Does perfume have shelf life ?

The public enemy of perfume is its oxidization due to the oxygen in the air. Bear this in mind and follow these 3 key rules to avoid the early ageing of your perfume:

1. Keep the bottle away from light and other UV rays. These are so-called catalysts that are known for accelerating oxidization.
2. Keep the bottle away from heat. Like UV rays, temperature accelerates oxidization. So be careful with temperature variations and avoid leaving your perfume in your bathroom or near a heater.
3. Do not leave it open. As oxygen from the atmosphere is the main cause of ageing, the bottle should be tightly close after use. At best, you should also avoid laying the bottle down since this implies a higher potential contact surface between the liquid and the air which accelerates the oxidization.

According to the percentage of natural ingredients and preservatives in the perfume, a well-kept perfume can last for decades. L'Osmothèque à Versailles gathers together thousands of historic perfumes, including several hundred perfumes that have been missing for over a hundred years!