English to Greek Medical Cosmetics, Beauty

Enfleurage:
Cold enfleurage: This technique has not been used industrially since 1930 because it is very costly and very unstable (fat melts when it’s hot). It reached its peak in the 1860s and established Grasse’s reputation. This process makes the highest quality absolutes because it does not use heat which always alters the scent of the plants used. It is used on delicate flowers that do not tolerate high temperatures such as jasmine, violet, tuberose and rose. Enfleurage was used by the Egyptians for thousands of years and works on the basis of the principle that fats absorb odours. A mix of fats is smeared onto a plate of glass in a wooden frame called a chassis. Flowers are put onto this to release their oils. This process, repeated several times, can last from several days to 3 months until the fat is saturated by the flower essences. 1 kilo of fat absorbs up to 3 kilos of flowers.
The resulting substance is known as "pomade"; the oil is then extracted from the fat by dissolving in an alcohol solvent. The essential oils dissolve in the alcohol without the fat. The mix is filtered several times to remove all the fat. The alcohol is then evaporated and the pure absolute is obtained. The scented fat is then mixed with alcohol in which the fragrance molecules dissolve. The fat is separated from the alcohol containing the essences. Then, the alcohol is eliminated to get the “absolute”.