Advice creating a blend:

[Oboegirl]

My good friend is very into the Middle Ages. She dresses up and gives history talks at elementary schools. Well, I was thinking of trying to make a soap for her that smells like Celtic culture. How would I do that? Do I just mix stuff? What does Celtic culture smell like? Are there books on mixing scents?

C

 

[CaraCara]

http://www.fragrantica.com/perfume/Fragrances-of-Ireland/Connemara-5381.html

 

[Oboegirl]

Thank you, CaraCara! What a very cool resource!

Catherine

 

[CaraCara]

You're welcome.
It looks like it will smell wonderful.

 

[dagmar88]

I'd go for oakmoss, spruce and lavender.

 

[Oboegirl]

i was thinking lavendar and I've got some ginger mint in my garden that might be fun to add. I've never smelled oakmoss but it sounds like something that would be perfect! I'll find some, for sure! Spruce? Would that make it smell Christmassy? I know they were known for their roses but I'm not big on the rosey floral scents. This research has been so much fun!

C

 

[dagmar88]

Spruce? Would that make it smell Christmassy?

The combo is sort of herbal, mystical, (not overly) feminine.



Just adding things from your garden won't work for scenting though; herbs and such won't come through after saponification.

 

[Oboegirl]

dagmar88, do you have any suggestions about finding oakmoss? I've found it in bulk but can't seem to find it anywhere, darn it.

C

 

[dagmar88]

http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/aroma/m-p.php

but I think this supplier is one of the more expensive ones...

 

[Oboegirl]

I found some through Amazon that I think is the real thing and not synthetic. Gosh, after reading about this stuff online I can't wait to smell it! Thanks for your suggestions and I'll be sure to update this thread with my final mix! All other suggestions are very welcomed.

Catherine

 

[CaraCara]

I don't know why but when I think of Celtic I think of Wicca, so Dagmar's suggestion of earthy and floral fits the description. You can always play with the fragrances though. It's all part of the fun.

 

[Moody Glenn]

Hi Oboegirl! While reading your post I suddenly began humming Simon and Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair". "Are you going to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme..." I am not sure which combos you could do but anything with rosemary sounds good. It has that resinous, piney scent. I think lavender, like dagmar88 mentioned, is also good. Whatever you decide it will be a great soap.

....now I have that song stuck in my head.....

 

[Oboegirl]

Moody Glenn, too bad I'm doing this a bit too late for the Simon and Garfunkel challenge, that would be awesome! I'm a newbie soapmaker and I started this to make good use of the herbs coming out of my garden. Funny thing, I've got all of those herbs in abundance right now! Thank you for the suggestion! I'm keeping a list and I'll definitely give those a try. Wow, so many soap ideas, so little time.....

Catherine

 

[roseb]

Hi Oboegirl! While reading your post I suddenly began humming Simon and Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair". "Are you going to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme..." I am not sure which combos you could do but anything with rosemary sounds good. It has that resinous, piney scent. I think lavender, like dagmar88 mentioned, is also good. Whatever you decide it will be a great soap.

....now I have that song stuck in my head.....

Thanks Glenn now you have me singing it!

 

[Oboegirl]

Update: Today I got in my oak moss! This has now become my very favorite smell! So I mixed up a blend of oak moss and lavender but it smelled too bright, I tried adding spruce to the mix and it helped so I decided that to help the lavender come out a bit more I would add just one drop of lemon grass. This is soooooo close to what I had in mind! It still needs more of an earthy smell. The only thing I had on hand that came close to that was tea tree oil which makes it smell too confusing. I was thinking I would try the oak moss with just lavender and rosemary. I wish I could figure out what I'm missing from this! Any suggestions for a green earthy smell?

Catherine

 

[houseofwool]

I wonder if you are missing a base note. What about adding something like patchouli? While not what you are looking for exactly, an extremely small percentage of it (or something similar) might be what is missing.

 

[Oboegirl]

I was thinking that it needed something to add roots to the smell if that makes sense. Bass note sounds like the perfect thing. I don't have any patchouli. I know they have it at our local co-op so I'll go sniff it tomorrow.

C