This post is dedicated to refreshing homemade Fragrances.
5 easy recipes for a perfect Valentine’s day gift!
Below, you will find 5 DIY recipes to create your own fresh Eau de Cologne
Coco Chanel once said :
“A woman who doesn’t wear perfume is a woman without future”
To realize your own creation, pick one of the recipes below, and follow the instructions. The procedure will essentially be the same but with different formulas
1 Classic Eau de Cologne (this recipe is propably inspired by the most ancient Eau de Cologne)
– 15 drops of orange essential oil
– 10 drops of neroli essential oil
– 6 drops of rosemary essential oil
– 15 drops of lemon essential oil
– 10 drops of bergamote essential oil
– 80 ml of Vodka or pure alcohol
– 2 tbsp of mineral water
2 Citrus Eau de Cologne
-20 drops of orange essential oil
-10 drops of lemon essential oil
-2 drops of petit grain citrus essential oil
-10 drops of bergamote essential oil
-2 drops of rosemary essential oil
-80 ml of vodka or pure alcohol
-2 tbsp of mineral water
3 Rose Eau de Cologne Formula
-10 drops of rose essential oil
– 3 drops of lemon essential oil
-3 drops of orange essential oil
-1 drop of basil essential oil
-2 drops of neroli essential oil
-2 drops of bergamot essential oil
-1 drop of petit grain citrus essential oil
-80 ml of vodka or pure alcohol
-2 tbsp of mineral water
4 Geranium Eau de Cologne
– 2 drops of geranium essential oil
– 10 drops of palmarosa essential oil
– 4 drops of petit grain bigarade essential oil
– 2 drops of lemon essential oil
– 80 ml of vodka or pure alcohol
– 2 tbsp of mineral water
5 L’Eau Impérial Inspired by the first Eau de Cologne of Guerlain.
-12 drops of lemon essential oil
-12 drops of bergamote essential oil
-8 drops of neroli essential oil
-4 drops of petit grain bigarade essential oil
– 1 drop of rosemary essential oil.
– 80ml of vodka or pure alcohol
-2 tbsp of mineral water
How to proceed :
-Mix all the ingredients together in a dark tinted glass bottle and let it stand for 4 weeks (we know it seems long but you need to let it sit for all the scents to develop in synergy, so patience!)
-Proceed to an « icing » of your mixture.
How and why “ice” your perfume ?
By putting your preparation for 12 hours in the freezer (in a temperature around 0°C or 34 °F, you will allow your preparation to stabilize. All the impurities present in the oils will precipitate and will enable the perfume to be cristal clear.
After this icing, filter your mixture with a coffee filter and pour your perfume in a nice glass perfume bottle.
Your Eau de Cologne is ready! However our advice is to let it stand for a couple more weeks. This will allow your perfume to really develop nicely.
Now some history on L’Eau de Cologne Impériale de Guerlain :
This Eau de Cologne was created in 1830 by Pierre François Pascal Guerlain. In 1853, he dedicates it to the Empress Eugenie after her mariage with Napoleon the 3rd. The Empress, who had a legendary beauty and elegance, was touched and conquered . And on the 11th of May, a letter edited by the State Minister announced to Mr Guerlain that he was the « Official Provider » for the Emperor’s House!
This title ensures the « Maison Guerlain » its amazing reputation.
At the time, his boutique was located at 15, rue de la Paix. This street is still to this day, a very strategic place for jewellers and designers.
Any questions or comments please do let us know in the comment section below!
Lots of Love
The Spoiled Bee Xx
Wow – I know the area very well in France – this is such powerful product!!
Thank you so very much! Paris is such an inspiration for fashion and perfumes
Lovely! I want to try this
Love this, I need to get busy! Blessings, Pam!
Smell beautiful without adding chemicals. How delightful! ❀
Please tell us if the last recipe, for L’Eau imperial should have mineral water and vodka or alcohol added, as do the other formulas.
Oooops….indeed I forgot that part. Indeed we need an alcohol base, as in any cologne or perfume….so sorry I forgot that… Thank you for your visit and for helping me improving francesorganicbeautysecrets.com blog 😉.
Thanks to your help, I have been able to correct my mistake….please let me know how you liked it!!! Enjoy
Thank you so much for posting these recipes!
Six more days to begin using the classic Eau de cologne that I put together in September. I just made the Citrus Eau de Cologne. Did not find the smell of the Petitgrain to be a positive addition. Possibly the product that I got is not what it should be.
I have been using organic grape alcohol. Do you think vodka would be just as good as the grape alcohol?
Encore merci
I am so glad you enjoyed DIYing your Cologne…fragrances are so ” personal”…formulating your own perfume ( or Cologne) is extremely subtle….
Actually I really love petigrain fragrance, ( it is true it really depends on the year of harvesting, the quality of distillation….) though I have been very lucky to get some kombawa leaves essential oil from Vanuatu. ( usually it is from citrus aurentium leaves) . But my advise….wait until it set on your skin…
Concerning grape alcohol, I never tried with this fruit alcohol….( I know some rare vodka are made with grape….but usually it is made up with grain. Does it have a particular smell? I would be surprised fruit alcohol wouldn’t have any fragrance. This would maybe ” transforme ” the whole blend synergy….
Let me know how it turns… how did you like it…. And thank you for sharing your experience…I looooove to learn!!!:)
So nice to hear from you!
I noticed no smell when I opened the grape alcohol. I actually thought that the vodka would have a more marked odor, which is partly why I asked about using vodka. The grape alcohol is quite expensive, so I would really prefer to use something else.
I don’t know what pure alcohol is. Are you able to recommend a specific product that you use?
The Petitgrain smelled so unpleasant that I left it out of the L’Eau Imperiale after putting it in the Citrus Eau de Cologne. I would like to create something that resembles Penhaligon’s Anthology Collectiom Eau de Cologne, very citrus.
Sorry my note is so long. There is so much to ask about!
Merci bien,
Sasha
Hi again Sasha 🙂
Now I know grape alcohol doesn’t have a specific fruity smell ;))))
If you really want to have a citrus kind of Cologne, here is a great recipe:
70 drops of orange essential oil
25 drops of lemon essential oil
25 drops of bergamot essential oil
15 drops of neroli essential oil ( usually petit grain…but…let’s be crazy…you will loooove neroli)
15 drops of benzoin essential oil
And if you prefer a flowery touch:
10 drops of rose ( very expensive though) or geranium essential oil
If you prefer a candy/sweet touch:
10 drops of vanilla or sweet almond essential oil.
Proceed like usual with your alcohol
Please note: this is a citrus based Eau de Cologne, citrus essential oils are making your skin more sensitive to UV, do not use this cologne directly on your exposed skin during the day, of course you can use it for a beheading night 🙂
Have fun with your safe DIY
Xx
France
Hello France,
I had a conversation with the company that makes the organic grape alcohol. They also offer wheat, corn, (both gluten free) and cane organic alcohol. The rep confirmed that each of these alcohols have their own particular smell. So I was incorrect about no fruity smell for the grape alcohol.
I dont know what to use in place of these options. Please recommend a product! Is vodka strong enough, and will the vodka smell disappear or influence odor of the cologne.
My first experience with making eau de cologne is ready. It smells so much like Jean Marie Farina. Smell does not linger for long. On my skin, it is completely gone after an hour or so. I love it, made possible by you!
I am finding it a little difficult to locate Benzoin. I found one company but didn’t care for the source of some of their other products. Will Benzoin impart a very citrusy odor to a mix? I am even thinking of trying lime.
Please tell me what you suggest! I am so grateful for your posting the recipes. Has opened another door to DIY. (I began with Oleassence products about two years ago.) So fantastic!
Best,
Sasha