Find your scent

However, few of us manage to avoid mistakes – and unloved perfumes remain a mute decoration on the shelf. They, like many beautiful things, can be pleasant for the first perception, but as a result, they still leave us indifferent. Or even cause discomfort, unexpectedly showing the hidden sides of his “character”. And only a few fragrances are able to awaken in us a magical feeling of recognition, delight, love – and really become our continuation.

Labels in space

Body and smell are our inseparable components. In an effort to find “your” fragrance, there is more than just a desire to embellish yourself. If a fragrance is truly a reflection of our personality, it gives us confidence in ourselves. It becomes a cozy cocoon, enveloping us, filling with itself our individual space, marked as “our own territory.” By allowing another to inhale it, we seem to give permission to get closer to ourselves. We perceive fragrance as something intimate, unconsciously paying tribute to its archaic purpose: the smell attracts a sexual partner. It is to this ancient instinct that ordinary perfume advertising appeals, presenting fragrance as an indispensable attribute of seduction. “For a long time, seduction was considered the main mission of perfumery, but today the situation has changed,” states perfumer Jacques Polge, creator of Chanel fragrances. “Women are more likely to seek harmony for themselves, they want to feel more free: once they appropriated our trousers, now they use our fragrances. Therefore, today the boundary between men’s and women’s fragrances is blurred: the “sex” of a fragrance is no longer important, it is much more important that a person enjoys it.

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The art of choosing

Long gone are the days when it was believed that spirits (like a life partner) should be the only one. Now the fragrance is chosen according to the season, the nature of the work, the style of dressing, the whim of fashion or the mood … And we can afford it: although perfumes still represent luxury, they have long ceased to be so expensive that we could be content with a single bottle . Molecular technologies make it possible to reproduce (or invent) the most exotic fragrances, the most paradoxical compositions – but this does not make it any easier for us to choose. A perfume bought “on the occasion” has little chance of being “the one” that will delight us again and again, bringing sensual pleasure comparable to enjoying the sounds of your favorite music, the taste of your favorite food. In a word, to become one of those important nuances that convey a sense of the quality of life, make it brighter. The ability to make the right choice in the store, among the variety and cacophony of smells, becomes an art. According to experts, in order to evaluate our impressions of the fragrance, we will need at least a day – and during this time we will have to visit the perfume store at least three times.

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Have patience

Smell, like everything that is directly related to our emotions, requires us to be able to listen to our feelings, feel them, taste them. Therefore, choosing perfumes, one should not rush. “It is best to choose a fragrance in the afternoon, because at this time the sense of smell is in optimal shape,” advises Elena Lykova, Lancôme brand expert. – First, apply the fragrance on a paper strip-blotter (they are freely available in major perfume stores). By all the rules of the classic olfactory pyramid, it needs about half an hour to fully open up: 10 minutes are spent on opening the head notes of the composition, 10 – on the heart chord, and 10 – on the plume notes. It is believed that our sense of smell gets tired quite quickly – a person is able to consistently perceive and “taste” from three to eight perfume compositions at a time. Therefore, having chosen three or four fragrances that cause sympathy, put them on blotters and take them with you, outside the perfume shop, where “smell noise” reigns. “Smell” them from time to time throughout the day and, having chosen one, go back to the store and apply it on your wrist. To understand how a fragrance interacts with your skin, spend the night with it. After that, you can make a purchasing decision.

Dress up in fragrance

Coco Chanel recommended wearing perfume “anywhere you want to be kissed.” Classic zones: back of the head, hairline, places behind the auricles, wrists and bends of the elbows. But this time-tested technique has its drawbacks – it is impossible to quickly change the scent if we change clothes or makeup. In addition, the aroma changes along with the condition of the skin – depending on the hormonal cycle, the food eaten, the medications taken. A modern alternative is to spray the fragrance on your hair or on your palms. Should you wear perfume on clothes? Professionals are still debating on this topic. Perfume guru Jacques Polge thinks it’s a matter of personal preference: “I like to suffocate a suit, the fabric holds the scent well,” he says. “But in principle, applying fragrance to the body or to clothes is a personal choice for everyone.” “Strictly speaking, perfumes are formulated to be applied to the skin,” explains Rochelle Bloom, head of the Fragrance Foundation, an association of major perfume manufacturers. – If you drop perfume, for example, on synthetics, it can destroy both the fragrance and the fibers of the fabric. In addition, perfume can leave stains on clothes. The specialists of the Guerlain perfume house recommend applying perfume only to your own skin, but they allow applying eau de toilette and perfume water to clothes: with great care for light natural fabrics and not on furs, but only on the lining of fur coats or jackets. If you want to infuse a suit with some fragrance, you can use the technique recommended by perfumer Serge Lutens: diffuse the fragrance into the air and enter this fragrant cloud.

In the image and likeness

A new, modern trend is to choose a fragrance in such a way that it matches our external image (created with the help of a special style of clothes, shoes, accessories, make-up). Today, the life of a woman is very diverse, and we usually have several images: formal for work, comfortable for free time and festive, as they say, “on the way out”. According to the Fragrance Foundation, in order for each of these images to be emphasized by fragrance, four to eight different perfumes will be required. Elena Lykova advises asking yourself a few questions before heading to a perfume shop: “It’s worth considering what image of a woman I would like to create for myself (classic, sporty, exotic, romantic?). What clothes will I wear the scent with? What makeup will I do to complete my look? When, in what situation will I wear it? By answering these questions, we will be able to inform a professional consultant about our needs – he will offer several fragrances that match the chosen image. It’s much more effective than just trying everything: let the specialist tell you about the concept and composition of the perfume composition. The words that he will use to describe the fragrance will help you understand how the very idea of ​​​​the perfumer fits your tastes and your style.