It is true that every woman needs a signature perfume of their own which is unique to them. Perfumes work with your body chemistry and can be a magical experience.
Most of us acquire our perfume from the high street or on-line but what about making your own unique fragrance?
Once you are familiar with the basics of perfume notes which are separated into three categories, you can buy the ingredients you need and become creative in developing a toxic-free signature perfume all of your own.
The three categories are:
- Top Notes
Top notes represent the first impression of your fragrance and are generally the lightest of all notes and fade the quickest. The most common top notes include citrus, herbs and light fruits like berries
The middle notes are the heart of your perfume and make an appearance once the top notes evaporate. They last longer and have a strong influence on the base notes to come and could be anything from rose to lavender and geranium to lemongrass.
Base notes are the final fragrance notes that appear once your top notes are completely evaporated. They mingle with the middle notes to create the full body of your scent. Common base notes include vanilla, musk, cedarwood and patchouli to name but a few.
There are different methods of creating your own perfume and below are listed a few methods for you to experiment with should you choose to do so. Or watch the video at the end of this Article.
DIY Perfume Using Essential Oils
You can use more than one essential oil if you wish but whatever you choose will affect the aroma of the fragrance. There are a few ingredients you will need in order to create your perfume which include:
- Two tablespoons of carrier oil (grapeseed, jojoba, sweet almond or anything of your preference)
- Six tablespoons of 100% proof vodka
- Two and a half tablespoons of bottled water
- Thirty drops of essential oil (9 for your top notes, 15 for your middle notes and 6 for your base notes)
- A small funnel
- Coffee filter
- Two clean dark glass bottles with airtight lids
Once you have gathered your ingredients together:
- Pour your preferred carrier oil into one of the glass bottles and add your base, middle and top note
- Add the alcohol
- Secure the lid and let your perfume sit for a solid 48 hours. When you make perfume with essential oils, the longer you let it sit, the stronger the scent so effectively you could leave it for up to six weeks if you wanted to.
- Once you are satisfied with the strength of the scent, add the water and shake the bottle vigorously for one minute.
- Use your filter and funnel to transfer the scent to the other bottle.
DIY Citrus Recipe
This is another way to create your own signature perfume with ingredients as follows:
- One tablespoon of jojoba oil
- Thirty drops of essential oils – grapefruit, sweet orange, peppermint and a chamomile/lavender blend
- Two tablespoons of vodka
- One tablespoon of distilled water
- Dark glass container
- Small glass container
- Glass perfume bottle
Method:
- Add jojoba oil to the glass container and then add alcohol
- For your essential oils, follow this order: base note: ten drops of grapefruit, middle notes: ten drops of sweet orange and five drops of peppermint, top notes: 5 drops of chamomile/lavender blend or just lavender
- Use a dropper to add distilled water
- Mix these ingredients well and transfer to a glass container and let sit for at least forty-eight house or as long as you want
- Transfer to a perfume bottle once it has reached the desired scent.
DIY Jasmine Perfume
To create this perfume you will need:
- Two tablespoons of vodka
- One tablespoon of distilled water or orange blossom water
- Essential oils consisting of thirty drops of jasmine, five drops of lavender and five drops of vanilla
- Glass bottle
- Cheesecloth
Method:
- Mix your essential oil blend with the vodka in a glass bottle
- Leave the mixture to sit for two days
- Add the distilled water or orange blossom water to the mix and shake gently
- Leave for approximately four weeks in a cool, dark place
- If you see any sediment strain through a cheesecloth and pour the perfume in a spray bottle
DIY Natural Vanilla Perfume
To create this perfume, you will need:
- One vanilla pod
- Three to four tablespoons of organic sunflower oil
- Forty drops of bergamot essential oil
- Cedarwood and anise essential oil
- Glass containers
Method:
- Slice open the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds and cut them up into tiny pieces
- Place these pieces in a glass bottle and add your organic sunflower oil
- Close your bottle tightly and let it sit in a cool, dark place for two weeks. Shake the bottle gently once every three to four days
- After two weeks add bergamot, cedarwood and anise essential oil to a glass spray bottle
- Use a dropper to get the vanilla infused oil out without getting the seeds
- Add this to your glass spray bottle and shake the blends together
DIY Solid Perfume Using Coconut Oil
The ingredients to create this perfume are:
- Two tablespoons of beeswax
- Two tablespoons of fractionated coconut oil
- Twenty drops of your favourite essential oil
Method:
- Add fractionated coconut oil and beeswax to a glass jar
- Place the jar in a saucepan with approximately two inches of boiling water
- Stir ingredients until combined
- Once it has melted removed from the heat and let it rest for three to four minutes
- Add your essential oil and stir well
- Pour this into a container, and to use, apply a small amount to your skin
DIY Patchouli Perfume
The ingredients you will need for this perfume are:
- Two tablespoons of vodka
- One tablespoon of distilled water
- A dark glass bottle
- Essential oils – twenty drops of sweet orange oil, ten drops of patchouli oil, ten drops of cedarwood oil, five drops of lavender oil, five drops of ylang-ylang oil and five drops of bergamot oil
Method:
- Start by combining your alcohol and distilled water into the dark glass bottle
- Add a drop of your essential oil, stir that drop into the mixture and continue adding a drop at a time slowly into the alcohol. This to ensure the oils thoroughly disperse in it.
- Let the mixture sit for two days
- Gently shake before use
DIY Summer Perfume Recipe
The ingredients you will need to create this perfume are:
- Thirteen drops of peppermint essential oil
- Thirteen drops of rosemary oil
- Five drops of lemon essential oil
- Five drops of sage essential oil
- Three tablespoons of vodka
- Two cups of distilled water
Method:
- Mix all your essential oils in a glass bottle that contains your one hundred percent proof alcohol
- Gently shake and let the bottle sit for approximately two days
- Add the distilled water, mixing slowly until it is completely dispersed
- Leave the perfume to sit for two to three weeks in a cool, dark place
- After your perfume matures, remove any sediment using a filter and store it in a glass spray bottle
DIY Summer Perfume Recipe
The ingredients you will need to create this perfume are:
- Thirteen drops of peppermint essential oil
- Thirteen drops of rosemary oil
- Five drops of lemon essential oil
- Five drops of sage essential oil
- Three tablespoons of vodka
- Two cups of distilled water
Method:
- Mix all your essential oils in a glass bottle that contains your one hundred percent proof alcohol
- Gently shake and let the bottle sit for approximately two days
- Add the distilled water, mixing slowly until it is completely dispersed
- Leave the perfume to sit for two to three weeks in a cool, dark place
- After your perfume matures, remove any sediment using a filter and store it in a glass spray bottle
DIY Roll-On Perfume
The ingredients needed to create this roll-on are:
- A five ml roll-on bottle
- Three drops of mandarin essential oil
- Two drops of sweet orange essential oil
- Three drops of neroli essential oil
- Two drops of cedarwood atlas essential oil
- One teaspoon of carrier oil – grapeseed oil or fractionated coconut oil
Method:
- Place your essential oils into a bottle and gently mix together
- Add your carrier oil
- Transfer this to a roller bottle
- Put the lid on and roll between your hands to mix
- Roll onto your wrists and behind your ears to use
DIY Rose Perfume
This is one of the classic home-made perfumes and consists of:
- Three quarters of a cup of fresh rose petals
- Half a cup of one hundred percent proof vodka
- Two and a half cups of distilled water
- Two to three drops of rose essential oil
- Big glass jar with a lid
- Glass perfume bottle
Method:
- Place the rose petals in the bottom of the jar and pour the vodka over them
- Cover this up and let it sit for a day in a cool, dark place
- Use a spoon to squash the petals and add distilled water into the jar together with the essential oils
- Cover the bowl and leave it to sit for five to seven days making sure you mix it once a day
- After one week strain the mixture into a glass perfume bottle. Shake well and it is ready for use
Making And Storing Your Homemade Perfume
These are just a handful of homemade recipes to create your own perfume and it shows that you do not have to spend a lot of money in order to smell good. Making perfume at home is indeed a skill worth having and there is the added bonus of avoiding all the synthetic chemicals.
In order to establish the creation and the storing of your homemade perfumes, here are a few pointers to help you along the way:
- Set up a clear area so that you can easily measure your ingredients
- Buy glass bottles with airtight lids and spray dispensers before you start your project
- Always use one hundred percent proof vodka for your perfumes because the higher percentage of alcohol, the better the outcome
- It is better to use glass containers and bottles because essential oils will break down if they are put into plastic containers
- The effectiveness of your perfume completely depends upon the ratio of essential oils, alcohol and drinking water in your blend. Ensure that you measure well before adding anything, because a little less or not enough will change the entire sign of your perfume
- Perfume is like a fine wine; it needs to mature before it reaches excellence.
