Primer on How to Make Perfume (Version 1.0) - Page 2

Make sure it's fractionated coconut oil. Coconut oil itself is a bit heavy and will have the coconut smell.

Any suggestions on mixing a scent based on rosewater? I have my doubts if its even possible to achieve, at home anyway.

I'm not too sure about this, but I read somewhere that you can make a face toner or a spritz with rose water (70%), alcohol (20%), propylene glycol (or glycerine- 2%), essential oils (1%) and polysorbate 20 (1%)... I know this doesn't add up to 100% as I forgot the exact ratios of the glycerine, essential oils and polysorbate.

The polysorbate 20 is suppose to help blend the alcohol, water and oils together.

I'm glad that I have stumbled upon this site. It is very informative.

And thank you so much for the information about a good substitute for alcohol and that is MCT Fractionated Coconut oil..I never thought of this when making my own perfumes. I usually use vodka as for my alcohol base.

Thank you

Bobby

http://make-homemade-fragrances.blogspot.com

Hello,

I haven't posted in a very long time but I have been reading and using it a resource. Since I became a member here I made about 13 perfumes god, bad & so - so results 1 had a great scent and also made a bathroom spray came out wonderful.

I started making perfume using alcohol.

Now I use organic alcohol, glycerin and organic EO's

I have 2 questions. I just saw on the forum that people use distilled water.
is this a must when you're making an alcohol based perfume?

I just saw that people use 600 drops of EO's when making a perfume.
I use about 60 drops of EO's in 50 -100 ml alcohol? Is this wrong?

Oops i have a 3rd question besides the above ingredients are there any other ingredienst used in making natural perfume?

Thank You all in advance.
Maggie
(Corfu, Greece)

Hi Maggie,

Water can be used when making perfumes with alcohol. Not recommended for making perfumes with oil. It isn't a requirement. I never add water when working with alcohol. Just my preference not to.

I'd like to ask you something. Does the glycerin really make the fragrance last longer and for how much longer? How much to you add?

Thanks!

Hello,

Yes, glycerin does make it last longer because when I give out samples to friends and families I ask them how long it lasts.
I don't use water either but I saw a few people adding water , does this make it marketable when adding water. I also tend to find that when I sniff my perfumes ( from the bottle) I get a slight headache. Does this happen to anyone here?
Once again , can someone help me with the ratios of alcohol/essential oils?

Maggie

thanks italian stallion. this is awesome!

Wow, I doubt you will check back to see this answer, but here goes anyway.
For an Eau de toilette, you would use about 10% oils or slightly less.
For Eau de parfum it would be closer to 20%.

Guess what , I checked back ; )
Is is possible you could give me the ration in drops.
For example 100 ml I usually use anywhere from 50 -70
drops of EO's is this ok??

Another question, I also posted in the natural perfumery board.
I bought Organic rose EO diluted in 5% percent Jojoba Oil, when I concocted
my mixture it was fine when I poured the alcohol, it seperated is there anyway I
could dilute it before pouring the alcohol?? Because now I can't use it for perfume making and I'm really upset !!

Another question? does anyone use vitamin in when making natural perfumes and if yes, how do you dilute it, if u do??

Thank You for your replies
Have a great day !!!!
Maggie

Hello again,

I have another ?. Has anyone used Vitamin E in their natural perfume?
Does it blend well and if so , how do you add it?

Also can anyone please answer my previous post on top ? PLEASE !!!!
Maggie

Hi, Maggie,

I usually assume 20 drops of an EO makes 1 ml.

For 50 ml of Parfum, I'd want about 20% fragrance, so I'd measure out 10 ml of EO and add 30 ml of carrier (oil or alcohol).

I'm usually after EdP, so I want 10% fragrance. I measure out 5 ml of EO and add 45 ml of carrier.

I have a little 60 ml measureing cup and 5 ml is its smallest division. So if I want a 100 ml of room spray at about 1%, I add 20 drops of EO to about 100 ml of alcohol.

Since proportions for Parfum, EdP, EdT, etc are always given as ranges, the ammounts don't have to be very precise.

The estimate of 20 drops to a ml is also handy if you're mixing several EOs in a fragrance. Say you wanted 5 ml total fragrance or 100 drops. If you wanted 40% base, 30% heart and 30% top, that would be 40 drops of base, 30 drops of heart and 30 drops of top.

Of course pouring in & out of a measuring cup will lose some liquid along the way and drop size may vary quite a bit with the density & viscosity of the EO. If you try to repeat a success the smell will probably be a little different. If I decide I need real precision I'll invest in disposable pipetts and an electronic balance.

BTW, where do you get your glycerine? I looked at a craft shop & they only sold solid blocks for melting & using in candle making.

Thank YOU VERY VERY MUCH !!!!!!
For breaking it down for me. Going to get my perfume notebook RIGHT NOW !!!
and writing everything down.
Well snowdrift farms sells vegetable glycerin but I buy mine from a local drug storre and it's really cheap !!
You can contact snowdrift farms and ask them?

Once again thank you
and have a fantastic day !!!
Maggie
BTW Have you ever used vitamin E in your perfumes and if yes how did you use it?

Sorry, Maggie, I forgot about your second question. I have not added Vitamin E separately. But I've used Rite Aid Vitamin Skin oil as a diluent. The label says it contains 4000 IU Vitamin E. I assume that's per bottle. I bought it because it was unscented and the E didn't cause any problems. 4.8 oz bottles were on sale last week for under $3. I hope they're not being discontinued. I like the persistence I get using oil instead of alcohol, but it's difficult to find unscented oils.

If you add E separately, be sure your source is unscented.

Thanks I will try vitamin E I will try in 2 ways and when my sister comes from New York I'll her to go to rite aid and pick up vitamin skin oil.
BTW I'm making alcohol perfume.

Maggie
Thanks
Enjoy your day in Rochester New York !!!

Thanks, Maggie, yesterday was a great day in Rochester. The Lilac Festival is this week and the park where it's held is kind of a walk-through perfume. There's even a special edition Highland Lilac perfume made by IFF & sold at the festival.

One caution if you're using alcohol as your primary carrier. Oil & alcohol don't mix at every proportion. Think of oil & vinegar dressing. So far I've always been able to disperse essential oils from Aura Caccia or Natures Alchemist in Alcohol, up to about 3% EO. And I've been able to disperse up to 10% of concentrates from The Perfumer's Assistant in oil. I know TPA concentrates contain some alcohol, but I don't know how much. I've tried mixing 80% alcohol at 50/50 with several different oils & they always separate. Even adding a little soap (which helps oils disolve in water) didn't help. So you may not be able to add very much Vitamin E oil to an alcohol based fragrance. I suggest trying small baches, say 1 ml of E to 5 ml of whatever alcohol you're using. If they don't mix, add another 5 ml of alcohol, etc.

Don't forget to have fun.
Ed

Hello Ed,

Thanks for the info, I didn't know you could use soap ,I don't think I will try it but it sound interesting !!
I tried rose diluted in 5% jojoba oil and when I added this to my perfume mixture and then added alcohol,
well it didn't blend , but it did smell very nice now I have a 5ml bottle with rose EO diluted in 5% jojoba oil and it's useless. If I heat the Vitamin E oil maybe it might blend <I haven't tried yet. But I will.
I hope you have a great day !!
Maggie

I am curious if anyone knows how to create the scent of human sweat? I have heard that cumin resembles body sweat and skin.

Perhaps it's a mixture of leathery scents? There's something else there. Maybe it's is, gasp, garlic?

if anyone has any notes on adding a human edge to parfum I would love to hear them!!!

thanks
Eric

Contrary to popular belief human sweat is not cumin, it's got some amines and sulfur compounds. And if you're a dairy eater, butyric acid compounds. So garlic and onion and rancid butter better resemble human sweat.

That must be why my body odour smells woodier than others and less sour; I don't eat much dairy at all. Just the very occasional cheeses. Haven't had milk in so many years. Gross.

So what is it that people think they're smelling when they smell cumin? I've only ever smelled food.

Sometimes some people's body odor can smell like cumin, at least to me.

HELP! I've been making artisan fragrances as a hobby for the past few months and so far, I've been successful in coming out scents that my friends enjoy. There are actually two scents that I've made using a combination of fragrance oils that became an instant hit. HOWEVER, when I tried to do a new batch, following the same recipe that I have made before, for some reason - there are "residues" that settle on the bottom of the bottle. One variation when I was doing this new batch is that, I increase a little bit the fragrance oils that I used ... yet still retained the basic proportions of the other ingredients (ie. alcohol). What I noticed though is that the "residue" - if I shaked the bottle strong enough, they managed to disappear ... however, the mixture turns a little less clear.

My questions are:

1. Will I ever get rid of the residue if I just shaked and shaked the mixture (in the bottle) - on the assumption that these are "oils" that didnt mix well and I just need to somehow break them down?
2. What are these residues to begin with? Could they be indeed fragrance oils that didnt mix or dissolve as well as they should?

I hope you guys can help me out.

Thanks.

A.

My only concern with Snowdrift Farms is that they have misinformation on their website concerning SDA. They claim the ATF (US Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms) forbids the use of drinking alcohol (vodka, Everclear, etc.) in perfumes sold to the public. But when I visited the ATF website, that was not the case. They just require you to fill out tons of paperwork to get a permit to use drinking alcohol in your perfumes: http://www.ttb.gov/applications/index.shtml

Hi Cat, I've found that a fragrance comprised of up to 50% of top notes results in
a very harsh accord. Top notes are noted for their sharp, assertive quality and their propensity to dissipate quickly, so if top notes comprise the bulk of the EO blend, your result will be an overly assertive first impression that is not very tenacious, which is a quality we all seek in our perfume blend. My approach is that base notes are the foundation on which a fragrance is built. Base notes anchor the fragrance and make it tenacious, which is a quality we all seek. So my approach is 20% top notes, 30% mid notes, 50% base notes. I start by blending my base notes. If I know that a particular base note is over powering (like Vetiver), I might use less of it in my base note formulation. For example, if my base notes will be comprised of Patchouli, Frankincense, and Vetiver, I might use more Frankincense (since it's the "lightest" of the three), less Patchouli, and even less Vetiver.

Anyway, the beauty of perfumery is we all have our percentages and ratios that work for us. I love perfumery because it's both an art and a science!

The Feds don't even care at all if you use tax paid beverage alcohol to manufacture fragrances for sale.

http://www.community.basenotes.net/s...6&postcount=18

I hope it's OK to post this, since this thread hasn't had anything posted in a while. Regarding the perfumer's alcohol vs. Everclear....what is the definitive answer? I bought a bottle of Everclear to practice with, and on the bottle label it has "Not Intended For Consumption Unless Mixed With A Non-Alcoholic Beverage". Does that constitute it not being a beverage alcohol as it stands? Since it is not being mixed with any type of non-alcoholic beverage, doesn't the warning label prove it is not a "stand alone" booze? It just seems strange, as every place you look on the internet there are "recipes" using water, fragrance, and alcohol (usually vodka is mentioned, but my attempt with it was dismal....not high enough proof). This whole thing still continues to stymie me. From what I read on the ATF site, it seemed like it didn't matter until you'd hit a certain amount - like in a package liquor store. Is anyone sure on this point? I know that for me, Everclear is much more readily available than perfumer's alcohol and it would be great if I could use it. I don't expect to be the next perfume mogul, but if I could develop a few enjoyable scents and sell them at flea markets, bazaars, etc. it would be a way to add a few bucks to the pocketbook - but I want to be sure I'm OK.

Thanks for your time!

I hope it's OK to post this, since this thread hasn't had anything posted in a while. Regarding the perfumer's alcohol vs. Everclear....what is the definitive answer? I bought a bottle of Everclear to practice with, and on the bottle label it has "Not Intended For Consumption Unless Mixed With A Non-Alcoholic Beverage". Does that constitute it not being a beverage alcohol as it stands? Since it is not being mixed with any type of non-alcoholic beverage, doesn't the warning label prove it is not a "stand alone" booze? It just seems strange, as every place you look on the internet there are "recipes" using water, fragrance, and alcohol (usually vodka is mentioned, but my attempt with it was dismal....not high enough proof). This whole thing still continues to stymie me. From what I read on the ATF site, it seemed like it didn't matter until you'd hit a certain amount - like in a package liquor store. Is anyone sure on this point? I know that for me, Everclear is much more readily available than perfumer's alcohol and it would be great if I could use it. I don't expect to be the next perfume mogul, but if I could develop a few enjoyable scents and sell them at flea markets, bazaars, etc. it would be a way to add a few bucks to the pocketbook - but I want to be sure I'm OK.

Thanks for your time!

Sorry about the double post.........not quite sure how I messed that up, and haven't found the way to delete it..........my apologies.

To answer both questions - the residue is definitely the less soluble components of your oils. They might be the carriers of absolutes if you're using them or simply less soluble components of essential oils. The easiest solution and perhaps an impractical one is to dilute your mixture - having more solvent will ensure that the less soluble residue dissolves. A certain amount of solvent can only "take" so much of a solute. Beyond that, the residue appears.

Another problem might be that the residue has little access to your solvent, that is, since it pools up in the bottom of the container, it has little contact with the rest of the mixture - this is why shaking/stirring apparently helps a little for a while, but then the residue just pools up again.

Try adding alcohol to the mix by drops and shaking well after each addition and see if it helps. Also, bear in mind that dissolution can take long for certain compounds. Maybe just giving the mix more time, shaking it up every couple of hours might help.

Hello, I ordered Iso E Super online and fractionated coconut oil as carrier. My question is, is fractionated coconut oil a complete substitute for alcohol?

To make an EDT like Escentric Molecules (which is said to be consisting of 100% Iso E Super), should I just mix Iso E Super and fractionated coconut oil with 20:80 rate or should I also use alcohol?

Hey everyone. A question, Please excuse my ignorance, Not being smart just honest, but isn't denatured alcohol dangerous? One of the things I used to do is make jewelery. For 8 years I lived among the Navajo and ground turquoise for the Navajo to make Indian Jewelery. I used denatured alcohol for my alcohol lamps to melt the hard wax we used to attach Dowel rods to the back of slabbed Turquoise to grind it. Once ground to shape and polished we froze them. Then the stone would simply pop off the rods using our thumb. I always read labels when using chemicals, and denatured alcohol was no different. Every single bottle I ever read said, and I quote: " Warning, Poisonous, cannot be made non poisnous!" I also know for sure Perfumers for years have used alcohol. One of my very few non pleasant memories as a young man and still even now as a single man is necking is girls. They always did and do always did and do spray perfume on their neck and breast. Many times it tasted very bitter. Remember that guys? It seems It is not as bad as it used to be. Was that denatured? I always blamed it on the Perfume ingredients, but now I am not sure it wasn't the alcohol I was tasting. I would much rather taste everclear than bitters on a girls neck!
I guess I need to find out about getting legal Moonshine and using it. It is plentiful around here. Legal White Lightening Moonshine are Moonshiners that have bothered getting tax license for their product. It sells in liquor stores in mason jars.

miccisue
To answer your post, Everclear is very strong as a drink, too strong and should be mixed and not consumed straight. There can be severe gastric intestinal reprocussions and even death from consuming pure Everclear. It is about health and not any law. I walked into a poker party one night and grabbed the first bottle on the table and took about four huge swollows without looking to see what it was. I almost pissed out on the po er pott. it willy quit me hick billy hard! It got my face blurey and face my nase fum. Yes it did it that fast! I grabbed and drank a lot of pop to delute it on my stonic. I think what saved me is I had just eaten a large meal.

Simply fantastic even for a beginer like me.

Im afraid the answer is neither. FCO and ethanol dont mix so you cant use both, however FCO isnt a full substitute for alcohol because you wont be able to spray it and the fragrance (in this case the Iso E Super) will behave differently in this different medium so what you have wont be like Molecule 01. On the other hand you may find you like it better, so its well worth trying - just dont mix ethanol in.

Yes. And no.

The whole point of denaturing alcohol is to stop you using it to drink - and the point of that is to ensure you pay the extra taxes on the drinkable stuff.

The poison added to it varies and some of them have a strong smell such as the commonly used methyl alcohol - which turns ethanol into methylated spirits, others less so. For perfume you obviously need one thats as low in odour as possible.

What you were tasting was denatonium which is added to denatured alcohol to make it taste bad and thus avoid people drinking it despite the warnings and poisoning themselves.

Perfumers alcohol has additives which are poisonous to drink but not to put on your skin. Which does not mean its not dangerous, just that its safe enough in normal use.

I am just starting to venture into this and I was wondering is there a list that tells which frag. oils are Top notes,Heart notes, and Base notes??? Thanks so much for all of the information!!

Hello! I became fascinated on how to make your own perfume a while ago, and I followed your discussion, which helped me be successful in created my own signature scent. I used ethanol(90%) as a perfume base, but I was wondering If diluting it with other substances wont affect on how long the scent will last. I am asking because I feel my skin just a bit irritated if I apply it immediately after I've had a bath. Thank you!

http://www.makeyourownperfume.co.uk

I'm surprised that no musks are included among the base notes. I've been using natural musks but want to switch to synthetics. I'm having a hard time finding the musk synthetics undiluted. I have found musk ambrette and am working on musk ketone. I have other synthetic musks from the Perfumer's Apprentice but they're very light.

Some synthetic musks are crystalline solids and as a result are often sold either pre-diluted or mobilised in something to make them liquid and easier to handle.

There are a huge number of musks on the market but the two you are working with are not the best choices - Musk Ambrette is prohibited by IFRA and Musk Ketone is banned in some countries.

These are some of the musks I use routinely:
Ambrettolide (this synthetic is the same as the musk in Ambrette Seeds - a very good quality diffusive musk, slightly fruity)
Cashmeran (interesting - liquid and easy to handle - but hard to use successfully because it has a musty, almost mushroom tone to it that needs carefull blending. When it works it very warming and velvety)
Celestolide (crystals that are slow to dissolve in ethanol. Adds more brightness than the others.
Ethylene brassylate (also called Musk T, widely available, liquid at room temp and cheap, good fixative properties and easy to use)
Exaltolide (solid at room temp but melts easily, very widely available and used macrocyclic musk)
Galaxolide (very widely available and used, especially in functional products. Often sold as 50% in DEP as its solid otherwise. A polycyclic musk which is not biodegradable)
Muscone (this is the musk that is in musk deer pods but synthesised. Lovely fine musk that has the edge over the others for its erogenic quality) l-Muscone is a more expensive and even finer quality - just the L isomer.
Romandolide (not so widely available, similar in scent to Galaxolide but macrocyclic and biodegradable)
Tonalid (crystalline solid again but a bit easier to dissolve than some. Often disparagingly referred to as laundry musk its nevertheless a good fixative and very widely used)
Velvione (another very fine musk of great diffusion, rather like ambrettolide by less fruity and even softer. A great exalting agent)

There are plenty of others. I nearly always use musks in combination rather than using just one in a composition. In particular you can get good effects by using very tiny amounts of ambrettolide or velvione alongside one of the cheaper musks. Both work well with Exaltolide and Romandolide.

Another option is Auratouch from Givaudan - a blend of several of their musk products which I think also includes a captive.

Thanks Chris for your so thorough answer. I will now set about tracking down these musks in small quantities but not in such high dilutions that they can't be used in perfume.

Thanks for the info, greatly appreciated!

Hello,
I am feeling lucky to join this forum, thanks to giving a lot of information.
I have a problem using glycerine for fixative, I make 10% EO, 20% Alcohol, 69% Ethanol and 1% glycerine
when I mix them it will be mixed but after 24 hours the glycerine will be separated.

thanks

How many drops per ml?
This varies by the oil...a thick oil like patchouli or vetiver is going to come up in big thick drops (like molasses, the vetiver) while a citrus oil is going to give you more drops per ml. ÊThe &quot;average&quot;...ie industry standard is:

600 drops 1 oz
300 drops 1/2 oz 15 ml
100 drops 5 ml one teaspoon
20 drops per ml.

If you are using the same droppers each time you'll get 'consistent' ratios. ÊIf you are putting together formulas in mass quantities, once you've fixed your mix (ie 5 parts this oil, 3 parts that one, and 2 of that one, etc.) Êthen you can use a scale that measures in grams and weigh them, instead of counting drops.??????????????

First off I don't recommend using glycerine as a fixative - it often leads to solubility problems and isn't a good fixative anyway.

Secondly I'm confused by your ratios:

10% EO (Essential Oil presumably)
20% Alcohol (what alcohol? normally this means ethanol but . . .)
69% ethanol (so I presume the 20% was something else?)

If you want a near odourless fixative I'd suggest you try one of these:

IPM (isopropyl myristate)
BB (benzyl benzoate - but note that there is an IFRA restriction on this - see relevant sticky thread)
BA (benzyl alcohol - but note that there is an IFRA restriction on this - see relevant sticky thread)
Glucam P20 (see Perfumer's Apprentice for details)

Alternatively see the section in this thread about musks, or use something like Hedione, which is an excellent fixative as well as being a widely used exalting agent especially for jasmine and other floral fragrances.

Hope that helps

Huh, cool! I'm a glasblower (flameworker, actually. Roger Gandelman, the glassblower in the link is a furnace worker) and make perfume bottles along with wine glasses and jewelry. I use borosilicate, or Pyrex or Simax, the brand name.

A few quesitons/clarifications, please:

The OP says to mix the oils undiluted, but I've read elsewhere to dilute all oils to 10% and some to 1% before working with them. Which is right?

If I'm supposed to dilute to 10%/1% before mixing, that already leaves my mixture too diluted to be called a parfum, which is 20% to 40% pure oils according to the OP, and likely too diluted to be an Eau de Parfum. Is this correct?

Now, this question is probably stupid, but I want to make sure I'm doing things correctly: If I'm to dilute my oils before mixing, I can dilute them with whatever carrier agent I choose, right? I'm planning on using an alcohol carrier agent, so I would dilute each oil to 10% or 1% with that alcohol and wouldn't need to use an oil carrier agent, correct?

Finally, I will probably end up using essential oils, absolutes, and synthetics. Will most of these need to be diluted the same amount or is one type generally stronger or weaker than the others? Is there anything I wouldn't dilute?

Both methods work, however most of us prefer to work with diluted materials when designing new fragrances because it involves less waste of valuable materials, is easier to be accurate, makes using trace amounts possible and enables you to evaluate the results of your work more quickly.


It does, so if you like your mixture when you've finished, you'll need to increase the concentration. I use a spreadsheet to help do that accurately.


Correct. But you must choose either ethanol or oil and not attempt to use both as most oils won't dissolve in ethanol.


Generally yes, all need diluting but strength varies enormously, particularly with aroma chemicals. I've given some advice on blending, including a downloadable spreadsheet, on my blog. There is also advice there on suggested starting materials together with notes on each, including how much to dilute them, which you may find helpful.

just a bit confusing to read now!

Thanks for posting all this incredible information! I don't mean to be rude, but I suggest a copy edit of the first post. I agree that it's confusing to read as it is currently formatted, and it reflects rather poorly on the forum. Is there any way that it could be cleaned up? What's with all the Ê characters everywhere? I can see that it is eight years old, so maybe the OP is not around to clean it up? Just wondering. I'm very curious about the subject, just having trouble making my way through all the gobble-de-gook.

I was looking for a thread to post some pics and i think I found it. I was hoping that someone here could help me identify this boatload of oils etc I inherited and tell me what kind of professional would possess all this stuff. I am guessing a Perfumist or a Scientist of some sort. A member on MUA suggested that these are raw materials for a perfume maker. Some of the bottles have only numbers and letters ie. fla-318. Some are little stones in a bag, the previous owner says it looks like Amber to her. There is even a 5 lb bag of beeswax pellets and then some kind of long was sticks. In addition to everything in these photos, she has tons of what she calls incense. It is all different colors and it is powder. There is lots and lots of this stuff, it's a little overwhelming for me. Any ideas?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/8004501879/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/8004500445/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998346793/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998349821/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998351841/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998354265/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998374608/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arborvitae/7998345093/

Italianstallion's explanation is awesome! So much info.

Is there a database providing information on the relative impact / strength of each oil? I Haven't found any in google or here.

Maybe we could start something, like a strength rating from 1 to 20 for each oil.


Digindirt, you're so lucky! Try to make some experimental mixes.

I don't know if this is the place for this post, but I continue with the development of a sandalwood perfume. The perfume is pretty powerful at the beginning, but after a few hours, dries down to virtually nothing. I'd be willing to forgo some of the initial power for a little more persistance. Any ideas? I've tried cistus, but have found it too domineering.

- - - Updated - - -

Another question. The literature abounds with descriptions of ambergris as the perfect fixative yet the amounts called for in old recipes are so minute that I can't imagine the ambergris having a real physical affect on the other components of the perfume. I've tried combining ambergris tincture (homemade) with my perfumes and then measuring how long they stay on a smelling strip and I can't notice any difference. I continue my quest to deeply understand ambergris and how it can be used.

Hey all. I'm hoping somebody can help me figure out these ratios. I'm attempting to make a cologne with EOs and Everclear. The original post states "'Eau de Cologne' is the least concentrated form of a fragrance and generally contains 2 - 5% perfume oils dissolved in water and alcohol."

What should the ratio of water to alcohol be? Any help is appreciated.

Personally I don't use water, even in Eau de Cologne but if you are going to use some I'd suggest the proportions will be something like this:

Fragrance concentrate 2-5%
Distilled Water 3-6%
95% v/v Ethanol 92%

The more fragrance you include the less water you should use to avoid solubility problems. It's only real function is to make the fragrance cheaper to produce and to reduce the drying effect of the alcohol on the skin - contrary to the often-expressed view on certain blogs there is no evidence it contributes any fixative effect.

Hi,
Since you've managed to read this whole thread, ending up here, you are probably really looking for your first DIY perfume making experiments.
Just wanted to let you know it's real fun, and if you are looking for some real usable formulations, don't hesitate to look at my formula blog: https://sites.google.com/site/perfumerecipes/
Happy perfuming!
Jeroen.

for people who have used Everclear how long have you found you need to let the mix sit for the alcohol odor to go? 4 weeks?

No need for water and the alcohol odour won't go - what happens when you let it mature is the perfume settles into a stable (or mostly stable) state. Don't expect ethanol to stop smelling because that won't happen. On the other hand when you put some of your fragrance on your skin the alcohol smell will be gone in a few seconds so you'll hardly notice it.

Just stumbled across this thread. Fantastic information on perfume making. Thanks for a job well done.

Just wanted to say "hi" and thank all who have contributed to this thread thus far. I have been looking for a more extensive list of base, middle and top notes and am so glad what I have found here. I have a small collection of Essential Oils that have been sitting in a drawer for quite a while now and am just getting around to exploring Aromatherapy and Perfumery. I find all the information here very useful for someone just starting out and wanting to create my own scent(s)! Thanks again. I look forward to exploring this site more in the future!

Hi Chris, I have access to only methylated spirit. I'm unable to get any perfumer alcohol nor pure grain alcohol at where I live. Before I try diluting my essential oils in it, will the strong odor that you speak of dissipate after a certain period? Worse case scenario, I'll just experiment with blending in DPG till I can find a source for good alcohol.

It will dissipate, yes, but the smell is powerful and offensive to most people while it lasts so to be honest I'd stick with DPG until you can find a source of good alcohol.