Who doesn’t like to smell good. Smelling good makes a person feel good and boost his or her confidence. Also, the sweet fragrance of the perfume used sends out positive vibes around. The power of perfume impacts not only the person wearing it but also the people around. Hence, it is important to use a good perfume that suits your personality type.

Of course, there are many reasons people use perfumes. Some use it to make a signature statement or leave an impression. Some use it to hide bad odour or to enhance their natural scent to attract the opposite sex and there are other reasons.

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So, next time you go perfume shopping, think about why you want to use a perfume and buy it accordingly. Here are a few tips to help you buy the right perfume for yourself.

Tips on how to buy perfumes

Test it

Don’t just pick up any perfume in the shop. Test it on your skin first.  Not only is it possible that you could be allergic to some perfumes, but a fragrance that smells nice on one person may not smell the same on you.

Know your signature scent

Never buy a scent just because you liked how it smelled on someone else.  Signature scent is uniquely our own, so what may smell good on others may not be as good on our skin. A specific fragrance will smell differently on different people.

Signature scent refers to the particular chemical makeup of the body, which dictates how our skin will take to any fragrance that we apply onto it.  Our unique signature scents are determined by our particular lifestyle habits and choices, diet, the medication that we take if we are taking any, our skin type and many other factors.

Choose the right theme

Theme is what creates variation among fragrances.  It is also called accord and is dependent on the base upon which the perfume is formulated, and there are four common bases used in formulating perfumes.

Citrus: created from fruits rich in citric acid, like oranges, bergamots and lemons, always light and fresh-smelling.
Earth: lends an air of mystery upon the wearer, formulated from minerals or from non-flowering plants such as cinnamon, vanilla, honey and sandalwood.
Musk: always considered sexy and alluring, and though previously made from the sacs of animals such as the civet and the Asian musk deer, they are now created synthetically.
Floral: the most common theme among perfumes; as the name suggests, they are made from the essence of flowers and are often strong, clinging and sweet.

The notes of a perfume

They are known as the impressions of the fragrance.  It is the lingering air left by the perfume as it evaporates from the skin.  All scents have three notes.

Top note: the instant impression created by the fragrance.  It is supposed to attract people to the scent, but it quickly dissipates.
Heart note: called the body of the perfume, the perfume’s essence.  It tells the smeller what the fragrance is supposed to be about.
Base note: the scent that lingers after the top note and the heart note evaporates.  It is the main message of the perfume.

Concentration of perfume

Concentration indicates how pure the perfume is, or the amount of perfume oil added into the fragrance. The purest perfume is known to be extremely volatile and can cause irritations when applied right onto the skin. To prevent this and to allow users to enjoy the fragrance, perfume oils are mixed into ethanol, with water sometimes added in.

Perfume extracts are the most concentrated among fragrances.  They are meant to be used sparingly and only on the body’s pulse points.

Eau de parfum and eau de toilette

After perfume extracts in terms of concentration is the eau de parfum, and after that, the eau de toilette. These two are often sprayed all over the body.  The least concentrated of fragrances is the eau de cologne.

Never rush

Never rush when buying perfumes.  The best way to understand a fragrance is to spray some on your wrist and let it linger for 30 minutes.  It usually takes a scent to display all its three notes within 30 minutes.  If you like what you smell on yourself after that time, go ahead and buy the fragrance.

Buy a scent that suits your personality.

Always get a scent that expresses your personality. You should always think of the fragrances you wear as extensions of yourself.

Always remember that the chemical makeup of a perfume is delicate.  Never store your fragrances in extremely cold or extremely hot places, or where they can be caught by direct sunlight.

Never hoard your perfumes or else they will just evaporate.