When making an impression, wardrobe, makeup and general attractiveness are all obviously important. However the sense of smell is an often overlooked detail that matters just as much, and can be far more lasting, than an outfit or hairstyle.
Choosing a scent that is right for you is like selecting any other beauty essential. Just like your best friend’s favorite lipstick can make you look like a cheap hooker, her perfume can mingle with your personal pheremones and end up smelling very different.
The best way to select a fragrance is, unfortunately, through trial and error. DO NOT trust the beauty counter testing papers. They have no body chemistry to mingle or war with and will rarely give you an accurate reading on how the scent will wear on YOU.
I learned this the hard way:
My first year in College I bought a bottle of Curve for Women as a present to myself. I’d loved it on others, so I didn’t bother to try it on to see how it wore on my skin. I’d also just moved into my first apartment with a male roommate who occasionally had friends over for beers. I spent most of the first day wearing my new perfume trying to figure out where someone had spilled beer so I could clean it up. I searched all over the place and the smell seemed to follow me. I finally realized the way my fragrance interacted with my skin was causing the smell. I ended up giving it away. And never made that mistake again.
Now I’ve learned that the best way to select a fragrance that flatters me is to shop 2 ways. First, if on a mission to find a new perfume I leave the house wearing none. When I get to the store I check on collections by designers that I’ve had luck with in the past. Burburry, Ed Hardy, Vera Wang, Juicy Couture, and Dior have become personal favorites just name alone is no promise of success. I also check out scents by new companies. This is the stage in the game where those papers you spray the perfume on DO come in handy. Just make sure you give the perfume time to settle onto the paper so you get an accurate test. Select your favorite 4 or 5. Then ask the person staffing the counter if any of your selections come in sample vials. You would be surprised how many do! Take as many as you can get a hold of. The real test is wearing a scent for at least 2 or 3 days-once on your bare skin, once on your clothing alone, and another to work on getting the correct potency figured out. Even a great scent sucks when it’s overpowering. If they don’t happen to have samples of all of your selections, spray your clothing with your favorite option. Make sure you put enough on that people will be able to give you their opinions-then ask those closest to you what they think. You don’t want to gross out your significant other with a scent that you love and makes him want to puke. Not hot.
After arming yourself with samples, prices, and a generous spray of your first choice, go home and experiment. Play with all of your new goodies over the next week or so and see if you can narrow it down to a top 2. Save what’s left of the samples for traveling, a purse spray if you end up buying one of the samples you’ve chosen, or a change of pace.
Go back to the store with a pretty good idea of your first and second choice. If there are two that you love, decide by price or see if either offers a boxed gift set that typically includes the spray, a body lotion or wash, and maybe a purse sized spray. This is the best way to get more bang for your buck.
When putting perfume on your clothes, just spray and go. If you apply it to your skin, hit pulse points like wrists, collarbone or neck, and I always hit my hipbones too. But again, use sparingly!
Another fun way to get a new perfume? A perfume party! Invite 6-8 girlfriends and have each bring a bottle or two of fragrances they are “over” as well as an inexpensive treat like a bottle of wine, cupcakes, or appetizers. Then, as a group, swap scents that you are sick of with friends who might enjoy them. You and your friends get a new beauty product, it’s not tacky (like regifting a half used bottle of perfume-no matter ho expensive.) and it’s a blast bargaining, arguing, and bartering to get what you want. Everyone has fun, gets a present or two, and gets to play “beauty advisors” helping everyone find a good match!
The party plan also works well with makeup, bath products, etc, (no mascara, please, and wipe eye liners, lipsticks, pencils or brushes down with alcohol for sanitation!) to provide a fun excuse to spend girl time AND to clear out a cluttered bathroom without wasting anything.
Best part? Free goodies, a cheap night spent with friends doing something different, and an excuse to buy that new fragrance you’ve been lusting over!
And of course, I want to help!
Sephora, Von Maur, and Dillards are all great places to find fabulous scents. But the sweet girl at the Younkers counter hooked me up with 2 sets of 4 or 5 sample bottles of her best sellers.
I’m going to give them to the first 2 people who leave a comment asking for them. The only catch? I want you to tell me what you think of each, so I can pas it on to our readers! And, of course, WP contributors are welcome to participate in this “lesson.”
I only have 2 goody bags, so they should go pretty quickly. And you know that it wouldn’t be Miss Nicole’s Charm School and Style Academy if I didn’t toss in an extra surprise or two-I love spoiling my students as much as I love being spoiled myself!!
Who knows, maybe you’ll find the perfect scent to wear to Winter Formal on Saturday!
miss nicole, do you have anything that will enhance the male stench as well? many products make dubious promises in their print and radio advertising. how do i know i’m not being swindled? and can it make my cock bigger?