Potion, Potion; Make me a Potion....

As much as I like to smell nice; I am not a perfume-wearer. My allergies hate perfume; and I always seem to get a headache when I wear it. That's part of why I love to make natural soap and lotion; it leaves a nice scent without being "perfumey". But the other day, I was dashing around as usual and decided to use a little sample of perfume I've had hanging around forever; it was a freebie when I placed an order at a place that I can't tell you about; because its a "secret". Well, my husband couldn't stop raving about how great I smelled! He has similar feelings about synthetic fragrances, and loves that I don't douse myself in scent; but something about that particular silly perfume he loved! Honestly, he complimented me so much it was getting ridiculous. So, I had an idea: there's a wonderful shop on my Bath and Body team on etsy, Mermaid Lane Perfume, who makes wonderful, natural, perfume; a woman on the team got some samples from her and loved them! I decided to find out what was in the "secret" perfume and try to get a custom blend. It turns out this perfume my husband loved is described as a "fruity floral" and has jasmine, bergamot, and a million other things in it, so I decided to have a sample made with similar notes. The owner of the shop gave me some wonderful info; telling me that the perfume my husband loved is 99% synthetic, so the blend she makes me will smell differently, but hopefully better! She will e-mail me a questionnaire about my preferences, then for a few dollars, she will mix up a sample for me, if I don't love it, she'll try again. I have to tell you, I'm not getting anything for promoting this shop; I just think it's so wonderful to have the talent to create custom scents, and I'm so excited to have my own scent that is natural! Of course, it is not an inexpensive prospect, but she says with care, your scent will last a long time. I know some feminist-types would cringe to hear that I want a perfume mainly to please my husband, but isn't that what we all want as wives? Getting compliments and having your husband think you're awesome is certainly not without benefit on my end; so I'm willing to save up to make an investment like this. My 12th anniversary is coming up, I think this will be my gift to my husband! (or his gift to me?). I should be able to save a few dollars each week from the grocery budget, or my etsy money, to buy a bottle of lovely, natural perfume. I so wish I had a talent like this, although I think I have a good "nose" for scents, and work with essential oils and botanicals in my craft; I know nothing about the complicated process of top notes, base notes, etc. It's so wonderful that what she does brings people joy! And also, I'm a little bit obsessed with mermaids, so I love her shop name!

I'm starting my day in a very tidy house; courtesy of my husband, who stayed up until the wee hours folding laundry and cleaning; after my late-night sewing took it's toll and I was dead to the world! Tomorrow, I will be spending the afternoon with my best friend; revisiting a drive-in restaurant that we used to go to as small children, followed by watching the new 'Alice in Wonderland' movie. Such fun! 

Happy Friday Everyone!