Blog About Perfume

Nag Champa
The name of a perfume oil originally made in the Hindu and Buddhist monasteries of India and Nepal and used to perfume incense. Traditionally made from a sandalwood base, to which is added a variety of flower oils, including that from the flower of the Champaca tree.

Napthalene-Like
Notes are reminiscent of mothballs. These odours are found in animal products. Their significance in perfumery is minimal.

Narcotic
Narcotic is the term used to describe the fragrance of perfumes containing a high percentage of heavy blossom fragrances (jasmine, tuberose, for example), and animalic components. The narcotic effect of natural flower scents is at its peak at the time when they fade.

Neroli
An oil prepared from the blossoms of either the sweet or bitter orange tree. Italian term for neroli is zagara.

Nose
A “nose”, or nez in French, is a person who mixes fragrance components to make perfume; another commonly used term is perfumer, or in French, parfumeur createur.

Note
The word “note” can refer to a single scent in a perfume, or it may be used to refer to one of the three stages of evaporation of a perfume, which are the top note, the middle note and the bottom note, the top note being the first to evaporate.

Nuancers
Are fragrance materials that are not the main fragrance carriers in a composition, but are used to support and round these carriers off, or produce special effects which contribute to the all around picture of a fragrance.

Oakmoss
Derived from a lichen (evernia prunastri) that grows on Oak trees.

Obtrusive
Perfumes can be obtrusive when they are used to excess. Also if the fragrance composition is not well balanced one component can be Obtrusive, dominating the other scents in the mix.

Olibanum
See Frankincense.

Opoponax
Also known as “sweet myrrh” and “bisabol myrrh”. Has a sweet, balsam-like, lavender-like fragrance when used as incense. King Solomon supposedly regarded opoponax as one of the “noblest” of all incense gums.

Oriental
Is the term for perfumes containing ingredients that are reminiscent of fragrances from the East. Such ingredients can be exotic blossom notes, spices, balsams, resins, and animalic components. More recently the term has been used to describe fragrances that are heavy and full-bodied. Some examples of oriental perfumes are Opium, Obsession, Shalimar, and Samsara.

Orris
Derived from the rhizome of the Iris plant.

Osmanthus
A flowering tree native to China, valued for its delicate fruity apricot aroma. Known as the Tea Olive in the southern United States.

Oud
Sometimes spelled Oudh. The Arabic word for wood, in perfumery usually refers to wood from the Agar tree.

Ozonic
Used to describe aroma chemicals that are meant to mimic the smell of fresh air. Frequently described as the smell of air right after a thunderstorm.

Pamplemousse
French for grapefruit.

Patchouli
A bushy shrub originally from Malaysia and India. Supposedly the leaves were folded into the cashmere shawls shipped from India to England during Victorian times in order to protect the fabric from moths; eventually, the scent became a badge of authenticity and customers refused to buy unscented shawls. Patchouli has a musty-sweet, spicy aroma.

Perfume
The word “perfume” comes from the Latin “per fumum”, meaning “through the smoke.” The French word “parfum” is also used. In ancient times fragrant resins were burned as incense offerings at temples, producing a richly scented smoke. Today, we use the word “perfume” to describe a solution containing 15% to 30% perfume oils and 85% to 70% alcohol. These are the products that have the highest concentration of oils.

Perfume Oil
Or Perfume Compound, is a concentrated mixture of fragrance substances which is used for the perfuming of various products.

Perfumer
Perfumer is a multi-use word, used to describe both a person who creates a perfume and one who sells perfume.

Petitgrain
Is an oil distilled from leaves and twigs of a citrus tree, usually the bitter orange tree.

Pheromones
Are chemical substances which make communication possible between living beings. They are mainly significant as a medium which insects use for sexual attraction. Most pheromones are odourless to human beings.

Pikaki
A form of jasmine (jasminum sambac) grown in Hawaii and used for making leis. Also known as Arabian jasmine, and widely used to make jasmine tea.

Pivoine
French for peony.

Plumeria
See Frangipani.

Pomade
Is a substance that is produced through the enfleurage process. In this procedure, animal fat is saturated with blossom fragrance. The mixture of fat and blossom oil is the pomade. It is either used straight or processed into absolute from pomade. Parts of the fatty odour attach to the fragrance of the blossom oils, giving the products made by this process a unique character.

Powdery
Is the fragrance effect produced by a combination of a heavy, sweet or woody note with a citrus, fruit or light green notes. Many perfumes leave a powdery overall impression after evaporation of the fresh and floral ingredients.

Glossary of Perfume Terminology (R-S) 

Tags: Definitions, Glossary, Terminology