The Ten Golden Secrets For an Ultimate Perfume Journey

Here are some top tips and tricks from our master perfumer to give you the best value and help you enhance and maximize your use and quality of perfumes:

This is a common issue or complaint that many people face. Even with scents and perfumes that they actually love, in many cases, other people might be wearing the same scent or simply recognize it easily, which makes them smell quite generic and like everybody else!

Here’s a trick that will change this forever: layer your favorite scent with a compatible oil. You can follow these main categories for layering:

• Woody, Ambery, and oudy scents with oud oil or oud attars.
• Rosy, musky, and powdery scents with musk perfume oil or musk attars.
• Fruity, citrusy, and fresh aquatic scents with rose oil or rose attars.

It might take a while for you to figure out the best combination, but by scent only, you should be able to tell which ones are most compatible from the base notes. Layering your favorite scent with an oil or attar will make a world of difference. Not only will it make your scent unique, but it will also make it last longer and project stronger.

A common issue is that many people don’t like to carry a bottle of perfume with them everywhere they go. At the same time, it’s nice and refreshing to have a mist of scent or perfume throughout the day. So what to do?

Here’s a trick you’ll thank me for the rest of your life: get a good-quality hand sanitizer! (Make sure it doesn’t smell bad or nasty on its own; smelling like strong alcohol is normal, but there should be no other added scents or harsh chemical smells.) Get any size bottle of the sanitizer based on your requirements and preferred size.

Open the cap and spray your favorite perfume into it directly, starting with a ratio of about 1 to 10 (one spray for every 10 ml of sanitizer). For a 50 ml bottle, use about 5 sprays. The strength of the oil and your preference will also play a role.

Starting with a ratio of 1 to 10 is usually safe and easy. Increase the ratio based on your preference or the strength you desire. Close the cap of the sanitizer, shake it well, and let it sit for at least 30 minutes.

Now you can use it as a sanitizer with your favorite scent. Although the scent might not project strongly and might not get you attention or compliments, it will remove the strong pungent smell of the sanitizer itself. It will smell good and stay near the skin on your hands.

You can use it throughout the day to keep your hands clean, have a healthy sanitary practice, and enhance your mood with your favorite scent or cologne without using it regularly. This will make your perfume last much longer and keep your hands smelling good most of the day.

This is also a common issue, especially for people with very dry skin. In some cases, perfumes don’t last long on such skin. If you want your scent or perfume to last almost twice as long, apply a small amount of Vaseline to the areas where you plan to spray your perfume. Rub the Vaseline on your skin—whether on your neck, wrist, or arms—then spray the perfume on top of the Vaseline.

The scentless oil in the Vaseline will bond with your perfume and help keep the scent on your skin much longer. While results might vary from one scent to another and from person to person, it’s definitely worth trying if you feel that perfumes don’t last on your skin or if you want to extend their time or projection.

This is also a common issue. While many people might think it’s due to their body chemistry and skin type, it actually has to do with other factors. Scents usually smell similar if they are made with the right composition and structure, even though they might vary slightly from person to person.

The biggest factors are skin oiliness, humidity/dryness, and the cleanliness of the person's palate. To get the best results from your perfume, after you shower or if your body is clean, lightly wash your face, neck, or arms (the places you plan to use the perfume on) with cold or chilled water.

Even a small splash is enough as it will help your skin pores close. Then, dry your skin well. Make sure it's not wet or very humid. This will help the scent stay on top of your skin rather than being absorbed, making your scent smell as it’s supposed to and last longer.

This is a common issue with many perfumes, even high-quality ones. After a while, your olfactory senses become accustomed to the scent, making it hard for you to smell it clearly or gauge its strength. To fix this issue, avoid spraying cologne or perfume above your shoulders, on areas like the neck, face, or hair.

This is because it interacts directly with your nose and olfactory sense. When you spray the perfume, which is strongest at first, your olfactory senses become overwhelmed and gradually eliminate it.

To avoid this issue, spray your cologne or perfume on the sides of your body, under the shoulders. This way, when you walk and your body heat or wind hits it, your scent will rise and smell stronger. It will also prevent your nose from becoming overwhelmed, allowing you to smell it throughout the day and enjoy other people’s scents and perfumes.

Yes, this is true. It is not recommended to keep perfumes in extremely cold or hot environments as it can alter the volatile oils. While some people argue that it might make the scent stronger or lighter, almost everyone agrees that it changes the perfume in some way and it won’t be the same as when you bought it. The best solution is to buy a small travel atomizer.

You can find these online; they are affordable and widely available. Get one or two and fill them with your favorite perfume. You don’t have to fill them completely. This way, if there is an accident or the perfume leaks in your vehicle, you won’t have to take it for multiple car washes or lose your entire bottle.

This is a simple question but doesn’t have a straightforward answer as it depends on various elements and factors. Generally, here are some guidelines to help you pick the best kind of perfume for your skin type or body chemistry:

Start by categorizing your occasions into five types:

• Based on temperature
• Based on humidity
• Based on day or night
• Based on the event
• Based on the desired outcome

For temperature:

• Cold
• Mild
• Hot

For humidity:

• Humid
• Medium or normal
• Dry

For day and night:

• Early morning
• Evening
• Late night

For the event:

• Work or business (meetings, office, and work environment)
• Casual and social (family gatherings, social outings with friends)
• Special and personal (nightlife, dates, and intimate events)

For the desired outcome:

• Acceptance and likability
• Respect and admiration
• Attraction and seduction

Assuming the four main categories for perfumes are: fresh, floral, woody, and oriental. Here’s how they generally fit into different scenarios:

Based on temperature:

• Fresh for hot weather
• Floral
• Woody
• Oriental for cold weather

Based on humidity:

• Fresh for high humidity
• Floral
• Woody
• Oriental for low humidity

Based on day and night:

• Fresh for early morning
• Floral
• Woody
• Oriental for late night

Based on the desired outcome:

• Fresh for likability and acceptance (almost universally liked)
• Floral
• Woody
• Oriental for attraction and seduction (the most unique and powerful)

These guidelines should help you understand which perfume categories work best for different situations. Based on your taste, preference, budget, and style, you can choose perfumes that are suitable for the event or place. Remember, these are general guidelines and may not apply in all cases.

Actually, contrary to what most people think, becoming a collector or even a creator of perfumes is not that hard and is not very expensive compared to many other fine and luxurious hobbies and practices.

Here are some of the best pieces of advice I can give you to start not only a collection but also training your nose to understand and recognize different notes and accords.

First of all, start with what you know and what you like. I am sure you have tried some perfumes or colognes and probably have some favorites. Go to your local department store or luxury store—usually found in your local mall or anywhere they sell perfumes.

I would recommend going at the beginning of the week when it is quieter, rather than on the weekends. Dress nicely, be professional and friendly, and ask the salesperson about their top sellers. Trust me, starting with the top sellers (which are usually popular because of their simplicity) is a good approach. Try the recommended perfumes on a piece of paper.

Don’t wear anything on your skin. Write the name of each one on the paper itself. Make sure you apply enough sprays on the paper for it to last a few days; this is usually done by spraying the paper from the front and back at least twice.

Take the collection of these papers with you and thank the salesperson for their time and effort. Go back home and smell them one by one. Try to identify any scents you recognize and compare them with your pre-existing catalog of scents and flavors. For instance, something might smell sweet like honey, floral like rose, or woody like oud.

Write these notes on a piece of paper for each perfume you tested. Then go online to any of the main perfume databases, look up each perfume, and see if the notes match what you detected. You will often find that your nose was accurate—you just didn’t know the names of the scents. Vanilla might sometimes smell like Tonka, and many musks smell similar. As you start to recognize these subtle differences, your nose will distinguish each note and accord more clearly.

Do this at least once a week for a couple of weeks (2 to 4 weeks), based on the number of perfumes you test, your olfactory sense, your memory, and your available time. You should start noticing improvements in your ability to distinguish the notes.

Next, when you go to a department store or perfume store, spray two to four perfumes of your own choice on your skin—typically on the hand, arm, or wrist. Don’t spray more than four perfumes to avoid overwhelming your nose with different aromas. Let the scents settle, then smell each one and try to identify the notes and accords. Find the ones that fit your skin and chemistry best.

Before making a purchase, write down all the accords and notes for the perfume you like most. Then, look for similar and compatible perfumes using any online database or based on people’s suggestions. Try these similar perfumes to refine your understanding of your taste and your nose.

Once you’ve tested at least four or five similar options, you can choose the one you like most. Trust me, this purchase, no matter how expensive or time-consuming, will be worth every penny as it will be made from not only knowledge and understanding but also a deep appreciation for the scent itself.

9: I would like to start learning perfumery and know more about it, what are the best books, and I know there are many so if you have to list ten books only that are nonfiction and would help me quickly and easily learn more about perfumery and practicing it, what would those ten books be?

The Secret of Scent: Adventures in Perfume and the Science of Smell
By luca turin

Perfume: The Alchemy of Scent
By Jean-Claude Ellena

The Art of Perfumery
By George William Septimus Piesse

Perfumery : Practice and Principles
By Robert R. Calkin and J. Stephan Jellinek

Essence and Alchemy 
By Mandy Aftel

The Perfume Bible 
By Josephine Fairley and Lorna McKay

Scent and Chemistry the Molecular World of Odours
By Ohloff/Pickenhage/Kraft

The Big book of perfume 
By Jeanne Dore

Perfumes: The A-Z Guide
By Luca Turin, Tania Sanchez

10: What is your overall and final advice that you think people need the most, or find most important and necessary to remind us of?

I see people buying low-quality perfumes all the time, wearing perfumes that don’t match the weather, the time, or the place, and generally choosing similar scents to what others wear. Perfumes are very personal; they make a powerful statement and serve as a testimony to who a person is and what they do. There is nothing more powerful or memorable than a good perfume.

What is the price of a compliment? What’s the price of a great first impression? What’s the price of a memorable moment? I can’t tell you exactly what the price is, but I can definitely say that it is more than the cost of upgrading to a good perfume and more than the time it takes to learn about what scent suits you best for different times and places.

So don’t be afraid to invest in your perfumes or in learning more about them to find what is best, unique, and special. Trust me, it’s an investment that is worth it.

Here are the best tips and advice I can offer you. I hope they will be helpful on your beautiful journey into the perfume world. It might have taken me years and lots of resources to gather these tips and tricks, but it will only take you one click to share them with others. If you find this information beneficial, please share it!

Thank you and have a wonderful olfactory day!