Summer of Patchouli Love: Monica Miller discusses peace, love, patchouli and perfume

Patchouli has grown on me since I started to be a perfumista, some years ago. At first, I disliked it and now I almost adore it.
Now, I would wear happily something like Patchouli by Reminiscence. In fact, I'd love to own a full bottle of it.
I think that the perfume which made the difference for me was État libre d'Orange Nombril Immense. It was so delicious that I couldn't believe it had patchouli.

From this project I have tried Bohemian Spice and it is wonderfully done. It reminds me a bit of Eau d'Italie Baume du Doge, but stronger. It's really comforting.
I'd love to try the rest of scents.

Patchouli reminds me of Boston. Being from Texas I didn't encounter many hippies until college. In Boston, they're everywhere. Straight up patchouli use to scare me because images of dreadlocks and folks who haven't showered in a week would pop into my head and that's definitely NOT what I wanted. What got me to warm up to Patchouli was actually Lush Karma, it was such a different take on it, far from the hippie straight up patchouli I was able to wear it with confidence. Now, years later, dark resinous patchouli is like gold!

Patchouli has always been an exotic earthy scent with a sensual and spiritual essence for me, it travels through the air with a message of earthly delights. My darling husband wears it well and I love to use it in my healing balms and creams with orange as a settler. It is often a presence in my healing work and helps to balance the more medicinal scents of Arnica Birch and Lavender I use for deep muscle and joint healing and along with these essences helps to balance the nervous system and keep the patient in a state of balance with the emphasis on pleasure. Tee hee I laugh as I write that last word and all the connotations it has for me with my early Catholic school conditioning.. Hey! Pleasure is good! lol I would like to qualify for some patchouli. I wanted to be a patch bunny but I missed the boat..

I love patchouly since I smelled Borneo. Actually, the blending of patch and chocolate seems to be a very natural association, since the smell of the leaves have a chocolaty facet. Patchouli has a distinct and interesting aroma that you won't be smelling on everyone, making it unique!!

Patchouli is one of those scents that takes me back, back to the days of hippies and the era of peace and love. It was a ubiquitous scent of the era and always has that earthy and sweet smell of the 60s. As an ingredient in fragrances it is always one that I enjoy, and blended well with other ingredients often makes it better. It would be a joy to see how those with a nose could blend this magical ingredient into new fragrances for a new century. Yes, I would love to sample all of these!

I'm enjoying everyone's comments. Who knew patchouli had so many fans? :-)

I found Monica's perspective on perfumes--both natural and mixed media--to be very refreshing!

Folks who are interested in purchasing a box of the samples can visit the Perfume Pharmer website. They also have a few "Diva" size samples (5 ml) of the scents still available.

I believe all of the perfumers also have the scents available for purchase on their individual websites. Check 'em out!

patchouli in perfume makes me feel in touch with my soul

What are wonderful read, Jodi! I am very impressed with Monica's philosophy.

For me Patchouli has a power to enhance your mood and calms your nerves but I am still in the look for a patchouli that wins my heart.

I have been wearing patchouli in one form or another (usually an essential oil) since the late 70's/early 80's. I typically like Tunisian patchouli the best, I find it develops more sweetly/with less of a musty odor with my chemistry than patchouli grown elsewhere, and many of the frags in my wardrobe that are in heavy rotation have patchouli usually in the base or heart notes.

In perfumery, I find that Patchouli gives a "bottom" or complexity to the composition that otherwise would be lacking, it provides an interesting element that, if used skillfully, does not necessarily announce itself as "I'm Patchouli...here I am!" You're just aware that there is a depth/complexity to the fragrance, a sweet/earthy "bass" to the composition.

It also helps that my husband finds Patchouli to be very sexy on me :). His signature scent is Aramis (which unfortunately is getting a bit more difficult to find) and Patchouli figures large in the composition of that particular gentleman savage. I love Aramis on him.

Good luck, and if I'm not the eventual winner I would love to know if the scents in the contest are going to be made available to the public, I would love to purchase them.

I'd love to experience the PLAP scents, to find out how the different perfumers met their minimum 25% patchouli content requirement and still came up with such different perfumes at the end. Fascinating experiment.

Straight-forward patchouli essential oil floats my boat so it would be wonderful to experience different takes on the earthy and distinctive scent.

Thanks for offering the chance to join in with PLAP!

I have always loved patchouli, having worn it in the 60's as a teenager. What really impresses me is the dedication the new perfumers show in their work, creating beautiful works with natural ingredients. I never dreamed that the patchouli oil I adored as a teen would be elevated to such heights as those expressed in the efforts of so many talented folks. Perfume Pharmer's Peace, Love and Patchouli Project is obviously a labor of love and a dedication to the ethics of Peace which were fostered long ago and continue to this day. My hope is for all people to remain close to Mother Earth and nourish her as she nourishes us.

My friend's mother wasn't feeling very well. She was in bed and nothing seemed to please her. A difficult patient, she seemed to ask for more different things than her friend, my daughter, could bring to her. Finally, my friend's mother blurted out: "I want you to bring me some patchouli to smell". I am not kidding. My friend said, "WHAT???@!!!" but recalled that she had some patchouli oil and brought it to her Mom. That seems to do the trick. No, patchouli did not cure her Mom's illness, but it cured her restlessness and gave my friend some needed peace.

I think this story summarizes the effect of patchouli in fragrances: it provides the centering, grounding, and often times slows one down and brings one peace.

Peace!
Thanks for the draw and good luck to the perfumers!

Patchouli = mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

I think of a magical forest...

I was surprised to find that I love every patchouli I've come across - even the moldy dank ones!
I think I like the sweeter chypres best, but I'd LOVE to try others and see! I do like patch in perfumes to be strong and very recognizable, so I was excited to hear about the Summer of Patchouli Love contest to create a patch-centric perfume.

Even though I have a zodiac air sign, I've always been drawn most to earthy scents. They say depth, humanity, love and "mmmmm" to me.

:-) Wega

Patchiouli is one of those notes I sometimes have a hard time identifying in perfumes. My favorite patch perfume is SL's Borneo, but I have to be in the right mood to wear it, or it will wear me! I followed with interest the PLAP features this summer. I love when the perfumers have a theme and come up with their own interpretations.
Let me also say I was once the lucky winner of some scent from Absinthe Dragonfly, who is listed above me here. They were wonderful and she was extremely generous in her gifting.
Thank you for a great draw!

I love the earthy, grounding sensation I get from patchouli. It sets a solid foundation but also fires me up. Mentally and physically. It's sexy, thought provoking and you can't miss it once you've smelt it. I'm not always in a patchouli frame of mind, but when I am I appreciate it's unique quality and dimension it gives to a perfume. Patchoolz rulz!

I followed entire journey and it was so interesting and complex. I like how judges test them without knowing who is the nose behind a scent. I wish there is more perfumes event like that. :)

I am a life long lover of patchouli! From my deadhead days, to working on the cosmetic floor at Bloomingdale's!Patchouli oil is hands down the perfume i have been asked most "what are you wearing?" I Love it!

This sounds wonderful!! I used to be a patch hater, but in the last 2-3 years, I've come to LOVE patchouli in perfume. I like the earthy quality it brings to a scent. I would love to be in the draw!

Patchouli is tricky for me. I used to simply love all things patchouli, but I'm a little careful now. Some time ago at the Guerlain counter in NM SF, after sniffing my arm, the perfume mistress recommended Sous le Vent as the perfect scent for me. I tried it on and the perfume soon became a blah mix of citrus and patchouli. Since then it seems that any bit of patchouli gets amplified on my skin. I still love the scent on other people, but on me, I have to be extra careful... I would love to find the perfect patchouli scent from the collection!

The PLAP was definitely a highlight in my summer as it was a thrill to follow and try some of the wonderful creations made by the participants.

I think patchouli can have many roles in perfume, from the shy accessory note to the brash and blaring "I'm patchouli, hear me roar" note. The perfumes from PLAP that I have tried were outstanding, and really showed skill and talent in bringing out the patchouli in the most flattering and varied ways! I am looking forward to trying the others in the series as time and budget allow!

Michael

Patchooooleee, the smell of wet earth raising from the ground. Inviting, enticing...Memories of Tijuana and stick ball come to mind and all the joys of playing with the locals and my cousins. Patchouli centers the soul...And reminds people of the simple joys of earthiness that grounds us all.

Patchouli, is a welcome added depth to a fragrance composition. It is instant character and attitude. I love the 'dirtiness' that it offers to any perfume that would otherwise smell too 'young' or 'innocent'. I love that people are passionate about their opinion of patchouli. Whether positive or negative, it always gets a strong reaction. That is the sign of a powerful fragrance note.

A little before my time, a bunch of crazy hippie chicks (and their guys) assembled on a patch of land known now as Woodstock. The patchouli they wore was just as earthy, heady, and mesmerizing as the patchouli we wear in skillfully blended scents today... just a little more concentrated due to the population density of that place. I LOVE patch and would also really, really love a chance to see what our modern day patchouli artistes have created!

Feelings and thoughts about Patchouli.....aaahhh, She is the Queen! Earthy, sensual, mesmerizing. She is my all time favorite among scents. If a fragrance has patchouli in it, I'm there....Inhaling like a Dyson! Have had a lifelong love affair with this stuff. I've gone through countless bottles of essential oil over the last, lets say forty three years.(I'm 52) I put it on almost everything. My art studio/jewelry workshop absolutely REEKS of it, and I LOVE it! Always spritz the bed linens with patchouli perfumes. Very relaxing, aids dreaming too. Among other things!
So thank you very much for the Summer of Patchouli Love!!! Keep it comin' folks!

I have to be honest here - I have yet to find patchouli fragrance that I would truly love.

My first encounter with patchouli oils happened when I was a teenager: I was at the shop surfing through shelves filled with handmade oils. Then a lady in the shop recommend patchouli oil to me, saying that it would be the best for the intimate atmosphere as it acts as an aphrodisiac (she winked~). I took a sniff and I hated it. In the end, I ended up buying it, just out of curiosity, and even burned it at home later.

Well, to make the story short, that particular oil shop has closed, I moved to another country. I still have this little bottle of patchouli oil and I love it now. I wish there was a fragrance that would smell like it: earthy, but not skanky, slightly sweet and not medicinal. Thank you for this post, now I know where else to look! ;)

Cheers!

Oh, yes, please enter me!

I have worn patchouli in one way or another since I was a teen, despite the associations with dope and b.o. I have been fortunate to sniff a couple of these PLAP scents and they have been amazing - I love real, good ole' dirty patch, not that cleaned up stuff I don't even recognize.

I work in a building that has a number of healing arts professionals and once in a while some patchouli blend of massage oil will be wafting around. So yummy, earthy, sexy.

I love Patch, and even grow a plant to run my hand over now and then!
Thanks for a great contest

When I get a whiff of a fresh patchouly note in perfumes I am immediately drawn into it and I usually will buy that perfume. I love it so! Patchouly smells good on most everyone and my nose finds it to be a sexy perfume note! Oh, la, la........

I would adore the chance to sniff all the creations that were made! I looooooooooove Patchouli - especially on people. Not much will get me nuzzling up to someone quicker than Patchouli on skin. It is strong, individual, and will not be denied.
I love its strength and vibrationally consider it to be somewhat alike to myself. It is not for everyone but the people it is for adore it. :)

Before I continue I have to disclose that I got as a gift Healing Balm from Skye Botantics that I love and that is awesome. I did not try Monica's perfumes but I may bet that they are awesome. Balm is done from fresh herbs and there is big difference compared to usual products I see on the market. This endorsement is not influenced by the fact that I got it as a gift but it is very touchy that Monica sent it to me when she found out on facebook that I was complaining about allergic rush that I had on my hands.

This was so much fun to be a part of, and Monica was so generous to all of the participants!

Thank you Jodi, for your thoughtful and beautiful interview and review of the PLAP (Peace, Love and Patchouli) project :)

I'm glad you liked Queen of Punk!

Amanda

Wow :) this all sounds so interesting. I wasn't a patchiouli lover before, on the contrary, it used to smell a bit mouldy to me. I'm glad I trained my taste :)
Now it's earthy touch gives me some dept and some of that warmth from the soil in perfumes I love.
Congrats to whoever wins this contest! He/she will be so lucky!