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When A Fragrance Ages

post #1 of 13
10/8/10 at 2:58am
Thread Starter 
Hey there basenoters! I had a quick question. I'm someone who collects frags like a mad man. I know that if you take good care of your frags, they can last a long time but I was wondering if even though a fragrance lasts long and still smells "right/good" is longevity ever affected? Lets say you've had a fragrance for about 2 or 3 years now and you've taken good care of it and it still smells great, is it possible that longevity would still be affected? What are your experiences with this? Thanks again guys/gals!
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post #2 of 13
10/8/10 at 3:35am
I have never experienced that a fragrance loses potency/longevity during storage, and I have some fragrances that are decades old..
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post #3 of 13
10/8/10 at 4:27am
Yes. I have bottles of Muguet des Bois from the 1990s that smell as they used to but last a very short time now.
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post #4 of 13
10/10/10 at 4:37pm
If you take good care of your fragances, they will never go bad. What spoils perfumes is light and temperature, so if you keep them in a dark and cool place, they will last a long long time. The only thing I notice with really old fragrances is that the "lose" somewhat the sharpness of the opening, becoming a little more, let say "tame", for lack of words to describe it, and the drydown comes earlier then when fresh, but that may not be a bad thing after all.
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post #5 of 13
10/14/10 at 6:31am
The few fragrances I have had go 'off' were trades - my own collection has never had a bad bottle. I believe the care taken of one's perfumes really pays off - like Tott I have some that are decades old.

reine
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post #6 of 13
10/28/10 at 12:20pm
Thread Starter 
Wow decades old!? Thats amazing!!! Thank you for your input!
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post #7 of 13
10/28/10 at 12:22pm
Thread Starter 
Hmmm, I figured that time would decompose some of the composition of the fragrance but as long as it smells the same, I can always carry around a decant! I just bought a back-up bottle of Pure Malt and stored it in my closet. I wonder if it'll last me until I am in my 30's?
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post #8 of 13
10/28/10 at 12:25pm
Thread Starter 
Decades old!!?? Again, Im amazed at the art of perfumery! When you say go off, what exactly does that mean? What are your experiences with having a fragrance spoil? Thanks again for your input!
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post #9 of 13
10/28/10 at 12:29pm
Thread Starter 
I usually store mine in a closet inside of bins. Would that be a good place? I have noticed that with one of my old bottles, the opening smells off and the drydown appears almost instantly. It still smells great though. Thank you for your input sir
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post #10 of 13
10/28/10 at 12:44pm
I think I have posted this on multiple previous threads here on Basenotes, but I own a bottle of Horizon by Guy Laroche from 1993 and the scent is in a good shape, the only sign of aging might be a slight diminishing of projection, but aside form that, it does not smell stale, neutral or vapid nor have any other sight effects- the secret was just keeping it stored a cool and dry place in the original box, but with no further precautions or special measures taken
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post #11 of 13
10/28/10 at 3:20pm
Well, it depends on the fragrance as well as the proper storage. I think a good indication of a fragrance life is it's longevity, makes sense doesn't it? if it evaporates faster on your skin, it does the same in the bottle.

Now, I had fragrances go bad due to bad storage, but it's usually the smell being lighter/different. The longevity on the other hand does not really change significantly, at least from my 2 or 3 bottles that went bad, they just smell different. I assume it is affected by age, but not as much as the perfume strength and actual smell. Keep in mind, some vintage perfumes decades old are being sold for hundreds on ebay, and people swear by them! I doubt anybody would pay $300 for a 1oz of shalimar parfum if it lasts 2 hours. On the other hand, people have complained about creed bottles going bad after a year or two, but hey creeds are mostly fresh fragrances with weak longevity.

So yeah, longevity changes but I'd say it's the least affected attribute. It worries me a little, so does projection, you can always apply more after all. However if the scent changes, to worse, then I'm screwed. And in general, a well packaged fragrance should last you a good 5-10 years. Probably a few decades if you take the extra effort to store it properly. If vintage perfumes are still great after 50 years when I doubt people took the extra effort for proper storage, you have nothing to worry about.
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post #12 of 13
11/19/10 at 11:18am
Hello all !

Can someone tell me what they think of keeping bottled fragrances in the fridge ?

I am in doubt wether it 'kills' some notes, and is it reversible, or some notes will die altogether ?

and whether it will smell different when spritzed straight out of the cold - if the fridge is a good way to store, should the bottle be 'chambrée' before use - the way wine is ?

Thank you
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post #13 of 13
11/20/10 at 2:14am
Good morning to all !

I found an answer to my above question in other threads about storage : keeping fragrance in the refrigerator is a good option apparently. Preferably a wine-fridge (i believe that is 14 degrees celsius). And to let it get to room temperature as not to give a temp shock (loosing top notes) before use.
I dont have a big collection, but i own a 150 ml of Etri Resort which will be better for warm days, so i will let it rest in the fridge until spring comes

Thanks all !
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