6 Expert Tips For Uncovering Your New Favourite Fragrance

Beauty

Here’s a riddle for you: What beauty weapon is both invisible and immensely powerful? Your signature scent, of course!

But like any element related to your personal style, discovering your dream scent requires careful consideration. We turned to Isabel Lopes, Avon’s Executive Director of Creative Fragrance Development, to fill us in on a few fragrance tips and tricks for finding The One.

Trust Your Instincts

“Like many sensory experiences, our reaction to smell is an instinctual process. Trust yourself, and learn which scent family — floral, fresh, woody, etc. — you are most innately drawn to. If you observe which fragrances you like most upon first sniff, over time, you will likely start to see a pattern.”

Blotter Versus Body: It Matters

“A scent has a mind of its own. That said, a perfume will smell different on your skin than it did on a blotter or a friend’s skin. Our diet, chemistry, hormones and even the climate around us can change the fragrance, so make sure to take the smell to your skin for the true liking test—be ready to be surprised, for better or for worse!”

Put It In Its Place

“Our pulse points omit heat, which is why the wrists and neck are ideal places to test out a fragrance. However, when applying, do not rub your wrists together. The motion actually distorts the ingredients. Just spray and allow the heart of the fragrance to reveal itself. My favourite secret pulse point is the back of the knees. Applying a fragrance there on a hot day actually allows the scent to rise up over time. During summer, my go-to is Avon Luck, which has notes of sparkling citrus and red berries — light, bright and perfect for a warm day.

Don’t Overdo It

“Try four scents at once — tops! Keep them spaced far apart on separate arms. Otherwise, you will send your olfactory glands into overdrive. If it’s too late, reset your nose by smelling something neutral like your skin or your shirt — only in those areas where you haven’t sprayed any perfume, of course.”

Love Takes Time

“It takes two hours for a fragrance to go though a full evolution on your body. The coeur — or heart of the fragrance — refers to the signature that opens up after the introductory notes subside. Two hours later, the base notes come through. So give yourself enough time do your research. Believe me, it will be worth it in the end.”

Moisturizer, Perfume’s BFF

“Fragrance actually lasts longer on well-moisturized skin — so be sure to always hydrate before you apply perfume. Consider using the body lotion version of your signature scent for a double whammy. (I always have the Avon Femme lotion on hand since I wear the scent often.) Otherwise — unless you know you’re a mixing master — stick with unscented lotion.”

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