IN CONVERSATION WITH KATHRYN FROM ST.LUCY BOTANISTS

Tell us a little about yourself  
I am Australian born but have spent half of my life living and working abroad.  Most of my career has been spent working as a marketing executive in the Wine and Spirits industry, where my love of distilling plants was ignited.  I currently live in Barbados with French husband, 2 American kids and a lot of Bajan animals (it’s a menagerie including 2 dogs, 1 cat, 6 chickens, a local black belly sheep, 1 tortoise and a bee yard).

You're morning routine looks like?  
I’m up before 6am; coffee first, feed the animals (or risk being attacked),

then I’m jumping on the bike for a quick spin around St. Lucy in the northern tip

of the island.  Exercise helps clear my head and get energized to start the day with conviction.

What was the inspiration behind St Lucy Botanists?

Nowadays the store shelves are filled exclusively with synthetic perfumes where the consumer is paying more for the packaging costs then what is inside the bottle.  Where is the heart in that?  Our olfactory sensibility has been deadened by the ‘chemicalization of our food and the excess of unnatural smells'. 
It’s our passion to create alluring scents using the finest natural materials that hark back to the golden days of perfumery where the value lies in the product, not the packaging.  Working with some of natures’ most seductive essences is a powerful way of transcending the everyday.  

 

What is your process behind dreaming up a scent and seeing it come to life?

My approach to creating a fragrance is rooted in a love of naturals.  Our perfumes are ingredient focused so the inspiration often starts with one rare and precious raw material.  Currently I’m working on an evocative Tuberose fragrance (one of the most expensive raw ingredients and rarely used in perfumery anymore due to cost) where the Tuberose extract plays the hero and is celebrated with complimentary accords.

How long have you been working on the products we see today and sourcing your natural ingredients?
Just like in cooking, the quality of the ingredients in the ‘recipe’ (or formula in this case) makes all the difference.  It’s taken years to discover the finest varieties and to build my relationship with growers.  It’s a continuous process as the quality or nuances in natural ingredients can change every season - just like any crop, some farmers can have good or bad years so it’s a matter of always sampling and testing.
In addition to finding the best quality, we believe the only way to make a truly amazing product is without harming animals, people or the planet. Hence we have an extra layer of ‘green responsibility’ in our sourcing protocol to ensure we are promoting sustainable agriculture and minimizing our environmental footprint

with a commitment to recycled /reusable packaging.

What is your favourite product from your range and why?
Our Solid Perfumes – they’re so unique and personal.  Each solid perfume blends with your distinctive body chemistry, encapsulating you with your own unique fragrant aura. Natural perfumes evolve on the skin, changing over time … interacting with us!

What is your homemade cocktail of choice?
I like to keep things simple but who doesn’t want to serve guests with a refreshing cocktail that has some wow factor?  This beauty is 100% natural and the flavour and colour is just … wow!

 

1.5 oz vodka (I like Elit)

1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice

3 basil leaves or whatever you have growing in the garden (rosemary or mint work well)

10 blueberries

3 oz sparkling water (or San Pellegrino Limonata if you need some sweetness)

  

Muddle the blueberries and basil leaves together in a shaker.

Add lemon juice, vodka and some ice.

Shake to mix

Strain and pour over ice in a rocks glass or highball.

Top with sparkling water or Limonata and garnish with basil leaves &

a lemon slice.

 

Take time to stop and smell the roses!  Sometimes I’m so passionate about a project I’m working on, I throw myself into it without looking up.  This year has been about taking stock, re-evaluating and being grateful for the small things.

 

 

or online  www.bethandtracie.com