Violets in perfume

Modern perfumery stands upon the building blocks of the past; we still enjoy much of what we wore several hundred years ago, albeit in different quantities and combinations. However, during the time since then, we have discovered more sensible and sustainable means of producing many of the materials. This is the case with violet notes in perfume; French and British violet fields produced so little that it was an extraordinarily expensive material, preserved only for the elite. That is, until synthetic violet materials became available, and then suddenly every man and his dog was wearing it.

I’ll let Sarah explain it. This is the type of thing you’ll find in Sarah’s Scenthusiasm Community on Patreon: explaining the history of a material, the ways it’s used today and what we can do with it in our formula.

Until the end of the 19th Century, the aroma of violets in perfumes came from the flowers. It was shockingly expensive owing to the tiny amount which could be extracted from Toulouse violets. It was one of those fragrances which waved an olfactory flag over the wearers' heads which said, "Look at me! We're rich!" as they wafted along in a cloud of ionones. It was as exclusive as a three-metre fence around a gated community and a guard on the gate. "Sniff all you like, but you'll never be wealthy like me," it smirked as it entranced the noses of the great unwashed.

This is one of the reasons that violet fragrances became so very popular once ionones and irones were synthesised and the gates were opened to all. The hoi polloi stormed the perfumed palaces and mere servants smelled as good as those who paid their wages. The shrinking violet started a revolution in its own way.  The violet became an inclusive fragrance, adopted by the Suffragettes, with their green, white and violet banners.

One of the ionones' ironies is that Napoleon Bonaparte adored violet fragrances - the expensive natural ones. Once he found himself in charge, he apparently forgot everything he'd fought for, declared himself emperor. took over Versailles, decorated it lavishly in layers of gold leaf, and covered himself in the poshest perfume he could find.  

Then chemistry happened, ionones and irones filled laboratories with a rich violet and iris aroma, and with mass production, violet perfumes became wildly fashionable. The colour mauve hit the streets too, first synthesised by William Perkin. We can scarcely imagine now that most clothes were shades of brown, and that bright purple seen outdoors was something to gape at.  Something which had been unattainable was everywhere, and everyone wanted to be part of it.

All those lovely violet fragrances our grandmothers and great grandmothers (and great grandfathers too, because back then it wasn't regarded as a feminine fragrance), none of those were made from flowers. The French and British violet fields were planted with other crops as the natural materials became too expensive to use and production fell out of vogue.

Violet sweets and tooth powders were used to sweeten the breath; we still have Parma Violets now, although mint has taken over as the oral aroma of choice.

Although they don't always stand out, there are violet aromas in thousands of perfumes, mostly methyl ionone alpha or gamma, deep in the hearts of floral and woody fragrances for men and women, but perfume companies don't always mention them because so many people think they won't like anything with it in, as they don't like it on its own.

Ionone alpha and ionone beta - two aroma chemicals that are like twins, with slight differences. 

Ionone alpha is more Parma violets, and ionone beta is a little more woodsy. They also turn up in essential oils, but only in very small quantities. Sometimes I use them alone, but often together in a straight ratio of 1:1.

Methyl ionone alpha and methyl ionone gamma are softer, smoother violetty aroma which is in almost every fruity floral fragrance you're likely to find.

The gamma version is one of the materials that the Master Perfumer Sophia Grojsman used in her famous accord - with Hedione, Galaxolide and Iso E Super - to make the base for Tresor and Paris. 

When I made my own version of this accord - and used it as a base for my fragrance Babylon Sunset - I used them in equal quantities, and I've used both the gamma and alpha versions. 

If you're wanting to understand - and perhaps make - fruity floral fragrances, then it's worth investing in methyl ionone gamma. For a violet flower fragrance, you'll be needing ionone alpha, and perhaps beta too.

Violet leaf absolute smells like turbo-charged cucumbers by the way, so if it's violets you're after, this is not the material you're looking for.