Selecting a new fragrance can be a complicated proposition with so many options on the market today. However, with some basic guidelines under your belt, you can shop for those perfumes with the fragrance savvy necessary to pick the perfect new scent to match your personality and mood. Most fragrances will come in a variety of potencies, which will affect the cost of the fragrance as well. The key is in knowing how potent each type of fragrance is; so that you can pick the one that will best meet your needs.

All fragrances are created with a mixture of essential oils and alcohol. When the scent is applied to your body, the alcohol will burn off into the air, while the essential oils will be absorbed into your skin. The difference between an eau de parfum and an eau de toilette will be in the concentration of essential oils. This means that those fragrances with a higher concentration of the oils will smell stronger, last longer, and generally come with a higher price tag. These are often the fragrances of choice for special occasions and evening wear. On the other hand, lower concentrations of the essential oils will result in a more affordable product that might be preferable for daily wear, or for fragrance layering.

The most potent type of fragrance that you can buy is the straight perfume, which will contain at least 22% essential oils, and come with the highest price tag. This type of fragrance is a good choice for special occasion wear, but should be used sparingly since the scent can be fairly strong. Eau de parfum is the next concentrated mixture, coming in with anywhere from 15% to 22% essential oil. The lighter fragrances tend to be the eau de toilette, with 8% to 15% oils, and the eau de cologne, with 4% oil. This lower concentration makes these fragrances nice to use as splash on scents and for everyday wear, although they will not last nearly as long as the fragrances with the higher oil concentration. You can make these scents last longer with a bit of layering, such as using a scented body lotion before splashing on the cologne.

No matter what type of fragrance you choose to wear, there are some tips in applying your scent that will help it to last longer and smell sweeter. First, find a fragrance that matches your personality and mood, since a fragrance that you like is one that you will enjoy wearing. Try a perfume on before purchasing it, to ensure that the scent will blend well with your own body chemistry. Finally, always dab or spray your fragrance on, since rubbing it into your skin will crush the scent. Fragrance is a part of a woman’s style just like clothing and jewelry. Wear it well.

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