Forest Walk is done! And a note on Vintage Rose…
So far all testers have liked the final mod of Forest Walk, and I’m converting the formula to batch size. I’ll launch it in a couple weeks. Can’t wait! (Aside: I snapped the photo above several years ago in nearby Armstrong Redwood State Reserve.)
Compared to mod 25b (which was the last mod discussed on Nathan’s blog), I reduced the dirt/earth accord, removed one floral ingredient, added a little bit of frankincense, removed one woodsy ingredient, increased the fir absolute, added a trace of galbanum resin, removed the blue hemlock, and increased the black hemlock. The changes eliminated the murkiness that read as seaweed to a few people. Testers have been very enthusiastic about the current mod, and I’m excited to start batching it.
It took about 40 mods, which is fairly good for me (Nostalgie was well over 100 mods). I picked this theme for Nathan’s blog project partly because I knew I could finish something woodsy more quickly than something floral. I also chose the forest theme because I’ve been wanting to work with my hemlock absolute. The final formula has about the same number of ingredients as the first trial formula (32), but I’ve swapped some in and out and adjusted percentages since I began. The original trial formula was probably over 85% the same, but the success is in the details.
I also made a slight tweak to Vintage Rose. I’m batching it early next week and will put it back on the site. The only two scents that still had the old labdanum were Champagne and Vintage Rose. I switched the Vintage Rose formula to the new labdanum last weekend and made a few other minor tweaks while I was at it. I think it’s smoother now with less scratch to the woods. The plumy rose accord is the same.
I’m continuing to work on the floral Champagne variant. I want to amp up the jasmine just a little more. I’ll also get back to original Champagne formula this weekend so that I can return it to the site soon; I need to test the version with the new labdanum more before calling it done.
I’m also working on display items for the July 8 show in SF. Lots to do!
We’ve had glorious weather here, and the roses have produced armloads of flowers daily. The first spring bloom is always the best. The sweet peas are blooming too, which is an annual treat. Photo above shows one of the climbing roses on the fence around my front garden (this one is climbing Pinkie).
(Note: I have removed the link to Nathan’s blog because he took his blog down several years after this post.)
Congratulations on Forest Walk! Really looking forward to it and the reintroduction of CdB. Also curious about the floral Champagne scent. And congrats on the July showcase, too–wish I lived closer so I could attend; it sounds exciting.
Thanks, Sharon! I’m still playing with the floral cdb variant; trying a tad less labdanum and bit more jasmine.Will need to give you a sniff of these. 🙂
Laurie, I can’t wait to try the Forest Walk. And those roses….unbelievable!
Thanks, Melissa! Hope you like Forest Walk!
Congratulations on Forest Walk! Question about the roses, is Pinkie a repeat bloomer?
Thanks! And, yes, Pinkie is a repeat bloomer. It blooms here in big bursts like this multiple times (4-5 per summer), taking a couple weeks off in between. The only drawback is that it has little to no scent. I like growing it on the fence in view from my kitchen window so I can enjoy the visual display, and I use roses with better scent closer to me on the porch posts.
I started out with a “all my roses must be fragrant” rule, but over time became more realistic. If even a perfumer is willing to compromise on rose scent, I feel better. I’m looking for roses to put on a far hill, so for this purpose, no scent is fine. Does this rose have a more formal name than Pinkie?
Suzanne M.
This is the only rose I have without scent; all my other roses are heavily scented and make nice cut flowers. Pinkie is just so carefree and easy blooming that I don’t mind though.. It makes a gorgeous mass display on the fence, and the color holds up to summer heat better than the more delicate pinks do. It’s a modest size climber, not enormous like Mme Alfred Carrière. I don’t think it does have another name. I just found it as “Climbing Pinkie.”
The pink rosebud on the About Us page of my site is a Climbing Pinkie bud. They don’t hold that shape long — they burst open pretty quickly into looser pink fluffy blossoms.
Edited to add: Just realized I also have a Ballerina shrub rose that has no scent, but it is another carefree, easy bloomer that’s worth having despite being scentless. It even blooms in part shade, which is how I use it.
That’s a great strategy for planting roses for show and for fragrance. It’s so tough to find ones that satisfy both. Just love your garden pictures!
Congratulations on finishing Forest Walk! One of your fastest ever development lifecycles?
Thanks, Ann! Winter Woods was faster, but this was not bad. Would have been faster if I hadn’t had to take time out for pesky tax forms in March. lol.
I’m so glad that Forest Walk is done. I was literally just thinking about this and checked in for a progress report. Good news, indeed!
PS: I have Climbing Pinkie on a rustic cedar arbor and it’s the star of the backyard.
Thanks! Glad you’re looking forward to Forest, and glad you have a happy Pinkie too! 🙂
I am very excited to smell the completed Forest Walk, but not as excited as Tam, my EST. She says it’s the first woodsy fragrance she’s ever wanted to wear.
Hi Dionne,
That’s neat to hear! The earthy accord is much softer than the mod I sent you, and one floral note is removed. I think if Tam liked the last mod she’ll like this too, maybe even better (fingers crossed)
Wow, I am excited to hear about Forest Walk being done and the other scents you are working on. Will samples be available at the same time as the full bottles, or will you put up samples for purchase earlier?
Tara
I will try to put samples up sooner if I can! Thanks, Tara!
Just wanted to say that I love the set of 5 spray samples I bought and these are the best fragrances EVER. I am in love with your art and so glad to have found them.
Thanks very much, Amanda! It means so much to me to hear your wonderful feedback. I’m glad you’re enjoying the samples!
As soon as Forest Walk is available on your site, I’m ordering the spray sample – can’t wait to try it!
Thanks, RusticDove! Samples should go up this holiday weekend.