The Fragrance Expansion: Exploring The World Of Scents

The global fragrance market is huge, with several hundred new perfumes released each year. The market is expected to reach a value of $44.52 billion by 2033, growing at a rate of 4.9% between 2024 and 2033. With so many fragrances available, it can be hard to keep track of them all, and people often stick to a 'signature scent'. However, it is possible to expand your 'fragrance wardrobe' by choosing different fragrances for different seasons, occasions, or moods.

Perfumes are made from organic compounds that produce a distinct smell, and they are typically classified into five main groups based on their concentration of aromatic compounds. The highest concentration is parfum or extrait, which tends to be the most expensive and longest-lasting. The lowest concentration is eau fraiche, which is diluted with water rather than alcohol or oil.

It is important to store fragrances correctly to prevent them from spoiling. Keeping them in a cool, dark place, such as a fridge or freezer, can help to prolong their life. However, fragrances will eventually expire, and oxidation can cause them to develop a sour, acidic, or metallic smell.

How to expand your fragrance wardrobe

Expanding your fragrance wardrobe is like putting together a capsule wardrobe. You need to know what suits you, what works for specific roles in your life, and then the 'wild card' pieces that express your inner soul. Here are some tips to help you expand your fragrance collection:

Know your basics

Just like a great fashion basic such as a white shirt, one solitary perfume is unlikely to express every facet of your personality. Perfume should be fun – a hushed whisper of intriguing hints at your personality rather than a name tag sewn to a uniform. Jeans and a white shirt might not be deemed acceptable for a high-powered meeting or a glitzy party, so why should your fragrance be any different?

Do your research

You don't need to be a fragrance expert to start expanding your fragrance wardrobe. Try typing the name of a perfume you love into a fragrance finder tool – it will suggest others to try. You can also research the perfumers (or 'noses') behind the fragrances you like – just like fashion designers have a signature cut, many perfumers stamp their mark in the scents they create.

Keep an open mind

Never imagine that you know exactly which notes you love and hate. Our tastes and preferences change over time, and our skin's acid mantle and hormone levels can alter our body chemistry, so something you disliked in the past may resonate with you now. For many years, I laboured under the misapprehension that I simply could not abide rose in any form; but several of my favourites contain rose – it all depends on the quality, quantity, and how it's used.

Try something new

When trying something completely new, allow yourself to fall under the spell of the smell alone, without heeding the notes. Focus on how it makes you feel, the images it conjures, and the outfits, materials, colours, and textures it brings to mind.

Host a fragrance party

Throw a 'Bring a Bottle' perfume garden party for your friends, and get everyone to bring fragrances – especially those languishing on dusty shelves – and a number of samples for you all to smell. Try them, swap them, critique them – be brave and surprise yourselves!

Know how many fragrances to own

How many perfumes should you have? As many as you like! Most people generally rotate between three and five scents for the year or part of it, but there is no strict rule about such things. The point is not to accumulate a trunk-load of bottles that will expire before you have used them all up (the shelf life for most fragrances is three to six months).

Know when to wear your fragrances

Consider how and where you wear fragrances. If you tend to head from the office to drinks, look for options that layer well together (such as a soft rose for the day and a deeper musk for the night). If you want to reserve one fragrance for special occasions, seek out something that captures the mood for you (such as dry, amber-y notes, incenses, and spices that give more character and leave an impression). If workouts are an integral part of your daily routine, you might want to only subtly scent your skin with an eau de toilette or essential oil that leaves a lighter trail than a traditional, more concentrated eau de parfum.

Invest in classics

Like tailored white shirts and little black dresses, there are some fragrance staples that are timeless, and can form the backbone of any perfume wardrobe. Among them are classic citrus colognes, white floral tuberose, airy roses, cedar and woody blends, and spicy orientals.

Store your fragrances correctly

Once you have your wardrobe assembled, ensure it stays in peak condition. That means storing bottles away from direct heat and light. Anything you want to preserve – or simply take a break from – can be tucked away in the fridge.

Tips to make your fragrance last longer

It can be frustrating when your perfume or cologne disappears within a few hours of applying it. Here are some tips to make your fragrance last longer:

Choose the right product

Look for fragrances with a high concentration of perfume oil, such as "extrait de parfum" or eau de parfum. These tend to have a more complex scent profile and longer wear time compared to lighter options like eau de toilette.

Apply to pulse points

Apply your fragrance to pulse points like the wrists, neck, inside of elbows, back of the knees, and behind the ears. These areas emit warmth, helping the fragrance slowly diffuse throughout the day.

Moisturise your skin

Apply your fragrance directly to damp skin right after showering, as wet skin holds onto oils better than dry skin. If you're not fresh out of the shower, apply a base like Vaseline, coconut oil, or an unscented lotion to your skin first, then layer your fragrance on top. Moisturised skin holds onto scent molecules better than dry skin.

Avoid rubbing your wrists

Resist the urge to rub your wrists together after applying perfume, as this can damage the fragrance molecules and cause the scent to break down faster.

Spritz your hairbrush

Instead of spraying perfume directly onto your hair (which can dry out your strands), lightly spritz your hairbrush with the fragrance. This will leave behind the fragrance oils while avoiding the drying effect of the perfume's alcohol.

Store correctly

How you care for your fragrance matters. Keep it in a cool, dark, and dry place. Avoid storing it in areas that are too warm or damp, and don't expose the bottle to excessive amounts of light, as this can damage the perfume's components and weaken the scent.

Fragrance types and strengths

There are several types of fragrances, also known as perfume types, which are determined by their scent families. These include:

• Fresh fragrances, which are typically made up of citrus, water, and green notes. Citrus-based fragrances often contain lemon, mandarin, and bergamot, while water fragrances use aquatic notes like sea spray. Fresh green fragrances are herbal and leafy, with notes of lavender, rosemary, or basil.
• Floral fragrances are one of the most popular and broadest families. They include any fragrance with a sweet and flowery scent, such as roses, jasmine, lilies, and peonies. These can range from light and delicate to complex and intense.
• Oriental fragrances are warm, sweet, and spicy. This luxurious family includes floral oriental, soft oriental, and woody oriental fragrances. They often contain interesting notes like cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla, jasmine, orchid, and orange blossom.
• Woody fragrances are warm and mysterious, often used in aftershaves. They use wood-based scents like cedarwood, sandalwood, vetiver, and amber. Woody fragrances are split into mossy woods, with an earthy and sweet undertone, and dry woods, which have a smoky and leathery smell.

The strength of a fragrance, also known as its concentration, refers to the amount of perfume oil it contains. A higher concentration means the fragrance is purer, lasts longer, and is more expensive. The different types of fragrance strengths include:

• Parfum, which has a concentration of perfume oils between 20-40%. It is the strongest type, with the highest purity and longest staying power, usually lasting around six to eight hours.
• Eau de Parfum (EDP), with a concentration of 15-20% perfume oil. It is a popular choice, often used for evening fragrances, and typically lasts around four to five hours.
• Eau de Toilette (EDT), containing 5-15% perfume oil. These fragrances often provide a quick burst of beautiful smells and then fade, lasting around three to four hours on average.
• Eau de Cologne (EDC), with a lower concentration of 2-5% perfume oil. Its staying power is shorter, lasting for approximately two hours.
• Eau Fraiche, the lightest concentration with only 1-3% perfume oil. It is perfect for those who want a subtle, delicate fragrance, lasting a couple of hours at best.

Perfume manufacturing process

The process of manufacturing perfume involves several steps, from the collection of raw materials to the final quality control stage.

Firstly, the collection stage involves obtaining initial ingredients from various plant substances and fatty extracts of animal products. This is followed by the extraction process, where the most common method is distillation. In steam or dry distillation, the material is heated to high temperatures and condensed into gas to release essential oils, which are then cooled and liquefied. Water distillation is a similar process but is more effective for delicate materials, where the plant material is placed into boiling water. Solvent extraction is another method, where the material is added to a solvent to form a waxy aromatic compound that is then mixed with alcohol to release the essential oils. This traditional method is, however, becoming less common due to its high cost and time consumption. Other extraction methods include expression, maceration, and enfleurage, each with its own unique process.

The next step is blending, where oils are combined according to a specific formula and mixed with alcohol. The volume of alcohol used depends on the intended type of perfume. This blending process can take months to years to achieve the desired scent. Ageing is a crucial step, allowing the selected chemicals to continue blending and modifying the scent.

Some perfumes are also synthetically manufactured in laboratories, which can be more challenging in terms of achieving the desired scent but bypass the need for natural ingredients.

The final stage is quality control, where the perfume is checked to ensure it meets the required standards.

Adverse effects of perfume

The adverse effects of perfume are numerous, and they can impact both your health and the environment.

Perfumes contain a mix of chemicals, often undisclosed by the manufacturer, that can be harmful to human health. These chemicals can enter the body through inhalation, skin absorption, or ingestion, and cause a range of issues. Some common adverse health effects include:

• Neurological problems: Fragrances can affect the central nervous system and the brain, with symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, and migraines. Animal studies have also linked certain fragrance chemicals to reduced neurological pathways in the brain.
• Respiratory issues: Fragrances can induce severe reactions in individuals with asthma, even at low concentrations. Toxic ingredients in perfumes can irritate the respiratory tract, causing coughing, inflammation, and difficulty breathing.
• Endocrine disruption: Fragrance chemicals, especially synthetic musks and phthalates, can disrupt the body's natural hormone balance and negatively affect reproductive health and fertility. Phthalates have been linked to abnormal male reproductive development and sperm damage, while high levels of musk ketone and musk xylene have been associated with gynecological issues like infertility and ovarian failure in women.
• Cancer risk: Fragrances often contain carcinogens, such as parabens, formaldehyde, benzene, and styrene. Multiple studies have linked these chemicals to breast cancer.
• Allergies: Fragrance allergies affect up to 11% of the global population. Repeated exposure to fragrances can lead to the development of allergies, and cross-sensitization can also occur, where exposure to one substance can cause an allergic reaction to another.
• Contact dermatitis: Fragrances are a leading cause of cosmetic contact dermatitis, a skin condition that causes swelling, itching, and redness.

In addition to the health risks, fragrances also have a negative impact on the environment. Fragrance-containing products emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the air, contributing to air pollution and public health issues. These compounds are absorbed by the ocean, soil, and greenery, causing build-up in aquatic ecosystems and disrupting the food chain.

To minimize the potential risks associated with fragrances, it is important to read labels and choose products that disclose all ingredients. Opting for fragrance-free or natural, non-toxic alternatives can help reduce exposure to harmful chemicals and minimize environmental impact.

Frequently asked questions