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CENT is connected — through the oldest and most primal part of our brain — to memory, pleasure and desire. The smell of damp earth, dry leaves underfoot, fresh conifer needles or lavender blooms crushed between fingers can transport and calm your mind, and connect you to nature. Local companies are harvesting and wildcrafting botanicals to create natural scents and skin care products, and bringing back self-care rituals that are infused with ancient and traditional knowledge. Walking into the Wild Coast Perfumery in Cowichan Bay, I feel like I’ve stepped back in time. The back area of the perfumery is like an alchemist’s workshop; there is a copper alembic still in the window, and jars of dried flowers and plants, tinctures, resins and waxes line the shelves, begging to be opened and experienced. The front of the shop is lined with bottles of scents with names like Tofino, Carmanah, Salt Spring and Whistler. I meet natural perfumer Laurie Arbuthnot and embark on a scent journey inspired by and connected to special places in BC. “When I sit down to make a perfume, it’s like sitting down to write a story or paint a picture — I need a direction. So I use scent inspiration from locations to build the perfumes. Oak moss reminds me of being a kid at the end of summer going through the woods when everything is crunchy. The perfume called Tofino is inspired by the scent of moss, damp earth and a path leading to the beach lined with cedars and wild roses. Salt Spring is inspired by a coastal cottage garden.” Laurie tells me she uses at least one local ingredient in each of her perfumes. Some include wild oak moss, lichen harvested off Garry oak trees, cedar bows and even bracket fungus, a local shelf mushroom. “I was hiking with my son one day and I saw a fallen log with this beautiful piece of bracket fungus. It came off easily so I smelled it — because I smell everything — and it was fruity and gorgeous. I brought it home and started playing around with it. Its scent is very earthy so I used it in my perfume Carmanah. I also use lavender a lot — when it comes to scent, lavender is like mustard to a sandwich.” As my journey into the discovery of scents continues, I visit natural perfumers Karen Van Dyke (of K Van Dyke Parfum) and Stacey Moore (of Flore Botanical Alchemy) at The Still Room in Victoria where they create and sell their scents and skincare products, and make custom, individualized scents.
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