Benzoin’s sensual, enveloping, vanilla-like sweetness is a popular feature in perfumery, especially in gourmand compositions. It’s a resin secreted by the Styrax plant, a type of shrub native to Southeastern Asia and South America. The Ancient Egyptians and Greeks used it for its disinfectant properties, and oftentimes in religious ceremonies. It is a base note that’s used to bind other notes together, thus creating a fragrance that oozes warmth and sultriness. Benzoin offers distinctly rich scents of woody, sweet vanilla. Its layered composition unfolds in warm, honeyed facets not dissimilar to caramel, almond or freshly roasted coffee. Subtle floral notes awaken slight nuances of carnations in soft, wispy or even powdery tones. Benzoin is renowned for its qualities as a perfume fixative, providing a fullness and warmth to compositions with its round, buttery-smooth tones. Benzoin can most commonly be found in ambery or gourmand accords.

Ambrox is used in perfumery as a base note. The molecule permits extending the trail, while adding incomparable smoothness and sensuality. It has a very complex fragrance with musky, woody, almost animal tones. For some, it recalls the skin, for others, it recalls the amber-like character of labdanum, or clary sage Created in the 50's as a replacement for natural ambergris, synthesized from sclareol, a component of the essential oil of clary sage, Ambroxan is a very faceted, deep and complex molecule with a musky clean amber woody note. Ambroxan is said to be the most sensual molecule.

Coconut’s tropical sweetness conjures up visions of a perfect island paradise whenever it’s added to a fragrance. It works best with deep florals such as gardenia, jasmine, and rose, as well as any other sweet note you like. Coconut also highlights other tropical citrus notes such as pineapple, yuzu, litchee, and peach. If you love exotic AND sweet notes in your fragrances, coconut’s smooth, fresh, sweetness will soon be one of your favorites. Coconut scents are best for summer, and also make a fun alternative to heavier winter fragrances.

A must-have in any perfumer’s arsenal, sandalwood forms the base note of countless fragrance compositions. Its milky, suave facets make for a deliciously blendable fixative that has inspired perfumers for millennia. It’s a woody and ambery note with a pervasive warmth that is both velvety-smooth and decadently creamy. Sandalwood’s mystical scent is found everywhere in perfumery. It’s luxurious, milky, tangy, and caramel-sweet aroma infuses a fragrance with deep, exotic accents. Sandalwood can also appear bright and bone-dry, and display its arid, woody side in a gorgeous and austere perfume. Sandalwood’s depth of tone and smooth, polished texture adds elegance, refinement, and mystery to any perfume - it can mimic vanilla’s deliciously sweet, butter-fat heaviness, or fade into cedar’s sharp and bitter feel. It’s also a fantastic and evocative scent on it’s own as well as in a blended fragrance. Sandalwood’s tastefully exotic lusciousness is wearable year-round by either sex, and you could spend a lifetime sampling all the different ways it can be used in perfumery.