Mid-Autumn Night: Herbs, Scent & Memory

Mid-Autumn is a festival we often remember through small things — the smell of tea, fruit on the table, incense in the air, an open window at night, or a family home we haven’t thought about in years. This Mid-Autumn, ObliqueTable and Scented Stranger 香间旅人 invite you to experience Chinese herbal aromas through smell, memory, and conversation. Over 90 minutes, you’ll explore a selection of herbs and incense through a guided sensory journey. With your eyes covered, you’ll smell each material before knowing its name and notice what comes up first — a color, a place, a person, a season, or a feeling. Some scents may feel familiar without you knowing exactly why. Others may take you somewhere completely unexpected. No fragrance knowledge is needed. There’s nothing to make and nothing to get right. Just come curious and let your senses lead. 👃 What You’ll Experience Blind Scent ExplorationPut on an eye mask and experience several Chinese aromatic herbs without labels or expectations. Notice your reaction before knowing what you’re smelling. One Material, Different FormsExperience the same botanical material raw, warmed between your palms, and released through smoke. See how temperature and form can completely change the way a scent feels. Your Scent Self-PortraitUse colors, symbols, images, and short notes to record where each aroma takes you — perhaps a childhood home, an autumn evening, a person, a meal, or somewhere you haven’t thought about for a long time. Mid-Autumn Through MemoryMid-Autumn is often associated with reunion, but everyone carries a different version of “home.” Through scent, we’ll explore the places, people, and small sensory details that have shaped our own memories of autumn and belonging. Conversation Through the SensesCompare your impressions with other guests. The same herb might remind one person of their grandmother’s kitchen and another of rain, medicine, old wooden furniture, or a completely different place. It’s an easy, natural way to meet new people — and you’re very welcome to come alone. ✉️ What You’ll Leave With At the end of the evening, you’ll take home: Your personal scent self-portrait A small pouch of Chinese aromatic herbs An incense stick connected to the evening A sealed memory envelope to reopen later We hope you leave noticing scent a little differently — and perhaps carrying home a memory you didn’t expect to find. This Mid-Autumn, instead of only looking at the same moon, we’ll spend a little time noticing what brings us back to the people and places we call home. About Scented Stranger 香间旅人 Scented Stranger 香间旅人 brings traditional Chinese scent culture into contemporary daily life through incense, aromatic beads, herbal jewelry, and botanical materials. Their work explores fragrance as something we can wear, live with, remember, and return to. About ObliqueTable ObliqueTable creates intimate experiences around craft, culture, materials, and the senses. Our gatherings are designed to make room for curiosity, conversation, and a slower way of experiencing the things that often pass unnoticed in everyday life. 📅 9/25⏰ 7:00 - 9:00 pm📍 New York City👥 Limited to 10 guests