Fragrance Science Part 1

by thebeautybrains on February 6, 2007 · 17 comments

The Beauty Brains receive a lot of questions about fragrance in beauty products so we thought you’d enjoy learning a bit more about the science behind the scents. Over the next few weeks we’ll be running a multi-part series that will discuss the chemistry of fragrance ingredients, how companies decide what kind of fragrance to put in products, and how new regulations can help protect you from fragrance allergies. Part 1 gets the ball rolling right now by describing what a fragrance is and where it comes from:

Definition of Fragrance

Fragrance is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, objects, and living spaces a pleasant smell. In the context of beauty care products, fragrance really means two things. First, it can refer to a scent that you wear on your body like Chanel, Dolce & Gabanna Light Blue, or Donna Karan Gold. This definition is the one most people probably think of first. But the term also refers to scents that are added to beauty products to cover the base odor of the chemicals and to make the products more exciting to consumers.

Shopping

The terms fragrance, perfume, and cologne are sometimes used interchangeably but they don’t necessarily mean the same thing. Strictly speaking, fragrance is a broader term covering all aroma chemical mixtures. Perfumes and cologne describe a specific type of fragrance that is worn on the body. (The term Cologne comes from the name of the German city where it was invented.)

Where Do Fragrances Come From?

While a fragrance can be a simple natural oil, (rose oil comes to mind for example) most fragrances are compounded from many ingredients some of which are natural and some of which are not. Who creates a fragrance? You may be surprised to find the companies that sell hair and skin care products do not, in general, make their own scents. Even the companies that sell the perfumes mentioned above don’t make their own fragrances. And no, Britney Spears did not make her Curious fragrance! Instead, fragrances are developed by companies that specialize in perfumery, known as fragrance houses. There are dozens (if not hundreds) of these companies around the world. The largest global fragrance suppliers include companies like Givaudan, International Fragrances and Flavors, and Firmenich. (By the way, these companies not only create fragrances but they are also responsible for developing most of the flavors used in the food industry today.)

Fragrance houses work with finished product manufacturers to create new scents for all kinds of beauty products. They are involved in every aspect of fragrance creation: from predicting the next hot fragrance trend, to understanding the science of chemistry, to consumer testing of new fragrance/product combinations. In most cases, this development work is carried by under the direction of the finished product manufacturer.

For the best deals on womens perfumes and mens colognes, Visit PerfumeCenter.com

Beginning the Creative Process – The Fragrance Brief:

A brief is a document the finished product manufacturer provides to the fragrance house to direct the fragrance development. It establishes the objective of the project, the conceptual direction, and pricing parameters. In other words, tt tells the fragrance house everything they need to know to be able to create a new fragrance.
Once the direction for the project has been set, the actual fragrance development can begin. This work is done by highly trained perfumers who use a pallet of aroma chemicals to create new scents in the same way that an artist uses a color pallet to create a painting.  In Fragrance Science Part 2 we’ll discuss how this fragrance creation process actually works.

{ 17 trackbacks }

thebeautybrains.com » Fragrance Science Part 2: Ingredients
February 20, 2007 at 12:01 am
thebeautybrains.com » Fragrance Science Part 3: Developing and Testing
February 28, 2007 at 12:03 am
thebeautybrains.com » Fragrance Science Part 4: Formulating Finished Products
March 12, 2007 at 12:01 am
thebeautybrains.com » How important is fragrance in your life?
May 5, 2007 at 10:21 pm
thebeautybrains.com » Return To Your Childhood With Demeter Fragrances
May 29, 2007 at 2:26 pm
thebeautybrains.com » 4 Ways To Tell If Your Cosmetic Has Expired
June 6, 2007 at 12:01 am
thebeautybrains.com » Blog Archive » Scent Of A Woman. Literally!
August 12, 2007 at 1:02 am
thebeautybrains.com » Blog Archive » Doomsday Fragrance Creates Zombie Love Slaves
October 16, 2007 at 12:06 am
thebeautybrains.com » Blog Archive » Is Your Lip Plumper Making You Sick
October 27, 2007 at 10:03 am
thebeautybrains.com » Blog Archive » Time Travel For Your Nose
November 6, 2007 at 6:48 am
thebeautybrains.com » Blog Archive » Like Celebrities, Fragrances Can Go Bad
January 1, 2008 at 12:02 am
The Beauty Brains » Blog Archive » How Your Perfume Can Predict Mental Illness
January 15, 2008 at 12:01 am
The Beauty Brains » Blog Archive » Bond No. 9 Fragrance Review
February 2, 2008 at 12:02 am
The Beauty Brains » Blog Archive » Adorable Aerosols Part 3: Formula and Propellant
February 16, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Fragrance: The Most Expensive Ingredient in Cosmetics? | The Beauty Brains
September 3, 2008 at 12:01 am
Fragrance: The Most Expensive Ingredient in Cosmetics? | Beauty Secrets Blog
September 3, 2008 at 9:14 am
Fragrance: The Most Expensive Ingredient in Cosmetics? | 1800blogger
September 3, 2008 at 9:17 am

{ 0 comments… add one now }

Leave a Comment

Previous post: 3 Ways to Fight Static Flyaway

Next post: Jan Marini Eyelash Growth Update