Ouddict

Ouddict Co-Founder & Tech Support
Some questions for the Resident Artisans.
What is your story?
How did you come into natural fragrances and what does it mean to you?
What are are trying to achieve through sharing these aromatic treasures with others?
What is your main driving inspiration?

To... in no particular order

@Faizal_p (Imperial Oud)
@Al Shareef Oudh
@Habz786 (HabzOud)
@EJayB (Olefaktory)
@Rahel (OudBase)
@AbasFrag (Al Hashimi)
@Alkhadra (Al Hashimi)
@RisingPhoenix
@Hamza H (The Attar Store)
@Elixir Attar
@mattmeleg (Meleg Perfumes)
@tyson (Tyson Mortensen)
@Royalbengalouds
@AbuTominaga (The Oud Lab)
@F4R1d0uX (La Maison Khenata)
@KodoKing
@NinjaRobb (SiberMusk)
@Ulugbek Abdumominov (MiskuAmber)
 
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mattmeleg

True Ouddict
What is your story?
I grew up on a fruit orchard, later moved to Tokyo and now live in Vancouver Canada.

How did you come into natural fragrances and what does it mean to you?
A YouTube video "Scent from Heaven," inspired me to learn about perfumes.
I came to realize that every single natural material has a unique story.

Perfume materials are connected to
  • farmers
  • trade routes
  • shipping
  • cultures
  • religion
  • history.
Perfumery reveals interdependence, the interdependent of human kind and nature.
Perfumery is the story of human kind.

What are are trying to achieve through sharing these aromatic treasures with others?
I wish to share the creative process with others.
Show people how I make my perfumes.

What is your main driving inspiration?
Learning inspires me. I wish to learn everything I can about perfumery.
 

Ouddict

Ouddict Co-Founder & Tech Support
What is your story?
I grew up on a fruit orchard, later moved to Tokyo and now live in Vancouver Canada.

How did you come into natural fragrances and what does it mean to you?
A YouTube video "Scent from Heaven," inspired me to learn about perfumes.
I came to realize that every single natural material has a unique story.

Perfume materials are connected to
  • farmers
  • trade routes
  • shipping
  • cultures
  • religion
  • history.
Perfumery reveals interdependence, the interdependent of human kind and nature.
Perfumery is the story of human kind.

What are are trying to achieve through sharing these aromatic treasures with others?
I wish to share the creative process with others.
Show people how I make my perfumes.

What is your main driving inspiration?
Learning inspires me. I wish to learn everything I can about perfumery.

Scent from Heaven... a great documentary!
 

Alkhadra

"Master Kafeel" Resident Artisan
What is your story?
I grew up in the ever so fragrant society of the gulf Arabs. Fragrance here is an extension of ones expression, and is considered a form of purifying oneself, a generous gift to thy neighbor, and an entertainment to guests.

How did you come into natural fragrances and what does it mean to you?
In the Arab world, you can find both the McDonalds of Oud (the large corporations that use synthetics in their product), as well as the local shops that sell the real deal. I've made countless friends a long the way in these parts, so bumping into natural fragrances isn't something very difficult to come by here.

As for what it means to me, I view the action of scenting oneself akin to eating, sleeping, and wearing clothes. It's a form of sustenance, as well as a way to present oneself. Whenever I have guests over, dinner ends with the guests washing their hands, then each getting a couple of swipes of Oud oil, and some Oud wood on the burner to fumigate their clothes. It's very engrained in our society to scent our guests with the best that we can offer for their enjoyment.

What are are trying to achieve through sharing these aromatic treasures with others?
Everything in the world has beauty in it, but not everyone can see it. Fragrance has music to those who listen to it, making an unknown music known is what I strive to achieve.

What is your main driving inspiration?
The mastery of oneself, only then you can master anything else.
 

KodoKing

True Ouddict
What is your story?

I grew up in a household that valued gardening as a family activity - we had the most exotic garden in our neighborhood. Various flowers, herbs, some fruit, lots of roses and geranium. When spending time in our yard as a child and growing up, it created an olfactory stimulation that ties into memories. As I got older, I would spend my time in department stores at the perfume counter - literally trying everything they had and began to understand some of the connections and familiarities from our garden growing up. It’s funny because, still today some scents take me right back to certain experiences working in the yard. During my honeymoon in Italy, I found Frederic Malle, Andy Tauer, Farmacia, Tiziana Terenzi and others. Today, I am not sure that each of these are considered Natural Fragrances, but at the time I thought they were. So I came home inspired to dig into Niche/Artisanal Perfumery and found a shop that specializes in this up in San Francisco and became interested in their natural perfumery courses. I quickly ordered many synthetic ingredients to practice with and to learn about blending and how different mixtures will smell different even with similar ingredients.

How did you come into natural fragrances and what does it mean to you?

Over time, I had collected many natural ingredients including Oud Oil which really blew my mind. I began ordering samples of oil from different vendors to try them out - landed on some favorites that have since evolved. I do appreciate a fine oil, but what really got me was the Aloeswood and the depth, complexity found in ultra premium, wild woods. I began to collect these woods; Borneo, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Phillipines, China, Vietnam, Maluku, Ceram, Indonesia, Thailand, Papua and many others from more specific locales. It was through this epic adventure of tracking down and sourcing the best woods money could buy that I found true passion and respect for the magic that is found in natural ingredients. Since this, I have pivoted away from using synthetics in my perfumes and am learning to extract essential oils from various citrus, plants, resins, flowers, etc…

It is through these forums that I find there to be a divine interconnection between so many users through natural and exclusive aromatics. There is a magic to it and I will remain as much a collector as a sharer of beauty.

What are you trying to achieve through sharing these aromatic treasures with others?

When I embarked on my journey, I had no idea how much some of these vintage wild Aloeswood pieces would cost. I realized quickly that buying a 30+ gram piece (not uncommon when seeking the best available) is not realistic for many. My goal is to provide ease of accessibility to the best Aloeswoods by offering in a qty that removes the barrier of sheer price and enables anyone on the forum the opportunity to share in the experience of these ultra rare gems.

I’ve also offered up some of my personal distillations but the majority of these oils are used in my Wife’s candle business. Planning to have Oud Candles very soon ;-)

What is your main driving inspiration?

Growing, evolving as a human being - as a Brother to those who share a common interest. We are all learning together - as new woods and oils are made available, there is an acid test that the Ouddict members put these new products to provide reviews and feedback. We are all part of a family, one that expects a lot out of each other. To be genuine and honest, to be the best we can be, to learn and evolve our techniques when making perfume, attar, distilling oils or offering the best woods for sale. I love sharing my passion for each of these aromatics even though my specialty is on the Woods side. Please, feel free to reach out at any time - I truly enjoy meeting someone new to have a discussion around any of these topics.
 

Ouddict

Ouddict Co-Founder & Tech Support
Great answers so far. I did not actually expect formal answers to my questions as they were just suggested questions, but the answers have been great so far. We opened this section to allow more interaction between the resident artisans and members who are curious to learn more about them without a commercial dimension present.

Come on the rest of you... I will keep chasing until the list is empty :Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao:

@Faizal_p (Imperial Oud)
@Al Shareef Oudh
@Habz786 (HabzOud)
@EJayB (Olefaktory)
@Rahel (OudBase)
@AbasFrag (Al Hashimi)
@RisingPhoenix
@Hamza H (The Attar Store)
@Elixir Attar
@tyson (Tyson Mortensen)
@Royalbengalouds
@AbuTominaga (The Oud Lab)
@F4R1d0uX (La Maison Khenata)
@NinjaRobb (SiberMusk)
@Ulugbek Abdumominov (MiskuAmber)
 

RisingPhoenix

Resident Artisan
Great answers so far. I did not actually expect formal answers to my questions as they were just suggested questions, but the answers have been great so far. We opened this section to allow more interaction between the resident artisans and members who are curious to learn more about them without a commercial dimension present.

Come on the rest of you... I will keep chasing until the list is empty :Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao:

@Faizal_p (Imperial Oud)
@Al Shareef Oudh
@Habz786 (HabzOud)
@EJayB (Olefaktory)
@Rahel (OudBase)
@AbasFrag (Al Hashimi)
@RisingPhoenix
@Hamza H (The Attar Store)
@Elixir Attar
@tyson (Tyson Mortensen)
@Royalbengalouds
@AbuTominaga (The Oud Lab)
@F4R1d0uX (La Maison Khenata)
@NinjaRobb (SiberMusk)
@Ulugbek Abdumominov (MiskuAmber)


I’ll try to put a response together once I survive OudFest :Roflmao:

Cheers to everyone from Atlanta - Atlanta OudFest USA starts now!!
 

RisingPhoenix

Resident Artisan
I’ll try to put a response together once I survive OudFest :Roflmao:

Cheers to everyone from Atlanta - Atlanta OudFest USA starts now!!

a few quick shots from the event ...

94DDC089-5D26-47FA-90C7-A2352357DB66.jpeg
A91D5280-0EFE-4411-87ED-496023F89C5F.jpeg
AF8F0C9D-9E26-4E79-A063-AFA4BFC3D85A.jpeg
575C8603-6771-435F-9DA5-60F8E8D08BCD.jpeg
 

DubOudh

Aster Oudh
Great answers so far. I did not actually expect formal answers to my questions as they were just suggested questions, but the answers have been great so far. We opened this section to allow more interaction between the resident artisans and members who are curious to learn more about them without a commercial dimension present.

Come on the rest of you... I will keep chasing until the list is empty :Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao::Roflmao:

@Faizal_p (Imperial Oud)
@Al Shareef Oudh
@Habz786 (HabzOud)
@EJayB (Olefaktory)
@Rahel (OudBase)
@AbasFrag (Al Hashimi)
@RisingPhoenix
@Hamza H (The Attar Store)
@Elixir Attar
@tyson (Tyson Mortensen)
@Royalbengalouds
@AbuTominaga (The Oud Lab)
@F4R1d0uX (La Maison Khenata)
@NinjaRobb (SiberMusk)
@Ulugbek Abdumominov (MiskuAmber)
They are too busy been artisans ...
 

Ouddict

Ouddict Co-Founder & Tech Support
@Ouddict are you still chasing the rest of the guys? The list is far from done. Wield that whip harder. 🤣

Well, what does it say about a business if they chose not to reply or engage in an opportunity to market their names? Members can come to their own conclusions as quite frankly I’m not here to spoon feed people and have a massive project that we are embarking on. If some of the present vendors are not as active as they should be, others will come and overtake them. That’s the way things are.

Having said that, there will be an opportunity to get to know them as there will be a section up soon with vendor profiles for all to see and every vendor will have to provide something about themselves for that area.
 

Mustafa

True Ouddict
Well, what does it say about a business if they chose not to reply or engage in an opportunity to market their names? Members can come to their own conclusions as quite frankly I’m not here to spoon feed people and have a massive project that we are embarking on. If some of the present vendors are not as active as they should be, others will come and overtake them. That’s the way things are.

Having said that, there will be an opportunity to get to know them as there will be a section up soon with vendor profiles for all to see and every vendor will have to provide something about themselves for that area.
Yep, at the end of the day if someone doesn't feel the love, then be it.
 
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