The cleanest scent in nature — and a fruit that travelled from the foothills of the Himalayas to the courtyards of the Mediterranean.

What is lemon?

Lemon (Citrus limon) is the fruit of a small evergreen tree of the rue family. Botanically it is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Cosmetics use mainly two forms of it: the essential oil, obtained by cold-pressing the peel, and the dried peel itself, ground to a powder. The essential oil is 60–70% limonene, with beta-pinene, gamma-terpinene and a small amount of citral, which gives it its characteristic sharpness. The peel is rich in flavonoids such as hesperidin and eriocitrin.

What are the benefits of lemon?

Lemon is one of the archetypal “clean” scents: cool, bright, weightless. In skin care:

• Gives a feeling of freshness and cleanliness
• Has a toning, slightly astringent feel
• Suits skin with a tendency to oiliness
• Offers flavonoids with antioxidant activity
• Scents with a clean, bright citrus note

Lemon and sunshine

Cold-pressed peel oil contains furanocoumarins, substances that make the skin more sensitive to light when they stay on it and sun exposure follows. This is why its proportion in leave-on products is strictly limited, while in rinse-off products the issue does not arise. There is also a distilled version of the oil, free of furanocoumarins, for those who want the scent without the restriction.

Where does it come from?

Lemon originates in north-eastern India and southern China. The Arabs spread it around the Mediterranean in about the 10th century, and it has thrived ever since in Italy, Spain, Turkey and Greece — from the Lemon Forest of Poros to the Argolid and Crete. The essential oil is produced mainly in Sicily, Calabria, Argentina and Spain.