BABY SCENTS AND THE MEMORIES THEY CREATE


Perfume dates back to the birth of Jesus Christ and beyond when he was given Gold and the fragrances Frankincense and Myrrh from the Kings of the East. At a time when perfumes and oils were used as commodities their prime uses were for personal, religious and medicinal. East Asia used fragrances for incense; but it was the Arabs and the Romans who refined the art of making perfume centuries ago .

Today perfume is a fashionable accessory and is more accessible to the masses while still having the power to evoke great memories and at the same time create a mood for the day. Available now through a wide variety of products, fragrance is now a big part of our lifestyle through soaps, lotion & creams, candles, diffusers and oils burners. It is something that will always be a part of our lives.

Starting from the day we are born, the sense of smell is one of the first senses to be developed. The baby’s recognition of their mother’s scent instils safety and calmness. Our sense of smell grows to a memory of over 10000 smells, much stronger than our sense of taste where we group our tastes into sweet, sour bitter, salt while all the other tastes are detected by our sense of smell.
From the first smell a scent is stored in our memory and can be associated with events and times in our lives of both good and bad.


For me the memory of coconut brings me back to a time when I was given a coconut flavoured medicine. Today I cannot smell coconut without feeling nausea. For many others however, coconut evokes happy memories of times at the beach and sunny days.

My mother often made me chamomile tea as a child, so today the smell of chamomile reminds me of home, love, calmness and well being.

When Carla Riva was first developed, the fragrance of the product was paramount. It was discovered that Mandarin was a simple aroma that kept babies happy & alert and calming to the baby at the same time.
Complemented with Chamomile, Lavender and Geranium, the essential oils were introduced for their healing and soothing properties but also for their gentle fragrance.

It was important for Carla Riva to be a part of their happy memories and it is with this intent that the next time they smell Mandarin or Chamomile it will bring them back to a happy childhood time, a time when they were carefree and didn’t have the pressures and worries that they may find when they become adults.