| The Perfumer | | | | and fixatives (refer notes below). |
| The task of composing perfumes that will sell is to | | | | Instead of building a perfume from "ground up", |
| enhance an expert on perfume composition or | | | | many modern perfumes and colognes are made using |
| known in the fragrance industry as the perfumer. | | | | fragrance bases, which are essential oils and aromatic |
| They are also sometimes referred to as "The Nose" | | | | chemicals. The effort used in developing bases by |
| due to their fine sense of smell and skill in smell | | | | fragrance companies or individual perfumers may |
| composition. The perfumer is effectively an artist | | | | equal that of a marketed perfume, since they are |
| who is trained in depth on the concepts of fragrance | | | | useful in that they are reusable. |
| aesthetics and who is capable of conveying abstract | | | | The perfume's fragrance oils are then blended with |
| concepts and moods with their fragrance | | | | ethyl alcohol and water, aged in tanks for a minimum |
| compositions. | | | | of 14 days and filtered through processing equipment |
| | | | to remove any sediment and particles before the |
| The composition of a perfume begins when the | | | | solution can be filled into the perfume bottles. |
| perfumer's employer's are given a brief which will | | | | Notes: |
| contain the specifications for the desired perfume | | | | - Primary scents: Can consist of one or a few main |
| that the organisation is trying to achieve. The | | | | ingredients for a certain concept, such a "rose". |
| employees are given several tasks to complete. | | | | Alternatively, multiple ingredients can be used |
| They are expected to describe what the perfume | | | | together to create an "abstract" primary scent that |
| smells like, their feelings after smelling the perfume, | | | | does not bear a resemblance to a natural ingredient. |
| when the perfume should be worn, also the price of | | | | For instance, jasmine and rose scents are commonly |
| the perfume oil concentrate. This will determine what | | | | blends for abstract floral fragrances. Cola flavourant is |
| aromatics and fragrance ingredients can/will be used | | | | a good example of an abstract primary scent. |
| in the perfume composition. | | | | - Modifiers: These ingredients alter the primary scent |
| This process is an in depth and tedious task but it is | | | | to give the perfume a certain desired character: for |
| essential. The perfumer will then start a process of | | | | instance, fruit esters may be included in a floral |
| blending various perfume mixtures and try to achieve | | | | primary to create a fruity floral; calone and citrus |
| the outcome the brief. This process can take several | | | | scents can be added to create a "fresher" floral. The |
| months or years. Once all the information is gathered | | | | cherry scent in cherry cola can be considered a |
| the perfume composition may be used as a | | | | modifier. |
| fragrance enhancement in shampoos, make-up, | | | | - Blenders: A large group of ingredients that smooth |
| detergents, etc or it may be marketed and sold | | | | out the transitions of a perfume between different |
| directly to the public as a fine fragrance. | | | | "layers" or bases. Common blending ingredients include |
| Technique | | | | linalool and hydroxycitronellol. |
| Perfume oils usually contain tens to hundreds of | | | | - Fixatives: Used to support the primary scent by |
| ingredients. These ingredients can be roughly grouped | | | | bolstering it. Many resins and wood scents, and |
| into four groups: primary scents, modifiers, blenders | | | | amber bases are used for fixative purposes. |