Citrusy-sweet, brightly acidic orange oil adds a happy Vitamin C overload to any fragrance. Orange is also the ultimate team player in perfume: it will go with anything as its many different forms can blend well. Mandarin orange, green mandarin, bitter orange, blood orange, Sicilian orange are all variations on this juicy, joyous note. Sweeter notes like mandarin and blood orange work best with florals and spices, while bitter orange, green mandarin, and Sicilian orange are fantastic with aromatics like basil, nutmeg, etc. Orange’s cheerful energy, no matter if it’s sweet, bitter, or spicy, is wearable year-round without hesitation.

White musks are a synthetic rendition of animalic musks, and their aroma ranges from clean and soft, to floral and sensuous. Due to their inclusion in the laundry detergent making process, most people associate white musks with the air-dried clean laundry scent. White musks also contain fixatives, which bond to certain accords and make them cling to the skin for a longer period.

Jasmine, the ever-popular heart note, is highly desired and extensively used in perfumery. A fragrance chameleon, jasmine is delightfully versatile: transparent and luminous as a top note, and surprisingly animalistic and sensual as a smooth base note. Its suave, heady characteristics combine in an intoxicating wave of rich tenacity. Perfectly balancing femininity and masculinity, jasmine emits an unmistakably powerful scent that is both floral and fruity. Indian Jasmine is the most highly prized and fragrant of all jasmine species. A small 3 foot tall and wide flowering bush that grows well in full to part shade. The multi-petaled white flowers of this jasmine are extremely fragrant.

A versatile note of many facets, ambrette seed is musky and animalic, slightly fruity pear and floral powdery, iris-like. It is considered the best natural/non-synthetic alternative to musk. However, this note comes with a rather lavish price tag—relegating its usage to fine perfumery.