Creating A Leather Scent: A Guide To Making Cologne

Leather cologne is a unique, undefinable scent that is alluring and quietly animalistic. It is a combination of essences and aroma materials that evoke the smell of leather. While there is no actual leather essence available, perfumers use a blend of ingredients such as quinolines, castoreum, birch tar, cade oil, labdanum, and saffraleine to create a leather note. The process of creating a leather cologne involves formulating a leather accord, which can be done in several ways, such as using natural ingredients or synthetic accords. The final product is a complex and nuanced fragrance that stands out from other scent families due to its paradoxical nature, blending masculine and feminine, wild and gentle, and potent and fragile aspects.

Leather cologne can be made using a combination of essences and aroma materials such as quinolines, castoreum, birch tar, cade oil, labdanum, and saffraleine

Quinolines are a family of aromachemicals with a pungent, tar-like odour. They were first used in the production of leathery notes in perfumery in the 1880s, revolutionising the creation of leather fragrances. The chemical name of the ingredient primarily used from the quinolines groups is 4-(2-methylpropyl) quinoline, commonly referred to as isobutyl quinoline. It is a colourless to pale yellow liquid, used in a dilution of 1.00% solution or less, and has a fiercely potent odour profile described as earthy, rooty, and nutty. Isobutyl quinoline also has ambery, woody, and tobacco-like undertones. Its character can be well perceived in fragrances such as Caron's Tabac Blond, Lanvin's Scandal, and Piguet's Bandit.

Castoreum is a natural secretion from the glands of beavers, with an intense, repulsive odour. When highly diluted, it can provide a leathery scent to fine perfumery. It is a by-product of the fur industry and has been prized in perfumery for its tremendous fixative powers and its deeply animalic edge with a dry quality that smells like real leather.

Birch tar is a natural material used for recreating the smell of leather. It has an intensely wintergreen and tar-like odour and has been used in the past in Cuir de Russie-type scents. The oil is widely used in suede and leather tannery in Russia, and the essence obtained from birch buds is used for hair tonics and some cosmetic products.

Cade oil is obtained from juniper trees, which produce dark viscous oil (cade) upon getting burned. This oil possesses a smoky aroma that is reminiscent of campfires in forests. It was also used in Cuir de Russie-type scents in the past along with birch tar. It has anti-mould properties, which is why it is a prime material for binding books.

Labdanum is a leathery essence obtained from the cistus plant. It is used in cases where a smokier and ambery note is required. It can be found in perfumes such as Caron Tabac Blond, Serge Lutens Cuir Mauresque, and Ava Luxe Madame X.

Saffraleine is an aromachemical found in isolates of saffron. It has an interesting smell, a combination of shoe polish, black cherry, and air conditioning refrigerating fluid. It can add a leathery tinge to perfumes.

By using different combinations and dilutions of these essences and aroma materials, perfumers can create unique leather colognes.

Leather fragrances can be categorised into three types: Spanish musky, animalic type, Russian butch tar type, and soft suede type

The Spanish "musky, animalic" type includes fragrances such as Cuir Mauresque by Lutens, Parfum d'Empire Cuir Ottoman, Ramon Monegal Mon Cuir, and Bottega Veneta. These scents are characterised by their warm, rich, and musky notes, reminiscent of newly tanned leather. Perfumers often use a combination of natural and synthetic ingredients, including labdanum, birch tar, castoreum, and cade oil, to create this scent profile.

The Russian "butch tar" type includes fragrances such as Lonestar Memories by Tauer, Le Labo Patchouli 24, and Parfums Retro Grand Cuir. These fragrances are typically bolder and smokier, with notes of tar and birch, reminiscent of cured hides and leather goods.

The soft "suede" type is more of an oriental spin with vanillic, ambery, and fruity notes. Examples include Daim Blond by Lutens, Boxeuses by Lutens, Keiko Mecheri Fleur de Peau, Guerlain Cuir Beluga, Ramon Monegal Cuirelle, and Tuscan Leather by Tom Ford. These fragrances are softer and sweeter, often with a vanilla base, creating a more subtle and sensual leather scent.

Leather fragrances are versatile and can be blended with a variety of other notes to create unique and complex perfumes. They are commonly used as base notes, providing a lasting and grounding effect for other fragrance notes to build upon.

The leather note in fragrances is often created using synthetic accords or natural ingredients like birch tar, castoreum, styrax, oud, labdanum, or quinolines

The leather note in fragrances is often created using synthetic accords or natural ingredients. Synthetic accords include isoquinolines, aldehydes, aromachemicals, and isobutyl quinoline. Natural ingredients include birch tar, castoreum, styrax, oud, labdanum, quinolines, cade oil, saffraleine, and civet.

Birch tar is a common ingredient used to create the leather note. It can evoke the polish daubed on Russian military boots, giving off a bracing, smoky scent. Another way to create the leather note is by using castoreum, a natural ingredient derived from the North American beaver, which has a leathery and animalic scent without any faecal undertones. Styrax, a natural ingredient that gives off olive oil, oud, and suede notes, is also used to create the leather note.

Other natural ingredients that can be used to create the leather note include oud, labdanum, quinolines, and cade oil. Labdanum, a resin produced by the rockrose bush, has a strong, sweet, and musky scent that can add depth to leather fragrances. Quinolines are harsh, tar-like chemicals that imitate the sharp pungency of cured animal hides. Cade oil, derived from the juniper tree, has a smoky scent that can add depth to leather fragrances.

Creating a leather fragrance involves blending various ingredients in specific proportions to achieve the desired scent profile. For example, a simple brown leather accord can be created using Suederal, Labdanum, Styrax, Shangralide, and Exaltolide. Experimentation and tweaking are often necessary to perfect the fragrance.

Leather cologne can be customised by choosing up to five additional scents: one more base note, two mid notes, and two top notes

For the base note, you could opt for something deep and rich, like musk or woody notes. Examples include patchouli, vetiver, and sandalwood.

For the two mid notes, you have more flexibility as these notes tend to be well-rounded and pleasant. Floral notes like jasmine, rose, and ylang-ylang are popular choices. You could also go for something with an herbal aroma, such as rosemary or thyme.

Finally, the top notes are the first impression of your cologne, so choose something fresh and sharp. Citrus oils like bergamot, lemon, or tangerine are great options.

When blending your customised leather cologne, remember that generally, mid notes make up about 50-75% of the blend, top notes make up about 20-40%, and base notes make up about 5-10%.

The history of leather fragrances dates back to ancient civilisations, with the Romans using mineral tanning and the Arabs using cow dung and urine to tan hides

The scented history of leather truly began to develop in the 16th century when tanners scented chamois with flower and herb essences, finishing the process by smearing the leather with civet and musk. This was known as Peau d'Espagne (Spanish Skin). The tradition of scented gloves was introduced to the French court by Catherine de' Medici, who loved fashionable gloves but not their smell. A tanner named Galimard offered her scented leather gloves, creating a popular new industry.

The first officially recorded "leather fragrance" is supposed to be Royal English Leather (1751) by Creed, which was created for King George III, who loved the scent of his gloves so much that he commissioned a body product in the same fragrance. However, by Georgian times, the fashion for scented gloves was waning, and both men and women favoured Eau de Cologne.

The invention of quinoline in 1880, a harsh tar-like chemical that imitates the pungency of cured animal hides, led to a new style of leather fragrance. This resulted in the trend for Cuir de Russie (Russian Leather) fragrances, with E.Rimmel offering one such fragrance in 1886, and Guerlain also proposing one in the same period. Legend has it that Cuir de Russie was born when a Cossack warrior, riding across the Russian steppe, rubbed his leather boots with birch bark to waterproof them.

Leather fragrances can be classified into different groups: true leathers, leathers with floral tones like iris or violet, and tobacco leathers. In modern perfumes, suede is another leather note that is obtained with synthetic ingredients.

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