Roxana Illuminated Perfume

An interview with alchemist, artist, and botanist Roxana Villa.

Imagine walking through a thick forest of oaks, smelling the divine scent that is part oak, part moss, part earth and the sweet air that it is touched with. You wonder, can this scent ever be duplicated? Roxana Villa has done just this and more with her exquisite collection of scents all from the natural world. Walking into her shop/studio is a bit like time traveling into a fairy tale. The first time I went there, my daughter and I wore our English capes and listened to the books on tape of the story The Golden Compass. When we arrived at Illuminated Perfume  nestled in the hills of Agoura, the first perfume we fell in love with was named after the heroine in The Golden Compass Lyra. Coincidence? Or a synchronistic example of coming to the right place at the right time.

Roxana is an elegant artist, alchemist, botanist and lover of the natural world. Her work is all about the details and being in tune with her environment. The solid perfumes come in bees wax (some from her bee hives), and all the perfumes solid and liquid are chemical free and without synthetics. The botanicals and florals Roxana derives are truly exquisite. It is not easy picking a scent that are blends of jasmine, frankincense, rose, oak moss, citrus, hawthorne, seaweed, patchouli, earth, oak trees, cedar, amber and so much more. My favorites are Aurora (amber floral scent), Cimbalom (incense and jasmine), Lyra (amber) and so many more. A good way to feel out which scent calls to you is to order the samples which are so lovely made in beeswax with old world seals.

Roxana is able to weave in the poetry and magic of centuries past into our modern world through the perfumes and their stories. Scents names after inspiring fictional characters, and others after a mood we can feel in our DNA. Her world is intoxicating and luminous like her . . . read below for an interview with Roxana.

 

1) What makes your heart sing?

Ah, there are so many things that make my heart sing, where to begin?!? Personally I am at my happiest when I am making art that has a power of transformation and creating higher consciousness while I am surrounded by other luminous, happy people doing the same thing. This is why my husband, artist Greg Spalenka, is such a good fit for me.

2) You have been making natural based perfumes for some time, what led you to this craft?

The path to natural perfume for me has unfolded very slowly and auspiciously. My career began in the late 80’s
as an editorial illustrator working mostly in the wellness arena contributing illustrations to national newspapers and
magazines. The range went from Self, Ms and Psychology Today to creating imagery for the City of Hope, Byran Katy,
The Four Agreements Card Deck, a Meditation book & deck and journals for Barnes and Noble.

While I was attending a sweat lodge and going through a divorce I was introduced to essential oils. Upon inhaling the
woody aroma emanating from the little amber bottle I was transported to a dense redwood forest where I felt deeply
wooded and expanding up toward the heaven like the great magnificent trees I stood with. The essential oil was
Juniperous viriginiana, Cedarwood. That very real, visceral experience made me realize that telling stories with pure,
plant material was a much more direct route to spreading awareness than illustration. Thus I began to study aromatherapy
formerly and eventually became a teacher for the Institute of Dynamic Aromatherapy.

A few years later while attending an visionary art workshop in Austria I realized that there was a sacred triangle between
the visual arts, alchemy and perfume of the 15th century when each of those sectors shared the use of plant matter.
That realization launched me to building my perfume brand, using the word “illuminated” in reference to the artists of
the 15th century and bringing to light how perfumes were made.

The most sign post on this journey came via a visit by my uncle my uncle who told me the story of my great grandfather
and his involvement with the first homeopathic pharmacy in South America. The site is now a museum in downtown Buenos
Aires where you can see the large scale Belle Opaque paintings of elaborately dressed women distilling plants. This awareness
added another element to my ongoing adventure that is now rooted in my ancestry and weaved into my new workspace here in
Agoura Hills.

3) What are some of the most mysterious and luxurious scents in your opinion?

Agarwood is probably the one scent I find the most mysterious, partly due to the process of how it comes into being, but
mainly because the scent is so deep and complex. The aromatherapy community has placed agarwood on the endangered
list along with Indian sandalwood and frankincense (Boswellia carterii). I find so deeply sad since these three precious woods
make up a sacred trilogy in the rich aromatic history of ancient perfumery.

My number one luxurious scent is Jasmine!! I adore this floral note so much I can’t get enough. She is intoxicating,
emanates fresh radiant light and immediately brings me to the feet of the Goddess.

4) Are there any essential oils you like to enhance beauty?

My favorite essential oil to enhance beauty is neroli. I have experienced two deeply interwoven facets of beauty, the outer and
the inner. In our modern, western culture we tend to focus on the outer where are in the inner is where its really at with the ability
to seep out of our eyes, pores and everything we touch if we can tap into it. Neroli has the ability to work on both aspects,
but especially on the inner because of the immediate joy it brings to individuals. When we are joyful we are much better conduits
of light.

5) I love the way you tell a story through your scents. You name some of your scents from Fictional stories. Do you have a favorite heroine
that is now one of your scents?

Vespertina is my favorite and the most inspirational of all the characters I have fashioned fragrances for. She is a bit like Claire Fraser who La Dame Blanche was created for, but much more connected to the spirit world with a driving force to save humanity. I’d love to be as courageous
as Vespertina.

6) Where is your dream vacation or trip?

At this moment in time I’d love to escape to a beautiful pacific island surrounded by crystalline turquoise water and white sand.

7) Are you a forest fairy or mermaid?

Based on my previous answer you’d think I would say mermaid, but I actually am a forest fairy. This has been confirmed by numerous
people who have walked into the perfumery and the introduction to essential oils via cedarwood.

8) Do you have a quote or philosophy you live by?

The closest thing to a philosophy I have is staying in the present moment as much as possible. It’s so easy to get distracted by
thoughts and all the “noise” that is out in the world distracting us from our purpose.