Liquid colour, clarity and what is floating in it
The hue and clarity of the liquid against a neutral background, including any sediment on the base.
The reading sequence
3 steps, starting at surface and finish and running to settle the bottle and read the base. Evidence on this point is read at E1, and 2 of the 3 steps carries a condition that ends the assessment outright.
Photograph the bottle against white and against black
Get a colour reading that survives the background, since a tint that looks correct on a dark shelf can read green or grey against white.
Evidence: E1 — two photos per bottle, one standing on white paper and one against black card, both lit by the same diffuse daylight and both taken with the lens level with the liquid's midpoint
- The same bottle is photographed against both backgrounds in the same session.
- The bottle is unsealed or partly used, so the glass wall carries no outer film in the light path.
- Both backgrounds are supplied but the bottle is still wrapped in film, which adds a colour cast.
- The two photos are taken in different rooms or at different times of day.
- Only one background is supplied, so the hue cannot be separated from the surface behind it.
- The photo is taken on a warm wooden shelf with a lamp above, where every liquid reads amber.
Look through the liquid at a printed line
Turn clarity into a reading rather than an impression, by judging how a known line looks through the full depth of liquid.
Evidence: E1 — one photo per bottle with a sheet of black type at 12 pt held behind the bottle, the lens level with the liquid and the type filling the bottle's width
- The type behind the bottle stays readable through the whole liquid depth, including at the base.
- No haze layer is visible where the liquid meets the glass, and no ring sits at the fill line.
- A slight softening of the type near the base, with the upper two thirds still sharp.
- A faint ring at the fill line with the liquid below it entirely clear.
- The type is unreadable through the liquid at any height.
- The liquid separates into a lighter band above a denser one, or carries a cloud that does not settle when the bottle stands still.
Settle the bottle and read the base
Decide whether anything is sitting on the bottom of the bottle, by letting the unit stand still and then photographing the base against white.
Evidence: E1 — the bottle stood upright for two hours, then photographed from the side at the base and from below through the glass, both against white paper
- The base shows no deposit, and the underside view shows the same tone as the liquid above it.
- Swirling the bottle leaves no ring of particles and the liquid clears again within seconds.
- A few specks at the base that stay put under a slow swirl and number fewer than about five.
- A faint shadow at one corner of the base that could be the glass mould rather than a deposit.
- A visible layer or clump sits on the base and rises when the bottle is swirled.
- Fibres, flakes or crystals are held in suspension and do not settle after two hours of standing.
Why the thresholds sit where they do
Colour and clarity are the two properties of a fragrance that the buyer can actually verify from a photograph, provided the photo is taken against a known background and through a known depth, which is why the protocol fixes both rather than asking for a nice picture of a bottle. Judging colour against a warm surface is the commonest way a hue is misread, and the white-and-black pair removes that variable without needing any colour reference card. Clarity is converted into a count and a legibility test because words such as clear and cloudy separate readers, while a 12 pt line read through the full depth of liquid does not. Sediment gets a step of its own because it fails differently from haze: a haze can be a cold-weather effect that clears at room temperature, while a deposit on the base that rises when swirled indicates material that was never fully dissolved, and that will keep settling after arrival.
Common misreads
2 pairs recorded for this point. Each runs in both directions: 1 finding that looks worse than it is, and 1 that looks better.
- looks like Return actually Pass
A liquid that turns slightly cloudy after a cold journey. Some materials drop out of solution below about 10 degrees Celsius and clear again once the bottle stands at room temperature for a day.
- looks like Pass actually Query
A rich, even colour photographed against dark card under a warm lamp. The warm background lifts the hue and hides the haze, which is exactly what the white-background photo is for.
Check this point against what you were sent
Insufficient evidence
Nothing decided on liquid colour and clarity yet: 0 of 3 steps have been read.
0 of 3 steps judged
| Step | Reading | Evidence | Stop met |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Photograph the bottle against white and against blackneeds E1 | — | ||
| 2. Look through the liquid at a printed lineneeds E1 | The liquid separates into visible layers or carries a cloud that does not settle. Separation is a formulation failure that continues after dispatch, and no repack changes what is already in the bottle. | ||
| 3. Settle the bottle and read the baseneeds E1 | A visible layer or clump sits on the base and rises when the bottle is swirled. Undissolved material keeps settling after dispatch, and the bottle cannot be filtered without opening it. |
Sources and checks
- Public community thread — Arrival reports mentioning colour shift, haze or sediment in the bottlen=63
- Editor analysis — 12 pt legibility test chosen as the shortest repeatable clarity readingno sample
Last checked · next review due · status current.
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