Perfume longevity

Perfume longevity. How long should your perfume last ? Well, there are a few factors to consider.

Shelf life of perfume

All fragrances will have a shelf life and we can usually get away with a couple of years before our favourite perfume starts to smell ‘off’ and turn a different colour.

This is due to the fragrance becoming oxidised and the molecules in the bottle will break down and this eventually affects the scent.

Exposing a bottle of perfume to direct sunlight and not keeping it in a dark place or in its own box, can have an impact.

It might look elegant showing off your designer bottles but you will accelerate the molecules breaking down and you won’t get a long shelf life for your favourites. Painful if you’re spending £80-£100 on a bottle.

Perfume notes for longevity

There are some notes within the fragrance family that are less likely to oxidise and those are ones with a high alcohol content like amber, leather and woody notes.

Fragrances that lose their longevity the quickest tend to be perfumes with citrus or patchouli notes. Perfumes contain alcohol in order to preserve their shelf life.

Perfume Longevity

Whilst leaving your perfume in direct sunlight is a definite no no, heat in general will have the same effect so don’t leave them close to any radiators.

The best place to store your perfume is inside a wardrobe or cupboard

Away from places like the bathroom where you will have hot water pipes, heat and humidity.

Another way of making sure your perfume holds its longevity is covered in my topic here Using perfume correctly