Tutorial

[The Scent Fairy]

Hi guys,

I've been asked by Sue to do a tutorial for you on fragrance.

[Mottern Man]

Bring on the info! :happy023

[TraderJoe]

Gary - this is awesome, can't wait to read what you have to say. :happy088

[Mama Bear]

Thank you Gary, I have been looking forward to this with Great Pleasure! Now I can't wait!!! :signs021

[msandoval858]

Awesome! I can always use something new to play with!

[SSLSTudio...]

Great,great... Cologne Junkie subscribing to this Thread !
There is always room for more scents,cologne,knowledge.


Nice. :pot

[Edcculus]

Sounds great!

[madmedic]

I know very little about Scents...so I need a tutorial. My current knowledge can be summed up by........Either I like it...or I don't:signs107

[Clark Kent]

:bounce

Thanks!

[The Scent Fairy]

PERFUME

A Short History of


I’ve been invited to give a tutorial on men’s fragrances, and it will be my pleasure to share what I’ve learned with you.

Let me start with one important statement that you should remember, something that is basic knowledge among perfumers. There is no such thing as men’s or women’s fragrances. There is only perfume. Yes, that’s what all fragrances are. Perfume.

Let’s take a look at the word. Perfume. In Latin, perfume is comprised of two words; per, meaning through, and fume, smoke. Early man discovered that certain woods, when thrown on fires, produced fragrant smoke which was pleasing to the nose. In the worship of their gods, they surmised that the smoke from these fragrant woods would be pleasing to them, as well and influence their bestowing bountiful harvests, successful hunting, and fair weather. As their civilizations flourished, trade brought in more exotic woods, like Sandalwood and Cedar. As the cities traded with more far flung peoples, resins like Frankinsence, Myrrh, Benzoin, Balsam made their appearance in the religious ceremonies, cast into braziers, their sweet smoke serving two purposes; one, a propitiatory offering to the deities, and secondly as a fumigant to cover the stench of the many animal sacrifices.

It wasn’t until the Egyptians that we saw the start of of perfumery as a form of personal adornment. Flowers were a part of everyday life to them, scenting their domiciles, and their persons, when they were worn, as well as gifts to the gods. It was some enterprising person who discovered that the fragrance of these flowers could be transferred to oil, which could be rubbed on their bodies to scent their persons. Effleurage, the art of capturing the scent oils of flowers by laying them on a layer of purified fat, enabled them to make the perfumed cones that were placed on the heads of guests at feasts. The heat of the body caused them to slowly melt and release their fragrance. Pleasant, no doubt, but messy, as well.

Now these oil and fat based fragrances were pretty much the norm for centuries. Herbs and flowers petals were crushed and steeped in oil filled jars until they were infused with the scent of the ingredients. By today’s standards, they were pretty heady brews, crude and not very long lasting. It was an Iranian doctor and chemist, Avicenna, who introduced distillation and perfumery, took a turn for the better. Roses were the most plentiful flowers available and their petals ideal for the process. Gone were the heavy scents, to be replaced by the more delicate fragrance of rose water. Needless to mention, it became immediately popular. Soon, everything that had a fragrance that was pleasant was being distilled and the art of perfume blending gained sophistication. The development of perfumery was not an isolated event. Chemistry was developing at about the same time, and in the future, it was to play a major part in taking perfumery to the next level.

As wonderful as these new fragrances were, they still were mostly single note scents, based on one flower or herb, and it was to remain so until 1370 when the first modern perfume, comprised of scented oils blended into a solution with alcohol at the request of Queen Elizabeth of Hungary, burst on the scene, and in short time, was known and worn all over Europe.

With the coming of the Renaissance, perfumery took another giant leap forward. With Italy’s temperate climate, the flowers and other herbal commodities could be grown with regularity, assuring the perfumers a steady supply to fill the increasing demand for their fragrant concoctions. More refinements enabled these Italians to blend more complex fragrances that became the hallmarks of the perfumers who invented them. When Catherine de Medici married the King of France, these refinements went with her, in the form of her personal perfumer, Rene le Florentin. By this time, the competition among perfumers was so intense that it was not unusual for formulae to be stolen from one perfumer, to be produced and sold as another’s original creation. Catherine ensured that her perfumes remained in the palace by having Rene’s laboratory connected to her apartments by a secret passageway.

During the Renaissance, perfume was only used by royalty, and the very wealthy, partly because they were the only ones that could afford such a luxury, and also as a masking agent to cover body odors due to the sanitary practices of the day. However, with discovery of Grasse as an ideal growing area for flowers, perfume and cosmetics became a major industry and France became its leader, affording even the meanest citizen the ability to afford scent, perhaps, not of the quality royalty used, but something that could make life just a little less dull and a little sweeter. By the 18th century, France was the undisputed leader in perfume design and trade, a position it still holds to this day.

Now, next week I'll be going into the fragrance families so when you go out to shop, you'll know what you're smelling. It's nice to have a signature scent, but it's even better when you know what family it's in. No costly mistakes.

And as an added bonus, I'm going to include a simple Fougere formula that you can mix up if you'd like to try your hand at blending. Don't worry, I'll include the sites you can obtain the materials from. It's one that you can wear all by itself, but, if you have a cologne that is a little flat, you can add a drop or two to spice it up. Great for breathing new life into scents you've gotten tired of.

[TraderJoe]

Awesome post Gary - its clear you put a LOT of work into that. Thanks for sharing it with us :happy088

[Baloosh]

Awesome post Gary - its clear you put a LOT of work into that. Thanks for sharing it with us :happy088


+1

Definitely looking forward to the next installment(s)!!

[Jim]

Hi guys,

I've been asked by Sue to do a tutorial for you on fragrance.

Give me about another week to get it together and I'll have it done. I'll be doing a brief history of perfume and discuss some of the natural and synthetic aroma molecules that have revolutionized the fragrance industry. And as an added extra, I'll include a formula for a basic Fougere base for those who might like to try blending something. Now, this base can be added to any fragrance you have that you'd like to goose up a little bit.

Gary

Whats that!
Excelent post Gary thank you!

[Mama Bear]

its clear you put a LOT of work into that

LMAO... Joe, Gary is a perfumer..... :rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl

Watch out for Jim, Gary hon... he is better known as "Goose Me Please" around some parts... ;-)

Kisses and Thank you Sweet Darling!

[Mottern Man]

Thank you Gary!

Good read! Cant wait until next week.

[moviemaniac]

thanks very much, Gary, it was a lovely and informative read!

[The Scent Fairy]

Stay tuned Jim, and you listeners out there, for the next thrilling episode of Perfume Hunt, or "Do I stink good, or what?" LOL

[Woknblues]

this is a great thing. I know I am totally clueless about this stuff. Great idea, and I am looking forward to the next installment.

[PalmettoB]

Great post Gary. Thanks. We might should clean this up or re-thread it and make this a "sticky!" :cool:

[Queen of Blades]

We might should clean this up or re-thread it and make this a "sticky!" :cool:

Abracadabra!

[_JP_]

I hope that in the next installment the use of ingredients like whale spit and essence of the three striped Madagascar skunk is explained.

[Mama Bear]

It's whale vomit... and don't forget crushed sperm essence of barking syrian cockroach.... :D

[Mottern Man]

It's whale vomit... and don't forget crushed sperm essence of barking syrian cockroach.... :D

ummmmmmmmmm ummmmmmmm

Can you make a soap out of that? :: ::ban

[Mama Bear]

ummmmmmmmmm ummmmmmmm

Can you make a soap out of that? :: ::ban

Of course! :D

[qhsdoitall]

It's whale vomit... and don't forget crushed sperm essence of barking syrian cockroach.... :D

I am most certainly not volunteering to collect ingredients for you. Besides how the heck do you uh...uh milk a barking syrian cockroach?:rofl

[xChris]

Ambergris (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ambergris) -- interesting name, but wierd place of origin.

[Mama Bear]

ummmmmmmmmm ummmmmmmm

Can you make a soap out of that? :: ::ban

Will, do you know how much you love musk... here is more information than you probably wanted... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musk

Bear in mind that you are in love with the synthetic version of this tho....

Sue, who is wondering if Will will ever talk to her again...

Gary!! Where are you!! I need help!:o :o :o

[Michael]

barking syrian cockroach.... :D

They're supposed to BARK?! :eek: Mine don't! :(

[Mama Bear]

You might have the version from Persia... they meow... :D

[Mottern Man]

Mama,

Nothing says being a man like gutting your own kill! Musk Duck huh? I bet Jim would love some of that in a shaving soap.

Send me some Musk EO. :D

[Hawkeye5]

This is something I need. I've never really explored many scents until just recently and would like to learn more.

[teenagefrank]

Excellent article looking forward to Fougere formula::

[Stubble]

Wonderful, I think all of us will find these articles very informative and interesting, at least I will...............thanks for your efforts.