Eucalyptus (Leafy)

Eucalyptus comes from a tree that grows in Australia, Africa, India and Southern Europe. It is known by several common names, including Blue Gum Tree, Fever Tree and Stringy Bark Tree. The trees grow very quickly and are the tallest known trees in the world.

The fragrant volatile oil, found in the leathery leaves, is used medicinally to treat croups and coughs, flu, congestion and as an antiseptic. It is also used in spas and saunas to open the poors and the nasal passages. As a perfume, it is used to scent shampoos, soaps and other body products. Like the mints, it is fresh and invigorating. It makes an excellent shower gel to wake you up on those cold and dreary winter mornings, and as a bubble bath in the summer to cool you off and revitalize you after a long work day.

UB's oil is a true eucalyptus, with a hint of wood and moss to create a perfume oil that is timeless. Mixes well with other leafy and herby scents, and adds a bit of zing to the florals and fruities.

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Almond (Herby)

The luscious nutty aroma of almonds warms and delights the senses, reminding us of home, family and holiday baking in Grandma's kitchen. A favorite flavor in candies, teas and baked goods, almond is used in fragrances to evoke that sweet treat feeling.

Sweet Almond oil is nutrient-rich and helps to condition and soften your skin. It is wonderful in our nourishing body lotion.

Almond is a base note, meaning it adds depth and sensuality to a recipe and the fragrance lingers for a long time. Our almond is strong and true. A little of this widely loved fragrance goes a long way.

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Cinnamon (Spicy)

Cinnamon is used as both a spice and a medicine. As a spice, it flavors breads, cereals, fruits and desserts, and is often added to chocolates, coffees and teas. As a medicine, it has been used to cure colds, to treat digestive ailments and toothaches, to increase blood flow, and as an insect repellent.

Cinnamon is truly versatile and adds a bit of spice and spark to your scent recipe. It has been valued through the ages and highly prized as a gift fit for a king. It was known as a sensual perfume in China and Egypt as early as 2,000 BC and is even mentioned in the Bible. Our cinnamon is warm, and strong enough to add pizazz and depth to any blend.

Try cinnamon in a mix of bergamot, honeydew melon and green apple for a warm, fresh, lighthearted scent that speaks of flirtatious innocence.

Blend it with your favorite citrus, floral, sandalwood and musk to create a scent especially for women who love life!

Add it to lavendar, mimosa and oak moss to make a sexy scent for men.

Mix it with our rich vanilla and coconut to create a wonderful winter holiday scent, or mix it with one of our berries, add a little Naked and voilá, you have a fun summer scent. The possibilities are endless!

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Coconut (Fruity)

Coconut is native to tropical areas. The coconut tree has been called the "Tree of Life" and the coconut itself plays a significant role in a nutritious and healthy diet of the islands. Called "Summer in a Bottle," coconut fragrances are delicious, exotic and comfortably tropical.

Coconut is by far my absolute favorite fragrance. I have used it in every single recipe I've created for myself. Why do I love it so much? Because it is a wonderful blending scent. It is very light and helps to round out the other fragrances in your recipe without changing the overall scent.

Want a tropical feel? Add coconut. Want a scent that's great for summers on the beach? Add coconut. Want a fragrance that is ever so slightly flirty? Add coconut. It mixes well with...everything!

You're in for a real treat here. Our coconut is too delicious for words.

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Geranium (Floral)

Geraniums are prolific bloomers and come in a spectacular number of colors and varieties. They also come in a variety of fragrances, such as lemon, rose, apple, peppermint, nutmeg and others.

Our geranium is a true geranium scent—romantic and feminine. As a middle note fragrance, it rounds out your recipe. It works as a great mediator scent, acting as a common ground when blending two very different scents together. It balances recipes with really light delicate scents and really heavy, deep scents, bringing the two together without affecting the overall fragrance too much. Geranium is great for blending with other florals for added depth and dimension.

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Bergamot (Spicy)

Bergamot is a small, pear-shaped citrus fruit produced in Italy. It is a cross between a pear lemon and a grapefruit. The fruit is sour, but the peel is used to produce an aromatic oil that is used in making the popular Earl Grey tea. It is also used in candy-making, as an aromatherapy to treat depression, as a digestive aid, as well as in many perfumes.

Bergamot is one of the more popular scents in both high end men's and women's fragrances. Bergamot awakens the heart and opens the spirit, offering a sweet, citrus (lemony), pepper-like aroma that is a joy to blend with. Try mixing it with masculine scents for that perfect cologne or with other natural fragrances such as lavender, sage, basil, green tea, grapefruit, and mandarin.

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Garden Mint (Herby)

Garden Mint is an earthy mint that's blended with patchouli and oakmoss. The patchouli and oakmoss give this scent a richness and depth that the other mints (peppermint and spearmint) don't have, without overpowering it's light crisp aroma. Garden Mint is a cool, grounded fragrance sure to win the heart of any Herby personality. Leafy's really like it too.

Garden Mint is one of my favorite scents. I've used it in my WinterMint recipe and in Snow on the Windowsill and in Cool Berry. I think it goes well with almost any of the other oils, adding a sweet gentle tang to any recipe.

I like it because it's not as strong as Peppermint, and it's sweeter than Spearmint. It sort of reminds me of that Orbit brand, SweetMint gum (which is my favorite flavor of gum).

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Musk (Woodsy)

Urban Botanic has three different musk oils, and although they are all Woodsy scents, they each have their own personality.

White Musk is the lightest of the three musks and closest to the "traditional" 70's musk scent. It adds a lightly sexy note to your recipe without overpowering the other scents.

China Musk is a white musk surrounded with classic, oriental notes for a truly light, fresh and airy aroma. You'll detect hints of vanilla, tonka bean, jasmine, fresh lily and hyacinth notes that round out this beautiful and delicate perfume oil. Blends well with nearly every UB scent.

Egyptian Musk blends several soft musks and mixes well with every single UB scent! It instantly cuts the harshness of any Herby or Spicy and nicely rounds out any other custom blend.

Both the China and Eqyptian Musks add heartiness and depth to a recipe, while White Musk adds a softer, powdery feeling. White Musk also adds a sensual romantic scent to your fragrance.

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Gardenia (Floral)

There are approximately 250 different species of Gardenia. They are small evergreen shrubs with white or pale yellow flowers. They are prized for their strong sweet scent.

Gardenia is a key ingredient in many popular perfumes, including J. Lo Glow, Intrusion by Oscar de la Renta, Elizabeth Taylor's Gardenia, Kimora Lee Simmons' Goddess, and others by Givenchy, Gucci, Liz Claiborne, Nina Ricci and more.

Our Gardenia provides a lovely lift to any floral combination. It creates a soft romantic, almost powdery, essence. Also works well in tropical, exotic blends.

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Honeysuckle (Leafy)

Honeysuckles are not technically flowers, but blooming bushes or vines that twine around posts and rails. That is why they show up in our Leafy family, not Floral. They are grown almost everywhere, but especially in China, Europe and North America. The honeysuckle blooms are bell-shaped with a sweet scent that is this season's favorite in the perfume industry.

Soft and sweet, this flower-like fragrance is a "top note," meaning that it is the first scent you smell when you spray it on, but also the most volatile and the first to evaporate as the day goes by. When mixing your recipe, you'll want to add lower woodsy notes to give it some staying power.

Most of the top perfumeries have a honeysuckle-based scent, or will be introducing one this year (spring 2007). And it's not just for women. Fahrenheit (for men) by Christian Dior has honeysuckle as one of its main ingredients.

Get ahead of the rage and make your own honeysuckle custom scent for spring!

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Pomegranate (Fruity)

Pomegranate is a sweet, refreshing, exotic fruit with a slight floral smell. Pomegranates are native to Iran and some people believe that it is the forbidden fruit from the Bible. In one version of Greek mythology, Persephone eats a pomegranate while in the underworld and has to spend eternity there as a punishment.

Pomegranate mimics many other fruits and goes well with so many of our oils. Mix it with Mandarin to get a scent of apricots and mangos. Or mix it with Peach Blossom, Strawberry and Raspberry and you will think you mixed up a Cranberry brew for a summer party. Pair it with Cedarwood and China Musk, or...

You get the picture. It is fresh and clean and refreshing—and so willing to be what you want it to be. I mixed pomegranate with juniper and cinnamon and called it Cinnaberry. What do you think would go well with pomegranate?

[Info on pomegranate stolen from Sandra and her Fragrance Designer blog.]

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Plumeria (Floral)

Our Plumeria oil has a fresh picked, subtle and sexy fragrance. It is perfect for light and airy blends, but also makes a fabulously darkened fragrance when added to any of the Woodsy scents.

Plumeria is a flowering tree, or bush, discovered by a seventeenth century French botanist named Charles Plumier. It is native to Central America, Mexico and Venezuelaand is also grown in Australia and the Cook Islands. It generally grows no more than 2 feet tall and has dark green, shiny leaves. There are four variations of plumeria: white flowers with yellow centers, yellow flowers tinged with pink, a deep pink flower with yellow centers, and white flowers with yellow centers and red or pink tips.

Plumeria is often called Frangipani because it is reminiscent of a fragrance developed in the sixteenth century by Italian perfumer, Marquis Frangipani. Urban Botanic has both Plumeria and Frangipani—and they are delightfully different.

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Frangipani (Floral)

Frangipani, often confused with Plumeria, was developed in the 16th century by Italian perfumer, Marquis Frangipani. He marketed this to women of the upper class as a fragrance for scenting glove boxes 100 years before the plumeria flowers were discovered. However, when these flowers became popular among the elite, it reminded them of the frangipani fragrance, and therefore plumeria was nicknamed "frangipani."

This can make for a lot of confusion in the world of perfumery. Plumeria is more of a floral scent, while Frangipani has a slightly more fruity base. Urban Botanic has both Plumeria and Frangipani—and they are delightfully different.

Our Frangipani oil is very delicate and pretty. It blends well with every single UB scent! Use it to calm a dominating Herby or Spicy, or to cut down excess citrus in your scent.

A funny story: At one of my parties, a guest used Frangipani in her signature scent. She struggled with the pronunciation. When I said "frahn--juh--pah--nee" she responded, "What? French panties?!" Guess what she ended up naming her scent?

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Plumeria and Frangipani—The Story

Once Upon A Time...

During the 16th century there was an Italian nobleman named Marquis Frangipani. He was a perfumer who created a fragrance just for scenting glove boxes. So when women wore their new gloves, they would smell like the perfume. He named this perfume after himself, "Frangipani."

A century later, a French botanist, Charles Plumier, discovered or created/cross-bred? (not sure which) the Plumeria flower... which he named after himself.

The smell of the Plumeria flower reminded people of the popular Frangipani perfume that had been around for about 100 years, so they nick-named the Plumeria plant "Frangipani."

Now that we are able to extract so many more fragrances than in the 16th and 17th centuries, and because our olfactory senses are much more developed, it's easy to detect differences between the popular Frangipani perfume and the Plumeria flower smell. But the name association remains the same.

So... in short, Frangipani and Plumeria were people before they were smells. Frangipani is a perfume, Plumeria is a plant. The names got crossed along the way, but the two scents provided a lovely contrast to each other and lived happily ever after in the world of U.B.

The End!

(Courtesy of McKenna Gordon, founder of Urban Botanic.)

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Freesia (Floral)

Freesias are among the most popular cut flowers in the world. Named after German physician, Dr. Friedrich Heinrich Theodor Freese, freesias are known for their intensely sweet and citrusy perfume.

In bloom, freesias make for great aromatherapy. In a perfume, freesia is often used as a middle note, rounding out other scents in the recipe. You'll find freesia in many popular perfumes, such as Acqua di Gio by Giorgio, Intuition by Estee Lauder, Rapture by Victoria's Secret, Red Door by Elizabeth Arden and Paris Hilton by Parlux Fragrances.

Freesia is a light and airy floral, clean and crisp. This fragrance is fantastic on its own or blended with nearly any other fragrance to give it a fresh and sweet accent. Guaranteed to delight your scentsitivities!

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Wisteria (Floral)

Wisteria is a climbing vine that grows native in the Eastern United States, China, Korea and Japan. It has lovely flowers in purple, pink, blue or white. Chinese Wisteria is the most fragrant, but they all smell wonderful.

Wisteria has a somewhat exotic and musky scent, sharp and alluring. It is fantastic and unique all on its own, but when mixing with other florals, it yields deep, leafy garden or cool meadow type scents.

Wisteria can act as a mediator scent, to balance and round out the other scents in your recipe.

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Spearmint (Herby)

Spearmint is thought to be the oldest of all mints. It is grown for its aromatic oil, which has many uses, such as flavoring teas, candies, gum, toothpaste and medicines. It's used as a breath freshener and for the treatment of stomach ache and headache. As a tea, it helps to calm and relax frazzled nerves.

A lighter scent than peppermint, spearmint is a mouthwatering, crisp and refreshing fragrance which is lightly stimulating. Spearmint is generally considered to be a top note, and it mixes well with all of the herby fragrances and is a fun addition to many floral and fruity scents as well. Use it to make your fragrance a clean and fresh feeling.

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Pina Colada (Fruity)

Escape to paradise by adding our Pina Colada oil to your signature recipe. Our pina colada is so yummy...just like the drink. It's a perfect blend of coconut and pineapples with touch of vanilla for a sweet kick. When I use the shower gel, I can close my eyes and pretend I'm standing under a Hawaiian waterfall. I wear it to hold onto the summer that is quickly passing into fall.

Pina Colada is the definitive scent for summer at the beach. Ours is distinct but light; not overpowering like the pina colada scents that come in some tanning lotions.

I used Pina Colada in a recipe I named Five O'clock Somewhere, adding in a little more Vanilla and some Naked. I spritz it on at the end of a work day to help me relax and to add a little fun to my life.

Pina Colada mixes well with the berry and citrus oils, or can be added to Hawaiian Rain for an exotic experience.

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Naked (Fruity)

Naked gets everyone's attention and is a fruity favorite at every party. I go through more Naked oil than anything else!



Naked is the aroma of fresh green apples, perfectly blended with honeydew and spicy pear notes. If you want a fresh, fruity scent that is definitely different and bright, this is the fragrance for you. You will adore t his truly fruity sexy aroma.


Naked blends well with the other fruits and the spicy scents. It also does well mixed with the woodsy scents. One guest mixed Naked and Egyptian Musk and called it "Naked Egyptian." (Sometimes naming our scents is the funnest part of the party!)

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Fragrance Families

Urban Botanic fragrance oils have been divided into fragrance families. These are the original 66 oils. They are available at Urban Botanic while supplies last.

FLORAL

• Freesia
• Gardenia
• Geranium
• Jasmine
• Juniper
• Lemon
• Lilac
• Lily
• Linden Blossom
• Lotus Flower
• Mimosa
• Plumeria
• Rose
• Violet
• Wisteria

FRUITY

• Coconut
• Frangipani
• Grapefruit
• Green Apple
• Guava Fruit
• Honeydew Melon
• Lime
• Mandarin
• Naked
• Passion Fruit
• Peach Blossom
• Pear
• Pina Colada
• Pomegranate
• Raspberry
• Strawberry
• Vanilla

HERBY

• Almond
• Basil
• Chamomile
• Garden Mint
• Lavender
• Peppermint
• Sage
• Spearmint
• Tomato Leaf

LEAFY

• Cucumber
• Eucalyptus
• Green Tea
• Hawaiian Rain
• Heliotrope
• Honeysuckle
• Verbena
• Waterlily
• White Tea

SPICY

• Allspice
• Asian Spice
• Bergamot
• Brown Sugar
• Chocolate
• Cinnamon
• Fig
• Maple Spice

WOODSY

• Cedarwood
• China Musk
• Egyptian Musk
• Myrrh
• Oakmoss
• Pine
• Sandalwood
• White Musk

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