My Story

Where heritage, science and creativity meet.

My name is Emma Terenzi, and long before I learned how to formulate a cosmetic product, I grew up surrounded by a world of fragrance, craftsmanship and creation.

I belong to the fourth generation of the Terenzi family, whose story began with my great-great-grandfather and the foundation of Cereria Terenzi. What started as a family craft has evolved across generations, while preserving a deep connection to creativity, raw materials and the art of transforming an idea into something tangible.

Today, that story continues through my father and my aunt, who are still actively involved in the family business. Growing up alongside them meant that fragrance was never simply a finished product to me. It was something I saw being imagined, developed and brought to life. I grew up seeing how much knowledge, curiosity, persistence and emotion can exist behind an object that someone else will eventually hold in their hands.

I am now beginning to find my own place within that story.

Not by simply following what came before me, but by bringing into it my own interests, education and way of creating.

From chemistry to cosmetics

I have always been drawn to two worlds that, at first glance, may seem far apart: science and creativity.

My academic journey began with a Bachelor’s degree in Materials Chemistry, where I learned to understand matter through its structure, interactions and transformations. But it was cosmetics that showed me how chemistry could become something tangible — something you can formulate, touch, experience and ultimately make part of everyday life.

That curiosity led me to pursue a Master’s degree in Cosmetic Industrial Science, where formulation became the point at which everything came together: scientific method, sensory perception, aesthetics and product design.

EMMAT Cosmetics was born from that intersection.

For my Master’s thesis, I wanted to go beyond simply developing a cosmetic formula. I wanted to understand why a formulation works, how apparently similar emulsifying systems can behave in completely different ways, and how those differences can ultimately define the identity of a finished product.

The result was a systematic comparison of three natural emulsifiers, translated into three different formulations: a BB Cream, a Milky Toner and an Anti-Age Body Cream. Each product was not designed first and formulated afterwards; instead, the experimental results determined what each emulsifier was best suited to become.

Beyond the laboratory

But EMMAT also reflects another side of me.

Outside the laboratory, I have always loved creating things by hand. Crochet taught me to build something complex one small element at a time — repeating, adjusting and connecting until individual pieces become a whole. That same idea inspired the modular pattern embossed on the EMMAT packaging, transforming the geometry of a handmade granny square into a contemporary cosmetic design.

In many ways, that process mirrors formulation itself.

Observe. Experiment. Adjust. Create.

EMMAT is where these parts of my identity meet: the heritage I come from, my scientific background, my fascination with cosmetics, my attention to sensoriality and my instinct to create.

This project began as a Master’s thesis, but it represents something larger to me. It is my first opportunity to bring together what I inherited and what I chose for myself — tradition and experimentation, craftsmanship and science