The original moist brews of aromatic herbs, flowers, woods, spices and salt used in potpourri may have well resembled the contents of Shakespeare's witches' cauldron, blackening, frothing and thickening as they simmered away releasing the combined aroma of their myriad contents but had a far less mischievous purpose. Literally translated from the French, potpourri means 'rotted pot' and was used to scent, (or perhaps more accurately, to mask unpleasant smells), and protect early homes from pestilence and spirits. Ingredients were varied but often included lavender, sage, orris root, marigolds, rosebuds, even orange peels and apple cores. Like a sourdough starter, once begun a pot would be fed with dried or fresh plant matter and water and would ultimately develop a thick plaque of decayed material around the inside, thereby deriving its name.

Today the term potpourri is synonymous with any assortment of dried, aromatic botanicals as well as those used in simmer pots and with names like lamb's tongue, stachys lanata, kangaroo paw, anigozanthos, cockscomb, celosia argentea, or rat's tail, limonium suworowii it is easy to conjure up images of 'double, double, toil and trouble'. While the original need for home purification may no longer motivate the use of potpourri, the home fragrance industry is thriving nonetheless. Cellophane bags of brightly dyed wood curls and shavings scented with strawberry, mango or peach fragrances line store shelves along with scented candles, incense and small ceramic simmer pots complete with packaged botanicals, even plug-in infusers can be found at every grocery store. These convenient and ready to use products confirm that we love scent in our homes and our lives and it may also indicate that we have forgotten just how easily potpourris can be put together with a walk in the backyard or a stroll around the corner.

Before discussing the art of making potpourri it should probably be mentioned that potpourri can be a work of art. Dried botanicals which include support material and filler like oak, sphagnum and Spanish moss, not only readily absorb the scent molecules from fragrance and essential oils but they come au natural in a rich abundance of shapes, hues, sizes and textures. The compact and reptilian scaled protea, or the round clustered rosettes of allium, even lichen can be found in creamy whites and silvers. Airy fescues or bits of ivy, dill, and pine cones provide rich browns and greens and strawflower and African daisies offer pallets of yellows and gold. Rainbows of pinks, purples, reds and blues are present in the translucent leaves of money plant, the bristly blooms of bottle brush, in roses or statice and whether you toss them randomly on a piece of old bark or arrange them upright in a Lalique vase or a handmade basket you have, with nature's help, created a unique piece of art.

Dry potpourri really only differs from a dried flower arrangement because the botanical material is chosen for its scent or has been imbued with additional scent. The natural and subtle scents of larkspur, lavender, roses, cloves and cinnamon make wonderfully effective potpourris for a living room or boudoir without any enhancements at all. Still, as mentioned above, dried botanicals absorb scent superbly and make a perfect medium for designing your own scents or aromacrafting. Aromacrafting is differentiated here from aromatherapy in that the latter may combine essential oils to stimulate or relax the nervous system without specific regard to the scent whereas the former hopes to create a pleasing or 'signature' scent. Either way both can be successfully employed in the crafting of potpourri.

In 1857, a perfumer by the name of Septimus Piée, implemented a classification system for scents using a musical scale which is still in use today. The terms base notes, middle notes and top notes are assigned to a scent to define its character and longevity. Once two or more scents are combined they are evaluated as to how smoothly they segue from one phase to another as in a 'common thread' and a perfume's 'octave' measures the height of an ingredient as its presence becomes known within the bouquet or 'composition'. Historically, a perfumer or 'Le Nez' as they are still called, sat at an arced multi layered desk of tiered shelves called an organ laden with small bottles of essential oils arranged by fragrance category to compose a new perfume. Certainly all this is too complicated for a quick, homemade potpourri but a little history can explain some of the terms used in aromacrafting.

To satisfactorily compose your own custom scent you need only remember a few basics about the different notes of fragrances. Top notes are generally the first aroma registered by your nose and they are the most fleeting. Examples of top notes would be most citrus scents such as sweet orange, tangerine and bergamot but can include florals and spices as well. Middle notes ultimately define the character of a scent such as woodsy, floral or spicy and should bring harmony between the base and top notes. Examples of middle notes would be lavender, carnation, geranium, pine and cedar. Just as the tympani in an orchestra provides the underlying beat and continuum for a symphony, so too do base notes carry the top and middle notes harmonizing with and prolonging their combined fragrance. Some base notes are frankincense, myrrh, vanilla, rose and jasmine.

The final point to consider is that a few drops of a single favorite essential oil applied to a few dried petals from your yard tossed onto a plate may be all you need to make an exquisite potpourri or to enhance an existing dried flower arrangement. Next we will discuss air drying techniques, get into some basic fragrance recipes and additional ways of freshening and scenting your environment without any toil or trouble at all.