How to preserve your perfume?

Your perfume is your intimate ally, you have chosen it and the chemistry has taken place! Like you, it is complex, evolving and ever changing. It remains an ally needing of taking good care of.

The complexity of a perfume

A fragrance is a complex and fragile product because it is made of both natural and synthetic raw materials . 

Sylvaine Delacourte prefers natural materials in her compositions. But sometimes it is impossible to obtain the flower’s soul which is the case of lily of the valley and peony, for example. To obtain the scent of a flower, if it does not exist on the perfumer's organ, you can imitate it and get as close to it as possible through a reconstitution or reproduction.
We can therefore work with these so-called synthetic or reproduction materials by combining them with natural materials. Sylvaine Delacourte uses short formulas with about ten different raw materials in her compositions, both natural and synthetic.

A perfume can contain different kinds of synthetic materials:

• Those obtained from natural materials that have been modified. 
• Those that result of a chemical reaction, which we call laboratory flowers. They have the advantage of being more stable. 

Sylvaine Delacourte’s fragrances contain a lot of natural raw materials. They are alive, they evolve and change according to various factors.

This is why it is better to test the perfumes on the skin.

You have to test the perfume on your skin beforehand because the more natural raw materials in a perfume, the more it will evolve. A perfume that suits the person who wears it will generally have a good diffusion and lasting power.

Preserve your perfume

A precious rule: the perfume must be kept away from light, heat and air.

An unopened perfume, like a good wine, can improve with time. It evolves, especially if it is composed of a majority of natural materials. If it is opened, it is preferable to use it in the following year. 

Perfumes love freshness. Ideally, it should be stored in its original packaging in a non-humid cellar.

The bathroom is a hostile place to preserve your perfume. Exposure to heat, daylight and spotlights will worsen the scent. The more air there is in the bottle, the more the perfume will change.

If the scent can be changed, so can the colour. It may get darker or turn into yellow, but the fragrance can still retain its aromas.

Travelling with your perfume

You can travel with your perfume everywhere unless the bottle has a balloon pump. These bottles are very elegant but they can leak in your luggage, as balloon pumps are not airtight.

Favour the spray bottle when travelling and be careful to place the cap correctly. If the cap is not put on, an object can press the spray button and trigger the spray.

Protect the vaporizer when traveling, put on the cap properly. If the cap is not closed well, an object can press on the spray button and trigger the spraying.

In the Sylvaine Delacourte range of perfumes you can find travel cases with different refills. There is a choice between 15 eaux de parfums (7.5 ml or 30 ml) that you can easily take with you on a trip. The perfumes are also available in 100ml bottles.

The expiration date of a perfume

There is no expiration date clearly indicated on the perfume packaging, unlike some cosmetic cream. In general, the legal cover indicates a shelf life of 36 months.

A perfume can be kept for 1 to 2 years, except for certain masterpieces that can improve over time if they are well preserved. Some perfumes are even more beautiful 10 years later, but this is rare. This is the case of great classic and vintage perfumes in general, such as Shalimar or L'Heure Bleue de Guerlain.

How long does an eau de toilette or an eau de parfum last?

How long a perfume lasts depends on how often you use your perfume and on the power of the fragrance.
An eau de Cologne that you spray on generously will be finished quicker than a powerful woody or oriental fragrance.
However, the average use is 2 to 3 100ml bottles per year.
Be careful, if the bottle has not been used in a long time, the pump should be primed several times before spraying the perfume on yourself.

Those who use several fragrances, own a collection or change perfumes according to their mood, the season or their clothes, might prefer smaller bottles (maximum 100 ml). 
For collector's items, or limited editions, it is important to keep the packaging, because in case of resale, the value could decrease. This also applies to prestige bottles and samples.

Fresh citrus or aromatic fragrances , ea ux de Cologne deteriorate more quickly than oriental and leathery fragrances .
Chypre perfumes ba sed on moss or patchouli, when they are too old, can give off a plastic smell. 
Fragrances with floral notes, especially white flowers, tend to become darker, as well as vanilla scents.

If you have had fragrances for a long time, try them on stripes of paper before spraying it on yourself, you never know.

There are not really any rules. The only rule is to trust your nose.

Tips to keep your perfume at its best

• Avoid placing your perfume in contact with direct light. The darker it is, the better.
• Never place your perfume near a radiator, or any other source of heat.
• Do not expose your fragrance to temperature changes.
• Avoid placing your perfume in a place that is too humid like your bathroom, it is better to keep it in your bedroom.
• Do not shake your perfume, it is a fragile product, perfume likes delicacy.

Sylvaine Delacourte fragrances

Discover Sylvaine Delacourte's brand with her Orange Blossom , Musks and Vanilla Collections . You can try them thanks to the Discovery Boxes (5 Eaux de Parfum x 2 ml) and rediscover these raw materials as you have never smelled them before.