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How to Make DIY Perfume + Solid Perfume Recipe

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DIY Perfume

I love perfume, I’ve worn it for as long as I can remember.  Well, come to find out, like everything else, it’s toxic.  Out of all the beauty products we wear on a daily basis, perfume is the most toxic!  Artificial fragrances have all kinds of side effects.  The big one is hormone disruption!  Smelling good on the outside while your hormones are making you a raging you know what on the inside is no longer going to work. Let’s learn how to make DIY perfume!

After having my 2nd baby, my hormones don’t need any help being out of balance!  Upon doing research, making perfume is easy.  BUT-I will warn you before you read on, it takes 6 weeks to fully mature.  You can cheat and use it within 48 hours, but you will not have as good of a fragrance.  If you choose to wait the 6 weeks, you CAN NOT open your perfume.  The oils work together to form a scent that is at it’s best after 6 weeks.  So, why don’t we make real DIY perfume AND I’ll include a recipe for solid perfume that we can use immediately for instant gratification!

DIY Perfume

DIY Perfume

3 tsp. Jojoba Oil (you could also use Sweet Almond oil)

2 TBSP. Vodka (the higher quality the less odor) or Witch Hazel (find it HERE)

1 TBSP. Distilled Water

70 drops of Essential oils

Directions:

  1. Add Oil
  2. Add 27 drops of Base Note
  3. Add 25 drops of Middle Note
  4. Add 18 drops of Top Note
  5. Add Vodka
  6. Shake bottle for 2 minutes
  7. Let set for 48 hours-6 weeks
  8. Add water and shake
OR-if you are not comfortable using alcohol you can substitute the alcohol for witch hazel.

*Always add your base note first, then middle note, and last top note.  If you don’t, the fragrance will actually be different.  Always take notes and write down exactly what you do in case you come up with something that you love and will need to make more of!*

A little background about Essential Oils and Perfume making-

The Frenchman, Piesse classified the scents of essential oils in the 19th century according to musical scales, and this is where the top, middle and base notes came from.

Typically top notes make up 15 – 25% of the blend. Middle notes make up 30 – 40% of the blend. Base notes make up 45 – 55% of the blend.  How poetic, huh?  Your perfume is like a musical chord!  All the oils should “harmonize” together.  I love that!

DIY Perfume

Top notes

Top notes tend to evaporate very fast and normally have anti-viral properties.

They tend to be light, fresh and uplifting.  Top notes give the first impression of a perfume but usually don’t last long.

  • Basil
  • Bergamot
  • Cinnamon
  • Clary Sage
  • Coriander
  • Eucalyptus
  • Grapefruit
  • Lemon
  • Lemongrass
  • Lime
  • Orange
  • Peppermint
  • Spearmint
  • Tea Tree
  • Thyme

Middle notes

Middle notes typically have a balancing effect on the perfume.  They are the body of the scent.

The smells of middle notes are not always immediately evident and may take a couple of minutes to come into their own right.  They are normally warm and soft fragrances.

  • Black Pepper
  • Cardamom
  • Chamomile
  • Cypress
  • Fennel
  • Geranium
  • Juniper
  • Lavender
  • Marjoram
  • Melissa
  • Myrtle
  • Nutmeg
  • Palma Rosa
  • Pine
  • Rosemary

Base notes

The base notes tend to be heavy.  They will evolve over time and will slow down the evaporation of the top notes.  They are rich and relaxing and anchor the perfume while their scent lingers.

  • Cassia
  • Cedarwood
  • Cinnamon
  • Clove
  • Frankincense
  • Ginger
  • Jasmine
  • Myrrh
  • Patchouli
  • Rose
  • Rosewood
  • Sandalwood
  • Vanilla
  • Vetiver
  • Ylang Ylang

How interesting was that?!  Get creative and mix oils that make sense to your senses!  You are going to have to takes some risks here because we can’t know for sure how it will blend and mature over those 6 weeks.

My favorite trio is TOP NOTE-Lemon MIDDLE NOTE-Lavender and BASE NOTE-Sandalwood.  Absolutely heavenly to my nose!

I used THIS perfume bottle.  You could also use roll on bottles!  I found THESE that are so cute!

Be sure to use quality essential oils that are PURE and undiluted.  This is imperative to a quality, long lasting perfume.  I suggest Mountain Rose Herb essential oils or Plant Therapy Essential Oils.

 

 “A woman’s perfume tells more about her than her handwriting. ”
― Christian Dior

As promised, there is a simple recipe for solid perfume.  It’s just like making a salve.  I made mine because it will be great to take on vacations or keep in my purse.  No worries of spills and when I need a boost of scent or a mini aromatherapy session it’s right there!

DIY Perfume

 

Solid DIY Perfume

Directions:

  1. Fill a medium pot 1/2 way full with water.
  2. Place a glass pyrex cup in the water.
  3. Add oil and beeswax.
  4. Once beeswax is completely melted, remove from heat and add essential oils.
  5. Pour into containers.
  6. Allow to cool completely before use.

This recipe makes 1 ounce.  Find a 1 oz. tin HERE.

Don’t forget, this would make a creative gift for friends and family!

xx, Jenni

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Perfume DIY

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Jennifer Phillips

Jennifer Phillips

Jennifer Phillips worked as a licensed aesthetician for over 8 years before creating the green beauty blog, Jenni Raincloud and her natural skin care line, J. Raincloud Organics. Jennifer has been blogging full time for 9 years and loves to gain and share knowledge on how to achieve beautiful skin the natural way.

29 thoughts on “How to Make DIY Perfume + Solid Perfume Recipe”

    1. Brenda-Hi! Lavender mixes well with Rosemary and/or Bergamot. Tea Tree is a bit medicinal but can be mixed with lavender, lemon and Frankincense for a really fresh scent. Bergamot and Lemon are really light and happy. Ylang Ylang is really sweet and girlie-you can tart it up with lemon and/or Lavender. Jasmine is way too sweet and flowery for me but most people love it as a perfume! Hope this helped!

  1. Very interesting! Thanks so much for sharing this. I do have one question about cinnamon being listed as both a top note and a base note. Can you please clarify this? Love following your posts! Thanks again 🙂

    1. Kathy, I got my info. from a source on the internet. It could have been a typo on their part but I can’t be sure. To me, cinnamon would be more of a base note then top note. I found another source for classifying essential oils and they put cinnamon as a middle note!

  2. Thank you for the great post! I would love to experiment with this in the coming year. What bottle storage do you use for the final product (not the solid perfume, but the one with the vodka)?

      1. Perfect. Can’t wait to try! I love your recipes. Do you forsee a book in your future? Or can you recommend a book that has similar recipes? I like the idea of carrier oils, castiile soap, beeswax, essential oils, etc. While I love natural DYI skincare, I am not into using fresh fruits, yogurt, etc.

        1. Diane-I am the same way-I like to make things that will last a bit longer then a hot second! I do see a book in my future-not sure when. I unfortunately don’t know of a book that has recipes like mine. I do know Mommypotamus has an e-book with beauty recipes. You can find it easily when you go to her site. Thanks!

      1. I really love the popular Marc Jacobs perfumes (Dot, Honey, Daisy). I think in Sephora, it tells you the base, middle, and top notes but I’m not sure and wouldn’t know how to use that information (match it to essential oils?) I hope you do a post on that it would be amazing! Thanks so much!

  3. I love everything about this post! Thank you. It’s super helpful to me especially since a friend was just asking me how to DIY your own perfume the other night. 😀

    Just one question: What’s the reason for putting the liquid perfume through a coffee filter before bottling it?

    THANKS!

  4. Hi, Jenni! Quick question: Have you ever blended more than one each of top, middle, and base notes? My favorite perfume says it contains cinnamon, clove, quince, magnolia, mahogany, amber, and cognac; now, who knows what they actually put in it, but that’s more than three scents!

    Love these instructions; I’ve read them so much I’m dreaming about them, and I haven’t starting mixing perfumes yet!

    Laine

    1. Laine-I think you can do whatever smells good to you. I rarely follow rules-lol! There’s no right or wrong. I just wanted to post what I had researched as a guideline. Good luck!

  5. I love your blog. Such great information. I am looking for Jasmine essential oil and I’m having trouble finding it. Spark Naturals doesn’t have it, is there another brand you trust?

  6. Hi Jenni! I am super excited about trying this:) I do have a question — I followed the steps, and have been letting it sit for a while. The vodka and oil has separated — is that supposed to happen? Thanks!

  7. Hi Jenni….that is a wonderful post,eager to try it as soon as possible…. just a doubt….do we need to add any kind of preservatives for this method as we’re adding water or is it self preserving?

    1. Manju-There is such a high amount of essential oils which are antibacterial/antifungal plus alcohol so I don’t worry about it. Plus, I get more concerned about mold and bacteria when we are rubbing a product on our skin.

  8. Perfume toxic! I’veblendedeo’s quite oftenwhen I was soapmaking.. Here is how I used to test blends. Dip a wooden toothpick in each eo and put them all in a small glass bottle for a day or two. It’s not a mature blend but it does give you an idea if anone eo is overpowering the others or is barely there.
    Here is what I have on hand and they seem to like each other. Top Bergamot/basil Middle Geranium Base-Patchouli/Cedarwood.
    The basil is an odd one and reminds me of black licorice which I don’t even like but I just a drop or two adds an unusual element that is pleasing to my nose at least.

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