A SCENT of HISTORY

Perfume.  When chosen well, is a woman's calling card, her silent partner, and the one thing that will linger on long after she's left the room.  For thousands of years, the works of writers, poets, and musicians alike has been inspired by women around the globe, bathed in scented concoctions in an effort to make themselves feel irresistible, alluring, romantic, fascinating, and exotic.  Some women will spend a lifetime known by one signature scent, while others will indulge in perfumes to go along with every occasion, outfit, or mood.  Perfume is still a product of desire and luxury. It expresses the personality, attitude and even mood of people and contributes to the general well-being.

         The modern female applies fragrance to enhance her natural chemistry.  Not so back in the 14th and 15th century.  Afforded by royals and wealthier families, perfume served to hide insufficient hygiene.  Due to the availability of more raw materials and the logistically good location, the little town of Grasse on the French Rivera developed into the hub of the perfume industry during the 18th century and is still famous for the design of the most popular fragrances.  Over time, the use of perfume has become more and more common and affordable. 

         Fragrances today are grouped into four different notes to classify a scent professionally:  floral, oriental, woody and fresh notes and these notes are generated not only from flowers and spices, but also animal and synthetic sources.  Precise ingredients of individual perfumes have always been kept secret, most composers of perfumes choose similar ingredients. However, thanks to different proportions the results are always different and not comparable.  Perfumes contain ingredients like water, alcohol, aroma oils and chemicals.
         The aroma or fragrance of any perfume is due to the presence of natural essential oils that have been extracted from various plants and even fruits.  The more expensive the perfume, the higher quality of oils.  Lavender oil and tea tree oil, derived from plants are some of the most favored essential oils used to make a perfume. Some other commonly used oils include a blend of rosemary oil, peppermint oil and spearmint oil that are equally capable of producing a heavenly aroma.  Plant sources also provide natural perfume ingredients. Roots, twigs, seeds, wood and flowers are some of the plant sources, from which fragrant oils are derived.
         Synthetic chemicals are used by the industry to imitate the aroma of natural ingredients.  The best option is to buy a natural perfume, as it will be free of dangerous synthetic chemicals which may react to contact with human skin. Following are the chemicals found in some perfumes and are considered to be harmful:   Benzyl Alcohol, Ethyl acetate, Benzaldehyde, Formaldehyde, and Camphor.  The biggest "new thing" in perfume today is global availability of ingredients.  Flowers indigenous to exotic lands can be easily obtained, as well as Eastern spices, South Pacific flowers, North American musk, and Indian woods.  Of course, much of this happens at the lab level, meaning in the form of synthetics. This helps preserve natural resources and makes perfume quality more uniform. 
           Animal extracts also contribute in supplying a unique fragrance to a perfume.  The popular civet or musk fragrance is actually derived from animal sources.  The following animal sources help to make a good scent:  Honeycomb, Ambergris, and Castoreum.  Many different perfume brands use synthetic chemicals instead of animal based products to mimic the musk fragrance. This change came about because of a raised awareness among consumers regarding animal welfare.
        As much as perfume relies on ancient ingredients, including plants (lavender), spices (cinnamon, cloves), flowers (roses, gardenias, honeysuckle, lilies) and fruits (orange, lemon, peach), it also relies on new ingredients.  An interesting new wrinkle in the perfume world occurred in the 1920s with the advent of a chemical substance called aldehyde which is a synthetic odor molecule.  It was artificial and not meant to mimic anything natural. It has a distinctive "sparkly" quality to it and is often mixed with florals. Probably the best known aldehyde scent in the world is the perennial favorite, Chanel No. 5.
         When you finally find the perfect scent, and that will be no small task since everyone including fashion designers, singers, movie stars, and reality TV bottom feeders have created a fragrance, you might want to make sure that you can keep it smelling the same as the day you purchased it.  Follow these simple tips to keep your perfume fresh till the very last drop:  do not buy testers, used, or pre-opened perfumes and always keep perfumes tightly sealed in the original container until you want to open it for the first time.  Lastly, keep perfume out of heat and bright lights, and store in a dry environment. 
COOL WATERS         TEA ROSE      CK ONE       JUST ME PARIS HILTON      LIZ SPORT        SHISEIDO        HANAE MORI          DUNE
     RED DOOR          PLEASURE          SHALIMAR            BLACK PEARLS          BABY PHAT GODDESS         BURBERRY BRIT
HERRERA            MGM GRAND            FOREVER ELIZABETH              GLOW              RED JEANS            CURIOUS              OPIUM
     WHITE DIAMONDS              CHLOE                GIVENCHY           MACKIE           FIDJI             ROSES ROSES             BVLGARI