A cookbook does not make a good cook. In perfumery, it is not unusual to encounter similar problems that a gourmet would. The quality and specificity, or even the rarity of certain raw materials is the principal sensitive parameter: an essential oil of Vetiver or an absolute of Rose will vary according to its origin. Vetiver originates from Reunion or Java and Rose, from Bulgaria, Turkey or Morocco. This is not forgetting the age (beware of too old stocks) and the integrity of the dealer (some do not hesitate to "cut" a real rose with a less expensive synthetic rose) etc.
Each individual has his own tastes: providing a definitive recipe would bet on the uniformity of the preference of our readers. In the recipes that we offer, we will leave a large room to the personalization of perfumes. One can modify the balance or even an ingredient to arrive at the desired product, or close to desired: perfection does not exist! In order to do this, a small preliminary course of composition would seem necessary. We suggest that you read it before you embark on a particular recipe.
Creation is essentially a search for harmony between several components (essential oils, absolutes, etc.), followed by a simple mixture with a solvent (alcohol) or a receiving body (oil, soap). It is simple and always the same. Let's concentrate on the main step: assembling the notes to form an accord and then a composition. The notes are the essential oils from a defined raw material: rose, jasmine, vetiver etc. The accords are blends of several notes: a simple two-note accord will be the mixture of rose and musk in a balanced proportion that would constitute an accord. The composition will be the combination of several accords in harmony.
For the creator, a myriad of notes exists: First, natural essential oils, absolutes, concrete, resinoids, all products resulting from different extraction methods: essential oils are obtained from distillation, concretes and absolutes from enfleurage or volatile gas extraction, resinoids from the treatment of gums and resins, and finally, maceration which involves an infusion in alcohol to liberate the aroma of a material (Vanilla, Amber). There are more than 500 essences available on the market. Each creator has his preferences and uses a good hundred. There are also hundreds of synthetic products and bases offered by the main production laboratories for perfumery. Some of these bases are a reproduction of natural notes or interpretations of natural aromas that do not exist as essential oils (e.g. fruits) or that give a note, which closely resembles the natural odour of the natural essential oil. For instance, if you want a note of fresh grapefruit juice, you will find a more faithful representation through the synthetic base that tries to imitate this effect, than the essential oil, obtained by cold expression of the bark and not of the juice.
When carrying out your first trials, you will have to choose a small number of essences that can be bought from an herbalist or by correspondence, via the Internet (see notebook). We recommend that you choose natural products. They are certainly more expensive but far more beautiful. Furthermore, you will have the advantage of working with good raw materials. For simplicity of instruction, the notes are classified into three families: base, heart and head. The base constitutes the skeleton of the perfume; it is what gives it depth and tenacity. Complementing the base is the heart, which imparts elegance and balance. The head comprises of the most volatile materials, like the Chantilly cream on the
HOW IS A PERFUME MADE?
cake, it is not the most important but it is what the consumer perceives immediately. Typically, these are light and immediately pleasant notes.
To compose a perfume or even cologne, one must therefore follow a selection of composition in three accords:
For the sake of clarity, we will use a classic composition of a Chypre as an example. Many perfumes are classified as Chypre, with infinite variants. It is François Coty's Chypre that has served as a reference for almost a century. Although there have been Chypre compositions since Classical period, the island of the Mediterranean (Cyprus) has always been the place for production of perfumes.
The composition begins with the base: in the case of Chypre, the dominant note is Oak Moss absolute, a very agrestic, tenacious and stable raw material. In order to confer some touches of originality to our composition, we must first harmonise this Oakmoss note with another base note: Patchouli, Cedar, Amber, Cistus Labdanum, Vetiver etc. For example, by selecting the Amber note, you can prepare the following:
In test tubes or tiny flasks, by adding alcohol, mix two components while gradually increasing the Amber. For example, in a bottom of 30 drops of alcohol, successively dose the following two in drops:
Oak moss: 9-8-7-6-5 Amber: 1-2-3-4-5
Through these 5 experiments with a total quantity of 10 drops each (or grams according to your equipment), you will find your preferred accord between the olfactory intensity of these two products.
With the products at my disposal at the time of the experiment, I chose the following:
For the heart, I chose simplicity and quality: a Rose absolute, which at this stage does not require any other addition.
For the head, you have the choice between all citrus fruits: Lemon, Orange, Tangerine, Grapefruit, Portugal, Bergamote. Following the example of the base accord, and after having smelled the raw materials at your disposition, you will do the same with two between them, for example Grapefruit and Bergamot.
For me, that gives: Grapefruit: 3 Bergamot: 2
Combining the three basic chords, we will arrive at the following formula: Grapefruit: 3
Cedar: 1
Bergamot: 2 Rose absolute: 3 Oak Moss: 6 Amber: 4
Once the Chypre base has been established, it will serve you for many uses. You can increase or decrease each element or you can also use it as a base for other perfumes: e.g. Vetiver (see p) or modify one element by replacing it with another, performing the same exercise as explained previously.
With a Chypre, an Oriental and a Cologne, and with some beautiful natural floral essences, such as jasmine, rose, tuberose or synthetic materials such as Muguet, you will have in your hand a dozen of possibilities of creating different, pleasant and simple perfumes.
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