It's Alice Through The Looking Glass time and I'm not immune to the mania-rave. With great anticipation, I look forward to Tim Burton's upcoming movie release, his adaptation of our beloved Alice. Super talented Tim Burton, never fails to inspire....his productions deliver the goods, opening up our imaginations to his fantasy filled, tweaky visual world. One has only to see a snippet of a movie trailer to see Burton's creative stamp - no one else crafts a movie style or script quite like him.

Alice, the story was written and originally copyrighted in 1865 by English author, the Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (who was also a mathematician at Christ Church in England). He penned this story under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. At it's debut, Alice was a publishing sensation, quickly sold out and was/is equally loved by children and adults. This book has remained so popular worldwide, that it's never been out of print. Two of the original printing readers were a delighted Queen Victoria and the young Oscar Wilde.

What better pairing than this "down the rabbit hole" adventure by Mr. Carroll and the inventive imagery of Mr. Burton? If you've seen any of Burton's earlier films; the ghost inhabited 'Beetlejuice', the doomed love story of 'Edward Scissorhands', 'Batman' with Joker ala Jack Nicholson or 'The Corpse Bride', then you know you're in for wicked and wild visual treat.

So Alice, it is! On May 5th, you'll find me in a darkened theatre, eyes glued to an immense full color screen, listening to Dolby stereo surround sound while my senses are inundated by Mr. Burton's film making magic. Oh yes...don't forget the 3D glasses - oh my do my artist eyes love the movies!!

Meanwhile, to take the edge off the film debut wait, my imaginings have been whipped into swirl of creativity. How about an 'Alice' inspired tea gown designed to make the Queen of Hearts oh so-o-o-o very jealous?

"Off with her head" ...after all we're all mad here.

Image #1,-Public Domain, Image #2-CC-Falkaroo, Images #2, 4, 5-copyright Bez

Available in our Winter Holiday Collection

Ever since I was a little girl, I've had my nose stuck in flower blooms or pressed into bunched leaves of freshly gathered garden herbs. I could not get enough of inhaling their wonderful fragrance. Wild violets, lily of the valley and one very special roadside weed are my scent markers of the renewed yearly cycle of plant life.

Almost everyday as I was growing up, I would un-stopper my mother's perfume bottles, deeply inhale their individual essence and abandon myself to the mysterious, exotic scents. Oh... the visions of far away lands and powerful beautiful women these scent-ual liquids conjured! Even the cedar wood lining of one of my mother's jewelry caskets affected me. I was taken by the world of scent almost from my beginning.

Over the years, I've enjoyed an arsenal of womanly perfumes and along the way have collected antique perfume bottles. The perfumes range from costly Frenchies originating in Grasse, distilled from the rarest fleur to simple hippie blends of two or three notes - patchouli or sandalwood laced, of course.

I've spent years infusing, extracting, macerating plant materials in solutions...some for wearing - some for eating and some that cross over. It's always a question of whether the bottle of alcohol tinctured orange sitting in the refrigerator will make it into the perfumes or be whipped up into a liquer topping for sponge cake and ice cream.

I am an avowed perfumista - never, never leave the house without applying scent. It's a part of my daily ritual. Unfortunately, as I have matured, I have become increasingly sensitized to certain types of perfumes, and to many body products in general.

One of the few things that will induce me to enter a shopping mall are the perfume sales counters. There I can indulge in a forever favorite...sampling all the scented offerings until nose fatigue takes over. However increasingly, I find my nose/sinus and skin react to these big box retailer perfumes. What I've come to understand is that I am reacting to the synthetic scent chemicals in these perfumes. Most of these perfumes are created with smell-a-likes. Perfume ingredients that are chemically manufactured to impersonate natural perfumery materials.

Not willing to give up my perfume wearing, I embarked on search and discovery. My wonderful wild violet? I discovered, and am now quite sure I've never had a 'real' violet oil in hand and even if I could find a perfume made with real violet flower oil, the purchase cost would be prohibitive. It is a very elusive scent to extract...it simply does not give it up it's secrets easily or accurately.

In addition, what I did find on my search is a scary story of sorts, at least scary for me. There is a violet perfumery material that is widely used by commercial perfume companies. Here's what's in it:

methyl ionone - considered a hazardous chemical ( IFRA - ( Found under : Pseudomethylionones ))

4,2,6,6-trimethyl-2-cyclohexen-1-yl-3-buten-2-one (IFRA - Found under : Pseudoionone (2,6-Dimethylundeca-2,6,8-trien-10-one)

benzyl ethanoate ( Niosh ICSC NLM HSDB)

Hazards warnings Harmful. Harmful by inhalation, in contact with skin and if swallowed. Irritating to eyes, respiratory system, and skin. May cause sensitization by inhalation and skin contact. Keep out of the reach of children. In case of contact with eyes, rinse immediately with plenty of water and seek medical advice. Wear suitable clothing, gloves and eye/face protection.

---

What I now also understand is that "perhaps" in dilute minute amounts (as suspended in other perfumery materials) these chemicals may not be allergens. But what if every part of the perfume is comprised of chemicals?

Hmmmmm....well, synthetics are not the choice for me. I don't like the idea of bathing myself in chemicals. The outcome of my search and discover has been to not only listen closely to my body's reaction message, but to become proactive in my approach to wearing perfume.

Some time ago, I began to seek out perfume knowledge and began methodically testing natural perfumery materials. I became a part of The Natural Perfumers Guild (whose members' amassed knowledge would fill an extensive collection of perfume encyclopediae). After a period of intensive learning and experimenting, my years of dabbling and blending (just for myself and a few close friends) evolved. I've finally taken a big step. I am no longer a closet perfumer.

This year it's my pleasure to offer our debut perfume oil blend, Shimmer. A light romantic, sparkling scent.

...and those wild violets? I will always dream that someday I'll find a a huge field of them and by some alchemical magic will successfully extract their elusive and rare wild scent.