I Want The Real Thing!

March 13th, 2008 by Poise Daily Staff Member in She Answers by Ms. Trendsetter, POISE Answers

She Answers On: I Want The Real Thing!

Q. The French are meant to be famous for perfume. I wonder why, when most French-made perfumes are mostly alcohol. Didn’t perfume come from somewhere in the Middle East? If so, how can I get that kind of ‘real’ perfume?

A. Perfume actually came from the ancient Egyptians over 5,000 years ago who believed that burning incense pleased the gods; hence, the name ‘perfume’ from the Latin per fumum which means ‘through smoke’. Many of the scents the ancients enjoyed then remain popular now. Even the techniques for gathering materials remain unchanged.

Despite having over 3,000 natural ingredients, most of today’s perfumes are mixed with new chemicals such as alcohol for many reasons. One reason is that ‘real doesn’t necessarily mean safe’. Most natural ingredients contain allergens, that’s why the use of them has been prohibited or at least decreased and most of today’s perfumes ‘watered down’ with alcohol and synthetic chemicals.

‘Real’ also doesn’t translate to being ‘better’. Consider the ingredient musk. The acquisition of natural musk from animals is considered inhumane and cruel. Synthetic musk is more than a worthy substitute.

But probably the biggest reason for this is economics. Natural ingredients are, quite simply, ridiculously expensive. You will notice that the most natural of all perfumes (the ones with more natural ingredients as opposed to synthetic) are very expensive such as Joy by Jean Patou and the famous Chanel No. 5. So it really only makes sense that in order to get ‘real’ perfume, you’ll have to shell out some ‘real’ cash.

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