STYRAX | Resinoid

Pure Liquidambar styraciflua resinoid.

Styrax (or Storax) is a thick, honey-like extract produced by Liquidambar Styraciflua, a deciduous tree native to the Americas commonly known as Sweetgum.

Like other balsams, this sticky-sweet resin is not only appreciated within the world of perfumery, but for its myriad of medicinal and folk uses as well—including use as an adhesive, as sacred incense, as a means to promote dental health and hygiene, as an expectorant, a sedative, and a wound-healing balm, just to name a few.

In Hoodoo and other folk magic and spiritual practices, Sweetgum seed pods, with their round, gnarled, and spiky exterior, are known as ‘witches’ burrs’—undoubtedly due to their devilish appearance and tendency to lodge themselves beneath one’s bare foot— and are used as potent and protective spiritual talismans.

Scent-wise, Styrax is a bit of a chimera, combining contrasting notes and subsidiary nuances to form a rich, complex, and whole balsamic aroma. Though it possesses the same vanillic imprint as other tree resins, it distinguishes itself with its potent styrene top note which gives this extract an unusual and dry olfactory edge comparable to the scent of vinyl, leather, or gasoline. It’s dry down is considerably less sweet than that of other balsams, like Benzoin, leaning towards being animalic, smoky, herbaceous, and earthy instead. This complexity lends itself best to floral, leather, incense, and amber type fragrances, where Styrax’s peculiar character can be played up for an edge or softened to obtain a richness that sits somewhere between dirty and divine.

ASPECTS: rich · sweet-balsamic · styrene vinyl-like · animalic
APPEARANCE: light brown, transparent, viscous liquid
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Honduras
PLANT PART: oleoresin

Presented in a 5ml or 15ml black glass bottle with a euro dropper top that may have to be removed depending on the viscosity of the item selected. Please note that essential oils and absolutes vary widely in thickness and consistency.