To some people, this may seem obvious. If you’re already in the habit of making things, you know how fun DIY projects are, how they’re a form of creative expression, they reduce your reliance on commercial products, they can be relaxing, you can make exactly what you want without having to settle for less.

But those things can be said of any do-it-yourself project. The real question is: what makes perfume in particular such a great thing to make?

Most people’s ideas just stay in their heads.

Most people never act on their ideas. Whether they’re ideas for a business, painting a room, a short story, an article of clothing, or just a simple scarf, most people just talk about what they want to do someday “when they have time.” In my experience, most of those projects never become physical reality. Even the most hard-core among my friends only finish a small percentage of the projects on their lists.

Perfume is one of those things that most people would never dream they could make themselves. Much of this is industry mystique; after all, the delicate bottles, flashy packaging, and exotic titles all conspire to elevate this particular product into the realm of fantasy. It seems too glamorous for us mere mortals.

In reality, perfume is easier than knitting.

But anyone who wants to can make perfume. In fact, it’s much easier than knitting or sewing, which requires a lot of physical dexterity, practice, and learning before you can turn out anything remotely good.  Most of the steps to sew something require some specialized knowledge – if you know how to sew a seam, it doesn’t mean you know how to alter a pattern to fit. If you know how to use a sewing machine, it doesn’t mean you can sew well by hand.

It requires a lot of practice before you can master all the basic skills needed to sew an easy pair of PJ’s! I clearly remember my frustration when I first started sewing, and a pillow case came out bad.

But perfume only requires a small amount of physical and technical ability.

It’s a relatively short path between wondering if you can blend anise and grapefruit (you can, it’s pretty cool) and actually doing it. There are no physical skills you need to make that happen except being able to eyeball measurements and handle small bottles.

I’m not saying that perfuming takes no skill, but it’s creative ability. Obviously, there is some design work involved, but it takes place in your imagination. Once you have the clear idea, you can easily make it. It’s more like mixing a paint color than making a painting. You get the ingredients, and you just mix them together – no additional steps between your imagination and your fragrance. In a relatively short amount of time, you’ll be looking at your own unique perfume creation. (Whether it’s pleasing or not is another story…)

The only technical information you need is the basics on what makes a professional-quality perfume. Even industry perfumers don’t know chemistry; you shouldn’t worry about that either.

And if you need help in the organization department, I have some printable fragrance formula sheets so you can quickly write down your perfume experiments in an easy to read format.

Join us in an excellent lifestyle based on creativity, high-quality, and frugality -- become part of the Excellent Living Guide community! You'll be invited to participate in member discussions, projects, events, and special PDF tutorials on making more cool stuff. Read about ELG values and sign up here.