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Traditional fragrance families

Floral

Some florals may focus on a single flower species, but more commonly are made from a bouquet of notes. Florals can be crisp, fresh, rich or heady. Some contain non-floral notes such as amber or vanilla.

Oriental

These are spicy fragrances with staying power, which often contain animal scents such as musk, balsams, spices, resins and vanilla or tonka bean blended with flowers and citrus.

Woody

In a woody fragrance you’ll notice dry woods such as cedarwood and vetiver or sometimes the warmer wood notes such as sandalwood and patchouli.

Chypre

Chypre is French for the island of Cyprus, where labdanum is grown. When labdanum is combined with oakmoss it becomes a ‘mossy-wood’ note. This forms the basis of traditional chypre fragrances and is usually combined with flowers and citrus notes.

Fougère

Fougère is the French word for fern. Ferns don’t actually have a scent, so the main structure or accord in these fragrances is moss mixed with a herb, such as lavender.

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Green

A wet, crisp, slightly acrid note is the predominant feature of all green fragrances. Traditionally, violet leaves or the scent of freshly cut grass is used, but these days ingredients include coriander, tomato and fig leaves and lemony verbena.

Water or Ozonic

Ozonic fragrances are clean and modern, with an almost electric smell. Imagine walking outside after a thunder storm and smelling the air. A good example of this is L’eau D’Issey by Issey Miyake.

Citrus

In this family, citrus notes such as lemon, lime, grapefruit, bergamot, mandarin or tangerine predominate.



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Words: Erin Whitty.  Photography: Corrie Bond

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