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MUSK



Musk a Must


Musk is a must in the oriental perfume family. Let’s explore the evolution of the traditional musk to its transition to the modern white musk in perfumery.


The natural and original musk is an animal raw material used in the composition of perfumes. It is extracted from the abdominal glands of a musk deer in Central Asia.


Other animal and plant species can produce a substance called musk, such as civets, muskrat, barbed duck, musk duck, and muskox.


Endangered, the musk deer is therefore protected, which is why the exploitation of natural musk has been banned for many years.


I took the opportunity to smell an animal musk at Souk Waqif in Doha, and to give you an idea of that smell, what I can relate to you is that I had the sensation to be hit by a whip. It is that strong and powerful. It is definitely a scent that is not for the common of the people. I had to literally step back from the bottle.


White Musk


There are several synthetic reproductions called "white musk" to distinguish their provenance. The white musk is a synthetic fragrance, 100% chemical therefore, which was originally intended for the food industry.


What is now called "white musk" has long been used to flavor yogurts and baby milk. Hence the regressive or tender aspect of the fragrance. Perfumers once had the idea to divert it from its primary use...


Many perfumers use white musks in base notes for their fixing effect. They are highly appreciated by women in warm and oriental scents, but also by men.


Thus, what is a musky smell?


In its pure state, musk has an extremely strong and violent odor. It releases notes of wood, animal and faeces; it has according to me nothing to do with what we usually described nowadays as a musky smell which has become a sweet, round and warm smell.


To accompany a woody base note or even to carry a fresh scent on its own, the scent of musk blends everywhere! Used in both male and female perfumes.


Predominantly fruity scents can also include musky notes to support them. This is how some perfumers offer scents with a zesty attack of bergamot and grapefruit, on a fruity and flowery heart of jasmine, lily of the valley, peach and rose, carried by a base of sandalwood and vanilla, accompanied by white musks.


Citrus, powdery, oriental, woody, amber, spicy scents, etc. In short, all the scents go wonderfully with a musky note! This note will in fact create harmony and roundness between all the other molecules, to give you a homogeneous fragrance that lasts throughout the day.



A radiant, warm and musky thank you to Sarah Pflug for this beautiful photo. Click on the bottle to visit her website.



See you on radiant_talks on Instagram!






OUD



A Sensory Pursuit


While visiting Qatar you might pass in front of a perfumery with some kind of pieces of wood on display.


This is oud, it comes from the wood of the tropical Agar (Aquilaria) tree that includes 15 different species. When the wood of the tropical Agar (Aquilaria) gets infected with a parasitic mold called Phialophora Parasitica, it reacts by producing a dark and fragrant resin that looks like a piece of wood.


Oud which is also called agarwood, oudh, agalocha, aloeswood, or eaglewood is used as one of the rarest perfume ingredients in the world and has been used for centuries in India, Southeast Asia, in the Middle East, as well as in China, and Japan.


The perfumery industry uses it in its form of oil (dehn al oud) or resin (oud mubakhar).


On one side, the resin is only triggered by the mold, it's estimated that a total of 2 percent of these trees produce it. Plus, many of these trees are now threatened species.


On the other side, the oil of oud is extracted by distillation from the wood or by melting the resin and can be applied directly to the skin as it is non-irritating.


According to Catherine Helbiq from Liveabout “Due to its rarity, high demand, and the difficulty of harvesting it, oud oil is perhaps the most expensive oil in the world. The annual oud market is around $6 billion, and its value is often estimated as one-and-a-half times the value of gold. For these reasons, it's occasionally referred to as "liquid gold."


The specific value of any particular oud, however, varies depending on the source. Certain tree species produce more valuable oud, and the region where the trees grow is a factor as well. Not to mention, oud that occurs naturally is more expensive than oud produced by an artificial infestation of the mold.”


Indeed, according to the International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences, oud oil can cost as much as more than $30,000 per kilogram depending on its purity.


Oudh (in Arabic) is valued strongly by perfumers who use it most often as a base note (as it ends to stay on the skin long after the others dissipate).


Oud note is described as warm, sweetness mixed with woody and balsamic notes, strong, musky or animalistic, undeniably it is a complex scent.


According to Chandler Burr, the famous perfume critic “It has a very particular scent and there is nothing like it on the market. It’s dark, rich and opaque.”


For me this penetrating signature, soulful and hermetic note, lift smoothly a corner of the veil of the Qatari identity.


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Cecile Quenum shoot the photo I choose to illustrate this article.


Click on the photo to reach Tracesdelumière, Cecile Quenum's website.








Sarah Quenum Laroque



Corporate Communication Consultant