Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Finding Your Fragrance


Your Individualized Scent for Your Mood and Body Chemistry

Each week during my health, beauty and hair segment, I try to present information that is informative, fun, playful and helpful to you and your life. Oftentimes, I use “the five senses” as one of the guidelines in my research and preparation. As you will discover, this post will address our aromatic sense.

Basically there are four fragrance categories:

1. Citrus – light and fresh
2. Floral – sweet and strong
3. Earth – simple yet mysterious
4. Musk – heavy and sexy

Each of these fragrance categories sends a different signal (or message) to the more than 40 million olfactory receptor neurons which reside in the olfactory epithelium in the nasal cavity. In other words, what we "smell" can affect our mood, attitude and perceptions.

Based on body chemistry, a fragrance can have dramatic differences from person-to-person. It’s important to try the fragrance first (on you) and give it time to mature. Fragrances are a combination of “notes” with some “notes” lasting longer than others. (i.e. Base note last longest – middle note second longest – top note evaporates first).

What scent works for your friend, may not work for you. For example, oily skin types will hold a fragrance longer and make it stronger than someone with dry skin. A fragrance is designed to last about four hours, however, on someone with an oilier skin type, it may last all day. Apply or reapply appropriately…

Also, when shopping for a fragrance you will find it in basically four different concentrations:

1. Eau de cologne – least concentrated – better for oily skin types
2. Eau de toilette – more concentrated – better for oily skin types
3. Eau de parfum – still more concentrated – better for dry skin types
4. Parfum – most concentrated – better for dry skin types

Things like genetics, skin type, hair color, lifestyle, medications, exercise, smoking, age, climate, time-of-year and environment can all change a fragrance.

Some things to consider:

True Blondes typically have dryer skin types
True Brunettes typically have oilier skin types
True Redheads typically have fair, delicate skin types – beware of green note fragrances as they may be incompatible with your body chemistry (Green Notes are Plant Extracts).

Depending on the occasion, where you apply your fragrance does make a difference. While there are many suggestions as to where to apply a fragrance, the pulse points are great – behind the ears, opposite side of elbow (arm) and opposite side of knee(leg). During increased heart rate, respiration and perspiration these areas will reactivate the fragrances due to moisture and heat.

A fragrance (or smells we experience) can have a combination of the following three effects:

1. Psychological
2. Pharmacological
3. Physiological

Wanna try a fragrance concoction of your own to see how easy it is to make your own personalized aroma?

How about Magic Madness?

Ingredients:

3 drops of sandalwood essential/fragrance oil
2 drops of vanilla essential/fragrance oil
3 drops of cedarwood essential/fragrance oil
15 drops of bergamot essential/fragrance oil
½ pint (300 ml) 70 percent alcohol or vodka

Directions: Pour vodka into a clean, glass container (jar or bottle). Add the oils and shake well. Seal container and leave for one week. Go easy on this stuff, you can always make more…

There are three basic ingredients in making a fragrance:

1. Essential/Fragrance Oils
2. Pure grain alcohol or a good vodka (Don’t drink it… you’ll be wearing it)
3. Your Imagination…

Remember: Base notes last longest, middle notes last second longest and top notes evaporate first…

Have fun!

Dorlon Peckham 
Genesis Salon
775-828-9797
www.genesissalon.com

Sunday, July 15, 2007

THE NOTEBOOK





WELCOME

YOU are the SUBJECT and YOUR BEAUTY, in all five dimensions, is the TOPIC.

The objectives are:

To provide you with information that is helpful and informative
To provide a sense of community to ask and answer your questions
To present ideas which are inspiring and honest
To assist you in looking and feeling your best
To share health, beauty and fashion inspiration from around the world

Since 1980, education has been the foundation of my career as a hair designer. I was fortunate to work with some of the world’s greatest hair artisans. One in particular, Russell Hyde, shared with me the key elements of hair design, art, beauty, thinking, seeing and where to discover true and endless inspiration. During the late 1980’s and early 1990’s I had the opportunity to work, one-on-one, with Russell. I’ve never been the same since.

Also, I discovered another four pieces of the beauty puzzle that changed my perspective on hair design and beauty:

1. Color Analysis
2. Style Personality
3. Face Shapes
4. Body Types

I quickly came to realize TRENDS are secondary to the INDIVIDUALIZED WOMAN. A great haircut or haircolor is only great if it is great for the individual woman.

I began questioning… What is beauty anyway? Is it physical? Is it something a woman is born with? Is it something that can be developed?

We’ve all known someone who we thought was beautiful, untouchable until we got to know her. Then, we found out otherwise.

One the other hand, we’ve also met someone who didn’t appear beautiful at first glance, until we got to know her. Then, out of nowhere, we begin to realize the true meaning of beauty. Wow! She is amazingly beautiful – inside and out.

Since 1980, I’ve had the privilege to work with thousands of women in the salon. In doing so, I’ve come to realize beauty is found, or developed, in five dimensions:

Physical
Spiritual
Mental
Emotional
Social

Beauty can and should be enhanced physically. However, it doesn’t stop or start here. It’s the “graces” in all five dimensions that define beauty.

It’s important to know, there is not such thing as perfection. In fact, it’s the imperfections that are most beautiful and most human – these imperfections are what make a woman most beautiful.

In my opinion, our society has distorted our views “destructively” regarding beauty –especially as we begin to age. Again, it’s not that we shouldn’t do all we can to enhance, protect and preserve beauty. What I’m speaking of is the internal, destructive nature of media hype and what we now have come to believe as truth.

As human beings we take-in and send-out information through our five senses:

Touch
Sight
Sound
Smell
Taste

These five senses give us an endless opportunity to design beautiful experiences to tantalize and revitalize others as well as ourselves.

Sincerely,

Dorlon Peckham
Genesis Salon
775-828-9797
Or visit our Web Site at:
www.genesissalon.com