My bad. I must not be keeping up with SCS! And sorry if I continue to screw up. I have not gone back to look at the current SCS web site, for instances. Was there an SCS pure Bulgarian rose EDT? I know there were BR SCS shaving soap and ASM, but I do not recall that there was ever a pure Bulgarian rose EDT, only the Rosa Damascena, which has other fragrances added as you say. The whole line as I recall, and my recollection my be completely faulty, was called "Rosa Damascena."
<open to suggestions it is not bottled yet. Anting to make it better, I am open to.>
I ought to learn to keep quiet, I suppose! Full disclosure: Over quite a bit of time, when your Mom was working on exactly what Rosa Damascena would be, she sent me, and I am sure any number of others, samples of maybe five different rounds of the edt and the shaving soap, too, seeking my opinion. I think the exercise started as an attempt at something that was a kin to C&S 88, which was extremely difficult, I assure you. I think by the end, your Mom really decided to go a different way with the Rosa Damascena line, and to make the ASM and the SS pure BR, and to make the EDT as different from 88 as like it.
And seeking suggestions from me is probably a bad idea. I do not know that I was any help to your Mom at all. If you have her old PMs anywhere you might be able to dig out my comments on the various iterations that she sent me, and if you know what was in each iteration formula, you could reconstruct my impressions from back then. Of course, my tastes and/or scent analyzing abilities may have changed since then.
With every caveat in the world, I can give you a few thoughts now, and may be others will have others! I also had only the final version of the EDT, not of the SS or the ASM. Bear in mind that every new restaurant that has opened up that I have been wild about, seems to be closed a couple of months later (see Seinfeld, Dream Cafe episode), so you may want to go 180 degrees contrary to my tastes!
My impression may have been that your Mom took a less bold approach than the versions of the scents that I liked the most, and she may well be right to do that. I can only convey what appeals to me the most. I sure have no idea on what will appeal to most and thus sell the most units!
With all of those weasel words!:
First, I would suggest an edt that is pure BR without the other added fragrances.
Second, re SS, like I said, I do not know where you came out on them, but I remember that your Mom sent along one that was darker than others by quite a bit. That was my favorite. So rich and strong.
Third, as I said, as I recall, I preferred the bolder versions of the edt mixes of BR and other scents. I suspect that they had more frangipani than what SCS ended up using in the the edt and I am sure that was a conscious decision by your Mom.. 88 supposedly "has a fresh, woody top note of reviving and uplifting bergamot, the richness and warmth of geranium, rose otto, cassie and exotic frangipani. Combined with dry base notes of vetiver and sandalwood, . . . ." I suspect that that is far from a complete ingredient list!
You Mom thought 88 was all about the frangipani, if I recall, and she may be correct. I wonder if there are different types of frangipani out there, some which may be closer to whatever 88 uses. Cassie seems like an interesting note. I am not sure that the SCS Damascena could not use some additional "green" to it! Cassie might provide that.
Also, I am not sure that carnation would not be a good addition. Maybe some of that really nice SCS LE Sandalwood. I do not sense a lot of vetiver in 88. I am not sure how to go about "anchoring" the scent solidly. 88 has persistent darkness to it. And I have no idea what creates that. Again, 88 is a tough frag to try to copy!
Anyway, that is probably way more suggestions than you wanted, and any of the above maybe changing your Mon's vision of the scent. And I would surely test any changes before going final with anything. Also, I have no idea whether every one else that tested samples last time around gave very different feedback than I did.
Anyway, I do not think you can go wrong with a pure BR edt. Folks can always layer in what they want to. And pure Bulgarian Rose EO is a very complex scent all by itself! In any mix of fragrances, I would still think the BR should dominate, as I think it does in 88.
Hope any of that is of help! From what I can tell scentmaking is extremely difficult and even at the highest levels involves lots of trial and error, most the latter! And remember the "Dream Cafe"!
Best!
Robbie you lost me after "my bad"
I think I will just smell the stuff. I do not believe I have the smarts for anything more.
Done, now just waiting on my webmaster to put on site.
So, so difficult!
guess ill have to wait for a rose scent cream from her..
