Scent as memory, scent to dine for

Sometimes, moments of quiet sensory attention can feel almost radical. Yet scent has a strange way of interrupting that rhythm.

A trace of jasmine drifting through evening air. A faint hint of wood lingering in a hallway. The soft sweetness of a room spray that appears without warning and suddenly rearranges memory. Long before sight or touch, fragrance reaches the emotional part of the brain. It reminds us of people, places and moments we thought we had forgotten.

Perhaps that is why scent remains one of the quietest forms of emotional therapy.

It is also the central language of Ganda Saitum, founder of Ganda Scent & Object. Her practice does not treat perfume simply as a cosmetic product. Instead it functions more like a library of emotions. Each fragrance captures a moment, a mood or a fragment of memory.

“Scent is something very honest, it speaks before we have time to explain it.”

Interestingly, Ganda did not originally plan to become a perfumer. Her career began in publishing, working as a beauty editor during the era when print magazines still held  sway. Those years exposed her to countless products and perfumes. She spent long days reviewing fragrances and analysing trends.

Creation arrived later.

‘One day my husband, Surasak Ittirit, joked that maybe I should start making something of my own,’ she recalled. ‘He said: “If you only review things, you will become a very good critic’’.’

The comment stayed with her.

Soon afterwards she enrolled in a half-day workshop about candle making and fragrance blending. The class took place in a modest shophouse studio. Nothing about it suggested a life-changing experience.

Her husband soon joined the project. A photographer with a strong interest in fine art, he became responsible for designing the objects and packaging surrounding the fragrances. The partnership felt natural. Together they already run a production house creating advertising and media content, so creative work has always filled their daily life.

The brand’s name reflects that partnership with surprising simplicity.

‘Scent is me,’ she said.

‘Object is my husband.’

From there the story unfolded slowly, bottle by bottle, note by note.

Learning to listen to scent

Before blending her own fragrances, Ganda thought about perfume the way many people do. It was an invisible accessory. Something that revealed personality or taste.

‘A fragrance could tell you something about a person,’ she said. ‘It hinted at their character.’

That perception changed the moment she began working with raw materials herself.

Suddenly, scent felt less like decoration and more like language.

‘Every note has its own voice,’ she explained. ‘Even lavender smells different depending on where it grows.’

The process requires careful listening. One ingredient may feel bright and optimistic. Another carries warmth or melancholy. A successful fragrance emerges when those voices settle into balance.

Ganda describes the act of blending as almost meditative.

‘I smell each ingredient carefully and ask whether it belongs in that moment,’ she said.

If the note does not feel right, she simply returns it to the shelf.

‘I believe every scent will eventually find its place,’ she added. ‘Just maybe not today.’

Why the brand includes objects

The name Ganda Scent & Object often raises questions.

Why include the word object?

At first glance it seems to refer to packaging or fragrance tools. In reality the idea extends much further.

‘Object can be many things,’ Ganda explained. ‘It can be artwork, scent tools or collaborations with other creators.’

Her husband leads that side of the practice. As a photographer and visual artist, he often experiments with materials that people usually overlook.

‘Sometimes he transforms something very simple into something unexpected,’ she said.

The couple have avoided opening a permanent shop for now. Instead their fragrances appear through collaborations and temporary installations.

You might encounter their scent in a gallery. A design space. A fitness studio. Even a restaurant.

‘We enjoy presenting fragrance in different environments,’ Ganda said.

Those moments create a different kind of interaction. People first notice the scent, then the object that releases it. Curiosity follows.

“When someone experiences a small moment of happiness because of a scent, it makes us happy”

Nine scents, nine emotional moments

So far Ganda has created nine fragrances for the brand, each representing a specific emotional state.

When I asked which one she loves most, she laughed softly.

‘Right now I like this one,’ she said.

The answer changes depending on how she feels that day.

Each scent carries its own story.

The first fragrance, Gathering Clouds, was inspired by the view outside her riverside home in Nakhon Chai Si beside the Tha Chin river. The name references Ruam Mek Bridge nearby.

‘The feeling was something between happiness and sadness,’ she said. ‘Soft and neutral like clouds moving across the sky.’

Another scent called Quiet Echo appeared after a high-intensity, interval training workout. Lying on the floor in the resting yoga pose of savasana, Ganda felt completely exhausted yet strangely calm.

‘It became a scent about resilience,’ she explained. ‘About reminding yourself that you are stronger than you think.’

Memory also plays a powerful role in her work. The fragrance Old Picture was created for her father after his passing.

‘I do not believe we must remain sad when remembering someone we love,’ she told me. ‘When we think of them, we meet them again in our memory.’

Interestingly that scent was actually the first perfume she ever blended during a workshop years earlier. She kept it quietly stored until the right moment arrived.

Another fragrance, Evenfall, takes inspiration from The Godfather and its sequel.

The scent reflects solitude and quiet confidence. It captures the moment evening arrives and the world grows quieter.

Among all nine creations, the most difficult may have been Endless Rose.

The concept sounded simple. She wanted to create a rose fragrance that even people who normally dislike rose might enjoy.

In practice the process proved surprisingly challenging.

‘I wanted it to express the feeling of liberation,’ she said. ‘But at that time I had not yet experienced that feeling myself.’

Instead she had to imagine it.

The result became one of the brand’s most popular scents.

‘Now I think it might be my favourite,’ she admitted.

Somewhere in the background she suspects the tenth fragrance may already be forming.

When Scent Meets the Table

One of the most unusual collaborations from Ganda Scent & Object appeared recently at XXG Xin Xe Goi.

The project is called Scent to Table.

The idea sounds experimental at first. Pair fragrance with food. Allow aroma and flavour to unfold together.

The collaboration began when Ganda created three scent variations for the restaurant partners to choose from. At some point the conversation shifted.

Instead of selecting only one scent, why not explore all three?

“The restaurant already serves wonderful food and drinks, so bringing scent into the experience felt natural.”

After all, aroma is already part of taste.

The fragrances were carefully designed so they never overpower the dishes. Instead they remain light and atmospheric.

‘The scent should stay in the background,’ she said. ‘It supports the experience rather than competing with it.’

During the dinner guests first smell the fragrance. Soon afterwards the dish arrives. Some people return to the scent while eating.

Gradually the two sensations merge.

Even the drinks follow the same idea. A small scent card sits on the rim of the glass so aroma and flavour arrive together with each sip.

The project introduced three scent identities named XXG001, XXG002 and XXG003.

‘The scent carried the spirit of a fighter,’ Ganda said.

From that starting point she developed three variations.

XXG001 remains closest to the original fragrance but includes gentle Chinese herbal notes reflecting the history of Xin Xe Goi Street.

XXG002 draws inspiration from the kitchen itself. Ingredients like coriander and basil mirror the playful cooking style that blends Western, Chinese and Thai influences.

XXG003 allowed the greatest freedom. It combines airy herbal notes with a hint of smoke that captures the atmosphere of evening gatherings.

That final scent eventually became the restaurant’s signature fragrance.

The name combines both collaborators.

XXG represents Xin Xe Goi.

GD represents Ganda.

‘It reflects both the place and my interpretation of it,’ Ganda explained.

Closing reflections

When Ganda reflects on the journey behind Ganda Scent & Object, one thought often returns.

She was 46 when she created the brand a year ago. Her husband had just turned 50.

‘Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I had discovered this earlier,’ she admitted.

Then she smiled.

‘But maybe that is also the lesson. It is never too late to begin something you love.’

The work has changed her in unexpected ways. Perfume blending requires precision and concentration. Every drop matters.

‘I used to be quite careless,’ she laughed. ‘Fragrance does not allow that.’

Looking ahead, she hopes to expand into personal fragrances – many people already wear the brand’s room sprays as perfume. More collaborations are also planned with galleries, artists and creative spaces.

For now the most immediate way to experience her work may be through the Scent to Table collaboration at XXG Xin Xe Goi. The fragrance created for the project continues to fill both floors of the restaurant and remains available as a home scent.

Special dishes and drinks inspired by the fragrance will stay on the menu until April. Guests can walk in, although reservations are recommended during busy dinner hours.

Those curious about the collaboration can also ask the staff which menu items were inspired by the XXG x GD scent.

‘I really recommend trying them,’ she said. ‘The food and drinks are truly delicious.’

Her fragrances are also available through the brand’s social channels and selected locations across Thailand. In Bangkok they appear at Boundary in Thonglor, Flat No. 8 at Central World and several BFF locations including Central Chidlom, Mega Bangna, The Taste Thonglor and Central Ladprao. Outside the capital the scents can be found at Raya Heritage Hotel in Chiang Mai.

A permanent shop may come one day.

But not yet.

‘When the time feels right,’ she said.

Until then the scents continue to travel. From studio to restaurant, from memory to table, quietly inviting anyone willing to slow down and breathe.