Perfume, Composed from the Ground Up: A Conversation with Jill McKeever, Owner and Perfumer of For Strange Women
At For Strange Women, scent begins with raw botanicals, unfolding slowly against the skin
By: The Lace Ledger
Photo Credit: @forstrangewomen
Step into a world where perfume begins in the soil.
At For Strange Women, scent is cultivated, gathered, studied and coaxed into form through plant matter that still carries the memory of where it grew.
Each blend is built with intention. Each note arrives with purpose.
For those who find traditional fragrance overwhelming, this approach offers something else entirely. The compositions move gently, settling into the skin instead of sitting on top of it. What unfolds feels personal, shaped as much by the wearer as by the materials themselves. Owner and perfumer Jill McKeever gives us a behind-the-scenes look at her process and what comes next.
Photo Credit: forstrangewomen.com
1. We love that your scents are composed entirely of botanical ingredients. What first drew you toward working exclusively with plant-derived materials?
I am sensitive. The way many synthetic based perfumes and materials interact with my senses is harsh, and I never had an interest in these scents. I think my entire nervous system reacts to things differently than most people; it is estimated that 20% of the population is highly sensitive.
So, when I discovered that plant based materials were beautiful, I knew there would be some others out there that experienced the difference in the same way that I do.
Photo Credit: @forstrangewomen
2. Perfume, whether botanical or otherwise, is known to interact uniquely with the wearer. Do you find that how a scent develops changes from person to person depending on skin chemistry, hormones, environmental factors, etc.?
Yes, especially when worn on the skin, where your unique chemistry interacts with the molecules, it can vary a lot from person to person. Even your diet can change the way your skin's chemistry. There are specific essences that seem to be more commonly changeable, such as citrus oils and smokey notes, and it is always best to wear them for at least 5 minutes to determine how your skin will read the scent.
3. Your fragrances are designed to melt into the skin and evolve slowly over several hours. From your perspective as a perfumer, what does that unfolding look like? How do you approach engineering that journey?
I begin with just a couple materials that I want the perfume to be based on. Then I build around them, based on if I want diffusion, resonance, sweetness, texture, sharpness, etc. The natural materials are so complex and delicate that the evolution is inevitable—it is based on the weight of each molecule and how quickly they evaporate.
4. For Strange Women fragrance categories are beautifully intention-driven, with moods like calming, seductive, or energizing guiding the experience. Do you begin designing a scent with a specific emotional atmosphere in mind?
Yes, the mood is a main motivation for me in creating a perfume. I am often inspired by a particular material and season—even personal emotions, and I ask how I want to feel right now.
Photo Credit: forstrangewomen.com
5. Every perfumer seems to have a plant that feels especially magical to work with. Which botanical ingredient currently fascinates you the most, and what makes it so compelling?
There are so many favourites, and I am always rediscovering my appreciation for ingredients. One of my favourites that seems underrated at the time is Orris Root. It is the rhizome of iris, aged for years and then extracted into a thick, richly scented butter. Synthetics never seem to capture the exquisite depth and softness of this material, and it does have a slightly musky, earthy, but also dry and powdery quality. There is a lot of it in Black Iris. "Powdery" is not in style at this time, but I find it to be an essential material in my palette.
Photo Credit: @forstrangewomen
6. Working with natural materials must invite the occasional surprise. Is there an experiment that went delightfully (or disastrously) wrong that still makes you giggle?
When formulating Winter Kitty in 2009, I was still learning the realm of materials, ordering more and more to achieve the perfect batch that was in my mind. There were so many experiments that went the wrong direction in that learning process, including "hot summer kitty", "barbeque kity" , and "waffle kitty"
Photo Credit: forstrangewomen.com
7. Your work extends across perfume oils, solid perfume, incense, candles and scented paper. How do you decide which delivery method best suits a particular scent or ritual?
Natural materials are often very difficult to work with because they can be solid, sticky and resinous, they vary in solubility, they are drastically different in cost, and they are varied in availability. There are natural limitations to formulating with them, so practicality drives a lot of it. But sometimes there is a chord that can be struck between a format and an unexpected (or perfectly aligned) scent and concept.
Photo Credit: forstrangewomen.com
8. Which fragrance feels most like spring to you this year, and what atmosphere does it evoke?
Lichen is a scent that has a light, dewy opening and a verdant, mossy drydown, which emulates spring nicely. There is a quietness, an overcast feel.
Photo Credit: @forstrangewomen
9.Your New Moon limited edition collection has developed something of a cult following. What inspired that series and the world surrounding it?
I realized as I began this business in 2009 that I was having trouble setting deadlines and work schedules for myself. I realized that working with moon cycles works perfectly for me, and that the influence of the moon is something I can use to my advantage. I began making a new limited edition for every new moon beginning in 2012, and at this point have created over 100 unique perfumes. At the time, no one was doing small limited edition runs of perfume, and it was unheard of to sell them online where no one could smell them before purchasing. But I created a world around the perfume and I earned the trust of an amazing customer base that looks forward to each release.
Photo Credit: forstrangewomen.com
10. The philosophy behind For Strange Women also appears in your book, The Spirit of Botany. What inspired you to bring that sensory philosophy into book form?
To be honest, I knew an editor for a book publisher who approached me. He knew they were looking for a book on the subject of natural aromatics and I knew I could write about it in a different way than it has been in the past. I wanted to emphasize working directly with the raw materials, even growing them. And showing simple ways to use some of my favourite plant materials in tinctures and incense blends and even teas so that the reader can study the basics and develop a relationship with the plants themselves.
Perfume, at its best, stays with you. Not as projection, but as something that settles into your own rhythm.
At For Strange Women, that experience begins with the material and ends with the wearer. Explore the full collection through their website, then follow along on Instagram, where each release continues to unfold.
Which will you try first? Tell us in the comments and subscribe to receive our free monthly digital issue to your inbox including a first look at dark feminine style and culture, the chance to vote on next month’s stories and a preview of upcoming giveaways.
