The association of humans with perfumes is very long. In fact, it is one of the innate tendencies of humans to enhance their body odor with fragrances. It is said that they started by using natural materials like flowers, leaves and roots. You might have heard about the Bible story that depicts the three wise men who visited baby Jesus with offerings like myrrh and frankincense. These materials are nothing but fragrant resins obtained from two different trees. These resins are used as incenses. The origin of perfumes has been traced back to the incenses prepared by the ancient Egyptians. The term perfume is derived from the Latin word, per fumus, which means through smoke (referring to the incense smoke). Today, we have thousands of perfume varieties that are used by people across the globe. Did you know that perfumes can be made at home? Apart from being less expensive, homemade perfumes do not expose you to chemicals that are found in most of the store-bought types. How about making a perfume from flowers? This article will provide you with some tips about making perfume using sampaguita flowers. What is Sampaguita? Most of us are familiar with jasmine plants that are found in many different varieties. There are around 200 species of jasmine and Jasminum sambac is one among them. Otherwise known as Arabian jasmine, this plant is native to certain parts of Asia, like India, Philippines, Thailand, etc. In fact, jasmine is the national flower of Philippines, where it is called sampaguita. It is also one of the three national flowers of Indonesia. Jasminum sambac or sampaguita is a plant that produces highly fragrant flowers that are used for making garlands and crowns. They are also used as religious offerings and for preparing certain folk medicines. The regular sampaguita plant produces strongly scented flowers with white petals that are around 5 to 9 in numbers. There are 3 to 4 popular varieties that vary in the shape of the petals and the number of layers in which the petals are arranged. With their strong scent, sampaguita flowers are widely used for making perfumes. Homemade Sampaguita Perfume In order to make perfume from sampaguita flowers, the most important ingredient is the flower itself. If you have a flowering sampaguita plant in your home, then well and good. Otherwise, contact a florist who sells this flower. Once you get the flowers, you can start with the procedure of making sampaguita perfume. You may use other flowers along with sampaguita for making this perfume. As per the following recipe, you need a combination of sampaguita and ylang-ylang flowers. The method of preparation is as follows - Procedure #1: Start with boiling the flowers in distilled water. If you have a cup of flowers, use two cups of distilled water. As the water boils thoroughly, lower the heat and let it reduce to half. Strain the water and keep it aside. Now, take a sterilized bottle, into which you have to add unscented vodka and the scented water. For every three tablespoons of scented water, you have to add five tablespoons of vodka. If you find the perfume to be too mild, you may add two to three drops of essential oils (preferably floral ones) too. You may start using this perfume within two to three days. The above said is a simple method of preparing sampaguita perfume with fresh flowers. Some people opt for another easy method, which is as follows - Procedure #2: Take a sterilized bottle and place a cheesecloth over its rim. Place the sampaguita flowers on the cheesecloth and pour distilled water over it, till the flowers are immersed in water (in the jar). The edges of the cheesecloth must be hanging outside, over the edges of the bottle. Now, cover the bottle tightly with the lid and leave it aside. After a few days, remove the cheesecloth with flowers (make sure to squeeze the cheesecloth and flowers to extract the scented water in them). Strain and filter the scented water, before filling it in a sterilized bottle. Your sampaguita perfume is ready. So, as you have seen above, making sampaguita perfume at home is not at all difficult. And, it's a good idea to try out the above explained methods for a change because homemade perfumes have that personal touch, which makes it all the more special. Smell good, feel good!