Help! Organizing Fragrance Oils???

[ScentimentallyYours]

How does everyone here organize their fragrance oils? I have everything from half ounce samples to 1 pound bottles. SO MANY from 20+ years. I purchased several sizes of glass bottles and caps to transfer FOs from plastic bottles into glass bottles. Once I do that, how do I organize them in my soap room? How do I group them, by size, by fragrance family, or alphabetically? For labels, I have a good label maker and/or a sharpie marker and blue tape.

How do you keep track of all the fragrances available in your shop or closet? Do you rely on memory? Did you create lists? Did you go so far as to create a spreadsheet to track the name, source, and quantity of every fragrance, plus how well it behaves and sticks in soap? (I confess I fantasize I will actually create and use the spreadsheet.)

I appreciate advice, and always, pictures!

 

[dibbles]

Mine aren’t very organized, but I’ll tell you how I keep them somewhat corralled. I mainly buy the majority of my FOs from Nurture, Fragrance Buddy, Bramble Berry, and WSP. I keep them, along with my EOs on two shelves in my basement soaping space. I bought some inexpensive 12x12 plastic bins and the FOs are in those by supplier. I have another bin for my EOs, and what doesn’t fit sits on the shelf. And one more bin with bottles from other suppliers. My suppliers of choice might change once I get through more of what I already have.

I know there is a better way to keep track of everything, but I am not disciplined enough to do more than this.

 

[TheGecko]

After I discovered that I had purchased a fifth bottle of Lemon Verbena, I purchased SoapMaker3 Pro. Yes, it was a bit of work to do inventory, enter my order, run batches and then quarterly inventory, but I haven't "accidently" ordered duplicate scents. And as long as I keep up with it, I can set inventory levels and add notes.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Two old shoe boxes here. All bottles are 100ml or less. not sorted but I know roughly where to find things, and I have a relatively good memory as to which part of the box they are in

 

[Vicki C]

I have my smaller bottles in shelves on the wall - like this:




I like these shelves because of the edge that contains them, but they don’t hold 16 oz bottles, so those are in open containers on shelves with the names written on the lids.

I don’t have the soapmaker software, but I do organize my fragrances in Google sheets -here is a screen shot of what I track. ”Scent Family” is highly subjective - the groups I use are:
Christmas
Citrus
Fall
Floral
Fruity
Herbal
Hippy
Ocean
Spicy
Tea
Vanilla
Woodsy

I print labels with the usage rate to put directly on the bottle. I’m behind on entering my fragrances into this sheet - some are missing and the in stock amounts are wrong. I’ll catch up after the fall holiday market season!
*Edited to take out some columns in the spreadsheet that were only relevant to testing I was doing.

 

[dmcgee5034]

I bought clear plastic bins at Costco on sale that fit on my shelves. My bottles aren’t any bigger than 8oz, and most are 2-4oz. Like @dibbles , I keep them separated by supplier - I also buy from WSP, BB, NS, & FB. I typically keep the bottles that are open in the back, and my want to try soon in the front. I have 1 bin dedicated to items I buy specifically for non soap products like flavor oils.

 

[TheGecko]

*Edited to take out some columns in the spreadsheet that were only relevant to testing I was doing.

So do you have a column that says what it REALLY smells like? I've bought scents based on description and then have it smell completely different to me

 

[Vicki C]

So do you have a column that says what it REALLY smells like? I've bought scents based on description and then have it smell completely different to me

Ha no - it was cryptic numbers about grams to add (based on max usage) in my 50 gram samples. And I totally agree - sometimes I buy something based on fabulous reviews, eagerly open the bottle, and all I smell is cheap aftershave. I do have some notes about what they smell like and if I liked them, and how they smelled after six weeks, but the screen shot didn’t capture them.
Someone in a Facebook group made an amazing spreadsheet with discoloration colors in one of the cells - again somewhat subjective and will change depending on your monitor, etc etc, but was super helpful. Do I remember who it was or save a link? Of course not.

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

This is also very helpful!!!!!

Sorting them by vendor, like @dibbles, was easy. But what I like about this is the ability to pull down a vendor’s container to see what I am low on or out of when I place an order from them. (I have more than a couple shoeboxes worth, so I need more organization than @KiwiMoose.)

I love @Vicki C’s spreadsheet! I will put one together using packing slips that I have saved, then check the inventory against what is in my vendor boxes. I like the categorization of fragrances. It would also be nice to be able to sort fragrance oils by columns when trying to identify fragrance options.

I put all of my recent essential oil purchases into one container. I will inventory them after I’m done with the fragrance oils.

Like @dmcgee5034, I already separated out my flavor oils. There aren’t enough of them to have to worry about organizing.

I appreciate your advice.

 

[MomInWA]

I’m normally very well organized, and let’s just say I have good intentions. It’s gotten rather out of hand. I bought the little shelf, meaning to get everything put away, but have been traveling, so it just collects. I haven’t even opened all the packages yet. You can see my pink case is organized, and we saw Edgar Winter with Ringo Starr this year…he’s back there keeping an eye on things until I have time to reorganize the whole shebang.

Yes, I do have an Excel spreadsheet. I can show you when you come out next spring if you have time. It’s a little complicated. I have all the products listed on a tab, according to brand. Each brand has its own tab. Each product has a row, and I have columns with descriptions and their expiration dates.

From there, I have recipes that pull from the cells, so when I use something in a recipe I know how much I have left.

Now, have I touched it in months? No. But it is set up that way. I’m so well-meaning, and…SQUIRREL!!!!

ETA: I organize by fragrance type, and group like scents with like, then in alphabetical order.

 

[lucycat]

I consider myself a small seller, do a few large craft fairs each year and ship to regular customers. Most years I purchase about 30 pounds of fragrance/essential oils. I finally had to get control of my purchases because I had way too many fragrances and the amount kept getting larger and storage space kept getting smaller. My goal was to make sure I was not purchasing more than I use!

I keep a spreadsheet for fragrance /essential oils that contains 2 worksheets. First, by name with purchase date, supplier, scent group type, then beginning and ending of the year inventory by both quantity and $. This sheet I use for tax purposes. The second worksheet is the same as the first except that it is sorted and grouped by year I purchased the fragrance. This one's goal is for me to use up what is old or to throw out if I don't like, doesn't stick or aging bad as well as to keep track of how much I am using so I can set a goal of how much I will let myself buy. I still haven't reduced my quantity of FO's a lot but it is smaller than 10 years ago and doesn't contain as many impulse purchases. It causes me to review older oils to work on blends to use them up. If I purchase 1-2oz bottles to test it makes it clear whether I actually did that each year. On popular fragrances it keeps me grounded on how much I am actually using each year and is easy to make an order if one of my suppliers is having a sale.

Where to store them? I store some on open shelf, some in a drawer and some in shoe boxes on the lowest shelf of my curing rack. I do add masking tape to the bottle to record name, date purchased, and total weight of the bottle at purchase (so I can keep track of how much is left in an open bottle). I used to record on the seller's label but too many sellers use labels that fade these days. They are stored mostly by size of bottle and whether glass. I do keep fragrances in plastic for scents that I know I will use the year I purchase.

I have a word document on each soap I make. It includes colors/designs, temps, IFRA, usage, problems as well as notes on the fragrance. It helps a lot to keep my design consistent between batches and to make the process simpler the next time I make that soap. That means my fragrance inventory records don't need any of this info.

What I do may be way too much for you but I think the biggest issue is not where and how to store them but how much storage do you really want to allocate to fragrances and how do you limit yourself to that. It is too easy for wants to be much greater than needs.

 

[TheGecko]

This is why I use SoapMaker3 to track my inventory and this isn't all of it. I have scents from Shay & Company, Nurture Soap, Elements Bath & Body, Rustic Escentuals, BeScented, etc. Mind you, I'm not an active seller right and I've seen folks who have a heck of a lot more. I currently have close to 100 bottles in various sizes and would like to decrease it by at least half by the end of the year.

 

[lucycat]

This is why I use SoapMaker3 to track my inventory and this isn't all of it. I have scents from Shay & Company, Nurture Soap, Elements Bath & Body, Rustic Escentuals, BeScented, etc. Mind you, I'm not an active seller right and I've seen folks who have a heck of a lot more. I currently have close to 100 bottles in various sizes and would like to decrease it by at least half by the end of the year.

View attachment 74902

I was a spreadsheet user for work so that is more flexible for me that software. At the beginning of the year I had 161 bottles so I completely understand. My goal for the year is to try and either use up by themselves or in blends the Elements fragrances I have that are no longer available. Getting rid of half would be monumental.

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

Now, have I touched it in months? No. But it is set up that way. I’m so well-meaning, and…SQUIRREL!!!!

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

I have a word document on each soap I make. It includes colors/designs, temps, IFRA, usage, problems as well as notes on the fragrance. It helps a lot to keep my design consistent between batches and to make the process simpler the next time I make that soap.

I was thinking of doing something similar in keeping a soap log, but I was thinking of doing it in writing in a notebook. Reading your description, however, I’m considering also creating a digital log. I’m more likely to do it consistently because I dictate and can add to it through several different stages from creation to wrapping. I would also have the capacity to search digitally for information. I could also copy and paste the ingredients list and colors used

When I met @Ford he showed me his notebook with two primary soap recipes he uses. It also contained soaping ideas and designs with sketches for swirls. I was inspired! I just started my new three ringbinder for soaps made this year. It’s more cluttered than Ford, but I can keep working to improve it.

I like having the recipe in hardcopy for each batch when I work, marking off each ingredient as it is added. I note acceleration or other issues I run into. I would only have to add one more step to create a digital log with more details and pictures, too.

The hanging wall baskets @TheGecko uses would almost work for me, because I have a place to hang them. But for now I like the idea of clear shoebox containers, because I will have an easier time finding fragrances by vendor. Plus, I typically carry containers upstairs into the kitchen to make soap because my basement floods in spring/summer/fall and is very cold in winter.

For my needs, I think the best way to track fragrances will be a spreadsheet. That will be next week’s project. If it’s something I can access on my phone or iPad instead of the PC, I will be more likely to use it consistently.

So re-organizing hardcopy soap records in my three ring binder is on track, providing a jumpstart to create a digital log of all my soaps. Organizing/corralling fragrances by vendor is on track, and next week I will record a vendor each day in a spreadsheet. I’m making a commitment to report back here so I feel obligated to follow through.

 

[lucycat]

I was thinking of doing something similar in keeping a soap log, but I was thinking of doing it in writing in a notebook. Reading your description, however, I’m considering also creating a digital log. I’m more likely to do it consistently because I dictate and can add to it through several different stages from creation to wrapping. I would also have the capacity to search digitally for information. I could also copy and paste the ingredients list and colors used

When I met @Ford he showed me his notebook with two primary soap recipes he uses. It also contained soaping ideas and designs with sketches for swirls. I was inspired! I just started my new three ringbinder for soaps made this year. It’s more cluttered than Ford, but I can keep working to improve it.

I like having the recipe in hardcopy for each batch when I work, marking off each ingredient as it is added. I note acceleration or other issues I run into. I would only have to add one more step to create a digital log with more details and pictures, too.

The hanging wall baskets @TheGecko uses would almost work for me, because I have a place to hang them. But for now I like the idea of clear shoebox containers, because I will have an easier time finding fragrances by vendor. Plus, I typically carry containers upstairs into the kitchen to make soap because my basement floods in spring/summer/fall and is very cold in winter.

For my needs, I think the best way to track fragrances will be a spreadsheet. That will be next week’s project. If it’s something I can access on my phone or iPad instead of the PC, I will be more likely to use it consistently.

So re-organizing hardcopy soap records in my three ring binder is on track, providing a jumpstart to create a digital log of all my soaps. Organizing/corralling fragrances by vendor is on track, and next week I will record a vendor each day in a spreadsheet. I’m making a commitment to report back here so I feel obligated to follow through.

I am a firm believer in spreadsheet tools. If I might want to sort, summarize or group data then I want a spreadsheet. I also keep a soap log with soap name/fragrance, type, date made/cured, whether beveled, labeled, photos, bar count. Easy to do, fast to search and I don't have to have the soap in my hand to see what hasn't been done for finishing.

 

[Ford]

HEy! don't give away all my secrets. Wink, Wink.

Digital inventory tools. Work well, when you can keep them up to date. I never could.

Fragrance organization.... on a shelf, sorted by masculine, feminine, seasonal. Kind of, sort of, something like that.

 

[redhead1226]

I have my smaller bottles in shelves on the wall - like this:


View attachment 74873

I like these shelves because of the edge that contains them, but they don’t hold 16 oz bottles, so those are in open containers on shelves with the names written on the lids.

I don’t have the soapmaker software, but I do organize my fragrances in Google sheets -here is a screen shot of what I track. ”Scent Family” is highly subjective - the groups I use are:
Christmas
Citrus
Fall
Floral
Fruity
Herbal
Hippy
Ocean
Spicy
Tea
Vanilla
Woodsy
View attachment 74875
I print labels with the usage rate to put directly on the bottle. I’m behind on entering my fragrances into this sheet - some are missing and the in stock amounts are wrong. I’ll catch up after the fall holiday market season!
*Edited to take out some columns in the spreadsheet that were only relevant to testing I was doing.

There used to be a spreadsheet here that reviewed all the FO's from all the vendors that looks similar. Is it still around? I have hundreds of FO's and need to find the ones that dont accelerate or discolor. Is there one here I can look at?

 

[Savage Daughter]

I use essential oils rather than fragrance oils, but regardless, I keep things simple.

I organize alphabetically, period, regardless of size, supplier, whatever, on my stainless steel shelving units. Each alphabetized 'category' is in its own low-sided bin, all lined up next to each other, from A-Z. They sit on the shelf above my plant infused oils. I have index cards which I have cut in half & written: A-D / E-G / H-L etc stuck to each of the low-sided bins. The bins are necessary as they are 'wire' shelves, which some bottles can tip over on. They also help keep them better organized. I keep all bottles in these alphabetized bins, from 50ml up to 1 litre bottles.

My smallest bottles - personal ones I have bought for making my own natural perfumes & skin care, which tend to be more pricey - I keep in a clear bin with a lid. These are in bottles sized from 15ml-30ml, no bigger. This prevents them from being knocked over & smashed on the ceramic tile floor, which has happened & has resulted in pure grief over a treasured, lost essential oil My dark patchouli oil - a larger 250ml bottle before I put everything in bins - exploded when it hit the floor. Couldn't bring myself to clean it up for days....I just wanted to smell it as much as possible before saying a final good-bye LOL

 

[Vicki C]

There used to be a spreadsheet here that reviewed all the FO's from all the vendors that looks similar. Is it still around? I have hundreds of FO's and need to find the ones that dont accelerate or discolor. Is there one here I can look at?

There was a fragrance oil spreadsheet but it is no longer maintained - I tried to post a link but it didn’t work.

I was thinking of doing something similar in keeping a soap log, but I was thinking of doing it in writing in a notebook. Reading your description, however, I’m considering also creating a digital log. I’m more likely to do it consistently because I dictate and can add to it through several different stages from creation to wrapping. I would also have the capacity to search digitally for information. I could also copy and paste the ingredients list and colors used

For my needs, I think the best way to track fragrances will be a spreadsheet. That will be next week’s project. If it’s something I can access on my phone or iPad instead of the PC, I will be more likely to use it consistently.

So re-organizing hardcopy soap records in my three ring binder is on track, providing a jumpstart to create a digital log of all my soaps. Organizing/corralling fragrances by vendor is on track, and next week I will record a vendor each day in a spreadsheet. I’m making a commitment to report back here so I feel obligated to follow through.

I use Google sheets for EVERYTHING -
- tracking prices of carrier oils, fragrance and essential oils, and other ingredients.
- maintaining a list of fragrance oils and their behavior (earlier in this thread)
- calculating master batches of lye based on weight of 2 pound lye containers (they are never exactly two pounds)
- tracking past soap batches. I keep a daily log in a handwritten spiral notebook and then transfer to a spreadsheet - then print little tabs from the spreadsheet and stick them into the notebooks. Then I can look in the spreadsheet and filter by soap name to see when I made it, go back and find that notebook. Sounds complicated but it really isn’t.
- calculating my costs per bar
- tracking market sales - I know how many of each thing I go in with and then count when I get home.
The advantage of Google sheets is that I can access it from my phone, from my iPad or from my laptop. I not doing higher level calculations so it’s plenty powerful enough for me.