⊛ learn · lesson 14
reading a notes list
what the list says, and what it doesn't
a list, not a recipe.
the notes a brand gives you, often laid out as top, heart and base, usually come from its press side. they describe the perfume. they aren't the formula, and they aren't complete.
what a note can really be.
tap a note.
a list has no amounts.
a list never says how much of each thing is inside. a perfume magazine notes that costly materials like iris are often in a formula only in tiny amounts.
some notes are accords.
an accord is several materials blended so well that they lose their own identity and read as one new smell. a note on a list, like amber, can be an accord rather than a single material.
the pyramid is tidier than the perfume.
the neat top, heart and base fits many older perfumes best. many modern perfumes show their main character from the first spray, and some have no real top at all.
so how do you use it?
read it as a rough hint of what to expect. if you smell something that isn't listed, your nose may be right. the final test is on your skin.