Last fall I had the pleasure of finding Sweet Anthem’s Etsy shop when I was looking for some new scents to add to my cupcake bath fizzie line. Meredith, the perfumer behind Sweet Anthem, was so tickled that she wanted to work together to create an exclusive Valentine’s Day cupcake bath fizzie from us.

We did all of our planning on-line. I just had the pleasure of speaking with her on the phone this week to conduct her “THE WASH” interview.

So here’s more on Meredith!

Meredith Tucker
MAIN CRAFT: Perfumery, Graphic Design
SITE: sweetanthem.com
BLOG: sweetanthem.com/blog
ETSY SHOP ID: sweetanthem
TWITTER ID: sweetanthem (business) or whenyougethigh (personal)
FACEBOOK FAN PAGE: Sweet-Anthem-Handmade-Perfume
LOCATION: Hometown: Slaton, TX (near Lubbock)
Current residence: Seattle, WA (specifically Capitol Hill)

Meredith is a full-time graphic designer at Microsoft with a Russian Languages and Linguistics degree. Her original passion is through writing and music. She discovered that talking about perfume is like talking about music. "Perfume ingredients are called, "notes" and formulas are, "compositions," she said. Meredith developed an instant obsession with perfume upon discovering that each fragrance has a story to tell her.

It was sometime in 2004-2005 that she became obsessed with indie perfumes and was buying an insane amount of perfume (up to $200 on samples alone in one week).

Being a long-time DIY-er (Meredith ran Sweet Anthem as a small press initially, binding her own books and zines), she decided she should try her own hand at it. She learned lots on-line about the chemistry on building a fragrance. Meredith started with the noble intention of making bathing goods, but realized that she spent an overkill amount of time on perfecting scents to the point that she never got around to the soap, lotions, etc.

Meredith officially kicked-off Sweet Anthem, the perfumery, the holiday season of 2007 selling small run sample packs of her first four blends. Today Sweet Anthem has 25 fragrances and an upcoming couture line to be released later this year that will hopefully hit major department stores nationwide.

Through Sweet Anthem, Meredith is also able to support the local economy by sourcing materials primarily from the Pacific Northwest, buying local dry supplies whenever possible, and provide compassion to the animal kingdom by creating 100% vegan products.

Meredith also uses a vegetable based carrier oil for most perfumes, and will always note if alcohol is used. She also carries solid perfumes which are blended with soy wax, shea oil, and almond oil.

Well, how does Meredith come up with her fragrances?

“When I'm working on a new perfume, it mostly boils down to inspiration. If a perfume is based on someone I know personally, I try to think of colors that embody their personality and work from there. (If it is a famous person, like a musician, I listen to their music for scented cues, or try to imagine what sort of color their sound is.) In addition to musical notes, perfume notes can also be related to colors. I'll usually pick a note that embodies that color - lavender for purple, coriander for red, patchouli for brown, etc. - and start the composition process from there.

Once I have decided on the beginning ingredient, then I have to figure out what mood I want, what sort of setting I picture the wearer in, and all of that fun story boarding kind of stuff - and then continue building the rest of the perfume, constantly thinking about the changes it will make and the story it tells. It's actually very similar to process writers go through, but with scents!” she says.

Meredith is very committed to Sweet Anthem with spending 99% of her free-time outside of her full-time job on her craft. She does her work in her lab in a small corner of her home office. She has several closets full of supplies and lots of shelving and containers and bins to stay organized.

Also, planning a summer wedding is on Meredith’s plate! Her fiancé found her engagement on Etsy and she’s getting her wedding dress from another handmade Etsy designer. So cool!

Meredith’s advice for other crafty chicks is:

• Know your own limits and do not be afraid to ask for help

• Don't be afraid to comment on blogs and get in touch with bloggers.

• Be passionate about what you do, and don't do something if you're going to do it halfway.

• Plan ahead! Do your research in advance as possible and figure out WHERE you want to promote and HOW you want to promote. Knowing your targeted audience will help drive the value of your shop.

Thanks Meredith!