I have always been interested in perfume. My earliest recollection of blending was taking my mother’s bottle of Joy perfume and mixing half of it with my Little Lady cologne. Needless to say, my mother was not too happy. But she also realized that my affinity for mixing things was not going to end (I also did some blending with her Youth Dew too), so she bought me a variety colognes that I could blend, thus, leaving her Joy perfume alone. Thanks to my mother that started my journey into the world of blending and eventually into the world of Natural Perfumery.
I began my road to Natural Perfumes by starting to blend herbal and floral infused solutions for hair rinses, facial treatments, using lemon, rosemary, roses, lavender and avocado. Then in 2005 our local newspaper ran an article about natural perfumer, Mandy Aftel. I bought Mandy’s book, Sense and Sensibility. After reading it and other books on natural perfumes, include Jeanne Rose, I thought blending my own perfumes would be interesting. I began looking for classes about natural cosmetics and natural perfume and started taking classes with Lori Nova (of the Nova Studio). Eventually I started to blend my own perfumes, which I gave away to friends and family, still very surprised that they liked wearing these creations of mine. By happenstance found the Natural Perfumers Guild and I joined as a Friend of the Guild. By 2008, my Guild status changed to a Professional Perfumer and that same year A Wing & A Prayer Perfumes was born. The name A Wing & A Prayer comes from my childhood. Whenever we saw a shooting star in the evening sky, my father would say, ‘quick make a wish on a wing and a prayer’. Together with my daughter Sarah, who runs the business end and our etsy shop, AWAAPP, has started to have a following, much to my everlasting surprise!
I guess I am noted for my florals and light fragrances, which I not only love to blend but to wear too. The “heaviest” fragrances that we sell are “San Francisco Mist” and most recently “Haight & Ashbury” for the Patchouli Project. I wanted to make sure that my perfumes, when opened do not have that alcohol smell, but the top note needs to be a clear clean fragrances, hopefully I have done just that. I also think in terms of olfactory memories, the use of vanilla or cinnamon can take me back to a cold New York day and my mother baking cookies, the essence of certain spices and I am back in upstate New York to a wonderful summer and my first romance, Lavender and honeysuckle I am in Sonoma Wine country on my honeymoon. I love creating memories by blending essential oils.
By day I am a Principal of a Special Education Cluster for the Santa Clara County Office of Education (in California) and hold a doctorate in education, short term memory research was my specialty. I work with medically fragile students at a Center Based program, ages 3 to 22 years old, with various medical and cognitive disabilities. The other special education classes within the cluster are “housed” on integrated school sites, working with students ages 3 to 14 with a variety of disabilities, ranging from Intellectual Disabilities (formerly Mental Retardation) to students with Autism. Previously, I was a director of student services in two school districts as well as a faculty member at a university, until I wanted to get back to my roots, so to speak and work directly with teachers and special education students. However, even though I love what I do, I needed to find a creative outlet and creating perfumes for me is an escape from the reality of working with medically fragile students and smelling disinfectant all day.
It never ceases to surprise me how life is so fragile and how brave my students are. This year two of my students passed away, both very special young people. They shared, with all of us who knew them, the gift of humility and acceptance. So, I create perfumes and my world has a sweeter fragrance. When I create perfumes it helps me to believe. Maybe that is why my perfumes are light and sometimes fleeting, like life!
By Jane Cate, A Wing and a Prayer Perfumes (see her clickable ad banner this page)
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you Monica for publishing the fragrant story about my beginnings.
What a beautiful story! The natural talent you have as a perfumer is extraordinary. I love Tallulah B and wear it frequently. I wonder if you ever try to integrate your two worlds, and if your students might not enjoy your perfumes too.
Thank you Lucy. Unfortunately, most of the students are highly allergic to fragrances; they are very medically involved. However, I do give away my candles and perfumes to my staff ( teachers and paraprofessionals) as gifts from time to time. Once I did make one of our Autistic students a lavender “fragrance ” baggie( with parent permission of course) , using muslin and cotton saturated with lavender tincture , so he could that sniff ihis special baggie rather than going up and sniffing people’s hair. This was part of his social skills training when he went out into community setting; sniffing the baggie was more socially approriate behavior.
Thank you again for your comment, it is apprecated. And I am so happy you are enjoying your Tallulah B; by the way I did bring back the original Tallulah B fragrance.
Thanks again.
The staff are most fortunate. Keep up the good work and most definitely keep up the perfume work! You are so talented in a number of areas, especially that one.
Lucy, thank you so much for the compliments, both are deeply appreciated.
Jane, I did not know what your other vocation was, I am deeply impressed ! Those children are very lucky to have you, as we are lucky to have your perfumes!
Flora:
Thank you. Perfume blending is a passion and I love it. Working with special needs children and young adults is a calling. The combination of both has afforded me a very interesting spiritual journey.