Aquila Children's Magazine AQUILA Magazine Best Bits | Page 15

It isn’t always possible to sniff the real thing if you want a reference for a new fragrance oil. For example Camelot Theme Park asked us to make a dragon’s breath smell. Our scent designers had to do some research into how dragons were described in medieval times. They researched reptile smells (so… lizard sniffing? Ed) and they already knew how to make smokey scents. This mix led to the perfect recipe. When it comes to creating a new smell, it’s often a case of researching, smelling real subjects and then experimenting with ingredients. Polly: Who decides whether an aroma like that is right or not? Liam: Most of the time visitors to an attraction are the best judges of our scents, but everyone experiences smell differently. Years ago we made a rotting flesh smell for a scare attraction. Some people thought it smelled like delicious meat! It was hilarious. We soon made the smell even more ghastly. Polly: What is the weirdest smell you ever produced (in a lab, not, you know… organically)? Liam: No scent is too weird for us, in fact pretty much all of our smells are out of the ordinary. We have produced a penguin sick smell for zoos, and that never fails to amuse people. The actor, Richard E. Grant once sampled it on TV. Polly: Has it ever gone really wrong? Liam: Flatulence is one of our bestsellers. In 2003, a Roman museum wanted to use it for their replica Roman toilet. Silly smells are always fun and get you engaged with the past, but on this occasion, the museum set the strength of their smell machine too high. The pong ended up being far too strong and four schoolchildren were sick when they sniffed it! This was a very long time ago. Customers are always advised on the best ways to use stinky odours, but it is a very amusing story. It even made the news! Polly: What’s your favourite smell? Liam: Lemongrass is lovely! I am a writer in my spare time, and I’ve been writing a novel that involves outlandish aromas – one of the main characters smells of lemongrass. The villains are more odious.   Polly: If you could only ever smell one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? H ave you ever wondered what a T-rex’s toenail smelled like? How about Sherlock’s socks, or the Duke of Wellington’s…erm… Wellingtons*? Well, now is your chance to find out! Our mates at AromaPrime are offering one very lucky AQUILAnaut the chance to smell anything they like. All you have to do is tell us what historical smell you’d most like to experience. We’ll pick the most interesting one and the lucky winner will receive their custom-made fragrance and a special device to propagate their pong. *Use your imagination. Your own entry does not need to be foot or sock related! Liam: If I could only smell one aroma for the rest of my life, it might be the smell of the Timewalk – the attraction from my childhood. It’s comfortably musty, and it has a personal appeal to me because of my fond memories. There’s a perfume called Aramis that’s quite similar, although not everybody finds it appealing! I suppose I’m more used to strange pongs than most people. Polly: Why do we remember smells? Liam: The smell receptors in our nose are directly linked to the part of our brain that processes memories and emotions. This means that scent has the amazing ability to influence your feelings. So, if you’re walking through a recreation of the trenches, a horrible odour can really help you imagine how awful it must have been for soldiers who had to fight there. Alternatively, if you’re an older person, you might visit the replica of an old-fashioned house, and the smell of the food, the soap and the coal fire can cause all sorts of childhood memories to rush back. The way themed smells bring back memories is actually useful in care homes too. Our products can help people with dementia to remember their past. Send your answer on the back of an envelope with your name and address on the inside to: AQUILA History Stinks Competition Studio 2, 67a Willowfield Road Eastbourne East Sussex BN22 8AP Email entries also accepted at: [email protected] Closing Date: Monday 4 November York Polly: How do you even start designing a smell? Especially for a time or a place you could never actually visit? Liam: We have an amazing laboratory full of bottles with labels like Granny’s Kitchen, Dinosaur and even Bear Poo! We have a long list of scent recipes but sometimes an attraction will ask for a smell we’ve never made before.