We had only had our range of perfumes out a week when the confusion began. "Perfume? I thought they were parfums..." said a confused customer.
I found myself rambling an unrehearsed jumble of explanations as she looked back at me with a confused expression. I should have been more ready for this question, because I have now heard it multiple times and it is fairly simple to explain.
As a general term, perfume can refer to all scented oils or fragrances. Eau de Parfum is a type of perfume that has a higher degree of fragrance (20-30%) compared with other types of perfume, such as Eau de Toilette (15-20%) and Eau de Cologne (12-15%).
Although there are advantages to each perfume type, we decided to stick with Eau de Parfums, as they have the highest concentration of scents. We use only essential oils, absolutes and extracts in our perfumes, which means they have less staying power than big brand perfumes you buy from big commercial brands. These larger perfume companies use a mix of natural, synthetic and scientifically enhanced fragrances to make them long-lasting. Your Lucian Parfum will still last 6-8 hours.
Our perfumes are made with natural essential oils, floral absolutes and natural extractions. These are blended with each other and left to cure for twelve weeks before they are ready for filtration. The filtering process gets rid of the residue from the plant and floral absolutes often leave. Vanilla is a particularly tricky absolute to filter and often we have to filter five or six times to get the clear liquid parfum.
Just the same as any perfume, you will need to wear it for a few days to decide if it is the right fit for you. Natural parfums often have a very strong scent at first sniff but as this mellows, the complexities of the fragrance become more apparent. Many people have commented that they enjoy the scent more, the longer they wear it.
If you'd like to try a new natural scent, drop in to Pop CBR or Trove Canberra, where we have a small selection of our parfums. Let us know what you think!
Rachel
