by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | Jun 29, 2023 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist
In Memory of Tony Burfield (1946-2023)
A.B.P., M.I. Biol., C.I. Biol., M.I.F.S.T., F.L.S.
Anthony Graham Burfield was born July 7, 1946, in Tunbridge Wells, England. He passed away suddenly May 17, 2023, in Tunbridge Wells.
Tony spent most of his working life in the essential oil and related industries. He worked in the production, analysis, and applications of essential oils, work which has often meant long periods working on-site overseas such as Seychelles and Madagascar. Over the years he worked for many major aroma concerns such as H.E. Daniel, CPL, Robertet UK, Graham Page Ltd., and FPI, amongst others.
After initially qualifying as a food scientist, he returned to academia mid-career to do a further degree in biochemistry, followed by a period of post-doctoral research in the microbiological biotransformation of essential oil components at Cranfield University (UK).
During his early life he was an anti-nuclear protestor and a member of the Friends of the Earth. The majority of his adult life Tony spent in the fragrant materials industry. He worked as a consultant, using his direct experience of the aroma and related industries to help industrial clients with ideas, projects, and problems.
Tony lectured world-wide at scientific meetings, perfumery, and aromatherapy conferences. He wrote extensively on essential oil matters, including occasional articles for various flavour, fragrance, and aromatherapy journals. With his experience and continuous research, he started Cropwatch (no longer up), a site that was dedicated to referenced information on origins and sustainability of aromatic plants to help industry personnel improve their technical knowledge of the aroma industry. He also spent time tackling the EU regulatory committee on the restriction of natural perfume materials (Scientific Committee on Consumer Products) head on in Brussels.
He helped change the aromatherapy industry toward safer use of essential oils when many aromatherapists had no idea of sensitization. He provided valuable scientific referenced materials first on his Cropwatch site and later this expanded into his major work which has now helped thousands worldwide. Called “Natural Aromatic Materials – Odours and Origins, the First Edition was published in 2000 and the updated expanded Second Edition in 2016. This two-volume set was the first of its kind, replacing a 1960’s text that was currently used, giving an in-depth study of over 1000 entries of aromatic materials as well as their odours and technical inside information of the industry. This work will be used and cited for many years to come.
When the workaholic side of his nature could be abated, Tony’s hobbies included rock music and jazz, walking, and traveling. In his own words, he “fooled himself that he could play pretty good bass guitar”, and was a keen connoisseur of real ale, the consumption of which he always said was “an important feature of living a balanced and healthy life.”
Tony is survived by his three daughters Phae and Corrina (former wife Janice Burfield, predeceased), and Rosie (partner Kendra Kirkham), and his son Tristan Burfield (partner Nina Taylor).
He will be deeply missed by family, friends, and colleagues.
by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | Jun 26, 2014 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist
Last Confession: Use Me! I Will Not Die an Unused Life.
My brother turned me on to a lot of musicians after the Beatles came to A starting when Dylan came to Raleigh, D worked concessions. Of course it progressed from there. One of the earlier ones was Dave Bromberg, a great musician who played with many other famous musicians from early 1960’s. He got tired of the road and travel, so he took a 20 year break while learning violin making. Recently he had an idea for a new recording, and went to his friends and asked them to use him in the best possible way. In his words: “It’s an interesting record because what I did was, I called up a bunch of people, and I asked each one of them to write a song for me, and then to produce a recording of me doing that song. Thus the title of the CD: Use Me. I had songs with Tim O’Brien, Levon Helm, John Hiatt, Dr. John, Los Lobos, Linda Ronstadt, Vince Gill and others. A lot of people actually consented to write a song for me. It was phenomenal.”
So I am saying to you all, USE ME (in the nicest possible way of course). Use all of us who have been doing aromatherapy before, use the pioneers and the vintage Aromatherapists. Write me a song and produce me, so I won’t die as Wayne Dyer says with the “song still in me.” Ask me a question and do something with it so I will not die with an unused life.
In Summary: To the Pioneers, thank you from the depths of my heart for your contribution to the world we know as aromatherapy. To the newbies: you are the force of the future. Take the torch forward. In ten years you will be up here running the organization, doing the work, presenting new research, and starting new opportunities! Take the lessons of past, educate, move us all forward.
Carry on in “co-opetition”, share the word with others; we are all in this together. Instead of competition which separates us as mine and yours, co-opetition calls us to work together, support and help each other, and unites us together. Stir up your passion of possibility, and see what your contribution may end up being. Don’t be afraid to think big, silly, or small and local and see just where your path takes you. I am proof that even the smallest, seemingly strange or crazy thought or idea can turn into a book, organization, or an aromatic contribution that helps others. Keep the faith!
“Faith: sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible.” (author unknown)
And lastly I will leave you with the advice of my guru, Paramhansa Yogananda:
“Learn to keep the perpetual smile of balanced recklessness.”
by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | May 10, 2014 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist
During the Purdue classes in 1996, we went on a field (peppermint!) trip to the Lucac farm to see peppermint distillation. While we were there, we met Rob Brown of Lebermuth, who had with him their new chemist Rob Pappas. Rob was new to the industry, and our meeting that summer day sealed his fate with aromatherapy. You can read about his history here and here.
Rob and I became great friends and aroma colleagues as I dragged him kicking and screaming into our field of aromatherapy. He cleared up a lot of the mystery for us surrounding chemical components and distillation, and he helped bust essential oil myths with rational science. I was able to arrange for him to come to the Part II Essential Oils Purdue class so he could teach the chemistry portion (the previous professor unfortunately had such a thick accent that we couldn’t understand the lecture).
He joined with the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy to teach Chemistry of Essential Oils classes in Florida and other locations for many years. We co-authored a home study course on chemistry and perfumery, as well as two articles for publication on separate essential oils. See them below.
I visited his home several times and met his beautiful wife Buffi and their beautiful children (very young at the time, but now they’re adults!). He showed me the gigantic dunes in the Indiana Dunes State Park on Lake Michigan. Who knew that was there!? He also gave me an essential oil sabbatical by letting me spend time in his lab and see the GC/MS equipment; he even let me mix up some formulas on the scales. I had the most fun smelling and tasting all sorts of varieties of oils. Oh yes, I like to taste to get the true sense of an oil, much to the horror of the staff!
I’ve learned so much from Rob over the years and had a lot of fun, too. He helped me with my computer skills and issues, once remotely taking over my computer to fix something. He added “Witchy Woman” music to my first website. Once, he sent me a chemical structure picture that I opened early in the morning, before the sun had come up. I was so excited to see it and print out the image that I tripped and fractured my hand! It was my first fracture, and and I still blame it entirely on him!
We both obtained one of the first Internet phone systems with an eyeball camera, so we sat up late many nights talking about stuff. For fun, he showed me Diablo, an early interactive internet game that was very exciting for those who don’t play games—me, in other words!
We also connected through music, most especially the Dave Matthews Band album “Crash,” and I still think of those times when I hear those songs. For example, Celebrate takes me back to us riding through the Colorado mountains with Laraine Pounds and Michael Scholes, singing along on the way to some hot springs before a chemistry class weekend. We were known to sing karaoke in bars from Indiana to Paris. He introduced me to distillation and set me up with my first stills, including the StoveStill that he designed himself. It’s very efficient and uses the cold finger condenser. And he, along with others, remotely supported me through my cancer experience.
He debunked a lot of myths on aromatherapy through the old idma internet list, and he still does so on social media. He was the first to expose a major supplier’s jasmine as being synthetic, and he recently debunked myths like the idea that oil was used in the Bible, and that irritation is detox, and many more on Facebook here. He is not afraid to speak his truth.
We traveled similar paths and had great fun in many places at conferences, from across the USA and Canada and to Europe (Paris, Nice, and Cannes). He introduced me to Tony Burfield in Cannes at the World Perfumery Conference, which began years of collaboration–but that’s another story! Along with Rob Brown, Rob Pappas and I traveled into the high mountains outside Nice, France to find the home of some wild crafters. Together we saw how they lived, collected and processed aromatics. Our friend Michel drove us around Paris to see the sites, ending up in a park where we smelled the loveliest oils of Haute Provence from Michel’s distillations.
Once I found a eucalyptus tree in my neighborhood, and when I distilled the leaves, I realized it was different. During a chemistry class, we harvested some, distilled it, and Rob analyzed it. It was unique because it was a camaldulensis species with cryptone, a component not usually found in this species. So we decided to find out more. Tony Burfield had connections in Australia for species identification, so we sent the plant leaf/flower specimen for authentication and wrote about it. Our article was published in Journal of Essential Oil Research. You can read about that here. We also presented a paper in Grasse on a high chamazulene Artemesia from the Pacific northwest, which you can read here.
Rob started the first Chemistry of Essential Oils course for college credit (C390) at Indiana University South Bend. He arranged for a separate Introduction to Aromatherapy course, which we did together and imported various experts. Both of these courses are landmarked as the first university credit courses focusing on essential oils and aromatherapy. He still teaches Chemistry of Essential Oils at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany, IN and offers an online course as well.
Rob, Sylla, and George Nazaroff, Head of Chemistry IUSB
These days when he’s not teaching, Rob is busy with his analysis business Essential Oil University, and he maintains one of the best databases for essential oils. The Essential Oil Chemical Reference database contains thousands of literature references and GC/MS reports for almost any oil you need information about. Each citation will list the title of the article, authors names, title and page numbers of the journal referenced, and the complete chemical breakdown of the oil as reported in the article. We in the industry have found this database very useful because it’s the largest online essential oil chemical reference database in the world. Visit his Facebook page for more information.
Rob has been a major factor in my life in many ways, and this is just a little slice of why I love him so much. He has always been our aromatherapy champion, bringing in science and rationality, fighting for what is right and good. A true Aquarian, he brings water to thirsty aromatherapists and shines a rational light on irrational claims. We are very blessed to have him on our side in the fight for truth and justice in the essential oil realm.
So thank you, Rob, for being a special part of my life and giving the gift of truth to the aromatherapy world!
by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | Feb 7, 2014 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist, Sylla's Confessions
Doug E. Rasmusson was my inspiration to get involved with disaster relief. Affectionately known as “Doug E”, he had over the previous years become a very good friend, mentee, supporter and instructor for the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy. We first met when he came to my class in Tampa, 1992. He sponsored aromatherapy classes in the Florida Keys and sold his own oil line. Together, we travelled to many conferences within the aromatherapy community. He formed the first Florida massage team before moving to NC and in 1998 where he developed Carolina Emergency Response Massage Team (CERMT). They provided relief during hurricanes and other disasters in North Carolina.
In 2001, after the tragedy of September 11th, I wanted to do something to help those affected. As a cancer survivor, I couldn’t donate blood so I decided to join “Doug E.” and his team who were preparing to venture to New York to participate in the disaster relief.
Before leaving, I had the idea to take some aromatherapy to help with the smell and other issues. Thanks to the internet, the call for donations from all my friends and colleagues in aromatherapy produced a miracle. The first trip in November we carried $10K worth of supplies to give out. DougE led us back 3 more times, with help from therapists from all over the USA and the REST-UK, the teamed formed by therapists in England. He took good care of us as we worked daily and earned himself the name “Daddy Brother” pronounced “brudd-ah” Brooklyn style. Often taking the night shift at St. Pauls church at Ground Zero, he scheduled us from his bed before he got his sleep.
We all had New York nick names like Queen Mudder, Loving Mudder, Spinster Sista, and others. (Feel free to remind me in the comments what your name was!)
After seeing such a drastic difference in the lives of those we were helping, because of the immense support we got, we decided to create the United Aromatherapy Effort, Inc.: a non-profit for collecting and disseminating aromatherapy products for first responders after disasters. Eileen Christina and I created the “Adopt a Station program” over bacon and eggs before our daily rounds. Our complete history and pics are on the site UnitedAromatherapy.org and our Facebook Page. We also have an amazing Tribute Video you can check out.
In between events we celebrated ourselves at the NAHA Raleigh conference, where we raffled off strands of DougE’s long hair for fund raising, and we partied hard with lots of aromatic friends and supporters! Michael Kirk-Smith holds the first of many strands sold that day.
Many of us also served in CERMT by helping Doug E break the worlds record for chair massage – 52 hours- in order to raise funds! First hour, followed by last hour with Nyssa in the chair and Sylvie cheering him on. He did it!!
After NY, we served in Biloxi after Hurricane Katrina for many weeks.
Our grand finale was supplying aromatherapy to the armed forces in Afghanistan. My nephew Jim Baucom was called to duty in Kabul and he helped us get the donations dispersed at Camp Phoenix by acting as our Soldier on the Ground, receiving and distributing supplies to other soldiers on duty.
For this great feat we got a flag flown over Camp Phoenix in our honor and this plaque, along with a letter from the General. See it here.
Several companies including Nelson Bach Co, and Nature’s Gift shipped direct to Afghanistan on their own in our name so we passed the flag around for photo ops! Here it poses at Samara Botane!
I’m so thankful for all those who helped us help others on our disaster relief missions. It is still hard to believe the small idea to take aromatherapy to New York became a successful non-profit organization lasting 10 years. Last year, we officially closed, but the UAE had a great run, having served two major disasters and many minor ones. All of our accomplishments are archived at UnitedAromatherapy.org. We were able to disperse any leftover donations and have distributed remaining funds as gifts to NAHA and Alliance of International Aromatherapists.
My greatest thanks go to DougE, my forever Daddy Brother, and the gift he gave me by being in my life. DougE now resides in France with his beautiful wife Sylvie (formerly Grosjean, Nelly’s sister, who he met because I introduced him to Nelly!!). You can see the awesome location in Provence where they live here.
In this fragrant and relaxing location just 45 minutes northwest of St. Tropez, he is busy training people in Massage Cupping. In addition they host wellness seminars and have a SPA, where he still does massage and still plays lots of music. You can visit in Provence! See the awesome location where they live here and check out their Facebook page.
I cannot finish this blog without mentioning the Most Honorable Outstanding UAE Volunteers:
-Nyssa Hanger, who went several times wrote this piece and won YM Magazine Coolest Teen award for her work with us during her last year of high school. She was inspired to become a massage therapist and has a successful business Upward Spiral Center; and she is teaching aromatherapy as Assistant Director with Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy.
-Geraldine Zelinsky gave her loving support for many years running from the start. Most especially from Katrina on to the end she kept us going. From being VP/Assistant Director and overseeing all donations, shipping to Afghanistan, arranging for PR, to additionally keeping all our books and records, and so much more. I cannot thank her enough for her time and energy!!
-Karen Romanchek was a faithful volunteer extraordinaire for all trips.
-Mynou DeMey was logistics and liaison for our deployments.
-Sara Holmes served as Secretary, gave continuous support and supplies made by her students.
Thanks to all the LMT helpers who worked with us. Please share with us in comments your experience with this project!
Finally, a big THANK YOU to my brother Don Baucom or “D”. He kindly allowed us to raffle him for fund raising several times! including the first time when Jane Buckle wrote a poem about it.
This work may have been the greatest gift of my life. The knowledge and experience I gained was incredibly valuable. I learned so much, most importantly that giving back feels better than receiving. I also learned that one has to receive in order to ‘fill the cup’. My dear friend and colleague Trevor Stokes said during my cancer recovery, “you have to let people help because it is giving them a chance to do something, and they need this gift”. And so I did. I got what I needed and gave them the gift of helping me. When we help someone, its a win win. Giving makes the giver feel good, the receiver feels good for receiving, and anyone watching also feels good too because of the endorphin release which can occur for observers witnessing a good deed too! To keep it going now we local therapists volunteer with the James Haley Veterans Hospital here in Tampa, so we continue to accept a chance to give to the wounded warriors , and their caregivers too.
The moral of this tale is you never know what a random thought can do, even though it seems silly or impossible at the time! Go ahead, fly with it! It could become an important move. You could help a lot of people including yourself and if nothing else you will have a grand story to tell later.
by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | Dec 22, 2013 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist
After half a decade of playing around with oils on my own, using the few available books I had at my disposal, such as Valnet and Tisserand, I wanted to expand and share the knowledge I had collected. I saw the need to delve further, to really get serious about this new path I had wandered upon, so I began more serious study of aromatherapy!
One big influence in this endeavor was Kurt Schnaubelt. Kurt Schnaubelt had one of the first fine lines of “genuine and authentic” essential oils and aromatherapy products available here in the USA. Original Swiss Aromatics was started up in 1983 by Kurt in San Rafael, CA, and you can see an early article about him here. His educational arm Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy offered the home study course by 1985.
Over the years Kurt and Monica have brought some high level education in their regular conferences in San Francisco, and the events became a nice gathering place for enthusiasts and something to look forward to. I presented several times including my paper on the work with children and autism and my personal use of oils during breast cancer recovery. Eileen Christina and I shared about our work after September 11, 2001 in the the United Aromatherapy Effort Tribute video. This year is the 30th year celebration and the 8th PIA conference coming in 2014. Read more here.
Since 1983, Original Swiss Aromatics and the Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy together have been the first to establish the concept of genuine and authentic essential oils in the US, create the Aromatherapy Course, the first comprehensive text on scientific aromatherapy to come out of the US, and the first and foremost course with a pharmacological basis that is internationally recognized.
They were the first to bring Robert Tisserand to this country for his first major US seminar in 1988,
to present Dr. Daniel Penoël, aromatherapy researcher, author, and lecturer, to present, Pierre Franchomme, Master Aromatherapy Scientist to coordinate the original two American aromatherapy conventions in the US, and to speak out not only about the quality of essential oils but to start a rigorous program of purity analysis by GC/MS.
Once I took this course in 1985, I felt I could add the missing parts of what I did to a curriculum. I created my own course for practitioners; less technical and more down to earth! This course eventually became the Aromatherapy Practitioner Home study course and eventually in 1989, the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy was created as my educational arm. I felt like I could add an East Coast feminine aspect of practice (as a friend used to say) to the table.
I honor Kurt in so many ways than being my first teacher. He is a beautiful man with a charismatic German accent who changed the aromatic world in ways we cannot say. Monica is a beautiful spirit sister. I have fond memories of them both through the years and I feel fortunate to have crossed paths!
see Kurt’s blog here.
by Sylla Sheppard-Hanger | Dec 18, 2013 | Memoirs Of a Vintage Aromatherapist
In February of 1982 I married my husband, O.V. on Valentines day and the same month bought the salon business I had worked at for a few years. I renamed it Rumors, in honor of Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks, my obsession at the time. Originally I sold my collection of vintage clothes I had worn and accumulated for years called “Sylla’s Fancy”. (I was later known for this kind of attire, dripping lace, antique slips for dresses, layers of slips showing some lace up boots. I loved finding something to add to my style of dressing. Once my friend Michael’s son now adult told me that when small “I thought you were the goddess or the good fairy with your dresses”….so cute.
Pretty soon I also sold my first aromatherapy products and essential oils. Eventually my line was called “Rumors Aromatics” with oils, blends, natural perfumes, with Aveda products on the side. I created a scent bar where my clients could to sit and play with oils, to find the right scent or just smell and look.
Being the first in Tampa offering aromatherapy, I had a bit of publicity with many articles in the papers, talks on local TV news, and newspaper interviews and articles. Early on my clients thought I was saying I did “roman therapy,” wondering what the heck that might be. Now of course they know more than most people thanks to their early education in what was then a little known therapy.
My signature salon scent became rosemary and geranium (2:1) blend. Clients would just come and sit and relax as they passed by, others would know they had been there due to their smiles and subtle scents. Students from nearby University of South Florida would come get a “study blend snifie” (cotton ball of basil and rosemary), then a fresh one for exams. I made custom blends for massages, giving clients the remainder to “bring them back” to my table when they used it. Aromatics, aromatherapy massage, and natural facials became the rage as we became a community gathering place for looking and feeling good. I did consults and helped a lot of people find essential oils. My first blends included my own personal scent with a patchouli base that has changed yet remained the same they say over the years; a blend for protection during meditation of 33 essential oils, an earthy grounding blend with vetiver, patchouli, sandalwood; and most asked for, our famous rosemary and rose geranium house blend.
After half a decade of playing around with oils on my own, I wanted to expand my offerings a share the knowledge I had collected and many were requesting classes and courses. My first classes were live but eventually I created the Aromatherapy Practitioner Correspondence Course for mail order; and in 1989 the Atlantic Institute of Aromatherapy was created as my official educational arm, separate from the oils. A few years later, after ten years open I closed my salon, Rumors, and I quit selling oils as I could not do both teaching and selling as it became clear about this time that it is unethical (illegal if medical?)to make claims and sell product. and I had seen enough so called educational classes really there to sell product in the hair industry. So I moved my office and salon/treatment room to my home so I could focus on devoting myself to the collection of knowledge and experience within this field that had become my passion. I remain here today, working out of my home, seeing clients and working in my yarden…
