For over 30 years, Mandy Aftel has been a trailblazer in natural perfumery, crafting exquisite fragrances without synthetics—a rarity in today’s industry. Through her renowned Aftel Archive of Curious Scents in Berkeley, California, Mandy tells the story of humanity through the story of scent, weaving the centuries-old connection between natural ingredients and past civilizations into her work. As the founder of Aftelier Perfumes and author of multiple books, she has dedicated her life to preserving the art of scent, showcasing rare artifacts, ancient raw materials, and the profound ways fragrance has shaped cultures around the world. Open only one day a week, her archive draws visitors from across the globe, eager to experience its wonders.In this episode, Mandy sits down with Scentbird’s Marianne Mychaskiw to explore the lasting power of scent, take a virtual tour through her archive, and learn techniques for engaging with scents all around us.Highlights:• Scent as a window into human history• A treasure trove of rare artifacts• How to reset your nose after smelling lots of things• The world's most legendary perfume ingredient• Precious oils from a century ago• The “Cabinet of Curiosities”• Mandy’s secret for training your nose• An aristocratic artifact from the times of the plague• How perfume has evolved over centuries• The botanical ingredient that costs $50,000 per kilo• The story of musk and animalic ingredients• The key to working with raw materials• Mandy’s process for creating a fragrance• Breaking down a perfume• The power of scentShop Mandy Aftel’s newest perfume, Sacré Bleu, made with 100-year-old sandalwood oil.The video version of this episode drops later today, 11/21 at 2 pm EST, on Scentbird's YouTube channel.Soak in all of our audio and video content at https://podcast.scentbird.com.