Essential Oils & Perfumes Part III - Suggested ...

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Essential Oils & Perfumes Part III - Suggested Essential Oil Blends

Blends:

Firstly a word of caution - there are some imitation aromatherapy products on the market which may contain one or two oils. Even the "scientific community" demands that we try to limit the product to one oil in clinical trials as most still have the belief that one active should do the job. While these may have some limited effect, for the complete action we recommend careful selection of a blend of many oils - the results are outstanding.


Suggested Essential Oil Blends:

The general usage levels are 1 to 3% in the oil or cream, although higher levels can be used depending on the seriousness of the complaint.

Aches & Pains

Ginger, Rosemary & Lavender in a massage base

Acne

Rosemary, Geranium & Juniper (stimulate the lymphatic system), Carrot, Neroli, Sandalwood & Lavender (to minimize scarring), Hypericum & Calendula (to enhance wound healing and as an anti-inflammatory), usually in a predominantly Jojoba Oil base with Wheatgerm Oil.

Alopecia

Provided the scalp is in good condition stimulation of hair follicles can be achieved by Cedarwood & Rosemary

Anorexia

As the fear, anxiety & weight loss can be rapid it can be delayed by a blend of Lime, Geranium, Lemongrass & Cardamon (inhaled). Cease if nausea occurs.

Antiseptic

Tea Tree (40%), Eucalyptus (40%), Lavender (15%), & Lemon (5%)

Anxiety & Fear

Neroli (60%), Melissa (20%) & Bergamot (20%)

Circulation Cinnamon Bark, Clove Bud, Ginger, Black Pepper and Rosemary for their rubifectant properties or Cypress, German Chamomile, Lemon, Rose, Rose Otto and Geranium for micro-circulation.

Detoxification

Grapefruit, Sweet Orange, Peppermint, Rosemary or Carrot Seed, known as lymphatic stimulants.

Dry Skin

1.German or Roman Chamomile (50%), Rose Absolute or Rose Otto (15%), Neroli (10%) & Lavender (25%) 2.Geranium (20%), Lavender (20%) & Sandalwood (60%) has a balancing effect on Seebum production. 3.Sweet Almond Oil, Avocado Oil infused with Calendula.

Oily Skin

Lemon, Geranium & Lavender

Headaches

1.Lavender & Rosemary in a cool compress or massage 2.Roman Chamomile & Mandarin in a neck massage oil.

Inflammation

German Chamomile plus Calendula, Lavender, Neroli, Yarrow & Everlasting.

Nappy Rash

Zinc Oxide & Castor Oil Cream

Nervous Tension Blend

Lavender (35%), Geranium (15%), Neroli (20%) & Ylang Ylang (30%)

Psoriasis

Tea Tree (40%), Eucalyptus (40%), Lavender (15%), & Lemon (5%) for its antiseptic properties with Bergamot & Sandalwood (for anxiety) in an Evening Primrose and Wheatgerm Oil base. Anti-inflammatory oils such as German Chamomile, Yarrow or Everlasting can be added, while carrot seed oil is added for collagen sysnthesis.

Regulating Seebum Production

Geranium, Palmarosa, Rosewood & Sandalwood

Sensitive Skin Blend

German Chamomile (10%), Lavender (40%), Neroli (10%) & Sandalwood (40%)

Stress Reduction

Neroli & Lavender soothe & calm, Rose, Ylang Ylang & Rosemary help correct the mind-body imbalance while lavender, Sandalwood & German Chamomile help the skin directly.

Wound Healing

(Youthful complexion, stretch marks & Scarring) Carrot Seed, Lavender, Everlasting, Myrrh, Frankincense, Neroli, Patchouli and Yarrow.

Uplifting Blend

Bergamot (30%), Rose Otto (15%), Neroli (15%) & Rosewood (40%)

Or interestingly a

Study Blend - for increasing your attention span Basil (10%), Lemon (50%), Peppermint (10%) and Rosemary (30%) Fragrant Oil or Perfume A fragrant Oil or perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and aroma compounds (from plant, animal or synthetic sources), fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, cosmetic products, objects, and living spaces a pleasant smell.Describing a perfume Describing a perfume The precise formulas of commercial perfumes are kept secret. Even if they were widely published, they would be dominated by such complex chemical procedures and ingredients that they would be of little use in providing a useful description of the experience of a scent. Nonetheless, connoisseurs of perfume can become extremely skillful at identifying components and origins of scents in the same manner as wine experts.The most practical way to start describing a perfume is according to its concentration level, the family it belongs to, and the notes of the scent, which all affect the overall impression of a perfume from first application to the last lingering hint of scent. Concentration Levels Perfume oil is necessarily diluted with a solvent because undiluted oils (natural or synthetic) contain high concentrations of volatile components that will likely result in allergic reactions and possibly injury when applied directly to skin or clothing. By far the most common solvent for perfume oil dilution is ethanol or a mixture of ethanol and water. Perfume oil can also be diluted by means of neutral-smelling lipids such as jojoba, fractionated coconut oil or wax. The concentration by percent/volume of perfume oil is as follows:

Bottles of some notable commercial perfumes

Bottles of some notable commercial perfumes: (clockwise from top left) Bois De Violette, Serge Lutens, 1992; Angel, Thierry Mugler, 1994; Shalimar, Guerlain, 1925; Beyond Paradise, Estée Lauder, 2003; No. 5, Chanel, 1921 (Pre-1950 bottle); Cabochard, Parfums Grès, 1959 (original bottle); Bellodgia, Caron, 1927; Arpège, Lanvin, 1927 (original bottle); Nombre Noir, Shiseido, 1981; Mitsouko, Guerlain, 1919; Pour Un Homme, Caron, 1934.

Perfume extract 20%-40% aromatic compounds
Eau de parfum 10-30% aromatic compounds
Eau de toilette 5-20% aromatic compounds
Eau de cologne 2-5% aromatic compounds

 

As the percentage of aromatic compounds decreases, so does the intensity and longevity of the scent created. Different perfumeries or perfume houses assign different amounts of oils to each of their perfumes. Therefore, although the oil concentration of a perfume in eau de parfum (EDP) dilution will necessarily be higher than the same perfume in eau de toilette (EDT) form within the same range, the actual amounts can vary between perfume houses. An EDT from one house may be stronger than an EDP from another.

Furthermore, some fragrances with the same product name but having a different concentration name may not only differ in their dilutions, but actually use different perfume oil mixtures altogether. For instance, in order to make the EDT version of a fragrance brighter and fresher than its EDP, the EDT oil may be "tweaked"to contain slightly more top notes or less base notes. In some cases, words such as "extrême" or "concentrée" appended to fragrance names might indicate completely different fragrances that relates only because of a similar perfume accord. An instance to this would be Chanel's Pour Monsieur and Pour Monsieur Concentrée.

Eau de Cologne(EDC) was originally a specific fragrance of a citrus nature and weak in concentration made in Cologne, Germany. However in recent decades the term has become generic for a weakly concentrated perfume of any kind.

Olfactive Families

Grouping perfumes, like any taxonomy, can never be a completely objective or final process. Many fragrances contain aspects of different families. Even a perfume designated as "single flower", however subtle, will have undertones of other aromatics. "True" unitary scents can rarely be found in perfumes as it requires the perfume to exist only as a singular aromatic material.

Classification by olfactive family is a starting point for a description of a perfume, but it cannot by itself denote the specific characteristic of that perfume.

Traditional

The traditional classification which emerged around 1900 comprised the following categories;

Single Floral:

Fragrances that are dominated by a scent from one particular flower; in French called a soliflore. (e.g. Serge Lutens' Sa Majeste La Rose, which is dominated by rose.)

Floral Bouquet:

Containing the combination of several flowers in a scent.

Ambery:

A large fragrance class featuring the scents ofvanilla and animal scents together with flowers and woods. Can be enhanced by camphorous oils and incense resins, which bring to mind Victorian Era imagery of the Middle East and Far East.

Woody:

Fragrances that are dominated by woody scents, typically of sandalwood and cedar. Patchouli, with its camphoraceous smell, is commonly found in these perfumes.

Leather:

A family of fragrances which features the scents of honey, tobacco, wood and wood tars in its middle or base notes and a scent that alludes to leather.

Chypre:

Meaning Cyprus in French, this includes fragrances built on a similar accord consisting of bergamot, oakmoss, patchouli and labdanum. This family of fragrances is named after a perfume by Fancois Coty. A notable example is Mitsouko (meaning mystery in Japanese) by Guerlain.

Fougère:

MeaningF ern in French, built on a base of lavender, coumarin and oakmoss. Houbigant's Fougère Royale pioneered the use of this base. Many men's fragrances belong to this family of fragrances, which is characterized by its sharp herbaceous and woody scent.

Modern

Since 1945, due to great advances in the technology of perfume creation (i.e., compound design and synthesis) as well as the natural development of styles and tastes; new categories have emerged to describe modern scents:

Bright Floral:

combining the traditional Single Floral & Floral Bouquet categories.

Green:

a lighter and more modern interpretation of the Chypre type.

Oceanic/Ozone:

The newest category in perfume history, appearing in 1991 with Christian Dior's Dune. A very clean, modern smell leading to many of the modern androgynous perfumes.

Citrus or Fruity:

An old fragrance family that until recently consisted mainly of "freshening" eau de colognes due to the low tenacity of citrus scents. Development of newer fragrance compounds has allowed for the creation of primarily citrus fragrances.

Gourmand:

scents with "edible" or "dessert"-like qualities. These often contain notes like vanilla andtonka bean, as well as synthetic components designed to resemble food flavors. An example is Thierry Mugler's Angel

13 October 2007


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