The Connection Between Perfume and Aromatherapy
I sincerely believe that perfume is a form of aromatherapy, but an unspoken rule is that the two worlds should be kept apart. Why so? Interestingly, perfume is marketed as a luxury item, while essential oils are considered medicinal. What many don’t realize is that the best perfumes are made with perfume-grade essential oils that are luxurious in smell, price, and medicinal properties.
Anu Essentials Sita Yellow is my personal go-to perfume. It has a mature sweetness, formulated with rose oil that fetches $630 an ounce. Sita is a sultry and flirty aroma that I feel is complementary to my persona. In the deep of winter, I will sometimes spray on just one burst of Sita Red, combining it with Sita Yellow, to deepen the aroma. Honestly, I wear all of Anu Essentials Perfumes depending upon my mood, and wow, did I have a mood this past spring! With the advent of COVID, I went scampering for the sacred and protective Anu EssentialsShaman. I still wear it almost daily, but sometimes switch between Shaman and Sterling to lift my spirits, help ground me, and give me that feeling of protection. I wear Vetiver and Meadowlark to transport me to the great outdoors since, like many of you, I am stuck inside now that it’s too cold to enjoy my garden or visit the park.Hence, my stance that perfume is just as much an aromatherapeutic substance as essential oils, which are coined “medicinal” because all essential oils and resins have medicinal properties. For instance, sweet and expensive rose oil energetically soothes the heart and physically heals the skin, which is why it is often used in high-end luxury facial care products and spas.I share this to say that any scent which lifts your spirits and makes you feel good, is a form of aromatherapy, and that includes perfumes. I believe this is the reason people wear perfume and why it is a multi-billion-dollar business: it shifts your mood. Moreover, the commercial perfume business also brings in the bucks in billions because most commercial perfumes are made primarily with synthetics, costing pennies-on-the-dollar to manufacture. They are then marked up as high as 1000%, which is why retailers can afford to have endless sales.It wasn’t always this way. Perfumery, which hearkens back to the days of ancient Khamit (Egypt), once used only natural ingredients, not only for perfume but also for makeup and body care. In today’s commercial perfumery, more is spent on packaging and marketing than is spent on what’s in the bottle. The opposite is true of natural perfumes. The bulk of the cost is for what’s inside the bottle. Natural perfumes are expensive to make, which is why indie perfumers cater to niche markets, not mass markets. Not to mention, the aroma palate of natural perfumes is not something that most western noses are accustomed to. We’ve been conditioned to prefer fake over natural, but believe me, it’s the natural essences that offer exceptional fragrance and true healing.So, there you have it, my evidence for why perfumes are a form of aromatherapy. When we spray or dab on a scent we love, we’re transported. We feel elevated, as the spirit of the perfume works its magic on our olfactory, mind-altering senses. We move through the world, smelling the way we feel or how we wish to feel. Remember: although she dressed in common clothing to fit in with the crowd in an attempt to escape execution, it was Marie Antoinette’s wildly expensive and distinctive perfume that gave away her identity, sealing her trip to the guillotine. She still wanted to feel and smell like a queen.With COVID still in our midst and growing, I continue to wear the perfumes intended to shield, protect, and invoke power. And when I want to feel sensual and flirty, I’ll switch up for a day or two depending upon my mood, the time of day, and the season with one of the following essences - Sita Yellow which features rose, patchouli, and sandalwood oils, creating a sweet and flirty fragrance. Sita Red - which features the same notes as Sita Yellow, but with a darker palate for those who appreciate, and whose bodies resonate with deep, spicy notes. Nola - which is a blend of magnolia, pear, and musk was created as an alluring, sultry, and pheromonal fragrance, to entice and raise the stakes. Sunrayz - is an exotic citrus blend with notes of bitter orange, clementine, Mandarin orange, with the elegant neroli flower, is a bright and sweet fragrance to lift your spirits. Then there's Mocha, with its exquisite coffee blossom, cocoa, linden blossom, and civet essences that creates a sophisticated deep, dark gourmand aroma. Trust and believe: perfumes are not only enchanting to smell, but consequently, they are also aromatherapeutic.