Making Perfume Tip About Using Abbreviations for Descriptors

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Making Perfume Tip About Using Abbreviations for Descriptors

by  | Oct 13, 2015 | natural aromatics, natural perfumery course, Natural Perfumery Institute, raw materials of perfumery, study perfumery | 0 comments

Learn how to dilute aromatics, use a scale, and work with professional evaluation forms to record your impressions.

Learn how to dilute aromatics, use a scale, and work with professional evaluation forms to record your impressions.

Making Perfume: Perfume Shorthand Key to Comprehensive Descriptors for Organoleptic Evaluation

Perfumers need a jolt, or a boost to the thinking process, to help them come up with a descriptive word for various aspects of a fragrance. When making modifications (aka mods) to choose the perfect perfume, it helps to have both the Aromatic Lexicon that I supply my students with, and the next step, a shorthand way to jot down those descriptive terms. The following shorthand key included in the textbook for The Natural Perfumery Institute, (NPI) is valuable for this, and I’m sharing it here to pay it forward to those who need some help with their word searching. I hope you find it useful.

If you’re considering studying perfumery, join us at the NPI, and you’ll find the textbook and supporting materials that will give you an outstanding perfumery education.

You can right-click the image and save it as a .jpg, or copy and paste the individual entries, below. Saving the individual entries will give you the chance to create a document of your own, and add the descriptors you develop in your studies. I provide my students with an editable Word.doc to do this, and they really come up with some creative terms! Use the document as a jumping-off point to allow you to add to when new terms arise during your observations. Feel free to share this with your perfumer friends, and most of all, have fun!

A quick and easy way to keep notes while evaluating perfume modifications. Courtesy Anya McCoy Natural Perfumery Institute

A quick and easy way to keep notes while evaluating perfume modifications. Courtesy Anya McCoy Natural Perfumery Institute

AGR Agrestic

ALM Bitter Almond

AMB Ambergris/Amber

ANI Anisic

ANM Animalic

APL Apple

APR Apricot

BAL Balsamic

BER Bergamot

BIT Bitter

BLC Black Currant

BNA Banana

BNT Burnt

BRM Broom

BUT Butter

CAM Camphorous

CAR Carnation

CAS Cassie

CAT Castoreum

CBR Cucumber

CDR Coriander

CED Cedarwood

CEL Celery

CIN Cinnamon

CIS Cistus

CIT Citrus

CIV Civet

CLO Clove

CML Caramel

CMN Cumin

COC Coconut

COE Concrete

COF Coffee

CON Coniferous

COO Cool

CRS Coarse

DEL Delicate

DIF Diffusive

DRY Dry

ERT Earthy

ETH Ethereal

FAT Fatty

FCL Fecal

FLO Floral

FNG Fenugreek

FOR Forest

FRE Fresh

FRU Fruity

FUN Fungal

GAL Galbanum

GAR Gardenia

GER Geranium

GIN Ginger

GRA Grapefruit

GRE Greasy

GRN Green

GRS Grassy

HAI Hair

HAR Hard

HEL Heliotrope

HER Herbaceous

HNY Honeysuckle

HON Honey

HSH Harsh

HVY Heavy

IND Indolic

JAS Jasmine

JON Jonquil

LAB Labdanum

LAV Lavender

LEA Leather

LEM Lemon

LFY Leafy

LHT Light

LIM Lime

LIN Linden Blossom

LLY Lily

MAG Magnolia

MAR Marine

MED Medicinal

MEN Mentholic

MET Metallic

MIM Mimosa

MIN Minty

MOS Mossy

MUS Musky

MYR Myrrh

NAR Narcissus

NON Nondescript

NUT Nutmeg

OFL Orange flower

OIL Oily

OPO Opoponax

ORB Orange oil, Bitter

ORR Orris

ORS Orange oil, Sweet

OZN Ozonic

PAT Patchouli

PEA Peach

PEP Peppermint

PER Peru Balsam

PHE Phenolic

PIN Pine

PNP Pineapple

POW Powdery

PPR Pepper

PRN Prune

PUN Pungent

RAS Raspberry

RES Resinous

RIC Rich

ROS Rose

RSM Rosemary

RWD Rosewood

SAG Sage

SAN Sandalwood

SEA Seaweed

SHA Sharp

SMO Smoky

SMT Smooth

SOA Soapy

SOF Soft

SOU Sour

SPI Spicy

SPR Spearmint

STA Stale

STY Styrax

SUL Sulphurous

SWE Sweet

TAR Tar

TEA Tea-like

TEN Tender

TER Terpenic

TGN Tangerine

THI Thin

THY Thymolic

TOA Toasted

TOB Tobacco

TOL Tolu balsam

TRP Tropical

TUB Tuberose

URI Urinous

VAN Vanilla

VEG Vegetable

VIO Violet

WAR Warm

WAX Waxy

WET Wet

WIN Wine

WOD Woody

YLA Ylang-ylang

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