What can I say, Mark Montano is Mr Do It All. He’s had several shows which include While You Were Out, My Celebrity Home, She’s Moving In, and 10 Years Younger. He’s also written several books, Big-Ass Book Of Crafts, Dollar Store Decor, and Window Treatments and Slipcovers For Dummies to name a few. The day before his taping for the Martha Stewart show, we grabbed a cup of coffee and chatted about fragrances. Here’s an excerpt:
What’s your earliest recollection of fragrance?
My earliest recollection would probably be my mom’s Patchouli and my dad’s Old Spice. Those scents always make me think of home. I hated when my parents left for the day so those scents make me sad because I knew they were getting ready to leave for work.
What fragrances are currently in your rotation?
Creed Green Irish Tweed, Jasmal and my own concoction – mint oil and lemon oils.
Tell me a bit about your fascination with drug store fragrances? Are there any good ones?
Hmm…….are there any good ones? Good question. I don’t want to diss the entire drugstore fragrance counter because I grew up in a small town and that’s what we had…it was all we had! Well, I guess it depends on what you like. I like to mix them so I head to the counter and start messing around with two at a time. Not sure if I should give away my recipe but let’s just say a good splash of Jovan Musk Oil mixed with some pine fragrance is always a good mix for me. Not too much though!
When you’re in the mood to purchase something new, what do you look for?
I always buy a new fragrance when I have a major achievement in my life like landing a new TV show or publishing a book. It’s the only time I will go to Creed and buy the largest bottle of something amazing.
How would you finish this statement, “My most memorable fragrant moment would be…?
Probably trying on my dad’s Old Spice and feeling very grown up. I was probably 4 at the time and I’m sure I doused myself with it. Scent is such a large part of memory and sometimes when I’m at a drugstore I smell it just to think of my dad.
What’s next for you?
Well, my 5th and 6th books come out this year so I’ll be promoting the bejeezus out of them and I’m working on my own craft show which is very exciting. It’s a great time right now for me and I’m happy to be busy!
Thanks for sharing Mark.
fragrantmoments.net 
I love that guy! Very cool interview. Old Spice.. he’s taking it back to basics!
Mark is awesome. I love that he celebrates life’s successes with a new fragrance. And I’m noticing a theme here – everyone at some point or another takes it back to the basics.
Love this interview…next time I am mixing scents at the drug store I am going to think of Mark! He has such cool style, “The Big Ass Books of Crafts” is on the “do not loan out” section in my bookshelf haha.