Perfume Scent Guide for Beginners: How To Choose Your Perfect Scent

Are you searching for your signature scent, but you’re not sure where to start?

Maybe you have a special occasion coming up, and you want to make a good impression on friends and family. Or, perhaps you’re interested in finding a scent for everyday wear. No matter what you want to smell good for, it can be tricky to choose the perfect fragrance. The choices can be overwhelming with an abundance of different perfume scents on the market.

Luckily, we have put together a simple guide for choosing the perfect perfume for any occasion or reason. We will talk about perfume scent profiles and detecting different notes, which perfumes last the longest once applied, and how to go about choosing your next perfume.

Note Detection and Scent Profiles

There are three levels of scent notes when it comes to building a scent profile:

1. Top Notes: This is the first scent that you detect in a perfume. Common top notes include citrus scents like orange blossom, herbal scents, and members of the fruit fragrance family.
2. Middle Notes (Heart Notes): Once you get past the top level of scents, the heart notes emerge. Scents that fit this category include fresh-cut flowers and soft florals.
3. Base Notes: Includes woody scents and dry woods as well as musks and vanillas. This becomes easier to note when the fragrance dries down on the skin.

Perfume Types and Longevity

Different concentration perfumes last longer than others. Here are the most common types of perfume on the market today:

1. Eau de Toilette (EDT): Moderate concentration that can last between 3 or 4 hours.
2. Eau de Cologne (EDC): The lowest concentration at 5-15%, lasting from 2-3 hours.
3. Parfum (Extrait de Parfum): The highest concentration, Parfums can last up to twelve hours when applied correctly.
4. Eau de Parfum (EDP): A higher concentration that usually lasts between 8-8 hours.

Choosing a perfume can be the most cost effective, but if you don’t want to commit to one scent for too long it would be a better choice to go with one that must be applied more regularly throughout the day.

Choosing your Perfect Scent

At the end of the day, the perfect scent will be obvious when you smell it. Just remember to keep these things in mind when going to purchase your first fragrance.

• Take the occasion into consideration. Different scent families make sense for specific occasions and times of year. Tailor your choice to fit the occasion and the setting!
• Remember your fragrance profiles. You can search for different types of fragrance notes that fit your profile just by reading the labels.
• Try before you buy. Most perfumes will offer sample and trial sizes: take it for a test drive before you commit to a full-sized bottle!
• Don't rush! It can take people years to find their signature scent.
• Ask for recommendations from people you trust. There are so many scents out there to discover!

To explore different types of scent and browse a wide variety of sample sizes, visit our full collection of perfume introduction sample sets.