Gracing the Dawn

Birth date: March 2008
Original Name: The Three Graces
Name change and launch: San Diego Comic Con 2010
Fragrance family: Floral
Inspiration: Poem

 

Gracing the Dawn, more than any other perfume in my line, has a very tangled and twisted her-story. Originally, she was an idea, a draft of notes called The Three Graces specially created for Heather Ettlingers project titled Perfume in a Poem. 

 

In a Station of the Metro

The apparition of these faces in the crowd;

Petals on a wet, black bough.

~ Ezra Pound

 

Over time, with the birth of many other chords and perfumes, the draft of notes morphed and shifted, eventually birthing into a very complex fragrance. The original illumination for the fragrance changed as well, becoming Greg's iconic image at the 2010 San Diego Comic Convention, where the perfume was debuted.

 

 

Gracing the Dawn is a bouquet of fresh garden flowers seamlessly woven together so that no one floral note stands out. The fragrance is composed using a classic chypre perfume structure, although the end result is much more ethereal.

The orchestration of ingredients in Gracing the Dawn shares a few similar essences with Hedera helix and four chords contained in GreenWitch. The four chords have all been crafted by my own hands using essentials oils, absolutes and C02 extracts. In total there are twenty other botanicals, including a plethora of flowers. I choose to use whole essences in my perfumes, from the botanical world, no isolates what-so-ever.

 

 

I refer to Gracing the Dawn as a violet perfume, although the violet note in the solid version of the fragrance is subtle, it is a more fictional representation. The main scent component of violet flowers comes from the naturally occurring chemical constituent ionones. The natural perfumer has no violet flower essential oil, C02 extract or absolute. There is a violet leaf absolute but the aroma is not the scent of the delicate little flowers we all adore, rather a very green, earthy note. Opting for maximum nature in my fragrances I utilized orris root and a variety of other whole essences to convey the impression of violets. In the liquid version the violet note has been further enhanced with a tincture of violet flowers.

"..composed to illustrate a magical theme that unites the young child and the ancient tribal, aboriginal being that still lives somewhere within you." ~ Lucy

 

Here's a list of the essences included, which illustrates within the first six ingredients, why this perfume is so costly:

FLOWERS
Rose
Jasmine
Boronia
Night Queen
Tuberose
Orange Blossom
Osmanthus
Black Current
Narcissus
Ylang Ylang
Mimosa
RESINS
Oakmoss
Peru Balsam
Labdanum
Galbanum
WOOD
Agarwood
Sandalwood
Cedarwood
Guaicwood
Pine
HERBS
Chamomile
Parsley
Ginger
Patchouli
Celery
Clary
Sage
Cumin
Tumeric
Lavender
Rosemary
Juniper
Geranium
Basil
Caraway
OTHER
Violet Leaf
Ambrette
Cognac
Orris
Vetiver
SeaWeed
Choya Nakh
Spikenard
Beeswax
Neem

The base alcohol in the liquid expression of Gracing the Dawn is a 190 proof organic grape from Oregon with a tincture of wild and parma violet flowers. 

This fragrance contains Africa stone, technically not a botanical ingredient. I used a dilution (tincture) of Africa stone absolute, Procavia capensis. Africa stone is one of those particularly odd ingredients that has made its way into the palette of natural perfumers. It is the fossilized urine, sun baked on rocks of a small African mammal called the Rock Hyrax. Before going into a perfume the substance has gone through a number of alchemic transformations. Africa stone adds an animalic quality to a natural perfume, or in this case an accord. In GreenWitch the ingredient is barely in the perfume since there is minimal amounts of the Faux Musk Accord, however, I wanted to let you all know that it is there.

"It's clear that lovers of classic floral chypres, such as the mountain-pure Ma Griffe, or maybe with an orientalised leaning, like Magie Noire, would like Gracing the Dawn. Recommended sniffing!" Elena, Perfume Shrine

 

 

Like my other creations Martha and I got together several times to discuss the design and color hue for the crochet pouch that would be used for the packaging of the flacon and cases. To bring in the violet element Martha created sweet, little violet flowers that hang from the tie strings for the liquid. All these added details, along with the intricate compacts and French flacons add to the higher end cost of these versions of the fragrance.

 

 

 

Want to read more about Gracing the Dawn? Check out the original LookBook.