How to Make Your Own Signature Perfume With Essential Oils

We love the poetic romanticism of a signature scent—a fragrance that's entirely evocative of your very essence. But, despite what most mass-market perfumers would have you believe, such a personal fragrance probably won't be found stocked on a shelf. If you're tired of the endless search for the perfect perfume, or simply don't want to smell like everyone else at the office, learning how to make perfume with essential oils may be the logical next step. In fact, concentrated perfume oils are the height of sensual luxury, deepening with your skin's natural chemistry for an intimate scent that lingers throughout the day.

Don't worry, you won't need to brush up on endless science lessons to create your very own perfume oils. We tapped perfume expert Jeff Smith to learn exactly how to get started making perfume with essential oils. Read on for the step-by-step guide to creating your own signature scent with essential oils.

Choose Your Favorite Essential Oil and Scent

When choosing which essential oils to blend into your signature scent, keep in mind that citrus makes a good head note as it's potent and assertive, light and airy florals work well as heart notes, and woodsy scents have longevity that works well as the base. You can mix any combination of scents you like, but creating a mix of these three categories is a good place to start—a sample blend would be something like bergamot, jasmine, and sandalwood. Below, Smith shares more details on the different fragrance categories and which scents you might want to choose.

• Woody scents: Smith says cedarwood and labdanum are your best bets: “I like pairing these with something brighter and crisper like cognac extract, which isn’t too sweet.” Other woodsy scents include pine and sandalwood. 
• Musk scents: Musk notes historically come from animals, although there are some botanical options available as well. “Ambrette is the closest to a botanical musk I’ve found,” Smith tells us. Try blending it with a white rose or a cedarwood for balance. Vetiver is another earthy musk to explore for a depth of scent. 
• Citrus scents: Bergamot, lemon, and grapefruit are some citrus fragrances that are especially on trend in warmer seasons, but great for brightening any perfume. These are strong, crisp, and revitalizing. 
• Herbal scents: Lavender, chamomile, and rosemary are grounding herbal essences that tend to be lighter.
• Floral scents: “Florals are the heart song of essential oils and natural raw materials, and this is where you can have the most fun,” Smith says. Rose, geranium, iris, and jasmine are some of the most popular florals, as are magnolia, peony, and ylang-ylang.
  

Consider Potential Risks

When making perfume with essential oils, you'll want to make note of the effect each ingredient may have—plant-derived essences can be very powerful, and some citrus essences (like lime oil) can cause photosensitivity. Herbaceous oils derived from peppermint, oregano, clove, thyme, jasmine, and cinnamon, to name a few, may cause skin irritation and have been known to induce allergic reactions. According to the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), essential oils can be sensitizing or irritating if used incorrectly, so it’s important to stick to the ratios provided in this article. Just because an ingredient is natural doesn’t mean it’s harmless, so proceed with caution. 

If you are using essential oils to create a perfumed room spray, it's important to note that some essential oils can be harmful to pets. Tea tree, cinnamon, clove, anise, peppermint, pine, ylang-ylang, citrus, wintergreen, and sweet birch oils are all considered potentially toxic to pets. Cats in particular may be at greater risk as they are unable to process phenol compounds found in some essential oils, but dogs can also be aggravated by some. Small mammals and rodents, like rabbits and hamsters, along with birds may also suffer from respiratory problems from exposure to essential oils.

Gather Your Materials

You'll Need:

• One 5 mL (0.2 fl oz) rollerball bottle
• Three essential oils: head, heart, and base
• Four pipettes or glass droppers: one for each essential oil and one for the carrier oil
• An unscented carrier oil, like jojoba or almond oil 

Follow a 20% Concentration Ratio

Smith recommends using no more than a 20% concentration of essential oils in your carrier oil when making perfume, just to be on the safe side. Every milliliter of liquid is roughly 20 drops with a pipette or glass dropper—so for a 5 mL bottle, you’ll need to account for 100 drops of liquid. And in case you want to recreate your scent later, don't forget to record your custom recipe.

In short, to make one perfume with essential oils, you'll need:

• 80 drops of carrier oil
• 20 drops of essential oil blend (10 drops base, five drops head, five drops heart)

Mix Up Your Formula

Once you have your ingredients and materials ready, follow these five simple steps to make perfume with essential oils:

1. With one of your droppers, add 80 drops of carrier oil to the perfume bottle.
2. Using another dropper for each, add in 10 drops of the essential oil base notes, followed by five drops of head note, and five drops of heart notes.
3. Seal the bottle and shake well (and again before each use).
4. Label your creation.
5. Store in a cool, dark place.

Solid vs. Liquid Perfume

While the most common perfume formulas are liquid in nature, either applied by rolling, spraying, or dabbing from a bottle, some fragrance aficionados prefer the more tactile approach of melting solid perfume into the skin. Gently massaging scents into pulse points offers a more luxurious, slow-living experience that engages multiple senses, namely smell and touch. To create, you'll need to adapt the above recipe to incorporate a wax, such as beeswax, as well. Many default to a blending ratio of two parts oil to one part wax, but this can be adjusted to create your preferred consistency. Melt the two together before adding the desired oils. Once mixed, pour into your container of choice and allow to set. Keep the solid perfume in a cool, dry place as hotter temperatures could cause the mixture to melt and leak.

Apply Your Perfume Oil

Depending on your bottle of choice, you'll either apply your perfume by dabbing, rolling it on, or spraying it. Apply it behind your ear, on your collarbone, and across your chest to help diffuse the scent. Smith suggests dabbing perfume oils on the tops of your arms, and avoiding the wrists, which he says have more blood flow and evaporate the scent quicker. The nape of the neck is another spot for perfume oils to make a lasting impact. DIY perfume oils are the ultimate skin elixir, offering a silky feel, staying power, and an intensity that builds throughout the day, as opposed to a one-note fragrance.