Scents and Sensibility

Sometimes when my sister has been around, if we’ve gone shopping and she’s ridden in my car, days afterwards, I catch the scent of her perfume lingering lightly on the upholstery or on my daughters’ clothes after she’s hugged them. It’s a beautiful fragrance and it’s distinctly my sister. I’ve never smelled Chanel Chance on anyone else, and so it’s a scent I associate with my sister and only my sister.

It’s beautiful.

Meanwhile, I wear fragrance sporadically. I mean, I work from home, no sense gussying up for myself. I feel wasteful wearing perfume when I’m not leaving the house and suddenly I have a bottle three quarters full and three years old and the fragrance doesn’t even seem to feel like ME anymore.

My most recent fragrance (three years recent) is a splash by Marc Jacobs and it felt lovely in spring and summer months – for autumn and winter? It’s not…quite…right.

So, I’ve been ON A MISSION.

I went to Sephora, seemed a good place to start. While there, I did their in-store fragrance finder (which differs somewhat from their online fragrance finder), and after telling it I liked to wear blue jeans and liked long walks on sunny days, it recommended Burberry Brit. Its notes are

Italian Lime, Icy Pear, Green Almond, White Peony, Sugared Almonds, Amber, Mahogany, Vanilla, Tonka Bean.

Now, I don’t even KNOW what a TONKA BEAN is, but it’s actually a lovely fragrance. Is it for me? I don’t know – I think that White Peony may be too strong – I’m not a fan of florals.

Another Sephora Junkie I know recommended the Fresh series of perfumes. These actually sound more “me” – but I have yet to check them out.

I want something classic – something I can fall in love with and live with for a long time. Something I can wear in ripped blue jeans and something I can wear when I’m dressed to the nines. Something I can wear while I’m sitting at home in front of my laptop and something I can wear when I’m on a class field trip. I need something versatile. I need something fresh. I can’t stand cloying, overwhelming fragrances. It must be light, and wearable.

And most importantly, it can’t make me pukey.

So, tell me – do YOU wear a fragrance (and men who might be reading: YOU ARE NOT EXEMPT FROM THIS QUESTION!)? What is your fragrance style (sporty, fresh, romantic, floral, spicy, etc)? What are your favorite scents? And MOST IMPORTANTLY, do you have any recommendations for me?

About sarah

Sarah is a book nerd, a music lover, an endorphin junkie, a coffee addict. Oh, and a goof ball. She writes, she tweets, and she sings off key.

Comments

  1. I like the Ed Hardy “Love Kills” and I wear that one whenever I do put it on. I recently sniffed the new Juicy Couture sent and I really like it as well.

  2. I’ve got a sensitive nose, so most perfumes give me a headache but I’m sort of in love with philosophy’s Amazing Grace and the new Eternal Grace. Clean, light and lasting. I will take as much *grace* as I can get. 🙂

  3. I am very sensitive to fragrances, but the one that doesn’t set off any headaches for me is White Shoulders. My mother wore that when I was a child, and when I tell people that is what I wear, they almost always say “Oh yeah, my mother wore that”. But for me, it is light, fresh, and completely feminine without being flowery.

  4. I would suggest you try Miss Dior Che’rie. I wear it all year long and always get a compliment or two. Absolutely amazing.

  5. I recently tried one from Dior. It’s very feminine, but seems to work well in casual settings and dressy ones. One of the clerks gave me his last sample that lasted me for a couple weeks, but I have yet to plunk down the $90-some bucks Canadian to get it.

    I went in and told them that since getting pregnant in 2008, all scents I used to love now make me sick. They were really cool having me try different scents with a whiff of coffee bean in between each one to “clear the palate”. I just wish they had samples for everything so you could try it for a week or two to see if it’s really you.

  6. For years I didn’t wear any perfume because I worked in an allergy office and well, duh. Anyway, every once in awhile I will wear perfume, I love Chanel. But mostly I stick to body sprays and lotions from bath stores. Fragrance is very individual, it just has to suit you. My mom wore Red Door for years which is very strong. Whenever she was in my car the seat belt would smell like her perfume for days. Now…I’d give anything to smell that 🙂

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