Perfume

Perfumes have been around for thousands of years. The Egyptians were the first to incorporate perfume into their culture, and the first to place perfume into glass bottles. Soon after, the entire world began to see (and smell) that perfumes tickle the senses and evoke strong emotions.

Of course, perfumes have undergone many changes since the ancients first used them. Changing tastes and the development of modern chemistry have led to different and more elaborate perfume mixtures. Some perfumes now consist of more than 250 different ingredients.

Below are some other facts about perfumes that you may or may not have known:

• The word perfume is of Latin descent, and comes from the phrase per fumum, which means “through smoke”.

• Perfumes are a mixture of water, alcohol, and scents. The alcohol is a necessary ingredient, because without it, the scent would not emanate from the skin.

• Perfumes can be sorted into seven major categories: Greens, Florals, Aldehydics, Chypre, Oriental, Fougère, and Tobacco/Leather.

• Perfumes can be graded according to strength. From strongest to
  weakest: Perfume, Eau De Parfum, Eau De Toilette and Eau De Cologne, Aftershave. The more perfume oils that a solution contains, the stronger it will be and the longer it will last.

• An individual’s body chemistry determines what a perfume will smell like once it is applied to the skin. The same perfume can smell different depending on who is using it.

• You should never test more than three different perfumes at once. If you do, the smells will become so complex, that it will be impossible for your nose to properly evaluate each scent.

• Because perfume evaporates from the skin quickly, it may be necessary to reapply your scent every four hours.

• To lengthen and strengthen the smell of your perfume, apply perfume, and then add a layer of lotion with no scent or a complimentary scent over top.

• Perfume that is applied to places like the wrist, the neck, behind the ears, and crooks of arms will smell the strongest.

• Perfume should be stored in a cool, dry place. If possible, keep open perfume stored within a box to lengthen the shelf life.

• Most perfume manufacturers recommend disposing of perfume after one year, but perfume may last as long as two to five years when stored under the right conditions.
  
  The Five Common Fragrance Group
  
  For men, as well as some women, finding the perfect perfume can be a stressful, time-consuming experience. . If you familiarize yourself with the six basic fragrance groups, you will not only save time, but also make your shopping experience more enjoyable.The following paragraphs will discuss the six common fragrance groups when it comes to perfume in order to assist you in finding the right perfume with more ease.
  


• The floral category is the largest and most popular scent for perfumes. These scents are made mainly from different varieties of flowers. These varieties include roses, orange blossoms, vanilla and jasmine. Other flowers are also used, including different varieties of lilies and orchids.
  


• The oriental category of perfume scents represents a relatively large group of scents, as well. These scents include heavy mixtures of spices, balsams, resins, and amber helping to suggest a warm, exotic sensation. This category is very popular during wintertime, and colder months of the year because of its heavy, musky traits.
  


• The citrus category of perfume scents are derived from different fruits. These fruits can include lime, lemon tangerine and mandarin. This often creates a tangy aroma women find refreshing, as well as uplifting. This category of perfume scent is most popular during warm months.
  


• The Chypre category of sent are most generally strong, earthly scents. Although it can be hard to describe the scent of a color, this is a real category of perfume scents. Perfumes falling into this category of scents tend to be sharp, outdoor scents. This includes the scents of pine, juniper, leaves and herbs.Lavender and cocoa are also examples of green scents.
  


• The Fougere category of perfume scents is most common among men. These aromas are usually created from herbs and mossy ferns. Perfumes that fall into this category normally come together in a very sophisticated style. While men typically where scents that fall into this category, there are popular perfumes for women that fall into this category as well.

• Most every fragrance retailer will make you think their perfume is a totally new scent, all scents are likely to fall into one of these six categories.
  
  Perfumes & The Various Types
  
  Perfume fragrances were classified by Charles Piesse who was a perfumer from the 19th century. Charles had actually tried to classify each type of fragrance to a musical chord. Unsurprisingly his system failed but the terminology stuck on. The current perfume fragrance pyramid was invented by William Poucher in the 1920’s. The fragrance pyramid is based on the instability of the perfume ingredients or how fast the fragrance fades away.
  
  The fragrance of a perfume is described as top note at the point when it just gives you a whiff and then passes on. The heart notes then follow where the fragrance actually has a chemical reaction with your skin; and finally are the base notes where the true essence of the fragrance is revealed when the highest molecular weight from the ingredients begin to surface.
  
  There different categories of scents to describe perfumes meant for women and perfumes meant for men. Under the women’s category, we have the most common scent, which is floral. This is in fact the largest category and the primary ingredients are from flowers like rose, jasmine, carnation, violet and orange blossom. Some of the perfumes that come under this category are Paris and White Diamonds. Some of the sub categories for floral fragrances are like floral green (Bvlgari, Chanel 19); floral fruity (Baby Doll, Amarige) and floral woody (L’Eau D’Issey, Romance).
  
  The next category is oriental. This means the scent is made to create warm, exotic impression because of its ingredients like balsams, spices, resins and musk. Perfumes that fall under this category are Royal Secret, Contradiction and Shalimar. Some of the sub categories of oriental are oriental spicy (Opium); oriental citrusy (Candies); floriental (Hugo Woman, Wings) and oriental gourmand (Angel, Casmir and Wish).
  
  The other categories of perfumes are chypre, citrus, fougere and green. Chypre was first described by Francois Coty to describe the aromas from the island of Cyprus. This fragrance is generally sweet, soft and earthy with ingredients like oakmoss, patchouli, bergamot and citruses. Some of the well-known perfumes under this category are Paloma Picasso, Fendi and Femme. Citrus fragrances have citrus fruits like tangerine, lime, mandarin and lemon in them. These are very common in men’s fragrances. Examples of citrus scented perfumes are CK One and Jess. Fougere is French for fern, which relates to freshness and is best described in Cool Water. Green fragrances are from green plant parts like grass, pine and herbs. Safari and Bvlgari Extreme best describe this scent.