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0b9b30f6c2 Blah 2024-08-13 21:57:03 -05:00
e4f4a0ba26 Add masto ID 2024-08-05 09:26:26 -05:00
6 changed files with 16 additions and 4 deletions

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synopsis: "I finally figure out how to make myrrh work in a composition."
imageURL: /img/pexels-david-roberts-940521-8323579.webp
imageAlt: A beautiful light-pink dog rose, rosa canina.
mastodon_id: ""
mastodon_id: "112909867440319574"
---
Myrrh can be a challenging note. I've seen the resins collected from various members of the Commiphora genus described as everything from loamy, bitter, and mushroomy, to reminiscent of cleaning fluid or a dental clinic; whatever impression you take from the fragrance of myrrh resin, there's no denying that it's unique; there is no mistaking myrrh. While I'm rarely a fan of myrrh alone, or as the predominant note in a sparse composition, I've always felt that there is something compelling about it. Despite its overall unpleasantness, I find heated myrrh resin to produce a dark, mysterious, and somehow sexy fragrance. When balanced well, such as in Mystic Jade from Shoyeido's Magnifiscents collection, it adds a wonderful, earthy warmth to a composition that's hard to beat.
Myrrh can be a challenging note. I've seen the resins collected from various members of the Commiphora genus described as everything from loamy, bitter, and mushroomy, to reminiscent of cleaning fluid or a dental clinic; whatever impression you take from the fragrance of myrrh resin, there's no denying that it's unique; there is no mistaking myrrh. While I'm rarely a fan of myrrh alone, or as the predominant note in a sparse composition, I've always felt that there is something compelling about it. Despite its overall unpleasantness, I find heated myrrh resin to produce a dark, mysterious, and somehow sexy fragrance. When balanced well, such as in *Mystic Jade* from Shoyeido's *Magnifiscents* collection, it adds a wonderful, earthy warmth to a composition that's hard to beat.
For some time I've struggled to incorporate myrrh into a stick that I can be proud of; it isn't a resin that you can just drop into a composition with the expectation that it'll work. My experiments with commiphora kua, opoponax, and wightii have all ended in disappointment… until recently.
I've long had an inkling that myrrh would pair well with rose. It's challenging to incorporate flowers into combustible incense; some say it's close to impossible to do without winding up with an incense that smells of acrid burning plant material with, if you're lucky, a touch of whatever flower you've added. Certainly, I have found that often other methods of incorporating floral fragrances work best. Recently I have found, however, that if you start with very good material, and methodically try varying ratios in a series of trail-burning tests, you may wind up surprised by how close a fragrance you can achieve to the fragrance of fresh flowers while minimizing acrid notes. For instance, in my testing, I found that a combination of 30% Rosa Canina and 70% Santalum Spicatum, both very high quality powders given to me by [Dave of *The World Makes Scents*,](../visiting-chicago-incense-maker-dave-of-the-world-makes-scents/) smells absolutely wonderful.
I've long had an inkling that myrrh would pair well with rose. It's challenging to incorporate flowers into combustible incense; some say it's close to impossible to do without winding up with an incense that smells of acrid burning plant material with, if you're lucky, a touch of whatever flower you've added. Certainly, I have realized that often other methods of incorporating floral fragrances work best. Recently I have discovered, however, that if you start with very good material, and methodically try varying ratios in a series of trail-burning tests, you may wind up surprised by how close a fragrance you can achieve to the fragrance of fresh flowers while minimizing acrid notes. For instance, in my testing, I found that a combination of 30% Rosa Canina and 70% Santalum Spicatum, both very high quality powders given to me by [Dave of *The World Makes Scents*,](../visiting-chicago-incense-maker-dave-of-the-world-makes-scents/) smells absolutely wonderful.
[![A beautiful light-pink dog rose, rosa canina.](/img/pexels-david-roberts-940521-8323579.webp "Rosa Canina in bloom, by [David Roberts on Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-shot-of-a-dog-rose-in-bloom-8323579/)")](/img/pexels-david-roberts-940521-8323579.webp)

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import { DateTime } from "luxon";
import { eleventyImageTransformPlugin } from "@11ty/eleventy-img";
import markdownIt from "markdown-it";
import markdownItFootnote from "markdown-it-footnote";
import markdownItAnchor from "markdown-it-anchor";
@ -36,6 +37,17 @@ export default async function(eleventyConfig) {
eleventyConfig.addWatchTarget("content/**/*.{svg,webp,png,jpeg}");
// Official plugins
/*
eleventyConfig.addPlugin(eleventyImageTransformPlugin, {
extensions: "html",
formats: ["webp"],
widths: [270,540,810,1080],
defaultAttributes: {
loading: "lazy",
decoding: "async",
},
urlPath: "/img/",
});*/
eleventyConfig.addPlugin(pluginRss);
eleventyConfig.addPlugin(pluginSyntaxHighlight, {
preAttributes: { tabindex: 0 }

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"homepage": "https://upchur.ch/gitea/n_u/nathanupchurch.com",
"devDependencies": {
"@11ty/eleventy": "3.0.0-alpha.13",
"@11ty/eleventy-img": "^3.1.0",
"@11ty/eleventy-img": "5.0.0-beta.10",
"@11ty/eleventy-navigation": "^0.3.5",
"@11ty/eleventy-plugin-bundle": "^1.0.4",
"@11ty/eleventy-plugin-rss": "^1.2.0",