Paperback Perfumes Podcast By Clare Presser cover art

Paperback Perfumes

Paperback Perfumes

By: Clare Presser
Listen for free

Season's Savings | $0.99/mo for 3 months

$8.99/mo thereafter—terms apply.
Welcome to Paperback Perfumes! The host Clare Presser is a Librarian with a fascination for fragrances and their capacity to evokes memories and experiences through the activation of the olfactory system. In this podcast she chats with guests about their connections with scents and stories through the pairing of perfumes and literary texts. Think of it as reader’s advisory for fragrance lovers, or fragrance recommendation for bibilophiles - whichever experience is your first priority. It’s fun exercise that allows a lovely discussion around people’s personal interpretation of experience, scent, and story

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Clare Presser Art Decorative Arts & Design Literary History & Criticism
Episodes
  • Remember Me

    Remember Me
    Oct 20 2026
    “Stories come in so many forms: in charcoal, and in song, in paintings, poems, films. And books. Books, she has found, are a way to live a thousand lives—or to find strength in a very long one.”- V.E. Schwab, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRueWhat happens when a novel about being forgotten meets an art form built on being remembered? In this episode, Daylesford perfumista Rhiane Schroder brings V. E. Schwab's The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue to the table, and together we explore how fragrance can hold time, how memory shapes identity, and the deep human longing to leave a trace. Rhiane matches perfumes to the novel's many eras and moods, turning Addie's centuries into a trail of scent.A hair and makeup artist by day, Rhiane may be a fresh voice in social media perfume reviews, but her nose has been leading her for a lifetime, from her earliest scent memories in the garden to travels that have shown her how different cultures wear and celebrate fragrance. For her, a perfume is never just the final touch of the day, but an experience that conjures pictures, colours, textures and moods. So it's no surprise her bottles double as memory objects, and we talk about the very real anxiety of finishing a beloved perfume, and the joy of revisiting scents from different stages of life.Fragrances mentioned:Giorgio - Giorgio Beverly HillsFendi - FendiTihota - IndultPlacebo - KolidoIris Silver Mist - Serge LutensPistil - Miskeo ParfumsGardenia - Archer FarrarInterlude Man - AmouageInterlude Woman - AmouageMon Nom Est Rouge - Majda BekkaliEpic Woman - AmouageFate Woman - AmouageLibrido - Olfiction Lab EditionsAmBrosius - CB I Hate PerfumeViolet Empire - CB I Hate PerfumeVetyver Bucolique - Mad et LenBlack Lacquer - Tom FordWearing Scars Like Jewels - One Way Bridge PerfumesAbsince of Nothing - One Way Bridge PerfumesHaute Horopito - One Way Bridge PerfumesThe Typographers Daughter - One Way Bridge PerfumesBook discussed:The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V. E. SchwabFind Rhiane at:Instagram:@she.smells.everythingTikTok:@she.smells.everytTheme music for the show was created by Raul Sanchez I Jorge. Check out his solo work on Wild Animal Records Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    1 hr and 9 mins
  • The Guest Book

    The Guest Book
    Sep 1 2026
    "Nothing is more memorable than a smell. One scent can be unexpected, momentary and fleeting, yet conjure up a childhood summer beside a lake in the mountains."-Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of the SensesOn September 12–13, I'll be at the Geelong Fragrance Fair and to mark it, this special episode gathers voices from everyone I've interviewed on Paperback Perfumes this past year. Sixteen perfumers, founders and scholars, each paired with a book, woven into one conversation about scent, story and identity. Here they are, in the order they first appeared on the show. Come find me at the Fair and say hello!Ep 3, Return of the Rivers — Laura Bass (Lore Perfumery) pairs fragrance with Rivers of London and The Return of the King.Ep 21, Artistic Aliens — Corey Newcombe (Criminal Elements) on a decade of artisanal scent, nose training and dream-born fragrances.Ep 26, Inheritance — John Domjan (Örök Fragrances) on telling queer community stories through scent.Ep 44, Futurism — Dr Caroline McMillan on smell tech, sci-fi and the future of olfactory art.Ep 46, Resilience — Aysha Hansen on sensory memory, teaching perfumery and building a fragrance line.Ep 47, Story Keepers — Juliette Fournier & Richard Adamson (Hart + Hedi) on collaboration, memory and native Australian botanicals.Ep 49, The Land of Flowers — Justin James (House of James) on niche perfumery as artistic rebellion.Ep 51, Fairy Tales — Michael Nordstrand (Mythologist Studio) on myth, the hero's journey and Scandinavian fairy tales.Ep 54, Kings and Heroes — Ashek Zubayer (Byermia) on the Epic of Gilgamesh and his mythological Folklore series.Ep 55, Aesthetics — Dr Liam Sardea on the philosophy of aesthetics, memory and meaning in scent.Ep 60, More Than a Dandy — Katrina Cochrane (Archer Farrar) on natural perfumery and The Scarlet Pimpernel.Ep 65, Sacred Scent — Lee Couch (LA COUCH), a Gamilaroi woman, on Aboriginal bush medicine, songlines and healing.Ep 71, A Box of Spices — Alina Tadevosyan (ARAKYÁL) on Armenian heritage, memory and cultural resilience.Ep 78, A Beautiful Grimoire — Troy Vu (Grimoire Perfumes) on Dorian Gray, myth and the macabre.Ep 82, Finding Language — Saskia Dodds-Painter (KOLIDO, Nose Magazine) on the language we use for smell.Ep 84, Makeup and Murder — David Clarke (Rivendare) on Agatha Christie and building a perfume house from scratch.Sixteen episodes, one thread: scent as story. Listen to the full compilation now, then come find me in person at the Geelong Fragrance Fair, September 12–13 — I'd love to swap book and fragrance recommendations with you. Tickets & info: geelongfragrancefair.com.auTheme music for the show was created by Raul Sanchez I Jorge. Check out his solo work on Wild Animal Records Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    36 mins
  • Haunting Love

    Haunting Love
    Aug 18 2026

    "Always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Add pepper to your mashed potatoes. Plant roses and lavender, for luck. Fall in love whenever you can."

    - Alice Hoffman, Practical Magic


    Aysha Hansen is an independent Australian perfumer with an uncompromising focus on exceptional quality, detail and sensorial elegance. Born in Geelong and raised in the coastal town of Torquay, Aysha's approach to perfumery is largely inspired by memories, daydreams and adventures. As an artisan perfumer, she draws on her passion for nature, history and travel to create fragrances that transport the wearer through evocative storytelling. Aysha conducts custom perfume workshops from her studio in Geelong, and has launched her eponymous luxury perfume collection in July of 2025.


    This episode welcomes back perfumer Aysha to reflect on a breakthrough year, including a finalist nomination at the Institute of Art and Olfaction's Golden Pears, an unforgettable trip to Athens, and the craft of turning memory into scent. The conversation explores community in perfumery, the restorative power of Aysha's workshops, and a book pairing with Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic that helps frame Aysha's first three fragrances: Golden Thread, Ghost Lover and Ambrosia.


    Fragrances mentioned:

    Golden Thread

    Ghost Lover

    Ambrosia

    Book discussed:

    Practical Magic - Alice Hoffman


    Find Aysha at:


    Instagram:

    @ayshahansenfinefragrance


    Website:

    www.ayshahansen.com


    Theme music for the show was created by Raul Sanchez I Jorge. Check out his solo work on Wild Animal Records


    Australian listeners — the Geelong Fragrance Fair is on from 11–13 September 2026, and tickets are on sale now. It's a great opportunity for the Australian fragrance community to get together — come and see me pair books with Lore Perfumery live on the Saturday!

    Tickets & info: geelongfragrancefair.com.au

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show more Show less
    45 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet