Guest guest Posted January 9, 2009 Report Share Posted January 9, 2009 >What scent would you use to welcome someone, into your home. your family, your life? A perfume or accord or essence or incense or other aromatic entity. ______ Depends on the season, for me, but I have found in general that the smell of rosemary, cinnamon, or a woodsy incense that approximates the smell of wood burning in the fireplace, or citrus are very welcoming to guests. The smell of freshly-baked bread also seems to promote a feeling of comfort in guests too. If I'm not cooking something with rosemary, I might throw a sprig of rosemary into a teaspoon of hot oil in a skillet for twenty seconds or so, and then remove it, just before guests arrive. I once went to a dinner party at a friend's house back East in the height of the humid summer, and she had actually made her own placemats with strips of vetiver roots woven into a cotton warp on her handloom. These did not smell overpowering at the table but added a distinct vetiver-y freshness that contrasted well with the summer mugginess. She served both chilled and room-temperature dishes with citrus or mint garnishes. The whole olfactory ensemble seemed to be a marvellous accord comprised of mint, citrus, and vetiver. Once I get to know someone and know some of the smells which seem to make them feel comfortable, I can tailor the 'ambient smells' to match what they like. I have a friend who is transported by the smell of onions cooking and frankincense tears on (not overly hot) charcoal. Another friend loves to arrive and smell garlic and roses. Still another: lavender, labdanum, and zinfandel, so I strew lavender flowers on the tablecloth, serve zinfandel, and wear something with labdanum in it. To learn these things and to be able to customize the atmosphere of the house so that it generates a sense of comfort and joy in guests is great fun for me. Every once in a while I wonder what it would be like to make an omelette flavored with ambergris, which I heard was especially enjoyed by King II, but unless someday I find a huge boulder of ambergris lying on a beach, I will confine this to fantasy, and reserve precious ambergris for fixative purposes. :-) Alfred in San Francisco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 10, 2009 Report Share Posted January 10, 2009 >What scent would you use to welcome someone, into your home. your >family, your life? A perfume or accord or essence or incense or other >aromatic entity. Lavender + grapefruit. Love, Saskia .. <http://geo./serv?s=97359714/grpId=7141510/grpspId=1705162397/msgId =33305/stime=1231527626/nc1=3848640/nc2=5579908/nc3=5202323> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 10, 2009 Report Share Posted January 10, 2009 > > What scent would you use to welcome someone, into your home. your > family, your life? A perfume or accord or essence or incense or other > aromatic entity. > Today - just today, and I don't know why - it would be eoil of myrtus communis, just bubbling in the air diffuser in our family room. Fresh, clear, sweet, and a little playful. If I had access to the leaves and twigs, I might burn them over coals in our braziers. Margi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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