Posted by Maese Lab - 07.09.19

Fixers in Perfumería Niche

What kind of fixatives exist to make perfumes, what are their characteristics?

FIXATIVES IN PERFUMERY:

Discover their types, how to use them and how to make the most of their olfactory qualities. How to combine them in a formula and adapt the fixative that best suits the spirit of your perfume.

These are found in essential oils, absolutes, resin extracts, aromatic essences and special fractions for perfumers.

A Fixative is a substance that by its conformation and chemical structure "traps" the volatile molecules of essential oils and delays their evaporation. Many of these substances are essential oils that, having a heavier molecular weight than the others, act as "anchors" for the lighter ones and therefore more susceptible to volatilization. In other cases, they are molecules that establish strong chemical bonds with the molecules of the essences and thus transform them into a more stable element, making their evaporation slower and longer lasting. In addition to slowing evaporation, some of them give greater structure and roundness to the fragrances, even providing their particular aroma, thus enriching the final product. Two types can be distinguished: natural fragrances and synthetic fragrances. And according to their origin they can be vegetable, animal or synthetic.

Aquí encontrarás consejos de gran ayuda para utilizar fijadores totalmente naturales en la fórmula de un perfume: Para esto, te explicaremos de que recurso sintético hecha mano la industria actual del perfume y porqué, para que sepas que se pueden conseguir mejores resultados utilizando materiales naturales mediante una perfumería consciente y con perfumistas bien informados. En el sector de la perfumería fue muy común durante mucho tiempo utilizar fijadores artificiales, el más popular ha sido siempre la Dimeticona: hablemos un poco de esta sustancia, esta sustancia a pesar de provocar un terrible daño en el sistema inmunológico de las personas, era y es en algunos casos empleada en las formulaciones ya que sus moléculas son de gran peso y tamaño, también denominadas raptoras, es decir tienen la capacidad de enlazarse con múltiples moléculas aromáticas. Además estas moléculas no son evaporables y pueden sujetar moléculas que si lo son en extremo, de ahí resultó ser siempre un recurso fácil para conseguir que un perfume perdure en el tiempo. Además, esta sustancia no aporta aroma alguno, es totalmente neutra, característica que la hace apropiada para conseguir perfumes monovarietales comerciales y de bajo costo. Pero un buen perfumista sabe, que conseguir un perfume de esta manera, no es resultado del verdadero arte de la perfumería, sino de la ingeniería química. Un buen artista perfumista se empeña en conseguir no solo un fijador que atrape y fije las moléculas sutiles, sino que también aporte un valor aromático a la fórmula. Es por esto que vamos a recomendar varias opciones de fijadores totalmente naturales, exquisitos en su estructura tanto por su calidad olfativa e interacción con determinadas aceites esenciales, como por sus potentes cualidades fijadoras, que es el tema principal de este artículo.

You might be interested in some of these Propanediol products or our article on how to make a homemade perfume for men.

Fixatives from Vegetable origin

Varieties

Resins: Myrrh, Olibanum, Estoraque, Opoponax, among others.

Roots and Woods: Orris (rhizome of Germanic Iris and Iris pallida), Vetiver Root, Sandalwood, Cedarwood, Cypress, Siamese Wood, Canadian Thuja, among others.

Balms: Gurjum, Benjuí, Copaíba.

Cabreuva, Hiba Japanese

Citrus: bergamot is the most used.

Leaves: sage, Patchouli

Coumarin: substance present in many plants: Sweetgrass, Mullein, Asperula olorosa and Tonka Bean (the latter is the most used in perfumery).

Synthetic Fixatives

Varieties

Perfume fixative

Glyceryl Diacetate, Ethyl Phthalate, Benzyl Benzoate, Amyl Benzoate, Musk Ketone, Musk Ambrette, Heliotropin, Synthetic Coumarin, Cinnamic Alcohol Esters, Cinnamic Acid Esters.

Fasteners of animal origin

Perfume fixative Types

Animal origin: they are generally oily secretions produced by sexual glands of certain animals, or as in the case of ambergris, stomach waste of the sperm whale that evacuates in the sea.

Ambergris: is a waxy and compact substance produced by the stomach of the sperm whales in response to indigestion, after being expelled this compact substance to the sea and undergo salt and sun an exquisite substance is obtained in earthy, marine and very attractive animal aromas. Nowadays it is the most used fixative in perfumery, for its effectiveness, aromatic contribution and because fortunately the animal is totally protected since the ambergris being a waste that the animal evacuates, it is not conditioned to the hunting of the man nor its captivity.

Other aromatic substances coming from animals are Castoreo, Civet, Musk. Currently, their collection is totally regulated by governmental entities in the areas where tribes that hunt animals for their personal consumption live, being these the only ones authorized to prepare the aromatic materials indicated above, thus avoiding the extinction of these species that secrete olfactory substances through their glands and controlling the excessive exploitation caused by an irresponsible and cruel market.

Of course, the use of these aromatic resources is subject to the criteria of each perfumer, this article is informative and everyone can decide what corresponds best for themselves and their own idiosyncrasies.

You might be interested in some of these Propanediol products or our article on how to make perfumes.

How we can combine these natural fixatives in our perfumes so that they also enrich the original scent:

To fix woody perfumes, which already have essential oils with high fixing power, but we would like to increase their fixation, we will use Gurjum Balm, which will give the formula an unctuous but at the same time dry contribution and will also provide greater expansion to the wood, it will be a fixative and an expander of aromas at the same time.

If we are looking for a fragrance that is not dry, that is to say, to obtain a fresher wood and at the same time, unctuous and pleasant, we will use as fixative Palo de Siam, which is of the cypress family, but with a softer aroma.

If we want to generate a perfume of woods with very deep nuances that lead to damp landscapes, wet earth and roots with touches of intense greens, then in this case we will use Oak Moss as a fixative.

If we wanted to achieve intense woods, with a touch of roasted and smoky notes, we would look for a Guayaco Palo as a fixative and if we only wanted to achieve a good fixing power but without taking away the prominence of fresh herbal, floral, summer and citrus scents, we would use Copaíba Balsam in any of these cases.

In perfumes with fresh and intense woody aromas, the best choice as a fixative is Japanese Hiba, which reminds us of freshly cut wood, evoking sawmills, artisan cabinetmaking.

If we are looking for a deep aroma in the fragrance we would use Myrrh as a fixative, it has heavy molecules, deep and pleasant smell. It does not interfere directly in the main scent, it does not take away its prominence, but we know that it is present during the whole time the perfume is active.

For perfumes of a sweet nature, such as caramel and honey, the best fixative is Tuya from Canada.

And in Aromas, approaching to pastry, vanilla, cookies, cookies, candied products, we will use Cálamo Aromático as fixative.

INCENSE: There are two types of incense.

One is the Incense Resinoid: it is the one whose aroma reminds us of the atmosphere of a church, it is the one that has the most fixing power, it belongs to the low and deep notes and has practically no aromatic incidence in a perfume. It is one of the most versatile resins as it adapts to all essential oils. Sweet, dry, aromatic, spicy and floral aromas. It is what we would call a real wild card in perfumery.

On the other hand, we have the Incense Essential Oil, which has the same fixative qualities as the resinoid, but its presence is strong in the formula and has a great influence on the final aroma of the perfume.

OPOPONAX: in this scent there is a combination of aromas in the same essential oil of frankincense, myrrh and caramel. It can be used in fragrances that have a sweet and penetrating tendency. As perfumes with fragrance combinations of whipped cream, intense caramel, strong chocolate, among others.