Floral

Carnation

Note Profile

Botanical 686 perfumes

Also Known As

Carnation (Malmaison), Dianthus

About

Spicy-sweet floral with clove-like character

Scent Profile

Carnation smells warmly spiced, led by clove with a bright peppery lift on top. A faint cooling, wintergreen edge runs underneath. Its floral heart is creamy and petal-like, turning soft and powdery as it dries down, with a faintly waxy weight to the base. It reads like pressed flowers in an old book rather than a fresh garden bloom.

ScentWheel

Breadthmedium

EnvelopeHeart · ~8h lasting

Family Spicy, Floral

Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.

What this is made of

Carnation absolute

A natural extract

CAS 8021-43-0

Carnation absolute (IFRA NCS). Rare in commercial use; most carnation notes are eugenol-based reconstructions, hence the moderate confidence.

How the layers join

Origin

Carnation absolute is extracted from the flowers of Dianthus caryophyllus, primarily cultivated in France, Egypt, and Morocco. The extraction process typically involves solvent extraction, as the delicate flowers yield little oil through steam distillation.

Usage in Perfumery

Perfumers use carnation mainly in the heart of floral compositions to impart a spicy, vintage character and enhance complexity. It blends well with rose, ylang-ylang, clove, and woody notes, and is often found in classic floral, chypre, and oriental fragrances.