The Floral Family in Perfumery: The Complete Guide to Flowers, from Rose to Rare Blooms

1. Spring Flowers in the Floral Family

Synonymous with freshness, spontaneity, and joy, spring flowers bring green and vegetal notes to floral perfumes. However, not all can be used as such: many are mute flowers, whose scent must be reconstructed using natural materials and synthetic molecules.

Here are the main spring flowers used in perfumery, also called flowers of renewal.

Narcissus

Native to Central Europe, North Africa, and Asia, narcissus can be naturally exploited in perfumery. The largest current production is located in Auvergne, France. Highly prized by perfumers, it is used in high perfumery, particularly in floral and chypre compositions.

Its scent is green (see Green Facet), but also animalic and earthy — making it a difficult material to work with. It is found in the perfume Mont de Narcisse by L’Artisan Parfumeur.

Daffodil (Jonquil)

The daffodil is extracted by volatile solvents, a technique that captures its unique olfactory signature. It evokes spring freshness and has an immediately recognizable olfactory personality.

Daffodil is found in several floral perfumes, including:

• Vol de Nuit – Guerlain
• Velvet Orchid – Tom Ford
• Eau de Printemps – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Dolce Rosa – Dolce & Gabbana

2. White Flowers in the Floral Family

Also called “narcotic flowers” or “sensual flowers,” white flowers share a common molecule: indole. This molecule gives them a naturally animalic, bewitching, and carnal facet.

Jasmine Flower

Two varieties of jasmine are used in perfumery: Grandiflorum jasmine, with a balanced and delicate scent, both animalic and fruity depending on its origin; and Sambac jasmine, native to India, warmer, orangey, and sensual. An essential flower in floral perfumes, it is found in:

• J’adore – Dior
• Jasmin des Anges – Dior
• Splendida Jasmin Noir – Bulgari
• Shalimar – Guerlain
• Souffle de Parfum – Guerlain
• À la Nuit – Serge Lutens
• Le Parfum – Elie Saab
• Jasmin Rouge – Tom Ford
• Eau des Sens – Diptyque
• La Chasse aux Papillons – L’Artisan Parfumeur

Tuberose

Formerly named “hyacinth of the Indies,” tuberose is a highly fragrant flower, now extracted by volatile solvents. Its milky, solar, almost coconut scent is exotic, sensual, and powerful. Among iconic perfumes:

• Tubéreuse Criminelle – Serge Lutens
• Fracas – Piguet
• Le Premier Parfum – Chloé
• Poison – Dior
• Nuit de Tubéreuse – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Jardins de Bagatelle – Guerlain
• Parfum Terracotta – Guerlain
• Carnal Flower – Frédéric Malle
• Do Son – Diptyque
• Gabrielle – Chanel

Ylang-Ylang

Called “flower of flowers” in Indonesia, ylang-ylang exhales a solar fragrance, between jasmine, monoi, and tuberose. This carnal and exotic note is found in:

• Cruel Gardenia – Guerlain
• Terracotta – Guerlain
• Samsara – Guerlain
• Songes – Annick Goutal
• Eau de Mohéli – Diptyque
• Organza – Givenchy
• Amarige – Givenchy
• No. 5 – Chanel
• Infusion d’Ylang – Prada
• Ylang Nosy Be – Perris
• SunKissed Goddess – By Kilian
• Soleil Blanc – Tom Ford
• Gucci Bloom – Gucci
• Beach Walk – Margiela

Frangipani Flower

Delicate and sacred, this flower does not yield its perfume naturally: it must be reconstituted in the laboratory. Its scent is soft, solar, and evocative of islands.

Tiare Flower

Symbol of Tahiti, the tiare flower is sometimes extracted naturally, but its original scent is difficult to capture faithfully. Reconstituted, it evokes exoticism and tropical softness. Examples:

• Tiaré – Chantecaille
• Bronze Goddess – Estée Lauder

Gardenia

Widely used in reconstituted form, gardenia evokes a green white flower with a rhubarb note, thanks to the molecule styrallyl acetate. Present in:

• Cruel Gardenia – Guerlain
• Gardenia – Chanel
• Passion – Goutal
• Songes – Goutal

Lily

A majestic and symbolic flower, the lily diffuses a haunting floral scent that is very difficult to reproduce faithfully.

• Baiser Volé – Cartier
• Vanille Galante – Hermès
• Lys Méditerranée – Frédéric Malle

Magnolia

A flower from the Far East with citrusy and solar facets, magnolia (variety Michelia alba) offers very elegant lemony, green, and vanilla notes.

Orange Blossom

Derived from the bitter orange tree (Citrus aurantium), this iconic ingredient comes as neroli (distillation) or absolute (extraction). Orange blossom is used in floral, oriental, or chypre perfumes, revealing fruity, solar, or lavender notes (see Aromatic Facet).

• Florentina – Delacourte Paris
• Osiris – Delacourte Paris
• Fleurs de Citronnier – Serge Lutens
• Fleur d’Oranger – Serge Lutens
• Histoire d’Oranger – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• La Chasse aux Papillons – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Néroli – Goutal
• Cologne – Mugler
• Mi Fa – Réminiscence
• Infusion de Fleur d’Oranger – Prada
• Bouquet de la Mariée – Guerlain
• L’Heure Bleue – Guerlain
• L’Heure de Nuit – Guerlain
• Néroli Outrenoir – Guerlain
• Grand Néroli – Atelier Cologne
• Escale à Portofino – Dior
• Néroli Originel – Givenchy
• Néroli Ispahan – Boucheron
• Séville à l’Aube – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Néroli Portofino – Tom Ford
• Acqua di Sicilia – Tom Ford
• Sole di Positano – Tom Ford
• Eau de Néroli Doré – Hermès

3. Rosy Notes in the Floral Family

Rose

Among all existing rose varieties, only two are used in perfumery: the May rose, or Centifolia rose (honeyed, round, warm, and slightly candied scent) and the Damask rose, or Damascena rose (available in essence and absolute, each with a specific scent).

Essential to floral perfumes, rose can be fresh, oriental, fruity, or deeper. It also blends perfectly with chypre accords, especially neo-chypres.

Rose is one of the few flowers that can be processed by both volatile solvent extraction and steam distillation. Rose essence — from distillation — is one of the most expensive materials: it takes about four tons of petals to produce one kilo of essence. Rose absolute, obtained by volatile solvents, is more economical and offers a fuller note, used as heart and base in floral perfumes.

Some iconic fragrances featuring rose:

• No. 5 – Chanel
• Jo – Patou
• Paris – YSL
• Nahéma – Guerlain
• Idylle – Guerlain
• Rose Barbare – Guerlain
• Drôle de Rose – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Voleur de Rose – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Lipstick Rose – Frédéric Malle
• Dovana – Delacourte Paris
• Chloé – Chloé
• Infusion Rose – Prada
• Romance – Ralph Lauren
• Isia – Sisley

Rose Geranium

Pelargonium rosat, or rose geranium, native to Africa, concentrates its scent in the leaves and stem. Its note recalls that of rose (sharing nearly 30% of its components), but also has a green aromatic facet evoking mint, lychee, or lemongrass. It is a rather masculine flower, often associated with the fougère accord.

Rose geranium is present in many creations:

• Géranium Pour Monsieur – Frédéric Malle
• Wild Geranium – Aerin
• Rose de Chine – Tom Ford
• Rose Gold – Tiffany
• Eau de Minthe – Diptyque
• Équipage Géranium – Hermès
• No. 18 – Chanel
• Vétiver Géranium – Creed
• White Flowers – Creed
• Velvet Pure – Dolce & Gabbana
• Rose de Russie – Tom Ford

Peony

The peony, a mute flower, does not yield its scent to perfumers. Its reconstruction relies mainly on rose essence, phenyl-ethyl alcohol, geraniol, and fruity accents (like raspberry) as well as powdery notes (ionones, heliotropin). It brings a fresh, rosy, and delicate touch.

4. Spicy Flowers in the Floral Family

Carnation

Carnation should not be confused with marigold (tagetes). Its scent is generally reconstructed using combinations of spices (clove, vanillin, heliotropin) and rose. Although it can be extracted naturally, Egyptian carnation absolute is rarely used because its smell differs from what the public spontaneously associates with the flower.

Some perfumes containing carnation:

• L’Air du Temps – Nina Ricci
• Opium – YSL
• Bellodgia – Caron
• Tabu – Dana
• L’Oeillet – Prada
• Après l’Ondée – Guerlain
• L’Heure Bleue – Guerlain
• Lui – Guerlain
• Florentina – Delacourte Paris

Wallflower

Wallflower is distinguished by a musky and spicy scent, with vanilla nuances. A mute flower, it can only be used through reconstructions.

Immortelle

Immortelle (Helichrysum) grows in the scrublands of Corsica, Spain, and France. Distilled for its essence, it offers a spicy, liquorous, honeyed note, with a tobacco accent and a facet slightly evoking curry. A complex raw material, it requires great mastery to be integrated into a fragrance.

It is found notably in Sables by Annick Goutal.

5. Powdery Flowers in the Floral Family

The main powdery flowers are iris, mimosa, cassie, violet, and heliotrope.

Iris

Iris Pallida reveals a powdery scent blending violet, mimosa, woody nuances (see Woody Facet), and touches of raspberry or carrot. In perfumery, it is not the petals but the rhizomes dried for several years that are used. An extremely expensive material, iris is prized for its elegance, refinement, and retro softness.

Highly appreciated in powdery accords, iris also enhances oriental or woody creations. Its quality depends on the percentage of irone, a precious molecule close to violet.

Some iris-based perfumes:

• Infusion d’Iris – Prada
• Dior Homme l’Original – Dior
• Fleur de Peau – Diptyque
• Comète – Chanel
• Florentina – Delacourte Paris
• Iris Torréfié – Guerlain
• Iris Poudré – Frédéric Malle
• Iris de Chloé – Chloé
• Iris Bleu – Armani

Mimosa

An iconic flower of the south of France, mimosa is extracted by volatile solvents to obtain its absolute. Olfactorily, it blends violet accents, a powdery-almond facet, and a green note due to the simultaneous distillation of leaves.

Some mimosa creations:

• Mimosa pour Moi – L’Artisan Parfumeur
• Champs-Élysées – Guerlain
• Mimosa Pour Moi – Atelier Cologne
• Indigo – Atelier Cologne
• Les Infusions Mimosa – Prada

Cassie

Close to mimosa as it belongs to the same botanical family (acacias), cassie is reserved for fine perfumery. Its note is powdery, spicy, woody, balsamic, with animalic accents close to ylang-ylang and sulfurous and aldehydic nuances. It blends well with iris, mimosa, and violet.

Some perfumes containing cassie:

• Fleurs de Cassie – Frédéric Malle
• Après l’Ondée – Guerlain

Violet

The violet is a mute flower: it cannot be extracted naturally. Its scent is therefore reproduced using ionones and methylionones, discovered at the end of the 19th century.

Some perfumes enhanced by violet:

• Insolence – Guerlain
• Misia – Chanel
• Florentina – Delacourte Paris
• Lipstick Rose – Frédéric Malle
• Blanche – Byredo
• Blanc Violette – Histoires de Parfums
• Tempo – Diptyque
• Flora Salvaggia – Guerlain
• Violette Volynka – Hermès
• Deep Viola – Byredo
• Black Violet – Tom Ford

Heliotrope

Heliotrope is also a mute flower. Its scent, floral and almondy, close to mimosa and lilac, is reproduced either synthetically or using raw materials such as Tahitensis vanilla.

• Dovana – Delacourte Paris
• Heliotrope – Etro
• Après l’Ondée – Guerlain

6. Rare Flowers in the Floral Family

Reseda

This delicate flower exhales a honeyed scent recalling lily of the valley and narcissus.

Champaca

A highly prized white flower, Michelia Champaca offers an amber, warm scent with hay nuances, rosy and honeyed accents, as well as an effect evoking ylang-ylang, between heady jasmine and spicy-animalic notes.

Some perfumes with champaca:

• Champaca – Comme des Garçons
• Un Matin d’Orage – Annick Goutal

Broom (Genêt)

Its yellow flowers release a fruity and bitter fragrance, between orange blossom, lime blossom, honey (see Beeswax), and tobacco.

Pittosporum

A small tree with white and greenish flowers, pittosporum gives off a scent between jasmine and orange blossom. However, it cannot be extracted: only reconstructions are possible.

Mahonia

Native to America and Asia, this shrub offers a honeyed note recalling lily of the valley and narcissus, and exists only in reconstruction.

Karo Karoundé

A rare and powerful flower, karo karoundé offers a very green, spicy note with an animalic leather effect. This material can be used in its natural form.

Mock Orange (Seringat)

This flower with facets of jasmine and orange blossom brings freshness and light. A mute flower, it must be entirely reconstructed to be used in perfumery.

The floral family finally abounds with other iconic flowers: hyacinth, notably used in Chamade by Guerlain, or lily of the valley, present in Porcelaine by Hermès, Diorissimo by Dior, Muguet by Guerlain, Le Muguet by Goutal, or Lily of the Valley by Yardley.