin. Miss Garcia opened the door of her pink shop to us on a Saturday night. Her smile and transcendent Saturday night copal smudging scent greeted us. Still soft and fresh, she unwrapped the copal and cut me off a 1/4 pound piece. I mentioned I wanted to tincture it for perfume, and she instructed that it should soak for 9 days, a sacred number as per the Mayans.
I left the shop floating on an incense cloud basking in the radiance of the kindly Miss Garcia.
I will tincture some in organic alcohol and oil. For 9 days, as recommended.
Incidentally, Copal is a resin from the Copal Protium Tree. It is used mostly as an incense but can add a lovely incense base note to perfumes. A bit like Frankincense only sweeter and more ethereal.
Miss Garcia
Miss Garcia’s shop.
All the gorgeous imperfections.
Cutting it is like cutting a very firm cheese
The tree is nicked to cause the resin to flow.
Mayan Faeries – The Alux
The faerie hunter.
This dapper fellow and frequent travel companion is my dad. In addition to being an incredibly literate professor, he shares my curiosity in faeries. He always gets his question out in the most serious and professorial of manners, asking our local guides what they know of the Alux (pronounced ah-loosh) a Mayan sprite or faerie.
As children our Belizean guides were cautioned not to go into caves. In the caves the Alux lie in wait and will get you. And parents are advised to have more than 1 child as the Alux are less likely to talk a child into going off with him if a sibling is present.
“Does anyone ever come back from there after being caught?” asks yours truly.
“Ummm. No.”
Now, doesn’t that make you just a touch suspicious? Don’t you wonder what it’s like in the land of the Alux? Maybe it’s super nice and the children don’t WANT to come back… Hmmm.
Belize & Guatemala Part II coming very soon..
In the meantime for more scented beauty, check out Julie Johnson’s blog –
Do you travel with perfume? How do you decide what to bring?
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