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 | I'd like to know about how to go about shopping for a scent for myself. |
 | There’s nothing like finding the perfect perfume, but there are so many out there, it’s often hard to know where to begin. Here’s Katrina's six-step program:
1. Think about scents you may have loved in the past – chances are they will fall into a particular group according to their ‘notes’ or prominent scent. The widely used industry guide, by Australian perfume guru Michael Edwards, defines categories, such as citrus, green, water, floral, oriental and woods. If you’re not sure what your scent style is, visit a perfume counter, choose a couple that you like and ask the staff how they’re characterised. From this starting point, you’ll be able to sniff out your new faves.
2. Window shop: start out with clean, fragrance-free skin and shop in the morning (your sense of smell is sharper). Make a short list of perfumes, using step one, and consider some names, bottles, colours and advertising images you like. It may seem like marketing, but often a fragrance’s image is closely linked to its ‘feel’.
3. It’s time to put your nostrils to work. To avoid olfactory overload, keep some coffee beans in your bag and sniff them between scents to help clear the senses. Choose three of your favourites and ask for sample phials – you need to smell the scent on your skin, not on a piece of cardboard as perfume reacts differently to flesh.
4. Test drive the scents, wearing one each day. It’s important to try before you buy to ensure the perfume reacts well with the particular chemical make-up of your skin. Don’t dab or spritz near jewellery, and avoid rubbing your wrists together – either of these can distort the scent.
5. Resist making an instant love or hate decision. Perfume can take 15 minutes to show its true tone. This is because most of them have three unfolding layers. The top notes hit you immediately and set the mood. They’re vibrant, but light, often fading within minutes. Next come the middle, or heart, notes. These are warmer, expanding on the feel of the fragrance. They eventually drift away to reveal the base – the longest-lasting notes, which reaffirm the first impression. Base notes should linger for hours. So, while you can fall in love at first whiff, you may hate the end result. Alternatively, a scent might grow on you as it develops.
6. Still not sure? Ask for advice, but not from sales staff – it’s their job to help you part with your money! Nor from a man – studies have shown that men are sexually aroused by everything from vanilla to pizza! Instead, ask your girlfriends. |
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