[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Smell transports us. To another time, to another place, to another person. Unlike other human senses,
olfactory responses are linked to the emotional center of our brains and correlate directly with our past experiences. This is why the smell of tarmac or the ocean or roses rocket us back to wherever we first experienced that particular smell.
It’s worth noting that the sense of smell is us at our most primal. It allows us to identify food, mates and predators, and it provides both sensual pleasure as well as warnings of danger, such as spoiled food or chemical hazards. In humans and animals, it is one of the important means by which our environment communicates with us.
It’s estimated that the number of odors that people can detect is somewhere between 10,000 and 100 billion. Because we all have different combinations of odor-detecting cells in our noses, people vary greatly in their sensitivity to smells.
Scent has long been used to heal, uplift and attract. Many ancient civilizations, including Egypt, China and India, have used
aromatherapy as a popular complementary and alternative therapy for more than thousands of years. According to some studies,
fragrance can affect and change your mood. Certain fragrances have been proven to lower stress levels, boost performance and improve self-confidence and overall mental outlook.
How to create your own essential oil perfume
It's easier than you think to create your own unique scent. You can combine your own constellation of essential oils with a base, carrier oil to design your own functional fragrance that transports you to your happy place. While any carrier oil can be employed to make perfume, generally oils with neutral odors, such as
jojoba or fractionated
coconut oil are best suited to making scents.
The concentration of essential oils in oil-based perfumes is largely personal and can range anywhere from 10-30 percent essential oil concentration. Oil based perfumes can be aged to harmonize and develop, or they can be worn and enjoyed right away.
Amber Graziano, a certified clinical herbalist and general manager of Boulder-based Rebecca’s Apothecary, says “Perfumer’s terminology for blending borrows from a musical metaphor. Perfume blends are comprised of top, middle and base notes, like three notes comprise a musical chord. A well-balanced perfume blend is called an accord; where three fragrance notes forgo their individual identity to create a completely new, unified scent impression, defining the soul of the fragrance.”
To start your bespoke fragrance journey, it can be instructive to explore your associations with smell.
Explore the scents that attract you
Ask yourself, what smells do you already enjoy? What scents are your drawn to, and what scents are you curious about? If you can, seek out a local apothecary that has a wide range of
essential oils you can sniff or order a variety of scents you are already familiar with online. You might also want to tailor your scent to an appropriate context.
Think about mood and lifestyle and what fragrance families lend themselves to it. It’s part common sense and part instinct. A primal musk might be more suited to a night out than a desk job. Also, consider intensity. Is the fragrance just for you, or do you want others to notice.
Once you find a family of notes you like, use that as a starting point. If you are drawn to florals, such as jasmine, spend some time exploring what that pairs well, such as
citrus oils,
bergamot,
rose and
sandalwood.
A scent primer, courtesy of Amber Graziano:
Top Notes
The top notes, are the ones that give the first impression of the fragrance. They consist of fresh, volatile and generally sparkling notes, which dissipate quickly. They are also known as the "flight of the perfume" and are the first impressions in creating the story of your fragrance.
Examples: Peppermint, orange and
lemongrass are all good candidates for top notes. They are usually light and sharp, and they evaporate quickly, sometimes within 5 to 10 minutes.
Middle Notes
Middle notes create the body of the blend, rounding out and smoothing sharp scents. Their scent unfolds within 15-20 minutes. If they are well orchestrated, they can give softness and comfort to the perfume and give the desire to continue to feel the evolution of the perfume. If it feels like something is missing in the blend, it generally will benefit from an additional middle note.
Examples: Rosemary,
geranium and
pine are the main part of the aroma and may last up to 2 hours.
Base Notes
These are the notes that evaporate after the heart notes and are the densest and most intense part of the pyramid. They are also called signature notes, the notes that give the fragrance its soul, and are the notes that give the memory of the perfume. Their scent predominates 30 minutes to several hours after application, after the top and middle notes have evaporated.
Examples: Cedar,
vetiver and
sandalwood are examples of base notes that can sometimes last for up to a day.
Getting started
- Start with your carrier oil. A neutral oil, such as jojoba works best. Fill up a small roller bottle of roughly 0.3 ounces, leaving a little room at the top for essential oils.
- Add six drops each of your chosen base, middle and top notes. You can choose up to six scents per fragrance blend.
- Add the different essential oils in no particular order. After you have added all your selections, shake up the mixture. Let it settle on your skin for a few minutes.
- If the perfume feels like it’s missing something from the blend, it could benefit from adding a few more drops of the middle note. Keep exploring and fine tuning the scent, adding drops as needed.
Bonus tip:
The most critical part of deciding if you like your creation is trying it on. Spray it on a pulse point (naturally warm), such as behind your ear, the bottom of your throat, wrist or elbow, so the fragrance heats up and reveals itself. Don’t judge your scent by the first impression since a perfume’s top notes literally wear off within 15-30 minutes. The essence of the scent will reveal only after it’s intermingled with your chemistry—this takes time.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title="Featured Products" border_width="2"][vc_row_inner equal_height="yes" content_placement="middle" gap="35"][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="168069" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1690587138196{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/dr-mercola-organic-bergamot-essential-oil"][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="168068" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1690587162604{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-essential-oils-sandalwood-oil-14-in-jojoba-oil"][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_single_image image="168067" img_size="full" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" css=".vc_custom_1690587177499{padding-right: 7% !important;padding-left: 7% !important;}" link="https://www.vitacost.com/natures-truth-100-pure-essential-oil-warming-cinnamon"][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]
