The Perfume Making Podcast16 Mars 2025

The Essence of Roses - From Harvest to Heart

This week Karen is talking to Silvia Yonkova, founder of Rose Overdose, a company that grows roses and produces stunning fragrances from them. But, on top of this, Silva also hosts a yearly ‘Rose Retreat’ where budding perfumers can experience what it’s like to harvest roses and work with organic materials. In this interview with Karen, Silvia shares her family's rich history with roses, what inspired her to move into the world of perfumery and gives details of her not-to-be-missed retreat.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Silvia grew up in a family of rose growers. However, when she was young she began to notice a huge difference between the roses her family grew and those available to the public. She explains how this set her on her journey to perfumery.
Synthetic rose materials are used in most perfume creations. Silvia explains why this is the case which leads the ladies into a discussion about the differences between natural and synthetic rose materials.
Silvia explains what happens at her rose retreats and how she aims to give visitors a different experience from the standard tourist one.
Despite her rich history with and love for roses, as Silvia explains to Karen, it was her desire to show the world that Bulgaria doesn’t just smell of roses that led her to perfume making.

BEST MOMENTS

“What makes the Bulgarian rose so unique is that it is unapologetic.”

“Don’t be in a rush to create your fragrances. Enjoy the journey and let the materials reveal themselves to you.”

“What you smell with synthetic rose materials is not what roses actually smell like. There is no comparison.”

EPISODE LINKS

Rose Overdose Website

Rose Overdose Retreat

Rose Overdose Instagram

VALUABLE RESOURCES

Getting Started Guide

Artisan Perfumery Mastermind

In-person class

ABOUT THE HOST

Fragrance expert, author, teacher and speaker; Karen Gilbert runs courses in the UK and online which demystify the secretive world of perfumery in a fun and interactive way.

Karen has inspired thousands of students to explore their olfactory sense and create their own personalised fragrances.

With extensive product development experience in both the commercial perfumery and the organic skincare industry, Karen is able to offer a unique insight into creating natural and mixed media fragrances for fine fragrance, room scents and skincare/bodycare products using commercial perfumery techniques.

Karen is also a certified meditation teacher and has a passion for helping people to create daily rituals that integrate scent with other modalities to shift state and increase your sense of wellbeing.

CONTACT DETAILS

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(126)

Done with Hustle? - Building a Stronger Perfume Business That Won’t Burn You Out in 2026

This isn’t the usual New Year’s episode about planning, vision boards, and big 2026 goals. Instead, Karen looks at what happens when you actually need to do less, and how that can be the key to buildi...

4 Jan 40min

Layering Like a Pro (or a Rebel): From TikTok Hacks to Indie Perfume

Ever wondered why everyone’s suddenly talking about layering their favourite scents? In this special year-end episode, Karen dives into the layered world of fragrance - examining the trend that’s gone...

14 Dec 202546min

Don’t Sell Yourself Short! Building a Perfume Business Without the Discount Spiral

It’s easy to think that the best way to stay ahead in business is by watching your competitors and lowering your prices when they do. But as Karen explains in this episode, that common fear-driven rea...

7 Dec 202530min

Making a Mod: Embracing Iteration in Perfume Making and Doing It Right

This week Karen follows on from the conversation she had about learning to evaluate your perfumes. She covers something that is done as a matter of course in the industry. It's something a lot of peop...

30 Nov 202526min

Evaluating Your Fragrances: How to Judge Your Scent Like a Professional

Do you really know if your fragrance works? Or are you just hoping for compliments? In this episode, Karen reveals why friends and family are not likely to be giving you the feedback you really need. ...

23 Nov 202530min

Why Buying More “Magic” Materials Won’t Make You a Better Perfumer

It’s easy to believe that the secret to creating great fragrances lies in having more materials - more naturals, more synthetics, more obscure aroma chemicals. But as Karen explains in this episode, t...

16 Nov 202534min

You’ve Made Soup! - How to Avoid a Muddy Fragrance

“You’ve made soup!” is a phrase French perfume teachers often say to their students. In the world of fragrance, soup refers to a perfume that smells muddy, flat, or undefined. But what causes a scent ...

10 Nov 202533min

Raw Notes - What I Learned from Bruce Springsteen

Karen recently went to the cinema, something she doesn’t do very often. However, on this one-off trip to see the new Bruce Springsteen film, something resonated with her. We often chase perfection, ei...

2 Nov 202517min