Artefact explores how Bryson Ammons, of The Alloy Studio, infuses his memories into perfumes.
On a FaceTime call filled with the occasional bark of his dog in the background, he sat in his studio, rows of countless perfume ingredients stacked behind him.
“My existence as a perfumer is challenging,” he says his tone matter-of-fact, as if stating an undeniable truth.
Originally from Chicago, but now working from his home studio tucked away in the New York borough of Queens, he creates fragrances reflecting his belief in scent’s power to evoke emotion:
“My worst fear is people smelling my perfumes and going meh, it’s okay”, he explains. For him, the goal isn’t universal appeal but sparking a strong response, anything but indifference.
Ammons’ passion for perfume didn’t bloom overnight; it was a craft shaped by years of curiosity and exploration. Long before he thought of perfume as an art form, he was a curious child captivated by the smells around him.
One of his earliest scent memories was the smell of lavender; introduced by his mother, who “loved the colour purple and smelling the colour purple,” he says with a smile. “Anything lavender-scented, you name it she had it.”
As he grew older, Ammons’ fascination with perfume only deepened. By high school, it had formed into a full-blown obsession. Known as the staple of the quintessential teenage boy experience, Versace Eros became his favourite cologne.
Well before niche fragrances became his interest, however, Ammons’ love for perfume began in the aisles of discount stores.
“’Tattoo’ by Michel Germain was and is a favourite,” he says. “I wear it to this day.” When he began experimenting with his own formulations, it wasn’t about replicating those old scents – but more about paying homage to them.
Before stepping into perfumery, Ammons was studying cosmetic science. While learning the science behind skincare formulations, he found himself far more intrigued by the process of isolating essential oils than the class content – this was the moment he shifted his focus from skincare to fragrance, setting him on the path to becoming a perfumer.
Independent perfumers are shifting the perfume industry by pushing the boundaries of creativity. Ammons, as well as many others, is moving away from conventional scent profiles, embracing authenticity and personal expression.
“The core of why I make perfume is because I wanted to challenge the traditions of just being a perfumer,” Ammons explains. Instead of trying to appeal to everyone, he’s focused on creating something that feels real to him. “I want my perfumes to feel like they’re coming from me, always,” he adds.
“The things I make today remind me of my younger taste in perfume”
Bryson Ammons
‘Silver Haze’ evokes fond memories of chilling in the backseat of his car with his partner, smoking weed, as Ammons put it. He blended notes such as cannabis, ambroxan, cacao and strawberry, capturing a whiff of nostalgia.
“I used to spray really sweet strawberry perfume to cover the smell up,” he laughs. The cannabis note in ‘Silver Haze’ is subtle yet present, while the juicy sweetness of strawberry flirts with a playful twist, much like his attempts to mask the lingering scent. Ammons draws directly from his past experiences when creating his fragrances. “’Silver Haze’ is really embodying that memory, whether they relate to it or not,” he explains.
For Ammons, creating fragrances goes beyond formulation; it’s also about the mood he sets in the studio. “Music is really tied into the way that I make perfume,” he tells us. House music often fills the room, fueling his creative flow. “The end result always reminds me of what I was listening to at the time, or the feeling that I had while creating it.”
This connection between music and scent is especially evident in one of his perfumes, ‘Idyllic’, which he brings to mind Janet Jackson’s
“Someone To Call My Lover” – a childhood favourite – that shaped its essence. The saccharine rhythms of the track are subtly mirrored in the fragrance, carrying a warmth reminiscent of revisiting an old memory.
‘Idyllic’, as Ammons describes it, is “an abstract amalgamation of my joyous memories in summer when I was a child.” It’s his take on summer in a bottle, inspired by orange-tinted skies in Chicago, where he grew up.
Though it contains no metallic notes, Ammons considers it a “metallic” fragrance. “When you smell it you’ll feel gold,” he explained – referring not to the scent itself, but by concept.
This focus on conceptual elements – like the “gold” essence of ‘Idyllic’ – is at the core of Ammons’ brand. His perfumes are split into two distinct collections: gold and silver.
The brand’s name, ‘Alloy’ captures this fusion, reflecting different facets of emotion and storytelling. “Gold is my viewpoint on perfume, a bit more elevated and abstract,” he explains. “Whereas silver is a lot more experimental and a lot more fun – it embodies Eddie, my partner’s entire personality.”
Having recently launched his brand, The Alloy Studio, in 2023, being an indie perfumer offers boundless creative freedom – it also comes with its fair share of challenges. For Ammons, one of the significant challenges has been navigating the industry as a self-taught perfumer.
“Nobody walked my hand through making perfume,” he laughs. Unlike classically trained perfumers with established networks and resources, he learnt to figure out things independently through trial and error.
“No-one talks about the tough and sometimes draining process of creating perfume,” Ammons says – he estimated working through 60 iterations of each perfume before landing on one he was satisfied with.
Being self-taught, however, is where Ammons takes pride in subverting the normal: “There’s not a lot of people like me making perfume, who break free from a certain mould or identity as a perfumer.”
He feels there is a disconnect between industry perfumers and designing perfumes that expand people’s comfort zones. This outside perspective as self-taught is what drove him to pursue perfumery in the first place.
“I felt like I could make something more expressive than what was out there,” for Ammons, perfume is more than just a product; it’s a medium for self-expression and storytelling.
From the rows of perfume ingredients in his home studio to the memories woven into each fragrance, his journey reflects the beauty found in indie perfumery.
While the challenges of being self-taught and completely independent loom over him, they are also a driving force for his creativity.
Featured image courtesy of Bryson Ammons.