In last week’s blog, we looked at the research behind perfume and the delineations that make perfume, eau de perfume, eau de toilette, and cologne. And we learned that perfumes can smell differently as our body chemistry changes with age.
The perfume industry is extraordinarily exacting and new scents can take years to develop. While there are many variations, we looked at the main categories of fragrances: floral, wood, oriental and citrus.
The question is which aroma appeals to you? And beyond what appeals to you, which scent will work best with your body chemistry?
Floral
Floral scents are considered the most “feminine.” If you love the smell of flower shops and rosewater then start with a floral base. Think rose, lilies, and fresh flowers. But use sparingly as the floral scents can trigger sneezing for those around you who have seasonal allergies. We recommend Tender Romance by Ralph Lauren which is described as “celebrates gentle moments of falling in love for the first time.” (Hum), Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb which is one of the most popular today, and Versace’s Bright Crystal. 
Wood
Do you love camping, cedar, wood fires, leather couches or being in nature? If you think you are wood woman, you might want to consider trying some unisex or men’s fragrances. We recommend Acqua Di Gio by Armani, Bleu de Chanel, or Polo Red.
Citrus
Citrus fragrances are clean, youthful and summery. Citrus-based perfumes can smell very “young” but it’s really up to you to pick what you love. We find that citrus doesn’t work in the winter months and do prefer it as a summer fragrance. It’s sort of like Sauvignon Blanc for summer. We like Jo Malone’s Lime Basil & Mandarin Orange, Fresh’s Citron de Vigne, and Cristalle Eau Verte by Chanel.
Oriental
Oriental scents are quite seductive. Do you love chai tea, or beautiful vases of jasmine flowers? Oriental fragrances usually have incense, amber and vanilla as their main scents. We found a site called Scentbird which recommends very different fragrances with out of site descriptions :
Night by Judith Leiber described as “Night is a rustic and sheer Oriental with a gorgeous opening of cinnamon and bergamot. The two notes blend and smooth out their individual sharpness so well in this scent you almost don’t care what comes next.” (We are not really sure what that means “not caring what comes next”)
La Force 11 by Dolce & Gabbana that “takes the traditional Oriental style of warm spices with sweet vanilla and sets it on its head by adding cypress notes in the heart and a sharp note of caraway seeds in the base…the pimento in the top notes adds a swarthiness to the cardamom and cinnamon…
We have not tested these fragrances but the descriptions are interesting to say the least.
While some women wear perfume only in the evening, we wear perfume every day and always have. Whatever you use now, think about these four categories and decide which one you prefer and then head to the perfume counter and try scents within the category. It’s fun and you feel great with a new scent.
Pick something that you love and compliments who you are. The best advice is to use sparingly and let the scent compliment you not overwhelm you. You want people to remember you and a lovely scent not an overwhelming fragrance.
Lucy’s daughter has fun picking out a new perfume for her mom as she describes her mother to the sales person. My sons know to hit the Chanel counter every year where they know they cannot go wrong. Except there was the year that my then eight-year old got me Chanel deodorant instead of perfume.
Flowerbomb from Viktor & Rolf is currently one of the most popular brands of perfume at Nordstrom’s where we went for our perfume tutorial. And as we post this, Vogue has just done a wonderful story that combines the gardens of Florence with artisanal perfumes. How intoxicating!
Ciao
Lucy and Claudia