DIY Long Lasting Perfume Recipe
If you are an avid bath and body DIY enthusiast, or even if you are a beginner in this field, I have got the homemade recipe for you today. Have you ever wondered how to make essential oil perfume, or what essential oils scents go well together? If so read on because today I will show you how easy it is to make your own long lasting perfume at home, using only a few natural ingredients as well as a printable PDF worksheet to help you with creating your own perfume combinations at home. The procedure of perfume making is as much of an art as it is fun… and its plenty fun! To begin with, let’s go over the ingredients that you will need for this DIY recipe.
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Ingredients And Supplies Needed
Perfume Atomizer (I use a 2 oz. container however you can use any size just adjust ratios accordingly)
5-8 Teaspoons of 91% (or higher) Isopropyl Alcohol
¼ Teaspoon of Vegetable Glycerine
½ Teaspoon of Distilled Water
10 ML Roller Bottles
What you will want to do first is experiment with some scent combinations (or use some of the ones I have provided below) to customize a perfume blend to your scent preferences. To do this, use your 10 mL roller bottles (start with 8-10 bottles and label each one with a number) and start by adding up to 10 drops total of essential oils (3 top, 5 middle, 2 base notes). Cap the bottle, shake it well, and leave to sit for 24 hours to meld the fragrances together.
To help with this process you can print off my Perfume Making Worksheet /PDF that I have included at the bottom of this post. On these sheets you will write how many drops of each oil you placed in which numbered bottle, this way when you find a combination you like you will know exactly what’s inside and can calculate what is needed to make the final perfume. If you are new to perfume making I have also included a checklist of the most common essential oils along with what category and note they fall into, you can find this on the downloadable printable as well.
The best way for me to teach you how to turn one of your trial/experiment bottles into a full perfume is to show you with an example. As I mentioned above I use a 2 oz. perfume bottle for my perfumes so the calculations that I show you here will be based on this, adjust your ratios according to the size of your bottle of course. For all calculations you will need to know how many drops are held in your sized container. For example, a 2 oz. container holds approximately 1,020 drops (this is something that can be easily researched if it is a common sized bottle).
Okay, so lets say I found a combination I liked and in this combination I had placed 2 drops of sandalwood, 2 drops jasmine, 1 drop lavender, 1 drop bergamot. To make a 25% concentration perfume (the highest quality perfume) you will need to multiply your total drops by the percentage like this:
1020 x 0.25 = 255 drops (so you will need 255 total drops of essential oils)
You will then divide this number by the number of total drops used in your initial blend, so for our example it will look like this:
255/6 total drops (sandalwood, jasmine, lavender and bergamot) = 42.5
You will then take this number (42.5) and multiply it by the number of drops per scent you used in your initial blend like this:
42.5 x 2 drops sandalwood = 85 drops of sandalwood needed
42.5 x 2 drops jasmine = 85 drops of jasmine needed
42.5 x 1 drop lavender = 42.5 drops of lavender needed (I always round down so I would change this to 42 drops)
42.5 x 1 drop bergamot = 42.5 drops of bergamot needed (rounded down to 42)
You will see that these totals add up to the 255 drops (or 254 when we rounded down) that we came up with at the start for how much of our essential oils we needed. I have filled out this example in the worksheet below so you can see the example visually.
So this is the heart of your perfume, now that you have done these calculations you are ready to put all the ingredients together quickly. Simply use your mini funnel to add your essential oils to your container. Put the cap on and mix together well by rolling the bottle back and forth in between your palms. You will then place your distilled water and glycerine into a small bowl and mix together well. Once mixed, pour this into your perfume bottle using your funnel. Finally, add the necessary amount of alcohol to take your mixture up to the top of the perfume bottle (the amount needed will vary based on how many drops of essential oils you used - I typically require about 5 teaspoons). That’s it! Place the cap on, mix in your palms a little more, and allow the perfume to set for at least 24 hours prior to using to allow the scent to completely meld together.
How To Make Homemade Perfume Last Longer
Now, you may have heard that homemade perfumes do not seem to last very long, while I will admit that these do not last as long as store bought perfumes, I can assure you that they are made from substantially less chemicals and potential health hazards. I have included here a few tips to get your DIY perfumes to last longer.
1. Use Glycerine And Water In Your Recipe – This is why these ingredients are included here, while alcohol is our main carrier since it allows the oils to mix appropriately, the glycerine and water will add staying power to your perfume as it evaporates much less quickly.
2. Apply Perfume To The Back Of The Neck, Clothing And Hair – You may also apply to pulse points as you traditionally would, but applying to hair and clothing makes the scent last much longer. In fact I notice that the scent last all day in my hair as I smell a nice waft of fragrance when I take my hair down after a long day of work.
3. Make A Strong Concentration – As suggested here, it is best to make the highest quality perfume/concentration (which is 25%) when you are making homemade perfume, this gives you the best chance for a long lasting perfume.
4. Increase The Concentration Or Complexity Of Base Notes – The base notes are the strongest notes in your perfume and if blended correctly, can add to the depth and longevity of your fragrance.
Essential Oil Perfume Recipes And How To Blend Scents
Here are a few homemade perfume recipes (based on a 2 oz. bottle) that I have experimented with and enjoy, this will give you a good place to start however be sure to try and make a customized scent for yourself! Important Note: Prior to making a full size perfume of any of these recipes, be sure to mix a small sample first in a roller bottle and wait a few days before smelling (to allow the scent to meld) to be sure you like this scent. I would hate to hear all these oils going to waste if you decide you don’t like the scent!
Whisper
* This was the combination we used in our example
85 Drops of Sandalwood
85 Drops of Jasmine
42 Drops of Lavender
42 Drops of Bergamot
Jungle Flower
73 Drops of Lime
36 Drops of Cedarwood
36 Drops of Vetiver
36 Drops of Rose
36 Drops of Ylang Ylang
36 drop of Lavender
Bouquet
73 Drops of Neroli
73 Drops of Orange
36 Drops of Sandalwood
36 Drops of Patchouli
36 Drops of Lime
Sunny Isles
77 Drops of Geranium
54 Drops of Orange
54 Drops of Lime
51 Drops of Grapefruit
18 Drops of Cinnamon
Ocean Breeze
77 Drops of Lavender
51 Drops of Vetiver
51 Drops of Bergamot
51 Drops of Spearmint
26 Drops of Cedarwood
DewDrop
85 Drops of Geranium
57 Drops of Lemon
57 Drops of Orange
57 Drops ofVetiver
Summer Love
85 Drops of Lavender
61 Drops of Tangerine
57 Drops of Lime
32 Drops of Spearmint
20 Drops of Ginger
Lavender Fields
113 Drops of Lavender
85 Drops of Lemon
28 Drops of Cedarwood
28 Drops of Vetiver
To get you started with experimenting which essential oils blend well together here are some suggestions based on scent categories. As a general rule different scents within the same category typically blend well together. Other scents within complementary categories also likely blend well together, complementary categories are listed below for each base category.
Floral – Citrus, Spicy, Woody & Herbal
Woodsy – Spicy, Herbal, Earthy,& Floral
Earthy – Floral, Woodsy & Spicy
Herbal – Citrus, Floral, Woodsy
Citrus – Floral, Herbal & Spicy
Spicy – Floral, Woodsy & Citrus
