5 Tips for Finding a New Spring Fragrance

Saturday, March 09, 2013

Donna Macdonald, GoLocalWorcester Beauty Expert

Shopping for a spring fragrance can be daunting, but is worth the risk. Here's how to navigate the journey.

Coco Chanel said that a woman who doesn't wear perfume has no future and whether that is true or not, we all know that wearing a perfume can be either your misery or your currency. It's so easy to make a mistake when choosing a new scent and it doesn't help that there are hundreds of perfume launches each season to confuse the senses. Here are some easy tips to selecting the best spring scent for you.

One: What you know won't hurt you

Only a small segment of women have a signature scent but we still tend to buy perfume within the same "family" and for good reason. If you love lush florals, reaching out of your zone for the hot new incense cedar blend is a sure way to mid-day misery. By sticking to your personal genre, you'll avoid jonesing to run home at lunch for a quick shower. Try fragrances from the same perfume house, or if you know you love roses, research new scents that contain them.

Two: Give peace a chance

If you bought something new and after getting it home, the first spritz is telling your nose a different tale than the one you heard at the store, allow it to mellow out. Fragrance usually makes a subtle decent over time and can develop into a beautiful low-level chime. If you stayed with at least one of your fav ingredients, you may find the dry down will take you to your peaceful fragrance place after all.

Three: Message in a bottle

Advertisers spend a fortune evoking a fragrance's essence to us in print, hoping we'll try it. Or they tell us who we will be if we wear it. But remember your best bet for creating currency with your perfume, is to love what's in the bottle and not get sucked in by the seductive ads. It's the juice inside the bottle that's going to say all the wordless things you want to say about yourself. You may just find that inexpensive drugstore splash that’s been around since grandma was a girl, is your special message to the world this spring.

Four: Follow your nose

If you smell something lovely as you rub shoulders with a fellow commuter or a co-worker, ask what they're wearing. Most women will take it as a compliment and it could lead to a glorious new scent. Do remember that scents tend to smell differently on each woman but you may get a happy lead that keeps you experimenting and exploring. Or you may find that the scent you were curious about turns out to be so spellbinding that he finally pops the question you've been waiting for. That means he got the message in the bottle too (see above)!

Five: Get professional help

Sometimes shopping for a perfume becomes so bewildering, you need to call in the experts. Department stores have fragrance specialists who are trained to help you choose a perfect new sent with your name on it. Also, try a perfume boutique, an exclusive place for leisurely browsing and sampling with access to an in-house doyen just for you.

Maybe the great Coco Chanel WAS correct – wearing the right scent can make you feel optimistic, hopeful, and confident - ready to face the future, come what may. And that’s currency in your bank!

Donna Macdonald is a freelance writer who enjoys covering topics of interest to women, especially fragrance, style, beauty. She has also written marketing material for a women's book that hit the New York Times Bestseller list and netted her an up close and personal discussion on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Donna currently writes her own personal blog, alovelyinconsequence, where she also writes about issues close to a woman's heart. Donna believes that when a woman finds beauty in the world, she will find beauty in herself.