The Power Of Scent: Interview With Jelena Von Olnhausen, Founder of LEN Fragrances

What is your first "scented memory"? 

The first memory is our family heirloom - a huge book with old perfume recipes, handwritten by a French perfumer. It was a gift to my great-great-grandmother. My parents constantly talked about the perfume release according to these recipes and that these scents would impress the world. I always admired the massive collection of perfumes of my parents. As a child, I always asked them to buy a new fragrance in a beautiful bottle for me instead of toys.

Tell us about your career path.

After my economic studies at the university, I worked for a couple of years in an American consulting company and took over the family business - a publishing house in London. As a journalist, I often interviewed famous perfumers and many of them helped me in fulfilling my childhood dream of creating my own perfume brand.

You have released a new fragrance LAST CALL TO IBIZA. Tell us more about it!

It's a fascinating story. I spent all my childhood and holidays in Ibiza - this magical island is basically my second home. Many unforgettable smells are associated with this island - orange and lemon trees in our garden, freshly picked pomegranates, sunrise's scent, the smell of the sea, wind, fresh fish, coffee, the smell of sunny streets, brilliant parties, and romantic sunsets. One day I read that Nostradamus advised 550 years ago to move to Ibiza in the event of the world's end and challenging times. The idea about the new fragrance was born! Every scent of my brand tells a love story. LAST CALL TO IBIZA is about how Nostradamus and his beloved wife met 500 years later in Ibiza in the pirate port of Es Cubells, immediately recognizing each other and falling in love again.

How do you find the ingredients for LAST CALL TO IBIZA and what inspired you?

Imagine you dancing all night in Ibiza. Then you drink your first cup of coffee at 4 a.m. in the garden; among the flowers, you see the sunrise. This fragrance contains notes of coffee, marijuana, rasberry, rose, peach, freesia, veriver, musk, caramel and sandal. The scent is unique, and Mark Buxton, the famous perfumer and eternal child, talented and a little crazy, helped me create it.

What is your best advice for improving a person's sense of smell?

Train your nose - often try various perfumes, and very soon, you will learn to distinguish gourmet fragrances from mass market perfumes and your favorite natural notes from synthetic ingredients.

How many fragrances should be in a woman's perfume collection?

Each outfit should have its own fragrance. Day and night, different hair colors, different seasons- each situation needs its own perfume. People may forget your clothes, but they will never forget your perfume.