talkmagic.co.uk

As suggested by Mandrake here: http://www.talkmagic.co.uk/viewtopic.ph ... 295#314295

I love aromatherapy. My absolute fave is the oil they use in chippies. I can't walk past one without nipping in for a quick nibble on a battered sausage.

Discuss

There's nothing to beat the smell of old books. Mmmm....
(Grabs copy of "Salmon's Sydenham" that happens to be sitting nearby, takes a big whiff.)

Not sure if this comes under aromatherapy but there are certain fragrances which can bring back memories - fresh mown grass, perhaps the scent of honeysuckle will bring back very pleasant memories but also things like steel castings being linished - that smell of burning metal always takes me back to the first job I had during school summer holidays, casual labourer in an engineering works, linishing off the surplus casting sprues on castings, painting large steel tanks...ah memories!

Of course, 'Essential Oils' are now big business but I've never figured out what they're so 'essential' - or does that just mean they're distilled down to 'essence' rather than 'must have' ?

Mandrake wrote:Of course, 'Essential Oils' are now big business but I've never figured out what they're so 'essential' - or does that just mean they're distilled down to 'essence' rather than 'must have' ?

According to Wiki: An oil is "essential" in the sense that it carries a distinctive scent, or essence, of the plant.

Of course, if you listen to the cosmetics ads, they'll have you believe it's essential as in "must have"!

Well, if we're expanding this to fave smells other than oil, I'm with Robbie. Books are the best, without exception. The older, the better.

Bodyshop musk for men, baking bread, vanilla. Hmmm.

When I created this thread, I thought I'd get a load of groans and some sarcy response from Mandrake hehe

Thanks Robbie!

Baking bread, coffe and so on are well know for use in supermarkest to entice costomers to buy and the same goes for selling houses - places with those aromas are supposed to be quicker to sell than without but I'd have thought these days those tricks are well known and will be less effective?

Sorry there's no sark, Wishmaster, the aroma of sausage and chips is just wunnerful to me as well!

Aromas can be used in less pleasant ways, apperently interrogation techniques inclde the use of very overbearing aftershave by the interrogator, close face to face questioning with a cloying odour like that is supposed to be as effective as other more painful methods. 'OK, sunbeam, tell us everything or we won't hesitate to use the Old Spice!'

Old spice! I'd forgotten about it. My dad used to use that and Brut when I was a kid.

I read somewhere that they are starting to toy with the use of smells in the cinema auditorium to help with the immersion when watching a film. What will they think of next! A bucket of water over everyone during scenes on a boat?

The smell of fresh tarmac, and freshly creosoted fences take me back to junior school.

A warm Colossus.

Petrol !! All the way for fave scent.

F x

Tomo wrote:A warm Colossus.

What's a warm Colossus Tomo?

No one said Pipes yet?

When I used to smoke a pipe (when we could still smoke in public) I actually had people in dinning halls ask to sit closer to "that wonderful aroma" vs. how they would snarl and act repulsed over cigarette and cigars...

Pipe Smoke... especially cherry, apple, Vanilla and a good Cavendish all seem to trigger "romantic" notions of the past i.e. grandpa, dad, that favorite uncle... always tied to someone special as well as special times. Then again I can still appreciate the idea of a good pipe and some warmed brandy by a rolling fire in the dead of winter as the snow if falling.

I love the smell of cinnamon, it always makes me think of skiing in Germany. We'd get back from a day on the slopes to a lovely apple strudel waiting for us and the smell of cinnamon filling the house.

Sandalwood has got to be my favourate essential oil, I don't know why, I just love the smell of it.

Craig Browning wrote:No one said Pipes yet?

Why is it that pipesmoke and coffee never taste as nice as they smell?

I find it interesting that many of the smells mentioned here lead us back to fond memories, often from childhood.

As soon as Craig posted about pipes, I was straight back to an early memory of my dad coming home from Saudi Arabia after a 6mth stint over there, with his pipe full of cherry or brandy tobacco. I'd forgotten completely about it.