It's always exciting to meet other frum fashion bloggers who not only share the same enthusiasm for beauty and fashion but also for remaining true to our traditions. Recently Elisheva from Bellabusta contacted me about doing a guest post on fashion-isha featuring insider information from her years training at FIT and interning at a fragrance house, and I thought, why not? Who wouldn't love to learn some insider secrets of the beauty industry?
Insider Secrets of the Beauty Industry
Last month, I graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology with a degree in Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing where I spent a couple of years learning the little-known secrets of the beauty and fragrance industry. In this Fashion-Isha exclusive, I share some insider secrets so you can be more informed and entertained about what really goes on in the beauty industry! Read below to find out the smart way to buy a perfume, how to best extend the life of your fragrance and what the word “natural” really means in cosmetics. (For those who are not particularly enamored with fragrance - just skip to the end of each paragraph and read the “Moral of the story” for a quick nugget of info.)
- Perfumes are designed with top notes, heart notes and base notes. The top notes are what you smell immediately after spraying, the heart notes are the main signature of the fragrance and the base notes are what linger a few hours after the initial spray. Nowadays, because of fierce competition in the perfume market, fragrances are designed with amazing top notes so that you fall in love with the smell at first spritz and purchase it. It may not smell so wonderful after an hour, though, when the heart and base notes are revealed. Moral of the story: When you purchase a new perfume, don’t buy it right away because you like how it smells. Spritz it on the inside of your wrist and wear it for a few hours before deciding to buy since the scent can change dramatically.
- The scent of your perfume changes as soon as you spray it on yourself since the heat of your skin quickens the evaporation of the fragrance molecules. The base notes are the ones that stay behind the longest. Moral of the story: If you want your fragrance to stay on for a really long time, spray it on your clothes, hair, or better yet, your shaitel. The scent will last for days. (Halacha Note: you can spray perfume on your hair or skin on Shabbos, but not on a shaitel or clothes.
- Contrary to popular belief, perfumes are not made by the designer labels they carry. Calvin Klein or Vera Wang don’t sit down and make their fragrances (they’re too busy designing fabulous clothes!). Instead, they contract a fragrance house with professional perfumers, also called “noses” who sit down in a lab and compound a yummy-smelling formula. These fragrance houses sell the perfume oil to the designers who put it in a beautiful bottle and sell it for a hefty markup. Perfumers don’t only make fine fragrance - they also design fragrances for laundry detergent, shampoo and dishwashing liquid! Moral of the story: When you buy your favorite Downy fabric softener, you can thank a perfumer somewhere who made it! (And they can thank you – since they can make a lot of $ off their successful formulas!)
- Although designers and celebrities don’t actually make their perfumes, celebrities really do have input in the fragrances that have their name on it. I spent a few months interning for a big fragrance house, and once I was sent out with the company credit card and spent $200 on candy which was to be used for a meeting they were having with Khloe Kardashian and her husband who were developing a new perfume. Moral of the story: Celebrity perfumes aren’t as cheap as you may think, they are often made with the same quality of ingredients and by the same perfumers as the more expensive designer perfumes.
- When I interned at a fragrance house, they had the most incredible room. It was a small space with a few refrigerators filled with virtually every perfume ever made. The company makes sure to buy each new perfume that comes to the market as reference material. Inside the fridges are separate compartments labeled A through Z. All the perfumes starting with the letter “A” are in the box labeled “A”, etc., all the way to “Z”. If there’s anyone else out there crazy about perfume, you can imagine my excitement at the discovery of this treasure trove! Moral of the story: To make your perfumes maintain their scent for a really long time, store them in your refrigerator!
- For those interested in natural cosmetics and fragrances, be aware that when a product claims to be “natural” it might not be meaningful at all. There are currently no laws about using the word “natural” on products, so anyone can put it on their packaging. You often see a product claiming to be natural and the only difference may be adding some kind of plant ingredient to the many other “unnatural” ingredients. Moral of the story: Green packaging and a product label with the word “natural” in it may not mean a thing! If you are really concerned with using natural products, check the labels.
For more great beauty and fashion tips why not check out http://bellabusta.tumblr.com/ and enter her True Religion Perfume + Lotion Giveaway ($105 Value). To enter, "like" Bellabusta on Facebook and post a comment of a beauty brand you love to be entered. Winner will be chosen using random.org on July 5. See full entry info here: http://bellabusta.tumblr.com/post/6722788404/truereligiongiveaway.
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Have a beautiful weekend!
xo
Sharon
2 comments
Thank you bellabusta for sharing your inside secrets! All those fashion and beauty lovers out there are totally jealous for your time at FIT--it must have been great. I love your blog and keep sharing your secrets with us!!!Mwah!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post was very happy reading the really important information for me thanks, I thought the man in the future. I will surely recommend this article with your friends, family and friends. You are really great so allowing good articles.
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