Have you ever considered making your own perfume?
Truthfully, I didn’t for a long time. I loved wearing my department-store brand perfume and used it every day. I loved the light floral scent and didn’t think twice about what was actually inside it.
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But then I started researching chemicals in my beauty products and found hidden chemicals were in many of my beauty care staples, including my perfume. While many perfumes and body sprays claim to be natural with floral, citrus or exotic scents – they are anything but natural. Perfumes aren’t required to disclose ingredients (such as synthetic chemicals and fragrances) because they are considered trade secrets to the manufacturer.
In lab tests commissioned by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found 38 secret chemicals in 17 name brand fragrances, such as Coco Chanel (18 chemicals not listed), Britney Spears Curious (17 chemicals not listed) and Giorgio Armani Acqua Di Gio (17 chemicals not listed).1
The secret chemicals found in these name brand fragrances include those associated with endocrine disruption and allergic reactions. Plus, many of these chemicals were not assessed for safety in personal care products.1
Is this what you want to put on your body or expose to your family? Thankfully, there’s an easy (and inexpensive) solution.
Perfumery 101
Believe it or not, it’s cheap and easy to make your own DIY perfume. It takes just a few base ingredients and essential oils to make the right blend for you.
The scents of a perfume can be classified into what’s called notes1,2. There are three types of notes:
1. Top Note
The first impression of the perfume, light and evaporates quickly.
Examples include: lemon, orange, grapefruit, lime, tangerine, citronella, bergamot, eucalyptus, lavender, lemongrass, peppermint, spearmint.
2. Middle Note
The main scent of the perfume, but also mellow and comes out a couple of minutes after the top note.
Examples include: chamomile, cinnamon, clove, cypress, fennel, geranium, jasmine, juniper, marjoram, neroli, nutmeg, pine, fir, rose, rosemary, spruce, tea tree, thyme, ylang ylang.
3. Base Note
The rich and deep scent of the perfume and often a musk scent.
Examples include: cedarwood, frankincense, ginger, helichrysum, myrrh, patchouli, sandalwood, vanilla, vetiver.
Types of Aromas
In addition, essential oils can be classified by aroma3:
- Floral (rose, geranium, lavender, jasmine)
- Woodsy (cedar, pine)
- Earthy (vetiver, patchouli)
- Herbaceous (rosemary, basil)
- Minty (peppermint)
- Camphorous (eucalyptus)
- Spicy (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg)
- Oriental (ginger)
- Citrus (orange, lemon)
How to Make Your Own DIY Perfume
To make your own DIY perfume, simply blend aromas that you like best and mix with a carrier oil. For instance, citrus/exotic or floral/spicy.
Here are a few ideas on blends I really like:
Energizing Blend – Grapefruit/Ylang Ylang
Mix 7 drops of Grapefruit with 4 drops of Ylang Ylang in a 5 ml roller bottle and fill with fractionated coconut oil (it’s odorless and doesn’t solidify when cold) or sweet almond oil.
Floral Blend – Jasmine/Lime
Mix 7 drops of Jasmine with 4 drops of Lime in a 5 ml roller bottle and fill with fractionated coconut oil or sweet almond oil.
Walk in the Woods Blend – Lavender/Lemon/Vetiver
Mix 5 drops of Lavender, 4 drops of Lemon and 3 drops of Vetiver in a 5 ml roller bottle and fill with fractionated coconut oil or sweet almond oil.
Sexy Musk Blend – Lavender/Lime/Copaiba
Mix 5 drops of Lavender, 4 drops of Lime and 3 drops of Copaiba in a 5 ml roller bottle and fill with fractionated coconut oil or sweet almond oil. You can also get Stress Away from Young Living which is made with lavender, lime, copaiba and other essential oils in a roller bottle.
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