A basic perfume is composed of 3 notes:

•top note: lasting power of approx. 0 to 2 hours - ingredients are mostly citrus (Hesperides) notes but also fruit notes
•heart note: lasting power of approx. 15 min to 4 hours - ingredients are floral, aromatic or spicy
•base note: lasting power of approx. 1 hour to 24 hours - ingredients are usually woods, animalic notes and resins


The lasting power will depend on the choice of raw materials used, some being more volatile than others…

What is the difference between a perfume and an eau de parfum?

In simple terms, the more concentrated the essences of the perfume are, the more likely it is to have lasting power. Put in figures, a perfume usually averages 24% of essences while an eau de parfum only contains 15%. Of course, if some precious and expensive oils are used such as rose, sandalwood, neroli, Osmanthus, the price will also be reflected. In the old days and until the late 60′s, ingredients such as civet, deer musk and castoreum were used as fixatives. Their smell is fecal or like urine but in lower dosages, they transform the perfume in a beautiful way.

If you happen to smell an old perfume bottle, you will not fail to notice how lingering the smell is. These ingredients have been banned or their use restricted. Although we understand the reasons behind the ban (mostly harm to the animals as far as the extraction is concerned), most of the artisan perfumers using ancient French methods sometimes wish they could access such strong fixatives.
(http://lesparfumsdisabelle.wordpress.com/2010/06/17/making-perfumes-according-to-ancient-french-methods/)