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Natural Perfumery is the art and science of using natural plant essences to create perfumes. Perfumery has been compared to other arts such as music because it uses a variety of blends or chords and different 'notes' that subtly change their scent depending on your individual body chemistry and time since they are first applied to the skin. As people begin to look for natural alternatives in their lifestyles they will certainly be looking for perfumes that are naturally derived and that contain no synthetic chemicals.
Elise Pearlstine is the Nose of BellyFlowers Perfumes. She has been learning about and creating natural perfumes since about 2004. She has studied with both Anya McCoy (President of the Natural Perfumers Guild) and Mandy Aftel (founder of Aftelier Perfumery and natural perfumery pioneer), learning much from both perfumers. Elise has created a number of highly acclaimed perfumes (read reviews of Bellyflower perfumes) and participated in two perfume projects with the Natural Perfumers Guild where she is an active member and Guild Manager. The Mystery of Musk project was the first and for this Verdigris was created. Rose of Cimarron was developed for the Outlaw Perfumes project, making Elise an official Outlaw Perfumer.
Elise’s love of natural perfumes and soaps is an instinctive draw to the natural world as reflected in her doctoral degree in wildlife ecology. In her faculty position with the University of Florida, Elise is focused on habitat relations in agricultural lands and working with land owners to enhance wildlife habitat opportunities. She has also initiated evaluations of small farm opportunities for introducing essential oil crops in their planting rotations. Elise's other activities include writing about perfumery, plants, the natural world and fragrances in her blog. She posts weekly or biweekly, depending on her schedule and the subject matter. She is a guest blogger at the respected perfume blog Bois de Jasmin where she writes about scented gardens.
