Do you have a signature scent?

Do you have a signature scent? If not, is it because you are still looking for your perfect match or because, like me, you love to match your perfume to your mood?
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I have recently become an Avon representative (more about that later!) and the buzz in Avon at the moment is all about the arrival of the new Fergie fragrance 'Outspoken Instense' tipped to be a big seller. The description sounds good 'a provocative, floral fruity blend inspired by the intense euphoria Fergie feels when she is on stage', and the little scratch and sniff patch on my representatives guide smells good, but is a catalogue really the place to buy fragrance? I'm not convinced!

Buying fragrance is always a bit of a hassle. Trailing around department stores or chemists with strips of paper and stepping into the remnants of other people's spray trials is incredibly unhelpful. Firstly, all those different fragrances join together, but secondly, you can only really experience a couple of smells at a time. Urban myth and fragrances of the world tell us that you can only try three perfumes at one time before confusing your mind and not being able to tell them apart. In reality, I'm not even sure that trialling three at a time is a good idea as it is human nature to pick up on the one that smells least offensive and convince yourself that you do, indeed, like it whereas if you tried it alone you might have found it didn't work for you either.

Fragrances are a really individual thing. You might adore a fragrance on your best friend, but on you it might end up smelling like a freshly cleaned bathroom. One woman's intoxicating sophistication is another's accident with a gin bottle. Don't take a whiff from the bottle either, at worst all you are getting then is alcohol, and at best you are just getting the top notes of the fragrance. In fact, you need to really give it a good 30mins or so to develop on your skin to really be able to judge it.

So how do you find your signature scent? Firstly, take a look at the marketing information of the perfumes you currently own and love. Is there an ingredient that comes up in each of them? Is there a common theme (ie floral, intense, oriental, fresh, intoxicating, sensual, sophisticated, retro, spicy)? Decide on your buzzwords which should include a few ingredients and a general trend, and start reading the marketing literature for as many different fragrances as possible. Also, hit the review sites such as make up alley. When you see a match, grab your pen and paper and make a list of a few hopefuls. The very best way to trial perfume is by getting yourself a sample and trying it in the comfort of your own home. Trying the new Fergie perfume is easy if you already have yourself an Avon representative - ask them to give you a sample with your next order. If you are going to department stores, there are often sample vials available, see if you can find out where to get hold of one. You can also check out ebay as you can often find samples for a few £. If you have no choice but to use a spray in store, try one spray and leave and don't buy until you've really had time to check it out. Spritz your wrist and give yourself time to work out if you like it. Check at hourly intervals to see if the fragrance has developed more, and make a note of when it fades. If you can't smell it at all in 30mins then you absolutely need to give it a miss. You don't need to spend money on a fragrance with no lasting power!

Similarly, never judge a fragrance by it's bottle. Perfume branding is big business and is designed to appeal to the image you want to cultivate rather than to the fragrance that suits you best. So what if the box and the advertising suggests youth when you are feeling none to young these days? Or if it suggests powder puffs and hair rollers when you have a more urban edge? You aren't wearing the advert, you are wearing the fragrance - embrace it and own it!

Here are a few of my favourite perfumes du jour:

LUSH Tuca Tuca
Yes, that's right. Simple, affordable, natural favourite LUSH comes top in my favourite perfumes of the moment. It has floral notes of Violet with the cinammon-y/ cocoa butter-y smell hiding slightly beneath, and a creamy muskiness hitting the deep notes. It is distinctly LUSH but doesn't have that all incompassing hippy note that is synonymous with LUSH products.

Jean Paul Gaultier FRAGILE
From the top of the page, FRAGILE is my long term favourite fragrance and the closest thing I will ever have to a signature scent. The top note is undeniably Tuberose and the Jean Paul Gaultier website suggests 'The woman who wears FRAGILE is luminous and fascinating'. It certainly is a very unique and striking fragrance and one of my favourites.

Enigma, from Oriflame
Oriflame ENIGMA is a new favourite of mine. It promises 'the enchanting charm of Black Rose and Night-Blooming Jasmine' mingling with 'the sensuality of Patchouli leaves'. This is a deep and seductive fragrance that has a wonderfully musky and intoxifying quality on my skin.



Bond No 9 Nuits de Noho
And lastly, I adore Bond No 9's Nuits de Noho. Bond No. 9 is one of those perfumes that don't seem to want to sell widely within the UK. If you can get hold of a bottle it can be rather expensive, although you can get a few £ off if you look for them on Amazon. The quality of Bond No. 9 is wildly differing with many having an edge of playdough top note on my skin, but Nuits du Noho is perfect, they call it 'A new kind of night time femininity: Irreverent, unapologetic, favours a shot if icy vodka'. If you don't mind keep restocking, and you have the patience to keep looking over a few weeks (or months) you can sometimes find the tester and purse sized versions of these on ebay and I very much recommend the worthiness in the time spent on this pursuit.