What is extrait de parfum?

Extrait de parfum is the most concentrated form of fragrance commonly sold: roughly 15 to 40% pure fragrance oil, where an eau de parfum usually carries 8 to 15%. Everything that matters follows from that number. Extraits last longer on skin, sit closer to the body, and cost more per bottle but usually less per wear. Every Maison Carthia scent is an extrait, dosed around 25 to 30%, so consider this both a definition and an explanation of why we build the house on it.

The concentration ladder

Fragrance categories are mostly statements of dosage, the percentage of fragrance oil dissolved in alcohol. Body mists sit around 1 to 5%. Eau de toilette runs about 5 to 10%. Eau de parfum usually lands between 8 and 15%, despite the premium on the label. Extrait de parfum starts where those end and can climb past 30%. The names are not regulated with much rigour, which is why two eaux de parfum can behave nothing alike, and why the number matters more than the words.

What concentration actually changes

Longevity, first. More oil means more material for your skin to hold, so a good extrait wears for 6 to 12 hours where an eau de toilette fades by lunch. Character, second. Higher dosage lets the base notes, the woods and resins and musks, stay present for hours instead of vanishing with the top notes. And, counterintuitively, extraits are often quieter than sprays half their strength: less alcohol means less initial blast, so the perfume stays in a closer orbit and lasts instead of shouting.

Extrait vs eau de parfum

Same perfume, different physics. An eau de parfum announces itself quickly and fades within 3 to 6 hours on most skin. An extrait opens more gently, then keeps going through a workday and into the evening. If you re-apply an EDP twice a day, an extrait at a higher price can still cost less per hour of actual scent. That arithmetic is most of the reason we never bothered making anything weaker.

How to wear it

Two sprays are enough, on pulse points or collarbone. Do not rub your wrists together; the friction bruises the top notes. A single spray on clothing or hair will outlast everything, though test dark fabrics somewhere hidden first. In summer, spray once and trust it.

Questions we hear

Is parfum the same as extrait de parfum?

Yes. Parfum, pure perfume and extrait all name the same top tier of concentration. Extrait de parfum is the traditional French term and the one we print on our labels, because it is the least ambiguous of the three.

Is extrait too strong for the office?

Usually the opposite. Extraits project less than a fresh eau de parfum because there is less alcohol pushing scent off your skin. Two sprays of an extrait is a more polite amount of perfume than five of something weaker.

Does extrait de parfum expire?

Kept away from heat and sunlight, a sealed extrait lasts for years; the high oil content makes it more stable than lighter concentrations, not less. A closet shelf beats a bathroom counter.

Which Maison Carthia scents are extraits?

All ten. The collection runs from fresh marine to deep oud, every bottle dosed around 25 to 30% and hand-filled in Montréal. The Discovery Set is the way to try seven of them for $39, and if oud is your direction, start with the oud guide.