Perfumes based on ylang ylang

Always considered the "flower of flowers", ylang-ylang is the flower of ecstasy and seduction that adorns women's hair and gives them a regenerating strength. It is the flower that perfumes the harems. Find out what ylang ylang perfumes are.

Its name of Tagalog origin (one of the main dialects of the Philippines) could derive from the word "ilang" which means wild region, or from "ilang-ilan" which means uncommon, referable to its very particular scent. The tree, ylang ylang, is native to the Philippines but also common in the islands of Polynesia, and can reach a height of 20 m: it is kept at a maximum height of two meters to facilitate the collection of flowers - which is done by hand, at dawn – when the petals are intense yellow. An apparently delicate flower, it is also called "the poor man's jasmine" because its fragrant petals are very resistant and allow up to three subsequent distillations to be carried out. The product of the first distillation is called ylang ylang extra and is commonly used in perfumery. Subsequent distillations have a gradually lower quality.

The third distillation to obtain ylang ylang perfumes still retains a fair amount of perfume and is used in soaps and personal hygiene products. To obtain 1 kilo of absolute, 700 kilos of flowers are needed; for 1 kilo of essential oil you need 500 kilos.

Lately, strong returns to the origins have been noticed in the art of perfumery, with mono-olfactory and minimal fragrances. Prada launched a line dedicated to ylang ylang perfumes in 2022 while Guerlain he thought about his own Embruns d'Ylang, a fragrance from the unisex Floral group. Embruns d'Ylang was launched on the market in 2019. The nose of this fragrance is Thierry Wasser. Top notes are salt and bergamot; middle notes are ylang ylang, cloves and jasmine sambac; base notes are iris, patchouli and vanilla.