What's In A Scent???

I had a request to write a post about my philosophy on fragrances, perfumes and scents.  I wanted to point out that there are many different elements that must be considered before you find a scent that works best for you.  Here are some things that I consider important when choosing a fragrance:

1) Your body chemistry.  Your own ph levels and body chemistry can alter how a scent sits on you and the 'perfume' that it gives off.  That being said, a scent that suits one person may not necessarily suit you.  It's similar to a colour palette in a sense.  Also, I've had the experience where I've worn a perfume for a very long time and then all of a sudden, it starts smelling horrible on me.  This happened with a Versace scent I used to wear.  I even went back to the store and told them that they had given me a rotten bottle.  However, that wasn't the case.  My body had just gone through some type of change (which happens often hormonally for women) and the scent didn't change, but my body chemistry did!!!

2) The Season and Your Environment.  There are winter scents and summer/spring scents.  There are also different environments which may influence the type of scent you wear.  Many businesses, professional environments are either scent free or ask that you wear a more gentle, subtle fragrance.  You may also be allergic to an ingredient in a scent and this will impact what you can wear.  Also, a spicy, exotic scent that may be perfect for a winter evening by the fire may not work for a 'summer picnic' - just like makeup, there are different looks (i.e. scents) that work for different seasons and occasions.

3) Your Personality.  I think that there is something to be said about finding a fragrance that works with your personality.  I think that companies know this and use this to their advantage when selling a product, calling a scent 'flirty' or 'me' or 'sexual' etc etc.  The labels of a fragrance are meant to sway you to purchase something that resonates with who you are.  Which isn't necessarily a bad thing because your best scent should be reflective of who you are.  I find that women who are always happy and cheerful smell so good when their scent matches their inner 'sweetness and freshness'.  I also know of one woman, a business woman, who always wore a men's scent - everyone complimented her and wanted to know what she was wearing.  It wasn't until she ended her career that she finally told both me and my mother that she had always worn her husbands cologne.

4)  Je Ne Sais Quois.  I wanted to continue with number 3 and add another story.  I had a wonderful conversation with a woman who was in politics. She had worked as a diplomat in Europe and told me that when she was in Europe (in France especially), she noticed that women would 'layer' their perfume.  They would have a base scent and then layer on another one overtop.  This would keep people guessing 'what is she wearing?'  This gives a woman that special allure.

So really, when choosing a perfume, you must take a few things into consideration and really make your perfume selection based on something that is unique to YOU!!!