Chaya Ruchama

Aspiring parfumeuse and lover of life.

From Aroma M : As Sealed by Dev

 

Yes, my friends: I’m woefully behind, but utterly committed to the Devilscent Project nonetheless.

As I sit at my 50+ year old lemon yellow tiny kitchen Parson’s table, the Boston harbor seabreeze eases my labors of  love; I’ve JUST dared to open my Aroma M package from Maria and Alexis.

WELL worth the wait.

 

Anticipation is part of the journey.

Our lasses have, as is their wont, ingeniously presented their offering bound in gold wire, affixed to singed paper, and color-coded , sealed with sealing wax- Dev’s is RED.

My poor paws struggle with the wire, my hands tremble eagerly, too eagerly.

I don’t want to spoil the surprise…

I needn’t have fretted ;-)

Darkly debonair, I may be enticed into transgression by the deepest cocoa note I’ve ever encountered, accompanied by what feels like a possible davana, soft florals and dirty business underneath.

Filthy business, truly. Animalic growling, nasty unwashed toenails which more resemble hooves than anything human. Long, slender clever fingers with razorsharp fingernails; the nails look like an auto mechanic’s, strangely at odds with the  pale violinists’s hands.

Wistful tenderness vies with a thoroughly Pagan sensibility. Don’t be lulled by the familiarity of coffee, cigarettes, a creaminess grounded in the resinous depth of an endless evening. And leather, smooth black leather: perhaps, it’s chaps ? Nothing to beat a deadly man in chaps.

[I used to frequent a particular haunt on The Fenway in the early '70's, where gentlemen in the back room were often attired in chaps, spurs, boots-

And little else.

Lovely place, that dive.]

I’m amazed by this genre: by what name shall I categorize it ?

Besmirched scorched gourmand ? Fair is foul and foul is fair ?

Evil, be Thou my Good ?

Dulcet, foul, earthy, gloweringly divine.

Maybe THAT’S it.

It’s “Muse Bites Hinder ” Time ;-)

Yeah, folks- it’s that time again.

Due to my work schedules, I feel badly when I’ve been entrusted with collaborative projects  involving such fine folk…

And I’ve not enough hours to make it right.

Fortunately for me, today was truly a G-dsend : grey, rainy, chilly .

I LOVE not feeling possessed by the irresistible urge to be out-of-doors like some untamed thing [ ergo, my childhood nickname, Vilde Chaya / Wild Animal ;-) ] .

So, yes- you ARE being bombarded with a flurry of overdue posts on a plethora of topics.

That’s just how it goes .

Everybody knows…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9F8QM3tjkTE

Leonard Cohen – Everybody Knows

www.youtube.com

Leonard Cohen – Everybody Knows

 

Strawberry Passion Perfume Au Naturel:Strawberry by Skye, Fruitful Revolution by Kedra Hart of Opus Oils

Yes, indeed !

Kedra Hart of Opus Oils rides again, fueled by MMM aka Skye Miller‘s Martha’s Vineyard Strawberry  flower and leaf essences.

Two études were created in celebration of this most Libran of plants- the strawberry. One creamy, meant to evoke Devon clotted cream for scones and high tea- and one emphasizing the greener facets of the ripest fruit.

These are modules meant for adults, but I honestly don’t see any viable reason to limit the audience. They are sweet and dandy ;-0

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_St8Kbo4uwU

www.youtube.com

 

Kedra ‘s Cream is sweetness itself, a dulcet fantasy in which  peaches, raspberries and boronia wed joyfully with no hesitation; amber, ambergris [ of natural origin], vanilla, patchouli and sandalwood await them with open arms. Whatever citruses [ tangerine, bergamot] and pink pepper may bring to the table is gentle and fleeting, serving to whet the olfactory appetite.

There is an unaffected charm to this perfume, winsome and toothsome.

 

Kedra’s Green showcases a variant of the strawberry motif.

It is unmistakably sweet , too- there’s no denying that.

But limpid aspects of green are embodied within : the use of an ivy accord, white water lily, black currant and green tea set this alternative perfume apart from the first one.

We still sense the common tendrils :  strawberries [ of course !], peach, boronia, ambergris, patchouli, sandalwood -

But the addition of a pinch of oakmoss enhances the vivacity of tuberose, that queen of the night.

Sweetly sophisticated Green maintains a youthful optimism nonetheless; nothing can daunt its enthusiasm.

 

Please, feel free to sample these two, before we ‘vote’ upon which we prefer…

[I would, if forced- be prone to go Green.]

Here is where you can find them:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/96412114/strawberry-passion-perfume-sample-set

Thank you, Skye and Kedra- for including me in your strawberry fest.

The Devilscent Project: Monica Marjorie Miller’s Dev ~The Perfumed Massage Bar

Madame  Monica Marjorie Miller- aka Monica Miller Perfume Permaculture Perfumista,  Perfume Pharmer, MMM, Skye  for short ;-) -

Has devoted her own wicked talents to The Devilscent Project on many levels.

But concretely [sic] , she has presented us with a Dev massage bar - an aromatic adjunct to unbridled lustful love play.

Skye sent me this randy Green Man awhile ago; I was immediately enamored of his form and fragrance. She saw to it that he was ensconced in a “stimulating flagellation Hessian fabric sack” [ her words, not mine !] – surrounded by a plethora of dried herbs, hops, blossoms.

My sweetly degenerate friend utilized her considerable herbalist’s know-how to create an unctuous base for her massage bar, which feels incredibly soothing, nourishing, and softening on the flesh.

Small wonder: high-grade cocoa butter, jojoba oil, sea buckthorn oil,  azulene, benzoin and beeswax copulate uproariously in the base. It’s an orgy of dermatological do-gooders.

Can it be used on ‘naughty bits ‘ ?

I’m not telling.  Go try for yourself, why don’t you ?

 

And the aroma !

As we know from Sheila’s writings, labdanum was the one uniting note essential to the project- the rest was up to the fertile, fevered neurasthenic imaginings of the perfumers.

Skye’s vision of the Devil feels like a woodland being, a Pan-like figure who enjoys the pleasures of the forest.

Spicy  and savory in its sack, Dev melds gently, subtly upon application.

Graciously herbal / dreamily floral /sylvan with a soupςon of scorch , Dev invokes a pentimento of feeling.  For me, it echoes all those clandestine assignations under the moonlit skies of my extremely wanton youth, filled with significant risk. Encounters which were potentially deleterious to my well-being, replete with rapscallions of great charm and dubious intention ;-)

Mother would NOT have approved.

 

The facts according to Skye :

Elements : Cocoa butter, jojoba oil, azulene, sea buckthorn oil, beeswax, a potpourri of aphrodisiac Mexican damiana leaf, crack the whip stinging nettles, psychodelic salvia divinorum, euphoric hops…

Perfume Notes :

Crown : pink pepper, peppermint, lemon, coriander, marjoram, blood orange, petitgrain, basil

Trunk :fir absolute, tuberose absolute, geranium absolute, lavender absolute, clary sage absolute, strawberry furanone

Roots : labdanum, cocoa butter, frankincense, cedarwood, patchouli CO2, benzoin, cinnamomum zeylanicum, beeswax, Javanol [ synthetic sandalwood]

99.8% Natural


You don’t have to be a part of The Devilscent Project , in order to avail yourself of this delight.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/97131233/dev-massage-lotion-bar-devilscent

Now, don’t say I never did you any favors, my dears ;-)

Sheila Eggenberger : The Force Behind The Devilscent Project

Firstly : Happy Birthday, Beauty !

May blessings hound you more abundantly than hard times, Ma Reine !

Sheila Eggenberger, the force behind the throne, provided the very raison d’être for her ongoing Devilscent Project: a creatively collaborative community which has been inspired by Sheila’s own novel Quantum Demonology.

We exist because SHE exists; her brilliant, razorsharp intellect has crafted an edgy, salacious retelling of the Faustian legend as seen through the eyes of a soon-to-be-middle-aged Titian hardhead possessed of  Burgundian  sexual appetites.

This worldly, hardbitten voluptuous writer finds herself roundly and inescapably smitten with the Prince of Darkness…and inescapably would be an accurate modifier, at that.

Sheila is Arachne of the Word, as far as I’m concerned. She weaves  a  fabulous web of stark intrigue and myriad entanglements- including the flawlessly chic, viciously tragic figure of Lilith, estranged wife of Dev himself.

Sheila has shamelessly seduced a number of writers and perfumers, and we are cheerfully complicit.

You can locate more of everything Devilscentaliscious on these contributing websites  !

Perfumers:

Ellen Covey (Olympic Orchids) Neil Morris  (Neil Morris Fragrances), Amanda Feeley (Esscentual Alchemy) Monica Miller (Perfume Pharmer) Kedra Hart (Opus Oils) and Maria McElroy and Alexis Karl

Participating Blogs :

The Alembicated Genie – http://thealembicatedgenie.com

The Perfume Pharmer – http://www.perfumepharmer.com

Chaya Ruchama – http://chayaruchama.com

Indieperfumes – http://indieperfumes.blogspot.com

The Perfume Posse – http://perfumeposse.com

Perfume Smellin’ Things – http://perfumesmellinthings.blogspot.com

Beauty on the Outside – http//botoblog.com

Another Perfume Blog – http://anotherperfumeblog.com

This Blog Really Stinks – http://thisblogreallystinksperfume.blogspot.com

The Architecture of Perfume – http://architectureofperfume.blogspot.com

Ellen Covey - http://perfumenw.blogspot.com/

Amanda Feeley - http://esscentualalchemy.wordpress.com/

Kedra Hart – http://scentsofimagination.blogspot.com

 

Participating perfumers:

Ellen Covey, Olympic Orchids – http://orchidscents.com

Neil Morris – http://neilmorrisfragrances.com

Kedra Hart, Opus Oils – http//www.OpusOils.net

Maria McElroy, Aroma M . http://www.aromam.com

Alexis Karl, Cherry Bomb Killer Perfumes - http://www.cherrybombkillerperfume.com/

Monica Miller, Perfume Pharmer – http://www.perfumepharmer.com

Amanda Feeley, Esscentual Alchemy – http://www.esscentualalchemy.com

Help us all assist Sheila in realizing her dream.

Ida Unplugged, ‘Re-Plugged’ ;-)

Buon Giorno, amici miei !

[I think it's morning  ;-)   ]

 

My mind and body aren’t quite sure about the date- but I’m home with B and the Guinea Pig Girls, covered in cavy hair, and drinking Le  Bon Café de Mon Roi [ Mr. B, spouse extraordinaire ! After 29 years, he still grinds the beans for me...].

During my brief sojourn abroad , it became quite complex and potentially frustrating [especially for a technologically-challenged individual like me] to have any sort of consistent Internet access- a really fine lesson in letting go.

Rather than permitting myself to be frustrated, I took it all as a message to simply drop the subject. After all, how important is it really ? Am I ?  I’m just a particle of dust in the Universe,  just like everyone and everything else. Not terribly remarkable.

Take the photos, for instance.

I’ve always been terrified of the camera. It must represent the vestiges of some Jungian chazerei of mine, a fear that the camera will steal my soul, a reflection of my ongoing discomfort regarding my corporeal aging process.

Big whoop.

Talk about humbling.

I ‘m presented with the images of a sweet-natured, loving human being who resembles [ often disturbingly] my own mother- jowly, pudgy [ in places !], pensive, generous. [Thank heavens, I'm not possessed of the same distressing personality/ character traits]

NOT the ‘Balanchine body’ of yesteryear, the long-necked, swanny former self, all legs and mystery .

Blecch.

The challenge of remaining ‘ myself’ among a large community of folk who were clearly better dressed,more assiduously maintained [ some with the help of the cosmetic surgeon, fabulous personal trainers, and the veil of youth itself]- and definitely better-rested ;-)

I didn’t possess the ability, OR the capacity- to ‘blog’ or photograph effectively-  during my time in Milan.

What I DID experience, and appreciate gratefully- was the kindness and cameraderie of Mark David, Neela Behen , Pierre, Jessica, Andychen, Jourihina, Diana P., Sergey , Silvio fratello…sweet unexpected Vida and her Peter.

A fleeting charming Geza,a brief glance and embrace from the Best Bosses a gal could ever have [ aka Jeca and Zoka !].

I don’t wish to ‘name-drop’, so much as I want to thank and acknowledge the kindness and generosity of heart of these dear folk. There’s a cornucopia of others, but fatigue and the desire to share [ rather than brag] are my driving factors here ;-)

 

So, what does it all mean ?

Probably, that it’s good to step back and unwind, unplug,accept what comes, and BE.

And try to accept the visual evidence of your constantly shifting existence, rather than rail frantically against it.

 

I’ll tell you one thing : I’d rather spend REAL time, time eating, drinking, walking, conversing, embracing-with real folk, any day.

THAT was my gift , the gift of grace – given and received-  in the moment.

[ MANY thanks to Neela Behen, who generously allowed me to share some of her photos, and to Jourihina Irina !]

Life goes on

I’ve been riotously busy these past few weeks.

Months ? I don’t honestly know ;-)

It’s been a blur of near-misses, narrowly-avoided crises, and those magnificently humbling events that remind me of my own personal insignificance…

I’m not waxing all ‘Uriah Heep’-ish on you-I’m deadly serious, for once.

It’s nice to be invisible- it takes a lot of pressure off of you.

You can do almost whatever you please, and no one notices- because you’re not particularly young, or svelte, or reproductively active. You’re NOT looking to hook up with anyone; your  own skin feels pretty good to you.

 

It doesn’t really matter how devastatingly divine your sillage, how seductive your voice, how charming your badinage, baby. No one sees you.

I try to look back upon places I’ve been, and cheerfully observe that my absence hasn’t changed anything.

Meanwhile- I pack, I anticipate. I leave a LOT to destiny.

I will travel with 3- count ‘em-3- idiot business cards !  What business has a working mother have that would require such nonsense, I ask you ???

Tonight, I leave for Europe.

I’ll have a very brief stop-over [ more later] en route to the Netherlands, where my beloved Cor and Marietje await.

I pray my Internet accessibility is such that I can fill you in !

[Until then- sei mir gegrusst, sei mir gekusst !]

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAADkgJBxhY

I’m on fire

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzQvGz6_fvA

 

When the Muse beckons, resistance is futile.

[Who'd want to resist, anyway ?]

You might as well be King Canute, railing at the tides  lapping at the foot of his throne.

It’s a good thing, as it turns out. If I’ve got to be laid up for a bit, writing is an excellent Retrograde Mercury sort of activity.

I’ve got lots of organization , work, and planning ahead of me.

It’s scarcely a week before I leave to see my lifelong dear friend Marietje in Enschede; and heaven knows, I’m not such a techno-whiz [ FAR from it !] that I can depend on  knowing how to manipulate Internet access abroad ;-)

So I’m lining up all my ducks, meeting all my commitments in advance.

And making one helluva lot of hay while this unseasonable sun shines.

Happy Birthday, dear Father !

Happy, happy birthday, Johann Sebastian !!!♥
When I crave order and unearthly mathematical beauty of the Orbs, I run into your arms ♥
Wafting Etat’s Fils de Dieu and Der Morgenstern ♥

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0kXTXxN5l0

J. S. Bach – Cantata “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern”, BWV 1 (1/6)

www.youtube.com

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750) Opening chorale “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern” from the cantata “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern” (chorus), BWV …

In Dylan Thomas’ magnificent Under Milk Wood, Organ Morgan is completely obsessed with Bach:

Mrs Organ Morgan (at table, talking to her husband about Polly Garter) :
“Remember Bob Spit? He wasn’t any bigger than a baby and he gave her
two! But they’re two nice boys, I will say that, Fred Spit and Arthur.
Sometimes I like Fred best and sometimes I like Arthur. Who do you like
best Organ?”
Organ Morgan:
“Hm? Oh, Bach without any doubt. Bach every time for me…”
Mrs Organ Morgan:
“Organ Morgan, you haven’t been listing to a word I said …”
And she bursts into tears …
Organ Morgan:
“And then Palestrina”

There you go;-)