1 
February 11th, 2011 at 3:17 pm
Michele
I love fresh scents! i find that anything else is just too strong for me, i end up getting headaches! so i stick to fresh and citrusy scents. my signature scent is chanel chance eau fraiche. i have been wearing This daily for a few years now and i always get compliments. another scent that i really like is chanel chance eau tendre. its still a fresh scent but with a little floral mixed in. it is not strong at all, its nice and light like eau fraiche. i will be purchasing it soon and will probably do a rotation between the two chances.
2 
February 11th, 2011 at 4:00 pm
Stephanie
Jo malone nectarine blossom and honey is my scent – i’ve worn it for years. i’m so glad to see it mentioned because i love it. i was given a bottle as an 18th birthday present; i haven’t smelled anything comparable in the years since. i find woody and oriental scents irritate my nose, and give me a headache. i’m not a big fan of florals, on myself or on other people, because i find that the middle and base notes often smell too sickly-sweet or grandmotherly. two of the reasons i love my jo malone perfume is because the notes are fresh enough to avoid smelling like an older person’s scent and it works well whether i wear it during the day or at night.
3 
February 11th, 2011 at 4:16 pm
Jessica
I have a couple “signature scents,” i guess. beautiful sheer, by estee lauder, and malaya or something from hollister. i tend to use one consistently, but i switch between them once in awhile to change it up. works for me!
4 
February 11th, 2011 at 5:32 pm
Blair
This was really really helpful! thank you! i never understood the different notes. i am definently a ‘fresh scent’ kind of person.
5 
February 11th, 2011 at 5:35 pm
Else
I really love britney spears’ perfumes, especially midnight fantasy. been wearing it for two years or so, i’ll never go tired of it! hilary duff’s with love is, on me, better suited for evenings though.
6 
February 11th, 2011 at 5:40 pm
April
I don’t agree with some the categories that some of the perfumes are placed in but that doesn’t really matter. i Would strongly suggest, however:
1) whenever you go in to smell some scents, don’t already have scented sprays or lotions on your body. It’s important to have clean skin, because when you find one you like, you will need to try it on and you don’t want it to mix with other scents. i often spray two on each of my wrists and two on my upper/elbow area. then i walk around for a few hours and see how the scent has changed or whether i can even smell it anymore!
2) do not let pushy salespeople force you on a scent you’re not crazy about! they make higher comissions on certain products. most of the time they don’t care what you like, just making their sales goal.
3) come back to smell your favorite two scents the next day. ever had a smell(cleaning products, candles, lotion) get stuck in your nose and keep smelling it all day? It’s best to make sure your smeller is fresh before buying a $80 bottle of perfume. also, a lot of businesses will allow you to return a used perfume for a few days if you change your mind.
4) and if they all start to smell the same, ask for some coffee beans to “reset” your nose. or take some testers home and come back another day!
7 
February 11th, 2011 at 5:43 pm
Amy
So true about the basenote. i love fragrances with woodsy base notes like sandalwood, patchouli or amber, but i find them much too overpowering as middle or top notes. i prefer to keep those a little more fresh or floral. This is a great post, the right perfume can do wonders to your mood and self esteem.
8 
February 11th, 2011 at 6:52 pm
Melissa
One scent i’ve been super obsessed with for daytime recently is coach poppy. i’m currently wearing victoria’s secret bombshell the most at night… i love it. not too much of anything at once.
9 
February 11th, 2011 at 6:55 pm
Michelle
Wow, This is really helpful! Thanks!
10 
February 11th, 2011 at 7:08 pm
Rachel
I love wearing perfume — i wear it every day! my mom and sister are really sensitive to too much fragrance, though, so i’ve learned to keep it light when i apply. it just seems so classy to me to wear perfume and always smell lovely.
My current favorite perfume is dolce & gabbana’s rose the one. i love sweet-smelling perfumes, and also fresh ones, and This one is perfect: sweet, tart, and floral. i feel so pretty when i put it on, so It’s great for any time. until recently (and for years) my favorite was hanae mori. It’s just such a sweet, rich, unique scent. my first boyfriend told me he loved the way i always smelled really sweet, Thanks to This perfume! and one of my favorite dress-up perfumes is calvin klein’s euphoria. my grandma also loves it, but it doesn’t smell like an old lady scent! it has pomegranate and vanilla notes, so it has enough sweetness and freshness to keep it from being too musky or seductive.
What a great post! i definitely second not wearing anything scented when trying perfume — and taking time. It’s a big investment (and buying the real thing is definitely worth it) so you want to make sure you buy exactly what you want!
11 
February 11th, 2011 at 8:08 pm
Liz
This post was great! the advice you gave about picking a scent was super helpful, especially the advice to give it a few hours after you try the scent before you decide whether you like it or not. i wear chanel coco mademoiselle pretty much every day. i started wondering what category of scent it falls into when you first mentioned the four main categories, and it was awesome to see it listed as an example of an oriental scent! (incidentally, the other scent i occasionally wear is viktor & rolf flowerbomb, which i got as a hand-me-down from my mom who got it as a gift and didn’t like it. i guess i really gravitate towards oriental scents! )
And i totally agree with the point that just because a scent smells great on someone else doesn’t mean it will smell great on you. my mom loved my chanel perfume after i got it, and so she got some for herself, only to find that she didn’t like the scent nearly as much on her.
12 
February 11th, 2011 at 11:12 pm
Alex
I’ve been wearing chanel chance since i was 16 (i’m almost 24 now! ). i’m a signature scent kind of girl.
13 
February 11th, 2011 at 11:19 pm
Maria
My favorite perfume of all time is j’adore by dior. if it isn’t so expensive i’d wear it everyday. the scent just suits me so well It’s like it was made especially for me. 
another favorite is bvlgari pour homme, black, and blv. i’m a huge fan of bvlgari perfume. i realize that the ones i mention are for guys, but they also suit my skin chemistry amazingly well so It’s safe to say that even girls can find their perfect scent in the guys’ perfume section!
I’m currently wearing kenzo flower for my signature scent (i switch around once i finish a bottle – but the j’adore will never be replaced). the funny thing is, in my country ‘fake’ perfumes actually exist. i’m actually wearing the ‘fake’ version of kenzo flower, but that version suits me even better than the original kenzo flower. maybe it isn’t a fake one after all, just has a similar scent with a much lower price.
14 
February 12th, 2011 at 1:41 am
Lalalina
I am a true burberry brit girl! i have been wearing it for 6 years or so. i like to mix it up with some of the victoria’s secret fragrances like noir, noir tease, and dkny pure.
I think it was mentioned, but you have to try the perfume on your skin. the scent will change once it mixes with your body’s own scent. i love chanel chance on a tester strip, but on me it isn’t great. testers get you started, but wearing for a few hrs is great advice!
This was a really detailed and well written article. props!
15 
February 12th, 2011 at 12:03 pm
Melissa
Omigosh! i was looking at buying diptyque philosykos as i love going on holiday to greece, but i don’t know if It’s gonna be too masculine? if anyone’s tried it, please say whether It’s manly or if It’s not nice i also love chanel no 5 but It’s super expensive
16 
February 12th, 2011 at 12:22 pm
Sarah – west virginia university
Melissa, philosykos is one of my absolute favorite scents! i think It’s a pretty true unisex – it starts out more masculine /green on me, but the dry down is a little coconut-y and more feminine. It’s not girly/sweet and a man could easily wear it, but i think It’s just as easily worn by a woman. i get compliments on it whenever i wear it, so i guess it doesn’t smell too masculine on me anyway! most of my favorite scents are woody/orientals though, so i don’t usually wear super girly/sweet/floral perfumes to begin with.
The first time i tried it out i didn’t like it at all (which has been the case with most of the diptyques i like), so i’d definitely suggest sampling it rather than blind purchasing it. diptyque is usually good about sending out samples if you’re not located near a store that stocks their products (like saks); their website is http://diptyqueparis. com and there’s a contact form you can use or you can email their customer service directly.
17 
February 12th, 2011 at 1:13 pm
T
Love the post! really good points mentioned
18 
February 12th, 2011 at 4:35 pm
Katie
I have 4 scents that i use on a regular basis and theyre all from bath and body works they are cheap and smell amazing so why spend big bucks on perfume?
19 
February 12th, 2011 at 7:56 pm
Lindsay
So helpful! Thanks for the post! Would it be terrible if i asked you to break down the types of cologne, too? my boyfriend and i were trying to find a cologne for him that Would match his personality the other day, and i was clueless!
20 
February 13th, 2011 at 4:17 pm
Lindsey vorhees
I a have a signature scent but i also like to switch it up ever once in a while hen i get boredso i Wouldn’t say i’m in one of the categories. my absolute favorite perfume is l by lolita lempicka. its has so many dimensions and is a mix of citrus and musky vanillas. its was perfect for me because i love fresh orange scents but i wanted a warm sexy vanilla perfume. i also have mini bottles of eternity by calvin klein, ck in2u her, juicy couture’s classic and pacifica’s hawaiian ruby guava. bath and body works sprays are great too, i love orange sapphire and midnight pomgranate. i Wouldn definetly recommend minature perfumes if you don’t want to shell of on a perfume you know you aren’t going to fully commit to.
21 
February 13th, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Anna
Marc jacobs daisy is my scent…. It’s fresh and reminds me of spring.
22 
February 14th, 2011 at 10:57 am
Luisa martinez
My signature scent is vera wang princess. it smells fresh and doesn’t overpower. growing up my godmother always wore (still does to This day) opium. my mother wears paloma picasso. i realized that whenever i came across those scents, beautiful memories flooded my mind. now, people tell me all the time whenever they smell vera wang they think of me…and isn’t that a nice thought? 
23 
February 15th, 2011 at 7:01 pm
Liz
Great tips! i’m obsessed with perfume and did one of my first posts ever on fragrance 101, kinda like This one. i actually own wayy too much perfume though and don’t even end up wearing it every day. i don’t have a signature scent but don’t really have a scent for a few different occasions either-i switch it up so much. tip: if you like wearing may different scents, save all of your samples. i do that and have over 100!
24 
February 17th, 2011 at 4:57 am
Whitney
Thank you so much for This article! after reading, my boyfriend and i went out and found my new favorite scent – bijan black. It’s the perfect mix. i can’t really place my self in one category but This scent allowed me to have the best of all four. to make things even better it factored into my mood during the day – fresh and awake in the mornings but warm and seductive by the time the sun went down.
The top notes are very fresh, a nice mix of pomegranate and bergamot. after that wears off you’re left with a wonderful mix of florals; gardenia, jasmine, and rose. finally the perfume wears down to a cross between an oriental and woody scent with notes of tonka, sandlewood, and musk.
This scent is definitely powerful enough for night and great for day with a lighter application. the transition through all the scents left me feeling like i had four different perfumes in one. the best part is it doesn’t come with a horrible price tag making it more practical for daily use than other scents. my purchase was during a sell at a store in dc, 50 percent off all perfume so i only spent about 30 dollars on my bottle.
Beware thoughjust smelling a tester strip is a bit misleading with This scent. definitely wear it for at least 6 hours or so. you have to experience the changes for yourself before you will truly know whether It’s for you or not.
25 
April 17th, 2011 at 8:36 pm
Abby
My favorite (and signature scent) is very irrasistable by givenchy. It’s perfect for me, young, flowery and fruity! i love it!
