Seaweed, Absolute

The marine note in modern perfumery is usually synthetic, most often calone, which smells of melon and sea air. Seaweed absolute is a different material. It is extracted from a brown alga and smells of the shoreline itself: iodine, salt and wet rock.

01 · Origin

Fucus vesiculosus, bladderwrack, is a brown alga of the North Atlantic coasts, named for the air bladders along its fronds. It is not a plant in the botanical sense. This absolute is produced in France from conventionally harvested material.

02 · Process

The dried alga is solvent-extracted and the extract refined with alcohol. Fatty acids form most of the material: octadecenoic acid, hexadecanoic acid and tetradecanoic acid, with ethyl octadecenoate. The odour-bearing fraction is small and very persistent.

03 · In Practice

Marine, iodinic and earthy, with a dark, salty depth. A base note, dosed in traces. Natural perfumery, especially fougère and aquatic accords, and olfactory study. Skincare formulation at low concentration. Blends with lavender, rosemary, cypress, juniper berry, lemon, vetiver and oakmoss.

General information: For external use only. Dilute before applying to skin. Keep away from heat and sunlight. Keep out of reach of children. Avoid contact with eyes and mucous membranes.