Choosing the right perfume to suit your style and needs is challenging, but rewarding and fun. Your perfume is a way of expressing your personality. Like quality fashion accessories, good perfume adds a finishing touch to what you’re wearing.

It is easy to be persuaded by the extravagant advertisements of the perfume industry, but it is a mistake to decide what you want without first trying a perfume out properly. Remember that the description of a perfume in a magazine, no matter how persuasive, is only a description. Perfumes that contain quality ingredients are expensive and it is very important that when you wear your perfume you feel great.

The first step is to think about what kinds of smells you find most attractive. Do some research. Do you love the smell of a cake baking? There are a lot of perfumes these days based around the scent of vanilla. Are you a beach person who loves the smell of the ocean? The new oceanic fragrances might be right for you.

You may not think you want to smell like tea or fresh laundry but if you like these smells they may be a clue to the sort of perfume your looking for.

The six main categories of perfume are

1. Floral - with flowers as the dominant theme, very feminine and romantic.

2. Fruity- spicy and fresh with fruits used as part of the formula

3. Oceanic �?modern perfumes that use synthetic elements to smell strongly of the sea and it’s environs.

4. Greens- fresh energetic perfumes that remind you of the outdoors.

5. Orientals- sexy exotic and intense perfumes that smell of musk, vanilla, spices and opulent heavy flowers.

6. Woody-Perfume that smell like bark, moss and other things you might find in the forest.

Different perfumes are suitable for different occasions, and age groups. A green perfume is especially suitable for a young girl while an oriental may be too sophisticated for a teenager. Orientals are intense and tend to be more suited to eveningwear and special occasions while greens are more appropriate for casual wear. Lighter perfumes are refreshing during hot weather and heavier perfumes are comforting in the cooler months.

Once you have a good idea of what type of perfume you are after, you are ready to approach the shop counter and find a skillful salesperson to help you. Always try a perfume out on your skin, not on those little bits of cardboard the sales people are so ready to offer you. Perfume mixes with your own personal scent and smell and is different on different people, so never assume that a perfume that smells great on a friend will smell good on you.

Spray the perfume on the vein of your wrist where the skin is warm, as this will diffuse the scent. You can try out two perfumes, one on each wrist during one trip to the mall, but not more than two as your nose will start to get confused and you will end up smelling like a perfume factory.

Get into a habit of trying a new perfume each time you pass by your local duty-free shop, pharmacy or department store. This will help you in your quest to find the perfect perfume and give you a chance to enjoy each scent on it’s own merits.

Don’t sniff the perfume immediately after you spray it. If it has alcohol in it this will assault your senses. Wait a bit. Remember that most perfumes will go through three stages called the top, middle and base notes. You cannot judge a perfume simply on it’s top notes although this is what will make the first impression. For example, the oriental perfume Dioressence by Dior has top notes of clove, cinnamon and geranium then middle notes of patchouli and jasmine and ends with base notes of vanilla and tuberose with the smell of carnation present in all three layers.

Never rub perfume on your skin, as you will damage the delicate ingredients. Take your time and enjoy your search.