Extrait, Eau de Parfum, Eau de Toilette: The Difference

The names describe how much fragrant oil is dissolved in alcohol. From lightest to richest: eau de cologne, eau de toilette, eau de parfum, and extrait de parfum, sometimes called parfum or pure perfume.

More oil means a softer opening, a closer and warmer presence on the skin, and a fragrance that lasts longer. Less oil means a brighter, more diffuse first impression that fades sooner.

There is no legal standard for these terms, so every house sets its own levels. As a guide, an eau de parfum usually sits around 8 to 12 percent oil and an extrait around 15 to 22 percent. An eau de toilette and an eau de cologne are lighter again.

The same name on two brands can wear very differently. The concentration tells you the direction, not the exact result.

Alcohol carries the top notes into the air quickly. That is why a lighter concentration feels loud for the first few minutes and then thins out.

With less alcohol, an extrait opens quietly and gives more of its time to the heart and base: the woods, resins and musks that hold a fragrance together. It projects less across a room and stays longer with you.

Choose a lighter concentration if you want something bright that you will reapply through the day. Choose an extrait if you want one application to carry you from morning into the evening, close to the skin.

Every Ember Sky fragrance is an extrait, so the choice for us is only which one, and whether to wear it alone or layered.