If you’re a perfume wearer, are you using perfume correctly? It’s surprising how many people don’t know how. From spraying excessively, spraying in the wrong areas to rubbing a fragrance on the wrists. All of these can hurt your fragrance.

You’ve bought yourself an expensive bottle of designer fragrance. Firstly, do you save it for a special occasion or do you wear it for work? It’s cost you a lot of money, so let’s save it for the best. What happens when we save a fragrance for a special occasion?

A guide to Everyday perfume

Saving perfume for a special occasion

The problem with saving fragrances for best is that eventually they will go off and turn into a very musty smell that no one will want to wear or smell. You’ve spent a fortune on your favourite and the pretty little bottle with a hefty price tag is now sitting in the wardrobe, waiting to be used.

Some fragrances can be very strong and overpowering so spraying excessively can make the fragrance scent a lot heavier than it should be. Others around can smell it for several hours and if it’s a strong scent, you can still smell it too.

If you can smell your perfume for hours after, it can trigger a headache and also means that you have the wrong scent on your skin. No perfume should give you a headache or linger for the whole day.

Strong perfume can be very off-putting to others around as well as expensive. So how do we find the right amount of perfume to use?

Perfume shop

Using perfume correctly

We’ve all heard the saying less is more and it certainly comes into its own when we talk about cosmetics and perfume. Heavy make-up and over-spraying of perfume scents is enough to put many off. Especially the opposite sex.

I remember the days of my late Nan wearing a very heavy fragrance that a little spray really would have been enough as the perfume was a very strong one and not the cheapest, even back in her day.

What’s also important is how and where we apply our fragrance. Certain points on the skin and body will affect scents differently.

Top 10 Tips on using perfume correctly

1. Applying perfume after taking a shower or a bath will help your perfume last longer

2. Moisturising your skin will make your perfume last longer.

You can even use a body lotion or a cream that carries the same scent as your perfume for even better enhancement.

3. Perfume loves to sit on moisturise skin so trying a little petroleum jelly on your pulse points before you spray your perfume will help with the longevity.

4. Many people will insist on holding the bottle in front of them as if they are spraying an air freshener. It’s important to choose the right points when you are applying perfume and these are the pulse points.

These are the warm points and will help your fragrance sit for longer on the skin.

Our next 4 points

5. It’s a well-known habit that most women will rub their wrists together as soon as they’ve sprayed their perfume. What happens when we do this?

This breaks the top notes and rubbing your wrists together will make them disappear faster so it’s important just to dab your wrists together to protect the fragrance notes.

6. Hold your perfume bottle at a distance so that large drops of the perfume won’t land on your skin. 5 to 7 inches away is good.

7. Avoid spraying perfume onto your clothes as it will stain.

8. When we buy designer perfumes, we feel the need to display them on our bedside cabinets for everyone to see. No one sees the wonderful display of perfumes apart from yourself and the people you live with.

If your bedside cabinet happens to be near the sunlight coming through the window then your fragrance isn’t going to last as long as the heat will evaporate the scent. It’s important to keep them stored inside a dark cupboard, somewhere dry and away from light and kept in their original box so that the bottles don’t get damaged.

9. As we have already covered, try to avoid wearing too much perfume.

Your fragrance should attract those around you and not the other way around.

Remember less is more.

If you’re wearing the same fragrance every day, the chances are you will have got used to the scent and therefore won’t be so aware of how others will smell your fragrance.

Read my previous post on sillage and try wearing a different perfume every day.

10. Always choose a perfume with lighter family fragrance notes for daytime wear and heavier notes for the evening time.

Alternate options

Getting out of old habits can be hard.

Somehow we seem to be programmed to buy expensive perfumes, to use them heavily and sometimes wear the wrong fragrance for our skin.

Nowadays, there are alternatives and by that, we don’t mean cheap. I don’t like to use the word cheap because it always comes across as negative. I like to say less expensive and kinder for the purse/wallet.

There are many fragrances out there that will be lighter on the purse strings, will go a lot further when you use them correctly and are still enjoyable, subtle and longer lasting to wear for any occasion.

If you would like to try a sample of your favourite perfume, get in touch or comment below.

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