Yvonne Twomey

Celebrating the Fête de la violette in Tourrettes sur Loup

Yvonne Twomey is the only perfumer I know on the green island of Ireland. The particular green part she comes from is the county of Cork in the south coast. She grew up on her family farm and approaches her perfume with an affinity to the land and it’s surroundings—seeing top, middle and base notes as the sky, the fertile flowering land, and the soulful earth.

She studied Analytical Chemistry in college and worked as a QC Analyst with Pfizer for several years before embarking on her perfume journey to the south of France, Grasse, the perfume capital of the world. There she studied at the Grasse Institute of Perfumery and worked and trained further with Fragrance Resources. She tells me her time in Grasse was a definitive professional awakening where she got to meet and work with the most amazing master perfumers of our time.

Yvonne says perfume is a pleasure, a mystical expression of love, health and happiness! A moments mesmerising love. Her dream is to develop the creative craft of perfumery in her own brand of handmade Irish fragrances.

Y/V/E perfume is passionate about the senses. Unique, sensious and precious blends of natural fragrant ingredients.

Growing up on a farm in Cork sounds so close to many friends of mine. Was farm life as typical as I imagine it to be?

Yes it was quite typical, as children we were heavily involved in helping out within the family business but we had the freedom to explore.

I have a strong affinity with the land and my belief in creating perfumes stem from this. I see a fragrance from top to bottom, top being the sky (ozonic, fresh, watery) the middle being the produce of the land, the flowers (ylang ylang, rose, jasmine) and the bottom the earth and below, the soul of the fragrance (musk, woods, animals).

Such a beautiful interpretation of a fragrance structure, you seem very in-tune and aware of your surroundings. I’m a little the same myself in that I like having greenery around me wherever I live, it’s so important. I can’t imagine farm life being so poetic growing up though? What with farm-like smells not being so typically beautifully fragrant all the time.

Actually my mum grew roses, daffodils, primroses and was/still is very proud of her garden. Her baking was always very comforting and satisfying. I remember smelling the freshly baked apple tart. I would have spent time collecting the cooking apples from the garden, washing, peeling and placing them neatly for her tart. The smell of my mum’s lipstick and her perfume Samsara only put on for special occasions also comes to mind when I think of that time.

To sum up my childhood I would say barefoot.

I know exactly what you mean when you say “barefoot.” I remember Stephen Fry in an interview being asked what he remembers about his childhood and he said “his knees,” that boys have a relationship with their knees, sitting hunched up resting their chins on them, picking cuts on them, or getting grass stains too. Knees and bare feet, very childlike.

The sound of home-made, home-grown apple tarts is heavenly. My mum wasn’t much of a baker, but I always think there’s something like a passing of rites for people and the smells of their parent’s cooking.

What else do you remember from that time?

My mum’s dressing table. I remember my heart would beat faster with bulging eyes every time I got my little fingers on her cosmetics. She tried to hide them from me as her lipstick did not always end up on my lips. This fed my curiosity I just knew I had to learn and discover more.

Did that continue?

Yes. In secondary school my friends called me Cleopatra. I used to wear about three different fragrances to school depending on my mood. They always said they smelt me first before they could even see me.

I was always very interested in chemistry at school. It was the clinical environment combined with the experimenting of different chemicals that fascinated me. It was at this time that I really started to research perfumery. I have to say this was the most difficult time for me as there was very little information about perfumery out there.

Cleopatra is a very flattering name mind you! I can imagine too the lack of information then. It’s surprising to think how much the internet has opened up perfume to people.

To move forward now in present time, I’m curious about your work. What do you try and say when you create perfume?

Each and every fragrance is created from a desire, a desire to express a feeling, sensation, a moment but ultimately I create to please, admire, seduce and allure. In my discoveries and travels I have come to realise I am a listener not a talker. I communicate through my creations. I am happiest when I am working and creating with my raw materials. I am like a child in a sweet shop.

A child in a sweet shop, sounds not unlike a perfumista at a perfume counter! Has coming from a rural farm influenced your work in the way you describe it?

Yes I do believe growing up in the Irish countryside influenced me. It flows between freedom, curiosity, innocence, living off the land and need for discovery.

I’d say working as a perfumer’s lab assistant early on with Firmenich in New York was very inspiring. Being exposed to the amazing array of raw materials was heaven for me.

Like a child in a sweet shop? Tell me a little more what it’s like to work on a fragrance.

Well certain themes and ideas are present, and I like to express them. But it comes down to what the customer wants. A perfumer needs to listen and adhere to the client’s brief on expectations, price, legislation, dosage, branding and marketing.

As a perfumer I truly believe in choosing the right raw materials to suit the brief. I brainstorm, imagine, travel, but ultimately I choose the right combination of raw materials I want to use to communicate an idea/desire or evoke an emotion.

That sounds not unlike my job as a designer. I talk with the client. I Include them in the design stages, work with them, educate them and succeed the brief and hopefully expectations for their customers too. I always imagine creative boundaries are crossed at these shared-experiences. Some days are better for creativity than others am I right?

Yes some days I am in love with a certain raw material and from this I can create and build a fragrance. I adore natural ingredients they are the soul of my creations. I can work every day but creativity comes in waves. I create from a void place that is searching fulfillment and once this is achieved my fragrance is complete.

I see where you are coming from, about a desire to express a feeling, sensation, a moment, these are all reactionary emotions that artists rely on. I have never doubted that perfume is an art, but hearing it like this always reinforces the idea. Plus, it keeps the spark alive in many ways.

Do you think you’ll always be working like this in 10, 15, 20 years from now? What do you see yourself doing then? Where do you see your work standing?

Yes I would truly hope so. I want to progress, explore and delight in my bespoke creations. Never stop dreaming is my firm belief. Ultimately I hope my work would inspire love, happiness and unity.

I hope that your work does indeed inspire others, that must be one of the most rewarding feelings for any creative artist or practitioner.

Thank you so much for taking part Yvonne, it’s been a delight getting to know an Irish perfumer who is so in love with her work. I can’t wait to see and smell more of your work, I think 2012 will be a great year for you.

Remember, if you’re interested in joining in this series of discussions you can get in touch with me on the Impersonal Odour page.