Reducing Undesirable Top Notes

[KenA]

I apologize if this question has been asked before or belongs in a different category. I did some searches on maceration, but I don’t really know what this would called.

I’m not a perfumer, but I tinker/experiment with aroma compounds, fragrance concentrates and essential oils to satisfy my curiosity. I have noticed that a lot of fragrance concentrates and essential oils open with notes that I don’t like. To me, a lot of the woods open with a smell of turpentine and lavender opens with a lot of camphor.., but after a while these top notes go away and they smell very mice.

I was wondering if I put these in an open bowl and occasionally stir it for a few days (?) before using, would it reduce these top notes? Maybe gently heating them while stirring to get this result faster? If this process works and is practical, others have thought of this already and apply it. If so what is this process called? Or are there problems with this idea?

 

[Capybaron]

As far as my understanding goes, which is still limited, this is not feasible, at least not with the "simple" methods you propose.

Consider this: What you smell, when you apply a chemical onto something, are particles "evaporating" (Or particles being otherwise transported into the air and then into your nose). Different materials and molecules evaporate at different speeds- But once in the open, they do so.

So if you leave certain oils in the open, the more volatile top notes might indeed vanish- but so will those others which you actually want to keep. So even if it might kinda work, the material you want to keep will be much weaker, too.

Also sInce every material behaves differently, evaporates faster, or slower, is less stable in heat etc. i will be very difficult to figure out a process which keeps whatever you want to keep and loses what you want to lose. You´d have to figure out exactly the various chemicals in your oil behave and which process and conditions might work- And "stirring in a pot and leaving for a few days" is not exactly precise.

Separating different chemicals without those issues ist very possible- But by means of distillation or chemical reactions.

 

[Hedione HC]

You may find some more information in this thread.
Regarding lavender oil: a reasonable lavender oil - if it's true/English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) - shouldn't smell of camphor (lavandin often does). I'd recommend looking for another lavender oil (or more).

 

[ScentAle]

If too much camphoraceus, you can soften lavender top note, adding coumarin or using lavender absolute.

 

[pkiler]

Buy a better lavender.

 

[KenA]

So if you leave certain oils in the open, the more volatile top notes might indeed vanish- but so will those others which you actually want to keep. So even if it might kinda work, the material you want to keep will be much weaker, too

That would be a trade off. I thought that the larger molecules would not evaporate as quickly, so it would be a small trade off. As it is, I wait for the opening to pass.

If too much camphoraceus, you can soften lavender top note, adding coumarin or using lavender absolute.

I have 40/42 Lavender and that helps. I will try coumarin.

 

[Capybaron]

It would be far easier/more effective to add in a quickly evaporating chemical/oil which mask or modifies the top notes you dislike.

Without mentioning more specific aroma chemicals or actually blending a perfume, a low-hanging fruit, for example, would be bergamot oil. Bergamot famously goes with almost anything, is almost universally liked, and is fleeting- thus wouldn´t interfere much with any longer lasting notes you want to enjoy.

 

[jkhuysmans]

It could be that essential oils don't suit your purposes for those notes. I disliked a lot of wood ingredients in essential oil form, for the terpene and distinct "aromatherapy" connotation, but started collecting more wood aroma chemicals, which are completely different. Javanol, Santaliff, Cedrene, Bacdanol, Vertofix, etc are much more beautiful and "tighter"/"cleaner" than natural wood oils, and, to me, much more useable. I don't know as much about lavender but my lavender essential oils versus dihydromyrcenol for instance has the same aromatherapy vs. perfumery connotations.

This isn't to say those essential oils can't be used in perfumery, but maybe it's more difficult or simply suits a different scent profile than what you want.