Rookie mistakes?

Hmmm.. Let me think...

Assumptions.
Don't assume that if you get one essential oil of a essential oil, say Frankincense, that all frankincense smells exactly that way.
In the beginning, I had people tell me that Frankincense lasts forever, So I thought it was a basenote. Then I got more types and different distillations, different extractions, fractional distillations, from different suppliers, from different countries, etc, etc, etc. They're all different. I once mentioned that some frankincense was more of a topnote, I got laughed at by an inexperienced member of the Yahoo Perfumemaking group that I moderate. But if you look at some Frank's GC/MS, Limonene is very high on the percentages, and Limonene is a topnote, and the lower notes in a distillation take more time to come out. So this topnote rich essential oil was a short duration distillation of Frankincense, instead a basenote weighted Frank that was distilled over a longer time...

Don't buy a ton of a single citrus oil at once, buy small amounts, and replace them once a year.

At your very first opportunity, buy this scale, and only blend according to weight, instead of drops.
http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/my...lance-101.html

And MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!
WRITE EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO DOWN SOMEHOW - SOMEWHERE - SOMEWAY - ANYWAY ! ! !
Even bad notes are better than no notes
Don't think, Oh, This is just a scribble, it's not important... it won't matter. Write it down...
Using a spreadsheet is ideal. Ask around, there are a couple of them.

Don't believe those yahoos on the internet who say to add glycerin to your fragrance.

Don't mix carrier oils and alcohol, nor oils and water

Look it up on TGSC First...
http://www.perfumersearch.com/

Get over being stupid

Get ready to spend a lot of money.
Get ready to Waste a lot of money.
Get ready to spend a lot of time.
Get ready to Waste a lot of time.

Get ready for failure (s) time and time again. and again. and AGAIN.

Don't be convinced that you can make a commercial level fragrance before you spend at least five years learning, more likely 10.

Don't be afraid to give up and move on with your life if you really aren't very good, because you just can't keep pouring money into a hobby that will consume all of your extra time and money.

Don't forget the people in your life. Make them perfume(s) repeatedly, even if they're bad.

Don't get upset if they won't wear it or laugh at you because it actually stinks...



Oh, that's enough for now, plus my wife is calling... and I have to make Dinner with two hungry boys to feed...

Only one thing I want to add. When you are a complete beginner, the first thing it is necessary to do is to learn how to smell, and learn how your raw materials smell. Most beginners seem to think it better to start with Essential Oils, I think it better to start learning with synthetic Aroma Chemicals. Essential Oils are made up of many (often very many) chemicals. As they evaporate, over time so their smell changes, and it is often quite hard for a beginner to follow the changes that occur. As an aside, I recommend, when you smell anything dipped on a smelling strip, that you follow its behaviour over a couple of hours, and even a couple of days. Single Aroma Chemicals, are much simpler in their behaviour, and so are easier to follow. Once you are happy with this, and can describe to your own satisfaction what the smell is and how it changes over time, and how long it lasts on the smelling strip, you can then go on to the more complex Essential Oils.

I would also like to reiterate what Paul has written. Make notes of everything that you do. When I started I kept a card index of Raw Materials, listing things like the initial smell, how it changed, how long it lasted and so on. When I started creating my own Perfumes, even if I thought they were rubbish (which at the beginning most were) I wrote down the formulations in a book, with all the trials listed, and dated.

It takes time, but is hugely rewarding. Enjoy.

You are welcome but; I don't have a Web site, nor do I have a suggested chemicals list. Maybe you are confusing me with another.