Interview with JoAnne Bassett, a Natural Perfumer

Congrats D.stramonium! :)

I <3 Joanne and her perfumes. Always sensual and exotic.
I love how she made her perfumes even more attractive by introducing these wonderful bottles.
Thanks for the giveaway.

Thank you for the interview article, Jeca and JoAnne. The stories are inspirational and intriguing, and the photographs are beautiful.

My experience with natural perfume is limited to a beautiful carnation oil my mother wore when I was a child... I have a delightful memory of mom bicycling off to work with a honey bee flying behind in pursuit!

Napoleon is a fascinating figure; so much of his romanticized persona includes that of a capturer who is indeed captured himself. A fascinating muse.

Best wishes,

Chickenboo

What an amazing article! Unfortunately, I have not had the pleasure yet of experiencing natural perfumes.I keep a small library of essential oils to add to potions and such but have never been able to create anything with any complexity. Being a perfume addict and also a lover of natural products, at times I have been concerned about the safety of synthetic ingredients as I have always had sensitive skin. My mind can only wonder and oogle over what fantastic pieces of art you have created JoAnne. Blessings to you for having found your bliss and sharing it with others!

After learning about natural perfumes an experiencing them first hand, they have become a passion for me. What really draws me to them is their depth and evolution that I just don't find much if at all in the synthetics. They are magical and mysterious and reveal themselves bit by bit. Chameleons who wear so differently on everyones skin.
I was lucky enough to try Reveiller from JoAnne's collection and it is glorious and uplifting, and even helped me appreciate a perfumery note I wasn't all that fond of previously! She has such talent and works so inspirationally with her scents!
Thank you for hosting a very generous draw! The winner will be very lucky!

I'm from a state (county) in Brazil - Pará - that is known as "the place where people smell better". This reputation came from a very old habit of the original people that live at that part of Brazil, the american indians, that used to mix flowers, plants, oils and so many natural products found at the rain forest, the Amazon Forest. Up to now, women from there, love to splash all over their bodies, generously, scented waters, usually made by themselves, as my mother used to do, when I was younger.

I read about JoAnne Basset Perfums at Facebook some time ago, and I always receive the news about her perfumes. I imagine that they are wonderful, because, even though I'm from a tropical country and used to a specific kind of fragrances, all my life I was a big fan of french perfumery.

Finally I am reading about her work here, and she surelly deserves all the respect for her wonderful work.

Good luck for all of us!

Thank you Jeca, Zoka, and Fragrantica for posting this lovely interview and photos. I really enjoyed our time together and sharing my natural perfumes.

I really do take care in the creation and bottling of my essences..everything is done by hand using the finest 100% natural botanicals, some are grown by me.

I hope you all get to experience my true 100% natural perfumes.

Color your Life has it right with the comment ..magic from nature..this is exactly the way I feel about my perfumes..with the benefits of the essential oils.

JoAnne

I'm gonna start I had such a great pleasure reading this article. JoAnne Bassett is an artist, a visionary.

My experience with natural perfume so far... none actually, but I am dealing with a lot of synthetic perfumes.
I have around me a lot of people wearing synthetic sweet perfume just because it's sometimes cheap and it smells "nice". Being cheaper they can just use half a bottle once. I avoid buying or even trying perfumes that smell synthetic but I'm pretty sure many of my perfume have synthetic ingredients just by reading the ingredients. Less perfume and more chemical ingredients.
It's all about the cheaper ingredients meaning a lower price for manufacturing the perfume and a bigger price on the shelf. It's the policy of profit world wide and sadly it has spread it's roots even into perfumery.

I believe "Less is more", natural perfume is an investment. Not just an economical investment but an investment for your body and soul. It's like going back to nature in a small precious bottle. A magical bottle filled with all the greatness nature has to offer.
I know that right now I don't have the resources to buy not even a sample of this natural wonder but I know in the future somehow I will.
On the long run this is the future of perfumery, going back to nature, using essential oils as perfume like our ancestors did.

Thank you again Jeca for this article and I wish you all a Great Scented Day! :)

In my opinion, natural perfumes are a wonderful thing. I don't own one, but I had the opportunity to experience the Soivohle line. Perfumes made of natural ingredients are strong, vibrating, warm and full of live. I also like perfumes with synthetic materials, but the natural ones are special to me. I would love to be chosen as a winner, because that would be my chance to continue my travel into the world of natural perfumes. Thanks to fragrantica for these wonderful give-aways!

I'd love to be selected to win JoAnne Bassett's fragrance sample collection and the Napolean edp bottle. I've been curious about them for a long time. As unpopular as it may be on this site, I am concerned about the impact of synthetic perfumes on the environment and our bodies. When using synthetic scents we're inhaling chemicals, preservatives, solvents derived from fossil fuels like formaldahyde, and disrupting our nervous and hormonal systems. Perfume production is not regulated. Over 4,000 chemicals are used in the production. It is most likely that synthetic perfumes contain carcinogenics as well as allergins contributing to skin, lung diseases, etc. Mostly for the sake of our environment and our childrens' health, I am a supporter of natural perfumes.
Perfumes in Ms. Bassett's line use a higher quality of ingredients and contribute to a healthier world. The natural scents blend better with our body chemistry, creating a purer perfume. Natural perfumes have a longer shelf life and contain no dammaging preservatives. Our skin absorbs natural perfumes more readily, therefore our bodies can benefit from the natural healing properties from the natural oils.
Naturally, I'd love to try Ms. Bennetts fragrances. Please consider me for this awesome offer. Sincerely

First of all, congratulations on a wonderful article! JoAnne's courageous jump from corporate life to pursue her perfume passion is incredibly inspiring. It's so obvious that this was the right move for her - she seems to be a "natural" in the art & science of perfume making.

My grandmother gave me a tiny vial of rose oil when I was 6. That was my first experience with natural perfume - or perfume in general for that matter. That tiny little bottle sparked my love affair with fragrance! I loved & cherished it, wearing it only on special occasions. Sadly, I broke it one day and the oil spilled all over a little leather jewelry box I had. The leather absorbed the fragrance and to this day I can still detect a faint rose aroma on it. And every time I smell it, I'm reminded of my grandmother and that first experience with perfume.

I'd love to sample JoAnne's collection! Thanks for entering me into the contest. Good luck to everyone!

I am interested in the samples because I am addicted to perfume and using it right now as aromatherapy. I lost my job due to an accident and am working as a contractor. I have been a bit down about my income, fearful of medical issues and worried about finding a job in this economy. Fragrance gives me a boost. I put them on and am mindful of NOW. I look with gratitude at what I do have. I try to eat organically. Using natural fragrances intrigues me. Many I have tried are herbal/medicinal. I am looking for ones that have it all and make me feel great. Many use lots of vanilla or patchouli. That is not me. I love florals, tobacco, spice without the cloying sweetness. I am excited to know about a new perfumer. Bring it on!!!

All of JoAnne's perfumes have an exceptional beauty and independence, due to her commitment to 100% natural aromatics and her skills. I have known her for many years and I admire her gifts as a perfumer and loveliness as a human being. Thank you so much, Jeca and Zoran, for this wonderful profile of JoAnne.

Good luck, everyone, on the draw, whomever wins will be in for a fragrant treat!

I would love the opportunity to try JoAnne's perfumes. As of to date I have started sampling the Olympic scents from the state of Washington. These perfumes are not like the mainstream perfumes. They smell very different and unique. You smell the perfume and your nose tells you the perfume has come from another dimension. They are fun to sample!

I got a chance to try JoAnne's entry in the Peace, Love and Patchouli contest and it is indeed a lovely scent. Natural perfumes have a completely different "vibe" than perfumes made with aromachemicals. Both have their place, IMHO, and there are many lovely natural creations that deserve more attention than they're getting.

Thanks for this article, Jeca! It's always a pleasure to learn more about the person behind a perfume I have tried. Best of luck to everyone in the contest! :-)

She is obviously a very inspiring perfumer, and I respect her for the all natural perfumes.

I am a bit disappointed by the price of the samples ( from the latest collection ). Although I have no doubt these perfumes are much more expensive than synthetic perfumes, the crystal bottles are definitely the most expensive ingredients in the 350USD perfume.

Taken into consideration that the samples are coming in a common normal glassvial, I think 35USD is really overpriced for 1 ml.
If they come in crystal vials, I take it back :)

I had the chance to sample JoAnne Bassett's Amazing as part of the Outlaw Perfume Project by the Natural perfumers Guild. She describes it as a citrus, floral chypre, but on me the spicy notes were also prominent -- it's lovely. I also enjoyed Anya McCoy's Amberess and Dawn Spencer Hurwitz's Mata Hari from the same project. Espionage by local-to-me perfumer Ayala Moriel is another natural perfume I like for its leathery smokiness.
I find it fascinating that JoAnne can trace her ancestry back to Charlemagne. I'd love to sample her French Collection (very intrigued by the mushroom in Colette) and the Royal Collection, all of which sound beautiful including, of course, Napoleon.

I am the wife/caregiver of a handicapped gentleman, and perfume is an escape for me which brings me much joy. Natural perfumes made from organic ingredients and essential oils are far superior to today's synthetic commercial perfumes. A great perfume can inspire a spiritual experience. If I could afford it, I would stock my own perfume collection exclusively with them.

My experience with natural perfume involves a visit I made once to a chemist who ran a unique perfume shop in a charming Danish town in California's Santa Ynez Valley called Solvang. The chemist custom blended perfume for you based on your skin's ph. He tested my ph and matched me with a fragrance he said would suit me perfectly. He mixed a combination of ingredients that simulated Yves Saint Laurents Yvresse (Champagne), which I just adored. I treasured that little bottle for a long time. Every drop was precious to me!

I read the article about JoAnne today with much admiration. What a wonderful, creative (and fun) endeavor she has pursued in developing her line of private label perfumes. I live in Southern CA too and was wondering if Joanne needed a volunteer assistant or apprentice? I'm available! : )

It would be an honor to sample her perfumes.
BTW, the bottles are gorgeous! Kudos to the artistan who created them.

The only experience I've had with natural perfumes is Sage Machado perfume oils, I don't know if these count, but there it is.

I bought the Royal collection samples, reviews to come. I've been on a natural perfume kick lately so can't wait to see how these will compare to the other very fine offerings from this state.

(No need to enter me in the contest, btw)

Thank you first for such great article!I love JoAnne Basset's fragrances, but never had the plesure to own them.I love it that she is so inovative and the way her ideas comes to fruition.I like that her perfumes have dept and do not disapper.They are really like symphony's, all well orchestrated!
She is using great classic parfumery techniques in such a suave manner. I remember when i was little girl making my first perfume.....i collected rose petals and put them in a jar of water.Well, i know it was not much but it smelled good to me then ;-).The idea to use natural perfumes is great! There are a lot of people who have alergies or even when pregnant,so i think they are the way ! Thank you for the give away ,it is so generous and thoughtfull!Just to read the article was a plesure.
GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE ;-))

i have always longed to try joanne's "reflection" perfume. all of these look just gorgeous. i have experienced lord jester's natural perfumes, and i must say they are lovely, well-balanced and long-lasting. my favorite from that line is "daphne". its a rich, fallish, incredibly earthy fragrance. a beautiful spice. i find all of adam's line of perfumes long-lasting and so real. you can almost pick out each note specifically.
i would love to try joanne's samples. they all sound so rich and satsifying.
thank you for the chance to possibly try these lovely perfumes.

It was so nice morning we have spent with JoAnne. Jeca and me forgot about time at all. JoAnne has so many good fragrances and she is very knowledgeable in what she does. We got as a present Napoleon and it is one of Jecas favorite fragrances she use lately. I love it's smell of pines resin.

My general impression after conversation with joAnne is that she really enjoy her work and she crafts fragrances with a lot of care. She is not very ambitious to grow her business to the size of multinational company... but prefers to make great products of exceptional quality.

What an inspiring offer. I wish I had more experience of natural perfumes because JoAnne Bassett's fragrances need someone better qualified than me to comment here!

But I would surely appreciate the opportunity to find out more by trying those collections of samples.

Good luck everyone:-)