I was going through an oil notebook on Sunday and realized that eight years ago I created Amayori’s best selling Hinoki Onsen fragrance. 

The idea for this fragrance came to me in a bath after my first trip to Japan. I longed for the hinoki bath in the Gion Hatanaka- a ryokan my husband and I visited in Kyoto. Alas, the Hatanaka has closed due to Covid. The bath there has so much meaning to me and I will never forget it. Thankfully, I have pictures (one is below), my memories, and Hinoki Onsen.

If you have been with us along the past eight year journey you may remember that about 6 months after launching Amayori  I adjusted this fragrance. I was still working out of my New York kitchen and was blending fragrances after a glass of wine one evening. I wasn’t paying attention and used a different type of jasmine. When I realized my mistake I was upset at wasting costly jasmine oil but I realized that I liked this new scent much more. I then switched the cedar from Virginia to atlas cedar and a new version of Hinoki Onsen was born.

About five months after that there was another ingredient change. I had been using a gorgeous rosewood oil which to me conveys mystery and allure. Around that time I was working part time for an aromatherapy company in New York where I was learning so much about the inside of the essential oil industry. It was beginning to come to light that rosewood harvesting was not sustainable and in fact causing great damage to rainforests. I knew that I could no longer use this oil and be at peace with it. So, I began to search for a replacement. Nothing would do. After weeks of searching I came up with a beautiful combination of coriander CO2 and rose geranium. Rosewood oil has come back into the aromatherapy world but is now usually harvested from leftover twigs and leaves. I contemplated bringing it back into Hinoki Onsen but realized that everyone loves it the way it is and I do too.

Thank you for supporting this fragrance and allowing something that has so much personal meaning to me to bring you joy, relaxation and comfort. This nostalgic journey has me in the mood for a long, languorous Hinoki Onsen bath. I hope these reflections have the same effect on you.

Warmest wishes,

Françoise