dUSt Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 So, I want to make beard balm and body butters based on holy scents. For the beard balm (masculine), I want a cathedral scent. For the body butter or lip balms (feminine), I want a rose based scent, but on the woodsy side, not the flowery side. Similar to a rose scented rosary. So, in my quest to find the perfect essential oils or scenting techniques, I need some suggestions. I know the obvious reply for the cathedral scent would be frankincense--but I think the actual smell of a church is a lot more than that. For example, the oldness of a cathedral. The years of wood polish. Burning wax. Altar flowers. Chrism oils, etc. All of those things have to come into play somehow, creating that beautiful holy smell one typically associates with a cathedral. Open to suggestions for the body butter and lip balm as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 Lip balm using the same bee's wax that altar candles used to be made of. Recycled from old pascal candles would be cool Body butter using the olive oil and balsam that the chrism oil is made from. Most pews are made from oak. You can soak the acorns of red oak trees to remove the tannins and that makes a good balm for things like poison ivy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 What most makes me remember the smell of churches most, is murphy's oil soap. It's what we cleaned the pews with. I think it's got some citronella in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DominicanHeart Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 All I can think of is incense. And candles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franciscanheart Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 Cool idea, dude. Good luck. I like Catherine M's suggestions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriela Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 (edited) Why don't you just buy this stuff? http://catholicbalm.co/beardbalm/ I find that a lot of nag champa varieties are very, very close to church incense. For the other stuff: rose wood? Edited May 19, 2016 by Gabriela Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
He is Risen! Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 I think that you might be able get rose oil from different kinds of roses, I might be wrong, but you might be able to find something less fruity tooty that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Era Might Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 (edited) Here's the secret formula: go to the 4 o'clock Mass on Saturday and get a dab of perfume from all the old ladies, and a pinch of tobacco from their husbands. Put it all in a melting pot, add a pinch of salt used in the Roman Ritual, and half a lemon. Voila. Edited May 19, 2016 by Era Might Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dUSt Posted May 20, 2016 Author Share Posted May 20, 2016 Update: My first try failed. Anybody need a couple tins of beard balm that smells like shea butter and lemons? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luigi Posted May 20, 2016 Share Posted May 20, 2016 To me, wood is a major component of the smell of cathedrals, but not the kinds of scents you usually find in colognes like cedar or evergreen. I think the smell of tobacco - not tobacco smoke, but like Prince Albert In A Can - might come close to the smell of oak or walnut, but you might have to temper it with something else,or use just a little bit of it, mixed with wax and incense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enitharmon Posted May 20, 2016 Share Posted May 20, 2016 Beard balm is actually a thing? A friend suggested it to me some time ago--I've had a(n occasionally trimmed) beard for about 15 years--and I laughed it off, thinking he was making that up as a joke. Weird world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DominicanHeart Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 On May 18, 2016 at 11:06:24 PM, Gabriela said: Why don't you just buy this stuff? http://catholicbalm.co/beardbalm/ I find that a lot of nag champa varieties are very, very close to church incense. For the other stuff: rose wood? I was literally just going to mention that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriela Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 1 hour ago, DominicanHeart said: I was literally just going to mention that Which part? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DominicanHeart Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 7 hours ago, Gabriela said: Which part? The Catholic balm. I found it on Facebook and thought of this thread. It advertised with the smell of Chrism which I love Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IgnatiusofLoyola Posted May 21, 2016 Share Posted May 21, 2016 Since the Summit Dominicans make scented candles and soaps, they have a lot of experience in developing scents and the best sources for various scents. Perhaps one of the Sisters who is an expert at creating scents would be willing to share her expertise with you via email or even a phone call. Or, if the Sisters feel they aren't the best source of help for you, they can point you in the direction of other resources. I suspect that Sister Mary Catharine may only read Vocation Station and Prayer requests, so she may not see this. I'll try the @Sr Mary Catharine OPfunction so perhaps she'll get a notification. Or you could PM her. Good luck! I like this idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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