Ingredients · Not for the smell

Diethyl phthalate (DEP)

Say itdye-ETH-il THAL-ayt

Nearly odorless; faint bitter-sweet.

What it is

There to carry, keep or colour the perfume, not for its smell.

What perfumers do with it

Cheap solvent, blender and fixative; also denatures perfume alcohol (SD 39-C)

Worth knowing

None of 101 perfume labels sampled from Open Beauty Facts in 2026 named it; it also plasticizes tape and eyeglass frames.

Also called

DEP; denaturant in SD alcohol 39-C