Mixing your own perfume sounds pretty exotic doesn’t it? Well it is, but it’s also simple and very cost effective!

Step 1: Dilution

The strength of your aromatic liquid or perfume depends on the ratio of essential oils to water and alcohol. Perfume is the strongest formula: 15-30 percent essential oil, 70-85 percent alcohol, and 5 percent water. Be sure to use bottled distilled or spring water only. 100% proof Vodka should be used for the alcohol, you may also use Brandy, but it has a distinct aroma of its own and sometimes gets in the way of blending in the essential oils.

Step 2: Decide on Your Notes

Base notes remain on your skin the longest and will become stronger as the other notes fade. Some suggested base notes include cinnamon, patchouli or vanilla.

Middle notes become evident after the top scent has faded, usually half an hour after applying the perfume. Some good middle notes are nutmeg, geranium and ylang-ylang.

A Top Note is the first, most evident scent when you first apply the perfume. Citrus and floral scents make good top notes.

A Bridge note is a scent that will tie the others together. Some popular bridge oils are vanilla and lavender.

Step 3: The Process

Now that you have chosen which essential oils will make up your notes, you need to have the following items ready:

• Alcohol (Pure Vodka is best)
• Glass Jar
• Glass bottle for your perfume (it is best if it is dark in colour)
• Four to six different essential oils
• Glass dropper (non-essential but useful)
• Coffee filter
• Cotton Swab/Bud
• Notepad and pen

You are now ready to follow the process:

1. Open the oils that you have chosen. You may be able to get a preview of your scent blend merely by having the bottles open at the same time.
2. One at a time, dip the tip of a clean cotton swab into the essential oils. Squeeze any excess oil from the swab on the lip of the bottle.
3. Place the swab in the glass jar.
4. Repeat for each of the scents you want to add to the blend.
5. Make sure to write down each oil you include in the blend.
6. Walk away from the jar and wait a few minutes.
7. Come back to the jar and gently sniff the air above the jar. This will be the scent blend in its early stage of development. Take notes on your thoughts about it. Is one oil overpowering the others? Do two of them seem too similar to tell apart?
8. Now that you are happy with your mix, dispense several drops of your base note into a glass perfume vial. Add the other notes a few drops at a time, sniffing after each addition until you reach a balance that you like. Use at least 25 drops total among all the oils.
9. Add 70 ml of pure alcohol.
10. Add 2 tablespoons of distilled water.
11. Shake vigorously for several minutes to mix the ingredients.
12. Put the lid on the jar and leave it in a cool, dark place. After a few hours, open the jar and smell the blend again. The scent should have mixed further and “matured” a bit. Take further notes on your thoughts about the blend.
13. Put the lid back on the jar and leave it again in a cool, dark place. After about 48 hours, open the jar and smell it again. The scent blend should be fully mixed and “matured” by now. Take further notes about the blend.
14. Make corrections to your blend. Perhaps try two parts of oil A and one part of oil B. Or add some oil D to your blend of A, B, and C. Try the blend again until you find the perfect combination.
15. Pour the mixture through a coffee filter into your perfume bottle and wear as desired.