About
Sarah Dwyer
I blend and bottle fragrances by hand in small batches using exquisite oils and absolutes.
Ingredients are carefully sourced from around the world as well as locally in Aotearoa New Zealand
Everything I have done has brought me to this moment. I began my journey teaching food and textiles, spending many hours painting, cooking, and sewing. But my perspective shifted deeply following my diagnosis and recovery from cancer—a turning point that set my life on a whole new course.
Today, life feels richer, grounded in presence and a deep awareness of what I nurture my body with. Through this journey, I discovered the powerful, evocative nature of scent and its profound impact on our sense of wellbeing.
My fascination with essential oils blossomed into a passion for natural perfumery. To master the craft, I traveled to San Francisco in 2016 and 2019 to study under legendary perfumer Mandy Aftel. I have since continued honing my art through the Institute for Art and Olfaction in California and independent artisan Sarah McCartney in London.
The Art of Perfumery
Spices add wonderful heart notes, creating depth, complexity and surprise in my blends. Exquisite essential oils, absolutes and scent molecules are sourced from all over the world to ensure beautiful premium fragrances. The very essences of everyday garden herbs and flowers are captured and evoke memories and emotions from times past.
Contemporary techniques enables me to carefully compose perfumes balancing rich resins, woods and musks with complex floral notes and fleeting bright citrus. These French vials with ground glass stoppers hold the precious extracts. I was given a very special material - Ambergris - 30 years ago. This tincture transforms and softens a blend like a deep 'sense of knowing'.
‘ Obsessed with Eleve, the others are also beautiful ‘
Emma