If you want to create something uniquely yours, why not make your own perfume? It's surprisingly easy and doesn't require more than a few ingredients—most of which you already have in your home!

This article guides you through a step-by-step process on how to make perfume. Once you've created your first bottle, you'll never have to buy store-bought perfume ever again!

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Perfume production is more than just combining ingredients together. Master perfumers spend decades perfecting designer fragrances that don't change over time. Luckily, they've left their notes—no pun intended—for us to copy. 

When you spray perfume onto your skin, the fragrance you smell is called a "note." They're categorized into three sections: top notes, heart (or middle) notes, and base (or bottom) notes. 

Top notes shape a perfume's first impression. They're the first scent you detect after spraying a perfume. Top notes are fresh, light, and fleeting; dominant for only about 15 minutes. 

Common top notes include citrus scents like orange, lime, and lemon; and light floral notes like rose, jasmine, and lavender.

Heart notes, as the name suggests, are the "heart" of the fragrance. They constitute about 50% of the perfume's total scent and tend to last anywhere between 20 to 60 minutes. Heart notes appear as soon as top notes begin to dissipate. 

Examples of heart notes include clove, nutmeg, lemongrass, ylang-ylang, and other full-bodied and strongly aromatic scents. 

Base notes form the fragrance's foundation. They're extremely heavy, rich, and syrupy; think amber, musk, vanilla, and cedarwood. These scents sink on the wearer's skin and linger for hours and sometimes days.

The Science Behind Perfumes

Now that we have the basics out of the way, it's time to make your perfume! 

Creating an unforgettable scent starts with high-quality, high-impact ingredients. As much as possible, buy the below products from a reliable source. Here are the items you'll need: 

Unscented carrier oil (sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, sunflower oil, etc) 

Your chosen scents in the form of essential oils, infused oils, or fragrance oils 

190-proof alcohol (or the highest you can find) 

In a glass or spray bottle, carefully pour about a quarter of a cup of alcohol and a teaspoon of carrier oil. 

Then, gradually add approximately 30 drops of three or four of your preferred scents into the alcohol/oil mixture. Your perfume must contain roughly a ratio of 30% top, 50% heart, and 20% base. 

After every drop you add, swirl and smell the liquid. Write down the number of drops you’ve added so you can adjust the recipe when needed. Feel free to increase or decrease the amount of essential/fragrance oil; there’s no real recipe here, so trust your nose!

Once done, shake the bottle for a couple of minutes until the mixture is thoroughly combined. 

Place the mixture inside your refrigerator and allow it to rest anywhere between 48 hours to six weeks. The longer it sits, the stronger the scent will be. Shake the bottle once every week so the molecules won’t separate. 

When the desired time is up, open the bottle and give it a little sniff. The aging process changes the mixture's overall scent, so if the scent isn’t to your liking, go ahead and add several more drops of your preferred essential/fragrance oil. 

If you added anything to the existing mix, leave it to rest once again.  

Once the fragrance is ready, dilute the mixture with two to three tablespoons of distilled or spring water. If you want to preserve the fragrance even more, add about five drops of glycerine. 

Gently swirl the mixture until it's fully combined. 

With the help of a funnel, pour the mixture into your perfume bottle. The darker the bottle, the longer the scent will keep. If you're using a clear bottle, we recommend covering it up with wrapping paper so the scent won't degrade. 

If you want to be extra fancy, mix in glitter or a dried flower petal or two into the liquid. Then, label your creation using your own unique brand, and voilà! Just like that, you've made your very own perfume. 

As long as you store the bottle away from direct sunlight and heat, the scent will last you a few months.


Making Your Own Perfume at Home: 5 Easy Steps

Here are some of our favorite perfume blends you can try and experiment with: 

5 drops of chamomile or lavender essential oil

5 Perfume Blends To Try

Nothing beats the scent of a good perfume. Making your own perfume is like making a song—you need the right combination of notes for it to work! 

When it comes to creating your own fragrance, there's no single ‘right’ recipe. After all, there are virtually infinite scents and fragrances to choose from, each with its own distinctive allure.

The steps above merely serve as a beginner’s guideline, so you can tweak it however you like. 

Have fun and experiment with your scents. Let your creativity (and nose) take the reins. Who knows, maybe you'll be the next Yves Saint Laurent or Marc Jacobs!

How to Make Perfume (Plus 5 Blends You Should Try!)

The Science Behind Perfumes

Making Your Own Perfume at Home: 5 Easy Steps

5 Perfume Blends To Try

Wrap Up

How to Make Perfume (Plus 5 Blends You Should Try!)

The Science Behind Perfumes

Making Your Own Perfume at Home: 5 Easy Steps

5 Perfume Blends To Try

Wrap Up

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