Jade started out in the world of documentary and journalism, covering a mix of pop culture, politics, and women’s rights for VICE, the Guardian, Huffington Post, Dazed & Confused, i-D, and Refinery29, before turning her attention to film.

Jade Jackman

All photography courtesy of: Azzi Glasser

In this time alone, you can really get to know yourself. I would suggest don’t just spray the room, spray yourself and get to know your own sensual identity too...”

Second in our series, Jade speaks to celebrity-favourite perfume designer, Azzi Glasser, on how she's mastered the art of scent-making, that even Orlando Bloom himself are like "precious time capsules" to transport the wearer to fond moments in time. In this conversation, Glasser talks about how scent is really just another way of getting to know yourself and gives us some tips on how to liven up the aroma of your home.

While Azzi Glasser’s extremely impressive clientele, such as 

, have ascribed a witchlike quality to her nose, speaking to her reveals the allure of a snake-charmer. Between the shimmer of her rings, the listener is drawn into a wonderful story about smell’s unique seduction…

Rather than rely on ingredients alone, Glasser’s brand holds the character of the wearer at its heart. This attitude, she confesses, made her somewhat of a rebel in the market. But, given that this is the woman who launched 

’s first scent, would you expect any less? 

the 90s was very much about light and watery fragrances… Whereas I thought why would I base my fragrance on a trend? I highly doubt Agent Provocateur base their lingerie on a trend. They base their identity on doing something unique that nobody else is doing”.

 Nor was Glasser looking to fads… Instead, she built a business upon the notion of smelling different to the rest and so “the Perfumer’s Story” was born.

After some time working with fashion houses like 

, Glasser started her bespoke business. “

“the fragrance has to totally represent their brand through a distinct story. It is like creating a DNA print through my nose; it is their character and style so it has to embody what they are about

”. With sessions that have reminded her clients of therapy, Glasser will chat until satisfied she has ascertained what their one-off scent should be. However, the guarantee of a truly individual smell comes with a hefty price-tag which is far outside of most consumers' price range. But, alongside this, Glasser has a collection of fragrances that also seek to emphasize the wearer’s style and character.

“The whole idea is that you should be buying perfume that suits who you are”

“in the same way you dress to reflect your identity. With perfume, there isn’t just one ingredient in there. There could be 200 raw materials in a perfume. If pretty little Rose is mixed with Sandalwood and Oud, it changes the note to this dark character. So, I decide what ingredients to put in my perfume to tell my story.”

 Given such a fictitious twist, it is hardly surprising to discover that Glasser ended up concocting scents to aid actors in becoming their part. 

With the National Health Service providing guides on how to look after our mental health during the pandemic, it seems likely that many of us will be searching for new ways to enhance and alter our moods. Out of her own collection, Glasser suggests 

“I am going with Sequoia Wood. That character is creative, edgy and sensual. It isn’t too pretty pretty, it is unisex and has a freshness on top of the Niroli. It really boasts you up.”

Over the last 20 years, the International Flavours and Fragrances Inc. (IFF) have been conducting research into scent and their emotional properties, finding that certain relaxing scents were able to release muscle tensions. But, for now, Glasser suggests we take a slightly more playful approach. 

the sense of smell is subconsciously led. They don’t even teach us how to analyse it in school. Right now, the world is at war with a virus so we are having to slow down. With that, we are appreciating what we have and learning to do things differently. In this time alone, you can really get to know yourself. I would suggest don’t just spray the room, spray yourself and get to know your own sensual identity too”.

Given that our ability to travel is necessarily restricted, it might not be ourselves that we seek to alter but rather our surroundings. But, via tapping into smells inextricably linked to memory, Glasser also has a cure. After noting the aroma of figs in the lush heat of Corsican summers, she set to work. “

Corsica is not very polluted, the figs come out more vibrantly than elsewhere. It is very green and rich”,

 she says reaching for one of her fig scented candles. “

There is something about summer time, you get all the sap that comes out from the trees. When you touch them, those trees and the leaves, you come back smelling of it. If I am going to call an item of mine Fig, it needs to transport you there straight away”.

Despite the name, Glasser’s candle does not just smell like fig. As with the best stories, there is a deep complexity hidden beneath more immediate sensual revelations which disarm and distract you. Led by your memories, you might pick up another note rather than the body of the scent first. 

“It even changes when it is on your skin”,

“it depends what you have eaten or the climate that you're in”

. Either way, the richness of Glasser’s nose will guide new thoughts and feelings into your day.

 and take a little trip abroad with your nose.

Azzi Glasser: The Perfumer's Story

All photography courtesy of: Junior Adesanya

“Understanding why incense is, is quite profound as a concept and teaches you so much about cultures and their values across the world.”

In our last interview of the series, Jade speaks to founder and creator, 

, about the smells of the earth and how it's fed into his passion project, Cremate. Creating more than just incense, the brand represents a lifestyle, a sense of mind, and a reminder that time is of the essence, so now's the time to enjoy it. Read on to learn more about the cultural significance of incense and how travel has inspired his brand.

When speaking to London-based, Junior, he emphasises the natural quality of his incense brand. With the air of an alchemist, he lightly commiserates over the commercial perfume industry’s usage of synthetic oils. But, with Adesanya, there is something more organic than just his choice of ingredients.

Born out of London but influenced by his interest in religious iconography, skate culture and childhood warnings of Nigerian witches, Adesanya’s interest in creating concoctions was a mini-rebellion waiting to happen. Looking back, he recollects...

There was a store in Woolwich called 7th Sun which was a tattoo, piercing and occult store. I remember because growing up in a predominately black, inner-city, religious area and being religiously aligned, you’d never go in there… but, me being me, I just went in. I was like what the fuck is going on? I sort of just fell in love with it. They had loads of Chuckie dolls up on the walls, all the crystals… it was just a side of things I had never seen. I knew it existed but it was so taboo within my background. I just thought I wanted to see what it was about. I just remember it stank of Nag Champa!”

The transformative power of scent paired with Adesanya’s tendency to unite seemingly disparate experiences 

, he began to notice the use of incense wherever he went. From its usage in the church rituals that he grew up in to skating, he noted 

“incense's presence in relation to other subcultures

. However, it wasn't until a trip to Japan that his ideas around incense and ritual began to crystallise.

It wasn’t just the culture of burning”

the attention to detail when it came to the packaging, what it conveyed and more so, perfecting very traditional, pure scents. Whilst in Japan, I checked out the crazy range that

has and although many may not class it as specialist, the sheer amount of scents, each with its own very distinct smell and its trippy names, encapsulated this experimental spirit which is more relatable to the younger sub-cultures that adopt incense

It was here that I noticed the marriage of two quite opposite ideas and attitudes; this idea of bringing modernity and tradition together would set the scene for Cremate a few years later

Adesanya’s Japanese trip also revealed to him how different cultures valued different scents and the clear differences of these values in East compared to West. Whilst there, he discovered that traditionally the Japanese weren't really big on perfume, but they are very aware that it’s big in the Western market so they make it for financial gain. This type of incense, that we’re more likely to know in our day-to-day lives, is made to improve the aroma of a space. On the other hand, you have incense for Kodo, which is essentially an incense ceremony where the entire ritual revolves around appreciating the aromatic woods many incense is made from. In Christianity, you have incense that is made for prayer in the church - the smoke of burning incense is interpreted as a symbol of the prayers of the faithful rising to heaven.

“I think understanding why incense is, is quite profound as a concept and teaches you so much about cultures and their values across the world.”

Upon moving out a couple of years ago, he decided to try and make his own. This led him to some late-night deep diving on Reddit and even some 

. However, Adesanya came back in a natural full circle with his initial scent, now called ‘Mary Mother of God’

“based off a lot of the flowers that you find in traditional Roman Catholic Mary gardens like Lavender and Rose”

“the first combination smelt really good but I just thought it was a first time fluke thing! I kept messing around with some other ratios until I realised it was actually a good smell!”

While scent can move you to memories of humid climates or fresh spice, Adesanya’s understanding of the essence of smell has a spiritual quality to it. Rather than perceive scent as something you have to travel to find, Adesyana adds “

smell is inherently about movement and change.

When you're working with essential oils, they change form so easily… when they are carried through smoke or interact with the skin. It is very ethereal and I carry that ethos of change with me”

The world is an endless source of creativity and innovation to many, Adesanya included. His inspiration ranges from an abbey in Gloucester to the mountains of Tibet, being inspired by every culture that has some significant ties to incense.

“The abbey in Gloucester has been producing their own incense by hand since 1906. I’d really like to hit it up, but not completely sure how to go about it, may have to become a monk? I also want to go to Tibet to study the methods of producing traditional Tibetan incense. It’s really a skill that is honed over years - as is the case most of the time when it comes to making incense, so not really a short trip, but one I dream of.”

It’s clear that for any creative, all inspiration leads back to the holy source: Mother Earth. With Junior and Cremate’s journey, his exposure to a multitude of cultures and sub-cultures have played a significant role in not only the company’s identity, but his own. Experiencing a place is an amalgam of senses working together to make a memorable moment. A simple walk down a street and you'll realise just how much your body interacts with your surroundings. Cremate is clearly a unique and personal blend of these seemingly disparate but holistic journeys - one we can see through Junior’s identity, travels and experiences.

 and take a break, relax and travel with your mind.

United Kingdom

London

The Culture of Scent with Cremate London

"In the UK, there has been an uptick in people purchasing scents to curate a calming atmosphere in their homes. But for Njie, this has always been

For the first in a series of interviews, Jade speaks to London-based self-taught perfumer, Maya Njie, on her skilful way of capturing certain scents and smells to invoke memory and place. They speak about the untapped potentials of such a powerful sense and she offers some tips on how to choose the best scents and oils to your needs. Read on for the full story.

How do you get people to the warmth of the tropical beach without anyone breaking a sweat? Guided by memories of drinks and the universal holiday adage of sunscreen, niche perfumer 

In Njie’s public collection, there are currently five fragrances - 

 - which are heavily influenced by her Swedish and West African heritage. But with 

, it seems she managed to capture the warmth of a placeless daydream.

“It was important to have an element of care-freeness and escapism in my fragrances”

“While I could do that for myself by invoking the smells of Gambia, you might not be able to relate to that so much. Whereas, that smell of pineapple and coconut… it just awakes something in people and it can be applied to so many different places”.

While admiring Njie’s portfolio, you can't help but be drawn in by her attention to place and memory. Alongside her perfumes, there are photographs that read like extracts from a family album. In some places, that is exactly what they are but others are snapshots from Njie’s more recent travels. At first, Njie says she was slightly reticent about this personal touch as she thought it might reduce her scents’ relatability.

However, the photographs have become like a visual prompt or a 

“starting point for someone and then they are able to go off on their own journey. When I put my images together, I was thinking about whether I should have a description alongside. Of course, I will tell people when they ask, but I like the idea of people wondering and using their experiences to inform who they could be. If you look at Tobak, you see the man and the little girl… you can create your own story around that. I don’t want it to be like… this is my grandad and his apartment during the 1970s, although I will tell them when they ask!”

In a unique moment where touch and travel are prohibited, Njie’s rare ability to distil a place into something vivid yet intangible seems likely to become integral to our wellbeing. Back in March, 

 that there had been a boom in cologne sales in Turkey due to people desiring it’s disinfecting and mood-enhancing qualities. Similarly, in the UK, there has been an uptick in people purchasing scents to curate a calming atmosphere in their homes. But for Njie, this has always been 

I would be drawn to places that I really liked the smell of. I used to always try and persuade my friends to come with me to the commercial greenhouse where there were lots of pots and plants. The smell there was really earthy and I loved the powerful aroma of the soil”

“trying to ascertain what the home smells of Gambia were because I desperately wanted to bring them back”

. Luckily, one of her family members gave her a bag of Goji seeds and the smell of them burning filled the void.

Since then, she has been fusing the scent with incense alongside her own oils. 

“In the incense burners, the types of oils I use are woody and resinous smells

“or I might have Frankincense, Cedar, Vetiver or Patuaille… all of which are quite heavy”

there's all sorts of alchemy going on, but it's nice to take a step back, not look at it from a business point of view and create your own space”

Needless to say, Njie’s daily routine is still punctuated by smell. In the mornings, she has been using citruses and experimenting with various florals guided by the sunshine. 

“One of the things that has really helped me is

, it is really awakening and gives you a boost of

while also being cleansing. To combat some of the deprivation of movement, I have been using

- it is all about the zest. If you feel like something more

Although the mood-enhancing qualities of smell are far from secret, it seems Njie’s talent to create scents that exist between worlds takes this one step further. Fusing formulas that live between cultures and memories provides us with a sensual break that may transport us to the greenery of a Scandinavian wood, amidst leather workers in the West African heat or somewhere else entirely.

The Smell of Nostalgia with Maya Njie

 "Smell, or our olfactory receptors, is one of our most powerful senses. It occupies the space between experience and imagination bringing about evocations without needing to move at all."

Before Covid-19, I had begun to wonder how sustainable our lifestyle was. As a filmmaker, who has family across the globe and the privilege of a British passport, I have been lucky enough to travel extensively for work and pleasure. In my childhood, I would stare out the rear window for the entire journey back to the airport. Fat tears would roll down my face as I promised myself that if I could count each frangipani tree, I’d see my grandparents again. Growing older, there’d be dreams of bottling up the midnight blue of a sky sunken with heat and the suspense of a tropical storm. Or the bizarre desire to have my nose broken by the smell of durian in the subdued English countryside. For so long, I’d understood this as a drive to see more, to experience more or to document more. And, for a couple of days, I felt a bit lost sitting in the same room. It felt like nothing was moving. But, then, I smelt my hair…

For many of us, smell is one of our most latent senses. Despite its constant presence, mine had been somewhat sidelined, as I experimented with colour, imagery and sound in pursuit of my storytelling. But, in this moment, that commands us to do things differently, my nose decided to wake up with me. The previous night, I had sprayed a scent by niche perfumer, Maya Njie, as I encircled around my room dancing to the comforting tunes of The Blaze. Waking up, I caught a hint of pineapple hanging in my hair. Previously, I had not encountered the fragrance and began to wonder what else I’d been missing.

While it is no secret that smell is one of the joys of travel, the scents mingling with my sweat moved me to memories of dancing on the beach or watching the sun break through the thickest of palm leaves. Smell, or our olfactory receptors, is one of our most powerful senses. It occupies the space between experience and imagination bringing about evocations without needing to move at all. When coming to process smell, our words can fail us. According to the work of academic Asifa Majid, it is partially due to British society’s belief that we are visual creatures. Whilst researching with the Jahai community in the Malay Peninsula, she learnt their language for smells is as vibrant and diverse as ours is for sight or colour.

In reality, smell already orders your day; you might feel energised by the bitter tang of coffee in the morning or, like me, be lulled to sleep by Lavender. While you cannot invite new people into your home or be enticed by aromas of a foreign spice, you can explore the sensuality of smell. So, instead, we’re bringing you some suggestions on how to travel with your nose. Through conversations with members of the Trippin’ community and artisans, we bring you some suggestions on how you can journey and create new experiences with just a spray and spritz.