In recent years, many have recognised the need to move towards natural options for beauty. It is said that the average woman puts 515 synthetic chemicals on her body everyday. Of this, 60% of what is applied to the skin will also be absorbed into the body, Commercial fragrances, particularly perfumes, rate one of the highest on the toxicity scale, in fact, such products are seen to be so toxic that in the IVF industry, lab technicians are not permitted to wear perfumes/colognes when working with embryos as the chemicals in them can be so detrimental to the fragile process being undertaken -- this says everything, right?

Commercial perfumes are thought to have on average 250 chemicals blended into the mix, with synthetics like Benzaldehyde being of great concern to health, and more and more frequently being linked to side-effects like irritation to the skin/mouth/throat/eyes, nausea, headaches, eczema, asthma, and longer term health concerns including kidney damage, infertility and more.

Instead of opting for store-bought perfumes, it is SO simple to use high quality essential oils to create your own ‘purefume’ blends, or to aromatically dress by lathering the body with oil as a part of your morning or evening routine (maybe after dry body brushing!). By using essential oils, you can know exactly what goes into what you’re putting on your skin, and keep it as toxin free as they come. ZERO phalates, parabens, sodium laurel sulphates or anything else, simply hormone balancing, health fortifying oils.

THE ‘HOW-TO’ OF BLENDING YOUR OWN PERFUME

Most perfumes are a mixture of fragrance oils in an alcohol base. There are base fragrances, mid tones and top notes. When you smell a perfume, the top notes are typically the first thing you smell, followed by the mid and then base notes. Middle notes are considered the heart of the fragrance. They last longer than the top notes and have a strong influence on the base notes to come.

In making perfume, you select and add them in order from base to top. Base notes should account for roughly 45-55% of the blend, middle notes for 30-40%, and top notes 15-25%.

FOR EXAMPLE:

In a 10ml roller, this might look like (roughly):

10 drops base note essential oil

6 drops middle note essential oil

4 drops top note essential oil

Topped with fractionated coconut oil

OILS IN EACH CATEGORY

BASE NOTES:

Cedarwood

Vetiver

Ylang Ylang

Sandalwood

Frankincense

Patchouli

MIDDLE NOTES:

Rose

Lavender

Chamomile

Geranium

Clary Sage

Juniper Berry

Spearmint

Marjoram

Thyme

TOP NOTES:

Bergamot

Grapefruit

Wild Orange

Neroli

Basil

Cinnamon

Eucalyptus

Lemongrass

Lemon

Siberian Fir

Rosemary

Peppermint

Tea Tree

Mandarin

Here’s a few of my favorite perfume blends, great for gifting! --

They could be made as 10ml rollerblends (with fractionated coconut oil)

OR as 100-200ml spritzers (with a dash of witchhazel and then topped with water)

FEMME + FRESH

10 drops frankincense

3 drops geranium

3 drops roman chamomile

4 drops wild orange

MINDFUL MOMENTS

5 drops cedarwood

5 drops sandalwood

5 drops patchouli

4 drops juniper berry

3 drops bergamot

FLORAL FRENZY

6 drops patchouli

5 drops ylang ylang

3 drops lavender

3 drops geranium

4 drops neroli

MEN’S COLOGNE

6 drops vetiver

6 drops cedarwood

6 drops douglas fir

doTERRA’s sneaky blends/rollers that make GREAT pre-mixed perfumes:

Whisper

Women’s blend, my personal favourite and daily go-to. Smells like pink musk sticks.

Passion

From our emotional aromatherapy range, a spicy/sexy oil, perfect for date night!

Citrus Bliss / Citrus Bloom

Fresh and bright, perfect if you’re after something sweeter!

Balance

Our grounding blend, lovely as a soft perfume, or blended with wood/fir/resin/root oils (eg. douglas fir, cedarwood, myrrh or vetiver) as a men’s cologne

Jasmine / Rose / Neroli / Magnolia ‘touch’ rollers

These make the perfect gift!

Delightfully feminine floral oils with fractionated coconut oil ready for topical use.

Happy blending!