33 Seconds with Eileen Harcourt

Introduced through a mutual friend because of our shared passion for fragrances, I met Eileen Harcourt two years ago. Our first meeting lasted for almost five hours. We sat in her living room and talked our heads off. I sampled many of her creations and she explained her holistic approach to perfume making. The more she talked, the more I became intrigued. There I was, a newbie to blogging about fragrances and I was welcomed into the home of an actual perfumer. (That’s unheard of right? Perfumers can be so standoffish, especially when you’re not from one of the majors.) She was the first one I ever met and she was totally open to talking to me. I was humbled and in awe at the same time. She had me hooked from Davana Bud, or so I thought. You see I knew Eileen without ever meeting her. I met her, or rather one of her creations, in 2002 when I stumbled into the hip little shop Base on Lincoln Road in Miami. That was my first time down there with my girlfriend, now wife, and I was on sensory overload. But all of that was settled when I picked up a bottle of Sand. This roll on fragrance took me to sandy beaches and blue skies and being the impulse buyer that I am, I snagged it immediately. Since then my taste has dramatically changed but for some reason I held onto Sand. When I began telling Eileen about how much I love this scent, a smiled erupted across her face and she simply said, “I created that.”

Eileen and I have met many more times since then and she is constantly encouraging me to continue following my fragrant passion. When she told me she would be setting up shop at the Hester Street Fair, I knew I had to drop by and hang out with her for a while. As is usually the case when we get together, what was supposed to be a quick pass through turned into a two and a half hour visit. I had so much fun watching the reaction of the people coming into her booth and smelling her creations. By the time I reached there, she was already sold out of a few scents. But after being there for a bit, Eileen and I began talking about fragrances and here is a piece of the conversation.

Thanks Eileen for entertaining my passion and being my first video interview.