Smelling a beautiful fragrance is one of quickest and most sure-fire ways to lift your mood. The more you surround yourself with beautiful scents the greater the joy that fills your life.
In tough times you owe it to yourself to search out the most beautiful perfume you can find and surround yourself with it. Use it each day and not just in the morning – reapply it throughout the day to keep energised and feeling beautiful.
A fragrance’s lasting times depend on its strength and also your body’s basic metabolism. The faster your metabolism, unfortunately the faster your body dissipates the scent.
The different strengths of perfume are:
- Parfum/Perfume This is the richest concentration of the pure fragrance, at least 20 percent, and will last on the skin for up to six hours.
- Eau de Parfum This is around 15 percent of the pure fragrance and lasts around five hours.
- Eau de Toilette This is around 12 percent of the pure fragrance and lasts around four to five hours.
- Eau de Cologne This is around three percent of the pure fragrance and lasts about two hours.
Every substance has a scent because it contains aromatic molecules, which readily escape from its surface. These aromatic molecules make contact with the receptors or nerves in our nose and they send a message to our brain registering the type of smell.
These olfactory nerves or receptors found in the nose are constantly regenerated so that we should never lose our sense of smell. Smoking, however, can damage those receptors, which is why smokers tend to lose some of their sense of smell.
Placement of fragrance is usually at major pulse points such as the side of the neck and the wrist but really you can place fragrance anywhere you like.
Some other areas of application are the hands, especially if you are going to be meeting and shaking hands with people – it really helps to make a more lasting impression.
You can also lightly spray fragrance over your hair. This will draw people to focus more on your face. Try lightly spraying fragrance in the air and then walk through it. This will lightly scent your whole body and is great if you’re going to be in a crowd and want to really stand out.
The latest classic fragrances released in 2009 also offer the most beautiful bottles. The fragrance houses have really gone one step further. They are offering you even more value for money. Not only do you get to feel good every time you look at these beautiful bottles but they are also collectors items which you can keep and reuse.
Fragrance as art
Throwing out a beautifully designed fragrance bottle once you’ve used up the fragrance is surely a cardinal sin. Here are some interesting and aesthetic uses for your favourite perfume bottles.
- Use them as paperweights.
- Refill the clear bottles with water coloured with food dye and line them up on your mantlepiece or on a table runner on your dining table.
- Group them together on your coffee table or bedside table.
- When empty you can fill the bottle with water and use as a room spray. This will complete your fragrance identity. Especially great when trying to impress a new man! He will smell you everywhere – even when you’re not in the room.
- Use them as a vase to hold a single flower. The flower will then take on some of the fragrance and smell just gorgeous.
The classics
The group of fragrances which we have selected are true classics. They offer unforgettable, unique scents – modern yet at the same time deeply classical. One of these is sure to become your new favourite. Remember, a classic fragrance is not a luxury; it is a necessity.
Idole d’Armani by Giorgio Armani, $130 for 50ml eau de parfum
Mr Armani has personally worked on every aspect of this fragrance from the scent itself through to the bottle and is his tribute to women everywhere. It is different from all his other fragrances – a modern fresh blend of florals and orientals with the unique addition of juicy pear, bitter orange and ginger.
Ombre Rose L’Original by Jean-Charles Brosseau, $130.20 for 50ml eau de toilette
A relaunch of a true classic which has been around for more than 25 years. It combines oriental floral with powdery notes and a heady combination of iris, lily of the valley and ylang ylang. Adding to this is a blend of peach, sandalwood and musk. It comes in a matte black hand-embossed bottle, which is as unique as its fragrance.
Alberta Ferretti, $178 for 75ml eau de parfum
This is the first fragrance from one of the world’s most celebrated fashion designers. It has been many years in the making and well worth the wait. A floral woody fragrance, it unveils a heady blend of freesia, sweet pea, Casablanca lily, ylang heart, pink pepper and golden amber. It is feminine, modern and completely intoxicating. Its bottle is heavy crystal glass with a faceted base and a black and silver engraved cap – simply beautiful.
Lola by Marc Jacobs, $120 for 50ml eau de toilette
Just looking at this fragrance bottle makes you feel good before you even open it! It has a beautiful scent which is modern, feminine and sexy. The bottle has a beautiful flower exploding from the gold rope coil, which tops a beautifully elegant glass shape. Fuchsia peony, rose and geranium, pink peppercorns and ruby red grapefruit, vanilla and tonka beans all combine to bring a unique scent to this fragrance. Lola is a complete perfect experience of both sight and smell.
Parisienne by YSL, $120 for 50ml eau de parfum
A grand floral with woody tones, which smells very feminine, mysterious and sensual. Combining the dames rose, violet, peony, patchoulis vetiver, sandalwood and musk, the bottle itself is a beautiful faceted glass with a gold top. This fragrance will suit any woman who really wants to feel like a true woman.
L’Air du Printemps 2009 Limited Edition, $100 for 100ml eau de toilette
This fragrance has a fresh floral with a powdery and seductive undertone. Rose, jasmine, spiced carnation and Indian jasmine with sandalwood, cedar and pear all give an enchanting scent. Every time we smell it we smell something different in it. It is a continually evolving smell which tantalises the wearer and all those around her. The beautiful glass bottle is topped by two doves and adorned in shades of pink.
