I am always fascinated with how the faintest whiff of a person's perfume or food cooking on the stove can instantly transport me back to some of the best people and times in my life. Does that ever happen to you? I can often be reminded of friends {both present and past}, holidays, and vacations by simply walking down the street. And to me, a familiar scent always congers up the most vivid of memories. . .more than seeing or hearing something familiar. Why is that? While doing some research for this blog post I came across a very interesting and somewhat scientific article on the relationship between one's sense of smell and memory and I wanted to share a portion with you.
"It is said that people can identify about 10,000 different smells... [The] lack of understanding and appreciation of odors is a result of our over reliance on our eyes and ears, even to the extent that we suppress our awareness of what our nose tells us... [As] Proust stated, smell has such a strong power to vividly bring back memories, it is definitely more important than we realize. To a large extent smell is more personal than other senses so it brings back memories of people, not just places, or things." Shigeyuki Ito
Sadly though, I can't smell some of the more important days of my life. . .my wedding or the day I had my son. No scent on either of those days was so pungent that it stayed with me quite frankly. So when a dear friend of mine shared with me her go-to wedding and baby shower gift, and the thinking behind it, I knew I had to share.
The Gift of Scent.
It's quite simple you see. Give a gift that has a memorable and remarkable smell and instructions for your recipient to use or carry that gift with them on their very important day. Down the road, when they use the product again or smell something similar, they will be reminded of their brightest days. And who doesn't want to be reminded of their brightest days?
The Product.
There are plenty of perfume and skincare companies out there, you do not need me to list them. I will tell you that although it may be a bit cheesy my favorite scent right now is Patchouli Lavender Vanilla from Sabon. It makes me giddy. But forget my favorite, you have to check out
CB I Hate Perfume. This shop is all about making "perfumes" like
Old Leather, Burning Leaves, In the Library, Gathering Apples, Burnt Wood, and my favorite. . .Seeing a Flower. These perfumes are made and worn to evoke memories as I spoke about earlier. And believe me, they smell exactly like what they say they do. It's astonishing. I just ordered Patchouli Empire so I will let you know what I think when it comes in.
Giving this gift is simple. Just package it up with directions for the bride OR the bridal party {depending on which side you happen to be on} to wear the fragrance for all of the events leading up to and during the wedding. Then every time she or they use it, memories of the BIG day will come pouring in. Fun right?
The Recipe.
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| Sunday Suppers |
It's not secret {if you know me} that I am no cook. At least not on a daily basis {sorry husband!}However I do like preparing new and unique dishes when we entertain. Perhaps that is why my connection between memory and the smell of food is so joyous, because I am always surrounded by family and friends when cooking. In any case, preparing a meal, or giving the gift of the recipe for a particularly fragrant meal can help your loved one connect the memory with a scent. Again, when they prepare or are served that meal down the road, they will remember that it was an engagement, wedding, or shower gift.
My go-to site for the most refreshing, yet soul warming food {not to mention the most visually stunning pictures of the food}is
Sunday Suppers.
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| Sunday Suppers |
The Flower.
Yay. My favorite part.
If you are the one looking for an easy way to connect a wedding to a scent is to choose pungent flowers for the bouquets and event decor. Sweet peas, roses, magnolia and gardenia are popular wedding flower choices and all have a rather sweet-smelling fragrance. Lavender {both fresh and dried}is also very aromatic and works nicely in garden-inspired arrangements. You can also incorporate herbs such as thyme, basil, and dill is you are looking for more of an earthy smell.
Remind someone of their wedding, using their flower choices. Why not purchase a perfume or skin care product that is reminiscent of the flowers OR, better yet, send them the flowers! A perfect anniversary gift that is sure to send the bride or couple right back to their special day is to send them an arrangement of the their wedding flowers. The scent will have them reliving their first dance in their living room.
{Karma Flowers offers flower delivery
packages to make this an easy choice for you!}
Happy Sniffing Everyone!
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