The Art Of Perfume Notes - What Are They?

When people hear the word 'notes' they often say "yeah those are the things that make up a song." Sure this is true, but did you know that notes are also used to describe the various scents of a fragrance? Most people aren't even aware that there is more than one aroma involved in perfume or mens cologne.

In this article we will take an in depth look at what levels of notes occur in a fragrance, as well as what is involved in each level.

As I mentioned above, there are actually different scents within a bottle of perfume. That's right, when you purchase your dream bottle of cologne at the local store, it isn't going to always smell the same. When you wear it, the scent will actually change throughout the day. Evaporation causes different 'notes' to come out during this period.

So what exactly are these notes? Let's take a look.

Top Notes - This is the first scent you smell when sniffing a particular fragrance. Because this is the first scent a person smells, the manufacturer knows that the top notes are very important for a good first impression. The top notes are usually described as fresh or strong. These notes generally last a matter of minutes (10-30) due to them evaporating quickly.

Middle Notes - Also sometimes referred to as 'heart notes', these scents are generally much less 'dramatic' than top notes. Middle notes last longer than top notes and usually appear 10-45 minutes after applying the perfume.

Base Notes - This is the finale of every good cologne. The ingredients used here hold everything together. Musk is a common ingredient that is used as a base note.

Now that you are "in the know", next time you go to buy that special cologne, you may be able to give the clueless sales representative a crash course in fragrance study!

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Cody Kahl is creator and writer of Mens Cologne Guide - A site
dedicated to providing only the best mens cologne information.
Cody believes in quality, and this free resource proves it.
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