Creating a Cottage Industry (Article #3): You Smell Good!

Perfume is a classic gift, but it's even better if the perfume you give is a scent that you created yourself, especially if you package it in a beautiful bottle. Perfume you make yourself is free from synthetic chemicals and is fully customized to your personal taste. Perfume consists of a mixture of essential oils in a base oil, together with alcohol and water. When shopping for the oils, be sure to compare prices as cost varies widely depending on where you purchase the oils.

Here is how to make your own perfume.

Ingredients

• 1/2 ounce jojoba oil or sweet almond oil

• 2-1/2 ounces alcohol (e.g., vodka, ethanol)

• 2 tablespoons spring water or distilled water (not tap water)

• coffee filter

• dark-colored glass bottle

• 25 drops essential oils (recommended scents appear below)

• 7 drops base note essential oils

• 7 drops middle note essential oils

• 6-7 drops top note essential oils

• couple of drops of bridge notes (optional)

The essential oils that you use form the basis of your perfume. These essential oils are called the “notes” of the perfume. The base notes are the part of the perfume that lasts the longest on your skin. The middle notes evaporate a little more quickly. The top notes are the most volatile and disperse first. Bridge notes have intermediate evaporation rates and serve to tie a scent together. Sometimes other substances are added to a perfume, such as sea salt (ocean scent), black pepper (spicy), camphor, and vetiver. Since the essential oils evaporate at different rates, the way a perfume smells changes over time as you wear it.

Examples of common base, middle, top, and bridge notes include:

• Base notes: cedarwood, cinnamon, patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla, moss, lichen, fern

• Middle notes: clove, geranium, lemongrass, neroli, nutmeg, ylang-ylang

• Top notes: bergamot, jasmine, lavender, lemon, lime, neroli, orchid, rose

• Bridge notes: vanilla, lavender

The order in which you mix your ingredients is important, since it will affect the scent. Always record the process by which you created (or changed) your mix, so that you can reproduce the result you want.

Directions

1. Add the jojoba oil or sweet almond oil to the bottle.

2. Add the essential oils in the following order: the base notes, followed by the middle notes, then finally the top notes. Add a couple of drops of bridge notes, if desired.

3. Add 2-1/2 ounces of alcohol.

4. Shake the bottle for a couple of minutes, then let it sit for 48 hours to 6 weeks. The scent will change over time, becoming strongest around 6 weeks.

5. When the scent is where you want it to be, add 2 tablespoons of spring water to the perfume. Shake the bottle to mix the perfume, then, filtering it through a coffee filter, pour it into its final bottle. Ideally, this will be a dark bottle with minimal airspace, since light and exposure to air degrade many essential oils.

6. You can pour a little perfume into a decorative bottle, but in general, store your perfume in a dark sealed bottle, away from heat and light.

7. Label your creation. Again, it's a good idea to record how you made the perfume, in case you want to duplicate it.

Perfumery Notes

It takes experimentation to get the scent you want, but you can get started in the right direction by keeping in mind the type of scent associated with essential oils:

• Earthy: patchouli, vetiver

• Floral: geranium, jasmine, neroli, rose, violet, ylang-ylang

• Fruity: bergamot, grapefruit, lemon, lemongrass, lime, mandarin, orange

• Herbal: angelica, basil, chamomile, clary sage, lavender, peppermint, rosemary

• Sea: sea salt

• Spicy: black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, coriander, ginger, juniper, nutmeg

• Woodsy: cassia, cedar, cypress, pine, sandalwood

If the perfume is too strong, you can dilute it with more water. If you want your perfume to retain its scent longer, add a tablespoon of glycerin to the perfume mixture.