The Perfume Making Podcast

The Perfume Making Podcast

Discover the captivating art of perfumery and learn how to turn your passion into a business. Join Karen as she shares step-by-step instructions and occasional interviews, guiding you through the intricacies of fragrance creation. This podcast goes beyond the technical aspects of perfumery. Explore the fascinating connections between scent, mindset, and wellbeing. Learn about scent psychology, meditation practices, and the profound impact of fragrances on our emotions and overall wellness. Whether you're interested in natural perfumery, commercial perfumery, or starting your own venture, Karen provides valuable insights and business advice to help you succeed. Unleash your creativity, tap into your senses, and discover the secrets of this enchanting world. Start creating your signature scents today and unlock the transformative power of fragrance in your life.

Episodes

Too Much of a Good Smell - The Myth of Longevity in Perfumery

July 13, 2025 • 19 mins
This week on the show, Karen is finally addressing an issue that has been annoying her for years - the obsession with extreme longevity of a fragrance. There is a theory that the longer a perfume lasts, the more desirable and worthwhile it is - but Karen is calling that a myth. In this week's episode, Karen is here to explain that just because something doesn't last, that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Instead, she argues that perfume is ...
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The Architecture of Aroma - Structuring Floral Fragrances

July 6, 2025 • 26 mins
Karen has a new live course coming up, on the 7th of July, and in this episode she wants to explore two things that link into that live course - Floral Fragrances and Structure. Working with florals, without experience, can be an overwhelming task that often leads to disappointing results as florals are dense materials that fight with each other if you don’t know how to mix them. But, when you get florals right, they can lead to so...
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Reflections of 30 Years - Things I Would Tell My Younger Self

June 29, 2025 • 31 mins
Inspired by a recent chat with her social media manager, and the realisation that she is approaching thirty years in the perfume business, Karen has decided to take a look back and ponder on the thing that she would tell her younger self if the opportunity arose. When you’re new to anything, whether it be a perfume business or not, you are also naive. Only with time, failure and growth can we realise the mistakes we have made in th...
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Lessons That Last Part 4 - Building a Brand Without Breaking the Bank

June 23, 2025 • 36 mins
To date, my new mini-series has very much been focused on the creation of your fragrances. However, once it’s created, it becomes the time to put it out into the big wide world. But, how do you achieve it if you’re a small independent perfume maker and you don’t have the marketing budget or resources of a big company? Whether you know it or not, you’re also carrying an expectation that you’ll put your product on the internet and pe...
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Lessons That Last Part 3 - How to Structure a Scent

June 15, 2025 • 27 mins
A problem that most of Karen’s students inevitably face is how to structure a scent. Once they learn the perfume pyramid, top, middle and base notes, they assume that they have learned all they need to know…but they haven’t.  The problems arise when synthetic materials are introduced as the perfume pyramid is not the best model for them. In this episode, Karen is going to break down when the pyramid structure works and when you sho...
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Lessons That Last Part 2 - Learning Materials

June 8, 2025 • 39 mins
After taking a slight detour to the Rose Retreat last week, Karen is back with her ‘Lessons that Last’ mini-series, and this week she is taking a look at the process and importance of learning materials.  The most important, but also time-consuming aspect of perfume making is learning materials, because without knowing how they smell, interact with each other and react to the skin, you simply can’t make fragrances. There are so man...
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Rose Overdose - My Week at The Rose Retreat

June 1, 2025 • 39 mins
Karen has just returned from a trip to Bulgaria where she attended the Rose Retreat by Rose Overdose. In this week’s episode, she is here to give you a debrief on the whole experience.  From visiting rose fields to witnessing the distillation process and even stopping off at a local winery to sample the vino, Karen enjoyed the complete Rose Retreat experience.  So, if you’ve ever wanted to attend, but don’t know what to expect, sit...
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Branding 101 - An Interview with Fiona Humberstone, The Brand Stylist

May 25, 2025 • 59 mins
This week Karen is joined by Fiona Humberstone, also known as ‘The Brand Stylist’. Fiona has worked with clients ranging from tiny artisan brands to large country estates, as well as being a published author and course facilitator. With a lifetime of experience, it’s safe to say that what Fiona doesn’t know about branding isn’t worth knowing. In this interview with Karen, Fiona gives an insightful crash course on everything from wh...
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100 Episodes Later…  Lessons That Last

May 19, 2025 • 26 mins
When Karen started this podcast, she expected to do no more than 20 episodes that would address the most common questions she receives. However, things took a turn and here we are at episode 100. To celebrate this landmark, Karen isn’t going to do the usual and look back at the show’s highlights, instead she is beginning a brand new mini-series based on things that still hold true after 100 shows.  KEY TAKEAWAYS With so many tut...
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You Don’t Have to Break the Bank - Starting a Perfume Brand on a Realistic Budget

May 11, 2025 • 36 mins
This week Karen is addressing a question she is asked all the time on social media and through email -  “I’m obsessed with perfume and I want to start my own brand, but I don't have the money to invest…can you help me for free?” Well, the answer is yes and no. In this episode, Karen breaks down the hard truths of starting a perfume brand, and whilst you can’t do it for free, it doesn't have to cost the world. Covering what you can ...
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The Democratisation of Scent - Perfume in the Digital Age

May 4, 2025 • 52 mins
This week on the show, Karen is joined by Thomas Dunckley AKA The Candy Perfume Boy, 6 time Jasmine award winner, writer, trainer and industry consultant. After taking a step away from the industry Thomas has returned with a new mission and a new branding - ‘Making Scents Make Sense’. Thomas’ mission is to cut through the snobbery and gatekeeping traditionally associated with the perfume industry in an attempt to make it more acces...
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From Day Job to Dream Job - Why it’s Never Too Late to Follow Your Dreams

April 27, 2025 • 48 mins
This week Karen is joined by Artisan Perfumery Mastermind alumni Gabrielle Durand, the founder of natural fragrance brand ‘On the Nose’ perfumes. After a long career in the corporate world of HR, Gabrielle decided to take a leap of faith and follow her lifelong dream of being a perfumer. Changing your career late in life can be a very daunting prospect, but Gabrielle was determined to succeed. In this inspirational interview with K...
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From Scroll to Sold - Mastering Social Media for Brand Growth

April 20, 2025 • 98 mins
This week Karen is joined by Kate Beavis, a social media strategist and content expert. Kate has been working with Karen since 2018 on her social media presence to make her brand feel authentic and not overwhelming. And, after Karen’s initial reluctance to use social media, Kate has shown her the many benefits that can come from embracing your online presence. In this interview, Kate spills the many secrets, tips and tricks she has...
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A Nose for the Niche - Crafting a Unique Fragrance Voice

April 13, 2025 • 37 mins
The world of indie perfumes has become extremely crowded, leading people to wonder if there is space for their product in a marketplace full to the brim. And, that is the question Karen is here to address this week. Entering any marketplace as a beginner can feel daunting, but facing one that is over-saturated and full of high end brands posing as independent can easily be enough to give you second thoughts. However, in this week's...
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Success Doesn’t Have a Deadline - The Importance of Moving at Your Own Rhythm

April 6, 2025 • 29 mins
Last week Karen took the time to reflect but, as most of us do after we have a brief rest bite, she now feels the pressure to act with urgency creeping up on her. So, what happens when ambition and energy are at complete odds? The pressure we place on ourselves to be instantly successful, coupled with the pressure from society, is very real and can cause us to doubt our every move. However, the one thing that society doesn't teach ...
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The Art of Stopping - A Moment to Reflect

March 30, 2025 • 46 mins
Karen has just returned from a four week trip around Australia where she attended a family wedding and spent time catching up with old friends. However, what struck her unexpectedly, was what she discovered about herself, and her creative process, once she actually stopped and got off the hamster wheel. On this week’s episode, Karen shares both her travel experiences and what they revealed to her in the larger scheme of things, onc...
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The Emotional Palette - Using Colour to Connect with Consumers

March 23, 2025 • 71 mins
This week Karen is joined on the show by Karen Haller, an expert in behavioural colour psychology and author of ‘The Little Book of Colour’, to discuss how colour shapes our experience of scent. The first thing any consumer sees when they interact with your product is the colours, and whether you mean it or not, the consumer will have an emotional response to that colour. In this fascinating interview, Karen shares her vast knowled...
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The Essence of Roses - From Harvest to Heart

March 16, 2025 • 53 mins
This week Karen is talking to Silvia Yonkova, founder of Rose Overdose, a company that grows roses and produces stunning fragrances from them. But, on top of this, Silva also hosts a yearly ‘Rose Retreat’ where budding perfumers can experience what it’s like to harvest roses and work with organic materials. In this interview with Karen, Silvia shares her family's rich history with roses, what inspired her to move into the world of ...
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Experience of a Lifetime - An Interview With Pia Long Part 2

March 9, 2025 • 60 mins
Following on from last week’s episode, Karen is once again joined by Pia Long for part 2 of her interview. In this second part, Pia gets into the passionate side of her career. As she explains to Karen, she has long been an outspoken advocate for regulation reform and fragrance compliance. She explains her views to Karen, and how her work and advocacy led her to be the recipient of unexpected recognition. KEY TAKEAWAYS In 2024 P...
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Experience of a Lifetime - An Interview With Pia Long Part 1

March 2, 2025 • 64 mins
This week Karen is delivering the first of a two-part interview with Pia Long, head perfumer at Olfiction. Pia has worked in almost all areas of the perfume industry from sales and marketing to product development and quality control. She has, to use a cliche, seen and done it all. In the first part of this interview, Pia goes into depth about her incredible journey from student to master and talks with Karen about the changes she ...
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