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Using a Perfume is an experience that evolves over a period. Unlike any other consumer product that you can use mechanically, a perfume grows on you and eventually becomes a part of you. This is because fragrances have a direct connection to mood and feelings. If an analogy had to be made about a Perfume and its user, then we would say, it’s not a fling, it’s a relationship. And hence how to choose perfume is a question that needs an answer, and a well-researched one.
When we meet customers at exhibitions, the most asked question is ‘how do I choose a perfume?’ And on top of it, because we are an online perfume brand, we get asked ‘how do I choose perfume online?’ Very valid questions. And we have very valid answers for these.
Given the importance of these questions, we decided to cover them objectively in this blog so that it reaches more & more perfume lovers. For a better understanding of our answers on how to choose a fragrance, it is imperative to get some facts established. First one being - Perfumes contain scents (also known as notes & accords) of various ingredients and such ingredients are segregated into fragrance families. Read our write-up on Fragrance notes if you want to know more details. And second one being - the scents in Perfumes are bifurcated as Top Notes (they last about15-20 mins), Middle Notes (they last 2-3 hrs) and Base Notes (they last 3- 6 hrs). When you spray a Perfume, it goes through this cycle and eventually evaporates totally. It's also known drying down of a Perfume.
Now if you are wondering how is all this relevant in choosing a perfume, read on
Difference between choosing a Perfume Offline vs Online.
Since you know about Top Notes, Middle Notes & Bottom Notes, let’s decode the Offline or in store Perfume buying process first.
Top Notes hit your nose first when you apply a Perfume first time. Top Notes are intense but evaporate faster – in about 15 -20 mins. What comes out after that are the middle notes – the heart of a Perfume which you can smell for about 3-4 hours after spraying the perfume. When you are assessing Perfumes at a store, you are evaluating a Perfume only on the basis on the Top Notes. Whereas the main heart of the Perfume is the middle note. What if you don’t like the middle note? You won’t be able to realise it till you start wearing it.
Secondly, after smelling 3 or 4 fragrances back-to-back in a store, nose fatigue sets in, which means you cannot interpret any fragrance thoroughly. Thirdly, often, the person at the counter does not either have full understanding of what ‘notes’ and ‘accords’ are present in a Perfume, or he’s not interested in explaining so much detail. Thus, buying a Perfume offline from a store is not optimum.
On the other hand, if you have a decent understanding of notes and accords, you will get more than enough information about each specific variant to be able to assess and visualise the fragrance. Now with this perspective, you will appreciate that when you buy perfume online, you will be able to patiently read the notes and accords, read some reviews, or even get a small pack to try. It opens your mind to purchase perfume online.
While buying Perfume online seems counterintuitive, it does have specific advantages over Offline.
Factors to consider when choosing a Perfume.
Notes & Accords:
The most essential element of how to choose perfume. Perfumes have a combination multiple ingredients and various fragrance families. However, there are only 2 to 3 ingredients that dominate the perfume. The rest of them support the main ingredients. You need to understand if you like the main notes & accords. For e.g., we have Vanilla as ingredient in Dark Side of Vanilla as well as Deliciously Spicy. But the difference is Vanilla is the main note in previous one and just a small supporting note in the latter.
Packaging & Pricing:
‘How do I pick a perfume? the packaging some perfumes looks great.’ We were once asked this. And yes, a great bottle and great packaging can be enticing. But it can be misleading too. Packaging is a non-essential cost that can be controlled and instead funds can be diverted to better quality fragrance oil. Often a fantastic looking perfume bottle which priced average or low, will have a poor-quality product. Just as in life, look for a balance. Our Intimate For Him perfume has an extremely expensive fragrance oil. To ensure we make this luxurious perfume affordable, we have kept our packaging cost under check.
Reviews:
Another blessing of online stores. You get to read reviews. Which obviously doesn’t happen in offline. You can’t imagine other users appearing from behind the shop keeper at the counter and telling you about their experience. Presence of reviews gives a decisive direction to your quest for how to pick a perfume.
Commitment:
Stay with the Perfume that you have bought. Use it for some time. Often, the notes and accords will grow on you. None of us from the founding team had worn an Oud fragrance before. When we started testing it for the market, we used it for some time and now all of us like Oud more than anything else.
The difference between Extrait De Parfum, Eau De Parfum, and Eau De Toilette
Another basic funda which provides valuable insights on how to choose a fragrance, is what type of perfume is it. Every batch of perfume that is manufactured is classified as a certain type/ category of perfume based on IFRA guidelines. These guidelines are based on how much concentrated perfume oil is contained in the bottle. You will recall seeing (and even sometime struggling to pronounce) various labels on perfumes like Eau de Cologne, Eau de Toilette (EDT), Eau de parfum (EDP) and Parfum.
Extrait De Parfum or Parfum:
Extrait de parfum or Parfum, also known as pure perfume, has the highest fragrance concentration. They contain anywhere from 20% to 30% concentrated perfume oil. Of all categories, Parfum is classified as the longest lasting category. One application can last anywhere between 6 to 9 hrs-a solid performance.
All Dopamine Perfumes belong to Extrait De Parfum category because we add 25% perfume concentration to our perfumes.
Eau De Parfum (EDP):
After parfum, eau de parfum (EDP) has the next highest category in terms of perfume concentration levels. Eau de parfum has a concentrated perfume oil between 15% and 20%. EDP will last anywhere 4 to 6 hrs after one application.
Eau De Toilette (EDT):
Eau de toilette (EDT) (pronounced as U DEY TWALE) has concentrated perfume oil between 5% and 15%. It is cheaper than eau de parfum and is one of the most popular types of fragrance available along with. Naturally, since its less concentrated than even EDPs, they will last between 2 to 4 hrs after one application.
Depending on the weather, occasion, social environment, you can pick the appropriate type of Perfume.
How to find your signature perfume online
With the above the information if the question ‘How do I choose a perfume’ still haunts you when you order fragrance online, please look at the fundamental philosophy of the brand which is selling online perfumes. At Dopamine Perfumes, for instance, we believe that Perfumes don’t have to smelt, but they must be felt. And the feeling for each occasion varies. How you want to feel on a date is vastly different from how you want to feel at work or at a party. For a romantic evening, a date perfume should make you feel attractive and impassioned, enhancing your charm. On the other hand, and office perfume should keep you feeling fresh, energized, and professional throughout the day. Explore our curated collections to find the perfect scent for every occasion!
Man in the Mirror – Extrait De Parfum collection for him.
Magic of Oud – Unisex Oud Collection
Molecules of Mood – Unisex Fine Fragrance
Conclusion
The answer for how to choose perfume lies in many aspects. Whether you are buying offline or online, whether you have adequate information about notes and accords available to you, whether you will be wearing the perfume at work or on a date etc. You must also understand that you will go wrong some time. But the key is to try and try after equipping yourself with all the information we have shared above. Because once you find the perfect perfume, you will have to worry about how to pick a perfume.
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