The Art of Seducing Oneself : How to Select Perfume | perfume cologne samples

perfume cologne samples

“What fragrance drives men/women crazy?” This is one of the most frequent email inquiries I receive. Given that fragrance preferences are very subjective and personal, a search for a single magic potion that will work on everyone for every event is meaningless. In fact, I would go further to say that it is pointless to search for a perfume to seduce your lover. Perfume is an extension and reflection of your personality; it should be worn to seduce oneself. Everything else will follow. “The best color in the whole world is the one that looks good on you,” said Coco Chanel whose Chanel No 5 is still a best-seller almost a century later. The same philosophy applies to fragrance. The most seductive perfume is the one that smells great on you….

The subject of perfume is often steeped in a myriad of myths. For instance, one is advised that rubbing wrists together “crushes molecules.” If that were the case, the job of chemists would be much easier. Or that fresh floral fragrances are only for the summer. In fact, they can work beautifully in the winter by reminding you of spring. Or that you should reserve the richest concentrations, parfums, for the evening and wear the lightest, eau de toilettes, during the day. However, many parfums stay rather close to the skin and therefore make superb and subtle daytime fragrances. Or that you should smell of fruit and lollipops if you are 20. This depends only on your preferences. A few decades ago, we had been told to find a signature fragrance and develop loyalty to one perfume. Now, the marketing of perfume is all about change and novelty. In the same vein, statements like “all men like __; all women like __ (insert the latest fad in the blank)” should be disregarded. Since every man or woman has his or her own preferences, finding a crowd pleaser will only lead you to something bland and characterless. We are constantly bombarded with messages designed to influence our likes and dislikes; however, wearing and living with scent is a very intimate activity. Forcing yourself to love a particular perfume is just as unnatural as forcing love in relationships. Therefore, take marketing pronouncements with a grain of skepticism and be guided by your instincts. Below, I give a few pointers on how to seduce yourself with fragrance. In a way, they are my suggestions on how to start a passionate love affair with perfume in general.

Before you venture to the fragrance counter, decide what scents you like. Our vision centric culture leaves us with few experiences that develop our vocabulary for scent. Try to describe your favourite scents in words: with what are they associated; why do you like them? Jot down your favourite fragrances on a piece of paper as well as your favourite smells. Twelve years ago, mine would have read like this:

Visit boisdejasmin.typepad.com for more info.

perfume cologne samples

how to get fragrance samples, free or otherwise | perfume cologne samples

perfume cologne samples

Beg at brick 'n mortar stores

For many fragrances, especially new mainstream releases, about the only way to get a sample is to go to a store in-person and ask for one. Nordstrom and Sephora top my list of the absolute best foraging grounds: both stores will happily give you a carded sample (i.e., a sample from the manufacturer, usually attached to a card or folded enclosure) if they have one; if they don't, they will happily decant a sample for you. Nordstrom uses little glass vials; Sephora uses plastic atomizers. Being given a sample on demand makes me inordinately happy; if I was the sort of person willing to pay full price for a bottle of fragrance, I would do all my perfume-buying at Nordstrom and Sephora. As I am most emphatically not the sort of person willing to pay full price for perfume when I don't have to, I try to buy all my other makeup and beauty things at those stores.

Unfortunately, the “free samples on demand” policy is pretty much limited to those two stores; nobody else comes even close to that level of customer service. Bloomingdales and Neiman Marcus (at least, my local stores) will usually give a carded sample if they have one, but of course, they don’t always have them. I have never managed to cadge a single carded sample out of Macy's or Lord & Taylor.

If you have no shame (and why have shame?) you can carry empty glass vials with you and ask if the store will allow you to make your own sample. This is rather hit or miss, but in general, I find the higher-end stores are much more likely to give permission than the lower-end stores. Bergdorf Goodman has allowed me to make samples any number of times, so have Saks, Neiman Marcus, Barneys, Takashimaya and Bloomingdales. Once, and once only, I was given permission to make samples at my local Macy's, and within minutes a manager materialized from out of nowhere and very nearly threw my friend and I out of the store. Thanks, Macy’s!

Smaller stores, again, are hit or miss. The Coach boutique I visited last month was passing out samples of their new fragrance to anyone who asked. Hermès is generally very nice about samples when they have them, especially at the flagship store in New York. L’Occitane gives them out when they have them, but they almost never do have them.

for more great info, visit: nstperfume.com

perfume cologne samples