The Three Elements of Fragrance
The Three Elements of Fragrance
The scent of a perfume is determined by three elements: the theme of the fragrance, its notes and its concentration. Knowing about these three elements can help you decide on which would be the best perfume that would suit you and your personality.
Theme is what creates variation among fragrances. It is also called accord and is dependent on the base upon which the perfume is formulated, and there are four common bases used in formulating perfumes. These four are:
* Citrus – created from fruits rich in citric acid, like oranges, bergamots and lemons, always light and fresh-smelling.
* Earth – lends an air of mystery upon the wearer, formulated from minerals or from non-flowering plants such as cinnamon, vanilla, honey and sandalwood.
* Musk – always considered sexy and alluring, and though previously made from the sacs of animals such as the civet and the Asian musk deer, they are now created synthetically.
* Floral – the most common theme among perfumes; as the name suggests, they are made from the essence of flowers and are often strong, clinging and sweet.
The notes of a perfume, on the other hand, are what are known as the impressions of the fragrance. It is the lingering air left by the perfume as it evaporates from the skin. All scents have three notes, called the top, the heart and the base.
* Top note – the instant impression created by the fragrance. It is supposed to attract people to the scent, but it quickly dissipates.
* Heart note – called the body of the perfume, the perfume’s essence. It tells the smeller what the fragrance is supposed to be about.
* Base note – the scent that lingers after the top note and the heart note evaporates. It is the main message of the perfume.
The last element to be considered is the concentration of the perfume. Concentration indicates how pure the perfume is, or the amount of perfume oil added into the fragrance. The purest perfume is known to be extremely volatile and can cause irritations when applied right onto the skin. To prevent this and to allow users to enjoy fully the fragrance, perfume oils are mixed into ethanol, with water sometimes added in.
