I’m happy to announce that there will be an encore of my class, Smells like Xenophobia: An Olfactive History of Otherness, next week as part of the Institute of Art and Olfaction’s Scent Week programming and in conjunction with their Scent & Society series. If you missed this class last month, this is your…
Category: Books
Books I’m Excited to Read This Year
A new year is upon us and with it, a fresh start to crush my Goodreads Reading Challenge, or at least that is how I would have approached it in past years. I’m an intensely competitive person, and I would read 60-90 books a year mostly just to prove I could. I always had a…
The 2019 Death/Scent Holiday Gift Guide: Embrace the Gloom
Oh boy, I don’t know about y’all but it has been a year here at Maison Death/Scent. Beyond the daily assault of the news and global politics, these days I’ve been bogged down by delays in projects I’d hope to launch this year, and my mood has turned as foul as the weather. I personally…
More Spooktacular Fragrance Pairings for Halloween
Spooky season has descended upon us once again and with it the age-old quest for the perfect Halloween costume. Personally, I’ve been oscillating between Dolly Parton and Pugsley Addams this year. That’s right boys, get you a girl who can pull off both Dolly and Pugsley! All this mulling has led me back to one…
Ephemera Guide: Flowers, Hearts, and Gloriously Macabre Valentines
February for a good half of the globe is a miserable month. A month both wet and cold where the dream of shorts-weather seems both tantalisingly close and yet so very far away. It is at this time we turn our minds to love, as if carnal body heat will somehow shift this snow. Whether…
The Putrid and the Divine Book Club
A few years back, after receiving several requests for more information on topics covered in the blog, I made a lengthy list of over 50 books to indulge our olfactive bookworms. In retrospect, that list was a bit daunting. At first, I was planning to just do an updated tighter edit of that list but…
A Holiday Gift Guide For Difficult People
Let’s face it, I’m difficult, you’re difficult, Aunt Kathy is difficult, everyone is a pain in the ass to buy for. No matter what you celebrate this time of year, you may find yourself with a difficult person on your list. It’s not that they are rude or mean about your gift, its just…
The Great Stink of London
What happens when a city of 3 million inhabitants has a sewer system that serves 1 million? The Great Stink! But can stench alone kill?
Santa’s Creepy Friends: A Gift Guide
While I appreciate the decorations and lights of this time of year, there is something I find very daunting about the holidays. All this cheer, all the merriment, the world becomes a Disneyland ride, and it is all a bit…well, boring. As David Sedaris put it: While eight flying reindeer are a hard pill to…
Ephemera Guide: Grimm & Glorious
Hello my darlings, I’m so sorry I’ve had another unintentional summer hiatus from the blog. I’ve been writing my dissertation which is like slowly slashing my heart with a thousand papercuts. But the end is in sight, and I finally have a few minutes to catch up. Keep your eyes peeled for a new article…
