Choosing the Right Fragrance for Your Special Day Out

A perfume is a fragrance that has been extracted from aromatic flowers, plants, citrus or spices. It is described as a toiletry that emits or diffuses a fragrant odour. Clothes and fragrances tend to enhance and complement ones personality.

Visually, your clothes make you look good. Similarly, your perfume should suit your person. More often than not, your dressing is usually dictated by your mood. This reminds me of the many times when I have carefully selected my attire for the day, laid it out on my bed, had a bath only to change my mind at the last minute on my choice of clothes when I get out of my shower.

We often dress to create a certain impression for a given occasion. This too applies to the perfume we choose to wear. Perfumes are usually graded at four different levels, namely;

Perfume (labeled on perfume bottles): This is the most concentrated form of a fragrance

Eau de Perfum (labeled on perfume bottles): This type tends to be less concentrated compared to perfume

Eau De Toillette (labeled on perfume bottles): This type is a less powerful concentration when compared with Eau de perfume.

Cologne (labeled on perfume bottles): This is the mildest of all fragrances. The concentration of a fragrance dictates its cost. The more concentrated it is, the more you have to pay for it.

Perfume manufacturers categorize them into various fragrances. Some are referred to as having a musky smell, a spicy smell, floral or woody smell, to suit our individual personalities. I have always wondered why there is such a limited selection for our many personalities. These are the categories we have to choose from when we stop at the perfume store. Your choice should be based upon one or more of your personality traits.

Casual and outgoing persons are advised to select floral or citrus extracts that evoke their moods. The dignified or somber in character are advised to choose spice extracts that enhance their calm, quiet or sedate demeanour. A few experimental dabs on the wrist serve me well before I commit myself to a purchase. You will agree with me that some scents that pass for perfumes smell so bad that I ensure to keep a safe distance on my next visit. Other scents keep me coming back again and again for more. More pleasant scents are being manufactured each day as our tastes keep changing.

i) Ensure to apply your perfume on your skin immediately after taking a bath, shortly before you dress up.

ii) Apply the perfume sparingly on your wrists, your arms, your neck, behind your ears and behind the knees for better effects.

iii) Apply your perfume only on clean skin. Sweaty or dirty skin changes the scent into a foul smelling odour.

iv) Concentrate on a common brand of products that will enhance each other to avoid a clash of scents. The brand you chose should include the perfume, its lotions, deodorants and creams.

v) Store your empty perfume bottles with your inner clothes in a drawer to have them pass on their scent.

When well done, a lasting impression of your personality is created among those you socialize with. We are not likely to forget a nice smelling flower. Moreover, a door could open that you least expected, courtesy of your fragrance.