Perfume

When buying and choosing a fragrance, it can be very easy to get overwhelmed with the large choices available to you. Your nose can get confused by the amount of smells you've tried and you might end up buying the wrong fragrance. So here are a few hints to make the whole process a little more easy.

You may want to test out some fragrances before you buy online. Head down to your local department store and follow the points below to find your perfect fragrance.

When sampling perfumes, ask for them to be sprayed onto blotting strips. This means you can sample as many fragrances as you like and the scents won’t clash together. You can also write the name of the fragrance on the blotting strip and bring the strip home to show someone else. The blotting strip won't give as good impression as your skin, but it will give you a idea of what the fragrance is like.

Once you have found a scent you like ask for a test spray on your skin. Do not rub the fragrance in as you can distort the true scent - just leave it to develop.

When you smell the fragrance, don\'t just smell it once and decide that you don’t it. Give it a few minutes and come back to it. The scent of a fragrance develops as the notes evaporate.

After smelling about three or four fragrances, your nose gets fatigued, and you will have difficulty smelling the true scent of the fragrances. At this point you should leave the store and get some fresh air, or try eating some mints or chewing gum.

If it is for a present for someone, try and find out what fragrances they have used in the past as this information will give the shop assistant something to go on. If you can’t get get this information for yourself, ask friends for advice on the recipient’s preferences.

Technical Information

Perfume Concentration
Perfumes come in four different concentrations; perfume extract, eau de parfum, eau de toilette or eau de cologne. The amount of solvent mixed with fragrance oils determines which of the four perfumes you are buying.

Perfume Extract
Contains 20-40% of aromatic compounds and can last between 3-8 hours.

Eau de Parfum
Contains 10-30% of aromatic compounds and can last between 4-6 hours.

Eau de Toilette
Contains 5-20% of aromatic compounds and can last between 4-6 hours.

Eau de Cologne
Contains 2-3% aromatic compounds and can last between 1-4 hours.

Perfume Notes

Perfumes are described as having top notes, middle notes or base notes. When you spray or dab on a fragrance, the heat from your body causes the solvent to evaporate. The rate of evaporation and the strength of the perfume odour determines the note classification of the perfume.

Top Notes
These are the scents that you can smell as soon as you apply the perfume. They instantly give you an initial impression of the perfume, but it lasts for a very short time. The scents of this note class are usually described as sharp and assertive. The top notes will last for anything up to 20 minutes before dying down.

Middle (Heart) Notes
These describe the smells that emerge after the top notes have disappeared. The heart note complements the sharpness from the top notes and they are usually more mellow and smoother. The middle notes can appear moments after spraying and last up to 6 hours on the skin.

Base Notes
These are the smells that develop slowly and will linger until the end of the day. When you choose a fragrance make sure you wait until the base notes have developed so that you are sure you like the whole scent and not just the initial top or middle notes. The base notes appear after around 30 minutes and can last up to 24 hours.

All of women's fragrances can be split into seven olfactive groups:

Aldehydic
This group of perfumes contains chemicals from the aldehyde group, which have a pure and fresh character.

Chypre
Perfumes in this category have a base of bergamot, labdanum, patchouli and oakmoss, which offers an earthy, fruity fragrance with a hint of leather. The scent of chypre perfumes tends to be very rich and long-lasting.

Citrus
These perfumes are fresh and light, and traditionally have been used only as eau de colognes, as the fragrance tends to be subtle. Lemon, lime and orange as well as some spices make up this popular family. The Citrus Olfactive is used in both men's and women's fragrances and has a light fresh smell.

Floral
As the name suggests, the dominant fragrances in floral perfumes are derived from one or several types of flower. Over half of all women's fragrances fall into the Floral family because they are suitable for all occasions and easy to wear.

Fougere
Many men's colognes are based on the Fougere Olfactive family, and perfumes in this category feature a base of oakmoss, lavende and coumarin which combine to produce a woody, herbaceous scent.

Oriental
Oriental perfumes form another large olfactory group and they are probably the most popular Olfactive used to make women's perfume as they have a bright floral scent (with traces of vanilla and musk). Also known as ambers, perfumes in this category are often described as warm and sensual. The scents for these perfumes come from musk, vanilla and exotic woods.

Woody
Perfumes with fragrances that are derived from woods such as cedar, patchouli and sandalwood are part of the woody group. Woody will often have a hint of citrus scent added to it to give it a brighter smell. They are mostly found in men’s fragrances, but there are still several women’s perfumes in this family.