A month of perfume, learning, research, new beginnings, and a lot of beautiful work
September has been one of those months where, when you are in the middle of it, you don’t quite realise how much is happening.
Then you stop and look back.
Students have been joining us from different parts of the world. Student work has been arriving for assessment. An NPA alumna has joined our Hall of Fame. New research has been published. An ISIPCA internship project has reached thesis stage. New conversations have begun with growers and makers. And, perhaps most importantly, students have been talking to us about what they need from the Academy, and we have been listening.
So before October begins, I wanted to take a moment to share some of it.
The studio doors are opening wider
One of the nicest developments this month came directly from student feedback.
A student wrote to me saying that sometimes it would simply be useful to see another perfumer working, making an accord, evaluating it, adjusting it, talking through what they are doing.
That stayed with me.
So Open Studio Monday is evolving.
On the last Monday of every month, Diploma and Masterclass students now have two private live studio windows in which they can drop in, bring whatever they are working on, ask questions, compare materials, discuss formulations, or simply spend some time with other natural perfumers.
It is not a class.
There is no presentation to sit through, and the sessions are not recorded.
It is studio time.
A place for real conversation, peer support, unfinished work, experiments, questions, and the occasional “what on earth have I done to this accord?”
Today’s windows are:
11am–1pm Irish time
6pm–8pm Irish time
Diploma and Masterclass students will find the private joining details inside their course.
Learn at your own pace. Work in company.
From student to Hall of Fame
One of the most special moments of September was celebrating Muriel Mansier Ottavi and Elganaur.
Muriel returned to NPA for the Advanced Perfumers Workshops & Masterclasses, and this month we completed both her NPA directory listing and a special Hall of Fame feature recognising her work.
Muriel and Fabrice wrote afterwards to say how much the feature meant to them, which made the whole thing even lovelier.
And there is another little part of this story that makes me smile.
During assessment, I fell completely in love with one of Muriel’s perfumes, Oiseau Bleu.
I wanted to wear it.
So this month I bought a bottle.
For me, that is one of the most wonderful things about teaching perfumery: eventually the student becomes the perfumer whose work you want to own.
Please take a look at Elganaur and the beautiful work Muriel and Fabrice are creating.
LINK TO ELGANAUR
September reading; three deep dives into scent
We also published three substantial research pieces this month on our Substack, Olfactory Adventures & Inspiration.
What Is Attar, Really?
From mitti and rose to sandalwood, Kannauj and the traditional deg–bhapka process, this became a much bigger conversation than I expected — particularly around authentic attars, modern commercial interpretations and traditional makers.
Ambergris: Biology, Chemistry, Myth, Trade
A closer examination of one of perfumery’s most misunderstood materials, including its biology, chemistry, history and the persistent “whale vomit” description that refuses to die.
What Is the 100% Natural Perfume in Your Winter Wardrobe?
A more playful exploration of natural perfume, seasonal scent wardrobes, layering and the botanical materials we find ourselves reaching for as the weather changes.
If you missed them, I’ll link all three below.
ATTAR LINK
AMBERGRIS LINK
WINTER WARDROBE LINK
These articles are free to read. They are part of something I want NPA to keep doing more of: not simply teaching people how to formulate, but continually exploring the history, materials, culture and science behind perfumery.
A little something from Isparta is on its way…
September also brought a very interesting conversation with a rose producer in Isparta, TĂĽrkiye, one of the historic centres of Rosa damascena cultivation and Rose Otto production.
They have offered to send NPA a sample of their 2026 Rose Otto for evaluation, together with the batch GC/MS analysis and organic certification documentation.
I have made no promises whatsoever about recommending it, smelling and documentation come first, but that is precisely what makes this interesting.
The sample should now be on its way to Galway.
So there may be a little Rose Otto evaluation coming soon.
An NPA project reaches ISIPCA thesis stage
Another very proud behind-the-scenes moment this month came from Germannia Mira, whose ISIPCA internship with NPA centred on our Botanical Organoleptic Exploratory Training Kit project.
Germannia has now completed her written internship thesis, and her formal ISIPCA thesis defence has been scheduled for 5 November.
It has been fascinating watching a project that began as an NPA internship grow into formal academic work, and I am very much looking forward to seeing her reach the final stage.
Mexico Monday continues 🇲🇽
Our collaboration with SalomĂłn Murow and ParfoLab in Mexico has also been quietly growing.
This month we explored copal, its long history in Mexican scent culture, ritual use and its place in the perfumer’s palette.
October will take us somewhere completely different; CempasĂşchil, the extraordinary marigold so deeply associated with DĂa de Muertos.
There is much more coming from this collaboration.
New students, new work, new perfumes
September has also brought new students into the Academy from across the world, including South Korea and Australia.
And just today, another student perfume submission arrived on my desk from the United States.
Two small amber bottles.
That may not look dramatic from the outside, but for me it represents one of the most important parts of what we do here.
Behind those bottles is months of learning, experimenting, smelling, failing, adjusting, starting again and finally deciding;
I am ready to put my work forward.
That takes courage.
And if you are currently working your way through the Diploma and wondering whether you will ever reach that stage, you will.
Keep going.
The people whose work you see being assessed now once sat exactly where you are sitting.
For our Portuguese-speaking community
Ane Walsh’s live Sunday readings also continue, and the archive now contains many hours of recorded material.
The live meetings are free to join, the recordings remain private to the community, and English subtitles are being added so that the material is accessible beyond Portuguese-speaking students as well.
It has become a remarkable body of teaching in its own right.
And in the background…
Juliana’s Build Your Artisan Business Online pilot programme continues to take shape too.
This course is being built specifically for makers, perfumers and independent creative businesses, the practical side of taking a craft and turning it into something that can stand professionally in the world.
More on that very soon.
Scholarship update
No scholarship was awarded in this round, so the opportunity will now carry forward to our Winter Solstice scholarship round.
We do not award a scholarship simply because a date arrives. The right application has to be there.
Details of the next round will follow.
And so that was September.
A month of students beginning, students progressing, alumni creating extraordinary things, research going deeper, ideas becoming real, and the Academy continuing to grow in ways that are not always immediately visible from the outside.
To everyone who has ever studied with NPA; you are part of this story.
To those of you currently studying; keep going. Finish the assignment. Make the accord. Send the perfume. Ask the question. Come into the studio.
And to anyone who has been standing at the edge of natural perfumery for a while thinking, maybe one day…
Sometimes the only thing left to do is begin.
Learn. Create. Inspire.
Ruth
Natural Perfume Academy
Established 2008
P.S.
A little help from our community
If you have studied with NPA and would be happy to send us a short review or reflection on your experience, we would be enormously grateful. Reviews really do help people who are considering studying with us understand what the Academy is like, and they help support the work we continue to do.Â
You can also support NPA through the NPA Collective, including our Natural Perfume Vocabulary Wheel and other educational resources, every purchase helps us continue developing teaching, research and community projects.
And finally, we are currently looking for future guests for the Natural Perfume Academy Podcast. If you are a perfumer, grower, distiller, researcher, maker, educator, author, historian or simply have a fascinating scent story to share, we would love to hear from you.
Send a review, explore the NPA Collective, or get in touch about joining us on the podcast- Contact Ruth Here