The Artisan Insider
  • Home
  • Small Biz
  • Artisan Stories
  • Scent
    • Perfume
    • Olfaction
  • Personal
    • Personal Updates
    • In My Garden
    • Favorites
    • Sonoma Finds: Art, Garden, & More
    • DIY
    • SSS Updates Archive
  • Blog News
  • About

The Artisan Insider

celebrating and supporting artisan businesses

  • Home
  • Small Biz
  • Artisan Stories
  • Scent
    • Perfume
    • Olfaction
  • Personal
    • Personal Updates
    • In My Garden
    • Favorites
    • Sonoma Finds: Art, Garden, & More
    • DIY
    • SSS Updates Archive
  • Blog News
  • About
Sonoma Scent Studio Updates

Rainy winter update

written by Laurie January 27, 2010

New Scents: The last ET tester, labeled 1-16-1, has too much cistus in it because I had tried increasing that when I decreased the musk. The cistus got too heavy so I am putting it back to the way it was in the previous tester, which was labeled 12-30-4. I’m trying less musk in that version though, and possibly less guaicwood too because when I decrease musk the guaiac seems to come out too much. I’m doing more testing and adjusting before sending out any more samples. The good news is that my orris should be in next week so I will be ready to start making batches as soon as the formula is done. I’ve been busy with orders and haven’t been able to get back to Bouquet Blanche yet, but I did get out bottles of the green notes I’ve been contemplating as additions to it and am doing some sniffing and thinking.

Bottles: I’ve ordered the new one ounce bottles and am excited about that. They will have the permanent crimp style sprayers and that introduces some challenges, but I think the trade-off is worth it. I already offer half oz and 5 ml bottles for those who want small, economical decant sizes or splash caps so most people really don’t need to decant my scents, and I could offer TPP and TPC special Boston round packaging for their decanting if they prefer that to crimped bottles. The screw cap bottles are just not as high quality as most crimp style bottles and I really want to upgrade for the larger bottles. These new bottles are much better made, with heftier and prettier glass, nice edge details, and the ability to take a shorter, nicer spray pump. There’s just no comparison. I’ll be getting a small hand-operated machine to help put on the pumps. It’s hard to find bottles in the 1 oz size because the standard for so long has been 1.7 oz or 3.4 oz, so I felt lucky to find these. I’ve noticed a trend towards smaller sizes in stores though, so maybe the 1 ounce will become easier for perfumers to get as time goes by. I hope people like these bottles as much as I do! I think it’s the right thing to do.

A Lesson in Non-Customer Relations: I’ve been stuck on dial-up internet service for most of the last 10 days because our high-speed provider, whose transmitting tower is located at the top of a nearby mountain, frequently suffers power outages and equipment damage in the winter. We have no DSL or cable available where I live because our population density is too low to make it worth the cost of running lines to us. The only options are dial-up, or a satellite company with high monthly fees and many complaints against it, or this service that offers a broadcast from an antenna on the mountain. Today I inquired about the status of the repair since it has been over a week now, and I was told we should feel lucky to get any service at all in the winter because the environment is so tough on the mountain. I did not say any of the things that came to mind because I know they are doing their best, but goodness that’s not an appropriate thing to say to a customer who is paying $56 per month for an internet service that can’t seem to be provided as promised. I sure don’t tell someone they should feel lucky to get their packages in the winter, lol, because USPS has a hard time delivering in storms. And when I signed up for this service they did not say “by the way your service will go out a lot in the winter, ” but instead they advertised their fast connection speeds. They do not offer any break in charges when they cannot provide service for periods of over a week, though I guess that would be a nightmare in paperwork. There are worse things in life than being temporarily stuck on dial-up and I’m very thankful to have the back-up access, but it makes tasks like printing shipping labels take ten times as long and sure gets tiresome.

On the up-side, the sun came out for a few hours this afternoon and it was nice to see some blue sky! We’ve had so much rain that we are very soggy here, though I’m up on a hilltop out of flood danger. I have some fun new samples to sniff and will get into more of those soon, but I’m concentrating on ET and BB for now.

2 comments
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Laurie

previous post
Quick update
next post
Turn-around time

You may also like

More news on ingredient restrictions

February 13, 2014

Back up to speed

August 12, 2008

Update

December 6, 2013

Bottles are here!

April 8, 2010

Checking in briefly…

July 12, 2008

checking in

October 26, 2010

Quick Q&A about opening

September 6, 2009

Lieu de Reves and Sienna Musk Sample Drawing!

February 25, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!

November 22, 2007

Update and some links…

October 10, 2014

2 comments

AnnYM January 27, 2010 - 4:06 am

Hi Laurie,
Can’t wait for you to get back to BB! New 1oz bottles sound lovely. Looking forward to seeing the pictures. I’m so greatful that you’re able to offer smaller sizes. It makes it possible to acquire more scents without breaking our budgets!
Too bad about your internet service. On the upside, at least based on photographs, you live in a gorgeous location.
a:)

Reply
Laurie January 27, 2010 - 4:21 am

Hi Ann,

Yes, you are totally right — living in a beautiful rural spot is well worth the few downsides. I’m lucky to be here and wouldn’t trade it for being in town with reliable DSL! I don’t know how people get by on dial-up these days though when so many sites won’t even load (they just time out).

I like small sizes myself too so that’s close to my heart. I’ll share some bottle pictures but may wait until they ship so as not to jinx things.

I can’t wait to get back to BB too! I have the formula back out and am testing some greens. It needs a little more freshness, I think, because it has a lot of rich floral notes. I dislike any hint of ozone though so that limits my green options.

Reply

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Search

SUBSCRIBE TO RECEIVE NEW POSTS VIA EMAIL




SUBSCRIBE TO RSS FEED

The Artisan Insider

Categories

  • Artisan Stories
  • Blog News
  • DIY
  • Favorites
  • In My Garden
  • Olfaction
  • Perfume
    • Featured Perfumery Posts
  • Personal
  • Personal Updates
  • Small Biz
  • Sonoma Finds: Art, Garden, & More
  • Sonoma Scent Studio Updates

Perfumery Highlights

  • The Fragrance Creation Process
  • Running An Artisan Perfume Business
  • Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools
  • Ten Tips for Exploring the World of Perfume
  • Safety Standards For Natural Ingredients
  • Talking fragrance Design With Miriam Vareldzis
  • Interview with Dabney Rose: artisan perfumer, expert distiller and plantswoman
  • Defining Niche, Indie, and Artisan
  • Scent Concentration
  • A Brand’s Signature Base
  • Tincturing Ambergris

Olfaction Highlights

  • Study Finds 30% Difference in People’s Scent Receptors
  • More Discussion About Individual Scent Perception
  • Our Own Scent Truth
  • Every Human May Have A Unique Nose
  • More On Our Individual Sense Of Smell

Artisan Stories

  • Talking fragrance design and more with Miriam Vareldzis
  • Dabney Rose: artisan perfumer, expert distiller and plantswoman
  • Melissa Groben, perfumista & jewelry artist

Recent Posts

  • Sonoma Scent Studio Has A New Owner
  • Happy Easter/Passover!
  • How To File A USA Trademark For Less Than $300
  • Spring Visit to Garden at Ferrari-Carano Winery
  • Dreaming of Spring 2019

Recent Comments

  • Laurie on Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools
  • Wendy Gardner on Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools
  • Laurie on Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools
  • Josefa on Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools
  • Laurie on Learning Perfumery: Classes & Schools

Archives

Tags

allergens awards botanical art chemical deer distilling dogwood employee enfleurage EU restrictions exploring perfume food fragrance design garden genetics gifts GMO hiring help home distillation home scent how to hydrosol IFRA independent contractor interview jewelry lavender learning perfumery Miriam Vareldzis natural perfumery olfactory fingerprint perfume general perfumery perfumery schools photography product liability insurance reviews roses Scent Perception seeds skin care small business Sonoma spring winter iris
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Email
Footer Logo

@2019 The Artisan Insider. All Rights Reserved. | Privacy Policy