THE OTHER ROOM: EP. 162 - MABELLE O'RAMA

Mabelle O'Rama shares the people, places, and perfumes inspiring her most right now...

Jan 24, 2025

Mabelle O’Rama, Perfumer and Founder of her eponymous fragrance brand, joined me in the Perfume Room earlier this week. Today, she returns with even more fun, personal stories in The Other Room.

The Other Room is the official Perfume Room companion post-show. Every Tuesday, hear from guests on their episode of Perfume Room podcast, and on Fridays, enjoy bonus content from those same guests, exclusively on Substack!

Mabelle is a Lebanese British perfumer and the founder of the olfactive studio Mabelle O'Rama, based in London. Her olfactory journey began during the pandemic using scent as a therapeutic escape and as a bridge to nostalgia and fantasy. Her perfumes have been recognized by the Fragrance Foundation in the UK and the Institute of Art and Olfaction.

Today, enjoy the people, places, & perfumes that inspire Mabelle; the books, tv, music she’s currently consuming, her go-to recipe; her rituals around perfume creation, and more!

xx Emma

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Some people, places, perfumes, and more(!) that inspire Mabelle.

What’s your favorite non-bottled, real world smell?

With the risk of revealing my weird side, I love ‘hot electric’ smells that provide warmth. Old school photocopiers emit a certain scent when the light flashes to take a picture, which I adore. One of my studio neighbours specialises in laser-cut maps, and I love that electric smell of the laser ‘burning’ coming out of his studio. Or the smell from hairdryers…

For someone visiting London, where should they be perfume-shopping!

I’d book a perfume tour with Olga of @perfumewalks, but if you can’t fit that in, here are my top picks: start with Les Senteurs in Belgravia, the UK’s oldest independent perfumery. The Fragrance Lounge at Liberty is a calm spacious spot to explore perfumes, plus it has the Noseum—an interactive installation of 3D-scanned noses (some even emit scent!). Bloom in Covent Garden is also a fun stop, with lots of hard-to-find indie brands. If you’re feeling opulent you have to visit the Salon de Parfum at Harrods on the 6th floor!

(A) perfume(s) you wish you created:

D&G Light Blue (Olivier Cresp) or Marc-Antoine Barrois Ganymede (Quentin Bisch).

Favorite perfumer(s)?

So many! I love Jean-Claude Ellena and am really inspired by his technique and simplistic approach. Quentin Bisch is another recent favourite, I find him bold and very creative. Tilia is a masterpiece. [Editor’s note: UGH, AGREED.]

Have you ever stopped a stranger in the street to find out what they were wearing?

I used to, but I’m too shy now to ask strangers what they’re wearing. I still compliment people if they smell good then I sit quietly (mostly on the train) trying to absorb as much of their smell and analyse what notes and ingredients I can smell. (I promise in a non-creepy way 👾).

What culture/media are you consuming right now?

I’m currently reading The Creative Act; A Way of Being, which I’m really enjoying and recently watched Avicii, I’m Tim. Spoiler alert: I did not know that his album True, his best album and one of my favourite was not an immediate success at the launch event. It’s a reminder that art may take time for people to appreciate...

Can we get a Mabelle Spotify Wrapped? What’s on repeat in your ears right now?

Recently, it’s “Hey Brother” (Avicii) because of the docu above. Otherwise [artist-wise] it would be Bedouin, Oceanvs Orientalis or Adonis.

You have a lot of comfort smells.. any comfort foods?

I adore cooking, and if I wasn’t a perfumer I might have been a chef. Lentil soup with swiss chard, coriander, sumac and lemon heals the soul (and the flu), we have it weekly at home. DM me for the recipe!

Do you have any particular process(es) or rituals around creating?

I am a night owl; I find my creativity and sense of smell are best at night so most of my creative work happens then. For art pieces I HAVE to have loud music that stirs up emotions and allows me to release my feeling into the art. Arabic pop like Adonis, Saint Levant or the iconic Fairuz are great for nostalgia. Billie Eilish is another favourite. Perfume blending is the opposite, I go for quite lo-fi music so I can focus on the numbers while typing the formula and blending.

What most exciting you in perfumery right now?

I’m excited to see more and more research around the importance of smelling for our brain health and memory. I think this will support the medical field in various ways. Studies are starting to show that smell training could help rebuild neural pathways and might even delay symptoms of dementia or other cognitive diseases. It’s a field I find so interesting, and I really hope to contribute more to it in the future through research and my smelling workshops. In the meantime, keep enjoying your perfumes, it’s not just indulgent, it’s good for your brain too!

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