THE SHAPES AND COLORS OF THE PANDEMIC

The pandemic disrupted a lot of things, including shipping, and the sources from which I get materials for perfume making. Because of delays, I’ve run out of things, and because of unavailabilty of items that I routinely use, I’ve had to improvise. 

The first improvisation occurred when our bottle printer moved to a new location, was shut down for some time, and we ran out of printed bottles for the 30 ml size of some popular fragrances. To keep up with orders, we started putting new labels over the name on existing bottles, and quickly realized that using generic bottles for the 30 ml size, as we had been doing for the 100 ml bottles, would save space that would otherwise be used to store boxes of bottles for less popular fragrances. By customizing all of the bottles, we wouldn’t have to guess about demand and potentially keep things sitting around that we didn't use. We have added the classic picture labels to the back of the 30 ml bottles, so now the appearance of the two sizes matches perfectly. Discontinuing the old flat, rectangular bottles also saves storage space, eliminates the need for more than two types of sprayers, and helps conserve space on our stock shelves. When I have time (good luck with that!), I will post new photos of all of the bottles in all sizes on the website. We are currently using up the old stock, but pretty soon everything will be standardized. 

 

The second surprise came when the clear vials we use for samples became unavailable. The supplier said that they were being used for Covid vaccine, but that doesn’t seem probable. I think it’s more likely that the clear glass was all being used to make a different size and shape of vials for vaccine. Whatever the real story, we could only get amber glass vials with black tops, so we are using those until the clear glass becomes available again. I like the clear glass because the juice inside is visible, but I may stick with the black tops. 

 

Several materials that I use in perfumes have also become unavailable, so as I use up the last of the supply on hand, I’m working on coming up with acceptable substitutes. This is considerably more frustrating than any changes in packaging, but in the end, everything should work out. 

 

During the pandemic, I’ve been wanting more than ever to downsize my chaotic stash of fragrance samples, decants, mini-bottles, and even some full size bottles. To help with that process, I’m offering another batch of surprise packages to five readers of this post. Each package will include a mix of things, probably some junk, but also some potentially valuable items. Of course, one person’s trash is another person’s treasure, so I don’t really know which is which in your eyes, so it will all be there to sift through. Just leave a comment saying that you would like to be included in the drawing, which will happen after we return to Seattle on the 26th. Unfortunately, at present I can only offer shipping within the US. 

[The gratuitous but seasonally-appropriate photos are mine, one of the peonies that got beaten down by the rain, and one of a small fraction of the amazing crop of strawberries from our garden] 

A BELATED SOLSICE AND BIG GIVEAWAY

Where to start? A lot of this fall was taken up with adapting a large class to strictly online format. That’s over, but I’ve got to do it again for another class in January. 

Anxiety about the elections, and now the insane aftermath of the elections, has occupied a lot of mental space for me and everyone I know. If n politics this year were a satire, it would be too far-fetched to work effectively. I just hope we can get through the next month without a major crisis of some kind. 

 

Apparently the covid epidemic has greatly increased online shopping, because we’ve had unprecedented numbers of orders for both orchid plants and perfumes. I ran out of boxes for the 100 ml size bottles, and it took over a month for the new batch of boxes to arrive, so shipping of many orders was delayed and I’m still dealing with the backlog. We are running out of small sample vials, and can’t get the usual ones because they’re all being used for covid vaccine. 

The solstice is over, so the days will at least start getting longer, if not warmer. Crocuses and daffodils are starting to come up, and the hellebores are in bud. On Monday we had torrential rain, then on Tuesday it snowed. The Pacific Northwest is the only place I know of where it can snow – and the snow can stick – when the temperature is well above freezing. On Wednesday I finally had to bring inside all of the orchids, tender succulents, and other tropical plants that had been having such a good time outside. Today I’m planting the last of the bulbs that I ordered when they were on sale, hoping that the squirrels and moles don’t eat them all. 

 

I’ve been going through all of my perfumes, eliminating anything that I don't think I need to keep. For that reason, I’m offering a series of big giveaways to all US readers. The items in the giveaways include small samples, larger samples, decants, mini bottles, and a few full-sized bottles. To enter, just leave a comment about your fall. To make up for lost time, up to 5 readers will be winners of this drawing. 

[Photos are mine]